19th May 2016

NIGERIA’S MOST INFORMATIVE NEWSPAPER NO 16,504

THURSDAY, 19 MAY, 2016

First Chibok girl rescued —P4

•OthersaliveinSambisa, 6dead,shesays

www.tribuneonlineng.com

Nigerian Tribune

@nigeriantribune

TribuneOnline

Dangote to construct Lokoja-ObajanaKabba-Ilorin Road with cement —P3

Petrol price hike

•Gets 30% tax remission

Nigerian Tribune

N150

Ajimobi meets Fulani herdsmen, says no night grazing —P31

NLC hits the streets

•Labour leaders lead protests, partial compliance in many states •Strike illegal, NLC leaders risk 6-month jail term —FG —P2,3 •We will continue to fight anti-people policies —Wabba •Senate to mediate in FG, Labour impasse

Weapons found in my house belong to NSA office —Dasuki —P32

Metuh was paid N400m from party's fund, Okupe tells court —P33

Police preventing members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) from protesting on Ikeja bridge, after Eko Hospital, in Lagos, on Wednesday. PHOTO: SYLVESTER OKORUWA MORE PHOTOS ON PAGES 2 & 5

Egbeda killing: Police receive autopsy report on Ronke Shonde —P11

2 news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Petrol price hike: NLC hits the streets

By Our Reporters with Agency Report

F Members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Joint Action Front, Oyo State chapter, protesting petrol price hike and electricity tariff increase in Ibadan, on Wednesday. PHOTO: NAN.

OLLOWING the order of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for its members to commence strike from Wednesday to protest hike in the price of petrol, there were protests in some states of the federation.

In many states, NLC leaders led members on a protest in many streets of state capitals.

While there was partial compliance in some states, others like Ekiti, Ondo, Gombe, and Plateau had full compliance to the order.

However, in almost half of the country, especially the North-West the strike failed.

Edo

Members of the NLC, Ogun State council, during a peaceful protest on Wednesday. PHOTO: OLAYINKA OLUKOYA.

NLC in Benin, Edo State, protesting against fuel price hike and electricity tariff, on Wednesday. PHOTO: NAN.

NLC Lagos branch members, protesting the petrol price hike, on Wednesday. PHOTO: SYLVESTER OKORUWA.

There was partial compliance in the industrial action called by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Edo State with adherence largely observed in the public sector.

It was observed that many public workers attempted to resume work at their posts but were not allowed to gain entrance to their offices by members of the organised labour, who shut entrances to the offices.

At the state workers’ secretariat (Palm House), workers, who arrived for duties, were chased away by members of the NLC and civil society organisations.

In the public schools, students were asked to go back home, even as it was observed that some few schools in the state capital, Benin, shunned the stay-at-home order.

There was almost zero compliance in the private sector as banks, filling stations and businesses were opened.

The state government also directed workers in the state public service to shun the strike and stay at their duty posts, warning that any worker who shuns work under the guise of strike would forfeit his or her pay.

Abuja

Workers at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja, defied the strike declared by the leadership of the NLC, they reported to their normal duty posts on Wednesday.

Checks by the Nigerian Tribune at the Federal Secretariat where most of the Federal Government ministries are located, revealed that normal activities were being carried out by the civil servants.

The Federal Government has also directed all civil servants to report to duty punctually, working in difiance to the purported NLC strike, which was partially observed in some parts of the country on Wednesday.

In a circular issued to all permanent secretaries and heads of extra- ministerial

departments by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and signed by the Permanent Secretary, Common Services Office (CSO) in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mr S.K.Y. Adelakun, urged “all civil servants to report punctually to work daily.”

The circular further directed all permanent secretaries and heads of extra- ministerial departments to ensure strict compliance to the directive.

It was, however, observed at the federal secretariat that the police and officers and men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) mounted strategic locations, including entrance gates to the various offices as early as 6.30a.m on Wednesday.

Banks located within the secretariat were also opened to their customers with food vendors going about their normal businesses.

Oyo

Members of the organised Labour unions, comprising Oyo State NLC, Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Trade Union Congress (TUC), Joint Action Front (JAF), Joint Negotiating Council (JNC), MDCAN, among others, on Wednesday, declared that the strike would commence today and called on the Federal Government to reverse the new pump price of petrol back to N86.50k.

The position was known by the Oyo NLC chairman, Comrade Waheed Olojede, while addressing members of the public on Wednesday, at various joints where the group protested by making procession across major roads in Ibadan.

“The position of the Nigerian people now as made by the labour leaders is that the Federal Government should go back to the drawing board to do a re-think and reverse the price of fuel from N145 to N86.50k,” Olojede said.

Though there were free flow of vehicles in Ibadan, the protest rally took off from the state headquarters of the labour congress, moved round the state capital through Gate, Oje, Bere, Orita Merin, Dugbe, J. Allen, Mokola Round about and secretariat.

Banks and other private businesses were open to the public, but people came out to watch, dance and sing with the group at most locations where they passed through.

Kwara

The strike embarked upon by the NLC over fuel price increase paralysed activities in government offices, ministries, agencies and parastatals in Ilorin, on Wednesday.

Nigerian Tribune gathered that the leadership of the NLC in the state went round government establishments to enforce compliance, just as gates to such establishments like the state secretariat, state universal basic education board (SUBEB), state High Court, ministries of Health, Education, Finance, water corporation and civil service clinic were locked.

Also, students in public schools, who had gone to their different schools, were seen returning to their various homes at about 8:00 a.m.

Taraba

There was high level of non-compliance with the directive by the NLC in Jalingo, Taraba State, as workers and traders in the state ignored the strike order.

Most of the state-owned establishments, banks, schools, other organisations and markets were observed carrying out their routine activities unhindered.

Nigerian Tribune learnt that some state establishments like the Civil Service Commission, Board of Internal Revenue and the state secretariat remained open despite the strike order.

Some of the civil servants, who spoke to the Nigerian Tribune, said the strike was totally unnecessary and illtimed The state NLC chairman, Mr Peter Gambo, said there was partial, not total, compliance with the strike in the state.

He revealed that the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had since withdrawn from the strike.

Gambo, however, said the NLC would continue to negotiate with the Federal Government on the subsidy withdrawal, despite the partial compliance with the warning strike.

Benue

The strike declared by the NLC was not effective in Benue State, on Wednesday, as socio-economic activities were at its best.

Nigerian Tribune, who went round capital city on Wednesday, reported that both public and private schools opened for students, while banks also opened their doors to customers.

Markets and shops were all opened.

Workers were seen at both the federal and state secretariats in the capital city, commercial vehicles and motorcyclists popularly known as okada riders were also on the roads.

Many workers, who spoke to the Nigerian Tribune, expressed dissatisfaction with the strike, accusing labour leaders in the state for Continues pg5

3 news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

NLC strike: Labour leaders risk 6-month jail term —FG Taiwo Adisa, Leon Usigbe and Ayodele Adesanmi - Abuja

T

HE Federal Government, on Wednesday, emphasised its readiness to continue negotiations with organised Labour over opposition to the increase in petroleum pump price, but has warned the unions not to violate laws which specify six months jail term or a fine of N100,000 for offenders.

It was, however, keen to stress that it had no intention of pressing for such punishment during the ongoing dispute with the workers.

Addressing State House corespondents after the meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr Chris Ngige, who reminded of the provision of the law, also said that government would not encourage breaking into factions of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

He said government would rather work for the reunification of the factions, hence it decided to meet with all shades of opinions in the organised Labour.

The minister advised them to be conscious of the existing laws, in order not to run foul of them.

The Federal Government is presently locked in negotiations with the two factions of the NLC, led by Ayuba Wabba and Joe Ajaero, respectively.

With Ngige at the briefing were the Ministers of Information and Culture, and Power, Works and Housing, Lai Mohammed and Babatunde Fashola, respectively.

Senate mediates in FG, NLC negotiation

The Senate, on Wednesday, emerged from a 35-minute closed-door session and directed its Committee on Labour to immediately interface with the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) over the ongoing strike embarked upon by the workers.

Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over the sitting and read the resolutions reached at the closed session, said the Senate asked the committee to dialogue with the feuding parties and ensure the strike was brought to an end.

He said the Labour Committee, headed by Senator Suleiman Nazif to commence work earnestly and

consult widely.

Ekweremadu said: “The Senate, in a closed-door session deliberated on the nationwide strike by labour and the ways of resolving the issues to avoid untold hardships to Nigerians.

“We also mandated the Committee on Labour, under the chairmanship of Mohammed Nasif, to con-

tinue to interface with both government and labour for an early resolution of all the matters. Is this a true reflection of what transpired in closed session?

The lawmakers chorused aye.”

The Campaign for Democracy, in a statement signed by its president, Ifeanyi Odili, in Abuja, on Wednes-

day, however, insisted that the strike was long overdue, describing the court order stopping the NLC from proceeding on its planned strike as unfortunate and height of irresponsibility.

The group insisted that the court order was a misuse of judicial discretion, adding: “It is sad that judiciary which has always

been seen as the last hope of the common man is now playing to the gallery, fallen into the contraptions of the politicians, thereby throwing the dignity, honour and true professionalism in to the dustbins.

“The judiciary has not ceased to acknowledge the fact that the workers have the constitutional right to

President Muhammadu Buhari with the Minister of Labour amd Employment, Senator Chris Ngige and the Minister of State for Education, Professor Anthony Onwuka (middle), after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the Council Chambers, Abuja, on Wednesday.

protest against any policy of the government that adversely affect them, including judicial workers.

“The Campaign for Democracy is of the firm belief that the strike is long overdue, because virtually all the states in the country are owing their workers more than six months salaries; this alone has called for work boycott across the country.”

It blamed the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration for the woes of the Nigerian workers for not putting them into consideration before the increment was announced.

The group reminded the Buhari government not to forget its promise to make Nigerians happy, adding “how will N145.00 per litre of fuel make Nigerians happy? It has inflicted much pain and agony on the lives of Nigerians, hence the reversal.

“Consequently, we call on Nigerian workers to take their destiny in their own hands, by embarking on the proposed strike and defiance act. Nigerians should join hands with the NLC for the success of the strike, since it is a collective responsibility,” it said.

We will continue to fight against anti-people policies —Wabba Soji-Eze Fagbemi - Abuja THE division in the labour movement largely affected the effectiveness of the nationwide strike called by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Abuja, on Wednesday, as business activities were going on in the nation’s capital, while civil servants, banks and private offices all opened for business activities.

The NLC, however, staged a rally and public protests around the capital city, which it said would continue today, to show their resistance to the increase in the price of petroleum and electricity tariff.

President of NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, said during the protest that the congress would continue to fight against anti-people policies of the Federal Government.

Despite the call by the NLC to workers to stay at home in protest of the price hike, workers resumed at their offices and blamed the division within the labour movement for their action.

The NLC had, Tuesday night, walked out of a meeting with the Federal Government representatives, led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation

(SGF) and insisted on going on strike, while the Trade Union Congress (TUC) called off the planned strike.

The NLC faction led by Comrade Joe Ajaero had also backed out of the strike and directed its members to go to their respective offices.

All public offices, airport, motor parks and filling stations were all opened to the public, while activities went on as normal.

Led by its president, Comrade Wabba, the NLC held the peaceful rally from the Labour House to the Federal Secretariat, Wuse, and ended at popular Berger roundabout, where he announced that the protest would continue today.

He called on the government to revert the pump price of fuel to N87 or face a prolonged strike.

He pointed out that the congress supported the fight against corruption and the issue of good governance, and would continue to demonstrate its commitment in those directions.

However, he stated that corruption was inherent in the system, hence the reason refineries were not functioning.

Wabba insisted that the refineries could be turned around because Nigerian refineries were among the newest in the world.

He assured Nigerians that NLC would continue to

stand by them and attack issues that would create hardship for the masses.

While speaking, the General Secretary, National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWU), Comrade Issah Aremu, described the increase in the pump price of petrol by over 60 per cent as outrageous.

Aremu, a former vicepresident of the NLC said: “You also increased electricity tariff with almost 50 per cent and there is no light.

This is just too much for the common man; a lot of people are suffering.

“Government must understand the plight of the masses, as fingers are not equal

and this kind of suffering must not continue.’’

He said the protest was to urge President Muhammadu Buhari to have a rethink on issues that affect the people.

In his own speech, chairman, Labour and Civil Society Coalition (LACSCO), Dr Dipo Fashina, said the increase is “arbitrary, unjust and against all rules of good governance.”

Fashina said the increase was a subvertion of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria and undermining of democracy.

He added: “Because the result of this very action will kill democracy in the country, so government must have a rethink.”

FG grants Dangote 30% tax remission on cement road construction Leon Usigbe - Abuja THE Federal Government, on Wednesday, granted Dangote Group, 30 per cent tax remission on cement road construction.

It stated this through the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, who revealed that FEC considered a memorandum which “seeks to take benefits of tax policies, tax laws for the purpose of using them to

drive infrastructure development renewal.”

Towards this, he said FEC had approved a 30 per cent tax remission for Dangote Group to construct the Lokoja-Obajana-Kabba-Ilorin Road with cement.

He said government would exploit existing laws to give the tax incentives to the company and any other individual or corporate organisation which may want to embark on similar projects through the due pro-

cess.

“So, the details is about 30 per cent income tax obligation spread over time.

It doesn’t mean they won’t pay tax, they will continue to pay their tax obligation, but they will get remission for making this investment because ultimately, the road doesn’t belong to them, but to government and is for the benefits of Nigerians. So, it is like credit advance to government,” he said.

Fashola explained: “So, we presented a proposal by one of the subsidiary of Dangote Group, a construction company, for the construction of a section of Lokoja-Obajana-KabbaIlorin Road, specifically the section between ObajanaKabba Road, using cement as demonstrative of how perhaps we should continue to build going forward, in order to reduce maintenance on the road and the

continues pg4

4

news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

At last, first Chibok girl rescued, alleged husband arrested Chris Agbambu - Abuja with Agency Report

O

NE of the missing Chibok schoolgirls has been found, the first to be rescued since their capture two years ago.

Amina Ali Nkeki was found carrying a baby by an army-backed vigilante group on Tuesday, in the huge Sambisa Forest, close to the border with Cameroon, the BBC said.

She was with a suspected member of the Boko Haram Islamist group.

In all, 218 girls remained missing after their abduction from a secondary school in Chibok, Borno State, in April 2014.

The girls were taken by militants from Boko Haram.

Amina, now 19, was reportedly recognised by a civilian fighter of the Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF), a vigilance group set up to help fight Boko Haram and briefly reunited with her mother.

Nigerian military named the suspected Boko Haram fighter as Mohammed Hayatu. He said he was Amina’s husband.

According to the has been arrested and taken to Borno State capital, Maiduguri, along with Amina and her baby, for medical attention, Aboku Gaji, leader of the JTF in Chibok, said: “the moment this girl was discovered by our vigilantes, she was brought to my house. I instantly recognised her and insisted we should take her to her parents.

“When we arrived at the

house... I asked the mother to come and identify someone. The moment she saw her, she shouted her name: ‘Amina, Amina!’ She gave her the biggest hug ever, as

if they were going to roll on the ground, we had to stabilise them.

“The mother called the attention of other relations to come out and see what is

The rescued Chibok girl with her four-month-old baby

happening. The girl started comforting the mother, saying: ‘please Mum, take it easy, relax. I never thought I would ever see you again, wipe your tears. God has

Alleged husband

UN Under-Secretary-General arrives Nigeria THE United Nations (UN) Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, has arrived in Nigeria, on a two-day visit, to assess the humanitarian crisis created by Boko Haram insurgency.

Head, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA), Ms Kate Pond, disclosed

this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday, in Abuja.

Kate said that O’Brien would have a first-hand assessment of the humanitarian crisis caused by Boko Haram insurgency at Diffa and Maiduguri, before visiting Abuja.

Kate explained that the insurgency had affected millions of people in the NorthEast, making it the fastest

growing displacement in Africa.

“The UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, would be in Nigeria from Wednesday, May 18 to Thursday, 19, to take stock of the humanitarian crisis in the Lake Chad Basin.“The crisis in the Lake Chad Basin, including Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon and

Military raid cattle rustlers’ camp, clear more terrorists’ hideouts TROOPS of 1 Brigade Nigerian Army operating under the auspices of Operation Mesa, in Zamfara State, have raided suspected cattle rustlers and armed bandits camp at Yan Mangu forest, near Dandindin village, Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

The troops also arrested two bandits and recovered an AK47 rifle, AK-47 rifle magazine loaded with seven rounds of 7.62mm (special) ammunitions, three locally made guns and one motorcycle.

The two suspects were arrested while attempting to flee from the camps, but the troops destroyed all the bandits’ camps in the forest.

Meanwhile, in continuation with the special clearance and rescue operations, otherwise known as ‘Operation Crackdown’ within the Sambisa forest, troops of 7 Division, on Tuesday, cleared Boko Haram terror-

made it possible for us to see each other again.’

“Afterwards, we had to make them understand that the girl would not be left in their care. She must be handed over to the authority.”

Hosea Abana Tsambido, chairman of the Chibok community in Abuja, told the BBC that Amina had been found after venturing into the forest to search for firewood.

“She was saying… all the Chibok girls are still there in the Sambisa except six of them that have already died.”

Sources told the BBC that she was from the town of Mbalala, south of Chibok, from where 25 of the kidnapped girls came.

A video broadcast by CNN in April this year appeared to show some of the kidnapped schoolgirls alive.

Fifteen girls in black robes were pictured. They said they were being treated well but wanted to be with their families.

The video was allegedly shot on Christmas Day 2015 and some of the girls were

ists out of their Njimia camp within the forest.

The troops also cleared Boko Haram terrorists camps at Alafa, where they encountered heavy resistance from the terrorists, killing 15 of them.

The troops, according to

an information provided by the army, continued to advance through Alafa Main, Alafa Extension and Alafa Yaga-yaga, where they cleared remnants of the terrorists hibernating there before arriving at their main objective, Njimia.

The information has it that apart from destroying the camps, the troops rescued 41 hostages, who were mostly women and children and recovered two dane guns, several vehicles, motorcycles and bicycles belonging to the terrorists.

Shi’ites/army clash: Absence of army, COAS stalls court sitting Muhammad Sabiu - Kaduna THE absence of the representatives of the Nigerian Army and the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant- General Tukur Burutai, at the Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna, when the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) was seeking to enforce the fundamental rights of its leader, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, his wife and

other members who lost their lives and property in the December 12 and 14 clash, stalled the court sitting on Wednesday.

The representative of the IMN, Maxwell Kyon, told the court that the respondents in the case had been duly served with the hearing notice on May 12, adding that the recommended days as enshrined by law for their response, had expired.

However, counsels for the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Attorney-General of Kaduna State, Enoch Simon and Dari Bayero, respectively, were present at the sitting.

Counsel for the AGF explained that he had been served the counteraffidavit of the case, with regards to the leader of IMN, Sheikh El-Zakzaky, on Tuesday and requested time to respond to it.

Chad, has continuously deteriorated over the last two years.

“Insecurity and counterinsurgency measures have affected over 2.4 million people, making it the fastest growing displacement crisis in Africa,” she said.

According to her, communities in the Lake Chad Basin were already struggling with the effects of climate change, environmental degradation, chronic food insecurity and malnutrition.

At Diffa and Maiduguri, O’Brien is expected to meet with displaced people, their host communities, local officials and humanitarian actors.

She said the Under-Secretary-General held media briefings at the Maiduguri International Airport on Wednesday and at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, today.

NAN reported that the coordinator’s visit preceded the first World Humanitarian Summit, which would take place in Istanbul, Turkey, between May 23 and 24.

The summit seeks to generate renewed focus on essential humanitarian commitments, highly relevant to the people of the region affected by the Boko Haram insurgency.

It also seeks to renew focus on the need to ‘leave no one behind’ and to `prevent and end conflict’.

identified by their parents.

The Chibok schoolgirls, many of whom are Christian, had previously not been seen since May 2014, when Boko Haram released a video of about 130 of them gathered together reciting the Koran.

Army spokesman, Colonel Sani Usman Kuka Sheka, in a statement, said one of the Chibok schoolgirls was among a group of people rescued by Nigerian troops.

In a statement issued by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Colonel S.K Usman, in Abuja, the duo were brought to its Headquarters 25 Task Force Brigade Damboa at about 2.30 p.m. on Wednesday.

It confirmed that preliminary investigation revealed that girl was, indeed, one of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls, identified as Amina Ali. “In continuation of ‘Operation Crackdown’, troops of 25 Brigade Damboa, in conjunction with CJTF, deployed in one of the roadblocks at Baale, near Damboa, rescued one Miss Amina Ali and a suspected Boko Haram terrorist, Mohammed Hayatu, who claimed to be her husband.”

It also confirmed that the Miss Ali is now a nursing mother with a four-monthold baby girl, who was named Safiya.

“Both have been taken to Maiduguri for further medical attention and screening,” the statement read.

FG grants Dangote 30% tax remission on cement road construction continued from pg3

company proposing to fund the construction of that section of the road in exchange for some tax remissions.

“Companies are ordinarily supposed to pay income tax.There are existing policies in our laws which enable government to consider and give taxes incentives.

“So, council considered and approved the proposal for Dangote Construction Company to build that section of the road, because the tonnage of cement being produced from the factory has increased and the traffic in that area has increased.”

The minister stressed importance of the project to the economy, but noted that it had been in a bad state and causing accidents.

5

news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Labour leaders lead protest, partial compliance in many states Government House on Anwai Road.

The workers, who carried placards with different inscriptions, accused the Federal Government of insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians on the fuel issue.

Laying their grievances before the state governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, spokesman of NLC in the state, Comrade Jonathan Jemiriegbe, contented that the indefinite strike action would continue until a reversal in the pump price was implemented.

Continued from pg2

not attending to their plights over the non-payment of their five-month salaries.

However, members of Benue State University (BSU) chapter of ASUU complied with the strike order, as lecturers shunned classes.

Chairman of the union, Mr David Ikoni, told newsmen on phone that the union wrote to the university management intimating it that they would participate in the strike as an affiliate of NLC. Failure of workers to comply with the strike order forced labour leaders in the state to move from offices to offices to enforce, but were rebuffed by workers.

The state labour chairman, Godwin Anya, who led union leaders, told newsmen that non-compliance of workers to the strike was as a result of its short notice, but promised that the compliance would be total today.

Ogun

The planned nationwide strike by the NLC, partially paralysed activities in Ogun State, on Wednesday Members of the union, led by the state chairman, Comrade Akeem Ambali, as early as 7.30a.m., converged on the NLC headquarters on Abiola Way, Abeokuta, to embark on peaceful protest against the increase.

The protesters sang solidarity songs to express their displeasure over the development.

Nigerian Tribune, who went round the town, observed that pupils and students of public primary and secondary schools were seen returning home at about 8.30a.m, while some were playing football on their school fields.

Some banks earlier in the day shut their doors against customers, but later opened for businesses at about 10.00 a.m.

Also, the state High Court at Isabo area of the town was also closed down.

However, workers in the service of the state government defied the stay at home order and turned out en masse for work.

At about 9.30am, many of them were at their duty posts carrying out their normal day to day activities.

Speaking with newsmen, Ambali said the strike was called to fight against oppression in the interest of the masses.

Abia

The nationwide strike called by the Comrade Ayuba Wabba-led faction of the NLC was greeted with partial compliance by workers in Abia State, as markets, government offices and banks opened for business.

Nigerian Tribune,

Enugu

Members of NLC and Civil Society Organisations, protesting the petrol price hike, in Abuja, on Wednesday. PHOTO: NAN. who went round the city of Umuahia and its environments, observed that virtually all the banks and most government offices were open, against the directives given by the leadership of the NLC for workers to stay back at home.

It was further observed that pupils and students of public schools who went to school on Wednesday were asked to go home, while filling stations and commercial transport were seen plying the roads as against the expected full compliance to the nationwide strike.

Rivers

Workers and residents of Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, on Wednesday, went about their normal duties and activities as there was no form of protest as directed by the NLC against the recent increase in the pump price of fuel.

Indications emerged early in the day that the call for a protest was doomed to fail, as school children and students were going to their various schools in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

This was as there were normal activities, even as the commercial banks, operating in the violent-prone Mile 1, Ikwerre Road axis of the Port Harcourt metropolis, opened their doors to customers.

Even civil servants and workers in the oil sector were at their duty posts as a senior staff of Total Exploration and Production Nigeria (TEPNG) Limited told the Nigerian Tribune that work was going on as normal in the company.

However, chairman of the state chapter of the TUC, Comrade Chija Onuegbu, said the congress did not participate in the strike in the state, based on an agreement it had with Federal Government.

Onuegbu, in a statement issued in Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, further directed all affiliates and members of

TUC in the state to go about their normal business.

Declaring that TUC would not participate in any strike, he said the action was taken based on some understanding with the government on an immediate setting up of a committee to determine appropriate types and measures of palliatives within two weeks.

Imo

The industrial action declared by the NLC nationwide was partially successful in Imo State, because the core civil servants in the state obeyed the call of labour to stay at home.

The state secretariat on the Port Harcourt/Owerri Road was under lock and keys, because workers, in obedience of labour instruction, decided to stay at home as directed by the union.

When the Nigerian Tribune visited some local government areas, headquarters of the secretariats were under lock and keys, while some were opened without workers in attendance The public school students who reported to schools returned homes because there were no teachers to teach them while their counterparts from privates schools attended schools.

Commercial banks in the state, however, opened to customers, while markets and commercial transportation were fully operational.

When contacted, the state chairman of NLC, Austin Chilakpo, said the increase of fuel pump price at N145 was bad timing, because some states in the country were unable to pay their workers’ salaries.

Kano

Virtually all markets in the ancient city of Kano, as well as private organisations were not in compliance with the strike declared by the NLC. This is just as the state chairman of the NLC, Comrade Ado Minjibir, said the

people were committed to comply with the directive, but many got the information late.

However, the state secretariat, Adu Bako, were open but only few civil servants were seen within the premises.

Most of the civil servants who were around said they only came to register and sign their names.

When the Nigerian Tribune went round the state to ascertain level of compliance with the strike order, traders in most markets were seen doing their normal business transaction.

Also, commercial banks were seen attending to their various customers.

However, at the entrance of each bank, security was beefed up to check unforseen circumstances.

Lagos

The strike called by the NLC to protest nationwide the hike in price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popular called petrol, recorded no noticeable success on Wednesday, in Lagos, as workers, residents, commercial motorists, students, among others, went about their normal business activities.

At the Lagos State government secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, workers and government officials resumed for normal activities like any other day.

All the offices were open for business as there was no sign of strike, even as the normal meeting of the state executive council, which used to take place every Wednesday at State House, Alausa, took place, with Governor Akinwunmi Ambode presiding.

Also, banks within the government secretariat were seen open for business as bank customers moved in and out of them.

Activities at the Ikeja City Mall, housing Shoprite and major business outfits remained bubbling as usual as

shoppers and others came to transact their various businesses.

The NLC threatened to ground flight operations at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, from today.

Mr Adelegan Solomon, Vice-President, NLC, made this known while addressing protesters at the MMIA over the government’s removal of fuel subsidy.

According to him, the N145 per litre announced by the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) would further increase the suffering of ordinary Nigerians.

He noted that Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) were members of AUCPTRE, adding that arrangements had been perfected to ground flight operations at the airport from today.

“Today, few planes have taken-off and landed on this airport but by tomorrow, no plane will land or take off.

It is operation occupy Lagos State,’’ Solomon said.

Delta

In compliance with the directive of the national executive of the NLC, workers in Delta State, on Wednesday, carried out a peaceful protest, while government offices remained under lock and keys. .

Banks in the state capital operated for skeletal services before closing their doors to customers, just as public school children, who reported for academic activities, were turned back by school authorities.

At the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba, no new admission of patients was recorded while state hospital workers down their tools, leaving patients in dilemma.

As early as 7.00a.m, state executive of the NLC and members of the affiliate unions had gathered at the traffic light on Nnebisi Road, in Asaba, where they embarked on a long walk of several kilometres to the

The strike embarked upon by the NLC was partial in Enugu State.

Nigerian Tribune observed that there was normal academic activities in both primary and post-primary schools in the state, while many of the civil servants and federal ministries were seen carrying out their official duties unhindered.

Some of the civil servants interviewed, but preferred to remain anonymous, said they were in office waiting for further directives from their union leaders.

Contacted, the state chairman of the NLC, Comrade Virginus Nwobodo, said leaders of the NLC in the state complied and were observing the strike, except the Trade Union Congress (TUC) members, who were yet to join the industrial action.

Cross River

The Cross River chapter of the NLC, on Wednesday, called out workers for an indefinite strike over the increase in price of petrol from N86.50 to N145 by the Federal Government.

Mr John Ushie, Chairman of NLC in the state, told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), that they had no option but to embark on strike after the meetings between the labour leaders and the Federal Government ended in deadlock.

A check by NAN at the state and federal secretariats showed that some offices were locked while a few people were seen in groups discussing the development.

One of them, who pleaded anonymity, said he was confused whether the strike was holding or not.

Mr Eyo Nsa-Etim, Chairman of Nigeria Union of Teachers in the state, told NAN that government’s primary and secondary schools in the state would remain closed until further notice.

Akwa Ibom

The NLC in Akwa Ibom shut offices in the state and federal secretariats and barred workers from entering their offices.

NAN reported that the gates of state secretariat Continues pg10

6

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Nigerian Tribune

Lagos

Edited by

Lanre Adewole

olanreade@yahoo.com

0811 695 4647

Lagos residents speak on petrol price hike Sylvester Okoruwa

R

ESIDENTS of Lagos State have decried the current increase in petrol pump price from the previous N87 to N145 stating their different position on the nationwide strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

Henry Ehuezel, a lawyer and activist while speaking with Lagos Metro said: “Even the blind or the deaf will not support the increase in fuel hike from N86.50 to 145 naira, the suffering is alarming. The Federal Government should reverse the petrol price because the suffering is too much for us.”

