Monday, february 9, 2015 binder1 by Newtelegraphonline

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Monday, February 9, 2015

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Vol. 2 No. 355

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12 pages of international new york times

FG defers decision on $12.5bn Bonga project Adeola Yusuf

he Federal Government has deferred the Final Investment Decision (FID) on $12.5 billion Bonga South

West Aparo deep-water project to the second quarter of 2015, New Telegraph has learnt. Besides, the Federal Government, a major stakeholder in the 3.2billion barrels recovery

project, has through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), been demanding "high level of local content on the integration work needed for the planned Floating Production Storage and

Offloading (FPSO) vessels." A report by the Nigeria Focus monthly, which unearthed this, added that the Federal Government had already shown preference for the project "to be

carried out at the Ladol facility in Lagos." The postponement of the FID is a disappointment for Samsung and Hyundai, the two South Korean firms leading the CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

N150

}23

47 days to go... Nigeria votes

2015

ria Nige

s vote

2015

}14 & 15

Rage over poll shift lUS, Buhari, Fashola, Oshiomhole, Wamakko fault INEC lNo going back on May 29 handover date, says Jonathan }5

Quick Read Editorial

Stemming the shame of executions abroad }19

Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega (left) and other national commissioners during the announcement of the postponement of the general elections in Abuja...at the weekend. PHOTO: Timothy Ikuomenisan

Military steps up battle against Boko Haram

lDeploys more special forces, equipment to North-East

Onwuliri: Onani Jonathan best Emmanuel Abuja suited to stop military has begun insurgency }7 The a final battle to rid the

North-East of Boko Haram insurgents to pave the way for the successful conduct of the general elections, which were pushed forward by six weeks based

on security concern. New Telegraph gathered yesterday that more specially-trained troops on counter-terrorism and heavy military equipment

have been deployed in Borno, Adamawa, Yobe and Gombe in a determined bid to end the Boko Haram insurgency in the troubled CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

Travel Advisory

Your guide to local and international flights }4

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Travel Advisory

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

International Flight Schedule Air France

Destination Abuja- Paris Paris-Lagos Paris-PHC PHC-Paris Paris –Abuja Lagos –Paris

Flight No. AF 513 AF 3822 AF514 AF513 AF514 AF3849

Departure 23.55hrs 10.55hrs 11:00hrs 21:20hrs 11:00hrs 23:55hrs

Arrival 6:05hrs 17:15hrs 19:15hrs 6:05hrs 17:00hrs 6:20hrs

Amsterdam-Lagos Lagos-Amsterdam

KL587 KL588

13:15hrs 23:05hrs

20:00hrs 05:50hrs

KLM

ARIK AIRLINES

Lagos-London London-Lagos Lagos-New York

W3 101 W3 102 W3 107 (Mon, Wed , Fri) New York-Lagos W3 108 (Tues,Thurs, Fri) Lagos-Johannesburg W3 103 Johannesburg-Lagos W3 104 Lagos-Douala - (Tues, Wed ,Thur) Douala-Lagos - (Tues, Wed, Thur) Lagos-Accra Accra-Lagos

Abuja-Accra Accra-Abuja Lagos-Freetown Freetown-Lagos Lagos-Banjul Banjul-Lagos Lagos-Dakar Dakar-Lagos

-(Tue, Thur, Sat, Sun) -(Mon, Wed, Fri) -(Daily) - (Wed, Fri, Sun) -(Wed, Fri, Sun) -(Wed, Fri, Sun) -(Wed, Fri, Sun) -(Mon, Tue, Thur, Fri,Sat) -(Tue,Wed, Fri,Sat,Sun)

BRITISH AIRWAYS

London-Lagos Lagos-London Abuja-London Abuja-London

07:00hrs 20:05hrs 20:10hrs 11:45hrs

Lagos-Cairo Cairo-Lagos

MS 876 MS 875

14:25hrs 08:30hrs

22:20hrs 13:30hrs

EGYPT AIR

KENYA AIRWAYS

16:00hrs

Lagos-Kigali

11:15hrs

16:45hrs

10:45hrs 09:35hrs 11:10hrs 13:25hrs 07:20hrs 17:00hrs 08:05hrs 13:35hrs 18:00hrs

hrs 14:44hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs

AWB 201 (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun) AWB 202 (Tue, Thur, Sat, Sun)

14:00hrs

17:30hrs

22:35hrs 15:10hrs

06:00hrs 21:20hrs

17:00hrs 06:00hrs 08:00hrs 17:00hrs 08:00hrs 15:20hrs 21:00hrs

hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs

01:00hrs

hrs

3:00hrs 14:00hrs

8:00hrs 19:00hrs

EK 7821 (Sun-Sat) EK 7822 EK 7831 EK 7811 EK 761

21:30hrs 14:40hrs 07:35hrs 14:20hrs 23:55hrs

07:40hrs 01:05hrs 12:50hrs 19:45hrs 10:30hrs

Lagos-Doha Flight Doha-Lagos Flight

QR 1414 (daily) QR 1415

14:55hrs 07:20hrs

23:45hrs 13:35hrs

Lagos-Atlanta Atlanta-Lagos

DL053 DL 054

22:15hrs 5:15hrs

05:32hrs 16:15hrs

Lagos-Houston Houston-Lagos

UA 143 UA 142

10:10hrs 19:10hrs

6:05hrs 15.15hrs

Lagos - Addis Ababa ET900 Addis Ababa - Lagos ET901 Abuja - Addis Ababa ET910 Addis Ababa - Abuja ET911 Enugu - Addis Ababa ET930 Addis Ababa - Enugu ET931 Kano - Addis Ababa ET930 Addis Ababa - Kano ET931

13:15hrs 09:00hrs 13:40hrs 09:40hrs 12:00hrs 09:20hrs 14:05hrs 09:20hrs

20:25hrs 12:15hr 20:10hrs 12:20hrs 20:50hrs 11:15hrs 20:50hrs 13:20hrs

Lagos-Madrid Madrid-Lagos

IB 3337 IB 3336

22:55hrs 16:00hrs

5:25+1hrs 20:20hrs

Lagos-Casablanca Casablanca-Lagos

AT738 AT 737

06:25hrs 02:15hrs

09:55hrs 6:00hrs

air maroc

20.45hrs 09:50hrs 09.20 hrs 06:30hrs

12:30hrs

Lagos-Dubai Lagos-Dubai Dubai-Lagos Dubai-Lagos Abuja-Dubai

IBERIA

Abu Dhabi-Lagos

EY 0672 (Sunday) (Monday) (Saturday) EY 955

19:35hrs 23:45hrs

MEA 571 MEA 572

ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES

Lagos- Abu Dhabi

ETIHAD AIRWAYS

12:30hrs 18:00hrs

to Lagos)

UNITED AIRLINES

17:00hrs 4:40hrs

KQ 533 KQ 534

11:55hrs 5:50hrs 14:35hrs 06:00hrs

DELTA AIRLINES

11:00hrs 22:40hrs

Lagos-Nairobi Nairobi-Lagos

17:55hrs 00:00hrs 09:00hrs 22:40hrs

QATAR AIRWAYS

VS 652 VS 651

18:30hrs 05:15hrs 05:30hrs

BA075 BA074 BA 082 BA 083

EMIRATES AIRLINES

Lagos-London London-Lagos

12:00hrs 21:30hrs 23:50hrs

Middle East Airlines (Two flights weekly (Tues & Friday)

Lebanon-Lagos Lagos-Lebanon

VIRGIN ATLANTIC

RwandAir

Kigali-Lagos

Turkish Airlines

Lagos-Istanbul Nairobi-Lagos

332 333

Air Côte d'Ivoire Lagos to Abidjan Abidjan to Lagos

HF 851 (Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sun) HF 852 (Mon,Wed, Thurs, Sat)

ASKY AIRLINES

Destination Lome to Abuja Abuja-Lome- Kinshasa Kinshasa-Abuja Abuja-Lome Lome-Lagos Lagos-Libreville Libreville-Kinshasa Kinshasa-Libreville Libreville-Lagos Lagos-Lome Lome-Lagos Lagos-Libreville Libreville-Brazaville Brazaville-Libreville Brazzaville-Lagos Lagos-Lome

10:10hrs

10:50hrs

19:20hrs

21.50hrs

Flight No. KP 032 (Tue-Fri) KP 032 ( Tue-Fri)

Departure Arrival 14:00hrs 15:55hrs 16:30hrs 18:15hrs

KP 033 (Wed-Sat) KP O33 (Wed-Sat) KP O40 (Sun-Sat) KP 040 (Sun-Sat) KP 040 (Sun-Sat) KP041 (Tue-Sat) KP 041 (Tue-Sat) KP 041 (Tue-Sat) KP O44 (Tue-Fri) KP 044 (Tue-Fri) KP 044 (Tue-Fri) KP O45 (Wed-Sat) KP 045 (Wed-Sat) KP 045 (Wed-Sat)

8:20hrs 10:35hrs 13:00hr 14:40hrs 17:00hrs 7:15hrs 9:35hrs 11:55hrs 13:10hrs 14:50hrs 17:10hrs 07:00hrs 09:20hrs 11:40hrs

10:00hrs 12:20hrs 14:00hrs 16:30hrs 18:45hrs 08:55hrs 11:25hrs 12:45hrs 14:10hrs 16:40hrs 18:50hrs 08:40hrs 11:10hrs 12:30hrs

Local FLIGHT SCHEDULE ARIK AIR

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

AZMAN FLIGHT SCHEDULE

WEEKLY SCHEDULE Kano-Lagos 8:00am Lagos-Abuja 10:30am Abuja-Lagos 12:40pm

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

FIRST NATION AIRWAYS

LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 06.50; 09:30; 11:45; 16:00 (SAT) 06:50; 11:45 (SUN) 11:45; 16:00 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 09:00; 11:30; 13:40;18:30 (SAT) 09:00; 13:40 (SUN) 13:40; 18:30 LAGOS-PORT-HARCOURT (MON-FRI) 14:45

(SAT) 16:15 (SUN) 14:45 PORT-HARCOURT-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 16:50 (SAT) 18:20 (SUN) 16:50

AEROCONTRACTORS

LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 06:50; 13:30; 16:30; 19:45 (SAT/SUN) 12:30; 16:45 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 07:30; 13:00; 19:00 (SAT) 12:30 (SUN) 15:30

MEDVIEW AIRLINES

LAGOS-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 07:00; 08:50; 12:00; 15:30 (SAT) 10:00; 15:00 (SUN) 17:30; 18:30 ABUJA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 09:00; 14:00, 15:00; 18:30

OVERLAND AIRWAYS LAGOS-ILORIN (MON-FRI) 07:15 LAGOS-IBADAN (MON-FRI) 7:00 IBADAN-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:00 IBADAN-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 16:30 ILORIN –ABUJA (MON-FRI) 08:30 ILORIN –LAGOS (MON-FRI) 17:00 ABUJA-ASABA (MON-FRI) 10:00 ASABA-ABUJA (MON-FRI) 14:15 ASABA-LAGOS (MON-FRI) 11:30 LAGOS-ASABA (MON-FRI) 13:00 ABUJA-ILORIN 16:00 ABUJA-IBADAN 15:00

News

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Rage over poll shift as Buhari, US kick Our Correspondents

ondemnations yesterday trailed Saturday's decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to delay by six weeks, the general elections slated to begin this week. The All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, the United States, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola and his Sokoto as well as Edo State counterparts, Alhaji Aliyu Wamakko and Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, frowned on INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, to postpone the elections despite his assurances that he would keep to the election timeline. However, amidst the criticisms, President Goodluck Jonathan who welcomed the poll shift, allayed fears that the postponement could affect the sanctity of the May 29 handover date and rally support for the commission and the military to ensure that all the impediments to the successful

conduct of the elections are removed by the new poll date. Like Jonathan, Senate President David Mark, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the party's Presidential Campaign Council welcomed the postponement of the elections and hoped the new timeline would give the nation enough time to hold hitch-free elections. Reacting to the extension of the elections at a press conference yesterday in Abuja, attended by party bigwigs, including former Lagos State Governor, Senator Bola Tinubu, Buhari warned that the APC would no longer tolerate further delay in the conducting the elections. He said: "I wish to state strongly that our party will not tolerate any further interference with the electoral process. The rescheduled elections of March 28th and April 11th, 2015 must be sacrosanct." According to him, INEC has exhausted the chance of shifting election if it were to meet the deadline set by the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act for the conduct of the elections at least 30 days before

the May 29 handover date. Buhari, who read a prepared speech titled "We Must Remain Calm, But Resolute," appealed to Nigerians, particularly APC supporters to be calm and show restraint despite their anger over the INEC decision. He said: "This postponement, which comes on the heels of the bogey of the National Security Adviser that half of the registered voters were being disenfranchised, was exposed as a crude and fraudulent attempt to subvert the electoral process. The PDP administration has now engineered a postponement using the threat that security will not be guaranteed across the length and breadth of Nigeria because of military engagement in some states in the North-East. It is important to note that although INEC acted within its constitutional powers, it is clear that it has been boxed into a situation where it has had to bow to pressure. Thus, the independence of INEC has been gravely compromised. "As a Nigerian and a presidential candidate in

the elections, I share in the disappointment and frustration of this decision. This postponement coming a week to the first election has raised so many questions, many of which shall be asked in the days ahead. However, we must not allow ourselves to be tempted into taking actions that could further endanger the democratic process". Stressing on the need for calm and restraint, he said: "Our country is going through a difficult time in the hands of terrorists. Any act of violence can only complicate the security challenges in the country and provide further justification to those who would want to exploit every situation to frustrate the democratic process in the face of certain defeat at the polls. "If anything, this postponement should strengthen our resolve and commitment to rescue our country from the current economic and social collapse from this desperate band. Our desire for change must surpass their desperation to hold on to power at all cost. We are clearly dealing with people who feel they

can get away with placing their personal interest over those of our nation and its citizens. What is at stake is the very survival of our country. We must not allow this temporary delay to abort this great opportunity. While I share the pains and frustrations of my fellow citizens over this development, my deep faith in the democratic process assures me that this country, with your support, will overcome." Buhari also expressed surprise at INEC's volteface in view of its earlier briefing at the Council of State meeting, where Jega said the commission was ready for the elections. "I am a member of the Council of State and INEC gave us a comprehensive plan of their readiness to go ahead with the elections. INEC is the body that will organise and conduct elections in this country. It is up to the government to secure INEC. But with the military we have, if for five years, the Nigerian military cannot secure 14 local governments, 10 in Borno, two in Yobe and two in Adamawa out of 774 local governments in this country, does that mean it is a delay

L-R: Managing Director, Arik Air, Chris Ndulue; Hon. Jerry Weller of the Global Development Officer VIP TV; Founder, Centre for Values in Leadership (CVL), Prof. Pat Utomi; Chief Executive Officer, Arik Air, Dr. Micheal Arumemi-Ikhide and Deputy Managing Director, Capt. Ado Sanusi, during the airline’s retreat in Lagos…at the weekend.

PHOTO: ADEYANJU OLOWOJOBA

African nations pledge 8,700 troops to fight Boko Haram

frican nations pulling together a regional force to fight Boko Haram militants has pledged 8,700 soldiers, policemen and civilians, an increase from earlier estimates for the mission. The African Union had previously authorised a force of 7,500 troops from Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Benin to take on the insurgents, who have seized large part of the North-East.

The new troop pledges came on Saturday after three days of talks in Cameroon between experts from the nations of the Lake Chad basin, the region where Boko Haram is seeking to create an Islamist enclave. No budget for the regional mission was given and neither were details on when troops would be deployed. Further talks are to take place before the AU seeks

support for the mission from the United Nations Security Council. Chad has already dispatched 2,500 soldiers to Cameroon and Niger and its troops have engaged the militants in a series of battles that have killed hundreds along the border zone. Boko Haram fighters waged a new attack yesterday in Niger, where a blast killed at least one person and left 10 injured,

witnesses and hospital sources said. The Islamist militants launched their assault around the town of Diffa before dawn, two days after launching its first major attack on Friday in the area bordering Nigeria, witnesses said. The cause of the deadly blast in Diffa was not immediately known, with some sources describing it as a suicide attack while others referred to it as a

bomb or a mortar shell. Nigeria’s military is struggling against the fiveyear insurgency, which has killed thousands of Nigerians and displaced some 1.5 million people. With Nigeria also trying to organise elections and the militant threat turning increasingly regional, diplomats have said neighbouring nations must bury mutual mistrust and join the fight to defeat the militants.

tactics? What they couldn't do in six years, can they do it in six weeks? But again, it is absolutely clear to us that elections must be held at least 30 days before 29th of May," he added. The United States also kicked against the vote delay and expressed ‘deep’ disappointment by the decision. Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry, in a statement late on Saturday, rejected political interference with INEC. He faulted INEC's reason that the elections were delayed because the military could not guarantee security for electoral officials and materials, saying: “It is critical that the government not use security concerns as a pretext for impeding the democratic process.” The US said the international community would be watching closely as Nigeria prepares for elections on the newly scheduled dates. “The United States underscores the importance of ensuring that there are no further delays. “As I reaffirmed when I visited Lagos last month, we support a free, transparent, and credible electoral process in Nigeria and renew our calls on all candidates, their supporters, and Nigerian citizens to maintain calm and reject election-related violence,” Kerry said. Fashola also criticised Jega for succumbing to the campaign for the postponement of the polls, saying the development has further exposed Nigeria to ridicule from other democratic nations of the world. The governor who also obtained his Permanent Voter's Card (PVC) from the commission, wondered why the Federal Government could not guarantee the security of lives of the residents in a bid to ambush the electoral commission. He, however, appealed to Nigerians to remain calm and ensure they get their PVCs to enable them to exercise their franchise on March 28 and April 11. Briefing journalists, shortly obtaining his PVC, Fashola accused the PDP and the presidency of shifting election through the backdoor, saying those who shifted the election did so because they are afraid of defeat. "When you now even hear the presidency, the Federal Government and PDP saying they cannot guarantee security, they say it with such relish as if they have a choice in guaranteeing security. CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

News

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ministerial committee begins verification on private jet operators Wole Shadare

s the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) is set to ground private jet operators who use their equipment for commercial operations, the Ministerial Committee on Aeronautical and Non-aeronautical charges will, today, commence verification of jet operators. A Ministry of Aviation source said the committee, headed by Mr. Ahonsi Unuigbe, would commence interrogation of the private jet owners today in order to put an end to illegal ‘hire and reward’ by the jet owners. The source told New Telegraph that the essence of the interrogation is to know the number of jet operators who have complied with last week Friday’s deadline by the NCAA and those who have regularised their operating licences within the last 72 hours. The NCAA, in a circular at the weekend, disclosed that any jet operator who fails to comply with the directive would be grounded while the operating license would be revoked. However, as at the time

TODAY’S WEATHER FORECAST LAGOS

33o C 27oC Thunder Storms

ABUJA

39oC

23oC

Partially Cloudy

PORT HARCOURT

27o C 19oC Thunder Storms

KANO

38oC

15oC

Sunny

ENUGU

38oC

25oC

Partially Cloudy

IBADAN

36oC

24oC

31o C 24oC Thunder Storms

MAIDUGURI

ONITSHA

38oC 16oC Mostly Sunny

38oC

25oC

Partially Cloudy

ration, BUA Group Limited, Chrome Air, Delmon Aviation/C&K, Dominion Air, EAN Aviation Limited and Executive Jets. Others are Ferry Aviation Dev. Serv., Gitto Construzioni, Grenfact Ventures Ltd, Gyro Air limited, NAMCO Nig. Limited, Orlean Invest West Africa, Prime Air, Project Eagle Air Ltd, Southern

Air, SWAT Technology Ltd, Tag Aviation Ltd and Toucan Aviation Support. The agency came up with the 22 names after long hours of meeting among its management staff at its headquarters at the Murtala Mohammed Airport (MMA), Lagos on Friday. Aviation Minister, Osita Chidoka, at the launch

of the Aviation Commits Initiative in Lagos, had threatened to ground private jet owners who engage in commercial operations in the country. Chidoka revealed that at the moment, there are 90 foreign registered aircraft in the country with additional 111 Nigerian registered carriers currently in use in the system, stress-

ing that some of them have deviated from the content of their operational certificates. He noted that their diversion from their operational certificates had led to loss of massive revenues to the Federal Government and urged them to regularise their papers before yesterday’s deadline.

L-R: Wife of the former governor of Ekiti State, Mrs. Bisi Fayemi; Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Ekiti State, Most Rev. Felix Ajakaye; the celebrant, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and former governor of the state, Chief Niyi Adebayo, at Fayemi's 50th birthday thanksgiving at St. Martin's Cathedral, Isan-Ekiti...yesterday.

US, Buhari, Fashola, Oshiomhole, Wamakko fault INEC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

That is the primary purpose of government and when you say it in order to ambush an electoral manager into not conducting an election because you are afraid of defeat, I mean it’s really a very low point for governance in this country because whether we go to elections or not, government will still have a duty to secure this nation and if countries like Afghanistan, Syria and all those countries where there was war and internal conflicts have held elections, I don’t see why not we could not do that in Nigeria," he

added. Fashola's counterpart in Sokoto State, Wamakko, on his part called for the resignation of the service chiefs and the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Suleiman Abba, for allegedly masterminding the postponement of the general elections. He told reporters in Sokoto yesterday that all the service chiefs and the IGP should resign now for failing the nation and Nigerians and as such had no reason to remain in office. "The service chiefs and IGP should, therefore, honourably resign as they could not guarantee the

elections as their statutory and civic duties," Wamakko stated. Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, while criticising the postponement of the elections, however, advised Nigerians not to be deterred by INEC's decision. Addressing the people of Tede in Atisbo Local Government Area at the weekend as part of his campaign tour of the OkeOgun zone of the state, the governor said: "No matter how many times the election is postponed, when it finally holds, APC will definitely be victorious.’’ He urged Nigerians not to be disturbed by the role

of the Federal Government in the controversial shift in the conduct of the polls and urged those who had faith in democracy to continue to hold on to their belief, in the country’s quest to enthrone good governance. Oshiomhole who spoke in the same vein like Ajimobi, said no amount of postponement of the general elections could save PDP and the presidency from handing over APC on May 29. He said no matter how hard they try, they could not postpone the May 29 handover date. Oshiomhole said yesterday in Benin City when he

received about 1,000 PDP members who defected to APC that it was obvious that the PDP and Jonathan were not ready for the elections when they came up with the issue of security. But in view of the raging anger from the opposition and the international community, the president reassured all of the sanctity of the May 29 handover date. In a statement yesterday by his spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, Jonathan stressed that May 29 is, has been, and will remain sacrosanct. He appealed to all stakeholders to accept the CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

FG defers decision on $12.5bn Bonga project CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Partially Cloudy

CALABAR

of filing this report, it was not clear if any of the 22 companies released by NCAA on Friday had complied with the directive. NCAA had listed 22 foreign registered private companies as those who violated their certificates. The companies are Air First, ANAP Business Jets, ATT Aviation Support Ltd, AVJET Corpo-

hunt to secure the contract for what will be one of the biggest FPSOs in the world. Vice-President, Nigeria & Gabon Shell Upstream International, Markus Droll, had earlier said the FID on the Bonga South West would be taken by the end of 2014. He explained that the Bonga project is an expansion that will cost $12.35 billion to develop, but the new report, which New Telegraph obtained at the weekend, noted that the

government had deferred the major decision "to the second quarter, 2015, if not later." One of the factors liable for this, according to the report, is that the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, is reportedly demanding high level of local content for the planned FSP vessels, which she prefers to be done at the Ladol facility. The NNPC, according to the report, has also arranged that the FID is accompanied by board ap-

proval on contract awards for the project and may not be ready on the latter issues. Spokespersons for NNPC and Shell declined comments on the FID deferment. The report, however, noted: "Uncertainties in the budgeting process caused by the fall in the oil price have made the delay inevitable. It also seems that NNPC management wants to wait until after the federal and presidential elections in mid-February when more ministerial

time will be available." The technical bids were conducted in the first quarter of 2014 in order to assess and apportion local content. Following the technical phase, the commercial bidding phase is expected to begin once the FID is in place. The concept selected by SNEPCo involves a regional capacity vessel with 44 subsea wells (22 production and 22 water injection) drilled in two phases. The project spans three blocks-oil mining leases 118, 132 and 140.

Massive in scale, the Bonga South West Aparo project aims to develop 3.2 billion barrels of oil initially in place from eight turbidite reservoirs accessed at a deep-water depth of 1300 metres. The field development plan that has emerged from the define phase of the project targets ultimate recovery capacity of 804 million barrels in two phases. Planned production capacity is 250, 000 barrels per day with the first oil scheduled for late 2020.

News

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Jonathan best equipped to fight insurgency – Onwuliri

inister of State for Education, Prof. Viola Onwuliri, yesterday declared that President Goodluck Jonathan is best equipped to tackle insurgency in the country. She said the president had undergone training in counter-terrorism. The minister made the disclosure at the inauguration of motorised borehole projects including 20,000 litres overhead tank at the Police Force Animal

Branch, Canine section and Directorate of Security Service (DSS), Imo State. She said that a number of things had been put in place to fight terrorism in the country, adding that President Jonathan had gone through counter-terrorism training and had equally raised security agencies for such purpose. “Anybody that comes now will take Nigeria backward which creates a dangerous gap for the perpetrators to operate,”

she said. According to her, President Jonathan “is also enjoying international support from world leaders in the fight against insurgency. Heads of government are continually being trained to fight. That is why the president is the best person to fight insurgency. Insurgency is not a military prowess; it is not anything that anybody would say he can fight in two months, except that person is behind the in-

surgency.” She said the water project was part of President Jonathan’s transformation programme, adding that the administration had reduced the country’s food importation from N1.1 trillion in 2011 to N648 billion in 2012 and increased its local production of rice, cassava, sorghum, cotton and cocoa; built multibillion naira grains silo, and an agro storage facility at Ezinachi Okigwe. Onwuliri said that Nige-

Minister of State for Education, Prof. Viola Onwuliri with the Chairman, South-East Council of Traditional Rulers, Eze Cletus Ilomuanya, during a visit to the monarch over his affirmation as the Chairman, Council of Imo Traditional Rulers by the Supreme Court...at the weekend.

ria is now investors’ destination as the Federal Government has attracted over $20 billion worth of foreign investments in three years. Earlier, the state Commissioner for Police, Alhaji Abdulmajid Ali, thanked the minister for attracting the boreholes for the Nigeria Police and assured that the facility would be maintained.

US, Buhari, govs fault INEC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6

adjustment of the election dates by INEC in good faith, as the electoral body has a responsibility to conduct credible elections in which every Nigerian of voting age is afforded the opportunity to exercise his civic right without any form of hindrance. According to him, this is not a time to trade blame or make statements that may overheat the polity, but a time to show understanding and support the electoral commission to conduct the elections successfully. "It is the president’s understanding that INEC’s decision ought not to generate acrimony since it acted within its powers under the law and in consultation with all relevant stakeholders. "President Jonathan therefore called on the international community, civil society and the electorate to continue to support the administration’s commitment to a free, fair, credible, and non-violent

Military deploys more special forces, equipment to North-East CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

region. A top military officer said the military was resolved to end the war on terror this time around to prove to Nigerians and the international community, that the Armed Forces are still as competent to defend the nation's integrity. According to the source, the offensive will surely decapitate the insurgents before March 28, which is the new date the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed for the presidential and National Assembly elections. Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega had on Saturday night predicated the postponement of general elections earlier scheduled for February 14 and 28 on "advisory" by military chiefs that they could not guarantee security of poll officials and materials should the commission insist on the original timetable. When New Telegraph sought to know the true state of affairs in the North-East and its correlation with polls' postpone-

ment, the source said: "It is true that more serious attention is being focused on the operations in that area now than ever before. "At the moment, there is additional deployment of our special forces, who have been trained on serious counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency offensives. "From what I see, between now and 28 of next month (March), when elections will take place, these Special Forces, who will join their colleagues on ground, will chase these rag-tag guys out of the region. "This will happen because they will handle, with precision, the latest military hardware and other equipment brought from Russia to neutralise what the insurgents are parading. "Let me also inform you that there is no more room for any elder from anywhere, to come and beg us for restraint on the excuse that some of their kith and kin are being held, and that a total war will put them in the harm's way.

"Our well-trained Nigerian Air Force pilots are also pounding these elements through air strikes, with helicopter gunships fully equipped with night vision." On the content of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed last Friday between the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh and his Chadian counterpart, Major General Brahim Mahamat, the source refused to disclose facts. He, however, said: "The only details I will give you are that about 2, 500 Chadian forces are currently engaging the insurgents around border towns such as Malumfatori and others while 5,000 of our soldiers will join the onslaught. "The two defence chiefs also agreed on the need for Chadian troops to restrict operations to border areas even as they are not to annex any Nigerian border town liberated from Boko Haram." He added that the new approach is for Nigerian troops to "sustain ongoing air and ground assaults on

insurgents' strongholds in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states; force them to attempt to escape through border towns, where the allied troops will complete the mission." The essence of Badeh and Mahamat's meeting in Abuja was to make additional inputs to the MoU signed in the Chadian capital, N'djamena, on January 18, and to also iron out some grey areas, the source stated. Chad appears the first among countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) to send troops following a multilateral agreement among Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon. Also speaking on the polls, the police said they started preparations for this year's elections since late 2013 and so could not have been among the security agencies INEC said advised against holding the elections as earlier scheduled. Responding to New Telegraph's enquiry on INEC's position, the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Mr. Emmanuel Ojukwu, an Acting Com-

The police commissioner, represented by the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) in charge of administration, Adelesi Rotimi, appealed for more support, adding that security issue should not be left to the police alone. “If you want a perfect society, we must support the police to discharge their duties,” he said.

missioner of Police, said via text: "There was no claim by INEC that the police lack of preparedness necessitated a shift in election date. "No. Not the police. We got prepared for all that may arise in the elections since late 2013. Don't forget that the police were fully on ground at all the primaries, congresses and conventions of all the political parties. There is no fault on our part please." Meanwhile, scores of Boko Haram insurgents were said to have been killed yesterday while trying to overrun Damboa town, the headquarters of Damaboa Local Government of Borno State. A resident of the area, Aisami Bukar, who fled to Maiduguri, told reporters that troops of 195 Battalion repelled the insurgents who had launched their attack on the town about noon. According to him, the insurgents tried to attack Damboa from Kalla village just two kilometres from the town when the military ambushed them, killing many.

electoral process," he said. Mark also urged Nigerians to place the country above partisan and other parochial interests. Mark said in a statement in Abuja, said no matter the political divide, Nigerians must take the path of caution in order not to jeopardise the process towards a successful exercise in the Nigerian project. He further cautioned against the rage trailing the shift in the conduct of the polls, saying, "it is a necessary step to avoid anarchy and chaos because of some shortcomings and insecurity fueling the already charged atmosphere. On its part, the PDP welcomed the postponement of the general elections, saying this is, however, not without the attendant cost of time and great expense to the party and its candidates. The party however, advised INEC to use the opportunity of the postponement to "thoroughly investigate the apparent involvement of some of its personnel, including ad hoc staff on the issue of the lopsided distribution of the PVCs." PDP in a statement yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, said based on the reasons adduced by the security forces and INEC, it believed that the shift, which is still within the constitutionally allowed period, could be accommodated. Also, Director, Media and Publicity of the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, at a press conference yesterday, expressed the belief that the shift in the dates would afford INEC the opportunity of conducting general elections that are freer, fairer and more transparent than the 2011 ones. Fani-Kayode, however, said the credibility, acceptability and success of the elections would depend on effective distribution of PVCs to eligible registered voters so that no one is disenfranchised and the deployment of adequate security forces before, during and after the elections to ensure that the electorate are able to go out to perform their civic responsibility on the election days.

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monday, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Dasuki, service chiefs commit treason — Falana Wale Elegbede

human rights activist, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) has said that the National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Dansuki Sambo (rtd), and the military chiefs have plotted a coup against the Nigerian constitution by causing the postponement of the general elections. Falana, in a statement issued yesterday, said the military chiefs acted wrongly by premising the postponement on the busy schedule of the military, adding that the NSA usurped the functions of the National Security Council by writing directly to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the security situation in the North-East region. Citing constitutional provisions, Falana, how-

ever, argued that both military chiefs acted wrongly by making such assertions. “In a desperate bid to blackmail the INEC to postpone the election, the NSA wrote a letter to the INEC to the effect that the armed forces could not provide security for the election because of the operations in the North East region. “As an adviser to the president on national security, the NSA has no powers whatsoever to give directives or advice to the INEC. Indeed, there is no statutory nexus between the INEC and the NSA to warrant the purported demand for the postponement of the general elections. To that extent, the NSA acted illegally. The INEC rightly rejected the unwarranted interference from the NSA.”

NBC extols MTN, Kannywood partnership

he Director General, National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Chief Emeka Mba, has commended the partnership between Kannywood, the Hausa genre of the flourishing Nigerian movie industry and leading ICT Company, MTN Nigeria. He gave his commendation during the second edition of the annual Kannywood Awards, held in Abuja recently. “I sincerely give kudos to MTN for this initiative to partner with Kannywood on this award. This is a boost to the industry and the practitioners, whose efforts are acknowledged in this amazing manner. By this gesture, we know the stakeholders will be encouraged to do more.

It will be a great thing, if other companies can emulate this initiative,” said Mba, who was the chairman of the occasion. In the same vein, the Founder and President of Kannywood Awards, Ahmad Mohammed Sarari was full of gratitude to MTN for the sponsorship. ”We thank MTN for its huge support since the inception of this award in 2013. It has really boosted the morale of the artists and also encouraged them to be more creative and passionate in their act.” Also speaking during the event, MTN’s Chief Marketing Officer, Bayo Adekanmbi, said the company will not relent in its effort to encourage its subscribers to get better at whatever they do.

Group dumps Jonathan, PDP for Buhari Johnchuks Onuanyim Abuja

group formerly in support of Peoples Democratic Party and its Presidential candidate, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has dumped the party and its presidential candidate to declare support for All Progressives Congress and its presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. According to the group, Mass Movement for Goodluck, henceforth, it would use its structures to work for the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, General Muhammed Buhari. Also, the Deputy National Chairman of the

APC, Senator Lawal Shuaibu has expressed happiness over the party's campaign so far. According to him, the campaign has assured him that APC would win the presidential election. He said, "Our chances are very, very bright. Actually l have never gone to a campaign that amazed me and actually made me feel l had won election than the one we did. The Mass Movement for Jonathan, which was formally received to the APC fold by Shuaibu at the weekend, said its leadership met after considering the rot in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and decided to take its support to the APC presidential candidate.

L-R: Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer, UAC of Nigeria (UACN) Plc, Mr. Abdul Bello; Group Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Larry Ettah, Group Managing Director/CEO, Flour Mills of Nigeria, Mr. Paul Gbededo and Executive Director, Corporate Services, UACN, Mr. Joe Dada, at UACN’s 2015 Business Retreat in Lagos …at the weekend. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

Ekiti rigging audio tape: Fayose, Obanikoro, others can't deny involvement, says Fashola Adesina Wahab and Muritala Ayinla

agos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN) yesterday said that the Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, and former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro cannot deny their voices in the audio tape revealing how the June 21, 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State was rigged in favour of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Captain Sagir Koli of the 32 Artillery Brigade in Ekiti State had released an audio recording which purportedly has the voice of Fayose, Obanikoro, Brig.-Gen. Aliyu Momoh, Senator Iyiola Omisore, and Minister of Police Affairs, Jelili Adesiyan, at a meeting where they allegedly gave directives to the military to rig the governorship election in favour of the PDP. Speaking on the controversial tape, Fashola said those involved in the 'secret' meeting cannot wash their hands off

l Stop mourning – Fayose the deal, saying none of the relatives of those involved could deny their involvement, after listening to the tape. According to him, "Well, I am sure some of those people who spoke in that audio, especially the one who claims that the promotion of security officer is in his hands. They have drawn the presidency into it; they said they were acting on behalf of the presidency. I am sure that fellow, even his grandchild will know that is his voice. So, how he want to deny it I don’t know. His own grandchildren will recognise his voice and many of us have already done.” He lamented that while some poor Nigerians are struggling to get their permanent voters’ cards (PVCs), some powerful Nigerians are in the dark, planning to subvert the will of the people through electoral malpractices. "This must open the mind of the Nigerian people to what it takes to win an election. When Governor Rauf Aregbesola was celebrating, I know what

he went through, because we have been through it, we have been in opposition here, and when we win elections in Lagos as we have always done, we know what it takes to do so, to keep votes that are legitimately cast for us. Those people in that audio are the examples of some of the kind of desperation for power that you can never see. “So, why ordinary Nigerians are struggling in the sun, trying to collect their PVCs, trying to vote, you see what they are doing at night; you see how seriously that party that they represent takes your vote and your effort and your sacrifice for democracy. I’m sure now that Nigerians are getting wiser, because all of the things that they thought was done in the dark, is now out in the open," he added. Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that the audio clip had vindicated it. The APC, in a statement by the Ekiti State Publicity Secretary, Mr.

Taiwo Olatubosun, said it earlier stance that the party and its candidate, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, were rigged out had been confirmed. The party said it was vindicated by its claim that photochromic ballot papers were used to fix election in Ekiti State, stressing that it was shocking that principal participants did not hide their evil plot as they spoke freely of an elaborate rigging without knowing that they were being recorded. However, Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayo Fayose, has said that the APC is only flogging a dead horse with its claim that the June 21 governorship election was rigged. In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, the governor said the APC was also only trying to whip up sentiments. "In as much as we know and the people who voted us in know that the APC was totally rejected by the people on June 21 last year, we are happy to inform the APC that they have failed again."

Why Jonathan should be re-elected, by Okonjo-Iweala Camillus Nnaji

inance Minster, Prof. Ngozi OkonjoIweala, has said the Federal Government can improve on what it has done already, which placed Nigeria as the largest growing economy in Africa. Okonjo-Iweala, while answering questions from Richard Quest on the CNN, yesterday on why the present adminis-

tration must be re-elected, said a number of issues stand out and needed to be mentioned. She said, “Out of the 1.6million jobs that need to be created yearly, 1.4 have been created. The country has an accumulated unemployment problem over the years. We have created 1.4 million jobs out of the required 1.6 million jobs required annually. The truth is that if one is not

employed, he assumes the government is not doing anything on employment. We have done enough but we can do more. On this regard, what we have done basically is to create a UWIN entrepreneurial programme, where young people are trained and empowered to create jobs for themselves” The Finance Minster stated that the government engaged on construction and reconstruc-

tion of road networks while some abandoned railways over 20 years have been repaired. She cited the Port HarcourtEnugu , Lagos-Kano and Abuja Kaduna railway lines as examples. Okonjo-Iweala disclosed that the government has made its mark on Agriculture, stating that food imports have reduced; prices of food items are low while inflation has been held to a point.

NEW TELEGRAPH monday, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

fear not

Bond investors' interest will always be protected, SEC DG assures Abdulwahab Isa Abuja

he Acting Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr. Mounir Gwarzo has allayed fears nursed by bond investors in the face of the crash in oil price. Oil, Nigeria's major cash cow responsible for

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Oil price: SEC allays bond investors’ fears more than 80 per cent of her revenue, has lost 60 per cent of its price at the international market from June last year till date. Gwarozo gave the assurance in a statement at the weekend while welcoming the executives of the Association of Corporate Trustees, who paid him a courtesy call at the SEC head office in Abuja. Specifically, he said the bond investors’ interest will always be protected. Gwarzo gave the reassurance amidst concerns in some quarters that the

plunge in global crude oil prices may affect the ability of state governments to meet up with their obligations under the Irrevocable Standing Payment Order (ISPO) required for state bond approvals. Speaking to the Trustees, who had earlier raised the issue as their biggest concern, Gwarzo said: “The decline in crude oil prices affects the revenues of state governments and it is an issue we need to look at closely, especially with a view to protecting investors, which is ulti-

mately our major responsibility”. The ISPO is an important instrument that gives bond investors comfort as funds are deducted at source from the State’s federal allocation to go into the sinking fund from which investors are paid their coupons. Gwarzo gave an assurance to the Trustees that the SEC, with the support of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, will insist on the sanctity of the ISPOs, considering

the impact the arrangement has had on the domestic bond market so far. He also underscored the urgency for state governments to diversify their revenue base away from over reliance on oil in order to live up to their obligations while achieving the developmental objectives for their people. Speaking earlier, the President of the Association, Funmi Ekundayo congratulated Gwarzo on his recent appointment and commended the SEC’s leadership for

various initiatives aimed at developing the capital market. She gave an assurance to the SEC Management of their continued support and cooperation as a trade group in the quest to moving the market to the next level. “Our role as protectors of the investor cannot be overemphasised. In compliance with our responsibilities within the Trust Deed, we ensure that investors are always protected and repaid as and when due."

NSITF strengthens mandate on injured workers Yekeen Nurudeen Abuja

Chairman of the occasion, Prof. Anya O.Anya, presenting an award to Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, during the Vanguard Personality of the Year award in Lagos…at the weekend

anaging Director of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Umar Abubakar, has said plans are on to strengthen the fund's mandate of treating and rehabilitating injured workers in the country. He said this when he paid a courtesy visit to the management of the National Teachers’ Institute (NTI) in Kaduna. Abubakar stressed that NSITF does not stop at paying compensation to injured workers, but treat and rehabilitate them where necessary. The NSITF boss ex-

plained that the Fund also creates an atmosphere where injured workers do not become a burden to family members after treatment in a case where the injury does not allow such an employee perform his previous duties. His words: “Once an employee is covered, the employer does not need to bother with any treatment or payment. NSITF takes care of everything from medical treatment to rehabilitation if there is need for it. It also pays handsome benefits to a deceased employee’s spouse for the life of that spouse as long as he/she does not remarry, or to the child till age 21 or when the child graduates from a tertiary institution.”

Air safety: FG asked to replace navigation equipment at airports APGA group condemns respectively, the group ity and reliability of the automation project and attack on Shinkafi Wole Shadare called for the engage- facilities and safety of controller Pilot Data link

he National Association of Air Traffic Engineers (NAAE) has called on the Federal Government to take advantage of technological revolution and advancement in global aviation community to deploy new Navigational Aids (NAVAIDS) equipment with spare parts to replace ageing ones. In a statement issued over the weekend by the Engineer Ebenzer Makanjuola and Francis Omeje, President and Secretary of NAAE

ment of more manpower to enhance seamless operations in the country. According to NAAE, NAVAIDS facilities deployed by the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency NAMA ranked among the best in class and operated in accordance with internationally recommended standard and procedures. They pledged to continue to ensure the optional performance of the equipment, irrespective of their locations in order to achieve credibil-

the country’s airspace. The engineers noted that government in the past few years, continually embarked on massive deployment of Air Navigational equipment, adding that as managers of the equipments, they remained serviceable, fully functional and reliable to the end users. According to them, they were fully involved in skill deployment within available resources in ensuring the success of the ongoing Aeronautical Information Service

connection of NAMA. They said the association was aware of misleading information perpetrated by some group of agitators, aimed at frustrating gover nment’s effort in providing state of the art navigational facilities. According to them, every group has the right to demand but such demand should not be premised on the state of equipment bearing in mind that they were agitating for a better welfare.

SERAP seeks INEC's probe of ballot papers' printing Akeem Nafiu

he Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Corruption Watch UK, and the African Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) have sent an open letter to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega,

seeking clarifications on the award of contracts for ballot papers printing for the 2015 general elections. The letter dated February 6, 2015, was signed by SERAP’s Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni; Corruption Watch’s Director, Andrew Feinstein, and ANEEJ Executive Director, David Ugolor. The groups, in the letter, expressed their con-

cerns at suggestions that INEC may have overpaid considerably for the ballot papers. “Information passed to us suggests that INEC may have paid as much as four times more for the ballot papers than they cost to produce. If true, this raises serious issues of transparency and accountability in the procurement process by INEC, and will amount

to a fundamental breach of the UN Convention against Corruption, to which Nigeria is a state party’’, they said. They argued further: “Transparent, competitive and efficient procurement systems are part of the broad measures needed to curb corruption in the electoral process, and to achieve a fair political process and ultimately, the rule of law.”

