The Nigerian
PUBLISHED SINCE MAY 29, 1968 ART AND CULTURE Page 19
Spirit possessing culture
• Vol. 38 NO.488• FRIDAY, MAY 23, 20 14 • N100.00
APC ’ll win subsequent elections
BENIN CITY- Following the recent defection of some members of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Edo State to other political parties, a top notcher of the APC in Edo State, Chief John
- Chieftain
Osamede Adun has assured• that the party will emerge victorious in forthcoming elections in Edo State. In a statement,
Chief Adun described those who defected to other parties as political jobbers who tried to hoodwink the State Governor,
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole to do their biddings. Chief Adun said the state funds are not meant for sharing among politicians, but for meaningful Continues on page 2
Prison Swap With Boko Haram
REFLECTION Page 23
The problem of privatization and capitalism in Nigeria
ECOWAS Parliament cautions Fed Govt ABUJA - A member of the ECOWAS Parliament, Mrs Eucharia Azodo, yesterday in Abuja cautioned against swapping the kidnapped Chibok school girls with detained Boko Haram members. “We’ve seen what Azodo, who represents happened the other Nigeria in the parliament, time. Some of them told newsmen that such were released about an action would 2011 and 2012. embolden the group and “Instead of going to expose the country to more risks from the insurgents. “This decision is very difficult. But, I still maintain that negotiation with them will not solve any problem. “Instead of solving the problem, it will multiply it in tenfold or even hundredfold.
their houses or reconciling with the government or doing necessary things they
went ahead training more people, forcing people to enter their camp to go and do the damage.
“So integrating them into the society again will cause more harm than good.” Azodo said with the expertise and technology coming from other countries she was hopeful that the girls would be
Chibok School Girls
Dep Gov’s wife calls for prayers
FG advises Nigerians on war against Insurgents ABUJA - Alhaji Kabiru Turaki, the Minister of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, has advised Nigerians, who use serious national matter such as insurgency to play politics, to have a change of heart. This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja by Mr Okey Muogho, Special Assistant, Media, to the Minister. The statement said Turaki made the remark when delegates from Igbo World Union (IWU) paid him a courtesy visit. It said that President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration had contributed a lot in bringing the menace of
insurgency to an end. “Many Nigerians do not understand the complexities of the war against terror because terrorism is a new phenomenon as far as Nigeria is concerned.’’ It stated that the president had been able to reduce the activities of the terrorist from 13 states to three states. “Let us cast our minds back to about 11 or 12 months ago when there were terrorist activities in about 13 states - Sokoto, Kano, Kaduna ,Niger, Kogi, Plateau, Bauchi, Gombe, Yobe, Jigawa, Taraba, Adamawa and FCT. “Today, Mr President has been able to push the Continues from page 1
TIT BIT
“Evil gets sweeter when the doomsday is nearer”. - Kinglsey Ogbeide-Ihama
traced and rescued. Azodo, however, called for a long term solution to social crises such as the Boko Haram insurgency. “I strongly believe that if the government can provide jobs for the youth all the issues of insecurity will be reduced drastically,” she said.
COURTESY VISIT: Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State (middle) flanked by Maj.-Gen. Abubakar Gana, Commandant, Nigerian Army College of Logistics (right) and Brig. J. O. Oni during a courtesy visit of the directing staff and students of the College to the Governor in Benin City yesterday.
BENIN CITY – Wife of Edo State Deputy Governor, Deaconess Endurance Odubu has urged women in the state to pray ceaselessly until the abducted girls in Chibok, Borno State are released. Deaconess Endurance Odubu made the call yesterday in Benin City at a prayer session targeted at securing the release of the school girls who were kidnapped by the Boko Haram insurgent. The deputy governor’s wife enjoined the women to be passionate in prayers aimed at
Police debunk rumour of Boko Haram in Edo BENIN CITY- The Edo State Police Command has debunked rumour of the presence of Boko Haram insurgents in the state. A statement by the Acting Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Noble Uwoh indicated that the rumour is “completely false as there is no iota of truth to the rumour.” The statement noted
that the state is safe and there should be no panic”, while urging rumour mongers to
desist from it or face the wrath of the law. While urging people of the state to go about their
By QUEENNETH A OROBEDO BENIN CITYSecretary to Edo State Government (SSG),
Prof. Julius Ihonvbere has urged the leadership of the
normal duties without fear, the statement also noted that the command has put
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necessary security measures in place to ensure the safety of Continues on page 2
Collaboration with other professionals
SSG charges Surveyors Nigerian Institution of Surveyors to
collaborate effectively Continues on page 2
News
APC ’ll win subsequent elections
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development. He urged APC members in the State and the Governor not to be deterred, but be
steadfast and more committed to the development of Edo State. Chief Adun stated that the defection of the members to
other political parties will pave way for the party leadership to streamline and perfect the structure of APC in the State to victory.
He advised the people to continue to support Governor Oshiomhole in order to deliver the dividends of democracy to their doorsteps.
reciprocated by appointing them into sensitive positions. He praised the Igbos for standing behind the President and the Federal Government and urged them to continue to support the administration.
The statement reported the IWU leader, Mr Mishak Nnanta , as saying that the group believed in the unity of Nigeria and were happy with the way the President had
treated Igbos. The group commended the way the President had been piloting the affairs of the country. It condemned the recent abduction of the Chibok girls.
FG advises Nigerians on war against Insurgents
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activities of the terrorists to only three states within seven months; this has never been done anywhere in the world. “Mr President gave a clear directive to the security agencies to flush them out and the insurgents have been cleared from the municipalities of these three states. “I want to assure Nigerians that Mr. President is committed to ensuring that the lives and property of Nigerians are protected wherever they may be within the geographical entity called Nigeria.’’ Turaki commended the Igbos for their support to the Federal Government, saying that the government had also
Dep Gov’s wife calls for prayers
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touching the hearts of the Boko Haram insurgents who have been holding the school girls captive. She said the onus is on women to ask for God’s intervention in this trying moment in the nation’s history. Deaconess Odubu remarked that the prayer session was aimed to fight the common cause of restoring security in the
country, irrespective of religion. In her remarks, the Special Adviser on Special Duties to Governor Adams Oshiomhole, Hajia Maimuna Momodu told the congregation that the focus is on the alarming rate of insecurity in the country, stressing that women are worst hit irrespective of whether
National Conference Rejects ABUJA - Delegates at the Minority Report National Conference yesterday unanimously rejected a minority report presented by a member of the Devolution of Power Committee, Ms. Annkio Briggs. Briggs submitted her report in Abuja immediately after the committee’s report was submitted by the CoChairmen, Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie and Obong Victor Attah. Attah, who spoke after submitting the report, said the committee had no doubt that the report would generate a lot of interest. Briggs, a Federal Government delegate and member of the committee, said she was submitting a minority report. “I am a member of the committee, unfortunately, I happen to be a lone-voice that does not agree with a very critical aspect of the report of Devolution of Power Committee. “I hereby seek to present my minority report on the issue of derivation,’’ she said. the submission of the report generated a heated argument as majority of the delegates said the report should not be accepted or considered while few others said it should be accepted. Dr Bello Muhammed, representing Kebbi State, called on the conference not to accept minority reports. Muhammed said that the conference rule did not give room for minority reports but decisions that were reached either by consensus or 70 per cent vote. “If we accept this report, it may encourage other delegates who also want to submit minority reports after a decision had been taken by this conference. “This is because it is not
everyone that will agree with everything that we agreed on.
“If the committee has decided either by consensus or by 70 per cent the report of a committee, every reasonable member of the committee should be bound by that report,’’ he said. In his contributions, Mr Atedo Peterside, another Federal Government delegate, also stressed the need to reject the minority report, describing it as deliberate. Peterside said any delegate who did not agree with a decision on an issue with its committee could take advantage of the five minutes given to each delegate to express his or her opinions. Mr Festus Okoye, representing Civil Society Organisations, also agreed that the report should be rejected, as several strong opinions from delegates were also rejected at the committee level. “We all went into some of the committees with hard opinions on various issues. “Some of us, our opinions on various issues were defeated at the end of the day. We followed majority decisions and we are here to defend the
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Reps C’ttee stops Presidential Scholarship Scheme ABUJA - The House of Representatives Committee on Education yesterday stopped the 2014/2015 Presidential Special Scholarship for Innovation and Development over breach of federal character principles. The decision followed the committee’s meeting with the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Julius Okojie, at the National Assembly in Abuja. Earlier, the Chairman of the committee, Rep. Aminu
Suleiman, said the distributions are: Abia, four; Akwa Ibom, three; Benue, one; Ekiti, five; Kwara, one; Ogun, 17; and Osun, 15. The others are: Anambra, seven; Delta, nine; Edo, four; Enugu, seven; Imo, seven; Kogi, three; Lagos, five; Oyo, seven; and Rivers, four while the remaining 24 states had no beneficiaries. Suleiman said that the distribution was in breach of Section 14 and 17 of the 1999 Constitution because the selection did not reflect federal character, equality and justice.
acknowledged the role of the institution of surveyors in societal development opined that most person have not fully appreciated their role, hence they must form a synergy as well as create adequate awareness for their activities and programmes. The SSG assured that the state ministry of Lands and Survey would be encouraged to work more closely with the state chapter of the institution to achieve the desired results. President, Nigerian
Institution of Surveyors, Mr. Bode Adeaga noted that they are in Edo State for the associations Annual General Meeting and Conference aimed at brainstorming on issues affecting them and the country at large. He appealed to the state government to make the office of the Surveyor-General an extra-ministerial department for effective discharge of its primary duties. Over two thousand, five hundred (2,500) delegates are attending the annual general meeting and conference of the institution.
SSG charges Surveyors
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with other professionals for maximum performance. He stated this yesterday in Government House , Benin City, when he received a delegation of the body on behalf of the state Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. Prof. Ihonvbere who
Police debunk rumour of Boko Haram in Edo
lives and properties. Members of the public are also advised to inform the
majority decision. “If each delegate that disagrees on an issue is to write a minority a report, I think we will be seeking an extension for five years,’’ Okoye said. In his ruling, the Chairman of the conference, Justice Idris Kutigi, said that there was no provision for minority report in the conference rule and as such rejected the report. “So, on this minority report, I rule that it is accepted but marked rejected,’’ Idris said.
men or women are the victims. She maintained that the prayer session was not for the school girls recently kidnapped in Borno State alone but for every Nigerian who is directly or indirectly affected by the deteriorating security situation in Nigeria. State president of the Federation of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN), Hajia Fatima Hassan said Boko Haram is un-Islamic and therefore called for all hands to be on deck in the face of insecurity. Rev’d Christiana Ejemurua in an exhortation expressed confidence that the Chibok school girls would be freed unhurt. The interim state All Progressive Congress (APC) woman leader in Edo State, Mrs. Modino Emovon appealed to the kidnappers to release the girls. The prayer session was attended by the wife of the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mrs. Jennifer Igbe, wife of the State Head of Service, Mrs. Blessing Obazele local government chairpersons, a cross-section of muslim women and the women’s wing of the Christian community.
police and other security agencies of any suspicious movement or activities of persons within the state”, the statement noted.
Ize-Iyamu’s loyalists back out of defection plot
BENIN CITY - Some loyalists of a former leader of the All Progressive Congress in Edo State, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu have backed out of his decamping to the Peoples Democratic Party saying they remain strong and staunch members of the All Progressives Congress. Spokesman of 27 leaders of the loyalists, Precious Igbinevbu said the defectors are merely fighting for their own interests and not the interest of their followers and the people of the state. He said the government of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has performed beyond expectations and anyone who criticizes such an achieving government is merely deceiving himself. “The same leader who said they are aggrieved today and defected to the PDP, we have the belief that they are fighting for their parochial interest to the detriment of their followers. They cannot deny it because they have enjoyed this government because we are their followers. “We are the soldiers in the field that were used to deliver Edo South. We are mature enough because we see the works you have done so far for the common people. The few people who have left APC, who call themselves the political guru, this people sit down in their houses and they don’t think of the common people”, he said. He explained, “We have decided to move ourselves out of the faction. We told them we are not decamping with them. We have disassociated ourselves from the Ize Iyamu faction. We are tired of leaders of intimidation and oppression. Now that they have left APC for PDP, I think we will have peace. “The people of Edo State want to enjoy more dividends of democracy. The same people who left the
APC had become threat to the State Government because of what they want to get from the government. They are greedy” he added. Also, youths of the All Progressives Congress across the state on a solidarity visit to the Governor say they are firmly behind him. Spokesman of the Youths, Aghedo Oscar, said they were in Government House to pass a vote of confidence on the leadership of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. Comrade Aghedo said, “We are here to tell you we are solidly behind you. We are celebrating the exit of 419 politicians from the APC.They have been constituting nuisance in the wheel of progress and it is good radiance to bad rubbish”. Other youths who addressed the Governor in Yoruba, Ishan, Hausa and Ibo said their faith in the APC remains unshaken, even if a few people leave the house they helped to build. Responding, Governor Oshiomhole said, “I want to thank you for standing firm on principles, on what you believe in. It is in moments like this that we separate the boys from the men. “When I stepped forward to contest for this office, I made only one promise that I will do my best to lay a solid foundation for sustainable growth and development of Edo State and to improve on the welfare of the people. “In Benin City, I made the point that whereas the rest of the country prays for rain, we have enough of it here but that people get scared when it threatens to rain and it was as if there was nothing that can be done about it. Not a few people lost their children because of flooding problem and today they can’t believe that flood has disappeared because of the Benin City Water Storm Master Plan.
National Confab rejects minority report
ABUJA- Delegates at the National Conference yesterday unanimously rejected a minority report presented by a member of the Devolution of Power Committee, Ms. Annkio Briggs. Briggs submitted her report in Abuja immediately after the committee’s report was submitted by the CoChairmen, Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie and Obong Victor Attah. Attah, who spoke after submitting the report, said the committee had no doubt that the report would generate a lot of interest. Briggs, a Federal Government delegate and member of the committee, said she was submitting a minority report. “I am a member of the committee, unfortunately, I happen to be a lone-voice that does not agree with a very critical aspect of the report of Devolution of Power Committee.
“I hereby seek to present my minority report on the issue of derivation,’’ she said. the submission of the report generated a heated argument as majority of the delegates said the report should not be accepted or considered while few others said it should be accepted. Dr Bello Muhammed, representing Kebbi State, called on the conference not to accept minority reports. Muhammed said that the conference rule did not give room for minority reports but decisions that were reached either by consensus or 70 per cent vote. “If we accept this report, it may encourage other delegates who also want to submit minority reports after a decision had been taken by this conference. “This is because it is not everyone that will agree with everything that we agreed on.
News Non-Representation Of Surveyors In Confab Worries Nat’ President By CLIFFORD AGBAJOR
L-R: Rev (Mrs.) Christiana Ejemurua; Mrs Blessing Obazele, wife of Edo State Head of Service; Deaconess Endurance Odubu, wife of the State Deputy Governor and Mrs. Jennifer Uyi Igbe, wife of the Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly during a prayer session in Benin City for the release of the abducted Chibok school girls.
High Priest Cautions Against Use Of month, High Priest Ebohon insurgents, he blamed phenomenon, the peculiar Force noted, “If we want to save Nigerian for being pretenders, nature of Nigeria’s case is
Abducted Girls: By ANDY EGBON
BENIN CITY – High Priest Osemwengie Ebohon has advised the federal government against the use of arms in the quest of curtailing the activities of the Boko Haram insurgents. In a chat with The Nigerian OBSERVER in Benin City, Ebohon, instead, recommended the adoption of diplomacy to achieve desired result. Speaking against the backdrop of global calls on Boko Haram insurgents to release the over 200 girls of Government Secondary School, Chibok, Bornu State who were adopted last
Debate:
BENIN CITY – The National Deputy President of Nigerian Institution of Surveyors (NIS, Surv. Ben Omon Akhigbe ahs expressed concern over the nonrepresentation of NIS as a body in the on-going National constitution conference at Abuja. He made the remark in Benin City, yesterday, during a chat with The Nigerian OBSERVER. Surv. Akhigbe who is expected to take-over the mantle of leadership of NIS in the next few days described the on-going national constitution conference as a
welcome development, and commended president Goodluck Jonathan for the bold initiative. He pointed out that the nonrecognition of the Nigerian Institute of Surveyors as one of the bodies that should be represented at the on-going conference may render most issues on land matters unclear. Omo-Akhigbe recalled that land use Act that was promulgated in 1978, surveyors were not carried along adding that most of the flaws being noticed in the Act was a result of the noninclusion of surveyors in the process that gave birth to the
those girls, and more Nigerians, we should negotiate in a way that we will not lose our sovereignty. “Look at those killed some days ago, those ones wouldn’t have happened; I am begging them (Nigerian government). “For the Chibok girls, we should play the sheep (fool), let them (BH) release them, it doesn’t make Nigeria a coward nation, we are saving souls. “While I am begging them not to use arms is for the girls to be complete when they are out; if we
delay more than this, we may not get them complete”. “Each of those girls is a nation, if they kill all of them, apart from the problems of their parents, and the families they come from, Nigeria herself for ever, history, posterity and our conscience will not forgive us” he said. Acknowledging that the international communities that have indicated interest to assist Nigerian government in the operations to rescue the Chibok school girls, have the capacity to run over the
especially for failing to be proactive on the strength of security information about plans for the abduction. He noted that though terrorism is a global
occasioned by corruption, uneven distribution of some Nigerian politicians, election rigging, and the non recognition of the peculiar problems of the poor masses of the people.
Act. While noting that NIS is prepared to contribute its quota towards the development of the country, Surv. Akhigbe decried the way surveyors are not been carried along in the scheme of things by government. He however assured that when he eventually comes on board, he would do all within his reach to draw government’s attention to the need for it partner with NIS for the overall development of the country. On his part, the chairman of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the ongoing 49th Annual General Meeting and Conference of NIS holding in Benin City, Surv. Standley Egogo, said the body would continue to draw government’s attention to the significance of surveyors and NIS as a body in the country. He assured that NIS would continue to check quakery in the body so as to continue to maintaining its “image”.
Ikuforiji Commends School
By SURAJU RAJI
LAGOS - Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji has congratulated the students, staff and the management of Épe Senior Grammar School, Épe, Lagos for emerging the overall winner of Year 2014 Lagos State Schools Debate, which is the fifth in the series. In a Press Release signed by his Chief Press Secretary, to the speaker, Mr. Rotimi Adebayo, Ikuforiji declared: “ On behalf of my colleagues, the entire management and staff of the Lagos State House of Assembly, I heartily rejoice with the Principal, all the students, and staff of the school for this commendable feat.” “Let me also, in particular, single out the duo of Miss Amusa Zainab and Miss Olabode Kausarat for being the worthy ambassadors of Épe Senior Grammar School, who jointly won the competition.
“You are indeed a source of pride, not only to your school and parents, but to our zone and our great State in general.” “I also rejoice with all the traditional rulers, and the entire people of Épe and Lagos East Senatorial District for the honour that Épe Senior Grammar School has brought to our Zone. I dare say that such a competition that is won by zone will definitely be a tonic “for all students in all public and private secondary schools in our Senatorial zone and indeed all over our State, to aim higher and face their studies diligently, “he added. The Speaker also noted, “It is also pertinent to congratulate students and staff of C.M.S. Senior Grammar School, Bariga, and Meiran Senior Grammar School for emerging in the second and third positions. I also greet all the schools that took part in the competition this year. Kudos must also be given to all those
that are in charge of organizing this yearly competition for all our secondary schools in Lagos. The successes recorded each year has continued to positively impact on the education of students in our secondary schools in Lagos State.” , Ikuforiji concluded.
Deaconess (Mrs.) Endurance Odubu, wife of Edo State Deputy Governor (left); Mrs. Jennifer Uyi Igbe, wife of the Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly and Hajia Maimuna Momodu, Executive Director, Office of Edo State First Lady during a prayer session in Benin City for the State and for the safe arrival of kidnapped girls of Government Secondary School, Chibok, Bornu State. PHOTO: MOSES OBOH.
Security Challenge: Jonathan ’ll Emerge Stronger - Uduaghan By BETTY IDIALU ASABA - DELTA State Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan said President Goodluck Jonathan would emerge stronger from the present security challenges facing the country. Speaking when he played host to the President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Revd. Dr. Felix Omobude in Asaba Governor Uduaghan admitted that Nigeria was facing serious challenges but noted that President Jonathan will emerge as a better leader from the challenges.
“President Jonathan is passing through heat right now, but he will come out stronger, more acceptable and a greater leader,” the Governor said. Dr Uduaghan, attributing the success of his administration to God, said, “We cannot take credit for what we are doing in the state. Whatever modest achievement we are having is by the grace of God.” He thanked spiritual leaders for their prayers for the country and Delta State in particular, noting that with their prayers for the state, a lot have been achieved. “Without you in terms of prayers, in terms of counseling, Delta State will not be where it is today,” he said.
Governor Uduaghan congratulated Revd. Omobude on his election as the President of PFN and commended him for his efforts at repositioning it. Revd. Omobude who led other executives of PFN on the visit to the Governor explained that his visit to Delta State, the fourth in the series of such visits to states in the country, was aimed at bringing the national headquarters of the body closer to the people. The cleric explained that the visits were part of his plan to reengineer the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria and build synergy within the fellowship. He lauded the developmental
strides of Governor Uduaghan’s administration, noting that the free education programme of the government was one programme that was positioning the youths of the state positively. “The greatness of a leader is in his people,” the PFN President said, adding, “I want to congratulate you on your developmental efforts; you have left no one in doubt that you mean well for Delta State.” He added, “I applaud you for the successes in the field of education, you have touched the lives of many and the Church of Jesus Christ is grateful to God for the man that you are.”
Sickle Cell Patient Can Live Normal Life - Expert By FRIDAY OBANOR BENIN CITY – A medical child’s expert, Dr (Mrs) Yetunde Israel-Aina has said that Sickle Cell disorder patients can live normal life if adequate variety of diet and good environment is accorded them. Delivering a paper, titled: “Sickle Cell Disorders: The Myths And Reality” at the monthly seminar series of the Institute of Child Health, University of Benin City, yesterday, Dr. Israel-Aina noted that people living with sickle cell disorder have a lot and better couping mechanizing than the average normal human being, irrespective of health challenges. Dr. Israel-Aina stated that the cure for the disease is not readily available in Nigeria, stressing that blood marrow transplantation with a match donor could give ultimate cure to the disorder. The medical expert who is a Consultant Paediatrician Haematology at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) said about 87 percent of parents live regrettable lives for having a child with sickle cell
disorder. Giving statistics of world sickle cell indexes, Israel-Aina hinted that over 40 million Nigerians are carriers of the disease out of which about 150,000 die annually as a result of the disorder. According to the Resource Person, “Sickle Cell disorder has huge burden on their parents while increasing proportion of them now survive above 54 years of age, against the initial belief of not surviving beyond 5 years. Continuing, Dr Israel-Aina, however informed that the region with abundance of malaria, like the Sub-Sahara Africa, Nigeria inclusive are highly affected by the disease. She pointed out that sickle cell disorder is not an infectious disease that can be contaminated by merely staying in the midst of carriers. Educating that sickle cell disorder is an autosonal recessive disorder, she further informed that for the disease to occur, there must be a carrier gene, from either of the parents of the patient through genetic inheritance.