Alhaji Ayo Baro, a Driver of commercial vehicles in his reaction said: “I support the strike to go on because this is not the change we voted for.

People are seriously suffering; a bag of Garri is now N15, 000. I am in support of

the NLC strike because this is the only way that the government will notice our pains.”

On the contrary, Andrew Ojiezele, a journalist said: “I am not in support of the NLC strike because it will bring more problems and suffering for the common man,” he added that, “the governor, senators and the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria don’t pay to buy fuel.

It is the only the common man on the street, that bear all the pains of the fuel hike.

The fuel price should be reversed while the government should look for better solution to the problem facing our nation.”

Adebowale Bolanle, a fish farmer also said: “I don’t support the NLC strike because Nigerians are already suffering, any further strike action will increase the sufferings and pains of the common man on the street of Lagos and Nigeria as a whole.”

Ojiezele

Adebowale A truck not fit for road but loaded with petroleum product at Ojota. PHOTO: ELLIOT OVDJE

Alhaji Baro

Human traffickers caught smuggling teenager to Dubai for prostitution Ayomide Owonibi Odekanyin

The newly constructed and commissioned Brown Street, Oshodi, on Tuesday. INSET: Representative of the Lagos State Governor, Commissioner for Local Government and Community Affairs, Honourable Muslim Folami (second left); Executive Secretary, Oshodi-Isolo Local Government, Honourable Adeola Olajobi; Oba Elewu of Ewu, Oba Shakirudeen Kuti and Chairman, Local Government and Community Development Association, Mr Kasali Olamide, during the commissioning of Brown Street, Oshodi built by the Lagos State Government, on Tuesday.

Ehuezel

TWO suspects have been arrested by officials of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Person and other Related Offences (NAPTIP) for attempting to smuggle a teenager to Dubai.

The accused persons: Joy Kenneth and Albert Eze were alleged to have conspired in December 2015, to procure travelling documents for a 19-year-old girl to Dubai for purposes of prostitution.

The first accused, Kenneth, who resides at 15, Divine Victory Street, Alagbado, was said to have on December 4, 2015, at 55, Unity Street, off AIT road, assisted one, Endurance, who is now at large, to procure the documents.

The second accused, Eze, who resides at 18, Igbaja Street, Bariga, was also al-

leged to have assisted the said Endurance to arrange the foreign trip of the teenager at the Murtala Mohammed Airport on December 14, 2015.

The accused were alleged to have secured the travelling documents of the girl, who is from Ewohimi in Benin City, Edo State, to travel to Dubai, for the purpose of prostitution.

They however, both pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were arraigned before a Federal High Court.

Following an application for remand by prosecution led by Mrs Kehinde Falade, Justice Abdulazeez Anka ordered the remand of the accused in custody and fixed June 28, for hearing.

Drunk man stabs friend to Ayomide Owonibi Odekanyin A 27-year-old man, Rashidi Sikiru, who allegedly murdered one Akeem Jimoh while he was drunk, has been arrested by the police.

According to the police, Sikiru allegedly stabbed Jimoh on the neck with a broken bottle around 10:00 a.m. at Orisa Junc-

tion, Imude, Ajangbadi while under the influence of alcohol.

The presiding Magistrate K.O. Ariyo of an Ebute Metta Magistrate’s Court refused to take the plea of the accused, stating that the court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the case.

Ariyo ordered the police to continue with their investigation into the matter

7

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Nigerian Tribune

metro Man, 25, stabs friend to death Olayinka Olukoya A man identified as Samson Tella, 25, on Tuesday, was said to have stabbed his friend, Abiodun Abdulkareem, to death, at Iyesi Otta, in AdoOdo/Ota Local Government Area.

The incident, according to a statement signed by the Ogun State Police Command Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, occurred when the duo engaged in a hot argument which eventually led to the death of Abdulkareem.

The suspect was said to have stabbed his friend with a broken bottle on the neck.

Adejobi said that the state Commissioner of Police Ogun State, CP Absulmajid Ali, had ordered thorough investigation of the matter and directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the Department of Criminal Investigation and Intelligence, Eleweran Abeokuta, to investigate the matter, immediately.

The CP appealed to the general public to always avoid unnecessary and unreasonable argument that could lead to any criminal act and encouraged youths to always maintain decorum during discussions on any issue.

death and also ordered the police to duplicate the case file after completion of their investigation and send to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPPs) for legal advice.

The Magistrate also ordered the accused to be remanded at Ikoyi Prisons and adjourned the case to June 13 for report from the DPP’s office.

Woman treks from Gbagada to Third Mainland to commit suicide with baby • Says ‘I heard a voice’ Olalekan Olabulo A 27-year-old mother of four, Halimat Adejoke, was on Tuesday saved by the police from committing suicide on the Third Mainland Bridge, alongside her a 12-month-old baby.

Adegoke had on Tuesday evening attempted to jump into the lagoon with her baby, when policemen

attached to the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), saved her and her baby.

An unidentified cab operator had reportedly drawn the attention of the RRS operatives, who were ensuring a patrol of the Third Mainland Bridge, to the woman.

The RRS operatives reportedly quickly arrived at the scene and prevented

the woman, who had a baby strapped on her back, from jumping into the lagoon.

Adegoke told the police that she had actually wanted to jump into the lagoon but said she did not even know the reason, why she attempted to commit suicide.

On interrogation at the RRS headquarters in Alausa, Halimat claimed

that she had trekked from her home at Medina Estate in Gbagada to the Third Mainland Bridge, to commit suicide.

She also claimed to have heard a voice, which directed her out of her home to go jump into the lagoon, adding that she decided to listen to the voice because it was “repeated and constant.”

The rescued woman, a University of Lagos (UNILAG) drop out, told the RRS officers that before the incident, she had issues with her husband before relocating to her parent’s house in Gbagada, Lagos.

The lady along with her baby were, however, on Wednesday morning, handed over to her relatives.

LASTMA officials towing away a vehicle for not being road worthy, while passengers plead for leniency, at Ketu. PHOTO: ELLIOT OVDJE.

Drug dealer fined N.5m for selling fake Codeine Ayomide Owonibi Odekanyin A businessman, Sylvanus Ifeanyi Nwanoro, 37, has been fined N500.000 for dealing in counterfeit drugs.

He was given the option of the fine by a Federal High Court or given an option of spending five years in jail if he refuses to pay the fine.

Nwanoro was arrested by operatives of the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

He was accused of selling counterfeit Cof ‘N’Cold with Codeine Syrup.

Nwanoro had pleaded guilty to one of the charges prompting the prosecution, Umar Shamaki to review the facts of the case before the court.

As a result, the trial judge convicted the suspect with an option of fine to the tune of N500, 000.

In his plea of allocutus (plea of mercy), the

convict said he is a first offender and did not waste the time of the court.

According to him, he is now remorseful of his action and so would never

commit such offence again if given the chance.

The court after listening to the allocutus of the convict, condemned his action and lamented the

effects of taken codeine by youths, which is as a result of the action of people like the convict, adding that such should not be tolerated.

The court commended the prosecution and NAFDAC for doing a good job and urged it to continue to rid the country of counterfeit and fake drugs.

89 persons, N17.72bn property lost to fire in 1yr — Commissioner THE Lagos State government has said that property worth N17.72 billion were lost to fire incidents while N106.32 billion worth of goods and property were saved between last May 2015 to April 2016 by the state’s Fire Service.

Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-governmental Relations, Mr Oluseye Oladejo, gave the breakdown on Tuesday at the ongoing state’s Ministerial Briefing in Alausa, even as he disclosed that a total 89 victims were recovered with 118 people rescued alive within the same period.

According to the commissioner, the state Fire Service received a total of 1,772 distressed calls, while out of them were discovered to be false.

Giving a breakdown of the calls, Oladejo said a total of 1,476 were made on fire incidents, with 136 made in respect of rescue operation, while 11 were done with regard to collapsed buildings.

Speaking on the preparedness of the state Fire Service to deliver on its mandate, the commissioner said that the Agency had undergone various transformations to enhance its operational capa-

bilities and capacity to effectively curtail fire outbreaks and related emergencies.

According to him, during the period under review, the fire service secured the approval of the governor to recruit additional 100 officers to undergo intensive professional basic fire fighting training to boost its staff strength and capability.

He said 12 fire stations were approved for renovation to provide a conducive working environment for firemen and rebrand the stations while boreholes in nine existing fire stations were rehabilitated to en-

sure that water was easily sourced.

Oladejo added that the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) under its watch ensured collaboration with stakeholders through prevention, mitigation, response and recovery operations in management of emergencies and disasters.

This was just as he disclosed that the Lagos State Safety Commission attended to 57 public complaints on safety issues and liaised with Ministries, Departments and Agencies on safety compliance drive.

Thursday, 19 May, 2016 8 news Diezanigate: EFCC probed alleged forgery of ex-Milad’s signature Saliu Gbadamosi - Abuja

A

new twist of forgery has emerged in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)’s investigation of a former Akwa Ibom State military administrator, Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga (retd), over allegation of collecting his state’s share of N450million from the N23.29billion disbursed by the immediate past Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, ahead of last year’s presidential election.

The former minister was alleged to have deposited $115 million (about N23.29 billion) into Fidelity Bank, through which she disbursed the money to officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), some individuals and interest groups in the wake of the presidential election.

EFCC has been investigating the presidential election fund from the former minister, which was alleged to have been largely funded up to the tune of $88.35million by some oils barons, and had made some arrests in connection with it.

Air Commodore Nkanga, who ruled Akwa Ibom between 1990 and 1992, was arrested by EFCC Monday last week and taken to the Port Harcourt zonal office of the anti-graft commis-

sion, where he maintained his innocence of the scam, insisting insisted that he neither received nor shared the N450 million recorded against his name.

Nkanga, who is a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, was alleged to have collected the money in two tranches from an official of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, branch of Fidelity Bank, which disbursed the fund on behalf the embattled Mrs Allison-Madueke, one Saint-Anthony Ejiowu.

The Nigerian Tribune gathered on Wednesday in Abuja that EFCC operatives were not turning a blind eye to the probability of forgery in the case, as a source stated that operatives were now looking at the claim that some powerful officials in the state might have forged Nkanga’s signature as the State Coordinator of Subsidy Reinvestments Programmes (SURE-P) of the former President Goodluck Jonathan administration to collect the money without his knowledge.

The source further informed that during their separate interrogations, some officials of Fidelity Bank told EFCC that the N450 million in question was delivered to the Government House, Uyo, in a bullion van on the order of an aide to the governor.

The inside source re-

Visit tertiary institutions for your anti-corruption fights, group tells Buhari A non-political group, the Accountability Vanguard of tertiary institutions in Nigeria at the weekend urged President Muhammudu Buhari to visit tertiary institutions in his fight against corruption.

The group said the tertiary institutions are the root of every corrupt practices in Nigeria, urging government to tackle political vampires alongside with academic gluttons.

In a statement signed by its national president, Pastor Theophilus Aremu, the group condemned the recent media reports on numerous allegations against academia across the country.

Accountability Vanguard which involves academia from select universities, polytechnics and colleges of education across the country, admonished President Buhari to act on the numerous allegations of corruption perpetrated by some senior professors, especially the vice-chancellors and provosts of the University of Ibadan, Auchi Polytechnic and Yaba College of Technology in recent time, as well as the Ahmadu Bello

University, and seven others on which the Honourable Minister of Education set up panels of investigation early this year.

According to the group, there were allegations of fraudulent promotion of some professors and manipulation of high-level appointments at the University of Ibadan, and a recent report from Auchi polytechnic where students pay prostitutes to sleep with their lecturers to earn marks.

The group also noted that in an ideal society, abuse of offices such as manipulation of appointment of successors in office, manipulation of appointment and promotion processes in favour of relations, old Grammar School mates and cronies being some of the allegations against the immediate past vice-chancellor of the University of Ibadan were unacceptable and irritating.

It, therefore, called on President Buhari as the Visitor to intervene by investigating these allegations with appropriate sanctions as a matter of urgency to curb such fraudulent practices in our tertiary institutions.

vealed that in the course of the investigation, it was discovered that Nkanga’s SURE-P identification card was used as a receipt to collect the money.

According to the source, “We want to know the actual person who received the first tranche of the

N350 million on March 27, 2015 and the second tranche of N100 million on March 31, 2015.”

The source disclosed that there were questions begging to be answered in view of the new twist to the investigation, saying that operatives are

now trying to establish if the signature used in the acknowledgements of receipt of the said N450million on the two occasions it was delivered was indeed taken from Nkanga’s SURE-P ID card.

Also, according to the source, operatives would

want to know if the bank official actually delivered the amount as claimed, who collected the money at the Government House, Uyo, and equally see if there was a nexus among the bank, Government House and the SURE-P office in Uyo.

Farouk Lawan was caught on video collecting $500,000 from Otedola —Witness Sunday Ejike - Abuja

THE second prosecution witness in the trial of former Chairman of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy, Farouk Lawan on Wednesday, told a high court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Lugbe, Abuja, that Farouk Lawan was caught on video receiving $500,000 from an oil magnet, Femi Otedola.

The witness, David Igbodo, who is Commissioner of Police, Legal Services and Investigating Police Officer (IPO) in the office of Inspector General of Police (IGP), Special Investigation Unit, told the court that Farouk was caught on video due to a sting operation by the Department of State Security (DSS).

Giving evidence, on Wednesday, in the court, David said after Farouk had after collected the 500,000 USD at the house of Femi Otedola on April 24, 2012, he proceeded to the House of Representatives and crossed the name of Zenon Oil that was earlier indicted in a report before the Adhoc Committee.

He said: “I found out that on April 24, 2012 at about 3:47am in the morning, the defendant was in the house of Otedola and was given the sum of 500, 000 USD and was caught on video due to the sting operation by the DSS. “The purpose of the demand and acceptance was to remove the name of Zenon Oil and AP Petroleum from the list of indicted companies,” David told the court.

The Independent Cor-

rupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned Lawan and one Boniface Emenalo before Justice Angela Otaluka on a seven-count criminal charge bordering on obtaining $620,000 from Otedola in order to doctor the committee’s report in favor of Zenon Oil and Gas Limited.

During examination by Prosecution Counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), the witness further told the court that , “On the same April 24, 2012, the defendant, after collecting the sum at the house of Otedola, crossed the name of of Zenon Oil earlier indicted in a report before the committee at the House of Representatives”.

He further said: “To my findings, the defendant (Farouk) admitted collecting the 500, 000 USD. He admitted he went to

the house of Femi Otedola and collected the sum of 500,000 USD, crossed the name of Zenon from the list”.

The witness also told the court that Farouk admitted collecting the money and gave it to another Honorable member named Adams Jagaba, Chairman House of Representatives on Narcotics and Financial Crimes.

Jagaba, however, was said to have denied ever receiving the 500,000 USD from Farouk and equally denied that any letter was written to him in respect of the collection.

The witness told the court that he found out that the defendant, after collecting the sum of 500,000 USD which was caught on video, did not report the collection to any security agency neither before nor after collecting the money.

According to the witness, Farouk had rather gone straight to the House of Representatives adding also that a search was conducted on the house of Jagaba but no money was found in the house.

David said that he found out that after the defendant had collected the 500,000 USD in the early morning of April 24, 2012 which was five days later, went to the chairman of EFCC and reported that some marketers were offering him a plane load of dollars.

David however said Farouk failed to inform the EFCC that he had earlier collected 500,000 USD from Otedola.

According to the witness, Farouk had said that the EFCC asked him to come back if any attempt was made to give him the planeload of dollars.

Police investigate alleged plan to implicate UK-based Nigerian Olalekan Olabulo

A - thirty four –year- old mother of three, Mercy Adetokunbo Oluwafeyibunmi has raised the alarm over alleged plans by a group of people to tarnish her image and implicate her former husband and father of her daughter, by using fake police extract and affidavit against him in the United Kingdom.

The police at the Yaba Police Station and the Ondo Area Command in Ondo State, have begun investigations into the documents and one of the suspects had been arrested, while efforts are on to arrest other members of the gang.

Mercy told the Nigerian Tribune that the police

were used by the gang to describe her as ‘fictitiou and untraceable s” in order for some people to implicate her former husband.

She wondered why the police, who had declared her as fictious and untraceable in a letter and a police extract, which had been tendered at a UK court ,would now locate her, about two weeks ago.

The husband Bankole Oni Ogunowo is involved with a case of contact order in the UK with the mother of his daughter, who is based in

CHANGE OF NAME

I, formerly Daniel James now DANIEL UTENWOJO. All former documents remain valid. FCMB Plc., and general public take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME

I, Akinrinde Femi am the same person as Akinrinde Olufemi Opeyemi. Henceforth, I wish to be known and addressed as AKINRINDE FEMI. All former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, formerly Miss Shoyemi Victoria Olubunmi, was also formerly Mrs Adeola Victoria Olubunmi, with Adeola being the adopted name of my husband. Now, I want to be known and addressed as MRS ADENUGA VICTORIA OLUBUNMI, with ADENUGA being the family name of my husband.

All former documents remain valid. Local Government Service Commission and general public take note.

the UK. The former wife had, in November 2015, sworn an affidavit to support her husband and denied that the daughter, Damola Oni Ogunowo was at anytime a victim of Female Genital Mutilation.

Mercy, a resident of 11 Fayomi Akinjise Street, Adepetu, Ondo town, told the Nigerian Tribune that she actually sworn the affidavit to show that she had no problem with her former husband, over their daughter.

CHANGE OF NAME

I, former Miss Adedeji Alice Lola now MRS OYETADE ALICE LOLA. All former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

CHANGE OF NAME

I, formerly Miss Emeziem Obiageri Ann now MRS. UZODINMA OBIAGERI ANN. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

CHANGE OF NAME

I, formerly Miss Elatunsin Ibukun Oluwadara now MRS BANSO IBUKUN OLUWADARA. All former documents remain valid. NYSC and general public take note.

CHANGE OF NAME

I, formerly Oladimeji Afeez Ayobami now OLADEJI AFEEZ ADEMOLA. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

9

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

10 news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

‘NLC hits the streets’ Continued from pg5

known as Idongesit Nkanga Secretariat was locked as early as 7.30 a.m, on Wednesday.

The situation was also the same when NAN visited the federal secretariat on Abak Road in Uyo. Union leaders were seen outside the gate of the secretariats chanting solidarity songs while workers who turned up for work could not access their offices.

However, teachers and pupils were seen observing their morning devotion in some public schools in the Uyo. Banks in the state capital and some cities like Eket and Abak were opened for business and fuel stations were also selling the products to motorists.

Chairman of NLC in the state, Etim Ukpong, said the strike called by Ayuba Wabba-led faction of NLC was in force.

Ukpong emphasised that workers in Akwa Ibom were on strike.

Workers reported for duty while commercial banks opened for business.

Bauchi, Yobe, Jigawa, Adamawa, Gombe

Normal activities are continuing in Bauchi, Yobe, Adamawa, and Jigawa states, as residents ignored the call by the NLC to embark on strike over the increase in pump price of fuel.

NAN, however, reported that there was partial compliance in Gombe State.

NAN correspondents, who monitored the situation in those states, reported that key institutions like banks, schools, state and federal secretariats, hospitals, markets and all major commercial, centres were open for normal activities.

In Bauchi, where some youths demonstrated the previous day in support of the deregulation of the downstream oil sector, labour officials did not attempt to enforce the strike.

A civil servant working with the state government, Sanusi Ibrahim, said most workers were not in support of the strike.

Contacted on telephone, on Wednesday, for his comment, chairman of NLC in the state, Comrade Hashimu Gitel, told NAN that he was on his way to Abuja.

He, however, said his other colleagues would brief the press later in the day.

Normal activities were observed in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, with banks, schools, hospitals, state and federal secretariats open for business.

An official of the NLC in the state, who did not want his name mentioned, told NAN that they would meet

later in the day to decide on their next line of action.

NAN correspondents in Yola also reported that normal activities were going on in Yola and other major towns of Adamawa, as schools, banks, markets, as well as the state and dfederal secretariats, remained open.

Many people, who spoke on the failure of the strike, said they were not convinced that the action was the best alternative in the present circumstance.

A bank staff who pleaded for anonymity told NAN that they observed the situation for some time and decided to open at about 9:00a.m as against official time of 8:00a.m.

NAN reported that officers and men of Nigeria Police force were seen in strategic places to ensure safety of lives and property.

Plateau

Commercial activities were paralysed on Wednesday, in Plateau State, following strike embarked upon by the NLC. Going round Jos, the state capital, governmental organisations, such as state and federal secretariats, were deserted while commercial banks and other government establishments were also shut to customers.

Students of both public primary and secondary schools in the state reported to school, but were disappointed that their teachers were not on ground .

Staff of the University of Jos and the Nigerian Television Authority College were also denied access to their various institutions by members of the NLC, while staff of the state house of assembly were denied access to their offices by members of the NLC. The Plateau NLC, in a statement, tagged: “Mobilisation for industrial Action,” signed by Comrade Izang Francis Atsen and made available to newsmen in Jos, pointed out that the unilateral increase in the pump price of fuel and electricity tariff by the Federal Government would cause hardship for Nigeria and make lives unbearable.

Kogi

The strike called by the leadership of the NLC over the removal of fuel subsidy did not hold in Kogi State, as government offices and schools were opened for normal governmental and academic activities.

Apart from this, the much expected protest over the hike in pump price of petroleum did not take place in Lokoja, the state capital.

A visit to the government secretariat, public and private schools in the metropolis showed that the offices

were opened, while students and pupils were also seen in the schools.

Although, there was only a handful civil servants around, the offices were not locked in anticipation that members of staff of the ministries and parastatals would still report for work.

Also, the Paparanda area of the state capital, where the protest was supposed to commence, was deserted as a detachment of police were seen around ready to disperse any protesting crowd.

Ekiti

The nationwide industrial action declared by the organised labour in Ekiti State was effective until late Wednesday afternoon, as the development took toll on economic, government and sundry activities.

Banks, government offices, public and private schools (except Catholic-run schools and some private schools) and businesses in the state capital did not open, while members of the labour unions rallied in the town against the increase in the pump price of petrol.

Officials and members of both the NLC and TUC, as well as those of the Joint Negotiating Council (JNC), students under the aegis of National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), as well as artisans marched through the streets of Ado Ekiti.

However, after the rally in the morning, where the labour leaders addressed people on what they described as the evils of the new petroleum price regime, shops and some other businesses began to open in the state capital.

Kaduna

The nationwide strike embarked upon by the NLC was a flop in Kaduna.

Earlier, the state chairman of the Ayuba Waba’s faction of the NLC, Comrade Adamu Ango, had instructed workers to remain at home and not report to work, but findings by the Nigerian Tribune revealed that the workers refused to take instructions as they reported to work on Wednesday.

When our reporter visited the state secretariat on Independence Way, kaduna, civil servants were seen in their offices.

Also, Nigerian Tribune noticed that schools, banks as well as markets, were all opened.

When contacted, the chairman of the Northern Traders Association, Ayuba Mohammed, also explained why the leadership of the association directed its members to open their shops and markets in all the 19 northern states.

According to him,”we did not even know whether labour exist. He said if we did

not open the markets and our shops, the sufferings that would be inflicted on Nigerians will be severe. We don’t want to be part of it.

“We consider the labour agitation as selfish as they don’t have the interest of the people at heart.”

Also speaking, the state chairman of the Ajaero faction of the NLC, Comrade James Ephraim, said they were not part of Wednesday’s strike, as, according to him, discussion was ongoing between their faction of the labour, led by its National president, Joe Ajaero.

Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the Textiles Workers Union, Comrade Issa Aremu, called for a united labour if the labour movement really wants to succeed in its current agitation.

This was contained in a press statement he issued to newsmen in Kaduna, on Wednesday.

Osun

Social and economic activities were, on Wednesday, grounded in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, as members of the NLC, the state chapter and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) stormed major streets to protest the increase in the pump price of petrol from N86.50 per litre to N145 by

the Federal Government.

Similarly, leaders of the labour movement in the state also blocked the major entrance into the state secretariat, Abeere, to prevent few workers who wanted to report for duty from gaining entry into the premises.

The crowd of protesters, including civil servants and members of the CSOs, later converged on the popular Olaiya junction, where the chairman of the state NLC addressed them.

However, anti riot policemen, operatives of the Department of State Security (DSS) and men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) were on hand to monitor the protest, with a view to preventing it from being hijacked by hoodlums.

Speaking to newsmen at the venue of the rally to round off the protest, Osun State chairman of the NLC, Comrade Jacob Adekomi, said “we have held a successful protest to kick against the increase in the price of petrol. We have been here since 8.30a.m and now people are just dispersing and we are still coming here tomorrow to continue the protest.”

In his remark, the leader of CSOs and human rights, Comrade Amitolu Shittu, said: “today’s protest is a landmark for Nigerians to

reject N145 per litre of petrol imposed on us by the Federal Government. It is a commendable effort for Nigerians to resist this wicked increase and we will continue the protest until the price is reviewed downward.”

We are not on strike —NUPENG The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has said that its members are not on strike and are going about performing their legitimate duties.

In a statement by NUPENG, signed by its president, Comrade Achese Igwe, it stated that it aligned with the Comrade Joseph Ajaeroled faction of the NLC not to embark on the nationwide strike action.

The union directed all its members nationwide to go to work and ignore the calls by the Wabba Ayuba-led faction of the NLC to go on strike.

The union called on its members working in oil installations, loading depots to be alive to their responsibilities.

NUPENG reiterated that all filling stations must be opened for the petrol station workers to dispense petroleum products to the end users.

11 news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

‘Special Police Squad’ kills police officer, woman in Bayelsa Austin Ebipade -Yenagoa A police officer, identified as Mathew Akpos and a middle-aged woman, were, on Tuesday evening, killed by a team of police described as ‘Special Police Squad.’

The police officer and the woman were allegedly killed close to OMPADEC school field area of Amarata in the state capital.

Akpos, who was said to have once worked at Ologbobiri, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state, was killed around 6.00 p.m. on Tuesday.

It was learnt that stray bullets from gunshots fired at the scene of the incident hit the middle-aged woman, a trader in the area, on her leg and stomach.

The unnamed woman was reportedly rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, where she died before doctors could attend to her.

The gunmen were described as a “special police squad” from unknown division and their mission, at

Ekiti doctors: Senate seeks establishment of ambulances on highways Taiwo Adisa and Ayodele Adesanmi -Abuja THE Senate, on Wednesday, observed a one minute silence in honour of the six Ekiti doctors who died on their way to the annual event of the Nigeria Media Association (NMA).

It also urged the Federal Government to establish hospitals equipped with ambulances and other emergency medical equipments on major highways.

The Red chamber, which took a motion on the demise of the doctors on Wednesday, also mandated the Ministry of Works and Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to ensure maintenance and reconstruction of all portions of Nigerian roads.

the time of filing this report, was yet to be ascertained.

“The gunmen dressed like a special police squad.

They wore the outfits of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad and police bulletproof vests,” a resident, who craved anonymity, alleged.

The eyewitness said the gunmen drove into the community on a black Hilux vehicle and, ostensibly looking for the “area boys” in the area who had been terrorising the residents.

“I was at a supermarket directly opposite the scene of the incident. The way they drove into the community was suspicious and sent panic waves all over the place. The gunshots caused panic in the area as people, even youths, who were playing football, abandoned the game and scampered for safety,” he said.

It was learnt that when the team came to the spot, they saw the late policeman with gun while on mufti, they shot at him, perhaps mistaken him for one of the “bad boys” in the area, while a stray bullet hit the woman.

But another source from the community said the gunmen trailed the victim to the area and wanted to force him into their vehicle.

The source, who did not want to be named, claimed that while Akpos was being dragged into the car, he resisted his assailants and, in the process, pulled out his service pistol from its casing and shot at the gunmen.

“One of the gunmen who was standing close to the Hilux van immediately pulled out his gun and shot the victim who fell and died instantly,” the source said.

The victims were said to have been deposited at the morgue of Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Yenagoa, even as others claimed that the police team went away with the late police corpse.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Asinim Butswat, said information at the disposal of the command was still sketchy, adding, however, that the command would solve the mysteries surrounding the incident.

President Paul Biya of Cameroon (second right), welcoming the keynote speaker and chairman of Heirs Holdings, Mr Tony O. Elumelu (left), flanked by former president, European Commission, Mr Jose Barroso and senior Cameroonian officials, at the International Economic Conference organised by Cameroon, held in Yaoundé, Cameroon, on Tuesday.

We don’t have document linking Saraki to London property —Witness Sunday Ejike -Abuja

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prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, on false assets declaration, told the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) sitting in Abuja, on Wednes-

day, that he has no official documents linking the Senate president to the ownership of London properties.

The witness, Micheal Wetkas, made the confession during cross examination

by Saraki’s counsel, Paul Usoro.

He said the prosecution

Arms deal: How ex-PDP chairman, Haliru Bello, was paid N300m —Witness A witness in the ongoing trial of a former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Haliru Bello, Yazidu Ibrahim, a staff officer, Accounts, Office of the National Security Adviser, has told the Federal High Court, Abuja, how he was instructed to pay the sum of N300 million to a company, BAM Projects and Properties Limited, owned by Bello.

Bello, alongside his son, Bello Abba Mohammed, and their company, Bam Project and Properties Limited, are being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for al-

legedly receiving the sum of N300 million from the office of the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retd).

At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, Ibrahim told Justice A. R. Mohammed that he received a written instruction on a piece of paper to prepare a payment mandate for BAM in the sum of N300 million.

