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PUBLISHED SINCE OCTOBER 6, 1990 • Vol. XI NO.3,190• SATURDAY, JUNE 29, 2013 • N 100.00
WEEKEND DISCOURSE
Macabre Dance In Rivers State
Group Urges Members To Vote Wisely In 2015 General Elections
FEDERATION of Informal Workers Organisation of Nigeria (FIWON), on Friday advised its members to use their votes in the 2015 general elections to improve their rights and work condition. The FIWON General Nigeria’’. Secretary, Mr Gbenga Komolafe said that the Komolafe, gave the workers had the power to advice in Lagos at a elect leaders who would meeting on the theme: use their positions to “ T o w a r d s improve the lives of the institutionalisation of people. social protection in “Next election must
First Lady Calls On Women To Contribute To Africa’s Development
THE First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, yesterday called on women to rise and contribute to the growth and development of Africa. The First Lady made the call in Abuja while receiving her Ethiopian counterpart, Mrs Roman Tasfaye during a courtesy visit. According to her, the African woman has a history of being a stabilising influence in her home and community. “African women, as effective agents of peace, must continue to draw from their strength to contribute to the growth and progress of
the continent,’’ she said. Earlier, Tasfaye said “Dame Jonathan’s consistent role in championing the cause of women and the less privileged in Africa is highly commendable. “African women are indeed grateful. I thank you all for your warm hospitality,’’ Tasfaye said. The Ethiopian first lady is in Abuja for the 2nd High Level Meeting of the Global Power Women Network Africa. M a d a m e Nompumelelelo MaNtuliZuma, the First Lady of South Africa and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri attended the meeting.
not be about money, bags of rice, cloths or Tshirts. “It should be about what the men or women vying for positions have to give to the people in the areas of health, education and housing, among others. “We have the power, let us use it to determine who will occupy the positions of change— the position that will ensure social protection of workers in the informal sector,’’ he said. The FIWON scribe said that if workers in the informal sector failed to change the agenda of their politics in favour of their interest, they would continue to suffer. He said that FIWON had presented a bill on social protection to the National Assembly, but nothing had been done about it. “We want to be paid 70 per cent of the approved National Minimum Wage. Government should provide a social pension scheme where workers and the government will make equal contribution,’’ Komolafe said.
He urged the workers to be informed and enlightened about their rights to be able to demands for better welfare. The Chairman, Coalition of Residence and Business, Mr Abayomi Dawodu, said that poor electricity supply was hindering the
growth of businesses in the informal sector. Dawodu said that informal sector workers were entitled to certain benefit enjoyed by people in the formal sector, because they were also contributing to the development of the economy. He advised the
workers to partner and support themselves to be able to tackle their challenges. In a remark, Mr Ode Komaya, who represented the AgbonyiKetu Local Council Development Area (LCDA), called on the workers to create more
awareness on their needs. He urged the workers to negotiate a platform to engage the government and private agencies on the issues affecting them, such as access to workspace, credits, as well as old age insurance.
MEETING:L-R: Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo, Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau, Governor Tanko Al-Makura of Nasarawa State, I-G , Mohammed Abubakar and Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers at National Economic Council Meeting in Abuja recently,
MOMENT OF SCRUTINY
Need To Provide Efficient Transportation - Page 5
POLITICS
The Ravaging Crisis In The NGF - Page 10
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Senate Probes Missing 27m Dollars Sales Of Foreign Mission Properties
Officers of 2 Division of the Nigerian Army and other Sister Security Agencies in a joint march in Ibadan weekend.
Death Sentence Can Only Be Abolished Through Constitution Review - AGF THE Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, said in Abuja that death penalty was recognised in Nigerian law and could only be abolished through a review of the constitution. Adoke made the statement at the 2013 Ministerial Platform and added that it was not possible to abolish the death penalty till the law was reviewed by relevant
stakeholders. He also said issues involving imposing death sentence as a punitive measure were state offences and as such it would be difficult to impose it on any of the states of the federation. “The issue of death sentence is a very sensitive issue, considering the ongoing global debate. “However, that debate has not metamorphosed into the
abolition of death sentence in our law and most of the issues involving death sentences are state offences. “We know that abolition is the current trend today. However, under the Nigerian law, in our statutes and constitution, death sentence is recognised,’’ the minister said. He said the Federal Government could, as in a
NEC Endorses 1 Per Cent Deduction In Revenue THE National Economic Allocation To Fund Police Council (NEC) has approved the deduction of one per cent of monthly allocations due to the three tiers of government to fund the Police. The Anambra Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, announced the approval when he briefed State House correspondents on the outcome of the council meeting, presided over by Vice-President Namadi Sambo. Obi said that the deduction of the fund would be made as first line charge during revenue allocation. He said the decision was sequel to the consideration of a memorandum on the funding of the Police Reform Programme presented by the Nigeria Police Reform Interim Implementation Committee. Obi, who is the Chairman of the committee, said that the council agreed that the fund would assist in tackling the issues of security which had become of great concern to the country. “Today, the committee’s report was considered on how to find extra funding for the Nigerian Police to ensure that they provide effective security delivery.
“The council agreed on the need to fund police appropriately and recommended that one per cent be deducted as a first line charge on monthly revenue allocation to fund the police. “The funds that will be deducted, the states and local government contributions will be domiciled in the state and will be managed and ensured that it is used in provision of the requirement within that state. “This will go a long way in funding the police that is today believed to be underfunded,’’ he said. Obi said that NEC also approved the pruning of the initial overall cost estimate of the Police Reform from N2.8 trillion to N1.5 trillion. He said the council approved the extension of the reform period from five to six years to ensure the government’s commitment to the transformation of the police for effective security service delivery. Also at the briefing were the governors of Niger, Dr
Babangida Aliyu, and Adamawa, Alhaji Murtala Nyako, as well as the Inspector-General of Police, Muhammad Abubakar. The ministers of National Planning Dr Shamsudeen Usman, Police Affairs, retired Navy Capt. Caleb Olubolade, and the Minister of State for Finance, Dr Yerima Ngama, were also at the briefing. The NEC is the highest economic decision making body in Nigeria with the vicepresident as chairman and all state governors, minister of FCT and some key ministers as members.
country operating a federation, only partner with the various states to find a lasting solution to the issue. “We cannot, in operating a federation, impose on the various states how to run their laws.
“It also commenced sale of a fifth property located in San Francisco, California. “For the sale of those properties, the government of Nigeria retained the services of ECULAW Law Firm. Out of those sales, Nigeria realised the sum of 27 million dollars. “All funds realised from these sales, except those set aside as fees, were remitted to the Embassy of Nigeria in Washington D.C,’’ the petitioner alleged. He alleged that all the funds and transactions were duly confirmed in June 2007 by ECULAW Law firm when it met with embassy officials at the Embassy premises in Washington D.C. He alleged that instead of remitting the proceeds to Nigeria, the funds were lodged in Washington bank. “M&T Bank had been the bank the embassy used for other transactions and had about three different accounts with that bank. “It was confirmed in clear terms that their bank was holding huge deposits comprising the proceeds of the sales of these properties. “This remained the position after Dr George Obiozor had returned to Nigeria upon completing his service in Washington.
FG Recovers £22.5m Assets Abroad THE Attorney General and – Justice Minister Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, said that his ministry had recovered more than twenty million pounds allegedly stolen from Nigeria’s coffers. Adoke, who said this at the 2013 Ministerial Platform in Abuja, noted that the money was recovered from one Raj Arjandes Bhojwani, an Indian national and associate of late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha. He said that the assets were recovered in 2011, adding that the ministry was able to recover and repatriate the money following its negotiations with the Island of Jersey. “During the period under review, the ministry intensified its efforts to trace
Appeal Court To Conduct Special Sittings In Birnin Kebbi THE Shari’a section of the Court of Appeal, Sokoto, will, on July 1, commence special sittings in Birnin Kebbi, in Kebbi State. The Deputy Chief Registrar of the court, Hajia Fatima Abubakar, disclosed this in Sokoto in a statement. She said that the sittings
THE Senate has began investigation into alleged disappearance of 27 million dollars proceeds from the sales of Nigerian properties in New York. Two former Nigeria ambassadors and the incumbent appeared before the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs in Abuja. They are: Dr George Obiozor (2004 to 2006); Prof. Joy Ogwu (2006 to 2007), and the incumbent Mr. Ade Adefuye, who assumed duty in March 2010. The probe followed a petition by Transform Nigeria Citizen Initiative, a nongovernmental organisation, over alleged misappropriation of funds by the officials of the Nigerian embassy in Washington D.C. The petition was signed by one Mr. Daniel Elombah. Elombah had urged the Senate to investigate why the proceeds from the sale of some Nigerian government properties in the US between 2004 and 2007 were not accounted for. He said, “Available records showed that between 2004 and 2007, the Embassy of Nigeria sold four prime properties of the Nigerian Government located in Washington D.C and Maryland.
- Registrar were to hear and determine cases of appeal from Sokoto, Zamfara and Kebbi states. She said that the special sittings, which would last for one week, would be conducted at the New High Court Complex, Birnin Kebbi.
and repatriate Nigeria’s stolen assets abroad. “In this connection, we have maintained effective liaison and communication with targeted jurisdictions to keep pace with assets recovery proceedings in those jurisdictions. “In 2011, our close liaison and negotiation with the Island of Jersey led to the recovery and repatriation of the sum of £22.5 million confiscated by the Royal Court of Jersey from Raj Arjandes Bhojwani, an Indian national and associate of General Sani Abacha on account of his money laundering transactions from Nigeria.“ Adoke also said that the Principality of Liechtenstein recently confiscated the sum of 175 million Euros from the Abacha family and associate companies in Liechtenstein. The minister said although Nigeria had not recovered nor repatriated the money following an appeal lodged by the companies involved, the ministry would ensure the repatriation of the money. “We continued the liaison and negotiations with the Principality of Liechtenstein, which recently confiscated the sum of 175 million Euros
from the Abacha family and associated companies in Liechtenstein following a confiscation order by the Supreme Court of Liechtenstein. “However, the companies involved have lodged an appeal against the decision before the European Court of Justice in Strasburg. “As soon as the appeal is concluded, firm arrangements consistent with the asset recovery provisions of the United Nations convention against corruption would be made to repatriate the forfeited sums to Nigeria.” Adoke said that the ministry recorded significant improvement in the institutionalisation of reforms in the justice sector aimed at improving access to justice. He said that the ministry also made improvement in terms of prosecution of crimes and defence of civil cases. Adoke also said the ministry had made improvement in mainstreaming the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act as well as effort to reform business and investment laws.
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N ws Obstetrician Advises Women To Take Folic Acid Daily, To Reduce Birth Deformities AN obstetrician, Dr Adeyemi Okunowo, yesterday, advised women of child-bearing age to take a daily dose of folic acid supplements, to prevent Neural Tube Defects (NTDs) in babies. Okunowo, a consultant at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, gave the advice in an interview with newsmen in Lagos. The Online Medical dictionary defines NTDs as “birth defects of the brain, spine, or spinal cord, that happens during the first month of pregnancy”. Okunowo said: “Folic acid is important in helping a baby to develop properly during pregnancy and reduces the risk of the baby developing NTDs.” The obstetrician said that those planning to get pregnant should take folic acid for at least three months
before conception, until 12 weeks of pregnancy. He said: “Folic acid is a form of Vitamin B9 that is needed to help make new cells and for growth. “This is why it is so important for women to take it, to help their babies develop and grow properly during pregnancy. “Neural Tube Defects happen in the first month of pregnancy, often before a woman even knows that she is pregnant. “Before you are even aware that you are pregnant, your baby’s brain and spinal cord are developing. “Getting enough folic acid before and during pregnancy prevents most neural tube defects like spinal bifida, which happens in the first 28 days of pregnancy. “Most women don’t start folic acid early in their pregnancy. “It is never too early for a
woman to start taking a daily dose of folic acid, as long as she is of child-bearing age.” Okunowo said that though some diets contained folic acid, they could not act as substitute to taking folic acid supplements. “All women are encouraged to eat a healthy, balanced diet, including foods with folic acid. “Diets, however, won’t provide enough folic acid to protect developing babies from NTDs, so pregnant women need a daily folic acid tablet. “It is recommended that women of child-bearing age should take a daily tablet of 400mcg of folic acid. “Some women who are obese or diabetic, however, have increased risk of having a baby with NTDs and should take a daily dose of not less than 4000mcg folic acid,” Okunowo added.
THE leadership of Edo State indigenes, United Kingdom (UK) has commended the state Governor, Comrade Adams Aliu Oshiomhole for his developmental strides. A statement signed by the president of the organisation, Deacon Emmanuel Adanemhen described Governor Adams Oshiomhole as a man of action, promoter of peace and committed countryman. The statement extolled the successful conduct of Local Government Election in the state and urged the sworn-in council chairmen to emulate the developmental efforts of the state Governor. Deacon Adanemhen commended members of the Edo State Executive Council for the cooperation they have given the state governor to succeed in office.
of the nation. It would be recalled that President Jonathan, had in March, sent a revised 2013 Appropriation Bill to the National Assembly for consideration. The House of Representatives, on Wednesday, rejected the President’s request to reconsider the bill. “The budget is about
government’s revenues and its expenditures. “If the amendment is crucial for execution of certain capital projects, the House of Representatives should approve it. “If not approved, it will have adverse effects that can cause setbacks for the economy, “Ibikunle said. He said that projects that
Ismael Salami, Kehinde
could contribute positively to the economy should not be left to suffer. Ibikunle said that the House of Representatives should not forget the multiplier effects of poor implementation of budgets on the economy. The expert advised the Presidency to rub minds with the National Assembly to resolve the issue amicably.
FG Warns Officials On Unauthorised Use Of Sirens, Covered Number Plates He called on civil servants
THE Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Alhaji Bukar Aji, on Friday directed Federal Government officials to henceforth comply with the ban on unauthorised use of sirens, covered number plates and using unregistered vehicles. This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Tope Ajakaiye, Director of Communications in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation. According to the statement, Aji said that such acts by the officials portended grave danger for national security. “This is especially in view of intelligent reports indicating that men of the underworld also indulge in these unlawful acts to perpetrate heinous crimes.” The statement said that directives had been issued to the Nigeria Police to apprehend any government official found engaging in such practises for prosecution. Aji said that it became imperative to revisit the agelong values and code of ethics guiding the conduct of civil servants in continuation of the desire to re-position the civil service. “The values and ethics which civil servants are
expected to exhibit are discipline, integrity and moral rectitude, political neutrality, loyalty, patriotism and courtesy. “Others are politeness,
modesty, tact and industry, tidiness in work environment and decency in dressing, probity and accountability, and promptness in service delivery.”
to ensure efficient service delivery and to display professional discipline in the discharge of their responsibilities to enhance public confidence.
Nigerian Airlines Urged To Partner Foreign Counterparts For Devt MR Manoj Nair, West Africa Regional Manager, Emirates Airlines, yesterday urged Nigerian Airlines to partner their foreign counterparts in developing Nigeria’s aviation industry. Nair gave the advised during an interactive session with newsmen at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos. He noted that Nigeria was an important market in the West Africa sub-region, and that Emirates would need the partnership of the local airlines for connectivity for its Nigerian publics. He said that Emirates was bent on ensuring that Nigerian passengers have seamless travel experience across the world. “The key focus area for us is that our customer based connects well to the network that we have got as well as making sure that our vast network is connected to Nigeria.
“This is with the aim of giving Nigerian passengers a seamless travel experience, ease of transactions making it easy for them to be with us and giving them a value for their money with a good product and services,” he said. According to him, Emirates will make sure that Nigerian passengers would be connected to the network of the airline in the East, West and South-East Asia, with great value for their money. “We are looking at various options through which we can make international connection through inter-connectivity, while working with a Nigerian partner like Arik Air, to make things easier. “We see Nigeria as a hub and those are the areas that we are looking at and making key collaboration with viable stakeholders in the industry,’’ he said. He said that the airline had given the best products to the Nigerian market, adding that
He stated that Edo State indigenes in the United Kingdom will support the ongoing efforts of the state Governor in improving on the well-being of the people of the state. Deacon Adanemhen said the organisation is committed to the welfare and upkeep of Edo State indigenes in the United Kingdom. He described them as law abiding and Nigerians in Diaspora who are set to use their wealth of experience to develop Edo State and Nigeria in general. Deacon Adanemhen also congratulated the Oba of Benin in his birthday and wish him many more years on
earth. He attributed the peace in Benin Kingdom to the handiwork of the monarch and wish him well.
Deacon Emmanuel Adanemhen
Four Men Arraigned Over Alleged THE police in Lagos yesterday arraigned four Cult Activities men— Raheem Eletu,
Financial Expert Advises NASS To Reconsider 2013 Appropriation Act A financial expert, Mr Oluwole Ibikunle, yesterday advised the House of Representatives to consider the request by President Goodluck Jonathan for an amendment of the 2013 Appropriation Act. Ibikunle, the Managing Director, Boar Management & Financial Strategies Ltd., told newsmen in Lagos, that the amendment might be for good
Edo Indigenes In UK Commends Oshiomhole
Emirates was planning to expand its route in the country. NAIR, HOWEVER, SAID THAT THE
AIRLINE HAD NO PLAN O F BUILDING A M AINTENANCE REPAIR AND OVERHAUL (MRO) FACILITY IN THE COUNTRY.
Adeyemi and Ibraheem Ajisafe, for allegedly being involved in cult related activities. Eletu (20), Adeyemi (20) and Salami (22), are apprentices to motor mechanics, while Ajisafe (20), is a bus conductor. The four, who live in Lagos Island, appeared before a Tinubu Magistrates’ Court on a charge of being members of an unlawful society. According to the prosecutor, ASP A. C. Orji, the quartet committed the offence on or about March 31, at Okepopo in Isale Eko, Lagos Island. He said the men were arrested in the area with cutlasses and stones during a fight between rival cults.
Nigerian Army 70 Regular Recruitment Intake 2013 Commences In Edo By EGHWRUDJE PRAISE
THE Nigeria Army 70 Regular Recruitment Intake 2013 exercise for specialist trade-men/ women has commenced in Edo State. Qualified interested candidates are required to get a scratchcard, which is currently on sales in all branches of
Nigerian Navy 2013 Direct Short-Service Commission Commences Online Registration By IFASUYI HELENOSASERE
THE Nigerian Navy 2013 Direct Short Service Commission Enlistment exercise has commenced Online Registration, which is expected to last between 3rd June and 12th July 2013. The aptitude test for the exercise has been scheduled for
“Eletu belongs to a group called “Shope”, Ajisafe’s group is called “ Kilamo” while Adeyemi and Salami both belong to a group known as “Tobalashe,” the prosecutor said. He said that the offence contravened Section 42(a) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The section stipulates a three-year prison term for anyone found guilty of the offence. All the four accused persons, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge. The Magistrate, Ms Abimbola Awogboro, granted each of the accused bail in the sum of N50, 000, with one surety in like sum. She adjourned the case to July 18 for mention.
Saturday 20 th July 2013 at some selected Military establishments as contained in the Nigerian navy website (www.joinnigeriannavy.com). Candidates are hereby advised to register online within the designated period and ensure strict compliance with the instructions contained therein.
Union Bank Plc and Unity Bank Plc nationwide. The sales of the scratch cards for specialist trademen/women, which commenced on 3rd of June, 2013 will close on 16th July, 2013. While the prescreening examination (PSE) will hold on 29th July, 2013 at designated centres nationwide. In a statement signed by the public relations officer, Ministry of Information and Orientation Edo State, Mrs. Uhuegho Henrietta, stated that the zonal screening of the non-trademen/women would be conducted from 19th July – 2 nd august 2013 at the same centre. Candidates are expected to select any centre of their choice for the conduct of the PSE. The exercise would be based on the criteria ascertained in the Terms and Condition of the Service Soldier 2012 (revised).
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IN Nigeria, transportation trends have relied heavily on cars, (taxis) trucks and buses.
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closer home still to Nigeria is negligible. In today’s Nigeria, the major means of transportation is the
the towns and urban centres across all parts of Nigeria. Furthermore, the bike popularly referred to as
has evidently led to increasing traffic congestion in the towns and cities, creating increasing noise and
Need To Provide Efficient Transportation System
Only recently, air travel has been on the increase, even as the railway system has become relatively less important over the years. Also the use of water ways has also become less important. However, the use of road traffic has tripled over the years on a nation wide scale. Today, precisely, road traffic has continued to dominate the transportation trend, though air transport is increasingly becoming a major player in the transportation system in Nigeria. Transportation volume is often measured in “passenger – kilometers” or to kilometer” unit that encompass the number of passenger or the weight of cargo goods multiplied by the distance they are moved. For instance global air p a s s e n g e r transportation has risen from 928 billion passenger – kilometer in 1950 to more than 2.6 trillion passengers – kilometers in 1998. Since 1960 global air passenger traffic has grown at an average yearly rate of 9 percent, air freight of 11 percent a year”… As with road traffic however, the African continent is largely missing the entire picture.” In comparison, car production has almost risen linearly since the end of the Second World War. As a result the volume of global car fleet should be heading toward a trillion or even more than a trillion today. On the other hand, the story of transportation in Africa, and coming
motorbike. Meanwhile the use of the bicycle has declined considerably while cars, trucks still predominate having supplanted the motorbike for longer trips. Motorbikes, cars and trucks have helped in no way to change the structure of our towns and cities, which has in turn contributed to road use. Ironically due to the massive decline in the nation’s economic fortunes in the mid 70’s
to the 80s, 90s and the millennium, bikes have been much cheaper than the car, and have became one of the most available means of transportation in Nigeria. Today, the bike forms the primary transportation system in most parts of Nigeria as it traverses the hinterlands, to the towns and cities and anywhere people lives. Also the motorbike is largely used for bringing raw materials, food stuffs and other wares from the hinterland to
Okada, now form the basic means of transportation for people in urban and rural centres. Such is the magnitude and wide use of the bike and its ubiquity that it cannot be undermined both as a means of transportation and its contribution to the socio-economic activities of the people. However, in spite of its vast usefulness as a means of transportation,
its draw back is enormous. The growing number of motorbike in the towns, cities and villages nationwide is truly of an alarming proportion. This
pollution. More perplexing is the rate of accidents in which the motorbike is involved on a daily basis, having many people killed, leaving many injured and numerous others maimed for life. Environmentally and health wise motorbikes emits carbon that is contributing to rising global temperatures. Toxic ingredients in motorbikes includes
carbon monoxides, sulphur dioxides, nitrogen oxides and many other pollutants. The World Health Organisation (WHO) in a
report published sometime ago noted that “… highly polluting two-three wheeled vehicles which are prevalent in many towns and cities are powered by simple but dirty “twostroke” engines in which most of the fuel goes unburned and is released with the exhaust”. Beyond this, these “two-stroke” engines is the cause of the prevailing acid rain, carbon intensity that is
responsible for climate change, and causing all kinds of diseases and damages to the people and the environment. A World Bank report
suggest that “two stroke engines emit more than 10 times the amount of fine particulate mater per vehicle-kilometer as a modern car and only slightly less than a diesel truck”. Further more, here in Edo State as well as in other parts of the country, motorbikes are now being used in carrying out all sorts of vices, crimes and criminal activities which was not augur well for the peace and security of the people. Hence kudos must be given to the Comrade Governor of Edo State in his effort to reform the transportation system in the state following the ban on motorbike. Examined critically there is nowhere on earth that bike riding for commercial purposes is regarded as a worthwhile profession or an occupation. Nigeria as a developing nation has reached the state when it should certainly phase out the use of motorbike as a means of transportation. Patriotic leaders like Comrade Adams Oshiomhole should be encouraged to help us improve our transportation system so they better serve the people, the environment, and the people will need to work with the government to attain this goal.