News
“There is the tendence of one in every four who is both carriers and in some cases there are carrier children who are equally free without traces of the disease in their gene. “It is not only carriers who can transmit the gene, but if a carrier marries a non carrier, then there is the possibility of some of children becoming a carrier,” she noted. In a brief remark, the Director Institute of Child’s Health UBTH, Professor Osawaru Oviawe said the monthly seminar is part of the Institute’s information dissemination activities organised to educate those around them on health matters.
LASU Lecturers Declare Strike
LAGOS- The Academic Staff Union Of Universities (ASUU), Lagos State University (LASU) Ojo chapter declared a“ total, comprehensive and indefinite strike’’. Addressing newsmen in Lagos, the Chairman of the union, Dr Adekunle Idris, said the congress had unanimously
FRSC Boss Identifies Challenges Of improving on set standard. Road Safety Mgt He disclosed that since his By JOEL CHUKWUAGHONIM
BENIN CITY – The Zonal Commanding Officer, Zone RS5, of the Federal Road Safety Commission FRSC, Benin City, Assistant Corps Marshal Nsobong Akpabio said the greatest challenge of road safety management in Nigeria remains the poor attitude and psychology of the average Nigerian motorist in the areas of regulating speed limit and dangerous driving. Beside freely violating the relevant rules in these regards,
Akpabio noted that the psychology of road users and the infringement of the highway code and other regulations manifest in bad driving habit and other unsafe practices that endanger lives and property on the road. Akpabio spoke on Thursday at a zonal retreat organized in Benin City for commanding officers, Principal Officers and Heads of Operation. According to him, the retreat was aimed to assess the command’s performance in the first quarter of the year 2014, as well as restrategise with a view to
A cross section of Christian women during a prayer session in Benin City for the release of the kidnapped Chibok school girls.
assumption of office, the command had revamped and revitalised its operational strategies to address scourge of incessant road traffic crashes in some critical sections in the zone. Advocating collaboration with critical stakeholders for the purpose of road safety awareness in the zone and the nation at large, he said the command is more ready and dedicated to deliver on FRSC core mandate. He therefore charged officers and men of the command to shun indiscipline corruption and other acts capable of bringing ridicule to the job.
agreed to commence the strike due to the failure of management to meet its demands. “The congress, after exhaustive deliberation, concluded that core issues that are germane to survival of the University and career of our members have been neglected by the authorities,” Idris said. He said that the chapter was also authorised to embark on the strike by ASUU National Executive Council at its meeting held at the University of Ibadan from May 14 to May 15. “We are using this opportunity to inform the academic community and the good people of Lagos State. “We declare that as from Tuesday, May 20, we, the academic staff of LASU, are withdrawing our services to embark on a total, comprehensive and indefinite strike. “It is a sad decision we are compelled to take and have taken it with every sense of responsibility,” Idris said. He said that the three core demands of the union yet to be met include the reversal of the high LASU tuition fee and repeal of the ‘’No Vacancy, No Promotion’’ policy. According to him, the
implementation of the Universities (Miscellaneous Provisions Amendment) Act 2012, already operational in other universities, is also still pending. He said that the union had maximised all avenues to dialogue with the management and the opinion leaders in a bid to avert the strike but they did not yield results. “ASUU-LASU had used every opportunity to persuade the appropriate authorities to consider all our concerns in good time. “Regrettably, the union had no choice but to declare a trade dispute and at several times met the management, governing council and chancellor, but the issues remained unresolved. “We are at loss as to why the
authorities have refused to frontally address these issues for over one year. “Our goals are noble and so we intend to pursue them to a logical conclusion,” Idris said. It would be recalled that ASUU-LASU had on March 24 issued the management a 21- day ultimatum to meet its demands. This was followed by another 14-day ultimatum effective April 15, while another seven-day ultimatum was issued on May 1. The union gave a final threeday ultimatum on May 12, which expired on May 14. Reacting to the development, the Public Relations Officer of LASU, Mr Kayode Sutton, told newsmen that the University management had not received an official letter from the union on its strike.
ABUDU – The All Progressive Congress (APC) Chairman in Orhionmwon Local Government Area, Chief Matthew Ehigie has been described as an election winner and a political institution in the making. Making the assertion recently, APC member, Stanley Igunbor declared that apart from being at home with the nitty-gritty of
party administration and tactical organization, Chief Ehigie is a bold and fearless fighter for free and fair elections. He declared that with Chief Ehigie at the helm of affairs in Orhionmwon APC, the election battle is already half won. Mr. Igunbor said what Orhionmwon APC members needed to do now was to rally round the chairman to enable him lead them to the promised land. It will be recalled that Chief Ehigie was on May 10, 2014 overwhelmingly voted by Orhionmwon people as the party chairman.
Party Stalwart Hails Orhionmwon APC Chairman
Court Adjourns Forgery Case To Today By VICTOR OMOALU
A cross section of Muslim women during the prayer session in Benin City for the release of the abducted Chibok school girls.
BENIN CITY – A mobile court sitting in Benin City, Edo State has adjourned hearing till today in a case of alleged forgery of vehicle plate number preferred against one Paul Aburime (m) in Benin City. Paul Aburime, of No. 1b, 3rd Unnereu Lane, off Asoro Street, Benin is charged with a three count charge of conspiracy, counterfeiting vehicle plate number, UBJ 580AA and impersonation.
The offence is contrary to Section 52 (7)a, 52 (1)b and 56 (1) and punishable under Section 55 and 36 (1) of State Revenue Administration Law. The accused however pleaded not guilty. The Chief Magistrate Monday Ihenyen (Esq), granted the accused bail in the sum of N200,000 with a reliable surety, who must own a building within the court jurisdiction. The surety is also effected to possess two passports photograph.
Chief Matthew Ehigie
News DG Identifies Role Of Of Museums And Monuments LAGOS- Mallam Yusuf Abdallah, the Director-General, National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), has said that museums should be used to promote relationships and cultures. Abdallah, who was represented by Mrs. Edith Ekunke, the Curator of NCMM, Lagos, made the appeal during the International Museum Day celebration in Lagos. Reports state that the theme of the celebration was “Museum Collections Make Connections”. “This day is an occasion to raise awareness on the importance of museums in the development of every society. “This is done through collecting, researching into and exhibiting collections with the aim of preserving important historical relics, yet communicating in modern day language,” he said. Abdallah said that museums are constantly facing challenges that made International Council
of Museums (ICOM) to consider this year’s theme to attract more visitors around the globe. “The idea is for visitors to patronise museums around the world and to learn more about different countries’ historical cultures and heritages,” he said. Speaking, Ms Ronke Ashaye, the guest speaker, urged Nigerians to constantly visit museums. According to Ashaye, museum is a place where objects, artworks, artifacts, scriptures and collections are conserved and preserved for research and other purposes. “Museum is an avenue where people and visitors can learn and know more about a country’s history and its culture,” she said. She urged the commission to embark on publicity and awareness about the national museum’s potential. “The commission should go via digital, internet and other social network to showcase and exhibit the museum potential
that Nigeria is blessed with,” Ashaye said. Miss Chiamaka Atuegbu, the winner of the essay competition organised by the commission to mark the Day, urged the Federal Government to encourage creativity. Atuegbu sought collaboration of the organisation and other government agencies in empowering youths on creativity to develop their talents. She expressed dissatisfaction at the poor condition of museums in the country, and urged the Federal Government to upgrade them to international standards.
Commissioner of police, Plateau, Mr Chris Olakpe (left), Sympathising with a victim of bomb blast at the Plateau Specialist Hospital in Jos on Wednesday.
IGP Orders Security Audit Of Schools
ABUJA- The InspectorGeneral of Police, Mr Mohammed Abubakar, has ordered Commissioners of
Police to immediately carry out a nationwide security audit and threat analysis of boarding schools.
he said. The director said that in spite of attempts to transform the economy over the years, the distortions and disconnect in the
economy persisted. “This is further reinforced by the character of the Nigeria’s economy, which defies logic and empiricism.
Don Seeks Promotion Of Science Education ENUGUMr Chris Chukwurah, the Director of Project Development at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, has stressed the need to promote science education for speedy growth of the economy. Chukwurah made the call while delivering a lecture entitled “The Dwindling Interest in Engineering Education in Nigeria: Causes and Solutions’’ on Tuesday in Enugu. The lecture was organised for students of tertiary institutions in Enugu State by the state branch of the Nigerian Society of Engineers as part of activities marking its 50th anniversary. He said that the promotion of
science and technology education would encourage job creation at the formal and informal sectors of the economy. Chukwurah said that the rot in engineering sector had led to the urgent need for stakeholders to re-evaluate the performance of technical education at all levels of education. “Technical education at the primary education level is almost non-existent as this important component of primary technical education seems lost forever. “At the basic secondary school level, the shabby way technical colleges were closed down in many states underlined this rot, thereby, reducing the attention paid to engineering education,”
A statement issued by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Frank Mba, said the measure was part of a deliberate and proactive effort to bolster security network in the schools. The statement also said it was to ensure the safety and security of students and other stakeholders in the schools. “The outcome of this exercise will greatly assist police authorities and other security agencies in the task of designing security strategies that will help in promoting safety and security
in schools. “It is equally expected that the result of the consultations, threat analysis and the attendant security awareness campaigns will help in reducing the vulnerability of the schools and strengthen an otherwise soft terror target,’’ it said. The I-G advised the commissioners to collaborate with other security agencies, the Ministry of Education in the various states, as well as the management and staff of the schools.
NERC Inaugurates Electricity Consumers’ He urged consumers to take Complaints C’ttee advantage of offices of the forum
ABUJA- The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has inaugurated committees to handle electricity supply complaints in its Benin, Jos and Yola offices. The NERC Chairman, Dr Sam Amadi, who inaugurated the committees, said that they were charged with the responsibility of resolving disputes between
electricity consumers and service providers. “ This forum provides opportunity for consumers to have their complaints addressed in an effective manner. “You know there will always be some degree of complaints and conflicts in this kind of
market. “Our hope is that the Distribution Companies (DISCOs) will do very well to improve their operations to minimize these complaints,’’ he said. He said the forum members were stakeholders knowledgeable in electricity market, drawn from each state to ensure fairness and diligence in electricity supply process in their areas. According to him, the forum is expected to protect electricity consumers from exploitation by service providers which may arise as a result of billing system, metering, connectivity, and transformer issues.
in their areas to address their complaints over power distribution by the companies. He congratulated members of the forum, and urged them to be fair in adjudicating all issues. He said NERC had evolve legal framework to enforce the decisions of the forum, and urged them not to be “toothless dog’’ in handling the numerous complaints from consumers. The members were drawn from the Consumer Protection Council, Manufactures Association of Nigeria, NonGovernmental Organisations, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mining and Agriculture, among others.
Maternal Mortality
LCDA Partners NGO
Commissioner of police, Plateau, Mr Chris Olakpe (2nd-left), and other security operatives at the spot where a bomb exploded in Jos on Wednesday.
LAGOS- The Yaba Local Council Development Area (LCDA) says it is collaborating with a UK-based NonGovernmental Organisation, Life for African Mothers, to combat maternal mortality. This is contained in a press statement by the LCDA, made available to newsmen on Tuesday in Lagos “Through the partnership with Life for African Mothers, residents of Yaba will enjoy necessary medication on health related issues “Mother and baby clothes, including bedding, will be distributed to women in need and
health centres in the community,” the statement said. The chairman of the LCDA, Mr Jide Jimoh, said in the statement that he was determined to address several health issues affecting pregnant women in his local community and beyond. “I am delighted with the collaboration with the Life for African Mothers that will help in reversing minor health complications that usually lead to death of pregnant women and children. “We offer our gratitude for the positive hands of friendship from Life for African Mothers,’’ he said.
South West
Don Cautions Against Underage IBADAN - A paediatrician if the baby sleeps in the same at the College of Medicine, Pregnancy bed with the parents, partly University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, says babies of pregnant mothers under the age of 20 years have a higher risk of sudden death. Prof. Adegoke Falade, who is also the Head of the Department of Paediatrics in the hospital, made this disclosure in Ibadan while speaking with newsmen. He said: “ Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the unexplained death, usually during sleep, of a seemingly healthy baby less than a year old. “SIDS is also known as crib death because the infants often die in their cribs; the disease has also been linked with brain abnormalities and respiratory infections. “The major cause is unknown but SIDS may be
associated with abnormalities in the portion of an infant’s brain that controls breathing and arousal from sleep. “Premature birth or being part of a multiple birth increases the likelihood that a baby’s brain has not matured completely. “So he or she has less control over such automatic processes as breathing and heart beat rate.” Falade listed other factors that may cause SIDS to include respiratory infection, placing a baby on its stomach or side, sleeping on a soft surface and sleeping with parents. According to him, the risk of SIDS is lowered if an infant sleeps in the same room with his or her parents. “However, the risk increases
because these soft surfaces impair breathing,’’ he said. Falade explained that sex of the baby, age, family history and second-hand smoke were also risk factors. According to him, boys are also more likely to die of SIDS than girls. He said the condition could be prevented by making the baby crib or cot as bare as possible using a firm mattress and by refraining from placing baby on thick fluffy padding or quilt. “Don’t over heat baby, use light weight materials and don’t cover the baby’s head. “ Your baby sleeping in the same room with you is a great idea but adult beds are not good for infants because the baby can become trapped and suffocate,’’ he said.
IBADAN- The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has said it was introducing new measures to tackle vandalism in the country. Mr Adebayo Ayeni, the new Oyo State Commandant of the NSCDC, stated this when he visited the Ibadan Zonal Office of the newsmen. These new measures, he said, may include legislation and sensitisation campaign to change the attitudes of Nigerians with regards to protection of critical national assets. “ Some people even tell you that it is their birth right to access these natural resources, especially in the Niger Delta. “This had been on for a long time, but we have been trying to make them realise the harm they had been doing to themselves and their children. “ Apart from the arrests, we are embarking on public enlightenment so as to control to a manageable extent these acts of vandalism,’’ he said. He also said that security had become a global issue, adding that no government would
handle it with levity. “All over the world, security has become a major issue and what the ordinary person wants to know is that he or she is secured. “If the people know that they are protected, they will be able to go about their normal and lawful economic duties. “The apathy to insecurity is a major concern as some people are not readily conscious of their environment. “We wrongly adjudge security to be the sole duty of security agencies, yet we all should collaborate on this issue. “The media should also ensure that they give credible information to the public,” he said. In his remarks, the Zonal Manager of the Ibadan Zonal Office of NAN, Mr Ojo Folorunsho, pledged that the agency would continue to offer support to the NSCDC through reportage of its activities. Describing NAN as Africa’s leading wire agency offering a bouquet of services which include text, audio, pictures and
video, Ojo said the present management remains committed to the efficient delivery of
Relations of the victims of Jos Bomb Explosion at the Plateau Specialist Hospital Mortuary in Search of their relations on Wednesday.
Vandalism: NSCDC To Evolve New Measures accurate, reliable and balanced information to its diverse clientele.
He also enjoined the NSCDC to key in into NAN BIZCOM initiatives by enlisting its
information officers in training programmes being run by the business arm of the agency.
End Strike, Osun Assembly Urges Striking Workers OSOGBO- The Osun House of Assembly has appealed to the Joint Negotiation Council (JNC) of the non-academic staff union of state-owned tertiary institutions to call off its threemonth-old strike. The House made the appeal at a joint meeting of JNC, Head of Service and the Commissioner of Finance, Mr Akintunde Adegboye in Osogbo. Members of non-academic staff union of the institutions embarked on strike on March 11
over non-remittance of their contributory pension funds and poor condition of service, among others. Addressing the meeting, the Speaker of the House, Mr Najeem Salaam, said the House would do everything within its power to address the union’s demands. Salaam gave assurance that the House would consider the inclusion of the union in the new 65 year retirement age demanded by them. “We want to appeal to you to
return to class and believe us; we will consider your demands. “Strike cannot solve the problem but it will rather worsen the situation. We are appealing to you to return to work for the future of our children,” he said. The speaker reaffirmed the commitment of the House to ensuring remittance of their pension deductions to the appropriate managers. The commissioner said that government would address the gap noticed in the contributory pension of the union.
Earlier, Mr Olusoji Fasipe, JNC chairman, said government had not been remitting their pension deduction into the appropriate quarters in the last nine months. Fasipe said the union was also demanding that the new retirement age of 65 year be extended to the non-academic staff. He urged government to improve the condition of service of members of the union. “We want to appeal to
the 2014 Ministerial Press Briefing in Ikeja. He said the figure arose from a power audit recently conducted by the state government to ascertain the power needs of the state. Tijani, however, said only 1,000 megawatts was being
supplied from the national grid to the state. “Lagos requires 5000 megawatts of electricity. “The total national generating capacity as of now is about 4000 megawatts with the state getting just 1,000. “So there is a huge deficit in the state,” he said. The commissioner said the state government was building Independent Power Plants (IPPs) and taking other strategic steps to gradually address the deficit. According to him, Alausa, Akute and Island Power plants
have been completed and the three IPPs have enhanced power supply by about 35 megawatts. “The 10.4mw Alausa IPP, when commissioned, will decommission about 140 generators at the state secretariat, which now enjoys uninterrupted power supply. “Also, the Island IPP will provide stable power supply to government’s institutions like Island Maternity Hospital, Massey Hospital and some of the street lights on the Island, “ he said.
BADAGRY (LAGOS STATE) - Two brothers, Monday Hungbo, 35, and Benjamin Hungbo, 26 appeared before a Badagry Chief Magistrates’ Court, Lagos State, for allegedly stealing a generator valued at N45,000. The accused, who resides at No 9, Hunteyon street in Topo, Badagry, were arraigned on a one-count charge of stealing the generator belonging to one Obi Obinna . The prosecutor, Insp. Innocent Uko, told the court that the accused had on April 3 at Agelasho in Ajara area of Badagry stolen a generator valued at N45,000. Uko said the accused stole the
generator when the owner was not at home. “They went to the victim’s house and stole the generator. “When they were about entering a bus with the stolen property, a neighbour saw them and alerted the police,’’ the prosecutor said. He said the offence contravened Section 285 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2011. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge. Mr Tobi Akande, counsel to the accused, pleaded with the court to grant bail to his clients, and gave the assurance that they will not jump bail.
Stable Power: IKEJA- The Lagos State Government has said that the state would require nothing less than 5,000 megawatts (mw) of electricity to attain power stability. Mr Taofeek Tijani, Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources said this at
Lagos Requires 5000MW
2 Brothers Docked Over Theft
A victim of Jos bomb blast at the Plateau Specialist Hospital in Jos on Wednesday.
Lagos Egg Donation
Expert Cautions Girls
would have the privilege of plying the BRT lane. The commander said that any driver who contravened the law would not be punished before the students because of the psychological effect it might have on them. He said that the driver’s licence of such erring driver
would be seized but the commission would issue ticket to the school that employed such a driver. The leadership of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools commended the commission’s efforts, aimed at ensuring safety among school children.
LAGOS- A physician, Dr Nkechi Asogwa, has in Lagos cautioned young girls against commercial egg donations to prevent life-threatening ailments later in life. Egg donation is when a woman gives her eggs to another woman anonymously, altruistically and unselfishly so she can have a child. Asogwa, who is also the Secretary, Doctors Health Initiative, a civil rights group, told newsmen that egg donation could be hazardous to the wellbeing of the donor. “Most of the time, the victims who are the ones donating their eggs do not know the medical consequences associated with egg donor programme. “I have heard recently that university girls, of ages 18 to 25, are being urged or at least, appealed to, to donate egg for monetary terms. “So, for as little as N20,000 to N30,000, a young girl enters into an egg donor programme. Now, she is not told the consequences or some of these acts. “We have major issues, we have liver, kidney failure that could occur, Ovarian Hyper stimulation Syndrome, we have stroke. “You can have pulmonary embolism from the blood clot because of the hyper stimulation and the hormonal drugs that are being injected into these girls to be able to harvest the organ. “Patients have been known to die in the process of retrieving the egg. “Every other organ surrounding the ovary is at risk;
guns, while some residents were seen with their luggage moving out of the area. Mrs Titilayo Ajose, wife of the community leader, Chief Lateef Ajose, told newsmen that about 20 families were currently taking refuge in the palace after the attack. Mrs Ajose, popularly known
as Ope-Oluwa, said that the people brought to the palace at around 10.00 p.m. on Monday night, were mostly women and children. According to her, the crisis in the community is becoming a big challenge, stressing that is always shooting and looting of shops and houses during the attacks. “We cannot still identify who the attackers are and their
mission or grievances. The attackers are unknown gunmen. “We have sacrificed several times to the gods to end these attacks but all to no avail. “We want peace in Ilogbo Community. We want the police to station their men inside the streets in the community. “People are afraid to open their shops or go out at night,’’ Ajose said. One of the residents, Mrs
A cross section of members of the Nigerian Institution of Surveyors at the Annual General Meeting of the Association in Benin City Tuesday. PHOTO: LUCKY AGIE.
Standard Buses For Schools
FRSC To Commence Enforcement
LAGOS- The Lagos State Command of the FRSC has said that it would commence the enforcement of the use of standard buses for schools early next month. The Sector Commander, Mr Chidi Nkwonta, made the announcement at the School Bus Scheme Awareness Programme, held for proprietors of private schools in Lagos. He said that the enforcement was long overdue having been conceived since 2009. Nkwonta said that standard school bus operation was to ensure the safety of pupils as well as to enforce discipline among the school drivers. The reports state that the standard school bus operation will involve private school proprietors employing drivers and assistant drivers to drive school buses. The school buses would have colour codes, emergency exists and insurance coverage for the
vehicles and their occupants. Nkwonta said that the enforcement of the policy would have started since April 30, since the National Educational Council had approved it since March 2012. He told the association that any school bus under the scheme held up in traffic with pupils
LAGOS- The Lagos chapter of the Women for Change and Development Initiative, an NGO founded by Dame Patience Jonathan, held a prayer session for the abducted Chibok schoolgirls and Nigeria. Boko Haram insurgents on April 14 invaded the Government Girls College, Chibok in Borno and abducted over 200 schoolgirls. Reports state that the nationwide interdenominational prayer session was well attended by Christian and Muslim members of the W4CDI in Lagos. Speaking with newsmen after the prayers, Mrs Adenike Shobajo, the state Coordinator of the group, said that the prayers were for God’s intervention for the safe return of the missing Chibok girls.
