20th October 2015 by Nigerian Tribune

nigeria’s most informative newspaper no 16,352

TUESDAY, 20 OCTOBER, 2015

www.tribuneonlineng.com

Buhari's govt clueless —Adebanjo —P4

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Police arrest 80-yr-old Edo woman with 68 live cartridges —P5

Screening: Saraki clears way for Amaechi —P5

•As Senate committee rejects petition on Sokoto nominee •5 ministerial nominees seek Dogara's intervention

2 Oyo pilgrims detained in Saudi for drug offences —P44

Saraki: Appeal Court adjourns judgment —P44 indefinitely

Members of the Women Arise Initiative, led by Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, calling for justice for Mrs Comfort Idongesit Udoh, who was killed by Corporal Museliu Aremu, during his arraignment at Ebute Metta magistrates' court, Lagos, on Monday. photo: Sylvester Okoruwa.

EFCC arrests Kebbi ex-gov, Dakingari —P6

Weather, logistics hampering war on terror, service chiefs tell Buhari —P4

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

CHIEF (MRS) HID AWOLOWO (1915-2015)

PHOTOS: ALOLADE GANIYU

9 1. Reverend (Mrs) Tola Oyediran welcoming Ambassador Hamzat Ahmadu. With them is Mrs Kemi Aderemi. 2. Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran flanked by priests from Sagamu-West Archdeacondry. 3. Cross section of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Sagamu, with Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran. 4. Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran flanked by, from left, Otunba Lola Adefope, Olori Ekundayo Onasanya, Olori Odun Sijuwade, Olori Ladun Sijuwade and Mrs Folake Adefope. 5. From left, NAFDAC representative, Abuja, Deputy Director, Mr Ugochukwu Ilo, Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran, Ambassador Ahmadu and the Regulatory Officer, NAFDAC, Mr

Idowu â&#x20AC;&#x2122;Seyi. 6. Mrs Olufunmilayo Solarin-Adetutu signing condolence register. 7. Assistant Commissioner of Police, Otta Area Command, Mr Adegoke Fayoade (second left), presenting a letter of condolence to Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran. With them is DPO Ikenne, S.P. Alabi Lateef (left) and Mr Wasiu Adeola. 8. Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran flanked by Miss Olajumoke Akinbolajo (right) and Miss Omolara Adegbite. 9. Members of Sagamu Plumbers Association of Nigeria with Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran. 10. From left, CEO, Westford, Mr Bukola Olabiran; Reverend (Mrs) Oyediran, Ambassador Hamzat Ahmadu and Alhaji Abubakar Atiku Ahmadu.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

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Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Buhari’s govt clueless —Adebanjo

•Intellectuals-in-politics must document experience —Mimiko By Kunle Oderemi and Dare Adekanmbi

FENIFERE chieftain and Awoist, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has described the government of President Muhammadu Buhari as clueless and one with no identifiable blueprint or a compass with which to navigate the ship of the country to improve the lot of the citizenry. Chief Adebanjo spoke in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, on Monday, on the sideline of the launch of a two-volume autobiography, written by a former minister, Professor Tunde Adeniran, as part of activities marking his 70th birthday. Guests at the launch included a former Senate President, Senator Ken Nnamani, who chaired the event; Professor Alkali Ahmed; Chief Segun Oni; Senator Femi Okurounmu; Mr Tunde Ayeni; Jimi Agbaje; Major General David Jemibewon (retd); Brigadier General Oladayo Popoola; Professor Eghosa Osaghae; Brigadier-General Raji Rasaki; Dr Umar Mustapha; Dr Yemi Farounbi and many others. Adebanjo said it was baffling that Buhari, who traversed the length and breadth of the country, campaigning to Nigerians on what he would do differently if voted, could not do any tangible programme after almost five months in office. The octogenarian said although he did not want Buhari’s government to fail and supported his anticorruption crusade, added that success would not come without an economic blueprint which would reverse the increasingly poor socio-economic conditions of Nigerians. “Even now that the ministers have been appointed, where is the blueprint that they are going to work with? They are just talking about change, change and anticorruption. After wiping out corruption, will there be food on the table of Nigerians? “They are clueless; they have no programme. The only thing they were determined to do was to chase Jonathan away. I have said it and will continue to say it. I don’t want Buhari to fail. I only want him to prove people like me who spoke against his ambition wrong. “He should prove that he is not a dictator and a trib-

alist. How could he appoint 31 people and only seven came from the South? He is not ruling Daura or the North. He is ruling Nigeria and must carry everybody along. “As a person, Buhari has integrity, but the integrity must be used in a way that will carry every Nigerian along, without discrimina-

tion. Who is strange among the nominated ministers? However good some of them are and there are really good people among them, but should it have taken us four months to do? “Are they not the people Buhari had been campaigning with? And when they had been campaigning for almost 16 years to be in

power, has he got an idea of what he is going to do? He ought to have an idea and a policy,” Adebanjo said. The Afenifere chieftain traced the seeming lack of direction in the government to that manner the leaders of the various parties that coalesced into the All Progressives Congress (APC) came together.

“Individually, they all have various vested interests. That is why the first thing we saw in the National Assembly was crisis. You don’t share the booty after winning the war. They should have agreed on how to share the booty when they were fighting the war. “It is unfortunate for this country. People like Tunde

From left, former Senate President, Ken Nnamani; Pro-Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Dr Umar-Musa Mustapha; Ondo State governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko and the celebrant, Professor Tunde Adeniran, at the launching of a book written by Professor Adeniran to commemorate his 70th birthday, held at the Conference Centre, UI, Ibadan, on Monday. PHOTO: TOMMY ADEGBITE

Adeniran are in APC, PDP and other parties. But where they are, they have been overwhelmed by bread-andbutter politicians who really don’t know what service is all about. This was not the attitude of politicians at preindependence era. “When we see people like Adeniran, to me, they are anxious to be in power and that was why they joined them. I have told people like him that where he is, he has not got people of his ilk because when they got there they were frustrated. It is not what he wants that is happening in the PDP. “People like me are too conservative and that was why we were in the opposition in Awo’s party throughout because we were always asking what they were going to do for the people each time they asked us to join them,” he added. Also speaking with newsmen, Ondo State governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, stressed the need for intellectuals who joined partisan politics to always document their experiences to disabuse the minds of those who cast politicians in the mould of vagabonds and rogues.

Weather, logistics hampering war against terror, service chiefs tell Buhari •Nigerian Army reliable —Buratai Chris Agbambu and Leon Usigbe - Abuja PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari, on Monday, received briefings from Service Chiefs on the challenges the Nigerian Armed Forces are facing as they bid to root out Boko Haram insurgents in the NorthEast, telling him that bad weather and inadequate logistics were causing challenges. The meeting, also attended by the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Defence, Aliyu Ismaila, took place in the president’s office, Presidential Villa, Abuja. Briefing State House correspondents after the meeting, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Gabriel Abayomi Olonisakin, who was joined by the Permanent Secretary, explained that the meeting was a routine one, aimed at updating the president on the progress of the war. He said they told him about the effect of weather and the logistics required to enable the military to carry

out their mandate. He said: “It is a normal consultation to intimate him of the issues on ground. We briefed him on the security situation on ground after a 60-day review and we had to brief him on the challenges we have and ensure that the mandate we have is properly delivered.” Asked to comment on the challenges specifically, he said: “Of course, the challenges we are looking at are the issues of probably the weather as it were and some other logistics that we feel we should have so that the mandate can be quickly delivered.” Olonisakin revealed that the president was happy after the briefing, saying “he is very excited, very happy. As for our request, he gave the mandate.” The CDS refused to be drawn into whether or not the military might required an extension of the three months deadline given for them to end the Boko Haram insurgency, in view of the challenges they are now facing.

“We have not said that. The mandate is that we should clear Boko Haram from the occupied territories and ensure that we reclaim all the lost grounds. That is exactly what we are doing,” he added. But he noted that since it was a military operation, it would work with time lines, noting “it is a military operation and military operations have time-lines and these we are working on the assiduously.” On the Uited States, United Kingdom support for the war, the military boss said the countries had been involved in some capacity building. In his remark, Ismaila revealed that the president directed the military to continue to do what they have been doing. “The directive is that we should continue what we have been doing and in the next few days, there will be another meeting, but by and large, the president is excited and confident that the leadership of the Nigerian Armed Forces he puts in will do us proud,” he

stated. Meanwhile, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant-General Tukur Buratai, has described the Nigerian Army as a force to be reckoned with at all times. He spoke when the Republic of Netherlands Defence Attaché to Nigeria, Colonel Eric Adriaan de Landmeter, who paid him a courtesy call at the Army Headquarters, last week. General Buratai commended the Defence Attache for the visit, emphasising that the two countries had been participating in peace support operations for a long time. According to him, as the Multinational Joint Task Force had commenced operation, troops contributing-countries were expected to operate within their territories. He assured he Defence Attaché of the Nigerian Army’s determination to end Boko Haram activities soon. Earlier, the Defence Attaché commended the COAS and the Nigerian Army for

their efforts in the current fight against insurgency. He further stated that his country was interested in what was happening in Nigeria, stressing that Netherlands had the capacity to offer specialty in many areas to the country . Also, the Managing Director of Total E&P Nigeria, Mr Nicolas Terraz, also led some management staff of the company on a courtesy visit to the COAS, Lieutenant-General Buratai at the Army Headquarters. Speaking during the visit, Mr Terraz commended the Nigerian Army for protecting lives and property of the citizens. He applauded the troops for the professional manner in which they were carrying out their assigned roles. The Managing Director stated that one of the major challenges facing the company was oil theft, as well as pipeline vandalism and promised to ensure that the already existing cordial relationship between the company and the Nigerian Army was always maintained.

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Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Ministerial screening: Saraki clears the way for Amaechi

•Senate APC caucus meets •Ethics Committee dismisses petition against Sokoto nominee Taiwo Adisa -Abuja

ENATE President, Dr Bukola Saraki, appeared to have cleared the way for the screening of the former Rivers State governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, on Monday, following the declaration of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, which probed a petition against the former governor. Chairman of the Senate committee, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, while briefing newsmen after the committee meeting on Monday, said "there are petitions and we are treating them. And they are part of today's (Monday) committee public hearing. We have heard that of (former Governor Rotimi) Amaechi and these reports will be presented tomorrow (Tuesday) and by the time it comes out tomorrow (Tuesday), the press will have it. I can assure you that the report will be ready tomorrow (today)." His declaration was coming on the heels of several meetings held between stakeholders on Sunday night and Monday evening. It was learnt that Saraki, who called for the file of the ethics committee on Sunday, was satisfied that the former governor could now appear for screening. The Senate caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) also met at the National Assembly on Monday night. The meeting, which was held at the House Hearing Room 1 of White House, commenced at 7.00 p.m. It was learnt that the meet-

ing was meant to finalise the take of the caucus on the Amaechi issue. It was gathered that some stakeholders in the party had rallied the senators on the need to save Amaechi, being a nominee of President Muhammadu Buhari. The meeting was still underway as of press time on Monday. “The party has resolved that Amaechi should be saved and the meeting fixed for Monday evening was just to ratify that position. "The leaders are seeking a united front in this bid,” a source close to the National Assembly caucus of the APC said. Also on Monday, the Senate ethics committee dumped the petition against the nominee from Sokoto State, Ms Aisha Abubakar, for lack of merit. The 13-member committee, after listening to Aisha Abubakar, who appeared before it on Monday, dismissed the petition submitted to the Senate against her. A group of women, in a petition signed by Hajia Balaraba Abdullahi, submitted through Senator Ibrahim Gobir, representing Sokoto East, had alleged that Abubakar was incompetent for the office. They also claimed that the nominee was from the same local government area as Governor Aminu Tambuwal, adding that her confirmation would alter the political arrangement of the state. The committee, however, said the petition was wrongly addressed to President Buhari, while it was only copied to the Senate. The committee said that

Ogundiran invested ICAN chairman, Ogbomoso/Oyo district MR Mikail Olalekan Ogundiran has been invested as Ogbomoso/Oyo district chairman, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), with a pledge to run an all-inclusive administration. At the investiture ceremony held in Ogbomoso recently, Ogundiran assured of effective participation of members in the administration of the society, in continuation of the laid down succession plan of the organisation. Noting the need for increased awareness about the programmes of the society, he also highlighted his administration’s agenda to include canvassing for more students to sit for ICAN examinations. This, he added, was aimed at acquainting students with necessary tools for upcoming accounting technicians.

Specifically, he restated his commitment to the “Catch Them Young Programme,” to enable members to get first-hand information about the institute. To this end, he inaugurated committees to oversee students’ mobilisation, social publicity, investiture/inauguration, finance, SWAN sensitization and that of landed property. The event had in attendance the President of ICAN, Chief Olufemi Deru. Other inaugurated members of the district were, vice chairman, Mr A. A. Ismaheel; general secretary, Mr O. O. Fasipe; Dr A. A. Agoro; social/publicity secretary, Mr O. A. Ghazal; technical secretary, Mrs Fatima Olayiwola; financial secretary, Mrs A. A. Agoro; assistant general secretary, Elder K. A. Adegboye; treasurer, Mrs T. Ayantoyinbo.

the petition was merely forwarded to the Senate for information. Senators who commented on the petition at the meeting said there was no need for them to hear the petition since it was wrongly addressed. Senator Joseph Obinna said the petition was not meant for the Senate, while Senator Dino Melaye also noted that the petitioners wrote in long hand and also failed to state the specific aspect of the constitution breached by the nomination. Senator Binta Garba Marshi and Senator Jeremiah Useni said since the nominee had been confirmed to be an indigene of Sokoto State, the petition should be ignored. Counsel for the nominee, Dr Bukola Akinola, also argued that the petition was written by faceless persons whose address could not be traced. While speaking before the committee, Abubakar said

she is a public servant and an indigene of Dogondaji, in Sokoto State. Senator Anyanwu, therefore, said the report of his committee would be laid before the senate today. Meanwhile, Amaechi, on Monday, said he never stormed the residence of Senate President, Dr Saraki in anger, contrary to media reports. Amaechi, in a statement signed on his behalf by David Iyofor, said the former governor did not visit the residence of the Senate President on the date contained in the media report. The statement also indicated that Amaechi held the office of the Senate President in high esteem and would never do anything to lower the office. In another development, some of the ministerial nominees on Monday, held a closed-door meeting with Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara, in his office, National As-

sembly, in Abuja. The meeting, however, Nigerian Tribune learnt it was fence-mending courtesy call on the Speaker. Those who were at the meeting included Mrs Aisha Abubakar (Sokoto), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri,(Rivers),BrigaierGeneral Mansur Dan Ali (Zamfara), Honourable Kadija Abba Ibrahim(Yobe), Suleiman Bello (Adamawa) and Zainab Ahmed (Kaduna). The incoming ministers in the soon to be inaugurated Federal Executive Council (FEC) were led to the Speaker’s office by two Senior Special Assistants to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Ita Enang (Senate) and Honourable Abdurahman Sumaila Kawu (House of Representatives). Some of the nominees are already facing stiff opposition in their home state. When contacted for comment on the development, the Special Assistant to the

Speaker on Media and Public Affairs, Mr Turaki Hassan, simply said the meeting could not hold as scheduled.

Group commends South-East senators

‘Move on Nigeria’, a political and Civic-Action Group, has commended the Senate for swiftly approving the ministerial list submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari, contrary to expectations that the list may be frustrated, especially given that the chosen were not the “saints” the nation waited for. In a released issued in Abuja, on Monday and signed by the group’s national coordinator, Mr Clem Aguiyi, the group singled out Ekiti senators and in particular, all the SouthEast senators for praise and commendation, noting that they put national interest over and above partisan interest in supporting the nominees from their respective zones.

Woman, 80, paraded with 64 cartridges in Edo Banji Aluko - Benin City A 80-year-old woman has been paraded by the police in Edo State, for having in her possession, 68 live cartridges. Police said the woman, Comfort Izedomwen, confessed that she started peddling ammunition about six months ago, after she suf-

fered a medical condition in her leg. State Police Commissioner, Mr Chris Ezike, at a media briefing on Monday, said Madam Izedomwen was arrested at Ekae, a village in the suburb of Benin, after her accomplice, one Stella Omobude, was arrested with 32 live cartridges on October 8. The commissioner, who

also paraded 71 other suspected criminals at the state headquartres in Benin, noted that Izedomwen did not give details of her family members. “On October 8, based on credible information, operatives and tactical units of the command raided Ekaen village on the Benin-Auchi Expressway and arrested one Stella Omobude, aged 48, a

peddler of cartridges to suspected robbers,” Ezike said. In an interaction with journalists, Madam Izedomwen claimed that she was in the business of selling cartridges to hunters and private security operatives at the cost of N250 per one. She said: “I sell to them at N250, but I don’t know what they do with it. That is what I do for a living.”

2 rice importers owe Nigeria N44bn duties, appear before Senate Taiwo Adisa -Abuja TWO rice importing companies, The Stallion Group and Olam International, were, on Monday, accused of owing the Federal Government the sum of N44 billion in import duties. The Senate ad hoc committee on rice waivers, headed by Senator Adamu Aliero, which was told of the development on Monday, said the companies imported rice beyond the quotas granted them by the Federal Government since May 2014. Senator Aliero said Nigeria

would not fold its hands and watch the huge debt swept under the carpet. “There is no way the government will ignore this kind of money. We have to ensure that this money is collected and deposited into the federation account,” he said. He also said the two companies imported rice into the country without the required duties paid to the Nigeria Customs Service. Aliero stated that when the customs service accosted Stallion Group, the company dragged the Service to court.

According to him, the company flouted the quota given to it to by the Federal Government by importing 457,000 metric tonnes instead of the approved 157,000 metric tonnes of rice. Executive Director of Stallion Group, Mr Harpreet Singh, however, claimed that the company’s mission in Nigeria was to ensure self sufficiency in rice production and also to ensure that the country did not incur shortage of the product. He said the company had incurred losses as a result

of Nigeria’s porous borders, adding that former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, granted the approval on fiscal policy on rice production on May 26, 2014. While appearing before the committee, Olam’s representative, Ade Adefeko, also claimed that it had the largest rice farm in Africa and that it had been operating in Nigeria in the last 35 years. He said the company was seeking legal opinion on the matter, adding that it would abide by whatever counsel duly given.

Call Eze to order, Akure union urges Mimiko THE Akure National Union (ANU), Ibadan chapter, has asked the Ondo State governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, to undertake disciplinary measures on the suspended Eze Ndigbo of Ondo State, Mr Gregory Iloehika and order him to apologise to the Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, for what it called the desecration of the monarchy and gross disrespect for Akure tradition. The union made this

known in a release issued by its president, Professor Abiodun Ayodele. Last week, it was reported that Mr Iloehika and some Igbo youths in Akure had demonstrated over plans by the palace to suspend the Eze for what was reported as rudeness to the Deji by the Akure-based businessman. The Deji had reportedly sent the “Iru Okun,” the traditional insignia of his office, to Iloehika as an invitation

to him over a clash between indigenes of the state capital and some Igbo traders over disagreements on the running of an Akure market, but the Deji was rebuffed by the former Eze, who refused to attend the meeting, while Igbo youth destroyed the traditional staff of office. The report also alleged that thereafter, the Deji invited Iloehika to his palace, but the latter came to the venue of the meeting to ridicule the

palace and rudely desecrated the sacredness and respect due to the monarch and Akure tradition. In the release, the Akure group said it was unbecoming for Iloehika to ridicule the ancient traditional stool of the Deji which, it said, was the link between the people and their ancestors, stating that the people of Akure would resist every attempt to continue to disrespect their monarch.

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Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

HID worked for Nigeria’s unity —Ahmadu By Tunde Ogunesan

HIEF (Mrs) HID Awolowo has been described as a symbol of unity and one who put in her all to ensure Nigeria remains a united country, especially after the death of her husband, Chief Obafemi Awolowo. This was revealed by Ambassador Hamzat Ahmadu, who also disclosed that he delivered the message of former president, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, during his visit to the Ikenne home of the Awolowos, on Monday. Ambassador Ahmadu, however, informed that he still cherished the fond memory and bond he has with the sage family, having represented the former military head of state, General Yakubu Gowon during the wedding of Dr Tokunbo Awolowo Dosumu. On the death of Chief (Mrs) Awolowo, the former Nigeria’s ambassador to Russia, United States, Cameroon and the then Eastern Germany said “Mama HID is also my Mama. She gave me quite a number of presents when she was alive. I was to come and celebrate her 100th birthday in November, but here we are. “She is a very good woman. When her husband died, she tried in her own capacity as much as possible to unite the country and I think she will be wellknown as a unifier of Nigeria. Her death is a terrible loss to us and the country as a whole.” He added that since his first contact with the family, they have continued to relate with passion and mutual respect, saying such still lasted till Mrs Awolowo breathed her last. He said “the family is always in touch with me anywhere I go and myself doing same. It’s a great pleasure to have such experience. “Tokunbo gave me a quite number of presents during the lecture of the foundation of Chief Awolowo as well. I thought despite the fact that I myself have advanced in age, I said I must come here to condole with the family.” Earlier, during the daily service which coincides with one month of the death of Chief (Mrs) Awolowo, Venerable Aderemi Onajole of Saint Mark Anglican Church, Iwera, read from John

15:5. He urged the children to sow more seed of love in the family, show more love to themselves and keep the family as one, especially now that their mother was no more. According to Venerable Onajole, Mrs Awolowo showed to everyone she was a leader, as she expressed love and brought everybody together, irrespective of their gender, religion, cultural and ethnic affiliation together. “That is why Chief (Mrs) Awolowo is now an epistle for all to read, as she died valiantly. “I want you as well to be more loving, keep on being in the Lord and keep the seed of faith. You have

to show leadership traits that will keep the incoming generation of Awolowo as one. By doing that, it means you’re doing the will of God and as God never deserted Mama, he will keep you as well,” he said. In his speech, the Anglican Bishop of Remo Diocese, Olusina Fape, appealed to the family to keep the flag of Awolowos’ legacies flying and prayed that the Lord Almighty would give them the energy to sustain the legacy left by the diocesan mother of Remo. In her response, Reverend (Mrs) Tola Oyediran, thanked the diocese for the daily service since the demise of her mother. She informed the clerics in at-

tendance that the family would forever be grateful for the gesture. In addition, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Remo chapter, held a prayer session for the successful organisation of the burial programme which commences on November 15. The prayer session, led by Reverend Malato Ikuesan, was also well attended by the representatives of the association, as well as most members of the family. Also, representatives of Sagamu Plumbers’ Association of Ogun State, came to pay condolence visit to the family on Monday. Others who were around in Ikenne included ACP

Adegoke Fayoade, oloris of the immediate late Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade Olubuse II, Ladun and Odun, Honourable Lola Adefope, Olori Odogbolu- Ekundayo Onasanya, Mrs Folake Adefope, Akinbajo Olajumoke and Adegbite Omolara. Olori Ladun and Odun Sijuwade said “Mama is resting in the bosom of the Lord with her kind-hearted kin.” Akinbajo in her message said: “She was a mother to all and a lovable and unrepeatable personality. She will be greatly missed by me and all,” while Adegbite in her condolence message described the deceased as “a Godly and lovely mother. She was an

example to many woman. She will be greatly missed. I pray that the Holy Spirit will comfort the family and loved ones at this period.” Representatives NAFDAC Abuja, Deputy Director Mr Ugochukwu Iilo and the regulatory officer of the agency, Mr Idowu Seyi thanked God for the life Mrs Awolowo lived. “Our prayer is that God will grant the children the grace to continue,” they said. For Reverend and Mrs Evuarhehe of the Living Home Intercessory Ministries (LHIM), Mrs Awolowo would be remembered for unforgettable reception she used to accord them during her lifetime.