Yekeen Nurudeen Abuja

ollowing attacks on the campaign offices and vehicles of Zamfara State All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate, Alhaji Sani Shinkafi, the party has condemned the attacks, which led to the destruction of four campaign offices and 15

vehicles of the party’s governorship candidate. The group lamented that the destruction of Shinkafi’s campaign offices at Maradun, Mafara, Bungudu and Kaura Namoda Local Governments and 15 of his campaign vehicles by sponsored thugs was the height of political rascality, recklessness, hooliganism and cowardice being witnessed in the country.

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—Chairman —Secretary —Vice-Chairman —PRO

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: 1. To offer free eye check up and treatment to the less privileged. 2. To take treatment to the door steps of the less privileged. 3. To act as a purveyor to the most vulnerable/have not. 4. To Care for the blind. Any objections to this registration should be forward to the Registrar General Corporate Affairs Commission, Plot 420, Tigris Crescent, Off Aguyi Ironsi Street, P.M.B 194, Maitama, Abuja within twenty eight (28) days of this publication. Signed By: SECRETARY

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Metro Politician sets godfather’s car gift on fire

Dominic Adewole ASABA

former chairmanship aspirant in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State, Mr Collins Uwagwu, is now cooling his feet in the police cell of. Uwagwu contested the October 25, 2014 local government polls in the state on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but lost to Hon Chuks Oseme, the incumbent chairman. He was arrested by policemen attached to the Issele-Uku Divisional Police headquarters for allegedly setting his own Toyota Hilux van ablaze. The van, it was gathered in Asaba yesterday, was an empowerment gift from his political godfather (name withheld) in the council area. Uwagwu was furious that his godfather “promised but failed” to make him the chairman of the local government despite his age-long loyalty to him. While the van was on fire at the Obi Palace Ground, venue of a get-together he convened in Issele-Uku, Uwagwu told the invitees and passers-by that he chose this manner to set the vehicle on fire because of the rumour surrounding the van. The fume from the burnt vehicle engulfed the popular Affor Market. On interrogation, Uwagwu confessed that the vehicle was a gift from a prominent politician in the state. He said: “The inflammatory rumour being peddled by the politician that he has done a lot for me whereas the van was the only empowerment gift I benefitted from him since I have been serving him in the past 12 years, informed my action.” Uwagwu, it was further learnt, fooled his political associates to the function to witness the destruction of the van, thereby discrediting the godfather. The said godfather could not be reached for comment.

The scene of the crash

CARNAGE Sympathisers wail uncontrollably at the scene of a road crash which claims the lives of 17 people Adeolu Adeyemo Osogbo

t least 17 people reportedly lost their lives yesterday in a motor accident on Ile-Ife-Ilesha Expressway in Osun State. The accident, which occurred about 4pm, reportedly

FEATURES Editor

abiodun. bello@newtelegraphonline.com

Seven children, 10 others die in Osun auto crash left other occupants of the two vehicles in agony as many of them sustained various degrees of injury. Seven children, six male adults and four female adults reportedly died in the accident. Witnesses said that the injured had been taken to a nearby hospital by officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) who reportedly acted promptly when hinted about

the development. The accident involved a Sienna Toyota car and a ‘Hummer’ Toyotal bus. The residents nearby, motorists and traveller on the road wept uncontrollably at the scene of the accident. Meanwhile, the remains of those who lost their lives have been deposited in the morgue of the hospital where the injured are being treated.

The FRSC Unit Commander, Ile-Ife, Mr Richard Adetoro, confirmed the incident. Adetoro told journalists on the phone that bodies of the victims had been deposited at the Obafemi Awolowo Teaching Hospital Complex, Ile-Ife, while those who sustained injuries were being attended to. He also confirmed the number of those who lost their lives to the accident.

Do more for Chibok girls, Malala tells Nigeria, others

o mark the 300th day since the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno State, the 20142014 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Malala Yousafzai, has called on world leaders to do more to free the girls. Yousafzai said in a statement that Nigerian leaders and the international community must do much more to free the girls and change their weak response. She said: “As we mark this tragic 300th day of captivity for hundreds of kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls, I call on people everywhere to join me in demanding urgent action to free these heroic girls. “If these girls were the children of politically or financially-

powerful parents, much more would be done to free them. But they come from an impoverished area of northeast Nigeria and sadly little has changed since they were kidnapped.” Yousafzai also called on politicians running for office in the general election should not only demonstrate their empathy but finally take some responsibility for the tragedy. She added: “The leaders of Nigeria should commit to work together and make the case of the Chibok girls a priority in their first 100 days in office, as well as the education of every Nigerian child. “These young women risked everything to get an education that most of us take for granted. I will not forget my

Akeem Nafiu

Cannabis’ dealer bags four years’ imprisonment

A ABIODUN BELLO

The mangled body of the ‘Hummer’ bus

35-year-old Indian hemp seller, Ajayi Ganiu, has been sentenced to four years imprisonment by Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court in Lagos. The convict was arrested by officials of the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on August 11, 2014,

at 14, Anuoluwapo Street, Shasha area of Lagos, with 650 grams of cannabis sativa. Ganiu was arraigned before the court on a one-count charge of unlawful possession of cannabis sativa and pleaded guilty to the charge. Following his guilty plea, the

Some of the abducted schoolgirls

sisters. We cannot forget them. We must demand their freedom until they are reunited with their families and back in school, getting the education

prosecutor, Orji Kali, urged the court to convict him as charged. Consequently, the presiding judge, pronounced the accused guilty as charged, and sentenced him to four years imprisonment. The charge against him reads: “That you, Ajayi Ga-

they so desperately desire.” The co-founder of the Malala Fund promised to support efforts to educate girls from poor backgroung across the globe.

niu, 35, on or about August 21, 2014, at 14, Anuoluwapo Street, Shasha, Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this court, without lawful authority dealt with 650 grams of cannabis sativa, contrary to Section 11(c) of NDLEA Act N30 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.”

Metro 11

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Gunmen kidnap Dariye’s father, demand $10m ransom A

rmed men kidnapped Dariye Dafweng, the father of former Governor of Plateau State, Senator Joshua Dariye, in his Mushere village, Bokkos Local Government Area home on Saturday. The kidnappers have asked for $10 million ransom. “We have just confirmed that the kidnappers dropped a letter in which they asked for N10 million dollars,” the Commander of the Special Task Force maintaining security in Plateau, Major General Dave Enetie, told

the News Agency of Nigeria in Jos on Sunday. Enetie said the kidnappers also left telephone numbers to facilitate contacts with the family of their victim. He said: “We are trying to get a copy of the letter and the phone numbers to help our efforts to secure the release of Dariye’s father.” Enetie said the STF personnel had been dispatched to every nook and cranny of the state to locate the kidnappers, in addition to the efforts of search teams combing neighbouring

states. Enetie, who confirmed the incident, said his men were combing everywhere for clues. He said: “We have reached out to security agents in Nasarawa State and other neighbouring states. “We have also linked up with the Directorate of Security Service (DSS) in Nasarawa State and the search lights are everywhere, but we are yet to trace the kidnappers or the victim.” Meanwhile, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Abu Emmanuel,

said the police had visited the site of the incident and even picked up shells of bullets shot by the gunmen. He said: “There is already a search and rescue team and we hope we should be able to arrive at something as soon as possible.” Dafweng was kidnapped by gunmen who invaded the Dariye family compound, shooting sporadically and scaring away people The gunmen then took the old man, dressed him in women’s clothes and sped off with him on a motorcycle.

Dariye

Why we’re controlling traffic, say physically-challenged persons Suleiman Husaini and Camillus Nnaji

The scene of the accident

Enugu lone accident claims one Uwakwe Abugu Enugu

ne of two friends fleeing the North because of fear of violence during the elections lost his life in Enugu State yesterday. One of the two men died on the spot while the other sustained injuries when a commercial bus in which they were travelling somersaulted. The bus belongs to the Akwa Ibom State Transport Company. The President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Gary Enwo-Igariwwey, a week ago, had reviewed the plight of the Igbo residing in the North. He urged them to send home (to the South) their children but to remain there to defend themselves and their property in the

event of any aggression. But many people have been heading to the South to avoid possible attacks after the elections. The survivor of yesterday’s accident, who identified himself as Godwin Christopher, told our correspondent at the scene of the crash that they took off from Kaduna in Kaduna State. He said the bus developed mechanical fault at a dangerous bend on the new Opi Nsukka-Abakpa Nike Road, resulting in the crash. Christopher explained that his friend, who he said was popularly called Anambra, was relocating his business to Uyo in Akwa Ibom State owing to the fear of post-election violence. According to him, the deceased had already hired and

paid for a store in Uyo. The driver of the bus miraculously came out of the wrecked vehicle largely unhurt. It was gathered from the survivor that all the goods in the bus belonged to the deceased. His motorcycle, generator and some household effects were also in the vehicle. The administration of Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu State recently barred trucks, other heavy duty vehicles and luxury buses from plying the new road to reduce carnage. But many factors, including over-speeding, have continued to cause accidents on the road which has reduced the travel time from Enugu to the university town of Nsukka by nearly half.

hree physically-challenged persons, Ahmadu Zakari, Saliau Danladi and Garba Audu, have called on the Lagos State Government to reward them for their contributions to the state economy. The men said they had been controlling traffic on Sanusi Fafunwa Road, Victoria Island since 2003 thereby reducing man-hour loss in gridlock. Danladi and Audu hail from Jos in Plateau State, while Zakari is from Kano State. Danladi said: “Since 2003, even before the regime of former military administrator in Lagos State, Brigadier General Buba Marwa (rtd), we have been controlling traffic on this road. “If you come here as early as 7am, you will understand what I am telling you. The number of vehicles passing here when people are going to work is amazing. If no one controls them that means some vehicles will still be on this roundabout for about four hours. “When we saw this, we decided to offer helping a hand. That was even before the establishment of Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA).”

He regretted that for all these years, no Lagos State governor had recognised their efforts. According to him, they resume as early as 8am, sometimes without any food until later in the night, when some drivers would have given them money to eat. He said: “In fact, none of the companies within this area has made any attempt to empower us and we help daily in ensuring free flow of traffic here in front of their premises. May be they think we don’t deserve anything because of our condition.” The men said that their survival had been by the grace of God and a few concerned passers-by. “We survive by His grace and some passers-by, who appreciate what we are doing. Some give us stipends, telling us to continue with the good work. LASMA officials also encourage us more. “We manage to ensure free flow of traffic. We bought the overall we use and other little things with our money. But we want to feel the impact of this government too,” one of them added. Zakari said they had given their all to ensure free flow of traffic on the road. According to him, the only time they have is when they go out to play football.

NCC arraigns 10 for selling pirated products Cephas Iorhemen Makurdi

he Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has arraigned 10 people before the Federal High Court in Makurdi for allegedly offering for

sale or hire over 10,000 pirated copies of foreign DVDs, VCDs and other CDs to the public. The prosecution counsel, Mr Terkohol, said the accused were selling pirated copies of the items without the consent of the NCC.

The counsel added that the accused were arrested in Makurdi and Gboko. When the case came up for continuation on hearing in Makurdi, some of the witnesses were absent, and prosecution applied for adjournment.

Two of the physically-challenged persons

PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

News

national

monday, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Eligibility: Court orders service of fresh suit on Jonathan Tunde Oyesina ABUJA

he Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday ordered service of court process on President Goodluck Jonathan in a fresh suit challenging his eligibility to re-contest in the March 28 presidential election. Cited as defendants alongside Jonathan are Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The court's order was a product of an ex-parte application brought by the plaintiff, Nkemjika Nkemjika. He had argued in his exparte application that he could not effect personal service on the president, as he could not gain entrance into the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja. The court while granting the ex-parte application ordered that the process be served on the president through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Feder-

Mark condoles with aide over mom's death Chukwu David Abuja

resident of the Senate, Senator David Mark, has condoled with his Media Adviser, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan on the death of his mother, Mrs. Grace Bosede Alala Ologbondiyan. Ologbondiyan passed on to the great beyond in Kabba, Kogi State after a brief illness. She was aged 83. Mark, in a condolence message to the government and people of Kogi State, described the late matriarch of the Ologbondiyan family as a pillar, who was fair, firm, accommodating and just to all. He noted the painstaking efforts and diligence with which late Ologbondiyan trained his children to be of good conduct and responsible citizens. Besides, he recalled that Ologbondiyan as a committed Christian and a community leader, impacted positively on the society as a mother, who cared especially for the less privileged . Mark therefore, told the bereaved family to take solace in the fact that madam Ologbondiyan lived an eventful and indeed accomplished life worthy of emulation. He prayed that God Almighty grants the deceased eternal rest

ation (SGF) or office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF). In the Fresh suit marked FHC/ABJ/ CS/1112/2015, the plaintiff is asking the court to determine whether having regard to the provisions of sections 135(1)(b) and 135(2)(b) of the Constitution, Jonathan was qualified to contest the presidential election. The plaintiff, however, contended that Jonathan’s second term in office will end on May 29, 2015, be-

cause Section 135(2)(b) of the Constitution that determines the tenure of the office of the country’s president, did not make any provision for a VicePresident to complete the unexpired tenure of office or unexpired term of office of a deceased president. He further submitted that the president would have been eligible to further contest this year’s presidential election if he had won an election overseen by the Senate

President in 2010 in accordance with the provision of Section 146(2) of the Constitution. He, however, prays the court to nullify the nomination of Jonathan as PDP’s candidate for the forthcoming presidential election in view of the provision of Section 135(1)(b) of the Constitution to the effect that “a person shall hold the office of President until he dies whilst holding such office.” He also prays the court to declare that the

two terms limit, allowed President Jonathan as a democratically elected president under the Constitution, shall elapse on May 29 this year. Furthermore, the plaintiff wants the court to declare that Jonathan is not qualified to stand for election in view of the provisions of sections 135(1)(b) and 135(2)(b) of the Constitution. The trial judge, Justice A.R Mohammed later adjourned hearing in the suit till February 26.

L-R: Deputy Consul General, South Africa, Lagos, Ms. Thandi Mgxwati; Convener, Women in Action, Senator Florence Ita-Giwa; Minister of State for FCT, Mrs. Olajumoke Akinjide; former Lagos State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Buknor Kofoworola and former Ogun State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Titi Oseni, at a town hall meeting by Women in Action in Lagos …yesterday. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

TUC tasks presidential candidates on workers' welfare

l Workers would get living wage — Buhari

Yekeen Nurudeen Abuja

he leadership of the Trade Union Congress(TUC) has charged the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Goodluck Jonathan and All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari on the need to prioritise Nigerian workers' welfare after the general elections. TUC’s President, Bobboi Bala Kaigama, at an interactive session with the presidential candidates, who sent in representatives, criticised the devaluation of the naira by the current administration, arguing that the development has created negative effects on workers emoluments. He lamented that beyond the national minimum wage, which implementation still constitutes challenge for some state governments, the government of the day has not been able to adequately address issues of wages, provision of employment, job security,

strike and industrial policies, among others. "We believe these core labour issues have not been adequately addressed or addressed at all; for example, the meagre salaries which have never been able to take workers home have now been weakened by the devaluation which we consider ill timed and ill advised. "Our worries are that what will your parties do to ameliorate the effects on the salaries of workers to restore the dignity of labour. "Strike and industrial policy of your respective parties also draw our attention. One of the greatest accusations against the government is that it does not honour agreements voluntarily entered into with labour, neither does it honour court judgements negatively affecting it; which sometimes occasion strikes." Meanwhile, Buhari, represented by Deputy National Chairman, South of the party, Engineer Segun Oni, said the party would put in place standard living wage for Nigerian workers, when elected into power.

Fraud: Omatseye has case to answer, says court Akeem Nafiu

ustice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia of a Federal High Court in Lagos has directed the former Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Raymond Omatseye, to open his defence over an alleged N1.5 billion contract scam offence. This was sequel to the dismissal of his no -case application by the court and his failure to discredit the evidences adduced by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the case. Omatseye is standing trial on an amended 27-count charge of alleged contract scam brought against him by the antigraft agency. In her ruling on the nocase submission of the accused, Justice Ajumogobia, noted that from the wordings of Section 16 (1) (a) of the Public Procurement Act(PPA), it appeared that the offence was committed at the approval stage of the contract. According to the Judge: "It is thus an abject misconception for the applicant to contend that the offence is committed when the award

is actually made". Justice Ajumogobia also declared that she did not find any difficulty in agreeing with the prosecution that the counts in question were properly drafted in accordance with the provisions of the PPA. The Judge reiterated that at the stage of a trial, the court was not concerned with the weight to be attached to the evidence adduced before it. She said: "All that the court is required to do is to satisfy itself that there is some tenable quantum of evidence before it that links the accused person to the offences for which he is charged". "On the whole, I find the application to be lacking in merit. The applicant has failed woefully in his attempt to discredit the evidence adduced by the prosecution in this case", the judge added. The application was eventually dismissed and the accused was directed to open his defence on February 18. Adopting his no case submission, defence lawyer, Olusina Sofola (SAN) urged the court to discharge and acquit the accused on all counts.

MFM dissociates General Overseer from Facebook scam Appolonia Adeyemi

rked by the activities of several fraudsters that specialise in creating Facebook accounts in the name of Daniel Olukoya, the general overseer of the Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministry (MFM) and defrauding the public, the Church has warned the public to be wary of falling victim to the scam. Olukoya, who alerted Nigerians about the development, also announced plans to create a Facebook account through which he would communicate with the church congregation and the general public. He spoke during the February Edition of the monthly Power Must Change Hands at the Prayer City, on Saturday. Making the announcement during the special service tagged "First Fruit Offering" Olukoya said for several years, he had ignored the fraudsters and their fake emails. Creating false Facebooks, fake e-mails is a common practice perpetuated by 419ers also known as 'Yahoo Yahoo Boys' in the country. Often, they hack into existing Facebooks, hijack the accounts, pretending to be the original owner and use it to defraud followers of the original accounts. Similarly, they may create a false email or Facebook account, using the name of another person. In the case of the MFM, not only did the fraudsters create the false Facebook accounts, as weeks run into months, new additional fake Facebook accounts emerged in the name of Daniel Olukoya. According to Olukoya, those behind the account also solicited financial assistance from the public. The general overseer of the MFM said using the Facebook account the fraudsters created the false impression that it was Olukoya that was sourcing for fund to execute projects for the MFM. However, he notified the congregation and the public that those phoney Facebook accounts were never created by him, insisting, "they are fake." On the contrary, Olukoya said henceforth, he was going to create a genuine Facebook account to pave the way for interaction between himself and the congregation as well as the public.

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Elections

Parliament

INEC

Opposition

Legal experts disagree over poll shift

Reps back INEC on elections’ postponement

ASUU decries poll shift

APC represents dictatorship, not change – Ogundipe

Politics

The long road to poll shift uled only for some of these parties to change their song the following day.

The postponement of the 2015 general elections by six weeks came to many Nigerians as a surprise. However, ONWUKA NZESHI argues that the action has been on the drawing board since last year

2014 Confab, Abuja What could be described as the seed of postponement of the 2015 general elections was sown during the 2014 National Conference held at the National Judicial Institute (NJI), Abuja. On the sidelines of that conference, Chief Okon Osung, a delegate from Akwa Ibom State, South-South geo- political zone, addressed a press conference during which he proposed that the 2015 general elections should be postponed for 18 months to enable the present government address the challenges of terrorism, insurgency and general insecurity across Nigeria. He argued that with the bitter divisions among the political class, the war in the North-East and the low morale in the Armed Forces, it will take a miracle for Nigeria to hold any elections and survive the catastrophe that it would likely trigger. The proposal was greeted with a lot of negative criticisms by some delegates who believed it was a ploy to grant President Goodluck Jonathan an extension of tenure. But Okon said that it was an altruistic proposal to preserve democracy in Nigeria. He said there were some anti-democratic elements lurking in the corners who are hoping to take undue ad-

AYODELE OJO

DEPUTY Editor, POLITICS ayodele.ojo@newtelegraphonline.com

Jega

vantage of the growing insecurity in Nigeria to strike. According to him, the choices before Nigeria were to either go into an election that would trigger widespread violence, rigging and chaos or postpone same elections until the insecurity in various parts of country had been brought under reasonable control. It came like a prophecy and when the mob wanted to tear the messenger apart, he simply went underground but not before telling those who cared to listen that he would be vindicated someday. Chatham House, London About two weeks ago, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Dasuki Sambo (rtd) flew the kite of a possible change in the schedule for the 2015 general elections in Nigeria. Dasuki floated the idea during an interactive session with a cross section of British politicians and policy makers at Chatham House, London. He argued that postponing the February elections had become necessary because INEC was yet to be fully prepared to conduct the polls. He said that a situation where the electoral umpire was yet to distribute over 30 million permanent voters’ cards (PVCs)

INDEP ELECT ENDENT NAT ORAL C IO OMMIS NAL SION

The life of innocent young men and women, as well the prospects of free, fair, credible and peaceful elections would be greatly jeopardised

less than three weeks to the crucial polls was not a good omen for a free, fair and credible polls. The NSA expressed concern about the millions of Nigerians who would be disenfranchised if the polls were to be held as scheduled, but INEC promptly countered this argument, saying that it was ready to conduct the polls and would ensure that the PVCs were distributed to their owners before the first ballots were cast. The Interlude This seeming division in the views of the NSA and INEC gave vent to a hot debate among the political parties, civil society organisations, religious leaders and other stakeholders in the polity. Every group had its own views but the two main political parties were clearly at each other’s jugular. While the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) appeared favourably disposed to the poll shift campaign, their arch-rivals, the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not want to entertain the thoughts of a postponement of the elections. At a consultative meeting between INEC and the political parties, majority of the parties said the polls must be held as sched-

Council of States As if to break the deadlock in the debate, President Goodluck Jonathan summoned a meeting of the National Council of States – an assemblage of all former Presidents, Heads of State and government in the country. The Council also has the President of the Senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives and all serving state governors as members. It was at the meeting that INEC was made to put all its cards on the table for all to see its level of preparedness for the elections. In view of the earlier kite flown by the NSA, the security chiefs were also made to brief the Council on the readiness of the Armed Forces to provide the traditional security support to INEC and the Nigeria Police during the polls. The security briefs turned out to be against holding the elections on February 14 and 28. Although the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega made frantic efforts to justify his claims about the readiness of the commission, the Council directed him to consult more widely before rolling out the elections because of the security reports. The Saturday Marathon On Saturday, February 7, INEC held meetings with a broad spectrum of stakeholders. Jega and the 12 National Commissioners met with the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) from the 36 states of the federation and Abuja. The Commission also interacted with the leaders of the political parties. These meetings which lasted for several hours were aimed at feeling the pulse of these stakeholders on the advice of the security chiefs that the elections should be postponed to enable the military conclude an operation it had launched against the Boko Haram insurgents in the North East. Waiting for Jega In the course of the meetings, news filtered out through some foreign media platforms that the elections would indeed be shifted for six weeks. The scoop came out quite early in the day but it took another 12 hours for the commisCONTINUED ON PAGE 16

Politics

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

POLL SHIFT

Legal experts disagree over poll shift

lAli: It’s an admission of failure lAhamba: It’s an opportunity to contain insurgents Tunde Oyesina Abuja

egal experts yesterday disagreed over the postponement of the general elections from February 14 and 28 to March 28 and April 11 respectively by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Jega had premised the shift in the date of the polls on a letter received from the security services advising that he postpones the general elections on grounds that the security agencies were engaged in a renewed battle against insurgency in the NorthEast that would require their full concentration. Jega had further stated that in the letter, the military was demanding a rescheduling of election by at least six weeks in the first instance. Speaking with New Telegraph, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Yusuf Ali stated that the call for the postponement by the security agents was an admission of their failure to carry out their primary responsibility of protecting lives and properties. Disagreeing, another legal luminary, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN) said

the shift is welcome idea as it will give the security agents the opportunity to contain the Boko Haram insurgents in the NorthEast. Also reacting, Godwin Obla (SAN) said under law, the poll shift was not out of place as the Electoral Law provided for the conduct of elections at least 30 days before the handing over. Ali stated that the implication of the security agents’ request was that they cannot provide security for the elections. “Then, those who are responsible for that should resign from their office. We don’t need any further evidence that they are not skilful. That is what they are saying in normal language. “They are not competent, they are not capable. All security forces all over the world have the primary duty of protecting lives and properties. So, if somebody who is supposed to do that, now said that he is helpless, what he is saying is that, ‘I am not fit to be here’. “In any event, the handwriting has been on the wall that there will be a manoeuvre. Whatever reasons and whoever is behind it, the will of the people will not be defeated,” Ali stated.

TRG accuses Jega of hidden agenda Felix Nwaneri and Wale Elegbede

group, Transition Resurgent Group (TRG), yesterday accused the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, of a hidden agenda on the 2015 elections, and therefore has no moral justification conducting the polls. Addressing a press conference in Lagos, spokesman of the group, Yinka Odumakin said Jega would have handed Nigeria another political impasse if his commission had gone ahead with the February 14 presidential election with the disparity in the distribution of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) across the country. Odumakin said that Jega has been accused of skewing PVC distribution in favour of a particular candidate and attending meetings with leaders of the Northern Elders Forum

(NEF) where plots were hatched to compromise the integrity of the electoral process. “Jega is leading us to another June 12 or something worse than it because he has already annulled the election before the casting of the first ballot. He may have a hidden agenda, which may have informed why he said that February 14 is sacrosanct whereas it is May 29 that is sacrosanct. “The Inspector General of Police should cause an investigation on all the weighty allegations against Jega, as we no longer have confidence in the INEC chairman handling the election based on the allegations,” Odumakin said. On the disparity in the distribution of the PVCs, Odumakin said his group is worried by the failure of Jega to take responsibility for the obvious lapses that characterised the shoddy preparations for the rescheduled polls.

INDEP ELECT ENDENT NAT ORAL C IO OMMIS NAL SION

Ahamba on his own stated that with the reason given by INEC for the poll shift, there should be no condemnation. “Initially, I was opposed to poll shift on ground that Boko Haram

insurgence should not make us postpone elections because that will amount to conceding to them. “But giving that the security agency is launching a massive attack, that means there won’t be enough personnel to handle the general security during the elections. “Though it was claimed that some politicians are behind it. Even, if that is the case, let us wait and see how far they will go. We should all learn to respect constituted authorities,” he

stated. Obla noted two angles to the poll shift. “The law permits INEC to conduct election at least 30 days before the handover time. So, that means that up to April 27, INEC can still adjust its date. “There is another side whether it is politically desirable and the impact on the economy and other things can also be considered. “As far as I am concerned, there is nothing illegal about it,” Obla stated.

In his own submission, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), stated that the Electoral Act gives INEC the power to postpone elections by a period of not more than 150 days before the expiration of the present term (May 29) and not more than 30 days before the end of the current administration. “It gives INEC the power to do so when it believes that there is danger in holding the elections, due to, for example, insurgency or insurrection. That power is statutory and it is with INEC.”

L-R: Chairman, Adamawa State Positive Change Initiative, Alhaji Abubakar Kari; Adamawa PDP gubernatorial candidate, Malam Nuhu Ribadu and the state’s Vice Chairman, Alhaji Jingi Rufa’I, during the endorsement meeting of Ribadu in Yola …yesterday. PHOTO-NAN

...Coup against democracy, say Fayemi, IEMG Ibraheem Musa and Adesina Wahab

he Independent Election Monitoring Group (IEMG) has described the postponement of the February elections as a coup against the constitution and the people of Nigeria. In a statement issued yesterday, IEMG stated that “it is not convinced and will not accept the postponement of the February 2015 elections as the reasons given for the said postponement are not cogent and verifiable.” The statement signed by Barrister Festus Okoye, the National Coordinator of IEMG, condemned the decision of the security agencies and forces not to provide security for the elections. According to him, the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) had earlier issued the timeline for the conduct of all the strands of elections

provided for in the constitution, in compliance with sections 25 and 30 of the Electoral Act, 2010(as amended). “The security agencies did not complain about the dates and did not call for an adjustment of the timelines. They did not oppose the conduct of elections in the NorthEast of Nigeria and were taken into confidence as regards voting by Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). “At every forum, the security agencies assured the Nigerian people that all systems are geared towards the successful conduct of the elections and urged Nigerians not to be cowed by insurgents. “It is unfortunate and a constitutional aberration that the security agencies that did not oppose the conduct of elections have decided to kidnap democracy through the illegal abdication of their constitutional and statutory

responsibility to provide security for the conduct of elections,” Okoye said. Former Ekiti State governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, also likened the postponement to a coup against democracy. Speaking in IsanEkiti yesterday during a service to mark his 50th birthday, Fayemi said the Presidency in conjunction with the military, boxed the INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, to a tight corner to get the polls deferred against the wishes of Nigerians. Fayemi expressed dismay that the military, a sacred institution, could get itself enmeshed in acts that could subvert the democratic process, saying such trend was dangerous to the survival of democracy in the country. His words: “It was apparent that the military and Presidency boxed INEC to a tight corner

using the merchants of retrogression to get the postponement to achieve their devilish motives. “I believe what we are expected to do as democrats must be those things that would strengthen democracy. For military to be saying that it would in few weeks overcome insurgency it had failed to curtail in five years, was that not standing logic on its head? You could see that Nigerians are very unhappy. “To me, this is more of a civilian coup against democracy, because for the military to have said that it cannot provide security for INEC to prosecute the elections implies that it is hands in gloves with the Presidency. This is a travesty and a danger to our democracy. “Military is a product of Nigeria and not the father of Nigeria and it must do everything to protect this democracy,” the former governor opined.

Politics

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

POLL SHIFT

Reps back INEC on elections’ postponement Philip Nyam Abuja

hairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters, Hon. Jerry Manwe, has said that the House supports the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to shift the general elections by six weeks. He said since the postponement was predicated on security concerns, it is imperative for Nigerians to welcome the development. Manwe, who spoke to New Telegraph in a tele-

phone chat, noted that since INEC took the decision after extensive consultations with all the relevant stakeholders, there was no need to query the commission. “I believe as a journalist, you were at the venue of Prof. Attahiru Jega’s news conference and listened to the reasons he advanced as being responsible for the postponement. “He (Jega) said based on the report from the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Service Chiefs that they cannot guarantee the security of INEC personnel was one of the reasons why the elections had to be

postponed,” he said. According to the lawmaker, ‘this is a very serious issue because if the security agencies, whose duty is to protect are complaining, you cannot blame INEC for shifting elections.” Speaking further, Manwe said as lawmakers, they were not experts on security matters, so they will not doubt the position of the nation’s security services. Manwe also reasoned that perhaps with the postponement, INEC will have ample opportunity to address issues that were pending such as unclaimed permanent voters’ cards (PVCs).

“I think the postponement will also help to resolve the hue and cry about PVCs. Those who are yet to get their PVCs can now get within these six weeks. It is my hope that the postponement will turn out to be a blessing,” he noted. He noted that because of the recess and campaigns by members of the House, the committee could not meet but since the postponement is caused by insecurity, they have no problem with it. The lawmaker, however, appealed to Nigerians to be calm and support INEC to conduct a credible, free and fair elections as rescheduled.

A plot to derail democracy – APC senatorsthe face of a malicious

Chukwu David Abuja

he All Progressives Congress (APC) senators yesterday condemned the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to postpone the February 14 and 28 elections, saying that it was an orchestrated attempt to derail the democracy. A statement by the group’s spokesperson, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, who represents Ekiti Central in the Senate, described the postponement as a ‘tele-guided plot’ by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to derail democracy in Nigeria. His words: “What we are seeing is a desperate and jittery response to the imminent defeat of the PDP. The postponement has shown the helplessness of INEC in

cabal bent on destroying the fabric of democracy.” The group said the decision had raised a big credibility question on INEC and the forthcoming elections, stating that “this decision is borne out of fear of defeat and malice against the people of Nigeria in the face of the overwhelming support the APC commands across the country.” He said that the PDP leadership in collaboration with INEC had put Nigeria in extremely bad light in the comity of nations. Ojudu further asserted that the postponement was a diversionary tactics which undermined the aspirations of Nigerians and dims the hope for change in a country that had seen bitter upheavals due to similar partisan posture of the electoral umpire.

It’s in order – Afenifere, Agbaje Wale Elegbede and Babatope Okeowo

Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN (left) receiving his Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) from National Youth Service Corps members; Miss Adeyemi Oluwatomilayo (right) and Miss Metus Lynda (middle) at his polling unit in Ward G3 Unit E002, State Junior Grammar School, Itolo Street, Surulere, Lagos... yesterday.

ASUU decries poll shifts Sola Adeyemo Ibadan

resident of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr. Nasir Fagge, has expressed displeasure over the postponement of the general elections, saying there was no justification for it. Fagge told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the security issue which the shifting of the polls was predicated on was not sufficient. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had on Saturday night announced the rescheduling of the polls from February 14 and February 28 to March 28 and April 11. Chairman of the commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, who announced the shift at a news con-

ference in Abuja, said that presidential and National Assembly polls scheduled for February 14 would now hold on March 28. Similarly, he said that governorship and states’ Houses of Assembly election was shifted from Feb. 28 to April 11. He gave security advice from the service chiefs as reason for postponing the elections. Fagge said that the nation’s security chiefs ought to have alerted INEC well ahead of time, of their inability to guarantee security during the elections. He said that the current development would not speak well of Nigeria before international communities. He expressed doubt if the six weeks extension would be enough to tackle the security issue

believed to be the major reason for postponing the elections. “However, if the election umpire has been convinced enough to have the elections postponed, especially as it concerns security, then let us give them the benefit of doubt. “All I can say at this point is to call on Nigerians to organise themselves very well and keep their eyes open. “I also want to seize this opportunity to appeal to them to use this period to ensure that they collect their voter cards and ensure that they do not only vote but also ensure that their votes count,” Fagge said. The Ibadan Zonal coordinator of ASUU and Chairman of University of Ibadan Chapter, Prof. Segun Ajiboye, has urged Nigerians not to be frus-

INDEP ELECT ENDENT NAT ORAL C IO OMMIS NAL SION

trated by the poll shift but mobilise and collect their PVCs. “Hiding under this security ruse will not help the cabal trying to frustrate the genuine efforts of Nigerians seeking desperately for a change. We condemn the shift in the polls but however encourage Nigerians to keep calm in the face of unnecessary provocations by those ruling cabal. “The decision is a serious setback for Nigerian democracy. But we should remain steadfast. This is time- buying game. It will not work. Let us organise and not agonise.”

he pan Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, has given tacit support to the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to postpone the general elections. Secretary General of Afenifere, Basorun Seinde Arogbofa, said if the postponement of the election would bring the desired result, there was nothing wrong with it. Arogbofa said the two conditions given by INEC; the security issue and collection of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) are germane issues which necessitated the shift in the election date. Also, the gubernato-

rial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for Lagos, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, said the postponement of elections fell in line with the Nigerian Constitution. He, however, added that the postponement would incur additional expenses and more stress for competitors. Agbaje, who spoke yesterday during his campaign at Eti-Osa area of the state, said that a slight delay in the polls should raise no eyebrows so long as the May 29 handover date remained sacrosanct. According to him, the postponement would facilitate the holding of more credible and better inclusive elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

MURIC, CPPM: Military involvement in politics dangerous Muritala Ayinla

he Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) and the Committee for the Protection of Peoples Mandate (CPPM) yesterday condemned the postponement of the 2015 general elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Both MURIC and CPPM describing the basis – security factor – of the poll shift as a mere smokescreen. MURIC said: “Bastardisation of the military is bound to undermine its professionalism. They appear so desperate that

rather than play the role of good sportsmen and true democrats, they are prepared to destroy what they cannot enjoy. Resorting to the use of security agencies after the Council of State had rejected a postponement exposes the low level the Federal Government has sunk.” CPPM described the postponement as invitation to anarchy, saying the shift amounts to threat to national security. “We regard the grounds for this postponement as a coup against democracy which is unacceptable and must be resisted by all legitimate means possible.”

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

sion to formally announce its final decision. Journalists from both the local and foreign media who had converged at the INEC headquarters kept vigil for several hours. They waited for a confirmation or otherwise of the poll shift story. The commission had scheduled a press briefing at 5p.m. but when it could not conclude its consultative meetings, the briefing was shifted to 9p.m. Many of the journalists who had arrived the Media Centre before 5p.m. could not return to their offices when they learnt the briefing had been shifted. There were no provisions for refreshments and a number of journalists were forced to step out of the premises to have a late dinner of snacks and soft drinks. At 10:37p.m., some of the RECs came out of the meeting. Some photo journalists who have been sitting on the pavement for hours sprang to their feet, picked up their cameras and began to click away as the electoral officers descended the stairs. It was a renewal of hope that the high level meeting was over and the verdict would soon be made public. But the RECs were soon joined by their aides and they headed for their cars. Jega emerged from the main building at exactly 10:45p.m. but rather than walk towards the waiting cameras, he made a detour at the foot of the staircase. The turn took him and those accompanying him through an underground route leading to the media centre. The Verdict It was here that Jega finally released the bombshell. He announced that after series of consultations with relevant stakeholders, the general elections scheduled for February 14 and 28 have been shifted to March 28 and April 11. According to him, the postponement was in line with the advice of the security chiefs that they cannot guarantee security for the elections if they were held at the earlier dates. “Last Wednesday, which was a day before the Council of State meeting, the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) wrote a letter to the commission, drawing attention to recent developments in four North-East states of Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Gombe currently experiencing the challenge of insurgency. The letter stated that security could not be guaranteed during the proposed period in February for the general elections. “This advisory was reinforced at the Council of State meeting on Thursday where the NSA and all the Armed Services and Intelligence Chiefs unanimously reiterated that the safety and security of our operations cannot be guaranteed, and that the Security Services needed at least six weeks within which to conclude a major military operation against the insurgency in the North-East; and that during this operation, the military will be concentrating its attention in the theatre of operations such that they may not be able to provide the traditional support they render to the Police and other agencies during elections.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Jega shifts ground ness, therefore, if the security of personnel, voters, election observers and election materials cannot be guaranteed, the life of innocent young men and women as well the prospects of free, fair, credible and peaceful elections would be greatly jeopardised,” Jega said. He reassured all Nigerians and indeed the international community of INEC’s commitment to doing everything within the law to conduct free, fair, credible and peaceful elections. Jega also called on Nigerians, political parties, candidates and all other stakeholders to accept this decision in good faith and ensure the maintenance of peace. It was 11.45 pm when the long awaited briefing ended.

Jonathan

Buhari

“The conduct of elections in a country like Nigeria is invariably a collective venture that involves not just the Election Management Body (EMB), but also a diverse range of stakeholders, notably security agencies, political parties and their candidates, voters, as well as interest groups, such as the civil society organisations and the media. To guarantee successful conduct of elections, there are things that are wholly the responsibility of the EMB. But there are other things critical for the success of elections, which fall outside the control of the EMB. “In other words, while INEC must work hard to perfect its systems and processes for conducting elections, and take responsibility for any imperfections thereof, whatever the commission does may not by itself be sufficient to guarantee the success of elections. There are a number of issues in the preparation and conduct of an election, the most critical of which is security, which is not under the control of INEC,” Jega said. He disclosed that the Commission decided to take the advice of the Security Chiefs and adjust the dates of the elections, relying on Section 26(1) of the Electoral 2010 (As Amended), which states thus: “Where a date has been appointed for the holding of an election, and there is reason to believe that a

INDEP ELECT ENDENT NAT ORAL C IO OMMIS NAL SION

To guarantee successful conduct of elections, there are things that are wholly the responsibility of the EMB. But there are other things critical for the success of elections

serious breach of the peace is likely to occur if the election is proceeded with on that date or it is impossible to conduct the elections as a result of natural disasters or other emergencies, the commission may postpone the election and shall in respect of the area, or areas concerned, appoint another date for the holding of the postponed election, provided that such reason for the postponement is cogent and verifiable.” Since INEC is not a security agency, Jega said, it could not by itself guarantee protection for personnel and materials, as well as voters during elections. “The commission is specifically concerned about the security of our ad hoc staff who constitute at least 600,000 young men and women, together with our regular staff, voters, election observers as well as election materials painstakingly acquired over the last one and half years. This concern is limited not just to the areas in the North-Eastern part of Nigeria experiencing insurgency; the risk of deploying young men and women and calling people to exercise their democratic rights in a situation where their security cannot be guaranteed is a most onerous responsibility. Under such circumstances, few EMBs across the world, if any, would contemplate proceeding with the elections as scheduled. No matter the extent of INEC’s prepared-

Reactions As expected, the postponement did not come without its fair share of drama. Just as journalists kept vigil within INEC headquarters, a group of young men and women staged a peaceful protest across the road. It was an anticipatory protest. The group suspected to be supporters of the APC said they were not on support of any move to postpone the elections. Since the news of the postponement broke late Saturday, the real reactions came on Sunday. The APC has described it as a major setback for Nigerian democracy, and the opposition. National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun said the party would hold an emergency session to study the postponement. On the other hand, the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation (PDPPCO) said it concurred with Saturday’s decision by INEC to shift the scheduled February general elections since “it is in the best interest of deepening democracy and in the national interest’’. Director of Media and Publicity of the PDPPCO, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, said that INEC ‘’must be commended for showing the courage to shift the elections after acknowledging the fact that its state of preparedness was not 100 per cent.’’ He said that it was a common knowledge that INEC has been having numerous logistical challenges, adding that the poll shift will afford them the time to tackle and resolve those challenges before the new dates that have been fixed for the elections.

Wabara backs INEC on poll shift Wale Elegbede

ormer President of the Senate, Senator Adolphus Wabara yesterday expressed support for the shift in the 2015 general elections as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), saying that the electoral body was not fully prepared for the elections. Speaking with newsmen in Abuja, Wabara lamented that his constituents in Ukwa East

and West local governments of Abia State have been denied the Permanent Votes’ Cards (PVCs), stressing that efforts to secure the cards from the local government offices of INEC have proved futile. While noting that it would have amounted to great injustice for INEC to proceed with the elections as planned on February 14, he added that the people of the two local governments cannot just fold their arms and get disenfranchised.

Also, he decried the nonavailability of PVCs in the South-East, saying that he had personally visited the local government INEC office on several occasions without success. He said: “I have visited the local government offices of INEC in Ukwa East and Ukwa West more than 20 times and each time I have been told there are no PVCs. They said that cards have not been printed from Abuja and it would have been a disservice to our people

for the election to go ahead on February 14.” Besides Wabara’s experience, sources in INEC also confirmed that at least three local governments in Plateau State have no PVCs at the moment. It was gathered that no PVC has been printed for Langtang North and South as well as Jos South councils, adding that without the postponement of the election, the people would have been disenfranchised.