“We also want God’s intervention to overcome terrorism in Nigeria, we have no doubt that God will intervene in the nation’s security challenges. “Nigeria is at a very challenging time, but it will overcome,” she said. Shobajo urged all women in Nigeria to be part of the war to spiritually liberate the nation from the hands of evil ones. “Anywhere things go bad and women intervene, there is always change,” she said. Also speaking, the South-West Zonal Coordinator of the group, Mrs Bukky Ajomo, noted that the issue of terrorism was a global problem. “Nigerians must begin to realise that the fight against the monster called terrorism is an international one and not one that the presidency alone can fix.
1 Killed, 4 Houses Burnt As Gunmen Attack Community
LAGOS- At least one person was killed and four buildings burnt at Dawodu Lane in Ilogbo Community at Apapa Road in Ebute-Meta, Lagos, when gunmen attacked the community. Residents of the area told newsmen who visited the place that the attackers came at around 9.00 p.m. Reports state that some youths were seen with dangerous weapons, including cutlass and
not to talk about the bleeding, infertility, psychological and emotional side effects. “So, these girls are left open to future problems.
International Camp
Association To Sponsor Students
LAGOS-The King’s College Parents-Teacher Association, Lagos, has said it would continue to encourage students of the school to attend gatherings that would expose them to the brightest young minds in the world. The Chairman of the association, Mr Emman Oriakhi, made the pledge in an interview with newsmen in Lagos. He said that some of the students would participate at the 2014 International Model UN Summer Camp taking place in U.S. in August. According to him, the gathering is for the best and brightest young minds in the world and participating students are expected to interact and learn from one another. Oriakhi said that the students would engage in cultural diplomacy, participate in workshops, listen to diplomats and also go on field trips. He told newsmen that the yearly trip was put in place by the association to expose the children to happenings around the world that were not necessarily taught in their respective classes. Oriakhi said the students will participate in discussions and learn leadership skills for sustainable communities as well as alternative sources of energy, among others, at the programme. “We want our students to participate in this programme because at the end, it will promote understanding among them and ensure a new generation of peacemakers, placing human dignity at the centre of their activities,” he said.
Group Prays For Abducted Chibok Girls
The Zonal Commanding Officer, Zone RS5, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Assistant Corps Marshall Nseobong Akpabio (middle) flanked by the Corps Co-ordinator, Hygienus Omeje (left) and Head of Operations, Sobowale GbenkaOke at a Zonal retreat organised in Benin City for Commanding Officers, Principal Officers and Heads of Operation. PHOTO: OSADEBAMWEN SUNDAY.
Across The Nation Civil Society Demands Unconditional Release Of Abducted Girls NKPOR (ANAMBRA) - The Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC) of the Catholic dioceses of Onitsha, Awka and Nnewi in Anambra called for the unconditional release of the abducted Chibok girls. In a protest march at Nkpor, Idemili Local Government Area, the commission said the continued captivity of the girls was condemnable, wicked and a bizarre way of demonstrating
faith. The Executive Director of JDPC in the state, Rev. Fr. Edwin Udoye, said freedom was an inalienable right of the girls. He said that though the insurgents had the right not to go to school, the Chibok students had the right to free movement and education. “We therefore demand the immediate and unconditional release of the innocent and harmless school girls.
“We also call on the government at all levels to manage the nation’s security apparatus effectively to ensure the safety of lives and property of the citizens,’’ Udoye said. The Project Manager of JDPC, Mr Uche Madubuko, lauded the
efforts of the Federal Government and the concern of the international community in handling the problem. Madubuko urged the Federal Government not to negotiate with the faceless people and not
to agree to swap the girls for the arrested insurgents. “We want the government to double its efforts and rescue these girls alive and it is our demand that the insurgents surrender them unconditionally within 24 hours,’’ Madubuko
said. A concerned mother, Mrs. Chinelo Ogbor, expressed concern with the continued detention of the girls. Ogbor urged Nigerians to condemn the act and rise in defense of the children.
... Cleric Calls For More SOKOTO - Sheikh Yusuf Alibawa, an Islamic cleric in Sokoto State, has urged Nigerians to intensify efforts on prayers for God’s intervention on the safe return of the abducted Chibok school girls. The reports state that over 200 girls of Federal Government College in Chibok, Borno, were on April 14 abducted by the insurgents, Boko Haram. Alibawa told newsmen in Sokoto that the prayers and fasting by Nigerians would go ensure peaceful and successful operation by the international security agencies currently handling the operation. He said that Nigerians must be together and fight the menace of insurgency by exposing those responsible. The cleric said that activities of insurgency should be fought with patriotism and commitment for the overall political growth of the country. “Nigerians want the girls to
Prayers
be united with their parents and all efforts should be geared towards seeking divine intervention for the success of the operation. “Nigerians, irrespective of their religious differences, should come together and pray to God for the safe return of the abducted girls,’’ he said. Alibawa also called on Nigerians to volunteer to offer intelligence reports that would help the foreign and Nigerian security agencies to succeed in their mission.
Gombe grains market razed by fire on Wednesday.
Maintenance Culture Govt Tasks Technicians
Kwara NAWOJ Congratulates New President
ILORIN - The National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Kwara Chapter, has congratulated Mrs Ifeyinwa Omowole and Hajia Bilqees Oladimeji on their election as National President and Vice President of the association respectively. This was contained in a statement made available to newsmen in Ilorin. The statement was jointly signed by the Chairperson of the union, Hajia Binta Mora, and Secretary, Mrs Bola Olupinla. It said the election was widely adjudged free and fair, adding that this would mark a good beginning for women journalists across the country. The statement expressed optimism that the election would now usher in a strong and reliable leadership which would promote issues of womanhood. “We pray that the advent of the Ifeyinwa and Oladimeji team will usher in progress for the association,” it said.
Sympathisers at Gombe grains market that was razed by fire in Tudunhatsi on Wednesday.
Mokwa-Bida road Minister Orders Accelerated Work
ABUJA- The Minister of State for Works, Amb. Bashir Yuguda, has directed contractors handling the rehabilitation of the Mokwa– Bida road in Niger to accelerate work on the project, to meet the completion deadline. Yuguda told newsmen after an inspection of the road that “the contractor should concentrate on completing the projects in spite of the rainy season, to ease traffic on other roads”. According to him, the contractor is Triacta Nigeria Ltd and the project, awarded in November 2013 with a contract period of 24 moths, is to be completed in November 2015. “ We are happy with the progress and quality of work that is being done on the road; we envisage with the adequate funding of this project that the
contractors will be able to catch up with the scheduled date despite the rain. “The project was awarded in 2013 with contractual sum of N10.9 billion. I can see that we are through with the asphalt work and quarry plant and I think we have the capacity to complete it on time. “The funding of this project is very unique in the sense that the Federal Government brought in 10 per cent while the development partners, the World Bank, gave 90 per cent; with this, funding won’t be a hindrance to its completion.’’ Yuguda said the road was one of the worst in the part of the country, adding that the last time it was done was 30 years ago before it was taken over by the President to rehabilitate the road
for effective transportation. He said the progress of work was encouraging, adding that the contractor’s rate of work kept on increasing in an attempt to recover lost time, in spite of the rainy season. He, however, urged the contractors not to relent on their oars but to put in more effort to meet the completion date. Mr Elie Farhat, Managing Director of Triacta (Nigeria) Limited, assured Nigerians that his company would complete the work on schedule. “We are trying our best to ensure the completion of the project; this is not our first job with the ministry and we have also delivered so I am assuring you that we will meet the contract time.
“As you can see, equipment is on ground so there is no problem in completing the project on time because there is payment for the job.’’ The community leader, Umaru Mohammed, thanked the government for the rehabilitation of the road. “We are very grateful for the road and we thank God for remembering us,’’he said. The road, awarded in November 2013, is a very important highway in Nigeria’s transportation sector. It remains a vital link between the southern and northern parts of the country and aids travelers greatly, as motorists are sometimes forced to use it whenever Lokoja road is flooded.
OSOGBO - The Osun Government urged technical and maintenance officers in the state to imbibe maintenance culture to protect government assets and infrastructure. Mr Peter Babalola, the Chairman, Local Government Service Commission, who made the call at a workshop organised for the officers, said the bane of the Nigeria’s economy had been poor maintenance. “No matter the amount of money committed to the acquisition of capital assets and infrastructure, with poor maintenance it will become a waste of resources.’’ Babalola, who noted that lack of maintenance affected some of the country’s capital-intensive projects, such as the Ajaokuta Steel Company and Osogbo Steel Rolling Mills, underscored the importance of saving government facilities from neglect. Earlier, Mr Segun Ogunleye, the Managing Consultant of the Osogbo Asset Company, noted that with good maintenance facilities would last long. “Well maintained infrastructure has longer life span, and people will enjoy and benefit immensely from essential facilities provided for them.’’ Ogunleye urged the technical officers to learn to adopt proactive approach to maintenance to ensure longer life span and quality of government’s property. The the theme of the workshop is “Re-Inculcating Effective and Efficient Maintenance Culture in Service Delivery at the Local Government Level’’.
Abuja Minister Tasks Area Councils
Basic Amenities: ABUJA- The Minister of State, FCT, Ms Olajumoke Akinjide, has said that area councils in the FCT have the capacity to meet the people’s yearnings for functional health centres, portable water, better roads and sundry. Akinjide said this in Abuja while inaugurating various projects executed by the Abuja Municipal Council Administration (AMAC). The reports state that the projects include a health centre in Waru Apo; 1.5km road and borehole projects in Apo. Other projects are two blocks of teachers’ quarters in Government Secondary School, Tudun-Wada, Wuse District and donation of 10 vehicles to the
Water Supply
Official Urges Intervention ABUJA- FCT communities prone to cholera outbreak due to poor hygiene practices and water contamination need prompt intervention, an official has stressed. Dr Mohammed Dan-Hassan, Head, Rural Water Supply and Sanitation, FCT Water Board, stated this in Abuja in an interview with newsmen. DanHassan, who recalled reported cases of gastroenteritis in Mpape and Dei Dei communities of the FCT in April, said investigations by the board showed water pollution from latrines close to water sources. “Organisations like the public health, the primary healthcare, Water Board, even UNICEF, were all involved and the area councils made visits to the locations. “What was found was that the water sources in those places had a connection with their latrines; they had their toilets very close to where they had their wells and boreholes. “So, there was a link between the two; it means they had contamination from faecal matter and the communities were advised to ensure that their sources of water were far from any point of contamination.” He told newsmen that the FCT Water Board resorted to supplying water through tankers to the areas, to contain the situation. Dan-Hassan advised the communities to use uncontaminated sources while improving on their hygiene practices. “In places like Mpape, you have some places that the hygiene situation is very poor and a lot of awareness programmes are supposed to be done there so that the people will be educated. “Sometimes the people know these things but they take them for granted; so they need a lot of education and sensitisation to stop all these problems of contamination.
AMAC police command. Akinjide commended the chairman and council members for their commitment towards the provision of infrastructure, social amenities to the people and the council’s investment in security. “ I believe strongly that we have the capacity to meet the people’s yearnings for functional health centres, portable water, better roads and sundry. “The council can also provide entrepreneurship development programmes which would help to empower our youth and women, ’’ she said. Akinjide reiterated the minister ’s commitments to ensure security, law and order in the territory. She urged the leadership of AMAC not to rest on its oars but to continue to work to alleviate the sufferings of the people. She called for more empowerment programmes under which fresh graduates, schools leavers and women could be trained and assisted with the needed capital. Earlier, Micha Jiba, AMAC Chairman, said his administration would ensure all projects embarked upon were completed before the end of his tenure. He said the FCT administration would focus on education, electrification, primary healthcare development, water supply, rural road, security and sanitation.
L-R: Fellow, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Deacon Jide Soetan, ICAN President, Alhaji Kabir Mohammed, immediate past President, Mr. Doyin Owolabi and Registrar, Mr. Rotimi Omotosho, unveiling new Professional Examination Syllabus for ICAN in Lagos recently.
FG Advises Tertiary Institutions To Access Intervention Fund
ABUJA- President Goodluck Jonathan has advised tertiary institutions in the country to access the intervention fund provided by the Federal Government through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND). The president gave the advice in Abuja at a national conference on Transparency, Accountability and Ethical Values in tertiary institutions for sustainable development.
The conference was jointly organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), TETFUND and the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Ethics and Values. Jonathan, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Sen. Anyim Pius Anyim, said the delay by some institutions to access the funds was not in the interest of the
had aided electronically in the clearance of goods. He said the introduction of decentralisation of the issuance of transit permit and the introduction of direct trader input was significant in the sector. “All these measures have contributed positively in improving port efficiency and increasing revenue generation of the national economy. “The Nigerian customs has gone a long way in introducing electronic platform to enhance trade and all other organisations
Bello recalled that the port sector was characterised by high port cost, poor compliance to import and export guidelines and absence of coordination. He also noted administrative bottlenecks, congestion and corruption as some of the challenges. He said some of these challenges compelled the Federal Government to concession the port in 2006 to private terminal operators to increase the efficiency of the port.
Shippers’ Council Seeks Collaboration With are keying into these laudable ABUJA- The Nigerian Customs programmes,’’ he said.
Shippers’ Council has called for a strong collaboration with the Nigerian Customs Service to improve movement of transit cargoes in Nigeria. Mr Hassan Bello, the Executive Secretary of the council, made the call when he led a delegation to the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Alhaji Abdullahi Inde. Transit cargoes are goods imported by land-locked countries through other countries that have seaports. Bello said the transit cargo was an international obligation which the UN placed on Nigeria for land-locked countries to be assisted in facilitation of movement of cargoes without hindrance and impediment. He said synergy between the council and stakeholders in the port sector, especially the Nigerian customs, would promote efficiency, reduce port cost, encourage private investment and protect the investment of operators. He said Nigeria needed to allow for integration of terminal operators of shipping companies to enhance handling of transit cargoes. According to him, the council is planning a seminar to discuss specific issues concerning transit trade and its benefit to the country. Bello commended the custom service for the establishment of a trade hub and introduction of Single Window System which
nation’s educational development. “Under my watch, the tertiary education sector will continue to be supported in terms of incentives and supportive financing so that our dream of effective and result-oriented educational system can be achieved. “I have received reports from TETFUND that a good number of our tertiary institutions have failed to access the funds which runs into billions of naira. “I urge the respective institutions to do the needful in this regards because we must fast
forward the development of our tertiary institutions and we cannot allow nonchalance to slow us down,” he said. The president called for transparency and accountability in dispensing funds entrusted to managers of the nation’s tertiary institutions. He urged the conference participants to come up with innovative strategy that would enhance development in the country’s educational system. “I also urge you to put in place, a mechanism for monitoring the implementation of the decisions and outcome of this conference.
NGO Seeks Promotion Of Nigerian Languages ABUJA-Teenz Global Foundation, an NGO, has called for the promotion of the country’s languages to promote the country’s cultural heritage. Miss Ijeoma Idika-Chima, founder of the NGO, made the call as the country prepares to mark the world culture day on May 21 with the theme “ “Preserving the Nigerian
Culture’’. Idika-Chima stressed that the promotion of indigenous languages among Nigerian teenagers would preserve the nation’s culture. She called on parents to play their role of teaching their children and wards to speak and understand mother tongues.
Members of Solid Women Initiative for Development, Protesting over abducted Chibok School Girls in Abuja on Wednesday.
Business + Economy
Nigeria Reaps Over $68bn From World Economic Forum
ABUJA- The Freedom Organisation of Nigeria (FON), an NGO, has said that the just- concluded World Economic Forum for Africa (WEFA) had attracted over 68billion-dollar investments in Nigeria. Chief Frank Ohwofa, the Chairman of the organisation,
told newsmen in Abuja that the investment drive would cover all sectors of the economy. Ohwofa also noted that the global return on investment in Nigeria was the highest in the world today. According to him, it is worthy of note that this administration has recorded a
milestone by making Nigeria the largest economy in Africa and the most preferred investment destination in the continent. “The state of the economy of our country is on a good footing internally, externally and globally. “The World Economic
Forum for Africa has just been successfully concluded in Abuja with over 68-billiondollar investments already coming into various critical sectors of the economy. “All eyes of global investors
are on Nigeria and all that Nigeria can offer, and the return on investment in Nigeria is the highest in the world today.’’ He commended the Federal Government for its efforts at ensuring the rescue of the abducted Chibok school girls. He expressed optimism that the girls would be rescued with the support of all. “We want to commend the Federal Government for what it has shown to Nigerians, and the international community for its decisiveness to bring insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria to an end. “The new collaboration with other countries has further demonstrated the
administration’s commitment to bring a lasting solution to insecurity in the country.’’ According to him, the organisation will continue to support the president to end the insurgency in the country. Ohwofa urged politicians who have been using insurgency to heat up the polity to desist forthwith. He said that the “four years of President Jonathan will efflux in a twinkle of an eye, but the transformation the duo would have brought to Nigeria will last forever.” The organisation is seeking to create awareness on good governance and promote democratic culture in the country.
Abia Hands Over Palm Estate To Private Investor UMUAHIAThe Commissioner for Agriculture in Abia, Dr Ken Nwosu, said the State Government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with HoneyWell Group to takeover Abia Palm Estate. Nwosu told newsmen in Umuahia that the move was
Soldiers patrolling on Shehu Laminu way in Maiduguri recently.
NEXIM Disburses N1.11bn To Entertainment Industry
ABUJA- The Nigeria Export Import Bank (NEXIM) has said it disbursed N1.11 billion intervention fund to eight corporate entities in the country’s entertainment industry. The Managing Director, Mr Robert Orya, made this known when he briefed newsmen on the activities of the bank in Abuja. Orya said that the beneficiaries of the fund were among many others in the industry whose total value of request for assistance was about three billion naira. He said that a great chunk of the disbursed funds went to groups in cinema business. He said there were 60 screens of cinema with most of them located in Lagos, Ibadan and Kano, adding that the bank was determined to encourage the subsector to grow. “We are also considering the
issues of community cinemas too because we think that it will engage the people and also help to check piracy in the film industry. “One of the things we are happy about is the intervention of NEXIM in the creative and entertainment industry. “We pioneered President
Goodluck Jonathan’s directive that there should be a way of making entertainment industry to have access to funds; no other institution has come forth other than NEXIM. “We have over three billion naira applications from incorporated entities in the sector.
individuals but corporate entities and it places a lot of emphasis on infrastructure platform and that is the cinemas. He said the bank was taking after India’s model of developing the entertainment industry because of the successes it had recorded in it over the years. “We had to learn the Indian
States Urged To Resuscitate School Feeding Prog ABUJA- The Minister of Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, has urged various state governments to resuscitate the Home Grown School Feeding Programme (HGSF) launched in 2005. Wike, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Federal
Compensation: Dangote
Ministry of Education, Dr MacJohn Nwaobiala, made the call at a round table meeting on HGSFP in Abuja. He said the programme was in line with government’s commitment to reducing hunger among Nigerian children. The minister said the programme was important in
Group Pays N1.2bn
JALINGO- The Taraba Government said that Dangote Group had paid N1.2 billion to it as compensation for land acquired in Lau Local Government Area of the state. Alhaji Armaya’u Abubakar, the chairman of the committee set up for the screening and payment of compensation to the land owners, said this in Jalingo during the disbursement of the money in Jalingo. According to him, a total of 2,500 land owners captured by the committee would be compensated at the end of the exercise.
“And, looking at entertainment as a whole, fashion production, film production, cinema production, infrastructure platform, television and all that, for now what we have been able to give is N1.1 billion,” Orya said. According to him, NEXIM does not give money to
He, however, said that the disbursement would begin with 300 people on first phase, adding that subsequent payments would continue in phases. Abubakar said that the committee was always ready to receive complaints and observations from the land owners on possible errors in the screening exercise. He commended the Lau people for the high sense of maturity they exhibited throughout the screening, assuring them that the disbursement would be through e-payment for easy documentation.
A check point in Maiduguri.
shaping the future of children, who could face other risks such as hunger and parasitic worm infections that could lead to malnutrition and ill-health. He also said a survey by the ministry, in collaboration with UNICEF and other stakeholders, reported that 80 per cent of children in primary schools were
under weight with only 14 per cent having normal weight. He said the programme was aimed at improving their nutritional and health status, increase school enrolment, attendance, retention, completion, particularly of children in rural communities and poor urban neighbourhoods.
part of the efforts to revive the estate. He said government had revoked the contract with Sharrid firm, the investors that took over the estate last year. Nwosu said Sharrid failed to deliver on the MoU it signed with the government. “Sharrid failed to live up to the terms of the MoU with the government.’’ He also explained that government had revoked the contract for Ulonna North and South Farm Settlements with a private investor. The commissioner said that government had fully taken over the farms and was prepared to hand them over to new investors. He explained that the former investors were not remitting money to the government as contained in the MoU. The commissioner said the ministry would soon begin another phase of registration of farmers in the 17 Local Government Areas of the state. He a`dded that the measure was to enable more farmers in the state to benefit from the state and Federal Governments” agricultural programmes.