Led in evidence by Adebisi Adeniyi, who stood in for Rotimi Jacobs, Ibrahim further stated that the piece of paper had the account name, account number, amount and reason for pay-

Police receive autopsy report on Ronke Shonde Olalekan Olabulo -Lagos THE police in Lagos, on Wednesday night, finally received the autopsy result of the test conducted on the late Ronke Shonde, who was allegedly killed by her husband at their Egbeda, Lagos home.

The state police command confirmed the receipt of the report, but insisted that it

had not been opened as of 9.00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Details of the report were still sketchy as of the time of filing this report, but the Nigerian Tribune gathered that there was a reported stiffness in her respiratory system.

The result of the autopsy test was reportedly handed over to the police in the state at about 8.45 p.m. by pathologists at the Lagos

only obtained unofficial information of the properties from their foreign partners in London.

Wetkas said the partners promised to oblige them with the official documents of the properties, but they were yet to do so.

“In our investigation, we

State University Teaching Hospital.

A police source, who pleaded anonymity, while speaking with the Nigerian Tribune, said “it is true that we have received the report.

We got it this night.”

The police source added that “though the content had not been revealed to anybody, there were report of the stoppage of her respi-

ratory system.”

The image maker in charge of the state police command, Dolapo Badmos, confirmed the receipt of the autopsy report to the Nigerian Tribune.

She, however, insisted that the content of the report was not meant to be disclose to the public, adding that it was only meant for investigative purpose.

ment (Payment for Safe Houses).

According to him, there were two signatories on the payment mandate: Muhammed Sambo Dazuki, a former NSA and S.A. Salisu, Director, Finance and Administration.

“After they have signed the paper, I would also sign before taking it to the bank (Central Bank of Nigeria),” he said.

Prior to giving this revelation, he had told the court that there were procedures of making payments, which included presentation of documents, approval of the documents and instructions from the Director of Finance, among others.

During cross-examination by counsel for the first defendant, Solomon Umoh, the witness told the court that he did not know if there was any contract between the defendants and Office of the National Security Adviser, adding that he was not in the position to know why payments were made.

The case was adjourned till June 1.

normally receive unofficial information from our foreign partners,” he told the Danladi Yakubu Umar-led panel.

The EFCC witness also informed the tribunal that Saraki used the N375 million obtained from GTB Plc to buy House No. 7 and 8, Whitaker Street, London in 2011 and 2015 respectively.

He said the title number of the House No. 8 was NGL802235 and the second property Number was NGL802661.

The witness said the bank told them that the addresses of the properties were not disclosed to them, when the investigation team requested for the full detail of the said properties.

The loan documents attached, according to Wetkas, showed that the N375 miilion loan collected by Saraki from GTB Plc and the narration indicated that he used the said money to buy properties in London.

“When we saw the statement on the mortgage redemption transfer telex, we were convinced that the defendant used the funds to acquire property in London,” he said.

However, the EFCC counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, lamented the pace in which the defence was handling the case, accusing it of attempting to confuse and demoralise the witness.

Chairman of the tribunal, Umar, adjourned the case till May 25, for continuation of cross examination of the witness.

Thursday, 19 May, 2016 12 businessnews ‘African 2015 stability report: Banks strong despite loan, companies must interest rate risks —CBN give room for Chima Nwokojji-Lagos

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FTER conducting various tests in 2015 to determine the strength of Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has concluded that though there were credit concentration and interest rate risks, the industry is strong enough to survive economic shocks.

This is just as the apex bank revealed that five largest banks in the dominated on the basis of deposits and assets in industry during the review period.

In its Financial Stability Report (FSR) for as at December 2015, available in the bank’s website, CBN stated that the solvency stress tests suggested that “the banking industry remained relatively resilient.

“Although some banks were sensitive to credit concentration and interest rate risks, these did not pose systemic threats to the industry.”

The exercise covered the 23 Commercial and Merchant banks using the following risk elements: credit, liquidity, interest, foreign exchange rates and foreign exchange trading risks.

The December 2015 solvency stress test according to the bank, captured “the idiosyncratic nature of individual bank’s balance sheet and macro-prudential concerns using the bottom-up and top-down approaches.”

The banks were classified into three groups based on their asset size as follows: large banks are banks with assets greater than or equal to N1.0 trillion, medium banks have assets greater than or equal to N500 billion but less than N1.0 trillion and small banks have assets of less than N500 billion.

On the basis of size of deposits and assets, available data showed the continued dominance of the five largest banks in the industry during the review period.

The market share of the largest bank with respect to deposits and assets stood at 15.65 and 14.27 per cent in the second half of 2015, respectively.

“The average market share of deposits and assets of the five largest banks decreased to 52.99 and 52.94 per cent, from 54.49 and 59.98 per cent in the first half of 2015, respectively while the remaining 17 banks had market shares ranging from 0.29 to 7.19 per cent in deposits and 0.29 to 6.78 per cent in assets, reflecting low competition in the market.

“Notwithstanding the marginal improvement recorded relative to the first half of the year, the structure of the banking industry in the second half of 2015, remained oligopolistic,” the report read in part.

Meanwhile, eight (8) deposit money banks (DMBs) were designated Domestically Systemic Banks (D-SIBs). At endDecember 2015, D- SIBs accounted for 68.9 per cent (N18.15trillion) of the industry total asset of N26.4trillion.

Similarly, the D-SIBs accounted for 71.3 per cent (N11.9trillion) of total industry deposit of N16.73 trillion.

The D-SIBs also accounted for a significant portion of the loans and advances to the economy as at December 2015 with N9.54 trillion (71.45%) of the total N13.35trillion from the industry.

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele who endorsed the report said this 12th edition of the FSR, like the earlier editions, analyses the key developments in the Nigerian financial system during the reporting period and the associated macro-prudential and economic stability issues.

“It highlights the efforts of the CBN at curbing potential contagion risks to

the banking system from the general macroeconomic downturn, in the aftermath of the decline in oil prices,” he wrote.

The bank also said,the banking industry and large banks’ resilience to credit risk was robust.

The result of the test further revealed that in case there is a one-day run, the liquidity ratio for the industry would decline to 33.4 per cent from the 48.57 per cent pre-shock position, and to 10.24 per cent after a cumulative 30day run.

If there is a 5-day and cumulative 30-days run on the banking industry, it

would result in a liquidity shortfall of N1.79 trillion and N1.93 trillion, respectively.

The test revealed that 17 and 20 banks would record liquidity ratios below the prudential threshold of 30.0 per cent, following the 5-day and cumulative 30-day runs, respectively In terms of loans, the report showed that aggregate credit to the economy relative to end-December 2014, net domestic credit (NDC) grew by 12.13 per cent to N21,612.45 billion at end-December 2015,compared with N21,409.77 billion at the end of the first half of 2015.

female leaders’

TO significantly increase the participation of women in the economy, African businesses must actively develop a pipeline of qualified female candidates for top management positions so as to harness the benefits women can bring to bear on the economy through quality leadership.

Aishah Ahmad, Chairperson, Executive Council, Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ) and Head Consumer Banking at Diamond Bank made the observation at the recently concluded 2016 London Business School’s Africa Business Summit.

Speaking during the plenary panel session titled ‘The Gender Agenda’, she highlighted the need for businesses to make deliberate efforts to harness the potentials of qualified women within the workforce, while encouraging women to strive for successful careers without opting out at mid-levels.

Jaiz Bank rolls out in 36 states Sanya Adejokun-Abuja

From left: Chairman, Mining and Solid Minerals and Allied Services Group, Babatunde Bamidele; President, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Nike Akande and Director-General, LCCI, Muda Yusuf, during the inaugural meeting of members of Mining, Solid Minerals and Allied Service sub Group of LCCI held in Lagos. PHOTO: SYLVETER OKORUWA.

Airworthiness: Reps to probe NCAA, NAMA, FAAN Jacob Segun Olatunji and Kolawoel Daniel-Abuja

THE House of Representatives on Wednesday, mandated its committee on aviation to investigate the activities of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Nigerian Airspace Management Authority (NAMA) and the Federal Airports Authority

of Nigeria (FAAN), with a view to ascertaining the extent to which they comply with their responsibilities of ensuring the airworthiness of aircrafts operating within the country’s airspace.

The House also urged NAMA to ensure there was regular update of the weather conditions for the departure of airlines and

ensure that airline operators do not schedule flights for periods where air transportation is unsafe.

The resolutions by the House was sequel to a motion entitled “Need Regulatory Authorities to Conduct Routine Checks on the State of Aircrafts Operating in the Nigerian Airspace and make Public the Reports” sponsored by

GIST initiative organises workshop to promote entrepreneurial women

By Doyin Adeoye

THE United States Department of State’s Global Innovation through Science and Technology (GIST) initiative, in cooperation with the United States Consulate in Lagos, has kicked off a networking workshop for 25 science and technology entrepreneurs to promote women’s access to entrepreneurship resources.

The workshop, which is being implemented by the

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), is a series of workshops: GIST Women’s Village Workshops, to be held throughout Africa in 2016.

Science and technology entrepreneurs attended the two-day workshop where they learned how to network, build successful entrepreneurship ecosystems and leverage resources to benefit women entrepreneurs. Each entrepreneur is now challenged to increase

awareness and improve access for women entrepreneurs by teaching what they have learned to 60 people within six months of completing the workshop, and to expand the reach.

At the opening session of the workshop, Public Affairs Officer, Dehab Ghebreab said, “the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Lagos is developing and we see a great deal of interest from women who are eager to enhance their capacity.

Honourable Sergius Ogun.

He said with with these regulatory agencies and the range of functions they are mandated to carry out, the frequency of air crashes in the country calls to question the expertise and competence of these regulatory agencies.

According to him, “laws such as the Montreal Convention, 1999, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Act, 2006 and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulation, 2012 make ample provisions to compensate victims of air crashes for loss of lives and injuries, but such provisions are incapable of replacing the lost lives.

“If a thorough investigation of the activities of airline operators are carried out with a view to ascertaining the airworthiness of aircrafts operating in the country, it will help in no small measure to minimise the frequency of air crashes in Nigeria and also significantly improve the ratings of the Nigerian Aviation sector globally.”

FOLLOWING the issuing of a national licence by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Jaiz Bank has declared its intention to roll out in throughout the 36 states within the next few months.

Jaiz Bank is Nigeria’s first Islamic banking institution.

Its Chairman, Alhaji Umaru Mutallab, disclosed this while leading board and senior management of the bank, Jaiz Charity and Development Foundation and the Jaiz Zakat & WAQF Trust to a meeting with the President-General of the Nigerian National Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Saad Abubakar IV, in Abuja on Monday.

Mutallab said, “As a regional bank, Jaiz has operated in 12 states (in Northern Nigeria) but with the new licence we can now spread to all parts of the country. We will open branches in the 36 states of the federation.

Part of the plan, according to officials of the bank, is to improve on its services through its various arms and with the feat just achieved, they promised a better deal for Nigerians willing to bank with them.

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editorial

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Nigerian Tribune

Restructuring the public service

OYIN Okupe, former Senior Special Assistant to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, recently called on governors to reduce their workforce instead of begging for bailouts from the Federal Government to pay workers’ salaries. According to him, it had become clear that the governors could not meet the financial needs of their states with the dwindling revenue accruing to them from the Federation Account. He stated further that many states might face imminent bankruptcy if the economic situation in the country worsened. He provided figures, some of which have been contested by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), to buttress his argument.

As Okupe pointed out, state governments have bloated public services. For instance, between 2008 and 2009, Ogun State received N2 billion monthly from the Federation Account and paid out N1.8 billion as staff salaries, wages and overhead costs.

The total public service staff strength was about 50,000 while the population of the state was about 5,000,000. In effect, 10 per cent of the population consumed 90 per cent of the wealth of the state. In many states, the percentage of the resources of the state that is consumed by the civil service ranges from 70 per cent to 80 per cent and members of the service comprise no more than 10 per cent of the population. Okupe therefore called for the immediate retrenchment of between 20 to 30 percent of the civil service of the states; and further downsizing at an annual rate of about 10 per cent for five years. This, he argued, was necessary, in order to ensure that the states did not keep begging for bailouts. In addition, such restructuring would create space for the controlled employment of new, youthful and better-trained civil servants.

Similarly, while addressing members of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun had, on May 5, said that the N165 billion being paid to federal civil servants monthly represented 40 per cent of the total spending of government, a figure she said was too high. She further said the Federal Government was pursuing aggressive measures to detect and prosecute ghost workers and other saboteurs in the system, and that the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) introduced by the previous administration was sabotaged by those benefitting from salary fraud. According to her, many federal establishments including the police were yet to be captured in the system. The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), which is not fully functional, still has 10,000 workers on its payroll.

As part of the condition for bailout, the states have been asked to develop a fiscal restructuring plan to drive efficiency. This

includes carrying out biometric capture of their staff and putting in place efficiency, like the Federal Government has done.

This became necessary because of the pervasiveness of ghost workers and the level of savings expected from restructuring.

Earlier in 2013, the current governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El Rufai, had called on the government to cut the size of the civil service, blaming the infrastructure gap in the country on the civil service pay, which he said was draining public funds.

The NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, accused Okupe of flying a kite filled with lies and half-truths, aimed at hoodwinking the governors across the states. But we disagree. Instead, we think there is a need to restructure the public service. The reasons include the fact that there is a lot of fraud in the payroll system in the public service that must not be allowed to persist. Two, the service is inefficient. It is filled with many redundant and idle workers that need to be off-loaded to productive investments outside government but with the support of government. Some of these workers would have to be trained and supported in some cases to set up their own outfits. Three, the service needs to be modernised and reorganised for efficiency. This means that it must be better trained with the requisite skills to adopt technology, especially information and communications technology designed for administration and governance.

It is indeed regrettable that Nigerian politicians lack the political will and the enlightened self-interest to prevent the rot that has paralyzed the public service. The Vision 20-2020 document had indeed provided a vision and a reform plan for the public service. According to the plan, there are three phases in the reform of the service. The first phase is the rebuilding phase designed to restore professionalism, merit and client focus, equipment and infrastructures for the public service, covering the period 2009-2011. The second phase is the valuedriven phase (2012-2015). The goal is to transform the service into a value-based, strong and well performing institution.

The third phase, the World Class Service Phase, covering the period 2016-2020, is to achieve a world class public service, where performance management has penetrated to levels of departments, units and individuals. This vision is far from being realised.

Besides, current developments show that reform must be targeted at all levels of government rather than the federal service alone. Nigeria cannot develop meaningfully without an effective, efficient and service delivery oriented public service.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

SEND YOUR SHORT MESSAGES TO: 08054005323, 08055001746

yournews

No to fuel price increase THE Federal Government is adding salt to our injury with the increase in the price of fuel; government has failed to increase the minimum wage, and some states are owing as much as six months’ salaries. The prices of foodstuff have gone up astronomically, and it is a difficult time to live in Nigeria, so how does government expect Nigerians to survive? The Federal Government ought not

to have increased the fuel price when things are so costly in the country, and now, inflation is at an alltime high. The naira has also fallen against the dollar, which is making imported goods costly. I hope the government will seek for divine wisdom on how to take Nigeria through this difficult situation.

•Wisdom Oluwatuyi, 08161812554

Still on the proposed new minimum wage PERMIT me to speak on the proposed N56,000 minimum wage which is being championed by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC). Instead of fighting for an increase in the salaries of workers, I think it will make more sense for labour to fight against delayed salaries. At a time when state govern-

ments are finding it difficult to pay salaries as and when due, how will they now pay for the increment?

The labour unions should fight for the payment of outstanding arrears and against the continued delay in payment of salaries.

•S. Ilesanmi, 07037261980

Reverse fuel price

•Sleeping on duty ! PHOTO: SIJUADE ADENIYI.

Deregulation is the solution

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HE decision of the Muhammadu Buhari-led government to increase the price of fuel has justified the proposal made by former President Goodluck Jonathan to remove the subsidy in 2012.

The Jonathan administration embarked on several town hall meetings across the country to sensitise Nigerians on the benefit of the removal of the subsidy, but it fell on our deaf ears. When the government finally removed the subsidy in January 2012, we embarked on massive protests which crippled the country until it was reversed. Now that President Buhari has removed the subsidy, then it is important to apologise

to former President Jonathan. I also want to express my shock at the manner in which this government increased the price without carrying Nigerians along.

The former administration had much respect for Nigerians and that was why

it embarked on the town hall meetings to sensitise the people, but this government just announced it without any prior dialogue with Nigerians. Having said this, it is high time Nigerians accepted that deregulation of the oil sector

is the way to go. With the deregulation, it is expected that massive investments will flow into the oil sector, particularly the construction of new refineries.

•Vincent Akadiri, 08030461538.

FG, sell our refineries now INSTEAD of increasing the price of fuel, the Federal Government should simply sell our refineries to investors who will be able to turn them around in less than six months. Why we are having shortages of fuel is because our refineries are not producing at full capacities, and as long as government continues to run the refineries, they will

never work optimally. After the sale of the refineries, the government should also give tax considerations to other investors to come and establish their refineries in the country. I will never support the removal of fuel subsidy because it is the only benefit Nigerians derive from being citizens of this country. If we say that the monies generated

from the savings of the subsidy payments should be used to provide social amenities and infrastructures for Nigerians, then politicians will continue to steal a large chunk of it, so it is better we continue to enjoy the subsidy benefits.

•Tumini George, 09095687489.

THE Federal Government should, as a matter of urgency, reverse its decision to increase the pump price of petroleum from N86 to N145, as it will make life more difficult for Nigerians. The cost of food prices have gone up and Nigerians are now suffering. In just a matter of months, the price of a bag of rice has gone up from N11,000 to about

N16,000. Transport fares have now gone up, while landlords will also begin to increase rents. The price of fuel is tied to everything in the country, and I don’t think it is fair enough for the Federal Government to just increase it like that all of a sudden.

•Stanley Umoh, 08029518875

Let’s support Buhari THE deregulation of the oil sector, which has seen the removal of the fuel subsidy, should be supported by all Nigerians. We should understand the position of government, as our foreign reserves have been depleted due to the payment of fuel subsidy.

When the Federal Government under former President Goodluck Jonathan attempted to remove the fuel subsidy in January 2012, Nigerians resisted it because we had everything going on well for us; the price of oil was around

$100 per barrel then, and our foreign reserve was over $40billion, but the same cannot be said now with the price of oil hovering between $38 and $40.

If government continues to subsidise oil, then very soon, the country will become bankrupt.

We should, therefore, give the government the opportunity to actualise its plans for the country.

President Muhammadu Buhari should be supported at this tough period.

Tinuke Omideyi, 08030461538

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opinion

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

The morning after deregulation

By Tope Fasua

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on global crude prices. The bond between the regulators and importers/marketers is so strong, and the poorest of the poor bears the brunt of their incest. An importer told me over the weekend how he imports at anything between N86 and N150 per litre (landing price), with his transportation cost from the ports to filling station being N14 per litre, and I asked how come their prices never go down even though in the countries where they buy these refined crude, prices have crashed – sometimes up to 70 per cent!

Crude oil prices determine pump price in other places.

I recall that two years ago, PMS was $4.00 per gallon in Houston, TX, USA. The last time I was there – two weeks ago – it was $1.80. In London, the pump price is presently an average of GBP1.08 (or $1.50 per litre). It used to be over GBP2.00. In the UK, 61 per cent of fuel price is taxes (partly to discourage people from driving but to instead use the train and buses). So, the real price is much less than what appears at the filling station.

The reality, to Nigerians, is that as the price falls elsewhere, it climbs in Nigeria. Mind you, in these other countries, not only is the per capita GDP (or average income), like 100 times more than Nigeria, but they also (like London) have fantastic and cheap transport systems that makes it totally optional for one to drive into any filling station. In fact most workers have no cars, and when they do, they use them sparingly. We can see mayors (governors), and even their prime ministers, inside trains and buses. This way, they use the services they provide and are able to assess their efficacy.

The story is different here. Government hardly exists for the poor.

The other issue is how this pans out from today. I bought fuel in Minna about a month ago at N300 per litre. In Ka-

HE Federal Government, after a meeting with unions, the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and other energy stakeholders, recently announced that it will now ‘fully deregulate’ Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) prices, because it has come to the conclusion that Nigeria cannot continue subsidising that subsector, among other reasons. This action has met with kudos from many quarters, and knocks from others.

I happen to be one of those who opposed the removal of subsidies in January 2012, but for me, the chief reason then was that I believed we should not be bamboozled into overlooking the massive fraud that had happened under the so-called subsidy regime. Nigerians later found out that N2.3trillion was paid out as subsidies in 2011 – an unprecedented figure, and a record-breaking fraud, as most of that were for phantom fuel supplies. The irony is that today, all the perpetrators of the heist are still walking around free, and most of the cases have gone cold. Meanwhile, our best shot at tackling corruption is to pursue one man for false asset declaration. But I digress.

By every means, the government should exit this business of ‘subsidy’ because it has enabled criminals to feed fat on the blood, sweat and tears of hapless Nigerians. I had advised that government removed its hands entirely when crude oil dropped to $28/barrel. That was the perfect time.

But the next best time, is now. However, trust Nigerians, if government says ‘not more than N145, hardly will anyone sell below that upper limit. My observation of the type of economic system we have been running for the past decade is one which enables super-rich people to take advantage of the poor. It is scorched-earth capitalism.

There are many issues that need to be carefully considered, the day after the government ‘bit the bullet.’ First, how did PMS prices climb up to N145 in Nigeria in a time when crude oil – and PMS prices – are at all-time-lows elsewhere?

What happens when crude oil climbs to $80 or more? Officially, naira has devalued by about 33 percent since 2011 when fuel sold at N65 (even though with much subsidy).

The point is that we were never able to shake this subsidy thing. Even when crude oil price went as low as $28, the PPPRA still alleged that subsidy was being paid – even though they claim that 80 per cent of pump price depends

duna three weeks ago it was N230. Those guys are not going to listen to this ‘Not more than N145’ business. Will petrol stations selling above N145 in most places in Nigeria suddenly reduce their prices? I doubt it. When Kachikwu came with ‘price modulation’ I said it was meaningless then, but the crowd of cheerleaders, cheered him on. Then they ran into a sandbank and have had to now ‘deregulate’. But is this full deregulation? Why should government have anything to say about prices in a full deregulation regime? Regulation should be about quality, but we know – in a country where PPPRA and co issue certificates of delivery for empty tankers and tankers laden with water – that no one will regulate any quality. All sorts of fuel will make it into Nigeria. From red, to pink, to yellow, to colourless PMS. We are used to all that. But if the NNPC says nothing about prices, do our wonderful importers and marketers want to sell PMS at N2,000 per litre?

I pity the poor in Nigeria. If fuel has moved from N3.00 in the time of Obasanjo, to N65 under Yar’Adua, to N97 under Jonathan (whom we fought to a standstill for trying to move it to N140) and now N145 without debate, BY HOW MUCH HAVE PEOPLE’S SALARIES GROWN? Even for we business people, how much have our charge-out rates grown?

How much can a trader or manufacturer mark up his goods?

I just feel like living standards are dropping; a helpless, sinking feeling like it will all catch up with one soon enough.

We get charged by the banks anyhow these days. Stamp duty nibbles at our money like rats, while government has increased electricity bill by 45 per cent – and they charge you whether they give you light or not; transport costs for those who go public has gone up by 300 per cent in the last few years (chances are it will have been up by at least another 50 per cent now). Are we being thrown to the dogs?

Already, there has even been more scarcity after the announcement, for whatever reasons.

I had written before that the Buhari government was performing a dangerous chemotherapy on the economy. I advised that they should try and infuse nutrients rather than the one way street of pains and more pains to the people.

Who listens? Again I repeat; it is evident that the closer one is to government the less possible it is to see reality and feel the people’s pulse.

•Fasua, a public affairs analyst, lives in Abuja.

Deregulation: Need to support the government

By Umana Okon Umana

MANY boisterous and healthy debates have broken out on social media platforms and, indeed, other fora on the recently adjusted price of petrol. But quite unexpectedly, some of the arguments are grounded in myths. Here are a few and my attempt to burst them.

The first myth is that subsidy does not exist. There is a subsidy when the pump price of petrol is below the effective cost. The effective cost is the landing cost plus the distribution cost plus margin. Subsidy is the difference between effective cost and the pump price of fuel. Landing cost for a litre of refined petroleum depends on the price per litre of crude oil. When government fixes the pump price of fuel below the effective cost, distortions are created. In elementary Economics, when a price is fixed below the equilibrium price, there will be a shortage and a black market will be created. The government in Nigeria was paying for the difference between the effective cost and the pump price. Government was therefore subsidizing the cost of fuel. Nigeria spent over $35 billion between 2010 and 2014 to subsidise petroleum products.

The second myth is that subsidy favours mostly the poor.

This is not true. By paying fuel subsidies, we were subsidizing the consumption of imported petroleum products. We were therefore supporting production abroad and creating jobs abroad at the expense of Nigerians. Besides, outside Lagos and Abuja and other major cities where the controlled price of N86 was enforced, fuel was sold at between N150 and N180 in the rural communities. The government guaranteed price of N86 was therefore a myth as the poor people outside Lagos and Abuja had always paid N150 or more for a litre of fuel. The reality is that it is the rich and not the poor who benefit the most from Nigeria’s fuel subsidy.

Findings by the IMF show that globally the bottom 20 per

cent of households take only seven per cent of fuel subsidy while the richest 20% take 43 per cent. Nigeria’s fuel subsidy at some point accounted for 30 per cent of total expenditure of the Federal Government and 118 per cent of the capital budget. It also accounted for over 90 per cent of annual oil revenues. Payment of oil subsidies was not only not sustainable, it crowded out spending on core infrastructure projects such as roads, railways and power with grave consequences for the standard of living of Nigerians. Besides, the artificially low, government guaranteed and subsidised price of fuel was a disincentive to private investment in the oil sector. It is not surprising that although the Federal Government approved over 20 refinery licences to private investors many years ago, not one refinery has been built. I must however commend Aliko Dangote for his entrepreneurial acumen in this regard. His new refinery being built in Lagos and scheduled to be completed late 2018 will enhance local refining capacity.

Rather than subsidising the consumption of imported petroleum products we should support the private sector to build new refineries. Fuel subsidy also took a disproportionate share of dwindling foreign exchange allocated based on official rate. There was therefore an imperative need to free the resources deployed for the payment of fuel subsidies.

Thankfully, government has made meaningful appropriations in the 2016 capital budget to upgrade infrastructure in the areas of roads, railways, agriculture, education, and

provide support for small businesses.

The third myth is that at N86 per litre, Nigerians were already paying too much for fuel. The facts do not support this position. At N145 per litre, the petrol price in Nigeria is about the lowest in West Africa. It is now clear why at the old price of N86 the opportunities existed for arbitrage and corruption as fuel for which Nigeria already paid subsidy was smuggled to Niger, Cameroon, Ghana, and so on, where there is no subsidy regime. Ghana, Cameroon, Mali, Senegal and Mauritania have petrol pump prices of N185, N218.9, N228.85, N234.82 and N256.71, respectively.

Removing fuel subsidy will fuel inflation is the fourth and the commonest of the myths. While it is true that the upward adjustment in the price of fuel will affect some components of the Consumer Price Index, the overall impact on prices will be cushioned by activities in other sectors of the economy, upgrade in public transportation and improved fiscal discipline. Over time, the efficiency of the market will drive down prices.

The fifth myth is also a fallacy. It states that if other oilproducing countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are paying fuel subsidies, why can’t Nigeria pay? Saudi Arabia pays out of a huge surplus after meeting the expenditure needs of the country. Nigeria’s revenue is not enough to cover basic expenditure requirements. We cannot continue to run a country that spends more on subsidies than on the total capital budget. Other countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, Ghana and Angola already took the bold step to remove subsidies on fuel prices. We should commend President Muhammadu Buhari for taking a decisive action to deregulate the downstream petroleum sector in the face of dwindling oil revenues and the pressure on the Naira.

•Umana, an economist, is the APC governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State in the 2015 elections.

16

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Femi Olukunle Coordinating Editor 08158610216,

FG to attract youths’ interest in science, technology Ademola Adegbite-Abuja

FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello (right), conferring honourary citizenship of Abuja on the President of France, Francois Hollande during his arrival at the Presidential wing of Abuja International Airport.

SMEDAN endorses fresh campaign to patronise indigenous products Chistian Okeke-Abuja

S

MALL and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), as well as the Abuja Enterprise Agency (AEA), have endorsed the Proudly Nigeria Expo campaign targeted at promoting patronage for made-in Nigeria products.

Already, a total of 200 industrialists have indicated interest to converge on Abuja for the campaign scheduled to hold from July 25-31.

Speaking on preparations for the event, promoter of the expo and president of Helpline Foundation for the Needy, Mrs Jumai Ahmadu, noted that the Proudly Nigeria Expo would bring together over 200 industrialists in small and medium scale enterprises while arrangements had been concluded for mentorship of upcoming entrepreneurs at the event.

She further noted that the event aimed to fix the country’s unemployment and social crises.

According to her, “one major strength

Crew 1. Christian Okeke chidiabujatribune@ yahoo.com 08030947856 2. Clement Idoko idokoajiga@yahoo. co.uk 08034412281 3. Kolawole Daniel kolawoledaniels@yahoo.co.uk 08030763782 4. Adetola Bademosi gloriaadetola@ gmail.com 08182214290 5. Collins Nnabuife chideraacollins@yahoo.com 08039521408 Abuja Xtra email & GSM: abujaxtra@ gmail.com 08054501406

of Proudly Nigeria Expo is that it imparts knowledge and empowers the jobless. As manufacturers showcase their goods and services, those seeking knowledge to get into small and medium scale enterprises will be tutored on the rudiments of doing business.”