“In today’s Nigeria, the major means of transportation is the motorbike. Meanwhile the use of the bicycle has declined considerably while cars, trucks still predominate, having supplanted the motorbike for longer trips.”
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P rspective
The Menace Of Prostitution THE phenomenon of prostitution is not peculiar to developing countries; the enormity of prostitution throughout the world is overwhelming. Across the globe, it has become a prominent social problem. The presence of prostitutes in the major urban centres of the world especially the industrialized countries has transcended the level it was viewed as strictly uncommon occurrence to a worrisome global problem. The figures from EUROPAP regional reports show that 80,000 of 60 million population of United Kingdom are engaged in prostitution while Germany has 300,000 of its 80 million populations in sex industry. In United States, 1.5 percent of the population engaged in prostitution while .25 percent is involved in Asia. In Africa where the problem of prostitution is relatively new unlike the situation in Europe and other industrialized countries, the presence of large number of prostitutes has now become a major issue. The unprecedented growth of sex industry in Africa may not be unconnected with rapid and wide ranging socioeconomic changes and globalization which has affected the value structure of African Society. Prostitution began many centuries ago, as a way for women to earn money. Saloons in Europe used to be known for their beautiful women and liquor. Over the years, prostitution has become a threat to our society. In Nigeria today, prostitution was being practiced by women only; we now have male prostitutes, who parade themselves shamelessly
as the female do. Gone are those days when prostitutes hide or apply some decency to the way they hawk themselves. They now practice the trade with impunity, in some cases with encouragement from parents, society, authorities and friends. Thus, high rate of deaths through sexually transmitted diseases HIV/ AIDS inclusive. Many blame their sojourn to the trade on unemployment and poverty which is not entirely true, for greed and much love for riches play a greater role. A morally upright person will not trade his/her dignity for money. The question you should ask yourself is, is there any amount of money worth ones dignity? Generally speaking, the term prostitution refers to the sale of sexual services for money (wikipedia, 2009). The term is sometimes used in more general meaning as having sex in order to achieve a certain goal different from procreation or pleasure. From the above, prostitute refers to a woman over the age of consent who willingly exchanges sexual services for money and in derogatory sense, the term has been used as whore, sluts etc. The usage of these words is widely considered pejorative and prostitute as a less value laden term. To move away from these terms, those who work within sex industry use “sex worker” to describe someone who is a member of a legitimate profession. This term as observed by Leigh (1988) is coined to redefine commercial sex, not as the social or psychological characteristics of a class
By EGHWRUDJE PRAISE of women but as an income generating activity or a form of employment for women and men. Nevertheless, it is important to note that whatever term used; prostitute, sex worker, whore, slut etc, the fact remains that prostitutes are those who render sexual services for money. Child prostitute is a prostitute who is under the age of consent. The concept of child prostitute
consent varies from country to country. This makes a universally acceptable research on child prostitution difficult. However, for the purpose of this discuss, a child prostitute is anybody under the age of 18 who involves in the rendering of sexual services for money. Pimps are often used as synonym for anyone who lives off the proceeds of prostitution. They are also called a flesh monger or
Prostitutes is a difficult concept because its conceptualization varies depending on who is using it or the country in which it is being used. The terms child prostitution and child prostitute carry problematic connotations. Both terms failed to make it clear that children cannot be expected to make an informed choice to practice prostitution themselves and besides, the age of
pander. They manage people in prostitution – in brothels and on the streets- for the purpose of profiting their earnings. A woman is being pimped by a man when their relationship is contingent on her engaging in prostitution and relinquishing all or part of her earnings to him. In some countries, the term “pimp” extends to a prostitute’s landlord,
“In Africa where the problem of prostitution is relatively new unlike the situation in Europe and other industrialized countries, the presence of large number of prostitutes has now become a major issue. The unprecedented growth of sex industry in Africa may not be unconnected with rapid and wide ranging socio-economic changes and globalization which has affected the value structure of African Society.”
partner, co-habitat etc., and in the case of forced prostitute, pimp is also the name given to the prostitute exploiter. Although, most people who work in managing prostitutes are men, some women work in this capacity as well, they are called mamas an or a Madame. Brothel, also known as bordello, whorehouse, cathouse etc., is an establishment specifically dedicated to prostitution (wikipedia, 2009). It has also been described as a
house of prostitute where sex could be had for money (Longman Dictionary). According to the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (Sixth edition), a brothel is a house where people pay to have sex with prostitutes. Brothels are usually found in rundown inner city areas. Nigeria is not spared of this scourge and prostitution has become so prominent that Nigerians refer to it as “the Italian Connection”, “sex working”, “Ashawo business”. The outburst of prostitution in Nigeria, in a way, is comparable to Western societies, where sex trade has posed a moral challenge. The alarming dimension of this menace can be seen not only through the
proliferation of brothels and hotels for sex workers in most urban centres but also in the increasing of prostitution rings in the country. While scholars have diverse opinions on what constitutes prostitution, they have come out with considerable number of closely related factors influencing prostitution. With the internet survey conducted by AusbethAjagun (2005), such factors as poverty, parental attitude, laziness, greed and avarice, broken home, poor parental upbringing, deceptive media appeal, godlessness, distorted value system and ignorance were identified as factor influencing prostitution. These factors were corroborated by Obinna (2005) by identifying poverty, harsh economic condition, abandonment by family members as factors influencing prostitution in Nigerian urban centres. Though prostitution due to poverty or unemployment is unjustifiably, the government should come up with effective measures to curb poverty and unemployment amongst the youths, so as to help those who claim they ventured into the trade due to poverty. Prostitution not only destroys marriages, families and lives, but it destroys the spirits and soul, in a way that leads to physical and spiritual death. How does one live this double live? You assume a new role, new personality as soon as you render you body for sexual services, you become different individual. Your names now are prostitutes, call girl, ashowo, karuwa, to list a few. The only solution to the increasing menace of prostitution is for us to look innate and change our desire on worldly things, which even if gained from such immoral and ungodly ways, will bring no satisfaction. Parent and society should inculcate into the minds of the youths dangers associated with prostitution and its effect on human dignity. Prostitution for whichever reason is degrading, dehumanising and the highest indignity a human can bring unto self.
THE WEEKEND
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s
I sues The Imperative Of Passing The New PIB By JOHN EZE
Jonathan
Tambuwal As the sector operators, stakeholders and industry watchers patiently await the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), presently before the National Assembly for constitutional legislative considerations. It is auspicious to reflect on the issues that generated the hunger, appetite and eventual feeding of Nigerian hydrocarbon industry with new operational guidelines christened PIB to garner momentum to drive the needed impetus. It becomes more compelling when we realize that the bill was conceptualised and packaged about five years ago and has suffered prolonged political and institutional setbacks. Introduced with the best intentions to redefine the framework of the industry in line with global best practices as to withstand perceived and emerging challenges, the PIB is to replace the Petroleum Act known to be obsolete in view of today’s industry outlook. The commercial hydrocarbon industry in Nigeria is almost as old as the nation’s independence – oil being first discovered in Oloibiri, Bayelsa state in 1956 and its extraction starting two
years later. But in spite of many decades of operation and extent of development, indigenous participation is still at a low ebb. No thanks to lack of enabling laws. As an answer to the lingering inadequacies among other essential considerations in the context of President Jonathan’s transformation agenda, the cerebral minister of petroleum, Mrs Dieziani Madueke, in collaboration with the articulate Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Engr Andrew Yakubu and the resilient General Manager, National Assembly liaison of the NNPC, Alhaji Mohammed B. Bamanga, among other principal officers of the NNPC, have left no stone unturned in the pursuit and adoption of this 21st century compliant petroleum industry laws now facing scrutiny. For one, Nigeria’s economy is peculiar in the sense that since the advent of oil and gas exploration and production in the country, other sectors like agriculture, manufacturing, trade and services have suffered neglect, leading to a monocultural situation where petroleum became the
mainstay of the economy. Nigerian government hence mainly depends on oil and gas proceeds for finance and trade balances. The country therefore, more than anything else, requires a regulatory framework that will guarantee the fortunes of this lifeline, a home-grown approach encompassing the interest of Nigerians, as the PIB is the key. More so, knowing that the hydrocarbon industry is a global market, there was a priority to take meaningful steps to protect Nigeria from perceived vagaries of market dynamics. Available records of economic indicators highlights that petroleum contribution to the nation’s GDP has been falling since 2009, a year after the first PIB was presented to the National Assembly from the initial 18.89% in the first quarter of 2009 to about 13.42% for the third quarter of 2012. This is essentially as a result of decline in investment in the sector, especially the onshore front as investors are said to be afraid and uncertain of the PIB outcome coupled with sustained losses to theft and vandalism. There is therefore, need to avoid further delay to transform the Bill into an Act.
“Introduced with the best intentions to redefine the framework of the industry in line with global best practices as to withstand perceived and emerging challenges, the PIB is to replace the Petroleum Act known to be obsolete in view of today’s industry outlook.”
Mark Nigeria also needs to be mindful of losing its investors to other parts of the world in delaying the industry bill. Petroleum as an underground mineral resource, flows from areas of low pressure to areas of low pressure in response to continuous movement of the earth crust and has no restriction in national boundaries nor does it recognise monopoly interest. As we speak, the increasing exploration activities worldwide have led to the discovery of oil in many countries. Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania are among emerging oil producing nations. Consequently, investors especially the foreigners are increasingly getting alternative fields to do business. Keeping the Bill perpetually in limbo without completion could, as discouraging as it appears, push existing and potential investors to eventually abandon Nigeria’s oil fields to other new fields. Economic diversification effort of government planned to utilize capital from the more viable sector, which in this case is petroleum, for divestment, is a lofty idea that has been going on. This needs to be vigorously pursued by clearing all obstacles to the PIB so that the industry can stabilize once more to provide the needed funds, before the energy independence policies of petroleum importing nations begin to have impact. The global economic melt down having dealt a heavy blow on the economy of many developed nations, has
prompted high energy consuming nations like the U.S to begin to look into policies of energy independence as well as painstakingly engage in exploring new ways of cutting down oil imports. This therefore, extremely necessitates putting all
guidelines prevalent in the industry in line with emerging realities. History has shown that the most effective way to tackle an ideology is by developing a superior one to coexist and subsequently engulf it. The PIB is a new ideology and the entire interest and
Alison Madueke machineries in place to open up the industry through the quick passage of the Bill so that Nigeria can start the robust phase of oil industry that the new Bill holds in promise. Above all it is no more news that the petroleum industry in Nigeria is riddled with the crisis of crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism, militancy and even hostage taking, all emanating from a stagnant socio-cultural operational environment. There is therefore, compelling need to change the laws and
agitation in the oil producing areas on the other hand, is a new ideology. What the situation vehemently demands is the swift passage of this revised PIB that meticulously took into account, all perceived stakes of the governments (federal and states), the investor and the host communities. When this happens, the once peaceful and prosperous oil and gas industry environment can return to the country for the benefit of all. A stitch in time they say ‘saves nine.’
THE WEEKEND
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s
I sues Crude Oil Theft And The Military Epoch FORCE majeure is a term that is slowly creeping into our national lexicon and consciousness. It is such a negative phrase that no serious country would ever carry about in a way that allows its use anywhere within its territory. This ill locution that does no country any good appears to have fallen in love with our country. At the last count, we have had four occurrences of it and there is no consolation that we won’t have another. What is force majeure, if I may ask? See how few of those who know what it means are. This is to be expected as its meaning doesn’t give a cause to cheer. Hence the natural instinct is to bury the expression alongside its meaning so that we won’t have a basis to imagine the gloom that comes with it especially on a nation’s economy and image. Force majeure, in this context, is a legal notice that absolves an oil firm of liabilities for failure to meet supply obligations to crude oil buyers due to circumstances beyond the firm’s control. This term literally takes the blame
something akin to the last resort available to the oil firms and gives an inkling of how bad the situation is. But wait for it, you shall understand presently. The Italian oil firm ENI and SPDC fall among the four oil companies that have recently sued for force majeure. ENI, on April 1 this year, shut down its activities in the swampy oil fields of Bayelsa State over crude oil theft. It had lamented that 7000 barrels of about 40000 barrels of crude it produced from the facilities was lost to oil thieves. Did I just hear thieves? Oil thieves for that matter! Don’t mind me, ever since I heard of a thief who stole a governor’s cell phone worth N50000 and got a jail term of 45 years, I always feel pity for thieves who go after higher things like oil because they may be risking hundred years of their lives, if not more, imprisonment. But of course, not in Nigeria! In fact, these oil thieves steal with impunity even before those who are supposed to prevent them. Shell Petroleum Development Company too could not spare opting for
By UGOCHUKWU UGWUANYI when militancy was at its apogee in the Niger Delta. This, it has done by causing Nigeria to export the same amount of crude as it could in the height of the Niger Delta insurgency. This was confirmed by a Reuters report.
theft and pipeline vandalisation is now being allowed to pooh pooh all that money and effort. It is even more bitter that we have allowed same to scorn the major legacy we can attribute to late president Umar Musa Yar’Adua.
the situation is deteriorating yet they haven’t been disengaged. Nigeria, we hail thee! There is no need telling the negative impact the new figure of oil export portends for our country’s economy. Its impact will likely be felt on the national financing gap meaning that
For those involved or encouraging this ruinous act, pray, where is your love for country? Oh, permit my woolgathering that patriotism has long departed from our dictionary. Those involved would gleefully intimate you that they are only benefiting from their own share of the ‘national cake.’ And unfettered benefit they are really in for as government appears at sea on how to contain them. What have continued to confound most Nigerians is that the current administration is reported to be paying several billions of naira to ex Niger Delta war lords to block oil theft and guard oil installations, yet
there will be drawings on reserves for augmentation. This will probably funnel into a situation where we can’t guarantee the effective implementation of the 2013 budget and subsequent ones. Further, this low figure of oil export and the staggering quantity of oil export caused by crude oil theft is capable of denting Nigeria’s hitherto reputation as a reliable exporter with security of supply. With this image forfeited, buyers could go after other markets that promises more stability of supply. Our plight is further fevered by the trend that sees many countries discovering oil in
Jonathan
Diezani Alison Madueke from an oil company that gave vent to it and squarely places same on the country where such a firm is operating. For this to happen in our country, it proves that our environment is hostile to the survival of these companies to the extent that they cannot cope anymore. It is
force majeure on its production of Bonny Light Crude following the ubiquitous crude oil theft. This led it to effectively shut down a whopping 150000 barrels per day worth of Bonny Light Crude. All at the expense of Nigeria. These have aggregated to take us back to the days
According to the international news agency, which on Tuesday quoted a shipping list it saw, Nigeria now exports 1.76 million barrels per day, the lowest since August 2009 when the Niger Delta debacle was successfully (or unsuccessfully?) resolved by the federal government. Categorically speaking, the current figure of crude export is the lowest to be recorded by Nigeria since August 2009 when the Yar’Adua administration, by granting amnesty to the Niger Delta militants, made them pledge to stop sabotaging the nation’s oil export drive. With the situation on ground we have gone back to the aeon that caused the country so much loss in revenue before the amnesty programme came on steam. Considering the humongous sum sunk by government into the amnesty programme and the amount it has continued to cost the government, it is adverse that crude oil
commercial quantity. Countries like Uganda, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire as well as Brazil and the United States have been found to have enormous reserve of crude oil. Nigeria, therefore, cannot keep handling whatever that affects its crude oil export with kid gloves. Nonetheless, it is times like this that make plausible the call for government to encourage the diversification of the economy. Since it is becoming apparent that government can’t contain crude oil theft, let it at least encourage the stimulation of other sectors of the economy so we wouldn’t become slaves to the thieves. Structural problems that inhibits this like power failure, absence of the needed infrastructures should be adequately addressed. Assess to funds should be made easy with institutions and the policy space improved upon to attract more private capital both from within and outside the country. That notwithstanding, government is not excused from the responsibility of putting an end to crude oil theft. If government is not that troubled by the negative effect it has on the economy and image of our nation, it should at least be bothered by the environmental degradation it brings on its wake. Those behind this heinous crime are no ghosts, government should thus go all out to round them up, else it risks fuelling the suspicion of its complicity in the illegality. It should think out strategies that can effectively deal with the menace. With all the resources and personnel at its disposal, it is unacceptable for government to allow this to continue unless there is more to it than we already know.
“Considering the humongous sum sunk by government into the amnesty programme and the amount it has continued to cost the government, it is adverse that crude oil theft and pipeline vandalisation is now being allowed to pooh pooh all that money and effort.”
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n
A alysis
A Nation At War With Its People
NIGERIA is crashing all around us and tottering towards a failed state. Yet, the custodians and squanderers of the country’s oil wealth in Abuja and elsewhere keep behaving as if they are presiding over a nation beset by mere hiccups. The massacre of innocent civilians in the town of Baga, Borno State, is only the latest evidence of a space where life is nasty, brutish, and violently cut short. Initial press reports stated that some 185 people perished in fierce fighting between members of a militant Islamist sect, Boko Haram, and officers of the joint task force. But Senator Maina Lawan, who is from Baga, asserted that he counted 228 casualties when he toured the devastated town. In addition, he said he found more than 4000 houses destroyed. Meanwhile, the Federal Government and the Nigerian military claimed that the death toll was 25. Of course, the understatement of the scale of tragedies is a well known policy of the government. Whenever Nigerians die in scandalous numbers, the government trots out a casualty figure that often represents a mere 10 percent of the actuality. In this case, whether the number was 228, 185 or 25, the conclusion is inescapable: too many innocent people lost their lives in a horrific, illconceived and poorly executed quasi-military
operation. That’s the bottom line. President Goodluck Jonathan has ordered an investigation into the massacre. It’s the usual ho-hum response. Nigeria is a place where, if you wait a day or two, another similarly dreadful event – even if not on quite the same scale as Baga – is bound to happen. The Presidency will then make its usual pledge to get to the root of things. Here’s a safe prediction, then: Nothing will come out of the Baga investigation. No soldier much less an officer will ever be held responsible for mistaking unarmed, innocent people in Baga for discounted humans that deserved to be killed as if they were cattle. At any rate, the horror in Baga is but one more illustration of a country in much deeper crisis than its leaders – and many citizens – acknowledge. Nigeria has actually been in a state of war for several years now, but there appears a conspiracy to conceal that fact. That war is, in large part, a product of the inherent incoherence of the concept of Nigeria. If there’s a section of Nigeria where people are enthusiastic about the state of Nigeria, I’d like to know about it. At fifty two Nigeria is besieged by at least four quasi separatist groups: Boko Haram, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of
By OKEY NDIBE
• President Goodluck Jonathan
Biafra, and the Oodua People’s Congress. Of these four, Boko Haram – with its combination of religious fundamentalism and violent attacks – appears to have commandeered media attention. Some four years ago, the Nigerian state struck a so-called amnesty deal with MEND. But that deal is in reality shaky. It requires a steady funneling of cash into the pockets of a few exmilitant leaders, to the dismay of their frequently forgotten lieutenants. The recent killing of twelve police officers in Azuzuama, Bayelsa State, provided proof that militancy is very much alive in the Niger Delta. Besides, it appears as if MEND is being refashioned for a decisive role in the 2015 presidential election. In the last month, two friends of mine based in
Abuja have told me that President Jonathan MUST win re-election – or re-selection – in 2015 because he has MEND as his trump card. Both men admitted that President Jonathan has been a woeful failure, even for the Niger Delta. Even so, they contended that, should Mr. Jonathan fail to secure the mandate to continue, then MEND is bound to ramp up violence in the Niger Delta, virtually shutting down Nigeria’s oil production. This prospect, both friends reasoned, would in the end strike fear in the hearts of the oil-dependent political and corporate ruling class in Nigeria, compelling them to support anything the president and his ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) are willing to do to secure another four years. I wish I could describe their scenario as
“Nigeria’s Supreme Court recently authorized the Federal Government to proceed to indict Ralph Uwazurike and other MASSOB figures for treason. Given Nigeria’s political history, it was a bizarre verdict. Uwazurike and MASSOB are no threats to Nigeria; Nigeria is a threat to itself. When the machinery of the Nigerian state – the police, the legislature and the Presidency – cannot answer the simple question of who killed twenty or so men whose corpses were found floating on Ezu River, then why blame anybody or group who openly seeks a divorce from Nigeria?”
nonsensical, but that would be self-deception. As another friend of mine once told me, Nigeria is a country where any absurdity makes sense. Yet, that projection of MEND as the final cause of a Jonathan re-election provides yet another proof that Nigeria is a wobbly country living on borrowed time. If Nigeria were a firmly established nation, then such decisive means of blackmail would not be in play. The other side of the coin, of course, is that justice should be the first condition of a stable nation – to invoke words Wole Soyinka deployed in his prison memoir, The Man Died. In the context of Nigeria, justice would suggest that the natural resources in the Niger Delta belong to the people of the area, instead of being hijacked by a visionless national elite incapable of creative application of the intellect to generate the resources to better their environment. In the spirit of true federalism, I support the idea of each part of Nigeria deploying their resources towards development. The Niger Delta deserves to keep most, if not all, the resources from oil. Every other part of Nigeria has its own bequest of resources, natural and man-made, to fund development. To return to my original point: a Nigeria where any form of blackmail can be used to decide an election is a misconceived country. It’s a recipe for the intensified deployment of violence as a means of achieving political and other ends. What most troubles me about Nigeria is the apparent deafness of its politicians and broad elite to the signs of a widening chasm, an increasingly violent repudiation of a country founded on false platitudes. That we’re one Nigeria is a huge lie. That
we need to be one Nigeria is an even huger lie. A country, like any other community, must be shaped and animated by a set of values and principles. A sense of justice is indispensable. But before we even get there, a sense of volition – the idea that every group that belongs to this national family did so out of free choice, not compulsion – must be demonstrated. Nigeria’s Supreme Court recently authorized the Federal Government to proceed to indict Ralph Uwazurike and other MASSOB figures for treason. Given Nigeria’s political history, it was a bizarre verdict. Uwazurike and MASSOB are no threats to Nigeria; Nigeria is a threat to itself. When the machinery of the Nigerian state – the police, the legislature and the Presidency – cannot answer the simple question of who killed twenty or so men whose corpses were found floating on Ezu River, then why blame anybody or group who openly seeks a divorce from Nigeria? As far as the Nigerian state is concerned, the fate of the Baga dead is sealed. Justice will not be done to the victims of the Baga massacre anymore than justice was done to those floating corpses. The Nigerian state is in the business of discounting the humanity of its citizens, treating its people as if they were d i s p e n s a b l e inconveniences. Daily, the Nigerian state wages a war against its people. Each time the state murders innocent people in Odi, Zaki Biam or Amansea, it fosters the normalization of anarchy. And as long as that anomaly persists, there will be a job for Boko Haram, for MASSOB, for the OPC, for MEND – and for other separatist groups yet unborn.