NSE DAILY ACTIVITY SUMMARY (EQUITIES) AS AT YESTERDAY (22/05/2014) Stocks
Open
Close
Change
Deals
Units
Value
NB
169.2
173.5
4.3
0
3,436,680
593,029,455.20
7UP
85.8
85.8
0
0
85,243
7,393,015.96
NEIMETH
1.12
1.07
-0.05
0
178,359
191,398.11
ABCTRANS
0.83
0.83
0
0
1,814,460
1,503,556.70
NEM
0.8
0.8
0
0
4,656,073
3,674,406.74
ACADEMY
1.8
1.71
-0.09
0
350,000
598,500.00
NESTLE
1070
1080
10
0
80,915
86,784,273.73
ACCESS
9.04
9.1
0.06
0
6,499,952
58,707,235.79
NEWGOLD
2030
2032
2
0
8
16,256.00
AFRIPRUD
3.29
3.25
-0.04
0
972,363
3,166,920.56
NIGERINS
0.5
0.5
0
0
115,000
57,500.00
AFRPAINTS
2.72
2.72
0
0
1,500
3,885.00
NIWICABLE
0.5
0.5
0
0
5,200
2,600.00
AGLEVENT
1.52
1.52
0
0
60,600
88,441.32
NNFM
22.01
22.01
0
0
14,061
294,015.51
AIICO
0.81
0.83
0.02
0
1,431,421
1,177,441.03
NPFMCRFBK
1.07
1.03
-0.04
0
1,701,956
1,818,191.72
AIRSERVICE
2.36
2.25
-0.11
0
208,500
470,085.00
NSE30
1781.18
1804.03
22.85
0
179,283,589
3,363,685,010.00
ASHAKACEM
19.4
19.85
0.45
0
5,698,747
112,107,903.10
NSE50
1928.57
1951.59
23.02
0
216,180,468
3,585,060,631.00
ASOSAVINGS
0.5
0.5
0
0
800,000
400,000.00
NSEASEM
950.94
950.94
0
0
21,000
10,500.00
AVONCROWN
1.54
1.61
0.07
0
377,939
607,661.87
NSEASI
39102.77
39552.99
450.22
0
310,684,187
3,709,447,072.00
BECOPETRO
0.5
0.5
0
0
3,550,830
1,775,415.00
NSEBNK
408.26
412.47
4.21
0
107,999,521
1,684,258,634.00
BERGER
9.7
10
0.3
0
207,835
2,067,673.69
NSECNSMRGDS
1003.11
1017.15
14.04
0
13,588,590
960,083,800.60
BETAGLAS
17.96
17.07
-0.89
0
90,000
1,536,700.00
NSEINDUSTR
2483.74
2499.15
15.41
0
7,571,807
255,897,783.60
BOCGAS
6.47
6.47
0
0
3,041
18,702.15
NSEINS
141.28
143.15
1.87
0
18,696,070
11,788,716.21
CADBURY
71
73.84
2.84
0
179,915
12,906,780.14
NSELOTUSISLM
2680.03
2698.57
18.54
0
12,741,708
526,487,963.50
332.62
348.82
16.2
0
3,609,406
134,418,055.30
CAP
37.51
37.51
0
0
238,492
8,706,514.48
NSEOILGAS
CAVERTON
8.16
7.76
-0.4
0
137,502
1,067,415.52
OANDO
17.41
18.28
0.87
0
3,080,165
55,824,293.86
CCNN
9.89
9.89
0
0
411,233
4,060,470.46
OASISINS
0.53
0.51
-0.02
0
617,000
314,795.00 1,331,798.40
CHAMS
0.5
0.5
0
0
35,000
17,500.00
OKOMUOIL
34
34
0
0
40,660
CILEASING
0.5
0.5
0
0
52,000
26,000.00
PAINTCOM
1.5
1.5
0
0
100,000
150,000.00
1.57
1.57
0
0
74,400
116,808.00
CONOIL
46.74
46.74
0
0
56,999
2,559,843.64
PHARMDEKO
CONTINSURE
1.02
1.02
0
0
246,800
253,970.50
PRESCO
35
35.1
0.1
0
288,405
10,149,075.98
CORNERST
0.5
0.5
0
0
967,240
483,620.00
PRESTIGE
0.57
0.57
0
0
55,016
30,259.30
COSTAIN
1.25
1.25
0
0
580,899
726,184.25
PZ
35.3
34.83
-0.47
0
395,521
13,785,663.34
COURTVILLE
0.66
0.63
-0.03
0
180,660
113,815.80
REDSTAREX
4.5
4.5
0
0
76,000
348,850.00
0.5
0.5
0
0
10,000,000
5,000,000.00
CUSTODYINS
2.73
2.67
-0.06
0
4,736,059
13,024,019.27
RESORTSAL
CUTIX
2
1.9
-0.1
0
159,533
303,112.70
ROYALEX
0.55
0.55
0
0
141,460
75,386.48
CWG
5.48
5.48
0
0
2,210
11,514.10
RTBRISCOE
1.06
1.04
-0.02
0
129,702
134,416.04
DAARCOMM
0.5
0.5
0
0
100,000
50,000.00
SEPLAT
636
636
0
0
11,116
7,012,770.00
DANGCEM
221
222.98
1.98
0
481,697
106,700,459.00
SKYEBANK
3.4
3.26
-0.14
0
7,512,809
24,731,770.24
DANGFLOUR
8
8
0
0
120,730
959,629.47
SKYESHELT
95
95
0
0
4
361
DANGSUGAR
9.59
9.51
-0.08
0
1,383,220
13,166,330.97
SOVRENINS
0.5
0.5
0
0
50,000
25,000.00
DIAMONDBNK
6.42
6.39
-0.03
0
4,211,495
26,914,587.47
STANBIC
22.41
22.41
0
0
105,202
2,356,555.21
DNMEYER
1.06
1.06
0
0
30,000
31,800.00
STERLNBANK
2.25
2.25
0
0
4,925,161
11,236,520.57
DUNLOP
0.5
0.5
0
0
150,000
75,000.00
TANTALIZER
0.5
0.5
0
0
6,500
3,250.00
25,500.00
TOTAL
156
156
0
0
11,265
1,765,287.00
EQUITYASUR
0.5
0.5
0
0
51,000
ETERNA
3.61
3.61
0
0
10,000
34,300.00
TRANSCORP
3.64
3.73
0.09
0
48,136,127
178,142,668.40
ETI
15.5
15.34
-0.16
0
7,392,037
113,924,469.60
UAC-PROP
17.05
17.8
0.75
0
475,696
8,088,254.25
EVANSMED
2.7
2.7
0
0
35,590
95,462.60
UACN
56.2
57
0.8
0
455,181
25,976,682.81
FBNH
13.26
13.65
0.39
0
20,883,703
284,756,205.50
UBA
7.19
7.19
0
0
6,180,316
44,356,400.56
FCMB
3.9
3.81
-0.09
0
3,652,479
13,911,307.91
UBCAP
2.4
2.42
0.02
0
4,076,052
9,775,205.38
FIDELITYBK
2.05
2.05
0
0
9,486,286
19,450,190.61
UBN
10.2
10.2
0
0
538,079
5,467,650.54
FIDSON
2.6
2.6
0
0
469,834
1,224,939.56
UNILEVER
49
49.53
0.53
0
2,335,672
115,641,765.60
FLOURMILL
70
70
0
0
72,989
5,140,737.31
UNIONDAC
0.5
0.5
0
0
1,484,375
742,187.50
FO
163.5
169.2
5.7
0
398,794
67,885,016.13
UNITYBNK
0.5
0.5
0
0
1,231,938
615,969.00
0.5
0.5
0
0
50,000
25,000.00
FTNCOCOA
0.5
0.5
0
0
8,819,183
4,409,591.50
UNITYKAP
GLAXOSMITH
67
67
0
0
178,409
11,954,512.00
UNIVINSURE
0.5
0.5
0
0
10,013,256
5,006,628.00
GUARANTY
27.5
28.15
0.65
0
43,024,466
1,185,505,233.00
UPL
4.16
4.16
0
0
74,700
325,280.00
GUINNESS
178.07
178.5
0.43
0
421,855
75,330,754.96
UTC
0.51
0.51
0
0
30,941
15,779.91
HONYFLOUR
3.81
4
0.19
0
1,148,801
4,510,417.92
VETGRIF30
17.99
18.16
0.17
0
50
908
IKEJAHOTEL
0.85
0.86
0.01
0
5,539,225
4,675,226.17
VITAFOAM
4.15
4.11
-0.04
0
2,490,133
10,005,987.10
INTBREW
25.6
25.5
-0.1
0
238,476
6,059,744.86
WAGLASS
0.63
0.63
0
0
5,356,800
3,374,784.00
INTENEGINS
0.5
0.5
0
0
25,410
12,705.00
WAPCO
109.51
110.01
0.5
0
184,270
20,264,950.17
IPWA
0.52
0.52
0
0
4,000
2,000.00
WAPIC
0.85
0.81
-0.04
0
1,001,416
811,166.96
JAPAULOIL
0.5
0.5
0
0
1,534,940
767,470.00
WEMABANK
0.96
0.94
-0.02
0
14,855,089
13,904,284.06
1,947,216.28
ZENITHBANK
22.9
23.25
0.35
0
8,298,992
191,296,811.90
JBERGER
72
72
0
0
26,622
JOSBREW
3.24
3.08
-0.16
0
358,096
1,143,793.28
LEARNAFRCA
1.82
1.73
-0.09
0
21,900,261
39,808,089.99
LIVESTOCK
3.04
3.03
-0.01
0
525,244
1,574,276.07
MANSARD
2.3
2.41
0.11
0
98,848
238,223.68
MAYBAKER
1.61
1.6
-0.01
0
432,328
694,826.16
MBENEFIT
0.5
0.5
0
0
10,000
5,000.00
MOBIL
120.03
124.9
4.87
0
51,470
6,314,434.68
MRS
51.49
51.49
0
0
713
34,879.96
MULTITREX
0.5
0.5
0
0
200
104
NAHCO
5
5
0
0
1,016,771
5,071,352.27
NASCON
13.19
12.75
-0.44
0
1,184,379
15,075,228.51
TOP 10 GAINERS NSEASI 450.22 NSE50 23.02 NSE30 22.85 NSELOTUSISLM 18.54 NSEOILGAS NSEINDUSTR 15.41 NSECNSMRGDS 14.04 NESTLE FO MOBIL
TOP TOP 10 10 LOSERS GAINERS
39552.99
Stock
1951.59
BETAGLAS PZ NASCON CAVERTON ETI JOSBREW SKYEBANK AIRSERVICE CUTIX INTBREW
1804.03 2698.57 348.82 2499.15
16.2
1017.15 1080 169.2 124.9
10 5.7 4.87
Close 17.07 34.83 12.75 7.76 15.34 3.08 3.26 2.25 1.9 25.5
Loss -0.89 -0.47 -0.44 -0.4 -0.16 -0.16 -0.14 -0.11 -0.1 -0.1
MORE than any other issue in Nigeria today, the greatest concern has been the security condition of the country. ALMOST on a daily basis, there are accounts of several security threats arising from armed robberies, assassinations, armed militancy and banditry, kidnapping, bombings and of recent, the blood-let from a religious sect called the Jaamatus Alhus Sunnah Lid Daawatis Wal Jiliad (otherwise called Boko Harm) who say they are opposed to Western education and are ready to attack every vestige of western civilization. INDEED, the rate of crime and criminality, as exemplified in the high incidence of kidnapping, bombings and other organised crimes has sadly moved from the realm of security threat to an area of real and present danger. THE frightening security condition in Nigeria has not only been a source of worry, it has also dented Nigeria’s International status. FOR instance, on August 26, 2011 the terrorist group, Boko Haram bombed the United Nations (UN) Headquarters in Abuja, the nation’s Federal capital city. The consequences of that attack, as of today, are yet to abate. IN the wake of the UN building attack, Nigeria, lost her hosting right of the global food security meeting of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAQ) which was moved from Abuja, to Senegal. The meeting was an assemblage of experts and food administrators all over the globe. ASIDE the UN building bombing on August 26, 2011 that claimed 23 lives including 11 UN personnel, local Islamic fundamentalist sect, Boko Haram, had until late, been orchestrating series of isolated attacks predominantly in Northern Nigeria.
THE NIGERIAN
Security And Intelligence Sharing The sect is believed to be targeting centres of international attraction, especially in the Federal Capital Territory. CURIOUSLY, the presidential committee on security challenges in the North East Zone has identified security lapses, inter-service rivalry and lack of collaboration as factors that have encouraged the proliferation of security crises in the Northern part of the country. It also blamed the security breaches on high level of poverty, unemployment and other social ills. THE NIGERIAN OBSERVER is however of the considered opinion that serious security collaboration and intelligence sharing must be urgently evolved to arrest security breaches and this needs to go beyond the shores of the nation. The federal government must build inter-agency cooperation through diplomatic channels/pacts, and international intelligence to ensure that crime of whatever scale is nipped in the bud. MOST importantly, there is the overriding need to promptly move to demilitarize the Nigerian society and reduce the heavy influx of arms and ammunition in the country which have unfortunately gone into the wrong hands. TO this extent, the Customs and Immigration Services, in tandem with the Ministry of Interior should work round the
clock to protect the porous Nigerian borders. SOMETHING fundamental equally needs to be done to reduce, if not totally eliminate the existence of private militias that were established, funded and used by politicians and individuals who later dumped them after having been trained to handle arms. ALSO, the various security agencies, beside the need to be technologically equipped and funded to carry out their assigned tasks, would need to be restructured. The structure and duties of our security agencies must be revisited so as to ensure that each organ very well knows its specific roles and function, while the laws establishing these agencies must be made clear on who does what. THE government at all levels, particularly the federal government, urgently needs to carry out reforms in the security sub-sector to eliminate inertia created by inter-agency rivalry and react decisively to security threats with dispatch. ON their part, the citizens must cooperate with the security agencies by supplying them with prompt, useful and relevant information on likely security breaches. This can be facilitated by the existence of a wellcoordinated biometric database of Nigerians and non-Nigerians alike indicating where people live, their nature of jobs and background. This will assist in fishing out the bad eggs in the society. DECISIVE steps should be taken to cripple Boko Haram Sect and their operations as well as end their menacing reign. If anything, a safe, secure and peaceful environment is what the present democracy needs to be strengthened and sustained, as such the government and people of Nigeria cannot afford to leave this to the whims and caprices of miscreants.
All praise is for Allah who created and ordered us to keep the ties of kinship intact and forbade us from being ungrateful. He further confirmed the right of a Muslim over another Muslim. The neighbour has a right over his neighbour even if he is not a Muslim or is a sinner. We praise Allah and put our trust in Him. I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah Alone having no partners with Him. He is the creator who created everything other than Himself. May peace and prayers be upon our master Muhammad who spoke the best of speech. May peace and blessing be upon him, his family, and his companions who fulfilled all of the people’s rights required from them and upon everyone that follows their guidance. One of those moral virtues the Prophet taught and encouraged us to practice is good neighbourliness. Good neighbourliness is such a high moral virtue that if it is practiced well, it is capable of creating peaceful and harmonous co-existence between people of different faiths, religions and races. Especially in this multi-religious and multicultural world we live in, that is turning into a global village, we are in need of such lofty moral values with respect to good treatment of our neighbours This is why Allah kept sending Angel Jibreel to impress upon the Prophet the rights of our neighbours until the Prophet thought that they might be included among those who would inherit from us when we die. The Prophet teaches us that we must at least know who our neighbours are and be concerned about their well-being. Nowadays in big cities, many people live in the same block of flats or on the same street for many years without knowing each other. Robbers or gangsters in the neighbourhood may attack some body without the person’s neighbours caring or coming to help. In the Islamic sense of the word, a neigbhour is not just the person who lives next door to you or in your own neigbhourhood. Rather, a fellow student, a colleague at work, or a fellow traveler on a journey are all regarded as neigbhours, and treating them with care and kindness is considered part of worshipping Allah. The moral high ground manifested by Islam is that neigbhours must be given the best treatment in terms of mercy, kindness and sympathy as is found in the Qur’an and was practiced as a part of the lifestyle of Prophet Muhammad. The Prophet said: If you believe in Allah and the Last Day do not harm your neighbour. And you are a believer, if your neighbour is not safe in your hands. A man asked: O’ Prophet of Allah, how shall I know whether a man is good or bad? He said: When you hear your neigbhour say “He is good” he is really good. If you hear him say “he is bad” he is really bad. Therefore no one harms his neigbhour except an ill-mannered person who is wicked and evil minded. The Prophet said: There are three classes of neigbhours. The first class of neigbhour has three (3) rights over you. The right of neigbhour the right of being a relative - and the right
Voice Of
Islam
Every Friday With Mallam Abdulfattah Enabulele Chief Imam of Benin
Good Neighbourliness of being a Muslim. The second class of neigbhour has two (2) rights over you. The right of being a neigbhour; and the right of being a Muslim. The third class of neigbhour has a right. The right of being a Muslim. As your fellow Muslim has right over you, so is your neigbhour who is not a Muslim. Islam has made it incumbent upon Muslims to be kind and benevolent regardless of their neigbhour’s religion. The most disgusting and revolting neigbhours are those who search for their neigbhours faults and deficiencies. They would not mind looking into people’s privacy and they can not be entrusted with people’s lives, religion, money or property. The Prophet has said: He who believes in Allah and the last Day should not harm his or her neigbhour. He who believes in Allah and the Last Day should show hospitality to his or her neigbhour and guest. And he who believes in Allah and the Last Day should speak good or remain silent. Some of us do not care about others if they themselves are comfortable. They would not mind if all the people were annoyed by them and angry with them. They would not mind even if their reputation was hurt so long as they satisfy their lusts and joys. Their lusts and desires are fulfilled and their needs are met, so it does not matter if all these were satisfied at the expense of their honour, dignity, or reputation. For that reason, these people are despised by others, hated by their neighbours and have a disgusting reputation among their contemporaries. O’ Muslims, it is truly shameful to go to sleep with a full stomach while your neigbhour is hungry. It is shameful to always wear new clothes, yet be so stingy that you would not even give your neigbhour your used clothes to cover his or her nudity. It is shameful to enjoy all the good things you have- good, clothes, perfume and much more – while your neigbhour long for bones and dry bread.
Are you aware of what the Prophet said regarding giving things away to your neigbhour even if it were a little thing? To render assistance to your fellow human being whether being neigbhour or not is charity. The Prophet said: When you cook, add more extra to take care of your neigbhour (by sending them some of it). Islam is a perfect and a complete way of life. Don’t give Islam a bad name through your behaviour. Your neigbhour has right upon you, which you must fulfill. These rights are easy to fulfill: I shall mention them as a reminder: When you meet with him or run into him accidentally, you should greet him or her. When he or she falls sick, you should visit him. When he or she dies, you should attend the funeral ceremony and pay attention to his children just like a father will do to his children. You must stand by him in happiness, grief, hardship and ease. Show sympathy in his distress, be sorry in his sorrows, be happy in his happiness, share enjoyments in his happiness. Pardon his faults. Don’t trouble him by replacing your rafters on his wall. Don’t allow the water from your house flow into his compound. Don’t make the path to his house narrow and take care of his house in his absence. A man asked the Prophet about a woman who observe both the obligation and Nawafi prayers regularly and fasted much. Yet she would hurt her neigbhour. The Prophet answered: “She is in the fire of Hell”. The man asked again about another woman who only did her obligations in terms of praying and fasting, yet she gave charity with big pieces of yogurt and never harmed her neigbhour. The Prophet said: “She is in paradise”. O Muslims! It is prohibited for you to peek into your neigbhour’s house, especially while he is not paying attention.
“In the Islamic sense of the word, a neigbhour is not just the person who lives next door to you or in your own neigbhourhood. Rather, a fellow student, a colleague at work, or a fellow traveler on a journey are all regarded as neigbhours, and treating them with care and kindness is considered part of worshipping Allah”
It is prohibited for you to cheat him and have relations with his wife. You should know that he, who looks into his neigbhour’s house without his permission, would have his eyes filled from Hell-fire. It is forbidden upon you to try to listen to what your neigbhour says in his house like spies do, which would make him insecure with you being his neigbhour and never trust you with what he says or does. If you are not able to be good and kind with your neighbour or acknowledge his favour upon you, then do not harm him and keep your evil away from him. Let him relax in his home and visit him when he invites you. When he consults you, advise him. If he is oppressed, give him your help, support and defense. Yet if he is the oppressor, help him by stopping him from oppression. If he does well, compliment him and if he does wrong, pardon him. If he corrupts, do not approve of his corruption and remember that on Judgment Day many will be grabbing their neigbhours, each one saying: “O Lord! This is my neigbhour who closed his door in my face and deprived me of his good advice while witnessing my evil.” Allah likes the neigbhour who is patient upon his neigbhour’s harms until one day Allah will help him, either by moving him away from that neigbhour. It is idiocy and stupidity for people to file complaints with the authorities against their neigbhours for the bickering and quarrels that occur among the women or children. The Prophet also forbade building walls or raising the houses so high that such would cause harm for the neigbhour and might block the wind from reaching the neigbhour’s house. Abdullahi Tustari has a non-Muslim neigbhour. The run off from the neigbhour’s toilet, which contained faece matter and urine, flowed into Abdullahi’s house. Abdullahi used to collect this filthy water in a container, and late at night he would go out and throw it away while no one was observing it. Abdullahi continued his practice for a long time, until he was on his deathbed. Then he called his Magian neigbhour and told him to come into his house and see what was happening. The neigbhour saw the filthy water flowing from his house to Abdullahi house. Abdullahi said: for a long time I have been collecting it by day and disposing of it by night. Now I am dying, and I am afraid of making your fault known to whomever occupies my house after my death. That is why I have told you about this. The Magian then said: “O Shaikh, you have been so considerate of me all this time, and yet I have remained an unbeliever! Please stretch out your hand. I testify that there is no deity except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. A little while later, Abdullahi breathed his last, may Allah have mercy on him. Following the advice of the Holy Prophet would solve many problems facing humanity today. We ask Allah to guide us to the best of behaviour and good character. May Allah make us among the best of his creatures, and may He bless us all with the good favours and provisions that He bestows upon us. May He protect us from harming our neigbhours and from ignoring his rights upon us.
Insight
IS Nigeria a paradise on the verge of collapse? Is Nigeria a weak or a fragile state? Or Nigeria is already an established state? These are questions begging for answers as the nation is under siege facing a number of security challenges keeping the country at her knees. Experts and scholars have continued to hold divergent views about the position of Nigeria especially now that she is facing difficult times as a result of the obstacles and huddles before her. The nation since independence has continued to grapple with challenges which come from economy, social, agriculture, education, security and in almost all the sectors. Our oil boom which ought to be a blessing became a curse and an instrument to debate the fragility of the nation with the coming on board of militancy in the Niger-Delta region. Assassination has become the only way of settling dispute between rivals and you see killings in broad day light and the perpetrators walk free. Kidnapping and robbery have now become the order of the day among our youths who want to make money on the fast lane not minding the cost. As these issues continued unabated, our politicians have engaged themselves in political struggle for power recruiting political thugs to intimidate, molest, harass and get power by force not minding the long time implication of their selfish action on the nation and her citizens. Today, the birth of that negative political struggle has led to the fuelling of terrorism in Nigeria and the dreaded Islamic group Boko Haram came to existence and her citizens are now
under attack by this sect. The happenings in Nigeria, the acclaimed giant of Africa make one to doubt the stability of the nation, no wonder some scholars believe that Nigeria is weak and fragile and the marriage of 1914 through amalgamation by the then governor general of Nigeria Dr. Fredrick Lugard is
Is Nigeria A Paradise On T A University Don Mr. Iro Aghedo a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Social Science and from Department of Political Science in UNIBEN was invited to handle the topic “Nigeria a paradise on the
discharge certain responsibility and functions associated it. “The topic before me today is “Nigeria a paradise in the verge of collapse”. The question we intend to find a solution to during the
verge of collapse” He x-rayed the state as an entity; why it is called a state and what is expected of a state to do for the citizens. He said some state fail because they struggle to meet up with the challenges and responsibility of sovereignty. He said the issue of determining weather a state is established, weak or fragile lies in her ability to
course of this lecture is where the Nigeria state lies on this spectrum and pendulum”? Can Nigeria be said to be a consolidated, institutionalised, or well established state? Or can it be referred to as a fragile or a weak state? Or is it a collapse state? Hopefully, at the end of this lecture we should be able to pin point where Nigeria lies on the spectrum”.
