Nigerian observer 18 11 2014 by Nigerian Observer

The Nigerian

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

PUBLISHED SINCE MAY 29, 1968 • Vo l. 39 • NO. 123 • TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 20 14 • N100.00

Court dismisses suit seeking to restrain coroner

Synagogue:

TOURISM Page 21

United States and its urban poor

LAGOS - A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos yesterday, dismissed a fundamental right enforcement suit seeking to stop the coroner’s inquest into the September 12

Synagogue building collapse that killed about 116 people. A Lagos-based lawyer, Olukoya Ogungbeje, had filed the suit contending that the composition of

the coroner was in negation of natural justice as preserved by Section 36 of the Constitution. The lawyer had argued that the Lagos State Government, through its Attorney General, setting

up a coroner to probe the building collapse, could not be a judge in its own case. Besides, he had argued that the agencies of Lagos State Continues on page 2

PDP imports mercenaries to register in Edo - Oshiomhole FINANCE Page 22

Economic inclusion through microfinance framework

IYAMHO - Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has accused some politicians in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party in the state of importing mercenaries to register in their wards to boost their numbers for the forthcoming somewhere in Uromi, a elections in the state. Speaking yesterday PDP Leader brought in after monitoring the soldiers to provide escort ongoing Continuous while they brought in Voter ’s Registration Exercise at Ward 10, Iyamho, Etsako Central Local Government Area of the state, Oshiomhole said bus-loads of mercenaries were imported into the state and were given cover by suspected soldiers. According to him, “I have heard that some politicians are bringing in people from neighbouring states and I find that very strange. I was told that

people with buses from neighbouring states to register in one of the Wards in Uromi and I find that very worrisome because the whole idea is not to import mercenary voters. “The whole idea was to

give an opportunity to those who didn’t register before to register. I can understand if someone who is resident outside his village wants to go back to the village for the purpose of election but the villagers know

everybody. So, when you now import people who are not from the village and register them, that distorts the numbers and creates problems. It creates problem for the electoral system”. He said, “I want to

Atiku submits Presidential nomination form ABUJA - Former VicePresident Atiku Abubakar yesterday returned his expression of interest and nomination forms for the 2015 presidential election to the National Secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja. It would be recalled that Atiku, who wishes to be Nigeria’s president, is also the first to pick the forms more than two weeks ago. Atiku, who is in the race against four other aspirants, pledged to be

loyal and dedicated to the party no matter the outcome of the primary. “I thank the Chairman for the opportunity to be the first to collect and first to return the forms. We will continue to be loyal and dedicated party members, no matter the outcome of the primary. “I hereby submit the expression of interest and nomination forms duly and accurately completed,’’ he said. Responding, the APC National Chairman, Chief Continues on page 2

TIT BIT “In a day, when you don’t come across any problems - You can be sure that you are travelling in a wrong path.” - Swami Vivekanda

NATIONAL DEFENCE COUNCIL MEETING: L-R: Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adesola Amosu; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Usman Jibrin, Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Kenneth Minima; Chief Aliyu Gusau and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, at the National Defence Council Meeting in Abuja yesterday.

appeal strongly to INEC to have a way of monitoring the exercise to ensure that there are no mercenary voters. In Uromi, the leaders protested when the politician brought the mercenaries to register, but because of the soldiers that were escorting them, they had to leave. And these people were brought in with several buses, they were brought in buses owned by a popular transport company. This is very disturbing and I hope that INEC will check these kind of malpractices”, he stressed. Also, the Governor said the time allotted for the Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise in the State is inadequate due to the large number of people who still wish to register and the allocation of one Direct Data Capture Machine per ward to cater for the large numbers. The Governor said “there are lots of people who cannot register because of logistic problems. In many Wards, the machines were not available the Continues on page 2

Defence Council extends emergency rule in Borno, Yobe, Adamawa By JOSES SEDE

ABUJA - National Defence Council yesterday, endorsed further extension of State of Emergency placed on Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States some month ago. If approved by the National Assembly, the extension would be third on the row. The emergency rule was first declared in the affected states on May 14,

2013 by President Goodluck Jonathan over the continued activities of members of the Boko Haram sect. Since that first declaration of six months,

the emergency rule had been extended twice. The third tranche of sixmonth emergency rule expires on Thursday (20/ 11/14). The Council which is

one of the federal executive bodies established by Section 135 of the nation’s Constitution has the power to advise the President on matters

relating to the defence of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Nigeria. Its membership include the President who shall Continues on page 2

ABUJA Mr. OshitaOshita, the Director-General, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution

(IPCR), has urged the international community to develop a strong synergy in addressing

trans-national organised crimes. Oshita made the call in Abuja on Monday during

a workshop on emerging trends in trans-national Continues on page 2

Institute wants international community to curb transnational crime

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

News

Court dismisses suit seeking to restrain coroner Continued from page 1

Government that were giving testimonies before the coroner had already made indicting statements against the Synagogue Church of All Nations and its founder, T.B. Joshua prior to the inquest. But Justice Ibrahim Buba, in a judgement delivered on Monday, said the applicant completely misconstrued the essence of the coroner ’s inquest and the roles of the government agencies. The judge, who held that the coroner was a fact-finding body rather than a litigation court, said it was in the interest of the public to know the circumstances surrounding the death of building collapse victims. The judge held that more harm would be suffered by the public if the inquest was stopped as opposed to what the SCOAN and Joshua could possibly suffer if it was allowed to go on. Besides, Justice Buba noted that the coroner was a creation of the law of Lagos State, and stopping the inquest would amount to usurping the power of the executive arm of the Lagos State Government. “The Coroner Law was made in pursuant to the constitutional power of the Lagos State House of Assembly and the court cannot interfere in the administrative arm of the executive, this is because of the fact that Nigeria operates

by the system of separation of power,” Justice Buba held. The judge, while overruling the applicant’s locus standi to institute the action, said neither Joshua nor SCOAN had been shown to be incapacitated to complain in their personal capacity if they felt that their rights were violated. Justice Buba held, “Prophet T.B. Joshua and the Synagogue Church of All Nations are not on the moon, they are on earth and they live in Nigeria.” On the argument of the applicant that agencies of

Lagos State Government, having already made indicting statement against Joshua and SCOAN before the commencement of the inquest, could no longer tender fair or valid testimonies before the coroner, Buba said the applicant misconstrued the roles of the agencies. The judge said it was like arguing that the police could no longer testify in court in a criminal case if they had already carried out an investigation and submitted their report. Finally the judge held, “The

conclusion of this court is that after a careful consideration of all the issues and arguments, the applicant has failed to make a case of fundamental rights violation. The case lacks merit and it is hereby dismissed.” The applicant had sued the Lagos State Government, the state’s Attorney General and the coroner set up to probe the cause of the collapse of SCOAN’s six-storey building. He had contended that a miscarriage of justice would be occasioned against Joshua and SCOAN if the coroner’s inquest was not stopped.

‘’His marriage and business ties cut across tribe and tongue, as so his philanthropy and social obligations. Sadly, in the deeply-divided Nigeria we have today, few politicians can make such a claim. ‘’We are proud of the outstanding leadership role Atiku Abubakar has played in this country over the past 15 years of democracy, both within and outside government. “He has consistently lent his voice to pressing national issues, offering counsel to the Federal Government. ‘’Without the least meaning to diminish his national and global stature, it is on the records that Atiku, as an individual, has done more to develop Adamawa State than

Atiku submits Presidential nomination any indigene of the state that Continued from page 1 form is living or dead.’’ John Odigie-Oyegun, said

that equalizes every Nigerian. Whether you are big or small, rich or poor, employed or unemployed, on Election Day, it is one man one vote, everybody is equal. “The people want to register but because of logistics challenges, INEC is not able

to cope with the people turning up. All of us must play our part to raise awareness and encourage our people to take advantage of this exercise so that they can retain their power to hire, to fire and to discipline politicians who they empower with their voter’s card.”

She said next to the state government, he ranked as the highest employer of labour through his many businesses and industrial establishments. She said the people were thrilled by his commitment to job creation, improving the economy, education, infrastructure, transparency in government and the overall welfare of Nigerians. ‘’It is on this note that the entire members of the State Executive Committee are all here. “We are supported by the party’s chairmen in all the local government areas representing the APC in Adamawa State, and hereby endorse the Turakin Adamawa for the 2015 presidential elections. ‘’Following a meeting of the party executives on Sunday evening, we unanimously resolved that we will give him our full backing towards realising his ambitions to create a Nigeria for all,’’ Garba said. She also said the party believed in democracy and was open to other people’s candidacy, hence would not endorse a consensus candidacy.

the implication for human security organised by the institute. The workshop is aimed at encouraging policyoriented exchange of views and the sharing of knowledge among scholars, policy researchers and practitioner communities,

in order to understand the problem. It is also geared toward evolving possible suggestions and solutions to prevent such crime in Nigeria. “This workshop is therefore aimed at evolving a strategy which

will help us in dealing with an octopus-like challenge with its finger in nearly every human interest. “In fact not even the institutions thought to be sacred are immune from the destructive activities of trans-national organised criminal

he was at first nervous of the whole process but “today, I’m confident as I listen to you all. “I want to say that with every passing day, the need for change is overpowering, made manifest from activities of people like you around the nooks and crannies of Nigeria’’. Odigie-Oyegun prayed for the best man to win the party’s ticket. Earlier, Adamawa APC executive members and the 21 local government chairmen, held a news conference to affirm their support for the vice-president. Led by Binta Masi-Garba, the party executives lauded Atiku’s philanthropy and social obligations.

PDP imports mercenaries to register in Edo

Continued from page 1

first day and the second day and it took time apparently for INEC to prepare a lot of the machines before putting them to the various Wards. “As you can see for variety of reasons, there are lots of people who wish to register. So because of INEC not having enough Data Capture Machines, effectively, in the first two days or so, in many cases, the machines were not available”, he said. Governor Oshiomhole said, “What is encouraging is that many people want to register which for me is a positive sign because it means people recognize the need to have this power; the power to hire and fire politicians and that is the most potent power in the hand of very ordinary people and it is the only instrument

be the chairman; the Vice President who shall be the Deputy Chairman; Minister of Defence; Chief of Defence Staff; Chief of Army Staff; Chief of Naval Staff; Chief of Air Staff; and such other members as the President may appoint. Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Muhammed Adoke (SAN), who disclosed the council’s decision to State House correspondents, announced that having reviewed the emergency rule, the council resolved that the government should request the National Assembly to extend the emergency rule. When asked when the request would be sent bearing in mind that an arm of the

By MIKE OSAROGIAGBON BENIN CITY - Police in Benin have gunned down two members of a three-man gang of suspected armed robbers said to have been tormenting residents of 2nd Ugbor Road, GRA, Benin City. The acting spokesman, Edo State Police Command DSP Uwoh Noble disclosed this in a release made available to The NIGERIAN OBSERVER in Benin City, yesterday. According to the statement, the gang had last Sunday at about 10:22pm attacked occupants of a block of flats in the area possibly unaware of policemen on routine patrol of the community. The robbers were said to

have on sighting the police patrol van engaged the officers in a gun duel resulting in two of the suspects sustaining fatal wounds while the third suspect escaped. Items said to have been recovered from them were one locally made revolver pistol and stolen materials. The robbers who were said to have given their names as Owie Osas, 22 and Emmanuel Ufuafu, 26 were also said to have died on the way to the hospital. Ther statement however re-echoed the readiness of the police command to flush out criminal elements in Edo State while it enjoined the good people of the state to continue to partner with the police towards ensuring a peaceful Edo State.

ABUJA - The Minister of National Planning, Dr Abubakar Suleiman, on Monday called for the strengthening of Nigeria’s tax system and improved agriculture sector to make the country less dependent on oil. Suleiman made the call in an interview with newsmen in Abuja in reaction to new fiscal measures announced by the Federal Government on Sunday following global drop in oil price. He said that improvement in the nation’s non-oil revenue generation and exportation of some agriculture produce were required to complement whatever would be accruing

to the nation from oil sales in the prevailing situation. “I keep on saying this that `yes’, we depend so much on oil but oil is not the only means of our economy. “There are other avenues and other sources of income that we are not looking into. It is high time we looked at them. “They are not things that we will take time to really access. Take, for instance, revenue coming from Nigeria Customs Service. “I keep on saying that if customs are given the target to fill that vacuum created by the fall in oil price, I want to believe that we can get what it takes from the customs,’’ the minister said.

Effective Tax System, agric can take care of drop in oil price - Minister

Institute wants international community to curb Continued from page 1 to produce small arms and transnational crime light weapons by copying organised crimes and

Defence Council extends emergency rule

Continued from page 1

Police kill 2 robbery suspects in Benin

National Assembly is currently on break, the minister said it would be done immediately. “The council reviewed the issue of the state of emergency and the government will be requesting the National Assembly to extend the emergency rule. It (the communication) will go in immediately,” he said. Those who attended the yesterday meeting at the Aso Rock Villa included the CDS, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh; COAS, Lt.-Gen. Kenneth Minimah; CNS, Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin; CAS, Air Marshal Adesola Amosu; InspectorGeneral of Police, Mr. Suleiman Abba; and the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.). Others were Secretary to the

Government of the Federation, Senator Pius Anyim; Minister of Defence, Gen. Aliyu Guasu (retd.); and the Minister of Interior, Mr. Aba Moro. While declaring emergency rule in the three states in 2013 in a nationwide broadcast, Jonathan had invoked Section 305 (1) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. He had announced that regardless of the state of emergency imposed, the political structures in the affected states would remain intact. Following continued violence in the state in spite of the emergency rule, there were calls for the sacking of the state governors to pave way for the appointment of military administrators.

Meanwhile, Minister of Defence, Gen. Aliyu Gusau (rted), has challenged intelligence agencies in the country to track the source of supplies of terrorists’ organisations operating in the country. Gusau urged the nation’s intelligence community to take conscious steps to expand knowledge of the operations of such terrorists’ organization such as their sources of funding, weapons, recruitment of foreign fighters and others. The Defence Minister made the call yesterday, while declaring open, the Defence Advisers/Attaches Annual Conference with the theme ‘Re-engineering the Nigeria Defence Attaché System Towards National Security,’ in Ab

groups.’’ Oshita noted that at the national level, the International Police (INTERPOL) was working hard to tackle the menace. He also noted that some inter-national laws need to be domesticated in Nigeria so that transnational organised crimes could be fought in a more comprehensive way in Nigeria. Oshita also noted that transnational organised crime which involved dealing in small arms and light weapons, drugs and money laundering, among others, must be dealt with it from multiple angles. “Tracing the sources of these weapons of mass destruction is very important even though most of the producers are in Europe. “Locally too, our people are now using their technological capabilities

arms that they get from outside, ‘’ Oshita said. In his speech, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Bashir Wali, observed that in recent times, organised crimes had diversified and become more global with the economic dimensions of far reaching consequences. “It can destabilise democracy, disrupt free markets, drain national assets and slow down the development of stable societies,’’ Wali said. He also said that failure to develop practicable, coordinated national policies to tackle “this ever growing trans-national criminality” would further threaten and undermine the society. Trans-national organised crimes are on the increase globally and they portend great threats to national and inter-national peace and security.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

News NNPC/EPZ Project: Ijaw, Itsekiri Conflict Heightens By BETTY IDIALU WARRI ( Delta) - The seemingly frosty relationship between the Ijaw and Itsekiri ethnic groups in Warri, Delta State appears to have further deteriorated with last week’s postponement of the ground breaking ceremony of the NNPC/ EPZ project by the Presidency. Reacting to this development, a group under the aegis of Itsekiri Legacy Rebirth during press conference in Warri expressed disappointment over alleged onslaught against the Itsekiri nation by the Presidency,saying that the cancelation of the event shattered the dreams and high expectations of the Itsekiri people and men of goodwill in the Niger Delta to open up that part of the country to the world through trade. This, the Itsekiri linked to the ingredients of the declaration made at Kaima on the December 11, 1998 where the “Ijaws came up with jaundice conclusions predicated on heavily shrewed data on oil production and historic foundation of towns, villages and communities cohabiting the Niger Delta with unbroken chain of Ijaw territory and crude oil deposits therein approximate to the Ijaw ownership”. The group claimed that Jonathan for the second time did not turn up for the widely publicized ceremony at the site of the multi-billion dollar Federal Government’s Gas City project simply because Mr President’s Ijaw kinsmen advised him not to. In a Statement signed by Dr. Alex Ideh, Hon. Patrick Fregene, Mr. A.S Mene, Hon David Tonwe, Mr. Mike Odeli on behalf of the group, it noted that the claim by the Ijaws that they own up to 60 percent of the land mass of the project site was not only bogus, but also could not be substantiated Reeling out a catalogue of alleged oppression by the Ijaw nationality in Delta State, the group said, “Today, the physical war the Ijaws waged over the Itsekiri seemed to have been upgraded to psychological war. This has the element of crumbling the economy base of the Itsekiri people and destroyed their very existence. It is to our

appreciation that the government after a long wait while praying, has decided to remember us by. citing the NNPC/EPZ project at Ogidigben in Warri South West. “The Ijaws once again staged a serious protest and allegations based on bogus claim and deliberate falsehood. “As a cacophony of protest and allegations became unbearable, the state government set up a fact finding committee headed by the Deputy Governor of Delta State to adjudicate on the matter. Communities and ethnic nationalities with valid claims over ownership of the project location were asked to present their briefs with proof to support their claim,” the group added. The Itsekiri group further said “the headquarters of Warri SouthWest Local Government Area was first situated in Ogidigben but the Ijaw said they were not comfortable with it and it was moved to Ogbe-Ijoh. “This they say could not quench appetite of the Ijaws to unleash terror on the Itsekiri while the government looked away. The group while warning that no ethnic group has the monopoly of violence therefore called on Mr President to reschedule the ground breaking ceremony, which the group said it would be viewed as steps to treat the Itsekiri people as an unwanted specie in Nigeria.

APC Presidential aspirant, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (middle), submitting his nomination form to the APC National Chairman, Chief John Oyegun in Abuja yesterday. Left is APC National Organising Secretary, Senator Osita Izunaso.

Cleric Tasks Christains on Thanksgiving

By STANLEY UGAGBE / KINGSLEY NBADUGHA

BENIN CITY- Christians have been urged to develop a humble and a thankful heart so as to work faithfully with God. Speaking at this year’s

Party Primaries: By MIKE OSAROGIAGBON

BENIN CITY- Edo State Police Command has raised an alarm over alleged massive build up of arms and ammunition by unscrupulous politicians in the state. The piled up weapons are meant to cause mayhem if they lost the forthcoming primaries of unnamed political parties. The Commissioner of Police, Edo State, Mr. Foluso Adebanjo disclosed this in Benin City, in a chat with newsmen. “Unconfirmed intelligence

annual thanksgiving at the All Saints Chapel University of Benin (Ekewan Chapter), Rev Sam Azubike noted that it takes a humble heart to be

Compol Alleges Arms Build-Up

at our disposal indicates massive build up of arms and ammunition by some unscrupulous politicians, hired thugs, violent cult groups and other undesirable individuals to cause mayhem if they do not win the primaries. “...I warn everyone in Edo State, irrespective of his or her status, to surrender to the office of the Commissioner of Police, Edo State, within a period of 14 days, all illegally acquired weapons in their possessions.

A woman who people alleged metamorphosed from a strange bird at Ijora in Lagos yesterday.

“Failure to adhere, to this altimatum will spell danger for anyone arrested with such illegal weapon”. The COMPOL warned. He revealed that the Antirobbery and other special squads in the command have been given a matching order to identify, raid and confiscate such weapons and prosecute offenders. He however announced a handsome financial reward for any information that would lead to the recovery of the illegally acquired arms and ammunition as such information would be treated with utmost confidentiality. Meanwhile, 76 suspected criminals have been apprehended by the state police command. Large number of sophisticated arms and ammunition as well as 31 vehicles were recovered from the suspects. The COMPOL, said the suspects were nabbed for various offences ranging from kidnapping, armed robbery, murder, unlawful possession of firearms, rape, defilement, manufacturing of adulterated drinks to unnatural offence. He further stated that the suspects were arrested at different spots in the state, while vowing to make the State a hot bed for criminals

able to do business with God. Noting that humility is a hallmark for upliftment, Rev Azubike stated that thanksgiving is very significant in the lives of Christians because it will pave the way for greater blessing. He stressed that, “if you thank God for the little He has done, He will have the zeal to do more. Azubike pointed out that Solomon humbled himself before God and was uplifted while tasking all Christians to emulate the humility of Solomon.

The clergy lamented that many Christians are carried away with what God has done for them and forget to thank Him, stressing that it’s only those that appreciate God for what He has done that are made whole. The clergy said that sincerity in rendering services unto God is very important as God accepts the thanksgiving of those with a sincere and humble heart. According to him, those that are thankful and grateful to God are those that would continue to enjoy God’s blessing, emphasizing that thanksgiving is the key to open the door of God’s blessing.