Politics 17

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe is the National ViceChairman (South-West) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In this interview with ADESINA WAHAB, he speaks on the chances of President Goodluck Jonathan in the forthcoming general elections. Excerpts: The South-West is viewed as being critical to the victory of any candidate in the forthcoming presidential election, what are the chances of your party? Well, that is a critical question. Let us start by appreciating the contributions of Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State to our party. He single-handedly won Ekiti for our party. His victory is not a fluke for someone to get that overwhelming victory over an incumbent governor that was clinging to power and defeating him in all the 16 local government areas of the state. That victory gingered our party not only in the state, but in the zone. We have a good chance going by all the indices. We know how critical the South-West is to winning the election, and we are not relenting in our efforts. By winning the zone, we will get good bargaining from the Presidency. In Lagos, people may say there are power brokers in the All Progressives Congress (APC), but we have restrategised and the APC people are afraid. In Oyo, look at the crowd that welcomed President Goodluck Jonathan. We have challenges there but we are working hard to surmount those challenges. In Ogun, we are uniting the party and former Governor Gbenga Daniel, Chief Buruji Kashamu, Prince Gboyega Isiaka and others are working to give us victory. In Ekiti, our victory is a forgone conclusion as our governor is still loved by the people. We pray for God’s protection, guidance and support for him; he will give us, by the grace of God, victory. In Ondo, we are addressing the problems there and it is bad that some people would say they have been marginalised and would not want to tarry a while before defecting. Those who left have not left with their followers. What number of votes are they taking away from the PDP? Party leaders such as Dr. Bode Olajumoke, Chief Olusola Oke and others are working with Governor Olusegun Mimiko to consolidate our gains. We are not underrating anybody or group, at the same time, PDP will not compromise discipline, loyalty and respect for constituted authorities. In Lagos, the stake of PDP is increasing daily. Senator Musiliu Obanikoro is doing everything humanly possible to work with Jimi Agbaje, the governorship candidate, for victory. The cooperation of leaders is encouraging. In Osun, we have learnt some lessons from the past election there and we are not taking

APC represents dictatorship not change – Ogundipe

Ogundipe

chances. Currently, in Osun you will be proud to be a member of the PDP. I commend the doggedness of the members in Osun. I salute the courage of party leaders, especially, our gubernatorial candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore. With confidence, I can say we are going into this election in the South-West with high degree of certainty of victory. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is a factor in the PDP, but one may not be able to say he is in the PDP or APC. What is your take on this? In politics, some people have a way of deceiving others. If you are a stakeholder in a party and your supporters, more than 90 per cent, are in another party, then that person is deceiving himself. Baba is a voice but he cannot dictate to everybody. Why he has not come out to showcase the candidate of the party that he rode on its back to become president, he is in the best position to answer that. He is our father and children can disagree with their father, but as an elder, he must not rock the boat. How will he relate with Muhammadu Buhari as president? How will he relate with Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar? Presidential election is an open secret anywhere in the world. It is arranged in such a manner that no notable political figure can hide for too long before people discovered where he or she belongs. For now, we assume Baba is a member of the PDP even though his body language is showing otherwise. Until he openly denounces PDP, he still a member of the party. Like it or

leave it, he is a factor. The beauty of this game is that you cannot fool all the people all the time.

INDEP ELECT ENDENT NAT ORAL C IO OMMIS NAL SION

APC cannot win a free and fair election in this country because the party is not structured to win

There is speculation that the PDP is sponsoring parties like the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), Accord Party and Labour Party (LP). Will this politics not split the votes in the South-West? I am not aware of that. What I know is that PDP as the ruling party is contesting the forthcoming elections in all fronts. We are putting everything that we have into the poll. Don’t forget we have the responsibility to make the election free, fair and credible. My president is doing just that even though he is a candidate. He has shown enough tolerance. Some people may be working against that position. I want to assure you that they will fail woefully because in this country we need peace and we must get it. Let me tell you; APC cannot win a free and fair election in this country because the party is not structured to win. The people of this country do not trust the leadership of the APC. They know the antecedents of the leadership of the party. However hard they try to hide, their legs are out in the open. Again, nobody trusts somebody who is desperate for position of power. That is the secret. They are like a rich man who is impotent and loved by women. It is only because of the money and that is the limit. Recently, the presidential candidates signed a non-violence accord. How do you feel with the development? President Jonathan is a peace-

loving person. He will naturally sign an accord that will bring peace to this nation. That is a very unique development and I welcome it. In the PDP, we love peace, we don’t want this country to disintegrate. Our strength is in our number, togetherness and unity. What is happening to our brothers and sisters in the North-East is not good and we don’t want that to continue or even spread further. I want to laud President Jonathan for the idea. The people in the other side are saying they will form a parallel government if they lose, that is uncalled for. What profit will anybody get by killing his country? It is not by force that you rule the people. I commend the president for the effort. If somebody brings down the country, who will he rule over? The idea is good and it will let the whole world know who truly loves the people of this country. In the last four years, Jonathan has made sure the votes count and people laud the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega too. In Ekiti, during the last June governorship election, nobody voted twice. And people from far and near, commended the poll. Why should people threaten fire and brimstone because of elections? The accord is good and must be encouraged to continue. We are going to have credible poll. There is nowhere in the world where elections are perfect. What is your reaction to the fallout of PDP primaries in some states? By the dictates of PDP’s guidelines, I was in the Appeal Committee of the governorship primaries and people were given the chance to state their matters. The wish of the people must be respected; if the wish of the people does not give you the go ahead now, wait for your time and respect that decision. When you rock the boat now, which boat will you use next time which may be yours? I am appealing to those aggrieved, there is always another chance and time. Jumping from one party to another is not helping the system. People may not trust you where you are going or returning to. APC leaders are saying that the PDP is scared of Buhari and that is why issues they never raised during previous elections that he took part are now being raised. What is your take on this? They can say that, at the end of the day, if Buhari has done election thrice and lost, I see him as a serial loser. He is not getting younger and the job of being the President of Nigeria is not for the oldies. We need dynamic young minds which the candidate of PDP represents. Let Buhari go and find out why he lost in the CONTINUED ON PAGE 20

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Opinion Definitions, once more! Chimdi Maduagwu

he current political campaigns are throwing up a lot of issues, issues that should rather be left where they are unless they must be properly treated because some of them stink. One would never know how decayed our society has become and how it is capable of belching out garbage until a period like this. Now the two big giants in the political arena, The People’s Democratic Party, PDP, and The All Progressive Congress, APC, are trading blames; blames on who has contributed more to the filth in the society. Why the whole scenario has become interesting is because those who are leading the parties to the presidential polls are distinguished and honourable leaders of the country. While General Buhari is a former Head of State, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan is an incumbent president. Both have had opportunities to show themselves to the nation. This is perhaps why the presidential campaign rages with tremours of “perils past,” “sins forgiven and not forgiven,” new thoughts and new hopes as against obsolete ones. I relate all the promises, confessions and clarifications by the giant actors to my humble Anglican song about the compassion of the Lord Jesus. We sing of “New Perils Past, New Sins Forgiven;/ New Thought of Life, New Hopes of Heaven./” surely, we have passed through perilous times; surely we have sinned against each other but like the song writer, it is probably time for renewal of love. We wait for a new dawn. The big question now is: who leads us to the new dawn? The exponents of Buhari’s “Change” consciousness insist that the General has been anointed to do so because of his supposed unimpeachable character. They have released his dossier, reminding the electorate of his track record of relative honesty, firmness and most of all, integrity. It is on the basis of these and few other positive attributes, which they have contrived, that they insist that surely a deliverer is on the way. However, it appears to me that far above all these, is a burning urge on the General to redeem his hazy image as a military

or some form of an extremist. On the other hand, the Jonathanists do not pretend that they are presenting a saint, packaged in heaven and delivered to the world to cleanse it , like the classical Hercules and the “the Augean Stable.” However, to them, he is a man like any other, who feels like any other, makes the mistake of any other but is able to rise when he falls and not only rise, but move towards greater heights. Most of all, his supporters insinuate that he accepts that he is fallible and thus amenable to TRANSFORMATIONS. This is how he has become the defender of transformations. His personality has never been in doubt and the things he says he would do, he strives to do and when there are hindrances, he equally explains. Presently, a lot of revelations are emerging and most times these revelations asphyxiate the political atmosphere. It has come to the point where we need to demand that we be talked to as if we were six year old children. We need proper definition of statements, terms, and words, so that we can be sure of what to do. Then my question is what is wrong in a debate? Does it matter who organizes it since we know the purpose for which it is organized. I think the important point is to either give information or clarify doubts on issues of the nation, the political parties and the individuals. I am particularly interested in the promises being made now. Since we are in the post modern age, we need to get figures to back up claims and promises. I have heard people clamour for the reduction or even eradication of unemployment. Well, this I can assure all Nigerians appears like a recurrent decimal at all times. We recall efforts aimed at either full, partial or even tangential mobilization of Nigerians into gainful employment and productivity right from Olusegun Obasanjos’ “first missionary journey” during which he initiated the “Operation Feed the Nation (OFN)” programme. Then, there have been series of programmes and project like Ibrahim Babanjida’s National Directorate of Employment and again Obasanjo’s (second coming), National Poverty Eradication Programme, NAPEP. There was nothing

done by Buhari’s military regime towards this. Jonathan claims that he has contributed and still contributing to job creation. In addition to the existing structures of NAPEP, NEEDS etc, Jonathan’s key programmes aimed at keeping youths busy while they contribute to economic growth include those which draw upon Subsidy Re-investment Programme (SURE-P). They include Graduate Internship Scheme and Community Service Scheme. In the former, it is envisaged that about 50,000 youths would be attached to relevant firms and establishments where they would acquire skills that they would use for better and more permanent employment. The Community Service Scheme is also designed to get up to 320,000 youths busy with various support services, especially labour, in the construction of new infrastructure and rehabilitation of existing ones. In addition to these, there is YOUWIN project, which, as at the end of 2014 has midwifed disbursement of funds for 2400 viable businesses proposed by Nigerian youths and through which about 26,000 jobs have been created. It is, in fact, expected to create almost 80,000 jobs at the end of 2015. These, we understand are in addition to numerous jobs springing up from expanding industrial and manufacturing sectors as well as service providing establishments like The New Nigerian Railways. The creative and entertainment industries have attained an enviable height in the past couple of years. It is also clear that Nigeria has become the largest economy in Africa and the most sought after region in Africa by foreign investors. I agree that these are the truth but we are partially aware of them and mainly ignorant of them. We need to be educated properly and the best form of education is to let us know how these affect us as common Nigerians. We also hear others who covet the highest position in the country promise employment and job creation. Let me beseech them to please let us know how the jobs will be created. We want to be sure that those who want to rule us understand who we are, where we are coming from and where we are going to. • Maduagwu (Ph. D) (chimdim@yahoo.co.uk) wrote from Lagos.

Fayemi: Celebrating a change agent @ 50 Olayinka Oyebode

t was a warm afternoon at the OR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa, sometimes in March 2013. Dr Kayode Fayemi and I were returning to Lagos after receiving the Samsung award for Best State Government in ICT Education at an impressive ceremony in Cape Town. Mr Governor, as he is fondly called, had sought to spend some time at the business class lounge of the South African Airline, and because we were engrossed in a discussion, together with another official of the administration, Muyiwa Ogunmilade, he had urged me to come along. After going through my boarding pass and discovering that I was billed to fly the economy class, the female SAA official politely stopped me from entering the lounge. JKF’s attempt to convince her to allow me in order for us to conclude our discussion was met with a straight face by the official. The waitress however said I could be allowed in if the Governor and Ogunmilade could present their gold cards. Pronto, they both brought out their gold cards. Having confirmed the cards the official was about giving another condition when the activist in JKF came out. He politely asked that his card be returned to him and told the officials that he would rather take a walk around the airport with me rather than being denied my company at the lounge. I made a futile protest against his decision to

abandon the lounge because of me, knowing he needed to catch some rest. Alas, it was too late. “No, Yinka, it doesn’t worth it. What is the big deal about the lounge. Don’t worry, let’s just take a walk around before boarding time”. Thus we left the lounge and spent about half an hour buying books at a particular books store at the airport and the remaining time was spent strolling around before boarding time. That South African experience was for me perhaps the most humbling experience I have had as an adult. It was a lesson in simplicity and leadership taught in the simplest manner imaginable. It also typifies the experiences of many who have come in contact with Fayemi whether in the classroom, newsroom, lecture room, political rallies, in the trenches or in the hallowed chambers of the Ekiti State Executive council where he presided over the affairs of the state, together with his carefully selected team for four impactful years. Fayemi in and out of office believes in two things- service and justice. He believes life is worthless without service- service to mankind. On justice, Fayemi is a firm believer in that timeless Latin legal phrase: Fiat justitia ruat caelum (Let justice be done though the heavens fall). He remains today one of the few Nigerian politicians that have really tested the country’s legal system in the bid to determine some knotty issues. It is no longer news how he fought from one court to another for three and a half years to retrieve his mandate which he eventually got via the declara-

tion of the Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin on October 15, 2010. As Fayemi attains the golden age today, it is obvious that the energy and wisdom to run even a more impactful race in the second half of the century are bubbling in him like an hyper-active volcano. Born on February 9, 1965 into the family of the late Chief and Mrs. Francis Falade Fayemi. A native of Isan-Ekiti in Oye Local Government Area, he had his elementary education in Ibadan before attending Christ’s School, Ado- Ekiti for his secondary education between 1975 and 1980. John Kayode Fayemi received his first degree in History from the University of Lagos in 1985, a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Ife, Ile-Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), in 1987 and a doctorate in War Studies from the King’s College, University of London, England in 1993, specializing in civilian-military relations and defence planning. Prior to joining partisan politics, Dr Fayemi was the pioneer Director Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD). He was a Georgetown University Leadership Fellow in 2000 and a Senior Visiting Fellow in African Studies, North Western University, Evanston, USA in 2004. He is also an Associate Fellow of the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Ibadan and was on the Adjunct Faculty of the African Centre for Strategic Studies, National Defence University, USA, between 2001 and 2005. He was a member of

the Governing Board of the Open Society Justice Institute, New York and African Security Sector Network. Fayemi has written and lectured extensively on governance and democratization. He is also a recipient of several awards, fellowships and grants including the Ford Foundation grant on Special Initiative on Africa and the Macarthur Foundation research grant. His tenure as Governor of Ekiti State witnessed many reforms and earned the state a number of first positions in the areas of education, agriculture, health, rural development and social empowerment. This was attested to by local and international organisations leading to special recognitions including: Leadership Newspaper’s Governor of the year award, 2012; the Zik’s Prize in Leadership (Good Governance) Award in 2013; Champion Newspapers Governor of the Year award in 2014. Even with what some might consider as his foibles, there is no doubt that in JKF the researcher, the teacher, the activist, administrator and strategist come together with all the ideas that can help us change the way we think and act about leadership, scholarship, political tolerance, social justice and human capital development. From the four corners of the country and beyond come fifty gbosas for this innovator, democrat and change agent- above all, an Omoluabi - as he joins the golden club today. • Oyebode, a journalist, is former Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ekiti State

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

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Stemming the shame of executions abroad

he execution of six foreign nationals in Indonesia on January 18, has again focused the attention of Nigerians on the ignoble activities of some of their compatriots abroad, and serves as a sad reminder that many of our countrymen are languishing in prisons abroad, awaiting executions. Apart from advance fee fraud, which seems to be fading, drugs trafficking is perhaps the major issue negatively affecting the image of Nigeria and Nigerians abroad. On that January 18, two Nigerians, Solomon Okafor and Daniels Enemuo, were executed by firing squad for drug trafficking offences, along with four others from Malawi, Vietnam, the Netherlands and Brazil. Enemuo, 38, was arrested in 2004, while the age and time of arrest of Okafor was not immediately cited in most reports of the execution, although most of the six had spent ten years in prison. A few days later, it came to light that 12 other Nigerians are on death row for the same offences in the same Indonesia. Not long ago, the Nigeria’s Ambassador to China, Alhaji Aminu Wali, reportedly disclosed that 400 Nigerians were languishing in Chinese prisons

over drug-related offences, and were awaiting execution. Although the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) has expressed concern about the use of the death penalty for drug offences, while its officials have argued that capital punishment should only be applied to the crime of murder and intentional killing, some countries still believe execution of traffickers is the only way to curb a menace that could quickly devastate their populations. The executions of January 18, were carried out after Indonesia’s new president, Joko Widodo, who took office in October 2014, rejected the convicts’ petitions for clemency, despite pleas from the European Union, the Brazilian government, the Nigerian government and Amnesty International. The Federal government, in a statement issued by foreign ministry spokesman Ogbole Amedu Ode on January 19, said the executions were carried out “despite persistent pleas for clemency”. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, who spoke through a spokesman, said she was “distressed and outraged” after Indonesia ignored her last-ditch pleas and executed her countryman who was convicted of smuggling cocaine into the foreign county

in 2004. Widodo had earlier said at a public function that he planned to reject the 64 appeals for clemency he had received from drug offenders on death row. Widodo later explained, in an interview with satellite TV channel, CNN that he sanctioned the executions because too many Indonesian lives were being lost to drugs. "Every day we have 50 people die because of narcotics, of drugs. In one year, it's 18,000 people who die because of narcotics. We are not going to compromise for drug dealers. No compromise. No compromise," he said. Responding to the negative reactions across the globe to the executions, Indonesia’s AttorneyGeneral H.M. Prasetyo called on the international community to respect Indonesia’s laws. Mr Prasetyo said a Nigerian man, Silvester Obiekwe, had been arrested on January 25, a week after Solomon Okafor and Daniels Enemuo were executed, for running a drug syndicate, and added that the "shocking thing" was that the syndicate had been run from jail. This made him to submit that “Indonesia is clearly in a state of emergency with drugs," and that it made the government “realise that court sentences related to drug dealers and kingpins -

when final and legally binding - must be executed." The January 18 executions, the first in that country since 2013, when Indonesia resumed executions after a five-year gap, have again brought to the fore the vexed issue of Nigerians and drugs trafficking. We urge the federal government, through all the relevant agencies to step up efforts at providing more opportunities for gainful employment for Nigerians, particularly school leavers and graduates, and also embark on widespread media campaign against drugs dealing and trafficking, and its adverse consequences. The larger society too, particularly our traditional institutions, religious organisations, community associations and age groups, need to shelve all practices that seem to celebrate riches without investigation or minding the source of such. Doing these would be taking away the motivation of those with the propensity to venture into drugs trafficking, and will save the country some of the embarrassments of having its citizens executed in foreign lands, and the attendant shame brought on Nigerians all over the world in this age of the Internet where such odious news spread to all corners of the globe almost instantly.

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Politics

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

past. Nigerians are saying no to the person who truncated democracy in the past, who has no mind of his own, who is being pushed around. Jonathan is the gap between the young and the old by his age. A situation where the issue of perjury is rocking the camp of a presidential candidate is not good enough. For those saying Jonathan is not fighting corruption, the answer given by our president is far-reaching, there is separation of powers. They want him to abuse the seat thereafter go out to condemn him, but in-

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ogundipe: Jonathan’ll harvest votes in South-West stead President Jonathan is operating within the purview of democracy. I will forever remember his now famous quote that his ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian. Thank God today Jonathan is president, otherwise people like Governor Rotimi Amaechi would have been in jail for treasonable felony

by now. But the president never allowed himself to be pushed to doing illegal things. Fair hearing is a requirement in the rule of democracy. People are asking Buhari for his basic educational qualification, but his sponsors are saying something else instead of producing the certificate. It is an issue if he does not have the required ed-

ucational qualification. Instead of WASSCE, the old man produced statement of result from a wrong source. The cover up game continues. He said he will stop Boko Haram within one week of his tenure, which shows who their sponsor is. With Jonathan, the transformation is on the right track moving forward. The PDP under Jonathan

has fulfilled all electoral promises, we cannot afford to go back to the type of democracy practised by the ‘Jagabans’ (the likes of Bola Tinubu). The polity is tensed with the forthcoming elections such that some people are afraid of the continued corporate existence of the country. After the election,

Nigeria’s unity will be stronger. We will live together in harmony. Those importing insurgency will be put to shame. Prophets of doom will be disappointed. Nothing in the horizon tells me Nigeria will cease to exist as a one entity. Some people are saying that Nigeria will disintegrate for political reason, to gain attention and extort people. The prediction of the enemy will not overcome God’s agenda for Nigeria. By the time they are not doing well in the campaign, they will try to throw spanner in the wheel of progress, but that cannot stand. What are the chances of Jonathan in the poll? In the 2011 election, we had over 22 million votes. The then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) put together did not get the PDP figure. The same pattern is repeating itself and more people in the PDP-controlled states are collecting cards. The percentage of voters compared to what we had last time has shown that young people are now coming out to vote. That is why our president is focusing on the young ones and we will win and those preaching violence will be disappointed. In Ekiti, for instance, more people will come out and vote for President Jonathan. We are not relying on the power of the incumbent, but on what Jonathan has done in sectors such as agriculture, aviation, education, transport, health etc. Despite the global economic recession, our economy is still doing better than some people expected. If Buhari is saying he has integrity, how did 53 suitcases disappear under his watch? Why did he jail people without trial? They want a change from democracy to dictatorship. The coming of Buhari could be an arrangement between him and Tinubu. What is the health status of Buhari? This is vital so that we don’t repeat our previous mistake. We need a strong person who is sound in mind to lead us. Jonathan is the person. A man who believes in the tenets of democracy, a man who despite the challenges facing Nigeria, he allows the rule of law.

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Insurance

How retail banking can succeed in Nigeria, by experts

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Guinness Nigeria: Strong contest stifles profit

Money Line

Interview

Risk transfer: Nigeria in perspective

Housing: Developers, govt should focus on middle class – Ogunwusi

42-43

Business What's news

Vehicle imports into Nigeria drop 50% The massive importation of used vehicles by Nigerian auto dealers through the Cotonou Port, has reduced the number of automobiles coming into the country by some 50 per cent, New Telegraph has learnt.

p.22

Technology: Nigeria, others ahead in use, says IDC The International Data Corporation (IDC) has affirmed Nigeria’s leadership role in machine-to-machine (M2M) opportunities within the African continent.

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L-R: Group Head, Strategy and Corporate Communications, FMDQ OTC Plc, Kaodi Ugoji; Divisional Head, Operations and Technology, Dipo Odeyemi; Managing Director/CEO, Bola Onadele Koko; Divisional Head, Legal, Regulatory and Company Secretary, Atinuke Taiwo, during a media briefing on the company’s market review and outlook in Lagos. PHOTO: ADEYANJU OLOWOJOBA

Exim Bank tightens noose on Nigeria’s $100m power credit RECIPIENTS

The Business Desk

Cross River, Kaduna and Enugu states to benefit from the electricity project this year

Ayodele Aminu

Deputy Editor (Business)

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Industry & Agric Editor

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Abdulwahab Isa

Bayo Akomolafe

he Export-Import Bank (Exim Bank) of India has issued stiff conditions for the release of $100 million credit for financing Nigeria’s power projects in 96 communities. The bank said that not less than 75 per cent of the goods, machinery, equipment and services, including consultancy services for Nigeria’s power projects, would be supplied from India.

Finance Editor

Kunle Azeez

Senior Correspondent

Chuks Onuanyin Energy

Nnamdi Amadi Reporter

Johnson Adebayo

Asst Production Editor

The agreement, according to a document obtained by New Telegraph, also stated that the Federal Government must provide a Line of Credit (LOC) of $100 million to purchase the eligible goods. It added that

shipments under the LOC must be declared on GR/SDF forms as per instructions issued by its Reserve Bank from time to time. SDF is a document submitted to the Customs authorities

by exporters verifying that shipping bills are accurate and complete, while GR is a guaranteed form submitted by exporters before goods are CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

Waning gas supply threatens N3trn investments DISCOs cavil as TCN rations power Adeola Yusuf

he drastic fall in gas supply to the thermal plants has touched the lowest level in about three years, worsening

the threat facing the N3.06 trillion ($18 billion) power investments. New Telegraph gathered at the weekend that the increased attacks on pipelines have cut gas the supply to

Alaoji, Omoku, Olorunsogo and Calabar power plants. Two major supply lines, the 210,000 barrels per day Trans-Forcados and 180,000 barrels per day Trans-Niger Pipeline have suffered 50 attacks in the last six months. Sources said that the same fate befell Escravos pipeline, alleging that this has forced CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

Rates Dashboard INFLATION RATE December 2014.........................8% November 2014........................7.9% October 2014............................8.1%

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

EXCHANGE RATE (Parallel as at Feb. 6)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N209 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N310 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N237

l Foreign Reserves – $34.09bn as at 02/02/2015

Source: CBN

EXCHANGE RATE (Official as at Feb. 6)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N169 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N254.46 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N191.69

Business | News

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Vehicle imports into Nigeria drop 50% DESTRUCTIVE Nigeria’s auto policy boosts Cotonou Port with influx of used vehicles Bayo Akomolafe

he massive importation of used vehicles by Nigerian auto dealers through the Cotonou Port, has reduced the number of automobiles coming into the country by some 50 per cent, New Telegraph has learnt. It was gathered that Benin was gaining more business as fairly used vehicles meant for Nigerian market are being imported through the neighbouring Port of Cotonou, Benin Republic. Managing Director of Port and Terminal Multi-services Limited (PTML), Mr. Asconio Russo, who confirmed this, said that the volume of vehicles being imported into Nigeria has dropped sharply due to implementation of the automotive policy. Russo, who spoke in his Roll-on-Roll-off terminal in Lagos, lamented that the volume of vehicles being imported into the country had reduced by half since the introduction of the auto policy. He noted that the trend may get worse from April this year

when the policy would be fully implemented. He said: “I may not want to comment on the government’s policy because it is not my prerogative, but I can give you the figures and tell you the number of vehicles being discharged all over Nigerian. I am not talking about our terminal, but in Nigeria, it has dropped 50 percent. “So the calculation is, if the whole of Lagos was discharging 20,000 or 25,000 vehicles every month, it is like we are now doing 10,000 vehicles and these are the ones coming in RoRo. There are also some coming in containers, which has also disappeared. “Everyone can understand what that means and we know that Cotonou’s population has not increased from 10 million people they were. “This policy is dramatically affecting the port industry and this is affecting the overall population because the prices of vehicles are going up in the market and this is something we see every day,” Russo stated. Also, the national President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittuoro, who was on a visit to the roro terminal told Russo that his association had always been critical of the auto policy because

Exim Bank tightens noose on Nigeria’s $100m credit CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21

shipped. The projects include commissioning of transmission lines, 33 KV, 33/0/415 KV distribution transformers and associated accessories for 96 communities in three senatorial zones in Cross River, Kaduna and Enugu states. It was learnt that the Enugu State’s project would gulp $40 million for the construction of 132/33 KV substation; Kaduna State’s solar mini grid electrification and solar street lighting will take $29.85 million, while the construction of 2 x 26 MW gas-based power plant in Cross River State will use $30 million. Exim Bank’s Chief General Manager, Mr Chanda. D Srinivasan said: “Out of the total credit by the Exim Bank under this agreement, the goods and services, including consultancy

services of the value of at least 75 per cent of the contract price, shall be supplied by the seller from India and the remaining 25 per cent goods and services may be procured by the seller for the purpose of eligible contract from outside India.” Besides, he stated that the goods, machinery, equipment and services, including consultancy services, must be those eligible for export under the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) of India. Srinivasan noted: “Under the LOC, the last date for opening of Letters of Credit and Disbursement will be 48 months from the scheduled completion date of contract in the case of project exports and 72 months (May 21, 2020) from the execution date of the credit agreement in the case of supply contracts.”

the implementation would affect members businesses. He said: “We have always been critical of this automotive policy and we have not changed our position. By April when the 35 per cent

levy is added, it will be a problem because there will be no cargo through here, our people will lose jobs and we will lose the whole revenue. “How do you recover from the investment you have made so far? It is a

very serious matter because how many Nigerians can afford to buy a brand new vehicle in this country?” So, when duty on fairly, used vehicle is 70 per cent and by December, it will be 100 per cent. Will

it receive popular acceptance? Will government not see us as saboteurs because this is pre-election and post-election? We have to watch it because it will be tough this year and we all know this.”

L-R: Executive Director, South South/South East, Skye Bank Plc, Mrs Ibiye Ekong; Doyen of the Nigerian stockbrokers, Mr. Sam Ndata; and the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Skye Bank, Mr. Timothy Oguntayo, at the Stockbrokers forum hosted by the bank in Lagos at the weekend.

Waning gas supply threatens N3trn investments CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21

Chevron to shut Escravos gas supply, a claim, which its spokesperson, Mr. Deji Haastrup, denied. Investigation by our correspondent showed that the increased attacks on pipelines have crashed power generation and supply by over 1,000 Mega Watt (MW), a development that has put the Distribution Companies (Discos) on the edge, triggering criticism by their customers. To cushion the effects of this supply dip, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), further checks revealed, is rationing 2,470 Mega Watts (MW) among the 12 DISCOs. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, which currently generates 2,470 MW, has an estimated population of 170 million people. “As I am talking to you now, the pressure is on us,” Chief Executive Officer of one of the DISCOs told New Telegraph after his anonymity had been guaranteed. “Don’t forget that we are the ones that relate with the people directly and a lot of our customers still believe that we are to be held responsible if there is any shortfall in gen-

eration and supply,” he added. “We are on load-shedding now and we only implore our customers to understand,” he said. Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo and the Group Executive Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. David Ige, had also acknowledged that power supply had fallen, blaming it on shortfall in power generation, which was caused by fall in gas supply to the thermal plants. The duo also condemned the increasing spate of attacks on gas pipelines across the country. Ige noted that attacks on pipeline are “consistent as we approach the political peak period,” adding that there “is a need for a rethink of the strategies.” He said: “Since the beginning of this year, the Trans-Forcados has been breached four times. It is a pure criminality by a few criminal-minded people. “None of our facilities has been in operation for more than three consecutive days this year. On the average, it takes about 10 days to fix this and the loss is not easily quantified.”

He lamented that between January and February 2015 alone, the Trans-Forcados Crude Pipeline was attacked and vandalised four times, adding that none of the corporation’s gas pipelines have been able to run two straight days without been brought down. The NNPC GED said that the corporation was exploring a number of options on how to tackle the pipeline vandalism menace, ranging from an aggressive community engagement to installation of technological gadgets to stave off the vandals. Meanwhile, the Commander, anti-pipeline vandalism Force Head-quarters, Abuja, Friday Ibadan, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, said that over 120 cases of vandalism spread across the Federal High Courts are being drawn back by bottlenecks. He said: “We have over 6,000 kilometres of crude pipeline and over 5000 kilometers of PMS lines across the country,” he said on the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) programme, adding, “We need to double our efforts in terms of intelligence.”

INTERNATIONAL WEEKLY

In collaboration with

Sanctity of Truth

Online, Hackers For Hire By MATTHEW GOLDSTEIN

A man in Sweden says he will pay up to $2,000 to anyone who can break into his landlord’s website. A woman in California says she will pay $500 for someone to hack into her boyfriend’s Facebook and Gmail accounts to see if he is cheating on her. Hacking is no longer just the domain of intelligence agencies, international criminal gangs and disgruntled “hacktivists” taking aim at big targets. Rather, it is an increasingly personal enterprise. At a time when huge stealth attacks on companies like Sony Pictures, JPMorgan Chase and Home Depot attract attention, less noticed are smaller acts of espionage. A new website, called Hacker’s List, seeks to match hackers with people looking to gain access to email accounts, take down unflattering photos from a website or gain access to a company’s database. In the first three months

Where to get help to break into a boyfriend’s email.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN MOORE/GETTY IMAGES

Signs of Life as Ebola Ebbs With new cases of Ebola numbering in single digits in Liberia, daily rhythms are returning. A baby born in West Point township, and, top, beachgoers.

By NORIMITSU ONISHI Monrovia, Liberia

of operation after a November opening, over 500 hacking jobs were put out to bid on the site. It is done anonymously, with the website’s operator collecting a fee on each completed assignment. The site offers to hold a customer’s payment until the task is completed. Over a few days, offers to hire hackers at prices ranging from $100 to $5,000 came in from around the globe. One day this month, the site, which is registered in New Zealand, listed more than 680 jobs and 1,800 hackers. A bidder who claimed to be living in Australia would be willing to pay up to $2,000 to get a list of clients from a competitor’s database, according to a recent post. “I want to know who their customers are, and how much they are charging them,” the bidder wrote. Others were looking to retrieve a lost password or change

Continued on Page 26

LIFE IS EDGING back to normal after the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history. At the height of the epidemic, Liberians met horrific deaths inside the blue-painted walls of the Nathaniel V. Massaquoi Elementary School, as classrooms became Ebola holding centers and the education of a nation’s children, shuttered in their homes for safety, was abruptly suspended. Now, parents are streaming into the schoolyard once again, not to visit their stricken loved ones, but with their restless children in tow, to register for the start of classes in a delayed and shortened academic year. Florence Page, 11, bounded ahead, brimming with pent-up energy, as her mother, Mabel Togba, paused to look warily into the school building through its padlocked doors. “They still haven’t told us that Liberia is free of Ebola, so I’m still afraid,” said Ms. Togba, 42. “But it’s better than to leave my children at home doing nothing.” New Ebola cases in Liberia, where streets were littered with the dead just a few months ago, now number in the single digits,

according to the World Health Organization. In neighboring Sierra Leone and Guinea, the other two nations in the Ebola hot zone, new cases have fallen sharply, dropping to fewer than 100 in a week at the end of January — a level not seen in the region since June. With a virus as deadly as Ebola, officials warn that the epidemic will not be over until cases reach zero in all three countries. But after nearly 9,000 deaths from the disease, the W.H.O. has announced that it is focusing on ending the Ebola ep-

idemic, no longer simply slowing its spread. Here in Monrovia, the capital, ambulances and body collection vehicles that once barreled through the streets are a rare sight. Soccer matches are played on weekend mornings. People shake hands, squeeze into taxis and touch during conversations, as the fear of the virus ebbs and daily rhythms return. “We used to be afraid to touch our friends, but the fear is small, small now,” Patrick Chea, 19, said as he playfully placed his

hand on the head of Sonnie Kollie, a 16-year-old girl — who promptly punched him on the shoulder. Experts are trying to understand how the disease, which has defied the ominous predictions of the world’s top infectious disease researchers, appears to be extinguishing itself. In September, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had projected that by January 20, the outbreak could reach 1.4 million cases in

Continued on Page 27

INTELLIGENCE

WORLD TRENDS

MONEY & BUSINESS

ARTS & DESIGN

Independent Greeks, or just isolated? PAGE 24

The high cost of Italy’s noble life. PAGE 28

Promoting women to boardrooms. PAGE 29

Black subjects for new masterpieces. PAGE 34

THE NEW YORK TIMES INTERNATIONAL WEEKLY

Sanctity of Truth

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

O P I N I O N & C O M M E N TA RY

ED I T O R I A L O F T H E T I M ES The fighting in eastern Ukraine has flared up again, putting an end to any myth about the cease-fire that was supposed to be in force since September. Though the Russian economy is staggering under the twinned onslaught of low oil prices and sanctions, President Vladimir V. Putin has sharply cranked up his direct support for the rebels in the provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk, while continuing to baldly deny it and to blame all the violence on the United States. Mea nwh i le, Uk ra ine is broke, and without the military means to move against the Russian-backed rebels. Most of the victims are civilians who struggle with hunger and dislocation in the rubble of the combat zones and die in the constant

Aiding Ukraine exchanges of shells and rockets. The eruption of fighting in recent weeks, which was not supposed to happen until spring, has given new force to pleas to the Obama administration to give Ukraine the means to resist Mr. Putin — in money and in arms. Certainly the United States and Europe should increase their aid to Ukraine and find ways to expand sanctions against Russia. NATO’s commander, General Philip Breedlove, is said to support providing weapons and equipment to Kiev. And the American Secretary of State

John Kerry is said to be open to discussing the idea. But lethal assistance could open a dangerous chapter in the struggle — one that Mr. Putin would quite possibly welcome, as it would “confirm” his propaganda claims of Western aggression. So far, President Barack Obama has cautiously pledged to help Ukraine in every way “short of military confrontation.” Yet with sanctions and diplomacy making no headway against Russian aggression, it is imperative that the United States and its allies take a new look at what would bring Russia to

a serious negotiation. Along with denying the direct involvement of his troops in eastern Ukraine, Mr. Putin has not made clear what he is trying to achieve. Russian officials have suggested that Moscow has no interest in annexing eastern Ukraine, the way it grabbed Crimea, but rather seeks a Ukrainian federation in which the pro-Russian provinces would have relative autonomy, along with assurances that Ukraine will not move to join NATO. There is potential for negotiations there. Yet the latest rebel attacks have focused on Mari-

upol, an important port on the Black Sea, and on expanding the rebels’ control to areas that would give their self-proclaimed “republics” greater military and economic cohesion. And that speaks to long-term rebel occupation. The West must make clear to Mr. Putin that if a federation is his goal, the United States and its allies will actively use their good offices with Kiev to seek a workable arrangement. But if the evidence continues to accumulate that Mr. Putin and the rebels are carving out a permanent rebel-held enclave in eastern Ukraine, like Transdniestria, Abkhazia or South Ossetia, he must know that the United States and Europe will be compelled to increase the cost.

INTELLIGENCE/TAKIS THEODOROPOULOS

Greece’s Identity Crisis Athens Greeks are sick and tired of the troika, represented by three gray-suited gentlemen who appear regularly on the evening news. Each time these officials from the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund visited — four times a year since 2010 — Greeks knew that a new package of austerity measures was on the way: there would be additional taxes combined with wage cuts, a few hundred more small businesses would go bankrupt and a few thousand more names would appear on the unemployment rolls. Greeks are sick and tired of the survival plans elaborated by European politicians and their own leaders. They are sick and tired of a rotten and corrupt state that appeals to them for help. Taxation on real estate is still based on the pre-crisis values, which is almost 40 percent higher than the actual commercial value. The Greek state, which citizens never really trusted, suffers from a form of senile gluttony. Hungry for the fees for permits and certificates that nourish corruption, it turns any private initiative into a Sisyphian punishment. Something like 50 documents and two months of queuing are required to start a small publishing business. The state is a sick LeviaTakis Theodoropoulos is a novelist and a columnist at The Athens Daily Kathimerini. Send comments to intelligence@nytimes.com.

than that asks people to sacrifice their jobs, their homes, their dignity. Since 2010, economists have led the way, proposing solutions that seem more like astrological predictions. Politicians speak like accounting managers and try to ignore the huge debt that has paralyzed the country, though their policies brought it on. Democracy is based on trust, but insecurity reigns in Greece. The new government in Athens is a political hybrid based on a coalition between the radical left and a small nationalistic, xenophobic and anti-Semitic party of the far right. The coalition is populist, rooted in the language of Euroskepticism, which has replaced the traditional anti-Americanism of the Greek left. How else can we explain why Marine Le Pen, the head of the extreme right National Front of France, congratulated Greece’s new prime minister, Alexis Tsipras? How else can we explain why the new foreign minister, an ex-member of the pro-Soviet Greek Communist Party, is reluctant to extend sanctions against Russia for its intervention in Ukraine? Euroskepticism in Greece has become an existential issue, which risks turning the country not only against Brussels’s bureaucracy, but also against Western cultural values. The radical left and the nationalists first met in 2011, when thousands of protesters gathered daily in Athens’s Syntagma Square to hurl insults at the Greek Parliament, the government, Angela Merkel and the

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If Greece chooses Venezuela’s path, shortages could result. Handouts in Greece in 2013. memorandum signed between Greece and the troika of creditors. The protesters, known as the “Aganaktismenoi,” were the Greek version of the Spanish “Indignados,” who filled the public squares in Madrid around the same time. The current minister of finance, Yanis Varoufakis, was a prominent figure in the square, haranguing the people like a latter-day Danton, while a few meters away the skin-heads of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn waved Greek flags. It was then and there that the rhetoric of the new populism was formed. It was then and there that Syriza, a small party of the left with a young leader who named his son Ernesto after Che Guevara, met with the Independent Greeks party, whose leaders have declared that airplanes spray the people of Athens with mind-altering gases. (It sounds like a joke, but they mean it.) Since 2011, at the urging of the Germans, the government has taken austerity measures that have decimated the middle class. Heavy and unjust taxes have been levied, with no plausible hope of escape or economic

growth. The public health system has collapsed, public education is suffering and fantasies of abandoning the eurozone in favor of the “new drachma” are combined with even more exotic fantasies. Greeks can go on dreaming of becoming the Venezuelans of the Mediterranean. Hugo Chávez has fans in the new government. For them, shortages of soap, toi-

Populism on the left and right, rooted in Euroskepticism. let paper and food basics are insignificant when contemplating your place in “History” and the importance of “National Independence.” If you want to play a word game, just substitute “Isolation” for “Independence.” Greece has to change. The new government has to fulfill a contract based on abandoning austerity and fighting corruption.

We shall find out if it chooses a strategy of clashing with Europe, which could lead to Greece’s isolation and a future as a small, failed state in the southern Balkans. If the Syriza party tries to carry out everything that it promised its supporters, a conflict with our European partners is probably inevitable. In that case, the country will face a destiny that Greeks thought was behind them, somewhere in the pages of history books. Other countries of the European south — Spain, France, Portugal or Italy — would still be European countries even if they were not part of the European Union. They’ve been through all the phases of European history, from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment. Greece without the European Union will have to reinvent its identity. And as we know from the miserable king of Thebes, Oedipus, the results can be very risky. Trying to save his city from Apollo’s curse, he realized that he was an incestuous murderer. He knew what man is, as he solved the riddle of the Sphinx, but he did not know himself.

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Guantánamo Still Rankles Neighbors By WILLIAM NEUMAN

PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANDREA BRUCE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Bahamian Rules Hit Haitians By FRANCES ROBLES

NASSAU, Bahamas — Kenson Timothee was walking down the street when a uniformed officer asked him a question that sends Bahamians of Haitian descent like him into a panic these days: Do you have a passport? Mr. Timothee, who was born in the Bahamas to illegal Haitian immigrants, wound up jailed in immigration detention for six weeks. He is one of hundreds of people swept up in a fiercely debated new immigration policy in the Bahamas requiring everyone to hold a passport, a rule that human rights groups say unfairly targets people of Haitian descent. Mr. Timothee had proof that he was born in the Bahamas, but he had trouble obtaining his absentee father’s birth certificate so his application for Bahamian citizenship was never completed. “I showed them that I had applied for citizenship, but they said that wasn’t good enough; as far as they are concerned, you are not Bahamian, you are Haitian, and you need to get deported,” Mr. Timothee said. “I don’t know anything about Haiti.” The Bahamian government has announced that by next fall, schools will be asked to ensure that every child has a student permit. The annual $125 permit and a passport with a residency stamp will be required even of children born in the Bahamas who do not hold Bahamian citizenship. The tough new policy echoes similar stances around the region, where new citizenship policies and anti-immigration measures have overwhelmingly affected Haitians, who are fleeing the hemisphere’s poorest country. The top court in the Dominican Republic ruled in 2013 that the children of illegal immigrants, even if they are born in the country, did not have the right to citizenship. Facing an international backlash, the Dominican government came up with a plan to prevent tens of thousands of people from becoming stateless. In Turks and Caicos, a top immigration official vowed early in 2013 to hunt down and capture Haitians illegally in

Kenson Timothee fears deportation. Top, raids are common in Nassau shantytowns, like the one where these two boys of Haitian descent live. the country, promising to make their lives “unbearable.” In Brazil, politicians considered closing a border with Peru last year to stem the tide of Haitians, and in December, Canada announced that it would resume deporting Haitians. Here in the Bahamas, Mr. Timothee’s arrest coincided with stepped-up raids in predominantly Haitian shantytowns, where people who lacked

Anti-immigration moves spread across the Caribbean. passports or work permits were apprehended. When illegal immigrants ran from officers, the agents knocked down doors and took their children, and the photos of toddlers being carried away circulated widely. Since the policy took effect November 1, children born in the Bahamas have been deported with their parents, and others with Haitian-sounding names have been pulled from school classrooms, human rights observers said. In September, 241

Haitians were deported. Though 85 percent of Bahamians support the new policy, according to one poll, it has set off international condemnation. Citing some of the more alarming cases, including that of a Haitian woman who gave birth on an immigration detention center floor, several international groups have asked the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to intervene. Immigration officials in the Bahamas say their policies do not target any particular group, provide a better sense of who is living in their country, and could deter thousands of Haitian migrants from taking to the high seas each year in boats that often sink. But Annette M. Martínez Orabona, director of the Caribbean Institute for Human Rights, said the new policy fit into a broad context of immigration crackdowns in the region. “It’s all guided by discriminatory practices toward persons of Haitian origin,” she said. Children like Mr. Timothee’s 5-year-old daughter are in a precarious legal situation, she said. If nationality is passed down by blood and Mr. Timothee has no citizenship, then what passport would his daughter get? “The third generation is in a black hole,” Ms. Martínez said. In the Bahamas, the Constitution says that people born there to parents who were not citizens have the right to apply for citizenship between their 18th and 19th birthdays. In a country where one in 10 Bahamians is of Haitian descent, many people never apply, and others face years of administrative delays. The new policy forces them to apply for a passport from their parents’ country of origin. “It’s a trick,” said Fred R. Smith, a civil rights lawyer in the Bahamas who has become the policy’s most vocal critic. “Once you apply for a Haitian passport, you’re already a citizen of another country, and you no longer fit into a category where the Bahamas is under an obligation to give you citizenship. You are no longer stateless.”