Ahmadu disclosed that there would be seg-

ments during the period of the campaign to focus on skills training in ventures like soap making, bakery, beads making, leather work and event management.

She equally disclosed that participants would be taught how to access grants from government agencies and other financial agency.

THE Federal Government has reiterated its resolve to grow human capacity and stimulate the interest of young people in science, technology and engineering, with a view to ensuring that all projects in the country are executed by citizens.

The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, announced this while playing host to the outgoing Ambassador of the People of Republic of China to Nigeria, Mr Gu Xiaojie, who paid a farewell visit to his office in Abuja.

According to him, “Nigeria is harnessing partnerships with developed countries and international organisations that are interested and ready to encourage the development and the stimulation of the interest of young people in science, engineering and technology”.

He stressed that developed countries all over the world understood that the initiation and utilisation of science and technology was the instrument of development in the global economy.

Dr Onu expressed the government`s appreciation to the outgoing ambassador for facilitating the signing of the memorandum of understanding between Federal Ministry of Science and technology and the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology of China.

The minister commended him for the enormous work he has done within the period he served as the China Ambassador to Nigeria to improve and strengthen relationships between the two countries.

2016 budget targeted at lifting vulnerable Nigerians —Minister Ademola Adegbite-Abuja MINISTER of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, has declared that with the signing of 2016 budget into law by President Muhammadu Buhari, Nigerians should expect monumental change as there are a lot of programmes in the budget that target the vulnerable in the society.

While making the declaration, the minister further said that gone were the days when the level of impunity was so high in the way government was being run and when there was so much arrogance by those in power.

Speaking while receiving members of the Save Nigeria-Buhari Ambassadors, led by their National Coordinator, Comrade Jazeel Ibriahim, in his office in Abuja, Dr Onu, therefore, pointed out that it was in the collective interest of all Nigerians to diversify the economy.

He assured that the present administration, under President Buhari, would fulfill its campaign promises by creating jobs, growing the economy and ensuring that there was adequate security and rule of law.

According to him, “we want all Nigerians, who want to work to have work to do.

It would help us to create wealth, achieve self-reliance and also help to fight crime, because everybody in Nigeria is conscious

that there is rule of law, there is no longer any room for impunity and arrogance of power.”

The minister stressed that people elected to an office held it to the collective will of the people and appreciated the contribution of the Save Nigeria-Buhari Ambassadors during the last presidential

election.

Earlier, the National Coordinator, Comrade Ibriahim, appreciated recent order by the Federal Government for the recruitment of 10, 000 police men and women to add to the number of personnel and the recruitment of 5, 000 teachers in addition to the sectoral efforts.

Group seeks agencies’ collaboration to end dangerous usage of pesticides by farmers Chistian Okeke-Abuja A group, CropLife International, has pledged to collaborate with all international and government agencies to strengthen national legislation in the area of management of pesticides in Nigeria.

It also advocated the use of hazard-based approach rather than a riskbased approach in the definition and management of pesticides.

The group, in a communique issued at the end of the two-day West and Central Africa Hub and Regulatory Workshop in Abuja, equally called for the promotion and adoption of relevant biotechnologies in farming activities.

In the communique, it insisted on the need for safe and responsible use of pesticides as well as safe management of empty pesticide containers.

During the workshop, the group got the

support of the Senate towards enactment of pesticide legislation to mitigate the problem of misuse and address importation of pesticides including marketing, storage and their application and use, among other provisions.

The Senate equally pledged to support and promote promulgation of laws that supported diversification and growth of the economy, and in particular all laws that enhanced ease of doing business in the country.

It said considering that the country’s population was expected to peak at 340 million by the year 2030, it was suicidal to relegate the critical role and importance of crop protection services to the food production system.

Speaking at the workshop, the chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, said it was a must for the country to equip farmers with the right tools to guarantee food needed to feed the population.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

With Adewale Oshodi tribunearts@yahoo.com 08054005323

A hunger for romance literature in Northern Nigeria

W

OMEN and girls in northern Nigeria have a voracious appetite for romantic fiction that is taking on conservative attitudes in this largely Muslim region.

Written in the local Hausa language by women for women, Kano city’s equivalent of the Mills and Boons industry, known as “Litattafan Soyayya,” is a booming business.

“I read these novels to know how to handle complex life issues, like courtship and what life is in the matrimonial home,” says 23-year-old Hadiza Ibrahim Kabuga.

One of the bestsellers, A Daren Farko, meaning “On the First Night,” is especially popular with girls and young women about to be married — detailing what they can expect on their first night in the marriage bed.

The novels are a way for women to talk about issues not openly discussed in Northern Nigeria.

“I give more attention to women’s issues, like marriage, polygamy and education “Girls are often treated differently from boys, with some parents believing they do not need an education as their early years are just a preparation for marriage.

“In my writing I give more attention to women’s issues, like marriage, polygamy and education,” says Fauziyyah B Suleiman, who has written 32 novels and makes enough money to live by her writing.

Three of them have proved so successful that they have been turned into locally produced movies.

One called Rumaysah deals with polygamy and the complications that come with it.

Rumaysah is a woman driven by jealousy who is determined to stop her husband from taking a second wife and ends up murdering him.

The trickery and subterfuge of life in a polygamous family is also raised by many of the novels.

Others will, for example, chronicle the rise of an illiterate child bride who rebels against her family to get an education ending with her becoming aware of her rights within and outside the family.

“Such novels bring to the fore the much-needed change in the way women are treated in Hausa society,” says literary critic Murtala Abdullahi.

It allows women not only to express themselves but be viewed in a different light, he adds.

“Hausa romance novels often present the image of women not only as housewives and mothers, but also as breadwinners or political activists or professionals.”

The novels sell for about N300 ($1.50, £1) each and can be bought at book stalls in all markets.

“Every week, at least five new novels

come on to the market - some selling in their thousands,” says Ali Mai Litattafai, who runs a bookshop in old Kano city.

“In the past, people had the wrong impression of issues such novels raise, but now people have realised that they are for the good of the society.”

Most of Mr Litattafai’s customers are married women, some of whom buy in bulk and then loan out copies of the romances in their neighbourhoods for a small fee.

It is usually about $0.70 to borrow three books for a week. The novels are also serialised on the radio.

When Express FM in Kano airs its romance novel slot at 09:00 every weekday morning, many homes comes to a standstill for the next 30 minutes.

It can also be heard outside the city in

rural areas, where literacy is lower. Kano State as a whole has female literacy rates of between 35 per cent and 50 per cent — in much of the rest of Northern Nigeria, it is lower than 35 per cent.

Some teachers have complained that the books interfere with girls’ concentration at school.

“I used to have to frequently confiscate the romances when I caught students secretly reading them on their laps,” says Naziru Mikailu, a BBC journalist who used to teach at a school in Kano.

Some Islamic scholars have had more of an issue with what they consider the vulgar and erotic content of the novels.

The Kano State governor in 2007 led a widely publicised burning of thousands of the novels.

A censorship board was then set up, re-

quiring writers to present their works for scrutiny before publication.

This has now been relaxed after some writers won a civil court case which upheld their freedom of expression.

But the Hisbah religious police — who are tasked with upholding Islamic law — are still touchy about them.

In February, they stopped a popular narrator of the novels, Isa Ahmed Koko, from visiting Kano to meet his adoring fans.

This was in response to a Facebook campaign set up by men upset by the prospect.

“Many married women will abandon their homes and tell their husbands they are maybe going to the hospital only to end up at the meeting,” one of them posted.

The authors often put their mobile numbers on the cover of their novels, allowing direct feedback from readers who sometimes get in touch to offer them gifts.

But some have received threatening messages, urging them to stop writing.

People have formed groups on Facebook to share the romances Maryam Salisu Maidala, a teacher who has written two romance bestsellers, says she has never been on the receiving end of a threatening call, except from fans urging her to hurry up with a sequel to her popular book, Kainuwa.

“I reflect reality to the extent that sometimes readers call my mobile to ask me if my novels were based on real life stories that had happened.”

She writes her novels by long hand, because of Nigeria’s erratic electricity supply, and says that the serialisation of her books on the radio has helped boost sales.

—Courtesy: BBC

Four writers for May/June Ebedi residency FOUR writers, all Nigerians, have just arrived the Ebedi International Writers Residency, Iseyin, Oyo State, Nigeria for the May/June 2016 edition of the residency programme. The writers are Muriola Awosemo, Abdullahi Lawan Kangala, Okwudili Nebeolisa and David Ishaya Osu. Born in the early 60s in Ile-Ife, Awosemo obtained the Bachelor of Arts degree in English Studies from Obafemi Awolowo University, and later a Diploma in Journalism from the International Institute of Journalism, Abuja. His published works include a novel, The King of Boys; two volumes of collections of short stories — Telling Tales and The Colour of Love as well some children’s books. Awosemo had served the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) as an elected official at both the state and national levels. In addition to mentoring Iseyin students in the areas of fiction and short story writing, Muriola hopes to work on his forthcoming books, Adult Tree and Village Radio during his stay at Ebedi Residency.

The second writer, Abdullahi Lawan

Kangala is a Kano-based writer who currently writes in Hausa and English. Born in 1986 in Makarfi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Abdullahi is a full member of the Community Development Group at the American corner in Murtala Muhammed Library Complex, Kano. He is also the coordinator of the Hausa Forum of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), Kano State branch. He has recently completed work on his yet-to-be published Hausa language books. During his stay at the residency, he will be at work on his new novel, Sakamakon Fade, and will be polishing his collection of five English short stories. In addition, he will teach Iseyin students the rudiments of Hausa poetry, songs and folklore.

David Ishaya Osu, born in 1991, is a graduate of Urban and Regional Planning. A native of Nasarawa State, his works have appeared in Eureka Street, Atlas Poetica: A Journal of World Tanka, Birmingham Arts Journal, Off the Coast, The Kalahari Review, Vinyl Poetry, among other literary journals.

At Ebedi, Ishaya hopes to complete work on his debut poetry book, The Secrets of Underwears, as well as conduct workshops for students on spelling and poetry.

The fourth writer, Nebeolisa Okwudili is a Nigerian writer whose works have featured in several local and international literary journals. A Chemical Engineering graduate of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, Okwudili won the inaugural Jalada Prize in Poetry and also came third in the 2011 ASiS International Writing Competition in the poetry category. In addition, he was also shortlisted for the 2014 Raedleaf Poetry Competition in the international category. Nebeolisa who hails from Anambra State, will also delight Iseyin students during his residency with a workshop on poetry and drama, in addition to completing work on his debut novel, The Spirit House.

In its sixth year of operation, the Ebedi International Writers Residency has hosted more than 60 writers from Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Cameroun, South Africa and Ivory Coast.

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arts&review

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Understanding the history of Ikereland Sam Nwaoko, Ado-Ekiti

I

KERE-EKITI, the headquarters of Ikere Local Government Area of Ekiti State has got a response to some of the questions that had left many wondering for a number of years.

The answers came in a book entitled “The History of Ikereland” written by a former chairman of the council, Dr. Gboyega Akinola. The man who is more popularly referred to as Sodola through the book, made what has come to be seen as a fearless foray into the labyrinth the Ikere monarchy and chieftaincy issues are turning to.

The 150-page book is Akinola’s presentation of the historical antecedents of Ikere community, an issue which has heightened controversy in both the community and Ekiti State as highlighted by the emergence of a new Ogoga of Ikere and a vocal Olukere of Ikere. The Ogoga versus Olukere controversy had risen to a new height recently when the Ekiti State government announced that the community had only one traditional ruler and that that monarch was the Ogoga.

Akinola, however, through “The History of Ikereland” has not just set out to disprove this, he has expanded the argument by espousing that Ikere is a cosmopolitan set up with more than one traditional ruler, contrary to the position of the state government. In the preface of the 150-page book, he highlighted this contention.

He claimed thus: “The fact remains that the cultural and administrative system in Ikere when they were in the state of nature (dark age) was based on understanding and cooperation among the aborigines. It was more of unity in diversity. What is very clear is that the Ogoga

established cultural administration even before the advent of the Europeans and colonialism... What is obvious is that no Ikere son and daughter in whom the blood of Ikere flows can say that Olukere is not a traditional ruler, at the same time that Ogoga is not the only prescribed authority for Ikere kingdom.”

To him, “the first Olukere and founders of Ikere ought to be commended for their hospitality towards the first Ogoga and the Ogoga dynasty to be commended for not using violent method or war to establish himself as the ruler of Ikere-Ekiti.”

The author cited many works to support his argument, and also relied on his roots, the Oisa, which he said is among the first aborigines of Ikereland. He said the ques-

tion: “Is it true that Ikere had two kings?” had spurred him into finding answers to the question since 1974 when he was “a student of Yoruba Studies in the University of Lagos to write thesis on the history of Ikereland in 1974/75 session.” He said his bully pulpit was also his work “as a cultural officer in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Sports and Information under the regime of late Governor Adekunle Ajasin, when I was detailed to research on some cultural heritages in Ondo State.”

Akinola, who holds a degree in Political Science from the then University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) was a legislator in the old Ondo State House of Assembly, and was also a former chairman of Ikere Local Government Area. He said: “I have revealed many cultural and historical facts within my instinct, scope and research. I therefore challenge anybody with negative view or authority to refute my story or contribute his own quota to move Ikere forward.”

“The History of Ikereland” brought the representatives of both the Ogoga and the Olukere as well as many chiefs of the town at its presentation. The Akamuja of Uro in Ikere, Obawale Charles Ekundayo described the book as “comprehensive and memorable”, and held that the book was “for posterity, sound knowledge of history of Ikere Ekiti and to assist in restoring peace to the town through more understanding of Ikere history” among others.

The Akamuja contended that Akinola was “competent to write history because of his native intelligence” and held that “this book shall help the state government and local government in solving some problems in realising a better reasonable objective about the chieftaincy institution in Ikere Ekiti land.”

The Akamuja also held that the book

Towards learning small business management A review of Dr A.B. Obanla’s book, Theory and Practice of Entrepreneurship Development and Small Business Management.

AT this period of high unemployment rate, the way through which jobs can be created is for small businesses to thrive, and when this happens, many unemployed youths will be gainfully employed.

Unfortunately, more than half of new business ventures in Nigeria shut down within their fifth year, while another half close shop within their eighth year. This means that only a tiny percentage of new businesses survive.

So if we are truly serious about reducing the country’s high unemployment rate, then it is important for prospective business owners to learn about business management, and this is why Dr A.B Obanla, a business administrator par excellence, decided to research and publish a book, Theory and Practice of Entrepreneurship Development and Small Business Management.

This book is, therefore, a prospective business owner’s manual in his entrepreneurial journey, as the author deals with the basics in business and how to management small businesses.

In the foreword on the book, Professor Philip Olugbenga of the POMA In-

ternational Business University (PIBU), Republic of Benin, that the future of entrepreneurship is more brighter than government job.

“Business management has been a common practice in Europe, America and Asia for many years, but it is only recently that this form of assessment has just been introduced into Africa.

“Entrepreneurship training is now a combination of apprenticeship, objective business assessments, including directly observed procedural entrepreneurship skill.

“Therefore, the book fills a currently

unmet need by provision of a significant overview of important learning points in entrepreneurship development,” Professor Olugbenga explains.

In the book, the author explains the theories of entrepreneurship, the prerequisites for small business management, challenges of business management, as well as business contemporary ingredients.

The author explains how to choose a business enterprise, and one of the easiest ways is looking at an unmet need in one’s environment.

The author goes on to highlight how to test if such business will be successful if one goes into it.

Feasibility studies is also important when planning a new business venture, and the author is able to guide prospective business owners on how to go about this.

Dr Obanla, who is currently the Head of Department (HOD) of Entrepreneurial Management Department of the POMA International Business University, Republic of Benin, has given the ‘key’ which will guide new business owners on their entrepreneurial journey.

The book is, therefore, a must read for current and prospective business owners, and it is hoped that when we have millions of thriving small businesses, then the high unemployment rate in the country will reduce drastically.

would help the younger generation as well as those in authority to take informed decisions, saying it would “enlighten or provide more information to successive governments so as to act as reference point in taking some vital and critical decisions now and in the future.” He also said it would “open a new chapter of opportunity in recognizing and restoring Ikere-Ekiti chieftaincy institution by way of referendum.”

The book reviewer, Mr. Omotosho Okeya, also highlighted the “native intelligence” of the author and held that his contribution to academics through “The History of Ikereland” would further expand the frontiers of knowledge and research. “The author has said that he had written the history as he knows and sees it and this would do a lot for all that reads the book.”

Han Kang’s The Vegetarian wins Man Booker prize The Vegetarian, a novel about a woman who “wants to reject human brutality” and gives up eating meat, has won the 2016 Man Booker International Prize.

The book was translated by Deborah Smith, who only started teaching herself Korean in 2010.

Judging panel chairman, Boyd Tonkin, said South Korean author, Han Kang’s work was “unforgettably powerful and original.”

The writer and her British translator will split the award’s £50,000 prize money.

The pair saw off competition from Turkish Nobel Laureate, Orhan Pamuk; Italian writer, Elena Ferrante; Angolan wordsmith, Jose Eduardo Agualusa; Chinese author, Yan Lianke and Austrian novelist, Robert Seethaler, to take the prize.

Smith, whose only language was English until she was 21, decided to become a translator on finishing her English Literature degree, having noticed the lack of English-Korean translators.

She said she was “certainly not a born Korean speaker” and still spoke Korean “very much like somebody who learned it from a textbook.”

“I had no connection with Korean culture — I don’t think I had even met a Korean person — but I wanted to become a translator because it combined reading and writing and I wanted to learn a language.

“Korean seemed like a strangely obvious choice, because it is a language which practically nobody in this country studies or knows.”

She said she initially tried to translate the book for a publisher after only learning Korean for two years, but the translation was “awful.”

However, after publisher, Portobello Books, asked her if she had a Korean book that would be “right for their list,” she had another go at translating a year later.

She has gone on to translate a number of Korean texts, including two Bae Suah works - The Essayist’s Desk and The Low Hills of Seoul — and has recently founded a not-for-profit publishing house dedicated to Asian and African literature.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

education

Editor: Laolu Harolds 08111845016 tribune.education@yahoo.com

60% of out-of-school children in Nigeria live in North —UNESCO Clement Idoko-Abuja

A

BOUT 60 per cent of out-ofschool children in Nigeria live in the northern part of the country; over 71 per cent of these are girls, says the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

UNESCO Regional Director, Mr Benoit Sossou, who revealed this in Abuja, said the UNESCO/UIL Global Monitoring Reports, 2015 had shown that Nigeria is home to over 10.5 million out-of-school children, with majority of them being girls.

Sossou said the report observed that almost one of every three primary school children are out-of-school, and roughly one of every four junior secondary school children are out-of-school.

He said UNESCO is collaborating with Procter & Gamble to accelerate and underpin national efforts to achieve the Education for All (EFA) goals, especially goals 3, 4 and 5 and the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 in Nigeria.

“The project is especially targeted to support 60,000 girls and women to acquire basic literacy, numeracy and lifelong vocational skills for the next three years in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja and Rivers State.

“These beneficiaries comprise illiterate girls and women who have never been to school due to one challenge or the other; those that dropped out of school a bit too early before they could acquire any foundational skill; and young girls who are in school but are at risk of dropping out due to poor performance,” he said.

Sossou spoke during the graduation ceremony of 7,500 girls and women non-formal education learners who were the first beneficiaries of the project sponsored by

The Founder of Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin, Osun State, Chief Michael Ade-Ojo (left), in an handshake with the Managing Director of Kingsway Construction Company, Mr. Charles Liu, after the award of a contract to the latter to build a 500-bed hostel in Elizade University.

UNESCO in collaboration with Procter & Gamble.

The wife of the vice president, Mrs Oludolapo Osinbajo, who represented the wife of the president, Mrs Aisha Muhammadu Buhari, at the event challenged the private sector to emulate Procter & Gamble in partnering with relevant government agencies in addressing the issue of

NOUN grants 100% fee waiver to prison inmates Naza Okoli-Lagos

THE National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has granted a 100 per cent waiver to prison inmates who may wish to pursue a degree while in jail.

Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu, the vice chancellor of the university, disclosed this in Abuja while receiving the vice chancellor of the Nigerian Turkish Nile University, Professor Huseyin Sert, in his office.

According to him, the waiver which before now was pegged at 50 per cent, has been expanded to 100 per cent in order to “enable the inmates to have unfettered access to quality education and also encourage others take advantage of the initiative to acquire education.”

He said, “Having suffered abandonment by relatives, emotional and physical confinement, prison inmates will see such

gesture from NOUN as a measure meant to reduce the burden on them and to provide the platform to improve and make themselves better citizens.”

According to a statement issued by the Director, Media and Publicity of the institution, Malam Ibrahim Sheme, NOUN will also “explore the option of taking education to young girls who for cultural reasons cannot access education.”

Adamu also disclosed that NOUN would soon introduce a programme to be known as ‘Diaspora NOUN’, which would “enable Nigerians living and working in Anglophone countries to have access to education at their convenience and at affordable rates.”

According to the vice chancellor, Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone are some of the countries being considered for the project.

youth and adult literacy in the country.

While presenting certificates to the graduating non-formal education learners, Mrs Osinbajo underscored the importance of girl-child education as well as women empowerment as integral to achieving the desired growth and development in the country.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, said government is currently developing an Action Plan that would include policies and programmes for increasing access to basic education,

increasing female participation at the basic level, improving quality of education infrastructure, fostering technical and vocational education (TVET), enhancing teacher quality and increasing financing.

Malam Adamu was represented by the Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Mass Literacy and Adult Education (NMEC), Mr Jubrin Paiko.

He said the Federal Government is committed to implementing innovative strategies to address socio-cultural practices that negate girls’ education in the north.

FUT Minna spends N20m annually on staff medical treatment Adelowo Oladipo-Minna

AUTHORITIES of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State, have set aside N20 million annually for staff medical check-up, the vice chancellor, Professor Musbau Akanji, revealed on Friday.

He said this was aimed at encouraging them to give their best, and that the introduction of medical examination for the staff has been yielding positive results.

Akanji said: “What we do is that on the day of your birthday, the registrar will send text message congratulating you, and at the same time ask you to go for medical test at the school’s medical centre to ascertain that you are medically fit

to perform your duties,” he said.

“Actually there is a hidden revelation; we saw people who otherwise are not aware that they have hepatitis; some people are not aware that they are moving towards cancer and some serious medical problem.

“There are instances where the disease is more than the staff can handle by themselves. The university on several occasions advanced N1.5 million to N2 million to assist the staff to get treated, and it has improved the university’s productivity.”

He, however, admonished staff to always utilise the opportunity to take care of their health issues, knowing that without sound health, there won't be positive production.

education Police to lecturers: Conduct research on cultism, terrorism 20

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Say media over-reporting terrorists

By Laolu Harolds

L

ECTURERS in the institutions of higher learning have been challenged to conduct researches into cultism, terrorism and other security challenges besetting Nigeria with a view to proffering effective solutions.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Command, DSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, made the call in his lecture entitled ‘Communication and National Security’, which he delivered to mark the Communication Week of the Mass Communication Students’ Association (MACOSA) of Crescent University, Abeokuta.

Adejobi also cautioned the Nigerian press against celebrating terrorism through propagation of terrorist attacks in the media.

He said: “Some of our re-

FUOYE VC decries overdependence on foreign goods

porters have been celebrating criminals to the detriment of Nigeria’s image.

You don’t report security issues the same way you report other issues. It is very sensitive.

“It is not all the time you

report Boko Haram. Each time you report them killing as much as possible, you are only encouraging them. I want to implore all our communicators, particularly the media, not to celebrate these terrorists.”

The police image maker lauded the proprietor of Crescent University, Judge Bola Ajibola, for adding value to the lives of young people through the establishment of the university.

In a related development,

while hosting DSP Adejobi, the vice chancellor, Professor Ibraheem Gbajabiamila, explained how Crescent University had been in the forefront of building future leaders worthy in character and learning.

6 govs’ wives to bag awards for children education devt

By Kehinde Adio

Vice chancellor, Crescent University, Abeokuta, Professor Ibraheem Gbajabiamila (right) presenting a souvenir of the university to DSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, Police Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Command. With them is Dr Yemi Obalanlege, representative of the Head of Department, Mass Communication.

Inaugurates new cars for faculties

THE Vice-Chancellor, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Professor Kayode Soremekun, has decried what he termed Nigeria’s celebration of other people’s productive abilities, saying Nigeria, with its rich human and material resources, has no reason to depend on imported goods.

He made the comments while inaugurating the six Toyota Camry cars newly acquired for the use of faculties of the university.

These he said were meant to facilitate the work of the officers. He also promised more good things for members of the university community.

Professor Soremekun noted that many Africans had written extensively on how Europe underdeveloped Africa, but not much had been said about how Africa underdeveloped itself.

“When will Nigeria come to her own? When will Nigerians stop celebrating consumption?,” He asked rhetorically.

Reminiscing on the productive capacities of the past regional government in Nigeria, the vice chancellor said the country’s economic system of that time, if sustained, would have created among the regions a healthy production and export competition that would gradually have transported Nigeria into a global economic giant.

He later presented Adejobi with a souvenir of the university.

Participants at the Agricultural Media Resources and Extension Centre of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, during the recently concluded 7th Gateway Trade Fair, held at the MKO Abiola Trade Fair Complex, Oke Mosan, Abeokudta. The team, led by Dr Elizabeth Oluwalana, was awarded a Certificate of Merit at the event.

Hard work secret of academic excellence —FUNAAB VC THE vice chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Professor Olusola Oyewole, has charged newly admitted part-time students of the university to be focused, dedicated and diligent, saying these are the secrets of academic excellence.

He gave the charge during the orientation programme for the students.

Represented by the deputy vice chancellor (academics), Professor Catherine Eromosele, the vice chancellor noted that FUNAAB is one of the few universities approved by the National Universities Commission

(NUC) to run part-time programmes.

He stated that FUNAAB is one of the best universities in Nigeria, which pays attention to the quality assurance of its various programmes, and that 96 per cent of its programmes are fully accredited, while only four per cent has interim accreditation.

Professor Oyewole explained that the aim of the programme was to produce graduates with adequate skills, sound knowledge and entrepreneurial abilities for gainful employment.

He said the orientation programme was meant to

intimate students with the rules, regulations and culture of the university, as well as to give them information that would enhance their success in the university.

The director of Academic Planning, Professor Olukayode Akinyemi, assured the new students that though they had enrolled for a part-time programme, the quality of education they would receive is not different from those of regular students, as they would be taught by the same highly qualified lecturers.

The Principal Assistant Registrar, Mr. Moses Ayanda, gave a presentation on the ‘Importance of the Exami-

nations and Records Unit’, the Deputy Director, Senate and Admissions, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Dawodu, educated the students on course registration procedures, course unit system, among other things pertaining to their studies.

The Principal Assistant Registrar, Guidance and Counselling, Mrs. Modesta Ofodile, who was represented by Mrs. Olufunke Adegbite, counseled the students on the need to be modest and to abide by stipulated rules and regulations, stressing that the university has zero tolerance for immorality and other social vices.

SIX governors’ wives will be given awards during this year’s Children’s Day and Democracy Day celebrations in secondary schools, the national coordinator, President’s School Debate Nigeria (PSDN), Elder Dare Oritu, has declared.

The six women will be honoured for their contribution and commitment to the development of children’s education. This, he says, forms part of the activities by PSDN to celebrate this year’s Democracy Day and Children’s Day respectively.

The programme is being organised in collaboration with the Office of the Wife of the Nigerian President, Hajia Aisha Buhari, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

Addressing newsmen recently in Ibadan, Elder Oritu said the Democracy Day School Debate Championship Award Committee, led

by Dame Pauline Tallen, a former deputy governor of Plateau State, nominated the following governors’ wives for the award in view of their remarkable support for children’s education development in their various states: Dr Zainab Bagadu, Kebbi State governor’s wife; Hajia Salamotu, Nassarawa State governor’s wife; and Hajia Hadiza Abubakar, Bauchi State governor’s wife.

Others are Mrs Florence Ajimobi, wife of the Oyo State governor; Mrs Rachael Umahi, wife of the Ebiyi State governor, and Dr Linda Ayade, wife of the Cross River State governor.

He said further: “Some states have been selected to participate in this year’s Democracy Day debate championship scheduled to hold at the National Universities Commission, Abuja, between May 24 and 29, 2016. The states were selected based on their past records in debate activities in Nigeria.”

He thanked all the state governments and benefactors of the President’s School Debate competition for their support towards the success and sustenance of the programme since 1999, when President Olusegun Obasanjo gave his approval to run the programme in Nigerian schools to engender unity, promote peace, culture and the act of public speaking among Nigerian youths.

education Don canvasses introduction of Diaspora Studies in school curriculum 21

Naza Okoli - Lagos

A

LABA Simpson, Professor of Sociology at Crawford University, Igbesa, Ogun State, has called for the inclusion of Diaspora Studies in the university curriculum.

Simpson made the call while delivering the 2nd Inaugural Lecture at the Crawford University last week.

Speaking on the topic ‘Nuances of Recycled Acculturation and Relics of TransAtlantic Slave Trade in Lagos and Badagry’, Simpson analysed the impact of the African Brazilian culture on the lifestyle of the people of Lagos Island.

She charged the vice chancellor of Crawford University to pioneer the effort to introduce African Diaspora Studies in the curriculum as it would help to ensure that the issues that marked the slave trade era are not swept under the carpet.

“As a Christian university, it would not be out of place to include the subject of African Diaspora programme

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

in our General Studies Department, as this, apart from enabling a regeneration of human values in our students, would also go a long way in providing an avenue whereby the mandates of Christian universities could be fulfilled in the uplifting and building of posi-

tive value-laden individuals for the future,” she said.