Cleric Calls For Diligence In Service By INNOCENT OKOH

UROMI-The presiding Bishop of Christ Apple Mission International, Uromi, Esan North East Local Government Area of Edo state, Apostle Clement Ehidiamen, has said that diligence in service can fullfill human destiny just as Rebekah, in Genesis Chapter 24, did and eventually became the destined wife of Isaac. Speaking on the theme: Grace for divine favour, “he also said that sowing bountifully in the lives of people, society and service of God, could attract divine favour as a result of God’s mercy and kindness. Reading from the Book of Psalm 102:13, the clergy said God has revealed to him that He is going to richly bless all those who attended the just

concluded Bethel 2014, even as they shall experience overwhelming divine favour in 2015. However, he warned Christian faithful to live in righteousness with the fear of God, while they sow in the spirit as against the flesh which deter believers from rightful thinking and understanding. Apostle Ehidiamhen admonished believers not to be discouraged in sowing good seeds of mercy and goodness, adding that in due season they shall reap unending divine favour. Bethel, is an annual prayer programme, of the church, which kicked off, on November 10, 2014 and climaxed weekend with a thanksgiving service which featured worship and praises, including testimonies and word exaltation.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

News Obasanjo Advocates Adequate Visitor to the school, Finding Of Varsities and Alhaji Sule Lamido, said his KAFIN-HAUSA (JIGAWA) – Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, weekend called for improved funding of universities to enhance delivery of quality education in the country. Obasanjo made the call at the maiden matriculation students at the Jigawa State University, Kafin-Hausa. He said that adequate funding of universities was imperative in order to enhance teaching and research in them for the benefit of the nation. According to him, teaching and research are critical to university education, hence the need for adequate funding of our tertiary institutions. Obasanjo, who was invested as pioneer Chancellor of the university at the ceremony, advised universities in the country to offer courses that had direct relevance to the society. “It is imperative for the government to fund the universities to enable them stand on their own. “Education is the instrument of molding the youth. It control restiveness and provides opportunities to the youth. “The future of any nation is dependent on the youth and the youth should make their impact felt by displaying their talents for the development of the society,” he said. He charged the students to be of good character and dedicate themselves to studies. On his investiture, the

former president assured that he would strive to take the university to the next level. “I want to promise that we will not be found wanting; we shall all march forward to achieve the goals of establishing the university in the state,” he stated. Earlier, the state governor

Save Nigerians Lives With Diabetics Awareness -Nollywood Veteran LAGOS – Mr. Obi Madubogwu, Nollywood Veteran and Saving Life for Africa Diabetics Foundation (SLAD) founder, has said that lives could be saved if Nigerians were more aware of diabetics. Madubogwu said this to newsmen on the sidelines of a diabetes awareness campaign hosted by SLAD in conjunction with Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) in Lagos. Over 200 people have been screened at Orile and then more at Ojuelegba as part of a World Diabetics Day screening and awareness walk exercise organized by SLAD and the Actors Guild. According to Madubogwu, diabetes is a condition caused by high blood sugar that could have very serious side effects if it is not properly managed. The actor said that diabetic symptoms which included weight loss, increased hunger, increased thirst and increased urination were easily ignored that so many people did not get a diagnosis on time. “Today is World Diabetics Day and we are creating awareness about diabetes management, early detection

...Gov Says Sokoto Has 600,000 Cases SOKOTO - Governor Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto state weekend said that out of six million reported cases of diabetes in Nigeria, no fewer than 600,000 were in the state. Wamakko made this known in Sokoto at a ceremony to commemorate the 2014 World Diabetes Day in the state. He said that the statistics of the ailment in the state and the nation were high and called for more aggressive measures to reduce the rate. According to the governor, who was represented by the state’s Commissioner for Health, Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu,

administration established the institution to expand access of indigenes of the state to university education. Lamido pledged to support the university to enhance its operations. That no fewer than 774 students, all pioneers, were involved in the matriculation.

more needs to be done to prevent the disease and in providing adequate medications to sufferers of the disease. He promised to continue to provide needed drugs and special diabetic foods for the patients. The Chief Medical Director, Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Dr Yakubu Ahmed, in his speech, called on diabetic patients to engage in regular exercises and heed the drugs prescription and advice of medical doctors. “Regular exercises help to keep diabetes and many other diseases at bay,” Ahmed said.

and how people can know their status. “We have noticed a high sugar level in a majority of the people that we have tested so far, some even up to 400 mg/dL and they did not know it,” he said. Madubogwu said that in a healthy person, the sugar level should be between 82 to 110 mg/ dL and that the higher it was the more serious the health risk. Mrs Ngozi Charles-Osuagwu, a nurse heading SLAD’s medical team, told newsmen that diabetes is a sugar related disease. “Presently there is no cure for diabetes but it can be managed, it is not a death sentence if recognised on time,” she said. Charles-osuagwu said that was caused by the inability of an individual’s body to make use of the sugar in their system because of a particular enzyme called insulin. “Insulin converts blood sugar to glucose, for metabolism and other body activities. “Diabetics occurs when the body does not produce enough insulin or when the cells of the body do not respond properly to the insulin,” she said. Charles-Osuagwu said that because the body cannot make use of the sugar, it just keeps circulating in the blood making the person tired and unable to carry out normal tasks. She said that diabetes also affected other organs of the body, including the kidneys and eyes. She said that it hindered blood supply to parts of the body that are far from the heart and as a result leg injuries in diabetics took longer time to heal. “Such a person can come down with diabetic foot gangrene which can result in amputation, a life treating infection called septicemia and death,” she said. She said that people could reduce their risk of developing diabetes if they watched their diet and exercised frequently. The theme for the 2014 World Diabetes Day is “Healthy Living and Diabetes”.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

South-West JTF Nabs 10 Suspected Oil Thieves

Ebola: Irregular Water Supply, Bane Of Hand-Washing LAGOS - Some school administrators in Lagos have identified irregular supply of water to their schools as the major problem facing their effort to ensure regular handwashing. They told newsmen that they were finding it difficult to get regular water supply as their water taps had stopped running. The Lagos State Government had in July, following the outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the state, directed that schools should introduce handwashing. The hand-washing exercise was to contain the spread of the disease among pupils and students of primary and secondary schools in the state. It will be recalled that the late Patrick Sawyer, a Liberian-American, imported the virus into Lagos in July. Mrs Grace Jalekun, the head teacher of St. Paul’s Nursery and Primary School, Ebute Meta, said that washing of hands in her school had become a continuous exercise. “Each classroom has its own plastic container filled with water and liquid soap for the pupils to wash their hands in the morning— before going into their various classes. “They also do the same before they go for break, after break time and whenever they go to toilet”, she said. She noted that the school used to get its water supply from a cart-pusher every morning and paid for it from the subvention it received from the government. Jalekun, who expressed fears about the hygienic condition of such water, said, however, that she usually added water- guard to kill the germs such water might contain. “The school authorities also ensure that the big containers where the water is stored are washed every Wednesday and Friday,’’ the head teacher said. Also, Mrs Abosede Odukogbe, the head teacher of Maryhood Nursery and Primary School, Ebute Meta, said that hand washing had become a culture in her school, in spite of the irregular water supply. According to Odukogbe, cart-pushers supply water to the school because its borehole had stopped functioning. She said that a plumber had come to assess what was faulty with the borehole engine, adding that the school authorities would soon repair it. Also, Mr Chris Okorocha,

head teacher, Mount Carmel Catholic Nursery and Primary School, Ebute Meta, said that even before the EVD crisis, the school had been practicing hand washing. “Before the outbreak of Ebola, the school was practicing hand-washing twice daily —in the morning and before the close of school — but now it is done four times. “It has been taken as a continuous process, aside the Ebola crises, since the outbreak; it has become stricter and more handwashing stands have been added to the existing ones,’’ he said.

One of the victims that was shot at the scene of protest by youths of Barkin-Ladi LGA over the killing of operation rainbow officer, receiving treatment at Barkin-Ladi General Hospital

Youths of Barkin-Ladi L o c a l Government Area of P l a t e a u , protesting over the killing of operation rainbow officer in Barkin-Ladi yesterday.

Boko Haram: Lawyer Advises FG

Against Nationwide State-Of-Emergency ABUJA- Chief Akpan Ekereuwem, an Abuja-based constitutional lawyer, has advised President Goodluck Jonathan against the activation of section 305 of the 1999 Constitution in spite of the occupation of some parts of the country by insurgents. Ekereuwem gave the advice in a telephone interview with newsmen in Abuja. The section provides for the declaration of a state of emergency in the country if it is in a state of war. According to Ekereuwem, the security situation in the North East has not reached the height where the section of the constitution could be invoked. The section empowers the president to issue the declaration by way of official gazette. It further legitimises such action when the federation is in imminent danger of

invasion or involvement in a state of war. The provision allows allinclusive state of emergency when there is actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the federation or any part thereof to such extent as to require extraordinary measures to restore peace and security. According to the law, the action becomes imminent when there is a clear and present danger of an actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the federation or any part thereof requiring extraordinary measures to avert such danger. Subsection 3(f) of the provision says such proclamation is necessary if there is any other public danger which clearly constitutes a threat to the existence of the federation. Ekereuwem said the Federal

Government had the capacity to reclaim those territories with minimal aggression, adding that “nobody should contemplate abusing the provisions of the constitution in times like this’’. “You must get me right; I am not saying that all the conditions prevalent in the North-East do not meet the laid down provisions as encapsulated in section 305. “What I am driving at is for the president to continue to guide democratic tenets as he has in the past few years by not allowing room for haters of civil rule,’’ he said. It would be recalled that the Senate on Nov. 13 said that the 2015 general elections could only be conducted on the condition that all the territories captured by the Boko Haram insurgents were reclaimed. The Chairman, Senate Committee on Defence, Sen.

George Sekibo, made the remark while speaking with newsmen after a closed-door section with the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.Gen. Kenneth Minima, in Abuja. On whether the general election would be conducted if the crisis continued unbated, Sekibo said elections could only go on if all the territories in the North-East lost to the insurgents were reclaimed. On his part, the Chief of Army Staff said the military had had setbacks in Bassa in Borno, which resulted in the losses of the other territories up to Mubi. “It is indeed disheartening. This is so because we are fighting an unconventional war. “There is, however, a new pledge to engage the insurgents in order to reclaim the lost territories. The Army is working very hard to reclaim those territories,’’ he said

YENEGOA- The Joint Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta, Operation Pulo Shield, in Yenegoa announced the arrest of 10 suspected oil thieves and seizure of a crude-laden vessel. A statement signed by Lt.-Col. Mustapha Anka, JTF’s Media Coordinator, said the arrest and seizure were made on Nov. 14 at Brass Water Bar, a coastal community in Bayelsa. The suspects were arrested near Agip’s Oil export terminal. While attempting to steal crude from vessels anchored at the terminal by the JTF troops. “The arrest was made following a tip-off on a vessel christened MV SKYE, laden with substances suspected to be stolen crude oil, which was illegally siphoned from MVCERGEN - D and MT ELIMINA, earlier arrested for illegal oil bunkering. “However, the JTF monitoring team intercepted MV SKYE and arrested the 10 suspected oil thieves that perpetrated the illegal act,” Anka stated. The JTF spokesman also said that the vessel MV SKYE and the suspects were currently in the custody of the JTF for preliminary investigation. He said the suspects and vessel would thereafter be handed over to the appropriate agency for prosecution. Anka quoted Maj.-Gen. Emmanuel Atewe, Commander JTF, as saying the task force’s zero tolerance for oil bunkering, pipeline vandalism and other sundry crimes in the Niger Delta would be sustained. The commander, however, assured that the suspects would be diligently prosecuted.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Lagos Prices Of Agric Produce Soar

L-R: Former Minister of National Planning, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, Current Minister, Dr. Abubakar Sulaiman and Chairman, Governing Council, Institute of Planning, Nigeria, Dr. Mccarthy Ijiebor, at the 2014 Annual Planners Conference in Lagos yesterday.

LAGOS - Prices of some agricultural commodities like imported rice and soya beans have risen at the Mile 12 market in Lagos for the week ended November. 14. 2014 This is contained in the commodity index made available to newsmen in Lagos by Novus Agro Nigeria Ltd Weekend. The index showed that a 50 kilogramme bag of imported rice which sold for N9,714 during the week, was sold at N9,197 in the previous week. The cost of a 100kg bag of soya beans slightly increased

by N83, as it sold for N13,417 in the preceeding week. Meanwhile, a paint bucket measurement which cost N500 in the previous week, sold for N543 in the week under review. Other commodities like beans, popularly called ‘Olotu’, groundnut, maize and others, however, remained stable. A 100kg bag of beans which sold for N26,000 last week remained stable, while the price of a 100kg bag of groundnut also remained at

Prospective Voters Commend INEC Registration Exercise

LAGOS - Some prospective voters at a registration unit on Abule Nla Road, in Ebute Meta, Lagos, at the weekend expressed confidence in the ongoing INEC voters’ registration exercise, describing it as hitch-free. A cross-section of voters at the registration unit told newsmen that both the ad-hoc staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and prospective voters had conducted themselves orderly, since the commencement of the exercise. Mr. Idowu Adedeji said that INEC staff arrived the registration units as early as 8:00 a.m. and the exercise commenced immediately. “I have been here since

morning and the exercise had been going on smoothly. When I came in the morning, there was a long queue, I had to go back home to eat,” he said. Another prospective voter, Mr. Ishaq Ajayi, said that the exercise had witnessed an encouraging outcome. “The huge number of persons that turned out showed that they had confidence in the exercise,” he said. An All Progressive Congress (APC) party agent, Mr. Adex Adeleye, commended INEC for a smooth exercise. “Since morning, when we

started the exercise, there was no problem. Everything went smoothly. There was no harassment from anybody. “The INEC staff came here at 7:30 a.m. and they have been working all through. The turnout is satisfactory. “There have been an average of 70 people registered daily at the unit since the commencement of the exercise,” he said. An ad-hoc staff of INEC, who spoke on condition of anonymity, corroborated what others had said earlier. However, he added that the

only problem they encountered was inadequate power supply for the INEC computers. He said that the extra-life batteries they had could not

sustain them. “We were lucky that a good samaritan, whose business premises was close to our unit, helped us with power supply from his generating set. He called on INEC to supply generating sets for the effective charging of their computers.

N17,000. Also, a 100kg bag of white maize remained at N5,000 but the paint bucket measurement of the commodity recorded a N21 increase from N250 in the previous week, to N271 in the week under review. The price of onions also remained stable, selling at N15,000 per bag, while a 2kg measure of the commodity costs N500. Also, a 100kg bag and a paint bucket measurement of sorghum remained the same at N7,000 and N450 respectively. The price of 25 litres of palm oil remained the same at N6,500 while a bottle costs N200. Recording a slight decrease, however, was a 60kg bag of white garri, which presently sells for N5,500 down from N5,583 in the previous week.

Coy Urges New Approach To Energy Challenges

LAGOS - Mr. Jonathan Shortis, Vice President for DHL’s Energy Sector (Europe, the Middle East and Africa), has said that Africa’s transforming energy sector requires new approach from the industry’s players. DHL in a statement in Lagos, quoted Shortis as saying that there was the need to develop new technologies to meet the challenges in the sector. According to the statement, growth in the conventional energy sector currently hovers around one to two per cent per annum, while unconventional segment is booming. It said the global energy industry was undergoing a seismic shift, in part driven by development of new, unconventional sources of energy, such as shale, coal, seam gas and oil sands. The statement recalled that the BP Energy Outlook 2030 predicted that shale gas production would triple and that tight oil production would increase more than six-fold by 2030. It said that it expected the sector’s executives to employ traditional energy supply chain models and implement a highly integrated approach to drive down logistics costs and enhance profit margins. The statement said that in

Africa, there had been significant growth in oil and gas exploration and production due to its untapped resources and potential of new discoveries. It added that as in many other parts of the world, the development of unconventional reserves in the region was still in its infancy. “While there is a view that reserves in areas such as North

Africa and South Africa are substantial, little development has taken place,” it said. It added that due to the ongoing shift in geographies of energy production and demand, energy firms were required to adjust their approach to supply chain management.

L-R: APC Women leader, Chief Kemi Nelson, Senator Oluremi Tinubu and Chairman, Lagos State APC, Chief Henry Ajomale, at the submission of expression of interest form by Senator Tinubu for her second term in Lagos yesterday.

Society Calls For Better Mgt Of Respiratory Conditions

LAGOS - The Nigerian Thoracic Society (NTS),has said that there is need for better management of respiratory conditions and lung health to reduce respiratory system diseases. Prof. Etete Peters, National President of NTS, said this in Lagos at the 2014 Annual Scientific Conference of the society with theme: “Emerging Trends in Lung Diseases in Nigeria’’. According to him, there has been for some time now a changing trend in the respiratory conditions that affect Nigerians. Peters, who is also the Chief

Medical Director (CMD), University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, said several factors might account for these changes. “They include the HIV epidemic, increasing urbanisation of our towns and villages; environmental and industrial pollution; and increasing adoption of westernised lifestyle. “Others are drugs-resistant tuberculosis, HIV-associated pulmonary malignancies (AIDS defining and non-AIDS defining), Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases, obesity and

obstructive sleep apnoea’’, he said. Dr Njideka Okubadejo of the Neurology Unit, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, said there were effects of loss of sleep as a result of respiratory diseases. “Respiratory diseases can lead to disruption of sleep. This can lead to cognitive dysfunction that affects work and output. “Sleep and cognition have become major public health and safety issues and the consequent

result in significant financial and social costs’’, she said. Dr Olanisun Adewole, Consultant Chest Physician, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife, urged medical experts to continue to provide opportunities for the advancement of respiratory practice and care in Nigeria. Adewole, who is the Secretary General of NTS, said the society will continue health campaigns and corporate responsibilities so that Nigerians would have healthy lungs.

“We will continue advocacy and other activities that will ensure good and optimal health for our patients. “People need to be aware of the causes, risk factors, symptoms and early presentation of these diseases. “That way, the management and treatment will be more successful. “Government should also provide the enabling environment; equip the hospitals with up-to-date equipment as well as encourage and motivate medical and health workers’’, he said.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Across The Nation FF Reviews Oil Benchmark To $73 Per Parrel ABUJA - The Minister of Finance, Professor Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said the Federal Government has proposed a review of the oil benchmark from 77.5 dollars to 73 dollars for the 2015 budget. Okonjo-Iweala said this in Abuja at a media briefing on government’s strategic response to the decline in global oil prices. She said the proposal would be sent to the National Assembly for approval, adding also that there would be review of the entire Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF). The minister said government was adopting the best scenario approach to address the current situation, adding that there was expectation that the price decline would continue in the nearest future. She said government would adopt additional fiscal measures with appropriate monetary policy measures to cushion the effect of the decline on expenditure. According to her, government expenditure would drop from N4.8 trillion initially submitted to MTEF to about N4.6 trillion this time. “We are proposing a benchmark price of 73 dollars per barrel and, based on that, we are reviewing the entire MTEF and we have decided to maintain the same quantity at 2.27 million barrels per day. “This will mean a drop in projected oil revenues from N7.287 trillion to N6.833 trillion which also indicate that we need to do something about aggregate expenditure in the budget. “Even though the drop in oil price is a serious challenge, it is an opportunity for the country to focus on greater diversification and refocus efforts towards the non-oil sector,” she said. Okonjo-Iweala said part of the measure was the decision to raise non-oil revenue by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) by evolving a system of enlarging the scope of taxes. “Only 25 per cent of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country are currently registered as taxpayers, and more SMEs will be captured for broader tax sources,’’ she said. The minister expressed optimism that FIRS would meet the additional N75 billion target and promised to strengthen tax administration to drive the nonoil revenue by blocking the leakages. Okonjo-Iweala said there would be introduction of surcharges on luxury items to enable the well-to-do individuals in the society to be able to contribute to government’s purse. She said government would

continue to invest in infrastructure, job creation, human capital development and security, as well as prioritising investment in key sectors of the economy. “Government will also make enabling policies which will encourage private investors to continue to invest in the key sectors of the economy,’’ the minister said. She said government would no longer fund any foreign travel and overseas training by public servants from 2015, adding that only essential cases would be allowed. “As part of the efforts to reduce expenditure, international travel within the public service will be severely curtailed. “Also , unaffected are public sector wages as well as key initiatives in education, health and other areas critical to the country’s human development,” Okonjo-Iweala said. The minister said the economy was still strong in spite of the falling global oil price, saying that IMF’s estimate showed the country’s GDP remained among the best in the world. She said creating more spending by printing more money by the government, as suggested by some people, would lead to inflation which the country had been able to tame to 8.3 per cent.

Director-General, National Teachers Institute (NTI), Dr. Ladan Sharehu (left) and Chairman of the Board, Alhaji Ali Sa’Ad at a workshop for Primary School Teachers in Dutse yesterday.

Participants at the workshop for Primary School Teachers in Dutse yesterday.

NSE: Stakeholders Move To Encourage

LAGOS - The Capital Market Committee (CMC) on Monday called for strong Nigerian investors’ participation in the Nigerian stock market to enhance stability and development. Mrs Oluwatoyin Sanni, Chairman, Organising Committee, CMC 2014 Retreat, made the call in Lagos at a news conference to herald the event. Sanni, who is also the

Domestic Investors

Group Managing Director of UBA Capital, said the market and the economy would be stable through strong participation of domestic investors. “Our economy like most global market is sensitive to global development, but if we have a strong participation by domestic investors in our

economy, it will help to make our economy much more stable,” Sanni said. She said the market operators would ensure further development of domestic investors’ confidence in the market, noting that it was critical for long-term health and stability of the market.

18 Ships Arrive Lagos Ports

Petroleum Products: LAGOS - Eighteen ships laden with petroleum products and food items are waiting to berth at the Lagos ports. This is contained in the daily “Shipping Position’’ made available to newsmen on Monday in Lagos by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). According to the document, nine ships will berth to discharge petroleum products like petrol, kerosene, base oil and diesel. It said that nine other

ships would discharge bulk rice, fresh fish, buck wheat and containers. The document indicated that 62 ships were expected to arrive at the ports from November 17 to November 30, 2014. It noted that 23 of the expected ships would sail in with containers to be delivered at the APM Terminals, Apapa. The document indicated that other expected ships would arrive with bulk rice,

used vehicles, bulk malt, buck wheat and petroleum products. It showed that more ships were expected to bring in crude palm oil, bulk cola, bulk fertiliser, ethanol and bulk clinker. Twenty one ships are discharging buck wheat, bulk rice, bulk fertiliser, general cargo, bulk gypsium, bulk sugar, containers, petrol, aviation fuel and diesel at the ports.

Sanni said that “Nigerians are the ones that have a longterm stake in the economy and one of the things that we hope to develop further is domestic investor confidence. “This is very critical for the long-term health and stability of our market”. According to her, the Nigerian capital market plays an integral role in the Nigerian financial market. The financial market comprises the debt capital market valued in excess of 37.5 billion dollars and market capitalisation of 85 billion dollars. She added that issues bordering on infrastructure and ways to finance Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria would top the agenda of the CMC retreat holding from November 26 to 28 in Abuja. Sanni said that infrastructure and SMEs played important roles in economic growth and development. She said the retreat would focus on strategies for

converting the gains of the Gross Domestic Product rebasing into wealth distribution through the capital market . She added that the capital market masterplan would be unveiled at the retreat. Sanni said that over 800 participants were expected from various parts of the economy for the retreat. She added that key government functionaries such as the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Prof. Ngozi Konjo-Iweala among others are expected to attend. “We need to tie up the market and reach to people that is driving the transformation programme of the country because we are passionate about growing the market. “The percentage of the capital market to GDP is still very low and a lot still needs to be done and this is the opportunity to link capital market to wealth creation,” she said. The theme of the 2014 retreat is ‘Capital Market: Creating Wealth.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Abuja Electricity Sector Will Surpass Telecom Revolution - Wonodi

Spouse of Akwa Ibom Chief Judge, Mr. Bassey Isua; Chief Judge, Justice Idongesit Isua and the officiating priest, Rev. Joseph Eton, at the Church Service to mark the opening of 2014/2015 Akwa Ibom Legal Year in Uyo yesterday.

BENIN CITY - There are indications that expected transformation in the energy and power sector in the country will surpass the revolution in the telecommunication sector, all things being equal. Mr. Rumundaka Wonodi, an alumni of University of Benin (UNIBEN), in a lecture delivered at the 2nd Faculty of Engineering Public Lectures Series who disclosed this said in the three decades, the role of the state in funding infrastructural development has increasingly moved from one of absolute government control to a more liberalized approach. This he said has meant

Road Rehabilitation: EVGN Thanks Benin Monarch For Royal Blessing By TUNDE EIGBIREMOLEN BENIN CITY – Eghosasere Ventures Vigilante Group of Nigeria (EVGN), a communitybased security outfit at the weekend paid the Benin Monarch, Oba Erediauwa, a thank you visit for the gifts the Palace showered on the organisation for deeming it fit to rehabilitate the failed portion of Plymouth Road, around the Palace. Leading the members of the Vigilante Group, the President of EVGN, Comrade Eghosa Idahosa said they decided to pay the Palace the visit to thank the Monarch for recognising their humble contribution towards community development and security of lives and property in Edo State, adding that they were quite pleased with the Oba’s kind gesture to the organisation in kind and cash. The Benin Monarch, who was represented at the occasion by prominent chiefs of the Palace, including Chief Obamwonyi prayed for the vigilante group and offered the President, Comrade Idahosa royal blessings. It will be recalled that EVGN recently carried out infrastructural repairs at the Ogida Police Barracks when it embarked on the fencing of the Police Barrack which the Edo State Police Commissioner also applauded the group for.

Comrade Eghosa Idahosa

Governor Isa Yuguda of Buachi (right), presenting an appointment letter to the newly appointed Bauchi State Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Muktar Abubakar in Bauchi yest erday.

adoption of various models of private sector participation including public-private sector partnership (PPP); Build Operate and Transfer (BOT); Build Operate and Own (BOO); Concessions; Management Contracts; Privatization by sale of shares which have their peculiar advantages. Noting that the poor performance of governmentowned utilities has been largely due to underinvestment, the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) said with ongoing investments in the energy sector, the future is bright for energy supplies and power distribution. He drew a lead from the historical Benin kingdom of her extraordinary advances in metallurgical innovation which reached its apogee more than 500 years ago during the reign of Oba Ewuare the Great, noting that indeed, “this contrast between what we once were and what we can still”, points to the very core of the topic, “Issues and Options in re-engineering Nigerian Electricity Market and infrastructure”. Mr Wonodi said failure of the energy sector then was largely attributable to the failure of the government to prescribe cost-reflective tariffs, several years of underfunding which led to a severe infrastructure deficit which in turn required

significant funding that the Federal Government could illafford to provide in light of growing budget deficit. “So also is the change in government’s role in the utility space was needed. Institutional reform has entailed a combination of competitive restructuring, privatization and establishment of a regulatory mechanism. The paradigm shift is largely inspired by a belief in market forces as tool for economic growth that is predicted on entrepreneurial efficiency and capital. Indeed, the role of the state in infrastructural development has now been restricted to that of regulation, policy formulation, and in some cases, partnership with the private sector”. Mr. Wonodi reiterated that Nigeria’s vision 20:2020 target of a generation capacity between 20,000MW and 40,000MWn adding that even at the targeted generation capacity, Nigeria will still be very short of its energy requirements, compared to the countries that are currently in the top 20 bracket of largest economies in the world. He sighted the GSM revolution that started in 2001 and how it brought about efficiency in phone usage experience, providing jobs, boosted economic activities by making business transaction smoother, with Internet and mobile platforms coming down to the grassroots at affordable rates.