GUANTÁNAMO, Cuba — In this city of about 216,000 people, with a prosperous-looking downtown and decrepit back streets, residents have repeatedly been reminded over the years that they stand virtually face to face with the enemy. “It’s a little bit delicate,” said Geny Jarrosay, 25, an art student who has created pieces on the complex relations between the United States naval base at Guantánamo and the city of Guantánamo, where he grew up. “Coexisting with it is like having a person you don’t like living in your house for 50 years, and you’ve gotten used to both the good and the bad.” The base gives Cuba, an island nation, a sort of de facto land border, and a hostile one at that. “We’re very conscious that it’s American territory even though it’s not,” Mr. Jarrosay said. “It’s Cuban territory.” Despite the thaw in relations between the United States and Cuba, the base remains a sore point for Cubans. A senior United States State Department official said that Cuban negotiators had raised their oft-repeated demand for the return of the base during the secret talks that culminated in December’s announcement that the two countries would re-establish diplomatic relations. It might be said that the Guantánamo base is the last consequence of America’s 1898 invasion of Cuba in the midst of the island’s war of independence from Spain. A peace treaty ending the Spanish-American War in 1898 installed the United States as the island’s administrator, which it remained until 1902, when Washington allowed Cuba to govern itself. But the price was the hated Platt Amendment, a series of conditions written into the Cuban Constitution that gave the United States sway over Cuban affairs and the right to establish naval bases there. For many years, the city of Guantánamo and nearby towns like Caimanera were closely linked to the base. Many residents worked there, and American troops disported in the local brothels and bars. But after Fidel Castro came to power in 1959, the base became a point of repeated friction. Cuba refuses to cash the checks sent

by the United States to pay the annual rent of $4,085. When the Bush administration built a prison on the base to house captured terrorism suspects after 9/11, Cuba strenuously objected. President Barack Obama ordered the closing of the prison after he took office in 2009, but he has not been able to fulfill his pledge. And even after the prison is shut down, it is unlikely that the base will be returned to Cuba any time soon. Jana K. Lipman, an associate professor of history at Tulane University in New Orleans, said the political risks of returning it were too great. Nearly all the people interviewed here said the base should be returned to Cuba. “It’s Cuban territory; it doesn’t belong to” the United States, said Iliana Cotilla, a nurse. “It’s

Reports of torture have deepened the ire of Cubans. a lack of respect to have that on our territory, to be abusing and torturing people there.” There is generally no day-today contact between Cubans and the base, which is several kilometers away and out of sight. A resident of Caimanera, who lives within the restricted zone that requires a pass to enter, said that it was like living on the border between hostile countries. But having a military base in the neighborhood does have its advantages, said the man. “It’s very calm, it’s very controlled, and there is no crime or drugs,” he said. And residents get a cash bonus for living there. Clara Duany, 74, said that she worked on the base as a housekeeper from 1956 to 1960. She said that during Fidel Castro’s guerrilla war against the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, she smuggled medicine from the base to the rebels. Ms. Duany said she felt no rancor toward the Americans. “If they call me I will go work there again,” she said. “I liked every day. Everything. Yes, too much.”

A Cuban checkpoint on the road to the Guantánamo naval base.

WILLIAM NEUMAN/THE NEW YORK TIMES

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U.S. Rethinks ‘Tough’ Crime Controls By ERIK ECKHOLM

Bullets were flying in the cities. Crack wars trapped people in their homes. The year was 1994, and President Bill Clinton captured the grim mood in America declaring “gangs and drugs have taken over our streets” as he signed the most far-reaching crime bill in United States history. The new law expanded the death penalty, and offered the states billions of dollars to hire more police officers and to build more prisons. But what was not clear was that violent crime had peaked in the early ’90s, starting a decline that has cut America’s rates of murder, robbery and assault by half. Perhaps nowhere has the drop been more stunning than in New York City, which reported only 328 homicides for 2014, compared with 2,245 in 1990. Now, Democrats and Republicans alike are rethinking the costly infrastructure of crime control and incarceration born of the earlier crime wave. “The judicial system has been a critical element in keeping violent criminals off the street,” said Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois. “But now we’re stepping back, and I think it’s about time, to ask whether the dramatic increase in incarceration was warranted.” The reasons for the broad drop in crime remain elusive. There are, however, some areas of consensus. The closing of openair drug markets drove down shootings in many urban areas. A revolution in urban policing, in which officers concentrate on “hot spots,” as small as a block, that are responsible for outsize

High incarceration rates do little to cut down on crime.

ÁNGEL FRANCO/THE NEW YORK TIMES

Closing urban open-air drug markets drove down shootings. A New York street in 1989. mayhem, has helped reduce crime rates. The major increases in drug and gun sentences in the 1980s and ’90s played a modest role, most experts say. Various experts have also linked the fall in violence to the aging of the population and low inflation rates. But none of these factors fully explain a drop that occurred, in tandem, in much of the world. “Canada, with practically none of the policy changes we point to here, had a comparable decline in crime over the same period,” said Franklin E. Zimring, an expert in criminal justice at the University of California, Berkeley.

The fall in serious crime was accompanied by declines in other social ills such as teenage pregnancy, child abuse and juvenile delinquency, emphasizing the role of cultural shifts beyond the influence of the justice system. “Young people are growing up in a safer environment and behaving more responsibly,” said Jeremy Travis, president of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. Along with uncertainty about the sources of lower crime are contentious debates about what should come next. How far can incarceration be reduced without endangering safety? Where is the proper line between

aggressive, preventive policing and intrusive measures? The rise in incarceration has been even more striking than the decline in crime, leading to growing agreement on both the right and the left that it has gone too far. From the early 1970s to 2009, the share of American residents in state or federal prison multiplied fourfold, reaching 1.5 million on any given day. “The policy decisions to make long sentences longer and to impose mandatory minimums have had minimal effect on crime,” Mr. Travis said. Higher imprisonment might explain from 10 percent to, at most, 25 percent of the crime

drop since the early 1990s, said Richard Rosenfeld of the University of Missouri-St. Louis. But it brought diminishing returns, he said, as those committing less severe crimes received lengthy sentences. Many states have acted to reduce sentences for nonviolent crimes and to improve treatment services, while still bringing down crime rates. In the wake of the police killings of unarmed black men in Missouri and New York last year, President Barack Obama established a task force that is expected to recommend increases in community policing and other changes intended to repair the gulf between law enforcers and minorities. Given how poorly trends in crime were foreseen in the past, there is no guarantee that crime rates will not rise again. But there is agreement on measures outside the criminal justice system that could foster further declines or blunt any rise, said Daniel S. Nagin of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Enriching the early childhoods of high-risk children, expanding drug treatment programs and offering more mental health services are examples. “One clearly bad option,” Dr. Nagin said, “is turning prisons into substitutes for mental hospitals.”

Online, Where You Can Hire a Hacker Continued from Page 23 a school grade. Hacker’s List shows just how commonplace low-profile hacking has become and the challenge such activity presents for law enforcement at a time when authorities are concerned about data security. The website, which is registered in New Zealand, is modeled after several online businesses in which companies seeking freelancers can put projects out to bid. Hacking into individual email or social media accounts occurs on a fairly regular basis, according to computer security experts and law enforcement officials. The site did get a favorable review recently on hackerforhirereview.com, which specializes in assessing the legitimacy of such services. The reviewer and owner of that site, who would identify himself only as “Eric” in emails, said he gave his top rating to Hacker’s List because it’s a “really cool concept” that limits the ability of customers and hackers to take advantage of one another. Some of the jobs being sought

on Hacker’s List — breaking into another person’s email account — are not legal. The founders of Hacker’s List, however, contend that they are insulated from any legal liability because they neither endorse nor condone illegal activities. The website includes a 10-page terms and conditions section and forbids using “the service for any illegal purposes.” Some experts say it is not clear whether Hacker’s List is doing anything wrong in serving as a meeting ground for hackers and those seeking to employ them. Yalkin Demirkaya, president of the private investigation company Cyber Diligence, and a former commanding officer of the New York Police Department’s computer crimes group, said a crackdown would depend on whether law enforcement officials saw it as a priority. He said Hacker’s List may get by because many of the “people posting the ads are probably overseas.” But Thomas G. A. Brown, a former chief of the computer and intellectual property crime unit of the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan, said hacker-for-hire websites posed

problems. “Hackers for hire can permit nontechnical individuals to launch cyberattacks with a degree of deniability, lowering the barriers to entry for online crime,” Mr. Brown said. Still, the three founders of Hacker’s List are not willing to go public with their own identities. After registering with the website and beginning an email conversation, a reporter contacted one of the founders. The founder, who identified himself only as “Jack,” said in emails that he and two friends had founded Hacker’s List and that it was based in Colorado. Jack described himself as a longtime hacker and said that his partners included a person with a master’s degree in business administration and a lawyer. He said that the three were advised by legal counsel on how to structure the website to avoid liability for any wrongdoing by people either seeking to hire a hacker, or by hackers agreeing to do a job. The company, he said, tries to make sure the hackers are not swindlers. Hacker’s List began its website several months after federal prosecutors and F.B.I. agents in

Hacker’s List matches hackers with potential customers. Los Angeles completed a twoyear crackdown on the hackerfor-hire industry. The investigation led to the filing of criminal charges against more than a dozen people across the United States involved in either breaking into a person’s email account or soliciting a hacker for the job. The F.B.I. investigation also involved the cooperation of the authorities in China, India and Romania, because a number of the websites where the hackers advertised their expertise were based overseas. The market for hackers, many of whom comply with the law and act more like online investigators, shows no signs of

slowing. Many companies are hiring so-called ethical hackers to look for weaknesses in their networks. David Larwson, a director of operations with NeighborhoodHacker.com, which is incorporated in Colorado, said he had seen increased demand from companies looking to make sure their employees are not obtaining sensitive information. He said in an email they were increasingly focused on an “insider threat” leading to a breach. On its website, NeighborhoodHacker describes itself as a company of “certified ethical hackers” that works with customers to “secure your data, passwords and children’s safety.”

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Falling in Love, The Experimental Way Suppose you’re watching a romantic film and, while following a couple on the path to love, thinking that such a bond must be a result of chance, something LENS out of a person’s control. Or is it? The psychologist Arthur Aron proposed that it is not. He once conducted a study that involved having pairs of strangers answer 36 questions of an increasingly personal nature, then staring into each other’s eyes, silently, for four minutes. His hypothesis was that the interaction could create a close relationship, and his results were obvious in at least one case. As Mandy Len Catron wrote in The Times, “Six months later, two participants were married.” Mr. Aron reported his findings more than 20 years ago, but the prospect was intriguing enough to Ms. Catron that

Novel ways to make love happen, and to get over it. last summer she found herself suggesting to an acquaintance of hers that they try it. Unlike the original test subjects, they were not strangers, and they carried out the exercise in a bar rather than a lab. Starting with such questions as “Would you like to be famous?” the topics soon brought Ms. Catron and her companion into more serious territory, including their relationships with their mothers. “The questions reminded me of the infamous boiling frog experiment in which the frog doesn’t feel the water getting hotter until it’s too late,” she wrote. Then came the eye contact. Leaving the bar, they walked to a nearby bridge, where they stood and gazed into each othFor comments, write to nytweekly@nytimes.com.

er’s eyes for what felt like an eternity: four minutes. “The real crux of the moment was not just that I was really seeing someone, but that I was seeing someone really seeing me,” she wrote. So did they fall in love? In a word: Yes. She doesn’t credit the experiment entirely, but she says it was a vital part of what established such a strong connection. “It’s true you can’t choose who loves you, although I’ve spent years hoping otherwise,” she wrote. But, she added: “Love didn’t happen to us. We’re in love because we each made the choice to be.” But how do you find someone to try such an experiment in the first place? Online dating sites such as OkCupid are one option, as the columnist David Brooks noted in The Times, though as he pointed out: “There’s a gigantic superstar effect. Women who are rated in the top 5 percent of attractiveness get a vast majority of the approaches.” For those who do find a match this way, there is then the matter of meeting in person, and any lasting connection will require what Mr. Brooks calls the enchantment leap: “when something dry and utilitarian erupts into something passionate, inescapable and devotional.” That involves vulnerability, a move “from selfishness to service,” he wrote, “from prudent thinking to poetic thinking.” If the romance doesn’t work out, that poetic thinking may be best put to use in written form, as Anna North proposed in The Times. Writing “in a stream-of-consciousness way, how you’re feeling about things” can help rebuild a person’s sense of self and enable the person to move on, suggested David A. Sbarra, a University of Arizona professor who conducted a study that involved getting people who had gone through recent breakups to speak about their feelings. That does not mean spending all of that time pouring thoughts into a journal, though. As Ms. North wrote: “Spend a little time with your diary — and then go for a walk.” TESS FELDER

Answering questions and gazing into each other’s eyes can spark love.

DAVE YODER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN MOORE/GETTY IMAGES

Children on a fishing boat in Monrovia’s West Point township, which had been quarantined.

Signs of Life as Ebola Recedes Continued from Page 23 Liberia and Sierra Leone alone. But by that date, only 21,797 were recorded in all three countries. While many have emphasized the assistance from the United States and international organizations, there is evidence that the biggest change came from the residents themselves. “Fundamentally, this is about the extent to which societies change their behaviors, how they change them, and the speed at which they change them,” said Dr. David Nabarro, the United Nations special envoy on Ebola. When Ebola struck the densely crowded neighborhoods of Monrovia over the summer, the impact was devastating. Hundreds of new cases appeared around the country every week, hospitals collapsed or overflowed with patients, and sick people lay along the road, sometimes dying before help could reach them. Volunteer Ebola watchdog groups sprang up, typically overseen by local elders and led by educated youths, drawing from a long history of community organizing to survive war, poverty and government neglect. The groups educated their communities about Ebola, a disease new to this part of Africa, and set up hand-washing stations. They kept records, placed households under quarantine and restricted visits by outsiders. As the sick were turned away from treatment centers because of a lack of beds, people inside homes began protecting themselves better, covering their arms in plastic shopping bags as they cared for ailing relatives. By mid-October, new cases in Liberia had dropped to dozens from hundreds per week. “Heroes emerged in every community,” said Dr. Mosoka Fa llah, a Liberia n epidem iolog ist . “T he volunteer task forces may be the biggest reason behind the drop in October.” The international response has been vital as well, Liberian officials and community leaders Jeffrey Gettleman contributed reporting from Freetown, Sierra Leone; Helene Cooper from Washington; and Sheri Fink from New York.

chiefdom,” he said. In Guinea, where the epidemic has been concentrated in rural areas, change has often been slow and resistance fierce, fueled by a history of tensions with the government. It took months before some villages began letting health workers enter, their resistance waning only after so many among them had died. But now, as Liberia’s Ebola cases can be counted on one hand, the end of the epidemic appears in sight. “The sun is shining,” said Deborah R. Malac, the American ambassador to Liberia. Recently, she was in Barkedu, one of the hardest-hit communities Bindu Quaye waited for the Ebola in rural Liberia. A town of outbreak to slow in Monrovia 8,000 people, Barkedu had endured more than 1,000 before setting her wedding date. Ebola deaths. Whole families were wiped out as Ebsaid, greatly expanding diagola tore through the town, where the mostly Muslim population obnostic and treatment options for people stricken by the virus. The served local traditions like washsight of the world rallying to their ing the bodies of the dead. side reinforced the importance of But Ebola has not been in the epidemic and provided a psyBarkedu for more than 90 days, she said. And the protective chological boost to a beleaguered bubble that Liberians had erectpopulation. “This was the first time in our ed around themselves to avoid nation’s history that we saw touching others and possibly actual American boots on the become infected had dissolved. ground,” said Liberia’s presi“The ladies were dancing, we were all much closer together,” dent, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. “You she said. “It was much more norcan’t imagine the difference it made in the hopes of the people. mal, and I wasn’t really particIt inspired them to do more.” ularly concerned that someone In Sierra Leone, residents have might touch me.” also taken many matters into At the Mary Brownell Junior their own hands, criticizing their High School in Monrovia, many government and Britain, the Liberian parents have re-encountry’s former colonial masrolled their children despite their lingering fears of Ebola. Classes ter, for a slow and disorganized are expected to start this month. response. “The cavalry wasn’t Joseph Garway, 46, came to coming,” said David Mandu register a son. He has three chilFarley Keili-Coomber, the pardren, but he now also takes care of amount chief from the Mandu four more: the children of a cousin chiefdom in Sierra Leone’s east. who, along with his wife, died of “We were the cavalry.” Ebola last August. “We are worHe said that the region’s chiefs enlisted the traditional leaders in ried, but still we want our children the area and put together bylaws to go back to school,” he said. that barred residents from hiding Felicia Koneh, who sells shorttheir sick, interfering with health bread on the streets or in schools, workers or carrying out tradisaw her daily sales of $16 fall to $6 during the height of the epidemtional burials that increased the risk of spreading the disease by ic. In the last couple of months, touching infected corpses. though, they have risen to $12. “We threatened that anybody “Little by little,” she said, who tried to do a traditional buri“things are returning to what they were like before Ebola.” al would be banished from the

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China Strengthens Its ‘Great Firewall’ By ANDREW JACOBS

GIANNI CIPRIANO FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

The deserted Torre a Decima castle in Tuscany, overlooking the Chianti hills, is for sale. PONTASSIEVE JOURNAL

Beware of Castles For Sale By GAIA PIANIGIANI

PONTASSIEVE, Italy — On a gentle Tuscan hill near this town just east of Florence sits a medieval castle that once served as a refuge for noble families who had plotted against the Medicis’ rule during the Renaissance. For centuries after, the descendants of the nobles and the peasants who served them lived sheltered by the fortress’s crenelated walls or in the nearby country houses, and went to Mass in a rose stone church. Today, the estate is deserted and up for sale, castle, church and all. While that might seem an exceptional circumstance, increasingly for Italy, it is not. While castles and historic mansions in Italy have long been family inheritances, today dozens of them are for sale. In recent years, Italy’s well-rooted inherited wealth has withered from a potent combination of factors. They include the increasing costs of living and services, the shaky finances of owners in a time of lingering economic trouble,

cuts in government subsidies to maintain historical properties and, not least, mushrooming property taxes. “The Italian market is mostly historical — mansions pass from generation to generation,” said Dimitri Corti, chief executive at Lionard, a real estate company based in Florence whose portfolio includes about 70 castles. “It is not necessarily true that the owner is a millionaire, like one can assume in countries like the United States or England,” he added. “Some do need liquidity.” Moreover, those with the money to buy are frequently not Italians, a worrisome circumstance to some here who bemoan the loss of historical and family patrimony. The bulk of Lionard’s sellers are Italians, Mr. Corti said, while a majority of buyers are foreigners. They predominantly seek villas or mansions in Tuscany, and are ready to spend an average of six or seven million euros. In 2011, as the financial crisis

deepened and the government came under pressure to balance its books, the technocratic prime minister, Mario Monti, raised property taxes and started a review of the land register’s assessment of home values. On historic buildings, where owners used to pay little as compensation for the elevated costs of maintaining centuries-old structures, the taxes increased by 20 or 30 times, depending on the property’s location. On some buildings, taxes spiked from 3,000 euros in 2011 to 75,000 euros by 2013. Buyer beware: Owning a nobleman’s estate in Italy comes at a cost. New owners face an onerous bureaucracy to make even minimal changes — like air-conditioning. And under Italian law, the owner of a historic building is its custodian, bound to maintain it and, in some cases, to grant its use to the public. For this reason, brokers said, many buyers give up on properties of great historic value that are in bad condition.

BEIJING — Jing Yuechen, the founder of an Internet startup here, has no interest in overthrowing the Communist Party. But these days she finds herself cursing the nation’s cyberpolice as she tries — and fails — to browse photo-sharing websites like Flickr and struggles to stay in touch with the Facebook friends she has made during trips to France, India and Singapore. Gmail has become almost impossible to use here, and the authorities have gummed up Astrill, the software Ms. Jing and others used to circumvent the Internet restrictions that Western security analysts refer to as the Great Firewall. By interfering with Astrill and other virtual private networks, or V.P.N.s, the government has complicated the lives of Chinese astronomers seeking scientific data from abroad, graphic designers shopping for clip art and students submitting online applications to American universities. China has long had some of the world’s most onerous Internet restrictions. Until now, the authorities had effectively tolerated the proliferation of V.P.N.s. But last month, after a number of V.P.N. companies, including StrongVPN and Golden Frog, complained that the Chinese government had disrupted their services with unprecedented sophistication, a senior official for the first time acknowledged its hand in the attacks and implicitly promised more of the same. The move to disable some of the most widely used V.P.N.s has provoked outrage among video artists, entrepreneurs and professors who complain that in its quest for so-called cybersovereignty — Beijing’s euphemism for online filtering — the Communist Party is stifling the innovaChen Jiehao contributed research.

tion and productivity needed to revive the slowing economy. “One unfortunate result of excessive control over email and Internet traffic is the slowing down of legitimate commerce, and that is not something in China’s best interest,” said James Zimmerman, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China. Chinese authorities’ interest in disrupting such programs has mounted, especially since President Xi Jinping came to power two years ago. Lu Wei, the propaganda official Mr. Xi appointed as Internet czar, has been promoting the notion that China has the right to block an array of content. A co-founder of Greatfire.org, which tracks online censorship, suggested the government had decided that soaring V.P.N. use among ordinary Chinese warranted a more aggressive attack. “This is just a further, logical step,” said the co-founder, who requested anonymity to avoid government scrutiny. “The authorities are hellbent on establishing cybersovereignty in China.” Government officials have denied any role in blocking Google. A number of Chinese academics have gone online to express their frustrations, particularly over their inability to reach Google Scholar, a search engine that provides links to millions of scholarly papers. The vast majority of Chinese Internet users have little interest in vaulting the digital firewall. But those who require access to an unfiltered Internet are the very people Beijing has been counting on to transform the nation’s manufacturing economy into one fueled by innovation. “It’s as if we’re shutting down half our brains,” said Chin-Chin Wu, an artist who promotes her work online. “I think that the day that information from the outside world becomes completely inaccessible in China, a lot of people will choose to leave.”

Kurdish Pride Outweighs Grief Amid Kobani’s Ruins By TIM ARANGO

KOBANI, Syria — Lasheen Abdulla steered her minivan through the streets of her hometown, past the charred husks of bombed cars, the shattered storefronts, the unexploded mortar shells. Across the gray of destruction were streaks of color: the purple sheets hung to hide the Kurdish snipers who, for months, defended this city from the extremists of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. She pointed to the spots where her city’s martyrs fell — five over there, near the bullet-pocked wall of a school, six at a heap of rubble that used to be a market. The ruins have yielded corpses of Kurdish fighters, their heads severed. Even children’s dolls Karam Shoumali and Eric Schmitt contributed reporting.

were found decapitated, a symbol, Ms. Abdulla said, of the cruelty of their enemy. “When you see your hometown destroyed like this, you feel destroyed from within,” said Ms. Abdulla, 43, who remained in Kobani for the entire siege. The devastation of this city, wrought by the Islamic State siege and the American-led air campaign that ultimately expelled the militants, is so thorough that it seems unreal. Even so, now that the city has been liberated, pride in victory outweighs grief over the losses for the Kurds who live here. Even as the battle unfolded with its outcome uncertain, Kobani took on mythic status — Kurds called it their Stalingrad — as a place from which the Kurds hoped to carve a homeland from the turmoil of the Middle East.

“All I can feel now is happiness because of this victory,” said Anwar Jarmesh, 33, who lost two brothers in the fighting. He had escaped to Turkey but returned to make his own contribution: washing the bodies of fighters. “We don’t care about money or buildings, only victory. We were not broken by ISIS.” The battle for Kobani, a border outpost that abuts Turkey, began in September. More than 700 airstrikes pounded this city for nearly five months. American officials said Kobani became important to them only because it became important to the Islamic State, which used the battle as a recruiting pitch for foreign jihadists. Nearly 400 Kurdish fighters died in Kobani, local officials said, but more than 1,000 Islamic State fighters were killed, ac-

cording to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group. Despite the destruction and the dangers of unexploded bombs and booby-trapped buildings, there were small signs that Kobani was awakening. Down the street, a handful of children played in a doorway. Their aunt, Fayhaa Hamza, was watching them and said she and the children had returned a few weeks ago, and she wanted to thank President Barack Obama for helping to liberate her city. “ISIS has been attacking Syrians everywhere,” she said, “and it was only the Kurds who could defeat them.” The Kurds say they will never again accept dominion by outsiders — neither the Arabs of Syria, who treated them as second-class citizens, nor the Turks,

BULENT KILIC/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

Musa, a Kurdish marksman, surveying Kobani after it was reclaimed from the Islamic State. who ruled them during the Ottoman Empire. There are already plans to open a school in Kobani, where lessons will be taught in the Kurdish language. Standing just inside the gate that separates Kobani from Turkey, Mohammed Jarada, a fighter guarding the post, said: “This means that the Kurds exist. We exist.”

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Push to Get Women Onto British Boards By JENNY ANDERSON

LONDON — Four years ago, Helena Morrissey founded the 30% Club, an organization that seeks to increase the representation of women on boards to that number. While Sheryl Sandberg, the Facebook executive, and others have implored women to assert themselves and find sponsors who can help advance their careers, countries like Norway and France have mandated legal quotas for the percentage of women serving on boards. But Ms. Morrissey has taken a different approach: directing her focus on Britain’s most powerful men. Working behind the scenes, she has persuaded 120 of the country’s top chairmen that they want what she wants: more diverse boards that will produce better company returns. (Thirty percent representation is the level at which organizational psychologists agree a minority voice can be heard.) The approach has produced some remarkable results. Since 2010, the percentage of women on Britain’s top boards

ANDREW TESTA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Helena Morrissey of Newton Investment Management founded the 30% Club. has nearly doubled, to 23 percent, while in the United States, the figure has crept up a few percentage points to 17 percent. Now the 30% Club has expanded, with groups in Hong Kong, South Africa, Ireland and the United States, and plans for Canada and Australia. That Ms. Morrissey, 48, is credited with spearheading those results while raising nine children — ages 5 through 23 — could have made her the target of ire in a country that does not always celebrate success. Or it might have fueled the debate about whether a woman can or cannot have it all. It has done neither. “She’s an anomaly, not a template,” said her husband, Richard, 51, who is a former journalist, and who cares for the children at home. Ms. Morrissey believes results matter more than credit. “My style is not to tell people what to do but to show a path that is appealing,” she said. And she does not go negative. For example, she will not name those who would not join the 30% Club in its early days. She has encouraged men to lead the charge and recruit others. “Where I think Helena has been uniquely successful is in quiet

advocacy, in getting people who have the power to make a change, believing that they want to make a change,” said Robert Gillespie, a member of the Royal Bank of Scotland board and a former banker at Evercore and UBS. Ms. Morrissey believes the group will get to 27 percent by the end of the year, and more if it focuses on the 10 percent of nonexecutive directors who have held seats for more than nine years. The movement has not been without detractors. One chairman told her she was going to destroy business; others wonder why she is not doing more for broader categories of diversity, such as race or sexuality. Perhaps the 30% Club’s greatest asset is its ability to try new approaches. Hearing that midcareer women wanted mentorship, but not always within their own organizations, it created a cross-mentoring group where a female lawyer might be mentored by a male asset manager, because she might not want to talk to her boss about balancing children and work, or taking time off to care for an elderly parent. Ms. Morrissey started her career as a bond analyst for Schroders in New York and she was influenced by senior women there. Returning to London, she was passed over for a promotion. When she asked why, she said that her boss told her it was because she had just had a baby (her first). She left to go to Newton Investment Management, then a 7 billion-pound asset manager. In 2004, she was asked to be the chief executive, an appointment that took her by surprise. The company, a subsidiary of Bank of New York Mellon, now has 50.7 billion pounds under management. She was part of, and in charge of, various women’s mentoring groups. But she described the efforts as “soul-crushing” since so many smart people had invested so much time with so few results. In March 2010, she and 14 other women won the support of two influential chairmen, and decided to start the group. She has begun the new year by taking the group’s message to schools. Douglas Flint, the chairman of HSBC, recently offered students in east London some advice. When he goes to promote a man, he said, the reaction is often: “What took you so long? I’ve been ready for ages.” Women, he said, often question if they have the necessary skills. “Don’t be too self-effacing,” he said. At the event, the headmaster of the school introduced Ms. Morrissey as the chief executive of Newton, the recipient of honors from Queen Elizabeth, and one of Bloomberg’s 50 most influential people in 2014. When he said she also had nine children, the room erupted with gasps, followed by chatter. “She has more children than most women in most jobs,” said Siobhan Lynch, 18, a student at the school. “It provides hope in a way.”

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LAURA LEON FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Office in Paradise, Internet Included By TANYA MOHN

Hotels and resorts have long catered to travelers who cannot disengage from their jobs. But increasingly there is a new option for those who need to work, but who also want a vacation. These new centers provide a place to sleep, have fun and mingle with colleagues in exotic locations around the world. Call it the busman’s holiday for the digital age. Matej Hrescak, a product designer at Facebook from Slovakia who now lives in California, spent several weeks at the Surf Office on Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands, near one of the island’s noted surfing beaches. “I really appreciate long uninterrupted periods of work time in order to dive deep into a particular problem, and having a destination where you’re far away from usual distractions made this possible,” he said. The high-speed web, fully stocked office, access to a kitchen and camaraderie of other guests contributed to his productivity, he said. Raphaël Harmel, a co-founder of Speecheo, a web app meant to improve speeches, left his native France 10 months ago to travel the world and is now in Uruguay. He says he prefers to stay at co-working spaces whenever possible because they are all-inclusive and “are trying to reinvent the way people work.” “Normally when you arrive to a new location, you have to find a place to live and a place to work,” he said, adding, “For digital nomads and entrepreneurs like me, it is definitely the best existing option.” Liz Elam, founder of Link Coworking in Austin, Texas, and executive producer of the Global Coworking Unconference Conference, a network of co-working conferences, emphasized the focus on social interaction: “At hotels, travelers shut the door and order room service. At co-working/co-living spaces, they are part of a community of shared ideas.” Steve King of Emergent Research, a consulting firm in Cal-

Checking wave conditions at the Surf Office, a Canary Islands facility that caters to people wanting nontraditional work options in an exotic location. ifornia, said the trend to blend co-working, which offers an office environment on a temporary basis, with living started about five years ago. He cited as factors advances in technology that allow people to work from anywhere there is fast Internet, the round-the-clock work mentality, and the move toward more people traveling and rejecting the traditional work schedule. Companies are drawn to the intimate communal areas,

Have a meeting. Write some code. Go surfing. amenities and activities of co-working/co-living spaces. Nine remote-working employees of Automattic, a web development corporation, recently went to the Surf Office for six days “to build relationships, have real-time interaction and also work on projects that are best done in person,” the company said. The idyllic locations are no accident. “If you can work from any-

where, why not outside the city with some fresh air to breathe, good food to eat and nice people to talk with around the fireplace?” said Eric van den Broek, who opened Mutinerie Village last summer, an hour and a half southwest of Paris in an old restored farmhouse that belonged to his grandfather. Julianne Becker helped found Coconat, a retreat set to open in July near Berlin. The cluster of bungalows is built around a castle-like water tower from the late 1800s. There, Ms. Becker said, “people can work for a few hours, take a long walk, then be super refreshed and ready to go again.” A growing number of co-working spaces are temporary, like Coworking Camp, a pop-up venture established at a beachside hotel for six weeks in November and December in Kemer, Turkey. At Coworking Camp, there was a core group of some 30 entrepreneurs, start-up founders, coders, designers and marketers from 18 countries. Matthias Zeitler said he got the idea for the camp while working in Salzburg with a team that yearned for a larger community. “It was very powerful,” he said. “We really focused on work, networking — and vacation.”

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Rethinking Wisdom Of Inflation Target By NEIL IRWIN

SIM CHI YIN FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Richard Liu, right, of JD.com, said the online company stresses quick, reliable delivery in China.

The Other Chinese E-Commerce Giant By DAVID BARBOZA

BEIJING — On the anniversary of his company’s founding, Richard Liu dons a big motorcycle helmet and red uniform, hops on a three-wheeled electric bike and makes home deliveries for his e-commerce company JD.com. It is in part a publicity stunt for Mr. Liu, the 41-year-old billionaire who is the company’s chairman. But it is also a way to better understand the challenges facing JD, which is in a pitched battle for e-commerce supremacy in the world’s second-biggest economy after the United States. Long overshadowed by its rival Alibaba, JD has emerged as Chi-

has gone even further, venturing into home delivery with its own fleet of trucks and more than 20,000 couriers, all in the hope of capturing what is projected to be a $1 trillion Chinese e-commerce market by 2020. JD, which is publicly traded in the United States, is now China’s biggest direct-sales retailer, with 46 million active users and an estimated $20 billion in revenue last year. Yet this costly approach to building an online retailer has worried some analysts, who say that JD could be weighed down by physical assets and debt. Several analysts say the company won’t turn a profit before 2017. Competitors like Jack Ma, chair-

GILLES SABRIE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

JD.com pledged in 2010 that most orders placed in China before 11 at night will be delivered by 3 p.m. the next day. na’s other online goliath by carving out its own distinct identity. While Alibaba’s marketplace serves as a platform to connect buyers and sellers, JD buys goods from manufacturers and distributors and holds the inventory in its own warehouses, in a model that echoes Amazon’s. It then arranges for quick delivery of virtually everything from refrigerators to socks, using motorbikes in some of the country’s biggest cities. Like Amazon, JD has invested heavily in infrastructure, pumping more than $1.5 billion into building and leasing warehouses and order-fulfillment centers around China. But JD Phoebe Peng contributed reporting.

man of Alibaba, have even disparaged the company’s business model, calling it flawed. “It’s not that we are better,” Mr. Ma said recently. “It’s an issue of direction.” Executives at JD, which began selling goods on the web in 2004, insist they are building a company that will eventually have a commanding advantage in e-commerce. A big challenge, they say, is keeping up with an enormous volume of online orders, which have doubled in each of the last three years. The company has seven fulfillment centers and 118 warehouses in 39 cities. There are 1,045 smaller pickup centers in about 500 cities. Since 2010, the company has pledged that most online orders placed before 11 at night will be

A company that has pumped $1.5 billion into infrastructure. delivered by 3 p.m. the next day. Morgan Stanley calls JD’s business model a combination of Amazon and UPS; other analysts say it is beginning to look like Walmart, steeped in logistics and infrastructure and backed by a website. JD “has made it clear they will not only be a retailer but also an online supply chain and finance company,” said Lu Jianping, who teaches e-commerce at East China Normal University in Shanghai. “Retail is not profitable but it offers trading volume and cash flow. In the future, the main profits will come from finance and the supply chain.” By following its own path, JD has sought to make online shopping easier for China’s growing consumer class, promising authentic goods, delivered on time, for little or no delivery fee — and with a receipt, something hard to come by in a country where tax evasion is rampant. The company is filling more than two million orders a day. No other direct sales retailer has seen its revenue grow as quickly as JD, not even Amazon. Mr. Liu is finding a warm reception in the United States. He led the company’s public stock offering on the Nasdaq early last year, which raised $1.78 billion. Mr. Liu also struck a deal with China’s social media and mobile gaming giant Tencent, which allows JD to tap into Tencent’s huge user base. Tencent now owns about 20 percent of JD. Mr. Liu is pushing JD into online groceries and finance, and lending to his vendors the way Alibaba does. But unlike Alibaba and Amazon, he says he has little interest in developing film or entertainment divisions. “We don’t want to produce films or TV shows, but finance, yes,” Mr. Liu said. “And every few years we’ll invest in new warehouses. We need some temperature-controlled warehouses.”

A quarter of a century ago, New Zealand became the first country to set a formal target for how much prices should rise each year — zero to 2 percent. That is now the norm across much of the world. But what if that target is one reason the global economy has been in slow growth for five years? Some economists say it may leave central banks with too little flexibility. New Zealand’s Reserve Bank Act of 1989 was contentious. Labor unions feared that focusing so pointedly on inflation would lead to higher unemployment. Yet it soon looked like a success worth emulating: Inflation that was 7.6 percent at the end of 1989 when the law was passed had dropped to 2 percent by the end of 1991. Merely by announcing its goals for inflation, and giving the central bank the independent authority to reach that goal, New Zealand made that result a reality. In negotiations over wages or making plans for price increases, businesses and labor unions across New Zealand started assuming that inflation would indeed be around 2 percent. It thus became self-fulfilling, with wages and prices rising more slowly. Other countries adopted the approach: Canada, Sweden, Britain. Britain takes its 2 percent target seriously enough that the governor of the Bank of England has to write a letter to the chancellor of the Exchequer, explaining whenever inflation misses by more than a percentage point in either direction. But there was always an alternate view that keeping inflation that low might be dangerous. In the 1990s, a governor at the United States Federal Reserve, Janet L. Yellen, worried that it would make the bank focus only on inflation and neglect growth and jobs. She also worried that zero inflation could paralyze the economy, particularly during slumps. When businesses run into rough times, they may be inclined to cut workers’ pay. In practice, though, employers are more likely to cut hours, conduct layoffs or keep positions vacant. That’s one reason recessions tend to lead to higher unemployment instead of lower wages. Inflation helps deal with this problem. When there is inflation, employers can hold workers’ pay steady during a downturn yet have it decline in inflation-adjusted terms. An assembly line worker may keep making $20 an hour through a downturn, but in inflation-adjusted terms that pay falls by 2 percent a year, which could make the factory less likely to

New Zealand’s 2 percent limit drives fiscal policy. resort to layoffs. Another argument that Ms. Yellen raised was particula rly prescient. T he higher the level of inflation, the more that central banks can stimulate the economy during a downturn. “A little inflation permits real interest rates to become negative on the rare occasions when required to counter a recession,” Ms. Yellen said in 1996. “This could be important.” Some economists are wondering if a higher inflation target would have allowed central bankers to better combat the Great Recession because they would have been able to cut inflation-adjusted interest rates by more. “Should policy makers therefore aim for a higher target inflation rate in normal times, in order to increase the room for monetary policy to react to such shocks?” asked Olivier Blanchard, the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, in a 2010 paper.

THOMAS JAMES

Laurence Ball, an economist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, advocates raising the target to 4 percent. “Any adverse effects on the economy of having 4 percent rather than 2 percent inflation,” he said, “are trivial compared to the effects of having a horrible recession like we’ve been experiencing.” Others fear disruptions in financial markets and a sharp, sudden rise in longer-term interest rates that could slow growth. Alan Blinder, a former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve, sees it this way: “Central bankers have invested a lot and established a great deal of credibility on their 2 percent inflation target, and I think they’re right to be very hesitant to give it up. If you change from 2 percent to 3 percent, how does the market know you won’t change 3 to 4?” He recognizes that a higher number would have been better at the outset. “To many academics that means that was a mistake so let’s undo it and do it right,” he said. “In the practical policy world that’s not always right.”

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Printed Parts Give Surgeon a Chance to Practice By KAREN WEINTRAUB

BOSTON — The surgeon held a translucent white plastic eye socket in each hand. Gently moving them away from each other, Dr. John Meara showed the distance between Violet Pietrok’s eyes at birth. Then he slid the sockets closer to demonstrate their positions 19 months later, after he had operated on her. Violet, now nearly 2, was born with a rare defect called a Tessier facial cleft. Her dark brown eyes were set so far apart, her mother says, that her vision was more like a bird of prey’s than a person’s. The bones that normally join to form the fetal face had not fused properly. Her parents, Alicia Taylor and Matt Pietrok of Oregon, sought out Dr. Meara at Boston Children’s Hospital because the plastic surgeon had performed four similar operations in the previous three years. Before he operated on Violet, Dr. Meara wanted a more precise understanding of her bone structure than he could get from an image on a screen. So he asked his colleague Dr. Peter Weinstock to print him a three-dimensional model of her skull. That first model helped him to decide what might need to be done and to discuss his treatment plan with her family. Three more 3-D printouts allowed Dr. Meara to rotate the model skull in directions he could not manage with a picture and would not attempt with a patient on the operating table. Then he was able to cut and manipulate the plastic model to determine the best way to push Violet’s eye sockets more than 2.5 centimeters closer together. Such 3-D-printed models are transforming medical care, giv-

ONLINE: VIOLET’S STORY

A video follows an operation, from planning to recovery: nytimes.com Search 3-D skull

PHOTOGRAPHS BY KATHERINE C. COHEN/BOSTON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

Violet Pietrok, who is almost 2, after surgery to correct a facial cleft that had left her eyes set far apart. Dr. John Meara prepared for the complex operation by cutting and manipulating plastic copies of her skull. ing surgeons new perspectives and opportunities to practice, and patients and their families a deeper understanding of complex procedures. “There’s no doubt that 3-D printing is going to be disruptive medicine,” said Dr. Frank J. Rybicki, chief of medical imaging at the Ottawa Hospital. “It makes procedures shorter, it improves your accuracy,” he said. “When bioprinting actually hits, it will change everything.” For now, the printer extrudes a layer of liquid plastic instead of ink. It adds a second layer, and then another, and a skull or rib cage slowly emerges. The same process can print layers of human cells, blood vessels, simple

organs and bits of bone. A Utah boy’s life was saved last year by a 3-D-printed plastic splint that propped open his windpipe. Dr. Weinstock, the director of the Pediatric Simulator Program at Boston Children’s, sees 3-D models as part of a larger program to improve surgical craft. At Children’s and a dozen other pediatric centers around the world, he says, the surgical simulation program he developed improves team communication and trust, and lifts confidence before extremely complex operations. He believes it also shortens patients’ time under anesthesia. Dr. Weinstock is convinced that the $400,000 3-D printer has prevented many errors.

The models of Violet’s unusual skull allowed Dr. Meara to anticipate what he would find. Dr. Meara had received printed models of other patients’ skulls before, but only after waiting weeks for a single replica, at a cost of thousands of dollars. Dr. Weinstock’s printer generated four copies in a few days, each costing about $1,200 and accurate to within a hair’s width. Dr. Meara noticed that in their ideal positions, the bones of the eye sockets would bump into each other, limiting Violet’s vision. He modified his cuts to avoid that collision. “The ability to physically move those segments is huge,” Dr. Meara said. “Otherwise, you’re

doing it for the first time in the operating room.” On Violet’s surgery day in October, Dr. Meara consulted a model in the operating theater. The surgery went as planned. At Brigham and Women’s Hospital near Boston Children’s, an even more sophisticated 3-D printer replicates flesh as well as bone, and even prints the tools needed to make the cuts. “When it comes time to operate, you don’t need to fiddle around, it’s all there,” Dr. Rybicki said. “You have unprecedented surgical planning, and you have unprecedented accuracy.” Comparing models from before and after surgery offers clues to why some tissue grafts take hold and some are rejected, Dr. Rybicki said. As 3-D printers improve, so will surgical outcomes, Dr. Rybicki said. Soon, doctors will thread catheters through replica blood vessels, map out how to bypass aneurysms, and feel the tactile difference between tumors and healthy tissue. Violet’s parents, who have five other children, including Violet’s healthy twin, Cora, said they felt comforted by Dr. Meara’s extensive preparations. On the day of the operation, when the surgeon came out to speak with the family, “he was smiles from ear to ear,” Ms. Taylor said. “He said it went perfect.” Knowing every move he would make, she added, was hugely different “from busting her open and saying, ‘How do we fix this?’ ”

Storing Trivial Memories, Just in Case By BENEDICT CAREY

The surge of emotion that makes memories of embarrassment, triumph and disappointment so vivid can also reach back in time, strengthening recall of seemingly mundane things that happened just beforehand and that, in retrospect, are relevant, a new study has found. The findings, published recently in the journal Nature, fit into the predominant theory of memory: that it is an adaptive process, continually updating itself according to what knowledge may be important in the future. The new study suggests human memory has, in effect, a justin-case file, keeping seemingly trivial sights, sounds and observations in storage for a time in case they become useful later on. But the experiment said nothing about the effect of trauma, which shapes memory in unpredictable ways. Rather, it aimed to mimic the arousals of daily life: The study used mild electric shocks to create apprehension and measured how the emotion affected memory of previously seen photographs.