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o
P litics
The Ravaging Crisis In The NGF
THE Nigeria governor’s forum was established in 1999 after a multi party conference of the 36 states governors. The forum was registered under part c of the companies and allied
and the emergence of governor Jonah Jang of plateau state as its chairman, shows that the forum is in an unavoidable crisis. With the raging crisis in
factions, sequel to the rejection of Amaechi’s reelection by supporters of Jang, on the ground of
that Amaechi was not going to win as he didn’t get any votes until Jonah Jang recorded his 15 th vote
the NGF, Nigerians are shocked and frightened that this may go a long way in hampering the 2015 elections. The tension in the forum is palpable. It may not be awfully wrong to describe it as the battle between governors and the president. On one side, is the president and his loyalist in the forum, while on the other side of the tent is governor Amaechi and his supporters. The once influential NGF has since been split into two
massive irregularities in the election. Jang has been declared as the actual winner by his faction while Amaechi has been persisted in his claim as the duly elected chairman. Before this trouble began, Amaechi called for a reelection and it was greatly turned down by most governors in the forum, and craved for change. It was very obvious that the governors were in total distaste of Amaechi’s leadership. The jang idea was reportedly suggested by the Benue state governor, Gabriel Suswam and the governor of Kano state, Rabiu Kwankwaso. Governor Gabriel is no doubt a staunch loyalist of the president while governor Kwankwaso is a supporter of governor Amaechi. At the beginning of the election, it was vividly clear
election in which he was a contestant. Governor Amaechi on the other hand has said he does not benefit financially from the forum. If so, why the heist? There is nothing he
• Jang
• Jonathan
• Amaechi
matters act, 1990. Since its establishment, there has been numerous chairmen such as Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu, the former governor of Nasarawa state who preceded in office from 1999 to 2004 and handed over to Victor Attah from 2004 to 2006 who also handed over to Chief Lucky Igbinedion of Edo state. Chief Igbinedion handed to Dr Bukola Saraki the former governor of Kwara state. In 2011, Rotimi Amaechi took over. With the crisis trailing the Nigeria governor’s forum
By ODIMIKAEZE NNENNA
former attorney general of Lagos state, Prof Yemi Osibanjo (san) and human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (san) governor Fashola has asked the court to declare Jang incompetent to be the
before he caught up and went ahead of him. The forum’s election was subsequently rigged. As a result of this, two factions emerged, one led by governor Amaechi and the other by governor Jang. The once strong and influential forum has since been split into two factions. Jang is a stooge of the president. One thing the president has failed to realize is that having an opposition is ideal. It does not matter if it is Amaechi or anyone else. It is somehow worrisome that the Plateau state governor whose state is a beehive of violence, should be allowed to run a forum such as the NGF. He has no history of been able to quench the fire of crisis in any situation. Recently, there has been a twist in the crisis. In the writ of summons filed by a
elected chairman of the forum. The governor claims that a record of 35state governors participated in the election, that it saw the reemergence of Amaechi as its chairman. Also, governor Fashola is seeking the court’s declaration that Jang is incompetent to relocate the secretariat of the forum from its former place in Asokoro extension in Abuja. It will be recalled that Jang commissioned a new secretariat of the forum and subsequently held the inaugural meeting of its faction. Some governors have averred that there the NGF constitution does not make room for a second term for an incumbent chairman. Jang has described Amaechi as been incredibly desperate to remain a chairman. Meanwhile, governor Mimiko said it was morally wrong for governor Amaechi to preside over an
stands to gain in this fight; it is simply a matter of overshot ego. Amaechi has further advised the governor of plateau state to stop impersonating and parading as the forum’s chairman, as he was duly elected by his colleagues through the democratic process of free and fair elections. He said in a statement that, “we must comport ourselves according to the dictates and lawful practices and norms”. Politics the world over is a game of compromise, the game of give and take. As this fight continues to get dirtier by the day, both governors, especially governor Amaechi should stop for a second to think about the gravity of this crisis on the nation. The crisis not only affects the forum, but it also dents the image of Nigeria in the foreign scene.
“we must comport ourselves according to the dictates and lawful practices and norms”. • Suswan
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e
P rspective Nigerians And That Tinted Glass Mentality WHERE there are two/ three/four and more rich Nigerian politicians/ leaders there is laughter in their midst, and often it is a tinted atmosphere. #amebo# For purpose of this essay, let me quickly say irrespective of all that the traffic acts stipulates, what the police says and police did not say on the tinted glass matter, in summary, a layman’s definition of a tint—a tint is a chemical or nylon put in or on a glass that makes it unable for you to see those inside, and in cases guarantees the privacy of those inside, in other words, there’s often a blurred picture of what one sees. Over the week, a friend of mine brought to my knowledge again the farce called leadership in Africa’s biggest nation. He said to me “Mallam, have you seen the federal executive council (FEC) meeting pictures, imagine the way they are laughing, and exchanging banters?” I quickly looked it up on my NAN wednesday picture schedule. I saw it, I understood it, not that it was new, but it is the focus of my admonition this week. A collection of ministers and aides all laughing and exchanging banters. After all, contracts have been awarded...to friends and associates, you don’t expect them to cry. Beyond tinted and veiled condemnation on Baga, other killings and kidnap cases nationwide, our leaders simply live a tinted existence. They just laugh and make comedy of the serious issues bedeviling the nation.
I further looked up more pictures on the newspapers and watched events on television for the week, it only further confirmed that while Nigerians complain, suffer, groan under all forms of hardship. Our leaders are inside a tinted vehicle, inside tinted offices and get to homes with tint. We cannot see them, and when they manage to see us, they really careless. When we see them, we really can do nothing. We are victims of the tint, a psychological state that make Nigerians behave normal in the light of crass abnormality. Between the led and leaders is a tragic case of blurred vision. A nation of politicians with tinted hearts, lacking in focus, consistent in inconsistency, versed in policy somersaults and a people in dire need of visionary leaders but too tinted we cannot differentiate. With tints, a whole nation lives in rumor, just a matter regarding the future status of NECO/ JAMB is left as a dark matter. The minister for education, a junior minister, two education committees at the National Assembly, scores of aides and assistants yet we are all rabble-rousing in a nation that spends less than 5% on education. In Anambra 23 illegal refineries were discovered, 23 excluding those that have not been discovered. Excludes those in Bayelsa, Rivers, Edo and other core oil areas. These are tints, with all these bunkering
By PRINCE CHARLES DICKSON and stealing, we pay N97, and behind the tint they steal billions in subsidy. While the South sympathizes with the
farmers in Delta, in Benue, in Kogi, and we can’t see each other because we wear tinted shades. Tinted people that
Jonathan
David Mark
North on Boko Haram, the Southwest is tinting itself with notoriety in kidnappings, fulani herdsmen at war with
negotiate with ghosts, arrest ghosts, prosecute ghosts...one marvels, but really, it should not be surprising as they see
things we can’t see. When a Minister is never owed, has water running from taps in his/ her high brow home, barbed security wired high walls, domestic help and best of education for his/her ward—He/she simply suffers a wide disconnect, his/her reasoning is defect and in his/her tinted existence believes his/ her doing well translates to everything being fine—Nigerians don’t see well so we just nag and complain. On the other hand because we can’t see the inside, we make tinted comments, he can steal as long as he’s from my side of the wood. She can mismanage funds as long as its our money. Those muslims, the christians, its the ibos fault, crazy hausas, foolish yorubas and many more veiled comments that only expose our ignorance and tinted nature and victimology. The Federal Government within the week said it is looking beyond Nigerian banks to raise $3.4bn needed to fund power projects in the country “because of high interest rates being charged on loans by local banks.” The effect of the tint, the rates are high, small scale business people are on their own while government goes abroad for funds yet the collective wealth of the poor services the interests both low and high. On the little matter of tinted glasses on cars— does a goat eat bone, and in local parlance ‘who dash monkey
banana’. Of the several million plus cars plying our roads, how many ‘poor people’ that can manage a car, have cars with real tinted glasses? Victims of the tint, NDelta oil bunkerers tell FG they want amnesty, in Abia kidnappers say they deserve a feel of the tint, and in Edo new militants decry non-inclusion in the tint called amnesty. Rather than solve pressing security issues we are sharing monies. The Yorubas say Bí ekòló bá k? ebè, ara-a rè? ni yó gbìn sí i. Literally if a worm makes a heap, it is itself that it will plant in it. (The consequences of a person’s actions will fall on the person’s own head.) There’s need for us as a people to eliminate bottlenecks like the traffic acts tint rule and face the issues, the world is moving and would not wait for Nigeria. It is when the snail wants to invite death that it lays eggs. (A person who knows an action will be disastrous but carries it our anyway deserves what he gets.) Government must and by encouraging private participation invest in infrastructure, education, healthcare and importantly remove tints that block participatory governance or else, Boko in the haram is just letter B after A, there will be coko, doko, eoko, and down to zoko haram. If fish sleeps, fish will devour fish.(If one does not wish to be taken advantage of, one must be ever watchful.) Do we sleep and remain victims only to be eaten because of those that laugh at our woes—only time will tell.
“Government must and by encouraging private participation invest in infrastructure, education, healthcare and importantly remove tints that block participatory governance or else, Boko in the haram is just letter B after A, there will be coko, doko, eoko, and down to zoko haram.”
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e Between Boko Haram And Security Operation
P rspective THE recent declaration of the state of emergency by President Goodluck Jonathan over three dreaded and coldhearted terrorist afflicted northern states, Borno, Yobe and Adamawa indicated the massive loss of lives and property worth billions of naira destroyed by the self-styled terrorist groups in Nigeria. The 1999 amended constitution of section 305. (1) Subject to the provision of this constitution, the president may be instrument published in the, official gazette of the Government of the federation issue a proclamation of a state of emergency in the federation or any part thereof (2) The president shall immediately after the publication, transmit copies of the official gazette of the government of the federation containing the proclamation including the details of the emergence to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives each of whom shall forthwith convene or arrange for a meeting of the House of which he is President or Speaker as the case maybe, to consider the situation and decide whether or not to pass a resolution approving the Proclamation (3) The President shall have power to issue a Proclamation of a state of emergency only when (a) The federation is at war; (b) The federation is in imminent danger of invasion or involvement in a state of war(c) There is actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the federation or any part thereof to such extent as to require extraordinary measures to restore peace and security;(d) there is a clear and present danger of an actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the federation or any part thereof requiring extraordinary measures to avert such danger; (e) there is an occurrence or imminent danger, or the occurrence of any disaster or natural calamity affecting the community or a section of the community in the federation; (f) there is any other public danger which clearly constitutes a threat to the existence of the federation; or (g) the president receives a request to do so in accordance with the provisions of subsection (4) of this section with the provisions of the 1999 constitution, President
Goodluck Jonathan has every right to declare on the terrorism-afflicted north eastern states without reservations. Since 2009 when the indigenous Islamic sect popularly known as Boko Haram was formed by the late Mohammed Yusuf which was allegedly sponsored by one prominent northern politician and over 10,000 innocent and hapless Nigerians have been unscrupulously and callously murdered with no just cause including Christians in the north. Though many state of emergencies have been declared by Jonathan’s
government, yet the security situation is clinically deteriorating as a result of certain northern cabals who felt the apex leadership ought to be zoned to the north after the demise of President Musa Yar’Adua.The issue of Boko Haram against western education is no longer relevant rather than a political undertone to capture the leadership of the country at all cost with severe security threat while second term of President Goodluck Jonathan is being
In Nigeria By GODDAY ODIDI threatened by powers that be. Although senseless killings in the north started politically since 2001 when former President Olusegun Obasanjo was still in power. The political Jihadists started their public killings far back in the colonial era but were not facially pronounced but it was orchestrated in the formation of Nigerian Political parties while unnecessary crises erupted
in the north as at then. The Boko Haram emergence could also be traced to the high level of poverty ravaging the north in spite of many key northerners in power, youth unemployment is at a geometrical progression. One of the notable northern business moguls said many low income earners in the north cannot care for their children who averagely 75 percent of children are perpetual beggars while their parents have besieged their homes. It is sad that Boko Haram
is now compared to Niger Delta militants that fought for the total marginalization of the people in the Niger Delta region which prompted the creation of Niger Delta Ministry and Amnesty for the repentant militants by the late President Musa Yar’ Adua, while some traitorous and voracious prominent northerners were frontally agitating for amnesty for Boko Haram members. The issue of Boko Haram fighting
against western education is no longer relevant but decides to take delight in killing human beings as animals. Even setting up an amnesty committee by federal government to confront the perpetual killings of hapless Nigerians cannot solve the security situation because some political cabals are part and parcel of the callous violence in the north. Most of the operations of Boko Haram are politically masterminded by some highly placed persons who hate tranquility
in the country. To some extent, Boko Haram operations have been linked to the Arab world while members of the sect are digitally trained and fully armed to the core than Nigerian security operatives.Boko Haram has brought untold hardship and created unnecessary disunity of the people in the country. Security operatives are now preying to the infamous activities of sect and cult groups in the north. The federal government is unable to tackle the security threats over the years with empty promises to the
armless Nigerians. The fear of living in the north is the beginning of many people dying innocently while property worth millions of naira destroyed by these unrepentant sect members who refuse federal government amnesty plan recent times. Despite the urgent declaration of the state of emergence in the three northern states by President Jonathan, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Secretary, Rev Faye Pama Musa was shot dead
“The fear of living in the north is the beginning of many people dying innocently while property worth millions of naira destroyed by these unrepentant sect members who refuse federal government amnesty plan recent times.”
in his Maiduguri’s residence by unknown gunmen.Boko Haram operatives have sophisticated arms and ammunition to confront the Joint Military Task Force(JTF) without hesitation. The fact remains that some of our security operatives are part and parcel of giving Boko Haram operators information to attack government. Thousands of security operatives have been killed across the country in the course of protecting and serving their father’s land. Apart from the three states which the federal government has declared a state of emergency, states like Gombe, Kano, Kaduna, Bauchi and most recently Bayelsa, Taraba, Benue and Nasarawa states have been greatly attacked by the Islamic sect members. Even Lagos, Kwara , Delta and other states are prone to Boko Haram attacks but can be intercepted by security operatives. The problem is that Nigeria as a country is under the siege of Boko Haram which only prophetic prayers from great ministers of God can save the country from breakup. If security operatives are killed in thousands on daily basis in Nigeria, then who will bail the country out? President Goodluck Jonathan cannot protect Nigerians only because we have shortage of security operatives across the country Again, some of the political leaders and elders must be cautioned on statements in the media over Boko Haram attacks which deduced that some of these callous attacks are being carried out by paid members of the sect while sponsors of this act are at alert to watch government algebraic formula to fight security situation in the country.Boko Haram members are not spirit but human beings who have decided to make the country ungovernable for President Goodluck Jonathan. Does Allah allow people to be killed unjustly and wickedly? Many Christians living in the north have been killed while ultra modern churches destroyed by the sect members. Boko Haram has been divided into several rivalry groups to terrorize innocent people in the north. Lastly, President Goodluck Jonathan should genuinely tackle security challenge without any political undertone now.
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P rspective
The Conspiracy Of Our Leaders NIGERIAN politicians are validated by corruption. A system is as good as the people who operate the system. The unholy alliance between the legislature and Aso Rock presents a reliable compass for a fragile future. The hallmark of a presidential system that we feign to operate is the separation of powers. Separation of powers serves as buffer among the three branches – legislative, executive, judiciary – to ensure that no one branch has all the power. Each branch has its own purpose. The legislative branch is made up of the two houses of Congress – the Senate and the House of Representatives. The most important function of the legislative branch is to make laws. The President is the head of the executive branch, which makes laws official. The President approves and carries out laws passed by the legislative branch. The judicial branch oversees the court system. Through court cases, the judicial branch explains the meaning of the Constitution and laws passed by Congress. In order to further protect the citizens, the constitution has a system of checks and balances. Basically, each branch of government has a certain number of checks it can use to ensure the other branches do not become too powerful. For example, the president can veto legislation, the Supreme Court can declare acts of congress unconstitutional, and the senate must approve treaties and presidential appointments. The upper house is supposed to be a chamber of people of superior intellect, unmatched wisdom, matured, reasoned, thoughtful, deliberate, and above all fueled by patriotism for the love of country. Senators should be gently humble, responsibly committed, and sensitively responsive. The way the Nigerian brand of presidential system operates leaves much to be desired. Because of corruption and blind party loyalty, the three branches function as one. President Jonathan (the chief executive) wields power like an emperor with unlimited and
unquestionable powers. Few examples will suffice. Consider the enactment of laws. Ninety-nine percent of the times, the legislature has sheepishly rubberstamped any legislation and especially appropriation bills sent by Mr. Jonathan. The senate screening of President’s Jonathan’s nominees for cabinet positions makes mockery of separation of powers.
By BAYO OLUWASANMI senators behave like they’re suffering from conspiratorial fantasy. Judging by the abysmal performance and parody of statements and questions, the senators have proven with stylistic stupidity that they’re in Abuja not for the country’s business but for “their turn to eat,” a nickname for corruption.
Tambuwal
David Mark Usually it begins like a wonderful comic of the mocking bird. As the screening progresses, the drama unfolds with increased suspended animation of movie scenes full of satirical tragedies. Most of the times the protagonist and the cast members failed to capture the acerbic edge of the original play. Confusion, contraptions, and contradictions all add to the sinister twist of the movie’s plot. The screening exercise patently exposes the senators’ political cowardice, impotence, and corruption. It reminds me of the French medieval representative institution the Estate General in the 1700s that remained dormant for 175 years until the French Revolution swept it away for good. As members of the upper house, the senators are entrusted with the sacred duty of approving the president’s nominees. The childish carelessness with which they undertake the assignment shows they’re either seduced or deceived. Either way, the
constitution. They bungled it. Instead, they settled for a ragged stained toilet tissue called 1999 Constitution. They’re satisfied and comfortable with mends and patch-ups that would ultimately shred the shard of a piece of tragic military memento. The same conspiracy by the three branches is
selfishness, and wicked schemes. One thing I would like to remind the senators: No one occupies a leadership position without God’s sanction. A leader must practice the Law of Sacrifice by giving up the pleasures and comforts he might normally enjoy to ensure the welfare of the people that elected him and which he sworn to uphold. The senators need to
The senators’ handling of our nation’s business demonstrates beyond belief that they’re not thinkers but mere reflectors of the president’s thoughts. How do you interview nominees without knowing the departments they’re going to lead? Only in Nigeria is the absurdity possible in a presidential system of government. How else can one explain the confirmation process that lacks probing, rigor, digging and drilling of nominees? The whole process is uninspiring, cold, and robotic. I remember the confirmation hearing of one of the past leaders of PDP, Alhaji Bello Haliru. Before his nomination as defense minister, he was entangled in the Siemens’ corruption network. While the case was being adjudicated, the senators confirmed him as defense minister without any objection or reference to his pending corruption case. Look at the way the senators manhandled the case for a new constitution. They had the unique opportunity to fashion a new
employed on all issues that affect the country. They prefer to serve as rubber stamps for whatever the presidents sends them. Anyway, this is Nigeria where things work in the reverse. No one is disappointed by the complicity of the senators because they lack the fortitude, the conscience, and the love of country to do what is right and righteous. Needless to remind the senators that they occupy a powerful and influential position, they possess the constitutional power of check and balance to douse the excesses, and nearsightedness of Mr. Jonathan. They have the legal and political weapon to alter Nigeria’s political landscape for the better and change the course of history. The people’s mandate empowers them to force the president to govern like an intelligent statesman. But because of their insatiable appetites for luxury and lust like the greedy Cassim in “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” the senators are consumed and conscripted by their greed,
review their history and renew their memory to reclaim their legacy. Representatives of both houses are elected to fight on behalf of the people. From all indications, they’re hopelessly out of touch with ordinary Nigerians. They have the power to alter “business as usual” mentality of the president. For example, it is their primary duty to initiate bills that would directly impact Nigerians. Bills that will fight corruption, reform the judiciary, trim the bloated bureaucracy; disband the relic known as the Nigerian Police Force (NPF), guarantee modern infrastructure, safety and security; and bills that will address other areas of dire human needs beg for their attention and solution. The only time they put up a feisty exhaustive debate and discussion is during appropriation bills: food for the belly, belly for the food! It took a private citizen, Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) former president of the Nigerian Bar Association; to initiate, incite, and finally persuade the Congress the
need for constitutional amendments the job for which the legislators were elected to do and for which they’re being paid eye popping salaries. The senators’ collective negligence, ineptitude, paralysis, and the mediocre handling of policies and programs, the failure to halt orgy of spending by the federal government, their own escalating taste, and their lackadaisical approach to the urgent problems facing our country, enmeshed them in the conspiracy of dunces. They should stop whining and whirling like juvenile ingrates asking for more outrageous allowances and unjustifiable perks. For once, they can serve as an antidote to the toxic nonsense of the Jonathan administration! When our elected representatives cease to do what is right, Nigeria will cease to be great. The landscape of history is strewn with remains of once powerful and prosperous great nations. Overtime, they degenerate, decline, and disintegrate as a result of spiritual apostasy, political anarchy, and corruption. Greed, corruption, selfishness, and wickedness in high places are equal opportunity destroyer. Ancient Babylon was destroyed because of these sins. The grandeur that was Greece eclipsed. The opulence of Rome was trampled by the set of sins. These ancient evils are reproach to any people. The parallel outcome in Nigeria is frightening! To save our fledging democracy and make it a revolutionary experience and experiment, our representatives should move from spectating position to participating position. They should embrace the principles of personal responsibility. If they defied the peoples’ calling for sacrifice and selfless service, they’ll lose their mind; and if they denied it, they’ll lose their soul. It is no win-win situation for them. “Dulce et decorum est pro patria morire.” Meaning “sweet and proper it is to die for one’s country!” ***We cannot drive a car forward by looking at the rear view mirror. We cannot use shoes as hammers, newspapers for umbrellas, and finger nail to tight a screw!