Continuing Mr. Aghedo said Nigeria is also well known for several good things all over the world, even though we battle with the label of corruption, poor image and several negativities we still have some good side and great
President Goodluck Jonathan
threatened today. Answering the many questions on the true state of Nigeria has prompted the Achievers class of International Studies and Diplomacy Department 2007/2008 set of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) to organise a programme to lay the cards on Nigeria and answer the questions on the state of Nigeria.
“Nigeria produces the first black man to win the Nobel price for literature in the person of prof. Wole Shoyinka as far back as 1986. The feat achieved by Chinu Achebe with Things Fall Apart which was translated to over fourty languages is still been celebrated even after his death.”
future. “Nigeria is a highly respected soccer nation in the World. Our footballers have won several laurels for this nation. Apart from this, Nigerians have won many laurels from other diverse areas like literature, computer and the likes. Nigeria produces the first black man to win the Nobel price for literature in the person of prof. Wole Shoyinka as far back as 1986. The feat achieved by Chinu Achebe with Things Fall Apart which was translated to over fourty languages is still been celebrated even after his death. Beyond these literary Icons, we have people like Prof. Philip Emeguale who is a computer wizard. Emeka Ayonku is another success
By RICHARD OKOR
story of the positive side of Nigeria. These people are global figures that have made Nigeria proud in their various fields of endeavours. So it is not all about negativity, we have some positive side. There are different scholars that have come up with postulation on where Nigeria lies in the spectrum or pendulum. Importantly, since Nigeria is still struggling with discharging the duties, functions and responsibilities associated with statehood we can not refer to Nigeria as an established state. The reasons for this we will get as we go on in the lecture. Since the Nigeria nation is able to ensure this type of gathering today, and Nigeria is also able to provide protection for some visitors in the country, we can not also refer to Nigeria as a failed or collapse state. So that leaves us with only one option which is “Nigeria is a weak and fragile state”. It is fragile in the sense that it is not totally able to discharge those responsibilities that we applied earlier on including ensuring law and order, providing social security for the vulnerable especially, ensuring strict adherence to fundamental human rights as well as ensuring the protection of lives and properties. What are the manifestations of state fragility in Nigeria? Firstly, the pervasive corruption in the nation is most worrisome. Aghedo said in 2007, an American Anthropologist prof. Jordan Smith who got married to an Igbo woman, wrote a book titled “The culture of corruption in Nigeria” agued in that book that corruption in Nigeria is no longer an act but a culture. To Nigerians, corruption is now a way of life. When you travel through Nigeria roads, you see policemen demanding for bribe from drivers and when drivers refuse to pay,
you the and wh bas tak and Per app ma fra A Ah Pov exi lon “I for Am the “da col of s fro the Nig Nig N of oil cru sta pro gra Ni equ hum beg is dev is peo po wo hav ago en ski en res Ni be sta Ni exc po sch T hig one the Nig of res tra de cou als
Insight
The Verge Of Collapse?
RO EWEKA
u see passengers urging em to part with money d not delay them. This is hat we see on a daily sis. The larger corruption kes place in the offices d corridors of power. rvasive corruption has peared to be one of the ajor reasons for Nigeria agility. Another point raised by hedo is that of poverty. verty has threatened the istence of this nation for ng. According to Ahedo have a book written by rmer American mbassador to Nigeria and e book was titled ancing on the brink of llapse”. This is the issue state collapse originated om. In this said book, ere is a chapter titled “if geria is so rich why are gerians so poor”? Nigeria is said to be one the largest producer of in the world. Apart from ude oil and gas which the ate is known for, Nigeria oduces the largest aduate in the world. In geria, we have well uipped and endowed man capital but people gin to wonder why this not translated into velopment. The country so rich in oil, gas and ople, yet the state is so or. People are left ondering, even scholars ve argued several years o that when a state is dowed with highly illed people as well as dowed with natural sources like we have in geria that state will come a modernised ate. But the case of geria has been an ception from that theory stulated by these holars. The corruption we ghlighted earlier on is e of the reasons we have e huge wealth of the gerian state in the form materials and human sources have not anslated into velopment for the untry. Beyond this, we so have the issue of
unemployment. Unemployment in Nigeria is like a time bomb waiting to explode if it has not already exploded. The time bomb which unemployment is in the country was demonstrated at the disaster experienced in the last recruitment exercise embarked on by Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) which claimed over 15 lives
most formidable at the moment given the country and security agent a sleepless night is the bombing of Boko Haram. The group succeeded in bombing Abuja twice with the heavy security, this has further told us that we are in a fragile and weak state. Mr. Aghedo said beyond all these, the issue of damage and poor image is
otherwise. Indeed, Nigeria is a fragile and a weak state. How do we get out from this especially the Boko Haram insurgency? Today the Boko Haram issue that started as a very small issue have become a very big issue to Nigeria. It is only God that is protecting Nigeria. If Boko Haram can succeed in Abuja, why can’t they succeed in other states?
to reduce the level of poverty in the Northern part of the country and also ensure that the literacy and ignorant level in the region reduce. The government should ensure and fashion out method of terrorism management. There should also be the carrot method. This will reduce the insurgency in the country. Our leaders should ensure they get the notion of government right as this will bring the dividend of
Participant at the reunion/get together of achievers class of UNIBEN
with hundred wounded across the country. These deaths were as a result of the corrupt nature in the recruitment system of the body. Unemployment is now a part and a fact in the Nigerian lives. It is even responsible for the high level of insecurity we face as a nation. Insecurity has dominated the headline in the media in recent times. This has become an issue in Nigeria as such day in day out both the international and local media have continued to focus on the issue of insecurity in the nation. There is very high level of insecurity in Nigeria whether you look at it from the part of the Fulani helmsmen or the Boko Haram insurgency or kidnapping or arm robbery or militancy, insecurity is facing us as a nation bluntly. The
most worrisome as Nigerians are treated like second class citizens around the world especially when they travel out of the shores of this country. This poor and collapsed image is as a result of many of the manifestation of state fragility in the country. Our leaders travel abroad and they saw how a state functions and works but return to Nigeria to do
When you look at the profile of the foot soldiers they are very poor as such become easy prey for Boko Haram to recruit. A lot of them come from the Almagiri co-hurt, they wonder in the streets and are carried away with little inducement and ready to carry out bombing. If we must over come this issue we must get the notion and practices of government right. The government needs
democracy to the people of this country but at the moment the dividend of democracy is far from the people. The preterm public relations officer (PRO) Uyi Omosefe thanked all the members and guest for finding time to attend the ceremony which has open another chapter in the history of the group and that of the state. “The event was
perfect, great and well attended. The experience was wonderful; the deliberation was great moving a step further in focusing on the state and how to contribute to her development. Earlier, while delivering an address to all members and guests present at the third edition of the reunion, the preterm President Mr. Osamuyi Eyemwonmwen thanked all who have contributed one way or the other to make the programme a huge success. He said the group is involved in alliance and collective security of the state and that of the country not minding their differences. “To us, good fences make good neighbours, we have kept relating with ourselves, sharing ideas that will not only enhance our growth but also the growth of the state and that of Nigeria which we all belong to. We are all gathered here today not only to have a nice time under this platform but also to listen to a University Don from the Political department in the University of Benin Mr. Iro Aghedo who will create a platform to examine our nation in this difficult times especially looking at the Boko Haram insurgency in the nation. The title of the lecture “Nigeria a paradise in the verge of collapse” created a platform for participant to examine the nation and judge from their own perspective weather Nigeria is an established, weak, or a fragile state taken into consideration the present happenings in the nation”. Eyemwonmwen hoped that in the nearest future the group would be among the strongest state actors in international relations.
“There is very high level of insecurity in Nigeria whether you look at it from the part of the Fulani helmsmen or the Boko Haram insurgency or kidnapping or arm robbery or militancy, insecurity is facing us as a nation bluntly.”
Art Alive
With Francis Odupute
Onobrakpeya: Mask Of The Flaming Arrows - Book Review
Editor: Publisher: Number of Pages: Reviewer:
D Jegede 5 Continents Editions, Milan 400 Prof. Ola Oloidi
THE above book is made up of 5 main parts: the preliminaries, texts, persona] note testimonies and curriculum vitae. The preliminaries contain the table of contents, foreword, preface, acknowledgements and artist’s notes. The texts contain II articles sourced r4 from art scholars, while personal notes cover • Bruce Onobrakpeva’s comments on his art works. There are also testimonies from notable people and print media within and outside Africa. The curriculum vitae accommodates the life and professional experiences of Dr. Bruce Onobrakpeya. I will here address all the above One by one, starting with the foreword. The foreword, written by the President of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, expresses his joy in writing a foreword to a book that appropriately covers Bruce Onohrakpeya’ entire experimental and innovative art and his glutinous contribution n our to modern art development but also to nation building. The President recommends the book to all art practitioners and those interested in modern Nigerian art. In the acknowledgements. Dele Jegede necessarily appreciate the efforts of all those who have contributed to the book. He has a very brief nostalgic reflection on Onohrakpeyas art development and mentions how the essays ] this book emerged: before addressing the contextual compathr1entali/atioi of the hook, Having examined the preliminary part of the book, it is necessary to frontally and very atmospherically review all the essays, as objectively as possible. Dele Jegede’ s “Ruminations on Onobrakpeya Bruce Onobrakpeya: The Legacy”, an
introduction, refuses to indulge in any art historical rehearsals that are already commonly domesticated literatures on Bruce Onobrakpeya. He, therefore, focuses on the soul and not the body of the artist’s career. lie begins with patronage which he sees as the a determine of an artist’s success. Creative prosperity, artistic continuity and cultural preservation. He frowns on some that are septic to art patronage in Nigeria also, reveals some anti- depressing antidotes that have been provided by some artistically possessed people, like Rashidi Gbadamosi. He believes that, as already symbolized by Bruce Onobrakpeya. art patronage can bring professional jubilation, aggressive experience and unclogged creative development in Nigeria. Jegede address—s the Zaria story but as promised, in a way that does not help fertilize the historical boredom that has put the 7 discussion under stress. He silently, but pinchingly, berates the rather scratching art historical attitude that dcenergizes the manifestly ideological or philosophical, political, nationalistic as well as culturistic positions of the Zaria Art Society of which, very pying Dr. Bruce Onobrakpeya was a dynamically visible part. Jegcdc points out how the radical art commune of Zaria gave Bruce the initial anointed weapons to challenge like other Zarianists, the imperialistic effusions of his period, thereby clearing his path to creative and ideological radicalism. Jegede’s “Onobrakpeya’s Ascendancy is not only a cherishing metaphor The the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, it also reveals those things that have given Bruce
FRANCODUS ON FRIDAY
Onobrakpeya a golden md sLiperiol eepter of art image in Nigeria. These are sympathetic and engaging humility, undaunted ability to recognize early, in the spirit of Zarianisin, his innate, well traditionally cultured creative potential that snubbed Occidental art mode. Jegede explains how Onobrakpeya, being a fanatically committed artist, has
triumph over religious igi during the visu art controversy between hlni and the Catholic Church. Jegede also sees Ibadan as the Mecca and Jerusalem P where Bruce Onobrakpeya received the search il for his unassailable creative development. In conclusion, he confirms
David Okpako’s “Accessing Culture through Art: Bruce Onobrakpeya in Urhobo Myths” corroborates the fact that Onobrakpeya isa man of many creative parts. He discusses his artistic indigenization with utmost loyalty to his Urhobo culture which gives Onobrakpey&s art venerative or mythical
modernized the culture of art professionalization or devotion to studio practice;’ thereby giving pride and dignity to art and artists. He also acknowledges Onobrakpeya’s Urhobo subject matters and his greatly historical and artistic
Onobrakpeya’s creative dominance, unmatched experimentation, mythical creativity, foresight, among others that make the artist an innovator, documentator, ideologist, critic and preserver of culture.
subject matters. Okpako gives some of the artist’s works detailed iconographic interpretations, while he also cxposes the anthrop1lo ingredients of his art works generally. $ “Bruce Onobrakpeya’s Art: An
Analytical Approach to the Configuration of Form” by Frank Ugiomob distils Onobrakpeya’s convulsive obsession for new ideas and, therefore, new forms. After some synthetic and affinitive historical references and overview review of Dr. Onobrakpeya’s works. Ugiomoh takes a well guided trip to analyse or exteriorise the artist’s multi-lingual, if not encyclopedic, formal language. Ugiomoh does not, however, forget to occasionally reveal the politically unpretentious conceptual intentions of some works. Definitely, Ugiomoh’s formal analysis has exposed the grace and honour that are the loud attributes of Onobrakpeya’ s art. He concludes that, the art works of Bruce are, generally, an en of uniquely reformed styles that cut across visual history. Olakunle Filani’s “The Visual Translation of Urhobo Myths, Legends, and Philosophies in Bruce Onobrakpeya Prints” briefly vaporizes Onobrakpeya’s art for wider historical knowledge. He addresses the factors that initially induced his interest in his Urhobo culture Fulani piercingly scans those visual elements that make Onobrakpeya’s works, including prints, uniquely Onobrakpeyaic; stylistically, culturally, historical and philosophically. JohnTokpabere Agberia’s contribution, “Shifting Space, Reordering Art: The Harmattan Workshops of Bruce Ohobrakpeya as Interventionist in Modern Nigerian Art”, starts with the examination of the historical foundation of art workshops in Nigeria. It examines how artists, generally, are not geographically sedentary in their professionality; which is why Bruce Onobrakpeya’s Harrnattan has not less than 5 creative and intellectually telling and universalistic objectives. (To Be Continued)
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Art And Culture
With AMBROSE EKHOSUEHI
“The possessed person may preside over worship in a community or practice a form of divination. Divinities are those that belong to central services and are objects of religious faith and worship.” A sovereign ruler is consecrated in religious ceremony and has been credited with mystical powers for the services of kingdom. A divine king is more than a sacred ruler living pledge of divine favour for the people in spirit possession. Spirit possession is being grasped by ultimate concern. It is other worldly falling in love. It is revealed in retrospective as an undertow of existential consciousness, as fated acceptance of
Spirit Possessing Culture SPIRIT possessing is the principle of thought, mind and mental powers that a spirit is submerging someone’s personality of speaking and acting through the person. There are numerous spirits with more or less spheres of influence and activity. Spirit is the principle of thought or incorporeal being, Ghost, speaking or acting in person. Spirit possession performs actions conforming to the identity of the spirit which is thought of possessing the person. The identity and character of the spirit depends on the particular
content. The possessed person is the channel of communication with the spirits on behalf of other persons. The possessed person may preside over worship in a community or practice a form of divination. Divinities are those that belong to central services and are objects of religious faith and worship. The possessed person feels double and is not in control of what is saying. The sounds, speaks or dialects from the possessed person may be intelligible as a known language but often there is a greater or less distortion. Sometimes the sound may
be an unknown language, intelligible, ascribe to a dialect not spoken by the hearers or listeners. During conversation or interrogation the dissociated person is susceptible to suggestion and may be led by the interrogator to give responses that conform to the social-cultural context. A diviner is a specialist in spirit possession based on a combination of chance and manipulation in varying degrees for the purpose of discovering hidden knowledge, usually an effect produced by chance and is interpreted in the light of tradition and the client’s
circumstances. A seer is one who interprets events in a moral, religious or political sense on behalf of a people. In spirit possession prophets believe that their minds, wills, words and actions have been taken over by the spirit, so that they have been compelled to deliver the message of the spirit. In traditional ethnic religion, heads of families, clans and political leaders often have priestly functions and are medium of spirit possession. Priests officiate in religious worship on behalf of community.
“Spirit possession in moral conversion changes the criterion of one’s decision and choice from satisfaction to values. Spirit possession does not need to hear sermons or the like in order to have the experience of grace-poured into the hearts.”
vocation to holiness, perhaps an increasing simplicity and passivity in prayer. It is interpreted differently in the context of different religious traditions. It is the gift of grace. Spirit possession in moral conversion changes the criterion of one’s decision and choice from satisfaction to values. Spirit possession does not need to hear sermons or the like in order to have the experience of gracepoured into the hearts. Spirit possession is the holy mystery in which a person comes in the objective reality of every day life, both in the involvement of action and in the intellectual activity of the thought and comprehension, actualizing as the condition which makes possible such involvement and comprehension of the spirit possession. When spirit possession is considered from the Pentecost view point, every nation heard the
Apostles, each in their own language speaking the mighty acts of God. No one needed interpretations, all were hearing and understanding the mysteries with the divine realm. Nowadays such possession might be possible with ever increasing technology which possesses every tongue to its kind. Children are persuaded, cajoled, ordered, compelled to do what is right; and as knowledge of human reality increases, responses to human values are strengthened and refined. The mentors leave so that freedom may exercise its advancing thrust towards authenticity. People understand reality when grasp with the laws that governs its conduct in such a way that can predict the way it ought to be in behavioural principle. This is to say that the full knowledge of spirit possession, self consciousness is normative principle that must guide all human beings who contemplate on vision to change the world in religious culture. Spirit possession, mediumship, psychic, glossolalia, seer, are faculties of prophetic possession in culture, but differ from magic, the automatic forces that gives the person who knows their techniques. Forces for radical change exist within the society, such radical change begins in the mind, a change of mentality or human society; renews itself constantly in spirit possessing culture.
Musings
Nigeria, Worst Place To Be A Woman!
I am taking this new report by the United Nations personal, and who knows, I may at the end of the murmuring, be speaking the minds of the host of Nigerian women both here in this bomb-blast crate called Nigeria and in the not-so fantastic Diaspora! Now women are torn in the confusion between whether to have their children remain in this boiling lava of insurgency, violence and aggression or to send them to uncertain terrains abroad where they will be pushed to their death from high rise buildings by
cannot afford decent meals for their families are compelled to borrowing for the propagation of the gospel or the elongation of the pastor’s stomach, or the building of ‘Mission’ schools they would eventually not afford to send their children to, they shouldn’t murmur or else they will draw the wrath of God. I am happy that Pastor Eghosa Idehen appreciated that the church creates a platform for women to murmur, so there would be equitable sharing of God’s wrath on the day of reckoning!
digression, please. I was talking about the new report by the United Nations on the reproductive status of women in Nigeria. Although the report shows a 45 percent reduction in the global incidence of maternal deaths in the last 25 years, it however indicated that Nigeria and other sub-Saharan countries are the riskiest place for women to prove their mettle in reproduction due to pregnancy and childbirth complications. The UN estimates that 289,000 women died in 2013 from complications in
cause, and for every woman that dies, reports say, 20 others suffer obstetric fistula, infections and other disabilities. Is that not disheartening? Is that not enough to add another hash tag to the one that has now become a global anthem, #BringBackOurGirls plus #BringBackourHealth? Is it not time? It sure is! While the United Nations concentrated its findings on reproductive health of women, making us worry more when we see women spotting a protrusion in the middle and praying harder
serial killers (may our own 19 –year old only son of Aisha Falode, Sports broadcaster with AIT who was so brutally murdered in Dubai find eternal repose in the bosom of the Almighty God. Amen) or swallowed up by a landside!. Talking about murmuring, it was my immediate boss, the Features Editor, Pastor Eghosa Idehen, who reminded us that when the church is over –taxing, (really, over tasking or over levying) poor women and the poor women start murmuring, then they have committed grievous sin against God. In essence, when poor women who
While we await that great day, I use this platform to implore on bourgeoisie pastors to stop over burdening the female flock with over-taxation, sorry, over levying! Jesus Christ, our great husbandman kicked hard when the merchants merchandized the temple! For all true spiritual –growth –seeking women, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. In all you do, acknowledge that there is God. Give unto God what you can and don’t give any pastor what you don’t can! So says my Indian friend. Pardon me for the
pregnancy and childbirth, compared to 523,000 in 1990. On its part, a world Health Organisation study revealed that more than I in 4 maternal deaths are caused by pre-existing medical conditions, including diabetes, HIV, malaria and obesity (and I dare say poverty). Among countries with high maternal mortality rates, Nigeria ranks high with a ratio of 545 per 100,000 live births, says the Federal Ministry of Health. We already are aware that 52, 900 women and girls in the country die every year from pregnancy –related
that they do not transit from maternity to mortuary, we are also anxious about how women and girls have been so bedeviled by insurgency in recent times. It is known everywhere, and even tabulated in working documents of the United Nations and other world bodies, that in times of uprising, conflict or what have you, women and children are the worst hit. We do not know why the woman’s nature or sex should make her an object of mutiny and victim in the war she never knew anything about, not that anyone else deserves to be
FEMINIQUE With IJEOMA UMEH email: ladywithegoldenpen@yahoo.co.uk Tel: 08182382839 a victim. When we consider the analysis of recent bombings in Nigeria, spates of abductions and violent rape, we will realize how women are taking so much heat in the unending ogre of terror, both here and elsewhere. It is young girls who get abducted, it is women who are suffering more emotional trauma in search of their daughters! And why does the miscreants who are crafting the Boko Haram monster think that women are the ones who shouldn’t go to school, who should be given out in early marriage? Why on earth do they think that the abduction of women and girls would help them achieve their goals? How does it make a difference? Because of the special nature of women and girls! No one wants a female, whether she’s 9 or 90, under the grips of maniacs; they have an intricate nature-they can be violently raped or their captors could unleash dire forms of violence on them; they could easily be infected with sexually transmitted infections or diseases, including the Human Papiloma Virus (HPV) which gives rise to cervical cancer, HIV, VVF or out rightly killed by violent rape! So, it is easy to hold a woman hostage because there is no ransome as big as a woman in pursuit of an interest. The recent Jos twin bombblasts happened within the precincts of a busy market. Dare tell, who are the custodians of markets all over the world? It’s women. So we are already sure that the greatest number of casualty will be mostly women! We are no longer talking about poverty. (It mostly wears a woman’s face) and the urgent need for women empowerment. It is unfair! It is disheartening! And it is high
time something more than the issuance of the usual stage –managed statements is done! Heads should begin to roll! Someone has to pay for this. Where are those in authority-the FG, State Governments, National and State Houses of Assembly, the Representatives, the local government councils, service chiefs, e.t.c. We want to see all of them carrying placards, trudging Chibok and Sambisa; they should run round Sambisa for 40 days and nights, chanting in their different dialects until Sambisa comes down like the biblical walls of Jericho, until our daughters emerge unscathed. It is time! It is time!! It is time!!! Now except the Federal Government intends to divide Nigeria around sexlines and create for us Federal Republic of Aggrieved women where we can take arms and defend ourselves, then we want to wake up tomorrow and find a peaceful new Nigeria! We want the healthcare system overhauled. A deliberate new health policy should be put in place to address maternal and reproductive health issues. Our time starts now. #Bring Backourgirls. Last word: Spying on the UK spy plane! I thought intelligence or common sense would teach us how not to do security. How could anyone claim to be helping us find our missing Chibok girls when they cannot even keep their own secret secret? How can you be ‘spying’ when you are being spied upon? I heard that the UK plane sent to spy on the location of our girls developed fault on the way. How did we come to hear this news if these guys are truly involved in a security mission…
“We want to see all of them carrying placards, trudging Chibok and Sambisa; they should run round Sambisa for 40 days and nights, chanting in their different dialects until Sambisa comes down like the biblical walls of Jericho, until our daughters emerge unscathed. It is time! It is time!! It is time!!!”