“The study provides strong evidence for a specific kind of retroactive enhancement,” said Daniel L. Schacter, a professor of psychology at Harvard University, who was not involved in the research. “The findings go beyond what we’ve found previously in humans.” He and other experts cautioned that the details of the pro-

Emotions appear to play a role in what we can recall. cess were still unclear. No one knows which past memories an emotional experience flags, how far back in time it reaches or, indeed, whether it also suppresses some details. Memories are not fixed when encoded, experts said, and can be weakened by later events, as well as strengthened. The study, done at New York

University, had several stages. In the first one, the 119 participants sat in front of a computer watching photographs scroll by, and categorized each one as a tool (hammer, saw) or an animal (horse, eagle). They saw 30 tools and 30 animals, in no order. Five minutes later, the men and women again sat in front of the computer, only this time with electrode wires attached to one wrist. The research team, led by Joseph Dunsmoor, a postdoctoral fellow in cognitive neuroscience, calibrated a shock level for each person that was uncomfortable but not painful. The participants then categorized a new set of 60 photographs, 30 tools and 30 animals, in random order. Half of the group received a shock most times they saw an animal, and half received one most times they saw a tool. The research team then gave a surprise test, measuring how well the participants remembered all the photographs, particularly the first set. The results varied depending on when people took the test. Those who took it right away remembered as many tools as

JOSHUA BRIGHT FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

In his study of memory, Joseph Dunsmoor used a fear conditioning machine to mimic the arousals of daily life. they did animals; the shocks had no apparent effect. But those who took the test six hours or a day later recalled about 7 percent more items from the “shocked” category. For example, they remembered more tools if they had been zapped seeing tools. “The emotional experience of the shocks strengthened or preserved the memories of things that, at the time they were encod-

ed, seemed mundane,” Dr. Dunsmoor said. The fact that the retroactive strengthening took time to happen — none was evident in people tested immediately — leaves the timing unclear. Dr. Schacter said, “That’s the most surprising finding to me, that the enhancement depends on some consolidation process we don’t yet understand.”

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Setting Sail on Sunlight May Be Path to Space By KENNETH CHANG

Unlikely pals: an ankhole longhorn calf and a young greater one-horned rhinoceros; a Rhodesian ridgeback and a cheetah, below. PHOTOGRAPHS BY SANDY HUFFAKER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Friendship Tips From Animals By ERICA GOODE

A goat frolics with a baby rhinoceros. A pig nestles up to a house cat. A rat snake makes nice with the dwarf hamster originally intended as its lunch. Videos of unlikely animal pairs romping or snuggling have become so popular that they are piquing the interest of some scientists, who say they invite more systematic study. Among other things, researchers say, the alliances could add to an understanding of how species communicate, what propels certain animals to connect across species lines and the degree to which some animals can adopt the behaviors of other species. “There’s no question that studying these relationships can give you some insight into the factors that go into normal relationships,” said Gordon Burghardt, a professor at the University of Tennessee. Research has already eroded some boundaries between homo sapiens and other animals. Other species, it turns out, share abilities once considered exclusive to humans, including some emotions, tool use, counting, certain aspects of language and even a moral sense. At the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park, trainers have been pairing cheetahs with dogs at an early age. The dogs have a socializing effect on the skittish cats, the zoo has found. The dogs are adept at reading body language and take a dominant role with their feline companions. The dog and the cheetah gradually work out a way to play together, said Janet Rose-Hinostroza, an animal trainer. Dogs like to wrestle, but cheetahs’ preferred play is the chase — a way to hone their predatory skills. “The cheetahs are like, ‘No, no, you need to be the gazelle!’ ” Ms. Rose-Hinostroza said. But it is grooming, not playing, that cements a dog-cheetah friendship. Initially, the young cheetahs are terrified by the ONLINE: MIXING IT UP

Videos of play crossing species boundaries: nytimes.com Search Goode friendships

puppies’ attempts to play, but gradually the two animals begin to trust one another, and at some point, the cheetah begins to lick and groom the dog. “When you see that happen, you go, ‘Yes, the cat actually likes the dog now,’ so that’s a good day,” Ms. Rose-Hinostroza said. Some scientists remain skeptical that the examples of cross-species relations offer much more to science than a hefty dose of cuteness. Clive Wynne, a professor of psychology at Arizona State University, said that the videos he has seen all portray interactions that

Odd pairings in viral videos intrigue scientists. take place “in a human-controlled environment.” “To me, that’s what kind of removes what would otherwise be interesting,” he said. “Because it ceases to be directly a story about animal behavior and becomes a story about human impact on the environment, like the difference between gardening and the beauty of natural landscape.” But others see fertile ground for investigation. “There are so many questions,” said Barbara Smuts, a primate researcher at the University of Michigan who in 1985 shocked some of her colleagues by applying the word

“friendship” to describe bonds between female baboons. “We know this is happening between all sorts of species. I think eventually the scientific community will catch up.” Barbara J. King, an anthropologist at the College of William and Mary in Virginia, said the topic could benefit from a rigorous definition of what constitutes a “friendship” between members of different species. A relationship, she proposed, must be sustained for some time; both of the animals must engage; and some sort of accommodation must take place between them. In some popular online videos, Dr. King noted, these criteria are clearly missing. In a YouTube clip depicting a hamster on the back of a snake, for example, it is unclear if the two are best buddies or whether the snake is simply not hungry. Marc Bekoff, a professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, said examples that involve animals raised together from a young age illustrate the openness present in many species for some time after birth. “It shows that young animals are really open doors,” said Dr. Bekoff, who has long studied animal emotions. He said that videos of interspecies interactions offer a way for people to connect with a natural world from which they feel increasingly detached. “People are really craving to be ‘re-wilded,’ ” he said. “They’re craving to be reconnected to nature, and it’s these odd examples that are really seductive.”

To sail on winds of sunlight has long been a dream of rocket scientists. The Planetary Society, a nonprofit that promotes space exploration, announced last month that it would send the first of two small craft testing the technology of solar sails into orbit this May, tagging along on an Atlas 5 rocket. “We strongly believe this could be a big part of the future of interplanetary missions,” said William Sanford Nye — better known as Bill Nye the Science Guy — the chief executive of the organization. “It will ultimately eventually take a lot of missions a long, long way.” When photons — particles of light — bounce off a shiny surface, they impart a tiny bit of momentum, an effect that comes directly from the equations of electromagnetism published by the physicist James Clerk Maxwell in the 1860s. In his 1865 novel, “From the Earth to the Moon,” Jules Verne appears to have been the first to realize that this force could be harnessed for space travel. On launching, the Planetary Society’s craft, LightSail, is about the size of a loaf of bread — 10.6 centimers by 10.6 centimeters by 30.48 centimeters. In orbit, the spacecraft will undergo a month of testing before it extends four 3.96-meter-long booms and unfurls four triangular pieces of Mylar to form a square sail that spans almost 32 square meters. The May flight is to check that the sail deployment and other systems work as designed. But at the altitude that LightSail will be flying, the drag of air on the sail will be greater than the pressure of light, and the craft will drop out of orbit and burn up in a few days. Next year, a second LightSail is to be lofted to an altitude of 724 kilometers by a Falcon Heavy rocket. That flight is to be the first to demonstrate controlled solar sailing while in orbit around Earth. “The idea ultimately is to be able to tack like a sailboat on each orbit,” Mr. Nye said. Both LightSails were built for less than $4 million, Mr. Nye said. NASA considered solar sails in the 1970s for a mission to meet up with Halley’s comet in 1986. But the immense sails were regarded as too risky a technological jump. “It was very audacious for its time,” said Dr. Louis D. Friedman, who was the engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory leading the project. He

ONLINE: SAILING IN SPACE

A video of solar-propelled craft that could be used in space travel: nytimes.com Search Lightsails left NASA, the American space agency, in 1980 and helped found the Planetary Society. NASA scrapped the comet mission, and sails fell out of favor at the space agency. A decade ago, the Planetary Society collaborated with Russian scientists on a solar sail spacecraft called Cosmos 1, which was launched in June 2005 from a Russian nuclear submarine. But the rocket failed, and Cosmos 1 was lost before the sail could be tested. The society turned to something smaller — LightSail — taking advantage of a new generation of smaller, cheaper satellites known as CubeSats. “This is a more accessible, easier-to-build gizmo,” Mr. Nye said. Interest in solar sails also revived at NASA, which tested its own CubeSat, NanoSail-D, in

Solar sails are less expensive to launch into orbit. 2011, demonstrating how a sail could be used to nudge decommissioned satellites back into the atmosphere. Japan has already sent a solar sail on an interplanetary voyage. Its Ikaros spacecraft was launched in May 2010 and it passed by Venus later that year. Robert L. Staehle is among those at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory brainstorming concepts like sun-watching CubeSats that could give early warning of a solar storms that could knock out power grids. Solar sails save the weight and expense of lugging fuel, keeping the price tag of the sun-watching mission below $100 million, Mr. Staehle said,less than a fifth of the cost of a conventional approach using thrusters. Ultimately, sails could take us to the stars. Sunlight would be too weak for that trip, but a giant laser aimed at a gigantic sail could provide the necessary acceleration. Neither lasers nor sails large enough exist today, but in Dr. Friedman’s opinion, “it is the only technology that leads to interstellar.”

The LightSail soars past the Milky Way in this artist’s rendering. The solar sail craft will be launched in May. JOSH SPRADLING/THE PLANETARY SOCIETY

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

THE NEW YORK TIMES INTERNATIONAL WEEKLY

Sanctity of Truth

N E W YO R K

Its Crushing Success Is Spoiling Times Square By CHARLES V. BAGLI

The Crossroads of the World has never been more popular. And that is becoming a problem. More people than ever are packing into Times Square — from across the world, the country and the rest of New York City. International retailers are jostling for space, paying rents that are second only to Fifth Avenue. Color-splashed digital billboards have grown from the size of basketball courts to football-field proportions. With all this going for it, why are so many worried about the future of Times Square? The reason that retailers and advertisers lust after a Times Square location is the same reason that others now find it unbearable: the crowds. Some office workers and corporate clients complain of having to navigate thick and sometimes unyielding knots of tourists in various hot spots — including a digital wraparound sign at the Marriott Marquis Hotel — just to get in and out of office buildings. A 30-minute lunch is nearly impossible because restaurants are jammed. Howard S. Fiddle, vice chairman at the real estate services company CBRE, said, “It’s so successful as a tourist destination that people say it’s too congested for New Yorkers to conduct business.” Companies are dealing with the problem in small and large

SAM HODGSON FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

The Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square, with its income-generating digital sign. ways. A skyscraper at 1540 Broadway, for instance, offers an eighth-floor cafeteria and a gym so employees of several companies, such as Viacom and Pillsbury, do not have to step outside. Indeed, a test of the area’s desirability as an office district is underway at 4 Times Square, the 48-story tower erected in 1999. Condé Nast, the publisher of Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, GQ and others, had occupied half the building since it opened. The

company moved downtown in November, and the other tenant also plans to move. Members of the Times Square Alliance, a business organization, are closely watching the pace of leasing there to see how quickly the 168,000-square-meter tower is refilled. “Crowding in Times Square is a big problem right now,” said Tim Tompkins, president of the alliance. “It’s not just the costumed characters, but all the dif-

More Asians Join Force, Facing Perils on Patrol By DAVID W. CHEN

Officer Peter Liang is the rookie who fatally shot an unarmed man, in what police officials said was an accident, in a Brooklyn housing project. Lieutenant Philip Chan is the veteran officer who suffered a broken nose after being punched during a protest on the Brooklyn Bridge. And Officer Wenjian Liu was one of the two policemen who were gunned down in their patrol car in Brooklyn. Asian-American officers have been in the middle of a recent series of wrenching incidents involving the New York Police Department. And their front-line roles testify to a surge in their ranks. Twenty-five years ago, there were just 200 Asian-American officers in the city. Now there are more than 2,100 in uniform, or 6 percent of the total, police statistics show. Many arrived in the United States as children and grew up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan working alongside their parents in restaurants or garment factories. Many say they chose law enforcement because of the allure of a steady city job. “This is the group that’s comparable to most other imJeffrey E. Singer contributed reporting.

migrants and migrants that have entered into the American workplace,” said John Kuo Wei Tchen, a co-founder of the Museum of Chinese in America. “This is the working man’s opportunity to move up the ladder.” Asians are still underrepresented in the department relative to the 15 percent of city residents who identify themselves as Asians, census figures show. Barriers abounded a generation ago. The department’s 1.7-meter minimum height requirement for men — overturned in the 1970s — disqualified many candidates, especially those who hailed from Hong Kong and southern China, where the men are typically shorter. “Some people refused to be arrested by me, even when I showed them the badge,” said Thomas N. Ong, who retired in 1999 as a detective. “They’d say things like, ‘You’re a cop? There are Chinese cops?’ ” The department has moved to integrate its ranks after aggressive recruiting and community-relations efforts. Protests in Chinatown alleging police brutality in the 1970s, as well as gang violence in the 1980s, accelerated that endeavor, said Peter Kwong, a professor at Hunter College in New York. Another breakthrough came in 1984, when Hugh H. Mo was

ferent people who are hawking and hustling there.” This is a far different set of problems for Times Square than in the 1970s and 1980s, when the area was packed with pornography shops, massage parlors, prostitutes, pimps and drug dealers. New Jersey commuters arriving at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, just west of Times Square, routinely avoided 42nd Street, as did many retailers and corporate office tenants.

But a concerted effort by state and city officials to rejuvenate the area began to pay off in the 1990s. Developers built skyscrapers and attracted tenants with special tax incentives. There were new hotels and residential buildings. ItRetailers returned. Since 1996, the number of tourists visiting Times Square every year has doubled to an estimated 40 million. Annual rents for street-level retail space have quadrupled since 2008, according to Cushman & Wakefield, a commercial real estate broker. The digital billboards slung across nearly every building in Times Square are also booming, with one executive estimating that they generate more than $100 million a year in ad revenue. The new sign at the Marriott, eight stories tall, generates more than $2.5 million in four weeks. Yet, average rents for office space are still well below where they were before 2007. A survey conducted by the Times Square Alliance in May found that one of every four building owners, office workers and property managers in Times Square was “dissatisfied” with overcrowding and the construction of the plazas. “Our concern,” said Ellen Goldstein of the alliance, “is that the public realm is so unpleasant that we may at some point hit a tipping point, where companies won’t take space in Times Square. We’re not there yet, but the data is telling us we could get there.”

Quieting a Familiar Noise By SAM ROBERTS

CHANG W. LEE/THE NEW YORK TIMES

Now retired, Thomas N. Ong said some people did not believe he was an officer. appointed as deputy police commissioner of trials, and became the highest-ranking person of Asian descent in city government. Years later, he said, “I ran into these parents who came up to me and said, ‘Mr. Mo, my son is a cop, and they say it’s because of you.’ ” Yishan Tu, a 23-year-old native of Pingtung, in southern Taiwan, may well represent the future. Ms. Tu’s family moved to Queens eight years ago. Some of her friends, also immigrants, joined the military. She eyed the police, because she thought her Mandarin and Taiwanese skills would be in demand. She passed the written test last year, and is waiting for her chance while working as a bus tour guide. “I want to give back,” she said. “I’m going to be one of the good guys.”

Carles Guillot, a 42-year-old financial services entrepreneur, was awakened early on a weekend morning by workers wielding a jackhammer to repair the roadway nine floors below. “I understand the need to work, but it’s the timing that’s not good,” he said. “Jackhammers — I can’t think of a worse noise.” Nobody who lives in New York will ever mistake it for Walden Pond, what with its earsplitting police sirens and a cacophony of mechanical equipment. Help may be on the way. While most contractors still rely on the clangorous pneumatic drills driven by compressed air that were invented over 150 years ago, some are experimenting with new electric jackhammers that are demonstrably quieter. City officials are close to embracing regulations to encourage contractors and construction crews to switch to the quieter models — at least at night. “It’s a result of an outcry from the public,” said Alyssa Preston of the Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Environmental Compliance. Noise is the top gripe recorded by the city’s complaint line. The previous mayor, Michael Bloomberg, made an aggressive push to quiet the city, including a new construction code that mandated measures to muffle sound and restricted drilling hours. Most noise emitted by jack-

hammers is caused by internal parts, not by the drill bit striking the pavement. Inside a pneumatic, or air-powered, jackhammer, a piston hits a striker plate as many as 1,800 times a minute. The plate transmits energy to the drill bit, which reverberates. Hilti, a Liechtenstein-based manufacturer, says its electric jackhammer pounds the surface with more force, but less frequently, making it quieter. (In an indoor space, the Hilti model recorded 100 decibels; the pneumatic one, even wrapped in a makeshift muffler, hit 115. Reducing the noise by just 10 decibels typically halves the sound level.) But the General Contractors Association of New York says the quieter jackhammer does not break the densest concrete. “In the heavy construction environment it just didn’t work,” said Felice Farber, the association’s director of external affairs. Still, the city has placed Hilti’s TE 3000-AVR, along with models by Makita, Atlas Copco and Chicago Pneumatic, on its “Construction Noise Control Products and Vendor Guidance Sheet.” Jackhammers may not cause permanent hearing loss to bystanders, but they can impart a psychological effect, affecting sleep, concentration and communication, said Dr. Joseph J. Montano, an audiologist. Where do they rank on his patients’ complaint list? “They’re on the top,” he said.

Sanctity of Truth

THE NEW YORK TIMES INTERNATIONAL WEEKLY

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

ARTS & DESIGN

Masterpieces Revisited, With a Cast of Black Models By DEBORAH SOLOMON

Kehinde Wiley began thinking a long time ago about the stereotypes that shadow black men. “I know how young black men are seen,” he said in his studio in Brooklyn. “They’re boys, scared little boys oftentimes. I was one of them.” Now 37, Mr. Wiley, who grew up in Los Angeles, is one of the most celebrated painters of his generation. He is known for vibrant, photo-based portraits of young black men (and occasionally women) who are the opposite of scared — they gaze out at us coolly. He maintains studios in China and Senegal in addition to New York. As a gay man and the son of an African-American mother and a Nigerian father, he offers a model of the artist as multicultural itinerant. At the moment, Mr. Wiley’s work is seen on the hit television drama “Empire” and his first museum retrospective opens at the Brooklyn Museum on February 20, before traveling to museums in Fort Worth, Texas, Seattle and Richmond, Virginia. A Wiley painting is easy to recognize. More often than not, it shows a solitary figure, an attractive man in his 20s, enacting a scene from an old-master painting. Dressed in contemporary garb, the man might be crossing the Swiss Alps on horseback with the brio of Napoleon or glancing upward, prophet-style, golden light encircling his head. His posture is regal: shoulders rolled back, head turned slightly to reveal the sweep of a jawline. Every Wiley painting is a study in contrasts — the masculine figures contrast sharply with the ornately patterned backdrops unfurling behind them. Based on design sources as varied as Victorian wallpaper and Renaissance tapestries, the backgrounds can look as if thousands of curling petals had somehow been blown into geometric for-

Clockwise, from far left: the artist Kehinde Wiley with ‘‘Judith Beheading Holofernes’’; ‘‘Arms of Nicolas Ruterius, Bishop of Arras’’; ‘‘Equestrian Portrait of Prince Tomaso of SavoyCarignan,’’ left, and ‘‘Alfonsia Martinez and Jouanny Silberberg Bonnet.’’

PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHAD BATKA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES; TOP, GALERIE DANIEL TEMPLON, PARIS

mations across the canvas. Mr. Wiley’s champions tend to view his work in overt political terms. He redresses the absence of nonwhite faces in masterpieces, “using the power of images to remedy the historical invisibility of black men and women,” as Eugenie Tsai, the curator of the museum retrospective, observed. But you can also read his work in psychological terms, and Mr. Wiley himself emphasizes the never-ending tension in the paintings between their male and female aspects. “It’s about a figure in the landscape,” he said of his output, adding that the backdrops symbolize the land. “For me the landscape is the irrational. Nature is the woman. Nature is the black, the brown, the other.” The artist said he never met

Models off the street strike regal poses in Victorian settings. his father during his childhood, or even saw a photograph of him. The artist’s mother, Freddie Mae Wiley, a Texas native, studied linguistics and eventually became a teacher. Kehinde was the fifth of her six children, and a twin. For most of his childhood, he said, the family subsisted on welfare checks. Mr. Wiley attended college at the San Francisco Art Institute, before winning a scholarship to Yale University in Connecticut. He arrived in New York in 2001 as an artist-in-residence at the Studio

Museum in Harlem. Since then, Mr. Wiley has “street-cast” his paintings, heading out to scout for models — initially in Harlem and later, when he had enough money, overseas, in China, Israel and elsewhere. Mr. Wiley delegates much of his production to assistants, so much so that he has been accused of outsourcing his entire output. He admitted assistants usually handle the super-busy, detail-packed backgrounds. “Let’s face it,” he said, “I’m not doing all that.” After a background is laid in place, he starts in on the figure, the gently lit face and body, which he seems to view as the heart of his work. Rendering skin tones, especially black and brown ones, is a subtle process, and, if you look closely at a patch of cheek or forehead in his paintings, you are

‘Sniper’ Book Ends, and Story Begins By ROBERT ITO

In “American Sniper,” Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) peers through the scope of a high-powered rifle, preparing to shoot a young boy. A Navy SEAL on his first tour of duty in Iraq, he has been assigned to protect the lives of the Marines under his watch, and the boy is running at a convoy of them, his hands wrapped around an enormous Russian-made grenade. Any reasonably intuitive moviegoer has a fair idea how this is going to end. Mr. Kyle shoots the boy, and when a woman grabs the grenade and tries to finish the job, he shoots her, too. Both die. The scene is crucial to the film, but you won’t find any mention of a boy being killed in the book “American Sniper,” the autobiography upon which the film is based. After Mr. Kyle submitted the work to the Department of Defense for review, that part was removed. “Things were redacted from the book,” said Jason Hall,

the film’s screenwriter. And that’s not the only way that the Clint Eastwood-directed film version of “American Sniper” differs from the 2012 best seller. Much about Mr. Kyle’s life is already the stuff of armed forces lore: He once shot a man from an

A celebrated Navy SEAL’s life, redacted and complex. incredible 1,920 meters out. But the Chris Kyle viewers encounter in the film is a much more complicated figure than the one readers find in the book. Mr. Kyle began work on his memoir in 2010, a year after serving four tours in Iraq. In the book, he refers to the enemy as “savages” and describes the “despicable

evil” he encountered in Iraq. “What you’re getting is a glimpse of a man at a particular moment in time,” Mr. Hall said. “He had been at war or training for war for a decade. In places, he sounds downright nasty, but that’s what we created. This is what these people have to be.” On February 1, 2013, Mr. Hall handed in the first draft of his screenplay. The next day, Mr. Kyle was killed by a former Marine he had been trying to help. Mr. Cooper, who was producing the film and set to star in it, had only had a five-minute chat with Mr. Kyle. Mr. Kyle’s widow, Taya, provided access to home movies, letters and a decade’s worth of emails. “Jason and I spent hours on the phone,” Ms. Kyle said. “He would catch me at any time of the day or night, at times where I just needed to cry or vent or go through something.” Then, the screenplay changed “immensely,” Mr. Hall said. “The

likely to notice an array of indigo blues and alizarin reds. Even so, his surfaces are thinly painted, and he speaks with distaste for the Expressionist tradition of visible brush strokes. “My work is not about paint,” he told me. “It’s about paint at the service of something else. It is not about gooey, chest-beating, macho ’50s abstraction that allows paint to sit up on the surface as subject matter about paint.” Whether he’s working in oil or watercolor, he deploys the same strategy of inserting darkskinned figures into very white masterpieces of the past. “I am interested in evolution within my thinking,” he said. “I am not interested in the evolution of my paint. If I made buttery, thick paintings, there would be critics of that. You just have to proceed.”

Chris Kyle in 2012. After he was killed, the focus of a film about him shifted.

BRANDON THIBODEAUX FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

draft that I had written under the tutelage and watchful eye of Chris was much more of a war film.” The focus of the film began to shift more toward the relationship between Chris and Taya, and the struggles that Chris had in readjusting to civilian life. Also in the book, Mustafa, an Iraqi sniper who becomes a large figure in the film, registers as little more than a blip. “I really got on Chris about that, and he said that he felt that it was really possible that this guy shot his friend, and he didn’t want to memori-

alize him in the book,” Mr. Hall said. The film also depicts Mr. Kyle’s brother Jeff, a Marine, complaining about the war. “In real life, Jeff did not have that moment,” Ms. Kyle said. But millions of other veterans have. “Jeff understands that there was a need for that in the movie,” she added. “But for him to wear, it is going to be hard.” Politicians, pundits and others have argued over the film’s meaning and intentions even as it has drawn Oscar nominations for, among other things, its screenplay and lead performance. “It’s very easy to say, this movie’s this and that, and then write it off and say it’s propaganda, which is so insane,” Mr. Cooper said. “To me, Chris was utterly human. I never had to go from icon to human. I was studying a man, and I was trying to inhabit the man.”

Business | Money Line

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

How retail banking can succeed in Nigeria, by experts PARNERSHIPS Success of retail banking in Africa requires partnerships or collaboration of different competencies from other industries Kunle Azeez

or retail banking to succeed in Nigeria, the country’s lenders must build their retail banking strategies around people, processes, products and places with strong emphasis on differentiation. This was the submission of an international

retail banking expert, Mr. John Berry, at the 2nd Jeff & O’Brien Roundtable Conference on “The future of retail banking in Africa,” which took place at the Intercontinental Hotels, Lagos. He said that Nigerian banks must create a unique culture that differentiates their brands, adding: “It is easy for other brands to copy your pricing, but not your unique customerfriendly culture.” Berry advised that banks must turn their customers into brand advocates through unique experiential services offerings. “If you are able to turn your customers into advocates, they will buy more products, use the products more regularly, stay longer, tell others about your ser-

vices and make it more profitable. I will say build a retail brand that is differentiated through functional service and consumer experience,” he admonished. Group Country Director, Jeff O’Brien, Mr. Pascal Odibo, said that the expectation of his organisation regarding the event was “to trigger the conversation and hopefully steer the sector into some radical engagement on the mix of dynamics that will shape who plays, dominates and indeed set the agenda for Retail Banking in our region in the next decade or two.” Also speaking at the event, Heritage Bank’s Executive Director, Ivory Banking, Mrs. Mary Akpobome, who represented Managing

Director/Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Mr. Ifie Sekibo, noted that improved customer experience, technology and thorough exploitation of the emerging alternative markets in the non-oil sectors of the Nigerian economy were keys to growing emerging retail banking sector. She said that with Nigeria’s over reliance on the oil sector and the effect of the fall in foreign exchange rate, banks need to redefine their retail banking strategies to cater for the emerging retail business opportunities in the nation’s non-oil sector. “Retail banking in Nigeria is evolving. Traditional way of banking is changing. It is going to even change more with the digital

Interbank rates rise on CRR withdrawal

igerian interbank lending rates climbed 6.5 percentage points last Friday to 15.75 per cent on average from 9.25 per cent penultimate week, after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) debited commercial lenders’ account to meet the banks’ cash reserves require-

ment (CRR) last week. Traders according to Reuters News, said the apex bank withdrew about N167 billion ($861.7million) last Wednesday, draining liquidity. The banking watchdog requires commercial lenders to set aside 75 percent of public sec-

tor and 15 per cent of public sector deposits in liquid cash in their account with it. The regulator debit banks accounts every month to enforce this requirement. Banks’ cash balance with the apex bank dropped to about N64.6 billion last Friday, com-

pared with N393 billion penultimate week. “We see rates rising further next week (this week) due to anticipation of further liquidity drain from Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) cash withdrawal and funding for bond sales,” one dealer said.

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

Description

TTM

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

1.21 2.53 3.22 5.39 7.98 16.47

Tenor (Days) Call 7 30 60 90 180 365

Rate (%) 11.9167 12.3333 12.6667 12.9167 13.2167 13.5000 13.7500

NIBOR

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

FGN Bonds Bid Price 90.20 99.25 104.10 109.35 114.15 76.60

Bid 12.10 12.10 12.05

Offer Yield 13.01 13.40 13.47 13.49 13.44 13.59

Price 90.35 99.40 104.40 109.65 114.45 76.90

Tenor (Months) 1 2 3 6 9 12

Rate (%) 12.1827 12.2737 12.3744 12.8521 12.8535 13.8443

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

NITTY

Yield 12.86 13.33 13.35 13.42 13.38 13.53

Money Market Offer 11.85 11.85 11.80 Offer 163.38

Naira ends at record low despite CBN’s dollar sale

he naira ended at a record closing low against the dollar last Friday despite the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervention, dealers told Reuters News. The unit, which opened at N193.60, firmed to N185.80 lifted by the intervention. It quickly fell back to close

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

businesses that are the new money spinners, which have got the banking industry to rethink their customer management strategies. “What those alternatives have done to the industry is to get banks to rethink their strategies; to rethink the industry they want to play in, to also rethink the market they want to pitch their strategies to ahead of the future, because the future is going to change. Retail banking strategy means looking at a much wider scope of customers and how to reach them in their respective communities. Is it through alternative banking centre? Is it through agent-banking? Is it through cash-point or through other platforms?”

at N193.90. The naira closed at N192.70 last Thursday. Currency users were holding on to cheap dollars bought at the almostdaily CBN interventions, dealers said, because they believed the naira would continue to weaken as falling oil prices hurt Nigeria’s economy.

Enterprise Bank’s customer fair continues nationwide

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

age that we are coming into. Reliance and over reliance on brick and mortal branches is going to change. Customers are going to have a lot of alternatives as to how to interface with the market. Today, we hear of non-oil sector as alternatives to the oil sector. We can see what over reliance on the oil sector has done to our economy. If we had focused greatly on these alternatives, the exchange rate would not have hit us as much as it did,” explained Akpobome. She added that those emerging alternatives, which form large chunk of what today’s retail banking need to focus on, include businesses managed by middle-men, farmers, entertainers and other medium-sized

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

Rate (%) 11.33 11.63

NIFEX Spot ($/N)

Bid 163.4000

Offer 163.5000 Source: FMDQ

aving recorded a huge success with the first series of Enterprise Bank Consumer Fair, the lender says it is back on the road to extend the experience to customers in other parts of the country. The Consumer Fair according to a statement from the bank, is designed to take the products and services of the Enterprise Bank Limited to the doorsteps of customers and other patrons by letting them interface with the bank and experience firsthand, the value offering right in the comfort of their environments. The first phase kickedoff seven months ago (in July 2014) at the Trade Fair Complex in Lagos State and, subsequently, went round many other locations in the Lagos and South West area, including the Computer Village, Idumota Market, Dugbe and Gbagi Markets in Ibadan as well as the Oja Oba markets in Akure and Ekiti States before it was rested for the Christmas and New Year holiday.

With business activities now gradually picking up across the country, the bank said it has kickstarted the Consumer Fair train with a massive storm of the famous Aswani Market in Isolo and the Ikota Shopping Complex, Ikota, Lekki, Lagos. “In the weeks and months ahead, the Enterprise Bank Consumer Fair will hit 38 locations nationwide including Alaba International, Onitsha Main, Balogun and Ladipo markets. Other designated destinations are the markets in Calabar, Uyo, Owerri, Aba and Awka. “The Consumer Fair strategy is designed to continually deploy new platforms of service delivery targeted at surpassing the expectations of customers anywhere they are in the country,” said the statement from bank. Enterprise Bank Limited is currently in a business combination exercise with Heritage Bank to serve its customers more satisfactorily in a strong, bigger and better bank.

Business | News

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Technology: Nigeria, others ahead in use, says IDC PROSPECT Major potential for growth exists in the deployment of M2M energy, utility and security services Sunday Ojeme

with agency report

he International Data Corporation (IDC) has affirmed Nigeria’s leadership role in ma-

chine-to-machine (M2M) opportunities within the African continent. The corporation listed Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya as currently leading in the deployment of M2M technology being used in transportation and retail verticals to deliver services such as fleet management, asset tracking, retail point of sale (POS), and pay-asyou-go insurance. According to the corporation, while machineto-machine (M2M) opportunities may be limited across the African con-

tinent, a telecommunications and networking research analyst at IDC West Africa, Oluwole Babatope, said: “M2M technology is clearly gaining traction in Africa, albeit at a slower rate than seen in the world’s more developed markets. And while consumer applications for M2M technology undoubtedly exist, enterprises will be the main customers for such services and thus the main drivers of growth. Fleet management, vehicle tracking and pay-as yougo insurance will be the

key service areas in the short-term, but as connectivity in Africa improves, growth is expected in M2M energy, utility and security services.” Other critical growth drivers identified by IDC include improved mobile network coverage and bandwidth availability, increased usage of smart devices, and supportive government policies, with the latter proving particularly beneficial in Nigeria and Kenya. African governments that establish regulations enforcing smart moni-

toring of electricity and water meters have the potential to drive usage of M2M in the energy and utility sectors, as has been the case in both Brazil and China. The continent’s increasingly mobile-centric telephony landscape means that the primary mode of connectivity for services will be wireless, chiefly 2G GSM. This is because the services currently taken up typically require low bandwidth, meaning 2G connectivity will suffice. However, as mission-critical services

relying on low-latency packet delivery grow (e.g. video surveillance), 3G connectivity will become more significant. “In order to maximise the revenue potential of M2M, mobile network operators (MNOs) need to develop end-to-end solutions and avoid relying on revenue from connectivity alone,” advises Babatope. “African MNOs also need to develop a robust portfolio of valueadded services. This can be achieved by engaging in strategic partnerships with stakeholders along the M2M value chain.” IDC expects the M2M markets in most regions of the continent to grow slowly over the next five years, largely because mass-market consumer applications for the technology remain few and far between. IDC further predicts that as the African M2M market matures, there will be a shift from providing solutions to developing service-delivery models.

BDCs move to support ailing naira

u re a u x De Change (BDC) operators in the country have resolved to checkmate the falling fortune of the naira by supporting the monetary policies of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The naira, which currently exchanges officially at N169 per dollar and N209 at the parallel market, has lost over 16 per cent of its value to the dollar since June last year when the prices of oil at the international market crashed. The currency has been under pressure, necessitating the CBN to spend $5 billion defending the exchange rate in the last three months of 2014, reducing reserves to a three-year low of $34 billion, while devaluing the midpoint of the official exchange rate to N168 per dollar from N155 and raising the benchmark borrowing cost to a record 13 per cent. At a stakeholders meeting of BDCs in the South West zone last Tuesday, the operators, which have begun moves to resolve the lingering leadership crisis in the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), were said to have adopted four resolutions aimed at restoring peace to the Association.

Business |Stock Watch

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Guinness Nigeria: Strong contest stifles profit Share price movement of Guinness Nigeria Plc

DOWNGRADE Analysts have lowered the company’s stocks to underperform

2014

Chris Ugwu

hallenges of erratic electricity supply weak logistics, insecurity and other high costs of operations attributable to poor infrastructure, have continued to make business-operating environment difficult, especially for the real sector of the Nigerian economy. Although Nigeria’s beer industry is a very vital component of the country’s non-oil sector, which has largely contributed to economic growth in recent times, various factors have interfered to alter the dynamics of the alcoholic beverage market. Notable among the changes to the architecture of alcohol business in the country is the rise to prominence of new variants of alcoholic drinks, which mix bitters with spirit. For instance, the introduction of Alomo Bitters, produced by a Ghanaian company, Kasapreko Limited, in Accra, led the charge of these categories of beverages. The market shares of all other alcoholic brands have been re-configured and the beer brands have suffered a significant loss. The audited results of the companies since 2013 have not been encouraging. The expectations were that subsequent results would be brighter to erase the negatives in the accounts, but unfortunately, the trend has continued unabated. Market watchers attributed the depletion in revenue to stiff competition and drop in the value of naira. The brokers said that wary investors were still reacting and taking positions in the shares of the company based on the current figures available. However, while it has been accepted generally that the overall economic and business climate is a mixed fortune due to mounting economic challenges, Guinness Nigeria Plc is not insulated as its share price movement has also receded and remains susceptible to the challenges facing the manufacturing industry in Nigeria. This was due to the upset in financial sector following drop in oil prices and build up to the 2015 elections. Guinness is having its fair share of the current lull in the market following massive profit taking that saw the market lose considerable chunk of investors’ wealth. The share price, which closed at N194.25 per share in March 28, 2014, stood at N128.99 when the closing bell rang last Friday, representing a decrease of N65.26 or 50.59 per cent year to date. Corporate profile Guinness Nigeria Plc was incorporated in April 1950 as a trading company importing Guinness Stout from Dublin. Today, the company has transformed itself into a

Mar 31

N194.25

Apr 30

N176.00

May 31

N179.99

Jun 30

N200.00

Jul 31

N195.00

Aug 31

N185.00

Sept 30

N214.98

Oct 31

N170.00

Nov 30

N158.00

Dec 31

N168.15 2015

Savage

manufacturing operation and currently operates four breweries in Nigeria. Its diverse product line includes the foreign extra stout, Harp lager, Malta Guinness, Saltzenbrau and Orijin considered the most selling bitters at the moment. The company also engages in farming activities in Nigeria. Financials The firm’s result for the year ended June 30, 2013, showed a considerable dip in key profitability indices, though the revenue and net assets grew by four per cent and 19 per cent each to N131.4 billion and N46.03 billion compared with N126.3 billion and N38.6 billion respectively recorded the same period in 2012. Profit before tax dropped by 17 per cent to N17.008 billion as against N20.383 billion recorded in 2012. Also, profit after tax declined by 17 per cent to N11.8 billion from N14.2 billion recorded in 2012. Guinness condensed Interim Financial Statements for the six months ended December 31, 2013 further showed a drop of 32 per cent in profit before tax (PBT) from N9.44 billion recorded in 2012 to N6.41 in 2013. The company’s profit before tax slumped by 22 per cent to N4.99 billion to N6.41 billion. Guinness posted a turnover of N52.7 billion, as against N60.87 recorded in the comparable period of 2012, representing a drop of 13 per cent, while earnings per share also recorded a loss of 22 per cent to 332 kobo in 2013 from 426 kobo in 2013. The company also reported a 31 per cent decline in pre-tax profit

Devaluation of the naira coupled with a seven per cent rise in barley prices during the quarter were the likely drivers behind the substantial decline in gross margin

for the year ended June 30, 2014. In a financial statement released to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the company said its profit before tax (PBT) for the period dropped by 31 per cent from N17.0 billion in 2013 to N11.68 billion in 2014. Guinness also reported a decline in its post-tax profit of 19 per cent to N9.573 billion from N11.863 billion in its year 2014 audited year. Similarly, revenues declined to N109.20 billion in the 12-month period to June 30, compared with N122.46 billion during the same period last year. The company’s dwindling fortune continued during the six months ended December 31, 2014 as it recorded a 27 per cent drop in profit before tax. In its filing with the NSE, the firm said the first-half pretax profit fell to N4.65 billion down 27.4 per cent from N6.41 billion a year ago. However, turnover rose to N55.26 billion in the six-month period to December from N52.75 billion a year earlier. Profit deflators According to FBN Capital, the management of Guinness Nigeria disclosed that the reduction of stocks to channels and one-off items resulted in losses of N1.2 billion and N0.5 million respectively. “Adjusting for these losses, underlying PBT declined by -3 per cent y/y to N4.4billion. Further up the P&L, the outstanding performance of value brands, particularly “Orijin” - GN’s herbal spirit brand - contributed

Jan 30

N129.99

Feb 6

N128.99

strongly to topline growth. In contrast, growth for the premium and mainstream brands, particularly “Harp” lager was constrained due to strong competition from competing value brands. Consequently, the unfavorable volumeprice mix was the major driver of the 442bps contraction in gross margins,” it said. Analysts at FBN Capital also believe that the 10 per cent devaluation of the naira coupled with a seven per cent rise in barley prices during the quarter were the likely drivers behind the substantial decline in gross margin. This, according to them, was in addition to increased expenditures on advertisements and promotions, which grew by 48 per cent q/q to N7.8 billion. “Following Guinness Nigeria’s weaker-than-expected Q2 2015 (end-Dec) results, we have cut our EPS forecasts by around 28 per cent on average over the 2015-17E period and our price target by 21 per cent to N107.9. On a relative basis, GN shares are trading on a 2015E (end-June) P/E multiple of 28.1x for 25 per cent EPS growth in 2016E (helped by weak comparables in 2015E). These compared with the 23.9x (end-Dec) P/E multiple for eight per cent EPS growth in 2015E that rival Nigerian Breweries is trading on. Our price target implies a potential downside of -16 per cent from current levels. As such, we lower our recommendation to underperform from neutral,” they noted. Outlook Going forward, the management noted that it intends to expand its distribution footprint by covering about 20-30 per cent more mid-tier outlets. Chairman, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr. Babatunde Savage said that the Board would continue to support the management in its efforts to grow the business and deliver shareholders’ value. “We will continue to manage our cost base tightly to deliver moderate operating margins improvement. The Board is confident that our focus on our strategic priorities will return the business to growth and improved profitability,” he assured.

Insurance

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Risk transfer: Nigeria in perspective Abdulwahab Isa Abuja

ne of the tripods that support the economy of any nation is the insurance sector. The segment in Nigeria has for long taken the back stage, queuing abysmally behind banking, capital market and some other financial services sub-sector of the economy. Its share of contribution to the overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the economy has been very unimpressive. Largely, insurance in Nigeria in the early 60s conjured only one image – issuance of third party vehicle certificate. However, deliberate and bold steps were taken in 1989 by the Federal Government, leading to the promulgation of the Insurance Special Supervisory Fund (ISSF) decree 20 of 1989. The decree aimed at strengthening the manpower needs of the Insurance Supervisory Board. That decree mandated all insurance companies to contribute one per cent of their gross earning to the Fund. To further deepen the industry, another decree No 58 of 1991 was enacted to improve the provisions of Decree No 58 of 1979 and No 40 of 1988. The major highlights of the 1991 Decree included among other things, increased paid-up share capital of insurers and Re-insurers in respect of nonlife business and life business respectively, compulsory membership of trade associations; management of security fund by NIA and the implementation of no-premium, no-cover policy. The industry’s major breakthrough was in 1992. The Insurance Special Supervision Fund decree No 62 was enacted, establishing a body known as National Insurance Supervisory Board, bringing out insurance supervision outside core civil service, changing designation of Chief Executive from Director of Insurance to Commissioner for Insurance and setting up the Board of Directors to oversee the affairs of the established Body. All these provisions were made to attract high level manpower. The provision of Decree No 62 of 1992 and 58 of 1991 were reviewed for effective supervision and efficient Insurance market, bringing into enactment Decree Numbers 1 & 2 of 1997, National Insurance Commission and Insurance Decree respectively. NAICOM as industry’s regulator Interestingly, the industry started getting recognition in early 90’s with the pronouncement of National Insurance

Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Fola Daniel

Commission (NAICOM) as statutory body empowered to regulate and supervise the activities of the sector. As a sector regulator and supervisory organ, NAICOM falls in same category of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigeria Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). From its pioneer Chief Executive Officer, Eugne Okwor, to Chief Oladipo Bailey, Okechukwu Chukwulozie and to the present Commissioner for Insurance, Fola Daniel, NAICOM has adopted stringent measures to ensure sanity in the sector. While sanctions of erring firms were mild in time past, the coming on board of Fola Daniel as Commissioner of Insurance and CEO of NAICOM witnessed drastic change in the area of enforcement of sanctions and penalties. In apparent demonstration of its supervisory roles, NAICOM under Daniel does not waiver in slamming sanction on erring firms. At just concluded 2015 seminar for insurance correspondents in Benin, Edo state, Daniel declared that an insurance firm whose identity he refused to disclose to media was fined a penalty to tune of N62 million for misconduct. Fola said : “As some professionals have decided to break the rule with impunity, NAICOM has become harder in the implementation of sanctions.” He said insurance operators were expected to carry out their businesses by abiding by some operational guidelines, principles and regulatory requirements such as compliance to risk-based supervision; transition to International Financial

Chairman, NIA, GUS Wiggle

Reporting Standard, IFRS; solvency adequacy; early submission of financial results, and so on. Daniel adding that any firm that breaks the rule risks NAICOM sanction.