Road Rehabiliation: Community

Appeals For Govt Intervention BENIN CITY – Aruogba Community in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State has appealed to the state government and philanthropists in the area to rehabilitate the Ebo/Aruogba/ Ugunmwenyin Road to enable them have access to other communities In an interview with newsmen in Benin City, the Youth Chairman of Aruogba Community, Comrade Okoro Ogbaretin said that the deplorable condition of the road has brought untold hardship on the people. According to him, the poor condition of the road, has affected the marketability of farm produce of farmers in the locality. “The farmers hardly get vehicles to convey their farm produce to the major markets, thereby causing them to farm

on a subsistence level,” Okoro said. Okoro added that unless drastic measures are taken, the community would be cut short of infrastructural development. He disclosed that Aruogba community is where the former Speaker, Edo State

House of Assembly, Alhaji Zakawanu Garuba; the chairman of Edo State Internal Revenue Service (EIRS) Chief Oseni Elamah, and Mr. Ken Ihensekhien the former State Commissioner for Agriculture with their family reside. “We also have past and

serving state lawmakers, like Blessing Agbebaku, Friday Ogieriakhi, Abudulahi Imudagbe, as well as a former Deputy Governor of the state, Mr. Lucky Imasuen living in the area. “Yet, we do not have single government school nor market; the community

persons were jointly charged with one count of kidnapping of one Francis Umeh at Isiohor Community in Benin City, an offence contrary to Section 2 (1) and punishable under Section 3 (2) of the Kidnapping (Prohibition) Law of Edo State 2009. Justice Imoedemhe in the judgement, said the 1st accused corroborated the evidence of the PW1, PW2 & PW3 when he said that the kingpin kidnapper, Segun referred to as Don General requested him to convey him to Upper Siluko Road where the victim was kept, as well as to return the kidnapped victim to a spot near Precious Palm Royal Hotel after paying the ramson

of Six million naira while One hundred thousand naira was given to him as part of his share. According to the Judge, “I am therefore of the view that while the evidence on record raises considerable suspicion of the guilt of the 2nd accused person, it does not prove beyond reasonable doubt as required by law.” Counsel to the 2nd accused, E.O. Afolabi Esq leading M. Imafu (Mrs.) had earlier submitted that his client (Mrs. Janet Ilechukwu) was not at anytime with the kidnappers following the evidence so adduced by the prosecution witnesses, neither did she aid the kidnappers or facilitate their kidnap of the PW1.

Court Sentences Taxi Driver To Life Imprisonment Over Kidnapping In the case, the two accused

By ROLAND OSAKUE

BENIN CITY – A Benin High Court presided over by Justice P.I. Imoedemhe has convicted a taxidriver, Michael Musa to life imprisonment without option of fine over his involvement in the kidnapping of a middle- aged man in Benin City, Edo State. Justices Imoedemhe, who gave judgement in the case between the State and two accused persons (Michael Musa and Janet Ilechukwu) with Suit NO.B/16C/ 2010 recently in Benin City, however discharged and acquitted the 2nd accused person, Mrs. Janet Ilechukwu

cannot boast of five graduates from higher institution,” Okoro said. An elder in the community, Elder Goodluck Osayande said that many politicians have made series of promises, like installation of electricity transformers, establishment of Primary and Secondary Schools, as well as bringing market to the community. He noted that none of these promises were fulfilled, adding that Aruogba community has not felt any government presence, apart from the Healthcare centre which was established in 2010. According to him, both serving Federal Judges, retired military officers, former and serving state commissioners and lawmaker are residents of the community, yet no development.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Business + Economy Consultant Calls For Increased Lending To Farmers LAGOS - A finance consultant, Mrs. Olubunmi Lawson, has called for increased lending to farmers in order to mitigate the effects of the dwindling fortune of crude oil. Lawson, who made this call in an interview with newsmen in Lagos, said the sole dependence on oil as a major source of earning, was dangerous to the country’s economy. She observed that government had based its 2014 budget on an oil price of $77.50 a barrel and a daily output of 2.39 million barrels. “It has also submitted a budget benchmark of $78 a barrel for 2015 to the National Assembly under its 2015-2017 Medium Term Economic Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) . “This is an indication that our revenue from oil is on the decline,” she noted. According to International Energy Agency (IEA) on Friday, oil prices are expected to keep sliding well into 2015, held down by weak demand. “This report also maintains its full-year forecast for slow global consumption growth” Lawson asserted. Lawson said that Nigeria, being Africa’s biggest economy and also the most populous nation, should not rely on oil for 70 per cent of government revenue and 95 per cent of export earnings. She argued that agricultural sector needed to be expanded to also become a major source of earnings. Lawson, who is the Managing Director of ACCION Microfinance bank, noted that commercial bank lending had been on the decline for a decade. She argued that the microfinance banking sector needed to grab emerging opportunities and increase the loan portfolios to farmers, to protect the country from economic crisis. “Microfinance banks should concentrate on lending more to farmers before

considering other entrepreneurs, so as to boost cultivation and increase the country’s earnings. “The banks henceforth should start extending micro agriculture loans to crop, fish, pig and poultry farmers, among others,” she said. She argued that with the fall in the benchmark of crude oil to S78, this country needed to return to farming. “The drastic fall of oil prices should make us tighten our belt and concentrate more on our micro economy, empowering of entrepreneurs, especially women and farmers,” she said. She expressed the hope that micro loans to farmers, would increase by 2015.

L-R: First Vice President, NEPAD Business Group-Nigeria, Chief Nike Akande; Minist er of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina and Special Adviser to the President on NEPAD, Amb. Fidelia Njeze, at the 2nd Nigeria Rice Investment Forum in Abuja yesterday.

Govt Distributes Working Tools, Loans To Group

ILORIN - As part of its effort to ensure financial independence for the people of the state, Kwara State Government has distributed working tools, other forms of equipment and loans worth N50 Million to 35 artisan groups comprising 500 members. Speaking during the distribution of the working tools at the first anniversary of kwara State Artisans Congress, the State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed said the initiative was to empower

artisans and ensure that their potentials as major players in the economy of the state is enhanced. Governor Ahmed said the N50 million intervention was in addition to the N100 Million disbursed to the Artisan Congress when it was formed last year, adding that other forms of empowerment initiatives were in the pipeline for the benefits of the artisans. On the significance of the empowerment, the governor said since each of the 500 artisans would have at least two employees, about 1500 Kwarans were expected to

benefit from the scheme. The governor expressed satisfaction that the administration’s “N250Million Revolving Micro credit scheme launched in 2012 has grown to N700m and successfully empowered 48,000 small business owners in the process.” He noted that 47 artisan groups and 100 transporters have benefitted from the funds while another set of 170 farmers now have thriving agribusiness following the disbursement of N215m in micro- credit under Off

Association Donates To Accident IJEBU-ODE (Ogun) - The part of the association’s Victims Road Safety Officers’ Wives contribution towards Association of Nigeria (ROSOWA), Ogun chapter, donated food items to accident victims at the Ogun State Hospital in Ijebu-Ode. The items include tins of milk, beverages, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, disinfectants and tissue-papers.

Mrs. Adekunbi Adetunji, the leader of the delegation and wife of the Ogun sector commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, said the gesture was to commemorate the UN World Day of Remembrance of Road Accident Victims. According to her, it is also

Samples of Nigerian Rice exhibited at the 2nd Nigeria Rice Investment Forum in Abuja yesterday.

alleviating the plight of the victims. She urged the beneficiaries to use the items judiciously and join the campaign for the prevention of road accidents in the country. “We want to remember those who have lost their lives through road traffic crashes and to give hope to those that are alive, especially those recuperating at the hospitals. “We should all learn to imbibe a road safety culture by looking out for the safety of one another on our roads,” she said. Receiving the materials, the Chief Matron at the hospital, Mrs Olajumoke Onawoga, thanked the association for the gesture and urged others to emulate them. Onawoga said the assistance came at the right time and appealed to motorists to obey road traffic

taker Demand Driven Scheme”. The President Kwara State Artisans’ Congress, Alhaji Abdullahi Lanky in his address at the occasion said the formation of the Artisans’ Congress has enabled artisans in the state to work with unity of purpose. Alhaji Lanky said the Master Trainer policy of the state government and the establishment of the City and Guild of London moderated International Vocational Centre in Ajasse - Ipo as well as the various loan facilities place artisans in vantage position to drive economic development and generate vast employment opportunities in the state.

Security Operatives Want CCTV In Schools DAMATURU - The military, Police and State Security Services in Yobe have stressed the need to install Close Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras to monitor movements in schools. Malam Wakil Kaku, the National Orientation Agency (NOA) state Director, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Damaturu. “The military, Police and State Security Services authorities noted that all schools must be provided with wall fence and installation of close circuit Television (CCTV) cameras to monitor movements and objects in and around the schools. “The security authorities also emphasised on the need to provide designated entry and exit points to check unauthorised movements around the schools,’’ he said. Kaku, however, said that the agency had sensitised schools

Principals and proprietors to understand basic precautionary measures on security challenges. He said the agency was worried about the spate of attacks on schools claiming lives of innocent students. “We saw the need to sensitise school authorities to basic measures towards securing the schools. “The agency last week organised intensive training on precautionary measures on security challenges for school principals and proprietors across the state,’’ the director said. Kaku said the authorities were educated on the need to promote selfscreening to identify new faces among students and teachers in order to fish out strange faces with nefarious intentions. “The school authorities should also check visitation during school hours or when picking students after school closure,’’ he said. The director, therefore, advised authorities to be mindful of structures erected around the schools, saying these structures could be security risks.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

NSE DAILY ACTIVITY SUMMARY (EQUITIES) AS AT YESTERDAY(17/11/2014) Stocks

Open

Change

Deals

Units

Value

MULTITREX

0.5

200

100

7UP

148.83

23,200

3,342,885.45

NAHCO

4.72

4.71

-0.01

963,947

4,544,713.29

ABCTRANS

0.62

62,664

38,851.71

NASCON

8.59

8.17

-0.42

294,686

2,423,662.62

ACCESS

7.9

7.55

-0.35

14,684,182

113,009,481.90

162.17

165

2.83

1,955,040

319,205,783.50

AFRIPRUD

1,506,746

4,517,687.67

NEIMETH

0.92

125,000

113,000.00

AGLEVENT

1.31

11,237

15,073.88

NEM

0.76

11,862,881

8,844,993.26

AIICO

0.85

0.82

-0.03

3,399,740

2,855,692.95

NESTLE

900.22

40,550

35,127,973.01

AIRSERVICE

1.66

38,504

61,481.32

NEWGOLD

1912

1957

154,895.00

ASHAKACEM

25.38

299,980

7,236,678.52

NIGERINS

0.5

100

ASI

35381.02

35488.8

107.78

197,844,996

2,338,985,588.00

NNFM

442

7,978.10

ASOSAVINGS

0.5

50,000

25,000.00

NPFMCRFBK

0.9

0.86

-0.04

602,337

518,797.42

1584.58

1593.38

8.8

138,481,813

2,106,748,054.00

BERGER

7.98

8.3

0.32

179,626

1,485,905.48

NSE30

BETAGLAS

22.05

20,000

450,000.00

NSE50

1724.83

1732.72

7.89

147,372,120

2,141,544,336.00

BOCGAS

5.48

4,600

23,966.00

NSEASEM

979.48

993.63

14.15

1,015,000

631,150.00

CADBURY

46.63

13,810

633,275.20

NSEBNK

353.97

355.06

1.09

62,062,386

785,121,458.70

CAP

36.6

36,342

1,310,629.42

NSECNSMRGDS

883.14

890.52

7.38

6,596,559

497,206,605.30

CAVERTON

3.97

3.78

-0.19

125,421

474,164.31

NSEINDUSTR

2183.83

2180.35

-3.48

2,875,189

153,839,676.90

146.63

146.71

0.08

37,218,432

23,471,859.46

CCNN

11.58

11.15

-0.43

176,000

1,957,114.00

NSEINS

CHAMPION

8.73

9.16

0.43

260,100

2,382,293.00

NSELOTUSISLM

2265.19

2266.23

1.04

4,973,030

293,722,960.00

CHAMS

0.5

1,000,000

500,000.00

NSEOILGAS

407.86

409.14

1.28

11,395,751

251,825,656.10

CILEASING

0.5

44,000

22,000.00

OANDO

23.02

21.88

-1.14

9,868,902

221,104,224.00

CONOIL

49.23

715

33,440.55

OKOMUOIL

29.72

28.24

-1.48

112,138

3,197,879.57

CONTINSURE

0.97

614,791

596,257.63

OMOSAVBNK

0.59

0.61

0.02

1,000,000

610,000.00

2.48

2.36

-0.12

665,535

1,583,179.56

CORNERST

0.5

650,000

325,000.00

PHARMDEKO

COSTAIN

0.81

0.85

0.04

601,429

510,134.65

PORTPAINT

4.8

502,615

2,384,313.00

COURTVILLE

0.5

32,100

16,091.00

PREMBREW

3.98

1,000

4,037.00

CUSTODYINS

3.66

3.84

0.18

631,988

2,415,133.92

PRESCO

60,840

1,698,982.00

CUTIX

1.34

4,000

5,600.00

PRESTIGE

0.5

12,660

6,583.20

DAARCOMM

0.5

23.1

-0.1

297,756

6,801,722.19

DANGCEM

215.98

205.19

-10.79

48,351

10,105,648.69

REDSTAREX

4.2

355,120

1,436,004.00

DANGFLOUR

6.55

11,000

68,530.00

RESORTSAL

0.5

200,000

100,000.00

DANGSUGAR

6.19

6.2

0.01

808,309

5,015,965.75

RTBRISCOE

0.72

0.75

0.03

67,886

50,890.62

DIAMONDBNK

6.1

-0.1

817,104

4,911,547.57

SEPLAT

436.02

433

-3.02

305,949

128,408,112.60

ETERNA

3.21

3.27

0.06

1,389,696

4,327,706.12

SKYEBANK

2.57

2.51

-0.06

1,366,607

3,439,420.13

0.5

550,050

275,025.00

ETI

17.2

75,585

1,279,147.86

STACO

FBNH

9.75

9.6

-0.15

18,154,111

172,004,513.70

STANBIC

29.37

-1.37

281,274

7,892,096.94

FCMB

3.55

3.45

-0.1

242,561

829,699.28

STERLNBANK

2.3

1,915,301

4,411,722.50

FIDELITYBK

1.78

516,346

892,818.75

TOTAL

159

3,903

618,209.00

FIDSON

3.4

158,518

561,390.64

TRANSCORP

4.12

4.3

0.18

41,861,971

180,402,506.30

FLOURMILL

52.64

-0.64

1,959,419

102,804,685.90

UAC-PROP

10.93

10.44

-0.49

350,139

3,725,235.87

1,304,356

60,372,094.59

199.98

202

2.02

113,500

22,756,419.75

UACN

FTNCOCOA

0.5

111,500

55,750.00

UBA

4.33

4.34

0.01

14,462,428

64,654,552.98

GLAXOSMITH

593,289

30,840,323.10

UBCAP

1.8

1.73

-0.07

797,088

1,395,660.69

GNI

0.5

3,000

1,500.00

UBN

8.07

8.25

0.18

1,232,625

10,087,787.96

GUARANTY

23.12

23.26

0.14

8,739,229

203,046,747.70

UNILEVER

35.7

86,657

3,113,189.28

GUINEAINS

0.5

100,000

50,000.00

UNITYBNK

0.5

95,058

47,529.00

GUINNESS

166

160.2

-5.8

71,061

11,396,548.76

UPDCREIT

800

8,000.00

HONYFLOUR

3.45

308,380

1,064,409.10

UPL

4.13

3,000

11,790.00

IKEJAHOTEL

3.67

3.6

-0.07

5,126,843

17,959,816.50

VETGRIF30

15.6

15.94

0.34

479.4

INTBREW

88,260

2,312,392.60

VITAFOAM

4.02

-0.02

378,331

1,513,289.00

JAPAULOIL

0.5

30,033

15,016.50

WAPCO

1,608,275

128,903,787.80

0.61

0.62

0.01

2,288,192

1,402,879.20

LASACO

0.5

WAPIC

LAWUNION

0.5

1,000

500

WEMABANK

0.95

0.99

0.04

534,829

526,823.49

LEARNAFRCA

1.36

1.42

0.06

235,122

320,265.08

ZENITHBANK

20.8

20.95

0.15

18,252,979

379,388,231.30

LINKASSURE

0.5

1,500

750

LIVESTOCK MANSARD

2.35 3

0 0

19,442 51,066

44,632.18 148,091.40

MAYBAKER

1.55

109,500

164,595.00

MBENEFIT

0.51

0.5

-0.01

17,801,562

9,023,845.02

MCNICHOLS

1.48

15,000

21,150.00

MOBIL

165

19,035

2,985,656.75

TOP 10 GAINERS Stock ASI 107.78 NEWGOLD NSEASEM NSE30 NSE50 NSECNSMRGDS NB FO NSEOILGAS NSEBNK

TOP TOP 10 10 LOSERS GAINERS Gain

35488.8 1957 993.63 1593.38 1732.72 890.52 165 202 409.14 355.06

45 14.15 8.8 7.89 7.38 2.83 2.02 1.28 1.09

Stock

Loss

DANGCEM GUINNESS NSEINDUSTR SEPLAT OKOMUOIL STANBIC OANDO FLOURMILL UAC-PROP CCNN

205.19 160.2 2180.35 433 28.24 28 21.88 52 10.44 11.15

-10.79 -5.8 -3.48 -3.02 -1.48 -1.37 -1.14 -0.64 -0.49 -0.43

THE NIGERIAN

RECENTLY, the National Assembly, transmitted the proposed constitution amendment to the various Houses of Assembly which are currently considering the amendments. THE constitution of any nation, is the aggregation of laws, precepts and basic principles by which a state, country or an organization is governed. ALL human societies are always in a constant state of flux, in line with the principle of the dynamics of nature. So, are the peoples who make up these human communities that are governed by this body of rules. IN view of the fact that man has to keep pace with the constant changes as dictated by nature for his survival such rules and basic principles which are used to regulate society, need also be made fluid, so as to be able to provide desired answers to new questions and emerging novel needs of the people. NIGERIA is a country that cannot be exempted from the above compelling effects of the dynamism of nature on both people and environment by allowing some form of fluidity to reflect current realities and practices. ABOVE, and so many other compelling socio-political and economic reasons, have made the current urge for a constitutional review and amendment in Nigeria, a must do; as many have identified the lack of it, as the principal factor responsible for our present state of degenerate and political stagnancy, economic backwardness and social maladjustment.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014 THE NIGERIAN

Still On Constitution Amendment AS a corroboration of this widely held view about the state of inertia which Nigeria has found itself in the new millennium, it is apposite to point out that since our romance with democratic government, particularly dating from 1999, such moves at constitution review should be something that we cannot shy away with when it becomes inevitable. CONSEQUENTLY, concerned Nigerians and other stakeholders like the NonGovernmental Organization (NGOs), Civil Liberties Societies, Political groups and professional bodies such as the Nigerian Barr Association, have individually and collectively warned all concerned, to get it right by doing the right thing and by taking cognizance of public opinion. This will save the country from imminent confusion arising from the multiplicity, of inadequacies the obvious lacuna and the amended 1999 constitution. FOR example, vague and fraudulent provisions of section 308 of the constitution, which confers an unbearable immunity on political office holders like the President and Governors, while in office. Ordinarily, these people are supposed to be the peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; servants as they are elected by them. There are also

other vexatious provisions in the same constitution, the intendment of which citizens have viewed with circumspect over the years and which have culminated in the present call for review of the document. NIGERIANS, no doubt, are all at one that there is need for a continuous constitution amendment. TO this end, The NIGERIAN OBSERVER salutes all those who participated in the national constitutional conference for articulating various opinions and views that would help address the multi-faceted problems and shape the future and destiny of Nigeria. ADDITIONALLY, other contentious issues of true and fiscal federalism in which the different states would have greater say and authority in the control of the resources in their area; issues of states and local government creation; joint account between states and Local Governments; Proper devolution of powers amongst the three tiers of government, with states and local government wielding enough authorities to control their own police, resources and lots more should be addressed. Most of these contentious issues have been addressed by the National Constitutional Conference. NOW that the National Constitutional Conference has ended and appropriate recommendations made, we call for the passage of the final outcome into law to replace the 1999 constitution by the National Assembly before the 2015 general elections.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Anniversary

2013/2014 Diary Of Gov Oshiomhole

Second Tenure: Continued from last week

JULY 1, 2014: Market women, drawn from the 18 Local Government Areas of Edo State, were led by their leader Mrs. Blackie Omorogbe paid a solidarity visit to Comrade-Governor Oshiomhole at Government House. They pledged to support anyone he puts in place to succeed him, assuring him that they wouldn’t allow themselves to be bought over with money. The Governor welcomed them with open arms. He declared in a brief speech that some decampees from the APC party did so because of gubernatorial ambition. July 3, 2014: Edo State Government decided to cancel teachers’ assessment test, pardon 936 Primary School Teachers sacked for falsifying their records of service as well as restore relativity pay to teachers. Governor Oshiomhole disclosed this development during a meeting with teachers’ unions, NLC and TUC. He told the gathering of stakeholders: “Government’s commitment to carry out competency test was informed by the discovery that some of our teachers were not qualified or up to date with recent teaching method. Our insistence on competency test must be seen in this light. However, having listening to all suggestions and consultations with various groups, government has agreed to set aside the competency or assessment test in order to reassure Edo workers that government has no intention to sack anyone. In place of competency test, government will introduce the training and retraining of teachers as well as other core civil servants. He continued: “Government has also resolve to pardon teachers who

By MICHAEL ODIGBE

falsified their age declaration with the criminal intentions to cheat. We will retire those whose records show they are above 60 while those below 60 are to return to the classroom with their names restored to the payroll……. Following investigation, the alleged ghost workers in Ovia North-East Local Government Area found to have been actually on the ground will have their two months November/ December 2013 pending salaries paid. I will discuss with the local government chairman on how to effect their payment.” * Hon. Louis Odion, Commissioner for Information and Orientation, briefed journalists in Benin City on one of the outcomes of the state executive council’s meeting. According to him, the State Government was piqued by the proliferation of men wearing white and black uniforms on roads in the state purporting to be Vehicle Inspection Officers or agents/volunteers working with these officers. Given this fact, the Information Commissioner said that Government had directed the Transport Commissioner to withdraw these officials from the roads immediately. The Information Commissioner concluded by saying that a Special Enforcement Unit, already set up by government, had been mandated to ensure that the directive banning the Vehicle Inspection Officers and their agents from the roads was fully enforced. Present at the press conference were: the Commissioners of Transport (Hon. Orobosa Omo Ojo) and Environment/Public Utilities (Prince Clement

Agba) as well as the executive chairman of Edo Internal Revenue Service, Chief Oseni Elamah. July 10, 2014: Edo State Government, through the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Chief Lucky James, debunked claims of opposition critics that the government deducted funds

Commissioner for Finance and Accountant-General do not have direct access into the local government joint allocation account. - Teachers salaries are deducted from this account as first line charge. Hence, no teacher was owed any salary. Government is committed to the payment of teachers’ salaries on or before the 25th of every month.

the state. He went on: “We do not issue driver’s licence with passport photograph nor is it done by proxy but we do so through the physical biodata capturing of the applicant at the one-stop shop of the driving licence registration centre which henceforth be by invitation. We do not operate through touts.” * Barr. McDonald Obasuke, Commissioner for commerce and Industry, gave out cheques totaling N45m to small and medium scale enterprise owners/ beneficiaries in Benin. On the occasion, he said that such

out their duties with courtesy, diligence, tolerance, human face and persuasion. He warned against the collection of physical cash. All payment, he pointed out, should be made through designated banks or at points of sales machines using ATM cards. Also, he said that it was mandatory for the committee to submit a monthly report of their activities to the corporate headquarters of EIRS for proper documentation; as well as properly ascertain assessment notices served on the public before carrying out its enforcement duties.