Adewole is our son —Ijesa leaders of thought By Kunle Oderemi THE people of Ijesaland, on Monday, described as uncharitable and wicked, the war of calumny embarked on by a cabal in Osun State against Professor Folorunsho Isaac Adewole, as minister-nominee from the state.” Speaking through the Ijesa Leaders of Thought, in a statement signed by the president of the group, Chief Akinola Olukuyide, who is the Asiwaju of Omo-Ijesa in Oriade Local Government Area of the state, the people declared that contrary to the “falsehood members of the clique were trying to force down the throat of Nigerians, Adewole is not only an Ijesaman, but indeed, a true son of the soil, upholding our peculiar traits of industry, discipline and service to humanity.” The leaders said there was no iota of doubt that the “distinguished academic, administrator and world-acclaimed medical doctor is from Ijesaland” and enjoined the authorities to be wary of the antics of those misguided elements, whose ulterior motive was to trigger crisis in Osun State so as to please their paymaster. “We have watched with utter consternation and disgust the war of calumny a few unscrupulous elements have orchestrated against our son, Professor Adewole nominated by President Muhammadu Buhari for ministerial appointment. “We, hereby, state without equivocation that Pro-

fessor Adewole is one of us in Ijesaland. He is a proper son of the soil and we are all proud of him for sustaining the good name we are collectively famous for. Any individual or group that has a contrary view concerning his authentic

Ijesa root and blood is only being mischievous and destructive. “We, hereby, state with all authority that Professor Adewole is and remains one of us as the Ijesa. Whoever proclaims or tries to promote a contrary po-

sition is only propagating outright falsehood with in intent to deceive the public, destroy his well-earned reputation and character. “We, hereby, warn members of the clique to toe the path of honour by desisting from working against

the collective interest and good of Osun State, as their action amounts to a disservice to the aspirations of all right-thinking stakeholders and ultimately, the founding fathers of the state,” the Ijesa elders stated.

We don’t obtain suspect’s statement under duress —Lamorde CHAIRMAN, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Lamorde, has debunked the allegation that suspects who are being investigated for alleged corrupt practices by the commission are made to give their statements under duress. He said the state-of-theart recording facilities in the EFCC interrogation rooms would not allow any interrogator to humiliate a suspect. Speaking in his office on Monday, October 19, during a visit by two officials of Amnesty International (AI), he said: ‘‘The EFCC follows the rule of law. Our statements are recorded and are not taken under duress. Our rooms have cameras in them, so it is not possible to humiliate anyone.” Lamorde, who expressed gratitude to the AI team for opening an office in Abuja, also described corruption as the worst type of human right abuse, adding that AI must continue to lend its voice to the anti-corruption war in Nigeria. According to him, ‘‘Western countries must end the impoverisation of developing countries.

They must reject and return stolen funds, so that respective governments of the affected developing countries could use the money to better the lives of the poor in their countries. “It is the common wealth of the people that has been diverted for private use. So, it is the worst form of human rights abuse. When corruption and impunity become the order of the day, human rights abuses flourish. “When you consider the cause of water-borne diseases suffered by people in rural areas, it is because someone has diverted the funds meant for pipe borne water in those areas. Also, when you consider the fact that our hospitals lack the basic amenities, it is because some people have kept the funds allocated to the hospitals to themselves. I, therefore, urge you to consider partnering with the EFCC,’’ he said. In his remark, Senior Director, Office of the Secretary-General of AI, Mr Colm O Cuanachain, said only nations that take anticorruption war seriously could experience ‘‘phenomenal growth.’’ Cuanachain, who further

expressed the readiness of AI to partner EFCC, also talked about the activities of the AI in the NorthEastern part of Nigeria, the Niger Delta and Port Harcourt, Rivers State, where he said corruption had contributed to human rights violation. He, however, decried death penalty as punish-

ment for looters of the treasury, adding that ‘‘it is not the best option in the fight against corruption.’’ Also, in his closing remark, Executive Director, AI Nigeria, M.K.Ibrahim, emphasised the need for the masses to be educated on the effects of corruption and human rights violations.

EFCC arrests Kebbi ex-gov, Dakingari Sunday Ejike -Abuja THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has reportedly arrested a former governor of Kebbi State, Usman Dakingari, over allegations that he laundered N3.8 billion from the state when he was

governor. He was detained around 10.00 a.m. at the EFCC headquarters and currently undergoing interrogation. Recently, his wife, Zainab, was arrested by the agency for allegedly laundering N2 billion for her husband.

Online publishers association for launch The Guild of Corporate Online Publishers will be formally inaugurated on Thursday, at the prestigious Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will deliver the keynote address at the event, which will be attended by top government officials, governors, chief executives of corpo-

rations and media chiefs, among other important personalities. Former chairman of Punch Newspapers, Ajibola Ogunshola, will be the chairman on the occasion. Chairman of Zinox Group, Leo Stan Ekeh and the chairman of Channels Television, John Momoh, would be guest speakers.

news Police arrest fake presidential adviser, fraudster

HE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command, on Monday, said it had arrested a 70-year-old fake Presidential Adviser on Defence Matters. Presenting the suspect who claimed to be a retired Army Colonel to the media, the command’s Spokesman, ASP Anjuguri Manzah, said the suspect was arrested on October 18 in Maitama area of Abuja, following a tip-off. “Police operatives attached to Maitama Division, acting on a tipoff, arrested one fake Colonel (name withheld) who claimed to be the Special Adviser to the President on Defence Matters,”

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Manzah said. He said that the suspect, who specialised in defrauding influential people in the society, had gone to the area to meet up with an appointment with a former state governor. The spokesman said that the suspect, upon arrest, confessed to the crime. “He also confessed that he only hides under that guise to solicit for juicy contracts or financial fa-

vour from his high profile victims,” he said. He said that one fake identification card and five complimentary cards were recovered from him. The suspect, who said he worked with the Bauchi State Government up to 1990, said he had been in the business for over three years. “I thought it was an easy way to feed my family,” he said.

Man killed, dumped in dustbin Anthony Ubong - Calabar THE mangled body of a young man said to be 22-year-old was on Monday found in a dustbin on

Edgerly Street in Calabar South Local Government Area of Cross River State. Residents of the area who identified the body removed it to Edibe-Edibe

IGP restates ban on firecrackers Chris Agbambu - Abuja INSPECTOR General of Police (IGP), Solomon

Arase, on Monday, cautioned against the use of fireworks, insisting that the ban remains in force.

Globalisation encourages moral decadence among youths —Gani Adams Bola Badmus - Lagos NATIONAL Coordinator of Oodu’a People’s Congress (OPC), Gani Adams,

Loss of document I, Mumuni Adeniyi Wasiu, of 5c Oshosha Street, Off Olisa Street, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, lost my international passport on my way going to Lagos Garage, Ijebu Ode, on October 6, 2015 around 12 noon. Please, if found, take it to the nearest police station or contact 08055725957.

Word Bible Church holds revival THE Word Bible Church, Palace of Healing, Ajelogo Junction, Ketu, Lagos State, will hold the 2015 October edition of its All purpose prayer tagged: “God of Victory”. The power-packed threeday spiritual event will hold on Wednesday, October 21 through Thursday, October 22 and Friday, October 23. Prophet J.B Kumoluyi, the founder of the church, will lead other ministers of God in the programme

Prophet J.B. Kumoluyi

Manzah said that the suspect had been transferred to the Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department for further investigation. Similarly, the command has arrested a suspect who specialised in producing and circulating fake N1,000 notes to unsuspecting members of the public. Manzah said that the suspect was arrested by police

has said that globalisation through uncensored access to the media has continued to erode morality among young people. Adams, who is also the chief promoter of Olokun Festival Foundation, said this in Lagos while delivering his welcome address during this year’s Olokun Festival lecture entitled: ‘Culture, cultural heritage and modernity in Nigeria: Any clash?’ The OPC leader lamented that in Nigeria today, parents no longer care about the behaviour of their children, saying that it was sad “to see that most young people, encouraged by their parents, no longer speak the indigenous languages in schools.” According to him, the said globalisation has led to the commercialisation of Nigeria’s culture and has given undue advantage to foreign cultures. “As a result of cultural globalisation, the movement of youths from the rural to urban areas has caused a significant depopulation of the rural areas. “The entrenchment of new faiths and religions have also reduced the population of adherents of our traditional religions and thus encouraged the spread of these foreign faiths,” he said. Besides, Adams said cultural globalisation was also having negative impact on the number of movies produced by Nigerian Nollywood.

He said the warning became crucial as there were reports that hoodlums were using fireworks to confuse Nigerians in order to carry out their nefarious activities. In a statement by Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olabisi Kolawole, the IGP said it had come to the knowledge of the Nigeria Police that some Nigerians have started using fireworks and firecrackers in anticipation of the yuletide celebrations. He said with the present security situation occasioned by recent bombings in some parts of the country, “violators of the warning will be made to face the wrath of the law.”

Road where parents of the deceased reside. When contacted, Police Public Relations Officer, Hogan Bassey, said he was yet to be briefed about the killing, and could therefore not speak. Relatives said around 8:00 p.m. the deceased, whose name was given simply as Etebong, who is very popular in the neighbourhood, was with his friends near his home when he received a call from his girlfriend. “Etebong was with us when we were drinking. Later, he received a call and said it was his girlfriend that called, inviting him over to her house,” said his friend, Samuel Effiong. A family source said Etebong called later in the night asking if power has been restored, but when he was told it has not, he then said he would not return till the following morning. Etebong’s mother fainted when she heard of the news.

operatives around Royal Park in Wuse 2, Abuja, where he had gone to buy mobile phone recharge card. He said that items recovered from him included 54 pieces of fake N1,000 notes. Speaking with newsmen, the suspect said he was introduced into the business by a friend who resides in

Lugbe, Abuja, who linked him with his friend in Lagos. The spokesman enjoined members of the public to be vigilant and always provide the police with information about criminal elements. He also enjoined residents to take advantage of the police emergency help lines.

Nigerian Tribune

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Lagosmetro Well-wishers take over Alausa as commissioners take oath Chukwuma Okparaocha

From left, Lagos State deputy governor, Dr Oluranti Adebule; Lagos State governor, Akinwunmi Ambode; Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Honourable Mudashiru Obasa; chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Lagos State, Chief Henry Ajomale and Oba of Lagos, His Royal Highness, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, at the swearing-in of newly appointed commissioners and special advsers for Lagos State, on Monday. Photo: Sylvester Okoruwa

Killer-cop remanded in prison for 30 days AyomideOwonibiOdekanyin

28-year-old police corporal, Aremu Museliu, who allegedly killed a mother of four at Isheri-Oshun, Lagos, on September 16, has been remanded in prison. It will be recalled that the accused was attached to Isheri-Oshun Police Division, before he allegedly killed late Comfort Idongesit Godwin Sunday, and also injured her husband, Godwin Sunday, with his official rifle, AK-47, at Ijegun area of the state, on September 16, 2015, at about 8 p.m. Museliu was also alleged to have unlawfully shot the deceased dead with his AK47 service rifle on the said date over her husband’s failure to offer bride. While remanding the accused in prison, the presiding Magistrate, Afolashade Botoku said that the defendant should be remanded in prison custody for the next 30 days pending the legal advice from the office

of the Director of public Prosecution (DPP). She also refused the bail

application of the defendant and adjourned the matter till November 25.

The defendant had been in the custody of the State Criminal Investigation De-

partment (SCID), Panti, before he was sent to prison custody.

Corporal Museliu Aremu (middle), being escorted by security officers arriving Ebute Meta Magistrates’ Court for his first arraignment for allegedly killing Mrs. Idongesit Udoh, in Lagos on Monday. PHOTO: SYLVESTER OKORUWA

The Alausa State Secretariat on Monday became a beehive of dancing, eating and merry-making as the supporters of some of the newly inaugurated commissioners and special advisers stormed the secretariat in support of their own. The supporters who were too many to count took over many spots in the secretariat with some dancing round and blowing trumpets while others preferred to stay under tents to celebrate. Lagos Metro which had gone round different parts of the secretariat as the inauguration progressed saw various tents that had sprung up at different spots where people ate, drank and danced. In one instance, a large throng of supporters apparently in support of one of the commissioners who hails from a community on Lagos Island marched all the way to the Governor’s Office. They all sang and danced to the sound coming from a noisy trumpet as they progressed. The entire development also gave the chance for street urchins, generally known as ‘area boys’, to operate, as many of them were seen hustling for money from dignitaries who came in expensive cars. Even a section of the Lagos State House of Assembly car park was converted into an ‘event centre’ where a popular musician, MC Oluomo, reportedly performed.

Electrocution: UNILAG asks EKEDP to pay compensation to victim’s family Naza Okoli The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Professor Rahamon Adisa Bello has asked the Eko Electricity Distribution Plc (EKEDP) to pay appropriate compensation to the family of Miss Oluchi Anekwe who was electrocuted on the university campus on September 8, 2015. Bello was speaking at a press conference held at the

Senate Chambers on Monday. According to the vice-chancellor, a Federal Government panel set up to investigate the cause of Anekwe’s death has indicted the power company, hence exonerating the university of all blame. “The findings of the Federal Government panel have been officially released,” he said. “The panel established that the faulty cable which caused Oluchi’s death belonged to

EKEDP and indicated the directive to EKEDP to replace that and other similar overhead cables belonging to it with properly installed underground cables. “EKEDP is liable and must pay appropriate compensation to the family of Oluchi. Where the family requires us to assist to make sure this is done, we will do that.” Bello further described as untrue reports that Miss Anekwe was not attended to

upon arrival at the medical centre. “Both the nurse and the doctor on duty confirmed she had no pulse on arrival, and her pupils were dilated, confirming she was brought in dead to the medical centre. Nevertheless, both of them still attempted CPR on her and it was while attempting a CPR on her that she was placed on the hard floor. “The request for her iden-

tity was for the purpose of preparation of the document with which her body would be transferred to the mortuary at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).” The vice-chancellor also reported that the result of an autopsy conducted at the teaching hospital confirmed that “her death occurred within seconds to a few minutes of contact with the 11KV electric cable”.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigerian Tribune

Edited By Lanre Adewole 0811 695 4647

Rape: UNILAG panel indicts lecturer Naza Okoli A three-member panel set up by the University of Lagos (UNILAG) to investigate the alleged rape of an 18-year-old female admission seeker by Mr Afeez Akin Baruwa has indicted a lecturer in the Faculty of Business Administration, Dr Oluwatunji Dakare. This was made known by the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Rahamon Bello while addressing journalists at the Senate Chamber on Monday. According to Bello, Dakare was the lecturer to whom Room 08, the scene of the rape, was officially allocated. “Faculty of Business Administration Annex (Room 08), where the incident was alleged to have occurred was officially allocated to Dr Oluwatunji Dakare, an academic staff member of the Faculty of Business Administration. “Based on the strength of

the findings on the remote and immediate causes of

this unfortunate incident, the university has resolved

to commence appropriate disciplinary proceeding

From left, Chairman, Alhaji Tajudeen Agbede; Vice-chairman, Olawale Ajilo; Victor John Owolabi and Mutiu Mufutau, both ex-officio, all executive officers of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Lagos State Council, taking their oath of office during the 8th Quadrennial Delegates Conference and inauguration of newly elected executive officers of NURTW, Lagos State Council, held at Excellence Hotel, Ogba, Lagos, on Monday. PHOTO: SYLVESTER OKORUWA

Please, speak out when raped, Ambode begs Chukwuma Okparaocha Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State on Monday urged residents to speak out against domestic violence and assist government’s efforts to reduce the menace in the society. Ambode, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr Idiat Adebule, made the call at a symposium on gender based violence organised by the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT). He said that domestic violence remained a devastating public health crisis as statistics revealed that one in four women would be physically or sexually assaulted at some point in her lifetime. According to him, the government will endeavour to provide landmark prevention against domestic violence, protect survivors, bring offenders to justice and change attitudes that support such violence. “As a government, we are

against the allotted owner of the office in which the al-

in the process of establishing more shelter and transit homes for victims, procurement of rape kits and training of relevant agencies to equip them with the tools required to combat

this evil. “Our law enforcement and justice system must work to hold offenders accountable and protect victims and their children. “We, however, call on

stakeholders, traditional rulers, religious leaders, market leaders, NGOs, law enforcement agencies and the media to join this fight,” he said. Also speaking, Justice

Yetunde Idowu, Head, Lagos State Family Court, urged citizens to utilise the helpline – 112, to receive further information on relevant support services available.

leged rape was committed, Dr Dakare,” he said. The vice-chancellor while maintaining that Baruwa was never a member of staff of the university said he was only engaged as a project supervisor and invigilator by the Distance Learning Institute for its residential programme in the 2012/2013 and 2013/14 academic sessions. Nevertheless, he said the university had resolved to “take interest in the case and ensure that justice is meted out appropriately.” He added: “Our legal unit has been following up and watching; briefs are being taken on behalf of the university.” Bello also revealed that steps were now being taken to prevent future occurrence. He said it was part of their resolve to “publicise widely the policy of regarding oral complaints of sexual harassment as sufficient to warrant prompt official intervention. “With the foregoing decisions, the university hopes to sufficiently deal with the immediate and remote causes of the unfortunate incident and reinforce its zero tolerance for all forms of sexual harassment within its campus.

NURTW to build hospital, petrol station for commercial drivers In his determination to curb incessant cases of untimely death among his members, the newly elected state chairman of the Lagos National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Alhaji Tajudeen Agbede, has promised that his administration will build an ultra-modern hospital to handle victims of road traffic accidents among commercial drivers, just as he promised to build a mega filling station for Lagos drivers to solve problems of fuel scarcity. He stated this on Monday in his acceptance speech after being elected for another term of four years at the 8th Quadrennial Delegate Conference of Lagos

NURTW held at Excellence Hotel, Ogba, Lagos. “This administration will construct a hospital to take care of emergency cases among commercial drivers in the state. We will ensure that the hospital is well equipped with

modern medical equipment and qualified personnel. The idea of our own hospital is based on the belief that because of the nature of our job, our people are prone to accident. So with the hospital of our own, our members

will be getting prompt medical attention during emergency cases.” He also promised that efforts were in the pipeline to get a mega petrol station for commercial drivers in the state. This, he said, would help to solve

problems of fuel scarcity among drivers. He equally promised that the state council under his leadership will continue to partner with the state government to ensure that peace continues to reign in all Lagos motor parks.

Blogger remanded in prison over alleged divorce story AyomideOwonibiOdekanyin A blogger, Desmond Ike Chima, has been remanded in Ikoyi Prison for allegedly writing a defamatory story against the Managing Director of the United Bank of Africa Plc, Philip Oduoza. It was gathered that Desmond allegedly published

an obscene article against Oduoza on March 20, 2015, titled: “Randy UBA MD, Philip Oduoza’s wife to divorce him over affair with actress Genevieve Nnaji.” Desmond was also accused of intent to extort or gain something from Oduoza by accusing him on April 27, 2015 of de-

frauding UBA with his company, Afriland Properties, and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 301(1) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The accused, however, pleaded not guilty. Desmond was granted bail in the sum of N100,000 and two sureties, who must

be landed property owners in the state. The blogger who was arraigned before Justice A.O Ajayi of an Igbosere High Court was not able to meet the bail condition of the court and was thus remanded in Ikoyi Prison. The matter was subsequently adjourned till October 30.

businessnews Mobile money transactions hit N815bn, generate 98,000 jobs —CBN 10

By Femi Ibirogba And Chima Nwokoji

he Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that the total value of transactions through the mobile money platforms has hit well over N815 billion. It also said so far, it had licensed 21 mobile money operators since inception in 2012 and the process had generated over 98,000 sustainable and gainful employment opportunities for Nigerians, with the potential to create more thousands of such. Director, Banking and Payment System Department of the apex bank, Mr Dipo Fatokun, represented by Mr Shola Agboola, said these while delivering a lecture on ‘Enhancing the Capacity of Micro, Small and Medium scale Enterprises for job creation through Mobile Money system’ at Bovina View Hotel, Ilorin, Kwara State, during a threeday workshop for business editors and the Financial Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) organised by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC). “As of September 30, 2015, the total number of agents enrolled in the mobile money platforms is 98,158; the total number of subscribers is 24,389,263; the total volume of transactions is 78,952,409, while the total value of transactions is N815,464,917,062.” The objectives of the mobile money system are to foster financial inclusion, especially in rural areas; create job opportunities; to reduce cost of transaction and to facilitate economic growth. The workshop was part of the efforts being made to drive the government policy on the cashless financial system as part of the plans to make Nigeria one of the 20 developed economies in the world by 2020. The CBN director said large population of Nigerians live in the rural areas at subsistence levels, with no access to banking, but their family members usually work in the cities and remit money home using informal, expensive and risky means because attributes of the areas are lack of bank branches, inability to meet account opening criteria and low credit worthiness, leading to financial exclusion. To tackle these challenges, he added, the CBN came up with the idea of

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

mobile money system. “Mobile payment, especially in developing economies, is rapidly evolving and making tremendous impact in the economies

and lives of its citizenry in terms of savings, payments and transfers, among others. “The CBN noted the rapid growth of mobile telephony

in Nigeria (over 120 million subscribers, according to NCC) and the majority of the unbanked have access to a mobile phone “The need to leverage ex-

isting business network infrastructures as a practical and well thought out strategy for driving financial inclusion of the unbanked in Nigeria,” he said.

From left, Dafe Okpaleke, Regional Business Manager, Nigerian Breweries Plc; Goodnews Okon Jimmy, winner of the Benin leg of Gulder Ultimate Chase and Seun Lawal, Brand Manager, Gulder, also of Nigerian Breweries Plc., during the presentation of a brand new Hyundai Elantra car to the winner at Stonefield Grounds, G.R.A, Benin, on Saturday, October 17.

80% of Nigerian bound cargoes under-declared —Shippers Council Tola Adenubi - Lagos The Executive Secretary/ Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Shippers Council, Mr Hassan Bello has said that 80 per cent of Nigerian bound cargoes are under-declared. Speaking with Nigerian Tribune, Bello explained that if the Cargo Tracking Note (CTN) is introduced, it will address this anomaly. According to him, “80 per cent of goods coming into Nigeria are under-declared. In every 10 shipments to Nigeria, only two are correct, the remaining eight are under-declared. “Sometimes, issues of concealment of cargoes abound. The CTN will expose this. Under-declarations and concealment of cargoes at the ports are forms of tax evasion.” On how the CTN will address this anomaly, Bello stated that “CTN is a project for trade facilitation. It is not strange. It is done everywhere in the world. It boosts transparency in the ports. It is in compliance with the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code which give our ports, cargoes and ships standardisation so that our ports are recognised. “What the CTN does is that it speeds up the cargo

clearance process. The CTN contains details like the type of cargo, type of ship, where the ship carrying the cargo is coming from, weight of the cargo and all the important details needed by the Customs and other relevant agencies during cargo clearance. You cannot find any of those details in any transport document. “The most important document is the Bill of Laden. What is written in the Bill of Laden is ‘Said to contain.’ The Bill of Laden is not specific. “Sometimes, the Bill of Laden does not state the port of loading, port of origin and

port of destination. The fact that the Bill of Laden states, ‘Said to contain,’ means it is not specific. But the CTN contains all this. “Before the ship sails from the port of loading, everything is already known. The CTN will be an instrument which we will share with the Customs for their risk assessment, duty and the Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR). “The terminal operators will benefit from the CTN because they would have already made arrangement before the ship arrives since they would have known the

specific details of cargoes and type of ships that are expected. The CTN is an electronic document that describes everything that is needed to be known as far as cargoes and type of ships are concerned. “For an agency like the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), their three per cent surcharge deals with the weight of the ships and people doctor this. But the CTN will stop all this leakages where people doctor the weight of vessels to avoid paying the correct amount to NIMASA.”