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e Sins Against The Nigerian Child
P rspective NIGERIA on Monday, May 27th 2013 celebrated yet another Children and Youth Day during which the Nigerian Children and Youths were admonished by government officials, made up essentially of the same old people that have presided over such events in the last five decades, to be of good behavior and imbibe the essential leadership qualities of honesty, loyalty to fatherland, patriotism, fear of God and respect to constituted authority including their parents and guardians. It must be noted however that majority of the political leaders today are deficient in these virtues of good leadership which they inevitably mouth out at the various children and youth parade ground. In some instances, Children in their colorful school uniforms were conscripted by their school authorities and made to stage carefully choreographed match passes during which the political administrators of the various levels of government took the salute while some private and public television stations also hosted series of Children programs aimed at entertaining the large number of children that were in every convivial mood in the spirit of the Children’s Day celebration. These same broadcasting stations have in all honesty failed to play their social corporate role of naming and shaming serial abusers of the rights of the Nigerian children. At the level of state governments, it is expected that the 36 state governors were in frenzy mood to outshine each other in rendering some flowery speeches to pour unrestrained encomiums on themselves and their wives [known as First Ladies] for implementing what they cleverly but deceitfully call Children friendly projects and programs. Some of these so-called First Ladies in the 36 states of the Federation are already used to running very expensive pet programs some of which claim to be championing the human rights of the Children of their beloved states but most people in the states know that these first ladies are only serving
By LAMAL CASSIUS
their selfish interest by using the influence of their husbands’ offices to extort money hugely from contractors and other dubious business entrepreneurs who do regular business with these state governments. I will however state that Nigeria as a nation and the political leadership over the last fifty years since Nigeria became an independent political entity from Britain, have not being fair to the Nigerian children because there are so many that exist in the body politic that severely affect the enjoyment by the Children of their fundamental human rights and these will not be addressed or redressed by simply organizing colorful match passes and parades as was witnessed on May 27th 2013 of every year. The Nigerian Children who are caught up in areas whereby terrorism and civil unrests have flared up over the years are usually the worst affected victims of these violence even as most of these children in these troubled spots and flashpoints of terrorists attacks especially in the Northern part of Nigeria are denied of their fundamental right to good and quality education in addition to the fact that their parents or guardians are put out of job because of the violence or are even killed thereby exposing these children to
the vagaries of growing up in very harsh and hazardous social environment. In other parts of the country where there is relative peace and quiet, most of the children are faced with excruciating poverty because most parents of these children are either out of work or are too poor to enroll these children in good educational institutions. They are often left with no alternative but either hawking bread, pure water or other variety of wares for their parents or guardians to make a living or they are compelled by circumstances of hunger to loiter around at bus stops to beg for alms. Two things normally happen to these categories of children of the poor. These two things are either the children are sexually violated by adult predator or they are recruited into the world of crime and criminality and used by adults to perpetuate evil and other manifestations of crime in the society. A major inequity in all of these atrocities committed against the innocent Nigerian children born into poor and disadvantaged homes is that the state governments and the federal government have no effective remedy in the event that they suffer such monumental crimes against humanity such as violent
rape and other violations such as initiating and recruiting them into the World of crime and by so doing destroy their life chance forever. In The Guardian of Sunday May 26th 2013 the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development was quoted as saying that the Nigerian Children have been denied the full enjoyment of their rights in their states because the state Houses of Assembly have failed to pass the Nigerian Child Rights Act even as she stated that the Child Rights Act was introduced because Nigeria’s national Government felt the need to give a legal backing to the commitment made by Nigeria under the United Nations convention on the Rights and welfare of the Nigerian Child. Why have these state governments failed to domesticate the Child Rights Act to fulfill Nigeria’s obligation to the International humanitarian laws or are these component of the Nigerian federation not part of the whole federation? Again, since the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development is so weak to wage advocacy programs in the 36 states of the Federation to successfully convince and persuade them to pass the Nigerian Child Rights Law in their respective states to
benefit their children, why do we still waste so much tax payers money running that office of the Federal Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development? What is the relevance of this ministry when Nigeria does not have functional social welfare departments across the Federation thereby allowing all criminal syndicates and charlatans to invade the sacred responsibility of running motherless homes and other child welfare schemes as business enterprises and most of these private children home owners are now in the illegal business of turning these homes into babies factories whereby couples with issues of childlessness can pay huge price for their choice babies? Why do we sell and buy little babies in this modern age even with the abolition of slave trade? Government at the respective levels have spectacularly disappointed the Nigerian Children and unfortunately, these government officials dished out some lies during the public events to mark the Children and Youth Day celebration on May 27th 2013. The state Governors that have failed to persuade their state Houses of Assembly to pass the state version of the Nigerian Child Rights Act should ask themselves the soul searching question of why
they are deceiving their people by staging Children and youth Day parade when deep inside their hearts they hate these Children? To show how hypocritical these state governors are, one only need to know that their children are all schooling in Europe or America whereby these nations have long promulgated and are enforcing strict child rights laws but they have failed to give the children of the poor the opportunity of enjoying their human rights just like what their children are enjoying abroad. The children of the poor are all out of school because the state governors have diverted the Universal Basic Education fund which ought to be used to provide free, compulsory and quality primary and junior secondary educational opportunities for the children of the poor. The rate of boys drop out of school is a major national catastrophe which must be addressed and redressed fundamentally before we stop producing a generation of youth that are half baked educationally and therefore cannot drive the process of information technology and industrialization that will see Nigeria through in an increasingly competitive World. But, how can Nigeria benefit from the strength of her large army of Children when the majority of these children are born into poor homes whereby they are brought up in such a way that they are denied the educational opportunities that children of the rich get on a platter of gold? No nation will make it in our contemporary times if it fails willfully to educate its people and empower the children with the requisite skills to competently compete with their peers around the globe. We must make hay while the sun shine or we will forever regret this inequities that we have criminally failed to dismantled, so our children can have the best things that money derived from our rich natural resources can afford. Let us stop stealing our national treasury, but invest wisely in the educational and skill empowerment of our children.
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W ekend Discourse
Macabre Dance In Rivers State
Preamble SIR Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill was a British politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. Widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the 20th century, Churchill was also an officer in the British Army, a historian, a writer, and an artist. He is the only British Prime Minister in history to have received the Nobel Prize in Literature, and was also the first person to be made an Honorary Citizen of the United States. It is to this great man’s quotes that I want to start this piece with. According to this great leader of all times, “There is no limit to the ingenuity of man if it is properly and vigorously applied under conditions of peace and justice”. In another breath; he stated that, “Battles are won by slaughter and manoeuvre. The greater the general, the more he contributes in manoeuvre, the less he demands in slaughter”. After testing great wars and the results of diplomacy this great Statesman who has both British and American citizenship declared and I quote, “To jaw-jaw is always better than to war-war”. The Ongoing Macrabre Dance In Rivers State And Its Implications The main aim of this treatise is to critically examine the present macabre dance currently going on in Rivers State and possibly offer suggestions on the ways out of the avoidable imbroglio in the State if adhered to. But before embarking upon this venture, permit me my dear reader to take you a bit back on the State of Rivers State prior to the coming in of the administration of Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi. According to the Human Resources Unit of New York based Marsh & McLennan Cos report of 2006, “Port Harcourt the capital of Rivers State is the world third most dangerous cities in the world to live in ranked after Baghad, Yemen’s capital of Sana’a and Khartoum in Sudan for foreign workers as criminal gangs and militia groups seeking greater control of energy revenue step up attacks against the State”.
By EZE CHUKWUEMEKA EZE
• President Goodluck Jonathan Whenever I have to write on the security situation of Rivers States or whatever that may prompt it again, three great minds’ descriptions of that period will always come to my mind, Mr. Ogbu of Thisday Newspapers, late George Onah of Vanguard Newspapers and of course Prof Okey Ndibe of Sahara Reporters . Ahamefula Ogbu described one of the scenes in the State at this period in these words ‘Rambo could not have done better. With automatic rifles in their hands and hate, revenge and murder hanging around their necks, warring cultists took Port Harcourt, Rivers State, by storm yesterday for the second day running. Pandemonium broke out as residents ran for safety. It was sorrow, tears and blood. At the end of it all—or, more aptly, at the interval, for no one knows the end yet—15 persons had been dispatched to their early graves’. But if Mr. Ogbu’s description is not okay by you then listen to late Mr. George Onah, “For many residents, the capital of Rivers State, hitherto the Garden City where life was lived to the fullest is no longer the place to live in as rivers of blood flow ceaselessly following an unending siege by militants,
kidnappers, cultists, and criminals of other hue. Violence in Port Harcourt, Rivers State has gone full circle and the guns are still booming. The casualties are pilling, even as blood of defenseless citizens’ flow endlessly. Neither the Police nor the government has answers to the brigandage. Security outfits do not have official figures, record or reliable estimates of casualties in the Rivers State orgy of killings. Even the number of deaths during the Nigerian Civil War had a consensus of informed opinion on the number of deaths, on both sides, which hovered, realistically around 600,000 and below. But the rapidity of casualties in the onslaught by gunmen on Rivers State cannot simply be pigeonholed. The currency of killings is alarming and the growth of the economy of the state is heading for the deep”. You may wish to listen to Prof. Okey Ndibe in case Onah and Ogbu failed in their descriptions of what Port Harcourt used to be; according to him in his article titled ‘A Blood Soaked City’; ‘That the once idyllic Port Harcourt was now a scarred place, a war zone, a city soaked in blood; the city under siege with thousands of citizens displaced; that its
• Governor Rotimi Amaechi once quiescent boulevards and avenues were now ruled by marauding militiamen and by the fierce soldiers deployed to dislodge them. Sudden death by bullet was now a generalized hazard for the city’s trapped and hapless residents’. Recreating The Above Ugly Past Reading through the letter by the Speaker Rivers State House of Assembly to Mr. President I start to wonder if we are about to go back to the era of 2007. Rt. Hon. O Amachree in an open letter, titled ;Disruption of Democracy and Rule of LawAnarchy Looms in River State’, dated 11th May 2013 and addressed to President Goodluck Jonathan reads, “The situation in Rivers State has reached a fever-pitch, as there are strong indications that the governor, Rt Hon Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, the legislators, and prominent government officials have been marked for assassination. To this end, 18 prominent robbery and kidnap kingpins presently in custody are to be released from detention to launch the planned mayhem at the government officials and innocent citizens and residents of the state”. According to the Speaker, “ since 15th of April 2013 when an Abuja High Court
upturned the election of a legitimate and duly elected state Executive Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by Chief G.U.AKE, all has not been well in Rivers State. It is important to note that since this development, Rivers State is witnessing, with unending shock and awe, the creeping fashion of daylight illegality and disorder. As stakeholders in the Nigeria democratic project and legitimate representatives of our people as well as strong collaborators in your Excellency’s emergence as President, Federal Republic Of Nigeria, we seek to use this medium to intimate you with the developments, their implications for Rivers State and Nigeria as a whole and pray your presidential intervention”. Six days after the letter to Mr. President the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Mr. Otelemaba Dan Amachree reported, “Recall that I have earlier expressed my fears about plans to withdraw Security Operatives from the Governor and top officials of the Rivers State Government, including me, making us vulnerable to attack by hoodlums. Now my fears are made worse by the recent murder of an Aide to Chief G. U. Ake, Mr. Eric
Ezenekwe, at his Home Town in Erema, Ogba/Egbema/ Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State”. According to another report from online news site, Saharareporters quoting a source in Abuja that the police and state security services have been told to withdraw the security of the governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi anytime from next week. Thisday Newspapers in its edition of 15th May, 2013 reported that dynamite was thrown into a building housing the generating set that supplies electricity to the secretariat of Obio/Akpor Local Government Council in Rivers State, a development that ignited the fire which razed the building; sending jitters across the state as the crisis rocking the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) deepens. I got more frightened when I read the international dimension to this new effort to reincarnate the evil past. According to the petition by the Centre for Advancement of Justice and Peace in Emerging Democracies (ICJAPED) to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), petitioned the UN to investigate alleged Rivers State security siege. Continues on pg. 16
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W ekend Discourse
Macabre Dance Continues from pg. 15
According to their petition signed its Co-ordinator for African Region, Dr. Stephen Briggs and Secretary General, Chike Nwokobia, the group urged the UN to avert anarchy in Rivers State, “For emphasis, the past three weeks has portrayed Rivers State as being in a season of societal lunacy and political deadlock with very embarrassing actions meted on the Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Ameachi, members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, political office holders and other officials of government. These actions are considered highly repressive and against the tenets of a true democracy. As a major civil society group, we resolutely and explicitly condemn the repressive actions and characters behind the Rivers state situation as we believe that the present political deadlock in the State is already having devastating effect on many things including business to social order. Also, we strongly believe that unless this deadlock is broken, Rivers State may witness serious breakdown of law and order, with a high probability of being another centre for violent crimes which may be worse than the present Boko Haram terrorist activities in some Northern states of Nigeria. The alleged altercation between President Goodluck Jonathan, the Commander in Chief and elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Governor Chibuike Ameachi, the Governor of Rivers State began late last year following rumours that Governor Ameachi would be seeking a higher political position. This, even though regarded as mere speculation, did not go down well with Presidency because ever since then, the Rivers state governor, Chibuike Amaechi has no doubt witnessed a series of embarrassing castigations from mostly those loyal or sycophantic to the Presidency. Consequently, to the above stated, we also seek the immediate intervention of the International community to investigate the above stated issues and call to order all erring persons for the preservation of Nigerian people, sustenance of Nigeria’s democracy and restoration of order”. 2015: Rivers State, Its Politics And Its Strategic Status The strategic status of Rivers State in the socioeconomic, political future of the nation may not be over-
• Wike Nyesom emphasised. One may not be surprised of the political intrigues, manoeuvres currently going on in the State in order to capture the soul of the State knowing very well that whoever that takes the State is sure of the Government at the centre. Let me therefore use this opportunity to highlight the major gladiators and those holding the key to restore sanity in the State President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCON Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is of the extraction of the Ijaw Nation in the South-South region of Nigeria and the first Head of State of Nigeria from the region; graduated from UNIPORT with a Second Class Upper Division Honours Degree, Zoologist, a University Don and the first Nigerian Head of State with a Doctorate Degree. He is the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger, GCON and presently the President and Commander –In-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He has the singular honour to be the first Nigerian to be a Deputy Governor, Governor of Bayelsa State, Vice President and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria less than six years, a feat that does not come that easy. The heat in Rivers State is being generated by those that feel that every obstacle to his second bid to
the Presidency must be routed out. A quiet and unassuming gentleman but a deadly tactician when pushed to the wall; they are many great politicians that have tasted his bitter pills that can attest to this. His strength leans more on his perceived weakness. Some people erroneously assume that he is vindictive but records of those that have undermined him in the past currently benefitting so much under his administration proves that otherwise. He is not the ambitious type but fate continues to thrust on him higher responsibilities that he never schemed for. If he listens to some of the appeals on the on-going macabre dance in Rivers State, he has the sole key to put an end to the dance if he wants to. Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi OON Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi an indigene of Ubima Nkwerre in Rivers State. His rise to his present status is as mysterious and miraculous as that of President Jonathan. A Master ’s Degree holder, Amaechi was the first Nigerian to be the Speaker of a State House of Assembly for a whopping eight years and later becoming the Chairman of Conference of Speakers Forum an umbrella body of all Speakers of the State Houses of Assembly in Nigeria.
His assumption of office as the Governor of Rivers State, though his political party PDP dumped him after convincingly winning the ticket of the party during the primaries of the party until the Supreme Court restored him as the Governor of Rivers State still seems a mystery to many political watchers in the country. By May 2015 he may have spent eight years as the Governor of Rivers State. He is currently the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum and maybe re-elected by the next few days. His unprecedented feats in transformation of Rivers State have won him many international and local awards and respect of great world and Nigerian Leaders. His resolve to re-contest the office of the Chairmanship seat of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and his perceived lack of support to the perceived candidature of President Jonathan come 2015 is the main cause of the on-going macabre dance in Rivers State. He was the rallying force behind mobilising the Governors under PDP to support the presidential aspiration of President Jonathan during the PDP Presidential Primaries that produced Jonathan as the PDP Flag-bearer and during the 2011 presidential election proper ensured that President Jonathan got over 2million votes from Rivers State the highest by another State in Nigeria. A misunderstood but an amiable personality; his forthrightness and boldness to stand by the truth attracts so much enemies to him particularly those who can’t withstand his manner of approach to result oriented feats. His numerous ‘sins’ will be highlighted later. Chief Barr. Ezebunwo Nyesom Wike Chief Nyesom Wike an indigene of Rumuwike Nkwerre is a lawyer by profession, a political tactician of note and strategist of the first order. He was the National President of All Local Government of Nigeria from 2003 - 2006 (ALGON), the umbrella Forum through which all the 774 Local Government Council Chairmen in Nigeria
• Princewill Prince Tonye interface and interact on issues affecting the Politics and policies of Nigeria, while from 1999-2007 he was the Executive Chairman of ObioAkpor Local Government in Rivers State, an office he used to redefine and exhibit his special brand of governance. He constructed the Local Government Secretariat that stands as one of the best in Nigeria and a great edifice to behold. His tenure witnessed various developmental initiatives in the local government and he is remembered most especially for empowering a lot of youths, elderly women and men, the physically challenged. An ardent hand at grassroots mobilisation, He is credited together with Governor Amaechi of founding the formidable political vanguard in Rivers State - the Ikwerre Youth Movement (IYM) that decides and determines to a large extent the political tide in the state. He later was appointed the Chief of Staff of Governor Amaechi from 2007 to 2011 and from 2011 appointed by President Jonathan as the Minister of Education State of Federal Republic of Nigeria, a post he currently holds. He is touted as the next Mr “Fix It” when the original executor of the office and currently the BOT Chairman of PDP, Chief Tony Aneinh may have retired. It is in that capacity that he was
“The strategic status of Rivers State in the socio-economic, political future of the nation may not be over-emphasised. One may not be surprised of the political intrigues, manoeuvres currently going on in the State in order to capture the soul of the State knowing very well that whoever that takes the State is sure of the Government at the centre.”