SME loans had been given out N200m so far in pursuance of government’s policy to create jobs, promote self-reliance and boost SMEs in Edo State since 2009. He disclosed that the loans interest free, cheaper than those of commercial bank and quite accessible because of its minimum conditionalities. Also, he pleaded with the beneficiaries of the SME loans to invest the funds prudently to enable them to be paid back on schedule. Through this, he stressed that it would be possible to recycle the loan scheme. July 16 2014: The Land Use Charge Enforcement Committee was inaugurated by the executive chairman of Edo State Internal Revenue Service (EIRS), Chief Oseni Elamah. During the event, he directed its members to carry

July 17, 2014: The State Governor went on an inspection visit to observe how the ongoing Storm-water Project is coping with the heavy downpour on the previous day. The visit took him to Upper Siloko, Upper Mission, Ewah and Igbinaduwa Road in Benin Metropolis. He was accompanied on the trip by top government officials including the Commissioner for Environment and Public Utilities, Prince Clement Agba. In some instance, the Governor directed the Commissioner to liaise with the contractor handling a drain or the other to raise its height to curb flood water overflow into the nearby areas, homes and roads. July 22, 2014: Workers of EDO LINE state-owned

Governor Adams Oshiomhole from local government accounts. He made this defence in the hallowed chambers of Edo Assembly in response to an invitation by the house to clarify the issue. He explained: that: - Funds accruable to local government councils are credited directly into the councils’ joint allocation account from the Federal Allocation Account Committee. The State

- Local Governments have been encouraged and assisted to increase their internally-generated revenue. This was why most of them floated mass transit transport schemes. - The Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy affairs had been ensuring the judicious use of funds under its care and that local governments’ presence were felt in all the 192 wards across

“In some instance, the Governor directed the Commissioner to liaise with the contractor handling a drain or the other to raise its height to curb flood water overflow into the nearby areas, homes and roads.”

Continues on pg 14

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Anniversary Continued from pg 13

transport company paid a solidarity visit to Government House, Benin where they were received by Hon Patrick Obahiagbon, Chief of Staff to Governor Oshiomhole. The workers came with some requests. After commending the State Government for reopening the company, they pleaded with it to provide the company with a N250m takeoff grant; as well as pay up 5months arrears of salaries owed them before the company was closed down. Also, the workers implored the government to pay them their three months’ salary owed them since they resumed work in May 2014. Speaking on behalf of the State Government, Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon informed them that government was looking into their plight. He reassured the workers that they would soon be addressed. * The State Government approved the appointment of 20 new Permanent Secretaries in a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Oshiomhole, Mr. Peter Okhiria, reported The Nigerian Observer of July 22, 2014. The appointees are: F.A. Bello, I.O. Okuo, B.E. Oiboh, M.E. Okojie, Comrade Faluyi Osaruyi, V. Enebi, O.G. Umolu, Engr. S.E. Eghomare, P.E. Azigbemhin, O.S. Uhunmwangho, C.O. Odigie, A.C. Osunde L.J. Obayangbona, R.E Osaghae, S.E. Omorodion, A.C. Abbe, Dr. Ofure Eboreime, E.E. Osahon, Dan Aigbavboa and Udugboe Helen Adesuwa. Their appointments took effect from July 16, 2014. * Also, The Nigerian Observer on July 22, 2014 carried a newstory that President Goodluck Jonathan in a speech at the commissioning of PRESCO Biogas Power Plant Project at Obayantor on the outskirts of Benin City praised Governor Oshiomhole for creating a favourable investment climate in Edo State.

Delivering the speech on behalf of the president, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, Minister for Trade and Investment, stated: “For any form of investment, policies are critical but the enabling environment is far more important. I wish to commend the government of Edo State, in particular the Governor of Edo State. We heard his comments when they said they needed another 20,000 hectares of land. He said it is available, come and get it. Those are the sort of governors that investors want to work with. In his own speech at the event, Governor Oshiomhole commended PRESCO management for its industrial policy. He said that Nigeria should evolve a party system that supported business that required long-term investment as well as promoted low interest rate. In addition, he canvassed that there should be economic policy coherence between the federal and state levels. He urged the Federal Government to stop granting waivers because they damaged business, created confusion and bred corruption since “the exercise of such discretion cannot in any way be objective.” July 25, 2014: The State Governor swore-in Mrs. Osaghae Enaruna as Permanent Secretary. She was one of the two Permanent Secretary-designates dropped from the list of those earmarked for swearing in a day earlier on for allegedly arriving late to the venue. The Governor explained that he reversed his decision not to swear her in as a Permanent Secretary following new facts that emerged exonerating her from blame. He apologized for the gaffe, saying that a good leader should reverse himself if he found out that he had erred previously. * The board of Bendel Newspapers Company Limited, Benin City publishers of The Observer titles was inaugurated with Mr. Dan Owegie as Chairman

...2013/2014 Diary Of Gov Oshiomhole

and seventeen other members. Governor Oshiomhole told the board members during the inauguration: “I do understand that the Bendel Publishing Company has some challenges. I understand that the Nigerian Observer is presently not doing very well. But under your leadership we want to hope that, working effectively with the Commissioner of Information we can see how we will increase the fortunes of Observer Newapapers among others. Be assured of my support and cooperation. And I want to congratulate

construction of junior secondary schools in the 192 wards of the state had been awarded. * Public Service Day was held in Edo State. This year’s theme was: The Role of Senior Civil Servants in policy implementation. August 4, 2014: Governor Oshiomhole finally swore-in Mrs. Priscilia Aiziegbeni, the last Permanent Secretarydesignate, earlier sanctioned by the Governor for lateness to the swearing-in ceremony at Government House. In a brief address at the event, the Governor enjoined her to

each and everyone of you.” August 1, 2014: Edo State Universal Education Board (SUBEB) Chairman, Chief Stephen Alao announced that 1130 of its staff have been promoted by the board, reported Edo Broadcasting Service (EBS), Benin. He said he letters of the affected teaching and non-teaching staff had been signed and were awaiting collection. Also, he revealed that 120 contracts for the renovation/

inject new blood into the public service especially in the area of punctuality. The new Permanent Secretary expressed gratitude to the Governor for his mercy. She promised to live up to the expectations that her office demanded. August 5, 2014: Edo State Ministry of transport shuts 12 driving schools for failing to regularize their accreditation and formal registration with the State Government in line

“Edo State Ministry of transport shuts 12 driving schools for failing to regularize their accreditation and formal registration with the State Government in line with the Edo State Traffic Management Agency (EDSTMA) law.”

with the Edo State Traffic Management Agency (EDSTMA) law. It empowers the Ministry to regulate the activities of driving schools in Edo State, reported The Nigerian Observer. August 18, 2014: Edo State Ebola Disease Rapid response Committee was inaugurated by the State Government in Benin City. At the event, the State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Hon. Louis Odion, a member of the committee appealed to the media to partner with all

stakeholders in the prevention as well as control of the Ebola disease in case of its outbreak in the state. The state chairman of Nigerian Medical Association, Edo State Branch, Prof Afekhide Ernest Omoti revealed that his organization had lined up volunteers that would combat the disease if it spread to the state while doctors were still on national strike. He called for an insurance scheme for these volunteers which would spell out their remuneration package. In his speech, the Chief Medical Director of UBTH, Prof Michael Ibadin said that the hospital had established a committee in preparation for combating the disease if eventually it broke out in the state. The WHO Co-ordinator in Edo State, Ms Kate Okungo, announced that she was collaborating with

newspaper vendors/ distributors to disseminate information on Ebola disease through the placement of handbills, vests, posters and other printable materials in newspapers sold to the public. Also, he stated that her organization was working through disease control officers/immunization officers of local government areas to prevent as well as control the disease if the need arose when there was an outbreak. August 23, 2014: The Vanguard Newspaper on this day reported that Governor Oshiomhole commissioned

the 10-kilometer network of roads rehabilitated by the state government at the Nigerian Airforce Base, Benin. The roads have walkways for pedestrians. At the event witnessed by the chief of air staff, AVM Amosun, the Governor further said: “I know this is a very busy period for the Nigerian Armed Forces and as the chief of the entire air staff, I need not be educated on your own specific challenges with regards to providing air cover to our men and women under arms who are confronting insurgency in the various parts of the country.” August 25, 2014: The State-owned EDO LINE Transport Company began staff verification exercise, disclosed Hon. Orobosa Omo Continues on pg 15

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Anniversary ... 2013/2014 Diary Of Gov Oshiomhole Continued from pg 14

Ojo, the Commissioner for Transport in the presence of Comrade Didi Adodo, Commissioner for Establishment and Special Duties. The Commissioner for Transport directed the company’s staff to bring to the headquarters of the company the following items for verification purposes: their letters of appointment, letters of last promotion, the biometric forms issued to them by the ICT Unit of government; as well as other relevant documents.

Furthermore, the Commissioner stated that all drivers with the company would undergo medical fitness test to know their health status and state of physical fitness for the job. Chief John Osamede Adun the sole administrator of the company, told the workers that the result of the exercise would be released from Government House, Benin. August 26, 2014: Mr. Denis Idahosa was nominated as a Commissioner by Edo State Government in a statement released to the press. According to the statement, his name had been submitted to the Edo House of Assembly for confirmation before he would be formally sworn-in. No portfolio was attached to him indicating his job designation. September 2, 2014:

Deputy-Governor, Dr. Pius Egberanmwen Odubu, led a government team in a tripartite meeting with Edo pensioners and the state chapters of NLC, TUC as well as JNC. The meeting was necessitated by a threat by the pensioners to go on street protest on September 3, 2014 over non-payment of their incremental arrears approved for them by the State Government since April 2013. The State chairman of NLC, Comrade Emma Ademokun used the occasion of the

meeting to plead with the State Government to approve Batches 44 and 45 pensioners’ entitlements to enable them get their monthly pension. Also, he called on government to look into public sector workers’ outstanding demands. * Edo State Government was commended for naming 5 – Junction Roundabout after the Late Queen Esther Erediauwa, the Oloi of the Benin monarch. Chief Agbama Osawaru of Uselu gave the commendation in an interview with the Nigerian Observer of this day September 2, 2014. Other respondents during the interview – Chief (Dr) Mrs. Adesuwa Amayo and Mr. Godfery Omorotionmwan – also endorsed the government’s decision was a welcome development. September 3, 2014:

Governor Oshiomhole received solidarity support from Iguododo Community, where Pastor osagie IzeIyamu comes from, reported the Nigerian Observer. The community in Orhionmwon Local Government Area of the state had earlier on held a meeting of APC faithful during which they debunked rumors that the opposition PDP had taken over the community. Stalwarts of the APC party from the community like Mrs. Dorcas Obaruyiedo, Osaghae Osaremwinda, Robinson

Aigbovo, Theophilus Obasuyi, Monday Igbinigie and Sunday Ediku attended the meeting. September 9, 2014: House of Representatives Committee On Education called on Governor Oshiomhole when it visited Edo State on oversight function. After the visit, the committee went on to inspect Federal Government assisted education projects across the state. Leader of the committee was Hon. Aminu

Suleiman. * Edo State Government through Hajia Maimuna Momodu, special adviser to Governor Oshiomhole, distributed relief materials to the rainstorm victims in Fugar Community. The materials include cement, bundles of zinc, beverages, foodstuffs and toiletries. * The new AIG Zone 5, Daura Musa, in charge of Edo Delta and Bayelsa State’s Police Commands paid a courtesy visit to Governor Oshiomhole in company of top echelons of the zone. The

Police Boss informed the Governor that he had resumed duty at the zonal headquarters in Benin City. Thereafter, he said: “Before coming here, I was briefed by Edo Police Commissioner on how you have assisted the security agencies generally in fighting crime in the state. There is no way we can achieve peace and order without the assistance and cooperation of the State Government. You have done a lot and I have no doubt in

my mind that you will continue to assist us. I was going round this week and I saw a lot of achievements made by your regime and I have no doubt that you are equal to the task.” Governor Oshiomhole in his response, assured security agencies in the state of his continuous support to combat crime because “the State Government appreciates that nothing is possible without security.” September 11, 2014: Edo State Government vowed not to cede an inch of its territory to any neighbouring state. Government gave this undertaking when Orogho Community in Orhionmwon Local Government Area visited Government House to protest a recent skirmish between it and Seplat Oil Company prospecting for oil in the area. Deputy Governor, Dr. Pius Egberanmwen Odubu received members of the community in his office on behalf of the government. In his address, the Deputy Governor: Pleaded with youths in the community to employ civil, non-violent methods in all their agitations, Promised that benefits would be paid to the community by the oil company when the current impasse between them was amicably resolved. Also, he urged all security agents protecting facilities at Seplat Oil Company to always employ maximum restraint in handling peaceful assemblies as well as protests by the community since the constitution provided for them. A member of the community called on the oil company to fulfil its corporate social responsibility to Orogho, its host community. The peace meeting was held at Orogho. Those who attended it were: the Enogie of the community, HRH Patrick Akenzua; Commander, 4 Brigadier of Nigerian Army, Brig-Gen. Okwudili Fidels Azinta; Commander, 19th Batallion,

Lt. Col. F. S. Etin; the Permanent Secretaries of Oil/ Gas, Mr. Dan Aigbavoa; Surveyor-General of Edo State, Mr. Osayande; Ugu Ward Councillor, Hon. Mary Ogiku. September 20, 2014: A biography of the Governor’s mother Alhaja Aishetu Oshiomhole, titled IGOVINA Emosi and written by Imuzeze Ofen-Imu was launched in Iyamho in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State. Speaking at the event, the Governor praised her mother for her courage, honesty virtue, prudence and kindheartedness. His words: “My mom is a woman of virtue. She has a very kindheart and somehow she taught me the values of being straight forward and of being courageous. My mom has been the un-official treasurer of various community meetings where the books are not written but she kept the money under the carpet. Yet when we were going to school and we need money she would say there is no money. I would say there is money under the carpet. But she would say that the money belongs to the community. Those are some of the values we seen to have lost in today’s world.” Chairman of the book launch was Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi, former junior minister of works while Prof Marcel Okhaku of UNIBEN, Ekenwan Campus, reviewed the book. He explained that the book title could be rephrased to read QUEEN OF THE GIRLS. Also, he said the book was essentially a true chronicle of the life and times of Hajia Aishetu Oshiomhole, the Governor’s mother, as an uncommon child; as well as a documentary of her legendary exploits in Ayua and Iyamho communities in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State. Top dignitaries graced the book launch. They included, the Deputy Governor Dr. Pius Continues on pg 16

“A biography of the Governor’s mother Alhaja Aishetu Oshiomhole, titled IGOVINA Emosi and written by Imuzeze Ofen-Imu was launched in Iyamho in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State.”

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Anniversary Continued from pg 15

Egberanmwen Odubu; Chief of staff to the State Governor, Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon; the secretary to Government, Prof Julius Ihonbere; civil commissioners, national/state assembly members, APC party chieftains and captains of industries among others. September 22, 2014: Edo State Government in a letter presented its 2015 Budget to Edo House of Assembly. Governor Oshiomhole made the presentation. He christened it Budget of Developmental Consolidation, saying it would take Edo State to a new level. A breakdown of the N156.6 billion Budget. Capital Expenditure Estimate … N87.5 billion which is 55.77% of the total budget. Recurrent Expenditure Estimate … N68.99 billion which is 44.23% of the total budget. The budget is N4 billion lower than that of the 2014 Budget which was N160.1 billion. Governor Oshiomhole, also, in his presentation disclosed that the 2015 Budget was designed to: Complete all on-going projects Inject new investments in key priority sectors of the administration which are road construction/rehabilitation, education, health, water, rural electrification and environmental protection. Create jobs through most especially economic empowerment with focus on giving credit to Small and Medium-Scale (SME) entrepreneurs in the state. Expand the state’s revenue base so as to increase the Government’s capacity to deliver more democratic dividends to Edo people. Promote a mass housing scheme to improve the people’s access to affordable homes within the state. Open up the economic environment in Edo State to more domestic and direct foreign investments. Deepen democratic governance reforms in the state so as to enhance its capacity to institutionalize a people-driven government. * Also, in another letter to the Edo House of Assembly, Edo State Government asked the parliament to confirm the nomination of Mr. Dennis Idahosa as a Commissionerdesignate in Edo State. Similarly, the State Government informed the assembly men of its decision to withdraw the nomination of Mr. Mike Moni Modesty as a member of Edo State Public Procurement Agency Board. Government explained that his choice was in error and a replacement for the vacant slot would be sent in due course. September 24, 2014: A new Commissioner, Mr. Dennis Idahosa was sworn-in by Governor Oshiomhole with the portfolio for investment and public-private partnership. The State Governor at the event said the Commissioner’s mandate was to attract new investors to Edo State. He pointed out the Commissioner was well qualified for the job because “he understands the thinking and feelings of international investors, he is creative, has the entrepreneurial drive, wealth of experience and knows what needs to be done in the state to attract these investors to the state.” The Governor hoped that with the inflow of investments into the state, more jobs would be created, the state’s economy would get a boost while the GDP would increase. September 29, 2014: The Vanguard Newspaper reported that Governor Oshiomhole accused the Federal Government of illegalities in the governance of the country. He made the accusation when the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) led by its National President, Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN) paid a courtesy visit to him at Government House, Benin City. The NBA President, to start with, was in Government House to present the new leadership of the body to the State Governor. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Augustine Alegeh

Second Tenure:

2013/2014 Dia

(SAN) told the Governor that the NBA believed strongly that democracy thrived only when there was compliance with court orders. He urged the Governor “to ensure that Edo State is a leading light in obedience to court judgments. Sub-sequently, he went on: “A state cannot exist with two parallel legislatures and what we have read in our law is that the House of Assembly which was inaugurated at inception is the valid House of Assembly.” In his response, Governor Oshiomhole observed: “I like to comment on your advice to be obedient to court orders. Even on this, I ask you to confront this issue of illegalities, frontally.” He enumerated these illegalities to include: The continued operation of the Excess Crude Oil Account by the Federal Government after a supreme court ruling that it was unconstitutional to do so. The auditor-general of the federation’s action of making deductions arbitrarily from monies which accrue to the state and local governments from the federation account. The State Governor also spoke on the crisis rocking the Edo House of Assembly. His words: “The matter you have raised, I pray you will carry out your own independent investigation. If Edo State has not given you all the facts or the facts don’t appear comprehensive it is to the extent that they have unwittingly made themselves parties to the case in a partisan manner.” * Edo House of Assembly passed the 2015 Appropriate Bill submitted to it by the State Government. The House increased the budget estimate with N3 billion, thus raising it to N159.3 billion from about N156 billion. The capital expenditure estimate passed by the house stood at N88.67 billion while the recurrent expenditure estimate was N70.73 billion. Earlier on, the 2015 Budget Estimate/Appropriation Bill was sent by a plenary session of the house, after presentation by the State Governor, to the committee on appropriation/budget monitoring chaired by Hon. Peter Aliu for consideration. A report on the budget estimate was submitted by the committee to the whole house which then discussed and eventually approved the report before it was passed. Hon Philip Shaibu, majority leader of the house, moved the motion with which section 55 (2) (17) of the House Rules and Section 98 of the Amended 1999 Nigerian Constitution to clear the way for a speedy passage of the budget estimate and appropriation bill. October 1, 2014: Nigerian Observer reported that Governor Oshiomhole signed the N159.3 billion 2015 Budget Appropriation Bill into law. The size of the budget is about N3 billion higher than the N156.551 billion appropriation bill he earlier submitted to the Edo House of Assembly for approval. Speaking shortly after assenting to the bill, he noted: “There is a lot we can do and we want to do in the area of infrastructure and other capital projects that we will like to execute and there is no question that there is space for us to accommodate more projects.” He said, also, there is realistic expectation in the budgeting process. His word: “We have taken into account not only our wishes but the means we think will be available in terms of receipts from the federation account and our projected internally-generated revenue and other possible sources of funding.” He vowed to uphold prudence and accountability in spending the budget while stressing that his administration would aggressively pursue internal revenue generation so as to find the resources to deliver on the promise of the budget. Furthermore, Governor Oshiomhole observed that the act of signing the 2015 Budget Appropriation Bill into law was a clear evidence that Edo State “is working and the various arms of government are functioning optimally.” Having said this, he went on to Lamblast some section of the electronic media for

“A report on the budget estimate was submitted by the committee to the whole house which then discussed and eventually approved the report before it was passed.”

saying that there are two parliaments in Edo State. He argued that what the media was doing amounted to distorting the true situation in the state. For instance, he stated: “For me, it is most laughable and the fact that we have now signed into law the 2015 Budget Appropriation Bill, approved by the House of Assembly, I hope, settles this. I want to appeal to those who own electronic media not to put them to wrong use.” * The State Governor announced to labour leaders during a meeting with them at Government House, Benin that the state government had abolished the Federal Government’s 35 years retirement policy. Impliedly, all Edo publice servants would henceforth retire at the age of 60 regardless of whether they have put in 35 years in service or not. The Governor noted: “Our own anniversary gift to workers of Edo State, especially those in the public service, has to do with the issue of pension. Over the years while I was in the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), I had wondered why we have

a policy in the public sector which is unique to the public sector in which we appear to punish experience. You are compelled to retire because you have put in X number of years. I believe that about 90-95% of our records as regards the age of our civil servants can now be said to correct. This being the case, there is no reason for us to continue to use our obnoxious policy of 35 years as a bus is to determine one’s years of service in the public service. Therefore, the State Government has decided to abolish this policy and uphold only that aspect of retirement that has to do with age. So in Edo State with effect from today, I will effect an executive order to abolish the federal circular which imposes 35 years as a condition for retirement. Henceforth, Edo State public servants shall retire only when they have attained the age of 60.” The chairman of Edo Joint Negotiating Council, Mr. Shaka Otoide, and the chairman of Edo State Branch of Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Emmanuel Ademokun, both thanked the State Government for the innovation and gesture in the service for the entire Edo public workers. Comrade Emmanuel Ademokun observed: “The Comrade Governor is the only State Governor in Nigeria that has given Level 17 to workers. He was also the first to implement the new minimum wage. Now, he has again shown that he is the best worker-friendly governor in the country by abolishing the 35years retirement policy. On behalf of the entire public sector, we assure you that we are not going to let you down and by the grace of God, we are going to live up to expectation to ensure that this gesture you have given us, the state will not regret it.”