Nigerian Tribune

NSE market indices improve by 1.29 per cent Transactions at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Monday closed on a positive trend with investors net worth appreciating by 1.29 per cent. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the All-Share Index rose by 384.80 points or 1.29 per cent to close at 30,219.01 against 29,834.21 posted on Friday. Similarly, the market capitalisation, which opened at N10.253 trillion, appreciated by N132 billion or 1.29 per cent to close at N10.385 trillion. A breakdown of the price movement chart indicated that Dangote Cement led the gainers’ table, growing by N7.94 to close at N168.95 per share. Mobil Oil followed with a gain of N6 to close at N154, while UACN gained 80k to close at N28.85 per share. Lafarge Africa increased by 65k to close at N99.50, while Berger Paint grew by 51k to close at N10.87 per share. Conversely, Guinness topped the losers’ chart, dropping by N3.85 to close at N146.15 per share. National Salt came with loss of 53k to close at N7.20, while Cement Company of Northern Nigeria lost 37k to close at N7.31 per share. Nigerian Breweries declined by 26k to close at N135.06, while FBN Holdings shed 25k to close at N5.75 per share. NAN reports that Zenith Bank emerged the most traded equity, accounting for 16.68 million shares worth N293.74 million. FBN Holdings followed with a total of 14.17 million shares valued at N82.44 million, while Transcorp traded 6.66 million worth N14.23 million.

NSE appoints new Council Secretary, restructures legal dept KehindeAkinseinde-Jayeoba– Lagos The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has announced the appointment of Mrs Mojisola Ruth Adeola as the Council Secretary and Head of the Council Secretariat, following its decision to drive greater efficiency and innovation by separating its Legal Department from the Council Secretariat. Mrs Adeola, a lawyer and chartered secretary, has extensive company secretarial, legal and governance experience, having held prior relevant positions.

Most recently, she served as Company Secretary/Legal Adviser to Acorn Petroleum Plc. She holds an LLB degree from the University of Lagos and qualified to practice as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in 2005. Mrs Adeola takes over from Ms Tinuade Awe who served as Council Secretary from January 2011. Ms. Awe, according to NSE would remain at the Exchange as General Counsel and Head of the Legal and Regulation Division, thus focusing on driving greater efficiency in the Exchange’s regulatory functions, im-

proving its relationship with other regulators and preparing the Exchange for demutualisation. Mrs Irene Robinson-Ayanwale who previously headed both the Legal Department and the Council Secretariat retains her role as Head of the Legal Department where she will focus on protecting The Exchange from legal liability and providing first class legal support for The Exchange’s ongoing initiatives. Oscar N. Onyema, OON, Chief Executive Officer, NSE, while commenting on the development, said, “the Executive Manage-

ment and Council note the significant contributions of Mrs Irene Robinson-Ayanwale who combined the two roles reporting to Ms Awe prior to the appointment of Mrs Mojisola Ruth Adeola. I must also thank Ms. Tinuade Awe, who assumed the role of Council Secretary at a challenging time for The Exchange during the Interim Administration and was instrumental in building the governance structure currently at The Exchange. It gives me great pleasure to welcome Mrs Adeola to The Exchange and I wish her every success in her new role.”

businessnews

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Islamic finance products hit $2trillion in 2014 —SEC DG Gbola Subair And Kehinde Akinseinde-Jayeoba

slamic finance products were estimated st $2trillion in 2014 as the securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expressed determination to deepen the non-interest capital market space so as to enable millions of Nigerians and people of faith to invest their savings ethically. Director General of SEC, Mounir Gwarzo who stated this at a regional round table on Non-Interest Capital Market in Kano on Monday, with the theme “Financing Development through Islamic Capital Market - A Viable Alternative “disclosed that investors worldwide are increasingly allocating their resources into Islamic finance products, adding that by the end of 2014, total assets under management in the global Islamic finance industry surpassed $2 trillion. Gwarzo said while most people identify capital markets as an important source of medium-to-long term capital flow, there is also an amazing potential of capital markets to serve as a catalyst for financial inclusion adding that going forward, the SEC will focus on massive public enlightenment and also stronger capacity building initiatives. He said “Our focus for this round table is on Sukuk, one of the most important components of the Islamic financial system. The global Sukuk market continues to witness remarkable growth since after the 2008 global financial crisis, as annual issuances have grown from $15 billion in 2008 to almost $120 billion in 2014. “In fact, last year is widely considered a landmark year for Islamic finance, especially with landmark

debut Sukuk issuances by countries such as the UK, Hong Kong, Senegal, South Africa, and Luxemburg. Of

course the year witnessed continued strong interest from key markets of Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and

The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company on Monday, vowed to investigate malpractice allegations leveled against it in the aspects of human resource practices, specifically its recruitment and remuneration activities. It said the investigations will be conducted by independent auditors, hence take required actions to correct any anomaly. In a statement made available to Nigerian Tribune in Abuja by the AEDC, it maintained that the company will not hesitate to

that the Sukuk market is emerging on a global scale as a viable alternative source of funding.”

Entrepreneurs shun N220bn CBN funds —MAN DapoFalade-PortHarcourt

From right, Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo; Chairman, Sterling Bank Plc, Asue Ighodalo and Group Head, Strategy & Communications, Sterling Bank Plc, Shina Atilola, when the Vice President visited the Sterling Bank stand at the just concluded 21st edition of the Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja.

Eko Disco blames obsolete equipment for UNILAG electrocution •Accepts responsibility OlatundeDodondawaand Shalom Akpabio– Lagos The management of Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) has accepted responsibility for the unfortunate incidence of electrocution that claimed the life of Miss Oluchi Anekwe, a 400-year student of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) recently. The company said the snapped overhead line that led to loss of life was part of the obsolete network inherited from the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). The Chief Executive Officer, EKEDC, Dr Oladele

Amoda, disclosed to Nigerian Tribune on Monday that as a responsible corporate entity in Nigeria, “we are so pained and grieved by this incident and we have taken measures to prevent a recurrence. “The snapped overhead line that led to loss of life was part of the obsolete network inherited from the defunct PHCN, but the incident was more painful to us because the line was already slated for conversion to underground cables as part of our network upgrade project when the incident occurred.” Amoda further stated that immediately the incident

CWG earns CBN PTSP operational licence Adetola Bademosi - Abuja

the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and emerging markets like Turkey and Indonesia. There is no doubt

Nigerian Tribune

take actions against any of its officers who are perpetrators of the act. The statement reads in part;”While it is not the intention of this press release to respond to the specific allegations, AED Management would like to put it on record that Mr Siyanga Malumo who was named as the Board Chairman of AED is not its Board Chairman and information attributed to him in the article is incorrect. “As a company committed to good corporate governance and best practice in all aspects of our operations we will, with immediate ef-

fect, institute investigations through independent auditors on these allegations. “In addition, appropriate actions will be taken against any of our officers who is found to have engaged himself/herself in these malpractices. “AED strives to provide a fair and conducive workplace where all its employees can thrive.” We therefore wish to assure all our stakeholders of Management’s unwavering commitment to international best practices in all our operations as we grow AED into a World Class Company.”

occurred, the management sent a powerful delegation to the family and also attended the burial ceremony for the late undergraduate. “We have consulted a Life Assurance company to compute an adequate compensation which we intend to give the family of the deceased. “If only the conversion of the overhead which we were doing in phases, had been carried out a little earlier, this sad incident would not have occurred, and as a way of preventing a costly delay of this nature, all staff found not to have taken appropriate steps that could have prevented the unfortunate incident through conversion of the line to underground cable have been relieved of their duties,” he said. He assured that his company would work in part-

nership with the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA) and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to ensure safety and conformity to standards. The EKEDC boss used the opportunity to appeal to his customers at Lekki-Ajah axis who he said have been in darkness for three consecutive days now. “The situation is beyond us because when we have the power to distribute but the transmission company is currently being challenged and unable to evacuate power to that axis. You will agree with me that these equipment can break down anytime. “But the good news is that the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is working tirelessly to restore the faulty transmission lines,” he said.

Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has disclosed that small and medium scale entrepreneurs in the South-South and South-East geo-political zones of the country have failed to access N220 billion intervention funds of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) aimed at improving the industrial base of the country. This was as the association denied the allegation that manufacturers in Rivers and Bayelsa States were engaged in using foreign labels on their products. Chairman of the Rivers/ Bayelsa states branch of MAN, Prince Charles Beke, made the disclosures on Monday, while briefing newsmen on the preparation of the association for its maiden Made-in-Nigeria exhibition and 31st Annual General Meeting (AGM), taking place in Port Harcourt later in the month. “You are aware that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has set out a whooping N220 billion to help in revamping many micro, small and medium scale enterprises across the country. “Unfortunately, our investigation shows that many of the SMEs in the SouthSouth and South-East regions of this country have not accessed this very important fund. “We have been hearing about manufacturers and fabricators from some neighbouring states use foreign labels on their products, but it is not like that here. “There is no manufacturer in Rivers or Bayelsa States that use foreign labels. We know those that do that and they are not under our branch,” he said.

Dangote Cement leads gainers, as market equity leaps 1.29% KehindeAkinseinde-Jayeoba– Lagos Dangote Cement on Monday, led the gainers chart with 4.93 per cent from the N161.01 it traded last week Friday to N168.95 per share, even as equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) closed positively. The NSE ASI made an increase of 1.29 per cent

to close at 30,219.01 basis points, compared with the 0.4 per cent appreciation recorded on Friday. However, market turnover closed on a bullish trend as investors lost N401.5 billion to close at N1.934 trillion compared with the N2.336 it closed with on Friday. Closely following Dangote Cement on the gainers chart is Berger, which gained 51

kobo to previous N10.36, representing 4.92 per cent increase; Honeywell Flour added 12 kobo to close at N2.67; Cutix also had 4.40 per cent increase, gaining 0.07 kobo to the N1.71 kobo traded on Friday. Leading investors on the losing side, Transexpress shed 0.08 kobo to close at N1.05 kobo per share. Nascon followed with a 6.88 per cent lose.

business

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigerian Tribune

daily summary (equities) for monday, 19 OCTOBER, 2015

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

The 8th Quadrennial Delegates’ Conference of Lagos State Council of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) to elect new officers for the council was held yesterday at Excellence Hotel, Ogba, Lagos. Here are some of the people that graced the occasion.

1. A cross section of former Lagos State NURTW leaders that witnessed the delegates’ conference. 2. A cross section of state officers singing the national anthem before the commencement of the election. 3. A cross section of newly elected officers taking the oath of office after being elected. 4. Other newly elected officers taking the oath of office. 5. The newly elected Deputy State Chairman, Comrade Sunday Yusuf (right), receiving his certificate of return from the Returning Officer, Alhaji Abdul Azeez Kolawole Aro.

6. The newly elected state chairman, Alhaji Tajudeen Agbede, flanked by Comrade Idowu Adelakun, Lagos State chairman of NLC (left), and Dr. Matthew Oloko, Lagos State Secretary, NURTW (right) while Alhaji Abdul Azeez Kolawole Aro presents him his certificate of return. 7. Comrade Olusope Bodunde (right) receiving his certificate of return. 8. A cross section of delegates at the conference. 9. Alhaji Tajudeen Agbede (middle) flanked by some of his officers after the dissolution of the executive by the Electoral Committee. 10. The Presiding Officer for the delegates’ conference who is also NURTW Vice President, Comrade Joseph Aluanya (right) with the Returning Officer, Alhaji Abdul Azeez Kolawole Aro.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

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Oni ni o pe ojo marun din ni Ogoorun le ni egberun ojo (1095 days) ti Baba wa, OJOGBON OLUDARE OLAJUBU fi wa sile. Ojumo kan ko ni mo ki a ma se iranti yin. Eyin ati awon omo ti e fi sile dara. Ayanfe owon, maa sun lo ni aya Olugbala re.

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Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigerian Tribune

Femi Ibirogba adefemi2007@yahoo.com 0811 695 4646

‘Synthetic agric creates a system of poverty for farmers’ Mr Markus Arbenz is the Executive Director of IFOAM Organic International, an umbrella body of world organic agriculture scientists, researchers and advocates. In this interview with Femi Ibirogba, he sheds more light on reasons behind the move for organic agricultural products.

hat are you proposing with organic agriculture? We are proposing agriculture that is not using synthetic fertiliser; that does not use pesticides that have a lot of health problems for those who use it; agriculture that does not use genetically engineered crops. It is actually agriculture based on traditions, biodiversity with plant interacting with the soil; agriculture based on cycles on the farm. It might be true that organic agriculture is not productive in highly developed economies where synthetic agriculture is widely used, but it is also true that organic agriculture performs very much better in areas where you have poor soil condition and where the climate is difficult to produce. In this case, organic agriculture can produce 200% more than what synthetic agriculture can do. Organic agriculture is based on four principles of ecology, health, fairness and care. Why are you doing all that? We strongly believe that industrial agriculture is a wrong strategy for global agriculture. We should build a resilience of the farmer instead. The second important reason is about farmers’ health, consumption, nutrition for everybody, including women and children. It is a system that performs at two levels. At the first level, the production level, it is very beneficial to the farming household or the market. It allows clean water availability, devoid of fertiliser and pesticides to the households. Looking at the market, I think the first priority is the family consumption. Healthy food for a healthy family is the first priority. The second priority is the local market, either in the village or the community and the third priority is the national market, as well as the international markets. Practice and demand for organic agricultural products? The global organic market has $72 billion; most especially in North America and Europe, and more market demand is coming from Asia, Latin America and Africa. There are about 2 million certified organic farmers in the world. 85% of the farmers are from developing countries of Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Practically there are 37 million hectares of organic agricultural land. There are another 30 million hectares of wild collection which could be categorised as part of the organic agriculture. Now the development is impressive. The market has 10% growth rate every year. It is for the future. There are thousands of organic products in the market. With organic agriculture, can Africa feed itself, considering that with synthetic agriculture, it struggles with food security? First of all, I have to say it is very realistic. It is real because there are hundreds of thousands of organic farmers in Africa. I think the second and third of the top organic countries around the world are in Africa;

So there is an increase in productivity by doing the right thing through organic agriculture. One thing about organic agriculture is that it is very knowledge-intensive in terms of input; you have to be knowledgeable. And the knowledge, first of all, is based on information on what people have been doing for a long time. Second is that it based on innovations newly introduced, that is fruitful methods being invented and used in Africa. There are methods that you can use that help at least farmers in Africa, but nobody promotes them because nobody makes money with them. And that is the problem of the day, thinking the idea is crazy, because the farmers must have knowledge of how to do it. It is being done not only in Kenya, but also Uganda, Tanzania and it is being adopted. Considering the population of Nigerian farmers, do you think the country has a role to play in organic agriculture promotion? Absolutely yes! Organic agriculture is a system of intensification of producing more food with less land by intensifying the production not through input from outside but through intensified biological processes; capturing the sunlight; biological processes through the living soil, cycles and recycles of farm waste, getting nutrients from animal dung, farm residue and by activating soil fertility. People say often that the system is chaotic, but it is not. It is a way of mimicking and optimizing nature through biodiversity for productivity. The problem is that, it is a self-sustaining system that no profit-oriented firm would like to invest in. So, nobody is ready to push investment into it and those people who can push it are not investing in Africa. Why? They want to take the money back from Africa. You know what they want? They want to create an agricultural system in which farmers must purchase seeds, fertilizer and pesticides from the same company, and this creates a system that brings poverty eventually. But we want African farmers to develop by doing the right thing on their own that will sustain them and the environment.

Mr Markus Uganda and Tanzania, as well as huge organic practices in Ethiopia and Egypt. There are many countries having a lot of organic farmers. So it is real. That is the first thing. The second thing is huge productivity. The Food and Agriculture (FAO) is understudying productivity in organic agriculture and it has found out that by transforming traditional agriculture to organic one, it has given a yield increase of 460 per cent.

So, organic agriculture is sustainable? Yes. That is the aim and purpose of it. It has a blue print that you can reinvent, work on it and innovate all the time. Are developed countries like Germany and the U.S also embracing organic agriculture? In Europe, American and Africa, climate is changing and particularly, consumers are aware of the benefits of organic agriculture and they are driving it by their demand in Europe. In Asia, they are also driving it.

Ajasin varsity reaffirms resolve to build unique agric faculty The Vice Chancellor, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Ondo State, Professor Igbekele Ajibefun, has reiterated the university’s commitment to creating a unique faculty of agriculture. He said this while appreciating Supare-Akoko community for donating an expanse of land to the university for its newly-established Faculty of Agriculture. Ajibefun gave the commendation when he led other principal officers of the university on a thank-you visit to the Olusupare of Supare-Akoko, Oba Adejoro Adedeji, who received the university management in his palace. Supare-Akoko is a few kilometers away from AkungbaAkoko, the host community of the university. Ajibefun said: “I was delighted when the Dean of Faculty of Agriculture, Dr Emmanuel Gbadamosi, told me about the community’s donation. We are here to appreciate the Kabiyesi and the whole community, and to also

announce to you that bringing the university’s Faculty of Agriculture to Supare is something that portends good prospects for the community. “We have special plans for our Faculty of Agriculture that will be better demonstrated in the very fertile and rich land that you have given to the university. Beyond Akungba, the immediate host community, the university is established also to benefit neighbouring communities, among which is Supare.” Ajibefun assured the community that the kind gesture would attract benefits to the community. Responding, Oba Adedeji said: “We appreciate the visit of the Vice Chancellor and his team. We are happy to donate the land to the University. The Supare community has enough land to give for the development of the University. We are ready to contribute as a community to the development of the University. This is a good development and we are glad to be a part of it.”

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015 Nigerian Tribune 17 agriculture Support for rural agriculture: Why govt, private sector must be involved

xperts in the agriculture sector have urged government and the organised private sector to give greater support to smallholder farmers by providing the right incentives and financial support systems, as well as strengthening existing infrastructure to assist in eradicating hunger and poverty. This appeal aggregates the opinions of stakeholders at the British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation (BATNF)’s Dialogue Session on Agriculture Policies and the Nigerian Smallholder Farmers which held in Lagos recently. The Stakeholders Dialogue Session was necessitated by the need to provide a robust and expansive policy framework for the nation’s agricultural sector in line with the current administration’s resolve to enhance practices and output of the agricultural sector. General Manager, BATNF, Ms Abimbola Okoya, set the tone for the dialogue session when she remarked that, “a lot of our projects are based in rural communities and with smallholder farmers. We have noticed through a number of our interventions the need to ensure that government policies and stimulus packages must be inclusive of smallholder farmers because they make up about 70 per cent of farmers.” She further stated that the Foundation’s vision is to “create a platform for dialogue where various stakeholders across the country can discuss how they can be included in policies such as the Nigerian Incentive-based Risk-sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) and the Growth Support Enhancement (GES).” The forum also set out to “examine the impact of climate change and value-chain development, which includes rice, maize, cassava, vegetable and

livestock.” Okoya identified difficulties in accessing finance by smallholder farmers as a critical area of interest, noting that the Foundation was looking at ways of making financing more flexible. In an opening address, the Director, Legal and External

Affairs, British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN), Mr Freddy Messanvi, who represented the Managing Director, Mr Chris McAllister, stated that after 10 years of the Foundation, it “has been repositioned and realigned to suit the contemporary socio-

economic environment and challenges.” Messanvi noted that the Dialogue Session was an advocacy platform to facilitate access to policymaking decisions of the smallholder farmers who produce the bulk of the food Nigerians consume. Executive Director,

BATN, Mrs Seyi Ashade, in her presentation, provided an overview initiatives of BATNF’s aimed at empowering Nigeria’s rural dwellers. On the accomplishments of BATN Foundation in this regard, she noted that “the Foundation sees the

AFAN petitions Oyo govt over impersonation All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Oyo State chapter, has written a petition to the Oyo State government over alleged impersonation of the

chairman, Mr Olumide Ayinla and other executive members by some people. A letter addressed to Oyo State governor, Mr Abiola Ajimobi, dated October 14

2015 and made available to the Nigerian Tribune said the state Ministry of Agriculture has been recognizing some people parading themselves as

Chairman of AFAN in Oyo State, Mr Olumide Ayinla (left), presenting bags of fertilizer to beneficiaries of Olajumoke Akinjide Foundation at AFAN office, Molete, Ibadan, on Friday.

AFAN executive despite several letters written to the ministry to make the complaint formal. Mr Ayinla, according to the letter, was elected by the association on May 22, 2013, and approved by the national leadership of AFAN. “Therefore, we are appealing to Your Excellency to call the Permanent Secretary in the state Ministry of Agriculture to order to stop causing confusion in AFAN. It is our prayer that the peace already established in Oyo State by your administration will not be truncated,” the letter said in part. Meanwhile, Olajumoke Akinjide Foundation (OAF) has donated another batch of over 300 bags of fertiliser to AFAN members involved in late season maize production

to maximise their yields without stress. While distributing the fertilizer to the farmers on behalf of the foundation, Mr Ayinla said the foundation, sponsored by Chief Olajumoke Akinjide, had gone a long way in empowering farming households in Oyo State in their efforts to feed the country and improve on their livelihoods. He commended the Akinjide while calling on other politicians and the government to come to the aid of farmers in the state, saying without subsidy, agriculture, in this part of the where mechanization constitutes a major barrier, is unsustainable. He urged members of the association to avoid diverting the inputs, saying their proper use would ensure better harvest and income.

AWARD fellow empowers students to start agric club A fellow of African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD), Dr (Mrs) Olufisayo Kolade, has donated farm tools and other resources to encourage students of Maverick College, Ibadan, to form an agricultural club as part of her role modelling event. AWARD is an international body sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with the aim of empowering African women through careers in agriculture and agroallied disciplines, as well as engaging in the practice and value chains of agriculture. While speaking on ‘Women in Agriculture: Prospects and opportunities’, said

women are indispensable in all walks of life, including economy, science, medicine,

family affairs and in the business of feeding the world.

Kolade said AWARD had sponsored over 350 African women, including herself,

Dr (Mrs) Olufisayo Kolade (fourth from left), AWARD fellow, with other fellows and students of Maverick College, Ibadan, during a role modelling event on Thursday.

Nigeria to promote climate-smart agric to address rural poverty To tackle the cycle of rural poverty and other problems in agriculture associated with flooding and climate change, the Federal Government has resolved to promote a policy of climate smart agricultural programme. The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of

importance of supporting the smallholder farmers working diligently to improve the Nigerian economy,” adding that in the last five years, it had been able to execute various corporate social investment projects in Nigeria and sustained them.

Agriculture and Rural Development, Sonny Echono, disclosed this in a press briefing on the 2015 World Food Day Celebration in Abuja on Friday. He said the policy would, among others, include increased use of flood resistant and early maturing seed varieties;

adoption and use of organic nutrients, including fertiliser, provision and use of irrigation facilities and mechanisation. According to him, the policy would also pursue an expanded dry season farming which had significantly increased yield and translated into

enhanced income for Nigerian farmers. Other current programmes of the Federal Government which are aimed at providing employment and reducing poverty in the rural areas, the Permanent Secretary, said are the Youth Empowerment Agricultural Programme (YEAP), which

would give agricultural business employment and training to an initial 30,000 Nigerian youths and a total of 800,000 in the next four years and the National Agricultural Land Expansion Programme, which is aimed at making land available for youths to engage in agriculture.

several to international conferences, seminars and training around the world. She urged the girls among the students to take up professions in agriculture and related disciplines to benefit from AWARD and other schemes for empowerment of women in agriculture. She said they should put in the best to their studies and determine to affect their generation through whatever they choose to pursue as careers in the future. Principal of the college, Mr B. O. Ajayi, a girl-child could achieve as much male counterpart contrary to relegation of girls associated with some cultures around the world. Ajayi also said students, especially girls, should get involved in agricultural businesses, as farmers of today, with knowledge and technologies, are no longer tattered, unkempt and haggard-looking. He urged the government to intensify efforts to upscale agriculture as the only tool that can save the world from protracted hunger crisis.