Professor Simpson also advised the Lagos State government to get more involved in Diaspora issues by expanding the scope of its current programmes.

“I suggest that the Lagos State government should

initiate an African Diaspora Oriented Centre that will house diverse programmes in the Diaspora and TransAtlantic Slave Trade Studies.

“Such programmes should house, among other activities, a Culture Relations Section in which Afri-

Stakeholders renew calls to revive reading culture

As Nigeria International Book Fair closes Naza Okoli - Lagos THE 15th Nigeria International Book Fair which opened on Monday, 9 May 2016, at the Multipurpose Hall of the University of Lagos, Akoka, has closed, with participants calling on all stakeholders to join the fight to revive the reading culture both among the old and the young.

While delivering the keynote address at the book fair, Professor Hope Eghagha of the Department of English, University of Lagos, said a part of the reason for the poor reading

culture is the gradual fall in the quantity of well-written materials.

He asked: “If we don’t write well, can we read well?

If writing loses credibility, can we sustain a true reading culture?

“This penchant for abbreviations and locally coined expressions has found its way into formal settings, up to the university level.

We now encounter final year students whose essays are laced with the acid of unconventional language.

Teachers of English therefore have a profound role to play to help shape the

consciousness of the new generation. But are they listening?”

Earlier, Mr Rilwanu Abdulsalami, the chairman of the Nigeria Book Fair Trust (NBTF), organisers of the event, said the advantages of attending the fair were: “Buying of books and other instructional materials at a discounted rate; access to updates on new developments in the book industry at both national and global levels; and opportunity to meet prominent authors, publishers and other major stakeholders in the book industry.”

cans in the Diaspora will be further exposed to African cultures and so will build improved familiarity with their ancestry.

“For the contemporary Nigeria, the idea is: let us

not forget about the slave trade. Let us not let it be swept under the carpet. The centuries of enslavement should actually teach us how to move forward,” she added.

Tentative fight against Ebola, others dangerous, FUTA don warns A Professor of Virology and Immunology in the Department of Animal Production and Health at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Abayomi Adebayo, has called on government, farmers, research institutes, universities and other stakeholders to work together and put in place permanent measures and policies in tackling outbreaks of viral diseases such as Ebola, yellow fever, polio, hepatitis and measles in humans and Newcastle disease, Infectious Bursal Disease, Kata (PPR), foot and mouth disease and Avian Flu in animals.

He said the current adhoc approach to tackling and managing outbreaks portend grave danger for the

country.

Professor Adebayo made the call while delivering the 76th Inaugural Lecture of FUTA entitled, ‘The Monster and Its Hosts: A Matrimony of Survival of the Fittest’, at the university’s New Auditorium.

Adebayo, who criticised what he described as fire brigade approach to tackling repeated outbreaks, urged government to put in place enduring response options.

He canvassed manpower development, provision of specialised equipment and reagents for virology laboratories and proper funding of research efforts as vital inputs in designing a new enduring policy of containment and curtailment.

education Ganduje Teachers, pupils call for local languages as warns corps medium of instruction members to

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be wary of unauthorised, frequent travelling Kola Oyelere-Kano

KANO State governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has warned the newly posted corps members to the state against frequent and unauthorised journeys, urging them to preserve their lives which is valuable to the state and the nation at large.

This is just as the state coordinator of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC)Malam Abdullahi Yusuf Baba also urged them to integrate themselves fully with their host communities so as to enjoy their hospitality and cooperation, Dr Ganduje gave the warning at the closing ceremony of the 2016 Batch A orientation course at the National Youth Service Corps NYSC permanent camp, Karaye Local Government Area of Kano.

The governor, represented by his deputy, Professor Hafeez Abubakar noted that in the past, unauthorised and frequent travelling has led to untold hardship and untimely death of many corps members, hence the need for them to be wary of such attitude.

Ganduje however emphasised that the service of the corps members will be needed in the area of agriculture, education and other key sectors of the nation's economy, hence, the reason for posting most of them to schools and rural areas.

He therefore urged them to accept their posting in good faith.

He also urged them to shun all forms of indiscipline and impact positively in the lives of their host community.

Meanwhile, in his opening remarks, the NYSC Coordinator in Kano, MallamAbdullahi Yusuf Baba tasked the corps members to integrate themselves fully with the host communities so as to enjoy their hospitality and cooperation.

Thursday 19, May 2016

Biola AZeez- Ilorin

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UPILS and teachers of public primary schools in Kwara State have said that they prefer adoption of local languages for teaching in classes.

The revelation was made by a group known as Civil Society and Government Partnership (CGP), which carried out a research in selected public schools including nomadic schools across 42 communities in the state.

The group, which is a unit

of Civil Society Action Coalition on Education (CSACEFA) said while carrying out the research, it interviewed 262 school children,184 teachers, 382 community members and 232 members of School-Based Management Committees (SBMC).

Speaking with journalists in Ilorin on reports of the research on Monday, the state and North Central Zone coordinator of the CSACEFA, Mrs. Nimat Labaika, said 78 per cent of the teachers and 78 percent of pupils interviewed were of the opinion

Lecturers and students of Department of English, Ajayi Crowther University, during their excursion to Tribune House, Ibadan, recently, as part of the activities to mark their ‘Week’.

that the use of local languages would boost children's academic performance.

Labaika however disclosed that 81 per cent of the parents interviewed believed that the use of other languages would not improve children's performance.

She said most of the Fulani communities covered preferred Yoruba Language because they were born in communities which are in Yoruba land and understand Yoruba language more than their Fulfulde language.

The CSACEFA boss said it was discovered from the research that many children across sampled schools are learning very little in school and explained that this could be linked to the use of language they do not understand to teach them.

AAU appoints Adamaigbo as substantive registrar Banji Aluko-Benin city

Students of Library and Information Science, The Federal Polytechnic,Idah, Kogi State and their lecturers (Mr Innocent Adayi, Mr Linus Ugwuanyi and Mr Aina Rotimi) during their study visit/excursion to Tribune House, Ibadan, recently.

NGO takes read campaign to primary schools in FC ••• donates uniforms, books, bags to pupils

Clement idoko-abuja A Non-Governmental Organisation, Explorers' Readers and Book Club, has provided succour to pupils of LEA Primary School, Alugu-Lungu, a remote primary school in the Federal Capital, Abuja, as part of its "Keep a Child in School Initiative."

The group donated school uniforms, exercise books, school bags and Mathematical sets to some indigent pupils of the school, while some textbooks were donated to the school to equip the library.

Founder of the organisation, Mrs Claris Ujam, who

presented the items to the pupils at a brief ceremony in the school located in a rural community of Gwarimpa, Abuja, said she was touched by the miserable condition of some of the pupils when she visited the school in line with the vision of her organisation to directly impact on the poor children in the society.

She said it was not enough to encourage children to enrol in schools, but that there must be strategic plan to support their retention, so, that they do not become drop-out of school. According to Ujam, she was moved to provide help to some of the pupils when she visited

the school and saw many of them in tattered uniforms while some others told her they did not have uniform.

While addressing the pupils, Mrs Ujam, advised them to read hard and be dedicated to their studies in order to bring out the best in them, saying the materials donated to them would add value to their educational pursuit.

"It has been our tradition that on the 12, May of every year, we reach out to indigent children in schools to encourage them to read and provide support for them to remain in school," she said.

The Head Teacher of the Primary School, Mrs Ve-

ronica Enweremadu, commended Ujam, for her philanthropic gesture, saying the donation and words of encouragement were a demonstration of her true love for children.

She, however, said the school was faced with several challenges including nonprovision of perimeter fence, lack of borehole and electricity and non-availability of government toilet facilities.

The school is also operating without an Administrative Block, which Enweremadu said was a major challenge.

She appealed to authorities to also provide security for the school in view of its location in a slum.

THE Governing Council of the Ambrose Alli University (AAU), EkpomaEdo State has appointed the former spokesperson of the institution, Chris Majebi Adamaigbo as the substantive registrar of the university.

Sir Adamaigbo's appointment which takes effect from April 27, 2016 will last for a period of five years.

Until his appointment, Sir Adamaigbo who hails from Igarra, Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State, was the secretary, School of Post Graduate Studies.

Adamaigbo holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, University of Benin, 1981 and Master degree in Business Administration (MBA), Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, 2015.

He is a member of the Association of Nigerian Universities Professional Administration (ANUPA) and a knight of Saint Christopher (KSC) of the Anglican faith.

He assumed duty in this university as an Administrative Assistant (Information) on January 5, 1983 and rose through the ranks to the position of Deputy Registrar on October 1, 2006.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016 Editor:

health

Sade Oguntola sadeboguntola@yahoo.com 0805 506 9260

In order to meet adequately the needs of the older adults in Nigeria, we need to have a free State Pension Income for all older adults that is adjusted for inflation, as a special social welfare funding, which is easily and timely accessible. This is in addition to work related pension for those previously in work, which should similarly be easily accessible.

In terms of their health and social care needs, these are best met through the provision of free universal health coverage for the elderly which gives them access to quality health and social care since health also has physical, mental and social dimensions. The country can easily afford these funds and in fact would easily recoup this investment through the many benefits we stand to gain when we look after our elderly properly.

Growing old in Nigeria is stressful —Ahmed

Nigeria is projected to have 10million older adults aged 65 years and above by 2019. President, Geriatrics Association of Nigeria (GAN), Professor Usman Ahmed in this interview with SADE OGUNTOLA, says Nigeria is not prepared to adequately look after their needs, making Nigeria one of the worst countries to grow old.

N

IGERIA is projected to have 10 million ageing people by 2019. How prepared are we to take care of them?

We are not yet prepared as a nation to adequately look after the needs of the projected 10 million older adults aged 65 years and above that Nigeria is projected to have by 2019. This is predicated on the fact that we are currently not meeting the needs of the much fewer such adults in Nigeria and do not have a coherent strategy to do so now and in the near future.

It is a desperate struggle for even the relatively few older adults who have a formal pension income to have access to their entitlement in order to meet their basic living requirements. Such income is grossly inadequate anyway given the increased cost of living. However, for the majority of older adults, there is even no such pension income entitlement to begin with and so they

depend entirely on unpredictable handouts from friends, family and good Samaritans for their livelihood which is not only stressful but robs them of their independence and human dignity.

Their situation is often made worse when they fall ill, which they are more prone to in view of old age. This is because they have no access to affordable good quality health care and cannot afford out of pocket payments for their health due to poor income and the high cost of care.

Can you critically analyse training of our medical workers vis-a-vis Nigeria’s ageing population and the special attention to the growing population of the aged?

The very significant lack of an adequate number of highly trained and dedicated healthcare professionals of all types, is to my mind, the greatest of Nigeria’s healthcare challenges, followed very closely by the absence of a professional team approach to solving our many challenges.

Nigeria as you may be aware needs nearly 400,000 doctors today just to meet the basic minimum World Health Organisation (WHO) benchmark of one doctor to 600 persons. When you look at the case for different medical specialists such as geriatricians who specialise in the care of older adults, the situation is more abysmal especially as the population of the elderly is rapidly increasing in Nigeria and indeed the whole of Africa.

Finally, because effective and efficient healthcare delivery is a team effort especially in caring for older adults, the absence of certain healthcare professions such as speech therapists and the inadequate numbers of all other highly skilled healthcare professionals in Nigeria makes it very challenging to provide a high quality healthcare to any group of individuals and the population at large. The older adult is especially vulnerable because of the increased disease burden and the coexistence of many disease conditions often at the same time in one individual.

There are few facilities, specialist doctors (geriatricians) and other healthcare professionals dedicated to the care of the elderly (geriatrics) currently in Nigeria.

That is a serious flaw that is beginning to be addressed by various stakeholders including Nigeria University Commission, postgraduate medical colleges and Geriatric Association of Nigeria (GAN) around the country.

The United Nations in its last ranking of world worst countries to grow old ranked Nigeria as 85th among 91 nations. Why is it stressful growing old in Nigeria?

It comes as no surprise that Nigeria is ranked amongst the worst countries in the world to grow old. This is a reflection of the pervasive general poverty in the land which

affects the older adult pensioner disproportionately thereby making it difficult for him to be able to earn a decent standard of living and so adding to his disease risk in addition to those due to ageing.

Furthermore, because of lack of a universal health coverage that is also free for the elderly, such individuals are not able to access affordable health care which is based on out of pocket payments. This mode of payment renders them even poorer and more disease prone in a vicious circle, not to mention the foregoing lack of dedicated professional careers and the problems of access to the meagre pensions that a few of them earn.

Remember, the vast majority have no income at all and so rely on handouts from family and friends to survive and there is no government funded social security income allowance. This situation must change!

Experts say that exercise may be the most effective weapon against ageing, how true is this?

Ageing is not something we need to fight against with a weapon! Ageing is a welcome development that we should embrace.

Many factors help us to do just that such as a supportive family, a decent income, good diet, regular gentle exercise and the pursuit of leisure and other activities of interest to the older adult. Regular gentle exercise helps to keep physically fit, reduces blood pressure and prevents stroke and heart attack.

This should be in addition to supporting and enabling the older adult to continue to play his or her roles in the family and the community at large to which their contribution is invaluable.

So, how true is the assertion that we start ageing even before birth and that impatient people age faster?

If we look at ageing as a journey of progressive development from conception to delivery to infancy, childhood, adulthood and the older adult, then once we embark on this journey we begin to age. This is reflected in the physiological, psychological and other changes that we pass through on this journey. I am not aware that impatient people age faster, but if they do, this may be because worrying does not help in any circumstance - ageing included!

Family support and ageing in Nigeria, what is the situation like? What sort of care does the elderly need?

The sort of care that the elderly need is holistic and all-encompassing - mental, physical, psychological, social, cultural and spiritual - and that means the family has to be at the centre of it, supported by professional care givers and relevant institutions and organisations playing their roles effectively and efficiently as a team dedicated to providing the older adult a decent standard of living. Family support for the older adult is therefore essential, but how it is provided has to be individualised as circumstances demand or dictate. However, the objective should always be to provide a decent quality of life for the older adult member of the family in a holistic manner.

SEX, SEXUALITY&YOUR HEALTH

NATURAL HEALTH

Bitter leaf juice: Sweet benefits of the unsweet Page 26

Causes of a sore and smelly penis Page 26

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Dr. Ben Ajayi 0805 400 5447

you-and-eye@gmail.com

What kind of doctor are you?

“

WHAT kind of doctor are you?” asked Grandma. I was seized with fear.

“Why?” Grandma was just recovering from a crippling stroke. Initially, her speech was slur and incoherent, but improving every day and in the last two weeks had become more fluent. Now she has developed a twisted sense of humour and making expensive jokes. I was worried that my visitors might take whatever she said as gospel truth.

Recalling the story a friend of mine had told me about an elderly lady who was asked a simple question as a witness in a court of law. The prosecutor had called the grandma to the stand as his first witness. He approached her and asked, “Mrs. James, do you know me?” She responded, “Why, yes, I do know you, Mr. Williams. I’ve known you since you were a young boy, and frankly, you’ve been a big disappointment to me.

You lie, you cheat on your wife, and you manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you’re a big shot when you haven’t the brains to realise you never will amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher. Yes, I know you.”

The lawyer was stunned! Not knowing what else to do, he pointed across the room and asked, “Mrs. James, do you know the defence lawyer?” She again replied, “Why? Yes, I do. I’ve known Mr Johnson since he was a youngster, too. He’s lazy, bigoted, and he has a drinking problem. He can’t build

a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the worst in the entire state. Not to mention he cheated on his wife with three different women. One of them was your wife. Yes, I know him.” The defence attorney almost died. The judge asked both lawyers to approach the bench and, in a very quiet voice, said, “If either of you idiots asks her if she knows me, I’ll send you to the electric chair.”

It has been difficult to forget this story, so, I braced up for the worst. Grandma repeated the question, “What kind of doctor are you?”

I can see you are in a hurry to leave. I have just one more question for you. What exactly is the difference between an Ophthalmologist and an Optometrist

I quickly answered, “I am a medical doctor.”

“No you are not!” retorted grandma. I was alarmed! Grandma had always known me as a doctor. What exactly does she mean? I was worried. “I have searched through the Internet and to my amazement I could not understand why you call yourself a doctor. I stumbled on your university certificate and it read, Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery.” For all practical purposes, you are a Bachelor of Medicine not a Doctor. I heaved a sigh of relief. “Thank God we are not going along the line of the other grandma and the lawyers. If that’s all, I can deal with it.

“Grandma, you are right. The appellation of Doctor (Dr.) is just a title describing the vocation of those in the profession of medicine. It is not a university degree. We can say it is descriptive just as you associate a bricklayer with bricklaying and a barber with taking care of the hair. The title is endorsed by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria which is the regulating body. It is not a university degree.

Grandma seemed pleased with my response, but as I was about to take my leave, she asked again, “Ben, I am a bit confused.

What about the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Doctor of Optometry?” “These two are notable exceptions - aberrations. They are both first degrees awarded by the university. They are neither medical doctors nor Doctor of Philosophy. Doctor of Philos-

ophy (PhD) is awarded by the universities as a postgraduate degree,” I explained carefully to grandma.

“Ben you are yet to answer my question.

What kind of doctor are you?” Grandma asked again. “I am a medical doctor who later specialised in medical and surgical treatment of the eye,” I replied. “Doctor Ben, do you mean you’re an Ophthalmologist?”

“Exactly, you got it right! After a six year study in the university and graduating as a medical doctor with Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degrees, I spent another six years studying ophthalmology to become a specialist eye doctor,” I explained.

“I can see you are in a hurry to leave. I have just one more question for you. What exactly is the difference between an Ophthalmologist and an Optometrist – both prescribe glasses and both are called doctors?”

“Grandma, an ophthalmologist is a medical doctor who has undergone additional training to become an eye specialist and takes care of both medical and surgical treatment of the eye. A doctor of optometry (an optometrist) is a first degree university graduate who is trained to assist in eye care with special emphasis on prescription of glasses and optical aids. He is not a medical doctor; should not give any treatment beyond first aid and primary care; cannot issue sick certificate or write medical report on the state of health of a patient.” My phone rang and I quickly seized the opportunity to scram.

Dr Abayomi Ajayi

ivf &you

info@nordicalagos.org

0700 6673422

Fertility tales: A problem shared is a problem solved (II) Continued from last week

IN truth, there were times Gbemisola had even been envious, either because of Omotayo’s dress, hairstyle, perfume or because she drew clients like a magnet. She was a real powerhouse.

Next to such a successful career woman, Gbemisola felt like an ordinary housewife.

Little did she know that it was what she (Gbemisola) had that Omotayo valued most. But Omotayo seemed to need someone to confide in, someone objective and somewhat removed from her personal life; and she had a responsibility to listen. While Gbemisola did not know was why she was the one picked, she figured she owed it to Omotayo to try and help in whatever way she could.

Omotayo confided she had started seeing a fertility specialist, who kept sending her for more and more tests - with no results.

“I was overwhelmed; I would go to the doctor’s office to do an ultrasound test to see when I was ovulating, and then rush to work. Many times I came late, and though the boss was very understanding, I felt bad having to explain to him and to all my co-workers why I was always late and

often hostile. And then when I started on medication I felt worse physically, as well.

And after all that, I would get my period - I was a total nervous wreck.”

But just getting to a doctor, Omotayo explained, is not enough. Apparently each doctor has a specific specialty, and a doctor who helps one couple may not be able to help another. Omotayo said she’s met many couples who spent endless hours pursuing unsuitable doctors and inappropriate, time-consuming, anxietyprovoking treatments. Sometimes they would wait for months just to get to see a particular doctor only to be told that they should stop trying, that they were too old to conceive.

“You just don’t know what to do, who to talk to”, she said. “And I couldn’t speak about it with anyone around me - my immediate family felt bad for us, didn’t want

to bring up the subject at all; my younger sister was wrapped up in her own family; and it was obviously too personal a matter to discuss with professional colleagues. All my friends either had their own children to keep them busy, or weren’t even interested in becoming pregnant... and they certainly didn’t want to hear about my troubles. I felt all alone, as though I was the only person in the world with such problems - I had no one to turn to.”

Gbemisola was certainly flattered, but no doubt surprised that Omotayo had confided in her, in what must have been an act of sheer desperation. Here was a problem that she, personally, had known little about.

She did realise the incredible value on family life and raising children in the society, but never realised how overwhelmingly difficult it must be to have trouble conceiving. She knew just how it was as a mother to

I was overwhelmed; I would go to the doctor’s office to do an ultrasound test to see when I was ovulating, and then rush to work

have her life revolving around her children.

Gbemisola was ashamed to admit she had not really given the subject of infertility much thought. She had just taken it for granted that people had babies when they chose to. Once Omotayo and her started speaking, she began to wonder who else she knew who might have been affected. It had never occurred to Gbemisola that maybe some people that she had thought must not have wanted children might have very badly wanted children but couldn’t have them.

She had never thought to be sensitive when meeting someone and immediately asking, “So, how many children do you have?” Gbemisola started wondering how many people might have extremely painful stories to relate about her thoughtlessness and was very sorry indeed.

The first thing she did after she and Omotayo spoke was to search on the internet to learn more about infertility. What she discovered astounded her.

Omotayo and her husband were just one of the thousands of couples who experience problems conceiving. In fact, about one in four couples in the country may have problems with fertility at some point during their married life.

To be continued

25

healthnews

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Down’s syndrome rife in younger mothers in Nigeria­­—Expert

From left: Hospital secretary, Adeoyo Maternity Hospital, Mrs J.O. Akinleye; Director, Primary Health Care, Oyo State Ministry of Health, Dr Wole Lawal and Consultant in Charge, Adeoyo Maternity Hospital, Dr Soji Adeyanju at the 2016 World Malaria Day Celebration in Ibadan recently. PHOTO D’TOYIN.

CONTRARY to the belief that Down’s syndrome occurs more in older mothers, a health expert, Dr Olatokunbo Jarret, has said that increasing cases of Down syndrome are being recorded in Nigeria among women below age 35 years.

Jarret, a consultant paediatrician, spoke at a oneday event by Abishai, a nongovernmental organisation established to add value to mental and physical development of children, especially those living with Down’s syndrome.

Jarret, who described Down’s syndrome as a chromosomal disorder caused by an error in cell division that results in an extra chromosomal, declared that most mothers of children with Down’s syn-

‘Nigeria alone can save $12 billion on health’

By Sade Oguntola

N

IGERIA alone could save nearly $12 billion and avert the equivalent of over 23 million years of life that would have otherwise been lost to ill health, disability and

early death, a study has found.

Statistics released at the World Economic Forum on Africa (WEF Africa) in Kigali, Rwanda, by Erasmus University showed that sub-Saharan Africa could also save $52 billion (purchasing power parity)

by 2030 if the region meets the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s 2020 control and elimination targets for the five most common neglected tropical diseases (NTDs).

Sub-Saharan Africa bears over 40 per cent of the global burden of NTDs.

The five most common NTDs – lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis), onchocerciasis (river blindness), schistosomiasis (bilharzia), soil-transmitted helminths (intestinal worms) and trachoma – account for 90 per cent of the region’s NTD burden.

Eruwa hosts maiden Awojobi memorial lecture

By Vera Onana ALL roads led to Eruwa, Oyo State, the home town of late veteran surgeon, Dr Oluyombo Awojobi, as a memorial lecture was held in his honour.

The maiden lecture tagged “Oluyombo Awojobi and the Poverty of National Rural Surgical care – His contributions” took place at the Adeloye Ajayi Auditorium of the Awojobi Clinic Eruwa, Oyo State on Saturday Delivering the welcome address at the event was Dr Tayo Apampa, Ogun State of Korede Hospital, Abeokuta, Ogun State. In his speech, he described the late surgeon as sincere and compassionate. “He was a man who saw a need in his world and applied the whole of his life, attending to that need.” He stressed: “late Oluyombo could be a professor at the best universities of the world and earn millions, but he loved the poor. Thus, Eruwa became a sort of Mecca where people came to see his miracle.”

While giving his remark, chairman of the event, Emeritus Professor Akinkugbe, eulogised the late surgeon emphasising his outstanding brilliance

as a student in the University of Ibadan, College of Medicine and called for a minute silence in honour of the late veteran.

Delivering the memorial lecture, consultant and Professor of surgery, Ewan Alufohai, spoke at length of late Oluyombo’s royal pedigree and his outstanding academic records--his Spartan life. He touched key areas that formed the achievements of the late veteran surgeon including the Association of Rural Surgical Practitioners (ARSPON) that was initiated by the late surgeon for

the surgical relief of the afflicted rural poor.

Professor Alufohai regretted the demise of such an outstanding surgeon saying “in our new political dispensation where the change mantra is at the front burner, ‘Yombo, would have been one of the few moral pillars to lean on.”

He added that late ‘ Yombo displayed an unconditional love for Eruwa and stamped its name in the annals of medical excellence in global rural surgery. He therefore charged medical practitioners nationwide saying “ ‘Yombo has left an unfinished busi-

ness for the medical team in our nation.”

Royalty was also present at the maiden lecture as the Eleruwa of Eruwa, Oba Samuel Adegbola Akindele I, attended the event. Speaking of the late surgeon and his contributions to Eruwa, the monarch said “I would have loved to give an oratory speech about ‘Yombo.

He was wonderful to Eruwa and all of us but I must confess that till date, I have not found the words to fill his condolence register. The Eruwas are the luckiest to have the likes of Awojobi.”

How to overhaul health sector in Oyo —Adetunji GIVEN the distortions in the health care delivery in Oyo State, a former, Oyo State Commissioner for Health, Dr Gbola Adetunji has called for its overhaul and continuity of government policies that support good health care delivery.

Adetunji gave the charge in a keynote address he delivered at the first health summit organised by the Oyo State chapter, Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) in Ibadan.

Adetunji, remarking that the most singular factor that determines the level of health care delivery is gov-

ernment policy and the “human factor” in governance, said health care accessibility was an area that needed strong policy direction and implementation.

Although alternative source of financing health care is sine qua non for efficient health services, he declared, for future better health services, Oyo State must improve on the political will to budget adequately for health and promptly releases the fund as well as improve on primary health care management by cofinancing it.

According to him, “it will

be necessary for co-financing by state and local governments and setting up Primary Health Care Board in line with SUBEB policy to take over the operations of all primary health care services.”

Adetunji added: “Corruption must be frontally confronted. Adequately addressed financing of health; training and retraining of health workers must be priortised; community mobilised to participate and accept ownership of health facilities in their domain as well as developed functional health information and monitoring systems.”

The impact of NTDs on both health and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa is massive.

Each year, these diseases cause disabilities and disfigurements for millions of African citizens. They also increase absenteeism in schools and dramatically reduce labour productivity, ultimately perpetuating cycles of poverty.

“NTD control efforts offer a return on investment unparalleled in global health,” said Ellen Agler, Chief Executive Officer of the END Fund, a private philanthropic initiative dedicated to ending the five most common NTDs. “Ending these debilitating diseases will help to reduce poverty at all levels, from families and communities to whole nations.”

“I have seen the devastating effects of NTDs first hand in my community,” said HRH Queen Sylvia of Buganda, a kingdom in Uganda, who delivered remarks at the side event convened by the END Fund to make the case for increased investments in NTD control in sub-Saharan Africa.

“We cannot continue to let people across Africa suffer from these diseases of poverty when simple solutions exist. It is holding our people and our countries back. We can and we must do more.”

The five most common NTDs in sub-Saharan Africa can effectively be prevented and treated using low-cost, easy-to-administer interventions, such as preventive chemotherapy (PC) treatments through mass drug administration (MDA) in affected communities.

drome she is currently attending to were young and with their first babies.

The expert, who remarked that studies were required to determine the prevalent type of Down’s syndrome in Nigeria, declared that the likelihood of carrying a baby with Down’s syndrome can be estimated during pregnancy.

The paediatrician declared that children with Down’s syndrome act and look similar, adding that the characteristic signs include a flattened face, short neck, small ears and a single line across the palm of their hands.

Although they could be born at normal size, she said they may develop more slowly than a child without the condition, and have mild to moderate mental and social development delays as well as medical complications such as congenital heart defects, hearing loss, low thyroid function and thought and memory problems.

Given the medical complications that accompany Down’s syndrome, she said early detection and commencement of treatment was important to ensure that their delayed development can be truncated.

Jarret, who said these children can attend normal schools where they have opportunity for having special teachers, said governments at all levels should enforce laws that schools should never reject children with such challenges.

“We tell parents that although a child may have challenges in one area, they have special talents in other areas that they need to discover; so they need all the love and care,” she declared.

Mrs Lola Umar, head Medical Social Services, University College Hospital, urged that people living with Down’s syndrome should not be stigmatised, stressing that the condition was not caused by an evil spell or a walking in the midday sun or curse.

Umar, noting that Down’s syndrome has contributed to broken homes, said that children with Down’s syndrome could be helped if they are brought to the hospital.

Chief Medical Director, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Professor Temitope Alonge, said prenatal diagnosis using ultrasound between 17 and 19 weeks of pregnancy could help to determine children that may have the condition.

Alonge, who said that it is not a stigma to have a child with Down’s syndrome, declared that “every pregnant woman needs such a diagnosis so that they can have a rest of mind.”

26

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Bitter leaf juice: Sweet benefits of the unsweet

natural

health

By Vera Onana

S

O many people claim to have a ‘sweet tooth’ and often times ensure that its cravings are well satisfied. From sweets to candies, lollipops, chocolates and much more, it is soothing to consume a substance that appeals to this sweet tooth, but how good is sweet for the health?

Some medical experts belong to the school of thought that the longest life span in this century happens to be found in Asian countries like China because the people relish less sweet substances.