As part of a critical aspect of a nation’s economy, insurance has the potential of galvanising the optimal performance of other sectors and reducing pressure on public sector finance

Road map to leapfrog The insurance summit that held in Abuja last quarter of 2014 served as an eye opener to the quantum achievements previous reforms had brought to bear on the industry. The Commissioner said the commission had set a three-year agenda to transform the sector. As part of a critical aspect of a nation’s economy, insurance has the potential of galvanising the optimal performance of other sectors and reducing pressure on public sector finance. However, Daniel identified some of the challenges to the growth of the industry to include getting sufficient number of customers to buy insurance. “This decision is influenced by factors such as the image of the industry, financial literacy, economic constraints and attitude of the consumers, among others,” he said. Presenting the roadmap for transforming the insurance sector in Nigeria, NAICOM’s Director of Inspectorate, Mr. Barineka Thompson, said the road map (2011 to 2015 strategic plan and objectives) focused on deepening insurance penetration, strengthening insurance institutions through effective regulatory framework, and improving communications with all stakeholders to ensure transparency, public trust and confidence. Other areas the road map

was designed to achieve include transforming the commission’s processes, people and systems, and optimising revenue collection as well as effective management of assets. In area of regulation, Thompson said NAICOM had changed the perspective of regulation by enthroning risk-based supervision, bringing discipline to bear in market conduct and consumer protection, claims dispute resolution mechanism; conflict resolution, use of ombudsman and NAICOM complaint bureau. He listed NAICOM’s strategy for risk-based supervision of the sector to include, requiring firms to develop robust risk management culture, effective internal control mechanism, good governance system and transparent reporting systems and disclosures. He said: “NAICOM will adopt appropriate supervisory tools to be much more willing to intervene in management / board governance matters and use predictive analysis tools to monitor forward solvency positions.” 2015 outlook Daniel and his team expressed confidence that given the level of achievements recorded in the last couple of years, the industry is well positioned to play significant active role in the economy. His confidence was buoyed by positive mileages recorded last few years especially the enforcement of ‘no premium no cover’, which he said restored sanity to the sector. “As soon as Nigeria started it in 2013 and following its attendant success, other countries like Ghana and other francophone countries copied it as a policy. The fact that we have other countries copying our policy shows it was successful and it also impacted by a way of increased cash flow to the sector.” He said about N300 billion premium businesses was done by the collective insurance firms in the third quarter of 2014, adding that the sector had the capacity to do more given the huge market in Nigeria. On 2015 outlook, he said the commission would consolidate on its recorded achievements in the last four years by striving to improve on current rating of Nigeria from third position in Africa to first. “We have moved from enviable 5th position to 3rd position in Africa but we have no business being in third position because we have the potential to eclipse South Africa. So, we are aiming to be number one because we have the capacity as an industry and the potential as a great country to achieve the feat,” he said.

Business | Insurance

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

PENETRATION Increased participation in risk transfer guarantees economic development Sunday Ojeme

ollowing the poor insurance penetration in the country and its dismal impact on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has called on the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to sustain its efforts in the enforcement of the compulsory insurances listed in the Insurance Act of 2003. The Association, which made the appeal during a meeting with the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. Fola Daniel, also requested the assistance of the regulator in pursuing the amendment of the Companies Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2007 (CITA) to relieve insurance companies of the heavy tax burdens which is capable of inhibiting the desired growth of the market. The NIA boss, Mr. G. U. S. Wiggle, listed the giant strides the Association has made in recent times to include; sponsorship strengthening of Customer Complaints Bureau which is an Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanism, awareness campaign to increase insurance education thereby bringing more people into the

Compulsory Insurance: NIA tasks NAICOM over execution insurance net and the establishment of the Energy and Allied Insurance Pool to curb capital flight, increase retention and building capacity in Energy and Allied Risks underwriting, as well as sponsorship of a candidate to pursue a Master of Science Degree in Actuarial Science in a UK University as part of capacity building initiatives in that critical area of insurance prac-

tice, urged the Commissioner For Insurance to assist the Association by supporting these and other initiatives in order to deepen insurance penetration. “We thank you for this visit and urge you to support the Association in the drive to increase insurance penetration in Nigeria. We have taken some bold steps and we believe that they will complement the reform

initiatives you have introduced. Your support is critical to the growth and expansion of the insurance market in Nigeria” he stated. In his response, Daniel noted that the Association had taken some giant strides in some areas but added that more effort needed to be made to shore up the fortunes of insurance companies. He challenged insurers to key into the growth

agenda espoused by the government as a fall-out of the Insurance Summit held in December 201. While appreciating the role of insurance in national development, the CFI said the major goals of the Summit was to enable the insurance industry deliver jobs and skills development, build consumer trust and public awareness, increase access to insurance and enforcement of com-

L-R: General Secretary, Onitsha Main Market Traders Association, Nwabueze Egwuatu; Zonal Head, First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Limited, Enugu, Mr. Chijioke Mbagwu; Chairman, Traders Association, Innocent Agudiegwu; Leader, Women Wing of the Association, Mrs. Grace Okonkwo and Zonal Head, FCMB Plc, Awka, Chike Okeke, at the launch of the bank’s Personal Business Account product in Onitsha Main Market, Anambra State

Encomiums as Usoro leaves Premium Pension board

r. Paul Usoro SAN, a luminary in telecommunication law, has formally left the board of Premium Pension Limited after completing two terms totaling six years. A statement signed by the company’s Head, Media/Communication, Mr. Paddy Ezeala, said, Usoro, who was an independent board member and the chairman of the company’s Board, Audit Committee, played immeasurable part in consolidating the company’s core values defined by corporate governance and global best practice. Wishing him well as he departs the organization, the Chairman of the Board, Mr. Aliyu Abdulrahman Dikko, expressed sincere gratitude to other board members and stakeholders for allowing Usoro serve on the board of Premium Pension Limited. He said, “In these past six years his positive imprint are visible and indelible, his dedication and punctuality are unparalleled and we thank him immensely for all the positive influence.” A member of the board, Architect Yinusa Yakubu, also

described Usoro as a source of inspiration and learning, an assertion that was corroborated by Mr. Kayode Akande, the company’s Executive Director of Operations and Services. “We now have a more robust audit committee owing to the influence of Mr. Paul Usoro. He impacted positively on all of us in management and the entire company at large. The entire board would miss him,” he said. In his response, Usoro declared that he would remain a part of Premium Pension Limited and disposed to continued contributing towards the steady growth of the company. He said, “I will continue to identify with the company and make my services available. Premium Pension board is one in which I felt very much at home.” Premium Pension Limited is one of the leading pension fund administrators in the country and prides itself on having a robust and versatile board membership made up of highly skilled Nigerian professionals drawn from various parts of the country.

pulsory insurances. He therefore charged underwriters to own the deliverables from the Summit and ensure attainment of set goals. He urged the Association to help work out modalities at ensuring competitive and appropriate rates in the industry. The NAICOM helmsman commended the Association for setting up the Energy and Allied Insurance Pool and encouraged companies to key into the Pool arrangement in order to participate fully in the underwriting of Oil and Gas Insurance risks in the Nigerian market. “I want to appreciate the industry for the success of the Insurance summit and also take this opportunity to request that insurance companies should key into the goals of the summit which include; enforcement of public interest/ compulsory insurances, deliver jobs and skills development, build consumer trust and awareness and increase access to insurance. I urge you to own the deliverables from the Summit and work towards its attainment. The Commission will support the Energy and Allied Insurance Pool and ensure that the market reaps the benefits maximally” he promised.

ARC to develop epidemic outbreak insurance

he African Union’s African Risk Capacity - the continent’s sovereign disaster risk insurer - is developing cover for disease outbreaks and epidemics. In the aftermath of the Ebola crisis that ravaged West Africa last year, ARC Member States requested the development of these services at this week’s African Union Summit in Addis Ababa. “While pricing models will be more complex than in ARC’s existing drought product, and flood and tropical cyclone modeling, product development is feasible and will reflect true risk. We aim to insure the first four participating states in 2017,” said Dr. Richard Wilcox, ARC’s founding Director General. As in the case of natural disasters, outbreaks create immediate funding requirements for African governments, which traditional for-

eign aid only addresses in an ad hoc and often untimely manner. New applications of financial tools like insurance can significantly improve the speed of funds availability and shorten the time lag between event and response. “Ebola is not the first virus to threaten the world, and it won’t be the last. Unless we prepare for the next epidemic, we will find ourselves forever nailing down outbreaks just in time to see the next ones pop up. Epidemic risk financing is going to be a key component of the overall preparedness and risk management strategy. We are working with regional organizations such as ARC, global organizations as well as financial institutions in providing analytics and instutiontal knowledge required to architect such financing schemes.” said Dr.

Nathan Wolfe, founder and CEO of Metabiota, the pioneer in the analytics, management and mitigation of epidemic threats. ARC provides funding against African governments’ peer-reviewed and approved contingency plans for drought. A similar approach would be necessary for outbreaks and epidemics. “African Risk Capacity is an example that we should look at as part of our success stories. Firstly, this is pooled resources of Member states to address an African problem; secondly they work to strengthen capacity in Member states; and thirdly they have already started paying out to Member states facing drought this year,” said Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union Commission in her opening speech to the AU Summit last week.

Business | Financial Market News

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

6-Feb-15

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

Bonds FGN Bonds

Price

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description 4.00 23-APR-2015 13.05 16-AUG-2016 15.10 27-APR-2017 9.85 27-JUL-2017 9.35 31-AUG-2017 10.70 30-MAY-2018 16.00 29-JUN-2019 7.00 23-OCT-2019 16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14-MAR-2024 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.49 22-MAY-2029 8.50 20-NOV-2029 10.00 23-JUL-2030 12.1493 18-JUL-2034

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

23-Apr-10 16-Aug-13 27-Apr-12 27-Jul-07 31-Aug-07 30-May-08 29-Jun-12 23-Oct-09 27-Jan-12 14-Mar-14 28-Nov-08 22-May-09 20-Nov-09 23-Jul-10 18-Jul-14

4.00 13.05 15.10 9.85 9.35 10.70 16.00 7.00 16.39 14.20 15.00 12.49 8.50 10.00 12.1493

535.00 581.39 476.80 20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 600.00 434.68 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57 206.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

4,855.63

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,390.17

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description

Maturity Date

TTM (Yrs)

23-Apr-15 16-Aug-16 27-Apr-17 27-Jul-17 31-Aug-17 30-May-18 29-Jun-19 23-Oct-19 27-Jan-22 14-Mar-24 28-Nov-28 22-May-29 20-Nov-29 23-Jul-30 18-Jul-34

0.21 1.52 2.22 2.47 2.56 3.31 4.39 4.71 6.97 9.10 13.81 14.29 14.79 15.46 19.44

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

10.25 15.05 15.28 15.33 15.33 15.34 15.31 15.33 15.27 15.24 15.93 16.03 16.13 15.63 15.53

9.52 14.93 15.20 15.25 15.26 15.21 15.22 15.22 15.20 15.17 15.88 15.96 16.04 15.55 15.47

98.70 97.35 99.60 89.05 87.69 88.26 102.10 72.72 104.70 94.95 94.78 80.31 57.44 67.50 79.40

98.85 97.50 99.75 89.20 87.84 88.56 102.40 73.02 105.00 95.25 95.08 80.61 57.74 67.80 79.70

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

# Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

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

0.00 17.25 0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

24.56 2.70 112.22 116.70 66.49

24-May-15 03-Apr-17 08-Dec-16 19-Apr-17 06-Jul-17

0.29 1.15 1.84 2.20 2.41

2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 1.00

13.01 17.53 17.20 16.29 16.32

96.28 99.75 98.10 97.29 93.98

Agency Bonds FMBN ***LCRM

0.00 FMB 24-MAY-2015 17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 0.00/16.00 LCRM 08-DEC-2016 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 19-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

322.68

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

312.47

Sub-National Bonds A/Agusto

KADUNA

12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015

31-Aug-10

12.50

8.50

31-Aug-15

0.56

4.44

17.95

97.16

A-/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

4.18

30-Sep-15

0.40

3.23

15.07

99.19

BBB+/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

4.86

30-Jun-16

0.92

4.46

19.46

95.61

‡ /Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

5.73

30-Jun-16

0.92

3.48

18.49

97.55

‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

2.20

1.00

16.29

88.72

‡ /Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

25.73

30-Jun-17

1.46

1.00

16.12

97.05

‡ /Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

2.90

1.79

17.12

93.04

‡ /Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

34.14

30-Sep-18

2.07

1.80

17.06

95.00

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

2.08

1.00

16.27

96.25

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR†

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

09-Dec-11

14.50

13.73

09-Dec-18

2.27

1.00

16.30

96.76

‡ /Agusto

*NIGER

14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018

12-Dec-13

14.00

10.20

12-Dec-18

2.27

4.78

20.08

89.73

15.50

27.00

14-Feb-19

2.47

1.00

16.33

98.41

15.50 14.50 14.75

16.23 80.00 26.62

02-Oct-19 22-Nov-19 12-Dec-19

2.71 4.79 2.77

1.00 1.00 2.74

16.33 16.33 18.07

98.27 94.00 93.23

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR

*ONDO

15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019

14-Feb-12

BBB+/Agusto; A-/GCR ‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR

*GOMBE LAGOS

15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019

BBB-/Agusto; A-/GCR

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019

02-Oct-12 22-Nov-12 12-Dec-12

‡ /Agusto

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN II 10-OCT-2020

10-Oct-13

14.75

11.10

10-Oct-20

3.32

1.00

16.34

96.18

‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

13.50 LAGOS IV 27-NOV-2020

27-Nov-13

13.50

87.50

27-Nov-20

5.81

1.00

16.30

89.67

A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro

KOGI

15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020

31-Dec-13

15.00

5.00

31-Dec-20

5.90

1.94

17.24

91.86

‡ /Agusto A-/GCR

*EKITI *NASARAWA

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

31-Dec-13

14.50

4.55

31-Dec-20

3.56

1.44

16.78

94.33

06-Jan-14

15.00

4.56

06-Jan-21

3.59

1.95

17.29

94.32

98.69

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

460.61 429.81

Corporate Bonds ‡ /Agusto BBB-/Agusto

*UPDC

10.00 UPDC 17-AUG-2015

17-Aug-10

10.00

5.00

17-Aug-15

0.28

4.88

14.98

*FLOURMILLS

12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015

09-Dec-10

12.00

18.75

09-Dec-15

0.59

1.00

14.59

98.55

BB/GCR

*CHELLARAMS

14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016

06-Jan-11

14.00

0.42

06-Jan-16

0.67

2.63

16.56

98.46

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016

29-Sep-11

13.00

15.00

29-Sep-16

1.64

1.00

16.14

95.57

A-/Agusto

FSDH

14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016

25-Oct-13

14.25

5.53

25-Oct-16

1.72

1.34

16.51

96.68

A/GCR

UBA

13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017

30-Sep-10

13.00

20.00

30-Sep-17

2.65

1.00

16.33

93.01

BBB-/GCR

18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017

30-Nov-12

18.00

0.64

30-Nov-17

1.67

1.88

17.03

102.02

Nil

*C & I LEASING *DANA#{r}

MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018

09-Apr-11

16.00

6.30

09-Apr-18

1.67

3.48

18.63

96.49

A-/DataPro†; B+/GCR

*TOWER#

MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

18.00

2.90

09-Sep-18

1.83

5.20

20.40

96.68

1.83

5.06

20.26

94.09

AAA/DataPro†; A/GCR

*TOWER

MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

16.00

0.80

09-Sep-18

A/Agusto; A/GCR

UBA

14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018

22-Sep-11

14.00

35.00

22-Sep-18

3.62

1.00

16.34

93.74

Bbb+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR

15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018

18-Oct-13

15.75

2.40

18-Oct-18

1.94

2.29

17.52

97.26

BBB-/DataPro†; BB/GCR

*LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS#

MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019

17-Feb-12

18.00

0.41

17-Feb-19

2.03

6.11

21.37

95.00

Nil

*DANA#{r}

16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019

01-Apr-14

16.00

4.50

01-Apr-19

2.90

2.16

17.49

96.70

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

14-Nov-13

15.25

2.05

14-Nov-20

5.77

2.76

18.06

90.09

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

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

30-Sep-14

11.93

0.10

30-Sep-24

9.65

1.00

16.28

79.11

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

13.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024

30-Sep-14

13.25

15.44

30-Sep-24

9.65

1.00

16.28

85.44

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

135.24

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

127.40

Supranational Bond AAA/S&P

IFC

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

11-Feb-13

10.20

12.00

11-Feb-18

3.01

1.00

16.33

85.84

Aaa/Moody's; AAA/S&P

AfDB

11.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021

10-Jul-14

11.25

12.95

01-Feb-21

4.75

1.00

16.33

84.37

Maturity Date

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

24.95 21.23

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value ($mm)

FGN Eurobonds

Prices & Yields

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

FGN

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

6.75 JAN 28, 2021

07-Oct-11

6.75

500.00

28-Jan-21

6.82

6.59

99.65

100.79

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

12-Jul-13

5.13

500.00

12-Jul-18

5.68

5.35

98.28

99.31

6.38 JUL 12, 2023

12-Jul-13

6.38

500.00

12-Jul-23

7.05

6.88

95.78

96.82

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

1,500.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,468.59

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

AFREN PLC I

11.50 FEB 01, 2016

01-Feb-11

11.50

450.00

01-Feb-16

179.96

33.50

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC I

7.50 MAY 19, 2016

19-May-11

7.50

500.00

19-May-16

6.96

100.63

B+/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC

7.25 JUL 25, 2017

25-Jul-12

7.25

350.00

25-Jul-17

11.30

91.50

B/Fitch; B/S&P

FIDELITY BANK PLC

6.88 MAY 09, 2018

09-May-13

6.88

300.00

02-May-18

13.87

12.96

82.18

84.25

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC

6.00 NOV 08, 2018

08-Nov-13

6.00

400.00

08-Nov-18

10.36

9.82

86.74

88.24

B/Fitch

AFREN PLC II

10.25 APR 08, 2019

08-Apr-12

10.25

300.00

08-Apr-19

41.29

40.50

B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P

ZENITH BANK PLC

6.25 APR 22, 2019

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

10.78

85.00

B/Fitch; B/S&P

DIAMOND BANK PLC

8.75 May 21, 2019

21-May-14

8.75

200.00

21-May-19

15.44

14.44

79.55

82.26

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

FIRST BANK PLC

8.25 AUG 07, 2020

07-Aug-13

8.25

300.00

07-Aug-20

13.33

80.00

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

AFREN PLC III ACCESS BANK PLC II FIRST BANK LTD

6.63 DEC 09, 2020 9.25/6M USD LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021 8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021

09-Dec-13 24-Jun-14 23-Jul-14

6.63 9.25 8.00

360.00 400.00 450.00

09-Dec-20 24-Jun-21 23-Jul-21

25.64 13.57 13.81

25.64 13.07 13.81

43.98 81.83 75.00

43.98 83.67 75.00

B-/S&P

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

14-Aug-14

8.75

250.00

14-Aug-21

10.74

10.33

90.00

91.75

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

4,760.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

3,561.34

**Treasury Bills DTM 13 20 27 34 41 48

FIXINGS Maturity 19-Feb-15 26-Feb-15 5-Mar-15 12-Mar-15 19-Mar-15 26-Mar-15

Bid Discount (%) 10.94 12.55 11.95 12.55 11.71 13.00

Offer Discount (%) 10.69 12.30 11.70 12.30 11.46 12.75

Bid Yield (%) 10.98 12.64 12.06 12.70 11.87 13.23

Money Market

NIBOR Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 16.1250 14.7847 15.3000 16.5501

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

15.92

O/N Tenor

16.17

REPO

Rate (%)

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) Tenor

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

Spot 7D 14D 1M

193.70 194.20 194.50 195.22

193.80 194.31 194.65 196.60

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

322.68

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

312.47

Sub-National Bonds A/Agusto

KADUNA

12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015

31-Aug-10

12.50

8.50

31-Aug-15

0.56

4.44

17.95

97.16

A-/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

4.18

30-Sep-15

0.40

3.23

15.07

99.19

BBB+/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

4.86

30-Jun-16

0.92

4.46

19.46

95.61

‡ /Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

5.73

30-Jun-16

0.92

3.48

18.49

97.55

‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

2.20

1.00

16.29

88.72

‡ /Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

25.73

30-Jun-17

1.46

1.00

16.12

97.05

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

2.90

1.79

17.12

93.04

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY,EDO FEBRUARY 9, 2015 ‡ /Agusto

Business | Financial Market News

‡ /Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

34.14

30-Sep-18

2.07

1.80

17.06

95.00

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

2.08

1.00

16.27

96.25

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR†

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

09-Dec-11

14.50

13.73

09-Dec-18

2.27

1.00

16.30

96.76

‡ /Agusto

*NIGER

14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018

12-Dec-13

14.00

10.20

12-Dec-18

2.27

4.78

20.08

89.73

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR

*ONDO

15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019

14-Feb-12

15.50

27.00

14-Feb-19

2.47

1.00

16.33

98.41

BBB+/Agusto; A-/GCR ‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR

*GOMBE LAGOS

15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019

02-Oct-12 22-Nov-12 12-Dec-12

15.50 14.50 14.75

16.23 80.00 26.62

02-Oct-19 22-Nov-19 12-Dec-19

2.71 4.79 2.77

1.00 1.00 2.74

16.33 16.33 18.07

98.27 94.00 93.23

10-Oct-13

14.75

11.10

10-Oct-20

3.32

1.00

16.34

96.18

0.10

30-Sep-24

9.65

1.00

16.28

79.11

15.44

30-Sep-24

9.65

1.00

16.28

85.44

11-Feb-18

3.01

1.00

16.33

85.84

250.00

14-Aug-21

10.74

10.33

90.00

91.75

FORESIGHT

FMDQ targets N175trn turnover in 2017

Some of the initiatives BBB-/Agusto; A-/GCR *OSUN will develop the bonds ‡ /Agusto *OSUN ‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR LAGOS markets A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro KOGI ‡ /Agusto A-/GCR

14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019

14.75 OSUN II 10-OCT-2020

*EKITI *NASARAWA

Stories by Chris Ugwu TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

igerian over-the-counmarket for ‡ /Agusto Foreign Exchange *UPDC BBB-/Agusto *FLOURMILLS (FX), Treasury Bills BB/GCR (T.Bills), Bonds, Money*CHELLARAMS and DeA+/Agusto; A-/GCR NAHCO rivatives said it projects a turnA-/Agusto FSDH over of N175 trillion in 2017. A/GCR UBA The BBB-/GCRManaging Director *C & I LEASING #{r} Nil Chief Executive *DANA and Officer A-/DataPro†; B+/GCR *TOWER# of FMDQ OTC, Mr. Bola OnAAA/DataPro†; A/GCR *TOWER# adele, who made the disclosure A/Agusto; A/GCR UBA at aBbb+/Agusto; press briefing, FMDQ BBB+/GCR said *LA CASERA would focusBB/GCR on currency de- # BBB-/DataPro†; *CHELLARAMS #{r} Nil *DANA rivatives (FX Forwards, Swaps (OTC) Corporateter Bonds

and Options) inIV2015. 13.50 LAGOS 27-NOV-2020 31-DEC-2020 “We 15.00 areKOGI embarking on a 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 derivatives study to fully un15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021 derstand and dimension the market before our products are activated,” he said. On what is the impact of 10.00in UPDC 17-AUG-2015 volatility FX on the OTC FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 market,12.00 Onadele said volatil14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 ity would motivate the market 13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016 to develop derivatives. 14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016 “It could also bring bouts of 13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017 market 18.00 seizures, which our fiDANArisk 9-APR-2018 nancialMPR+7.00 markets manageMPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 ment framework is expected MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 to address. We are working 14.00 UBA II 22-SEP-2018 with the15.75 CBN to be18-OCT-2018 part of the LA CASERA framework as CHELLARAMS the lender of last MPR+5.00 II 17-FEB-2019 II 1-APR-2019 resort,”16.00 he DANA said.

Onadele said FMDQ13.50 would 27-Nov-13 31-Dec-13 15.00 be engaging in initiatives to de14.50 velop the31-Dec-13 corporate and state 06-Jan-14 15.00 bond markets. Speaking on infractions in the market, the FDMQ boss said, “We are working with key 17-Aug-10 stakeholders to finalise10.00 the Infractions09-Dec-10 and Penalties 12.00 Guide, 06-Jan-11 14.00 which should go live before the 29-Sep-11 13.00 end of Q125-Oct-13 2015.” 14.25 FMDQ30-Sep-10 had last year13.00 called on the first batch of its dealing 30-Nov-12 18.00 16.00 members09-Apr-11 to continue to dem18.00 onstrate 09-Sep-11 their compliance on 09-Sep-11 16.00 sound corporate governance, 22-Sep-11 14.00 as this will enable the overall 18-Oct-13 15.75 growth of17-Feb-12 the financial market 18.00 01-Apr-14 16.00 and the economy .

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

14-Nov-13

15.25

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

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

30-Sep-14

11.93

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

13.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024

30-Sep-14

13.25

SEC committed to investors’ education –Gwarzo

he Securities and ExTOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE change Commission TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION (SEC) will play its role as the apex Supranational Bondregulator 10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018 of AAA/S&P Nigeria’s capital marIFC 11-Feb-13 11.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021 AAA/S&P strong AfDB ketAaa/Moody's; in ensuring fo- make informed financial to ensure speedy 10-Jul-14 passage OUTSTANDING VALUE cusTOTAL on investor education decisions. We are keen on of Exchange bill pendTOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION and financial inclusion, ensuring that Nigeria has ing before the National Acting Director-General financially responsible Assembly. This is aimed Rating/Agency Issuer Issue Date of the commission, Mr. citizens,” Gwarzo said. Description at making a vibrant comMounir Gwarzo has said. He noted that the SEC modity body. FGN Eurobonds He said this while re- had put in place an ICT The SEC boss gave asJAN 28,surance 2021 BB-/Fitch;some B+/S&P trade groups 07-Oct-11 ceiving Committee to improve6.75on that the commisin BB-/Fitch; Abuja. the content of Commis- sion would support the FGN 5.13 JUL 12, 2018 12-Jul-13 BB-/S&P Specifically, he said sion’s website. management of the ComBB-/Fitch; collaboration with stake“Our website will6.38be Exchange 12-Jul-13 whenevJUL 12,modity 2023 BB-/S&P holders in the nation’s richer in providing infor- er there is public hearing TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE capital market including mation about the Nigeria on its bill. MARKET CAPITALISATION theTOTAL media was necessary SEC and other jurisdicGwarzo also advised to Corporate ensureEurobonds advancement tions. We are also looking NCX to be well positioned of B/Fitch; financial all PLCat e-library to enhance as there 11.50 FEB 01,for 2016 competition, 01-Feb-11 B-/S&P literacy in AFREN I parts of the country . information about the were other commodity 7.50 MAY 19, 2016 B+/Fitch; B+/S&P GTBANK PLC I 19-May-11 He noted that as the apex capital market, probably such as AFEX 7.25 JUL 25,Exchanges 2017 B+/S&P ACCESS BANK PLC 25-Jul-12 regulator before the end of this compet6.88 MAY 09,that 2018 will soon be09-May-13 B/Fitch; B/S&Pof the capital FIDELITY BANK PLC 6.00to NOV 08,ing 2018 with it. market, the Commission quarter, we will be able B+/Fitch; B+/S&P GTBANK PLC 08-Nov-13 10.25 APR 08, 2019 B/Fitch to raise financially AFREN PLCmake II 08-Apr-12 needed the e-library workHe said that SEC was 6.25 APR 22,very 2019 B+/Fitch;citizens BB-/S&P ZENITH BANK PLC Gwarzo said. literate who spend ing,” keen on the22-Apr-14 growth 8.75 May 21, 2019 B/Fitch; B/S&P PLC 21-May-14 wisely and save wisely.DIAMOND BANKThe Commission also and development of the 8.25 AUG 07, 2020 B-/Fitch; B/S&P FIRST BANK PLC pledged to collaborate “We believe if people Exchange largely07-Aug-13 because 6.63 DEC 09, 2020 B-/Fitch; B/S&P AFREN PLC III 09-Dec-13 with the Nigeria Com- of its important role areB-/Fitch; wellB/S&P educated finanin the 9.25/6M USD LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021 ACCESS BANK PLC II 24-Jun-14 cially, they will be able to modity Exchange (NCX) economy . 8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021 B-/Fitch; B/S&P FIRST BANK LTD 23-Jul-14 B-/S&P

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

on the as one 1.00 front burner 16.30 89.67 of 17.24 91.86 for the 1.94 key foundation items 1.44 16.78 94.33 ensuring a sound investment 1.95 17.29 94.32 environment. Aig-Imoukhuede said the institute also expected that members of the professional body, 14.98 in their 98.69 shall4.88at all times vari14.59 demonstrate 98.55 ous 1.00 work place, 98.46 best2.63 practice16.56 in the develop1.00 16.14 95.57 ment and effective deployment 1.34 16.51 96.68 of their human capital as an 1.00 16.33 93.01 integral aspect 1.88 17.03 of organisa102.02 3.48 development. 18.63 96.49 tional 5.20 20.40 96.68 He said, “In this way , you 5.06 20.26 94.09 will1.00command the respect 16.34 93.74 we 2.29 desire as17.52 professionals, 97.26 through the quality of95.00 your 6.11 21.37 2.16 17.49to corporate 96.70 contributions 2.76 18.06 90.09 performance.”

Lender promises shareholders increased ROI 135.24 127.40

10.20

12.00

11.25

Coupon (%)

6.75 5.13 6.38

11.50 7.50 7.25 6.88 6.00 10.25 6.25 8.75 8.25 6.63 9.25 8.00

14-Aug-14

01-Feb-21 Plc has 4.75 ccess Bank 24.95 promised to deliver 21.23 sustainable value to its shareholders, stressing that it Outstanding Value Maturity Date Bid Yield (%) would ($mm) increase return on investment to all stakeholders. Managing Director of Ac500.00 6.82 cess Bank, Mr. 28-Jan-21 Herbert Wigwe, stated this while speaking at 500.00 12-Jul-18 5.68 the bank’s Facts Behind the Right the Nigeria 500.00 Issue on 12-Jul-23 7.05 Stock Exchange in Lagos. 1,500.00 He said there were signifi1,468.59 cant improvements in measures of the bank’s key performance group’s overall 450.00 and in 01-Feb-16 179.96 stability ratio that would en500.00 19-May-16 6.96 sure sustainable value in the 350.00 25-Jul-17 11.30 bottom-line of 02-May-18 the bank. 13.87 300.00 Wigwe said08-Nov-18 that the board 400.00 10.36 41.29 of 300.00 directors 08-Apr-19 was confident 500.00 10.78 that the bank 22-Apr-19 had the appro200.00 15.44 priate capacity21-May-19 to protect and 300.00 safeguard the 07-Aug-20 interests of 13.33 its 360.00 09-Dec-20 25.64 depositors and shareholders 400.00 24-Jun-21 13.57 at all times. 23-Jul-21 450.00 13.81 12.95

8.75

1.00urged investors 16.33 84.37 He to take position in the ongoing bank’s Rights Issue, stressing that they should not be wary of the Offer Yield (%)market Bid Priceprice Offer current ofPrice the bank as distortion in the marPrices & Yields ket dragged down the price. 6.59 Access99.65 100.79 The Bank boss said: “We don’t manage share price, 5.35 98.28 99.31 but the fundamentals of the bank. going to give 6.88 We are 95.78 96.82 good returns on investment as our target is to be among top three banks in 2017.” He said the bank was already to institutional 179.96talking33.50 33.50 investors, high 6.96 100.63networth 100.63 investors 11.30 and individuals, 91.50 91.50particularly the82.18 investors84.25who 12.96 understand the long9.82 86.74value of88.24 41.29 40.50 40.50 term investments. 10.78 85.00 85.00 According to him, share14.44 82.26 holders have79.55 started taking 13.33 their Rights80.00 because80.00 they 25.64 43.98 43.98 know that the crisis is going 13.07 81.83 83.67 to be over. 13.81 75.00 75.00

4,760.00

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

The of the 87.50 former chairman 27-Nov-20 5.81 5.00 and Chairman, 31-Dec-20 5.90 FMDQ FMDA 4.55 of Trustees, 31-Dec-20 Mr. Aig3.56 Board 06-Jan-21 3.59 boje4.56Aig-Imoukhuede, while 460.61 speaking at the licensing of the 429.81 batch of its dealing members, said compliance to regulation 17-Aug-15 was5.00paramount to have an 0.28 ef18.75 market.09-Dec-15 0.59 fective 0.42 06-Jan-16 0.67 He said it was essential that 15.00 29-Sep-16 1.64 dealing members of FMDQ 5.53 25-Oct-16 1.72 and20.00all members complied 30-Sep-17 2.65 with and regulation 0.64the rules30-Nov-17 1.67 6.30 of FMDQ and 09-Apr-18 of those set 1.67 by 2.90 1.83 regulators such09-Sep-18 as the SEC, the 0.80 09-Sep-18 1.83 CBN, and the DMO. 35.00 22-Sep-18 3.62 The past Group 2.40 immediate 18-Oct-18 1.94 Managing Director 0.41 17-Feb-19 of Access 2.03 4.50 noted 01-Apr-19 2.90 Bank, that corporate 14-Nov-20 5.77 2.05 governance had been placed

6-Feb-15

3,561.34

The DQL contains data relating to, amongst other things, market and model prices, rates of foreign exchange products, fixed income securities and instruments in the financial market (the “Information”). The Information does not constitute **Treasury Bills FIXINGS Money Market & Forwards) professional, financial or investment advice. We attempt to ensure the Information is accurate; however, the Information is provided “AS IS” and on an “AS AVAILABLE” basis and may not be accurateForeign or up toExchange date. We(Spot do not guarantee DTM Maturity Bid Discount (%) Offer Discount (%) Bid Yield (%) Tenor Rate (%) NIBOR the accuracy, timeliness, completeness,19-Feb-15 performance or fitness for10.94 a particular purpose of10.69 any of the Information, neither do we accept liability for the results of any action taken on the basis of the Information. 13 10.98 20 27 FGN Bonds 34 41 48 Rating/Agency 55 62 69 76 83 90 97 104 118 125 NA 139 146 160 167 174 181 209 300 314 TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE 335 349 CAPITALISATION TOTAL MARKET

26-Feb-15 5-Mar-15 12-Mar-15 19-Mar-15 26-Mar-15 Issuer 2-Apr-15 9-Apr-15 16-Apr-15 23-Apr-15 30-Apr-15 7-May-15 14-May-15 21-May-15 4-Jun-15 11-Jun-15 NA 25-Jun-15 2-Jul-15 16-Jul-15 23-Jul-15 30-Jul-15 6-Aug-15 3-Sep-15 3-Dec-15 17-Dec-15 7-Jan-16 21-Jan-16

12.55 11.95 12.55 11.71 13.00 Description 13.20 13.10 4.00 23-APR-2015 13.00 13.05 16-AUG-2016 13.05 13.05 15.10 27-APR-2017 9.30 9.85 27-JUL-2017 11.00 9.35 31-AUG-2017 12.50 10.70 30-MAY-2018 13.70 16.00 29-JUN-2019 13.60 7.00 23-OCT-2019 14.05 16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14.20 14-MAR-2024 13.21 15.00 28-NOV-2028 13.55 12.49 22-MAY-2029 13.70 8.50 20-NOV-2029 12.40 10.00 23-JUL-2030 13.20 12.95 12.1493 18-JUL-2034 13.00 13.70 13.80

*for the Amortising bonds, the average life is calculated and not the duration #

Rating/Agency

Issuer

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

12.30 11.70 12.30 11.46 12.75 Issue Date 12.95 12.85 23-Apr-10 12.75 16-Aug-13 12.80 12.80 27-Apr-12 9.05 27-Jul-07 10.75 31-Aug-07 12.25 30-May-08 13.45 29-Jun-12 13.35 23-Oct-09 13.80 27-Jan-12 13.95 14-Mar-14 12.96 28-Nov-08 13.30 22-May-09 13.45 20-Nov-09 12.15 23-Jul-10 12.95 12.70 18-Jul-14 12.75 13.45 13.55

12.64 12.06 12.70 11.87 13.23 Coupon 13.47(%) 13.40 4.00 13.33 13.05 13.41 13.45 15.10 9.52 9.85 11.33 9.35 12.96 10.70 14.33 16.00 14.26 7.00 14.84 16.39 15.06 14.20 14.02 15.00 14.45 12.49 14.66 8.50 13.21 10.00 14.28 14.49 12.1493 14.64 15.67 15.90

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

Bonds

Description

(N'bn)

OBB

Rate (%) 16.1250 14.7847 15.3000 16.5501

15.92

O/N

Maturity Date

535.00 23-Apr-15 NITTY 581.39 16-Aug-16 Tenor Rate (%) 476.80 27-Apr-17 1M 12.5452 20.00 27-Jul-17 2M 13.4256 100.00 31-Aug-17 3M 13.6098 300.00 30-May-18 6M 14.4273 351.30 29-Jun-19 9M 14.9130 233.90 23-Oct-19 12M 15.9490 600.00 27-Jan-22 434.68 14-Mar-24 75.00 28-Nov-28 NIFEX 22-May-29 150.00 200.00 20-Nov-29 Current Price ($/N) 23-Jul-30 BID($/N)591.57 193.8250 OFFER 206.00 ($/N) 193.9250 18-Jul-34

4,855.63

Tenor

16.17

REPO

TTM (Yrs) Call 1M

Rate (%)

Bid 15.50 Yield (%) 16.00

Tenor

Spot 7D 14D 1M Offer Yield 2M (%) 3M 9.52 6M 14.93 1Y

0.21 10.25 3M 16.25 1.52 15.05 6M 16.50 2.22 15.28 15.20 2.47 15.33 15.25 NOTE: 2.56 15.33 15.26 :Benchmarks 3.31 15.34 15.21 * :Amortising 4.39 Bond 15.31 15.22 µ :Convertible Bond 4.71 15.33 15.22 AMCON: Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria 6.97 15.27 15.20 FGN: Federal Government of Nigeria 9.10 15.24 15.17 FMBN: Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria 13.81 15.93 15.88 IFC: International Finance Corporation 14.29Contractors Receivables 16.03 15.96 LCRM: Local Management 16.13 Company16.04 NAHCO: 14.79 Nigerian Aviation Handling 15.46 15.63 15.55 O/N: Overnight UPDC: UAC Property Development 19.44 15.53 Company 15.47 WAPCO:West Africa Portland Cement Company

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

193.70 193.80 194.20 Price 194.31 194.50 194.65 195.22 196.60 Bid Price Offer Price 196.53 197.57 197.85 199.40 98.70 98.85 202.36 205.42 97.35 97.50 211.80 217.74

99.60 99.75 89.05 89.20 87.69 87.84 NA :Not88.26 Applicable 88.56 # :Floating 102.10Rate Bond 102.40 ***: Deferred coupon bonds 72.72 73.02 104.70 105.00 ‡ : Bond rating under review †: Bond94.95 rating expired 95.25 94.78 95.08 N/A :Not Available 80.31 {r} :Issuer in receivership80.61 57.44 57.74 67.50 67.80 NGC: Nigeria-German Company UBA: United 79.40 Bank for Africa 79.70

4,390.17

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

0.00 17.25 0.00/16.00 FGN BOND 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

24.56 2.70 112.22 INDEX 116.70 66.49

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

# Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Indicative Price

24-May-15 03-Apr-17 08-Dec-16 19-Apr-17 06-Jul-17

0.29 1.15 1.84 2.20 2.41

2.63 2.27 2.00 1.00 1.00

13.01 17.53 17.20 16.29 16.32

96.28 99.75 98.10 97.29 93.98

% Exposure_ Mod_Duration

Implied Yield

Implied Portfolio Price

Agency Bonds

FMBN ***LCRM

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUEModified Duration Buckets TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Sub-National Bonds

0.00 FMB 24-MAY-2015 17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 0.00/16.00 LCRM 08-DEC-2016 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 19-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017 Porfolio Market Value(Bn)

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

Total Outstanding Volume(Bn)

FMDQ

Weighting by Outstanding Vol

Weighting by Mkt Value

322.68 Bucket Weighting 312.47

1,040.87

1,058.18

32.64

34.66

3<5

1,399.61

1,385.98

42.75

46.60

797.57

31-Aug-1024.60

3,241.73

30-Sep-10 100.00

12.50 18.74 13.00 100.00 14.00

4.86

INDEX

0.33

13.02

15.17

118.4679

1,125.20

0.43

45.98

15.26

121.0682

1,025.16

8.50

0.25

31-Aug-1541.00

0.56 15.60

4.44 84.2809

4.18

1.00

30-Sep-15 100.00

0.40 15.39

3.23 111.1686

17.95 985.39 15.07 1,061.56

YTD Return (%)

1.5666 1.2432

A/Agusto

KADUNA

562.87 12.50 KADUNA 31-AUG-2015

A-/Agusto

*EBONYI

BBB+/Agusto

*BENUE

Market

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 3,003.35

‡ /Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

5.73

30-Jun-16

0.92

3.48

18.49

97.55

‡ /Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

2.20

1.00

16.29

88.72

‡ /Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

25.73

30-Jun-17

1.46

1.00

16.12

97.05

‡ /Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

2.90

1.79

17.12

93.04

‡ /Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

34.14

30-Sep-18

2.07

1.80

17.06

95.00

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

2.08

1.00

16.27

96.25

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR†

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

09-Dec-11

14.50

13.73

09-Dec-18

2.27

1.00

16.30

96.76

‡ /Agusto

*NIGER

14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018

12-Dec-13

14.00

10.20

12-Dec-18

2.27

4.78

20.08

89.73

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

30-Jun-16

0.92

4.46

19.46

97.16 2.1473 99.19 0.6046 95.61

Business | Interview

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Housing: Developers, govt should Chief Executive Officer of Gran Imperio Group, Mr. Adeyeye Ogunwusi, is a real estate developer with a difference, having rolled out 400 ‘essential homes’ in less than one year and initiated over five housing projects at the same time. In this interview with DAYO AYEYEMI, he spoke about the positive side of the current economic downturn and plan by his company to build between 1,000 and 1,500 homes this year What can you say about the current economic downturn which is ravaging every sector of the economy? The truth is that Nigerians are very resilient; the economy itself is largely oil and gas based. There is sharp decline in oil prices and this is going to have negative effect on the economy. But the beauty of it is that we should look at it from the positive perspective. I think it will be a wakeup call for economy managers who are politicians to work towards diversifying the economy. There is nothing that lasts forever. At a point in this country, we had pyramid of ground nuts in the north, cocoa revolution in the west and palm oil in the east. Many countries came to Nigeria to pick the palm oil seedlings for planting in the past and palm oil has become the biggest product of their economy in countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia. Despite the suffering we may encounter this year, we must look at the positive side of it and see how we can diversify the economy. How will the downturn affect the real estate because many people have predicted tough times for the sector this year? These people are not real estate operators. I continue to say it that we are very hardworking and practical in this industry. The truth is that, how can real estate suffer since the demand outweigh supply? So, people must find a place to live. The challenge of the people is how to get money to buy or rent a home. It won’t be that bad, but it will be bad for highest echelon of real estate which is the high-end consumers because people may not be able to get money to buy houses in Abuja, Ikoyi and Victoria Island. Most people in these locations are particularly used to petro-dollars and that will not probably flow, but when you are talking about the main stream of the economy, the middle and low

that and our politicians are not very long-term in thinking. I appreciate what government is trying to do recently by coming up with the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC). I think it is going to work if we focus on it. The major challenge that NMRC will have is pricing.