18 LETTERS TO THE

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

editor

Letters to the editor should be sent to letterstribune@yahoo. com or by sms to 08055001747 or 08054005323. It MUST be accompanied by the full name and address of the writer.

Ministerial nomination: Allegations against Adewole baseless

read with utmost avidity the political agitation which was launched against the nomination of Professor Isaac Folorunsho Adewole as a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I wish to particularly particularise myself with the published paid advertisement in the Tribune newspaper of October 15, 2015 under the title:”Osun Concerned Citizens” on page 5 of the newspaper. The group was appealing to Mr. President to withdraw the nomination. Their vexation was not be-

cause Professor Adewole has not performed creditably and meritoriously in his past and present appointments; it is not because he is not eminently qualified for the job of a minister and neither because there is any crime which he has committed to warrant the wicked agitation. There may be some other hidden agitators who have no facility for public hearing or by their character always like to hide and do havoc to matters which have incontrovertible legitimacy. I am, therefore,

Let us abolish ministerial positions PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has been in power since May 29, 2015, and he has succeeded so far without appointing ministers. He has been performing his duties with the permanent secretaries and directors general of ministries and parastatals, and he has not done so badly. I am, therefore, of the opinion that we should do away with ministerial positions, as it is just an avenue to compensate politicians. Nigeria is a perculiar country, and we should develop our own unique democracy. If President Buhari can survive for months without appointing ministers, then it is high time we abolished the position finally. At the moment, our country is going through a lot of economic challenges, and it is important that we look for ways through which we can curb wastages. The majority of politicians are not particularly good managers, as they also need to take the ‘national cake’ to their leaders in their constituencies. I am, therefore, advocating that we do away with ministers in government, as this is a good way to save funds for government. Permanent Secretaries and Director Generals can virtually perform the tasks of min-

isters. •Nelson Ekwale, University of Benin, Edo State.

making this article perspicacious in order to serve all classes of agitators. .In human life, people always have one reason or the other to complain about people or places. Sometimes, it is surreptitious and insidious and they could be baseless and needless but because of the need for agitators to say that we are here for recognition or relevance more so when one is talking about a democratic setting. The exiled Soviet writer, Alexander Solzhenitsyn said in one of his writings: “Schemes can be shattered; ambitions can be thwarted, but words cannot be muzzled.” All agitations which are fueled or engineered because of where one is born, or because of colour, language, dialect or even on the basis of esoteric relations, of the person in the epicenter, is totally preposterous, wicked and lacks civility. I wrote

in one of my books about the Monolithic Universe, and that means it is the responsibility of managers of men and materials to manage the heterogeneous societies into one strong homogenous family. Unfortunately, our politicians rarely have a family. People irrationally blew up the dusts into the atmosphere to darken the noon day like mists and in the end, it is a needless feud. The concerned citizens would have wished that the President would emerge from Osun but it did not happen so. There are things which man can change and he should proceed amidst his cognitive powers, competence and the God-given wisdom to change them. In fact, not all changeable things can be changed because causing a change include refusing to allow tactical blunder. If causing a change of a changeable thing

demands a level of intellectual power and competence, how much more of issues which are not changeable by any man? In 1999, I stoutly campaigned for Chief Olu Falae as the presidential candidate. I was then leaving Ibadan to 138, Ogundana Street, Allen Avenue, Ikeja to attend the meeting at the Presidential candidate’s secretariat. I voted for Chief Falae but Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was declared the winner. In those days many Yoruba people were in mourning mood. I am from Ijebu North and for many years, all topmost political positions were coming from Abeokuta. All former Nigerian presidents or heads of state who were Yoruba came from Abeokuta, including M.K.O.Abiola. Today, the situation has changed dramatically. Ijebu were recently ministers of Agriculture and Foreign Affairs

and now Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. When the initial appointments made by the president were loaded in favour of the North there were great and wild altercations across the length and breadth of the Yoruba land. The grouse had a sensitive political definition and legitimacy. Now that Buhari is picking those he wants to work with in Yoruba land, we have now entered another round of agitation. There are many bright stars in Yorubaland, but all of them may not go to the field of play at the same time. This is because time and chance is likely to exert its force on the situation. •Oladele Osunbote, Ibadan.

Message to Buhari on Fashola I have always known the former Lagos State governor, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola as a very intelligent man. The manner in which he governed the State of Excellence gave credence to his brilliance, while the way he held the Senators and Nigerians spellbound during his screening was so wonderful. However, it is being speculated that Mr Fashola will be made the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). If this is true, this administration will underutilise the capacity of the former governor. I want Mr Fashola to be assigned to a more tasking ministry like Works or Power. We need good roads in this country, as well as stable supply of electricity. As a result of this, we want Mr Fashola to man one of these two ministries. Assignining the former Lagos governor to the FCT as minister is not fair enough, as only Nigerians resident in the capital city will benefit from his brilliance. •Festus Adegoke, Iyana-Ipaja, Lagos.

editorial

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigerian Tribune

The crisis in the power sector

INCE electricity supply was privatised in November 2013, the interest of the service providers has been in conflict with that of the public they serve. While consumers have been looking forward to the dramatic improvement loudly touted as the immediate benefit of privatisation, the objective of the distribution companies (DISCOs) has always been an upward review of electricity tariff. This has become a source of constant face-off and legal tussles in which the critical stakeholders are all involved. On Tuesday, October 6, 2015, the House of Representatives urged the NERC to stop the planned increase in electricity tariff by the DISCOs. The lawmakers called for the immediate installation of pre-paid metres in consumers’ premises and summoned the management of the DISCOs to provide justification for the proposed increase. The action of the House was sequel to a motion by one of its members who contended that the cost of electricity was going down in other places as a result of the sharp drop in the price of oil and its corresponding effect on the cost of gas which is being mostly used to generate electricity. While the DISCOs are striving to achieve a hike in the unit price of electricity, the consumers are clinging to the stance that the quality of service must justify the price to be paid for it. A Lagos-based lawyer Toluwani Adebiyi sought and obtained a court injunction restraining the DISCOs and the NERC from effecting any increase in tariff until there had been “a meaningful and significant improvement” in power supply. NERC Chairman, Sam Amadi’s effort to get the order vacated was unsuccessful. With the case still pending, another suit was filed against the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) in which two plaintiffs complained against estimated billing and asked the Court to award them N5 million as damages for unlawful disconnection of power supply to their apartment. In another case, a group of residents in Mushin and Surulere Local Government Areas of Lagos State, filed a suit against the NERC, Eko Electricity Distribution Company and the Attorney-General of the Federation. They complained about excessive estimated bills that did not reflect the readings on their metres. Apart from the law suits, there have been protests by residents of some areas of Lagos who claimed that their electricity bills were higher than their house rents. There have been instances in which bills of more than N20,000.00 were issued to tenants living in two bedroom apartments. While there has been a noticeable improvement in

power supply, the point to note is that consumers still have a catalogue of genuine complaints which should be attended to by both the regulatory agency and the distribution companies. Since the NERC has, through its own study, discovered that there is a wide metering gap - which shows that more than 50 per cent of consumers are unmetred - the commission should pursue the issue of metering with all the vigour it can muster. In the course of its efforts to demonstrate its capacity to bark and bite, the NERC has incurred the wrath of the DISCOs it supervises. The IKEDC, on which it recently slammed a fine of N131.4 million for defying its metering order, has threatened to take it to court. Our hope is that the time, energy and other resources that should be committed to the upgrade of the system for effective performance will not be wasted on legal battles. Electricity consumers want further improvement in service delivery and an end to the culture of arbitrariness in the preparation of electricity bills. They want value for money. The DISCOs, on the other hand, have been insistent on what they have persistently called a cost reflective tariff. They are asking for a 49 per cent increase. They have been complaining about huge losses resulting from the failure of a sizeable number of their customers to settle their bills. They have pinpointed government establishments – the ministries, departments and agencies – as the major defaulters. They have identified the military and others in that category as one class of consumers who have not been paying for the services they enjoy. The government privatised the power sector for improved performance. It is shameful and irresponsible that the agencies and institutions of the same government are the defaulters frustrating the objectives of privatisation. Are there no provisions for utilities in their budgets? And as businesses enterprises, what stops the distribution companies from disconnecting electricity supply to military personnel and institutions, MDAs and other defaulting establishments? If they cannot collect their own bills, in what way are they better than the government-owned utility they have replaced? Why are private and powerless individuals the soft targets always harassed with outrageous bills and thrown into darkness for no just cause? A private enterprise operating in a captive market and unable to collect the money for the services it renders is a failure in business. The power sector is in crisis and it is self-inflicted.

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opinion

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

... And the ayes have it!

IGERIANS could finally heave a sigh of relief. The uncertainty that hovered over the appointment of ministers for the nation like wraiths lurking behind a man’s shadow in corridors of abysmal darkness, temporarily gave way to a flicker of light. The many ripples that had initially besieged the national waters partially dissipated as the first list, consisting of 21 names, was sent to the Senate on September 30. A second list was later sent in, bringing the total number of ministerial nominees to 37 but the odyssey for the appointment of PMB’s ‘noise makers,’ had barely begun. The lists were only a tiny step in a sojourn of innumerable flights. So, on Tuesday 13 October, the 8th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, commanded by the Senate president, Bukola Saraki, began the ultimate task that would bring about the emergence of Buhari’s noisemakers and Nigeria’s ministers for the next four years. Prior to the screening exercise, Saraki had reiterated that the transmogrification of Nigeria’s Senate would be epically depicted in its conduction of the screening exercise. He assured Nigerians that it would not be another time-wasting plenary session, like what was prominent in the modus operandi of the ‘old’ senate, where the senate simply asked nominees to ‘take a bow and go’ during the screening exercises. He vowed that the Red Chamber of the fortified senate, led by him, whose emergence is still under the lens of powerful electron microscopes for scrutiny, would thoroughly screen nominees and ensure that only those who emerge squeaky clean would be approved. His words: “We have said that for the eighth Senate, it is not going to be business as usual, what I can assure you is that we will go with the constitution, the rules; we will put Nigeria first, screening will be done with level of seriousness and what we are all about is our constitutional responsibility to ensure that we find people who are fit enough to be ministers.”

Oblivious Nigerians, I posit to call them, had taken the thunderous echoes of Saraki as genuine solemn vows but in no time, had their hopes dashed like always. I, on the other hand, have devised a means of maintaining my sanity in a country laden with and ravished by loquacious, unreliable and mendacious politicians by following this simple rule: “blessed are those who are immune to their seasoned words, for they shall not have their hearts broken”. I hope more Nigerians will see the light! With high expectations, people sat glued to their television screens whether flat, curve or round and waited to see the Senate and Saraki deliver on their promise but alas, they paltered with us all in double sense, kept the words of promise to our ears but broke them to our hope as they gave it all to the ayes. One begins to wonder what hope lies for the nays. Will the nays ever haves in Nigeria’s senate? Nigerians, though choked on every side by thorns of adversity bestowed on us by the avariciousness of our mostly corrupt leaders, happen to have the greatest collection

veracity with Vera Onana

veraonana@gmail.com 08054680688 of homo sapiens with stupefying brilliance ever made by the creator. So, Let us not allow ourselves to be mocked because the ultimate mockery of our collective intellect, will be considering that charade, that stage play, that circus that went down at the National Assembly last week as screening! Let me replay two striking scenarios, follow me closely. Saraki, on the approval of Lai Mohammed, had chanted the sacred senate mantra which is similitude to the much valued coin with flip sides. It sounded like this – does the senate approve the nomination of Lai Mohammed, as a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria? Those in favour say ‘aye’, those against say ‘nay’… A good number of Senators had said ‘aye’ however, their aye stood no chance in comparism with the thunderous nay that rocked the substratum of the Senate. The Senate president made the call the second time, but this time, did not even give the other party enough time to respond before he banged his gavel. With a childish grin on his face, which broke into a subtle chuckle as he pronounced his verdict, he screamed “and the ayes have it!” Perhaps the response of the nay sayers was not audible enough the second time. Let us put that aside and consider the approval of Kemi Adeosun. After chanting his mantra in the traditional manner, Saraki received no response. There was neither a loud aye nor an inaudible nay. Nothing, no Senator spoke but what happened? Bang went Saraki’s gavel as he proudly declared again “the ayes have it” I shouldn’t go any further but the truth must be said. These actions and perhaps inactions of our leaders will invariably resurrect repercussions. 18 nominees have been approved already and more are to be screened, but hasn’t it been business as usual? The ayes will always have it and the nays, may be forever doomed to an inaudible fate… sad story of Nigeria’s Senate whether old or the so-called new.

Making the Nigeria nuclear power programme feasible (1) By Imoh B. Obioh

Much has been said about the Nigerian nuclear power (NP) programme. Few believe the programme would deliver electricity to Nigeria. Most do not believe anything would be achieved due to mismanagement by the focal institution, the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission (NAEC). The Commission was mandated in 2006 to achieve online electricity generation from nuclear fuel by 2017. Going by the current progress this may not be achieved in another 25 years. The position of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the global nuclear watchdog is that “launching a nuclear power programme is a major undertaking that requires careful planning, preparation and investment”. IAEA is letting new-comer countries developing NP infrastructure know that “if wishes were horses beggars would ride”, positing that developing national NP policy must involve broad range of stakeholders: politicians, policy makers, technical experts, community and non-governmental organisations (CBOs and NGOs), and the general public. These stakeholders must own the project and evolve a tailor-made programme with achievable targets, roles and responsibilities understood by all. Lack of such understanding appears the reason the programme is stalled. The role of NP Programme in National Development: NP programmes are associated with high investment costs, ionising radiation and radioactive wastes. Wastes management, safety and NPP economics remain issues of public concern. Despite these, developing countries with successful programmes have witnessed vertical and horizontal technological development in their economies. This is because one precondition for successful NP programme is human and institutional capacity development to support all elements of the technologies and their domestication in reasonable time. “In reasonable time” is underlined in the last statement because of typical long duration of the programme. IAEA recommends a 17-year structured programme which would require four Presidents of 4-year

tenure or two presidents with 8-year tenure each in Nigeria to complete. Periods much longer than this requires more political players and runs the risk of failure unless focused leadership is guaranteed across the number of years and political players. Besides nuclear, other associated technologies to be domesticated include construction hardware and materials; instrumentation technologies; steel, light and heavy machinery; electro-mechanical, chemical and allied technologies; hi-tech welding, fabrication of inputs to support operation and repairs for all facets of NP infrastructure, among others. Domestication creates the platform for increasing the fraction of technologies patented locally that is used in projects. With time the nation is able to advance and apply its own patented technologies in whole NPPs or projects in other economic sectors. South Korea whose programme started just before Nigeria’s independence commissioned its first turn-key NPP in 1978 with 8% national content. This grew to 12% and 14% with 2nd and 3rd turn-key NPPs in 1982 and 1984. They went into modular NPP constructions with 79% national content attained in 1995 and finally reached 100% in 2012. Koreans now build NPPs at home and abroad and one of the highest exporters of high technology goods and services globally. Achieving 100% indigenisation 34 years after its first turn-key NPP and 53 years after project inception is a

significant feat Nigeria could emulate. Their economy has witnessed monumental expansion that is uncommon. Same is the case in China, India, Pakistan, South Africa and others in the NP club. The Facts and Non-Facts of Nuclear Power Nuclear programmes have become highly controversial. However issues are not factual but fueled by anxieties of World War II experience. Only a few serious NP accidents have actually occurred globally, one at Three Mile Island (1979), one at Chernobyl (1986); and three at Fukushima (2011). Most others are recorded as incidents. The Chernobyl accident, had more than 4000 fatalities, and 6 fatalities in 3 incidents in Japan, most others had zero fatalities. Despite limited accidents and improvements in safety many are not convinced that nuclear power is safe or could be made safer. Difficulties arise in sieving facts from non-facts. Nuclear facilities pose serious danger to the general public if not adequately contained and managed. However measures to protect workers and the public are increasing. NPPs are not more unsafe in comparison with road, aviation, industrial accidents etc, which have higher frequency and annual fatality records. That the world only witnessed few major accidents in over 16,000 cumulative reactor-years of commercial operation in 33 countries in over six decades attests to its relative safety. Accident risks remain low and declining. Current anxieties appear over-magnified and speculative. Can Nigeria with all its economic challenges afford to wait until safety is completely guaranteed before investing in the sector through articulated well-structured NP programme for greater national economic benefits? •Obioh is of the Centre for Energy Research and Development, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and Former Executive Commissioner International Cooperation and Liaison Directorate, Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission, Abuja. (To be continued tomorrow).

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015 Femi Olukunle Coordinating Editor 08158610216

80-bed Keffi prison overcrowded, houses 449 inmates Sunday Ejike - Abuja

HE Keffi prison is an 80-bed-space capacity prison which unfortunately houses a total of 449 inmates, Abuja Xtra can disclose. Perhaps, it is not the overcrowded nature of the prison that sends tears rolling down the cheek of sympathetic citizens, but the fact that out of the current 449 inmates, 326 are awaiting trials with only 123 as convicts. Of course as should be expected, the high population of the inmates has over-stretched facilities of the prison. The situation has thus made the Deputy-Controller of the Keffi Prisons, James Landar, express worries over the high number of inmates awaiting trials in the prison. It equally attracted the management of the Legal Aids Council of Nigeria (LACON) headed by its Director General, Mrs Joy Bob-Manuel and some members of the Abuja Branch of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), led by the Vice Chairperson of the Association, Betty A. Umegbulem all of whom recently embarked on a visit to the prison. While playing host to the groups, Landar disclosed that most of the awaiting trial inmates were from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), which is the reason why he called on the Chief Judge of FCT, Justice Bello, to pay a visit to the prison to see things for himself. He informed that a letter had been written to the FCT Chief Judge, reminding him of the need to visit the prison which he said also fell under his jurisdiction. “The prison is, no doubt, congested and we only keep hoping that frequent visits of the combined team of the Legal Aids Council and the NBA, Abuja branch, will be helpful in de-congesting the prison here in Keffi”, he said. The deputy controller lamented that FCT Chief Judge had not responded to the letter written to him, stressing the need for him to come for a de-congestion exercise, even as he commended the CJ for his recent visit to the Kuje prisons for the same exercise, insisting that he should do the same by visiting Keffi prison. The prison boss applauded the

Man peeping from a gulag. visit by the Lagal Aid Council and the Abuja branch of the NBA and prayed for such regular visits, adding that such would go a long way in boosting efforts towards decongesting the prison. Checks by Abuja Xtra showed that most of the awaiting trial inmates are being held for crimes like robberies, culpable homicides,

Day Kubwa ‘night crawlers’ had outing with Terry G —pg22

house breaking and thefts. According to Landar, the fact that the inmates are brought from the prison which is located in Nasarawa State on a daily basis to courts in Abuja for trials was telling on the management of the prison. In her comment on the visit, Mrs Bob-Manuel, the Director-General of the Legal Aid Council, who was

Prison officials at a discussion.

Women beg Senators to clear Abubakar today —pg22

visibly worried that some of the inmates were being held in the prison because they did not have access to legal representation, said the situation informed the decision to visit prisons to identify those indigent Nigerians languishing in detention with a view to providing free legal services for them. While pointing out that the visit was a collaborative effort between the council and the NBA Abuja branch on prisons decongestion, Bob-Manuel pledged that the council and the bar would render assistance to inmates who needed lawyers’ representations in courts. She assured the awaiting trial inmates that the council would further collaborate with private practitioners to give free legal services to them. The Legal Aid Council boss said such visits would be extended to Kuje prison in Abuja and the Suleja prison in Niger State. Mrs Betty Umegbulem, who is the vice-chairman of the Abuja branch of the NBA, assured that the association would do its best to defend the inmates who could not afford legal services in court in order to de-congest the prison. Umegbulem, who is also the chairman of the Human Rights Committee of the bar, assured the inmates of protection of their rights, adding that the committee

had advocated the establishment of a human rights desk in the prison. She said that the bar was currently rendering free legal services to 15 inmates, just as she welcomed the Administration of Criminal Justice Act passed by last administration and described it as a step that would help in speedy dispensation of criminal trials. A total of 134 criminal cases were taken over for free legal representation by the Legal Aid Council at the end of the visit.

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. Collins Nnabuife chideraacollins@yahoo.com 08039521408 5. Adetola Bademosi gloriaadetola@gmail.com 08182214290 Abuja Xtra email & GSM: abujaxtra@gmail.com 0805450140

abujaextra

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Day Kubwa ‘night crawlers’ had outing with Terry G

Mc Bob (left) and Terry G Collins Nnabuife - Abuja

ESIDENTS of Kubwa in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) recently turned out in their numbers to witness a show which featured Terry G at Sledge Lounge and Restaurant.

The show, which attracted over 5000 fun seekers, was organised by an Abuja-based comedian, MC Bob, in collaboration with Sledge Lounge and Restaurant. Abuja Xtra spoke with the Cross Riverborn comedian who has been in the entertainment industry for a couple of years and

he said that it was very challenging bringing Terry G to the satellite town. According to him, the Terry G idea came when some friends told him that it was necessary to bring someone that has not been to Kubwa axis before. “So I decided to invite Terry G with part-

Women beg Senators to clear Abubakar today Christian Okeke - Abuja A cross-section of women in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have pleaded with the senate to clear a ministerial nominee, Aisha Abubakar, whose appointment generated a petition. The female nominee is expected to appear before the Senate plenary for her screening today (Tuesday), but the petition by some stakeholders from Sokoto State is

a source of worry to the FCT women. The petition, which was presented to the Senate by Senator Ibrahim Gobir, sought for the nominee to be dropped from the list and replaced with a more competent person from the state. However, the women, who spoke with Abuja Xtra, described the petition as unfair and urged the entire Senators, particularly female lawmakers in the red chamber, to defend one of their very own and ensure

Quacks destroying DJ business in FCT —DJ T1 Collins Nnabuife - Abuja AN Abuja-based DJ, DJ T1, has raised the alarm that one of the biggest challenges which DJs in Abuja face is the problem of quacks in the entertainment industry. He also said that the challenge was not

DJ TI

going down well with the professional DJs in the territory, as they found it difficult to get jobs from clients because the quacks had taken over the industry in Abuja. DJ T1, while speaking with Abuja Xtra, expressed worry that some professional DJs might be knocked out of business if the challenge persisted while others might relocate from the territory. According to him, the quack DJs use substandard equipment, thereby giving their clients poor quality jobs. He said: “Many people are trying to be DJ, so with that, many of us are not getting what we are supposed to get. “In Abuja, getting a DJ job is not easy, but the little ones that come go to the best DJs. “The type of equipment I use differentiates me from other DJs. Unlike the quacks in the industry who install Virtual DJ without proper training, in the next few years, I want to be like DJ Jimmy Jatt because he is the best DJ in Nigeria, he inspires me whenever I see him performing on the television.”

that she scaled through. Speaking with Abuja Xtra, Mrs Felicia Idika lamented what she described as an ambush against the female folk at this time, owing to the petitions against two female appointees, of which Aisha Abubakar is one. She said that it was unfortunate that some people decided to play politics with an appointment which they should ordinarily applaud, although expressed satisfaction that the petition was not about corruption or other personal infractions against the nominee. Felicia said it was a known fact that women showed more commitment to their work and delivered much more results than their male counterparts at work places. According to her, the country is blessed to have the calibre of female appointees like Aisha Abubakar by President Muhammadu Buhari. Also speaking, Halima Umar said she had followed the antecedents of the nominee when she served in various capacities in Abuja and was convinced that she would deliver quality result. She reminded the petitioners that those being appointed by the president already knew that they had no option than to perform and would do all within their powers to give good account of themselves in office. She said: “I am aware that a lot of people have spoken against the petition and I want to add my voice by saying that the woman who is an internationally-recognized expert should be allowed to come and contribute her quota to rebuilding this country “The good news that I want to hear today is that she has been cleared. It will definitely strengthen my pride in womanhood.”

nership of my comedy company as well as Sledge Lounge and Restaurant and the show was massive,” he said. Mc Bob said that in the history of shows in Kubwa in the face of the current security challenge, the Terry G show was the first that attracted over 5000 people standing. He said: “This is the first ever show in Kubwa where we have about 5000 people standing. I tried to listen to some people on the red carpet and they admitted that this was the first show that hosted 5000 people ever since the activities of terrorists started. “I was so happy that despite the security challenge, people still came out in large number to support me at the show, “he said. When Abuja Xtra asked him how he managed to drag Terry G to Kubwa, MC Bob said bringing the entertainer was very difficult. He said: “Initially, I fell into wrong hands after I had started doing publicity, but finally I got the correct contact of Terry G’s manager and started afresh with negotiations. It was two weeks to the show and the manager gave me consent and confirmed that Terry G would be at the show.” When asked about his plans for the next first years, the upcoming comedian said, “If I can host 5000 people today, I will be hosting my audience in a stadium in the next five years.”