Nigeria, is endowed with a variety of plants, a good number of which have been discovered to possess a string of health benefits. Among these plants is Vernonia amygdalina, a member of the Asteraceae family. It is a small shrub that grows in tropical Africa. It is commonly called bitter leaf because of its bitter taste but in local parlance, it has a number of other names.

The Yoruba in the South West call it ewuro while the Igbos in the eastern part of the nation refers to it as Onugbo. In the north, it is called chusar-doki by the Hausas and Ityuna by the Tiv people. Also, cooked bitter leaves are a staple vegetable in soups and stews of various cultures throughout equatorial Africa.

While many may run away from bitter leaf because of its bitter taste, there are numerous benefits that can be derived from its juice if and when its bitter taste is overlooked. 52-year-old business woman, Bayode Bamidele attests to the healing power of the bitter leaf juice thus: “as a young girl, I was raised by my grandmother and she had a way with herbs. Every time I felt feverish, she would manually squeeze out the bitter leaf juice and make me drink it. I hated it and used to throw tantrums but somehow I got used to it. Till today, I barely make use of anti malarial and I am mostly in good health. It just pains me that children of today would rather have all these sugar-based

tonics or sweet-coated tablets. These herbs are powerful.”

Scientifically substantiating Bayode’s claim is this study “A clinical trial of the traditional medicine Vernonia amygdalina in the treatment of uncomplicated malaria” which was carried out in 2009 and published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. The study stated that leaves of Vernonia amygdalina are widely used in Africa to treat malaria and that this may be because it is widely available, accessible and affordable in many remote areas that do not have ready access to modern medicines.

The study therefore, in 2009, examined the efficacy and safety of an infusion of fresh V. amygdalina leaves for the treatment of uncomplicated malaria in patients aged 12 years and above. It discovered that the remedy was associated with an adequate clinical response (ACR) at day 14 in 67 per cent of cases. However, complete malaria parasite clearance occurred in only 32 per cent of those with ACR, and of these, recrudescence occurred in 71 per cent.

sex,sexuality

&your health With Monica Taiwo

strictly adult teenagers, adult & geriatric sexual well being

08187754992 (sms only) taiwomonica@gmail.com

Causes of a sore and smelly penis If you are the type who enjoys oral sex, you have to keep yourself clean and odour-free down there. A smelly penis can be a big put off in bed. Are you wondering what could make you stink under? Here are a few possible reasons. Having knowledge of them will help you deal with the problem and smell good.

Smegma: This is a natural lubricant that keeps the penis moist, especially in uncircumcised men. It builds up under the foreskin at the tip of the penis. If you are not good with penile hygiene; if you don’t wash yourself down there and you allow the smegma to build-up, it can be a breeding ground for bacteria, causing odour and set up the stage for infections.

Penile thrush: Who says yeast infections are only associated with women?

Men can also suffer from the same, especially due to bad hygiene. And this is not just restricted to bad odour, it can also

lead to discomforts like pain and itching.

Sweat: Body odour does not spare your genitals and a sweaty penis cannot hide its odour, unless washed thoroughly every day.

Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs): A sexually transmitted infection like gonorrhoea or chlamydia, apart from producing discharge, can also lead to bad odour.

Dry skin: While excess lubrication deposit can lead to smelly penis, the same is true for extreme dry penises too. Lack of moisture can lead to cracks in the foreskin and that becomes a breeding ground for microorganisms that dwell and give out a fishy odour.

Tight innerwear: That too if it is made of synthetic fabric can lead to clogging of sweat, moisture and bacterial build up that can make the area smelly and at times itchy too.

The research further stated that there was no evidence of significant side-effects or toxicity from the bitter leaf juice. It was concluded that further studies may be needed to determine whether the efficacy can be improved by increasing the dose, changing its mode of preparation, or by adding other antimalarial plants.

Also, in January 2013, a group of researchers published an article in the International Journal of Pharmaceutical Science Invention called “Nigerian foodstuffs with tumour chemosuppressive polyphenols.”

Based on the findings of that article, the phytochemical screening of bitter leaves revealed the presence of tannins, phlobatannins, flavonoids, steroids, terpenoids, saponins and cardiac glycosides, which are the most important bioactive constituents of medicinal plants.

These bioactive constituents of Vernonia amygdalina, according to the study, also have curative active principles such as lovastatin antilipemia, pleurotin antibiotics and beta-glucan polysaccharides with heavy molecular weight and immunomodulator, im-

munostimulant properties. Polysaccharides are known to stimulate the immunological system using three mechanisms: interferon production, excitation of complement chains and the activation of macrophages, inducing organism’s defense.

According to these experts, bitter leaf when consumed daily, prevent oncogenesis and metastasis in cancer cases; therefore, it is used as a co-adjutant therapy in chemotherapy. In summary, Vernonia amygdalina extracts were discovered to help suppress, delay or kill cancerous cells in many ways, such as: Induction of apoptosis as determined in cell culture and animal studies, enhanced chemotherapy sensitivity - V. amygdalina extracts were discovered to render cancerous cells to be more sensitive to chemotherapy.

The leave extract, which is the bitter leaf juice, was found to bring about inhibition of the growth or growth signals of cancerous cells and suppression of metastasis of cancerous cells in the body. Also the study discovered that bitter leaf juice extracts also strengthens the immune system through a process known as cytokines regulation. As bitter as it may taste, the health benefits of bitter leaf and bitter leaf juice goes far above its bitter taste. It speeds up metabolism thereby reducing the chances of its consumers developing constipation and increasing the usage of the stored up fat indicating that it can be of great use to those who desire weight loss.

Bitter leaf juice also helps to reduce high sugar level in the blood because it speeds up the rate of metabolism and glucose uptake by the cells of the body thereby reducing the blood-sugar level, which is a prodigious news for diabetic patients.

Bitter leaf juice works on skin rashes, eczema, ring worms and any superficial skin ailments. This is possible because bitter leaf has antibiotic and antifungal properties. It is also said to soothe and cure pile by experts.

27

Thursday, 19 May, 2016 Taiwo Adisa - 08072000046 Group Politics Editor taiadis@yahoo.com

NASS’ shuttle diplomacy on PDP crisis On Monday, the National Assembly caucus of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) held a closed-door meeting to deliberate on the fate of the party ahead of the May 21 national convention. Group Politics Editor, TAIWO ADISA, examines the intervention by the lawmakers this time.

Unlike the situation when Sheriff came on board, the caucus this time does not appear to be talking to a deaf party.

L

ATE on Sunday night, the Minority Leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives, Senator Godswill Akpabio and Honourable Leo Ogor, jointly issued a statement calling a meeting of the opposition lawmakers on Monday May 16. It was their reaction to the state of the near free fall the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had found itself in recent weeks. The joint meeting which had as its sole agenda the state of the party was, according to the conveners, called to ensure that the party could go into the planned national convention on a united front. The lawmakers said they were worried about the trend which had seen the different strata of the former ruling party divided and disjointed.

Ahead of the call for that emergency meeting, the PDP was practically in disarray. The Board of Trustees (BoT), the conscience of the party, was at loggerheads with the National Working Committee (NWC), which oversees the day-to-day affairs of the party. The group of former ministers has also expressed their opposition to the planned National Convention. Leaders from the South-West who spoke in opposition were in unison with other leaders from across the country who declared war on the zoning arrangement announced by the zoning committee which retained the seat of National Chairman in the North East.

Some concerned stakeholders, largely elders of the party led by Professor Jerry Gana, took things to another height when they announced a strong opposition to the convention last week. The concerned stakeholders had announced the sack of the NWC and sought the postponement of the convention.

Though no one actually said this, the main issue in contention was the indication that the incumbent national chairman, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, would stay longer that he initially promised, and that the zoning arrangement announced by the Governor Udom Emmanuel-led committee favours Sheriff. There has also been the fear that Sheriff might use his position as National Chairman to favour himself in the 2019 presidential race. As the centre appears not to be holding within the fold of the once acclaimed largest party in Africa, senators and members of the House of Representatives became uncomfortable.

They therefore decided to set up the Monday meeting.

Preceding that meeting were caucus meetings at the Senate and the House, where the lawmakers agreed on the way forward for the party. Around 4.pm on Monday, the lawmakers headed for the Hearing Room O2 of the House, where they deliberated behind closed doors. At the meeting, the they expressed concern at the turn of events within the PDP, which many Nigerians expect to take up the opposition role at this time, adding that there are fears that some persons are really out to serve as the party’s undertaker. They agreed that, since the main contention among the party’s stakeholders remained the question of whether Sheriff would contest the 2019 presidential election, an undertaken should be secured from the national chairman to the effect that he would not join the presidential race in 2019 and that the chairmanship seat would revert to the South at a midterm convention in 2018.

Sources at the meeting confirmed that the National Assembly caucus of the PDP resolved to secure an undertaken from Sheriff, to ensure that the crisis over his suspected 2019 presidential ambition is laid to rest. Sources at the meeting told the Nigerian Tribune that an undertaking from the chairman would resolve the crisis.

It was gathered that the lawmakers intend to meet with Sheriff, as well as the members of the BoT and the gover-

Akpabio

Ogor

nors to resolve the crisis ahead of the national convention on May 21. A committee of the National Assembly caucus was also mandated to douse tension among the different segments of the party by ensuring that a united front prevails ahead of the May 21 national convention. A source at the meeting said: “Most of us agreed that the crisis in the PDP is about the issue of suspicion of whether he will join the 2019 presidential race. He came in and promised to spend three months and that has changed. So nobody trusts that he will not join the presidential race.”

After the closed-door meeting, the Minority Leaders took turns to describe the meeting to newsmen, while expressing confidence that the committee set up by the NASS caucus would yield results. Ogor said: “What we have done here is to ensure that the entire caucus of the National Assembly is making preparations towards the whole convention. You can clearly see that the PDP will have a convention that everybody in the country will be proud of. We deliberated extensively on issues and I believe that at the end of the convention people will congratulate us.”

On his part, Akpabio also told newsmen: “One of the things we decided on is that we cannot go into a national convention that is rancorous. And so we have set up a twelve-man committee to meet with the various factions and interest groups in our party within the next 48 hours to iron out all the grey areas.

“We are meeting with our governors. We will meet with the BoT and other stakeholders under the auspices of Concerned PDP Stakeholders. I believe strongly that in the next 48 hours, the entire PDP family will be united and by Thursday/Friday, we will be headed to Port-Harcourt, with songs of joy, with bands and you will be impressed that, indeed, the party is back on track.”

Sources at the meeting however confirmed that the caucus had agreed on the need for Sheriff to sign an undertaken to affirm that he would not be part of the 2019 presidential race. It was also confirmed that the strategic committee set up by the lawmakers would have six members each from the two chambers. Some of the members include Senators Enyinnaya Abaribe, Danjuma La’ah; Biodun Olujimi, Ogola Foster, while members of the House in the Committee include Honourables Tajudeen Yusuf, Wole Oke and Sunday Karimi, among others.

It would not be the first time the National Assembly caucus would seek to intervene in the crisis rocking the PDP. In February, when the news of the possible emergence of Sheriff hit the airwaves, senators and members of the House took up arms against his choice. The lawmakers joined other party members who expressed concern about Sheriffi’s public perception and insisted that the chairmanship seat should head southwards since there was an agreement that the party’s presidential ticket would stay in the North in 2019.

But the voices from the National Assembly caucus got drowned soon afterwards as the caucus of the governors, BoT and other leaders rallied support for the national chairman. This time, however, it appears that the lawmakers are keying to a general belief in the party to the effect that the burgeoning crisis should be nipped in the bud right away. Thus, unlike the situation when Sheriff came on board, the caucus this time does not appear to be talking to a deaf party.

Just as the lawmakers were making consultations, the BoT and other stakeholders also scheduled meetings aimed at addressing the crisis in the party. The party’s concerned stakeholders who are mostly members of the BoT came face to face with Sheriff, who wasted no time in apologising for the words his media aide used on the elders last week. Some concessions were reached and even before the National Assembly caucus reports progress to the lawmakers in NASS, it became almost certain that their quest for a unifying convention is coming to fruition.

28

politics&policy

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

My plans to reposition Lagos PDP —Salvador

The newly sworn-in chairman of the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Honourable Moshood Salvador, spoke with newsmen shortly after he emerged at the state congress, on how he wants to deliver on his new mandate, the crisis rocking the party in the South-West and the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration, among other issues. BOLA BADMUS brings the excerpts:

N

ow that you have emerged as the chairman of the Lagos PDP, what are your plans?

My first assignment is mobilisation of members and strengthening of our structures. It requires paying extensive visits to members and leaders. It has to be extended to political parties and the grassroots as well so that we can achieve a better environment and party.

The party appears to be in crisis, with different factions making diverse claims. How do you intend to work with others to achieve unity and bring about a stronger platform?

Change is something very difficult to achieve, especially when you are talking of positive change. If you are not prepared for it, it becomes very difficult to achieve.

I am a guru in this game. You are talking of crisis, it’s everywhere. But, I think the major thing is this: I have to advise our members not to have crisis in the party. If you talk of having crisis between individuals, that is okay. I can be chairman; another man can be deputy chairman. You can have personal differences with them, but don’t have it with your party. The unity of the party is the responsibility of you and me. To make the party successful requires the support of the media and members of the public, as well as members of the party, and it is only when the party is successful that it can give you very good materials in government. If you don’t have it, the country is doomed.

Let’s have your assessment of the country under the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership.

Since the inception of APC, they have never given us any humane policy. We’ve been complaining; you can imagine their foreign exchange policy. Look at all the other policies they embarked upon before coming to this one on petrol price hike.

They have taken lies and inconsistency as their policies. The other day, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, was talking of 21 days of eliminating queues from filling stations.

After 100 days, the queues are still there and they are not ashamed to say that in six months’ time, the price of petrol will go down again. They don’t care about the problems of Nigeria and that is the challenge we are facing. We are totally against the increment in the pump price of fuel.

Before they got there, they had talked about renovating our refineries, saying that it would take them one or two months.

I was in the House of Representatives for four years and in the Petroleum Resources Committee. I visited all the refineries and all our depots. I was the one in charge at a time when there was fuel scarcity in the country in 2001. I was the head of the National Assembly team and went round the whole country to put an end to it. What did

Salvador I do to put an end to the crisis, why can’t they do it now? Are they telling me they cannot get anybody that can do same? The record is there. Can’t they copy what we did then? We have the structures; underground pipes that can transfer oil, even fuel from one station to the other. Mosimi in Ogun States serves so many other towns, why can’t we refurbish all these facilities and others, so that we can start pumping fuel?

When the APC came to power, they said Nigeria is corrupt; you heard what British Prime Minister, David Cameron said about our country; that Nigerians are fantastically corrupt.

The zonal arrangement for the

PDP national convention has been criticised one way or the other by different leaders of the party. How do you intend to work round all this to ensure that the party holds a successful national convention?

Definitely, let me tell you: all the hullabaloo you have been hearing will soon fizzle out. When we have a good thing, everybody will love to be part of it. Let all the family members be arguing among themselves. The baton definitely will end up in somebody’s hand and anybody that finally gets it remains a member of the party; a member of the family. Therefore, I don’t lose sleep on issues like that because I know it’s just a political matter; that everybody wants every good thing. But defi-

Let me tell you: all the hullabaloo you have been hearing will soon fizzle out. When we have a good thing, everybody will love to be part of it. Let all the family members be arguing among themselves.

nitely, it cannot go round. At the end of the day, we will get over the issue. This is not the first time we are witnessing this kind of situation; so, such a thing cannot make me to lose sleep.

You are assuming the party chairmanship at a very difficult time, how do you hope to succeed in this assignment?

There is no time that is easy, so don’t say this one is a difficult time. There is no time that is easy for any hard-working person.

Some people were looking out for possible crisis during the congress, but it was a peaceful exercise. How did you achieve this?

I am happy to tell you that even people that are complaining, I don’t want to use the word disgruntled, can never complain about my emergence because they believe I am like the expression used by President Muhammadu Buhari: ‘I am for everybody.’

So, that is just it. They know I take care of everybody. I don’t look back; I don’t know whether you are black, green, yellow, red or blue. All I will ask you to do is to assist me in appealing to anybody in PDP in Lagos State that is not feeling happy to please, as I am appealing to them, come back home. Let us do it right this time. It is when we get it right that we can now be very happy.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Nigerian Tribune

with Shola Adekola

m:0803 365 4818 e:sholanig@yahoo.com

Etihad Airways appoints new GM

From left: Arthur Dieffenthaler, Commercial Director Air France; Kunle Afolayan, producer, director & Brand Ambassador for Air France and Jean-Raoul Tauzin, General Manager, Air France, at the unveiling of Afolayan’s latest film, ‘The CEO’ in Lagos.

Nigerian airlines want Warri aviation turbine resuscitated Stories By Shola Adekola

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HE Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) has appealed to the Federal Government to resuscitate the Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) from the Warri refinery and its pipeline–hydrant system that supplies aviation fuel to the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos.

Reacting to the shortage and increasing price of aviation fuel also known as Jet A-1, which is sold between N130 to N190 per litre by oil marketers, the AON Chairman, Captain Nogie Meggison, lamented that airline operators in the country are now spending 40 per cent of their operational cost on aviation fuel alone, even as some of its members spend

higher than this, making their operations less cost effective and running against all business sense for the industry.

He called on the Federal Government to intervene on the issue by ensuring that it revives the Warri refinery’s Jet A1 pipeline–hydrant system for supplying aviation fuel.

Equally, the airline Chief declared that the pipeline that supplied aviation fuel to the airport before it was shut down by the late General Sani Abacha led military

Nigeria’s new civil aviation rules take effect July 1 THE Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has announced that the new Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs) promul-

MD FAAN inaugurates Lagos runway safety team THE Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr Saleh Dunoma has inaugurated the Lagos Runway Safety Team, in compliance with Resolution A37-6 of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which requires member States to implement appropriate measures to enhance runway safety.

The inauguration took place during a meeting between the Managing Director and members of Lagos Runway Safety Team led by Mrs. Ngozi Njoku,

regime on 18 January, 1996 based on “fault rumour” was fully functional.

The AON leader who is also the Managing Director of JedAir, hinted that before the pipelines were shut down in 1996, that all aircraft fuel using the aviation fuel hydrant at the Murtala Muhammed Airport since the 1970s, not one trailer supplied fuel to the airport but was pumped through underground pipeline from Mosimi/Atlas Cove via Ejigbo directly to the airport.

ETIHAD Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has appointed George Mawadri as its new General Manager in Nigeria, where he will be responsible for growing Etihad Airways’ relationships with its travel trade and corporate customers while furthering the development of the airline’s commercial strategy in Nigeria.

George brings a vast amount of airline experience and knowledge to the position having served with British Airways for 19 years in Uganda, Kenya and Zambia in the East and Central Africa region, as well as the surrounding feeder markets of Zimbabwe, Malawi, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Sudan and South Sudan.

Reacting on his appointment, George said: “I am excited to take on this new role with Etihad Airways in one of the airline’s most dynamic markets.

“I look forward to working with the team to find new and innovative ways of expanding our strategic corporate and trade partnerships, and providing our guests with world-class service, comfort, and hospitality.”

who is also the Deputy General Manager/Head of Safety Services Department at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja.

This is just as the FAAN MD has assured stakeholders in the aviation industry of improved business environment for the mutual benefit of all concerned.

Dunoma gave the assurance while receiving the newly appointed Managing Director of SKyway Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL), Mr Rizwan Kadri, in his office in Lagos.

gated in December, 2015, will take effect from July 1, 2016.

This was contained in a Circular Ref: NCAA/DG/ AOL/21/16/01 sent to all Airline Operators last month. Whilst all operators are in possession of the copies of the Regulations, the interregnum between April and the commencement date is a permissible transitional period.

During this time, all stakeholders are expected to acquaint themselves with the contents therein for seamless implementation.

The process of review was set in motion to align Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs) with recent International Civil Aviation Organisations (ICAO) amendments and industry observations received by the authority.

In other words, the re-

viewed Nig.CARs is to ensure a completion of the Annexes just as provisions have therefore been made for economic and consumer protection regulations – that were hitherto not incorporated in the 2009 edition.

In addition, the NCAA decided on the review to standardise the operational procedures, implementation and enforcement in the industry.

All these according to the regulatory body have been done in conformity with the Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) as contained in the Annexes to the Chicago Convention.

The new Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations 2015 has 19 parts comprising general policies and definitions; personnel licensing; aviation training organisations; registration and marketing.

crucial moment 0803 365 4818

With Shola Adekola

Air France and the Nigerian Brand THE notion among the various stakeholders in the country especially in the aviation sector is that many of the foreign airlines operating in Nigeria are guilty of ‘winner takes it all’ attitude; that is, despite the huge fortunes they make from here, they hardly plough back a little fraction to the country.

Many of the mega carriers had at one time or the other described the Nigerian market as strategic to their survival in view of the huge market available to them.

It is on record that due to the unlimited opportunities the foreign airlines enjoy here courtesy of the loose policies of government, they smile home with huge profits annually.

Unfortunately, despite the goodwill, many of the airlines have failed to even affect the various Nigerian communities as they prefer to do so in other countries they operate to.

While this selfish attitude continues, a few of the mega carriers have, however, proved otherwise in view of the corporate responsibilities they continue to display even despite the global economic meltdown.

One of the foreign carriers operating in the country and have refused to ‘dine alone’ is Air France, the flag carrier of the French.

Air France has done well in the area of promoting the Nigerian brand through the obvious support it gives in such areas.

The most recent of such corporate responsibility was its decision to partner one of Nigerian Nollywood actors, Kunke Afolayan, as the airline ambassador.

Beside making him its ambassador, the airline is ensuring that it gives Afolayan all the necessary support to promote his films across the globe, which no doubt is a way of promoting Nollywood in general.

Only last week, the airline team in Nigeria were present at the unveiling of Afolayan’s latest film ‘The CEO’ in Lagos.

The airline disclosed that the latest film would be premiered on its flight AF 149 of June 1, 2016, out of Lagos, Nigeria to Paris, France.

Speaking for the mega carrier, the Commercial Director, Air France/KLM, Mr Arthur Dieffenthaler said the premiere of the film onboard its flight would be the first time anywhere in the world a film would be premiered by any airline onboard.

Dieffenthaler explained that Air France supported the movie which was shot in five countries through airlifting of the crew, actors and equipment to the different countries where the film was shot.

His words; “The premiere of the film onboard has never been done before by any airline in the world. It is history in the making for both airline and movie industries.

We will be the first to do this with Kunle, which I’m very proud of and I think for one, the film deserves it and we are trying to showcase the strength and beauty of the product.

“The film connects people, just like the aviation industry that connects people from one place to the other. This is going to be a unique event and anybody that was part of it should be proud of it.”

Dieffenthaler declared that tickets for the Lagos-Paris flight would only be sold in its offices in Nigeria; Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja, stressing that only limited ticket would be sold to air travellers.

There is no doubt that Air France has proved it is worth doing business with in Nigeria if it can go to the extent of promoting the Nigerian brand this much.

The Nigerian government should take note of this feat and should be ready to also view the airline as a partner in progress.

Above all, the Crucial Moment is calling on other foreign airlines to learn from the goodwill of Air France by learning not to ‘dine alone.’

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Nigerian Tribune

with Tola Adenubi

m:07068476673 e:adenubiadetola@yahoo.com

Ijora container accident not down to operational error —Sifax Group

From left: Alhaji Mohammed Bulangu, Acting Managing Director; Mr Markus Brinkmann, Executive Director, Commercials and Inland Container Depots and Mr Mustapha Mohammed, General Manager, Operations, all of Ports and Cargo Handling Services Limited, a subsidiary of SIFAX Group, at the press conference to celebrate the company’s 10th year of ports concessioning recently.

SIFAX Group, the parent company of the Sifax Offdock Terminal located in Ijora has stated that the container accident which occurred on Thursday, May 12, 2016, and claimed one life, injuring two other persons, was not down to operational error on the part of the operator.

In a statement signed by the groups Corporate Affairs Manager, Muyiwa Akande, the accident was caused by an early morning rain accompanied by heavy storm.

According to the group, “Few of the stacked containers fell on the shanties by the Ijora rail track due to the heavy storm that accompanied the early morning rain.

One casualty was recorded with few others injured. Immediately after the accident, the company’s management swung into action by alerting relevant government and

Federal Dept of Fisheries fault NIMASA’s cabotage enforcement Stories by Tola Adenubi- Lagos

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HE Federal Department of Fisheries has faulted the way and manner the cabotage regime is being enforced by the Nigerian Maritime Administrating and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

Speaking at a two-day maritime conference held in Lagos, the Director of the Department, Mohammed Muazu, bemoaned the charging of the two per cent cabotage fee on the fish trawling industry by NIMASA. According to him, “the enforcement of the cabotage law on fish trawlers by NIMASA should be looked into.

“Cabotage is meant to enable ship ownership by Nigerians, stimulate ship building industry in Nigeria and facilitate manning of vessels by Nigerians.

“Much as it is believed that harnessing the opportunities of effective implementation of cabotage will provide a springboard for indigenous operators to acquire requisite capacity/expertise to launch themselves into global shipping, with the ultimate target of enabling the Nigerian carriers have a share of about $3 billion per annum gross value of freight in and out of Nigeria; there should be a waiver for the fish trawling industry.

“The cabotage waiver on fish trawlers is imperative because they are not freight carriers but owners of their boats, fishing within Nigerian territorial waters. Hence, fish trawlers should be exempted from the payment of two per cent cab-

otage fee which is presently being charged.”

The Director also bemoaned the overlapping functions of different government agencies under the Ministry of Transport as regards coordination and regulation of the maritime industry.

“Hitherto, NIMASA is responsible for the registration of all fish-

ing vessels, however, the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) now want the fishing industry to register the same vessels with them at a fee.

“We had a tripartite meeting with the agency and the Nigerian Trawlers Owners Association (NITOA) and it was agreed that both agencies will sort out the issue

with their Ministry.

“It is, however, worrisome that while the issue is yet to be sorted out; NIWA has resulted to arresting fishing vessels on the waterways.

“Apart from the fact that the time wasted is money to the industry; the products they carry are perishable goods that need no delay.”

...Accuses NPA of threatening Lagos Fishery Harbour THE Federal Department of Fisheries has accused the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) of issuing incessant quit notices to the department over the Kirikiri Lighter Terminal.

It would be recalled that prior to the port concession, Kirikiri Lighter Terminal Phase 1 and 2 had been dedicated for the development of the Lagos Fishery Harbour which the Department

APM Terminals appoints new Managing Director APM Terminals Apapa Limited, the largest container facility in Lagos, and the busiest in West Africa, announces the appointment of Martin Jacob as Managing Director, effective 1 June 1, 2016.

Mr Jacob brings with him extensive experience in the industry from a wide variety of roles held during his 16 years with the AP Moller-Maersk Group, including the past five as the Managing Director of the West Africa Container Terminal (WACT), in Onne, Nigeria.

WACT, which handled 233,000 TEUs in 2015, was named Nigeria’s Best Container Handling and Port Development Company of 2015 at the African Governance and Corporate Leadership awards earlier this year. The award was presented by the Nigerian Insti-

tute for Government, Research, Leadership and Technology in recognition of the terminal’s achievements in productivity, investment, innovation and customer service.

“I am looking forward to my new responsibilities at APM Terminals Apapa, and to working closely with our customers, local and national authorities to continue to achieve success and to help facilitate the growth and progress of the Nigerian economy,” stated Mr Jacob.

APM Terminals Apapa is the largest container facility by capacity of the three serving Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city and business center. It is also the largest container terminal operation in West Africa, having doubled container traffic after concession began in 2006, with dramatically improved productivity.

could not build due to paucity of funds.

Speaking during a two-day maritime conference held in Lagos, the Director of the Department, Mohammed Muazu, stated that the fish trawling industry in Nigeria has been facing incessant quit notices from the landlord of the ports, the NPA. According to him, “despite committing huge investment in developing the Kirikiri Lighter Terminal, the NPA has been issuing incessant quit notices to us over the usage of Terminal 2.

On the manner of investment that has already been put in place at the terminal, Muazu explained that, “the fish trawling industry has constructed landing jetties, cold rooms, processing facilities, floating docks, engineering workshops and floating barges for bunkering at the Kirikiri Lighter Terminal.

“The question is where do operators move all this facilities to in the face of incessant quit notices from the NPA? There is need for government to intervene on this issue.”

security agencies in order to assess the situation. The corpse has been deposited in a mortuary while the injured have been treated.

“The accident is already under police investigation and the management of the company is cooperating with the investigating team. It is, however, premature to attribute what happened to operational error as reported by some newspapers because no operation was going on at the terminal at the time of the accident.

“SIFAX Group has a reputation for placing a premium on safety and security. It has a very robust Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) policy that guarantee the safety of our workers and other stakeholders in our terminal.”

On the deceased, the Group Managing Director, SIFAX Group, Mr John Jenkins exp[lained that the company is working with the local government authorities to identify the family of the deceased in order to commiserate with them on the unfortunate development.

“We share in the pains of the victims of the accident, particularly the family of the deceased, the injured and others who lost their property,” Jenkins stated.

Customs intercepts 575 bags of rice valued at N2.7m THE Western Marine Command of the Nigeria Customs Service in collaboration with the Nigerian Navy said it intercepted 575 bags of rice valued at N2,616,250.

Customs Area Controller, in charge of the command ,Comptroller Umar Yusuf, accompanied by the Commanding Officer NNS Beecroft; Navy Commodore Abraham Adaji, while conducting newsman round the jetty where the seizures were made said that the smuggled items were intercepted around Badagry axis in Lagos by patrol officers of both agencies. He, however, said that no suspect was arrested during the operation.

Giving details, Umar disclosed that the officers intercepted two wooden boats laden with the staple food, but added that on sighting the patrol officers, the daredevil smugglers in the process of evading arrest escaped into the creeks at Itonhu jetty.