appointed to oversee the PDP Gubernatorial Primaries of Sokoto, Adamawa and Edo States a feat he performed most stupendous to the admiration of those that sent him. Apart from Edo State gubernatorial election which PDP lost to ACN, PDP candidates won in Adamawa and Sokoto States. Currently, he is at the centre of the macabre dance currently going on in Rivers State as according to him, “I am defending the injustice meted to Bro Felix Obuah the PDP Rivers State Chairman to secure back his office as the Chairman of the PDP in Rivers State, this is in line with how I fought when Gov. Amaechi found himself in similar situation in the past”. Being the Director General of the Campaign Team that executed successfully the second bid venture of Gov. Amaechi to the Rivers State Government, it will be assiduously on his side to come out from this dance unscathed no matter how hard he tries. How far he can go in this his latest move will be determined in future. He has warned the Obuh led Executive and his supporters not to disrespect Amaechi as he remained the governor and leader of the party in the State. “By the constitution of the party, the state governor is the leader of the party in the state, so you must respect the governor and carry him along in everything you do. If not, you are not being fair”. The Hon. Minister recently donated his salary for six months to the foundation of Tompolo. Prince Tonye Princewill Prince Tonye Princewill an enigma as the three characters mentioned above which modus operandi politically is a study in mysticism as the more you try to study him the more he
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develops other confusing strategies. Born a prince of the renowned Amachree dynasty in the Kalabari kingdom of Rivers State and trained as an aristocrat par excellence and bestowed with an uncommon wisdom from God. He stormed the politics of Nigeria like a colossus dispatching political giants like Seregent Awuse to the cleaners and clinching the AC ticket and sent shock waves to the marrows of the PDP giants during the 2007 gubernatorial election. In an unprecedented political manoeuvre, he decided to withdraw his petition at the tribunal and chose instead to join forces with Governor Rotimi Amaechi in a Unity Government based on strategic partnership that has been hailed as a model of constructive opposition in the nation. This move proved that he placed the state’s stability and growth first over his own political ambition. Maligned in various quarters and within the ranks of the AC then, Princewill stood by his decision. His dynamism has also been recognised by the Federal Government with his September 2008 appointment into the 45 man Presidential Technical Committee on the Niger Delta with the mandate to collate and review all past reports on the Niger Delta, starting from the 1958 Willinks Report, appraise their recommendations and make other proposals that will help the Federal Government to achieve sustainable development, peace, human and environmental security in the Niger Delta Region. On 18th April, 2009 he was appointed alongside other illustrious Nigerians, as a member of the Federal Government Vision 2020 Committee, where he was subsequently appointed Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Niger Delta. A position he resigned from on the 19th May 2009 in protest of the JTF onslaught on Gbaramatu Kingdom in the Niger Delta Region. Popularly known and addressed as the undisputable Prince of Niger Delta Politics based on the above feats. He is being mentioned here not as a party to the on-going macabre dance but maybe a channel in stopping it. Interestingly these four great sons of Niger Delta on whose shoulder lie either escalating or finding how to restore peace in Rivers State are all alumnus of the great UNIPORT and the Port Harcourt big boys. President Jonathan and Princewill are
• Chief Tony Anenih, Chairman, Board of Trustees, PDP of the Ijaw extraction while Amaechi and Wike are of the Nkwerre extraction. Jonathan is the eldest of the four while Princewill is the youngest. Amaechi, His Sins And The Causes Of His Current Travails Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi knew where his problems are coming from, according to him when the Catholic Bishop of Port Harcourt Diocese, Most Rev. Camillus Etokudoh, led over a hundred priests and 1,000 Catholic faithful in a prayer session in Government House, Port Harcourt recently, he stated, “Pray for me for the chairmanship of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) because that is what this entire (political crisis in the state) is all about. But whether I win or not, I will contest for the Chairmanship of the Forum. I believe in the power of prayers. If you look at my political history, you cannot divorce God and prayers from my political history, if you remember how I became speaker, it was through prayers. Before I became speaker, I was already married to my wife (Dame Judith Amaechi) and she knew how we prayed and fasted together to be speaker. You know the story of the governorship race. What I ask God is that, why should I go through crisis like this all the time, why are people not honest in life? My political problems stemmed from my truthfulness and inability to tell lies and that people had mistaken that for pride, brashness and arrogance. When I’m asked a question, people expect me to tell a lie or bend it a bit, and suddenly it comes out straight. And when it comes out straight, people don’t like it. As a result, my Catholic priest told
me that it is only me that will account for my soul before God, not even my wife will help me to account for my soul. So if because of you, I bend it a bit, how will I answer to my God?” Throwing more light on the perceived sins of Gov Amaechi one of his closest allies, former Commissioner of Works and presently the Chairman of the Petroleum Downstream Committee of the House of Representatives, Hon. Chief Dakuku Peterside recently in an interview stated, “Some persons also claim that he is too forthright and I don’t know what crime that is called. However, the biggest unsaid problem is the perception by certain persons in the presidency that Governor Amaechi has ambition to aspire to higher office. The attempt to criminalize ambition, if any, is the root cause of the perceived problem in NGF. The second strand is speaking truth to power as can be seen in Governor Amaechi’s comments on sovereign wealth fund, excess crude account, Rivers-Bayelsa oil well issue, fuel subsidy, EastWest road, Adamawa PDP amongst others”. It has been stated in various write ups that the presidential bid of President Jonathan will suffer a setback should Amaechi emerges as the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum in their next election. How this is possible is what I don’t understand as the Chairman is just first among equals in the Forum as the Chairman of the Forum cannot influence or force another sitting Governor what can be done in their States. Apportioning unwarranted powers that the Chairman of NGF does not have is creating something else just
to overheat the polity. IS AMAECHI THE MAIN PROBLEM OF PRESIDENT JONATHAN IN 2015? INSTEAD, HERE ARE THE MAIN PROBLEMS! 1. 2015 PDP PRESIDENTIAL TICKET Though the egg heads within the President’s camp have not come out with the strategy they hope to adopt to clinch the PDP Presidential ticket come 2015 in the midst of formidable forces aligning to confront him including Atiku Abubakar amongst others. 2015 is surely going to be a different ball game than what happened in 2011, so instead of wasting energy the camp will need come 2014 on Amaechi they should be thinking on how to clinch the ticket and leave Amaechi alone. Assuming that clinching the ticket is concluded, let us discuss other serious challenges. 2. THE CHALLENGE OF CONFRONTING THOSE ALLEGING THAT MR PRESIDENT HAD AN AGREEMENT TO RUN FOR ONLY ONE SINGLE TERM The people concerned may have retreated and may regroup by 2014, what strategy is the President’s camp coming up with to diffuse this when it gathers momentum? Or is attempting to undermine Amaechi sorts out this? 3. POOR HANDLING OF THE RIVERS STATE PROJECT Sadly, those pursuing the current Rivers State agenda will be thinking that they are doing a great job on behalf of the President not considering the harm they are doing to the realisation of his bid come 2015. Other regions are putting their acts together and we are here dissipating our energy pulling ourselves down, making ourselves laughing stock before the outside world! Fighting or trying to malign Amaechi is a great disservice to the aspiration of Jonathan in case he decides to run come 2015 if the key role Amaechi played by his 2011 emergence are anything to go by. Instead of fighting Amaechi serious minded people should be concentrating on how to get him back. The way the strategists in Jonathan’s camp are going they will only succeed in forcing him to align with those that do not want Jonathan by 2015. Should we look down on what Amaechi is capable of doing then the strategists in Jonathan’s camp need some briefing. 4. THE APC CHALLENGE The threat posed by APC in 2015 is not only real but
• Gen. Buhari rtd. has the capacity to stop PDP come 2015. Those that need to know about this have already confirmed it including both the BOT Chairman and National Chairman of PDP. What strategy to adopt to curtail this moving force should be of concern to any serious strategist in the camp of Jonathan instead of wasting energy to pull down a force that should be of help in whatever calculation they are advancing! In case those fighting Amaechi do not know what APC portends, then they can read what the PDP BOT Chairman, Chief Tony Anenih thinks while addressing some of PDP Chief Wigs recently in Asaba, “We must not live under the illusion that our party is invulnerable. Although, the existing opposition parties are still too small, fragile and sectional, we must not ignore the possibility that a merger of these parties may constitute a threat to our current dominance of the political terrain”. Anenih told his party men, “We must not labour under the illusion that we can be spectators in the bold and necessary drama of national reconstruction, or, worse still, align with those who seek power for its own sake rather than for the good of our people. We, therefore, have a strategic obligation to put our house in order so as to sustain the peace which we have enjoyed in the last 14 years”. Is fighting Amaechi who is a pillar of the party how to put the house in order? 5. THE EAST-WEST FEDERAL ROAD AND THE SECOND NIGER BRIDGE If these two major projects at the heart of the SouthSouth and South East are not completed before 2015, its potential of posing a serious setback need not be overemphasized.
6. THE UNWARRANTED EXCHANGE OF WORDS WITH THE NORTHERN LEADERS Any thinking that threats in whatever form will intimidate any section of this country over 2015 general elections does not know about the politics of Nigeria. Chief Edwin Clarke recognized this fact when he stated that Jonathan cannot be elected by the Ijaws alone. Calling our people that make inflammatory statements to order need be overemphasized if truly they want the candidature of Jonathan to be sellable come 2015. Hear what Prof Tam David West said in this regard, “The way Jonathan is going, if he does not restrain the people who are speaking for him, he will lose 2015 in 2013” 7. Who are the notable politicians from other regions that still think of Jonathan come 2015. Apart those from South East which other region is speaking seriously about his candidature? Read some of these leaders’ comments and understand that Amaechi should be the least of Jonathan’s worries at this time. 8. THE THREAT FROM THE NORTH A. “2015: BUHARI WOOS IBB, GUSAU”. “The desire of northern leaders to stop President Goodluck Jonathan from retaining his seat after the 2015 election has received a boost with the acceptance of a former Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari, to bury his differences with his then successor in office, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) and form a formidable alliance that will give victory to the newly formed All Progressives Congress (APC) at the next Continues on pg. 18
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Continues from pg. 17
polls”. To achieve reconciliation with Babangida and other northern leaders in his camp, like former National Security Adviser (NSA), Gen. Mohammed Aliyu Gusau, Saturday Sun gathered that Buhari has set up an eight-man highpowered committee “that will not only work on smoothening the relationship between him (Buhari) and a section of the northern elite but also seek their support for his nomination as APC presidential candidate and at the election proper” B. NEF: THE NORTH WILL NOT PLAY SECOND FIDDLE IN 2015 The NEF argued that though Northerners threw away the presidency a few years ago by some political errors; elders in the region had decided that it was time to return the presidency to the North. According to the organization, “we are not happy that the North is not playing active role in the present day. That is why we decided to bring together our surviving elders. We resolved that something must be done, that the North ought to do more than it is currently doing now in the affairs of the country”. The group also maintained that any discussion that will not bring back power to the North in 2015 is not in the interest of the North and its people. Instead of the egg heads in Jonathan’s Camp strategizing and strengthening their base, they think by fighting some elements is the best strategy to sell Jonathan to other regions after all these obvious threat! THE PEACEMAKERS It is gladdening to note that Senators elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP have resolved to intervene in the rift between President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State “To that effect we have set up committees to engage the dramatis personae in the two states, and those committees will get to work immediately.” The earlier these Committees start to work the better for our country. The South-South, South East Governors have also decide to intervene. Most pronounced in this regard is that of an ally to the three major players in the ongoing confusion in Rivers State, Prince Tonye Princewill who has in several moves stated his resolve to bring peace amongst these three great characters that he shares a lot in common. “I have said it, time and time again that any true Nigerian should be focused on how to help Jonathan and Amaechi succeed. My dilemma now comes when these two
• IBB people are now at logger heads with each other, what do we do? I have done a lot to bring the two of them together and even though I have not succeeded till this point, I think at some point in spite of any interventions by third parties, two of them will realize that they and they alone need to settle this matter. I know Jonathan’s thinking on the matter and I also know Amaechi’s thinking on the matter and I believe that at the fundamental root of it is a gross misunderstanding between the two. Who supported Jonathan most when he was Vice President? Amaechi! And who gave Amaechi free rope in 2011 when many asked him to clip his wings based on the perceived leanings in Rivers state? Jonathan does not hate Amaechi and Amaechi does not hate Jonathan. In fact secretly if they are honest, they both like each other. Amaechi might have been a product of God but so was Jonathan. To defeat evil, you must be good. When two miracles of God face each other, show us the evil. If in the event you have to become evil to eliminate good, what is the point? In the end the President will realize at a point that Amaechi is really not his problem. Of this I have no doubt, what I am not sure of is how much damage would have been done by then”. Let us pray and hope that these efforts will bring peace to Rivers State CONCLUSION AND APPEAL From the much I gathered in the course of this research most of the aides of both Mr President and that of Gov. Amaechi are all amiable to peace but how to go about this is the challenge. As much as I commend all those who have intervened either through prayers or whatever form I plead with Mr President as the elder to
Amaechi and leader of PDP not only to summon but call his younger brother, Amaechi considering all the past positive deeds done by him and get this issue resolved once and for all and avoid the gathering of the storm in Rivers State. If my appeal is not acceptable then the cry of the Rivers State Speaker can be attended to “Your Excellency Sir, the situation in Rivers State has reached a fever-pitch, as there are strong indications that the governor, Rt Hon Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, the legislators, and prominent government officials have been marked for assassination, following series of reported nocturnal meetings held in a neighbouring State and Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory. The situation is exacerbated with the planned release from detention of 18 notable robbery and kidnap kingpins currently in custody to carry out this planned mayhem on the government officials and innocent citizens and residents of the state”. Your Excellency Sir, we fear for the survival of our democratic structures; and the freedom to carry out our legitimate legislative duties have been greatly hindered and interrupted. We make bold to say that we now live in uncertain times, lives and properties can no longer be guaranteed in Rivers State as a result of these chronicled events in a state
that has just regained its peaceful status from the recent past from being the hotbed of cultism and kidnapping. Silence over this planned and calculated destabilization of security apparatus in Rivers State is an “evil wind” that will blow no one any good and is capable of contributing to fostering anarchy on the Nigeria Stateline, especially, when those charged with upholding the law, ignore and conspire to undermine it, unmindful of the implications”. Your Excellency sir, you may wish to read this quote extracted from the Editorial of the Nation Newspaper titled “PLOT AGAINST AMAECHI” of 17 May, 2013, “The presidency should do everything to prevent bloodbath in Rivers State. Nigeria, in recent times, has had enough shedding of innocent blood emanating from the condemnable acts of the Boko Haram Islamic sect and some notorious cultists, especially in the northern part of the country. The president cannot afford to have another flashpoint now, especially in the aftermath of his declared emergency rule in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states”. Your Excellency sir, assuming that the Speaker is not making any sound statement coupled with the Editorial of the Nation Newspaper, what of our own revered Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka plea; “before the irretrievable point of escalation is reached, we have a duty to sound a collective alarm, even without the lessons of past violations of constitutional rights and apportionments of elected representatives of the people, and their consequences. There is an opportunity in Rivers state to break this spiraling culture of executive impunity manifested in both subtle and crude ways – that is fast becoming the norm in a postmilitary dispensation that fitfully aspires to be called a democracy. Even a child in this nation knows that the police derive its enabling and operational authority from the dictates of the Centre, so there can be no disguising whose will is being executed wherever democratic norms are flouted and the people’s
• Prof. Wole Soyinka rights ground to mush under dictatorial heels.” My Leader, in case Prof Soyinka stand is not in order what of our own elder Prof Tam West and his proverb, “The Nigerian Governors’ Forum, which is a forum of all state governors, does not belong to the Peoples Democratic Party, and should not be under the control of the President. I’ve told Jonathan before, I can reveal it. There is a proverb in Ijaw which says that if you chase a chicken too much, you will fall down and the chicken will go. If all Jonathan is doing is to guarantee 2015, I tell you, Jonathan may lose 2015 by fighting 2013. Amaechi has controlled the state very well. They expected action and reaction from the state which would have led to a crisis and then they would have declared a state of emergency. But if they are not careful, the way they are going, they will plunge this country into a serious crisis. It happened in the West, when (Ladoke) Akintola and (Obafemi) Awolowo were fighting. How did it end?” Your Excellency Sir, while I was trying to conclude this treatise that if adhered to is capable of making you the greatest democrat that have ever ruled this country, Senator Magnus Ngei Abe (Rivers East) and the Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) alerted me to summarize all that I was
“They expected action and reaction from the state which would have led to a crisis and then they would have declared a state of emergency. But if they are not careful, the way they are going, they will plunge this country into a serious crisis. It happened in the West, when (Ladoke) Akintola and (Obafemi) Awolowo were fighting. How did it end?””
trying to convey to you when he started that, “I would like to repeat that what is going on in River State is not in the interest of the South-South, it is not in the interest of the President and definitely not in the interest of Rivers people. I will say that and I will say it anywhere” I started this piece with quotes from one of the greatest Leaders of the world, Prime Minister Churchill Winston and would have loved to conclude with him with his following quotes, “However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results” and in another breath this greatest war strategist of all times counselled once again “Politics is the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. And to have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn’t happen”! But no Your Excelency, I will not conclude with the great Winston but the words of He who picked you out of nothing and made you to preside over one of the greatest nations of the world! The Gospel according to Saint Mathew Chapter 5 verse 9, says, “Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be called the children of GOD”. Psalm Chapter 62 verse 11 may interest you as well – “GOD hath spoken once; twice I have heard this; that power belongeth unto GOD”! Sir, before I rest my case and thank you for your precious time, permit me to say kudos and congratulations on your decisive step in declaring the state of emergency in Yobe, Borno and Adamawa States! No matter the rattling of some funny disgruntled elements only God knows what would have been our state by now as a nation if you have not acted accordingly!
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I sight Naira: The Slippery Currency THERE are various currencies used in the world today. Countries all over the world are identified with various currencies which aid buying and selling, and also foreign exchange. These currencies are in hard money (coins) and soft money (paper money). It is backed by the law as a medium of exchange and for the settlement of debts giving it a legal tender status. The word currency (from Middle English Curraunt, meaning in circulation), is used to refer to money in any form when in actual use or circulation as a medium of exchange especially circulating paper money. Collins Dictionary defined currency as a metal or paper medium of exchange that is in current use in a particular country. R.C Temple while writing some years ago described barter “as the exchange of one article for another, adding that currency implies exchange through a medium”. Paul Einzig, an author and journalist saw currency “as money actually in circulation or capable of being put in circulation”. But a general definition of currency puts it that, currency is a system of money (monetary units) in common
forms of money became a common denominator for economic exchange in colonial Nigeria. In 1912, the British established the West African Currency Board (WACB) and the board was given the responsibility of controlling the supply of currency note in Nigeria from 1912 to 1959. On July 1, 1959, the Central Bank of Nigeria came into operation and the West African Currency Board notes and coins were withdrawn. CBN took over the role of issuing the Nigerian currency relieving the West African Currency Board of that responsibility. Following the attainment of independence in 1960, the country needed to have its own currency. Therefore on July 1, 1973, Naira and Kobo were introduced as an independent Nigerian currency at a rate of 2 naira to 1 pound. The currency was also decimalized. Naira was introduced in the denomination of 50 Kobo, One Naira, Five Naira, and Ten Naira. Kobo was introduced in the denominations of +, 1,5,10, and 25 kobo. The + and 1 Kobo was in bronze and the higher denominations in cupro-nickel. The + kobo
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi use, especially in a nation. Like many countries in the world, Nigeria has its own currency which is Naira with the sign: N and code: NGN. Before the introduction of money by the colonialist, trade in Nigeria was carried out with local currencies. The currencies include copper wires, brass rods, manillas, cowry shells, among others. The British colonialists introduced their monetary system consisting of coins and banknotes, and these
coins was only printed that year and withdrawn from circulation in 1991. The highest denomination at that time 20 naira was issued on the 11th February 1977. The note bore the portrait of a Nigerian citizen, the Late Head of State, General Murtala Ramat Muhammed. On July 2, 1979, new currency notes of three denominations, namely, 1 Naira, 5 Naira, and 10 Naira were introduced. Naira at that time stood at an
depreciated further in 2004, to $1 = N136. Again in October 2005, another banknote was introduced in the denomination of a 1000 Naira. In 2007, the exchange rate appreciated to $1 = N115.50, but later continued
denomination out of existence and relevance. This situation also calls for serious thinking since the advanced economics such as the United States of America and the United Kingdom still make use of cent and pence respectively, which complement dollars and pounds as a legal tender.
the trek down the slippery path. In February 2007, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) redesigned the existing currency notes; Fifty Naira (N50), Twenty Naira (N20), Ten Naira (N10), and Five Naira (N5). The One Naira (N1) and Fifty kobo (50k) coins were redesigned, while a new 2 coins was introduced. Unfortunately, these coins range has been rejected, and put out of circulation. Ever since new notes were introduced, the price of goods and services has escalated. The introduction of new notes has proved fatal for the economy. It attest to the fact that naira has depreciated greatly against the values of dollars, pounds, and other advanced currencies. High denominations have also rendered the kobo unit useless in the Nigerian economy. It has forced this
The recent declining value of naira to major currencies in the world is of great concern. Naira fell due to tactical and strategic blunder. Also the weakness of the Nigerian economy does not seem favorable to naira, because a strong currency is determined by the GDP of a nation, particularly the vibrancy, volume and richness of the export. As noted by Dr. Venin, “a currency is the reflection of the country in which it is legal tender” Since December 2008, naira has declined by 55% from N116 = $1 to approximately N160 = $1, and it appears that it is further depreciating. At the current pace, naira would soon be trading at $1 = N200 or above in some years to come. The continuous volatility in naira has proved disastrous to the Nigerian economy. Yet recently, it was announced that a new currency with a face value of
By UTI ANIEKAN UDOH exchange rate of $1 = N0.658. It attained its strongest value in 1980 at $1 = N0.550. Naira remained strong until 1985 when it fell to $1 = N0.894. Then came a time when Nigeria needed a loan from IMF (International
Naira currency Monetary Fund). And IMF and the World Bank who argued that naira was too strong and needed to be devalued, made it a pre-condition for the loan. The condition imposed on the loan brought about the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP). This did not only affect naira, but subsequently led to the dramatic fall of naira. In 1991, a new currency note in the denomination of 50 Naira notes was introduced, and series of new coins range was issued. The coins were in the following denomination; One Naira (N1) Fifty Kobo (50K), Twenty five kobo (25k), Ten kobo (10k), and One kobo (1k). Between 1990 and 1991, the exchange rate had fallen to $1 = N9. The federal government made it worse when naira was further devalued in 1992, from an exchange rate of $1 = N8.50 to $1 = N18.50. This marked the beginning of the downward slope of naira. In 1998, the official fixed exchange rate was $1 = N21.98. The removal of the restriction on the official exchange rate in 1999, changed the exchange rate to $1= N85.98. New denominations of the value of 100 Naira, 200 Naira and 500 Naira were introduced in December 1999, November 2000 and April 2001 respectively. The rate
5000 Naira will soon be introduced into the Nigerian currency system. The full effect of naira devaluation will soon hit the Nigerian economy. So the federal government needs to tackle what brought naira to this level. Today, Nigeria is a net importer of products than a net exporter. Majority of goods sold in the country are imported from overseas. This problem should not be overlooked, because like a locust, it is destroying our farmland called Nigeria. Moreover, as naira continues to go down the slippery slope, wholesalers and retailers continue to change the prices of their products upward to reflect the amount been paid for the goods. The devaluation of naira also forestalls foreign investment. Foreign investors will not want to invest in Nigeria, because they will believe that there is no investment in Nigeria that would produce a good return. The major source of worry for CBN has been the gradual devaluation of naira, as well as the constant search for a stable value of Naira. For over 30 years, naira has experience tremendous decrease in its value. This evaluation of naira has led to the fall in exchange rate in comparison to other advanced currencies. It has also affected the prices of goods and services, as well as economic activities. Recently, plans were made to restructure naira which would lead to the conversion of 5 Naira, 10 Naira and 20 Naira to coins, to enhance the quality of our currency as well as reduce the cost of production, distribution and disposal of banknotes. But all these are nothing but textbook theories that may not work in practice. Nigerian government and CBN need to pave way for a strong currency and this must be done with a comprehensive strategy. The government needs to employ monetary policy and fiscal policy. These policies can also be used tackle inflation which poses the greatest danger to the value of a currency. The economy also needs to be diversified because it is vital for rebuilding and giving strength and value to naira.
“The introduction of new notes has proved fatal for the economy. It attest to the fact that naira has depreciated greatly against the values of dollars, pounds, and other advanced currencies. High denominations have also rendered the kobo unit useless in the Nigerian economy.”