Total Group donates HIV/AIDS equipment to Bwari hospital Christian Okeke - Abuja TOTAL Group in Nigeria has donated hitech HIV/AIDS screening equipment to Bwari General Hospital, Abuja. It also offered free HIV tests to over 100 residents of the area. The donation was made during the launch of the expanded community HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria preventive education project in Kubwa. Presentation of the donated equipment to the benefiting hospital was done on behalf of Total Nigeria Plc and Total Upstream Companies in Nigeria by the General Manager, CSR/SD, Dr Charles Ngeribara. Speaking during the event, he stated that the organisation was committed to positively impacting lives of citizens through health education and institutional capacity support on HIV/AIDS management. He noted that the project involved training of peer educators who would give further awareness to the public. Ngeribara appealed to the hospital management on proper and judicious use of the equipment and pledged the readiness of the body to train the handlers for maximum impact and sustainability. According to him, the organisation has already designated some service stations as centres for free HIV counseling and testing. He said: “The modalities adopted in the implementation of this initiative are in full compliance with the United Nations recommended standards which involve stakeholders’ engagement with the communities to address specific issues of concern and ensure capacity building for peer educators. Responding, the chairman of Bwari Area Council, Yohona Ushafa, described the fight against HIV/AIDS as a battle which must be jointly fought. He commended the organisation for choosing the area council for the kind gesture and assured that his administration was determined to give the council a befitting healthy environment.

Nigerian Tribune

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

The 60-second

business coach

7 things that make great bosses unforgettable

Just do it

Leadersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; forum You can be lazy and not know

Book Review

Leadership Quote:

We must learn to apply all that we know so that we can attract all that we want. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Jim Rohn

leadership &

management

with Sulaimon Olanrewaju

m:08055001708 e:lanresulaimon@yahoo.com t:@lanresulaimon

Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank

The synthesizing leader By Sulaimon Olanrewaju

T is not for nothing that the era we are in is called the information age. Wherever you turn, there is a swarm of information, solicited and unsolicited. No one can rightly complain of insufficient information as there is an inflow of this from various sources. However, as helpful as information is to a leader, its deluge

could be harmful. When a leader is bombarded by information, the decision-making process, rather than being aided, becomes hampered and the leader is thrown into a state of confusion as he ventures into making the most of the available information. This is why a leader needs to have a handle on synthesizing. Synthesizing is the ability to generate new perspectives from existing elements. Synthesis is neither a summary

nor a fusion of ideas and elements from different sources but a reliance on current materials and items to produce completely new thoughts. As observed by Bob and Gregg Vanourek, synthesis takes A + B + C and then derives D, where D does not only encompass the essence of A, B and C but also adds something new that resonates deeply with the people. Continues on pg24

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

leadership&management

The 60-second business coach

7 things that make great bosses unforgettable

Synthesis: A critical leadership skill

Book review

From values to action

By Travis Bradberry 1. Great bosses are passionate. Few things are more demotivating than a boss who is bored with his or her life and job. If the boss doesn’t care, why should anybody else? Unforgettable bosses are passionate about what they do. They believe in what they’re trying to accomplish, and they have fun doing it. This makes everyone else want to join the ride. 2. They stand in front of the bus. Some bosses will throw their people under the bus without a second thought; great bosses pull their people from the bus’s path before they’re in danger. They coach, and they move obstacles out of the way, even if their people put those obstacles there in the first place. Sometimes, they clean up messes their people never even knew they made. And, if they can’t stop the bus, they’ll jump out in front of it and take the hit themselves. 3. They play chess not checkers. Think about the difference. In checkers, all the pieces are basically the same. That’s a poor model for leadership because nobody wants to feel like a faceless cog in the proverbial wheel. In chess, on the other hand, each piece has a unique role, unique abilities, and unique limitations. Unforgettable bosses are like great chess masters. They recognize what’s unique about each member of their team. They know their strengths, weaknesses, likes, and dislikes, and they use these insights to draw the very best from each individual. 4. They are who they are, all the time. They don’t lie to cover up their mistakes, and they don’t make false promises. Their people don’t have to exert energy trying to figure out their motives or predicting what they’re going to do next. Equally as important, they don’t hide things they have the freedom to disclose. Instead of hoarding information and being secretive to boost their own power, they share information and knowledge generously. 5. They are a port in a storm. They don’t get rattled, even when everything is going haywire. Under immense pressure, they act like Eugene Kranz, flight director for the Apollo 13 mission. In the moments after the explosion, when death looked certain and panic seemed like the only option, Kranz kept his cool, saying, “Okay, now, let everybody keep cool. Let’s solve the problem, but let’s not make it any worse by guessing.” In those initial moments, he had no idea how they were going to get the astronauts home, but, as he later explained, “you do not pass uncertainty down to your team members.” People who’ve worked for an unforgettable boss often look back later and marvel at their coolness under pressure. That’s why, 45 years after Apollo 13, people are still talking about Eugene Kranz and his leadership during that crisis. 6. They are human. And they aren’t afraid to show it. They’re personable and easy to relate to. They’re warm. They realize that people have emotions, and they aren’t afraid to express their own. They relate to their people as a person first and a boss second. On the other hand, they know how to keep their emotions in check when the situation calls for it. 7. They are humble. Since these bosses don’t believe they are above anyone or anything, they openly address their mistakes so that everyone can learn from them. Their modesty sets a tone of humility and strength that everyone else follows.

Kase Lawal, CEO, CAMAC International Corporation Continued from pg23

They also say that synthesis simplifies and explains, adding, “Those who synthesize can touch people deeply. Synthesis is a powerful and essential leadership skill.” A leader’s success is often hinged on his ability to mobilize his people towards achieving a specified goal. More often than not team members hold different views about the same matter and are motivated to hold such views by different factors. So, outright rejection of such views may precipitate cracks in the team as team members may wonder why their views are turned down and may not be willing to give their all to the preferred idea. Therefore, the onus is on the leader to integrate the views of the team members while not jettisoning his own. Thus, it is important that the leader should possess the ability to synthesize. According to Howard Gardner, who wrote The Five Minds of the Future, the synthesizing leader takes information from disparate sources, understands and evaluates that information objectively, and puts it together in ways that make sense to the synthesizer and also to other persons. So, for a leader who wants to build a cohesive team, possessing the synthesizing skill is sine qua non. Synthesis is a skill that can be developed. Here are ways of developing the skill. Analytical thinking A synthesizer does not take an idea lock, stock and barrel, he has to consider such idea with a view to separating the shaft from the grain. To effectively do this, he needs to be analytical in his thinking. Analytical thinking is the ability

Adesuwa Onyenokwe, Publisher, TW Magazine to take apart a load of complex information to extract the hidden gems so as to be able to arrive at a conclusion or proffer a solution. To analyze is to consider something through different points of view with the aim of establishing a cause and an effect. It is also the ability to be impersonal in the deconstruction process. To make a success of analytical reasoning, personal biases have to be interred to ensure that the best decision is reached. Analytical thinking requires asking some basic questions to get the import of a piece of information. The first is what is the kernel or the heart of this information? In other words what is this information about? What is its essence? The second question: Is it important to us? Do we need it? If it is important, why is it important? What changes will it effect? Is there anything already in the system that is doing or offering exactly what this promises? The third question is ‘How do we make use of this information? Is it something that could be deployed immediately or something that has to wait till a later date? Once these questions are answered one way or the other, it becomes easy to synthesize the information. Critical thinking Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally about what to do or what to believe. It includes the ability to engage in reflective and independent thinking. It is a way of thinking in which one doesn’t simply accept all arguments and conclusions as presented but having an attitude involving questioning such arguments and conclusions. It requires want-

Ladi Delano, CEO, Bakrie Delano Africa

ing to see what evidence is involved to support a particular argument or conclusion. A critical thinker raises vital questions and problems, formulating them clearly and precisely. He also gathers and assesses relevant information, using abstract ideas to interpret it effectively and comes to well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards. Critical thinking is vital to becoming a synthesizer. Integrative thinking To become a synthesizer one needs to have the integrative thinking ability. Although the concept of integrative thinking was first used by Graham Douglas in 1986, it is Roger Martin,

Becoming an integrative thinker requires moving away from the conventional thinking of simplifying or reducing the complexity of the cognitive process to reach a resolution as quickly and efficiently as possible into viewing problems in a more holistic manner.

Kola Oyeneyin, Founder, AutoGenius

Dean of the Rotman School of Management, at The University of Toronto, who has popularized it and even developed a theory on it. According to Martin, integrative thinking is the ability to constructively face the tensions of opposing models, and instead of choosing one at the expense of the other, generate a creative resolution of the tension in the form of a new model that contains elements of the individual models, but is superior to each. Integrative thinking is making the best of two opposing ideas without losing the benefit of either. It is the ability to turn two opposing ideas into the raw material for producing a new one. Integrative thinking is the foundation for synthesizing. The difference between the two is that while integrative thinking is limited to two ideas, synthesis has no such restrictions. Martin further states that “Integrative thinkers build models rather than choose between them. Their models include consideration of numerous variables not just a subset of the above. Their models capture the complicated, multi-faceted and multidirectional causal relationships between the key variables in any problem. Integrative thinkers consider the problem as a whole, rather than breaking it down and farming out the parts. Finally, they creatively resolve tensions without making costly trade-offs, turning challenges into opportunities.” Becoming an integrative thinker requires moving away from the conventional thinking of simplifying or reducing the complexity of the cognitive process to reach a resolution as quickly and efficiently as possible into viewing problems in a more holistic manner. This attitude helps the integrative thinker to discover

solutions that elude the conventional thinker. Big picture To properly synthesize, the leader must have the big picture in focus at all times. The leader should always guard against allowing himself to be hemmed in by a narrow perspective. In an organization, every sectional head will be motivated by his parochial interests. This will determine his views and position on a number of matters. He will want to push his views just for the benefit of his section. But the overall leader cannot afford to take that route, he must always bear in mind the big picture and doing this will help him to bring all sections and segments of the organization into focus while taking his decisions. So, rather than take a decision that will favour just a section, a synthesizing leader, with the aid of the big picture, is able to take a decision that will not be sectional but all-encompassing. Recourse to the vision One of the major side effects of information overload is the temptation to lose sight of the vision. In the information age, things change almost at the speed of light and the leader is almost always pushed to the wall about having to change his focus every time. But those who change the vision of their organization all the time are often left behind by those who are better focused. To synthesize effectively, a leader must work in line with the vision of his organization. Adherence to the vision is a critical factor in the sustainability of an organization. Those who want to practise synthesis must not lose focus of the vision

WHAT is values-based leadership? Well, it’s based on the principle of “doing the right thing.” Kraemer writes of values-based leadership: Leadership, simply put, is the ability to influence others. Values-based leadership takes it to the next level. By word, action, and example, values-based leaders seek to inspire and motivate, using their influence to pursue what matters most (p.2). Now, there may be differences of opinion as to what matters most, but for those, like me, who come to this book from a perspective that emphasizes God’s concern for the common good, what matters most is that we learn to love God with our entire being and our neighbor as we love ourselves. Values-based leadership, then, will get us to that goal. Kraemer divides his book into three parts. The first part outlines his four principles – self-reflection, balance and perspective, true self-confidence, and genuine humility. If one just reads this section of the book, they will find much food for thought and foundation for action. Part two takes those values into developing a values-based organization. Here he deals with talent management, leadership development, setting directions, communicating effectively, motivating one’s team and executing one’s plan. This is the practical section. Finally, in part three, he discusses how to lead one’s organization from success to significance. That is, it’s not enough to be successful, especially financially, if one does not end up becoming a socially responsible entity that makes a positive contribution to humanity. The middle section of the book at times will require discernment as to how it will be of use. There is much of value here in regards to putting together a team and guiding it to an effective outcome. That said, those of us who work in small churches don’t have the luxury of hiring and firing a staff. We can’t always choose who we will work with, for most of those we work with are volunteers. So, the dynamics will be different. Still, there is much of value to be found laid out on these pages. Where I found the most value in this book on values-based leadership is part 1. These four principles – self-reflection, balance/perspective, true self-confidence, and genuine humility. Kraemer states that self-reflection is the foundational principle of leadership. By developing a sense of self-awareness, where we know both our own strengths

and our weaknesses, we will be better prepared to take on a leadership role. Self-reflection is a tool that will allow us to set priorities and make good choices. When we’re not acting from self-reflection we tend to make bad choices, jumping in without knowing whether this is a good decision. He notes, however, that this principle will require us to move outside our comfort zone, but the result will be very valuable. Following up on this act of self-reflection is the principle of “balance and perspective.” Balance, he writes, “is the ability to see issues, problems, and questions from all angles, including from different viewpoints, even those that are diametrically opposed to mine” (p. 28). Having balance invites one to do the right thing rather than being right, and one needn’t know everything. Something that Kraemer says that might cause difficulty for some, but which I think might be of value, is that leadership involves inviting input into the decision making process, but consensus isn’t necessary. Balance, however, not only includes looking at issues from multiple angles, it also involves living a balanced life. If, he says, we identify too much with our work then we’ll likely burnout. The goal is a satisfying life. Even though one works hard at one’s job, there needs to be room to “live life” as well. A values-based leader, therefore, isn’t a workaholic. The third principle is “true self-confidence,” which involves having an inner sense of one’s own self. Again it involves recognizing one’s strengths and weaknesses, and building upon one’s strengths. True self confidence means being comfortable with one’s self. He writes that “although there will always be people who are smarter or more talented, you know you are okay and committed to getting better. You recognize that your future lies in your existing strengths, not in your weaknesses. You surround yourself with people whose skill sets complement yours” (p. 58). It stands in contrast with false self-confidence, which is expressed in terms of bravado, arrogance, and the belief that one is always right. When one has this true self-confidence, then one will have the courage to speak one’s mind and the ability to persevere. Finally, he offers up the principle of “genuine humility.” This emerges from self-reflection and true self-confidence. It emerges from being grounded, and helps one focus on doing what is best and what is right, not in climbing the corporate ladder.

tribunebusiness

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigerian Tribune

TOPE POPOOLA is a Human Capital developement Consultant and Pastor. Please feel free to send questions, feedback comments on this column to

topheritage@yahoo.com or visit http//turbochargedforsuccess.blogspot.com

AT sixteen, Tayo had begun to take more than a passing interest in the opposite sex. Until now, he had not taken more than a cursory look at any girl. In fact, he had carefully avoided their company. He had no sisters. This meant that he had never really learnt how to engage any girl in conversation, even in his class. He felt therefore the need to build up his confidence level and learn how best to start a conversation with any girl he wanted to strike a friendship with. Fidelis, Tayo’s friend was a direct contrast. He seemed to be the toast of every party. Fidelis oozed confidence and was a smooth talker who could serenade anyone in conversation. Needless to say, he was a hit with the girls. Whenever he was in their company, he had an uncanny way of getting them to grin from ear to ear with intermittent giggles and chuckles mixed with loud laughter. Tayo never ceased to wonder how Fidelis could pull that off. To solve his own problem, Tayo decided to ask Fidelis for help. He had zeroed in on a particular girl in his class named Tamuno. He liked her to no end and always developed butterflies in his stomach each time he saw her. “Teach me how to talk to the girls” he implored Fidelis. “I am particularly interested in Tamuno and would love to know her better.” “Piece of cake”, Fidelis replied. “To start a conversation with a girl, you will need an ice-breaker; something to ease the tension and make you both relax. During the lunch break, find a means of sitting right opposite her, then look her straight in the eye and say, “Tamuno, when I look into your eyes, time simply stands still”. With that she should at least smile and relax. By the way, you don’t need to worry because I will be right beside you.” “Great. Sounds wonderful,” said Tayo. Then he began to repeat over and over aloud to ensure that he did not forget and to build up his confidence level. He actually got a sheet of paper and wrote the statement several times on it. “Tamuno, when I look into your eyes, time simply stands still”

Just do it!

He practiced the sentence several times every day for several days until he was very confident that he could deliver without stuttering. When he felt that his confidence level was high enough, he fixed a date for the onslaught. Finally, the D-day arrived. The moment he had both dreaded, yet anticipated had at last, come. At break time, Tayo and Fidelis went directly to where Tamuno was sitting with her friends. As he positioned himself directly opposite her, he looked directly into her eyes, opened his mouth to recite his ‘memory verse’. All of a sudden, he felt a big lump rise up in his throat and freeze his lips. The road to Golgotha could not have been more excruciating. Tayo just sat there staring, mouth agape with no words coming out. Seeing his friend’s dilemma, Fidelis sat down beside him and acting as a prompter, gave him a nudge and whispered, “Just say it!”. Tayo tried again but the words still didn’t form. Finally, summoning all the courage at his disposal, he blurted out in the manner of someone with hot, scalding food in his mouth, “Tamuno, ...you...you...have a face that would stop a clock!” Fidelis was so horrified he felt like the ground should open up and swallow him. After this, he would never speak a word to Tayo again. How could he have messed up so badly? Tamuno’s response shocked them both. Seeing beyond Tayo’s nervousness into his real intention, she laughed and thanked him for the compliment. It was the beginning of a great friendship which eventually led to a happy marriage ten years later. Butterflies in the stomach. As a public speaker, I know the feeling too well. There is perhaps no other sphere of endeavour where I know the palpable reality of fear like public speaking. Everyone who has the opportunity to stand before an audience recognizes that no two audiences are alike. For this reason, one cannot leave anything to chance. No matter how well prepared you are for an event, your first few minutes on stage can make or mar even a well rehearsed presentation. In my years as an actor, the same condition prevailed. The first time I appeared on stage, I stuttered through my lines, not minding the fact that I had been coached

leaders’ forum

with Ademola Adeoye 07067869718

over and over again by my Dad who was directing the play. It was in the year 1968 and the play was John Pepper Clark’s “Song of A Goat”. In my excitement, I had harassed every visitor to our house with my lines. But on presentation day, I felt as if someone had my tongue glued to my palate. I struggled through while feeling like someone should ferret me out of that stage. When people commended my performance afterwards, I wondered if they were humouring me or just trying to encourage my deflated ego! Over the years however, I have become better at managing the situation (emphasis on “managing”!) One good thing about fear is that most of what we are afraid of are nothing but the gnomes we created and set in our heads. In reality, fear is usually a manifestation of an imagination running riot and usually in the wrong direction. Several times, we want to do things but are waiting for all conditions to be perfect. The writer of Ecclesiastes in the Holy Bible writes that he who waits for all conditions to be perfect will never get anything done. Truth be told, conditions are hardly ever perfect for any venture especially at the beginning. Many people are trying to get it right instead of just getting it going. Fear is the Siamese twin of risk-taking. People who win in life do not win because they are fearless. They win because they went ahead, confronted their fears and ventured in spite of it. Your success story begins at the point where you move beyond your fears even while tongue-tied, clammy-palmed and sweating like the proverbial Christmas goat, and you go ahead and do the very thing that appeared like it was going to kill you. If you are at that point in your life now where you are faced with a venture to undertake but are afraid of taking the plunge in the hope that things would be perfect before you do, I hate to rain on your parade. They won’t. My candid advice (even at the risk of sounding like Fidelis)? Just do it! Remember, the sky is not your limit, God is!

leaders_forum@yahoo.com

You can be lazy and not know

RECENTLY, I travelled to speak on the subject of laziness, in context of leadership. My trouble-free job in that conference was to redefine laziness and lay it bare to them as onions. After finishing my session that day, almost everyone under the sound of my voice agreed that they were lazy. I want to believe that by the time you finish reading through this piece, you are going to find out whether you are lazy or not. Nothing sets free, empowers and liberates than relevant information. Who is either a lazy man or woman? Many people believe that a lazy man or woman is someone who only sleeps in his or her bed every day when he or she is supposed to be working. I conjecture that this is your own portrait of a lazy man or woman, too. But the truth is you may not fit into the picture I painted and still be lazy. If everyone is truly diligent, then everyone is supposed to be flourishing and productive in life and leadership. This is my own characterization, description and portrayal of someone who is lazy: “a lazy man is someone who hunts but will not roast that which he hunts.” This definition is a very pregnant, charged and significant one. It is life changing. I will try my best possible to break it down, so that you can understand what I am trying to pass on to you today. Your life is about to change forever! What does it mean to ‘hunt’ and not ‘roast’? Not long, I went to train an assemblage of leaders on the subject I am addressing today. After my presentation, a young man walked up to me and said: “I do have about six manuscripts…I am yet to publish just one out of them, releasing them to the market for people to buy. After your session today, I now believe that I have been so lazy without knowing.” A poorly written book that has been published is better than a well written manuscript that is kept in the house. About four months ago, I spoke to the workforce of one of the leading companies in Nigeria. I was to train them on what the 21st century workplace looks like. In the course of my teaching, I went

off on a tangent a little to speak to them in synopsis on laziness in the context of what I am teaching you today. During the interactive session, a lady said and I quote verbatim: “I sing very well. As a matter of fact, I have composed eight good songs, but I am yet to go to the studio to work on them, so that they can be released to the market to add value to the people…” This is the photograph of most of the future leaders of Nigeria that I have been opportune to meet with. They are lazy, but they do not know. They think being diligent is about hunting alone, but they do not know that until they convert their manuscripts to books, they are still lazy. The manuscripts might have taken you 10 years to write, but until you convert them to books, you are lazy! Have you wondered why you are not standing before kings and great men? Have you ever wondered why you have been standing before mere men? It is because you have not been diligent. It is because you have been lazy with what you know how to do. The question is: what does it mean to be diligent? If you are given an assignment to do, and you start doing it, but you push it to about 98% and stop. For those who do not know what it means to be diligent, they are going to tell you that you are diligent. But as far as the issue of diligence is concerned, until you finish the given assignment, you are lazy. The reason many people are not being productive today is because they are not finishers—they are not diligent people. Show me a man who is productive in life and leadership, then I am beholding a man who has a finish-mindset. It is not enough to start very well. Many people do begin very well in life and leadership, but they rarely do finish strong. I do not care how you start, what’s so important is how you finish in life. No one starts well and finishes very poorly and gets rewarded in life. Those who are rewarded handsomely in life are those who finish very well. Those who finish very well are regarded as diligent people.