According to him, “the boat, in the process of trying to evade arrest, hit a hard surface that broke the vessel and caused it to sink. Due to this, a large quantity of the bags of rice were drown in the water.”

Umar added that officers were able to salvage the remaining bags of rice and brought them to the command’s base.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Police parade suspected kidnappers in Ondo Hakeem Gbadamosi - Akure

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NDO State Police Command on Wednesday paraded two suspected kidnappers and 13 other suspects arrested in the state over armed robbery.

The two suspected kidnappers, names withheld, were accused of abducting one Gbadamosi Olakunle in Akungba Akoko in Akoko South West Local Government Area of the state.

Speaking on the arrest of the two suspects, the state Police commissioner, Hilda Harrison, explained that the two suspects, who were armed with guns, invaded the office of the victim in Akungba, at about 8p.m. on March 9, 2016 and kidnapped Olakunle.

Harrison said the victim was released nine days later by his abductors, but said his men were able to trace the two suspects with their handsets which were used for negotiation.

She explained that a green Nissan Primera car with registration number KAA 246 FK that was used for the operation was also recovered by the police who also rescued the victim unhurt.

She said that about 13 other armed robbery suspects have been arrested at different locations in the state.

The police boss said gun loaded with five rounds of live ammunition and other dangerous weapon were recovered from the hoodlums during the arrest.

The Police Commissioner said “On 5th March, 2016 one Alhaji Kolawole of Ore reported that on same date at about 3:00pm a gang of truck hijackers numbering five, armed with guns and others dangerous weapons violently hijacked his truck loaded with fuel valued at Two million, eight hundred thousand naira.”

She said her men swung into action immediately and led to the arrest of two suspects in Benin City, Edo State, saying the two suspects confessed to the crime.

She said after investigating, a sum of N2.5million was traced to the bank account of the girlfriend of the leader of the gang, name withheld, who was arrested alongside five other suspects in connection with the crime.

She said efforts were ongoing to arrest the gang leader and other members of the group who were still at large.

It was gathered that the

girlfriend supplied the group with the information and particulars of the truck while the group used her bank account to transact business and also to collect

ransom from the victims.

One of the suspects, who did not deny the group’s involvement in the robbery, said they were only working towards securing

the release of their boss, who is currently in prison custody in Edo State.

He said he was lured into the business some five years ago saying, “We

are only working towards gathering money for the release of our boss and to take care of him in the prison.”

Harrison however, said

the arrested suspects would soon be arraigned in court after the investigation.

LG polls: Group awards EKSIEC ‘most ethically responsible MDA’ Sam Nwaoko - Ado Ekiti

From left, the Seriki Fulani of Ogbomosoland, Alhaji Umaru Guruma; a cattle rearer from Orile-Igbon, Alhaji Ahmed Sulaiman; Commissioner of Police, Oyo State, Mr Leye Oyebade and Governor Abiola Ajimobi; at a stakeholders’ peace parley organised to defuse brewing tension over cattle grazing, in Ibadan, on Wednesday.

No night grazing, water poisoning in Oyo —Ajimobi

By Oluwatoyin Malik and Wale Akinselure

TOWARDS preventing herdsmen/communal clashes, Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, has ruled out night grazing, poisoning of water or farmlands in the state.

Ajimobi, speaking in Ibadan, on Wednesday, at a stakeholders’ peace meeting, that involved security agencies, farmers, herdsmen, traditional rulers, heads of Fulani groups, said the state government would rather acquire lands across communities which will be made available for grazing.

He noted that the acquired

land would be equipped with necessary infrastructure for pasturing and grazing where cattle owners would be charged to utilise the lands.

While intimating of the setting up of security, community leaders, cattle rearers/farmers committees, Ajimobi warned that owners of stray cows would be fined.

However, Ajimobi said the creation of ranches was a long- term measure that must be concerned in the country.

While supporting co-habitation and marriages between Fulani herdsmen and their host communities, he warned that people found

guilty of raping would be jailed.

“There would be no night grazing, poisoning of cattle, water or crops, and we will address the issue of stray cows through the provision of certain areas for pasturing. The state government will negotiate with the community and take land for which we will pay, to compensate them. The state government will own the land and provide necessary infrastructure for pasturing, where there will be water, health officials, veterinary doctors, people who can help with re-planting.”

“The cattle rearers are traders, businessmen and

Police arrest fake lawyer in Ogun Olayinka Olukoya - Abeokuta

ONE Ayodele Balogun, who has been parading himself as a legal practitioner, was on Monday, arrested by police detectives attached to Ota Division of the Ogun State Police Command.

Balogun, 47, in a statement by the Police Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, was arrested having duped an unsuspected “client” of a sum of N140,000.

The suspect, during interrogation, was reported to have confessed to the crime, having been practicing as a fake lawyer at a popular law chamber in the town for over a decade.

According to the PPRO, the state commissioner of Police, Abdulmajid Ali, had directed that the details of the suspect and others that might be indicted in the course of investigation be forwarded to the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and other concerned bodies for necessary actions.

Adejobi also said that the CP had called for thorough investigation into the matter.

The PPRO said, “The Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, CP Abdulmajid Ali, has directed that the matter be thoroughly investigated. The suspect and others, who might be

indicted in the course of police investigation, be charged to court without delay and his (their) details be sent to the Nigerian Bar Association and other concerned groups/bodies for necessary action.

“The Police boss also expressed disappointment in some individuals who engage themselves in nefarious activities and dupe innocent Nigerians of their hard earned incomes.

“He has, however, vowed to make Ogun State hot for criminals and unscrupulous elements as all hands are on deck to sanitise the state and get rid of bad elements.”

they will be charged token which they can add to their cost, we will regularise everything to the extent that they can include what the state government charges them to their selling cost.

Pending that time, when we will delineate some routes which they can use for grazing, anybody whose cows are found to eat people’s crops will be asked to pay.

The committees that we have set up will negotiate with the concerned persons and fix the fine. Once they meet regularly, there will be standards for everything.”

“In the medium/long term, we will think of ranching, creating ranches, feedlots. Having a route is short term as that route will become unproductive but a designated area that is regularly cultivated is helpful. I do not support taking farmlands and giving another. In the end, they are all traders and taking someone’s land and giving to a herdsman is not done in overriding public interest. Neither can you take someone’s cow and give it to the farmer. But if the state owns the cows, we can take it in overriding public interest for the state, but in this case, the cows are for individuals doing business.”

In attendance were the state Commissioner of Police, Adeleye Oyebade, Area Commanders, Divisional Police Officers, traditional rulers as well as farmers, cattle owners and herdsmen.

A non-governmental organisation, Centre for Ethics and Self Value Orientation (CESVO) has honoured the Ekiti State Independent Electoral Commission (EKSIEC) for what it said was its being the “most ethically responsible state-owned MDA in Nigeria.”

CESVO, which gave EKSIEC the award at a brief ceremony in Ado Ekiti, said the commission was singled out for the award following a survey it said it conducted in the state in the build up to the 2015 local government elections.

The Executive director of the NGO, Prince Saleh Musa Yakubu, who spoke for CESVO, said “what prompted our coming is that there was a lot of heat and propaganda in Ekiti State prior to the local government election and we asked ourselves what was really going on in the state.

Mimiko assures arrest of herdsmen killer Hakeem Gbadamosi - Akure

GOVERNOR Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State has assured that the cattle rustlers that killed the herdsman at Oloruntele in Ile-Oluji /Oke Igbo Local Government, last Sunday, Abu Adams, will be apprehended and made to face the full wrath of law.

The governor spoke when he led the state delegation on a condolence visit to the family of the deceased at Oloruntele town.

Represented by his Chief of Staff, Dr Kola Ademujimi, Dr Mimiko said perpetrators of the dastard act can only run but will not escape.

He assured that the existing peace in Ondo State would continue as he commended the proactive measure of security agencies in Ondo State, particularly the Ile-Oluji /Oke Igbo Local Government, since the incident occurred on Sunday.

He also commended the people of Oloruntele community and the herdsmen for their peaceful coexistence before and after the incident.

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news

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Nigerian Tribune

Weapons found in my house belong to NSA office, Dasuki tells court Says his continued detention arbitrary, illegal

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HE Federal High Court, Abuja, on Wednesday, was told that the weapons found at Asokoro residence of the former national Security Adviser (NSA), Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retd), barely 48 hours after he left office in 2015, belong to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

The weapons were said to be for the use of the security details attached to him as the NSA for protection purposes.

These were contained in Colonel Dasuki’s statement made to the operatives of the Department of State Security Service (DSS), tendered and admitted as exhibit by Justice Adeniyi Ademola, in the ongoing trial of Colonel Dasuki on charges of unlawful possession of arms.

A prosecution witness, Mr Samuel Ogbu, who is an operative of DSS, indicated this when he was asked to read in the open court, the statement made

by Colonel Dasuki, during his interrogation by DSS before he was charged to court.

Under cross examination by counsel to Colonel Dasuki, Mr Ahmed Raji, the witness said that ColonelDasuki, in his statement, confirmed that weapons where for the ONSA and for the protection of the NSA. The witness also said that Colonel Dasuki claimed in his written statement that the weapons were to be returned to the ONSA by the security details at the end of the day.

Ogwu, who was asked by Colonel Dasuki’s lawyer to read a portion of the statement of the defendant to the open court, admitted that Colonel Dasuki in the first paragraph of his statement, made it clear that the weapons belong to the ONSA and not his personal belonging.

The witness further said he could not remember the date ColonelDasuki left office as NSA but however, insisted that the interrogation was conducted after he had left office.

Meanwhile, Colonel Dasuki, has told the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice, sitting in Abuja, that the Federal Government has no legal or moral justification for his continued incarceration.

Colonel Dasuki, who spoke through his counsel, Robert Emukperuo, on Wednesday, while making his final address, predicated his stance on Sections

293-296 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act ACJA 2015, which outlines the procedure for keeping a suspect in detention for not more than two weeks.

“To accentuate the illegal-

ity of the arrest and detention of the applicant, the ACJA 2015, S.293 to 296 thereof, set out the procedure for the detention of any person pending trial or investigation. And in

summary, that procedure requires judicial intervention by a magistrate for it to be carried out and the maximum detention time-frame is two weeks,” he said.

Emukperuo had earlier

filed an application to amend the originating application by including additional reliefs, a request the court granted, ordering the defendant to respond, if any, within 15 days to the issues raised in the

amendment.

He prayed the court to order the release of his client and as well, order the government to pay N500 million as compensation to Colonel Dasuki.

More troubles for Oronsaye, others as FG files additional charges Sunday Ejike - Abuja THE Federal Government, on Wednesday, brought a 35-count amended charge against the former Head of Service of the Federation (HOS), Steve Oronsaye and two others standing trial over their alleged in-

volvement in a graft, running into several millions of naira, while in service.

At the resumed hearing of the matter on Wednesday, the former HoS and his co-defendants were re-arraigned before Justice Gabriel Kolawole of a Federal High Court, Abuja,

increasing the 24-count charge earlier slammed against them in 2015 to a 35 count charge in the amended charge.

In the new charge filed on Wednesday by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), prosecuting the matter on behalf of

the Federal Government, the number of defendants was increased from three to six, to include three companies.

Oronsaye and the five other defendants were accused of fraud, corrupt act and accused of violating the Money Laundering and Prohibition Act of 2004.

Wife of the President, Hajia Aisha Buhari (third right) presenting a N30 million cheque to some parents of the Chibok girls. With her are wife of the VicePresident, Mrs Dolapo Osinbanjo (second left); an official of the Federal Ministry of Information, Mrs Aishetu Bunu (left) and others, during the event in Abuja.

In the charge filed before the court earlier, the former top bureaucrat alongside two other persons, Osarenkhoe Afe and Frederick Hamilton as well as Global Services Limited, allegedly siphoned at least, N1.2 billion from the federal treasury.

The EFCC, which filed the charge bordering on money laundering and corruption against them, also alleged that one of the accomplices in the alleged crime, Abdulrasheed Abdullahi Maina, who is now at large, all connived to commit procurement fraud in the biometric enrolment job purportedly awarded to Innovative Solutions Limited, without following due process.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to the amended 35-count charge when read out to them and the prosecution counsel, Olaleke Atolagbe, prayed the court for an adjournment to commence trial.

Joe Agi, representing Oronsaye and other defence counsel in the matter, asked the court to allow the defendants continue to enjoy the bail earlier granted them in 2015 when they were first arraigned.

Badeh paid $6.2m in 2 tranches to buy property in Abuja, another witness tells court Sunday Ejike - Abuja MR Useni Umar, an estate survey manager, the third prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of the former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh (retd), over allegation of fraud, on Wednesday, gave graphic details of how Badeh gave

a sum of $6.2 million in two tranches for the purchase of a property located at No. 6, Ogun River Street, Maitama, Abuja.

According to the witness, “Badeh instructed that a sum of $6.2 million be released in two tranches within a period of two weeks for the purchase of the said property located at No 6, Ogun River Street,

Maitama, Abuja, after we carried out a joint inspection on the property and he was satisfied.”

Testifying on Wednesday, before Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court, Abuja, Umar told the court that after he got an instruction from Air Commodore Salisu Abdullahi Yushau, to get a beautiful edifice as a re-

tiring home for Badeh, he inspected four properties together with Yushau.

Umar, who was led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, said: “When I got the instruction from Yushau, the first inspection was carried out between myself and Yushau.

“The second inspection was carried out between myself, Badeh and Yushau while

Court reserves judgment in murder case against Oyo NURTW boss AN Oyo State High Court in Ibadan has reserved judgment in a murder case against Mukaila Lamidi (Auxiliary), a former Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Oyo State.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that others arraigned with Lamidi are Saheed Kareem, Taiwo Tijani, Abu Kareem and Kazeem Kayode.

Justice Eni Esan reserved judgment on Tuesday, after listening to the final written addresses of both the pros-

ecution counsel and the defence.

The judge said that the judgment date would be communicated to the counsel.

In his address, the state Director of Public Prosecution, Mr Tajudeen Abdulganiyu, informed the court that one of the defendants, Taiwo Tijani, died in prison custody two weeks ago and applied for the withdrawal of the charges against him.

Abdulganiyu then urged the court to adopt his final written address dated and filed on May 13 and

to pronounce the remaining defendants as guilty as charged.

However, Mr Ikenna Okolo, counsel to Lamidi, contended that the prosecution had failed beyond reasonable doubt to prove the allegation against his client.

Okolo said that it was clear from the evidence before the court that Lamidi was not at the scene of the crime and urged the court to discharge and acquit his client.

In his contribution, Mr Adeleke Bakare, counsel to Kareem, Abu and Kayode,

also urged the court to discharge and acquit his clients, saying the prosecutor failed in prosecuting the defendants.

It will be recalled that Lamidi, Kareem, Abu and Kayode were alleged to have unlawfully killed one Adekunle Oladipupo by shooting him with a gun.

At the arraignment of the defendants, Abdulganiyu had told the court that the defendants were arraigned on a three-count charge of conspiracy, attempted murder and murder.

the third and fourth inspection was a joint inspection between myself, Badeh, his wife, son by name Sam and Badeh’s daughter.

“It was after the joint inspections of the property that Badeh, having been satisfied with the property at No. 6 Ogun River, instructed that a sum of $6.2 million be paid in two tranches for the property.”

Under cross-examination by the defence counsel, Chief Akin Olujimi, the witness said that he did not state in his statement at EFCC that they inspected four properties before Yushau picked the one on Ogun River Street because he was giving a summary of his statement to EFCC. Olujimi thereafter, prayed the court for a day adjournment to enable him get the required materials for proper crossexamination.

The court adjourned till today (Thursday) for the cross-examination of the witness.

Thursday, 19 May, 2016 33 news Metuh was paid N400m from party’s fund, Okupe tells court Sunday Ejike-Abuja

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witness in the ongoing trial of National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olisa Metuh, on Wednesday, told a Federal High Court in Abuja that the PDP spokesman was paid N400 million from the party’s campaign fund.

The witness, Dr Doyin Okupe, a former Special Assistant to former President Goodluck Jonathan, told the court that, as the leader of the party, Jonathan issued money for the activities of the party, but could also ask a subordinate to render such assignment.

Okupe, in his testimony, stated that sometime in November 2014, the leadership of the PDP was concerned about the negative perception of people towards the party, and there was an opinion that something should be done.

He said former President Jonathan had told him, during a discussion that Metuh and some consultants had some suggestions regarding the way forward for the party and called a meeting of people, including the former Senate President, David Mark, former Chairman of the party, Tony Anenih, and Peter Obi, among others.

Okupe said the PDP spokesman and his team of media consultants gave their presentation at that meeting; which was approved by former President Jonathan.

He further stated that some suggestions were made by the party, as to what would be added to the project as presented by Metuh, adding also that the former president instructed that Metuh be paid for the

project with the sum of N400 million.

“Very early in the morning, I got a call from Chief Metuh who told me that he had received N400 million from the president,” Okupe told the court and added that

Jonathan had great capacity at the time; to gain response from people, which he used many times, to source for funds.

“As a candidate for an election; the president had immense capacity to response.

public; who privately gave their support to the president.

“Substantial funds became available to the president, which he also made available for projects that he felt would enhance his course,” Okupe said.

Asked to comment about the bank statement where Metuh’s company, Destra Investment Ltd received N400 million at about the same time from the office of the National Security Adviser (for security services as indicated by the electronic payment schedule of the bank),Okupe said: “I don’t know anything about this.

It looks strange to me. The president could have paid for the campaign activities himself.”

Responding to questions regarding the source of the money, Okupe said he was not aware about any particular source of the money, except that Metuh was paid

by Jonathan and that he (Metuh) also laboured hard Governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State, Kenneth Imansuangbon (left), collecting nomination form from the National Organ- to source for funds for the ising Secretary of the party, Senator Osita Izunaso, at the party’s national secretariat, Abuja. campaign of the party.

Edo 2016: What I will do if elected —Imansuangbon Kola wole Daniel-Abuja

A gubernatorial aspirant in the forthcoming Edo State election on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Ken Imansuangbon, a lawyer, on Wednesday, said that if elected as the governor, he would ensure that he restored the state’s old glory.

The aspirant also said that job creation, quality

education and improved agriculture would be his main focus.

The aspirant spoke with newsmen when he visited the APC national secretariat to pick his Expression of Interest form.

According to him, “I am the number one person to pick the form and God willing; I will be the number one person throughout the general election.”

He also noted “I have been consistent since 2004 because basically I believe that the people of Edo State need experienced person to create jobs and address other issues.”

He added “All my life, I have been committed to creating jobs. Since the 25 years I left university, I have been creating jobs and that is my cardinal objective when I take over

Illegal detention: Court slates June 13 to hear N500m suit against GG Sunday Ejike-Abuja

JUSTICE Binta Nyako, of a Federal High Court in Abuja, has adjourned hearing of a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed

by Dr Muhhamad Marri Abba, a medical practitioner and consultant to the World Health Organisation (WHO) against the Federal Government to June 13, 2016.

The adjournment was sequel to a letter written by J. A. Adamu, counsel to the fifth respondent (Chief of Defence Staff) addressed to the Judge, indicating that he was attending a matter at the Court of Appeal in Lagos.

Consequently, the matter has been adjourned to June 13, for hearing.

However, the applicant’s counsel, Jibril Okutepa

(SAN), filed a further affidavit, insisting that agents of the Federal Government know where Dr Abba was being detained.

The further affidavit in response to the counter affidavit of the first, to seventh respondents, deposed to by one Oluwaseyi Arowosebe, stated that “Officers and men of the third respondent (IGP) effected the arrest of the applicant when the ap-

‘April, hottest in modern history’

By Sade Oguntola

THE US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Wednesday said that last month, April, was the hottest April in modern history, thus marking the 12th consecutive month that global heat records have been shattered.

The agency in a statement declared that “The globally averaged temperature over land and ocean surfaces for April 2016 was the highest for the month of April in the NOAA global temperature dataset record, which

And this was demonstrated by the amount of money the president was able to raise, during the fund raising activity in the villa.

“Yet there are people who may not necessarily show publicly their support in

dates back to 1880.

“This marks the 12th consecutive month the monthly global temperature record has been broken, the longest such streak in the 137-year record.”

The report, issued each month by NOAA, also pointed to a concerning spike in temperature last month, compared to the 20th century average.

The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces for April was 1.98 Fahrenheit (1.10 Celsius) above the 20th century average

of 56.7 F (13.7 C).

This marked “the highest temperature departure for April since global records began in 1880.”

Overall, 13 of 15 of these record spikes, or monthly temperature departures, have occurred since February 2015, signaling that global warming is accelerating.

Northern and central South America and parts of southern Europe, western and central Africa, eastern Australia, southern Alaska, and the Caribbean also saw temperatures climb.

plicant voluntarily went to the police station to retrieve his properties.

“That in an earlier suit filed by the applicant and others which was struck out, the Commissioner of police, Yobe State, an agent of the first respondent.

(AGF), second (FG) and third, deposed to a counter affidavit which was served on the applicant, and they admitted the fact of the arrest of the applicant upon the fact stated therein.

In addition, Arowosebe claimed “that the first, to seventh respondents have in their possession, records of the arrest, detention and the place or places they keep the applicant presently.

From the further affidavit, it was revealed that the agents of the first, second and third respondents made available to wife of the applicant, Mrs Rahila Muhammad Bashir, copy of police investigation reports on the applicant, which report was signed by one ACP Mohammed Lawal.

from Adams Oshiomhole.”

Speaking further he said, “Secondly, my duty would be to strengthen our school system. Our school system is very weak. Governor Oshiomhole has done his best, but that is not where we want to be as a people.

I am well-equipped as an educationist to make schools work and give teachers hope and restore their pride. When I come in, school would be very interesting to students in Edo State.

“Thirdly, we would go back to till the land. I will boost agriculture. I will be the chief farmer in Edo State. I will take everybody back to farm. We will create farm industries. There

will be rice plantation in Auchi, Agenebode to be precise and other riverine areas across the three senatorial districts,” he stated.

He equally promised that, his administration would plug all revenue leakages, adding that, his mission was to improve on what Governor Oshiomhole has done in the state.

On farming he said “Rather than arm the police, I will arm our young ones to be in the farm,” stressing that, he would send at least 1,000 youth to Thailand to understudy their rice farming system with a view to replicating same in the state and exporting the produce back to Thailand.

Ofeimun’s book reading holds today A book reading on one of the latest works of poet and gubernatorial aspirant in Edo State, Odia Ofeimun, is now to take place today, Thursday.

The reading, which will have in attendance eminent Nigerians, scholars, including the former Minister of Education, Professor Tunde Adeniran and Professor Bolanle Awe, will have the audience talk on why Nigerians don’t take Nigeria seriously.

Scheduled to be held at the University of Ibadan’s International Conference Centre, Aganga Hall, by 2p.m., the event, put together by the Readers” Club of the Ibadan School of Government and Public

Policy (ISGPP) is, in the school’s words, its maiden effort at “contributing to the knowledge industry in Nigeria.”

The book, entitled Taking Nigeria Seriously, a 679page effort of the author, a compendium of analyses of issues of contemporary society that have the tendencies of limiting the nation’s growth and representation among the comity of nations, will be read by Ofeimun.

The book reading will also have in attendance members of the club, which include the former Dean of Post Graduate School, University of Ibadan, Professor Olabode Lucas; Prof M.K. Yahaya.

34 news FG will make 2,000km of road network motorable in 2016 —Fashola

Thursday, 19 May, 2016

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HE Federal Government said its target in 2016 is to make about 2,000 kilometres of road network motorable.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, made this known while fielding questions at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja, on Wednesday.

Fashola explained that

the current administration would ensure the completion of all strategic roads demanding urgent attention before undertaking other road rehabilitation projects.

“There are roads that only sections of them are bad.

There are roads that are really devastated that need to be totally rebuilt.

“And so, that is why our target is to make about 2,000 km of motorable

road network this year.

“So, the way I explained it then makes sense. We are not building 2,000 km roads. Our budget cannot build 2,000 kilometres of roads in one budget year.

“But because there are bad sections, there are failed sections (and) there are sections that need to be repaired.

“If we do all of that then Nigerians will have a pleas-

ant riding and travelling experience over about 2,000 kilometres of road network.

And we can do that yearon-year over the next three years,” Fashola stated.

Fashola, who gave insight into how the ministry intended to spend the funds allocated for the rehabilitation of roads, noted that the current budgeting system was targeted at eliminating the incidence of abandoned

From left, Director-General, National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Yusuf Usman and the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, receiving a repatriated Nok terra-cotta sculpture from the French Ambassador to Nigeria, Denys Gauer, at the celebration of International Museum Day, in Abuja, on Wednesday. PHOTO: NAN.

Onitsha most polluted city in the world —WHO

By Sade Oguntola

DATA from the World Health Organisation (WHO) on worldwide air pollution measures has named Onitsha in Anambra State and Zabol in Iran as the world’s two most polluted cities in the world.

The WHO data that made this public last week, named Onitsha as the worst city in the world for PM10 (particles under 10 but above 2.5 microns in width) pollution, roughly 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair.

It stated that rapid urbanisation and lack of planning have seriously increased air and water pollution in Onitsha.

The coarser PM10s included dust stirred up by cars on roads and the wind, soot from open fires and partially burned carbon from the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and wood. The particles, it said, are small enough to be inhaled deep into the lungs.

Similarly, because of an expansion of monitoring in Iran, the city of Zabol has superseded Delhi as

the city with the worst fine particle (PM2.5) pollution.

But it stated that the ultra-fine particles known as PM2.5s that could only be seen with microscopes are produced from all kinds of combustion. It added that they are small enough to pass from the

lungs into the blood supply, and are possibly more deadly because they affect the cardiovascular system.

It asserted that many cities in developing countries traditionally monitor only PM10s, noting that increasingly, PM2.5 pol-

lution is seen as the best measure of how bad air pollution is for health. It said that richer countries usually have higher levels of PM 2.5s, while low income countries have higher levels of PM10s. The WHO, however, declared that both are deadly.

Killer tomato paste in circulation, Reps alert nation Jacob Segun Olatunji and Kolawole Daniel -Abuja THE House of Representatives, on Wednesday, alerted Nigerians on the alleged existence of cancer-causing tomato pastes imported into the country by some unscrupulous people, with a promise to unmask those behind the dastardly act.

It has, therefore, mandated its Committees on Health Services and Drug and Narcotics to investigate the alleged importation of the said fake, substandard and cancerous products into the country.

It said this was aimed at identifying them, their importers as well as promoters and distributors said to

have flooded the nation’s markets with the products at very cheap prices.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion under matters of urgent public importance moved on the floor of the House, on Wednesday, by Honourable Ossai Nicholas Ossai of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), Delta State.

Honourable Osai while making a reference to a national daily publication (not the Nigerian Tribune) of May 9, 2016, alleged that there was a cabal who had boasted that nothing could stop them from importing the fake and substandard tomato paste into the country.

According to him, “this

ugly development of importation of cancer-infested tomato paste is killing a lot of Nigerians, and it is reported that this mafia group is collaborating with few indigenous manufacturers in Nigeria, who are being used as a cover up to distribute the killer products.”

Honourable Ossai expressed worries that the “Fake, substandard and cancer-causing tomato paste” has flooded the Nigerian markets with low prices which had compelled the closing down of ingenious tomato companies in Nigeria, adding that it had led to the laying off of over 50 per cent of their workforce.

roads.

He added that funds released would be effectively monitored to ensure completion of the projects.

“What we have done in the past is to budget for every road without being mindful of its state of completion.

“We must budget to complete projects that need special attention very quickly so that we are also not distracted in our capacity to monitor all projects.

“So, this year, we are going to put more money on certain projects because they are strategic and they have made some progress.

“And we think that we can finish them or nearly finish them either this year or next year.

“That does not mean that other projects are not important; but it means that we perhaps have to wait a little so that we finish those strategic ones,” he said.

The minister restated the commitment of the current administration to completing all road projects.

France returns artifact to Nigeria, after 8 years Christian Okeke -Abuja

FRANCE has officially returned to Nigeria, an artifact, Nok Terracotta, intercepted in France while on transit from Togo to the United States in 2008.

The Nok culture appeared in Nigeria around 1000 B.C. but later vanished under mysterious circumstances around 500 AD. French Ambassador to Nigeria, Denys Gauer, officially presented the Terracotta figurative sculpture to the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, at a ceremony to mark the 2016 International Museum Day in Abuja, on Wednesday.

The envoy said the presentation was in line with international law and within the framework of the 1970 UNESCO Convention, aimed at preventing illicit import and export of ownership of cultural properties, which was ratified by both France and Nigeria.

He said the gesture was an illustration of the French policy to fight illegal trade in cultural goods.

Responding, the Minister commended the French government for demonstrating the will to fight illegal trafficking of cultural artifacts.

Ajimobi, Tinubu, Aregbesola, Ooni get Ibadan Poly awards A former Lagos State governor and the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Tinubu; Oyo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi; his Osun State counterpart, Mr Rauf Aregbesola and Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, the Ooni of Ife, are to be conferred with The Polytechnic Ibadan Peculiar awards, on Wednesday, May 25, 2016, at the Middle Belt Hall of the institution.

The chief host is the rector of the institution, Professor Olatunji Fawole, with Messrs M. O. Oladeji and I. R. Eyitayo, the rectors of Oke-Ogun Polytechnic, Saki and Ibarapa Polytechnic, Eruwa, respectively, as co-hosts, while the royal fathers of the day were the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi II) and the Olubadan of Ibadan land, Oba Saliu Akanmu Adetunji (Aje Ogungunniso 1).

A statement by the president of the Students’ Union Government of the institution, Comrade Esho Tosin and the Public Relations Officer, Comrade Onuorah Amarachukwu, said the honour was in recognition of the awardees’ sterling qualities and outstanding contributions to nation building and democracy.