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E n vironment
The Warming Plateau
By JUSTIN GILLIS
AS unlikely as this may sound, we have lucked out in recent years when it comes to global warming. The rise in the surface temperature of earth has been markedly slower over the last 15 years than in the 20 years before that. And that lull in warming has occurred even as greenhouse gases have accumulated in the atmosphere at a record pace. The slowdown is a bit of a mystery to climate scientists. True, the basic theory that predicts a warming of the planet in response to human emissions does not suggest that warming should be smooth and continuous. To the contrary, in a climate system still dominated by natural variability, there is every reason to think the warming will proceed in fits and starts. But given how much is riding on the scientific forecast, the practitioners of climate science would like to understand exactly what is going on. They admit that they do not, even though some potential mechanisms of the slowdown have been suggested. The situation highlights important gaps in our knowledge of the climate system, some of which cannot be closed until we get better measurements from high in space and from deep in the ocean. As you might imagine, those dismissive of climatechange concerns have made much of this warming plateau. They typically argue that “global warming stopped 15 years ago” or some similar statement, and then assert that this
disproves the whole notion that greenhouse gases are causing warming. Rarely do they mention that most of the warmest years in the historical record have occurred recently. Moreover, their claim depends on careful selection of the starting and ending points. The starting point is almost
market over 30 or 40 years. It does not even tell you how you would have done over the cherry-picked decade, which would have depended on exactly when you got in and out of the market. Scientists and statisticians reject this sort of selective use of numbers, and when
always 1998, a particularly warm year because of a strong El Niño weather pattern. Somebody who wanted to sell you gold coins as an investment could make the same kind of argument about the futility of putting your retirement funds into the stock market. If he picked the start date and the end date carefully enough, the gold salesman could make it look like the stock market did not go up for a decade or longer. But that does not really tell you what your retirement money is going to do in the
they calculate the longterm temperature trends for the earth, they conclude that it continues to warm through time. Despite the recent lull, it is an open question whether the pace of that warming has undergone any lasting shift. What to make of it all? We certainly cannot conclude, as some people want to, that carbon dioxide is not actually a greenhouse gas. More than a century of research thoroughly disproves that claim. In fact, scientists can calculate how much extra heat should be accumulating from the
human-caused increases in greenhouse gases, and the energies involved are staggering. By a conservative estimate, current concentrations are trapping an extra amount of energy equivalent to 400,000 Hiroshima bombs exploding across the
confirm it absolutely, but a growing body of research suggests this may be an important part of the answer. Exactly why the ocean would have started to draw down extra heat in recent years is a mystery, and one we badly need to understand. But the main ideas have to do with possible shifts in
face of the earth every day. So the real question is where all that heat is going, if not to warm the surface. And a prime suspect is the deep ocean. Our measurements there are not good enough to
winds and currents that are causing surface heat to be pulled down faster than before. The deep-ocean theory is one of a halfdozen explanations that have been proffered for the
warming plateau. Perhaps the answer will turn out to be some mix of all of them. And in any event, computer forecasts of climate change suggest that pauses in warming lasting a couple of decades should not surprise us. Now, here is a crucial piece of background: It turns out we had an earlier plateau in global warming, from roughly the 1950s to the 1970s, and scientists do not fully understand that one either. A lot of evidence suggests that sunlight-blocking pollution from dirty factories may have played a role, as did natural variability in ocean circulation. The pollution was ultimately reduced by stronger clean-air laws in the West. Today, factory pollution from China and other developing countries could be playing a similar role in blocking some sunlight. We will not know for sure until we send up satellites that can make better measurements of particles in the air. What happened when the mid-20thcentury lull came to an end? You guessed it: an extremely rapid warming of the planet. So, if past is prologue, this current plateau will end at some point, too, and a new era of rapid global warming will begin. That will put extra energy and moisture into the atmosphere that can fuel weather extremes, like heat waves and torrential rains.
“The slowdown is a bit of a mystery to climate scientists. True, the basic theory that predicts a warming of the planet in response to human emissions does not suggest that warming should be smooth and continuous. To the contrary, in a climate system still dominated by natural variability, there is every reason to think the warming will proceed in fits and starts.”
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G vernment Appraising Jonathan’s Administration’s Feat In Solid Minerals Sector
THE absence of the Minister of Petroleum Resources and the Minister of Power at the Ministerial Platform on Tuesday, June 12, granted the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr Musa Sada, a greater opportunity to showcase the ministry’s work. At the Ministerial Platform, which was introduced in 2012 by the
Responding to such requests, the minister conceded that the government was aware of the need to create more jobs but it was addressing the issue in a painstaking way. ‘It’s not a 100 meter dash, it’s a marathon,’’ he added. Sada stressed that efforts
By OLAYEMI OKENIYI In spite of the minister’s claims, the National Bureau of Statistics insists that the solid minerals sector contributes less than 1 per cent to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as against its
Musa Sada, Min of Mines and steel Federal Ministry of Information to enable the citizens to assess and evaluate the activities of the ministries, Sada spoke about his ministry’s activities and achievements in the last two years. The power of social media made it possible for viewers who watched the discourse nationally on television and internationally on the internet to engage the minister. It is quite interesting to note that virtually all the questions that came in via e-mails, Short Message Service (SMS) text messages, twitter, facebook and from individuals centred on the need to create more jobs in the solid minerals sector.
to develop the mines and steel sector required a methodical approach so as to guard against the repetition of past mistakes and losses. He said that such mistakes included attempts to do too many things at once without effectively completing any project or giving licences to persons who lacked the technical expertise. Sada, however, noted that Nigeria’s vast mineral deposits had the potential to fix most of the country’s power problems and generate considerable revenue for the country. “Oil alone can’t sustain this country, oil gives us a head start but the things that can really help the country are solid minerals,” he said.
erstwhile 10 per cent contribution, prior to the discovery crude oil in the country. Besides, analysts note that India, which is less endowed with solid minerals than Nigeria, currently earns 75 billion U.S. dollars (about N11.3 trillion) annually from solid minerals. All the same, Sada recalled that the focus of his presentation last year was on establishing the right framework to guide the sector forward. He said that the
framework, which had been established, had enabled the ministry to keep track of licences given to prospective investors. The minister, however, said that through the framework, it had been discovered that out of an estimated 10,000 mineral licences issued, up to 80 per cent went unused. He said that as a result of the discovery, the ministry had now adopted a “use it or lose it’’ principle to ensure the proper use of the licences that were issued out. Sada said that the framework also facilitated the creation of an agency to handle the dispensation of mineral rights, adding that the agency would also cut off undue bureaucracy. He said that under the aegis of agency, certain categories of licences did not require an interaction with the minister, as long as the applicant followed the stipulated due process. The minister explained that the process had been computerised with a set timeline, stressing that if a person failed to follow the process, even the minister could not overrule the system. Due to this arrangement, the National Extractive Industry and Transparent Initiative (NEITI) singled out the Nigerian minerals sector as the most transparent industry in the whole world, Sada said. “This development has increased the revenue generation, as shown by the recent NEITI Audit, thus creating more jobs opportunities in the country,” he added. On job creation, the minister said that due to the extant collaboration between the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and the
Ministry of Trade And Investment, no fewer than 150,000 new employments would be created this year. He stressed that the solid minerals sector had facilitated the creation of 1,254,200 jobs in the rural areas via the operations of 1,710 quarries and 223 small-scale establishments across the country. Going from the general to the specifics, Sada said that the sector had assisted in the production of 2.45 million tonnes of steel products by private steel operators in the economy. He said that as part of efforts to make proper use of the country’s vast mineral deposits, plans were underway to identify and quantify the minerals. He, nonetheless, stressed that geosciences data generation was critical to investments in the solid minerals sector. “Geosciences data generation is the backbone of the sector, investors ought to have the right information to enable them to invest,” he added. To that end, Sada said that the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development had completed aerial magnetic survey of the entire country and airborne radiometric survey of required areas. He added that the ministry also discovered high-grade iron ore, while collecting data on the country’s gold and coal deposits. He stressed that the ministry had also discovered 10 new minerals, adding that the discovery had brought the total number of minerals in the country to 44. Of the 44 minerals, 14 are classified as industrial minerals, which could be used by local manufacturing companies to produce goods such as cement, paint and soap.
Another set of 12 minerals, which include coal and iron ore, are world-class minerals with high global demand. The minerals, if developed, can be exported or used in the country’s coal power generation and steel development programmes. “Already, coal has been admitted into the nation’s energy mix, as it would be used for coal-fired electricity power generating plants,’’ Sada said. The minister, however, noted that the challenges facing the development of coal and other solid minerals included paucity of funds, insufficient data for investments, inadequate skilled manpower and illegal mining activities “With an effective rail system, the minerals can easily be transported to our ports for export, while the industrial minerals for our local industries could also be transported with ease. “On the whole, if the railway is used to transport minerals, their cost of transportation will reduce significantly,’’ he said. Sada, nonetheless, underscored the need to heighten the general awareness of the viability of the solid minerals sector so as to attract local and i n t e r n a t i o n a l entrepreneurs. He said that tangible efforts were underway to tackle the challenges of inadequate finance and skilled manpower facing the sector. “Without knowledgeable, skilled manpower to drive the sector, it will not succeed. Local and international expertise is needed in the sector,” he said. All in all, analysts say that efforts to transform the solid minerals sector are definitely on track but they stress the need to initiate innovative strategies to consolidate the feats so far recorded.
“Without knowledgeable, skilled manpower to drive the sector, it will not succeed. Local and international expertise is needed in the sector,” he said.”
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o The Need For Counselling
C unselling
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With
O.C. Students In The Classroom Madu
TODAY’S youth in Nigeria are growing up in a complicated and fast changing society. This is an information age and people’s behaviour and life style change with new information. Youths in Africa are today, caught in a web of change, as they are bombarded with new information everyday. The resultant effect of this is a complex need of personal and social adjustment, academic and career and vocational awareness that can best be met through a comprehensive, well integrated counseling curriculum. Secondly, counselors in schools cannot effectively use a one-to-one counseling approach alone, as it provides services to only a few students at a time. Guidance and counseling curriculum taught in the classroom enables counselors to impact a larger number of students in their personal, academic and counseling curriculum taught in the classroom enables counselors to impact a larger number of students in their personal, academic and career development. This approach also, has the added advantage of providing cost-effective counselling service to all students in the classroom setting. Counsellors must begin to view counseling curriculum taught in the classroom as a veritable tool in providing an efficient counseling service in our schools. Today’s counselors must see the classroom as the “front line” of their work. Counselors must be provided with professional skills needed to fulfill all the roles they may be called upon to perform, such as, teacher, therapist, group facilitator, career specialist, crisis manager, consultant, administrator, researcher, test interpreter etc. There is an urgent need for a comprehensive guidance and counselling curriculum offered in the classroom. Counseling can be made available to all students in the school, not just to a few who can be aided through individual or group counseling. Through
counseling curriculum, students at the junior and senior secondary school can be taught and provided with the information that takes care of their developmental and personal needs. Such curriculum must be centred on the developmental needs of the students or pupils. It must be based on the concept that children pass through
need assistance throughout their school years in accomplishing developmental tasks. Successfully achieving these sills can lead each student to a sense of personal fulfillment and enhance the quality of life as a productive person in society. A curriculum of counselling provides a systematic approach for
develop healthy ways to cope and deal with situations that arise during their life’s journey. Students can work through developmental and situational crisis if they are able to call upon the skills they learned to confront difficulties when they arise. The Following Are Some Of A Good Counselling Curriculum
student’s cognitive and emotional development allows. All students can benefit from lessons that promote positive self – esteem, for example, but the way the counselor approaches this will be quite different, depending upon the class level of the students.
various developmental stages as they grow and mature. For children to develop in a healthy manner, they must successfully progress through certain kinds of learning and development. Counselling curriculum should therefore, be based on the competencies identified in the child as the child develops, student competencies differ from one location to another and from school to school. Typically, student competencies are organized around three domains of development namely: - Personal, social - Career/vocational - Academic/learning. Characteristics Of A Good And Counselling Curriculum A curriculum of counseling is based on the premise that all students
exposing students to lessons appropriate to their developmental level. The lessons are presented so that students are able to learn, understand and eventually, master aspects of personal/social development, vocational. Career development and academic/educational development. The primary goal according to Professor Alfred A. Adegoke is to present learning in these areas so that students can
Like any other curriculum in the educational scheme, a curriculum of counseling must be comprehensive and ongoing, sensitive to the readiness of students to learn in the areas of personal – social, vocational and academic development. Lessons emphasizing prevention for example should begin at the elementary level and progress to more difficult or abstract levels as the
One way this can be done is to establish monthly themes or topics for each class level each year. The themes are then broken into small units, units taught each month reflect the theme in a developmentally appropriate lesson. For example, a school may adopt the following themes for each month of the year. January Getting acquainted/orientation/ transition. February - Academic
GSM: 08056379608 fitness/self evaluation/goal setting March - Choices and consequences/decisionmaking April - Liking me/selfesteem/self-image. May - Family. June - Wellness/lifestyle/ stress management July - Friendship/ interpersonal relationship e.t.c (CASSON, 2004). The curriculum must have organisation and format. Activities in the curriculum should be sequential and follow a simple and consistent format. Goals related to student competencies should be set for each class level and the outcomes observed. When students understand the meaning behind their educational programming and know what to expect, they will benefit and will likely become the program’s most avid supporters. A curriculum in counseling must be flexible. As new areas of need arise in a program, the curriculum should be amendable to revision and embellishment without beginning again. As curriculum in counseling must be accountable. Goals and objectives for the curriculum should be written in behavioral and measurable terms. An evaluation should be done at the end of each lesson or unit to determine if the students understood and grasped the topic or issue presented. A counseling curriculum represents a structured, sequenced, large – group activity, directed to the needs and interests of all students in the school. Thanks.
“When students understand the meaning behind their educational programming and know what to expect, they will benefit and will likely become the program’s most avid supporters.”
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S ciety Introduction THE family is the nucleus of the society holding within it, as it does, the potential to either make or mar society itself. As such, parents play a crucial role in the all-round development of the child. However, guiding the child from infancy, throughout childhood, adolescent up to adulthood is neither simple nor easy as many parents would testify. The family provides guidance and support for their children to enable them fulfill their basic needs, and cope with the demands of the society. Parental negligence and failure to fulfill these duties have made the society suffer so much, and have impacted negatively on many Nigeria youths. Parents constitute the primary source of security, stability and affection for a child, and so the primacy of security also lies to the extent to which parents are able to achieve this. It follows that, in the case of parental rejection, hostility or excessive severity in the family, the results are likely to be an aggressive, violent and suspicious minded child, bringing about a violent society. Also, children deserve to learn important lessons from their parents and to acquire important habits, they need help in learning what matters to them. We want our children to grow up to be responsible adults. We want them to learn to feel, think, and act with respect for themselves and for other people. We want them to pursue their own well-being, while also being considerate of the needs and feelings of others. Thus, the thrust of this write up is to present the fact that, in stopping the spread of violence in Nigeria, the family needs to wake up to its responsibilities. Violence here should be seen
The Role Of The Family In By AYEGWALO, CLIFFORD OMV
holistically, as it has manifested itself in Nigeria, ranging from terrorist activities to kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism, etc. In achieving this set out goal, this work will attempt a conceptual clarification of important terms, then move to the focal point on discourse and finally give a c o n c l u s i o n .
human enrichment in the society. The values of life are developed in the family, because here is the point of departure for all members of the human society. This makes the family a delicate institution, any mistake in the family can make the society scattered as it is
outcome it produces. Globally, violence takes the lives of more than I .5 million people annually. In Nigeria, countless number of people have lost their lives to violence. For each single death due to violence, there are dozens of hospitalizations,
some deviant lifestyles, which spill over to terror in the social structure. P a r e n t a l Responsibilities In Fight Against Violence Following the trend of this write up, it has become clear that the good of persons and the proper functioning of society are closely connected with the healthy state of conjugal
C o n c e p t u a l Clarification Family Family is etymologically derived from the Greek Mispaha, meaning ‘clan’ and from the Latin Familiar, meaning ‘group of people’. The family as a way of definition is the union of a man and woman (usually not related by blood) along with their offspring usually living together.’ It is through the family that life comes to the world and so the family is always revered. The family is the principal institution for the socialization of children. With this in mind, the Church in Vatican II has referred to the family as a ‘domestic Church’. This is because the family is the school of Christian life and a school for
experienced in Nigeria in recent times. V i o l e n c e According to the Oxford Advanced English Learner ’s Dictionary, violence is the physical forceful behaviour that is intended to hurt or kill somebody. The World Health Organization defined violence as the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person or against a group or community that either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment or deprivation. This definition associates intentionality with the committing of the act itself, irrespective of the
hundreds of emergency department visits and hundreds of doctors’ appointments. Violence often has life-long consequences for victims (physical, mental and social) and can slow down economic and social development. Evidence has shown that one of the major causes and spread of violence is absence of safe, stable and nurturing relationships between parents and children. The effects are finding consolation in drugs and
and family life. Without families that are strong in their communion and stable in their commitment, people grow weak. The family structures the personality of the young and stabilizes the moral conduct of the adults, thereby inculcating in its members the psychological training and support necessary to meet the requirements of the social system. As parents, we can give our children the best in us by helping them acquire
habits and character traits which they can rely on in their own lives. If we help them learn to take pleasure in thinking and behaving well, they will have the best chance to lead good lives as individuals and as citizens in the community. This will be true no matter that unpleasant situations or road influences they come across. Parent should help the young Nigerians to learn from them how to love one another, manage freedom, forgive one another, know their peer groups, etc. Love For Life Life is the first and the best gift God has given to man. To love life is to love God who gave life. This love is taught to the children by example of how the parents love themselves and the children. Children who are loved hardly contemplate bad things because they are strengthened by love. Few years back, I was teaching catechism in one of my Apostolic works, while speaking to the children about God and prayer, I told them using anthropomorphic terms, that “God is like our earthly Father who loves and cares for us, forgives us and does everything possible to keep us happy and growing.” God, just like our parents is more to be loved than feared. A little lad instantly raised her hand and said: “Brother, God cannot be like my father surely: if God is like my father, I hate him.” For her, her dad is a drunk; he makes the atmosphere tense for them and their mum.
“Evidence has shown that one of the major causes and spread of violence is absence of safe, stable and nurturing relationships between parents and children.”
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Curbing Violence In Nigeria Such parents dehumanize their children by the way the children are beaten, insulted and scolded, nothing is ever good about them. Some children in our society grow with this pain and the consequences are that they turn to become violent fellows, the type that can easily wreak havoc and terrorism. Parents should learn how to love their children in any condition, value God’s gift of life in them, and encourage them to be good through fraternal correction. This will heal their inadequacies and restore confidence in the f a m i l y . Management Of F r e e d o m There are three definitions of freedom: two of them are false, and one is true. The first definition is “freedom is the right to do whatever pleases me”. This is the liberal doctrine of freedom, which reduces freedom to a physical rather than to a moral power. Of cause we are free to do whatever we please. But in actual sense do we ought to do those things? This kind of freedom, in which everyone is allowed to seek his own benefit, produces confusion. There is no liberalism of this particular kind without a world of conflicting egoisms, where one is willing to submerge himself for common good. To overcome this confusion of everyone doing what he pleases, there arose the second definition of freedom, namely, “freedom is the right to do whatever you must”. This is totalitarian freedom, which was developed in order to destroy, individual freedom for the sake of the society; this type of freedom was championed by Engels
and Marx. The true concept of freedom is, “freedom is the right to do whatever we ought”, ‘ought’ here implies good purpose morality and the law of God. Freedom is within the law and not outside it. The adolescent desires freedom, but many a time has wrong concept of freedom. The parents by their teaching and example should make them understand the true concept of
responsibilities. In their expression of freedom, the parents should make it clear to their children that life without freedom is hell and freedom without responsibility is like a house without roof. Forgive And Forget Violence and terrorism is sparked by religious/ political sentiments but is spread through unforgiveness. People want to attack back, making the
responsibly while they are young. Studies show that many children see nothing wrong with cheating in tests/exams. Some see nothing wrong with taking things that do not belong to them. If proper attitudes and behaviours are not acquired early enough in life, problems can mushroom with even worse consequences when children are older. As crimes have increased, teenage
freedom. The young mind needs freedom, but it should be accompanied by a sense of responsibility. The parents by example of their lives should make them to understand why they should do what they have to do instead of doing other things. It is a fact that in our society today, some parents live aimlessly without direction and they see and do things by chance and indulge in so many things that they are not proud to discuss with their children in the process, enslave themselves in their own houses. Parents should learn the nitty-gritty of freedom and see how their misuse of this concept can lead the children in desiring freedom without
environment more tensed and unbearable. The responsibility of parents here is that children are always watching them; they see how they quarrel and resolve issues. It is from the parents that the child learns whether forgiveness is valuable or not, if he/she sees the parents forgive one another or forgive their neighbours’ faults, they will learn forgiveness. Parents should reflect their way of life and know that their actions tell on the future of their children and the society at large. Create Time For the Things That Matter The wellbeing of the family should be the first priority of parents. Today, there is wide recognition that many of our children are not learning to act
offenders have shown less and less feeling for their victims. Children should learn responsibility from their parents when they are young, rather than wait, when they are older to change bad habits. Parents work hard day and night to get access to the means of a good life and justifiably to have good provisions for the welfare of their children and wards. But they hardly have time to take care of these children
and wards, oversee their educational pursuits and to bring them up as good and decent human beings. Their works have severed them from knowing their children. In the end, the huge accumulation of wealth is meaningless because children uncared for will grow up as uncaring grown-ups and the vicious circle continues. This is the tragedy of the fast life of the industrial age. This sad case of parental neglect has imparted violently in the Nigerian society. Parents in their plainly pursuit should be able to discern the things that matter most and stop leaving their children at the mercy of house maids. Peer Groups Influence Every youth wants to feel belonged, accepted and affirmed. Therefore, most youths go to any extent so as to be accepted even if it means doing something wrong. This has made many youths, join secret cults in higher institutions, picking up bad habit and behaviour that are not in accord with the social norms. 60% of armed robbers from wealthy homes are either influenced by peer groups or by constant absence of parental affection. Parents should make enquiries and know the friends of their children. They should know the extent of what their children are capable of and the degree to which they can be influenced. This will help them to guide the children against peer group influences in the society.
Conclusion It is important to keep in mind the enormous challenges that families of the 21st century have to face as enunciated in this write up. This is so because even in the midst of remarkable technological progress, notably in the area of communication, our world experiences a deep interior by their teaching emptiness that it perceives as an absence of God. Fascinated by its own creative capacities, contemporary humanity tends to forget its Creator and set itself up as the sole master of its own destiny. The value we place on freedom, our longing for equality, ideal of solidarity, our access to unrestricted communications or technological abilities and the protection of the environment are unquestionably admirable values. But this has had negative values on the family, the conflictual and broken relationships that are multiplying at all levels of human experience, disrupting marriage and the family, multiplying ethnic and social conflicts and increasing the gulf between the rich and huge majority who are poor. All these went wrong because of the family, and the consequences were further damaging to the family. The argument of this article is that violence which is the aftermath effects of all these, however, can still be remedied and controlled by revisiting the essential family values for a better society. Culled from The Nigerian Catholic Encounter
“The responsibility of parents here is that children are always watching them; they see how they quarrel and resolve issues. It is from the parents that the child learns whether forgiveness is valuable or not, if he/she sees the parents forgive one another or forgive their neighbours’ faults, they will learn forgiveness.”