Diligent people do not throw in the towel until they finish what they start. The world does not celebrate starters; the world only does memorialize finishers. After publishing one of my books, “Roadmap For Change”, a young man bought it and it added tremendous and remarkable value to him. He later gave me a call, saying: “I bought your well written book that has a breathtaking ‘container’ and it has added a priceless-value to me…I am also a writer. I wrote a manuscript about ten years ago and it has the same title like the one you did give your own book, but I am yet to publish it…” Does that sound like you? One thing I have seen about life is this: anything you refuse and decline to do, someone else will get it done and get the honour that is supposed to go to you. When it comes to the literary world, honour is not given to those who write and stop at the level of manuscript, honour is only given to those who publish great books. Once again, you are lazy until you turn a manuscript to a book and until you take those songs you have composed to a studio and release them to the market to add value to people, which in turn will cause you to smile to the bank. Lastly, have you noticed lately that you are not leading a productive life and you have been wondering why this is so? The answer may be that you have been lazy for a very long time without you knowing. In the cause of moving from one place to another in the field of human, organizational and national development, I have met with too many lazy people—who are masquerading as diligent people. There are far too many people who call themselves diligent but are not living a productive life. To live a productive life is to be diligent and to be diligent is to be a finisher. Always finish with excellence each project you handle. If you can do this, you will start leading a productive life almost immediately.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

brands& marketing

Nigerian Tribune

anchor Akin Adewakun

m:08054683584 e:akadewakun@yahoo.co.uk

Quality awards missing marketing industry —APCON Chairman

The Chairman of Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), Udeme Ufot, recently played host to the Brand As King Award Team, led by Maureen Umanah, in his office. During the visit, Ufot bared his minds on issues bothering on the industry, as he disclosed his administration’s plans for the industry. Akin Adewakun was there.

FG’s blanket dissolution of boards, commissions and parastatal e are in a difficult situation now, following Mr President’s blanket dissolution of all boards, commission and parastatals, APCON ideally being set up by law is not one of those institutions, but the time we are in, everybody is too scared to appear to cross the president or confront government. We’ve sought clarity about our position, which has not been forthcoming. Everybody is saying let us wait, let us get something from the president, and that is where our concern is. We have paid a courtesy call to congratulate him, but as it is now, the council is harm-strung. We don’t have the freedom to operate way we would have loved to operate, because of this non-clarity of government’s position on APCON Council. We are set up by statute, and like Nigerian Medical Council and Nigerian Institute of Architects, we shouldn’t, ordinarily be affected, but nobody in the Ministry is keen to stake up their necks to take the risk. We’ve made overtures to the government through appropriate quarters, it wasn’t possible much earlier, because as you very well know, the new government has taken its time in picking its key players. When you have a government where there is no SGF to take matters to, and all you as the most senior person, probably after the president and the Vice President, is Head of Service, civil servants are inclined to be very cautious in the way they approach things. With the proper structuring of government now and hopefully if the Minister of Information is also appointed, it would make it easier for us to remove the obstacle that is now on the way, to enable us make proper progress. It is so unfortunate because it was coming at a time we had gone through a rigorous process of setting up the committees that would work in the council, everything was beautifully set up, then this interregnum came again. What it means effectively, and very saddening is that for the past two years, APCON council has really not been operative.

law was flouted at any point in time. So one of my key objectives is that there is an equipment that one can actually procure, which would help monitor all the radio and television stations in the country. So you don’t have to depend on the accused to present evidence for himself to be sentenced. We’ve commenced work and we’ve been in Italy to see the manufacturers of the equipment and they’ve done the demonstration for us, and it was quite encouraging. And I believe if it is the only thing I do as APCON chairman, through the support of industry friends and clients who have assured me of their support, I’m okay. The equipment is quite expensive, but it will remove a lot of controversies and crises.

APCON as a regulatory body APCON is for the industry, and my own task as APCON chairman is to ensure that the goodwill of the industry, across all levels, is secure because APCON was made for the advertising industry, not the other way round. So any semblance of confrontation, or member of the industry perceiving APCON as being against their welfare or growth, for me I feel is something that should be removed. I operate an opendoor policy. I believe in engagement, be-

cause what leads to conflict is lack of communication. So when there is an open door, when there are things to be done, you explain then, even ahead of whatever policy that needs to be introduced and people are carried along. This makes it a lot easier to eliminate conflict or reduce it at the very least. Plans to introduce media moni-

toring equipment There are also issues for APCON in the area of Advertising Standard Panel (ASP) to be able to monitor the media. For instance, nobody can buy a space in the print and publish and deny that, but what happens to the electronics media? Most of the organisations don’t keep proper records of their transmissions, so when there are contraventions, the onus would be on APCON to prove that the

On brand as king awards Let me commend this Brand As King Award Team for the good work. In normal management parlance, they say what gets rewarded, gets done. If we want excellence in anything that we do, we must reward excellence. We must encourage people to do the right thing and when some people are identified and presented to the public as those that have done well, those who have not done so well will be encouraged to be in that roll call, so I think it is a good job that is being done, there has been a paucity of quality awards in our industry, elsewhere in the world this industry is run by recognising talents because at the end of the day nothing pleases anyone in a creative business than when peers recognise and celebrate you for doing great work and awards like this, when they are well-organised help the industry to strive for the very best.

Chi Limited wins 2015 Customer Service Excellence Award CHI Limited, makers of Chivita, Hollandia, Capri-Sonne and SuperBite range of products, has won the 2015 Nigeria Customer Service Excellence Award as the best Customer Service Company in the Beverage sector. The company, had in the last few years, received numerous awards such as the African Quality Achievement Awards in 2014 and The Generation Next Awards in 2013, as a recognition of these values, The Nigeria Customer Service Awards (NCSA) is a prestigious annual award that celebrates service excellence in Nigeria, by recognizing companies that deliver effective and exceptional customer services.

The Co-ordinator of the Awards, Dr. Aliyu Ilias, disclosed that the fruit juice market leader was adjudged as the winner of the award having fulfilled all the stipulated criteria and received vast majority of nominations from customers on the various voting platforms. ‘CHI Limited emerged as the best Customer Service Company in the FMCG/Beverage sector through appreciable feedback from the following criteria: nominations from Nigerians; customer feedback, review of employee job satisfaction/performance standards; and mystery shopping services,’ he stated Expressing the company’s appreciation

to the organisers of the awards, the Managing Director, CHI Limited, Mr. Deepanjan Roy, explained that since the company thrives on the support and patronage of its customers, it would therefore stop at nothing in ensuring that customers get excellent product and quality services. ‘This award is a testament to the hard work and strategy employed by the company to satisfy the needs of our esteemed customers and fulfill their expectations. It is dedicated to our numerous customers who believe in our relationship with them and support us to actualize our vision of creating value that is timeless,’ Deepanjan stated.

brands&marketing IIDA 2015: 3 Nigerian children win N2.25m 28

Three Nigerian children, Abbas Naifarya Ibrahim 13, Innocent Yamawo 5 and Naja Nuhu 12 have emerged winners of this year’s Indomie Independence Day Awards, thereby going home with a total sum of N2.25million. While Ibrahim was given a cash prize of N1 million for coming out top from the competition, the duo of Yamawo and Nuhu were given the sums of N750,000 and N500,000 for emerging first and second runners up respectively. The winners were presented with their

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

awards at an elaborate event, graced by top government officials, captains of industries, traditional rulers, members of the diplomatic corps, celebrities as well as students, in Lagos. The Indomie Independence Day Awards for Heroes of Nigeria (IIDA) is a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative from Dufil Prima Foods Plc, makers of leading noodles brand, Indomie Instant Noodles. The award which began in 2008 and is in its 8th edition is geared towards recognising children between the ages of 1 and 15

who have exhibited extraordinary acts of heroism in the face of danger or societal challenges. The Group Managing Director, Dufil Prima Foods, Deepak Singhal, in his address, reiterated the company’s commitment to positively impacting the Nigerian child. “As a company, we believe that in every child lies the seed of greatness. This is in consonance with INDOMIE’S core values. We believe that in the Nigerian child lies the qualities of excellence. This award

Nigerian Tribune

mirrors the importance and belief of our company in the extraordinary qualities of the Nigerian child which must always be celebrated,” he stated. Speaking further, Deepak said: “Not only are we encouraged and inspired by the stories of courage and selflessness of these children, as a company, we also take delight in the fact that we are able to positively impact these children so they can be empowered to achieve greater things in life.” A serving member of the National Assembly, Senator Gbenga Ashafa (Lagos East), who was present at the event, commended Dufil for the IIDA initiative. Impressed by the heroics of the 2015 IIDA winners, Senator Ashafa in his personal capacity, donated the sums of N300, 000, N200,000 and N100, 000 for the three winners respectively.

Winners emerge in Etisalat Easybusiness Hunt 2

MD/CEO, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Peter Ndegwa (2nd Right) hands over a set of alcohol breathalyser test equipment to the Lagos Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Commission, Hyginius Omeje (2nd from right), while Head of Policy and Public Affairs, Michael Onuoha (left) and Corporate Relations Director, Sesan Sobowale (right) both of Guinness Nigeria plc watch during the flag off of the “Ember Months Responsible Drinking Awareness Campaign” held at Guinness Head Office, Ikeja on Friday, in Lagos. Photo: Sylvester Okoruwa.

We’ve impacted 300,000 Nigerians with our low income housing in two years — Lafarge Africa As a measure of the success of its low income housing initiative (Ile Irorun), introduced few years, Lafarge Africa has disclosed that over 300, 000 Nigerians of the low income category had benefitted from the initiative since its introduction few years ago. The company added that it had, within the same period, also generated 7.2 million Euros, (N1.4 billion) from the housing scheme set to bridge the yawning housing gap the country is currently experiencing. Through the Lafarge Easy Home, the company had enabled 2,000 families to build their homes, allowing a total of 10,000 Nigerians to become homeowners. Disclosing this in Lagos, at a workshop tagged “Agenda of the housing microfinance Academy, organised by the company, the CEO, Aggregates and Concrete, Lafarge Africa Plc, Loren Zanin, stated that one of the

missions of the company is to ensure that the nation’s housing deficit is bridged, noting that having access to affordable housing facility had become amajor challenge for the average Nigerian. Describing the company’s Affordable Scheme as a practical demonstration of its commitment to improving lives in the area of housing provision, he explained that the initiative which was launched four years ago, had seen the company develop projects in 18 countries, around the globe. “In the perimeter of Lafarge Group, this initiative was launched 4 four years ago. Over the last 4 years, Lafarge has developed projects in 18 countries. This initiative is unique as it combines two objectives: Finding new ways of doing business by serving the low income segment profitably, and making an impact on the housing for millions of peo-

ple. This is now a business for Lafarge which impacted more than 300,000 people over the last two years, and generated 7.2 million Euro, last year. According to him, Nigeria had, from the start, been one of the key countries for the company’s affordable housing initiative, hence the decision of Lafarge Africa Plc to launch the first housing microfinance program ever in this country through partnership with LAPO Microfinance Bank and the AFD, in Sagamu, Ogun State two years ago. “We dedicated 5million Euros credit line to LAPO for this. The program, which was initially given a local tag of ‘Lafarge Ile Irorun,’ which means house of comfort, has now gone a long way and expanded nationally, and today it has transformed to ‘Lafarge Easy Home,” he noted.

Telecommunication company, Etisalat Nigeria, has announced 10 lucky winners for its season two Etisalat Entrepreneur Easybusiness hunt initiative. The winners, who went home with N2 million each, will also be receiving a sixmonth mentorship from the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of the Pan Atlantic University to guide them in the course of their business. The ten winners, seven females and 3 males, Hawa Linwa, Ukamaka Ugouju, Oluwaseyi Dada, Tovi Jejephilips, Abigail Adewunmi, Oyebowade Makinde, Yewande Towobola, Frankie Okoye, Tunji Akande and Tomi Adegbenro, emerged winners after their business plans were found to be outstanding. The Chief Executive Officer, Etisalat Nigeria, Matthew Wilsher, reiterated the company’s passion for SMEs, while promising to do more in supporting small business growth in Nigeria. “The programme was such a success last year where we found pretty young businesses and supported them with training and mentorship. With the success last year, we thought about doing it again this year and we are proud to announce ten more winners out of the 50 of the applicants. “At Etisalat, we know what it is being a small business, as we were there seven years ago We know what it is being a small business, fighting against big competitive businesses. We know how much they have to strive, how much support they need,” he stated. According to him, besides the monetary gifts the winners would go home with, the company would also provide mentoring for the winners for the next six month, to support them in their businesses.

in 2013, as a recognition of these values, The Nigeria Customer Service Awards (NCSA) is a prestigious annual award that celebrates service excellence in Nigeria, by recognizing companies that deliver effective and exceptional customer services. The Co-ordinator of the Awards, Dr. Aliyu Ilias, disclosed that the fruit juice market leader was adjudged as the winner

of the award having fulfilled all the stipulated criteria and received vast majority of nominations from customers on the various voting platforms. “CHI Limited emerged as the best Customer Service Company in the FMCG/ Beverage sector through appreciable feedback from the following criteria: nominations from Nigerians; customer feedback, review of employee job satisfaction/per-

formance standards; and mystery shopping services,” he stated Expressing the company’s appreciation to the organisers of the awards, the Managing Director, CHI Limited, Mr. Deepanjan Roy, explained that since the company thrives on the support and patronage of its customers, it would therefore stop at nothing in ensuring that customers get excellent product and quality services.

Nigerian Tribune

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

infotech

anchor Bode Adewumi

m:08055001765 e:bodekafi@yahoo.com

Nigerians want end to unsolicited text messages, calls from telecoms operators

Many Nigerians are not happy with the telecommunications services providers in the country, not because of poor telecoms services, but rather because of incessant and unwanted Short Message Service (SMS) emanating from their networks to subscribers’ lines. Despite the fact that a lot has been written on the issue by writers and commentators, yet the situation still remains the same. Bode Adewumi writes on this development.

t is a global practice, since the advent of the Global System of Mobile Communication (GSM) in the world, for service providers to use the Short Message Service (SMS) or text message to communicate some offerings on their networks to their customers. In other words, it’s a form of advertisement or a means of sending an important message about the network to subscribers. Nigeria is not an exception as services providers in the country (MTN, Globacom, Airtel and Etisalat) also use such platform to pass messages across to their customers. And it has been discovered over time that important messages have been disseminated through this means and has often proven to be effective. But feelers have shown that the idea behind the use of SMS as a means of useful communication to phone users may have been defeated if the attitude of many Nigerians to the issue is taken into consideration. To many subscribers nowadays, the rate at which text messages are sent to their phones calls for urgent attention. In other words, rather than serve the purpose it is designed for, to many subscribers, it has become an ineffective tool and a pesky development to them. A subscriber, Mr Olakunle Ajisafe told Infotech in an interview that he rarely checks his phone now if a text messages comes in because most of the messages he receives have no meaningful contribution to his life. “I dropped my former line because of incessant and unsolicited text messages but the new line is a bit better, although it’s not as if the network is a saint. But before I dropped that line, I was always getting messages that would disturb my work and my concentration. At times, the operator would send the same message more than ten times within a day. “The situation gets really annoying if I’m expecting an alert from my bank concerning an important transaction only for me to get messages imploring me to dial a number for free credit or telling me that I could receive calls for free whenever I’m out of the country as if I know where the airport is. “The worst of it all are the unso-

licited calls coming from the network to my phone. I almost had an accident as I made to pick a call while driving one day. As the call came in, I thought it was one of the calls I was expecting and was so engrossed as I made to pull up in order to pick the call that I didn’t notice that the car behind me was very close. I brought out the phone as I apologised profusely to the other driver only to discover that it was a lady’s voice from the network asking me a foolish question,” he said. Ajisafe explained that he was forced to dump the operator because if he got 20 calls in a day,

I am sorry to say it is one of the irresponsible legal legislations I have ever reviewed. It is structurally deficient.

ten out of them would come from the network. He said he could not cope with it again; hence he had to drop it for another one. He said he tried to figure it out why nothing was done to curtail this unhealthy practice, but was unable to do so. It isn’t Ajisafe alone who is in this condition. A teacher in one of the secondary schools in Oyo State, Mrs Okudo Eugenia, revealed that she does not bother to read her messages again because more often than not what comes in are unsolicited messages. She, however, said she missed an important appointment because she did not bother to read a text message thinking it was one of the unsolicited messages. “In most cases, I do not bother to check my messages anymore because nothing of substance comes from these messages again as they are mostly unwanted, but I missed an appointment once because I never bothered to read my messages. So, what I do these days is to check if a message comes in, once I see it is one of those meaningless messages, I will delete it instantly without bothering to see what it contains. It is that bad I must confess to you, she said.” But why most Nigerians who

have been troubled by this development have been wondering why nothing is done to arrest the growing disturbance, it has been discovered that several steps and moves had been taken only that most of these have not gone too far to checkmate it. For instance, a subscriber body, the National Association of Telecommunications Subscribers (NATCOMS) has taken the issue up with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on many occasions. In a recent interview, the association’s National President, Chief Adeolu Ogunbanjo said the association has succeeded in stopping the operators from sending messages at night. He said it took the complaint to the NCC who enforced the directive having seen the merit in it. Ogunbanjo explained that the association is not relenting in its efforts until the subscribers get respite from complaints like unsolicited text messages, poor services and many more. While acknowledging that some text messages are of advantage at times, he said the standard practice is that the operator must put a code at the end of each message which the customer can use to stop such message from entering his phone again. This position was echoed by Mr Ike Nnamani, the Chief Executive Officer of Medallion Communication, who said subscribers must not be forced to receive messages if the person is not interested in receiving any message from his operator. But the NCC has made its position on this issue known on a number of occasions. For instance, the Director, Public Affairs, NCC, Tony Ojobo, said the Commission has issued a lot of directives aimed at minimising as much as possible, the burden of unsolicited text messages to all the operators, adding that the regulator had even sanctioned the operators for not playing by the rules. He said the regulator has consistently urged the MNOs to install powerful firewalls to prevent unbridled influx of unsolicited text messages to their customers. He said: “We have made our position known on this matter. We have warned against sending messages to subscribers at night on their networks. The Commission is putting its foot down against the operators and monitoring their activities and giving them various

regulations to ensure that this does not happen. We encourage subscribers to go to the operators, walk to their customer care centers; call customer call centers to lodge their complaints and give them detailed explanations about the content of the text message, the time you got them and from which number. “Agreed, most of these things come from VAS providers. They are not actually coming from the network service providers; some of them may come from them but most are from VAS providers with the knowledge of the service providers anyway. These things are like pipes for them to transmit their services and sometimes they get services through the system without them being able to detect it. It happens all over the world but we are insisting that they should be able to provide various types of systems that should be able to detect these unsolicited text messages especially those that are not wanted. The customers have a right to stop them. Send stop to the number that sent the message and it will stop and if it doesn’t stop; walk to our Lagos office at Bankole Oki Street, Ikoyi and complain. We take such complaints seriously because they infringe on the rights of the customers. “If you fail to get redress, you can also call us on our toll-free number on 622. Additionally, I would like to say that this is a global problem it does not happen only in Nigeria alone.” The umbrella body of Value Added Services (VAS) providers in the country, the Wireless Application Service Providers Association of Nigeria (WASPAN), has absolved itself of any blame. The group blamed the raft of unsolicited messages on what it described as “rogue VAS providers.” Its National Coordinating Consultant, Simon Aderinlola, who described WASPAN as a self-regulatory body of firms licensed by the NCC that have at least connection with one MNO in Nigeria providing VAS. He said: “In answering that other aspect of your question about messages getting to people may be at night, they are rogue VAS services. By rogue VAS services, the Commission has tried immensely to halt their operation. There is a framework for licensing but it is gathering momentum. There are some who actually open business to do wrong things.”

infotech

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigeria’s tech market leaders must ‘think big’

Facebook, Eutelsat in African Internet satellite hook-up

Stories By Bode Adewumi

unji Adeyinka, the Chief Executive Officer of Connect Marketing Services Limited has challenged business owners in Ikeja Computer Village, Nigeria’s largest technology market cluster to start thinking out of the box, if they hope to scale up in today’s competitive business landscape. According to him, business leaders in Ikeja Computer Village, popularly called “Otigba”, have to start thinking out of the box if they still want to remain relevant in the technology business. Adeyinka gave the advice in a thought leadership keynote presentation, “Small is Unsafe” delivered at Technology Times Breakfast Meeting, which was attended by business leaders from Ikeja Computer Village. The event also witnessed the official unveiling of Computer Village Expo 2015 (CVE ‘15); an annual showcase event of Nigeria’s largest technology market inspired by Technology Times to connect buyers and sellers of consumer technology under one roof on December 9-12, 2015. To illustrate his point to in his thought leadership keynote, the CEO of Connect Marketing began by playing a short video clip of how a wildlife chase in which a bigger carnivore devoured its prey because of its advantage of size. In explaining how the competition in the jungle relates to the real-life business terrain, Adeyinka says that, ‘’our life is wildlife and the kind of market where we participate in is like wildlife where the big players devour the smaller ones. According to the CEO of Connect Marketing, “no matter how small or big the market we operate in, there is always a fight where the big always overpower the small.’’ According to Mr. Adeyinka, “it is important for business people to have a conceptual framework for competition where you devise

From left: Chairman of Brian Computers, Tunji Balogun; Thought Leadership Keynote Speaker and Managing Director, Connect Marketing Services Limited, Tunji Adeyinka and Founder/CEO, Technology Times, Shina Badaru, at the formal brand unveiling of Computer Village Expo 2015 (CVE‘15) inspired by Technology Times held recently, in Lagos. a market strategy on how best you can compete in your market space.’’ He advised the business owners to look beyond the now and tap into the harvest of opportunities that abound especially in this tech-driven age where virtually most businesses are now online. “You are competing with a virtual market and an organised brick and mortar shop like the shopping malls, big plazas and you are dealing with a large percentage of consumers who are willing to pay for convenience, so it’s better you start thinking big now.’’ According to him, “a lot of us operating in this market operate as a retail channel, so we need to think out of the box. The fear of operating in this channel is that the risk I see like a market in Computer Village is that in the next three years, that

market will consolidate and about 70 per cent of the businesses there will be eaten up.’’ Complementing the suggestion by Adeyinka’s keynote presentation, Tunji Balogun, the Managing Director of Brian Integrated System, also underscored the need for more collaboration among the business leaders in the market. Balogun, who is also the immediate past President of Computer and Allied Product Dealers Association (CAPDAN), the umbrella association of the Computer Village said that, “it is about time for us to start trusting each other and you can’t do business on your own. Even if you are not merging, you can have consortium of companies where you put your force together and go after the market.’’ According to the ex-CAPDAN President, “I was one of those that started Computer Village and I saw

Bashir Gwandu, global telecom experts map out 5G development pathway World telecommunications experts including Dr. Bashir Gwandu, former acting executive vice chairman, Nigerian Communications (NCC) gathered in Copenhagen, Denmark this week to map out the development pathway fifth generation (5G) mobile communications technology, which proposes a total connected day-today life. The two-day conference was held on October13-14, 2015 and organised by Wireless World Research Forum provided a platform to discuss global standardisation, global co-operation and interoperability, looking at how a user-centric approach can be used to identify and overcome the obstacles and challenges connected to a 5G future. Among the key speakers at the

conference was Dr. Gwandu, who made presentation and called for the inclusion of Africa in the practical research tests on 5G as way of taking into consideration the peculiarities of the continent especially as leading mobile growth region. Presentations was made by a number of industry leaders and experts, and specific sessions for this year’s event included: Building a globally agreed vision for 5G development and deployment; creating the 5G architecture, overcoming the obstacles to 5G deployment; revolutionary new use cases and implications for industry; New business models and commercial opportunities across different sectors (using the automotive industry as a sector case study).