Prof Fawole

‘Rotary Club International has spent $15.5bn since inception’ Joe Nwachukwu -Owerri

THE Rotary International Worldwide has spent a total sum of 15.5 billion Dollars since its inception in tackling problems affecting the society, particularly polio.

The President, who was represented on the occasion of world-class conference Owerri 2016 of Rotary District 9140 Nigeria, by Dr Rekha Shetty, revealed this while speaking in an interview with newsmen.

According to her, the Rotary Club does not discriminate while trying to solve a nation’s problems they consider as being necessary.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

Monarch commends Amosun over creation of Sango/ Ijoko LCDA olayinkaolukoya-abeokuta

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T was celebration galore for residents of Sango in Ado-Odo/ Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State over the bill passed into law by the Ogun State House of Assembly on the creation of Sango/Ijoko Local Council Development Area.

It will be recalled that the assembly recently passed Bill No.02/OG/2016 into law awaiting Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s assent.

The people led by the traditional ruler of the town, Oba Oluwagbohun Adebayo and the Chief Imam of Sango, Alhaji Tajudeen Shafi’i, assured that the governor would not regret the creation of the LCDA. The royal father expressed happiness that the assembly returned almost 21 communities which had

earlier been ceded to Ota area of the local government to Sango/Ijoko.

The traditional ruler said the people of the area would be mobilised for increased Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), maintaining that within six months of the take-off of the LCDA, Sango would be the best among equals.

He said: “The governor has done well for us; we appreciate him. We want to assure him that within the next six months after the take-off of the LCDA, this LCDA will emerge the best in the state. We are going to mobilise our people towards increasing Internally Generated Revenue and the state will be buoyant.

“We are going to establish an industrial forum to help to develop this town.

There are over 100 indus-

tries in Sango and we are going to tap the resources to develop this LCDA. The governr will never re-

gret creating Sango/Ijoko LCDA.” In his comments, Shafi’i

said about 11 acres of land had been set aside for the construction of the LCDA headquarters.

He said, “We thank the governor for not disappointing us for once. He has been there for us.”

Adiyan community flood: Water corporation pledges remedy GROUP Managing Director of Lagos Water Corporation, Mr Muminu Badmus, on Sunday, said the corporation was finding a solution to the flooding of Adiyan Waterworks’ host community.

This is contained in a statement by Mr Olufemi Akinmuleya, the corporation’s Controller, Media and Publicity, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

Adiyan Waterworks is located at Iludun Community, Oke-Aro in Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State.

The statement said that the corporation was committed to the safety and well-being of inhabitants of communities where its facilities were located.

According to the statement, the corporation is studying the Adiyan Waterworks environment to proffer lasting solution to the problem of flooding in the community anytime water is released from the facility.

“Environmental Impact Assessment was carried out before the execution of Adiyan waterworks project in line with international best practices.

“The channel for backwash was originally designed as drainage which gradually became bigger over time,” the statement said.

“It is the practice of the corporation to discharge waste water into the approved channel,” the statement said.

It, however, said that the

corporation was making efforts to remedy the situation.

President, Nigerian Baptist Conventon, Reverend (Dr) Samson Ayokunle (third right) and members of Bowen University, during the commissioning of a building donated to Bowen University Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, for community healthcare by Reverend Emmanuel Oyekan (second left), recently.

‘Fish out, punish perpetrators of violence anthony ubong-calabar

OWING to the recent clash between Mkpani and Nko communities in Yakurr Local Government Area of Cross River State, which led to the loss of lives and properties, community leaders from the area have called on the state government to do everything possible to find the perpetrators of the bloodshed and mete out appropriate punishment.

In a communiqué issued at the end of a meeting of Yakurr leaders resident in Calabar, the state capital, the community leaders, however, commended the state government for taking prompt action in ensuring that the communities cease hostilities.

Chief Wilfred Inah, who signed the communiqué on behalf of other 19 leaders from Nko and Mkpani communities, condemned in strong terms the hostilities which led to the destruction of lives and properties in the area while urging youths to give peace a chance.

The communiqué read in part: “There is need for all Yakurr elite wherever they are to strengthen the bond of friendship, brotherly love and social interaction that evidently exist now and which formed the basis of the intervention by this group of 19.

“There is also need for Yakurr people at home and

in the diaspora to exploit their numerical strength and highly-developed manpower to benefit from what the state

government has to offer the people of Cross River.”

The leaders, however, appealed to security agencies

to provide a safe corridor for Mkpani people to move from their home to Mkpani junction at the Calabar/

Ikom Highway as well as police effectively the stretch of road from Ekori junction to Nko town.

Akure indigenes elated over choice of Asiwaju Hakeem Gbadamosi-Akure

INDIGENES of Akure have commended the choice of former Ambassador to Greece, Chief Olu Agbi, as the new Asiwaju of Akure kingdom.

Speaking during the installation, the paramount ruler of Akure kingdom and Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, described the newly installed Asiwaju of Akureland as a worthy ambassador of the kingdom, who has contributed to the development of town.

Oba Aladelusi noted that “ filling this position is long overdue but we thank God because this is the right time for the honour to come.

Professor Agbi has paid his dues towards the development of Akure community and we are calling on other sons and daughters to emulate his virtues.”

While urging indigenes of Akure, to cooperate with him to develop the town, the monarch commended the present administration in the state for the unprec-

edented development witnessed in the town in the last seven years.

Speaking after his installation, Professor Agbi pledged to continue to add value to the kingdom, saying he had been serving the interest of Akure kingdom since his undergraduate days at the University of Ibadan He said he knew and understood the needs of his people and had been using every position occupied by him to drive development to his fatherland.

He said: “I must say that I am happy for the honour bestowed on me today as the Asiwaju of Akure Kingdom. “ I deeply appreciate the intelligence of our monarch, a man full of wisdom and I must say that this serves as a call to service at a higher capacity. I will continue to serve my people and work hard for the good of Akure.”

He also promised to ensure the emergence of an Akure indigene as the governor of the state in the February governorship election in the state, to succeed Governor Olusegun Mimiko.

In his comment, Governor Mimiko described the honour as a well deserved one, saying the best recognition a man can get is the one from his kinsmen which is borne out of genuine love.

Mimiko, who was repre-

sented by his deputy, Alhaji Lasisi Oluboyo, urged the former ambassador to continue to support the kingdom and called on the people to support him in taking Akure kingdom to an enviable height.

Kogi gov’s wife presents delivery kits to pregnant women yinka oladoyinbo-lokoja

IN her bid to reduce maternal mortality in the state, the wife of Kogi State governor, Mrs Rashida Bello, has donated delivery kits to pregnant women in selected hospitals in the state.

The presentation, done in hospitals in Okene Local Government Area of the state, saw no fewer than 300 pregnant women benefiting from the scheme organised as part of activities marking the birthday ceremony of the governor’s wife.

Apart from pregnant women, widows and orphans also benefited from the gesture as food items and financial

donation were made to Arqam Orphanage and Widows Home in Okene.

Others were Ideal Health Centre, Ideal Nursery and Primary school and the General Hospital, all in Okene.

The governor’s wife said she made the presentation to the pregnant women in order to enable them have basic delivery items needed in the hospital.

Bello said the gesture was part of the programmes already packaged for the women under her pet project, the Kogi Women and Youth Empowerment Foundation (KOWYEF) to contribute to the development of women and young ones in the state.

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Thursday, 19 May, 2016

foreig naffairs with seyi gesinde

08116954632 foreignnewseditor@gmail.com

US presidential campaigns targeted by hackers—US spy chief’s office

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NITED States presidential campaigns and related organisations have been targeted by hackers, the office of the U.S. National Intelligence Director James Clapper said on Wednesday, but did not provide details on specific intrusions.

“We’re aware that campaigns and related organisations and individuals are targeted by actors with a variety of motivations— from philosophical differences to espionage - and capabilities— from defacements

to intrusions,” Clapper’s spokesman Brian Hale said in a statement, deferring to the FBI for details on specific incidents.

Earlier, Clapper said the U.S. intelligence community had “already had some indications” of hacking attempts against presidential campaigns.

“As the campaign intensifies we’ll probably have more” attacks, Clapper said at a morning event at the Bipartisan Policy Centre in Washington.

According to Reuters, the last two U.S. presidential cycles in 2008 and 2012 witnessed a

Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper. PHOTO: REUTERS barrage of cyber attacks from a range of adversaries targeting President Barack Obama’s campaign and the campaigns of his Republi-

can foes.

U.S. intelligence officials have said many of the previous assaults were linked to Chinese hackers.

How Australia stood up to minister’s ‘illiterate migrants’ comments

WHEN Australia’s immigration minister spoke out about the level of literacy and numeracy among migrants late on Tuesday, he was address-

ing what has become one of the hot potatoes of this election season.

With the build-up to the July 2 vote now in full swing, Peter Dutton

responded to proposals by the opposition Labour party to increase annual refugee numbers from 13,750 to 27,000.

“They won’t be numerate or literate in their own language, let alone English,” he told Sky News. “These people would be taking Australian jobs, there’s no question about that.”

At this point, it is important to point out that 26 per cent of the population of Australia is foreignborn. That’s some 5.8m people, according to the Organisation for Economic

FORMER United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her sole rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, split two state nominating contests Tuesday, leaving her closer to clinching the nomination in three weeks.

VOA revealed that kkClinton edged Sanders in the coalproducing state of Kentucky by about 2,000 votes. It was a margin close enough that election officials said they would not yet declare an official winner,

but Clinton claimed the victory, her first in May. Meanwhile, Sanders defeated her in the Pacific

coastal state of Oregon.

With the outcome in the two states, Clinton, seeking to become the coun-

Australia’s immigration minister, Peter Dutton PHOTO: GETTYIMAGE

Co-operation and Development (OECD), with a fair few voters among them.

In the hours after Mr Dutton’s interview, plenty of those people, their children and their supporters took to social media to respond.

While many people took issue with Mr Dutton’s comments about literacy levels, others spoke out about what they saw as stereotyping of migrants and refugees, and went on to highlight what some immigrants had gone on to achieve in Australia.

otherNEWS Turkey moves towards stripping MPs of immunity TURKEY’S parliament has completed a first round of voting on a bill that will strip some MPs of immunity from prosecution - a move members of the proKurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) say targets them.

The bill, championed by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), would amend the constitution, adding a temporary clause to remove immunity from a total of 138 deputies in the parliament - the number who are currently facing criminal investigations.

Late on Tuesday, the parliament voted to send the bill forward for debate with 348 votes in favour, 155 against and eight abstentions.

On Wednesday, its first article was approved with 350 votes for and 148 against, and its second article approved 357 to 149.

The second of two voting rounds will be held on May 20, Al Jazeera said.

The move needs the support of at least 367 deputies in the 550-seat assembly to be directly passed. It would go to a referendum if it fell short of that number but reached 330 votes.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has the authority, though, to take the bill back to parliament for another vote, rather than to hold a referendum.

Currently, 51 opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) MPs, 50 HDP MPs, 27 AKP MPs, nine Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) MPs and one independent are facing investigations.

Combined, there a total of 667 proceedings against parliamentarians. Some 405 of them are against HDP MPs. “Someone who is aiding and abetting terrorism cannot be an MP,” MHP’s Mehmet Parsak said, speaking in favour of the bill before the vote. “The mentality that supports terrorism cannot seek harbour in the parliament.”

Turkish MPs came to blows and threw water at each other in parliament during talks about the bill last week. Several MPs were hurt. PHOTO: (Reuters)

Clinton closes in on Democratic presidential nomination

Hilary Clinton.

try’s first female president, could clinch the nomination June 7, when six states vote.

Brawl breaks out in South Africa parliament THE battle lines in South Africa’s politics have been drawn after security guards forcibly removed members of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party when they tried to prevent an ad-

dress by President Jacob Zuma in parliament.

About 20 EFF members, who were wrestled from their seats by plainclothed guards on Tuesday, refused to let Zuma

speak and shouted down Baleka Mbete, the speaker of the National Assembly.

The EFF argued that Zuma was not fit to address the house after recent court decisions against him. They

said they would repeat their disruptive actions until he resigned.

“These bouncers must know that if they give violence, we will respond with violence. We are not scared,”

Julius Malema, the EFF leader, said outside parliament.

“Zuma will never find peace in this parliament. Every time he comes here, the same thing will happen.”

Somaliland celebrates 25 years of self-declared independence SOMALILAND is celebrating its 25th anniversary of independence on Wednesday, but as far as the international community is concerned, Somaliland is not a country. It remains part of Somalia. International recognition of statehood may still be a long time coming.

People, cattle, camels, donkeys and a lion, dressed up in Somaliland’s red, white and green flag Wednesday for

parades and celebrations marking 25 years since Somaliland’s self-declared independence from the Federal Republic of Somalia, VOA reported.

Mohamed Ahmed is the executive director of the Somaliland Non State Actors Forum, based in Hargeisa.

He, like many other Somalilanders, takes offense to the phrase “self-declared.”

“We are very much strong,” he said. “The international community must accept our case, and I think there is no reason the international community (should) hesitate this time Somaliland not being recognised, because already we have shown that Somaliland has maintained its peace and security, economic development, infrastructure.”

Women march in a procession to celebrate the 25th anniversary of proclaimed independence in the capital Hargeisa, Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia. PHOTO: AP

38

Thursday, 19 May, 2016 Editor: Ganiyu Salman tribunesporteditor@yahoo.com 08053789060

15 teams in race for 2016 Access Bank-UNICEF Charity Shield Polo

Shooting stars Izu Joseph (left) and team-mate, Wasiu Jimoh celebrate after scoring.

3SC pips Abia Warriors 2-0

By Olawale Olaniyan

S

HOOTING Stars Sports Club of Ibadan (3SC) woke up from its slumber on Wednesday at the Lekan Salami Stadium, Ibadan, as it hammered Abia Warriors 2-0 in a week 18 fixture of the Nigeria Premier League.

The victory of the Oluyole Warriors came under a caretaker coach, Friday Christopher, following the

resignation of the team’s technical adviser, Kadiri Ikhana last week.

After a stalemate in the first half, Kabiru Umar opened the scoring in the 49th minute as he cashed in on a pass from Cletus Itodo.

Muyiwa Lawal doubled the lead the 56th minute with a set-piece which caught goalkeeper John Gaadi helpless.

Speaking with Tribunesport, the General Manager of 3SC, Mr Rasheed Balo-

gun disclosed that the Oyo State government paid the players a month salary on Tuesday, which also aided the team’s performance.

“The players were paid yesterday a month salary and I believe this greatly motivated them to victory today,” Balogun said.

Meanwhile, Abia Warriors handler, Kennedy Boboye said his players had themselves to blame for the loss.

“My boys lost concentra-

tion right from the first 10th minute of the second half and we paid dearly for it.

They (3SC) showed class and played to win,” Boboye, a former Sunshine Stars coach said.

Meanwhile, 3SC interim coach, Christopher said “We spoke to the players that they should play in the interest of their career and not money they were being owed and thank God we got it right.

They deserve kudos”.

Glo charges Dream Team to prepare hard for Rio Olympics NIGERIA’S U-23 national team and Africa U-23 champions, ‘Dream Team’ have been urged to prepare very hard for the football event of the 2016 Rio Olympics scheduled to begin on August 4 in Brazil.

Globacom in a press statement urged the Samson Siasia-piloted side to work assiduously towards making Nigeria and Africa proud in the competition, adding that the Dream Team’s participation at the Olympics is another opportunity for Nigeria to make a bold statement at the world football stage.

Globacom called on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to strengthen the boys’ preparedness by organising a series of friend-

lies for the team to bring the best out of them and generally keep them in shape.

It stressed that the reigning African champions have the advantage of having in the squad many players who had been playing together in different age-grade competitions.

Globacom also advised the technical crew of the team to go for the fittest and most talented players, thus ensuring that the first eleven of the team as well as the bench are the best we can assemble.

“If we put our best foot forward, we can withstand any opposition right from the first match,” Glo added.

Nigeria will play in group B alongside Sweden, Colombia and Japan

at Rio 2016.

The Dream Team emerged victorious at the African U-23 Nations Cup in Senegal in 2015 and qualified with Algeria and South Africa to represent Africa at the football

event of 2016 Olympics.

It will be recalled, that Nigeria’s ‘Dream Team’ captained by Nwankwo Kanu won the 1996 Atlanta Olympics gold, the first time by an African country.

THE 2016 edition of the Access Bank-UNICEF Charity Shield Polo tournament is scheduled to hold in Kangimi Resort, Kaduna, from May 25 to June 5, 2016.

The biggest charity polo event in Africa in collaboration with Fifth Chukker will this year, feature 15 teams vying for honours in three categories, organisers of the event said at a press conference in Lagos.

The event, which is in its 10th year of Access Bank sponsorship, is a reaffirmation of the importance of the lives of the orphaned and vulnerable children in northern Nigeria.

Executive Director, Personal Banking, Access Bank, Victor Etuokwu, said the Bank had maintained its yearly support to UNICEF towards its projects for orphans and vulnerable children.

He stated that in addition to the donation, the bank

is continually seeking new avenues through which more resources can be pooled towards supporting the children and touching the lives of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) scattered across the country.

“We have been working in Kaduna, in collaboration with UNICEF to elevate quality of lives. We need to do a lot more in support of these orphans and vulnerable children to especially in the IDP camps to enable them to live a better life and have access to education,” he added.

The UNICEF representative in Nigeria, Jean Gough who was represented by UNICEF Communication Officer, Blessing Ejiofor, thanked Access Bank for the partnership which has over the past decade positively touched the lives of children needing support particularly in Kaduna and its environs.

Rabiu Adeola U-12 scrabble tourney begins in Lagos THE maiden Rabiu Adeola U-12 scrabble championship would begin today at the Lagos Country Club Ikeja, Lagos.

The competition which is aimed at discovering and nurturing young talents will see 50 kids from over 12 schools in Lagos and Ogun states in a battle of word power.

Chrisland Schools, Mind Builders School, Trinity College, Karis Schools, Dansol School, Grange Schools, Olive Success Academy, Coastland, Berkeley Science Magnet School and others will slug it out at the oneday event.

Organisers of the competition, 27 July Ltd are optimistic that the competition will not only discover

players for the future but also give other kids the opportunity to showcase their talents.

Sponsor and sports broadcaster, Bimbo Adeola who said the competition is in memory of his late dad who passed on three years ago also informed that it will be an annual event.

“The competition is being put together to honour my dad who was very passionate about words and by extension the sport. It’s also our own way to give back to the society and also discover new talents for the country. We will ensure that the competition holds every year at the Lagos Country Club and endeavour to have schools from other parts of the country participate in future editions.”

Canada-based Nigerian runs to raise funds for SJ Syndrome Yinka Oladoyinbo-Lokoja

A Canada-based 25-yearold Nigerian, Fadesola Adedayo, has started a 17day marathon from Abuja to Lagos last Friday to promote awareness and raise research funds on the Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) in Nigeria.

The marathoner, who ar-

rived in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital about 9:15 am, said he had been running 44-km daily in the last six days when he began the road race.

Adedayo told Tribunesport that he embarked on the project to keep alive the memory of his Birmingham, UK-based late older brother, Dr Adeyosola Adedayo,

who died of the SJS syndrome on March 20, 2012 in Lagos during a free community health service.

The marathoner explained that SJS was an allergic skin reaction to drug, saying that the disease was not new as being wrongly inputted in some quarters.

According to him, victims of the disease in the western

world have 60 per cent survival chance, just as he noted that the mortality was far higher in Africa and other developing world.

He said that the marathon was to create awareness and raise funds for research on the syndrome, saying that part of the funds will be used to create a data base of its would-be victims in Nigeria.

39

tribunepools

DR J.K POOLS – 07039275802 (01XX 02) 4 – 11 – 15 – 16 – 42.

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FORTUNE DONOR DONATES 14 – 16 (08099111828) Our sure forth games lands on 14 – 16 for a good draw this week fixtures are enabling us to prepare well for wk 47, when some Aussie teams appear on the cards. Week 48 is for pumper harvest in Aussie, so get prepared.

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JOSEPH INITIATIVE 08167278061 (15XX16) BURSASPOR on date of play confirmed our 3 scheduled Nap for the week. Initially we intended to rest till next week due to the unpalatable fixtures on coupon but due to the advise from Dr. Mac Griffins, our overseas draw Experts on fixed matches gave us the winning courage.

Invest N25,000 to 2016 Aussie. Don’t be left out.

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WEEK 45 STATUS TODAY - 16 to 24 FRIDAY - 41 VOID - 19, 20, 21

NOTE = COUPON CLOSES TODAY, 19TH BY 2.30-3.PM.

Thursday, 19 - 25 May, 2016

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE POOLS PAGE

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Our last week Nap is to user you to promising 2016 Aussie season.

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STAKE BIG & WIN BIG - HE ASSURES. IKE & BROTHERS-08168157259 (24X45) OVERRIDE PROMOTERES IN WEEK 44=2X8X10XX KEY:- WESTBROM vs LIVERPOOL ON NO 10.

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SUNDERLAND SYSTEM 09038460009 1 NAP 11 Aussie system booklet out N3000.Membership N50,000 4 special draws N6,000 wk 45 NO NAP NAP NAP NAP WITH 1. 11 4 special draws N6,000 wk 46 NO NAP NAP NAP NAP WITH. NAP NAP 4 special draws wk47 NO NAP NAP NAP NAP WITH NAP NAP NAP Two bankers N3000 Wk 45 NO NAP NAP PAIR NAP NAP Two bankers N3000 Wk 46 NO NAP NAP PAIR NAP NAP Time to win pool this wk 45 Sunderland system 4 special draws this wk 45 will play = 4/4,Correct hurry up to get your copy today two bankers cost N3,000 wk 45 NO NAP NAP PAIR NAP NAP. Send MTN card 09038460009.

TRIPLE CONTINUES THE FAREWEL GIFTS WITH 14 – 21 (08035324990) Advance features show that no Australian teams will appear on Nigerian coupon with week 47 when some of them appear from Nos 34 – 49. This is very strange.

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JOSEPH INITIATIVE WIN 08167278061 (15XX16) BURSASPOR on date of play confirmed our 3 scheduled Nap for the week. Initially we intended to rest till next week due to the unpalatable fixtures on coupon but due to the advise from Dr. Mac Griffins, our overseas draw Experts on fixed matches gave us the winning courage. Invest N25,000 to 2016 Aussie. Don’t be left out.

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THURSDAY, 19 MAY, 2016

“The reality in Nigeria however is that government and private individuals have yet to fully appreciate that private universities deserve financial attention in the form of grants, donations and endowment.”

N the past four editions I have been discussing some of the issues raised in the article of Mr. Laolu Harolds published in the Nigerian Tribune including the following: 1.

Origin of private universities 2.

The role of private universities 3.

Contribution to civilisation 4.

Funding by philanthropists 5.

Other sources of income.

6.

On funding, we discussed the role of philanthropists, endowment, gifts, donations, school fees, alumni contributions and grants.

This week, I intend to discuss the role of governments and attitude of government to university funding.

History of private universities: To start with, history shows that private universities were established by churches, philanthropists, monarchs, corporation of students, mutual aid societies, governors, communities and heads of state who in their lifetime donated money to start universities or through testamentary disposition bequeathed their wealth to trustees to found universities.

Such universities included: 1. University of Paris which was founded in France by Catholic Church in 1150; 2. University of Constantinople was founded in 425AD by Emperor Theodosius II and is regarded as the oldest university in the world; 3. University of Bologna, Italy was founded in 1088 by Mutual Aid Society of Foreign Students; 4. Dartmouth, a private Ivy League research university in Hannover New Hamsphere was established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, a congressional minister; 5. Brown University, a private Ivy League university in New Port Rhode Island was founded in 1761 by residents of New Port; 6. University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League University located in Philadelphia was founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1740; 7. Cornell University, a private university and member of Ivy League was founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dick-

I

OFR, CON, SAN, LL.D, D.Litt

Nigeria has just lost its place as Africa’s largest oil producer.

While determined efforts must be made to arrest the situation, will Nigeria not do better if it puts an end to its unthinking wedding to oil and callous abandonment of many natural resources?

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Role of government in university education son White and located in Ithaca New York; 8. Yale University, an American Private Ivy League Research University in New Haven Connecticut was founded in 1701 and was renamed Yale College in 1718 in recognition of a gift from Elihu Yale a former governor of British East India Company to train Congregationalist ministers in Theology and Sacred languages; 9. Harvard University, a private research University in Cambridge Massachusset in USA was established in 1636 and was named after John Harvard his first benefactor; 10. Stanford University, a private university in Stanford, California and was founded in 1885 by Leyland Stanford, former Governor of and US Senator from California; and 11. Johns Hopkins University a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland was founded in 1876 and named after his benefactor, Johns Hopkins. On his death in 1873, Johns Hopkins, a childless bachelor bequeath $7,000,000 approximately today $140,000,000 to fund the hospital and the university in Baltimore, Maryland.

12. University of Oxford was founded in 1096 by students who had returned from University of Paris 13. University of Cambridge was founded in 1209 by Association of Scholars who left University of Oxford after a dispute with the towns people The George Washington University is a classic example of what operated in the thirteen new colonies of America.

Fully conscious of Washington’s hopes, but motivated primarily by a great missionary urge and the need for a learned clergy, a group of dedicated ministers and laymen sponsored a movement for the establishment of a college in the District of Columbia. Inspired largely by the zeal and energy of Reverend Luther Rice, they raised funds for the purchase of a site and petitioned Congress for a charter. After much delay and amendment, Congress granted a charter, which was approved by President Monroe on February 9, 1821.

In the case of the University of Oxford, it was first established as a lay corporation under common law and was later incorporated by statute formally. The early history of the University shows that it evolved from a group of Masters and students residing in Oxford in the latter part of the twelfth century. The University met in the churches of 81, Mary’s until 16th C. The academic society which they collectively brought in life paralleled similar associations at other centres of learning in Europe, notably Bologna and Paris.

Government Attitude:

Governments all over the world do appreciate the contributions of private universities to education development. Consequently, governments support these private universities and their founders not only in words but also by the provision of grants. There is nothing out of the ordinary in this. While government as a matter of policy is not expected to and indeed does not give money to individuals to found private universities, it nevertheless should in appreciation of their work to society support such private universities with grants. Table 1 below shows government grants to some private institutions in the United States.

Government grants to universities in US dollars UNIVERSITY 2014 2015 HARVARD 799,930,000 805,821,000 PENNSYLVANIA 650,000,000 683,800,000 PRINCETON 272,280,000 274,973,000 COLUMBIA 761,825,000 753,366,000 BROWN 147,499,000 151,458,000 YALE 512,600,000 507,100,000 CORNELL 149,065,000 148,712,000 DARTHMOUTH 42,754,000 42,121,000 STANFORD 1,266,000,000 1,387,000,000

Table 2 is the Naira equivalent (at the exchange rate of N199.22 to a dollar) of the grants made to these private universities by government.

UNIVERSITY 2014 2015 Harvard N159,362,100,000 N160,535,700,000 Pennsylvania N129,493,000,000 N136,266,600,000 Princeton N54,243,620,000 N54,780,120,000 Columbia N151,770,800,000 N150,085,600,000 Brown N29,384,750,000 N30,173,460,000 Yale N102,120,120,000 N101,024,500,000 Cornell N29,696,730,000 N29,626,400,000 Dartmouth N8,517,452,000 N8,391,346,000 Stanford N252,212,500,000 N276,318,100,000 The reality in Nigeria however is that government and private individuals have yet to fully appreciate that private universities deserve financial attention in the form of grants, donations and endowment.

Next week, we shall discuss attitudes of Nigeria government (federal and state) and its citizens to private universities and also the discriminatory distribution of TETFund.

To be continued.

ITTF Premier Nigeria Open: Nigerian Jamiu stuns Russian opponent HOME boy, Azeez Jamiu on Wedenesday made a great comeback to defeat Russian Andrey Bukin in the ongoing ITTF Premier Lotto Nigeria Open in Lagos.

Jamiu, gave the fans at the Molade Okoya Thomas Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, something to cheer as he cancelled the 0-2 lead courtesy of his five-star performance before he defeated Bukin 4-3 in an exciting match.

From the start of the match, it was as if Jamiu was going to play a second fiddle to

the European, but the motivation from fans inspired the Nigerian to rise to the occasion and eventually carry the day.

An elated Jamiu speaking after his heroics said he changed tactics to overcome the Russian.

“I discovered I was playing his pattern and I decided to change my tactics and this paid off for me. I am not in the competition to make up the numbers but to aim at the podium. Being my first time, I am afraid of any of my opponents as my target is to win the title.

“I am aware of the quality of the players in this tournament but for me, rating does not win title,” Jamiu said.

Meanwhile, the doubles event will start today while the final round of the preliminary stage of the singles events in men and U-21 hold with the 16 and eight players expected to make it to the main draw.

Players from no fewer than 16 countries are featuring in the prestigious ITTF Challenge which has $46,000 as its overall prize money.

NPFL results Shooting Stars 2 Abia Warriors 0 Sunshine Stars 3 Wikki Tourists 1 Rivers United 1 Akwa United 0 Ikorodu Utd 1 Warri Wolves 0 Heartland

0 Plateau United 0

Nasarawa Utd 2 Lobi Stars

Printed and Published by the African Newspapers of Nigeria PLC, Imalefalafia Street, Oke-Ado, Ibadan. E mail: editornigeriantribune@yahoo.com Website: www.tribuneonlineng.com MANAGING DIRECTOR / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: EDWARD DICKSON. EDITOR: DEBO ABDULAI. All Correspondence to P.O. Box 78, Ibadan. ISSN 2712. ABC Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation. 19/05/2016.

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