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L ving
The Power Of Self Control
SELF control is the ability to control one’s emotions, behaviour, and desires in order to obtain some reward, or avoid some punishment. “The Greek word translated Self Control” egkrateia, is derived from two other Greek words en and kratos. En means “in” and Kratos means “strength’ or ‘power”. Self control is vital for overcoming obsessions, fears, addictions, and any kind of unsuitable behaviour. It put you in control of your life, your behaviour, and your reactions. It improves your relationships, develops patience and tolerance and is an important tool for attaining success and happiness. Self-control is a key factor in every man’s life that needs to be given keen interest. The inability for a man to control himself in the area of his thoughts and actions has brought more harm than good to humanity. The book of James l vs. 23&24 says “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror. 24”For he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was”. In life, we see people who are highly placed in the society, and those who have contributed to the lives of humanity involving themselves in an unseen act, which is capable of damaging their good name and destroying their precedent benevolence to the society. Over the years, there have been stories following our newspapers headlines and also on our television screen about stories of president, governors, senators and even clergymen who the world and the society look unto for direction being entangled in devilish act. Most of these persons involve themselves in crimes ranging from murder, rape, money
laundering (theft), drug and human trafficking, assault of persons and so many other offences. They end up bringing shame and disgrace to their family and country at large. We all face temptations to sin all our lives, when confronted with temptations, we must strive as far as possible, to get away from them
even if you think you have a lot of self control, don’t put it to the test unnecessarily. We need self control to avoid not only outright evil but also too much of the good things Pros. 25 vs. 16 “Have you found honey? Eat as much as you need, lest you be filled with it and vomit. People often lack the self-restraint to stop when they should. People over eat, over drink, overspend and over indulge in lots of things. We must rule over our appetites rather than letting our appetites rule us. Over indulgence can lead to intoxication or and addiction. In either case, the person is then really out of control. Our law courts are filled up with cases upon cases, law suit pilling on one another of incidents done by persons who are unable to control themselves emotionally
By IFASUYI HELEN OSASERE
and otherwise. Benjamin Franklin quote “Educate your children to selfcontrol, to the habit of holding passion and prejudice and evil tendencies subject to an upright and reasoning will; and you have done much to abolish misery
a man sleeping with either his house help or his secretary in the office under the disguise of my wife is not performing her matrimonial responsibility. On the other hand the woman cheating on her husband with the excuse of her husband is not caring, loving and so on.
from their future and crimes from society. In our homes today, we see the effect of lack of self control playing a damaging role to the lives of married couples, siblings and the extended families at large. Most married couples/spouses trade their integrity for instant gratification and desire. We hear issue of
This scenery leads to the destruction of home that may have been built for a long time. We hear cases of 35 years old marriage being dissolved in court over infidelity from both parties. There are also instances, where a father is having canal knowledge of his own daughter, a 2-year-old baby raped by a 60-years,
old man. a brother accused by his sister of rape. These entire immoral-acts are as a result of lack of self control. In government and politics, we hear of former governors being arranged in courts for stealing public funds for personal interest and bribery and corruption here and there.
The high rate of criminal activities in our society and armed robbery attack in broad day lights. People are being killed with or without any reason. Our religious houses which most persons see as the hope for the common man in the society is not left out. Our Clergy men involve
themselves in theft, rape, sexual abuse of their members after preaching their sermon 1Cor 9 vs. 26 Apostle Paul said “Therefore I run thus not with uncertainty, thus I fight not as one who beats the air. 27’ But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection lest when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. Clergy men because they preach one thing and do otherwise, they are unable to exercise their sermon in themselves “I cannot trust a man to control others who cannot control himself” —Robert. F. Lee said. The scenery behind lack of self-control is that most persons lack the knowledge and understanding of what self control really means. They have strong and uncontrolled emotional responses. People sometimes react to outside stimuli without thinking first. Some persons lack selfdiscipline and ill power. Most persons lack the desire to change and improve in the weakness. Some persons see selfcontrol as a limiting and unpleasant activity. Why others belief that selfcontrol eliminates fun. This should be noted that anyone without selfcontrol is like a city without defence. And a society that is controlled by people without selfcontrol is doomed for failure.
“We need self control to avoid not only outright evil but also too much of the good things”
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CHANGE OF NAME
CHANGE OF NAME
HASSAN – I, formerly called MISS HASSAN SEYYIDAT MARTHA now wish to be called and addressed as MRS. NDEKWU SEYYIDAT MARTHA. All former documents remain valid. UNIBEN, NYSC, other concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.
IHASE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS JANET IHASE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS JANET ASEMOTA. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME OZIEGBE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS AUGUSTA OZIEGBE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. AGBONFIOROR AUGUSTA. All former documents remain valid Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and the general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME IGBERASE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS THERESA IGBERASE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. THERESA AKHUAMHENKHUN. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME ISEVBUA – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS OJO EDITH ISEVBUA now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. ABRAHAM EDITH ISEVBUA. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME IDOGHOR – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS UFUOMA JOSEPHINE IDOGHOR, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. GAJAH UFUOMA JOSEPHINE. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME IMADIFON – I formerly known and addressed as MISS IMAFIDON DOROTHY now wish to be known and addressed as MRS AMADI DOROTHY. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Ministry of Environment, Edo State and the general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME AJAKAIYE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS STELLA AINA AJAKAIYE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS STELLA AINA DAUDU. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME UWUMAROGIE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS R O S E L I N E UWUMAROGIE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. GUOBADIA ROSELINE. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME UJADUGHELE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS C H R I S T I A N A UJADUGHELE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. CHRISTIANA EDEM PETER. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME ENABULELE – I, formerly called ENABULELE ISOKEN is now known and called ENABULELE FESTUS. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME ADAMS – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS MARIAM ADAMS now wish to be known, called and addressed as MRS. MARIAM KEHINDE. All former documents remain valid. Authorities of Enterprise Bank PLC, Benin City, other concerned authorities and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME KORORO – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS BEATRICE KORORO, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. SOROGHAYE BEATRICE DORYE. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME
CHANGE OF NAME
ELUOJERIO – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS CHRISTIANA OMOYIEKHELU ELUOJERIO now wish to be known and addressed as MRS CHRISTIANA OMOYIEKHELU OKOJIE. All former documents remain valid. All concerned authorities, Edo State Rapid Response Agency (RRA), and the general public should please take note.
EDOGIAWERIE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS IMADE EDOGIAWERIE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. IMADE PATIENCE MADUEMEZIE. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME
LEGAL NOTICE IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE EDO STATE OF NIGERIA PROBATE REGISTRY BENIN CITY
CHANGE OF NAME I, MRS OMOSIGHO OSASUMWEN wish to bring for the information of the general public that I am the same person called Osasu Omoragbon as appeared in some of my valuable documents. However, I am now properly called MRS O M O S I G H O OSASUMWEN. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.
RECONCILIATION OF NAME I, EMUZE IGHODARO wish to bring for the information of the general public that I am the same person called EMUZE J O H N B O S C O IGHODARO and EMUZE DENNIS IGHODARO as appeared in some of my valuable documents including my Senior School Certificate Examination. However, I am now properly called EMUZE IGHODARO. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and the general public should please take note.
WHEREAS the person whose name is set out in the first
column hereunder died intestate on the date and at the place stated in the column: AND WHEREAS the persons whose names, addresses and claimed relationship to the deceased are set in the second column hereunder have applied to the Probate Registrar, High Court of Justice, Edo State of Nigeria for a grant of Letters of Administration of the real and personal property of the deceased. NOTICE IS BY THIS GIVEN that Letters of Administration will be granted to such persons unless a NOTICE to prohibit the grant is filed in this Registry within Twenty-One (21) days from the date of the publication of this notice. NAME MRS. KATE NGOZI EZELI, Late of Awka – Etiti, Idemili South L.G.A., Anambra, who died on the 8th day of October, 2012 in Texas, U.S.A.
PED/546/2013 Mr. Patrick Ezeli and Barr. Franklin Ezeli of No. 6, Idubor Street, G.R.A., Benin City, widower and son respectively of the deceased.
DATE THIS 28TH DAY OF JUNE 2013
Signed: H.I. ENEMAKU ESQ. PROBATE REGISTRAR
RECONCILIATION OF NAME
OSAYANDE – I, formerly known and addressed as MISS OSARUSE RUTH OSAYANDE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS ODEMWINGIE OSARUSE RUTH. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities and general public should please take note.
MRS ANN IYOBOSA OSAZEE is the same person as EGIEBOR IYOBO and EGIEBOR IYOBOSA. I now wish to be called and addressed as MRS ANN IYOBOSA OSAZEE. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities, Rapid Response Agency (RRA) and the general public should please take note.
CHANGE OF NAME
I, ASIMU BLESSING A. wish to bring for the information of the general public that I am the same person called ASIMU PATIENCE AMULIEBE, ASIMU PATIENCE A., ASIMU PATIENCE and UMORU BLESSING as appeared in some of my valuable documents including secondary and higher education certificates and statement of results. However, I am now properly called ASIMU BLESSING A. All former documents remain valid. Concerned authorities should please take note.
OSADOLAYE – I, formerly called MISS PATIENCE OSA’S OSADOLAYE is now known and called MRS. PATIENCE O S A ’ S AGBONKONKON. All former documents remain valid. C o n c e r n e d authorities and the general public should please take note.
ADVERTISE IN THE WEEKEND OBSERVER AND GOPLACES
RECONCILIATION OF NAME
LINDA ALENI BROWN AND JOHN IDIDIA IKEHIDE
The Solemnization of Marriage between former MISS LINDA ALENI BROWN (MC, UK) and MR. JOHN IDIDIA IKEHIDE (C.E.O Ivyhide Amor & Co. Ltd) took place on Saturday the 22nd of June 2013 at Oredo Local Government Council Marriage Registry in Benin City. Amongst those present were Ms. E.U. Aghedo (Groom’s Mother), Mr. Godwin Aleni (Bride’s Father) Mrs. Victoria Dele Musa, family members, friends and well wishers. Picture shows the couple holding their wedding certificate at the registry. CONGRATULATIONS.
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n The Rise Of Private Schools,
I sight
The Fall Of Public Schools
ACADEMIC institutions in Nigeria are categorized into private and government institutions. These two categories of institutions are responsible for the education of the Nigeria citizens (young and old) The government schools (institutions) are the schools the government established by the constitutional provision, this is one of the avenues where the common man otherwise known as the ‘down-trodden’ in Nigeria can benefit from the national cake otherwise known as the ‘dividend of democracy’. However, in or around the approach of independence in October 1960, and soon after that, the effects of falling standard of education was glaringly noticed especially in the primary school education caused by the problems associated with the Universal Primary Education introduced in the then regions. This was confirmed by one of the commissions of enquiry set up in the pre-war period to review educational system in Nigeria. This commission known as Adefarasin Committee revealed the greatest impact on the control of education especially as it relates to the service conditions of the teachers. On record, it is noticed that for many years before the Nigeria civil war, the service conditions of the teachers had been a constant argument between the federal, the state and local governments on the one hand and the Nigeria Union of teachers, NUT on the other. This was one of the reasons that led to the general strike action by the voluntary Agency teachers spear headed by the Nigeria Union of Teachers (N.U.T) in the year 1964. The inability of some states and local governments to pay their teachers’ allowances and salaries had been the most serious symptoms of the crises that hit the education sector in both primary and secondary school levels.
The industrial action to back up their demand became more prominent in 1981/82 which eventually gave rise to the emergence of private schools. Private schools became strengthened in the early ‘90s when strike action was almost becoming rampant. As private schools are academic institutions setup by individuals or group of individuals to maximize profit, by minimizing expenditure, they employed unqualified workforce, substandard equipments, filthy classrooms, unhealthy academic environment and congestion of pupils/ students in few classrooms. At the end, they went to an unbridled length to make sure that their students passed the external examination by applying the crooked means (examination malpractices) hence the persistent falling standard of education in Nigeria today. Suffice it to note that some of these private schools are illegally operated by uneducated proprietors and proprietress who had not enough education and experience to meddle in educational business, while some sadly enough are government approved. In spite of all these short comings, over seventy five percent (75%) of our educational institutions is privately owned. The reasons are not far fetched. They include Starvation of public schools at the expense of private schools. Most of the government owned schools are starved of funds and workforce. It is in the government schools today that one teacher teaches ten subjects. Some of these schools have one teacher and an auxiliary. If one of them has a reason for being absent, and the other one is on official assignment that day is considered wasted hence parents and guardians seize or grab this opportunity to moving their children/wards from the government schools to private schools where there are more teachers,
By IMONOFI TANUTI MOMODU
though not qualified and uninterrupted school calendar. Lack of proper utility of educational budget Although government budget much money every year, there is nothing to show for this, as
Nigeria, one wonders how responsive our leaders are to their responsibilities. It is indeed unfortunate that educational institutions are being treated like criminal institutions. Hence most of their products are Arm robbers, 419, kidnappers,
leaders children/wards in the government schools. If all our leaders children attend the government schools with the peasant’s children our public institutions would be given due attention. Taxation of the private schools – Government encourages private
• Prof. Ruqayyattu Rufa’i, Education Minister
stakeholders divert these funds into their personal accounts. I visited South Ibie Secondary School, Iyakpi South Ibie, where our leaders of tomorrow receive lessons recently, it is better likened to an oven where bread are baked. How many of our leaders would be pleased to see their children under this academic situation. Seeing the staff rooms of some government schools and condition of teachers in
cultists etc. Government lukewarm response to teaching profession is another set back. Government feels that investment on education has no immediate dividend and therefore treat it with a wave of hand, by dishonouring people who impact knowledge and neglect the institutions were knowledge is impacted. Non attendance of our
institutions because of the immediate revenue as tax it gets from them. To subject the common man to perpetual slavery: Our leaders discourage public schools. They know that one teacher to one hundred pupils or students, one teacher to teach ten subjects, students without the core subject teachers (English, mathematics and science teachers) teaching without the deserved teaching aids, teachers)
teaching without the deserved teaching aids would turn out half baked products. In this case our leaders deliberately nurture undeveloped, misdeveloped and under developed minds which is the kingdom of ignorance and error, a congenial abode of morbid desire, confused memory and of course injurious affliction in our society Nigeria. Bearing in mind that history is the record of our deeds, our leaders should recall in mind that which ever position we are holding today is ephemeral and they owe the people they are representing a duty they must be accountable for before their almighty creator. I remember vividly that not quiet long ago, the governors and President Goodluck Jonathan told the masses that the removal of oil subsidy and increased taxation would ameliorate economic situation in Nigeria. The masses reluctantly succumbed and what is the outcome? Hardship, hyper inflation, unemployment, strike actions by the unionists, chaos, multiplication of criminality in the society and insecurity became the ultimate outcome. If our leaders fear their almighty creator, have human sympathy and conscious of the day of accountability, they will not allow those who impact knowledge to go hungry for even an hour. Knowing full well that a nation without education is like a beast without a heart, an engine without petrol, a motor car without an engine, and of course a trailer lorry without break.
“Bearing in mind that history is the record of our deeds, our leaders should recall in mind that which ever position we are holding today is ephemeral and they owe the people they are representing a duty they must be accountable for before their almighty creator.”
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Barca’s Rafnha Set For RAFINHA Alcantara is set Celta Loan to spend next season on loan at Celta Vigo after signing a
Payet Bound For Marseille MARSEILLE and Lille have struck a deal “in principle” to take Dimitri Payet to the Stade Velodrome in a switch the France international hopes will keep him in the frame to play at the 2014 World Cup. “I can announce to you that I’ll be at Marseille next season. Thank you LOSC for two superb years,” Payet tweeted on Thursday after the two clubs reached agreement on a move that has been in the pipeline since Lille missed out on European football on the final day of last season. Completion of the deal is still dependent on the player passing a medical. The former Saint-Etienne attacker, who contributed 12 goals and as many assists as Lille finished sixth, will bring much needed funds - an estimated +8.7 million plus bonuses of around +1 million - to the northern club, who are seeking to offload a number of their highest earners in order to compensate for the lack of additional revenue a Champions League or Europa League campaign usually provides. In return, Payet hopes to benefit from playing in continental competition for last season’s Ligue 1 runnersup and one of France’s most popular clubs to keep himself at the forefront of the thinking of national team boss Didier Deschamps as the former OM coach draws up his plans for next summer ’s global tournament in Brazil. “Its history speaks for itself. OM has a past, a history full of titles and emotions. The club is a monument of French sport,” Payet told Marseille’s official website. “The French team and the prospect of the 2014 World Cup were deciding factors in my thinking, but not only that. I wanted to stay in France. Throughout my career, I’ve favoured the sporting aspect of things.
new three-year contract at Barcelona. Rafinha, the younger brother of reported Manchester United target Thiago, had been in the final 12 months of his Camp Nou deal and reportedly interested Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City. But Barcelona said a new contract, including a +30 million buy-out clause, had been agreed with the forward, who often played the ‘false nine’ role for Barca B last term. “FC Barcelona have reached an agreement with Rafael Alcantara, Rafinha, to extend the player’s contract through to June 30 2016,” a statement on the club’s official website said. Widespread reports in the Spanish press claim he is now set to join up with ex-Barca B coach Luis Enrique at Celta. The next young Barca player to improve his contract
Gordon Igesund
Aheadl 2014 World Cup
Igesund Has Faith In Squad
BAFANA Bafana coach, Gordon Igesund, has by his own admission picked an inexperienced squad for the COSAFA Cup in Zambia in July. It is a squad he believes come through the can go to do well at the 2015 development programmes, African Cup of Nations and the Under 17s, Under 20s the 2018 World Cup. “The and the Under 23s. That squad is very well-balanced way we will all play the with 50 percent of the squad same style of football and 23 or younger, and it fits in the players can adapt to the with our plan for the future,” system. explains Igesund. “If we don’t give these “We have to identify the kids an opportunity to play younger players and they we will not have a team for are now going to be coming the 2018 World Cup. They through now. need to be given the “We have identified that opportunity at the right time we want all the players that and we think the COSAFA play for the national team to cup and the CHAN cup are
the right time.” Still, despite the inexperienced squad, Igesund insists that his side are going to Zambia to win the COSAFA cup tournament, and believes there style of football lends itself to success. “Any tournament that we enter we want to win, there is no doubt about that,” added Igesund.
“We want to play an attacking type of football. We want to keep possession of the ball, making teams work very hard for them to score goals and create opportunities. That is how we have been playing and that is the style we want to continue to play. “It is a style of football that suits us and suits South Africans. We are not the type of team who wants to sit back and defend and play counter-attack football.”
EPL: Liverpool’s Drive For Expansion
THE story of the Premier League is one of growing commercialism off the field; and a complete shift in the balance of power on it from Merseyside to Manchester, via the odd stop-off in London. Generally overlooked in the story of that
Steven Gerrard
power shift is the advantage of having a stadium surrounded by car parks. And yet, as Manchester United have supplanted Liverpool over the last 20-or-so years, perhaps that advantage
should not be ignored. It is one that can be expressed, very simply, in numbers. In 1992, when the Premier League was formed, Old Trafford had a capacity of 34,031, temporarily reduced as the Stretford End was redeveloped. Anfield held 44,931. Today, United’s home holds 75,769 fans, Liverpool’s can hold only 45,552. Over the last two decades, United have had the space to expand their ground on to the surrounding car parks, significantly increasing capacity, revenue and their ability to compete in an evermore commercialised sport. Liverpool, hemmed in by tight streets and rows of housing, have been held back. For years, they have been looking for a way to break out and cash in. After a generation of planning manoeuvres, property disputes and false starts, the story of Liverpool’s attempts to free themselves of the physical and financial constraints of their Anfield home looks to be entering its final stages. It is one that has repeatedly brought
them into conflict with their local community. Liverpool have been looking to create a home big enough to house their ambitions since the days of their domination at home and in Europe. In the 1980s, the club planned to buy and demolish the houses on neighbouring Kemlyn Road in order to build an extended stand. But development was held up for a decade by two sisters, Joan and Nora Mason, who refused to leave the one remaining occupied house on the street. It took until November 1990 for a settlement to be agreed, and for the house to be vacated, so that building work could finally begin. The Centenary Stand opened in 1992. While new stands have been built at The Kop and Anfield Road Ends since, there has been no further serious expansion. That is not for the want of trying. But those efforts have done serious damage to the club’s reputation in the community. What happened in the years after the Centenary Stand’s
construction was outlined in a detailed and damning article, published in May by Guardian journalist David Conn. It portrayed a club strategy so focused on stadium expansion as to leave the local community seriously, perhaps fatally, undermined. In the mid-1990s, Conn wrote, Liverpool began buying up houses in the streets near the ground and leaving them empty, leading to dereliction and decline. Crucially, they did so without telling the residents what was going on. Whatever the motives for this, locals were left with the belief that the club were buying up houses by stealth to keep prices low, and to effectively acquire the land needed for expansion on the cheap. A more generous, and perhaps accurate, reading would be to suggest that the dereliction of the area was caused by Anfield boardroom indecision. It is difficult to judge, because the club declined to comment when Conn put his allegations to them.
could be Cristian Tello, with talks reportedly planned even though the winger signed a new deal only last December , keeping him at the Camp Nou until June 2016. Blaugrana sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta wants to renegotiate the contract to include a release clause better reflecting Tello’s quality and potential, but no negotiations have yet been scheduled. A report in AS said the proposed new deal included a +10 million release clause which would rise to +14 million after he has played 40 first team games and +18 million after 50. Tello, 21, has played 37 games, giving suitors - who reportedly include Liverpool and Tottenham - an extra incentive to move quickly if they want to sign him. Meanwhile, reports in Belgium claim Barca have agreed a +2.5 million fee to sell 23-year-old squad midfielder Jonathan dos Santos to Anderlecht.
Shakhtar May Sign Mkhitaryan HAKHTAR Donetsk chief executive Sergei Palkin says the club have come to terms with the fact that Henrikh Mkhitaryan may be sold if an acceptable bid comes in for the midfielder. Liverpool have long been favourites to sign Mkhitaryan, but Borussia Dortmund recently emerged as possible contenders for the player’s signature, with Palkin claiming on Wednesday that Shakhtar had rejected a £19.5 million from the Champions League finalists. Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala have also reportedly now entered the race for Mkhitaryan, who set a Ukrainian league scoring record with 25 goals last season. And Shakhtar, who had initially rejected the notion that they would sell Mkhitaryan, have now decided he can go for the right price. “Henrikh is an important player in our team. Shakhtar wants to keep him, but we are willing to listen and consider all suggestions for a transfer,’’ Palkin told Russian newspaper Izvestia. “We have already parted with Willian (to Anzhi) and Fernandinho (to Manchester City), but the club will not just sell players. In the near future we will also gain quality, designed to replace the leading players, possibly including Henrikh.’’