One Lay Woman
Season Of Sacrifice
FOR everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. “Ecclesiastes 3 :1. The pure sciences offer a lot of fascinations. One is its very nature of predictability and control (A + B = C). it follows a logical progression and is highly analytical. If A + B will not become C, the cause must be deduced and a solution arrived at which fits into the progression. Scientists are familiar with figures and letters, which are constant. They are always there. This precise nature of science is in direct contrast to human nature that is more chaotic and unpredictable. In fact an obvious distinction between pure and social sciences is that while the laws of pure sciences are immutable, those of the social sciences are open to vagaries, which are no doubt occasioned by the “active” role of human beings in the social science laws. So for the economists, A + B = C, “all things being equal.” In spite of these core differences, there is a similarity: the presence of a constant. For sciences, numbers and figures are constant. For human beings, change is constant. The one sue thing in the upheaval of everyday existence is change. From young to old, from new to old, from poor to rich: whether a change that occurs is for good or evil is another matter entirely. It is here that the issue of choice comes in. deliberately choosing to bring about changes for good is the
tonic desperately needed by Nigeria now. The Nigerian political scene has always presented a hint of Machiavellianism. But the recent happenings show a hitherto unsuspected depth. Niccolo Machiavelli it was , who in his book
By SABINA IDOWU-OSEHOBO
Subjects they were indeed since the ruler was a feudal lord. Machiavelli wrote from a selfish perspective, because he was looking from patronage from his prince but he was disappointed for he never got what he
philosophy to include other harmful categorizations is showcased by happenings in the political terrain. The violence which erupted in the wake of the announcement of the results of the
Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar
The Prince first divorced morality from politics. This was a very remarkable first because in the history of western philosophy, politics and morality were synonymous. According to him, the ultimate goal of politics is to grab power and retain it at all cost, foul or fair. Cruelty, brutality, violence, lies and dishonesty are actively encouraged as means of grabbing and retaining political power. He also opined that the ruler who is sovereign has all power and can please himself even at the expense of his subjects.
wanted. No doubt because what he propounded was evil. Nigerian ruling class have surpassed Machiavelli’s wildest imaginations and broadened his
presidential elections which brought president Goodluck Jonathan to power, has continued to increase instead of abating. It is being fuelled by the volatile statements and actions
of leaders who for their selfish gains are willing to use innocent Nigerians as fodder. Whatever may be the grievances of any sect of political power holders or would be power holders, there is no justification for the grand scale violence, brutality and sheer waste of human life being perpetuated on a daily basis in Nigeria. Ordinary Nigerians continue to suffer while the so called die hard political enemies by day continue to hob nob by night because they are one and the same, belonging to the same fraternities and having the same aim; to impoverish the Nigerian people. The Nigerian ruling class must shun the flamboyance, unserious conduct, profligacy, blatant stealing, inefficiency and unbridled corruption, which have contributed to the present volatile state of Nigeria. It is a well known fact that most of our politicians are persons who have failed in other areas of life. It is also well known that public office in Nigeria is not a call to “service” but an opportunity for selfaggrandizement, arrogance and corrupt
“A very bitter pill to swallow indeed is the subjugation of a people’s desire, a trampling on their fundamental rights to make changes that affect their everyday life. A worst pill still is this call for peace against this background of injustice.”
enrichment. This fact has not been helped by the fact that upright and eminently qualified Nigerians continue to stay out of politics due to the murkiness of its waters. The fact remains that every elected officer in the Federal Republic Nigeria and their selected teams owe this nation a duty of success in the area politics. As wise king Solomon noted:” For everything there is a time and season” This is a season for building bridges of peace and sheathing of swords. This is the season of sacrifice for “winners” and “loosers.” A very bitter pill to swallow indeed is the subjugation of a people’s desire, a trampling on their fundamental rights to make changes that affect their everyday life. A worst pill still is this call for peace against this background of injustice. For as Peter Touch the reggea musician puts it “ I no want no peace. I need equal rights and justice.” One will rightly ask: “what kind of peace will be built on a foundation of injustice and violation of human rights?” We all know that what is morally wrong is not made right by isolated acts of morality. Even when we know this, we are constrained to drag up that over used, much abused adage which says “Two wrongs do not make a right.” We have to hold it up as a banner, sing it as an anthem because we are unable to continue with the mayhem and violence which has become the lot of ordinary Nigerians who have no contributions to the power tussle making their lives a misery
Religion
The Strange Gods In The Christian Woman
AND YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE – JOHN. 8:32.
CHRISTIANS are commanded by God Almighty in Psalm 81:9 not to worship any strange god and not to adorn themselves with any strange god. In obedience to this commandment of the Lord, Jacob ordered his entire household to cleanse themselves of all the strange gods that were among them, when God said unto Jacob to go up to Bethel and dwell there as written in Genesis 35:1-2. Part of these strange gods that were put away included the earrings in the ears of members of his household as written in Genesis 35:4. Earrings are some of the strange gods of Egypt which the people of Israel especially the women, took along with them while leaving Egypt to the Promised Land. With the golden earrings in their ears, Aaron made unto them ‘gods’, for which the people of Israel requested, as written in Exodus 32:1-4, which reads “…And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of
your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. And he received them at their hands, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.” These golden earrings were moulded into ‘gods’. Egypt was a country wholly given to idolatry, full of all kinds of ‘strange gods’, part of which were these earrings, which the Israelites inherited from the land of Egypt. The world and its fashion, is our modernday Egypt. Earrings are the strange gods of the Gentile nation, brought into Christianity, by ‘Christian women’, who love the fashion of this world and the things of this world, in spite of God’s commandment in I John 2:15 which says “love not the world neither the things that are in the world…” It may be shocking to Christians to know that behind every strange god there is a demon (evil spirit). To buttress this fact, a Christian
sister had a revelation in which she saw herself by the river side where a mermaid spirit was inviting her to come and join them inside the river, telling her that she belonged to them; this Christian sister bluntly refused to enter the river claiming that she does not belong to them. But the mermaid spirit told this woman that she belonged to them because the earrings on her ears and the artificial hair on her head were their property. At this point she woke up. Christian women, who are born of the Spirit of God, are the temples of the living God. God’s temples must not be defiled by these ‘strange’ gods worn in the ears of Christian women. In I Corinthians 3:17, it is written, “If any man defiles the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are”. And in Ezekiel 20:7 it is also written, “Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.” Now, let us reason together, in the light of the scripture, that says,
in Genesis1:27 “SO GOD CREATED MAN IN HIS OWN IMAGE, IN THE IMAGE OF GOD CREATED HE HIM; MALE AND FEMALE CREATED HE THEM. And in Genesis1:31 it is written “AND GOD SAW EVERYTHING THAT HE HAD MADE, AND BEHOLD IT WAS VERY GOOD”. Now if in verse 31, the scripture says that the male and female are the perfect and good image of God, it means therefore, the “holes”, bored in the ears of females, are a disfiguration of the perfect image of God. No female child was born into this world with “holes” in the ears. How come about the “holes” in the ears of our females whom God created in His image? It is nothing but satan’s invention to tarnish the image of God. If there were no holes bored through the ears of our females, there would not have been any room for earrings which are the strange gods in the ears of our Christian women. THE ORIGIN OF HOLES IN THE EARS. The Truth about the origin of boring of holes, introduced into the world by satan, is found in Exodus 21:5-6, which
With
REV. OLU GEORGE reads “And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife and my children; I will not go out free: Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him forever”. The boring of holes in the ear which was part of the Law of Moses was a mark of servitude (slavery) which Jesus
Christ, through His death has abolished. Any Christian mother, therefore who performs this ceremonial rite of the law of Moses, by piercing a “hole” in the ear of any new born female child, is bringing herself, and the new born baby, under the “curse” of the law, from which Christ came to redeem mankind. COURTESY: REV. OLU GEORGE CHRISTIAN GOSPEL CHURCH (The Truth Centre) BENIN CITY.
“Christian women, who are born of the Spirit of God, are the temples of the living God. God’s temples must not be defiled by these ‘strange’ gods worn in the ears of Christian women. In I Corinthians 3:17, it is written, “If any man defiles the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are”. And in Ezekiel 20:7 it is also written, “Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.”
“The boring of holes in the ear which was part of the Law of Moses was a mark of servitude (slavery) which Jesus Christ, through His death has abolished. Any Christian mother, therefore who performs this ceremonial rite of the law of Moses, by piercing a “hole” in the ear of any new born female child, is bringing herself, and the new born baby, under the “curse” of the law, from which Christ came to redeem mankind.”
The Problem Of Privatization And Capitalism In Nigeria NIGERIA has just celebrated her victory as the fastest growing economy in Africa. Ironically, this same nation that has recorded the highest economic growth in Africa is having the most unemployed youths. Do you want to know the reason why the rich are getting richer whereas the poor are getting poorer? Do you want to know why the means of production and resources of this great nation is in the hands of few individuals? Do you really want to know why Nigeria will soon face economic revolution? Then read on. Nigeria is a nation where the powerful ones are feeding upon the powerless ones. It is a nation with a very high competition and exploitation, a nation that practices the theory of survival of the fittest, a nation where thousands of young graduates are roaming around the street due to unemployment and where young people are getting involved in antisocial crimes due to unemployment. Instead creating more avenues for employments our leaders are rather adopting policies and economic systems that are rendering more citizens jobless. In the name of privatization the government is indirectly robbing Peter to pay Paul. Few individuals are given license to own the means of production while others are frustrated out of business due to lack of fund and popularity. There is no doubt, Nigeria may be making a lot of profits through privatization but remember, one man’s meat is another man’s poison. While privatization has succeeded in empowering few individuals majority of people have actually lost their jobs, which is their means of livelihood. Every coin has two sides. Whatever has an advantage must equally have a disadvantage. We want to use this opportunity to reflect on some of the disadvantages of privatization and capitalism. Capitalism is an economic system in which trade, industry, and the means of production are controlled by private owners with the goal of making profits in a market economy. Some of the characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets and wage labor. Capitalism can easily lead to revolution and even war. Capitalism breeds Inequality: The capitalist system of economy favours the few and impoverishes the masses. It creates unfathomable gap between the rich and the working class. The rich uses the poor as a ladder to climb up to greater heights. It is very difficult, if not impossible, for the poor to catch up with the rich. It takes courage and the grace of God. The poor are always waiting for the cup of the rich to full so that they can share in the overflow of the rich but unfortunately instead of the cup of the rich getting filled up, the cup is rather getting expanded. That is why the rich will continue to get richer while the poor remain poorer. Uneven distribution of resources: In a nation like Nigeria where people are lamenting because of unemployment there are few individuals in charge of so many government sectors and agencies that would have been evenly distributed to more unemployed citizens. The distribution of resources in a capitalist society is based on capital that is money. Then, who has the money? The rich, of course! The rich have more money to acquire as much as they want. The bank is an agent of capitalism. There is only one language the banks speak and that is “profit.” The bank does not enter into any relationship that does not bring profit. Since Nigeria became a capitalist nation the bank has sacked so many of its workers so as to make more profits. The few remnants are forced to work like donkeys. A married man or woman working in the bank has little or no time for family life. Most bank in Nigeria even work over the weekend. There are two sets of people in the bank, those who go to beg the bank for money and those whom the bank visits their homes and offices to beg from. The bank has nothing
to do with the poor. They can easily approve loans for the rich even without collateral, but the last thing they would do is to approve a loan for a poor man no matter how small the amount of money may be without a collateral or guarantor. Who are the required guarantors?’ The rich, of course! So, if the rich are not ready to introduce you to their class, then forget it! You need divine intervention to break loose from the shackle of poverty. Resources are not evenly distributed. Hence, the wealthy have an excess of resources. Often this excess is wasted. Thousands of Naira worth of food is wasted by those who have more than they need, while there are many others who desperately need it. This can easily lead to starvation. In Nigeria, for instance, many are starving because they cannot afford to feed themselves twice a day, while the few rich individuals in the society fatten themselves with excess of food, and waste the rest of it. Capitalism is inhuman, anti-Social and undemocratic. Because of the gap that exist between the poor and the
President Goodluck Jonathan
rich, in a capitalist society, the wealthy ones have little or nothing to do with the society or even the church. They do not mingle freely with the poor masses. They are security conscious. The amount they spend in security alone is enough to empower as many poor people as possible. Capitalism is undemocratic: Ironically, most capitalist nations claim to be practicing democracy but there is nothing democratic in capitalism. During election every individual has a single vote but after election the masses have little or no say in government policies. The wealthy ones have greater influences on government. They are the king makers or what you may call godfathers. They sponsor political leaders. He who plays the flute dictates the step of the dance. Since the rich are the ones that
Reflection With Rev. Fr. John Damian Adizie, OCD 08076635886 sponsor the leaders they influence the leaders greatly. Capitalism leads to dictatorship especially in the workplace? The Directors and Chief Executive Officers who spend most of their time under well furnished offices with AC get paid massive salaries with huge bonuses on top of them, while they pay their workers minimum wage. The bosses don’t do any work, they don’t produce the goods we consume but they receive the highest salaries and profits. The workers cannot express their grievances because if they do they will be directly or indirectly victimized by the power that be. In a capitalist society, company owners prefer profit than the welfare of the workers. They literarily use the workers to make profits without considering the health hazard it may cause. They do not give their workers any breathing space for break or holidays. Often staffs are not properly trained in certain areas, or provisions have not been put in place to protect them from certain risks. This has often resulted in injuries and sometimes death. The family suffers greatly. Parents have little or no time with their children. They wake up very early in the morning to prepare for work and by the time they come back in the evening they will be so tired that they will not even spend any time with members of their family. Marriages have separated due to irrational and indiscriminate transfer of workers from one part of the nation to another. Whereas the Christian Bible says, “What God has joined together let no one put asunder.” Labour should not be used to separate marriages and families. Capitalism is anti-religion. They do not practice most of the common religious doctrines. They see religion as the opium of the people. For them, religion has little or nothing to offer to their material quest. Even when they go to church, they do not go to church to worship God. They see church as a social-political gathering. The last thing the rich can do is to invest in poor growing churches. They pump money into big churches where they know that they can easily influence public opinions. Pope Francis and his predecessors have consistently condemned capitalism. In his Evangelii Gadium, he describes capitalism as tyranny and modern idolatry: “The worship of the ancient golden calf has returned in a new and ruthless guise in the idolatry of money (capital) and the dictatorship of an impersonal economy lacking a truly human purpose.” The Pope further describes those who are excluded under capitalism as modern outcasts “The excluded are not the ‘exploited’ but the outcast, the ‘leftovers.” How can we build a just society where poor people are treated like outcasts? The Pope calls on political and Church leaders to shun every form of discriminations and inequality. There was sharing among the early disciples of Jesus Christ. They own things in common. No one lacked anything. The rich and the poor were same and were all respected (Acts 2:44-46). If our society must be united, peaceful and secured then everybody must be treated equally and respectfully. There must be an equal distribution of resources without favoritism, tribalism and capitalism.
“Capitalism is anti-religion. They do not practice most of the common religious doctrines. They see religion as the opium of the people. For them, religion has little or nothing to offer to their material quest. Even when they go to church, they do not go to church to worship God.”
International Verdict Against Me Political - Dahilan
Thailand
Army Takesover Govt BANGKOK Thailand’s army chief announced a military takeover of the government yesterday the coup was necessary to restore stability and order after six months of political deadlock and turmoil. Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha announced in a statement broadcast on national television that the commission which imposed martial law Tuesday would now take control of the country’s administration. “It is necessary for the Peace and Order Maintaining Command — which includes army, navy, armed forces and police — to take control of governing the country,” Prayuth said. The development followed two days of army-mediated meetings between the country’s rival political leaders that failed to break the impasse. The meetings were held at an army facility in Bangkok. Shortly before the announcement was made, armed soldiers in military vehicles surrounded the building, apparently to block those inside from leaving. Thailand has been gripped by bouts of political instability for more than seven years. The latest round of unrest started in November, when demonstrators took to the streets to try to force Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to step down. They accused her of being a proxy for her popular billionaire brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 military coup and now lives in selfimposed exile to avoid a jail sentence on a corruption conviction. The coup announced Thursday was the 12th since the country’s absolute monarchy ended in 1932.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani wipes his cheek as he speaks during a press conference at a hotel in Shanghai, China. Rouhani says an agreement on curbing its nuclear program is “very likely” by July despite a snag in talks last week, but said negotiation might also be extended.
Writing in Arabic on his Facebook page late on Wednesday, Dahlan said the timing “obviously aims to disrupt... my resolved participation in the next presidential and parliamentary elections.” The revelation comes as Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas’s Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and the Islamist Hamas, who recently inked a unity deal, were poised to unveil a new government of technocrats which will pave the way for longdelayed elections. Dahlan, a bitter rival of Abbas, accused the president of using the court “as a tool to serve his personal grudges and purposes against me.” If the sentence is upheld on appeal, it would bar Dahlan from standing as a candidate. Once a leading light in Fatah, which dominates the PLO and controls the Palestinian Authority, Dahlan once held the internal security portfolio and was head of the powerful security forces in the Gaza Strip. He fell from grace in June 2007 after the humiliating rout of his forces by Hamas during days of fierce street battles in Gaza, which saw the Islamist group eject Fatah from the territory. In 2011, his immunity as a member of the Palestinian parliament was lifted and he was expelled from Fatah over allegations of financial corruption and murder. Abbas and Dahlan have both accused each other of complicity in the mysterious death of president Yasser Arafat in November 2004.
open for business, the conference is being held this year during a standoff with the West over the future of the former Soviet republic of Ukraine. The United States and European Union have imposed sanctions on officials, lawmakers and companies close to Putin over Russia’s annexation
its interest for the sake of better ties. Putin suggested that Russia does not want to be isolated. “Only by acting together, taking account of mutual interests and building on the constructive ties that have been established over decades can the international community move forward and provide for further global development,” he said.
Thai
Up to
Thai Army Chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha speaks during a news conference at the Army Club after the army declared Martial Law nationwide to restore order, in Bangkok recently.
JERUSALEM - Exiled former Palestinian security chief Mohammed Dahlan says his conviction for defamation by a West Bank court is aimed at keeping him from running in promised presidential and parliamentary elections. Dahlan, who lives in exile in the United Arab Emirates, was convicted in absentia by a Ramallah court in March and sentenced to two years in prison, but the ruling was only made public this week.
Nuclear Deal By July ‘Likely’
SHANGHAI, China Iran’s president said yesterday an agreement by July on curbing its nuclear program is “very likely” despite a snag in talks last week, but that the deadline might also be extended. Talks in Vienna stalled last Friday, denting hopes that negotiators could meet a July 20 target date. The failure to advance diminished a sense of optimism that had been growing since negotiations began Feb. 18 on a comprehensive deal. The talks involve Iran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany. “It is very likely that we can come to an agreement by the end of July,” President Hassan Rouhani told a news conference. He was in Shanghai for an Asian security conference. Reaching agreement depends on unspecified countries not be giving a chance to “create problems,” Rouhani said. Western nations say Iran’s nuclear program could allow it to build atomic weapons. Iran says its program is for peaceful purposes such as medical research and power
- Iran’s President
generation. Because the technology can also create weapons-grade uranium for warheads depending on the level of enrichment, Washington and its allies want strict constraints on its size and scope. Deputy Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said
last week in Vienna that differences remain on more than a dozen issues. A Western official with detailed knowledge of the talks said enrichment was among the most divisive topics. Rouhani also held out the possibility the deadline might be extended by six months. “We’re not in a hurry to
reach an agreement but if there is goodwill in the 5+1 countries and enough efforts, in my view there is enough time for conclusion,” he told reporters. The Iranian leader criticized Western sanctions imposed over the nuclear program. “People are happier in Iran than they were a year ago, happier economically and socially,” he said.
Russia Wants Good Ties, Respect, Putin Tells Investors
ST PETERSBURG, RussiaPresident Vladimir Putin told foreign businessmen yesterday that Russia wanted to improve ties with other countries but must be treated as an equal and its interests respected. “Russia is ready to broaden multi-faceted contacts with all partners on the basis of true equality and respect for one
another’s interests,” Putin said in a telegram welcoming participants to the St Petersburg International Economic Forum. He is due to attend the forum, Russia’s answer to Davos, on Friday. A showcase event that is meant to tell investors and governments that Russia is
of Crimea from Ukraine and could impose more if Moscow disrupts Ukraine’s presidential election on Sunday. Putin’s statement reiterated a main plank of Russia’s foreign policy by demanding equal treatment from the United States and others, and saying it will not sacrifice
International 31 Killed, 90 Plus Injured In Xinjiang Attack BEIJING — Thirty-one people were killed and more than 90 injured in an attack yesterday on a busy street market in the capital of China’s
volatile northwestern region of Xinjiang, the local government said, the bloodiest in a series of violent incidents blamed on radical separatist Muslims.