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Anniversary

ary Of Gov Oshiomhole * The head of service, Mr. Jerry Obazele, organized a oneday seminar for Edo senior/middle level public servants on the ethics and traditions of the civil service. The seminar was undertaken by Edo State Government in collaboration with Rosyin Nigeria Consult. In his opening address to the participants Mr. Jerry Obazele - represented by the Permanent Secretary for establishment, Mr. Alfred O. Olaye-regretted that the do’s and don’ts of the public service were now ignored or partly observed by civil servants. For instance, he noted that only a few of them displayed the morality, integrity, transparency, loyalty, accountability, dedication to duty and punctuality to work which are the core ethics and traditions of the civil service. It was for this reason, he explained, the seminar was organized. October 4, 2014: Saturday Vanguard reported that Hon. Philip Shaibu, Majority Leader of Edo House of Assembly, disclosed that each lawmaker in the House received N36 mil-

lion annually from Edo State Government for constituency projects. For this reason, he enjoined the electorate to always demand for records of these projects from their repreventatives. Hon. Philip Shaibu, who is representing Etsako West at the assembly, made this statement while commissioning three blocks of classrooms at Jattu and Ugiede, respectively. He told the electorate to ignore law makers who often tell them that they have no business executing projects because they are only law makers. He asserted: “It is not true that what we do is mainly making laws because before I came to the house I never knew constituency projects exist. Prior to this period, we get N20m annually. But between 2013 and 2014, the Comrade Governor had to increase it to N36m so that we will be able to execute quality projects. And I thank God my projects are there for everyone to see and other lawmakers must show their constituency projects to the people.” * Edo State Government, through the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Oshiomhole - Mr. Peter Okhiria – issued a press statement announcing that October 10, 2014 had been fixed for the groundbreaking ceremony of the Azura/Edo Independent Power Project by President Goodluck Jonathan. According to him, the event would take place at Ihovbe/Orior Osemwende Communities, Off Benin-Lagos Byepass, Benin City. The press statement noted: “The Azura/Edo IPP will provide over 4000 direct and indirect jobs for the state indigenes from the construction to the post-construction period of the

contract. The projects is a clear demonstration of the confidence of the international community in Edo State’s economy. It will unlock the industrial potentials of the state and transform it into the nation’s energy hub.” Furthermore, the statement said the one billion dollar project was conceptualized in 2010 and thereafter was jointly incubated by Edo State Government in collaboration with Amayo Capital, a key promoter of Azura Power West Africa Limited. The first phase of the project had a target of generating 450500 mega watts of electricity in 2017 using gas turbines. Subsequently in the second phase power generation would be scaled up to 1000 mega watts. Lastly, the press statement stated that the Azura/Edo Independent Power Project was the first one to benefit from the World Bank’s “Partial Risk Guarantee” structure which was specifically created to meet the developing needs of emerging markets, globally. October 10, 2014 : Prince Kassim Afegbua, Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, issued a statement on behalf of Edo State Government, reported the Nigerian Observer. Essentially, the statement called on the opposition to stop blackmailing Governor Oshiomhole over Razak Momoh’s brutalization by unknown persons. The statement pointed out that the Governor had no hand in the attack on the Edo lawmaker. According to the statement, he was only a victim of the violence of which he is a serial perpetrator since his days as a lecturer at Federal Polytechnic, Auchi. * Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Hon. Abdul Oroh, was at the permanent site of the College of Agriculture Technology, Agenebode. The occasion witnessed the Commissioner officially laying the foundation stone of a block of four classrooms and the office for a head of department of the College at the site. The classrooms/office were donated to Edo State Government by the host communities of the college: In his brief speech at the event, the Commissioner observed that the State Government decided to set up the college in response to the need to address the problem of unemployment caused by lack of requisite technical skills by a teeming population of youths in Edo State. He revealed that a bill setting up the college had been drafted by the State Government, sent to the house of Assembly and was now awaiting its approval. * President Goodluck Jonathan visited Edo State for the second time within a forth night. During this first visit, he came for the commissioning of the Benin/Ofusu Road rehabilitated by the Federal Government; as well as PDP unity rally in the South/South Region which took place in Benin City. This time around, he came for the ground breading ceremony of Azura/Edo Independent Power Plant in Ihovbe/Orior Osemwende Communities in Edo State. He was welcomed to the state by Governor Oshiomhole, his state executive council members and Edo people across party lines. October 16, 2014 : Edo State Government sent a condolence letter to Chief Olabisi Akpata, widow of late Chief Tayo Akpata who passed on in his Lagos residence in the month of October 2014. In the letter, the State Government said his legacies would always stand him out as one of Nigeria’s greatest states man. The letter continued: “We in Edo State have fond memories of his contributions to our developmental effort. Overall, I found in the respectable Chief a frank and patriotic elder statesman that was always deeply committed to the pursuit of a better Nigeria; a kind and human gentleman of uncommon simplicity, humility and decency; and a person worthy of emulation. We beseech our Heavenly Father to grant his soul peaceful repose. We also pray for God’s consoling grace on the family he left behind and the entire people of Edo

State.” * Deputy Governor, Dr. Pius Egberanmwen Odubu, hosted the State Chapter of the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives at Government House, Benin. During the meeting, the Deputy Governor: Stated that Edo State Government was committed to the improvement of health indices in the state. Explained that the new State Government’s 60-year retirement policy for Edo Civil Servants was made in the common interest of Edo people. He urged those affected by the policy to reciprocate the gesture by displaying diligence at work as well as improving their productivity. The chairman of the association Comrade Okanguan Benjamin earlier on, had told the Deputy Governor that they were pleased by the new retirement policy introduced by Governor Oshiomhole on October 1, 2014. He noted, for instance, that most nurses and midwives in the Hospital Management Board’s employment, who would have retired between the age of 52 and 55m now had been given the opportunity to serve in the public service until they were 60 years old before retiring. October 21, 2014: Edo State hosted a one-day sensitization workshop aimed at strengthening the capacity of female political aspirants in the state. The wife to the Deputy Governor of the State, Deaconess Endurance Odubu, was one of the speakers at the event. In her speech, she: Stated that there was a need for putting 35% affirmation action in the constitution of political parties and that of the country. Criticised the dominance of men in both elective and selective position in the country. According to her, this translated to exclusion of women from public office. Yet, they make up over 50% of the voting population. Explanined that the implementation of the 35% affirmation action for women would bring them closer to influencing decision making in society. Emphasized that democracy abhorred gender segregation in politics and that campaigning against under-representation of women in decision-making position in public office was targeted at eliminating impediments to participation of women in the affairs of the nation. Also, speaking at the one-day workshop, Mrs. Blessing Maigida – Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development affirmed that gender discrimination against women was a negation of democratic values. She further noted that the demand for more women representation in politics was aimed at redressing the frustrating injustice meted out by society to women. October 22, 2014: Comrade Taiwo Akerele, Edo State Co-ordinator of the World Bank- assisted State Employment And Expenditure for Results (SEEFOR), according to a report by the Nigerian Observer, disclosed that the body had employed 1,500 youths since February 2014 for its public works programme in the state. He provided this information while addressing 240 newly-employed youths under the auspices of SEEFOR. Continues on pg 18

“Comrade Taiwo Akerele, Edo State Co-ordinator of the World Bankassisted State Employment And Expenditure for Results (SEEFOR), according to a report by the Nigerian Observer, disclosed that the body had employed 1,500 youths since February 2014 for its public works programme in the state.”

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Anniversary Issues

... 2013/2014 Diary Of Gov Oshiomhole Continued from pg 17

October 23, 2014: Today was World Polio Day. Commissioner for Health, Dr. (Mrs.) Aihanuwa Eregie, made a state-wide broadcast to all Edo people on the status of polio in the state. In her address, she declared that the State Government was committed to maintaining the state’s polio-free status recorded since March 2009. Furthermore, she: October 29, 2014: Edo House of Assembly approved the 2014 Appropriation Law virement proposal submitted to it by the State Government. The proposal addressed short falls in the personnel costs of Ministries, Departments, Parastatals and Agencies with regards to the payment of certain categories of staff salaries. The Nigerian Observer reported that Hon. Philip Shaibu, Majority Leader, presented the report of the Committee On Appropriationm Budget And Project Monitoring to the whole house on behalf its chairman Hon. Peter Aliu who was indisposed. He only affected sub-heads in the 2014 Budget of N160.61 billion not the size of the budget. He explained that the proposal became inevitable as a result of a need to meet the challenges of paying the staff salaries of Edo-Yes personnel in the Pension Board, Edo Broadcasting Service, Bendel Newspapers Company Limited and Civil Service Commission. In addition, he stated that the virement would ensure a pool of fund was made available to Edo State Repid Response Agency to rehabilitate more roads in the state. November 3, 2014: Hon. Peter Aliu, representing Etsako East Constituency in Edo House of Assembly, passed on in the morning at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin. Moments later, Governor Oshiomhole and members of the State Executive paid a

condolence visit to the deceased’s family at the Legislators’ Quarters in Benin City. In his condolence speech the State Governor eulogized late Hon. Peter Aliu’s character, courage and principled stand on all issues. He noted: “Aliu was my brother. In moments of temptation, he showed courage and good character. When people plotted to betray us, he stood firm and remained on the side of fairness, justice and principles. When people brought money, he refused money in

tion and his commitment to bring everything together.” The State Governor prayed that God should grant late Hon. Peter Aliku’s soul eternal rest and protection for Mary, his widow as well as other members of his family. He promised to support the wife and children he left behind. On his part, Edo State House of Assembly Speaker, Hon. Uyi Igbe said that everyone would miss late Hon. Peter Aliu’s fatherly role in the assembly. He explained: “The advice we got from him was great. I do not know how it can be replaced. His astuteness, re-

and other top government functionaries for their visit. He told the visitors: “He (Hon. Peter Aliu) was a father to all and I know that his death is a big blow not only to the Aliu’s family but to the state.” Hon. Peter Aliu is survived by a widow and six children. November 4, 2014: Edo State Government in the Nigerian Observer of this day issued a special public notice on the issuance of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) to Edo residents by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Highlights of the statement:

lection of his/her PVC. At the end of this 3 – day exercise at the polling unit level distribution, uncollected PVCs will be taken to INEC Offices in each of the Local Government Areas for subsequent collection. Continuous Voters’ Registration (CVR) for those who have not previously registered and for those who have just attained the age of 18 will hold as from November 13, 2014 to November 17, 2014. Those who have lost their cards or whose cards are damaged should apply for a replacement by writing to the Resident Electoral

favour of principle. The last time I saw him and we had a conversation, he was more concerned about my political wellbeing than his own health. His colleagues and I called him our father because Aliu conducted himself as a father of everyone not because he was old but it was just a statement of his character, fatherly disposi-

spect and political dexterity are unequalled. However, God has decided. He knows the best in everything. He said we should give thanks and praise unto him. Mr. Haruna Aliu, son of the deceased, on behalf of other members of the family expressed profound gratitude to the State Governor and his Deputy; as well as Edo Speaker

“The people of Edo State are hereby formed that INEC has scheduled the distribution of PVCs in the state from November 7, 2014 to November 9, 2014. Collection of the cards will last for 3 days only. Everyone registered in Edo State and who has a Temporary Voter’s Card is expected to go to polling unit where he or she registered for the col-

Commissioner (REC) through the INEC Electoral Officers of their Local Government Areas where they were registered. All the people of Edo State are enjoined to take advantage of this exercise to be eligible to vote in the coming 2015 General Elections and subsequent elections in the state as the Temporary Voter’s Card will be invalid for subsequent election.” The government’s special public notice was signed by Mr. Peter Okhiria, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Oshiomhole. November 5, 2014: Edo State Ministry of Environment and Public Utilities closed down all burrow pits around the Benin City By-

“Hon. Peter Aliu, representing Etsako East Constituency in Edo House of Assembly, passed on in the morning at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin.”

Passes as well as those threatening existing roads, public infrastructure and built-up residential areas. Prince Clement Agba, the Commissioner in charge of the Ministry issued a statement – published in the Nigerian Observer of this day – to this effect. According to the statement, the closure of these burrow pits was with immediate effect and was based on government’s discovery that the burrow pits posed imminent danger to lives, properties and infrastructural facilities in the state, especially those on Benin City By-Pass. The statement warned that anyone that flouted the government’s directive would be arrested and prosecuted in line with the existent environmental laws in force in Edo State. Finally, the statement stressed that government was taking this pro-active measure because it was its responsibility, as a caring authority, to protect the environment and public/private properties in addition to saving lives. November 6, 2014: Nigerian Observer reported that the Head of Service, Mr. Jerry Obazele, donated 100 plastic chairs to the Edo State Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists at a ceremony which took place at the NUJ Press Centre, Benin City. During the presentation of the chairs, he called on journalists to use their profession to propagate the policies and programmes of Governor Oshiomhole’s administration as well as foster the unity of the country. He explained that he was moved by the plea of the NUJ chairman’s plea for chairs its headquarters hence he made the presentation to it. The Permanent Secretary, Central Administration, Mr. Thomas Idahosa, represented the Head of service at the ceremony. Comrade Desmond Agbama, chairman of Edo State Chapter of the NUJ, received the chairs on behalf of the union. He did not only thank the head of service for his magnanimous donation, he disclosed that Mr. Jerry Obazele was a friend of the press, therefore, as one of their friends, he invited him to feel free to visit the JUJ Press Centre to unwind after a hectic day at the office. At the presentation ceremony were Mr. Sam Okpeaye, public relations officer; Mr. Gilbert Adegboyega and Mr. Mohammed Ikhelowa.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Drumbeats

Who Is A Wealthy Man? (Napoleon III) Louis - Napoleon Bonaparte (20 April 1808 9 January 1873) was the first President of the French Republic and, as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon_I. Elected President by popular vote in 1848, he initiated a coup d’etat in 1851, before ascending the throne as Napoleon III on 2 December 1852, the fortyeighth anniversary of Napoleon I’s coronation. He ruled as Emperor of the French until 4 September 1870. He holds the distinction of being both the first titular president and the last monarch of France. Napoleon III is primarily remembered for an energetic foreign policy which aimed to jettison the limitations imposed on France since 1815 by the Concert of Europe and reassert French influence in Europe and the French colonial empire. Napoleon stood opposed to the reactionary policies imposed at Vienna in 1815 and instead was an exponent of popular sovereignty, and a supporter of nationalism. In the Near East, Napoleon III spearheaded allied action against Russia in the Crimean War and restored French presence in the Levant, claiming for France the role of protector of the Maronite Christians A French garrison in Rome likewise secured the Papal State against annexation by Italy, defeating the Italians at Mentana and winning the support of French

Catholics for Napoleon’s regime. In the Far East, Napoleon III established French rule in Cochinchina and New Caledonia.

resistance and American diplomatic pressure. Domestically Napoleon was balanced between the conservatives and liberals of the French

proclamation of the French Third Republic and his exile in England, where he died in 1873. Early life Napoleon III, known as

French interests in China were upheld in the Second Opium War and the Taiping Rebellion, an abortive campaign against Korea was launched in 1866 while a military mission to Japan failed to prevent the restoration of Imperial rule. French intervention in Mexico. Wealth, Riches and Success – A Myths or Reality. was also unsuccessful, and was terminated in 1867 due to mounting Mexican

establishment, but he gradually moved toward the liberal element. His reign was an era of prosperity and industrialization in France, facilitating a major renovation of Paris under Haussmann that crated the outline of the modern. The Second French Empire was overthrown three days after Napoleon’s disastrous surrender at the Battle of Sedan, part of the Franco-Prussian War, in 1870, which resulted in the

“Louis-Napoleon” prior to becoming Emperor, was the nephew of Napoleon I by his brother Louis Bonaparte who married Hortense de Beauharnais, the daughter by the first marriage of Napoleon’s wife Josephine de Beauharnais The Empress Josephine , proposed the marriage as a way to produce an heir for the Emperor, who agreed, as Josephine was by then infertile, Louis Napoleon’s paternity has

“Since Joseph had no male children, and because LouisNapoleon’s own elder brother had died in 1831, the death of the Duke of Reichstadt in 1832 made Louis-Napoleon the Bonaparte heir in the next generation. His uncle and his father, relatively old men by then, left to him the active leadership of the Bonapartist cause.”

With Apostle Dr. Raphael O. Ayemere 08035459593

been brought into question (see Ancestry) LouisNapoleon also harboured a lifelong suspicion about his legitimacy, although most historians have concluded that he was conceived by Louis Bonaparte and Hortense. During Napoleon l’s reign, Louis-Napoleon’s parents had been made king and queen of a French puppet state the Kingdom of Holland. After Napoleon I’s military defeats and deposition in 1815 and the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy in France, all members of the Bonaparte dynasty were forced into exile. Louis-Napoleon was brought up in Switzerland, living with his mother in Arenenberg Castle in the canton of Thurgau, and in Germany, receiving-his education at the gymnasium school at Augsburg. As a result, for the rest of his life his French has a slight, but noticeable, German accent. As a young man, he settled in Italy, where he and his elder brother Napoleon Louis espoused liberal politics and became involved with the Carbonari, an organization fighting Austria’s domination of northern Italy. On 17 March 1831, while fleeing Italy due to a crackdown on revolutionary activity by Papal and Austrian troops, Louis—Napoleon’s brother, suffering from measles died in his arms. His experiences in Italy later had a profound effect on his foreign policy. Louis-Napoleon travelled on to France where he was quickly arrested and quietly sent to England. The Four Napoleons (collage, about l858). Meanwhile, France had again become a monarchy, both under the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy. Under the latter emerged a Bonapartist movement that wanted to restore a Bonaparte to the

throne. According to the law of succession established by Napoleon I when he was Emperor, the claim passed first to his son, who, at birth, had been given the title “King of Rome” by his father Known by Bonapartists as Napoleon II he was living under virtual imprisonment at the court of Vienna under the name Duke of Reichstadt. Next in line was Napoleon l’s eldest brother Joseph Bonaparte followed by Louis Bonaparte and his sons. Since Joseph had no male children, and because Louis-Napoleon’s own elder brother had died in 1831, the death of the Duke of Reichstadt in 1832 made Louis-Napoleon the Bonaparte heir in the next generation. His uncle and his father, relatively old men by then, left to him the active leadership of the Bonapartist cause. Coup attempts Louis-Philippe had established the July Monarchy in 1830, and was confronted with opposition from the Legitimists the Independents, and the Bonapartists (he had especially angered the Bonapartists by confiscating all the remaining family assets in France). Louis-Napoleon returned to France in October 1836, flying to emulate the start of the Hundred Days by initiating a Bonapartist coup at Strasbourg, calling on the local garrison to join him in restoring the Empire. The local troops instead arrested him and LouisNapoleon returned to exile in Switzerland. When Louis-Philippe demanded his extradition, the Swiss refused to hand over a man who was a citizen and a member of their aimed forces. In order to avoid a war, Louis-Napoleon left Switzerland of his own accord. To be continued

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Development

SOME People find fault in the name Nigeria because they perceived that we were given the name by the whites, but that is not true. Some people would say its derived from Niger Area, but what is the meaning of Niger? Example of the meaning of Niger can be said to be a Yoruba Lady bearing the name Wura which means “Gold”, upon coming in contact with the white the white ask what her name is and she says Wura, but a little inquiry by the white, about what Wura means revealed that it means gold. Instead of calling her Wura which is little difficult for him, he decided to call her gold. With time, she became popular with the name gold that her real name Wura was not known.

igerewen, which is used along the middle reaches of the river around Timbuktu. As Timbuktu was the southern end of the principal Trans –Sahara trade route to the Western mediterranean, it was the source of most European knowledge of the region. Medieval European maps applied the name Niger to the middle reaches of the river, in modern mall, but Quorro (Kworra), to the lower reaches in modern Nigerian, as these were not recognized as being the same river. When European colonial powers began to send ships along the west coast of Africa in the 16th and 17 th centuries, the Senegal river was often postulated to be seaward end of the Niger. The Niger Delta, pouring into the

Nigeria In Focus By MARY OKPEBE

making contesting national claims by colonial powers of the “upper” “lower” and “middle” Niger River basin

situation, ladies and gentlemen, I would like us to reason historically, the fruits man eats grows

Atlantic through mangrove swamps and thousands of distributaries along more than a hundred miles, was thought to be no more than coastal wetlands. It was only with the 18th century visits of Mungo part, who traveled down the Niger River and visited the great sahelian empires of his day, but Europeans correctly identified the course of the Niger and extending the name to its entire course. The modern nations of Nigeria and Niger take their names it from the river,

improvement and development. Though these development had not been smooth as it is supposed to be. One thing or the other, has always stands as

“Nigeria has survived political riots and wars, she has witnessed military insurgency and battering. She had been fortuned by her children who she single handle ding born and nurtured. She has turned to a home without peace and love. Her children preached about her often but none loves her progress and smiles.” during the seramble for Africa at the end of the 19th century. In the entirety, the name Niger can simply be said to mean, the great

naturally. Man eats the fruit and dumps the seeds. After sometimes, environment is seen as unbefitting, it litters the surrounding. Man then

black river. The British colonialisation and our eventual emergence as a nation is a design by the creator. According to the Quronic teaching some actions may be carried out by your oppressor for their benefit, event if it hurts you, they would not care provided it is to their benefit, but God made it possible because it’s a design to comfort you at the end, when it manifests, you would then realize it is indeed a blessing. To relate this to our

decided to hide the seed in a places were it would be hidden. It is in the quest of comforting man that the idea of burying the seed under the ground emerges. Man didn’t bury the seed because he wanted it to grow and produce more fruits, he did to suit himself at the expense of destroying and killing the seed. But after some while, the same seed buried to rot, rose from the ground and brought out fresh flowers and with time, produces more beautiful fruits.

President Goodluck Jonathan The Niger is called Jeliba or Joliba which means “great river” in manding, Orimiri or “Orimili” “great water” water” in Igbo, Egerew-Igerwen “river of rivers” in Tuaregi, Isa Ber “big river” in Sanghay, Kwara in Hausa, and Oya in Yoruba. The origin of the name Niger, which originally applied only to the middle reaches of the river, is uncertain. The likeliest possibility is an alteration, by influence of Latin Niger “black” of the Taureg name egerew n-

The buried seed is Nigeria which was buried to hide its glory. It was buried for the comfort of its oppressors but not the master can prevent it from

regerminating and producing beautiful offspring’s. Nigeria is like a seed crop, not one seed can germinate from the ground, two or more seeds is to be sowed to germinate and grow abundant harvest, our oppressors were used by God to sow the upcoming great nation, comprising the Yoruba, Hauas’s, Igbo, Ijaw, Idoma’s Nupe’s, and so on. Before these seeds were made into a nation, they have stood individually comfortable, but after being sowed together to grow, none can stand alone ever again. If any part is removed after it has been buried, the whole of the seed would be destroyed. Until we realized this, we shall continue to struggle. If the seed burial is not allowed to germinate for the betterment of all, it would be destroyed for the benefit of none. The present day Nigeria had witnessed so many clisruptions and distractions from the indigenes of Nigeria who wouldn’t want any better seeds to germinate. Nigeria is like a seed planted by the River side, and it is suppose to grow and produce fruits all round the year. But because of the thorns around the seed, it has made speed growth very slow while sometimes impossible. Throughout the centuries, Nigeria has staggered through different stages of

barriess and impediment to cultural, political, religious development. Among all, one has thrived and at to same time caused problems and several challenges to the oneness and development of the country. It was this year, 2014 Nigeria marked 100years of amalgamation, that is bringing the southern protectorate and the Northern protectorate together to form Nigeria. This process was not quite easy and smooth but saw good light at the end of the day. The light is what is still on till this moment, though many darkness had shown face and the light is still burning bright and shine. The political turmoils that had ravaged Nigeria has reduced the integrity and pride of the great Nation. Nigeria has survived political riots and wars, she has witnessed military insurgency and battering. She had been fortuned by her children who she single handle ding born and nurtured. She has turned to a home without peace and love. Her children preached about her often but none loves her progress and smiles. But the moment she purge away her dirts and remnants, she will be clean from political rebellion, religions intolerance, bribery and corruption, terrorism, cultural imperialism. Her seed look fine and sweet but to climb her free is hard and sour.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Tourism Issues FOR mile after mile as you travel south of Mexico City in the state of Morelos, the sun beats down on bleached and dusty fields, tired from centuries of squeezing out beans and corn. Shabbily dressed peasants in faded cotton pass by under large loads or balancing on the flanks of donkeys. The fierce heat is wasted here; there is little moisture to be sucked out of the earth. But as you come to an ancient hacienda near the little town of Chalcantzingo the fields are green; the landscape comes alive. The huge dome and towers of an old church look down on a small colony of buildings with whitewashed walls, red bricks and tiles. Under a huge tree at the entrance to the hacienda an Indian woman and her young son are retrieving fruit with a long pole. This is Montefalco, a centre where members of Opus Dei are working with the rural poor. Originally a prosperous sugar business, Montefalco was burnt to the ground during the revolution of 1910 by the troops of Emiliano Zapata. Local members of Opus Dei joke that Zapata was the first Mexican co-operator of Opus Dei thanks to him the modern owners gave the hacienda’s ruins to them in 1949. In the beginning the gift was more of a liability than an asset. The buildings were crumbling and infested with jungle and the local Indians, the Campesinos, were wretchedly poor. But, after years of work by many volunteers- Montefalco is a place of beauty, a rich contrast of colors and textures, of old and new. The main square, the size of a football field, is surrounded by two retreat houses, the old church, a guest house and two schools. The second challenge at Montefalco-helping the area’s impoverished peasants-was as demanding as the building renovataions, When Montefalco was a sugar business, canals brought water from the snow caps of the Popocatepelt volcano. But a town up stream decided it had a greater need for the water and cut the flow to the Amilpas Valley. Why did the

people of the Amilpas not do something? “We did,” a campesino explained, “we complained. And when we complained they gave us a choice. They said; ‘Do you want water or do you want bullets?’ The other town was a big town with many bullets….” The only supply of water left to the farmers around Montefalco was a short, four-month wet season. Thus the Amilpas valley became one of the most crime ridden in all of Mexico. During the long eight-month dry season the men spent too much time riding bulls and drinking tequila, and many family feuds broke out. But there was another side of the people of the Amilpas Valley-the strong faith which helped many survive the poverty around them. One of the priests at Montefalco, Father Jose Adolfo Martinez, told a story of an incident that happened soon after he arrived in the early 1960. The villagers had come and asked him to lead a procession to pray for rain. It was the wet season, but it had not rained for three months. They had with them what they called “the cross of the old lady”, a huge image of the crucified Christ. Father Martinez reluctantly agreed to go along, but warned if God did not want it to rain it would not rain. “No father,” the Indians protested. “If we do the pilgrimage it will rain.” Father Martinez said he felt foolish leading a ragged band of pilgrims through the parched streets under a cloudless blue sky, each covered by sheets of plastic in readiness for the expected rains. A non-believer sitting on his front door step as they passed broke into laughter and called out: “Whatever water falls, I will drink it.” “Of course, no sooner was the procession finished when it came down in buckets,” Father Jose said. “It was the kind of praying that frightens you.” On the way back to town, as they were passing the house of their sceptical friend, the pilgrims called to him with great satisfaction in the pouring rain: “Drink it! Drink it!”