Ogunwusi

income class, you can’t go wrong there. Middle-income class is the biggest strength, it is the engine room of Nigeria’s economy and many people are paying attention to this segment. But how can an economy survive on 10 million homes? It is not possible. 10 million homes to 170 million population? It is unheard. This is why we have a lot of shanties around. The truth is that the low-income bracket of the real estate market will not suffer because they save more from the little income they earn. They are more organised, reliable and dependable because the little they have they guide it jealously. How do you mean? The bulk of what people in the low-income bracket have go into rent because if you look at the economy, over 90 per cent of people are paying rent, especially in Lagos which constitutes about 60 per cent of Nigerian economy

and how can an economy within an economy, which is Lagos, have over 90 per cent of tenanted residents? Something is wrong within the system. The point is that real estate market from the lower end will not suffer. I am very sure of this, but the high-end segment will suffer the downturn. Somebody said there is no mortgage in this country due to its low-tenor and low income nature. Do you agree with this? Well, you are very correct. The fact that I am sitting here, I wear two caps: I am a real estate developer and I am on the board of one of the leading mortgage banks. So, I can see from two sides; that is the truth and it is very unfortunate. In a mortgage system that is functional, you will see that people that have access to it will decide who will be their leader and decide anything they want to do because it is going to have effect on the rates they are paying for mortgage. In Nigeria, we don’t see anything good about

The truth is that the low-income bracket of the real estate market will not suffer because they save more from the little income they earn

How? How can it get the pricing and the cost of fund right? How can it blend the funding by pumping it into the mortgage system? Remember that each funding, even government bond, attract some costs. So the issue there is that how can it blend properly? From the government and private sectors’ aspect, how can the fund be properly blended? In order to have a very low cost of funding, if the rate of mortgage is about 13 per cent, it will be very challenging for people to take because Nigerians do not really like to take too much debt, they rather buy. It is a cash-based economy. But if you want to really encourage people, government should look into very cheap funds to attract mortgage system to be very vibrant. Nigerian’s economy lacks mortgage system. If you look, the contribution to the GDP is less than five per cent, but in a typical economy, it should be between 40 and 45 per cent. There is a very wide gap. Real estate contribution to the GDP is low. Like I said, the mortgage system has to be very effective and functional. What Lagos State government did recently was amazing. From 13 per cent, it slashed land charges to three per cent. That is very encouraging. So, if that can be done by every other state, because land actually rest in the state due to the Land Use Act, it will be better. So, for Lagos State Government to have taken that lead, that is about almost half of the economy. We estate developers are very pleased with that and even the mortgage bankers should capitalise on that so that there will be a rapid development on low-cost housing irrespective of lack of money in the economy. There will be challenges this year, but in the low-end, there won’t be because demand for housing outstrips its supply. When last have we opened new cities? Eko Atlantic City is for high-end market. When last do we open new suburb cities? That was many years ago. This time around, developers and government should focus on opening new cities for middle-income class. This is the engine room of any economy because we have many youths there. About 65 per cent of Nigerians are youths and that is where the strength is. How many of them can afford to live in Eko Atlantic City? They can’t! That means that Eko Atlantic is for high-end. There is market for that class, but the main market is the emerging middle class. How many low-income people can afford the cost of housing at N8 million and N10 million?

Business | Interview

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

focus on middle class – Ogunwusi BIODATA Education:

HND, Accountancy, the Polytechnics, Ibadan Professional institutes: Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria; Institute of Management; Global Real Estate Institute (GRI), Previous positions: Up-Country Business Devt Officer: Dohagro Allied International Nig Ltd September 1996 – November 1998 Director/ Co-founder/Busness Executive: Josmaco Industries Limited, Prime water view Limited, Howard Roark Limited, Amalgamated Mining and Exploration Company Limited, Carterbiggs Investments Limited, Format Realtors Limited, Gran Imperio Projects ,Association of International Business (AIB), Africa We Care - Dec 1998 – On-going Founder, Gran Imperio Group: Construction, Manufacturing, Leisure & Tourism; Facility Management Director, Imperial Home Mortgage Bank Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Gran Imperio Group – 2013 till now Experience: Over 13 years

We need to focus on manufacturing of homes and not just building. What we do in Nigeria mainly is to build homes and that takes time. Who has the capacity to build 2,000 homes in a year? People just talk about it, it is a tall dream, even government in the last 50 years have not done 50,000 homes, both state and federal. This is a big task. Why has that become a big task? The reason is that we are used to brick and mortal system. If we can use high-breed technology to mix it so that we can have some technologies that are very fast to manufacture homes, the price will definitely come down. As a company, we are working strategically with Nigerite Limited now to do some houses. One of our biggest strength is research and development to blend a very good technology in terms of building homes. Nigerite came up with many dry technologies which are even made with cement board. We are working closely with the company, if we can get other developers and government to look into how cost of construction can come down, many people will get accommodation. Right now, the cheapest home we are building is N7 million and it is very luxurious. We did a lot of what we called essential homes last year, people did not believe it, but we have proved them wrong. We cannot meet up with the entire demand in the market. So the biggest strength is by working with a group by courting people within the group. By this, many workers

from blue chip companies like BATN, MTN and oil companies came together in form of cooperative societies to actually buy homes from us. We are now working towards a high-breed technology because of the social challenge in Nigeria. People like to touch their wall and feel that it’s concrete. We want to do a technology that when you touch your wall, you still feel the concrete. So, we are trying to do that so that the market can feel it. For now, we can’t do it because we cannot meet demand. So we need to heavily focus on research and development for us to have cheap homes of minimum six million naira and seven million naira that are very good and functional. If we have people that can take mortgage or loan of between interest bound of seven and 12 per cent and spread it for 20 years, anybody can actually take it and not only salary earners. If you are doing vocational jobs and on the average, you make about N150,000 or N200,000 per month, you will be able to put together some equities and buy a home if your income is guaranteed. We have some people from the informal sector that are into vocational works, we need to come together and get these things done. Are you in support of using local building materials for housing? When it comes to things that have to do with local content, I am very passionate about it because that is one of our biggest strength as a company. Nobody will build this country for us, we have to do it by ourselves. Interestingly, infrastructure is like any other thing in life. It is like if you don’t have a proper eye, you can’t see. So having a functional home is a function of how well you can access your area; how well your area is secured; how well your house is built in term of the water system and sewage. So, having a functional home, some people will even prefer to go and rent a functional home than to build a house that is not functional. When a house is not functional, the infrastructure is not good. The objective of everyone is to work toward having a functional home. What is special about Essential Homes? We launched the product and brand it ‘Essential Homes’ because we realised that many developers are not paying much attention to details and make home functional. We came up with essential homes with different house styles. We started with the essential homes classic. We have a lot of homes we opened to the market with the lowest price. We started selling with seven million naira and many people did not believe. We are involved in over 2000 homes either directly from our company or indirectly. But we launched different homes which are very unique in the market and eventually,

We need to focus on manufacturing of homes and not just building. What we do in Nigeria mainly is to build homes and that takes time. Who has the capacity to build 2,000 homes in a year?

Ogunwusi

the houses came out very nice and the market accepted them. By virtue of that, we developed a lot of strategic alliance. Last year was a bit tough for us because we focused on getting land bank. We formed some strategic alliances with many trade unions and cooperatives that bought land before and abandoned the project because they believed it would not see the light of the day. So we focused on that and we decided

Ogunwusi

to showcase estates from that product. Now we have done some homes and the market accepted them. We have been able to open up other means by doing an infrastructure of about seven kilometres road. By this, we opened up a lot of estates. So it is like a boulevard. Grand Imperio Group championed the road project. This year, we want to task ourselves to do between 1000 and 1500 homes.

Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015

Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023

Business | Capital Market

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Daily Summary (Bonds)

Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023

No Debt Trading Activity

The Nigerian Stock Market Exchange as at February 6, 2015 Daily Summary (Equities)

Daily Summary (Equities)

Activity Summary on Board EQTY AGRICULTURE Crop Production OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. PRESCO PLC Crop Production Totals

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

Activity Summary on Board EQTY Symbol OKOMUOIL PRESCO

No. of Deals 11 10 21

Current Price 26.64 30.45

Quantity Traded 44,454 211,068 255,522

Value Traded 1,202,931.02 6,392,843.62 7,595,774.64

Symbol LIVESTOCK

No. of Deals 26 26

Current Price 2.20

Quantity Traded 568,439 568,439

Value Traded 1,232,696.90 1,232,696.90

823,961

8,828,471.54

Quantity Traded 844 100 11,638,289 1,218,575 12,857,808

Value Traded 1,063.44 92.00 33,061,999.73 48,772,090.92 81,835,246.09

12,857,808

81,835,246.09

AGRICULTURE Totals CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. JOHN HOLT PLC. Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023 U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals CONGLOMERATES Totals

47 Symbol AGLEVENT JOHNHOLT TRANSCORP UACN

No. of Deals 7 1 169 48 225

Daily Summary (Equities)

Current Price 1.20 0.96 2.80 40.00

225

Activity Summary on Board EQTY Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Building Structure/Completion/Other COSTAIN (W A) PLC. G CAPPA PLC Building Structure/Completion/Other Totals

Page

No. of Deals 19 2 21

Current Price 0.73 14.46

Quantity Traded 1,025,696 1,480 1,027,176

Value Traded 780,958.08 20,335.20 801,293.28

Infrastructure/Heavy Construction JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals

Symbol JBERGER

No. of Deals 15 15

Current Price 42.65

Quantity Traded 151,676 151,676

Value Traded 6,470,458.65 6,470,458.65

Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals

Symbol UAC-PROP

No. of Deals 13 13

Current Price 11.94

Quantity Traded 54,160 54,160

Value Traded 614,716.00 614,716.00

1,233,012

7,886,467.93

CONSUMER GOODS Automobiles/Auto Parts Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 DN TYRE & RUBBER PLC Automobiles/Auto Parts Totals Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023 Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. GUINNESS NIG PLC INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals

49 Symbol DUNLOP Symbol CHAMPION GUINNESS INTBREW Daily Summary NB

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 5,441 5,441

Value Traded 2,720.50 2,720.50

No. of Deals 9 22 4 (Equities) 96 131

Current Price 6.57 128.99 21.50 141.81

Quantity Traded 243,361 19,470 8,350 6,662,502 6,933,683

Value Traded 1,598,881.77 2,479,738.26 171,592.50 946,466,831.06 950,717,043.59

Page

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

Symbol 7UP

No. of Deals Current Price 6 157.20 6

Quantity Traded 10,700 10,700

Packaging/Containers BETA GLASS CO PLC. Packaging/Containers Totals

NATURAL RESOURCES Chemicals B.O.C. GASES PLC. Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 Chemicals Totals Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023

No. of Deals Current Price 18 39.00 18 805.00 36

Quantity Traded 164,737 5,628 170,365

Value Traded 6,414,194.05 4,589,554.10 11,003,748.15

Symbol VITAFOAM VONO

No. of Deals Current Price 17 3.25 19 1.07 36

Quantity Traded 255,292 351,250 606,542

Value Traded 837,536.00 375,887.50 1,213,423.50

Symbol PZ UNILEVER

No. of Deals Current Price 10 28.80 34 35.00

Quantity Traded 103,925 3,371,920

Value Traded 2,844,106.50 118,086,045.34 of

Daily Summary of 06/02/2015 Energy as Equipment and Services Totals Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023 Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals

Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC.

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED FIDELITY BANK PLC GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC STERLING BANK PLC. UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION NIG.PLC. Daily Summary as ofBANK 06/02/2015 WEMA14:53:23.023 BANK PLC. Printed 06/02/2015 ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Banking Totals Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services

496

Value Traded 120,930,151.84

19,425,535

1,157,715,791.29

Symbol ACCESS DIAMONDBNK ETI FIDELITYBK GUARANTY SKYEBANK STERLNBANK UBA UBN WEMABANK ZENITHBANK

No. of Deals Current Price 179 6.00 64 3.90 34 16.60 34 1.27 201 21.00 185 2.00 20 2.35 232 3.42 27 9.00 12 0.94 613 16.10 1,601

Quantity Traded 46,396,452 4,274,884 68,861,881 4,506,776 14,724,913 37,185,008 1,234,409 18,640,657 804,196 186,766 39,178,323 235,994,265

Value Traded 278,956,248.49 16,680,616.04 1,143,089,050.42 5,712,086.67 309,203,118.92 73,740,587.02 2,889,081.27 66,120,256.39 7,228,034.23 172,144.52 634,170,104.04 2,537,961,328.01

Symbol

No. of Deals Current Price

Quantity Traded

Value Traded

Daily Summary (Equities)

No. of Deals Current Price 7 0.81 9 0.90 1 0.50 3 2.96 1 0.50 13 0.59 1 0.50 2 0.50 2 0.50 1 0.50 23 0.51 63

Quantity Traded 152,335Page 2,448,041 12,300 41,500 1,000 502,050 10,000 19,850 19,466 15,000 1,122,256 4,343,798

Value Traded 4 125,764.70 of 11 2,195,795.67 6,150.00 119,430.00 500.00 294,189.50 5,000.00 9,925.00 9,733.00 7,500.00 573,360.56 3,347,348.43

Micro-Finance Banks NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC Micro-Finance Banks Totals

Symbol NPFMCRFBK

No. of Deals Current Price 3 0.89 3

Quantity Traded 105,000 105,000

Value Traded 94,050.00 94,050.00

Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FBN HOLDINGS PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UBA CAPITAL PLC

Symbol AFRIPRUD CUSTODYINS FBNH FCMB ROYALEX STANBIC UBCAP

No. of Deals Current Price 46 2.75 12 4.00 588 7.00 98 2.09 1 0.50 21 25.75 21 1.45

Quantity Traded 1,426,243 8,775,308 83,808,469 18,604,100 85,900 243,435 1,032,650

Value Traded 3,933,822.09 35,100,817.16 585,735,766.70 38,258,216.97 42,950.00 6,130,293.17 1,504,898.50

Page

21.30

354,419,168

3,212,109,491.03

Quantity Traded 1,943,859 1,898,620 1,100 23,360 59,671 4,500 3,931,110

Value Traded 4,179,237.00 6,075,699.82 44,420.00 33,404.80 42,641.61 9,900.00 10,385,303.23

3,931,110

10,385,303.23

Quantity Traded 46,500 46,500

Value Traded 23,250.00 23,250.00

46,500

23,250.00

Quantity Traded 32,358

Value Traded 654,925.92

Page

No. of Deals 6 16 12 37 1 2 53 134

Current Price 9.00 38.75 9.36 159.80 1.50 4.03 87.99

Quantity Traded 15,600 88,202 21,658 206,006 1,820 10,097 582,982 958,723

Value Traded 133,380.00 3,415,299.00 209,715.00 32,956,349.05 2,602.60 38,871.51 50,464,382.12 87,875,525.20

Symbol BETAGLAS

No. of Deals 4 4

Current Price 31.49

Quantity Traded 6,080,000 6,080,000

Value Traded 182,509,400.00 182,509,400.00

7,038,723

270,384,925.20

Quantity Traded 100 100

Value Traded 521.00 521.00

100

521.00

Quantity Traded 10,100

Value Traded 5,050.00

138 Symbol BOCGAS

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 5.48

Daily Summary (Equities) Symbol No. of Deals Current Price JAPAULOIL

0.50

Symbol

No. of Deals 2

Current Price

Quantity Traded 10,100

Value Traded 5,050.00

Symbol OANDO

No. of Deals 108 108

Current Price 14.93

Quantity Traded 1,055,089 1,055,089

Value Traded 16,034,194.10 16,034,194.10

Quantity Traded 111,758 300,000

Value Traded 3,514,842.54 758,800.00

Page

Daily Symbol CONOIL ETERNA

Summary No. of(Equities) Deals Current Price 36 8

32.60 2.52

Symbol FO MOBIL MRS TOTAL

No. of Deals 38 13 1 12 108

Current Price 220.50 150.00 50.54 144.50

Quantity Traded 50,411 20,088 50 8,422 490,729

Value Traded 10,640,366.31 3,180,718.80 2,401.00 1,204,753.71 19,301,882.36

Symbol SEPLAT

No. of Deals 7 7

Current Price 333.90

Quantity Traded 36,099 36,099

Value Traded 12,053,456.10 12,053,456.10

Symbol AIICO CONTINSURE LASACO MANSARD MBENEFIT NEM NIGERINS SOVRENINS STDINSURE UNIVINSURE WAPIC

Value Traded 670,706,764.59

Symbol BERGER CAP CCNN DANGCEM PAINTCOM PORTPAINT WAPCO

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

Activity Summary on Board EQTY FINANCIAL SERVICES Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. Published by The Nigerian Stock Exchange © CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. MANSARD INSURANCE PLC MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. NIGER INSURANCE CO. PLC. SOVEREIGN TRUST INSURANCE PLC STANDARD ALLIANCE INSURANCE PLC. UNIVERSAL INSURANCE COMPANY PLC WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals

ASHAKACEM

OIL AND GAS Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors FORTE OIL PLC. MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals

Quantity Traded 3,475,845

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

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

CONSUMER GOODS Totals

DailySymbol Summary (Equities) No. of Deals Current Price

NATURAL RESOURCES Totals

Symbol CADBURY NESTLE

No. of Deals Current Price 44

Current Price 0.50

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals

Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals

Symbol

Current Price 2.15 3.20 40.10 1.50 0.74 2.24

No. of Deals 1 1

ICT Totals

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials BERGER PAINTS PLC CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC DANGOTE CEMENT PLC PAINTS AND COATINGS MANUFACTURES PLC PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE AFRICA PLC. Building Materials Totals

Value Traded 3,131,899.00 23,163,990.96 20,186,661.67 322,177.00 25,366,254.58 2,613.50 72,173,596.71

CONSUMER GOODS Personal/Household Products Personal/Household Products Totals

No. of Deals 20 12 2 5 7 1 47

Quantity Traded 113,976,105

Quantity Traded 783,659 3,473,883 590,214 105,000 3,264,976 5,227 8,222,959

Symbol COURTVILLE

Activity Summary on Board EQTY

Value Traded 1,675,107.00 1,675,107.00

Page

Current Price

ICT Computer Based Systems COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PLC Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 Computer Based Systems Totals Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023

INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials ASHAKA CEM PLC

No. of Deals Current Price 38 4.00 65 6.90 61 34.20 8 3.14 68 7.55 2 0.50 242

Daily Summary (Equities)

Symbol EVANSMED FIDSON GLAXOSMITH MAYBAKER NEIMETH PHARMDEKO

HEALTHCARE Totals

Symbol DANGFLOUR DANGSUGAR FLOURMILL HONYFLOUR NASCON UTC

No. of Deals 787 2,454

HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals EVANS MEDICAL PLC. FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC PHARMA-DEKO PLC. Pharmaceuticals Totals

Food Products DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC NATIONAL SALT CO. NIG. PLC U T C NIG. PLC. Food Products Totals

Household Durables VITAFOAM NIG PLC. VONO PRODUCTS PLC. Household Durables Totals Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023 Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC.

Symbol

FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals

Symbol COSTAIN GCAPPA

CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals

FINANCIAL SERVICES Other Financial Institutions Other Financial Institutions Totals

225

1,592,017 Page

47,394,582.56

Symbol RTBRISCOE

No. of Deals 10 10

Current Price 0.82

Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC

Symbol REDSTAREX

No. of Deals 9 9

Current Price 3.80

Quantity Traded 147,980 147,980

Value Traded 559,346.20 559,346.20

Symbol TANTALIZER Daily Summary (Equities)

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 50,466 50,466

Value Traded 25,233.00 25,233.00

Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023

Hospitality TANTALIZERS PLC Hospitality Totals

Quantity Traded 568,779 568,779

Value Traded 448,685.28 448,685.28

Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals

Page

Hotels/Lodging IKEJA HOTEL PLC Hotels/Lodging Totals

Symbol IKEJAHOTEL

No. of Deals 8 8

Current Price 3.67

Quantity Traded 81,670 81,670

Value Traded 285,854.30 285,854.30

Media/Entertainment DAAR COMMUNICATIONS PLC Media/Entertainment Totals

Symbol DAARCOMM

No. of Deals 2 2

Current Price 0.50

Quantity Traded 1,833 1,833

Value Traded 916.50 916.50

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

Symbol LEARNAFRCA UPL

No. of Deals 2 18 20

Current Price 1.27 3.89

Quantity Traded 49,000 488,994 537,994

Value Traded 59,290.00 1,809,277.80 1,868,567.80

Road Transportation ASSOCIATED BUS COMPANY PLC Road Transportation Totals

Symbol ABCTRANS

No. of Deals 2 2

Current Price 0.55

Quantity Traded 260,000 260,000

Value Traded 142,800.00 142,800.00

Symbol AIRSERVICE NAHCO

No. of Deals 5 12 17

Current Price 1.71 4.75

Quantity Traded 29,053,089 115,129 29,168,218

Value Traded 49,682,477.91 550,988.50 50,233,466.41

Symbol CAVERTON

No. of Deals 1 1

Current Price 2.95

Quantity Traded 9,500 9,500

Value Traded 28,025.00 28,025.00

Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Transport-Related Services Totals Daily Summary as of 06/02/2015 Printed 06/02/2015 14:53:23.023 Support and Logistics CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC Support and Logistics Totals

Daily Summary (Equities) Page

Activity Summary on Board EQTY SERVICES SERVICES Totals

30,826,440

53,592,894.49

EQTY Board Totals

3,753

432,194,374

4,850,156,944.36

Equity Activity Totals

3,753

432,194,374

4,850,156,944.36

Daily Summary (ETP) Exchange Traded Fund

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

Symbol LOTUSHAL15 NEWGOLD VETGRIF30

No. of Deals 2 1 4 7

Current Price 9.51 2,367.00 13.50

Quantity Traded 6 7 8,468 8,481

Value Traded 56.66 16,569.00 115,674.60 132,300.26

ETF Board Totals

8,481

132,300.26

ETP Activity Totals

8,481

132,300.26

Page

Photo | News

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

L-R: Convener, No BAGA Group, Ms Peace Anyiam-Osigwe; member/Nollywood actress, Patience Nzokwor and others at a Unity Day rally on ‘Vote, not Hate’ campaign in Lagos. PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

L-R: Senior Vice President, Babcock University, Prof. Iheanyichukwu Okoro; Speaker, Prof. Ademola Tayo; President/Vice Chancellor, Babcock University, Prof. James Kayode Fayemi and Orangun of OkeIla Orangun, Oba Adedokun Abolarin, at the second inaugural lecture of the institution in Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State.

L-R: Head, Corporate Affairs of Heritage Bank Limited, Mr. Fela Ibidapo; Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Kayode Aderanti and Executive Director, Heritage Bank, Mrs. Mary Akpobome, during the bank’s donation of patrol vehicles and other security gadgets to the Police Command in Lagos State.

PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

Imam Dauda Bello of Adamawa Peacemakers’ Initiative (left), with Ambassador of Switzerland to Nigeria, Chad and Niger Republic, Dr. Has-Rudolf Hodel, at a lecture on Democracy in Switzerland to students and staff of American University of Nigeria, in Yola, Adamawa State. PHOTO-NAN

L-R: National Coordinator of the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s Youth Vanguard, Mr. Bisiriyu Abdulghany; Director-General, Change Ambassadors of Nigeria, Mr. Blessing Agbomhere; member, Act Now NG, Ibilola Essien and a publicist, Bukky Gbade, during a media book launch entitled “100 REASONS WHY GOODLUCK JONATHAN MUST GO” in Lagos.

L-R: Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole; Otaru of Auchi, Ikelebe 111, Haliru Momoh; Chairman, Etsako West Local Government Area, Hassan Kadiri and Commissioner for Environment and Public Utilities, Clem Agba, at the flagging-off of the reclamation works at the Auchi gully erosion project at Auchi.

L-R: Head of Treasury, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Jos branch, Mr. Daniel Magit; Relationship Officer, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Micheal Nwachukwu and Chairman, Jos Bankers’ Forum, Mr. Mathias Kurah, during Jos Bankers’ Forum and end of the year award in Jos. PHOTO-NAN

L-R: Bishop Toyin Mavelous; Alhaji Olofa Adedokun; Archbishop Magnus Adeyemi Atilade; Chief Imam of Mushin, Alhaji Sulaimon Opeyemi Bukhari Olanijo and others, during a special prayer for the nation in Lagos.

News

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

SOUTH-WEST

Osun verdict: Omisore heads for Appeal Court Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

ollowing his defeat at the election petition tribunal, which confirmed the victory of Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State, on Friday, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate In the August 9, 2014 governorship election in the state, Senator Iyiola Omisore, yesterday said that he would proceed to the Court of Appeal for to

seek justice in the matter. Omisore, who said this in a statement made available to newsmen in Osogbo, said, “the pronouncement of the tribunal, though against the party, has not shaken its belief, and would not, even if there were no higher courts to review the tribunal’s judgement. He said, “despite my disavowal of the election petition tribunal judgement, I have taken it in good faith since other avenues of seeking redress

are open and are being explored. “Contrary to the lies being peddled by elements of the ruling party in Osun State, I hold the judiciary in high esteem and trust in its ability to dispense justice”. “Unlike them, our party is not known for extrajudicial ways of seeking political redress and it is not in our character to denigrate the system when things don’t go our way like they do”. “I am constrained

to speak again on the judgement of the Osun State Election Petition Tribunal again due to the deliberate mischievous twist being given my initial reaction to the tribunal’s pronouncement and the political activities preceding and succeeding it, by the elements of the ruling party in the state”. “Let me expressly state my abiding faith in the Nigerian judiciary to do justice at all times without fear or favour

and the pronouncement of the tribunal, though against us, has not shaken that belief, and would not, even if there were no higher courts to review the tribunal’s judgement. “The preceding political activities of the ruling party in the state, hours before the judgement which went in tandem with the party’s elements’ prediction, necessitated the call on the National Judicial Council (NJC) to take another

look into the bewildering scenario which was now being interpreted by our opponents as a call for the probe of the judges. “Going by the laws guiding elections in the country, two layers of appeal are still available unto us, which we are currently exploring.” “As earlier mentioned by our lawyers, we are proceeding to the Court of Appeal and we have total faith in the higher court to dispense justice in the matter.”

UPN guber candidate flays INEC over poll shift Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

L-R: Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III; Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi and Chief Judge of the state, Hon. Justice Munta Ladapo Abimbola, during the year 1436/2015 Maulud Nabiyy celebration in Ibadan …yesterday

Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

he management of the Osun State University (UNIOSUN), Osogbo and the institution’s governing council are now at daggers drawn over the step taken by the latter to suspend the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Bashir Okesina, along two other top principal officers, the Registrar and Bursar of the institution. The Pro -Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Gabriel Olawoyin, had announced the suspension of the trio in different let-

Osun varsity management, governing council on warpath over VC’s suspension ters sent to them, alleging that they defrauded the institution of several millions of naira and ordered them to appear before an investigative panel that would probe their misappropriation act. The step taken by the governing council, however, was described as unconstitutional, illegal and unholy by the national leadership of the Academic Staff Union of

Universities (ASUU) In a press conference held in Osogbo at the weekend, the union, which poised for war against the council over the development, stated that it is unfortunate that the leadership of the Board does not know what to do on some issues. Speaking through its the Zonal Coordinator in Ibadan Zone, Oyo state, Prof Segun Ajiboye, the

union’s national chairman, Prof. Nasir Fagge, speedily called for reversal step on the suspension on three of its members, saying “the union will stand against any unlawful action against its member.” “Since the creation of the first university in Nigeria in 1948, no government or council had sacked its Vice Chancellor, Bursar and Registrar at once.”

APC urges police to halt PDP’s ‘brigandage’ in Lagos Temitope Ogunbanke

orried by what it alleged as spate of threats, through provocation and vandalisation of its candidates’ posters, billboards and banners by suspected thugs of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Congress (APC) has called on the Lagos State Police Commissioner and his command to stop what it described as the brigandage of the PDP in the state. Addressing a press

conference yesterday at its secretariat on the incessant destruction of APC’s campaign billboards and candidates’ posters by purported PDP thugs, Lagos APC Publicity Secretary, Engr. Joe Igbokwe, alleged that some thugs, masquerading as members of the ‘illegal’ Federal Task Force in Lagos, have thrown caution to the winds in the way they are have been pulling down the posters and billboards of APC candidates all over Lagos, even on Lagos State roads.

He alleged that PDP was inciting violence in Lagos with the recklessness they have employed in destroying APC’s campaign banners, posters and billboards all over Lagos, urging the urgent intervention of the police. He said, “It is clear that the PDP thinks it can overwhelm Lagos with brute force and state-sponsored criminality and if it is so sure that it will win Lagos, as it has been lousily boasting, why is it precipitating a war in Lagos? Does

it also have the capacity to manage the war in the unlikely event that it wins a state where it is not welcome? “We want to state that our members are running out of patience in this continued provocation. While we are trying our utmost best to restrain them from being drawn into any war that would undermine our focus, we warn that there is a limit to tolerance and that our members may be forced to react even if to defend themselves and their interests.

he Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Prince Rotimi Paseda, has decried the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to shift the dates of the general elections. Paseda, who spoke with reporters in Sagamu, shortly after his installation as the Garkwa Hausawa, by the Council of Hausa Chiefs in Ogun State, said the postponement of the elections would create room for insinuations that may ultimately discredit the polls. The INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, had, on Saturday night

in Abuja, announced the rescheduling of the dates of the general elections from February 14 and 28 to March 28 and April 11. Jega said the decision was taken after several consultations with major stakeholders, including political parties, civil society organisations, the Council of State, INEC national commissioners and resident electoral commissioners. But Paseda, said the electoral body should have allowed the elections to hold as earlier scheduled irrespective of the reasons raised by the commission. The governorship candidate said such lapses should then be worked upon for future correction by the INEC.

Ekiti: APC’s election rigging claim time wasting –Adeyeye Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

inister of State for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, has said the All Progressives Congress (APC) has only embarked on a time wasting journey, with its recent claim that it has an audio recording revealing how the military was used to rig the June 21, 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State. Adeyeye, who said in a press statement in AdoEkiti yesterday, noted that the APC, would utterly fail in its attempt to rewrite history. He said, “No amount of campaign of calumny and blackmail can erase the fact that Ekiti people willingly elected Governor Ayodele Fayose. “APC is only chasing shadows having admitted earlier that Ekiti people indeed voted for Fayose but that they did so because he gave them rice.”

The minister said it was funny that the same people who castigated Ekiti people for voting Fayose because of “stomach infrastructure” were now saying that the election was rigged. He said it was the APC that actually plotted to manipulate the election, using Information Technology and thuggery, but the heavy presence of security agents foiled their plans. The minister, who said Governor Fayose did not hold meetings on how to manipulate the election with anyone, added: “The APC people know where to go if they have evidence that the election was rigged. “It is foolish for anyone to be crying that an election was rigged eight months after the election was held. This is more so that there was an election petition tribunal where the evidence ought to have been presented.”

NEW TELEGRAPH monday, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Uchenna Inya

Abakaliki

embers of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) Ebonyi State chapter, have protested the non-payment of January salary for the state local government workers, calling on the state government to pay the workers their salary along other allowances or face the union’s imminent industrial action over the issue. President of NULGE, Ebonyi State, Comrade Leonard Nkah, while addressing the workers during a protest at Government House, Abakaliki, issued a three day ultimatum to government, to pay the workers or face the consequence of strike. According to him, the situation was more worrisome as the Government of Chief Martin Elechi promised to offset various arrears of allowances owed to the local government workers between January and February, stating, ‘’we have, therefore, on behalf of the loyal hard working staff of Ebonyi State local government, call on the government to fulfill its promise, in order to avoid breakdown of order in the entire local government councils and development centres. The workers were seen

News 47

south - east

Ebonyi council workers protest non-payment of salaries carrying various placards, some of which read; Politicians stop joking with workers’, ‘We can’t vote with empty stomach’, ‘ don’t play politics with workers, ’among others. Addressing the protesters, Governor Elechi, blamed the non-payment of the January salary on the smear campaign against his administration by some politicians in the state, stating that the development has seen anti -graft agencies, including the EFCC and

ICPC, going through the books of the state government. He said, ‘’There are some people who have vowed that either they are elected or people within the present Ebonyi State would pay. We are doing our best to clear ourselves. The Commissioner for Finance, the Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy Matters and Rural Development, the Accountant General of the State, were recently whisked away to Abuja by the EFCC. As

if that was not enough, ICPC also invited them. So your problem is manmade by ‘respected sons’ of Ebonyi State people. "Some of you were instigated to on strike against Ebonyi State government, whether you yielded to that or not is a different ball game but that is the fact of the matter. We have been expecting you to react the way you are reacting now because some of you are induced to go on strike against me to paralyze the government.

Every day, there are reports of violence; criminal killings, shooting of guns and you heard what has happened in Afikpo South, expect worst thing to happen tomorrow but we are not running away from the state. They have been planning for my impeachment and are still scheming it, they also sued me to court in Abuja and the Accountant-General of the federation asking for court to stop payment into Local Government Accounts in Ebonyi State., he said.

L-R: Inaugural Lecturer, Prof. Gab Agu; his wife, Lolo Edna; Vice-Chancellor, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Prof. Cyprian Onyeji and Registrar, Mr Chris Igbokwe, at the Institution’s 21st inaugural lecture in Enugu …yesterday

APGA chairman backs Ufomba as guber candidate endorsement Guber candidate gets a lift from the party chairman Igbeaku Orji Umuahia

bia State Chairman of the All Pro g ressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Prince Nnanna Ukaegbu, has said that Chief

Reagan Ufomba, was the authentic gubernatorial candidate of the party in the state, calling on the electorate to vote for him Ukaegbu, who stated this during the party’s campaign rally at Osisioma Local Government Area, noted that Ufomba, remains the party’s flag bearer, stating that the purported claim that Dr. Alex Otti, was the APGA candidate, should be disregarded. He said if voted into power, APGA would

bring the desired change to Abia, stating that Ufomba, as the governor of the state, would replicate former governor of Anambra, Peter Obi’s transformation achievements in Abia State. Addressing the crowd of supporters, Ufomba, promised to build the needed infrastructure in the state, like, a stateof - the -art flyover at the popular Osisioma junction near Aba to address the perennial traffic problem experi-

Group wants strong South-East National Assembly representation Igbeaku Orji Umuahia

socio cultural and political organization, Orji Uzor Kalu Solidarity Movement, has said that there was need for the South -East zone of the country to have a have stronger representation in the National Assembly, than what presently obtains. Speaking on the development, in Umuahia, the group which said that it

was seeking the socio economic transformation of the Igbo nation lamented that if care was not taken, the Igbo would have no voice at the National Assembly, to properly represent the interest of the region. To this end, it said it has found in the former Governor of Abia State, Dr Orji Uzor Kalu, a man who could fill the gap of a pan Igbo representation, appealing to him to run for the senatorial seat of Abia North for what it

described as “effective representation and in the interest of Abia North in particular and the Igbos in general.” Addressing journalists, the Director of Communications of the group, Mr. Chibuzor Alaribe, said the call became necessary because the Igbo nation was in dire need of quality leadership, national and international connections in the search for socio-economic transformation of the Igbo.

enced by motorists at the junction. Ufomba, who said that his administration would address the development of the state on a tripod of agriculture, commerce and artisanship, noted that he would conduct local government election within six months of assuming office. He said, "The essence of the local government system is to bring government and development nearer to the

people". Ufomba noted that it was regrettable that since 2010 when the last local government administration was dissolved in Abia State, no local government election have been conducted till date. The APGA candidate promised to build industrial clusters and to establish industries in each of the 17 local government areas. He added that he would introduce free education from primary to tertiary levels.

Umeh's aide mobilises against Ekwunife Tony Okafor Awka

ormer Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association(NBA), Onitsha branch, Obele Chuka, yesterday described the candidate of the People's Democratic Party(PDP) for Anambra central senatorial district, Mrs Uche Ekwunife, as not possessing the quality that would attract the people of the senatorial district to vote for her. Chuka, who spoke with the New Telegraph in Awka, said since the Mbadinuju administration, Ekwunife had hoodwinked the people of the state, making fortunes from their commonwealth, noting however that the Anambra voters have become wiser to know who deserves their votes. "Since the Mbadinuju administration this woman had held this state to ransom and she thinks she can fool the people all through her life.No, it's not possible. We're going to retire her politically this this time. If you follow her campaigns, you will see that she has no message for the people other than castigating Chief Victor Umeh, in a manner unbecoming of a decent Igbo woman; in a manner unbecoming of a mother ", Chuka noted. The former NBA boss who is the Director-General of the Victor Umeh campaign organisation stated that Ekwunife, a two-time House of Representatives member, had not won any election in the state before. He said "recall that in 2007, when she purported to have won her first time to National Assembly, there was no eletions in this state. Andy Uba who was wielding excess powers in Aso Rock then under Obasanjo,came down here and selected those he wanted and apportioned them with elective positions and that was how Ekwunife went to the House of Reps that year."

Udensi gets traditional rulers' support Norman Obinna

he governorship ambition of the Progressive People’s Alliance, (PPA) candidate Sir Chikwe Udensi, has received a boost with three traditional rulers from Isuikwuato, along other traditional unions declared their support for him in the April 11 election. The royal fathers who declared support for Udensi, said the governorship candidate was

the type of character Abia needed for positive change, saying that he was the most accessible among all other contestants, with a clear blue print for Abia State. They promised to leverage on their positions as a traditional ruler to ensure that the IsuIkwuato people vote massively for the PPA candidate, whom they described as being exemplary in character, adding that thy believe that Udensi’s

administration would transform Abia State, as well as bring to life the long awaited desire of the people. Also speaking on Saturday at the PPA’s campaign office in Aba, the representatives of the Abia State Pool and Tippers unions, Mazi Lawrence Inyama and Mr. Sunday Akaniru, said the unions had endorsed Udensi is for his ability effect positive change in the State.

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SOUTH-SOUTH

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Plot to remove Bayelsa PDP chair thickens MONEY PALAVER Money is the root of party’s tension as members accuse chairman of embezzlement Chris Ejim Yenagoa

here has been tension within the fold of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in

Bayelsa State over the plot to remove the party’s Chairman in the state, Sam Inokoba, over his alleged involvement in the diversion of N70 million provided by the Minster of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, to support the party in hosting the presidential campaign rally in the state. According to sources privy to the removal plot, Inokoba, the accused party chairman, allegedly diverted N40 million out of the N70

million provided for the party and also had a substantial share from the remaining N30 million unknown to members of the State Working Committee (SWC) of the party. The plot to remove Inokoba is already creating tension among his loyalists and aides of the governor. Those calling for the removal of the accused PDP chairman attributed his (Inokoba’s) collapse during the presidential rally to the pressure created over the

alleged fund diversion. The discovery that N70 million was given to the party and not N40 million, was made during the PDP presidential rally, which was attended by the minister. Attempts to get the PDP Publicity Secretary, Osom Macgbere and the Media Aide to the Chairman, Mr. Nelson, proved abortive as they refused to respond to text messages sent to them or pick their calls. New Telegraph, however, gathered that the

plot to remove the chairman has received the endorsement of Governor Dickson. The governor, according to party sources, had a difficult time under the leadership of Inokoba during the party primaries. Inokoba, according to some aides of the governor, is accused of questioning the leadership of Dickson during the state and National Assembly primaries, which led to the upholding of the policy of zoning, initiated by the governor.

L-R: Design Director and Chief Executive, Space Concepts Limited, Sam Cookey; former Chief Executive, Newswatch Communications Limited, Mr. Ray Ekpu; Senator Udoma Udo Udoma and Mr. Donald Cookey, during a funeral service for Lady Grace Mayen Udoma, the matriarch of the Udo Udoma family, at Ikot Abasi, Akwa Ibom State.

Activist wants pipeline surveillance contract probed Joe Obende Warri

Niger Delta activist and the President of Iwere Development Association, Comrade Omolubi Newuwumi, has called for the investigation of one of his kinsmen, Michael Diden, over the Federal Government’s multi-billion naira pipeline surveillance contract in the Itsekiri area of the Niger Delta. Diden has been accused of misappropriating the contract funds. Newuwumi, who made the call in a letter to President Goodluck Jonathan and the Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, wants both the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission probe Diden. A copy of the letter was yesterday made available to New Telegraph in Warri. He said Diden was mandated to employ at

least 1, 500 Itsekiri youths to work in Oil Fields Surveillance Limited, the company handling pipeline surveillance job for the government. This was to check youth restiveness in the area, which Diden allegedly failed to do. Newuwumi said Diden, who is a member representing the Itsekiri ethnic nationality in the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) was to, as part of the agreement, pay each of the youths N120,000 monthly. He said that would have amounted to hundreds of millions of naira over the period all of which Diden allegedly embezzled. Aside that, Diden was also to purchase 1, 500 pairs of rain boots and coats, 1, 500 safety shoes, 1, 500 sets of uniforms, 1, 500 overalls, 1, 500 life jackets and 1, 500 flashlights to be recycled yearly for three years.

Cajetan Mmuta BENIN

insmen of President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday apologised to the Presidency and the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for booing the state governor, Seriake Dickson, during the presidential campaign rally that was held in the state last week. The people, under the auspices of the Niger Delta United for Jonathan, said the action was not meant to embarrass the President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, his wife, Patience, nor the PDP

Manager after my life, ex-militant alleges Gabriel Choba Ughelli

ne of the ex-militant leaders in Delta State, General Aboy, at the weekend, accused Senator James Manager, who is representing the Delta South senatorial district of threatening his life with thugs over what he described as the failure of the senator’s favoured aspirant to clinch the PDP ticket for the National Assembly seat in Bomadi/Patani federal constituency during the PDP primaries. Aboy, who spoke with journalists in Bomadi, said during the PDP primaries, he (Aboy) worked against the favoured aspirant of Manager, hence the plot to take his life. He said: “At the end of the PDP primaries in Bomadi Local Government, the aspirant I supported came victorious. Since then, Manager has been after my life by trying to use policemen, militants and men of the Department of State Security (DSS) to arrest me on the guise that I didn’t submit my arms when the Federal Government declared amnesty for us in the Niger Delta.”

Jonathan’s kinsmen apologise for booing Dickson national leaders. They said it was a clear case of pent up frustration with the administration of Governor Dickson. The group, which stated its stand through its National Secretary, Azibaayam Iborisi and the Public Relations Officer, Ebimiziewe Angalapele, in a two-page letter to the President, copies of which were made available to newsmen in Benin, Edo State, expressed dismay

that the administration of Governor Dickson was the worst in terms of policy of inclusion, youths’ mobilisation and empowerment and that it lacked respect for human rights. The group said: “The booing of Bayelsa State governor, Seriake Dickson, was not a plot sponsored by anyone, but was a spontaneous show of frustration by the people, from all the local government areas of the state.” According to them,

“In spite of the scotching sun and later the rain, the oppressed people of your state patiently waited to show you how they feel about the Seriake Dickson administration. “Though, as a father and uncle, the people of the state feel bad about what is happening, yet it could have been worse than that if it had not been your campaign outing, since we are seriously committed to working for your re-election.