FRANKFURT, Germany — Several European countries’ commitment to the painful economic reforms meant to cut debt and foster growth could be shaken by this week’s elections to the European Parliament, which are likely to see anti-EU parties buoyed by protest votes against austerity. While the parliament headquartered in Strasbourg, France, has only limited powers, the outcome of the voting yesterday through Sunday for 751 deputies in 28 countries could shake up politics back at the national level. Parties that are against greater integration among European Union countries — and have most vocally protested the austerity policies — are expected to get as much as 30 percent of the seats. “The results in France, Italy and Greece will be very important as they could again derail national politics and policies, giving rise to renewed discussions and controversies about austerity, reforms and debt sustainability,” said analyst Carsten Brzeski at ING. Indebted governments are trying to hold down spending and, with varying degrees of enthusiasm, make their economies more businessfriendly by clearing away excess regulation, taxation and protections for established workers. While those efforts — along with easy monetary policy from the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve — have helped calm markets, the budget cutbacks and tax increases have also hurt the incomes of ordinary people in the shorter term, raising unemployment and slowing the recovery. Past elections have been snoozers, especially since the parliament can’t initiate legislation and is confined to reviewing and amending proposals from the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch. Economists caution that the impact on the parliament itself is likely to be limited as anti-EU forces will remain in the minority and have shown difficulty coordinating their policies. The key is at the national level, they say. Here’s what’s at stake in some of the most important countries: Socialist Prime Minister Manuel Valls is trying to get a stagnant economy moving, pushing unpopular spending cuts so he can lower business taxes. A poor showing by the Socialists in the European Parliament vote
could undermine backing from the more left-wing members of his own party and make it harder for him to do that. France’s economy, Europe’s second-largest, failed to grow in the first quarter, one reason the continent’s recovery is so slow. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi of the center-left Democratic Party faces his first major electoral test since taking office in February. Renzi is trying to shake up Italy’s bloated bureaucracy and reform its cumbersome electoral laws. “His opponents, both within and outside his own party, could use a poor result to water down his reform efforts,” says James Howat, European economist for Capital Economics. Italy’s economy has been a drag on the 18-country euro union, where it is the third largest — output fell 0.1 percent in the first quarter. Without growth, it will struggle to reduce its massive debt load of 133 percent of GDP. At the height of the financial crisis, there were fears Italy might default on its debt, a move that could have caused the eurozone to break up. The voting gives an opening and a platform for the left-wing Syriza party, which calls Sunday’s vote a referendum on the country’s bailout and conservative-led government. Syriza’s leader, Alexis Tsipras, says he wants to tear up Greece’s bailout deal with the other eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund. He is the Europe-wide candidate put forward by left-wing parties to head the EU’s executive commission. Greece committed to cut spending to qualify for payouts of the bailout loans from other eurozone countries and the IMF. The loans kept the country from financial collapse and a possible exit from the euro currency. But the austerity policies worsened the recession, which shrank the economy by 25 percent and left unemployment at a miserable 26.7 percent — and an astonishing 56.8 percent for those 15 to 24 years old. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ struggling Socialist coalition partner, Pasok, could perform poorly in local and European elections this week, undermining the government. Opinion polls suggest that new elections could produce a Syriza government. Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg Bank in London, said that outcome “would create huge political uncertainty with a serious negative impact on the Greek economy and possible some ramifications around Europe.”
European Elections Could Endanger Reforms Drive
The Xinjiang regional government said in a statement that the early morning attack in the city of Urumqi was “a serious violent terrorist incident of a particularly vile nature.” The assailants crashed through metal barriers in a pair of SUVs at 7:50 a.m. and plowed through crowds of shoppers while setting off explosives, the statement said. The vehicles then crashed head-on and one of them exploded, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. It quoted an eyewitness as saying there were up to a dozen blasts in all. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the
attack, but recent violence in the region has been blamed on extremists from Xinjiang’s native Turkic Uighur Muslim ethnic group seeking to overthrow Chinese rule in the region. The death toll was the highest for a violent incident in Xinjiang since days-long riots in Urumqi in 2009 between Uighurs (pronounced WEE’gurs) and China’s majority Han left almost 200 people dead. yesterday attack also was the bloodiest single act of violence in Xinjiang in recent history. “I heard four or five explosions. I was very scared. I saw three or four people lying on the ground,” said Fang
Shaoying, the owner of a small supermarket located near the scene of the blast. Photos from the scene posted to popular Chinese social media site Weibo showed at least three people lying in a street with a large fire in the distance giving off huge plumes of smoke. Others were sitting in the roadway in shock, with vegetables, boxes and stools strewn around them. Police in helmets and body armor were seen manning road blocks as police cars, ambulances and fire trucks arrived on the scene. Urumqi was the scene of a railway station bomb attack
Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks during a press briefing at the end of the fourth Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) summit in Shanghai, China recently.
S/Korea President Nominates New PM
SEOUL, South Korea— South Korea’s president yesterday nominated a new prime minister and accepted the resignations of two senior officials, the beginning of a shake-up that follows widespread criticism of the government’s handling of last month’s ferry disaster. President Park Geun-hye nominated Ahn Dai-hee, a former Supreme Court justice, to replace the current prime minister, who has offered to quit over the ferry sinking, presidential spokesman Min Kyung-wook said in a statement. Park’s nomination requires approval by the legislature. Park’s government has faced rising public anger over the April 16 sinking, which left more than 300 people dead or missing. Most of the victims were students from a high school near Seoul. About five weeks after the disaster, 288
bodies have been retrieved and 16 others are missing. Park has said she will push to disband the coast guard, restructure some government offices and establish two new state agencies in efforts to restore public confidence and better cope with future disasters. Her government reshuffling plans need endorsement from the 288-member single-chamber National Assembly, where her ruling conservative party has a majority status with 149 seats. Opposition lawmakers’ consent is seen as crucial, so the majority party doesn’t have to railroad legislation, which could deepen public indignation. Min said Park would also soon name her new national security director and spy chief. The national security director,
Kim Jang-Soo, was under fire for reported remarks seen as an attempt to avoid responsibility for the ferry sinking. Spy chief Nam Jae-joon has faced separate political problems over allegations that his agents fabricated evidence to force proPyongyang espionage charges on an ethnic Chinese man from North Korea who posed as an ethnically North Korean defector to get resettlement money and other benefits from the South Korean government. Park will conduct a Cabinet reorganization after her nomination for the prime minister passes through the National Assembly, according to presidential officials. South Korean executive power is largely concentrated in the president, so the April 27 resignation offer by Prime Minister Chung Hong-won was seen as largely symbolic.
late last month that killed three people, including two attackers, and injured 79. Security in the city has been significantly tightened since that attack, which took place as Chinese leader Xi Jinping was concluding a visit to the region. Prior to last month’s attack, the city had been relatively quiet since the 2009 ethnic riots amid a smothering police presence. The station attack and other violence have been blamed on Uighur extremists, but information about events in the area, which is about 2,500 kilometers (1,550 miles) west of Beijing, is tightly controlled. Tensions between Chinese and ethnic Uighurs in Xinjiang have been simmering for years, but recent attacks — while still relatively crude — show an audaciousness and deliberateness that wasn’t present before. They are also increasingly going after civilians, rather than the police and government targets of past years. In an unprecedented incident last year, three Uighurs rammed a vehicle into crowds in a suicide attack near the Forbidden City gate in the heart of Beijing, killing themselves and two tourists. And in March, 29 people were slashed and stabbed to death at a train station in the southern city of Yunnan blamed on Uighur extremists bent on waging jihad. Uighur activists say the violence is being fueled by restrictive and discriminatory policies and practices directed at Uighurs and a sense that the benefits of economic growth have largely accrued to Chinese migrants while excluding Uighurs. The knowledge that Muslims elsewhere are rising up against their governments also seems to be contributing to the increased militancy. yesterday attack came two days after courts in Xinjiang sentenced 39 people to prison after being convicted of crimes including organizing and leading terrorist groups, inciting ethnic hatred, ethnic discrimination and the illegal manufacturing of guns. Among those convicted Tuesday was 25-year-old Maimaitiniyazi Aini, who received five years in prison for inciting ethnic hatred and ethnic discrimination for comments he made in six chat groups involving 1,310 people, the Supreme Court said. In another case, a Uighur man was jailed for 15 years after he preached jihad, or holy war, to his son and another young man, according to the court.
International
Vietnam Threatens Legal Action Against China
MANILA - Vietnam’s prime minister said yesterday for the first time that his country is considering legal action against China over its sovereignty claims in the South China Sea, a move that Beijing would likely fiercely oppose. China claims nearly all of the South China Sea as its own, bringing it into conflict with
the far smaller nations of Vietnam, the Philippines and three others that have rival claims. Beijing also has a territorial dispute with Japan over a cluster of islands in the East China Sea. Last year, the Philippines filed a complaint against China before an international tribunal in The Hague to challenge the legality of
China’s claims, antagonizing Beijing. China wants any disputes with countries to be resolved bilaterally even as it continues to engage in what many in the region regard as provocative assertions of its sovereignty in the waters. China raised the stakes in the region earlier this month when it deployed an oil rig to an area claimed by Vietnam,
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin speaks to journalists after a meeting in Shanghai on Wednesday. Russia’s State-Controlled Gazprom signed a long-awaited gas supply agreement with China on Wednesday.
triggering fury in Hanoi, which sent ships to try to disrupt the drilling operation. Street protests morphed into bloody anti-Chinese riots that damaged hundreds of factories. Vietnam had been trying a more low-key approach in its dealings with China, but the oil rig deployment may have changed that thinking. In a written reply to questions sent by The Associated Press, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said, “like all countries, Vietnam is considering various defense options, including legal actions in accordance with the international law.” He did not specify what legal actions it was considering. Two Vietnamese diplomats have previously told the AP that Vietnam might now file its own appeal or join Manila’s legal challenge against China. A senior Philippine government official said Dung and other Vietnamese officials mentioned that plan to their Philippine counterparts in closed-door meetings on Wednesday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not
authorized to speak to the media. Dung has demanded China withdraw the rig, but Beijing insists it has done nothing wrong. At a regular briefing in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei accused Dung of “calling white black in the world community and attacking China in an absurd manner.” “What Vietnam should do is harshly punish the assailants in the smashing, looting, burning and beatings, protect Chinese companies, and stop the harassment of the Chinese drilling rig. Apart from that, they should pay compensation for all the damage,” Hong said. When asked if his country would risk going to war in disputed waters, Dung said his country would never venture into that. “Military solution? The answer is no,” Dung said in the email. “Vietnam has endured untold suffering and losses from past invasive wars. ... We are never the first to use military means and would never unilaterally start
8 Ukrainians Killedhad rebuffed In Clash With Separatists an attempt by Ukrainian forces also Yanukovich in February.
KIEV - At least eight Ukrainian security personnel were killed and 18 wounded in overnight clashes with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine three days before a presidential election in the former Soviet Republic. Security sources said yesterday the main clash took place about 20 km (12 miles) south of the industrial hub of Donetsk, which is now in the hands of the separatists who say they will disrupt the election.
fought separatists in the neighboring Luhansk region but there was no word about any casualties there. The defense ministry confirmed that several people had been killed in the firefight near Donetsk but gave no precise death toll. It said the clash occurred when gunmen opened fire on an army checkpoint near the town of Volnovakha. Separately, Ukrainian border guards said they
dozens of separatists, armed with grenade launchers and rifles, to enter the Luhansk region overnight from Russia. Several guards were hurt in the fighting. Ukrainian security forces and the pro-Moscow separatists have clashed repeatedly in recent weeks in eastern Ukraine, where the breakdown of security has rattled the pro-Western interim government in Kiev. Kiev has acknowledged
that Sunday’s election cannot be held in parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and has accused Moscow of deliberately seeking to undermine Ukrainian democracy, a charge echoed by the United States and European Union. Russia denies the legitimacy of the current Kiev government, which took over after mass street protests toppled Moscowbacked president Viktor
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung waves to media shortly upon arrival at the Manila International Airport in Manila, Philippines Wednesday. Prime Minister Dung is here for the World Economic Forum in East Asia and for talks with Philippine President Benigno Aquino III that will focus on toughening cooperation as their countries wrangle with China in tense territorial standoffs in the South China sea.
a military confrontation unless we are forced to take selfdefense actions.” On Wednesday, Dung said he and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III “shared deep concern over the current extremely dangerous situation caused by China’s many actions that violate international law.” In a rare show of public unity between two countries wrestling with China’s growing assertiveness, Dung said Vietnam and the Philippines were “determined to oppose China’s violations and call on countries and the international community to continue strongly condemning China and demanding China to immediately end the above said violations.” Aquino did not mention the territorial disputes with China when he and Dung faced journalists but said they discussed how their countries could enhance defense and economic ties, adding that both governments aim to double twoway trade to $3 billion in two years. Many have feared that longseething territorial disputes in the resource-rich South China Sea could spark Asia’s next major armed conflict. Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan also have overlapping territorial claims in the strategic area. China and the Philippines are in a standoff over another South China Sea reef, the Second Thomas Shoal. Chinese coast guard ships have tried three times to block Filipino vessels delivering new military personnel and food supplies to Philippine marines keeping watch on the disputed area on board a long-grounded ship.
He fled to Russia and in March Russia seized Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula of Crimea. President Vladimir Putin asserts that Moscow has the right to intervene on behalf of Russian speakers outside Russia’s borders and has expressed sympathy for people in eastern Ukraine who he says face discrimination and harassment by the Kiev government. Russian Troops Possibly Withdrawing From Ukraine Border - NATO P O D G O R I C A (Montenegro) - Limited Russian troop movements near the border with Ukraine “may suggest” preparations for a withdrawal, NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said yesterday.
“Late yesterday, we have seen limited Russian troop activity in the vicinity of the border with Ukraine that may suggest that some of these forces are preparing to withdraw,” Rasmussen said in Montenegro.
US Diplomat Injured In Moscow Blast MOSCOW - An
explosion in an apartment in central Moscow believed to have been caused by natural gas has injured four people including a U.S. diplomat. The explosion took place about 11 a.m. (0700 GMT) in a nine-story building on Kutuzovsky Prospekt, one of the Russian capital’s main thoroughfares. It sprayed glass shards and metal fragments over a wide swath and left a sizeable crack in
the building’s brick facade. A statement from the US Embassy said a diplomat employed there was among the injured. It did not give further details. Moscow police said four people in total were injured, two of whom were hospitalized. Deputy Mayor Alexander Gorbenko said images from a security camera indicate the explosion was caused by gas, according to newsmen.
EVERY FRIDAY WEEK 45, 2014 LAST SEASON RESULT Anderson Richwell 1.2. X. Forecast
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‘No Contact For Shawcross’
STOKE chief executive Tony Scholes has emphasised there has been no contact between the Potters and other clubs regarding skipper Ryan Shawcross - and that the Staffordshire outfit do not need to sell their best players. Centre-back Shawcross has this week been linked with a move away from the Britannia Stadium to Barclays Premier League champions Manchester City. But Scholes, quoted by The Sentinel, said: “It comes as no surprise to me what I have read about Ryan. I don’t know if there is any truth in it, but certainly we have had no contact. “Players like him and (Stoke goalkeeper) Asmir Begovic, just to name a couple, will attract attention. That’s part and parcel of being a successful football team. “That’s the way it’s always going to be. It’s one of the prices of doing well, but it doesn’t mean you necessarily have to do business with them. “We don’t need to sell. We’ve been going through our situation for next year, our budgets, what is available in terms of buying players and players’ wages and we are not in a position where we need to sell. “We are looking to strengthen and move forward.” Shawcross, 26, was named Stoke’s player of the year at the end of a 2013-14 season in which the club achieved their highest Premier League finish of ninth and points tally of 50. He has been a consistent performer for the Potters since their promotion to the division in 2008, but did not make Roy Hodgson’s England squad for this summer’s World Cup in Brazil. And Scholes added: “Ryan’s had six great years in the Premier League and that’s quite something for a player of his age. “It is interesting that he has reportedly attracted the attention of big clubs in the way he didn’t seem to attract Roy Hodgson’s attention. “Anyone around these parts will think he should be on that flight to Brazil with England.” Meanwhile, it has been reported that Stoke midfielder Steven Nzonzi has handed the club a transfer request, as he did last summer.
Ryan Shawcross
Toure Wants Coaching Role, Not More Money THE Ivory Coast international seemed to express his unhappiness at the Etihad Stadium through Twitter on Tuesday after his agent Dimitry Seluk publicly claimed his client felt underappreciated and disrespected at City. Seluk suggested that one of Toure’s main gripes was the club’s failure to mark his 31st birthday last week. But in an interview with Sky Sports News broadcast on Thursday morning, the Ukrainian claimed Toure would be more than happy to stay should he be promised a coaching position or sporting director’s role beyond his retirement. Seluk said: “Of course.
Yaya Toure
Woodward Has Lot To Prove - Scholes
FORMER Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes believes the club’s executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has much to prove. “Edward Woodward has Scholes has also revealed he an awful lot to prove this time does not expect to be involved that he’s good enough at his in a coaching capacity at Old job. He has to bring the Trafford next season. players in that the new Woodward has endured a manager wants. rocky first year since assuming “It’s obvious that last year his current position, with the illhe didn’t manage to do that. fated appointment of David If he doesn’t we are not going Moyes as manager, some to get anywhere near the frustrating summer transfer top.” experiences and the team’s Scholes, 39, retired a year disappointing on-field results. ago but was brought back to But Scholes feels Moyes has United in a coaching role for been made too much of a the final four games of last scapegoat for the poor 2013-14 season by interim manager season and more questions need Ryan Giggs. to be asked of Woodward. He has not been told Scholes, in his new column for the Paddy Power Blog, wrote: “David Moyes took a lot of stick, but I believe he’s a top manager. VILLA have been under I’d question if 10 months was a cloud of uncertainty since enough time.
whether he will continue under new manager Louis van Gaal next season, but is not expecting to be retained. Scholes said: “I’ve not spoken to Edward Woodward. I came back for Ryan Giggs for the last few games of last season to try to help out, but I’m not waiting for a phone call and don’t expect to be at United next season.” Scholes went on to say how he believes England can get the best out of his former United team-mate Wayne Rooney at the World Cup this summer. Scholes, who played in two World Cups, has urged manager Roy Hodgson to make
sure Rooney channels all his energy into his responsibilities up front. Scholes said: “Wayne wants all the responsibility to score. He’ll try to play left-back, right-back. Sometimes he does that too much instead of saving himself and his energy for what his teams need - the ball in the net. “He needs to use his energy more effectively now as he’s a player who likes to be up front on his own and I don’t think he’s great with partnerships. “To get the very best from Wayne in Rio, the manager needs to tell him, ‘Don’t bother running back. Stay up top. Stay centre forward. Score goals. That’s your job in my team’.”
Lambert Determined To Keep Best no two ways about it. But Players there’s always something
owner Randy Lerner declared his intention to sell the Midlands club, with the likes of Christian Benteke, Brad Guzan and Fabian Delph linked with moves away. Lambert has reiterated his stance on his own future on numerous occasions, underlining his wish to stay as manager. And the Scot is adamant that Villa will not be looking to sell their big names between now and the start of next season. “I can say they’re not
going anywhere,” he said. “I’ll still have the final say on who came and who went. “I wouldn’t imagine anyone will leave without my permission.” Despite a disappointing 15th-placed finish in the Premier League in 2013-14, Lambert has no qualms over his spell in charge at Villa has gone to date. “Any regrets? No, not at all,” he said. “If it all ended tomorrow I would take away an unbelievable experience because it’s a brilliant club. “The pressure on it is big,
good that will come out of something like this. So I don’t have any regrets.”
Lambert
- Agent
Like Real Madrid did with (Zinedine) Zidane for example. Zidane played then after that he started working for the club. “Yaya needs the club in the future. “We don’t want any more pounds, not a longer contract, nothing like this, only really attention. “More attention (paid) to Yaya and Yaya must feel happy at the club - that’s the main thing. “I’ll tell you one more time, we don’t need one more pound in the contract.” Toure initially appeared to contradict claims from Seluk that he could quit the club this summer after his outspoken agent claimed City had failed to celebrate his birthday adequately. But the player quickly backtracked and made statements in favour of his agent. A video published by City last week in which Toure was presented with a birthday cake has since been widely circulated while many also pointed out that the club had tweeted a happy birthday message at the time. Seluk later clarified his remarks, saying that Toure was disappointed nobody from a senior position at the club wished him happy birthday. And on Thursday he added: “Of course some players congratulated him (on his birthday) but not the sporting director, not the general director, not the chairman, nobody. “(The manager?) No, nobody. “This is the question. If you don’t even congratulate the player or send flowers to his wife or mother - these are just small things.”
New Barca Boss Plans Changes
NEW Barcelona boss Luis Enrique says he plans to make improvements in all areas of the team and indicated that few players could be certain over their futures after the disappointments of this season. Enrique formally signed We will reinforce the team in his two-year contract to the best way possible, to be succeed Gerardo Martino as as competitive as possible. first-team coach on There is a market there — Wednesday before laying out teams ask a lot of money for his plans for the job to the players. You must manage it all. We will reinforce, maybe media. The former Barca player in all lines of the team, to and Barca B coach told those have the best players for the present that last season’s club and for me.” There has been speculation performances were not good enough and that he planned that a host of high-profile to make sweeping changes to players including Xavi the squad ahead of the 2013- Hernandez, Cesc Fabregas and Javier Mascherano could 14 campaign. “The players must know make way. Asked about the trio, he that you cannot let a year pass at Barca,” he said. “If they said: “I know Xavi. He is a are not at the level required friend, an ex-teammate. I then there will be changes. could tell you great things
No New Contract Offer For Kroos
BAYERN Munich president Karl Hopfner says the club will not make Toni Kroos a new contract offer, amid ongoing speculation that the midfielder is set for a move to Manchester United. United are believed to have made significant advancements in their pursuit of Kroos, 24, with sources close to Old Trafford telling ESPN FC that they are confident of completing a deal. The Germany international is moving into the final year of his contract at Bayern, and in January rejected a new offer from the club, choosing to put all talks on hold until the summer. Kroos feels that his importance to the team should be honoured with a suitable deal, and that the January offer did not match his expectations. Hopfner, however, has ruled out making the midfielder an improved offer. “It was the same with Michael Ballack [before his free transfer to Chelsea in 2006], we withdrew our offer at one point,” he said. “Kroos is under contract until 2015. “There will certainly be more talks. But eventually the player has to say what he wants. We will not overstep certain
Toni Kroos
financial limits.” The new Bayern president then reiterated that the existing contract offer will not be increased. “That’s the state of play, no question,” he said. When asked whether Bayern would be willing to sell Kroos should they receive a substantial offer, Hopfner added: “I don’t know. Everything changes so fast sometimes.” Meanwhile, the Daily Mail has reported that a deal between Bayern and United — believed to be worth 24.7 million euros — was struck when David Moyes was still in charge at Old Trafford. Incoming Red Devils manager Louis van Gaal has given the green light to the transfer, the newspaper reports.
about him. We will sit down and talk, and see what he wants and what we want. He has a big date with the World Cup. “I do not want to talk too much about individuals. Good and important players will stay. We will look at everyone and then see what we do. We do not have to make decisions now. We have time.” Barcelona have at least made clear that Lionel Messi is not for sale. The forward signed a new contract on Monday and Enrique is hopeful he will recover his best form next season. “I am delighted to have the best player in the world in the squad,” he said. “The club thinks the same. He just renewed his contract, so he is delighted to be here too. It is obvious that Leo’s performances last season were not as incredible as in other years, but he remains the number one. We have got used to his amazing figures. “He brings more than just goals. He is very important
with the group. We want him at his best; if not, we will look to help him so that he is.” It was made clear that Neymar — Barca’s bigmoney signing last summer — is another player who is expected to stay. “He is obviously one of the most important players in the team, was a big investment by the club and I am happy to have him,” Enrique said. He also stressed that, more
group, manage egos, motivate them. We will attack, play attractive football, entertain fans all over the world. “Barca has an attractive idea of football, but we also have to defend and concentrate, and work hard. The way of playing will be the same as for many years now, but you must evolve the ideas, and improve on them, based on players you have.”