Mexico: Working With The When Opus Dei members first moved into Montefalco, the local campesinos were suspicious. But some farmers became curious about the crops being grown there. A few accepted an invitation to study agricultural techniques. Thus, El Penon, now a full secondary school with an emphasis on modern agriculture, was launched with a modest class of five Students. At El Penon they taught the locals practical things like the use of fertilizer and how to make the most of the rain before the dry season set in; even how to write their names. The campesinos had only two crops: corn and

beans. At El Penon they taught them to grow tomatoes, onions and carrots and they taught the local people how to eat them so there would be a market. Then came lessons in raising chickens and pigs and instruction on how to start up a cooperative for buying and selling. One farmer who lives near Montefalco, Juan Garcia, used to produce a meagre annual crop of beans and corn. In 1969, after his son had been to Montefalco, he began

Rural Poor By W. J. WEST

poultry farming with 3000 chickens a year. Juan, dressed in clean new overalls, showed me his poultry sheds which now turn out about half a million chickens a year. “That is how we can afford the truck and the running water and the bathroom,” he explained. Between 1961 and 1965, 40 students passed through El Penon. In 1971 the secondary school was started. In 1965 they began a 3-year diploma course. In 1971 the governor

of its former students have established a clothing factory which supplies retail outlets in Mexico City. One farmer, Miguel Angel Senedo, who was married with three children, finished his studies at El Penon in 1974. With his father and brother, he had started to raise livestock, chickens and pigs, grew peanuts and tomatoes, and had replaced his oxen and donkey with a tractor. We chatted in his modern grain

of the state paid a visit, was impressed and initiated a joint course on livestock. Today El Penon is one of Mexico’s leading TV secondary schools, a school which combines live teaching with educational programmes on television. A girls’ school, started in 1959 with classes in home economics, has introduced the local women to dressmaking, new cooking techniques, ironing, modern dressmaking, hygiene and the principles of good diet. Some

shed. Next to the crop dusters hanging on the walls and the radio playing pop music was a framed picture of the Sacred Heart. Miguel said life was good now but a few years before his family had problems. His father, a heavy drinker, became sick. The family was falling apart. Noone talked. But things began to change when Miguel started to put into practice what he had learnt at El Penon about raising chickens, pigs and crops. The family began to work together and his father joined in too; he began to reduce his drinking and eventually cut it out altogether. “At El Penon I also learnt about spiritual things,” Miguel said. “I try to live the way they taught me. When I work I tell God it is for him. When I sow my crops for

“Miguel said life was good now but a few years before his family had problems. His father, a heavy drinker, became sick. The family was falling apart. No-one talked. But things began to change when Miguel started to put into practice what he had learnt at El Penon about raising chickens, pigs and crops.”

instance. Just now I received some new chicks to be fattened and I offered the work I would do with them to God and I asked God that all would go well. Sometimes your mind wanders away from God for a long time, maybe for a whole day, especially when everything is going well or when you get tired of work. Sometimes I get lazy and say to myself: ‘From now on I am not going to work hard. I am going to take it easy.’ But then God sends you a problem and that sort of makes you come back to him and say: ‘don’t forget me’. “Some days I get very tired from my work and I come

home and I don’t want to talk to anyone. But then the next day I start to try again and I ask God for help. At Montefalco they spoke of struggle for the sake of the others and that is what I try to do.” Marcos Torres is a member of Opus Dei, a farmer who raises crops and breeds chickens in the town of Jonacatepec. It was dusk and the front door of his house was open. As he spoke children played outside and tractors rumbled in the narrow street on their way back from the fields. He said Opus Dei had taught him that apostolate meant being a good friend. You had to start with people from the bottom, he said; not the ones who went to mass on Sundays, but the kind who got paid on Saturday and Continues on page 22

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Finance Economic Inclusion Through Microfinance Framework THE Nigeria economy is characterized by a large informal sector. Only about 35% of economically active population has access to financial services while about 65% rely on the informal sector. In fact, less than 2% of rural households have access to formal financial/banking services. The aggregate micro-credit facilities account for about 0.2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and less than 1% of total credit to the economy. In response to the foregoing, successive administrations in Nigeria had intervened through supply-led subsidized credit strategy. Notable among such programmes were the Rural Banking Programme, sectoral allocation of credits, concessionary interest rate, and the Agricultural Credit Guarantee (ACGS). Other institutional arrangements were the establishment of the Nigerian Agricultural and Cooperative Bank Limited (NACB), the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC), the People Bank of Nigeria (PBN), the Community Banks (CBs), and the Family Economic Advancement Programme (FEAP). In year 2000, Government merged the NACB with the PBN and FEAP to form the Nigerian Agricultural Co-operative and Rural Development Bank Limited (NACRDB), to enhance the provision of finance to the agricultural sector. It also created the National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP) with the mandate of providing financial services to alleviate poverty. Most of the intervention agencies had no sustainable sources of funding, hence, virtually all the initiatives could not be sustained. The ineffectiveness of the government economic inclusion strategies obviously left a huge gap which the nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) sought to fill. For instance, since the 1980s,

NGOs have emerged in Nigeria to champion the cause of the micro and rural entrepreneurs, with a shift from the supply-led approach to demand-driven strategy. Most of the NGOs are charity, capital lending and creditonly membership based institution. They are generally registered under the Trusteeship act as the sole package or part of their charity and social programmes of poverty alleviation.The NGOs obtain their funds from grants, fees, interest on loans and contributions from their members. However, they have limited outreach due, largely, to unsustainable sources of funds. To a large extent, the NGOs’ initiatives through demand-driven strategy had generated little impact on economic inclusion just like the government supply-led credit strategies. The observed ineffectiveness of both supply-led and demanddriven credit strategies in broadening economic inclusion on the one hand, and the existence of huge unserved and savings opportunities in the country, on the other hand, largely informed the introduction of the micro-finance policy in 2005. The policy was introduced to complement the banking sector reforms introduced in 2004 with a view to enhancing economic/ financial inclusion in the country. According to the microfinance policy framework, MFBs were promoted to provide financial services to the economically active poor in the society. The policy was targeted at creating an environment of financial inclusion to boost capacity of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to contribute to economic growth and development through job creation that would lead to improved standard of living and poverty reduction. The specific objectives of microfinance policy are as follows: Make financial services

By GANIYU ADEWALE OGUNLEYE

accessible to a large segment of the potentially productive Nigerian population which otherwise would have little or no access to financial services; Promote synergy and mainstreaming of the informal sub-sector into the national financial system; Enhance service delivery by

and MFB operating in a State with a minimum capital requirement of Nl.0 billion. The policy framework also specifies the objectives of the creation of microfinanee banks as: Providing diversified, affordable and dependable

living; Enhancing organized, systematic and focused participation of the poor in the socio-economic development and resource allocation process; Providing veritable avenues for the administration of the micro credit programmes of government and high net

607 as at the end of 2008. An analysis of the CBs that convened to MFBs showed that 308 CBs had completed the process and obtained final licence, while 299 were still carrying provisional approval as at December 31, 2008. Delays in registering increases in capital, change of name and registration of new directors at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), due to non-payment of penal charges

worth individuals on a nonrecourse basis. In particular, this policy ensures that state governments shall dedicate an amount of not less than 1% of their annual budgets for the on-lending activities of microfmance banks in favour of their residents; and Rendering payment services, such as salaries, gratuities, and pensions for various tiers of government. Community Banks (CBs) hitherto in existence were allowed to convert to MFBs provided they met the licensing requirements. Of the 1,259 CBs in operation as at December 31, 2007, the total number that met the minimum capital requirement of N20 million Shareholders’ Funds, unimpaired by losses, and converted to MFBs were

for non-submission of statutory returns by the institutions (despite the concessions granted by the CAC), were largely responsible for the slow conversion of their provisional approvals to final licence during the year. In addition to the 607 CBs converted to MFBs, a total of 138 new micro-finance banking licences were granted, while 95 approvalsin- principle (AlPs) had been granted as at December 31, 2008. With that development, the total number of approved MFBs as at the end of year 2008 were 840. Presented in Table 11.1 is the distribution of the 840 MFBs on a stateby-state basis, including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele microfinance institutions to micro, small and medium entrepreneurs; Contribute to rural transformation; and Promote linkage programmes between Universal/Development banks, specialized institutions and microfinance banks. The Microfinance Policy permits the establishment of two categories of MFBs, namely: MFB operating as a unit bank with a minimum capital requirement of N20 million;

financial services to the active poor, in a timely and competitive manner, that would enable them to undertake and develop longterm, sustainable entrepreneurial activities; Mobilizing savings for intermediation; Creating employment opportunities and increase the productivity of the active poor in the country, thereby increasing their individual household income and uplifting their standard of

“The policy was introduced to complement the banking sector reforms introduced in 2004 with a view to enhancing economic/financial inclusion in the country.”

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Issues

Tribal And Religious Disguise THE issue that surrounds tribe and religion in Nigeria is a serious one that has revealed to the world, even ourselves (Nigerians), how divided we truly are, though under false pretence of unity as one sovereign entity, which has paved way for politicians to take advantage of our segmentation and fragmentation to build empire for themselves and their posterity. In Nigeria, it has been noticed that our incorrigible (religious/ tribal/political) leaders turn tribe against tribe, religion against religion, as a means to an end and even for sport as the case may imply. Thieving, unscrupulous, inept politicians thrive on our ignorance; on our predictable emotions as Nigerians, to achieve their ‘divide and rule’ agenda. They hide the diamond that should keep us united and show us a ‘miserable’ ruly that we should gain in return, by making us antagonise each other, either by tribe or religion, or both. They ignite our tribal and religious sentiments; fuel it into a conflagration, using inciting and unguarded statements. They practically hide behind the smoke created by the fire, and then they steal the diamond that ordinarily should place us among the comity of nations had we been truly united without these tribal and, or religious

inciting words. Most Nigerian politicians would laugh at most citizens when they complain about i n s e c u r i t y , unemployment, inflation, power etc, because they are quite aware about the fact that our Achilles heel is our religious/tribal sentiments, therefore they use it against us very effectively. They can also easily predict an average Nigerian reaction to situation to the effect that most Nigerians are gullible, non-chalant, and in some cases, engulfed with fear. The annoying part of the whole gist is that Nigerians keep falling for the same divisive tactics every election year. It affects the young and old, wise and foolish; almost everyone are swayed by this old tricks. Nigerians should not forget in a hurry that our poverty higes on these divisive tactics used by thieving leaders, and their desire to enrich themselves under the guise of championing the cause of a tribe! This question may further add credibility to this subject matter that demands clarity: How come Nigerians do not care to identify the scorer of any Super Eagles winning goal by tribe or religion? Why then do we focus so much on tribe and religion when it comes to electing the fellow that should be referred to as Mr. President? Propaganda, defined as

By Nigerian Leaders By OMEIZA ROBINSON OFUJE

information especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicise a particular political cause or point of view, has become a valuable tool in the hands

average Nigeria becomes a pawn in the power tussle. There are some seemingly harmless propaganda which when viewed with a clearer

outlandish showy, it won’t be out of place to ask: who carried out such research with such conclusive theory? Could it have been a mere hypothesis? The example given above, are some of the

can be properly ventilated. Under this arrangement, we would consider the present state of the country, so that we can record remarkable, sustainable and resounding progress, thereby ignoring the

President Goodluck Jonathan

of our leaders to get away with just about any form of atrocity that they may be involved in. An average Nigerian in most cases, will always remain ignorant of the fact that they are vitally powerful tools in the hands of politicians via the propaganda machinery of our tribal, religious and political leaders. In this unending ‘rat race’ for power, the

lens, will be seen as a microcosm of the dangerous trend that has made an average Nigerians a beleaguered person at a precipice, such propaganda as: Yoruba men are romantic; Hausa men are handsome; Ibo men care for their women the most. Or Yorubas are entertaining/ well dressed; Hausas are conservative; Ibos are

positive’ stereotyping which has spread like an epidemic from generation to generation; stereotypes that ignore the immutable facts that though customs may guide one’s upbringing, good or bad traits are not peculiar to any tribe; humans will remain humans! Nigerians must need look beyond the boundries or tribes and religion so that their objectivity in reasoning

“This present generation of Nigerians have the chance to change Nigeria through embracing objective positions as to who has the merit to lead and occupy any position whatsoever, and completely shift gaze from tribal and religious issues.”

venue of tribe and religion which will constantly keep us aback if we remain subjective in our reasoning without willing to let go of these issues. This present generation of Nigerians have the chance to change Nigeria through embracing objective positions as to who has the merit to lead and occupy any position whatsoever, and completely shift gaze from tribal and religious issues. We can achieve great things in this country if we put an end to mediocrity and tow the line of Nationhood with one mind and one spirit which could also be interpreted to mean true unity.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

International Features WASHINGTON— After a productive trip abroad, President Barack Obama is back in Washington, where he faces confrontations with Republicans on immigration and an oil pipeline project. The contentious immigration debate could mean a year-end fight over keeping the government running, if some GOP lawmakers get their way. On the foreign policy front, there is a Novmber 24 deadline in nuclear negotiations with Iran, and questions are surfacing within the administration about whether to overhaul U.S. policy toward Syria. Given his faltering political support in the U.S. and his party’s recent election losses, Obama’s trip to China, Myanmar and Australia appeared to offer respite. The president, who returned to the White House late Sunday, basked in policy breakthroughs with China and warm welcomes in Myanmar and Australia. “I intend to build on that momentum when I return home,” Obama said at a news conference before heading home. When Obama set off for the Asia-Pacific, both the White House and Republicans were suggesting that the GOP’s decisive takeover of the Senate could pave the way for bipartisan breakthroughs. But just two weeks after the election, that optimism largely has faded, making it increasingly likely that Washington will churn through two more years of gridlock. Republicans attribute the swift shift in tone largely to Obama’s plans to move forward with executive actions on immigration that potentially could shield from deportation about 5 million immigrants who are living in the United States illegally. The president has pledged to announce the measures before year’s end; he could act shortly after returning to Washington. The incoming Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, has warned that such executive actions would “poison the well” with the new Republican-led Senate and could prevent the GOP from working with Obama on other potential areas of agreement. Republican leaders are considering what to do if Obama presses ahead. More conservative members want to use upcoming spending bills to block the president, but that could set the stage for a showdown for another government shutdown. Obama said that possible threat would not dictate his timing in flexing his powers. He said his main concern “is getting it right.”

President Barack Obama walks down the stairs of Air Force One as he arrives from Brisbane, Australia, by way of Hawaii on Sunday at Andrews Air Force Base.

month against GOP Rep. Bill Cassidy in oil-producing Louisiana. The House passed a measure to move the project forward on Friday, and the Senate is set to act. But Obama has all but threatened a veto, repeatedly saying the only way the pipeline can be approved is after the completion of a long-stalled State Department review. “We have to let the process play out,” he said. On Iran, Obama faces a deadline to reach a final agreement in sensitive nuclear negotiations. High-level talks in Oman last week failed to yield a breakthrough, potentially setting Obama up for a choice between pursuing another extension or abandoning the diplomatic effort. The president has asked the Congress to start debating a new

Confrontations Await Obama After Productive Trip The fight over the Keystone XL pipeline that would run from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast also has political implications

for the president, not just with Republicans but also his own Democratic Party. Democrats see passage of a

bill forcing construction of the project as a last-ditch effort to save Sen. Mary Landrieu, who faces a runoff election next

authorization for his airstrike campaign against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria, though he expects the legislative effort to pick up next year when Republicans take control of the Senate. The

saw the military on Saturday reinstate the constitution that it suspended when it took over following Compaore’s ousting in a popular revolt. On Sunday the military officially signed a “transition charter” — a sort of interim constitution hammered out between the military and civilian, opposition and religious figures last week. Applause erupted after Lieutenant-Colonel Isaac Zida,

the army-installed leader, initialled the document which marked his acceptance of a return to civilian leadership in the country. Under the deal, the president will appoint a prime minister, either a civilian or a military figure, who will head a 25member transitional government. A civilian will also head a 90seat parliament, known as the National Transitional Council. According to a draft of the transition blueprint, no members

debate comes as Obama faces questions from within his own administration, including from Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, about the effectiveness of the military operation, particularly in Syria. Hagel said in a memo to White House national security adviser Susan Rice that Obama needed a clearer strategy for dealing with embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad. White House officials have denied that Obama is undertaking any formal review of his Syria strategy and the president said Sunday that he was not considering ways to oust Assad. Also on the agenda: getting the Senate to confirm his nominee for attorney general, federal prosecutor Loretta Lynch. The White House is not pushing for that in the postelection session of Congress, and says the president is leaving the timing up to Senate leadership. Democrats are reluctant to push a fight with an empowered GOP over the process and White House officials say they are confident Lynch will be confirmed even with Republicans in control. The GOP takes over in January.

Career Diplomat Named Burkina Fast Interim Leader

Ouagadougou - Career diplomat Michel Kafando was yesterday chosen as Burkina Faso’s interim president, to steer the west African nation during a one-year transition back to civilian rule following the ousting of its veteran leader. The appointment of the former foreign minister and UN ambassador is set to end weeks of uncertainty in the impoverished country after mass protests toppled the 27-year regime of president Blaise Compaore and the military seized power. It came ahead of a deadline imposed by the African Union, which warned the country would face sanctions unless it appointed an interim leader by yesterday. “It is an awesome responsibility that falls to me, I already foresee the pitfalls and the immensity of the task,” the 72-year-old Kafando told reporters after his appointment that he described as “more than an honour”. Kafando, who will have to be confirmed by the Constitutional Council, previously served as the country’s ambassador to the United Nations from 1998 to 2011. He was also Burkina Faso’s foreign affairs minister between 1981 and 1982. After hours of negotiations, a panel of 23 officials, mainly civilians, chose Kafando over other candidates who included journalist Cherif Sy and sociologist and ex-minister Josephine Ouedraogo.

Initially Paul Ouedraogo, the Catholic archbishop of the southern Bobo-Dioulasso diocese, appeared to be a frontrunner despite his reluctance, but the Church later announced “categorically” that he was not in the race. “The consensus candidate is Michel Kafando,” said Ignace Sandwidi, a representative of the Catholic Church, which was involved in the discussions to find a new leader. Kafando’s appointment came after a weekend of activity that

Photo Provided by the Kassing Family shows Peter Kassing standing in front of a truck filled with supplies for Syrian refugees. A new graphic video purportedly produced by Islamic State militants in Syria released on Sunday claims U.S. aid worker Kassing was beheaded.

of the interim regime will be allowed to stand in the November 2015 election. Zida had given all the various actors involved in the transition until noon on Sunday to submit their candidates for interim leader to the panel. The African Union had given the country an ultimatum on November 3, saying it would face sanctions unless it established institutions and picked an interim president by yesterday. Mass unrest erupted in Burkina Faso in late October over expresident Blaise Compaore’s bid to change the constitution, which would have allowed him to extend his 27-year rule of the landlocked former French colony. Compaore was only 36 when he seized power in a 1987 coup in which his former friend and one of Africa’s most loved leaders, Thomas Sankara, was ousted and assassinated. He hung to power in the following decades, being reelected president four times since 1991 and his bid to extend his rule was being closely watched across Africa, where at least four heads of state were considering similar changes to stay in power, from Burundi to Benin and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Known in colonial times as Upper Volta, the country won independence from France in 1960 and its name was changed to Burkina Faso — “the land of upright men” — in 1984.

THE NIGERIAN

International

Parents Of Slain US Aid Worker ‘Heartbroken’ INDIANAPOLIS (USA) — The parents of an American aid worker captured last year while delivering relief supplies to refugees in Syria said on Sunday that they are “heartbroken” by his death at the hands of Islamic State militants but “incredibly proud” of his compassion and humanitarian work. Ed and Paula Kassig of Indianapolis said in a statement that their 26-year-old son, Peter Kassig, “lost his life as a result of his love for the Syrian people and his desire to ease their suffering.” “We will work every day to keep his legacy alive as best we can,” they said. Kassig was captured last year in eastern Syria while delivering relief supplies to refugees of Syria’s civil war. The Indianapolis man, a former U.S. Army Ranger who founded a relief organization, converted to Islam while in captivity and took the first name Abdul-Rahman. The White House confirmed Kassig’s death on Sunday after the Islamic State group released a video showing that Kassig had been beheaded. The video also showed the beheadings of about a dozen men identified as Syrian military officers and pilots. President Barack Obama called Kassig’s killing “an act of pure

evil” and said the Islamic State group “revels in the slaughter of innocents, including Muslims, and is bent only on sowing death and destruction.” The Kassigs said in their statement that their hearts also go “out to the families of the Syrians who lost their lives, along with our son.” They said they also grieve “for the families of the other captives who did not make it home safely.” The Kassigs learned of their son’s capture last year, but did not disclose his captivity while family and friends quietly worked to secure his release. In October, their son appeared in another video released by the Islamic State group that showed the beheading of a fellow aid worker, Britain’s Alan Henning. The militants vowed that Kassig would be next, leading his parents to plead publicly for mercy while stressing his humanitarian work and conversion to Islam. Kassig first went to the Middle East with the U.S. Army, which he joined in 2006, according to his military records. He ultimately served in the 75th Ranger Regiment, a special operations unit, and served in Iraq from April until July 2007 before being medically discharged as a private first class that September.

Military Accelerates Iraqi Troops Training

FORT IRWIN Calif. - U.S.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has said that the Pentagon will accelerate its mission to train Iraqi forces to combat Islamic State militants, using troops already in Iraq to start the effort while funding is sought for a broader initiative. Hagel, speaking to reporters while visiting the Army’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, said special operations forces had moved into Iraq’s Anbar province in recent days to begin work on the training effort. Rear Admiral John Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary, said later about 50 special operations troops were at Ain al-Asad air base working to set up the training mission. The base was home to a major U.S. military presence during the 2003-11 Iraq war. Hagel’s announcement follows President Barack Obama’s November 7 decision to roughly double the number of U.S. troops in Iraq, adding 1,500 military personnel to establish sites to train nine Iraqi brigades and set up two more centers to advise military commands. Obama also sought $5.6 billion in funding from Congress for the initiative, including $1.6 billion to train and equip Iraqi forces. Officials initially said the funding would have to be approved by Congress before the new effort could begin. However, repoters reported last Saturday that the U.S. military already had a team of troops at Ain al-Asad working on the mission in a faster-than-expected expansion of an operation that is central to its campaign against Islamic State. Hagel said Army General Lloyd Austin, the head of U.S. forces in the region, had recommended American troops start the training with some of the 1,600 personnel already in the country to advise the Iraqi military. Kirby said about a dozen countries had made verbal commitments to help the training effort. Officials hoped that U.S. forces starting the mission would encourage foreign partners to move

ahead as well. “We agreed with General Austin’s recommendations to take some of the special operations forces that he has in Iraq and give them some early missions with the Iraqi security forces in Anbar province just to kind of continue the mission, accelerate the mission,” Hagel said. “So yes, we’re doing what we can with the resources we have to give some acceleration to that,” he said.

His desire to perform aid work in the region was kindled during a March 2012 spring break trip to Beirut while he was studying political science at Butler University. Kassig, a certified emergency medical technician, left school and returned two months later to Lebanon, where he worked as a medical assistant and humanitarian worker and treated people from all sides of the conflict in neighboring Syria. In September 2012, he founded Special Emergency Response and Assistance, or SERA, which suspended its relief work after his capture. Kassig, who grew up in an Indianapolis family with a long history of humanitarian work and teaching, said during a January 2013 interview with Time magazine that he traveled heavily throughout Lebanon to assess the needs of people there. SERA, he said, focused on supplementing the work of larger organizations by delivering aid that could “do the most good for the most people over the longest period of time possible.” Kassig’s friends and family say he understood the risks of working in the region, but he felt called to help. Burhan Agha, a 26-year-old Syrian, worked with Kassig in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, delivering aid to Syrian refugees before Kassig moved his operations to southern Turkey. Speaking by phone from Switzerland, where he is seeking asylum, Agha described his friend’s purported killing as senseless. “If I could apologize to each American, one by one, I would,” Agha said while weeping. “Because Peter died in Syria, while he was helping the Syrian people. And those who killed him claimed to have done it in the name of Islam. I am a Muslim, and from Syria, and he is considered a part of the Syrian revolution.”