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Asamoah Set To Be Crowned Sports Writers Player Of The Year GHANA midfielder Kwadwo Asamoah is the frontrunner to be crowned 2012 Sports Writers Association of Ghana Player of the Year. The Juventus ace vies for the coveted award with international teammates Andre Ayew and Emmanuel Clottey. Asamoah’s sterling displays for the Serie A side which resulted in them winning the title for the second consecutive time. He was in his first season after making a switch from fellow Serie A contenders Udinese. Ayew, 23, made strides with Olympique Marseille
Ramadel Falcao
Monaco Hits With Points Deduction
BIG-spending Monaco’s Ligue 1 title ambitions have been dealt a blow with the newly-promoted club handed a twopoint deduction for a pitch invasion at the Stade Louis II last season. Jubilant supporters spilled if their fans transgress LFP onto the playing surface in rules in the future. They were the principality after the 2-1 also ordered to play one game victory over Le Mans on May behind closed doors, which 17, a triumph which clinched could see major summer the Ligue 2 title a week after signing Radamel Falcao promotion back to the top make his home debut against flight had been secured. In the Montpellier on August 17 in ensuing chaos, referee front of an empty stadium. Antony Gautier was struck in The club could yet, the back leading the French however, call on the French Football League’s (LFP) Football Federation’s (FFF) Disciplinary Commission to Supreme Appeals mete out the sanction. Commission to have the They face the prospect of a punishment overturned. further point being deducted
N.Korea To Send Women Football Team To South NORTH Korea is set to send its women’s team to the East Asian championships hosted by their arch-rivals South Korea next month, football officials said yesterday. It will be the first time North Korean footballers have visited the South since 2009, and comes as Pyongyang has embarked on a diplomatic offensive after months of heightened military tensions on the peninsula. The North’s squad will compete with South Korea, China and Japan in the women’s tournament from July 20, the (South) Korea Football Association (KFA) said. “After consultations with our association, North Korea agreed to dispatch its female team for the East Asian cup,” a KFA official told AFP. The cup, founded in 2003, will see South Korea, Japan, China and Australia compete in the men’s edition. There have been no crossborder sports exchanges for four years, although the two Koreas have met at major sporting events abroad.
South Korea has urged the North to participate in next year ’s Asian Games in the western port city of Incheon.
Madrid Offer Di Maria In Huge Bale Bid REAL Madrid have offered cash and players to Tottenham in the hope of welcoming new boss Carlo Ancelotti with the mother of all presents – Gareth Bale. The Daily Mirror says that Argentina winger Angel Di Maria is one of several stars that the Spanish giants are prepared to put on a plane to London if in return the 23-year-old Welshman touches down in Madrid. Ancelotti, revealed as Jose Mourinho’s successor on Wednesday, is desperate to land Bale and the Mirror claims that Real have officially opened the bidding for the winger. So far Spurs have remained resolute in their determination to keep Bale, but Real are going to test their mettle with a series of increasingly attractive offers.
“Monaco have been punished for their supporters invading the pitch,” the commission president, Pascal Garibian, is quoted as saying by L’Equipe. “Invasions, with the movement of a crowd, are always dangerous. The clubs are responsible for their fans.” Nice also face the prospect of playing their first home game of the season, against Rennes on August 17, behind closed doors after they were punished for the use of 54 flares by their fans prior to the league game against Lyon on
May 19. Smoke from the flares drifted across the pitch delaying kick-off while a bottle filled with sand was also thrown onto the field. The two teams who came up from Ligue 2 behind Monaco, Nantes and Guingamp, were fined +25,000 and +50,000 respectively as a consequence of pitch invasions by fans following their penultimate league games of the season during which they clinched promotion.
Croatia Aiming For Top Spot
CROATIA will be aiming to claim top spot in Group F at the FIFA U-20 World Cup when they take on New Zealand today Kick-off in Bursa is at 17h00 CAT. The European side presently find themselves placed second on the log, level on four points with Uzbekistan, but trailing them on goal difference. Dinko Jelicic’s side already have one foot in the quarterfinals after a win over Uruguay and a draw with Uzbekistan, but a big victory over the junior All Whites could secure first place in the group and a better draw for the knockout rounds. And with Uzbekistan set for what could be a tough encounter against a Uruguay side who are themselves fighting for their lives in the tournament, this is a great opportunity for Croatia to
usurp Group F’s leadership. As for New Zealand, successive defeats in their first two matches have all but eliminated them from the tournament, though they still have a slim mathematical chance of being one of the four best third-placed teams who will advance.
Luarent Blanc
under the year in review and Clottey grabbed the headlines after his 12 goals for Berekum Chelsea in the 2012 CAF Champions League. Hearts of Oak captain Mahatma Otoo is the leading contender for Premiership Player of the Year. He single-handedly led the capital club to fifth place and ended the season as top scorer with 20 goals. Otoo’s competitors are Asante Kotoko midfielder Michael Akuffu and Amidaus Professionals captain Yahaya Mohammed. Asante Kotoko coach Mas-Ud Dramani will be named Coach of the Year after guiding the Black Maidens to win a historic bronze at 2012 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup. His skipper at the
tournament Priscilla Okyere will be named Female Footballer of the Year. Berekum Chelsea President Emmanuel Kyeremeh will also be honoured. The 38th edition of the MTN SWAG Awards will be held at the Banquet Hall of the State House in Accra.
Kwadwo Asamah
Blanc, Right Man For PSG Says PSG Chief PARIS Saint-Germain president Nasser Al Khelaifi has told Le Parisien Laurent Blanc is “the best choice” to lead the Ligue 1 champions. Al Khelaifi predicted that former France coach, 47, would lead the ambitious club to even greater success than his predecessor, Carlo Ancelotti. He told the French capital’s main daily paper he was “very happy” with the choice of Blanc, who took Bordeaux to runners-up spot in 2008, and the Ligue 1 title the following year, in his only previous club job. “I’m very happy with this choice,” he said. “He’s an ambitious coach. He did good work with Bordeaux and also had success with France in a very difficult period. “He’s the best choice for us. I’m confident. He’s going to do very good work and help us achieve our objectives.” Al Khelaifi said those objectives were for PSG to retain their league title, “win one of the domestic cup competitions and get big results in the Champions League”. He added: “We’re not saying we have to reach the quarters or
the semi-finals because, in that competition, a lot depends on your opponents and the draw. “The most important thing is to do your utmost to go as far as possible. But we know that it’s not easy to play on all fronts.” But former France international Olivier Dacourt told RMC he believed Blanc’s appointment represented “a step back” for PSG. “Carlo Ancelotti is among the top five coaches in the world. If you have to replace Ancelotti, you have to do it with someone at least as good, if not better. The moment you don’t do that, it’s a step back,” he said. “When you’re a club like PSG, when you have the sort of ambitious project the Qataris [the PSG ownership] have, and when you lose Ancelotti, people think you’re then going to go out and get a great coach. In international terms, it’s a fact Laurent Blanc is not in that bracket.” At his official presentation on Thursday, Blanc acknowledged his appointment had been made late considering that the bulk of the PSG squad return for preseason training on July 1. Reports have claimed a key reason for this is that he was not among PSG’s main targets for the role, who were rumoured to have included Andre VillasBoas, Michael Laudrup, Guus Hiddink and Fabio Capello. Al Khelaifi, however, said: “We talked to some coaches, that’s true... [but] Laurent Blanc was one of our priorities.” He added that Ancelotti’s ambition of moving to Real Madrid had prolonged the process, explaining: “We weren’t in a hurry. We took our time to talk and think about it. We had to sort out Carlo’s departure, talk to Real. Finally, we reached a good agreement for PSG.”
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Messi Backs Mourinho To Succeed BARCELONA star Lionel Messi believes former Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho will succeed in his new role at Chelsea. Messi, who is currently caught up in a tax fraud investigation along with his father, insists Real will be equally competitive without Mourinho, but wished the Portuguese well at Stamford Bridge. “I think the Spanish league is difficult anyway and will continue being difficult,” said Messi, who visited the Senegalese town of Saly today as part of the Aspire Academy’s Football Combating Malaria project. “We’ll be fighting against strong teams with great players like Real Madrid. Mourinho was a great coach but we know that Ancelotti is equally great. “I think Mourinho will also succeed back at Chelsea because he’s a great manager.” Messi will play alongside Brazil starlet Neymar next term, and the Argentine is confident the pair can strike up a lethal partnership in attack. He also believes Barca will make a strong challenge for the Champions League title, even if faced with former boss Pep Guardiola and defending champions Bayern Munich. “I know Neymar is a great player who is going to bring a lot to Barcelona,” he said. “God willing, we will be able to play together at Barca.” “I think we have a great team and great players, as we’ve shown over the years. I think the arrival of Guardiola will make Bayern stronger. “Winning the Champions League is always difficult and our objective is trying to win everything and succeed in all competitions. That’s how we work at Barcelona. “You talk of Germany dominating football recently I don’t know what is going to happen in the future. “I know Germany have a history of great teams in global football at international level and club level. Winning the Champions League is difficult for anyone, whether they are from Germany or Spain. But I know Germany had a great year last year.” Messi is under pressure to deliver for Argentina, having never really reproduced his club form at international level, and realises next year’s World Cup in Brazil is a real opportunity to finally win a trophy for the Albicelestes. \
Jose Mourinho
Norwich Turn Down Blues Bid For Ruddy NORWICH have rejected a £5 million bid from Chelsea for goalkeeper John Ruddy and would want double that to sell him, the Sun has reported. The paper said returning Blues boss Jose Mourinho wants to bring England international Ruddy, 26, to Stamford Bridge as back-up for first choice Peter Cech. The goalkeeper, who has been a star performer for the Canaries since arriving from Everton for £400,000 when they were in the Championship three
Gareth Bale
seasons ago, missed around half of last season through injury. He returned to the first team as Norwich secured Premier League safety with a 40 Carrow Road win against West Brom in the penultimate game of the campaign. Ruddy made his England debut in a 2-1 friendly win against Italy in Switzerland ten months ago, and Norwich boss Chris Hughton would be reluctant to lose such a key player.
Bale Advised To Consider Manchester
TOTTENHAM Hotspur legend Glenn Hoddle believes Gareth Bale would be better off heading for Manchester should he leave White Hart Lane. Manchester United and Bale’s outstanding Manchester City potential form last season - that saw destinations. him named the PFA Player Speaking at the Fans of the Year and the PFA All Star global vote launch, Young Player of the Year - the Sun quotes former has resulted in the Tottenham boss Hoddle as midfielder being linked with saying: “If he does move, I a number of Europe’s top think he will settle easier at sides, including Liga giants another club in England. Real Madrid. The only ones he can But Hoddle, who made realistically join are over 300 appearances for Manchester United and Spurs, feels the Wales Manchester City. international would be “He could get more suited to initially Champions League remaining in England, with football there. But I want
him to stay at Tottenham.” Hoddle did, however, tip Bale, 23, to thrive in Europe after he has gained
I’ve got to start thinking that it’s near the end and what I’m going to do afterwards. “It’s exciting for me. I’ve been playing for 20-odd years and it’s a new chapter in my life. I want to do well and I want to make a success of it as I did as a player.” Next season will be the first for Giggs as a professional in which Sir Alex Ferguson has not been his manager, following the Scotsman’s retirement in May. While he acknowledges the important influence of his former boss, Giggs also believes that players must take responsibility for maintaining high standards. “Obviously I’d be stupid not to pick up on bits that I’ve learned from the [former] manager [Sir Alex Ferguson],” he said. “The players manage the dressing room, which is important really. “The manager doesn’t want to be dealing with little problems in the changing room all the time. “I think it’s important that
John Ruddy
Cisse Leaves QPR DJIBRIL Cisse has left QPR by mutual consent, the London club, relegated from the Premier League last season, have announced. Cisse, 31, joined bigspending Rangers from Lazio in January 2012 but
Giggs Looks Ahead To Coaching Career
MANCHESTER United veteran Ryan Giggs is looking forward to embarking on a “new chapter” in his career once his playing days are over by becoming a coach. The 39-year-old, who made his professional debut at Old Trafford in 1990, is currently at the under-20 World Cup in Turkey as part of his 18-month course to obtain a UEFA Pro Licence, the highest coaching qualification. After a trophy-laden career which includes 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League triumphs, the Welshman is getting used to learning a new trade from scratch as he approaches the end of his playing career. “It’ll be like starting all over again, it will be like being an apprentice again, learning things and making mistakes as you go along and just trying to better yourself as much as you can,” he told the FA’s official website. “I am an intense person and when I’m playing I’m concentrating on that. Also,
more experience, adding: “He is still young enough to secure a move abroad later in life when he could cope better with it.”
you’re self-disciplined in the changing room and that the standards are set. “You have to make sure you stand by those both on and off the pitch with regards training, looking after yourself and making sure you get the right rest to ensure you produce the best football.”
Ryan Giggs
spent the second half of last season on loan at Qatari club Al Gharafa. The striker, who made 29 appearances for the Loftus Road club, scoring 10 goals, is a free agent from July 1. A statement on the official QPR website said: “The club would like to thank Djibril for his contribution and wish him all the best for the future.” Meanwhile, Cisse has hit out at Montpellier president Louis Nicollin, who criticised him for DJ-ing in his spare time. Nicollin’s club had been linked with a move for Cisse, but the president told Midi
Libre: “There’s no question of it. I don’t want a lad who does DJ-ing, though I suppose it’s a career alternative like any other.” That sparked a Twitter riposte from Cisse, who said: “Thanks for your support, but I feel sorry for the fans and players at Montpellier. To have a president as stupid as that cannot be easy every day. “It’s a shame things won’t work out with Montpellier. A good club, a beautiful city with an idiot of a president who allows himself to cut people down to size whenever he feels like it.” But, speaking at the official presentation of new Montpellier coach Jean Fernandez, Nicollin told the media the door was still open for Cisse - but only on the club’s terms. “You can never say it’s definitive, but I said what I had to say: I don’t want to pay that much for a DJ,” he said. “If he decides to come on a freelance basis, we’ll see. It’s only my way of thinking, and he’s certainly a very good player.” Nicollin, whose money was made from his family’s refuse disposal business, added: “He was in England, so given the money he earned there, I’d need to sell a bunch of dustbin lorries for him to come to Montpellier.”
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Andre Ayew Rubbishes Riding On Father’s Fame
De Bosque Unfazed By Hostility
SPAIN coach Vicente Del Bosque says he is not worried about a hostile reception for his team when they face Brazil in Sunday’s Confederations Cup final at the Maracana. Spain’s players have been regularly whistled and even booed during the tournament, and suffered similar treatment during Thursday’s nail-biting semifinal win over Italy, which finished scoreless after extratime before Jesus Navas netted the winning penalty as La Roja won the shoot-out 76. Spanish TV commentators talked throughout Thursday’s game about whistles directed at their side’s players, and jeers were audible as Xavi Hernandez stepped up to take Spain’s first penalty in the shoot-out. But the veteran coach, who watched the shoot-out sat alone on the bench before turning calmly and walking quietly back to the dressingrooms while the players joyously celebrated on the pitch, played down the issue to reporters afterwards. “We will try and represent well the country [Spain] and to be a headache for them,” Del Bosque said. “It is normal. Maybe they whistled us because there is a big Italian
community here [in Fortaleza].” Del Bosque said that even the World Cup winners in the Spain squad had been really excited throughout the tournament about the chance to take on Brazil in their Maracana stadium, in a final for which Cesc Fabregas and Roberto Soldado should be ready to start. “While we had a kid’s dream of playing against Brazil in the Maracana,” he said. “This is stupendous for us. They are five times world champions, and us only once, but Sunday in the Maracana a new era begins. We are both starting from zero.”
Spain Coach Vicente Del Bosque
As Curtains Fall On Confederations Cup
Brazil Battle Spain For Glory By OKOGBA EMMANUEL O.
THE Confederation’s Cup is a dress rehearsals of the world cup which always follows a year later. This avails the opportunity for stadiums and other facilities built in preparation for the upcoming world cup to be tested. Brazil won the last edition when South Africa hosted it in 2009 by defeating the United States of America 3 – 2. When the 2013 edition of the confederations cup started on June 15, a lot of football pundits had a clear idea of what the final world look like, that is, teams that would compete in the finals. This is not because other teams were not good enough, since they won their respective continental championships, national team. I am really but because the teams impressed about it,” predicted to play in the finals Mohammed said. On his part, Akande (Brazil and Spain) are in a Akintayo, the coach of Civil world of their won. The Defence Babes, expressed joy individual brilliance of this generation of the brazillians at his team’s victory. He said the team was and the (titi-taka’ style of victorious because of the football by the spainards motivation received from the made them stand out. Brazil started out with an sponsors of the team. “Our motivation comes emphatic 3-0 win over Japan from the support we get from and that took their feet off the the Commandant-General of pedal a little when they put the Nigeria Security and Civil only two past Mexico before Defence Corps (NSCDC) and brushing aside Italy 4-2 to top the Head of Sports. their group and book a semi“If not for them, I don’t think final berth with Uruguay who we could have gone this far,” they also eased past 2-1. Akintayo said. The Spaniards on their own He expressed optimism that his team would beat the came into the competition as Safety Babes in their next favourites to win the title. They made clear their match in the competition. Reports say that Safety intentions when they brushed Babes are topping the three- aside Uruguay 2-1 in their team league with four points, opening group B encounter, while the Civil Defence Babes annihilated new comers. are in second place with two Tahiti 10-0 and ended the group stage fixtures at the top points.
FCT Handball Kada Queens Blame Defeat On Inexperience
AHMED Mohammed, the coach of Kada Queens Handball Club of Kaduna, in Abuja blamed his team’s defeat by the Civil Defence Babes on inexperience. Reports say that Kada Queens lost 15-27 to the Civil Defence Babes at the on-going FCT Handball Challenge Cup. Mohammed told newsmen that he was happy with the team’s performance in spite of the fact that its players were relatively new. “There is really an improvement on the part of my team and I am very happy with what the players have done. “The Civil Defence team has some national team players in its midst compared to my players who are young in the sport. “In fact, immediately after the match, some officials asked me for the names of two players in my team for inclusion in the
Nigerian Clubs Get Sponsporship Cash
Aminu Maigari
THE Nigeria league top flight will each get 10.5 million Naira from the sponsorship cash. The funds we gathered will be paid next week into the accounts of all the 20 premier league clubs in the country. “They have agreed to give each club 10.5 million naira but
we have been made to understand that this does not include broadcast rights money which would be shared according to how each team finishes at the end of the season,” a top club official revealed. The clubs have not received sponsorship cash for the past two seasons.
of the log with a 3-0 spanking of Nigeria and then narrowly edged out italy 7-6 on penalties in the Semi finals. Tomorrow (Sunday) when Brazil will confront Spain at the Maracana in Rio de Janiero, certain individuals will be put under the searchlight. The duo of Xavi Hernandez and Adres Iniester who are the midfield anchormen for Spain will be defended hearvily upon to bring out their all and partner with the likes of Cesc Fabregas, David Silva and every other Spaniard consecutively following their Leroics in the 2008 European Championships, 2010, FIFA world cup and the 2012 editiond of the European Championsships. While the Brazilians will need the individual brilliances of a certain Neymar da Silva Santos junior to come to bare. Neymar who recently completed a record transfer from Brazilian club santos to Barcelona will try to use this opportunity to show the Spanish players and fans what to expect from him later when the league season commences. Others to watch are Oscar, Hulk, Fred amongst others. However, the outstanding performances of the Spaniards and Brazilians did not deter other teams like Mexico, Japan, Italy, Nigeria and Uruguay from showing that their qualification for the championship was no fluke as they gave the finalists a run for their money. While Tahiti being debutants were the weeping boys of this edition of the confederation cup as they conceded a total of 24 goals, that is an average of 8 goals per game and scoring just once against Nigeria. The protest the followed the commencement of the competition by Brazilians who thought the hosting of both the confederation cup and world
cup next year is a waste of tax payers money did not take the shine out of the pre-world cup tournament. As the confederation cup reaches its crescendo every team that participated in this competition has learnt a thing or two from it and would go home knowing what corrections or improvements needed to be made. What is left to see is how they would come out next year if they eventually qualify from their respective confederations for the world cup next year.
ANDRE Ayew has hit back at his critics who accuse him of riding on the coattails of his famous father to assume superstar status in the game. In the wake of his recent resignation from the national team, some supporters called his bluff with many claiming he is not a talented player. It is an open secret that the Ayew brothers - like their legendary father Abedi Pele - sharply divide opinion in Ghana. But Andre and Jordan, who both play for French Ligue 1 club Marseille, are also aware that they remain two of the best players in the land. The Marseille playmaker, whose father is Ghanaian legend Abedi Pele, insists he had to fight on his own to be able to win a contract with the French giants. “If it was so easy then the children of players who were bigger than my dad would be playing,” said Andre, in a thinly-veiled barb at critics who accuse him of riding on the coattails of his famous father. “Nobody gave me my professional contract; I worked hard to get what I have today. “People in Ghana say things that hurt but football is not supposed to be like that. Football is supposed to unite.
Man Dies In Brazil-Urguay A man died as Protests protesters clashed with police before Brazil’s Confederations Cup semifinal against Uruguay this week, authorities have confirmed to the Associated Press. The demonstrator, 21year-old Douglas Henrique Oliveira, died from head injuries suffered when he fell from a walkway near the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte. Another man fell from the walkway, suffering only minor injuries. Tens of thousands took to the streets of the city to demonstrate against the government, claiming corruption and calling for reforms, and the high cost of hosting the 2014 World Cup at an increasingly difficult time for Brazil’s economy. Police used tear gas and rubber bullets as a crowd of around 50,000 marched towards the stadium to protest. Reports said one demonstrator had been hit in the eye by a rubber bullet.
Around 20 people were thought to have been injured, while police made around 30 arrests. The demonstration saw damage caused in the city centre, with shops wrecked and cars and other vehicles set alight. Anti-government - and anti-World Cup - slogans were sprayed on walls. “FIFA go home,” several read. Protests have taken place in the six cities hosting the Confederations Cup, and Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar said the players had been aware of what had been happening as they beat Uruguay 2-1. He said: “We tried to focus only on the match. We understand what Brazil is going through, and it’s normal that these protests take some of the focus away from the Confederations Cup. “But there are times that the players need to worry about their job on the field.”
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