Some of the features expected of the 5G as raised in the conference includes very low sub-millisecond round-trip latency (delay) of 5G signal, better security to avoid hacking, better location identification, ultra-broadband speed of over 10Gbps, distributed content and processing. Others are much better coverage and availability, low power consumption, high-order Mimo antenna systems, use of sub-6GHz or the spectrum between 6GHz and 100GHz, and whether or not the network should evolve from the 4G-LTE or simply new type of network, etc. Projected applications include machine to machine to people communications, autonomous cars and robots, and super wireless cloud computing etc.

Nigerian Tribune

the risk and but the empowerment for us right now is to come together to think out of the box and to start adding value to what we do.’’ Also speaking at the event, Shina Badaru, Founder and CEO of Technology Times, told attendees that the CVE ’15 Expo was inspired by a shared commitment to work together with business owners in Computer Village to promotes the nation’s largest technology market cluster. “Over the last couple of years, Technology Times has been collaborating with the leadership of the market associations to explore opportunities and initiative that we can collaborate on in to foster growth in the market”, he told the forum. According to the CEO of Technology Times, “we envision the CVE ’15 Expo to be the first of its kind, a showcase event that will bring showcase the very best of Computer Village and connect consumer technology buyers and sellers.’’

European satellite operator, Eutelsat Communications and social media giant, Facebook said last week that they are working jointly to deliver satellite broadband Internet to connectivity -hungry sub-Saharan Africa. The firms revealed they have reached a multi-year agreement with satellite communication firm, Spacecom to use the entire broadband payload of the AMOS6 satellite due to come on stream in the second half of next year and provide coverage for large swathes of sub-Saharan Africa, after identifying “pent-up demand for connectivity”. Eutelsat said in a statement that the project would offer access, “using affordable, off-the-shelf” hardware, sharing capacity with Facebook in regions often lacking access to reliable fixed and mobile terrestrial networks. “Satellite networks are wellsuited to economically connecting people in low- to medium-density population areas,” Eutelsat added. The capacity will enable Eutelsat to step up its broadband activity in sub-Saharan Africa that was initiated using Ku-band satellites to serve professional users. Eutelsat is establishing a new company based in London, United Kingdom, that will steer its African broadband vision and business. The company will be led by Mr Laurent Grimaldi, founder and former Chief Executive Officer of Tiscali International Network, and will focus on serving premium consumer and professional segments. Facebook two years ago launched Internet.org, an initiative to accelerate connectivity in poorly covered regions and unveiled plans to work with partners in Africa to improve both satellite and terrestrial capacity for rural areas. “Facebook’s mission is to connect the world, and we believe that satellites will play an important role in addressing the significant barriers that exist in connecting the people of Africa,” Mr Chris Daniels, Internet.org vice president, said in a statement.

ITU Telecom World 2015 accelerates global ICT innovation to help improve lives ITU Telecom World 2015 closed its doors last week at Hungexpo, Budapest, Hungary, following an exceptional week of dialogue, debate, networking and showcasing. The event, which welcomed over 4,000 participants from 129 countries, brought together an impressive line-up of top-level government representatives, leaders of industry – from established players to SMEs (small and medium enterprises) and young start-ups, from emerging and developed markets – along with high-level representatives of international organisations, entrepreneurs, accelerators, incubators and academia. Among these were over 235 ICT leaders from around the world. The exhibition included big

names, countries and SMEs from across the world. Some 50 countries, regions and their SMEs were represented including Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Botswana, China, Djibouti, Egypt, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, India, Iran, Indonesia, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Macedonia, Malawi, Mauritius, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Tunisia, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, USA, and Zimbabwe. Gabon, Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda came together within the Smart Africa zone on the show floor.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

property

Nigerian Tribune

anchor Gbemi Solaja

m:07065220616 e:gbemisolaja@gmail.com

Why gridlock persists on Apapa–Oshodi expressway —LASG

From left, Director, French Development Agency, Mr Olivier Delefosse; Head, Affordable Housing Scheme, Lafarge Holcim, Mr Francois Perrot; a beneficiary of Lafarge Affordable Housing Scheme, Mrs Folashade Abioye and Head, Business Development Group, LAPO Micro finance Bank Limited, Mr Amasha Seyi, during the tour of sites of Lafarge Affordable Scheme Beneficiaries at Magboro and Mowe held on Friday in Lagos. Photo: Sylvester Okoruwa.

Ogun rehabilitates Owode-Ijako, Sagamu-Ogijo Fed Roads Stories By Gbemi Solaja – Lagos

etermined to alleviate the problems faced by motorists and other road users plying OwodeIjako, in Ifo Local Government Area of the state, and Sagamu-Ogijo, Sagamu Local Government Area, Ogun State government has completed rehabilitation of the two federal roads. Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, Kayode Ademolake, in a statement by the agency’s spokesman, Mr Ayokunle Ewuoso, said the exercise was carried out on the governor’s directive.

“You will realise that in recent times, there has been incessant down pour that Lagos-Abeokuta old road was almost cut into two due to erosion, the same thing happened at Joju in Sango and we have the same thing happening between Sagamu-Ogijo expressway. On the basis of this, the governor instructed that the roads should be rehabilitated and it was one of the major reasons we went there to fix the roads. “The Lagos-Abeokuta old road was badly damaged before we moved in to save the situation, as about 500 metres of it was impassable. We stabilised it using various aggregate of hardcore and ever since then, var-

ious grades of vehicles had been plying the road. The same thing goes for Ogijo-Sagamu road. About three locations were cut off by erosion and it was enormous. Now, over 100 loads of boulders and six inches of hardcore had been used to restore that road.” Ademolake stated further that government had equally completed desisting of the road side drains in other to allow free access of water, adding that the refuse cleared from the drains had been evacuated. He reiterated government’s commitment to rehabilitation and maintenance of basic infrastructure such as the roads across the state.

UNICEM restates commitment to affordable housing provision The United Cement Company of Nigeria Limited (UNICEM), an Associate of Lafarge Africa Plc and member of the Lafarge Holcim Group joined the rest of the world to mark World Habitat Day, 2015 last week. Just as it stated that the celebrations was part of its drive towards improving living conditions for low and middle income earners through the affordable housing initiative. According to the company, in line with this year’s theme entitled ‘Public Spaces for All,’ the company through its staff volunteer group in partnership with a Non-Governmental Organisation, Gede Foundation, marked the day engaging in advocacy and awareness campaign for the protection of the environment and renovation of a dilapidated examination hall in Government Comprehensive High School, Akwa Ikot Effanga Community, Akpabuyo Local Government of Cross River State. According to the Company’s CSR Manager, Mr Inyang Bassey Inyang, “in line with our parent company-Lafarge Africa Plc’s vision of building better cities, we are taking this opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to provide decent housing for low

and middle income earners.” “The theme for this year corresponds with our drive to improve living conditions for low and middle income earners through our affordable housing initiative. School children in local communities represent most of the world’s vulnerable and very poor.” The outing he said, was to lend a helping hand to improve public spaces in line the global goal to improving access to them, “and making them safe for women and girls, increase equity, promote inclusion and

combat discrimination, since high-quality public spaces encourage people to communicate and collaborate with each other, and to participate in public life” she noted. The UN Secretary General was quoted as saying that, “World Habitat Day is instituted by the United Nations to reflect on the state of human settlements and on what we want the future of cities to look like.” The event was attended by community leaders, Government departments, school children and other community members.

NIQS gets female president in November The Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS), will install its first ever female president, Mrs Mercy Iortyer in November The investiture which is scheduled to hold on November 21 in Lagos will see Iortyer wear the NIQS presidential insignia at the grand finale of the institute’s 26th Biennial Conference and General Meeting. She takes the position from the incumbent president, Murtala Aliyu who is a former Minister of State for Power. According to the Institute, the biennial conference is the largest meeting of quantity

surveyors in Nigeria. The week-long conference discusses quantity survey and the construction industry. It stated further that this year’s event will involve resource persons and participants from within and outside with a theme entitled “Politics, Policies and National Development: The Role of Professionals.” In addition, African Association of Quantity Surveyors (AAQS) and other participants will be drawn from top government offices, political parties, real estate, banking, insurance and manufacturing industries.

Lagos State Government has said that the persistent traffic gridlock on the Apapa-Oshodi and Lagos-Abeokuta expressway is due to the failure in the road design, noting that the roads were not designed for the pressure they were subjected to. During a press briefing held at the state secretariat over the weekend, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, Engr. Ajibade Bade-Adebowale and the General Manager of the Lagos State Public Works Corporation, Mr Ayo Shodeinde lamented that litigations and slow pace of work by contractors appointed by the Federal Government were some of the reasons for the delay in provision of pedestrian bridges across the state. “We have two roads that are challenging to us. They are Lagos-Abeokuta Express way and Apapa-Oshodi Expressway. During the era of Obasanjo, the reconstruction was done by Messer Julius Berger, but the road failed. So the Lagos State government knowing this, has continuously embarked on palliative works on the road. We have discovered that the roads had failed from inception. “This was also the reason for the persistent traffic gridlock experienced by motorist on the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway. This road is substandard compared to the pressure it is subjected to. The volume of vehicles plying the road daily is massive,” he added. On the persistent traffic in other axis, the General Manager disclosed that some residents often cut the road at night, saying “this act cause traffic gridlock in the state. And that was why we have asked the Nigerian Police to arrest anyone found cutting road at night and wearing clothes that does not have the corporation’s tag on it.” Bade-Adebowale added that the litigation by a resident in Cement Bus Stop, Lagos-Abeokuta expressway was responsible for the continued delay in the completion of the pedestrian bridge on the road. “We cannot commence the construction of the Ojodu-Berger pedestrian bridge because we are waiting for the contractor handling the ongoing expansion works on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway to commence work on the section of the road. After completing the expansion works, we would be able to determine the length and others.” The permanent secretary noted that the current administration has completed 28 roads in the last four months even as it embarked on 12 new road constructions across the state. He said “there are 167 ongoing road projects across the state. Also, the state government has concluded plans to construct 114 inner city roads in each of the Local Government and Local Council Development Area (LCDA).” Bade-Adebowale added that the process to commence construction work on the 114 roads have started, noting that in few days, residents would begin to see contractors in their communities reconstructing roads.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015 Group Politics Editor Taiwo Adisa - 08072000046 tai_adis@yahoo.com

THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting last Thursday for the first time since November last year. LEON USIGBE writes on how the meeting signals the actual process of rebuilding for the former ruling party

ITH its first National Executive Committee (NEC) since its deposition from the Presidency coming last Thursday, the Peoples Democratic Party can say its healing process has finally taken off. To say that the party, which ruled for 16 years, did not know what hit it during the last general election, would be a complete understatement but Dr Olusegun Mimiko, governor of Ondo State and the chairman of the PDP Governors Forum (PDPGF), repainted that grim reality before the gathering of the party chieftains in its 67th NEC at its national secretariat in Abuja. He told them that the party lost the election due to complacency. In effect, the PDP thought all was done and dusted, therefore behaved as if the outcome of the election had been signed, sealed and delivered in its favour. Consequently, it went to sleep. But it now knows better. For the first time in 16 years, the party did not have a sitting president to preside over its NEC, leaving the atmosphere in the hall a bit eerie notwithstanding the efforts to raise fallen moral by the acting National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus, Mimiko as well as Senator Ike Ekweremadu, who, against all permutation, seized the position of the Senate President and ensured that the PDP has a strong foothold in the All Progressive Congress (APC)-led administration. Each of them did his best to hearten the demoralised party faithful and seemed to suggest that the APC would self-destruct because it has not shown itself capable of ruling at the centre. The message to the PDP members therefore was that if the party implements the recommendations of the Ekweremadu-led Reconciliation Committee and rebuild itself, it should be back to power at the centre in 2019. The committee recommended, among others, the zoning of power back to the north in a deliberate attempt to right the injustice that was perceived to have been done to the region when former President Goodluck Jonathan decided to run for a second tenure. That action is largely blamed for the refusal of the North to vote PDP. But having lost power, the PDP reasoned that it has no need to cry over split milk but must move on. “Our party has witnessed challenging times after our disappointing loss in the last elections. We moved from pain, despair, soul-searching and now by the grace of the Almighty God, we have started the process of re-building confidence in ourselves for a brighter future for the party,” Secondus told the party chieftains. But the PDP knows that it must for now be content with playing a second fiddle, its role of opposition. This fact is not lost in Secondus who expressed the party’s determination to provide Nigerians credible opposition by regularly evaluating the policies of the ruling government. Since leaving power, it seems to have revved up its

Secondus

Mimiko

PDP: March towards self-discovery information machinery, trying constantly to get the government of the day to be alive to its responsibilities. However, worrying for the PDP at this time is what it sees as the selective implementation of what it views as ordinarily commendable APC-led government’s anti-corruption fight in which Secondus observed that it would be morally repugnant to target PDP members while seemingly protecting APC members. “All we are calling for is an equal and fair treatment of all Nigerians under the law. Government should prevent the slide of our dear country into a police state by controlling some of the brazen acts of the security agencies against state institutions as exemplified in the invasion of the Akwa Ibom Government House by some officers of the DSS,” Secondus said. Mimiko too, was concerned about the negative attitude of the APC whose presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, he believes did not win the presidential election in a free and fair exercise as believed. He is irked that despite that, the APC has continued to rubbish the outstanding achievements of for-

mer President Goodluck Jonathan in office including willingly conceding victory even before the final tally of the election result was made. The PDPGF chairman observed that Jonathan voluntarily surrendered power for the sake of the survival of the country not minding the flawed nature of the exercise whose truth he believes, will be unveiled for all to see after a thorough scientific and forensic analysis had been done. Hear him: “I also want to use this opportunity to thank the former president and remind us that it is also very important that for those who seek to rubbish his legacy and rubbish everything that he represents, that if there had been no Nigeria, there will be no government to rubbish Jonathan. We thank God for the sacrifice he made. You all know that given the option, many PDP people would have wanted to contest that election because the fact that he had admitted or conceded victory does not mean that that election was one of the best we have ever had in this country. And am sure in the fullness of time, after a forensic, deep foren-

Our party has witnessed challenging times after our disappointing loss in the last elections. We moved from pain, despair, soul-searching...now we have started the process of re-building confidence in ourselves.

sic analysis is done of our 2015 election, all the deficiencies and irregularities will come to the surface. It is important for us to emphasize it so that the present government will know that that mandate which has been given to them now should be handled with all caution, responsibility and fear of God.” Ekweremadu on his part congratulated the judiciary for what he said was their refusal to be intimidated over election petition cases in which he alleged attempts were made to deny PDP members of justice. He was also confident that the PDP has emerged from its shock which followed its election loss, admonishing that Nigerians must be told that, as a party, the PDP gave its best to the country. He therefore wants the APC to build on PDP’s success. “And if they don’t do that, and if they don’t do it to the satisfaction of Nigerians, by 2019, we will be back. We will be back because we deserve to be back and we will be back energised, determined and refreshed to give Nigerians the best of governance. We are willing to admit our mistakes and we are willing to make amends. We are prepared to apologise when we have to apologise but Nigerians must remember that PDP had laid the foundation of our democracy and will continue to nurture it,” he declared. With the adoption of the Ekweremadu Committee Report, the PDP NEC believes that it has instituted a roadmap for rejuvenation whose core ingredients are the sanctity of the zoning principle of the party, biometric membership registration, introduction of direct primaries to guarantee internal democracy and finally, reconciliation.

33 politics&policy

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

How Mimiko’s exit from LP affected us —National secretary Mr Kayode Ajulo, a lawyer, is the national secretary of the Labour Party and in this interview with DARE ADEKANMBI, he speaks on the 2016 governorship race in Ondo State, issues about his party, among others. Excerpts:

before I proceeded to UNIJOS to read Law and throughout my university days, I held several leadership/executive positions in the Students Union Government and NANS. I am a practising lawyer, I am an arbitrator and consultants and these and other engagements allow me to have the luxury to play my style of politics to the dictates of my conscience. That Dr. Mimiko is moving from party A to party B should not translate that I should move too. Chief E. K. Clark, the revered elder statesman and PDP leader is one of my clients, I am privileged to be one of his sons and confidants for almost a decade now. The closeness and bond I share with him ought to have made me defect to PDP but, as you know, that is not the case. It’s about what you believe in and what you stand for. I am principled, a professional and integrity of purpose is my watchdog. There was a time that Mr Femi Falana, (SAN) recommended me to a former governor of Ekiti State and I appeared for his party from the High Court to the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court. All through, I recorded success without compromise, despite the fact that I am a well-known stalwart of a rival political party. What matter most is what I stand for and my belief. My politics is not on what to eat but on integrity, and how to make life abundant to all.

S one of the lawyers regarded as workaholics, at what point did you get your break? The memories are still very vivid. As a youth corps member, I was posted to the Civil Litigation Department of the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and on a particular Thursday, Chief Sehinde Kumuyi, then the director of the department and now the Chief Judge of Ondo State called me and I went to the pretrial conference with him and all the big names in the Nigerian bar were there. Of course, you will be intimidated. Chief Bola Ige (SAN) was the Attorney General and that was when they were having the offshore and onshore case in 2001. And the following week, we were at the Supreme Court the first place where I appeared as a lawyer was the Supreme Court in that case. I think it was one of my happiest moments when Chief late Rotimi Alade Williams, SAN mentioned my name as one of those that appeared with him to represent the Federal Government and the next day, my father called to inform of the dailies report of my appearance with Chief Williams, SAN and other legal luminaries! For me, that was the day I kicked it off. From that point, being in the Federal Ministry of Justice, most of our cases were the high profile cases. I guess that trend seems to have stuck with me. The same Chief Kumuyi took me to Afe Babalola and with Chief Babalola, our cases were the high-profile ones because Chief Babalola handles the legendary briefs in Nigeria- the biggest of them. As a private lawyer, I think the break again came when we started with Ngige/Ubah’s and election cases. Then, I was with Dr. Tunji Abayomi, I was even the head of chambers then, just two years at the bar. We had to move to Awka and Enugu for some time, and Dr Abayomi, being a very busy lawyer, literarily gave me free hands and that really exposed me to the intricacies of the profession. After that, the issue of OPC involving Dr Frederick Fasheun and Chief Gani Adams. They were locked up for about one year. GOK Ajayi, Gani Fawehinmi, Festus Keyamo, all of us were there but it got to a point that the whole thing fell on me to defend the OPC chieftains, maybe because they were in Lagos and I live in Abuja. That happened to be one of my most memorable moments because after a technical point in the preliminary objection raised by my humble self which was sustained by Honourable Justice Chikere of the Federal High Court, all the accused were discharged and acquitted. It was a fantastic victory because OPC is synonymous with the Yoruba tribe. For me, the brief was not about money but for God and glory that I shed tears of joy because the applause was so much. And the glory came as the late Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade and other Yoruba Kings and personalities called me, and that was how I bagged my first honorary chieftaincy title and it has continued like that and God has been so faithful. Do you agree that Governor Oluse-

Ajulo

I play politics of idea, not bread and butter politics, and I must tell you that my relationship with Governor Mimiko transcends politics.

gun Mimiko’s defection to the PDP affected the fortunes of the Labour Party in the last election, and what is your take on politicians crossing from one party to another? Yes, Dr. Mimiko left the party for PDP, it should, however be noted this was not as a result of any problem within our party but for personal reasons among other things, what he term increasing the lots of Ondo State. I personally have no problem with that as our extant Constitution guarantees freedom of association. And of course we don’t have to deceive ourselves, his leaving affected the party but we treated it as a challenge that must be surmounted and this we are successfully doing. After he left we took part in the last general election, and today, Labour Party remains the third largest political party in Nigeria. We are not a regional party, Our great party is represented in the National Assembly and some states: Oyo, Benue, Delta, Ebonyi, Cross-Rivers, Akwa-Ibom and so on in the legislative arm. We also had a good show in some states’ gubernatorial polls, safe for the rigging. presently with the conclusion of election petitions we are optimistic of having at least three states, where Labour Party will form the government.

Presently, we are ready to take over Kogi and Bayelsa states as we are presenting best candidates in the two states. Why did you stay back at Labor Party, despite having a good relationship with Mimiko who happened to be the only governor on the party’s platform? Labour Party is the third largest party in Nigeria today and very soon, we shall take over the rein of government. In the National Assembly and state Houses of assembly, we have members. Presently, we have about three cases in gubernatorial election tribunals and we are going to win by the grace of God. Back to your question, I play politics of idea, not bread and butter politics and I must tell you that my relationship with Governor Mimiko transcends politics. Despite my closeness with him, I have never sought for, nor awarded any contract in the state; the records are there for those who care to verify. When he said he was going to PDP, he gave genuine and credible reasons for his decision. For me, I believe you must have policy that cannot be alter just like that and that is why I have stood my ground where I am. I am not in the Labour Party by happenstance, I was barely 16 years old when I won election as an executive of a workers’ union in Abuja

The story in town is that you have your gaze on the governorship position of Ondo... The only thing I can tell you about it is that it’s only God who makes a king. I can’t really place my hands on how it all started, maybe it’s because I am from Ondo North Senatorial zone, or maybe because of my progressive position on some issues in the polity; maybe my engagements with the less privileged and vulnerable and maybe because of my visibility in the society. But, what I can say is that if it’s the way God wants me to go, so be it. I believe that whatever vision God gives a man, he makes provision for it. But, I am not the type to force events to happen because I understand that it is only God who elevates a man, and it is He who approves events concerning leadership of the people. Are you now considering joining the race for the governorship of Ondo State? As you know, the election is still in 2016 and there is so much to be considered because like I said, I can’t force events to happen. Concerning my giving consideration to the call, I want to say that right from childhood, all of my preparation has been for leadership and the service of my people in whatever capacity I am thrust in. This has informed many of my choices, including career. I have never been known to shy away from whatever affords me an opportunity to serve my people or to guarantee the welfare of the generality of people around me and at the right time, the Almighty God will do it. When I wanted to contest for the Senate in 2011, I did not have up to N10 million in my bank account. But after the whole thing when I took stock of what went down, the campaigns, billboards, and the rest, I could not believe the figure I arrived at. The most shocking thing was that I did not know where the funds came from. So, I want to keep my fingers crossed because when it is time, God Himself will let me know.

34 politics&policy

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

What many do not know about Fashola —Ex-special adviser Mr Lateef Raji is the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to former governor of Lagos State, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN). He speaks with TUNDE BUSARI on a number of issues surrounding the screening of ministerial nominees in the Senate, developments in the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade. Excerpts:

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governed the country for 16 years. Do you see the All Progressives Congress (APC) matching that record? I don’t want to start playing God because I was brought up to believe that only Him is the all-knowing. He has total power over time and over all of us. However, going by the yearnings of our people for a change and progress as they demonstrated at the last elections which brought APC to power, it is not impossible. Here are the people who tolerated the misrule of PDP for 16 years. So, if they enjoy the fruit, relief, abundance and advancement of their lives for 24 years, I believe it is not too much. They believe they deserve good governance which APC is bringing to the entire nation, and they voted for the party to end the years of suffering. But, the only thing that can stand between us and achieving that is if we relapse to the style of PDP. I don’t see the party relapsing to the style of PDP. It will never happen. So, let us keep our fingers crossed and see how the party will take the nation out of the wood, in terms of delivering good governance which Nigerians have been denied in the last 16 years. Certainly, we shall reach there and have a cause to reflect how we were able to achieve the feat for Nigerians. Given the intra-party issues that came up soon after the party won the elections, aren’t you worried about the future of the APC, as the ptoblem may be taking its toll on confidence in the party? There is nothing to worry about. A political party is not a family affair as such. There must be divergent views and also varied interests to contend with. At the same time, there are areas where personal interests have to give way for the interest of the majority. In this context, it is not right when the majority of people are pulling a particular place and you are pulling at a different way. It makes the party vulnerable much as it sets it back. And this should not be encouraged because of the danger it portends. The situation we experienced is like that of a plane which needs to first take off, get stability and gain altitude before the pilot put it in auto and continue the journey. We have taken off well; let see how we stabilise and gain the altitude. What we have passed through is a natural thing in which interests are bound to differ. Having said that, there is nothing to worry about. You can see that we are forging ahead and getting set for government business. The APC national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed is a minister-designate now. Won’t his confirmation create a vacuum in the party, going by what Mohammed has achieved so far? Let me first say something, the APC is a political party that does not believe that the absence of one man will create a vacuum. I think it does not follow the natural order of how things should be. The party is not structured in a way that the absence of an individual will jeopardise its functionality.