AUCTION SALES

CHANGE OF NAME

Contact: Abu Osodionahon Police Auctioneer 08060382828, 08074007087

PUBLIC NOTICE THE LORD’S DESIGN DELIVERANCE MINISTRY The general public is hereby notified that the above named Ministry has applied for registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission, under Part ‘C’ of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990. THE TRUSTEES ARE: (1) Pastor Samuel Maduka Nwachukwu – Chairman (2) Mrs. Eucharia Azuka Nwachukwu – Member (3) Mr. Roland Imade Eriamiatoe – Secretary (4) Mrs. Maryrose Nkechi Olisakwe – Member (5) Mr. Solomon Olumese Eigbe - Member AIMS & OBJECTIVES (1) To preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to every creature. (2) To bring genuine salvation to every believer (3) Through the gospel to bring deliverance to the captives. (4) To gather the saints for the rapture. (5) To foster brotherly love and kindness amongst the brethren. Any objection to the registration should be forwarded to the Registrar-General, Corporate Affairs Commission, Abuja within 28 days from the date of the publication of this notice. Signed: V. O. Nwafor Esq. (Solicitor) Benin City. 08033915675

PUBLIC NOTICE AEEM COMPUTERS LIMITED

The general public is hereby notified that the above named company has applied for registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission, under Part ‘C’ of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990. THE TRUSTEES ARE: (1) Mr. Edomwonyi Kingsley Efosa – Chairman (2) Mr. Owolo Emmanuel – Secretary (3) Mr. Edomwonyi Felix Asemota – Member (4) Mr. Igbineweka Martins Enoyeosase – Member AIMS & OBJECTIVES (a) To procure ICT and other related equipment and installation of ICT equipments. (b) Development and Marketing of software packages and other packages (c) To go into partnership with other companies with regard to the objectives mentioned above. Any objection to the registration should be forwarded to the Registrar-General, Corporate Affairs Commission, Abuja within 28 days from the date of the publication of this notice. Signed: Mr. Edomwonyi Kingsley Efosa Chairman

EDICHARSON FOUNDATION FOR SICKLE CELL

Courtesy: TUNDE ’MOLEN.

CRISAN – I formerly

18, 2014 There will be a public auction salesTUESDAY, of accidented,NOVEMBER called Miss Florica abandoned and unclaimed vehicle, motorcycles Mihaela Crisan is now and household items at the following Police known and called Mrs. Divisions, Edo State Command. Date of Sales is Florica Mihaela three weeks from this publication. CENTRAL Itesurobo. All former MOTOR TRAFFIC DIVISON: M/Benz 190 documents remain valid. Car Reg. No. AG370EKP. EVBUOTUBU Concerned authorities DIVISION: 8 Daylong Motorcycles Reg. Nos. and the general public QC 621GBZ, QD301AGD, QC313 AGD, should please take note. UC879BEN Other motocycles and household items.

PUBLIC NOTICE

Mrs. Kenny Jegede, Proprietress of Ighile Group of Schools on Friday, November 14, 2014 marked her birthday. Congrats from Emmanuel Oghogho Jarrette Osunde, Primary One (Catfish) pupil of the school.

CHANGE OF NAME

The general public is hereby notified that the above named foundation has applied for registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission, under Part ‘C’ of the Companies and Allied Matters Act No. 1 of 1990. THE TRUSTEES ARE: (5) Comrade Charles Edigin (1) Prince G. Akenzua Dr. (Mrs) B. Olufemi (2) Dr. Dominic Osaghae (6) (7) Dr. P. Iyawe (3) Mrs. Ann Amegor Mr. Igbinosa Uwumarogie (4) Rt. Matron A. Ihunde (8) AIMS & OBJECTIVES (1) To create awareness over sickle cell disorder beginning from Primary Schools, Secondary and Universities students. (2) To have heart to heart discussion with at least over two thousand persons in a year. (3) To sufficiently inform spouse on the risk of not carrying out genotype test before getting married. (4) To visit churches/mosques for awareness campaign regularly. (5) To carry out awareness campaign in urban and rural areas of Edo State and beyond. (6) To organize public lectures on sickle cell disorder around the city from time to time. Any objection to the registration should be forwarded to the Registrar-General, Corporate Affairs Commission, Abuja within 28 days from the date of the publication of this notice. Signed: Charles Edigin, Executive Committee Chairman, 08101220733, 07025944466 08057681618

KOLAWOLE – I formerly known and addressed as Miss Doreen Martha Kolawole now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Martha Sanusi. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.

CHANGE OF NAME OMOROGBE – I formerly Miss Anita Imuwahen Omorogbe now wish to be known, called and addressed as Mrs. Anita Imuwahen Osagiede. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.

CHANGE OF NAME OARE – I formerly called Miss Rebecca Oare is now known and called Mrs. Rebecca Osamudiamen Oshodin. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.

RECONCILIATION OF NAME I, Paul Ihaze Grace wish to bring for the information of the general public that I am the same person as Okonigene Agatha Osarunmwense as appeared in some of my documents. Henceforth, I am now properly known and addressed as Okonigene Agatha Osarunmwense. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.

RECONCILIATION OF NAME I, Imafidon Osazeme is the same person as Amenaghawon Bright Kelvin. I now wish to be properly known and addressed as Imafidon Osazeme. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

International Features

Chinese Medics To Beef Up Ebola Fight A large team of Chinese health workers arrived in Liberia to boost the Ebola fight as a US-based doctor infected in Sierra Leone was described as being “extremely ill”. The 160-strong Chinese deployment to the west African country worst hit by the virus came as the world’s most powerful economies vowed to “extinguish” the epidemic, which has claimed more than 5,100 lives. The Chinese doctors, epidemiologists and nurses will staff a $41 million (33 million euro) Ebola treatment unit which will be up and running in 10 days, ambassador Zhang Yue said in a statement on Sunday. The health workers have had previous experience in tackling the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) in Asia, Zhang said, adding that its total aid to Liberia would be $46 million. At least 2,812 people have so far died of Ebola in Liberia. So far Beijing has promised Ebola-hit countries the equivalent of $122 million to help fight the epidemic. Since the beginning of the year, China has given west African countries a total of 234 million yuan ($38.2 million) in emergency assistance, including disease prevention and control materials, grain and cash, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. China is Africa’s largest trading partner,

and its diplomatic footprint across the continent has expanded hugely in recent years as it seeks resources to power its economy. Still it is a long way behind the European Union, whose leaders have boosted their Ebola aid to one billion euros ($1.26 billion). On Sunday, a Dutch aid ship, the “Karel Doorman”, docked at Dakar on its way to Freetown, Conakry and Monrovia. On board were vehicles and emergency equipment from nine European countries, the Netherlands’ embassy in Senegal said. Meanwhile a doctor said to be “extremely ill” after being infected with Ebola in Sierra Leone was being treated in the United States. Martin Salia, a US resident who was infected with the deadly haemorrhagic fever while treating patients in his home country, was flown to Nebraska for treatment. “This is an hour-byhour situation,” said Phil Smith, medical director of the biocontainment unit at the Nebraska hospital, one of a handful of medical facilities in the United States specially designated to treat Ebola patients. “He is extremely ill,” Smith said. “We will do everything humanly possible to help him fight this disease.” World leaders meeting at the Group of 20 summit in the Australian city of Brisbane said they were prepared “to do what is

necessary to ensure the international effort can extinguish the outbreak”. The Ebola outbreak which began earlier this year has been centred around Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. In London, musicians including boy band One

released yesterday, the single will be the fourth incarnation of the song, which became one of the biggest-selling singles ever after its release in 1984 to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief. In Brisbane, G20 members welcomed an

president is coordinating the west African fight, warned that the world “cannot relax efforts” despite some encouraging signals. There is no known cure for Ebola, one of the deadliest known pathogens, but trials for

are known to have died of Ebola across eight countries, out of a total 14,413 cases of infection since December 2013. UN chief Ban Kimoon urged “G20 countries to step up”, warning that Ebola’s disruptive effect on

An officer in the medical contingent of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (left) embraces hsi colleague during a departure ceremony in Beijing.

Direction and Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant recorded a new “Band Aid” single to help raise funds combat the virus. Other performers ranging from U2 frontman Bono, Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Sinead O’Connor recorded late into the night for a 30th anniversary version of the charity single “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” “It’s not just about what’s happening in west Africa, it could happen here tomorrow,” said rocker-turnedactivist Bob Geldof, one of the forces behind the original Band Aid. Set to be officially

International Monetary Fund initiative to release $300 million to combat Ebola and promised to share best practices on protecting health workers on the front line. The G20 pledge came as Togo, whose

several possible treatments were announced last week in west Africa and Canada. The disease spreads through contact with bodily fluids. The World Health Organization said last Friday that 5,177 people

farming could potentially spark a food crisis for a million people. Transmission continues to outpace the response from the international community,” Ban told reporters.

“There is no known cure for Ebola, one of the deadliest known pathogens, but trials for several possible treatments were announced last week in west Africa and Canada.”

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Trends Tribal Marks

Facial Lines That Speak Volumes!

Intro: A young lady in her early twenties walked into a very busy new

generation bank located on Akpakpava Road, in Benin City, Edo State and suddenly the whole

By IJEOMA UMEH

“ While everyone starred at her in adaze, she smiled her way through the queue, and what else, her tribal marks made everyone to forget the hustle to be in the front of the queue as the ‘indented’ Princess went on ahead to the cashier and got served.” hub of banking activities which hitherto were at a feverish peak, suddenly came to a halt. All eyes were turned to the new entrant to the queue of anxious bankers. She was tall, light – skinned and had all the curves in the right places-those curvatures that characterized the ‘new deal’ in beauty statistics and her dimpled cheeks wore radiant smiles –but those smiles were not the attraction. Something, nay, some things made her the magnet that she wouldn’t ordinarily want to be – the identity or tribal

marks that were so deeply etched on both cheeks and which so annoyingly like clogs in the wheel stood of her natural endowments, nearly marring all the vital statistics of this beautiful damsel. While everyone starred at her in a daze, she smiled her way through the queue, and what else, her tribal marks made everyone to forget the hustle to be in the front of the queue as the ‘indented’ Princess went on ahead to the cashier and got served. Her lined face paved a way for her!

arm revealed a heart with an arrow through it-she must have been in love when she got it. Other parts of her body had drawings that I couldn’t decipher. I was struck by how grandmother was a record of history and culture, whether through her tattoos or the stories she has passed down to me about the Obas of Lagos, or the special songs in praise of the king. Despite their long history, some Nigerians believe the practice of scarification should be stopped, because they perceive them as ‘barbaric” or as unfashionable and antiquated. I recently spoke with a young lady

from Edo State in her mid-twenties, and she expressed disapproval at the practice she was made fun of as a child for the seven marks evenly placed on both her cheeks. She received these because she was thought to be an “abiku” ( a term used to refer to a child who is stubborn, sickly, or dies and returns back to life as punishment to their parents for offending the gods) The severe scars on the back, ears, face are thought to lead to a rejection of the “abiku” by it’s spirit friends, who will then let the family live in peace. Tribal marks are parts of our heritage and therefore it worth preserving.

Import Of Those Marks

TRIBAL marks are an age-long art common to the western part of Nigeria. The Egba, Nupe Ijasa and other Yoruba tribes commonly use these marks and designs as a form of identification, beautification and protection. There are two different types of marks :Ila (the wellknown facial scars) and Ona (also known as “local tattoos”) Both are created using a sharp instrument such as razor blades. Knives or glass, flesh is cut from the skin to create a gash, which later heals and leaves Igbin in Yoruba), a popular delicacy in Nigeria, are very important to tribal mark artisans, as the liquid

they secrete is used to soothe the pain caused by the instrument used to make the incisions. The unique colour of the Ona comes from various pigments such as charcoal. Tribal marks were used as a source of identification in times of war or migration. There are different styles for different tribes; for instance, the Pele style, which has three versions; Pele Ijesa (thick, halfinch vertical lines on both sides of the nose down to the mouth); Pele Ekiti (quarter-Inch Horizontal line) and pele Akoko (Quarter-Inch vertical or horizontal lines). An individual’s tribe or family typically

By GIFT .O. OKELEKE

indicates the pattern in which tribal marks are inscribed on their face, stomach or legs. The Ona designs typically have symbolic or decorative significance connected with various life stages such as puberty and marriage. Specific families are charged with the responsibility of creating these marks. These families are called Olowo lla or Omo Ile Olona (meaning “One who’s wealth is gotten from the art of tribal marks” and “One born into a family of tribal designs” respectively). These houses hold names are

also used to sing their praises. The skill of making these marks is passed from one generation to another. Most Yoruba women aged 80 and above have tribal marks on their bodies, as they were considered a sign of beauty, in their youth. My grandmother has words tattooed on her chest, arms, and legs. These words are Orikis or praise words, which are complimentary phrases about the person they are inscribed on, such as Apeke (“called to be cared for”) and Aduke (people will fight for the right to spoil her”). A closer look at her right

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Wenger: Ozil Will Be Back To His Best After

Injury Lay-Off

Arsene Wenger is confident that Arsenal fans will see the best of Mesut Ozil when he returns from his latest injury lay-off. The Germany international is recovering from a knee ligament injury suffered on international duty, with the timeframe for his return set back until after the turn of the year. Ozil has been criticised for some under-par showings in the early weeks of the Premier League season, though Wenger puts that down to tiredness after winning the World Cup, and the former Monaco boss believes the midfielder’s return will coincide with improved

performances. “I think, at Real, he played in a very strong team,” the Arsenal manager told BeIn Sports, “and he had a very good season with us last year. “But he had the World Cup and came back tired. We will see the best Ozil when he returns.” Wenger also moved to deny reports of a rift between Ozil and team-mate Alexis Sanchez, saying: “I was not aware of the supposed problems between Ozil and Sanchez. For me, there is no problem.” Arsenal currently sit sixth in the Premier League table, having won just four of their

Arsenal Will Not Sell PodoIski -Wenger Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger insists he has no desire to sell Lukas Podolski during the January transfer window. The 29-year-old has played just 46 minutes in Premier League this season and revealed earlier this week that he is unhappy with his current role within the squad and will seek clarification over his future.

Paul Pogba

Wenger has attributed Podolski’s lack to playing time to a short pre-season campaign following Germany’s win at the World Cup but is adamant that reports linking the forward with a move away have been “fabricated”. “He plays a position where there is a big competition. He came very late from his holidays [in the summer]. He started after his team-mates and was not good physically,” Wenger told reporters. “It’s not established at all that he will leave at Christmas. It was me who sets the price and it [Podolski’s reported valuation] doesn’t correspond at all to his price. He is not for sale and there is no offer. “Today’s newspapers have an advantage. They know more than us. But the story is completely fabricated.”

first 11 fixtures, and are 12 points behind leaders Chelsea. Wenger believes that the main issues in his team stem from defence, with the absence

through injury of Laurent Koscielny disrupting the balance of the side. He remarked: “We have many shortcomings this season. They

released by FIFA. Allegations of corruption strenuously denied - continue to be levelled against the Qatar 2022 and Russia 2018 bid teams. According to Bernstein, who retired from his post with the FA last year, boycotting football’s biggest tournament should be a real possibility but only if other countries support England in doing so. “England on its own cannot influence this - one country can’t do it,” he told BBC Sport. “If we tried to do something like that we’d be laughed at. I think England within UEFA undoubtedly have the power to influence FIFA, but to do so they would have to consider withdrawing from the World Cup, the next World Cup,

did leave him short of options at the back. “The problem with football today is that you cannot keep for four or five seasons players who do not play. We had to give him a release,” he explained. “This is a player who has not played much with us last year but he behaved in a remarkable way.” Wenger also revealed that Olivier Giroud will not neccessarily come straight back into the side on his return from injury, with Danny Welbeck and Alexis among those battling for the striker’s berth. “There is no indisputable in a team,” he insisted. “[Giroud] is considered as a potential starter, as are Alexis and Welbeck.”

Speculation Remains Over Hiddink Future Despite Win Arsene Wenger

David Bernstern

Former FA Chairman Calls For 2018 World Cup Boycott Former Football Association chairman David Bernstein has urged European nations to boycott the 2018 World Cup unless world governing body FIFA undergoes serious reform. FIFA is firmly under the spotlight again following the release of a report on Thursday by the chairman of the adjudicatory chamber of FIFA’s ethics committee which cleared Russia and Qatar to host the 2018 and 2022 tournaments, having found no serious breaches of bidding rules by either nation. Michael Garcia, who conducted the investigation on which Thursday’s report was based but whose full report has not been made public, has appealed against the version

are defensive firstly - both the level of experience and absence of injury. “A defence needs the reading of the game, the physical quality and it’s also a balance. When Koscielny is not there, we are destabilised. We do not have a balance so we have insecurity all the time.” Many have pointed to the sale of Thomas Vermaelen to Barcelona in the summer as part of the reason for Arsenal’s defensive failures, despite the Belgium international having not yet played for the Blaugrana through injury. But Wenger feels that he had no option but to sell his former captain, even if his departure

unless proper reform including (FIFA president Sepp) Blatter not standing (for a fifth term) - is carried out at FIFA. “If I was at the FA now, I would do everything I could to encourage other nations within UEFA - and there are some who would definitely be on side, others maybe not - to take this line. At some stage you have to walk the talk, stop talking and do something. “It sounds drastic but frankly this has gone on for years now, it’s not improving, it’s going from bad to worse to worse. There are 54 countries within UEFA. There’s Germany, Spain, Italy, France and Holland - all powerful. You can’t hold a serious World Cup without them. They have the

power to influence if they have the will.” He added: “FIFA is sort of a totalitarian set-up. Bits of it remind me of the old Soviet empire. People don’t speak out and if they do they get quashed. “The choosing of Qatar was clearly one of the most ludicrous decisions in the history of sport. You might as well have chosen Iceland in the winter. It was like an Alice in Wonderland sort of decision. “I’ve resigned for two reasons - firstly, the body has been pretty ineffectual. I’ve been on it for more than a year and we only had one meeting; secondly because frankly I don’t wish to be personally associated with FIFA any further.”

Speculation over the future of Netherlands coach Guus Hiddink dominated the Dutch media on Monday even after Sunday’s comprehensive 6-0 win over Latvia revived the team’s Euro 2016 qualification campaign. It was fuelled by the 68-yearold coach himself after the win in the Amsterdam Arena when he told reporters; “You can all go and enjoy yourselves speculating but I’m not saying anything. I remain in the service of the KNVB (the Dutch football association).” He would not answer a question on whether would be on the bench when the Dutch resume their qualifying campaign at home to Turkey on March 28. “I’m only concerned about today,” he added. Hiddink had said he would quit if the Dutch did not beat Latvia after they had lost two of their first three qualifiers, including an embarrassing defeat in Iceland last month. They also lost on Wednesday in a warm-up friendly at home to Mexico. Hiddink, who replaced Louis

Guus Hiddink

Real Madrid have been dealt a big blow after Luka Modric was ruled out for the remainder of 2014 after picking up a knock on international duty with Croatia. The 29-year-old featured from the start in his country’s 1-1 Euro 2016 qualification draw with Italy on Sunday, but was forced to leave the pitch after 28 minutes of play due to injury. “Modric felt pain in his adductor and will undergo tests in Madrid to determine the extent of the knock. We will know more on Monday or Tuesday,” Croatia coach Niko Kovac told HTV. The midfielder’s specific length of absence is not yet

known, but initial reports suggest he will be unavailable for between three to five weeks. Modric has been a key figure for Madrid in the opening months of the 2014-15 campaign, making 17 appearances in all competitions. The absence of Modric could see Sami Khedira return to the Madrid starting XI in the next few weeks. The Germany international has struggled to secure regular first-team action this term, through a combination of injury and the good form of Toni Kroos, but recently returned to full match fitness.

van Gaal after the Dutch finished third at the World Cup in Brazil, is contracted until after the Euro 2016 finals in France after which his assistant Danny Blind takes over. But press speculation that he might move to another function within the association gathered momentum on Monday. “Hiddink should have explained more precisely yesterday. Now his statement ‘I remain in service’ hangs like a clammy mist,” wrote Algemeen Dagblad columnist Chris van Nijnatten.

Modic Moury Blow For Madrid

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Russian Sports Minister Promises Drastic Changes After Defeat

RUSSIAN sports minister promises drastic changes after defeatRussian sports minister Vitaly Mutko has promised widespread changes after Fabio Capello’s team went down 1-0 to Austria in Saturday’s Euro 2016 Group qualifier. “No one could have been happy with the result against Austria or the way our team played,” Mutko, who watched the game in Vienna from the stands, told Sport Express. “The level of football we are playing has seen us drop into the ‘middle’ tier of European

nations and perhaps we are even falling below this. We have fallen below 30 in the FIFA world rankings. Maybe by the end of the year, we will be below 40,” he said. “Now we need to deeply analyse and weigh up the complexity of the situation. I think this will happen within the next few days and we will announce the decisions we have come to. I am positive

that these should be drastic in their character.” Under-fire Capello, who has

reportedly not been paid for five months, insisted his team played well and blamed the

Low Demands Improvement Despite Injury Concerns

Spain-Germany Preview:

GERMANY coach Joachim Low has called on his side to end their sensational 2014 on a high with victory in Spain on Tuesday. Since the World Cup, Germany have won just two of five matches, losing to both Argentina - the team they beat in the Brazil final showpiece and Poland. And even a 4-0 victory against minnows Gibraltar on Friday did not leave Low happy. The head coach felt his side should have scored several more goals and wants one last effort from his players in their final match of the year. Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has withdrawn from the squad with a knee injury, while Andre Schurrle, Marco Reus, Christoph Kramer and Jerome Boateng have also pulled out. That leaves Low - who rejected the notion that a win on Tuesday could be payback for Spain’s victories over Germany at Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup, in the final and last four respectively - with a depleted squad to choose from. “We want to show again, at the end of the year, what is in us, and if possible, win,” Low told the German Football Federation’s website. “A rematch for any games

Joachin Low

that [in] 2008 or 2010 [we] lost are gone. It does not matter. “We don’t have some players there, and the [same with] the Spaniards. “Therefore it is a game under other conditions.” Chelsea striker Diego Costa was not included in the Spain squad, due to fitness concerns, while Cesc Fabregas subsequently withdrew with a hamstring problem. Goalkeeper David de Gea is likely to miss out also, with a dislocated finger. Spain - who have dropped to 10th in the Fifa Ranking, nine places below Germany - have also lost twice since the World Cup, in which they were embarrassingly knocked out in the group stages as defending champions. A 2-1 Euro 2016 qualifier defeat in Slovakia last month was concerning, but Vicente del Bosque’s men had no problems in a 3-0 win over Belarus on Saturday. Isco, Sergio Busquets and Pedro scored the goals in Huelva for a second-string side also missing the likes of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and David Silva. The two sides have met 21 times, with Germany winning eight and Spain seven. Spain have won the last three, though, giving them the recent edge over their opponents.

loss on their poor finishing. Russia have picked up five points from four matches and are currently third in Group G. In seven competitive matches in 2014, Russia have only won one against Liechtenstein 4-0 in September. “Today we have been cast back to 2005, when we had to start everything again practically from zero,” said Mutko. “This is happening on the background of a number of worrying tendencies within the development of Russian football. The youth teams are weak and are putting in poor

performances. It’s completely obvious that we have been going backwards recently. We are regressing.” Russia play a friendly against Hungary on Tuesday, which some believe, could well be Capello’s final match in charge of the national team. The 68-year-old, who coached England at the 2010 World Cup, took over as Russia manager in July 2012. In January 2014, the Italian extended his contract with the Russian Football Union until the conclusion of the 2018 World Cup.

Di Maria ‘A;ready Considering United Exit’

Paper Round: Vitaly Mutko, Russia Sports Minister

Dimaria

Thiago Silva Angry With Neymar Over Captaincy Snub THIAGO Silva has revealed his anger at Neymar after losing the Brazil captaincy to the Barcelona star. The Paris Saint-Germain defender led his nation at the World Cup, but a humiliating 71 semi-final defeat to Germany and 3-0 loss to Netherlands in the third place play-off has seen new coach Dunga hand Neymar the armband. Silva has not played for Brazil since the tournament over the summer, with the Selecao recording five clean sheets in his absence, and the centre-back admits he is far from happy with his current situation and his compatriot for his lack of empathy. “Sincerely, I didn’t expect this,” Silva said at a press conference ahead of Brazil’s friendly with Austria on Tuesday. “I would be lying if I said it didn’t annoy me. It feels like something was taken away from me that was mine. It’s painful and makes me sad. “Especially because no one has come to talk to me about this. Neymar didn’t approach me.