Luis Enrique
Balotelli Cannot Blame Fans
THE president of the Fiorentina supporters’ club Filippo Pucci says Mario Balotelli was wrong to point the finger at Viola fans after the Milan striker was racially insulted while training with the Italian national team on Wednesday. Italy coach Cesare Prandelli
chose to close the doors to the afternoon’s training session after an unwelcome disturbance in the morning, which was captured on video. The AC Milan forward was victimised for his skin colour by a spectator who was accompanied away from the Italian Football Association’s (FIGC) Coverciano training
Mueller Dismisses United Speculation
BAYERN Munich attacker Thomas Mueller has played down suggestions he could join Manchester United despite telling Sport Bild he has a “special relationship” with Louis van Gaal. Bavaria-born Mueller broke into the Bayern first team as a 19-year-old during Van Gaal’s time in charge of the German side and, with the Dutchman now confirmed as United’s new boss, there has been speculation the Germany international could move to Old Trafford. There have been reports in the German press that Mueller, now 24, is frustrated by his lack of first-team opportunities under Pep Guardiola, and both the
than just reshaping the squad and changing the team’s playing style, his task was to command the trust of the players as he seeks to take the club forwards. “This job is about more than being just a coach — it is about being a leader,” he said. “The capacity to lead as a coach is important in many ways. I am not just talking about tactical or technical issues but how to manage a
player and his agent had previously rejected opportunities to dismiss rumours linking him with a move to the Premier League. However, Mueller told Sport Bild on Wednesday: “It’s no secret that Louis van Gaal and I have a special relationship but, as everyone
Thomas Mueller
knows, I also have a special relationship with FC Bayern Munich. I am under contract at Bayern until 2017. “We have just won the domestic Double and now I am looking forward to the World Cup. I have the feeling that I will play an important role at FC Bayern — and I 100 percent identify with the club and the people around the club. That’s a fact.” He added: “I enjoy playing for Bayern — actually, there is nothing nicer.” Although there now appears little prospect of Mueller moving to United, multiple sources have told ESPN FC that the English club believe they have made significant advancements in their pursuit of Bayern’s Toni Kroos.
facilities. Balotelli kept his cool and was briefly heard complaining that such incidents “only happen in Rome and Florence,” but Pucci hit back at the striker’s statement. “If a single person insults him, Balotelli cannot generalise and say everybody from the city of Florence and all fans of Fiorentina are idiots,” he said, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. “I would like to remind Balotelli that unlike some groups of fans, some of which are very close to him, the Viola have never been punished for racial incidents
Mario Balotelli
or behaviour.” FIGC President Giancarlo Abete concurred, saying, from a conference in Milan, that “this is unacceptable behaviour on the part of a few individuals, and something that should not happen but that, unfortunately, we have to take into account. What matters is that it is limited to a few individuals only.” Balotelli has been the victim of racially-motivated insults from Italian fans in the past, with Inter Milan being fined last year when their fans insulted the former Nerazzurri player during a match in which the striker was not even taking part.
2014 FIFA WORLD CUP COUNT-DOWN
Hodgson Turns Up The Heat In England Training
ENGLAND have been piling on the layers in the Algarve to make sure they are ready for the sweltering heat which awaits them in Manaus. When Roy Hodgson picked the luxurious golf resort of Vale do Lobo for a pre-World Cup training camp, he probably had visions of his squad being put through their paces under the baking sun, but that has not been the case so far this week. Temperatures in the southPortuguese resort have barely been over 15 degrees centigrade and a powerful cold wind blasted through the squad’s first and only opening training session at their base on Wednesday. To up their body temperatures and sweat rates, Hodgson had the players
Roy Hodgson
Mexico Banned From Smoking Alcohol, Sex MEXICO’S national team will have to go without smoking, drinking alcohol and sex for the duration of their World Cup. they are not prepared to be Italy’s Cesare Prandelli has a professional player. made a point about how he will “Let’s play a World Cup, allow his players’ families to we’re not going to a party. accompany them during the “All the players we have summer tournament in Brazil, selected have a pretty good but that the use of social media resume, they all have won will be up for debate. great things, they have been For Mexico’s Miguel Herrera, champions and obviously, however, the opposite is true, they know what they want with no ban on using the likes to achieve. of Twitter and Facebook, but one “So then we will not be on smoking, drinking and, in looking for sex or having particular, sex. sex at the World Cup just to “No, no-one,” Herrera told have it, we are going to go Mexican newspaper Reforma after what we came for, a this week. “If a player can’t go competition that gives us one month or 20 days without the opportunity to rise having sexual relations, then
above and do something really great. “So I don’t think that the guys even have this [sex] on their minds. They don’t have an idea about it. We talked about it because there was a buzz about it and we got criticised because I commented that in a team you have to worry about what is best for the team. “In a club, you lose one week and you get a second chance the next week. But on a national team, you lose once and you are out of the World Cup. “I am not thinking about prohibiting sex. I am
Essien Realistic Over Ghana Hopes THE Milan midfielder will be among the more experienced members of James Kwesi Appiah’s party as Ghana look for a showing as impressive as 2010. Ghana made the quarter-finals in South Africa before losing to Uruguay on penalties, and Essien has not ruled out a similar venture into the latter stages of the competition this time around. However, even with the likes of Asamoah Gyan, Kevin-Prince Boateng and Kwadwo Asamoah in the squad, the former Chelsea man feels they must be realistic when talking of progression from a group that features Germany, Portugal and the United States. “Our initial aim will be to get
out of the group into the second round, and then take it from there game by game,” Essien told FIFA.com. “We are certainly capable of going one better and making it to the semi-finals or even finals. Anything can happen, but we are realistic enough to know we cannot aim that high from the start. “Get the first objective of making the second round out of the way, and we will see how far we can go. “It will be a journey without doubt, one we are looking forward to.” The aforementioned trio
coupled with the likes of Essien and defender Jonathan Mensah offer a glimpse of the quality that Ghana possess. With Ghana hoping to become the first African nation to reach the semifinals of a World Cup, Essien feels their strength in depth is a major advantage. “The squad for this tournament is the best Ghana has to offer, and the quality in depth is extremely good, especially in midfield,” he continued. “We have multiple options in most positions which is always a plus for any side.”
thinking about football. I hope the players are thinking the same way. Forty days of sexual abstinence is not going to hurt anyone.” Mexico are in Group A of this summer’s competition, drawn against Croatia, Cameroon and hosts Brazil.
wearing three layers during the hour-long session. In addition, Dave Reddin, Hodgson’s head of performance services, recommended the players wear special pads underneath their tracksuit tops. That way, England’s medical staff, and three sports scientists who have been brought to Portugal from Loughborough University, can assess how the squad responded to sweating buckets - as they will do in the jungle on June 14 when they face Italy. “The players wore sweat pads for part of today’s training,” the England manager said. “We tested how much they sweat, how they will be able (to) recover and what can be best done for them to help them. “They will be analysed in terms of the extra heat we tried to generate. It is part of our process which Dave (Reddin) and his team have formed - it’s about learning to be comfortable being uncomfortable. “There are going to be uncomfortable moments (in Brazil) and you’ve got to learn to get comfortable with that. “We started off on the first day just with them wearing the extra gear for the warm-ups and then we’ve increased it. “When the word came to take the tops off there weren’t too many who kept them on. They were very quick to whip them off so it is obviously working.”
Humidity levels can reach over 80 per cent in Manaus, so Hodgson wants to do everything he can to help his players reach peak condition ahead of the Group D opener. It is a far cry from his previous experience at a World Cup when he just bunged his Switzerland players inside a sauna for a while prior to USA ’94. “Compare that to what we are doing now and it was an unbelievably amateurish performance,” the 66-year-old said. Interestingly, the Italian squad have been doing fitness sessions in saunas at their base in Coverciano, Florence. Back in Portugal everything is going to plan for Hodgson’s 23-man squad, apart from the weather. Dr Steve Peters, the acclaimed psychiatrist who will be with England all summer, gave an introductory speech on Tuesday night at their hotel. “The players were very attentive and listened to him,” Hodgson said of the man who has worked with some of Britain’s leading sports stars, including Ronnie O’Sullivan, Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton. “He’s an entertaining man. The things he’s done in life are quite amazing. I don’t know how old he is but to do all the things he’s done in life he must be about 150 at least.”
Suarez In Race To Make Brazil After Shock Surgery
LUIS Suarez faces a race to be fit for the World Cup finals in Brazil after it was revealed the striker requires surgery following a knee injury. ruguay’s Luis Suarez gestures during the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup.. The Liverpool forward will go under the knife on Thursday morning after an MRI revealed a meniscus injury in his knee, suffered in training with the national team. According to reports, the Uruguayan national team medical staff can see no other alternative than to send Suarez for an operation – even though the World Cup gets under way in three weeks’ time. Suarez will undergo keyhole surgery early on Thursday. Recovery time tends to vary from player to player, but typically varies from two to six weeks, which could put the Uruguayan’s World
Cup participation in doubt. The Uruguay national team are confident that their talisman will be fit to play a part in the tournament, but bookies responded by lengthening their odds of escaping from a tough group stage - which includes England, Italy and Costa Rica - to 1/2. Luis Suárez HAS injured his knee & will have minor op today. My source in Uruguay tells me he will miss #CRC game but could face #ENG Uruguay play Costa Rica on June 14th, England five days later on the 19th, then face a potentially crucial final group stage match against Italy on June 24th. It seems that even if Suarez recovers in time, he will certainly be short of match fitness. That leaves Uruguay in trouble since their other top striker, Edinson Cavani, has suffered a severe drop-off in form since going through a messy divorce in January.
Suarez knee injury isn’t serious enough to rule him out of World Cup Suarez netted 31 league goals for Premier League runners-up Liverpool this season and was expected to be one of the stars in Brazil, though Uruguay’s chances of progressing out of a group that includes England, Italy and Costa Rica will take a significant hit if he is unable to return to full fitness.
Luis Suarez
William Ready For French Open Title Defence
SIX different champions in the last six years suggests that tipping a French Open women’s champion is something of a lottery, but those backing world No.1 Serena Williams are surely investing wisely. The American powerhouse she calls her second home claimed a second Roland chasing an 18th major Garros crown last year - 11 singles that would tie her years after her first - and with Chris Evert and warmed up for the defence of Martina Navratilova. her crown by winning the The former French Open Rome title on Sunday, champion Li Na is probably dropping just one set and 22 her main rival as the Chinese games all week. attempts to become the first It was a return to the form player since Jennifer that helped Williams win 11 Capriati in 2001 to win the titles in 2013 and proof, if any year’s first two Slams. were needed, that the fire Maria Sharapova, winner within burns as ferociously as in 2012 and runner-up last ever as she returns to the city year, will also be confident of a strong run after beating Li on the way to claiming the Madrid title earlier this
month. Poland’s gritty world No.3 Agnieszka Radwanska, and Serbian duo Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic, the champion in 2008, will also be strong contenders while Simona Halep, the aggressive Romanian baseliner who has blasted into the top four, is more than capable of causing an upset. Whoever Williams faces, however, she will not be feeling any extra pressure just because she is defending champion. “Usually I’m like, ‘Oh my
DEFENDING league champions Kano Pillars played out a 2-2 draw with home team Kaduna United in a Nigeria Premier League Week 14 match on Wednesday. Pillars now have 18 points from 13 matches, while Kaduna United have 15 points from 14 matches. Samuel Agba opened the scoring for hosts Kaduna United in the 28th minute, before CHAN Eagles star Rabiu Ali equalised for Pillars in the 55th minute. Agba restored Kaduna United’s lead in the 66th minute to complete his brace. Rabiu Ali was on hand in the 85th minute to complete a brace and equalised for the second time for his side in the game. Azeez Shobowale scored what could have been the winner for Pillars in the 87th minute off a throw-in, but the assistant referee flagged him offside. Bright Ejike was Heartland’s hero as they battled to earn a point at home against Abia Warriors in the game which ended 1-1. Heartland have 17 points from 14 matches, while Abia warriors have 18 points from 13 matches. Ifeanyi Onyeali capitalised on a defensive error to give Abia Warriors early lead. Heartland have recorded the highest number of draws, with 8 this season.
good show in the event holding at the Thomas A. Robinson Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas. The statement disclosed that female quarter-miler, Patience Okon, was set to leave Nigeria for the U.S. on Wednesday alongside winner of the men’s 400m in the last Golden League, Omeiza Akerele. According to the statement, they are meant to boost the team’s chances in Bahamas. It said that the AFN President, Solomon Ogba, thanked Nigerians for their support, saying that the federation would assess the strengths of the country’s
Pillars Peg Back Kaduna
God, I have to defend’. This time I’m going to be cool with it,” Williams, who has bought a second Paris apartment near the Eiffel Tower, said recently when looking ahead to the French Open. “I’ve been feeling that way for a while now. I think that’s a good way to feel, since I won so many titles last year.” Ominously for her rivals, Williams’s previous two French Open triumphs came following a title run in Rome.
Former semi-finalist and reigning Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli, now retired, said Williams’s match temperament was her biggest asset and the reason that she still sets the standard. “I’m so impressed with how focussed she is going into every Grand Slam,” Bartoli, who will work as a pundit for Eurosport this year, told Reuters. “She doesn’t act like she’s a favourite. She is just focussed on winning every single match which is why she is a champion. She goes into every match thinking she needs to play her best tennis, not that she’s the favourite.” Gone are the days, it seems,
Serena Williams of USA in action at the WTA Madrid Open.
IAAF World Relay Injury Hit Team Nigeria Camp LAGOS - Team Nigeria’s preparation for the inaugural edition of the IAAF World Relays, scheduled for May 24 in the Bahamas has suffered a setback, due to injuries sustained by sprinters. A statement by the Athletic Federation of Nigeria (AFN) on Wednesday in Lagos named the injured sprinters as Obinna Metu, Bukola Abogunloko, Josephine Ehigie, Ada Benjamin, Rita Ossai and Chukwudike Harry. It said that in spite of the injuries, the federation was optimistic that the contingent would put up a
relay teams in preparation for the Commonwealth Games. According to the statement, Ogba expresses high hopes that the athletes will recover in time for the All-Nigeria National Athletics Championships in Calabar, Cross River in June. The IAAF Relays has attracted teams from more than 40 nations with over 500 athletes, who form the best relay quartets on the planet, including powerhouses like the U.S. Jamaica and Russia. The innovative two-day competition will see men and women compete in the 4x100m, 4x200m, 4x400m, 4x800m and 4x1500m in
front of sell-out crowds. It said that a total prize of 1.4 million dollars was in the offering as the first three teams stood a chance of winning 50,000 dollars, 30,000 dollars and 20,000 dollars, respectively. Teams occupying the fourth to eighth positions are to get 12,000 dollars, 10,000 dollars, 8,000 dollars, $6,000 dollars and 4,000 dollars. Teams that break world record in Nassau would be awarded a 50,000 dollars bonus by the IAAF. The top eight teams in the 4x100m and 4x400m will automatically qualify for the 2015 IAAF World Championships in Beijing.
when a teenager would jump out of the pack to capture a Grand Slam. World number two Li is also 32 and, like Williams, appears to be still improving. She showed with her magnificent 2011 run in Paris when becoming the first player from an Asian country to win a Grand Slam singles title that she has the tools and the temperament to survive two weeks of claycourt battles. A second-round defeat last year to American Bethanie Mattek-Sands left her at a low ebb but she rebounded impressively, reaching at least the quarterfinals in 13 of her next 14 tournaments and winning this year’s Australian Open. “I’m feeling pretty good,” Li said during her run to the quarter-finals of Rome last week. “I’m playing some high-quality matches. And I’m feeling pretty loose I’m just going to do my best out there.” Sharapova, now comfortable sliding around on clay after looking clumsy on it earlier in her career, will benefit from being slightly under the radar this year after a shoulder injury meant a slow start to the year. The former world No.1, now down at eighth in the WTA rankings, returned to her best form once the claycourt season started, winning back-to-back titles in Stuttgart and Madrid. “I’ve done a really good job of transitioning from the hard to the clay and really improving physically and recovering well from match to match,” the Russian told the WTA’s website. “I’ve benefited from that in the last couple of years. I enjoy playing on all surfaces. But I’m really happy about changing my results on clay the last few years.” A dark horse for the title could be Romanian Halep the most improved player on the Tour in the last couple of years. Wins against Ivanovic and Petra Kvitova on the way to the final in Madrid would have given her plenty of confidence as she bids to avoid a hat-trick of firstround exits at Roland Garros. “Last year I was top 20, now I’m top five so it’s a big difference,” she said. “I’m enjoying this time because it’s the best in my career.”
Edo And The Almajiri Politicians “A rolling stone gathers no moss” — Publilius Syrus
IT’S another season for serious politicking, horse-trading and carpet-crossing as the 2015 General elections draw near. Already, in Edo State, even when the Gubernatorial election in the state is not due until sometime in the year of our Lord 2016, the political gladiators have sharpened and brought out their long knives to, as they say, share the loot! In Year 2007, some politicians in Edo State, citing alleged disenfranchisement from their party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) formed an association of likeminds, which they called the Grace Group, with the motto “No Man is God”. Their motto was carefully chosen to reflect what they perceived as the choking influence of Chief Tony Anenih, then Chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees, also a “son of the soil” who was Lord and Master and whose word was law. In fact, the fear of Anenih was the beginning of wisdom such that, even though he himself has never faced the electorate to test his popularity at the polls, elected Governors, Senators, Reps members and others deferred to him and was fondly referred to as either the Leader or the godfather! The Grace Group was led by Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, at different times Chief of Staff and Secretary to State Government to Chief Lucky Igbinedion’s government which is regarded as having failed woefully to live up to expectation. Even Lucky Igbinedion’s father, the Esama of Bini Kingdom, Chief Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion begged the people of the
state to allow his son repeat as Governor having failed in his first tenure. He said at the time “if a child fails in a class, you ask him to repeat”! Lucky was known as an absentee Governor and Ize-Iyamu as SSG was effectively in charge, leaving crumbs for the then Deputy Governor, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe. If Lucky’s government failed, Ize-Iyamu was a major contributor to that failure. Always a political schemer, Ize-Iyamu plotted and turned Lucky and his political godfather, Tony Anenih, against each other, such that neither wanted to see the other. That was in 2007. Fast- forward to May 2014, in an interview he granted the media and which was widely published, Lucky Igbinedion just woke up to realize how he was used and kicked around like a football by his own appointee, Ize-Iyamu when he said “the quarrel was not between Anenih and myself, it was those that were playing the intrigue of 2007 elections. We were both used as pawns (by Ize-Iyamu). We (Anenih and I) never quarreled.” (Emphasis mine) It is now on record that Ize-Iyamu dumped the PDP, Lucky Igbinedion and Anenih and joined the Action Congress of Democrats (ACD) which later metamorphosed into Action Congress (AC), then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and then All Progressives Congress (APC). Now the question: what is the truth behind the dumping of the PDP by IzeIyamu and his group? The answer is not far-fetched: naked, inordinate, unbridled ambition to become the GOVERNOR. Now, don’t misunderstand me. I can’t stand a man who lacks ambition, but I also detest a man whose ambition is as open as a naked live wire. Just as the naked wire can be deadly, the overambitious man can also do anything to fulfill his dream. Ize-Iyamu dumped the PDP because the godfather, the Leader of the
PDP wanted his kinsman, Odion Ugbesia, now a Senator as Governor and Ize-Iyamu would have none of that. To him, it is either his way or the highway. He chose the highway. The rest is now history, neither him nor Ugbesia became Governor as the then President, Chief Aremu Olusegun Okikiola Obasanjo had another card up his sleeve, throwing up Professor Oserheimen
from place to place, never staying in one place permanently all in his search for greener pastures. The Almajiri are ubiquitous in the north, bowl-in-hand, seeking the next target for the next meal. It is no wonder the almajiri never builds permanent structures for himself and his family as he is always on the move. Same scenario is playing
the President on April 29, 2014, Ize-Iyamu and 20 others who were with him gave their conditions to rejoin the PDP, which among others include: that doors must be open to them when they eventually join the PDP; that they get a blanket waiver, get special
out in Edo politics now as the almajiri politicians who moved from the PDP yesterday to the APC are quickly dancing to the PDP when they realized that their dreams of grabbing the governor’s seat will not be fulfilled in the APC. During a meeting with
considerations for themselves and their members; that the zoning formular of the PDP as regards Edo governorship be made known to them and that the Governorship slot be given to them in the 2016 gubernatorial election. They promised to
By NOSAKHARE OSARODION
President Goodluck Jonathan
Osunbor as the Governor, although his election was eventually upturned by a court of law and Comrade Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole has been in the saddle in the state since November 12, 2008. Now the Almajiri politicians who dumped the PDP yesterday, abused everyone therein and joined the ACD which has over the years transformed to APC now want to go back to their vomit, the PDP today. Of course, Nigerians are familiar with the way an almijiri works. An Almajiri, like the the Fulani nomad, in tending his cattle, moves
use this bargaining chip as a means of helping the President in getting a second tenure in 2015. They got a positive response from the President. Well, 2016 is by the corner and the people of Edo State are waiting to see how Ize-Iyamu and his group, the rolling stone which gathers no moss, will get the gubernatorial ticket of the PDP when others who kept faith with the party in their dark days when they were trampled underfoot by the galloping APC stallion are also eyeing the same ticket. It will be interesting to see Ize-Iyamu upstage the likes of Charles Airhiavbere (rtd), Matthew Iduorikemwen, Mike Onolemenmen, Oserheimen Osunbor, Odion Ugbesia and Kenneth Imasuagbon who stayed with the party and did not jump ship into the APC when things were rough and who are also eyeing the Gubernatorial ticket. What will be most interesting to see however is how IzeIyamu who had for seven years poured invectives on Chief Tony Anenih as a godfather playing God, leading to his coinage of the motto “no man is God” relate with the man who is known to have his anointed candidate for Osadebey Avenue. It’s when all these scenarios play out that we will know that man can truly play God and the Almajiri politicians may then be forced again to move to another platform, bowl-inhand in search of the next meal ticket! Nosakhare Osarodion writes from Benin City
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