Orbih: Edo PDP presidential rally shocks APC, Oshiomhole Cajetan Mmuta BEENIN

do State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Dan Orbih, yesterday said that the massive turnout of Edo people and members of the party to receive President Goodluck Jonathan during his presidential rally in the state is one that has continued to baffle the state governor,

Adams Oshiomhole, and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. Orbih, who stated this while reacting to the protest and allegation of marginalisation over the N1.5 billion campaign by some aggrieved youths under the umbrella of the Grassroots Youths Initiative (GYI), said the major issue was that Oshiomhole and the APC were finding it difficult to believe that

“the state is now in the safe hands of the PDP.” This came as members of the GYI have pledged to support the reelection of President Goodluck Jonathan come March 28 this year as rescheduled by INEC. The controversy over the said largesse was put to rest following the intervention of popular business magnate and PDP chieftain, Captain Hosa Okunbo. Okunbo, who spoke

through the PDP House of Representatives’ candidate for Ikpoba Okha/Egor federal constituency, Mr. E. Johnson Agbonayinma and Comrade Patrick Eholor, President of One Love Foundation, had appealed to the youths to sheathe their swords and embrace peace in the face of what they called the handiwork of agents of the ruling APC to destabilise the opposition PDP and its members.

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

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NORTH

APC to Aliyu: You used WDP to siphon public funds Dan Atori MINNA

he All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday called on Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State to account for the billions of naira deducted at source from local governments’ accounts, but which was not disbursed to the ward development committees over the years. The APC, in a statement in Minna by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Jonathan Vatsa, said although the concept of the Ward Development Project would have brought real development to the people

•You are envious, WDP is people-based, says Aliyu’s aide if implemented, the administration had allowed corruption and fraud to swallow its implementation across the state. In a swift reaction, the state government said the opposition is envious and intimidated by the strides of the governor. A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Israel Ebije and made available to our correspondent, said the APC is only trying to present the project in bad light to score a cheap political point and to also rubbish the globally acclaimed initiative of the governor.

According to the APC spokesman, “The ward development policy of the PDP administration of Governor Aliyu has been used to siphon local government funds and further impoverished the grassroots. According to him, “Deductions were made every month from the accounts of the local governments, but the money was not made available for the projects. We make bold to ask where are the deductions kept and in whose account? “The truth is that the ward development

project is an avenue for siphoning public funds. We call on the governor to give account of all deductions since the inception of the project.” Ebije, however, stated that “the funds for the project are well accounted for and monies spent so far, well documented. The APC is, once again, on an errand of blackmail to score cheap political mileage. “The Ward Development Project is an important aspect of what the true concept of dividend of democracy is all about. Governor

Aliyu, in his wisdom, introduced the policy to mitigate years of deprivation suffered by the grassroots. “The policy, which is backed by law, has a wellestablished strategy for probity and accountability done by the people themselves.” Vasta while stating that the government has failed the people in this programme, expressed dismay that the party’s governorship campaign team has been inundated with complaints from the rural dwellers in the villages about the poor implemen-

tation of the programme. The governor’s spokesman said: “It is therefore blackmail and cheap propaganda taken too far for the APC to say that the WDP is a conduit pipe, when the effect of the policy is there for everybody to see and the monies spent, well documented.” He challenged the APC to produce facts on their claims, adding that their politics of lies and blackmail will not affect the fortunes of the ruling party. He said the opposition will remain perpetually agitated, intimidated and envious since they have nothing new to offer the state.

Niger LP removes chairman Dan Atori MINNA

arely two days after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) postponed the presidential and governorship elections, the Labour Party (LP) has passed a vote of no confidence in its Chairman, Alhaji Musa Mohammed, for breach of trust, misappropriation of party funds and ‘divide and rule’ tactics. The national secretariat of the party upheld the no confidence vote passed on the chairman of the Niger State chapter of the party thereby suspending him from office forthwith. According to a statement by the Labour Party National Secretary, Olukayode Ajulo, made available to journalists yesterday in Minna, the party suspended the state chairman for indulging in frivolous activities. “He is fond of instigating members against each other; he diverted party funds paid by an aspirant into his personal account thereby incurring the wrath of the national body of the party,” the statement reads in part. Ajulo in his letter also alleged that the former chairman, without permission from the national headquarters, removed N100, 000 meant for the payment of expression of interest fees by one of the party’s aspirant in the state. The suspended chairman was further accused of not involving the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) into the party’s activities despite their efforts and interest in the party as well as not keeping proper documentation of party records.

L-R: Director, Support Groups of Buhari 2015, Mr. Maurice Evey; National Coordinator, Mass Movement for Buhari 2015, Mr Kenneth Ibe-Kalu and Vice Chairman, APC North West Zone, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadiri, at a meeting of mass movement for Buhari 2015 in Kaduna …yesterday. PHOTO-NAN

Four soldiers injured in Al-Makura’s convoy accident Cheke Emmanuel LAFIA

t least four soldiers were yesterday injured when a military van in the convoy of Nasarawa State governor, Tanko Al-Makura, was involved in an accident.

The accident occurred when the governor was returning from a campaign rally at Awe, headquarters of Awe Local Government in the state. Eyewitnesses said the military van collided with a Volkswagen car with registration number

COCIN commends INEC for shift in elections Musa Pam Jos

he President of the Church of Christ In Nations (COCIN) Rev. (Dr.) Dachollom Datiri, has commended the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to shift the 2015 general election by six weeks, saying the decision was in good faith to enable them conduct free and fair elections.

Datiri stated this yesterday while speaking with New Telegraph on the postponement of the February elections. He said he is convinced that whatever is worth doing at all, is worth doing well. According to him, “If INEC is postponing the elections to enable it conduct a better election, then I think that is a welcome idea, because there are many Nigerians who have not collected their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVC’s).

NBB 578 AA shortly after Mahanga, few kilometers away from the venue of the rally at about 6.20pm. Though no life was lost, the injured soldiers were rushed to Dalhatu Araf Specialists Hospital, Lafia, the state capital in a Hilux van

just as the military van involved in the accident suffered a huge damage. Al-Makura drove straight to the emergency unit of the hospital on arrival at Lafia, where the injured soldiers were admitted in a critical condition.

New Telegraph reports that the accident came barely one week after the governor’s convoy was attacked by an angry mob at Gurku in Karu Local Government while he was returning from the installation of the traditional ruler of Gurku chiefdom.

Group adopts Tarzoor as PDP guber candidate Cephas Iorhemen Makurdi

socio-cultural group, the Transformation Disciples for Greater Benue (TD4GB) yesterday threw its weight behind the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Benue State, Prince Terhemen Tarzoor, with a vow to support his election as governor in the rescheduled April 11 polls. The group, which is made up of Benue sons

and daughters living in the Diaspora, made its position known at a media briefing in Makurdi. President of the group, Levi Adagen, said they were thrilled by the amiable personality of the governorship candidate and expressed confidence in his agenda to transform the state in various sectors. Adagen said the group was poised to supplement Tarzoor’s administration, if elected, by contributing to affordable housing programme

for both the rural and urban dwellers, industrial and value-added agriculture, establishment of skills acquisition centres in all federal constituencies, as well as contributing significantly towards ensuring improved health care services for the people. He described Tarzoor as a catalyst with the capacity to stimulate growth as well as the key to unlock opportunities and creating enabling environment for a greater Benue State.

WORLD | News

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Leaders scramble to avert ‘dramatic spiral' in Ukraine

he leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France agreed to meet in Belarus on Wednesday to try to broker a peace deal for Ukraine amid escalating violence there and signs of cracks in the transatlantic consensus on confronting Vladimir Putin. The four leaders held a call on Sunday, two days after Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande traveled to Moscow for talks with Putin that produced no breakthrough in the nearly year-long conflict that has

claimed over 5,000 lives. After the call, Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko said progress had been made and that he was hopeful the meeting in Minsk would lead to a "swift and unconditional ceasefire" in eastern Ukraine, where proRussian separatists have stepped up a military offensive in recent weeks, seizing new territory. A Ukraine military spokesman said yesterday that intense fighting was continuing around the rail junction town of Debaltseve, with rebel fighters making repeated attempts to storm lines

defended by government troops. At a high-level security conference in Munich over the weekend, Merkel said it was uncertain whether further negotiations would lead to a deal with Putin but argued that all opportunities for a diplomatic solution should be pursued. She came under sharp criticism from US senators Lyndsey Graham and John McCain, both Republican hawks, for opposing the sending of defensive weapons to the Ukraine army to help it fight the separatists. "The Ukrainians are being slaughtered and we're sending

them blankets and meals," McCain said in Munich. "Blankets don't do well against Russian tanks." US Secretary of State John Kerry sought to play down the differences with Europe. "Will we remain united? The answer is absolutely, positively, unequivocally we are united, we will remain united," Kerry told the conference yesterday, describing any differences as tactical rather than strategic. Members of the Obama administration are also believed to be skeptical about arming Ukraine but the president faces intense pressure from a Republican-led Congress to act. The Germans believe sending weapons to a depleted Ukraine

army would not improve its chances against separatists armed with "unlimited" supplies of Russian military equipment. They also fear that delivering arms would internationalize the conflict, playing into the hands of Putin, who has painted the crisis as a western plot to weaken Russia. Merkel, 60, flew to Washington yesterday for talks with Obama. A Russian speaker who grew up behind the Iron Curtain in East Germany, she has taken the lead in pursuing a diplomatic solution to the conflict, speaking with Putin by phone dozens of times over the past year and meeting with him in Moscow, Sydney and Milan in recent months.

US delivers arms to Lebanon, says fighting ‘same enemy'

T US Secretary of State John Kerry, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Munich, Germany, yesterday.

Egypt to retry jailed Al Jazeera journalists

he retrial of two Al Jazeera jour nalists jailed in Egypt will start on February 12, the lawyer for one of the defendants said yesterday. Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed were sentenced to seven and 10 years in jail respectively last year on charges including spreading lies to help a terrorist organization -- a reference to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. A third Al Jazeera reporter, Australian national Peter Greste, was sentenced alongside them, but was unexpectedly freed last Sunday and deported after spending 400 days in prison. Egypt’s high court ordered a retrial of all three journalists last month. "The session has

been set for Feb. 12, 2015," said Mostafa Nagy, the lawyer representing Mohamed, who was given an extra three years in jail for possessing a single bullet. Under a decree issued last November, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has the power to approve the deportation of foreign prisoners. Following Greste's release, Egyptian security officials said that Fahmy, who held joint Egyptian-Canadian nationality, might soon be deported. However, his fiancee told Reuters on Sunday that she had no information about his possible release. Amal Clooney, one of Fahmy's lawyers, wrote to Sisi requesting a meeting to discuss the case, according to a letter

dated Feb. 6 that was shown to reporters by his family. Baher Mohamed is Egyptian and holds no foreign nationality, making his case more difficult to resolve. Egyptian authorities accuse Qatar-based Al Jazeera of being a mouthpiece of the Brotherhood -- the movement the army removed from power in 2013. Al Jazeera denies the allegations. The journalists were detained in December 2013. They say they were doing their jobs and their imprisonment reinforced the view of human rights groups that the government was rolling back freedoms gained after the 2011 uprising that toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

John Kerry: ‘We are on the road’ to defeating IS

ecretary of State John Kerry says the US-led coalition is “on the road” to degrading and destroying the Islamic State militant group in Iraq and Syria. “I believe we are on the road to degrading and destroying IS,” Kerry said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” in an interview that aired Sunday. “Yes, I absolutely do.” The coalition, Kerry said, has regained more than 20 percent of territory that had been under IS control and killed “a significant proportion” of its top leadership. “We believe everything — including the governing process in Iraq itself — is moving in the right

direction,” the secretary said. Kerry’s comments come following airstrikes launched by Jordan against the militant group last week after an IS video showed one of its captured pilots being burned alive in a cage. “The coalition is strong, more committed than ever, particularly in the aftermath of the burning of the Jordanian pilot,” Kerry said. Retired Gen. John Allen, special presidential envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter IS, said on ABC’s “This Week” that the pilot’s killing “galvanized the coalition.” Kerry also reiterated the administration’s position that the United States is not willing to put “boots on

the ground” in its fight against IS, relying on ground troops from Iraq and other members of the coalition instead. Also yesterday, Kerry denied there were any divisions between the United States and its European allies over how to handle Russia and the crisis in Ukraine. “There is no division, there is no split,” Kerry said at a security conference in Munich. “We all agree that this challenge will not end through military force. ... We are united in our diplomacy.” On “Meet the Press,” Kerry said he had “no doubt” the United States and its allies would offer additional assistance to Ukraine, but declined to offer specifics.

he United States delivered more than $25 million worth of military aid including heavy artillery to the Lebanese army yesterday to help it fight jihadist groups which have repeatedly battled with security forces near the Syrian border. The US ambassador to Beirut, David Hale, said in a statement the weapons would be used to "defeat the terrorist and extremist threat from Syria". "We are fighting the same enemy, so our support for you has been swift and continuous," Hale said at an event marking the delivery of the weapons in Beirut. The Lebanese army has fought regular battles with armed groups including militants linked to Islamic State and the al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front in areas near the Syrian border, most recently late last month when six soldiers were killed. Hale said Lebanon was the fifth biggest recipient of US military aid. It received more than $100 million last year. Lebanese officials have warned of plans by radical Islamist groups fighting in the Syria war to seize territory in Lebanon. While the US-backed

Lebanese army has been battling hard-line Islamists on the Lebanese side of the frontier, the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah has been battling the same groups on the Syrian side of the border -- part of its role fighting alongside Damascus in the Syrian war. The Lebanese army, rebuilt after the country's 1975-90 civil war, is one of the strongest institutions in the country, but it has been hamstrung by outdated weapons. France and Lebanon signed a $3 billion Saudifunded deal in early November to provide French weapons and military equipment, including helicopters, to the Lebanese army. The United States has accelerated the delivery of military aid to Lebanon since last August, when Islamist militants staged a major attack in the border town of Arsal, said Nabil Haitham, a columnist in the Lebanese newspaper AsSafir. "Despite the importance of these weapons, they cannot make up for the big shortfall from which the army is suffering," he said in a phone interview with Reuters, adding that helicopters were vital.

Somalia's PM intervenes over US money transfer closure

omalia said yesterday it was trying to prevent the closure of the main money transfer service from the United States, warning the move would have an "astronomical impact" on the war-torn country's economy. The US-based Merchants Bank of California has said it will halt its services to money transfer companies, a decision aid groups say would stop up to 80 percent of the $200 million sent annually by relatives in the United States from reaching Somalia. "I have personally spoken to the US government on this pressing issue and repeated my calls to US banks to reconsider their decision,"

Somalia's Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke said. With no formal banking system in the impoverished Horn of Africa nation, diaspora Somalis across the world turn to money transfer services to send money back home support their families, sending some $1.3 billion (1.1 billion euros) each year, dwarfing foreign aid. They send money home via transfer businesses which can accept deposits abroad and immediately credit recipients. But banks have become increasingly reluctant to keep them as customers as regulators crack down on money laundering and the funding terrorism.

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

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Oliseh: I don’t want Eagles job

Ronaldo laments ‘crappy day’ for Real Madrid

ITTF rankings: Quadri slips to 32

Sport

Did you know? That the first player to reach 100 Premiership goals was Alan Shearer

Brume targets sprints glory in 2015

Charles Ogundiya

lasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games long jump gold medalist, Ese Brume, has said her target in 2015 is to perform well in the 100m and 200m events. Speaking with our correspondent in Lagos over the weekend, the Delta State born athlete said now that she had mastered the trick in the long jump, she wanted to concentrate

Brume

more on 100m and 200m sprints. Brume, who is hoping to follow in the footsteps of her mentor, Nigerian queen of the tracks, Blessing Okagbare, said she was ready to make a career also in sprints. “I am training hard, although it is not just about training, I also have to be focused and dedicated, which I have been doing since. “I really want to concentrate on the sprints because apart

from making a career in it, it will also aid me in my jump,” she said. Speaking further, the African Athletics Championship gold medalist said she had already set a target for herself in both sprints and long jump. The athlete who was discovered during the last National Sports Festival in Lagos said: “I really want to win laurels for Nigeria in 2015. I want to improve on my 2014 achievements by

winning medals in all competitions this year starting with the Junior championship. “I will be going for both the All Africa Games and the World Championship; the Grand Prix is also another target for me this year.” Brume was full of praise for the General Overseer of the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministry, Dr D. K. Olukoya, for the opportunity given to upcoming athletes to showcase their talents at the annual Olukoya meet he sponsors in Lagos.

Keshi

Musa (left), in action for Nigeria at the 2014 World Cup

Eagles reject Keshi The Sport Team Adekunle Salami Group Sport Editor

Emmanuel Tobi Assistant Editor, Sport

Ifeanyi Ibeh Sport Correspondent

Ajibade Olusesan Sport Correspondent

Charles Ogundiya Sport Correspondent

l Players worried over the delay in appointment of new coach Ajibade Olusesan

dds are mounting against the return of Stephen Keshi as Super Eagles coach as many of his players are against his retention. Nigerians are sharply divided over the decision of the Nigeria Football Federation to allow the coach to continue as Eagles handler and New Telegraph can authoritatively report that many of the tactician’s playing staff are also against any attempt to offer offer him a new deal. According to a Europe-based player, who did not want his name mentioned, many of them are praying that the coach

does not come back so that the team can have a new direction. The player said Keshi did very well by giving some of them the break in the national team but the team had lost focus because of the divisive approach of the coach to the job in recent times. “It is not our job to decide which coach the federation employs, we don’t have such powers, the administrators do that and we work with whoever is appointed. But if you ask me about my opinion, I will say let us look for another person to continue the good job the manager has started. Keshi is a good coach, he is like a father to all of us, he brought some of us

to limelight and we will forever be grateful to him. But things are not the same in the Eagles as when we first started. There is no way there won’t be the occasional altercations where there are many people but I don’t think the coach has handled the issue very well. Many of us are not happy about one thing or the other in the team. There are a lot of things that happened that I can’t tell you for the sake of peace. I cannot say what happened in the team was responsible for our failure to qualify for the Nations Cup but there was a big dark cloud over the team at that time. I don’t think this issue will be resolved if we continue to have the same manager in charge. That is my view and many of us share the same opinion on this matter,” he said. Another Eagles player who is a defender also told our reporter again on condition of anonymity that: “I don’t think the federation wants to give the boss the job again and if I were him, I will go. Coaches come and go, in my club, I worked with a coach last season and I have another one now, that is the nature of the job. My concern is that up till now we don’t know who the new coach is going to be and we will start Nations Cup qualifiers later this year. It is hard for us the players to criticise the administrators but you the media can help us to tell them to do something about this on time.”

SPORT

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Oliseh: I don’t want Eagles job F ormer Nigeria captain Sunday Oliseh has ruled himself out of contention for the Super Eagles’ head coach’s job, as the uncertainty continues over the contract situation of current tactician Stephen Keshi. Keshi, who led Nigeria to the Africa Cup of Nations title in South Africa in 2013, remains in charge of the Super Eagles, despite not having signed an extension with the Nigerian

Football Federation after his deal expired last year. Oliseh, who played for top European sides including Ajax Amsterdam, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund, sarcastically claimed that he would live longer if he turned the job down because it would be too much pressure. The 40 year-old is more than qualified to coach the Super Eagles as he currently has the top coaching badge in the world, the UEFA

A license, but said he would rather contribute from the outside. Oliseh said: “So many people have been asking me, ‘why don’t you go and coach the Super Eagles?’ I want to live long. “In as much as I know I’m very much qualified for it, I love my country and the proof of this abounds, but I’ll rather share my experience and allow my thoughts and knowledge reach a vast majority.”

Golden Eaglets tackle Fasbir Academy Wednesday

he Golden Eaglets will engage Fasbir Football Academy at the Giginya Memorial Stadium in Sokoto in their last domestic friendly match before travelling to Niamey for the 2015 African U-17 Championship. The tournament takes place between February 15 and March 1. Coach Emmanuel Amuneke said that it was imperative to play a local club partly as a token of appreciation to fans and football stakeholders for their hospitality since the

team’s arrival on Friday. “We are going to give our best against Fasbir FC on Wednesday, and apart from the fact that this match will be an opportunity for us to see the readiness of the players, we want to also appreciate the people of Sokoto for their support to us since we arrived here,” said Amuneke. On the road to Niger 2015, the Golden Eaglets did not lose any of their 25 domestic friendly matches and recently defeated Nigeria National

League side, Sokoto United, 2-0 at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium in Kaduna on January 17. Prestige will be at stake when the two teams confront each other for obvious reasons. Fasbir FC, owned by Mallam Mohammed Nasir Saidu, the Assistant Director, Legislative Budget at the National Assembly and chairman of Sokoto Football Association, is a strong side having lost just thrice in 30 matches, and were recently forced to a 2-2 draw by Sokoto United.

Brown Ideye scores the equaliser goal

Nigerians paint Europe red with goals

lIdeye, Kalu Uche, Musa, others on target Ajibade Olusesan

rown Ideye, Kalu Uche and Ahmed Musa top the list of Nigerian players who scored for their respective European clubs at the weekend. Ideye scored his second English Premier League goal since moving to West Brom when he headed home the Baggies’ second goal in their 2-2 draw at Burnley on Sunday. Ideye, who was a second half substitute, in the 67th minute, rose highest in a crowded penalty area to plant

a header past Burnley goalkeeper, Tom Heaton, to rescue a point for West Brom. In Spain, former Super Eagles star, Kalu Uche, was among the goal scores as Levante coasted to a 4-1 win over Malaga on Saturday. Playing in only his second league match for Les Granotes since joining the Spanish La Liga club in the January transfer window, Uche netted his side’s fourth goal in the match. Musa netted in the 31st minute as CSKA lost 2-1 to Torpedo in a friendly match on Saturday, while Odion Ighalo continued

his red hot form for English Championship side, Watford, scoring the lone goal as they beat Blackburn Rovers 1-0. It was Ighalo’s ninth goal in six games and takes his season tally to 13, as Watford stay sixth in the league standings. In Belgium, Moses Simon Ajala was on target for KAA Gent as they recorded an emphatic 4-0 home win over 10-man Westerlo in a Jupiler League week 25 match on Saturday. Nigeria international, Ezekiel Umoh, was also on target for his Belgian side, Standard Liege, on Saturday in their 3-0 win over Mouscron.

Ik Uche (middle) shields the ball during Nigeria and South Africa match

Usman leads 13 others to D’Tigers camp Ifeanyi Ibeh

eigning MVP of the DStv Premier Basketball League and Kano Pillars captain, Abubakar Usman, leads the list of players expected to commence training on Monday at the national team’s training camp in Abuja ahead of their upcoming African Cup of Nations qualifier against Burkina Faso. Also known as the Afrobasket, the Cup of Nations will hold later in the year in Tunisia with D’Tigers hoping to secure a toptwo finish that will automatically secure for the side a berth at next year’s Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Apart from the games against Burkina Faso, D’Tigers will also take part in the qualifiers for the 2015 All Africa Games in coming up in the Congolese capital Brazzaville, and the Nigeria Basketball Federation has called up Usman and 13 other players from the Premier League for camping

in Abuja. Players from Kano Pillars lead the list of invitees with seven. They are Usman, Mathew Omonya, Ibrahim Yusuf, Onyeka Okeke, Dele Ademola, Adeolu Ojo and Abdulwahab Yakubu. Five players from Mark Mentors – Stanley Gumut, Abdul Yahaya, Moses Odaudu, Victor Anthony and Timothy Kwaor – also made the list. Azuoma Dike of the Dodan Warriors and Lagos Islanders’ Ibrahim Okpe were also called up. According to a statement made available to New Telegraph from the media department of the federation, the invited players were scheduled to report at the team’s hotel base on Sunday ahead of Monday’s opening training session. With the NBBF yet to name a fulltime coach for the side, Sani Ahmed, who assisted the team’s erstwhile coach, Ayo Bakare, at the London 2012 Olympic Games, will take charge of training.

Reading boss explains Yakubu’s snub Ifeanyi Ibeh

eading manager, Steve Clarke, has explained why he didn’t hand Aiyegbeni Yakubu his debut appearance for the Royals in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the English Championship. The 32-year old former Nigeria international was an unused substitute in the game that saw his compatriot Hope Akpan come off the bench for his first league appearance for the Royals since suffering a shoulder injury in last November’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers victory over Congo in Pointe Noire. With time running out, and with Reading 2-1 up, Clarke had the option of either introducing Akpan, to see out the game, or Yakubu, to push for a third goal and kill off the game. The former West Brom manager however settled for the former, and he said after the match: “Ev-

Yakubu

ery time I turned around I could see Yakubu looking at me trying to get on. “The last change was straightforward, Simon was always coming off, then I had to choose between another attacker to get the third and kill it, or Hope (Akpan) to see it out. Thankfully it worked out with Hope.” Yakubu was signed during the winter transfer window to help bolster Reading’s attack and improve their chances of pushing for promotion.

International Sport 53

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Ronaldo laments ‘crappy day’ for Real Madrid

ristiano Ronaldo admitted Real Madrid had not been “physically or mentally” ready as they were thrashed 4-0 at city rivals Atletico on Saturday. Carlo Ancelotti’s side was second-best throughout as Atletico won easily thanks goals from Tiago, Saul, Antoine Griezmann and Mario Mandzukic, with Madrid’s galactico strike-force limited to just one shot on target all game. Champions League holders Real had not been beaten at the Estadio Vicente Calderon in La Liga during the 21st century, but were totally outclassed by Diego Simeone’s side.

Real’s Ronaldo vies for the ball with Atletico’s Juanfran during Saturday’s match

RESULTS English Premier League

West Ham 1 – 1 Man United Burnley 2 – 2 West Brom Newcastle 1 – 1 Stoke Tottenham 2 – 1 Arsenal Aston Villa 1 – 2 Chelsea Leicester 0 – 1 Crystal Palace Man City 1 – 1 Hull QPR 0 – 1 Southampton Swansea 1 – 1 Sunderland

Serie A Verona 1 – 3 Torino Juventus 3 – 1 AC Milan Fiorentina 3 – 2 Atalanta Cagliari 1 – 2 Roma Empoli 2 – 0 Cesena Napoli 3 – 1 Udinese Sampdoria 1 – 1 Sassuolo

La Liga Atl. Madrid 4 – 0 Real Madrid

ranislav Ivanovic knows his winning goal against Aston Villa will count for little if Chelsea take their foot of the gas in the Premier League title race. Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was victorious for the first time in five attempts at Villa Park on Saturday, as full-back Ivanovic’s wonderful left-foot

volley in the 66th minute secured a 2-1 win. With Manchester City having only drawn 1-1 with Hull City, leaders Chelsea stretched their lead to seven points at the top of the table. Ivanovic, though, was quick to stress that the London club can ill afford to rest on their laurels. “We cannot be relaxed.

Mertesacker rues defensive errors

This is a massive three points for us,” he told Chelsea’s official website. “The game was very tough but at the end of the day I think we deserved three points. “We don’t have time to relax even one second. There are 14 games to go and we must stay focused. Seven points are big but things can change quick- Ivanovic

Murray looks to heal wounds in Rotterdam A

Levante 4 – 1 Malaga La Coruna 2 – 0 Eibar

Bundesliga Bremen 2 – 1 Leverkusen Schalke 1 – 0 Gladbach Stuttgart 0 – 2 Bayern

7 Liverpool 8 West Ham 9 Swansea City 10 Stoke City 11 Newcastle 12 Everton 13 Crystal P. 14 Sunderland 15 West Brom 16 Aston Villa 17 Burnley 18 Hull City 19 QPR 20 Leicester

39 37 34 33 31 27 26 24 23 22 21 20 19 17

24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24

+6 +8 -3 -2 -6 -3 -8 -12 -12 -20 -17

-13 -19 -17

C Milan’s performance in Saturday’s 3-1 defeat to Serie A champions Juventus can be used as a “starting point” to reignite the San Siro club’s stuttering season, says Filippo Inzaghi. Goals from Carlos Tevez and Leonardo Bonucci sandwiched Luca Antonelli’s effort before Alvaro Morata settled the contest for Juve. Inzaghi said: “Despite many relevant absentees, I think that the team showed a great attitude today. “It’s pretty clear that playing against a fullstrength Juventus side is not easy for anyone, otherwise they wouldn’t have won all those games so far. “But I think that we were always in the game and in fact we also had the chance to make it 2-2 with Pazzini and we could have reopened the game.”

Ivanovic: No Chelsea let up B

Sociedad 1 – 1 Celta Vigo

Pts 56 49 45 44 43 42

And Ronaldo, who turned 30 on Thursday, told reporters that his team had played “very badly”, but reminded unhappy fans this was just one game. “Atletico deserved to win,” he said. “They beat us in every respect - in fight, play, organisation, second balls. “Why this happened, we must look at it over the next days. Clearly we are hurting a lot for this defeat, and clearly we must change our attitude, our motivation, above all to avoid a game like this happening again in future.” “This is a crappy day because the dressing room is annoyed, but we must think positively because we are still top.”

Villarreal 2 – 0 Granada

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE Team P GD 1 Chelsea 24 +33 2 Man City 24 +23 3 Southampton 24 +21 4 Man United 24 +17 5 Tottenham 24 +6 6 Arsenal 24 +18

Inzaghi happy despite loss to Juventus

Murray Mertesacker

er Mertesacker accepted Arsenal reversed all their recent good defensive work by not being “switched on” in allowing Tottenham to come from behind to win the north London derby 2-1 at White Hart Lane. The Gunners had looked set for another positive away performance when they snatched the lead through a fine volley from Mesut Ozil after 11 minutes. However, Spurs soon regained momentum as Arsenal struggled to deal with the impressive midfield work-rate from Mauricio Pochettino’s men. “We found a way recently to prepare ourselves on crosses better defensively (and also) on set-pieces, but we did not switch on quickly enough and were not up for proper defending, so that was worse than in recent weeks,” Mertesacker said on Arsenal Player.

ndy Murray steps straight back into the fray just over a week since his Australian Open final loss, playing as top seed at the Rotterdam ATP event from Monday. The Scot leads three other top 10 rivals into the indoor event, with Canadian Milos Raonic seeded second, holder Tomas Berdych at third and 2014 Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka taking fourth. Despite his Melbourne

disappointment at losing 12 of the last 13 games in the final against Novak Djokovic, Murray is ready to strive for more success after returning to the fourth ranking position. “It’s pleasing to be back playing close to my best. I still feel like I can make improvements in my game. I think I can get a few percent better over the next couple of months,” said the 27-year-old who lost a 2014 Rotterdam quarterfinal to Marin Cilic.

E’Guinea hail AFCON feat

FCON hosts Equatorial Guinea said they had achieved great things within a short time after they lost the third-place match against DR Congo Saturday. Nzalang Nacional fell 4-2 on penalties to finish fourth. Equatorial Guinea defender Rui Fernando da Garcia Gomes said they could be consoled by

the fact that they came this far within only 20 days. “We tried to fight for this third place. After, the penalty shootout is a lottery. But I am happy with my team, with the staff. We managed to achieve some great things in a short time. Everyone knows it is difficult to build a team in 20 days,” he said. Midfielder Ellong Doualla Vi-

era said finishing as the fourth best team in Africa should give them some satisfaction even though they would have been happier with a medal. “I feel some dissatisfaction. I would have liked to go back with a medal. But I must be happy with the fourth place which means a lot for my teammates and I,” said Viera.

Powell settles for second in Boston

ormer 100-metre world record-holder Asafa Powell of Jamaica settled for second place behind American Trell Kimmons in the 60 metres at Saturday’s Boston Indoor

Grand Prix athletics meet. Kimmons, the secondslowest qualifier for the final, surged from the start and outleaned his rivals at the finish line to win in

6.51 seconds with Powell, a world and Olympic 4x100 relay champion, second in 6.52, and American Michael Rodgers, the 2010 world runner-up at 60m, third in 6.53.

SPORT

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Injuries affect my football –Babatunde Super Eagles and Volyn Lutsk midfielder, Babatunde Michael, in this interview with SportsLaduna10.com, speaks on his injury woes as well as reports linking him to several other clubs outside of the Ukraine. successful at the Africa Cup of Nations had they qualified, do you agree with that? Yeah, sure. The teams (at the AFCON) have given their best, but we would have done better had we qualified. I think it would have been a big opportunity to retain the title if we had qualified. But it’s unfortunate that we did not, so we have to look forward now, and focus on the next edition. The qualifiers will start soon, so that should be the focus now.

fessional footballer and all I want is to be on the pitch doing what I know best, but the injuries won’t allow me to. It has been a difficult period for me obviously, but I am really hoping and praying that I recover fully soon.

Thank you for giving us your time. How are you doing? I’m good. I thank God for the gift of life, but just been battling injuries. I was going to ask you that. How has it been struggling with the injuries? It’s not been funny I must tell you. I am a pro-

You seem to suffer these setbacks when you’re on your way to full recovery. What’s the problem? It is quite unfortunate to be honest. The other time I recovered and returned to training, only for me to get injured again a day before a match. The doctors are doing their best but I just don’t want to rush it again. They have advised that I take my time for it to heal properly and that is what I’m doing. I will be back soon though.

What do you make of reports linking you with clubs outside of Ukraine? I heard about them. But I just have to focus on my team for now. If a bigger club comes in with a bigger offer and if they agree terms with Volyn, then I’ll move. But for now, my concentration is on helping my team do well, and hopefully things will get better.

A lot of people believe Nigeria would have been

Babatunde

ITTF rankings: Quadri slips to 32 Ajibade Olusesan

nternational Table Tennis Federation Star Player of the Year, Aruna Quadri, slipped from 30th to 32nd in the ITTF rankings for February. Apparently, the player’s rating was affected by the shock loss he suffered to Mohamed El-Beiali of Egypt in the men’s singles quarterfinals in the last ITTF Africa Senior Championship in Cairo. Quadri played 10 matches in the month under review and won nine while the loss to ElBeiali was the only one he suf-

fered. For winning the ITTF Africa Senior Championship, Egypt’s Omar Assad is named at number 43; a position which exceeds his previous best of 57 in July 2013. Despite sliding in the rankings, a confident Quadri amassed 19 points to add more points to his overall tally. In January, he had 2246 points and with his recent slump, he now has 2265 points. “I believe the loss in Cairo may have contributed to my drop and I hope to improve this month as I will be competing in a series of Pro Tours starting with the Qatar Open this week,”

Charles Ogundiya

Quadri

Blind rescues point for Man Utd Man City not all about Toure, says Pellegrini

Blind (left)

aley Blind left it late to salvage an unlikely point for Manchester United to keep their top four hopes alive. The Dutchman fired home a stunning stoppage time winner to help United leave their bogey ground Upton Park with their top four hopes still

alive. The first half lacked any real clear cut chances, although West Ham came closest to scoring. James Tomkins nearly opened the scoring in the 33rd minute when he peeled off at the back post from a corner, but his header was thwarted by David De Gea. The Hammers however were quickest out of the blocks at the start of the second, and Kouyate gave them the lead in spectacular fashion. With his back to goal, Kouyate played keepieuppies before spinning past his marker and firing past De Gea.

anchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini refused to blame the continued absence of Yaya Toure for his team’s collapse in 2015 following their 1-1 home draw with relegation-threatened Hull City. The defending English Premier League champions are now seven points behind leaders Chelsea, have exited the FA Cup at home to Championship side Middlesbrough, and have gone four games without a league win -- their worst such run in over five years. All this has happened while the inspirational Toure has been at the Africa Cup of Nations. The hulking 31-year-old midfielder is not expected to be available for Wednesday’s trip to Stoke City, but Pellegrini is adamant that City can prosper without him.

Four bag special awards as Ibile Games ends

“I always have the same answer, you can’t have any doubt how important Yaya Toure is for us,” he said. “But we feel that every game without Yaya we could win. It is not just about one player. We must be a creative team and we must play faster in the last 25 metres against teams who defend with men behind the ball. I think there is more of a problem than one individual player.” David Meyler gave Hull a deserved, if surprise, first-half lead on Saturday and the visitors, who defended stoutly, would have won had it not been for a fine injurytime free kick by James Milner. “Yes, of course, before the game, if you’d said we were going to draw against Hull, I wouldn’t have liked it,” admitted Pellegrini.

our outstanding athletes were on Saturday, at the closing ceremony of the Lagos State Secondary Schools Sports Festival, tagged Ibile Games 2015, rewarded for impressing at the two-week long championship with the Adidas Special Awards. They are Yinusa Idowu, a 16-year-old JSS 3 student of Mobolaji Bank Anthony Junior High School, who won five gold medals in gymnastics; Morayo Okungbuwa, a 13-year-old JSS 3 student of Meadow Hall, who won eight gold and two silver in swimming; Oluwadare Samuel, a 15-yearold SSS 2 student of Questland College, who won three gold medals in Chess, and Ojo Franca Benson, a 15-year-old SSS 2 student of Ipakodo Senior Grammar School, who won seven gold and a silver medal in swimming. On hand to present the outstanding athletes with their awards was Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola, who also declared the championship over at the ceremony held at the Teslim Balogun Stadium. Governor Fashola enjoined all the students to focus on their studies, even as they continue to excel in their sporting career. He also commended the organisers of the championship for a job well done. Lagos State Commissioner for Youth, Sports and Social Development, Enitan Oshodi, hailed the spirit of sportsmanship displayed by the athletes, adding that the championship’s target of discovering talents from Lagos based schools remains on track, insisting that “it is the backbone of meaningful development of sports in the country.”

NEW TELEGRAPH MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2015

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tial candidate, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, to call his supporters to orCONTINUED ON PAGE 5

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The Nigeria Customs (NCS) revenue Service has fallen billion or by N223 19 one year. per cent in the last

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Okonjo Iweala, a mismatch economy, says Enwegbara for Nigerian

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Dayo Ayeyemi

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Front row: L-R: European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker; Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu; former French President, Nicolas Sarkozy; Mali's President, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita; French President, Francois Hollande; Germany's Chancellor, Angela Merkel; Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas and Italy's Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, at a solidarity march against terrorism in Paris...yesterday. PHOTO: ReuTeRs

TRAvEl Advisory Your guide to local and international flights 4

Feb 14: APC blows hot

lDSS' story on hacking senseless, says Lai Mohammed Temitope Ogunbanke

he All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday faulted the re-

port of the Department of State Services (DSS) that it planned to inflate its membership data as well as hack into the Independent

National Electoral Commission (INEC) database through the creation of party membership forms and cards to match INEC's

voters register across the country. Addressing a press conference yesterday in Lagos, CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

QuicK reaD

Editorial

Managing a depressing economy }19 Female suicide bombers kill five in Yobe }7

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DEGRADATION

Director mo Bassey of HOMEF, Nnimcould not , said the fishermen fisherman hope to fishing pittance was better than return in the Bodo that Shell to fered the communities creeks because rivers initially to pay of- ters hydrocarbon of the depthand with cleaner “This can. to fish. Sadly of wapollution hardly ing from a good fishing purchase Bodo pollution , although the oil spills. resultthe boat and ment necessary also damaged He equip- the Goi community amount expressed that the fishing making to return being offered the waters the community business to tinue people that to languish know each conthey choose best – that the glect without in abject is if neto move remedy,” to other he said.

Sancti ty of Tr uth

No. 33

42-43

Bodo spill: N16 billion Group faults Shell’s compensati on

Communities in the NigerDelta have been drastically affected by activities of oil companies

The Food and Organisation Agriculture Food Price (FAO)’s monthly December Index declined in stability. after three months of

Insurance

Claims: Policyholder’s Leadway conflict with deepens

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Kalu to pDp, apc: elections not Do-or-Die

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First pregnant man delivered a baby girl in June 2008, Thomas Trace Beatie. He chose to become pregnant because his wife Nancy was infertile, doing so with cryogenic donated sperm.

How ISIS hardened Jordan BBC Correspondent

ess than a week ago Islamic militants released a video of a Jordanian pilot being burned alive. As Paul Adams found on a trip to the airman's home town, the killing and graphic images that were shown on TV have hardened Jordan's attitude towards IS. I was half asleep when the call came through - slumped uncomfortably in the back of a car, dozing off the effects of a a day spent crisscrossing northern Israel. The satnav told us we'd gain a few minutes on the return journey to Jerusalem by going down the Jordan Valley, so when the phone rang and a BBC voice from London said "Go to Amman, now," I was already halfway there. On the Jordanian side of the Allenby Bridge, in those familiar, smoke-filled minutes of uncertainty that always accompany Middle Eastern border crossings, I looked up at the TV screens in the arrivals hall - at images I'd only started to hear about and wasn't quite ready to see. Most Western news organisations tend to exercise extreme caution when it comes to the graphic images and political content of videos whose subtexts sometimes seem less important than an obvious desire to scare us witless. But here in the Middle East, broadcasters and the public are less squeamish. When it comes to man's inhumanity to man, it sometimes seems there's nothing they won't show. And so, the handful of travellers making the late crossing were treated to something unspeakable, even by the depraved standards we have, so quickly, come to expect. Not quite the moment of immolation, but everything else. Over and over. I looked at the faces watching beside me, but most seemed blank. Inured, or not quite comprehending? I couldn't tell. But it was clear, as I boarded a taxi for Amman, that by the end of the evening, every Jordanian would know exactly what had been done to one of their sons. The following morning we headed south to find Lt Moaz al-Kasasbeh's family home, winding through rocky hills turned green by winter rain, past villages perched on the slopes high above the Dead Sea. Far below, in the desert haze, the salty lake at the bottom of the world gave off a dull glow. On our way we passed the imposing ramparts of the castle at Kerak, one of the largest fortresses in the Middle East. Built in the 12th Century, it served for a while as the headquarters of the notorious crusader Reynald of Chatillon, who used it as a base from which to menace Mecca itself and, it is said, delighted in throwing his enemies from the castle

Safi al-Kasasbeh, father of the murdered pilot, in his home town of Kerak

The mourning ceremony for Moaz al-Kasasbeh in Kerak

walls onto the rocks far below. Regarded as one of Islam's most implacable enemies, he spent 15 years in prison in Aleppo, was freed for a vast ransom of gold but was finally captured and beheaded by Saladin himself. It all happened more than 800 years ago, but for the men who fight under the banner of Islamic State, it might just as well have been yesterday. For them, the crusaders are still here, along with their modern-day allies, the Zionists. They still deal in ransoms and, like Reynald, they're not above throwing their enemies to their deaths from tall buildings. And in this holy war, they clearly feel justified in meting out a uniquely horrible punishment to a fellow Muslim who had the temerity to take up arms against them.

Timeline: Jordanian pilot held hostage • December 24, 2014: Jordanian Lt Moaz Youssef al-Kasasbeh captured by IS after his plane crashes • December 25, 2014: Pilot's father urges IS to show mercy • January 24: IS calls for release of Sajida al-Rishawi, an Iraqi militant sentenced to death in Jordan • January 28: Jordan offers to release Rishawi in exchange for Lt Kasasbeh • January 29: Deadline to kill Lt Kasasbeh expires • February 3: Video released appearing to show Lt Kasasbeh burnt alive, with Jordanian media suggesting he was killed weeks earlier And so, finally, we reached the village. The surrounding hills were deserted, but A'ee was packed, cars

lining the streets all around the building that serves as the tribal headquarters. Workers were putting up a huge sign above the door - from now on, this place will be known as the Hall of the Martyr, Moaz alKasasbeh. Next to it, solemn well-wishers were making their way along a receiving line, into a vast white marquee. Men in traditional robes. Men in suits. Men in the uniforms of the army and the air force. No women here - they were attending a separate event nearby. And there, in the corner, being embraced and kissed, the pilot's father, Safi, receiving public condolences for the first of three long days, as waiters offered dates and cardamom-scented coffee to rows of seated guests. The Kasasbehs were already a prominent family before this appalling event - part of the influential Bararsheh tribe, one of the clans that for m the backbone of support for the Hashemite kingdom. Now Safi, the father of the martyr, is the voice of the nation. Last week, pleading for his son's life, he questioned Jordan's role in the US-led coalition against IS. Now, his hopes so brutally dashed, he told me Jordan should hunt down the militants wherever they are and destroy them. The next day, as King Abdullah arrived to pay his respects, jets flew overhead, apparently on their way back from bombing IS targets. Jordan says it's stepping up its involvement in the campaign. Have the men who lit the torch that killed Moaz alKasasbeh over-reached themselves, or is this exactly what they want?

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 Hotline: 01-8541248, Email: info@newtelegraphonline.com Website: www.newtelegraphonline.com ISSN 2354-4317 Editor: YEMI AJAYI.