“But I think we must be prepared for everything, somehow, even if I thought I was going to come and play. “I have to be ready to be on the bench also. We have quality players, like David Luiz and Miranda, so I knew that it was going to be hard, but I didn’t expect to be dropped. But it’s part of football and I’m ready to fight for my place back.” Chelsea defender Filipe Luis, meanwhile, had glowing words for Dunga, who has named the left-back in his starting XI for every game of his second spell in charge of the Selecao so far. “I talked a lot with my teammates. We are delighted with this type of training because the intensity required is always very high, we are always on training and on the game,” he said. “So this type of training helps us to improve a lot and work on the way that we play with our team-mates. “You start to know your teammates better on the field. So, we are very happy because they are requiring the maximum from us.”

ANGEL Di Maria may have indicated that he is already considering his Manchester United future; Chelsea are now favourites to sign Borussia Dortmund’s Marco Reus; Inter Milan are keen on Steven Gerrard and Ravel Morrison may be released by Cardiff City. Angel Di Maria eyeing shock United exit: Despite only signing over the summer, Angel Di Maria is already considering his future at the club, reports the Daily Star. The Argentine was heavily linked with a move to PSG over that summer but the French club were unable to consider a deal due to Financial Fair Play constraints. However, during an interview with French TV channel Telefoot, Di Maria has admitted that he could play in Ligue 1 in the future. “Now I’m in the English league. But you never know, there is a lot of movements in football. You can never predict where you’re going to play. There were a lot of clubs interested in me. A lot really. But Manchester United appeared and didn’t go away. They absolutely wanted me and it happened. It could have been a good experience for me to go to Paris. I know I’m still young, perhaps I’ll go to PSG one day. I don’t

Thiago Silva

know how it will all end.” Paper Round’s view: In isolation these quotes are hardly sensational. Not even the most ardent United fan would have expected Di Maria to stay at the club for the rest of his career. He will at some point leave United and it would not be a huge surprise were he to move to PSG at some point in his career. However, the timing of these quotes *could* be deemed as an early “come and get me plea”. To be fair to Di Maria he was probably just answering a question - but every player these knows the code. If you’re well settled, you reply, “I’m very happy in [name of city] and am just focusing on my football.” If you’ve got an eye on the revolving door, you say, “You never know what can happen in football, I’d love to play in [name of city] at some point in my career. It’s very early for any such talk - but realistically, Di Maria joined United to win trophies, not scrap for a Europa League berth. If United continue to toil he won’t be the only one ready to jump ship in the summer.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Shakes Mashaba

Mashaba Hits Back -Who’s Cheap Now? IN the wake of their successful qualification for the 2015 CAF African Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea, Bafana Bafana coach Shakes Mashaba says those who doubt his abilities do so at their own peril. The coach was in charge of the qualifiers for South Africa and managed to lead the nation to three wins and two draws.

Speaking after beating Sudan 2-1 at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday afternoon he has hit back at his critics. A first half strike by Ajax Amsterdam midfielder, Thulani Serero and FC Bornemouth striker, Tokelo Rantie in the second half secured South Africa’s passage to next year’s Africa Cup of Nations, wrapping-up qualification with

CAF Picks Mauritian Referees For Nigeria/South Africa Clash THE Confederation of African Football (CAF) has picked Rajindraparsad Seechurn of Mauritius as Centre Referee for Wednesday’s 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier between Nigeria and South Africa in Uyo. This is contained in a statement on Sunday in Abuja by Ademola Olajire, the Assistant Director, Communications, Nigeria Football Association (NFA). Seechurn will be assisted by countrymen, Balkrishna Bootun as Assistant Referee 1, Vivian Vally as Assistant Referee 2 and Parmendra Nunkoo as Reserve Referee. Reports state that CAF also appointed Cameroonian Abel Mbengue as Security Officer, to assist the Match Commissioner, Laryea Louis, from Ghana. According to the statement, the South African delegation to Wednesday’s match will

Eagles

arrive in Uyo on Monday evening. “Although the South African Football Association (SAFA) does not have the permit to land their chartered aircraft at the Ibom International Airport in Uyo, the NFA is working round the clock to ensure permit is granted for their plane before it departs Johannesburg at 1 p.m. on Monday,’’ it said. The delegation will be composed of 26 players and 15 officials. Reports state that South Africa currently lead Group A with 11 points from five matches, while Nigeria are in second place with seven points from five matches.

a game to spare, against Nigeria, on Wednesday. “I think we may still have those doubters, when I read newspapers, they always refer back to where we came from with Bafana Bafana,” said Mashaba. “It’s not something new, in life, you have the doubting Thomases. You have those who have their own people. “Maybe I’m not their person, but for what I’ve done in football, I doubt there’s still someone who will doubt my abilities. I’ve done a lot with the junior and senior national teams. “There’s no-one who’s going to blow your horn for you, you have to blow it yourself.” Prior to this major achievement, just after his appointment as senior national coach ahead of two overseasbased candidates, Mashaba hit out at sections of the media who claimed that he was ‘the cheapest option’, questioning the 64-year-old’s credentials at the highest level. “I know there will be experts telling us that our tactical work is not right, what matters is the goals,” Mashaba added. “If you looked at Sudan, they had a plan, they were not here to win, a draw would have done them a good thing. “After a long time, to see our boys playing the kind of football they played today, it was everything that you would have asked for as a coach, including the goals.”

THE Super Eagles have been boosted by the return to training of injured defenders Kenneth Omeruo and Azubuike Egwuekwe. Team spokesman Ben Alaiya disclosed, “Both Omeruo and Egwuekwe resumed training with the rest of the squad in Uyo.” Omeruo is nursing groin and knee complaints and as

NIGERIA coach Stephen Keshi has cast his eye on victory over South Africa after describing the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Congo as a very difficult match. Keshi said that there were no longer small teams on the continent as the Super Eagles won 2-0 in Pointe Noire to keep alive hopes of reaching next year’s tournament. The defending African champions were in danger of missing out on Equatorial Guinea 2015 but were aided by goals from Ikechukwu Uche and Aaron Samuel. “The game of football has changed, people are growing, nations are growing. So we have to grow too and we have to continue with whatever we are doing that we think will make us good and strong,” Keshi told Goal. “Our game against the Congo national team was not bad. Two good sides played the match and I think in the second half we could have had more goals. We lost some chances in the second half but I give glory to God that we got the three points we needed in this match.” Nigeria welcome Bafana Bafana to Uyo in Wednesday’s must-win final Group A game. “As regards the last qualifying match against South Africa, Nigerians should pray for us, they should pray for the

such was ruled out of Saturday’s clash against Congo in Pointe-Noire. Egwuekwe, who stood in for the injured Omeruo, suffered a head gash after going up for an aerial ball. The Eagles resumed training in Uyo on Sunday. Wednesday’s match will kick off by 5pm Nigerian time at the Akwa Ibom International Stadium aka ‘The Nest of Champions’.

players and they should be patient and they should come out en masse to support their team to win the match. They

should pray for the boys to be in good health and that they should respond well in the match,” Keshi urged.

Mfon Udoh Grabs 22nd & 23rd NPFL Goal ENYIMBA forward Mfon Udoh netted a brace in Enyimba 3-1 win over title winners Kano Pillars at the Enyimba International Stadium to raise his all-time league goals record to 23 on Sunday. Udoh, smashed the all-time goal record of 20 set by Jude Aneke in 2010 after he scored his 21st goal of the season during his side’s 1-1 draw with Dolphins at the Liberation Stadium last Sunday. The 22-year-old gave the hosts the lead in the 18th minute with a long range effort from the edge into the top right corner of Kano Pillars goalkeeper Theophilus Afelokhai. The former Akwa United attacker grabbed his second of the day on the brink of half time after he stomach home the ball taking advantage of the visitors’ defensive error. The Akwa Ibom-born star, who scored 15 goals last season for the Promise Keepers before he joined

Enyimba, has scored a totale of 25 goals in all competition for Enyimba including two goals in the Federation Cup. Udoh still hold a chance to increase his individual goal tally this season in the Federation Cup final when Enyimba seek their third title in a row against Dolphins, who denied them a victory in Port Harcourt to wrestle the league title out of the hands of Kano Pillars.

Mfon Udoh

Gumel, Ndanusa Fight It Out As NOC Exco Elections Hold In Asaba

THE Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) has cleared 16 aspirants to seek election into its executive committee from Wednesday to Thursday in Asaba. The elections have been scheduled to hold at the Hotels and Events Centre, Asaba during NOC’s Annual General Meeting (AGM)/Elective Congress. A statement by the committee’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Tony Ubani, said the incumbent President, Sani Ndanusa, would face opposition from a former President and an IOC member, Habu Gumel. It said a screening committee made up of Ibrahim Galadima,

Keshi

Eagles Get Omeruo, Egwuekwe Boost By EDET ELIJAH

Keshi Switches Focus To Defeating South Africa

Mrs Kofo Nwokedi and Maj.Gen. Adamu Dyeri gave the contestants the nod to battle it out for eight executive positions. The incumbent secretary, Tunde Popoola, would contest against a former secretary, Olabanji Oladapo, who is an Executive Secretary, Africa Table Tennis Federation (ATTF). President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), Solomon Ogba, would contest the position of First VicePresident, where he is unopposed. The following is the list of cleared candidates for the election:

Injured Akpan To Be Out Of Action For Weeks SUPER Eagles’ midfielder Hope Akpan, who was injured on Saturday in Pointe Noire in a 2015 AFCON Qualifier, will be out of action for at least two weeks. Reports state that the Reading FC player twisted his left arm in the 53rd minute of the Congo/ Nigeria match and was substituted by England-based Sone Aluko. The midfielder who plays in the Championship in England, according to team doctor Ibrahim Gyaran, said it would take the

player that period to recover and return to action. “Though, the injury is not too serious, but it will take him at least two weeks to recover, including the rehabilitation period before returning to action,’’ he said. It would be reported that the Eagles’ duo of Azubuike Egwuekwe and Akpan were injured during the game, and on returning to Nigeria, the two players had received more treatment. After the team arrived in Uyo,

Akpan was conveyed in a special ambulance to the Government House Clinic for another x-ray. Gyaran was later battling to ensure Egwuekwe got all necessary treatment to be fit for Wednesday’s decider since his own injury was a cut just above the left eye. The central defender had got his injury since the match’s fourth minute, but managed to play the game till the end with a bandaged head. The team is scheduled to host South Africa in Uyo on Wednesday in their final Group A match in the qualifiers.

THE NIGERIAN

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

Whitsleblower Blasts Garcia For Promoting FIFA’s ‘Culture Of Silence’ PHAEDRA Almajid, the Qatar bid’s former head of international relations, gave evidence to Garcia’s wideranging investigation which was later considered by Fifa ethics judge Hans-Joachim Eckert to carry serious concerns about her credibility. Almajid has now written to Garcia to claim that not only are such representations of herself and her evidence “fundamentally erroneous”, but she and her family have also been placed in jeopardy by Fifa’s blatant disregard for the confidentiality she had been promised. She told Garcia: “I was among more than 70 witnesses who had agreed to speak to you and provide information, documents, data and recordings. Having been dismissed by my respective bid in early 2010 and thus currently falling outside Fifa, I was under no obligation to cooperate with your investigation. I did so in the belief that the true facts known to me are important to the purposes of your investigation. “My cooperation was based on your promise of confidentiality. You have said that, ‘in the course of any investigation, [you are] bound by confidentiality,’ and ‘also want to protect anyone who would wish to come to me in good faith.’” She added: “As I have explained to you and your colleagues, confidentiality was crucial to my cooperation with your investigation, considering my personal circumstances, particularly the safety of my two sons and me. “Not only was Herr Eckert’s summary a crude, cynical and fundamentally erroneous description of me and the information and materials I provided your investigation, it directly breached Fifa’s assurances of my confidentiality. Although Herr Eckert did

not name me in his report, he directly identified me and my information by connecting it to my publicly reported statements three years ago. Within hours of publication of Herr Eckert’s summary, I had already been widely identified as one of the ‘whistleblowers’ in German and British media. As if identifying me were not enough, Herr Eckert’s report falsely discredits me in order to support his indefensible conclusion that the December 2010 bidding was wholly acceptable.” Almajid told Garcia she shares his characterisation of Eckert’s summary of his

430-page report as containing “numerous materially incomplete and erroneous represenations of

WALES manager Chris Coleman believes Gareth Bale embodies the spirit of a side still unbeaten in Euro 2016 qualifying after the Real Madrid forward produced a vital injury-time goal-line clearance in Brussels. Group B favourites Belgium were unable to penetrate their organised and resilient visitors as Wales extended their unbeaten start in the section to four games with a hard-fought goalless draw at the King Baudouin Stadium. Wales came under huge pressure at times against opponents ranked fourth in the world and Belgium defender Nicolas Lombaerts struck a post in the first half. But Belgium looked as if they might find a way through in six minutes of stoppage time until Bale popped up in defence to clear a shot off the line. “Baley’s won us games before and after the game all the questions are about him,” Coleman said. “But when you need him at the other end of the pitch he’s saving one on his own line. “He’s grown as a leader and that comes with being in stadiums and playing in front of 50-60,000 people. “He’s used to that spotlight

and pressure and it helps other players to stay calm in that situation.” Bale only had infrequent

the facts and conclusions” having provided Fifa with extensive materials and

Phaedra Almajid

records. Eckert discredited her evidence by claiming that she had previously proven herself unreliable by retracting serious accusations she made against Fifa Executive Committee members. However, Almajid told the Mail on Sunday that she was pressured to do so by the Qatar bid team, who threatened to sue her for around +700,000 unless she announced her initial claims were a fabrication. And in her letter to Garcia, Almajid has raised the concern that his report has discouraged others

from providing such evidence in future. “I have taken great personal risks to stand up for the truth in a highly politicised atmosphere. However I have found myself betrayed and denigrated for being courageous enough to come forward with critical information. My fate reveals much about Fifa and its modus operandi. A culture of silence is rewarded; those who speak out and dare to question the system are not just cast aside, but ironically denied any protection or respect under Fifa’s own Code of Ethics.”

know there’s a lot of hard work to be done.” Wales will resume their campaign in Israel at the end of March and Coleman who said he did not see the incident between Marouane Fellaini and Joe Allen which left his midfielder with a bloodied nose - admits that is a source of frustration after building up momentum in the last two months with wins over Andorra and Cyprus and draws against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Belgium. “If I’m honest, if you come away from Belgium with a point you want another game in four or five days,” Coleman said. “It’s a shame we’ve got to wait until March but we’ll enjoy this result. “Belgium are a great team, they try to move you around and we knew we had to ride our luck a little bit. “But we were stubborn and tried to stay in the game as long as we could. We were very courageous. “We worked most of the week without the ball because we knew Belgium would have it more and we needed a good base. “We were a lot better with the ball in the second half

and could have created opportunities. “But we didn’t want to come to Belgium and say we did really well and lost 1-0 or 2-0. “You’ve got to come here and do something even though we were up against a very good team. “I think 18 months ago we would have buckled in a game like that but we have grown as a team and have got a better understanding of the game at this level.” Belgium coach Marc Wilmots felt his side had played well but good fortune had escaped them when they needed it. “We had a lot of chances but we missed a bit of luck,” Wilmots said. “Wales had good organisation and that was foreseen, Belgium played a good game but we could not score. “They are a really good team with good individuals and it’s not a surprise to me that they play really well and are doing well in the group. “But the difference between Belgium and Wales is that Wales plays with counterattacks and Belgium leads the attack.”

Coleman Hails ‘Leader’ Bale After Epic Draw In Belgium of teams who qualify they get 1.8 points per game and we are on the right track,” Coleman

Bale sights of goal, twice testing Thibaut Courtois from freekicks and firing narrowly wide in the second half, as Wales knew they would be pushed back by a Belgium side who had Eden Hazard pulling their creative strings. Hazard was a constant source of danger throughout but Wales dug in to make it a return of eight points from four games and boost their chances of qualifying for a first major tournament since the 1958 World Cup. “If you look at the average

said. “We’re nearly halfway through the group now and we’re in there, it’s not a fluke after four games and we’ve played two of the best teams in Belgium and Bosnia. “Belgium took us seriously and teams need to take us seriously because we are serious about qualifying in this campaign. “We know the pressure is on us and the other teams will be chasing us down with six games to play. “But we’re balanced and we

THE NIGERIAN

CMYK

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2014

6 Years Of Oshiomhole

“WHEN you meet a man who does what you cannot do, you should congratulate him”-Chinese Proverb How time flies! Six years have gone by since the swearing-in of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole as the governor of Edo State, first on the platform of Action Congress of Nigeria and in his second term, the All Progressives Congress (APC). The day he assumed office on November 12, 2008 was a day of watershed in the annals of Edo, a land where citizens were thirsty for change for so many years. God who saw their long suffering in the hands of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) felt it was time to respond to their many years of prayer and supplication by giving them a transformational leader. He then gave Comrade Eric Adams Oshiomhole as succour. Most people in Edo who knew where we are coming from are forever grateful to Comrade Adams Eric Oshiomhole for his selfless, visionary and purposeful leadership. It is important to emphasize that Oshiomhole mean well for Edo people. In accessing a man, you do so looking at certain indicators- Where were we in development before he assumed office and where are we six years after? what goals and objectives did he set out to achieve these past six years? What has been achieved and what haven’t been achieved? What are his intents? In Edo, since Oshiomhole assumed office, we have seen the best of roads, primary and secondary schools under the red roof revolution sweeping through all three senatorial districts of the state. Water is being provided in communities where PDP told us that it was impossible to get water. This is happening in Edo Central and Edo North. Hospitals are being reconstructed and furnished. An ultra modern hospital is undergoing completion at the Central Hospital premises which will be equipped with state- of the -arts facilities. The Comrade buses have greatly improved the transportation burden of the poor Edo people,

citizens now ride in airconditioned buses. Youth and Women empowerment is a daily occurrence as more youths are being employed in both Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) even though the problem is still unresolved. The Edo YES programme have benefited many youths in the state. Market women have gotten millions of Naira to improve their businesses and are all happy. All these are happening with very meager money that accrues to Edo State from the federation account. Many people have had cause to ask the question where is oshiomhole getting the money he is using to work from? It’s like magic to many people, including the main opposition party, the PDP. Some critics of our beloved comrade governor’s administration have spoken from partisan perspectives. A few of APC decampees, who worked with some of us to wrest powers from the spineless and heartless PDP godfathers top the list. I then quiver when I hear critics such as one Barr Oviawe who claims to be a Civil Society Activist, (known to only few persons anyway) complain of Uselu- Ugbowo Road and Airport-Ogba Road in Benin at an I TV live programme on Wednesday. How were these roads before Comrade Oshiomhole assumed office six years ago? Whenever it rained heavily and Benin, being in the rainforest zone, all those living in Uselu, Ugbowo, Isihor, Iguosa and Oluku axis would either swim across a large pool of water to get to their homes or will look for where to sleep in other parts of Benin. The five junction was a den of armed robbers where so many people were dispossessed of their cars and other valuables as the pool of water made the place a safe haven for miscreants. Today, that same five Junction is a beautiful sight to behold, Oshiomhole has transformed it into a modern ring road, with street lights, beautiful walk ways with flowers and effective drainage system. Whenever it rains now, you can drive through five junction as if you are driving through any of the streets in New York. What about night life? People take advantage of the facilities at the King Square to have fun at

nights and other social places scattered all around Benin City. Before now, when it is 8.00pm everybody locks up their doors and gates in for fear of robbers or for fear of attack by intruders, but Oshiomhole’s government has solved all that. People now enjoy their weekends, nights and ceremonies in Benin. Safety of lives and property is better assured

monumental work done by Comrade Oshiomhole these past six years are quick to say he borrowed money to finance the development we are witnessing. Fine. Is borrowing now an offence? If so, the federal government is the biggest offender. The debt Management Office now puts the nation’s total debt at a staggering

Governor Adams Oshiomhole these past six years than ever. The ban on okada by the administration which served hoodlums and cultists as quick getaway means also helped to improve security situation in the GRA areas of Benin and all parts of Egor, Oredo and Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Areas that make up Benin City. Six years down the road, Oshiomhole’s critics, Edo PDP give an impression that nothing has been achieved. It is just a desperation to sneak back into the people’s hearts. But those who left the APC for the PDP makes one even wonder what manner of men they are: A man who came up with the slogan when they left PDP “no man is God” suddenly returns to that same man whom he said is not God. Anenih must be having a last laugh at them today, hahahahaha..They want to be governors and Senators...Anenih is laughing at their foolishness as he will show to them that he is indeed their god. Where will they run to then? Only time will tell. The PDP seeing the

$66.99billion (about N11.45 trillion) as at the end of June 2014. The staggering amount is made up of $9.38billion for external debt and $57.61billion for domestic borrowing owed mainly to PDP contractors! But is the PDP right in their criticisms of Oshiomhole, the definite answer is no. PDP is like the Leopard that can never change its spots. What has the PDP done for Edo people these past six years of Oshiomhole? The Benin- Ofosu Road only. The so-called dualzation of Benin-Okene road is a mere political hype that is why they started from Benin and Auchi to give an impression that they are serious. After the election, they would abandon the only project after 2015 polls. What about the gelegele port promised Edo people by President Goodluck Jonathan when he came to campaign? That port is already being constructed in the Ijaw enclave of Gbaramatu. So, they deceive us to believe we are all of South-South, but everything go to Ijaw. Edo people must shine their eyes. Corruption in high federal government places. The

MATTERS IN FOCUS WITH DAN OWEGIE World Bank recently revealed in its report that 75 per cent of funds meant for capital projects by the Federal Government of Nigeria were diverted to private pockets. That is what has led to the dearth of electricity, potable water, roads, healthcare services, qualitative education and affordable housing. Electricity tariffs is killing Nigerians as every month, consumers are made to pay over N850 fixed charge for electricity not consumed. Yet, there is no supply. So, if you do not get electricity supply for one full month, you must compulsorily pay N850 to the electricity supplying company. This is the fraud put in place by the PDP to weaken and finish Nigerians. At his re-election declaration ceremony held last week, President Goodluck Jonathan admitted that corruption remained a stain on his administration but promised to eradicate the menace in all sectors of the economy. He laughably vowed to bring to justice those who perpetrate corruption in his government. The same Jonathan who has been busy giving presidential pardon to high profile corrupt persons and exConvicts. Who then can be prosecuted for corruption if he is re-elected? Is it Alamieyeseigha? Bode George, Bamanga Tukur or Maman Ali’s Children? Is it Stella Odua? Who? Only the opposition parties of course. Can the President Jonathan administration have the moral right to prosecute anybody in court in Nigeria for corruption today? The answer is an emphatic no. Anybody being prosecuted of corruption by Goodluck Jonathan’s administration is just being persecuted by his government because it is morally debased to combat graft. What has happened to oil subsidy thieves, all of whom are children, surrogates and card-carrying members of the PDP- billions of dollars stolen under the guise of importing petroleum products into the country. The same Federal Government turns round to say the answer remains removal of subsidy on petroleum products, so that the poor man can begin to pay more for petrol, kerosene and diesel. Once Nigerians make the

mistake of re-electing Jonathan, one of the first poisonous shocks he will unleash on them is the complete removal of fuel subsidy by which time they will not be able to remove him from office. What is SURE-P all about today? A gift of our common resources to a few PDP loyalists in the 36-states of the federation, where one man holds the money and use it to source for votes for President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election. More worrisome is the fact that insurgency in Northern Nigeria and insecurity has grown beyond the federal government and the Nigerian Army to the extent that Boko Haram has graduated from being just a hit-and-run terrorist group, into an army which now occupies territories they have captured in Northeastern Nigeria. They go ahead to re-name towns and villages after Islamic names. They massacre Christians and burn down churches with so much impunity, yet the President is still mouthy that they would reclaim the conquered territories from the insurgents. He keeps assuring Nigerians of security of their lives and property. Are those north eastern citizens not Nigerians before they became Islamic Caliphate republic citizens by force? Where is our army, police and Air force? They keep announcing ceasefire agreement with a group that is killing our soldiers like rats. Our army are abandoning their rifles every day and fleeing to neighbouring Cameroon and Chad. The PDP security chiefs have continued to claim that they are on top of the situation. The more they claim to be on top of the situation, the more insecurity grows worse. Who then is fooling who? Why should Edo people and indeed Nigerians entrust this country into the hands of PDP in 2015? The next election is an opportunity for Nigerians to arise and take our destiny in our hands by voting out PDP from the centre and at all levels. No voter should make any mistakes about that, otherwise, we all would have ourselves to blame. · Mr. Dan Owegie is a Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

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