The nominees exhibited a high level of understanding of the Nigerian project during screening session. When they spoke, they did from informed position. They made us proud by demonstrating in their presentations that they have what it takes to solve myriad of problems confronting the nation. And we are satisfied with the character they demonstrated at the Senate. They are well-respected people because of their personal pedigree. They have the qualities Mr President was looking for, and they have got the job. There is no doubting their competence level because of where they are coming from. How do you want the ministers to be assigned portfolios? I don’t want to say. But if you watched the screening session very well, you would find out that they were asked questions on virtually every subject and they answered convincingly. Except the Ministry of Health, where we need a medical practitioner or Justice, where a lawyer is needed, they are capable people who can function anywhere. All of them are to be functional administrators to provide solutions to issues. Alhaji Mohammed could as well be the Minister for Environment. When you look at the way he answered questions, it’s not all about information. Fashola could as well be minister for information. I have seen some speculations, which I am not against but, I can tell you these people can perform at any designation.

Raji

You will be surprised that at 2.30 a.m., he is working and inspecting projects. He will call you on phone and tell you his observation about a particular project. A party built around an individual is not worth to be called a serious party. Aside the fact that the assistant publicity secretary is there as a capable hand to carry on, the party is also endowed with many tested members who can hold and function at any position they are assigned because offices are not tied to individuals. But despite that, Alhaji Mohammed is still a member of the party, who is expected to and will contribute to the progress of the party. Here is a man who has garnered a lot of experience even before the formation of the party. He is a repertoire of our information management system. And he remains an asset to the party and cannot be far away from how the party is run. His successor will therefore find him most useful because of his rich experience in that capacity right from the opposition day. If you watched the screening of the ministerial nominees, you

would see that he was appreciated by all for delivering his assignment well for the party. You may not like the face of somebody but you cannot take away his competence if he is truly competent. What criteria do you think President Buhari used to pick his ministers? The first thing is integrity. Second one is professionalism and experience too. The nominees come from very solid backgrounds that can, when projected at national stage, actually trigger a lot of positive actions for the advancement of the country. These are former governors, former senators, and academic dons. Every one of them stands very tall apart from a pocket of accusations which remain accusations until proven otherwise. But I can tell you those accusations are unfounded.

Corruption, they say, has a way of fighting back. Do you see President Buhari winning the anti-corruption war being waged by his administration? Once you have the political will, there is nothing you cannot achieve. We believe the President is ready to fight corruption. Although we have so far seen some people being arraigned, we have not really seen a demonstrable pattern. But, I can tell you he is taking his time to have a cabinet in place and assign Minister of Justice a duty as regards bringing corrupt people to book. How can corruption fight back effectively? It is not possible with the instruments at the disposal of Mr President. It is going to be a case of an egg hitting a rock. At least, 78 per cent of Nigerians are behind him. Nigerians are encouraging him to fight corruption to a standstill and put the corrupt ones in jail. Wherever you hide, if you have corruptly enriched yourself; if you have stolen Nigerian money, this government will go after you. You worked with former Governor Fashola. How would you describe him? Except for when I was sick which lasted a long time, I observed him closely and concluded that he is a workaholic. He has passion. You will be surprised that at 2:30 am, he is working and inspecting projects. He will call you on phone and tell you his observation about a particular project. When he is working, he does not make it look as doing Lagosians a favour. To him, it is even the other way round. He believes his being elected to lead Lagosians is a favour. So, he must give the work all it takes to meet excellent standards. You may have brushes with him but, he remains a workaholic, as well as an energetic person. He is a passionate man, who is very serious with his job

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

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For enquiries, Lanre Adewole - 0811 695 4647 olanreade@yahoo.com

Nolle prosequi power was abused in Ekiti —AG Two-time Ekiti State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, ex-OAU Students’ Union president and ex-NBA Chairman, Ado Ekiti branch, Barrister Owoseni Ajayi speaks with SAM NWOKO.

t was confusing in Ekiti State preparatory to the swearing-in of Governor Ayo Fayose for a second term a year ago, and you were in the thick of it all. How would you describe the period? I thank God for giving me the grace to be at the epicenter of the legal activities cum political shenanigans that surrounded the emergence of Dr Peter Ayodele Fayose. When he was removed from office in October 2006, I was also the Attorney-General. During that time, there was no impeachment of any sort, but there was a kangaroo arrangement that sent him out of office. There was no impeachment in the sense that when the House of Assembly purportedly passed a resolution for his impeachment, the constitution provides that the chief judge of the state should set up a seven-man panel to investigate. The then constitutionally-appointed chief judge, Justice Kayode Bamisile, set up a panel, which completely exonerated him. By the spirit of the constitution that was supposed to end that impeachment procedure because it said that it shall never be visited again. But because of the political expedition of that time to get him out of office, the then Speaker of the House, Chief Friday Aderemi of blessed memory, against the spirit of the constitution, instructed somebody that was not a chief judge or acting chief judge, in the person of Justice Aladejana to constitute another panel. It was that panel that purportedly removed the governor. So, they used that illegal impeachment to continuously harass the governor since 2006 in his political activities. Whenever he wanted to contest, they would brandish the illegal impeachment. That was why, even after he had contested and recorded overwhelming victory in a governorship election, which was acknowleged by Dr Kayode Fayemi, they still went to court to challenge him with the purported impeachment. The APC, in a disguise by way of Ekiti-11 of E-Eleven, still went to court using that impeachment to say that he cannot be sworn-in because somebody that has been impeached cannot contest a political office until after 10 years. I was the counsel in the matter for the governor and the case threw the state into a turmoil because people saw that a black market injunction to stop the governor from being sworn-in was about to be obtained. And I have never seen where an injunction was obtained not to swear in a governor. It would have put Ekiti in a state of quagmire and confusion if that injunction was obtained and he was not sworn in because the constitution does not provide for a situation like that, where a governor would be elected and he would not be sworn-in. The tenure of the incumbent governor then would have expired and the constitution did not provide for a situation where the speaker can take over. The speaker of the house can take over only if the governor and his deputy were impeached. It was a very serious situation in the state and the crises that arose owing to that attempt even led to the death of one of the prominent supporters of Fayose in the person of Chief Omolafe Aderiye, a former chairman of the NURTW in the state.

But he was eventually sworn-in and he became the governor? Thankfully, we were able to overcome their plots and the governor was sworn in. But our friends in the APC do not give up over any issue. Despite the fact that the APC candidate, Dr Fayemi conceded defeat, they still went to court, using the same illegal impeachment process of 2006 as the basic anchor, there was nothing else that was pleaded at the tribunal other than the impeachment. We dragged that from the tribunal to the Supreme Court and the supreme court finally laid the illegality of 2006 to rest. The Supreme Court affirmed that the 2006 panel set up by Justice Aladejana was an illegal concoction and that the judge, who was neither a chief judge or acting chief judge, allowed politicians to use him against his judicial oath and that he was properly dismissed from the judiciary. That laid the judicial obstacles to rest. But we entered another stage from there. The House of Assembly we inherited was dominated by APC and initially, it was 25 against one. We knew right away that 25 members of APC against a single PDP member in the house was a big crisis on our hands. We knew it was serious danger for us because we were dealing with a people that do not compromise. They do not forgive, they do not negotiate, they do not want you unless you defeat them. So, we were able to get additional six members from the APC to make our members in the House of Assembly seven, and even at that, that number did not make the required majority. So, we managed the situation with Dr Adewale Omirin as the Speaker until it because uncontrollable became they were adamant in using the remaining period of their tenure to remove the governor, using their majority in the house. This warranted the politics of removal of Omirin as the speaker and Dele Olugbemi taking over. That again led to a plethora of court cases. Omirin went to court to challenge his removal from office as speaker, going from one court to another. He filed two suits in Abuja, one in Lagos and one in AdoEkiti, trying to find where he could be allowed to come back as speaker. Olugbemi, as the de-facto speaker, on the other hand filed a suit saying that Omirin had been removed and that he was the de-facto speaker. We were in court over all these matters for the first seven months. We were hopping from one court to another in Abuja, Lagos and Ekiti until the impeachment tsunami was over. We were also able to overcome the threat of the APC-dominated House of Assembly and

“The Supreme Court affirmed that the 2006 panel set up by Justice Aladejana was an illegal concoction.”

Owoseni Ajayi

on June 5, another assembly was sworn in. So, how has it then been after the labyrinth of court cases and House of Assembly crisis? We thank God because we can say that peaceful reign commenced in Ekiti State from the time a new Assembly was inaugurated. From my analysis, you can see that it was hellish in Ekiti State. We had no time to settle down. We were jumping from one court to another, facing one crisis or the other with the runaway House of Assembly members, who wanted to use the swearing in of a new government in Abuja by their political party to invade the state and cause another round of crisis in the state and Ekiti people stubbornly resisting that. So, it was hellish. Are you done with court cases now or are there still cases in court? All political cases are now rested because they have mostly become functus officio. Most of them have been struck out, dismissed or overtaken by events. So, we have no pending political cases now. However, in the Ministry of Justice where I am, I discovered that nolle prosequi were entered by my predecessor to strike out all political matters in which the APC members were standing trial. But 40 of such persons were released without going through prosecution because of the nolle prosequi and these were serious crimes. Section 211 of the constitution gives the Attorney-General power to prosecute and discontinue any matter at any stage before judgement. But that provision did not envisage an abuse, it envisaged an Attorney-General that would apply Continues on pg36

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Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

‘LG elections in Ekiti would hold as scheduled’ So, if the staus quo remains without any injunction or order of court, the local government elections in Ekiti would hold as scheduled.

Continued on pg35

the rule of law and common sense. A situation where somebody would be facing a crime of murder, murder in broad daylight, not disguised murder, and the victim’s relations are alive and they have witnesses to such crime, you cannot use nolle prosequi to discharge such a case. The same power of the Attorney-General allows such matters to be reinstated. So, on the instruction of the governor, because petitions flowed in immediately we came in, in respect of these cases. That is why these cases were re-enlisted. Which cases are these in particular for which nolle prosequi were entered? One example is the Erijiyan killing. The Chairman of APC in the state, Chief Jide Awe is a principal accused person in that matter and some of his aides. We also have the murder case in Emure where the APC honourable member that represented that constituency is also a principal accused person. We have another matter in Isinbode, where another honourable member of APC is also an accused person. We have given instruction to the police to re-arrest them, some of them have been arrested and prosecution has commenced. But some of them are still at large and frustrating prosecution. How many nolle prosequi have you entered in your second coming as Attorney General? I have never entered any nolle prosequi because it is a power you

As his personal counsel and now his Attorney General, are there murder cases involving Mr Fayose or which he is facing in court?

Owoseni Ajayi should sparingly use. The state Independent Electoral Commission (EKSIEC) had been dragged to court by the APC in the state, alleging that Justice Bamisile who chairs the body is a member of your PDP. Yes we have been served and we have joined issues with them in court. But it is subjudice, I as Attorney General cannot comment on what should be the decision of the court. But what I can say emphatically is that there is no order of court to stop the state electoral commission from continuing their job.

Want to adopt a child? Alhaji Danjuma is a community leader. About three years ago, some members of the vigilante group in the neighbourhood where he lives came to inform him in the early hours of a particular day that they perceived some living object wrapped inside a sack, was moving inside drainage in the area. He followed them to the drainage and in his presence, the vigilante members brought out the sack containing the moving object. Lo and behold, the moving object turned out to be a new baby who had obviously been dumped by someone. It had rained seriously the previous night and it was clear that the intention of whoever dumped the baby in the drainage was for it to be washed away by erosion into a big river close by. The baby lives today with Alhaji Yussuf as one of his children. He proudly pointed at the boy and thinking I was aware of the incident, he said: “Lawyer that is the boy we rescued that day.” I asked “which day?” since I could not remember being aware of the incident. That was when he told me the story I just narrated above. A Deacon of the Baptist extraction adopted over seven years ago two babies born as twins who were about to be killed in this age and time because of the cultural belief that for their mother to have died during their birth, the babies were evil. You would marvel at the bond that exists between them and the Deacon and other members of his family. The boys are well taken care of and they are growing so well! I had more respect for former Governor Raji Fashola the day I learnt from his response to the campaign against him some

Even out of office in 2006, I was his lawyer and I can say that there were orchestrated attempts to link him with some murder cases. But investigations, even down to the Inspector-General of Police, confirmed that he was not involved in any murder. That is why he was never tried throughout the eight years he was in political wilderness, when he enjoyed no immunity. He was not charged for murder or for any criminal offence whatsoever. Given the political situation he found himself, if the police had found him culpable or if any prima facie case had been established

weeks back that he actually adopted some children whose parents died in one of the air mishaps which we have experienced as a nation in this clime in the last decade. Just imagine what could have happened to those children if they had not been adopted by their adoptive parents. Today’s topic is meant to encourage those who have been nursing the idea of adopting a child but are bothered about cultural inhibitions and procedural bottlenecks involved in so doing legally. I am sure that there are several Nigerians and many people the world over who have taken to adopting children as their own way of making the world a better place. May God reward their labour of love. You want to adopt a child or you are already taking care of a child without having adopted them properly according to the law? Then, the following hints may be helpful. There is no uniform adoption law in Nigeria. This is because the issue is within the legislative competence of state governments. However, within the space allowed on this page, we shall discuss some basic principles guiding adoption in Nigeria. In all jurisdictions in Nigeria, it appears that emphasis is on adoption of children and not adults. The maximum age of a child to be adopted ranges between 17 and 18 years of age. It is expected that a person adopting a child has the financial capacity to raise the child. Applications for adoption are made to the appropriate government authority. In most states, it is usually the magistrate’s courts. The court to which the application is made, appoints a guardian ad litem who is usually a welfare officer or any person the

How can somebody who has two days to leave office as member of House of Assembly still be contemplating removing an elected governor?

against him during that period he enjoyed no immunity, he would have been charged to court and prosecuted. So, there was none against him. That is why he had the opportunity to scale through INEC screening and the party screening for election. So, how has the past one year been? We should thank the people of Ekiti State for resolutely standing behind their verdict. If not for the people’s support, it would have been very difficult for us to maintain the status quo, particularly in the days of G19 House of Assembly members. They were a threat even to the last minute of their stay in office because they were determined to carry out another kangaroo impeachment. That is why illegality should not be condoned because those favoured by it would continue to use it to perpetrate further illegalities. They wanted to do it anyhow otherwise, how can somebody who has two days to leave office as member of House of Assembly still be contemplating removing an elected governor? It bothers on sheer abuse of power which has nothing to do with common sense. But we thank God the people of the state were resolute behind the governor and the governor himself. He has always stated that because the people gave him the rare opportunity of a second term, he would use the opportunity to serve the people of Ekiti State irrespective of the financial position we found ourselves and the huge debt the previous government committed this state to.

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By Olatunde Femi Abegunde Esq.ACOArb

m: +234-0803 967 7683; +234-0809 401 7911 e: pinnacle.chambers@yahoo.com, femabed2007@gmail.com f: Olatunde Abegunde & Associates-Pinnacle Chambers

court considers suitable for that purpose. The duty of the guardian so adopted, is to visit the adoptive parents. The child to be adopted must have stayed with the adoptive parent for at least three months. During this period, the welfare officer will make visits and make his confidential report to the court. Upon being satisfied by the report given by the welfare officer, the court then makes an adoption order. The fact of the adoption order being given is then entered in the Adoption Register. If the adoptive parents intend to take the child out of the country temporarily or permanently, they need to get a letter from the welfare officer to the immigration according to the adoption laws of some states. Adoption under the statutes in Nigeria envisages permanent severance of a child from his biological parents. The adoptive parents assume all legal rights, duties and privileges over the adopted child. The children so adopted under the law enjoy all the rights and privileges like the biological children. Customary law equally allows adoption but it does not envisage permanent severance of the child from his biological parents. It usually starts with guardianship and

matures into adoption with time. Adoption is not allowed under the Islamic law. It is only the concept of guardianship that is recognised by that law. The case of OLAIYA V. OLAIYA (2002) 8 NWLR (PT 782) 652 is quite instructive. A couple married under the Marriage Act of England. The couple had no biological child of their own before the husband died in 1981 intestate. The husband’s brothers took over the management of the husband’s property without recourse to the surviving wife. The wife sued claiming, among other things, that she and three children of the deceased husband were entitled to the inheritance of the deceased’s property. The wife’s evidence was that two of the three children were validly adopted under the applicable law. The trial court held that the children were entitled to share from property of the deceased and this decision was upheld on appeal to Court of Appeal. On further appeal to the Supreme Court however, the Court held oral evidence of adoption was not enough and that a party alleging that adoption was properly done must prove this by tendering Adopted Children Register under the relevant adoption law.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015 Editor: Bayo Alade featuresdesk@yahoo.com 080 55001747

features

Benue’s booming trade in babies

Some of the missing children.

Dooshima (left) and other members of the kidnap syndicate.

Johnson Babajide -Makurdi Poverty, as they say, is a disease. But sometimes it is difficult to explain what could have been going on in some people’s mind when they do things for money. Or how else could one explain the deliberate act of nursing an idea of keeping a pregnancy for the sole aim of selling the baby when delivered; or rather, what manner of poverty could make an aunt to sell off her niece’s unborn child for N300,000? Such riddles are the tasks ahead of the Benue State police command as it tries to unravel the mystery behind the rise in abduction of children in the state, a situation which has assumed a dangerous dimension. Cases of child abduction have become rampant in many parts of the state of recent. Hardly could a week pass by without one or two kids being abducted. By penultimate Thursday, when some mothers whose children were reportedly kidnapped ambushed the state governor, Chief Samuel Ortom, at a function in Makurdi, no fewer than 22 children were said to have been abducted across the state in just a few weeks. Narrating their ordeals, the women claimed that the unknown kidnappers used biscuits and drinks to lure their innocent kids and within a twinkle of an eye the abductors had gone out of sight while efforts to trace the children had failed till date. One of the cases reported was the forceful abduction of a week-old baby from the back of the mother at a gunpoint by unknown persons in broad daylight three Sundays ago in Makurdi. Narrating her ordeal amidst tears, one of the mothers of missing children in the state, Madam Ngodoo, an akpu seller at Wurukum Market, said the little boy that she took with her to the market on that fateful day had gone to play somewhere within the market and had been missing since then. “My son went to play close by within the market. He left my shop at about 4pm but by 5pm when he usually comes back I didn’t see him. So I went looking for him and in the process, a young girl said she saw my son with a woman whom she could not iden-

Madam Veronica (right) and Anum. tify and asked where he was going but the woman told the girl she was my sister and that I had asked her to go and buy juice for my son.” The stories of Mrs Wandoo Hemkya, Mrs Charity Otumala and Doosuur Aer were not different as their children were taken away by unidentified persons at different locations across Benue State.

We finally came here with the balance of N220,000 which we handed over to the girl’s aunt and collected the baby. Then we drove away, only to be called a few days after that the transaction had become a police case

Hemkya, who broke down and wept profusely while speaking with newsmen, said she left her son, Saaondo, with her sister to attend a burial programme in the village but on her return, she was told that somebody who introduced himself as an ‘uncle’ took him away on the claim that he was going to buy Bobo for him. Otumala and Doosuur who live within the same neighbourhood in Wadata area of Makurdi lost their sons same day after an unidentified person picked them away from where they were playing. The women whose husbands were mostly commercial bus drivers said they had reported the matter to the police and appealed to members of the public to pray along with them and avail the police of information on how they could find the children. State police spokesman, Austin Ezeani, said that the arrest of one suspected kidnappers had opened a floodgate of arrests particularly that of a syndicate whose trade in stock was buying and selling babies in some parts of the state. According to him, the arrested persons were in two groups though the two principal actors in the trade specialised in nursing pregnant girls and selling off the babies even when they were still unborn. Parading the suspects, Ezeani said that one Madam Veronica Vanger was fond of

luring her pregnant victims to the Eastern part of the country where they were made to sell their babies. One of the girls she lured to the Eastern part of the country was one Ngbekenger who was given N14,000 for the sale of her new born child. Another victim of Madam Veronica was a pregnant woman identified as Anum who was lured to Asaba in Delta State on the pretext that she was going to engage in menial jobs to eke out a living only to discover that her unborn baby had been paid for. But Madam Veronica said that Anum was aware of the deal and consented to an offer of N50,000 for selling her baby whenever she gives birth. According to Anum, “Madam Vero said she was taking me to someone who will assist me to get a job and I agreed to follow her, only for her to take me to Asaba where she handed me over to one huge man and left. But one day, as I was alone and the man guarding me slept off, I saw the key to the gate and I quietly picked it and escaped and ran to police station where they brought me to Makurdi.” Madam Veronica in her statement initially denied of the allegations against her, but later confessed that Anum consented to the business transaction between them as she agreed to collect N50,000 while also saying that her first victim, Ngberkenger, also consented to the business by agreeing to collect N50,000 but said that only N14,000 got to her. The police also paraded the another group, a nine-member syndicate which specialises in trading of babies whose ages range between one month and four years. A member of the syndicate arrested by the police was an aunt who sold her niece’s newly-born baby for N300,000, but gave her N20,000 as proceeds from the sale of the baby girl. This was the pathetic story of Dooshima Adogo, a 16-year-old. She lived with her aunt, Grace Aandi at Agbua in Buruku Local Government Area of the state. Though she could tell who put her in the family way but as the pregnancy developed she found Continues pg38

features Nigerian businesses in Ghana now booming —Ambassador Onafowokan 38

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Outgoing Ambassador Ademola Oluseyi Onafowokan was appointed Nigerian High Commissioner to Republic of Ghana in July 2012. Prior to that, he had served in Cuba, Moscow, London, Trinidad and Tobago and Spain. He spoke with Ajayi Oluwapelumi on his over 33 years of experience in foreign service, and his years as Nigerian envoy to Ghana.

Ghana and vice versa daily, aside other smaller cars that transport people between the borders of the two countries with the purpose of trade. Trade between the two countries by my estimate is about ten million naira daily. Bilateral trade agreement between Nigeria and Ghana is still an issue on the front burner. How soon do you think this will come to fruition? We are working on it. I believe sooner than later, it will come to fruition. But for now, ECOWAS protects every one of us.

ell us about your memorable moments an in the course of your duties as the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana? There are so many memorable moments in my over three years tenure as Nigerian ambassador to Republic of Ghana. I was privileged to have welcomed to Accra, six times, former Nigerian President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, while I welcomed the Vice President twice; the Foreign Minister, once. I have also been opportune to meet with the Ghanaian President, apart from the day I presented my credentials. I have met with him five times in the course of my sojourn in Ghana. I have been able to lay to rest, temporarily, the issue of crisis with Nigerian traders and Ghana government. We were able to start issuing international passport in the High Commission, a small office was built for that purpose. I was able to set up a Nigerian Cultural Center, where Nigerian dishes are served to Nigerians and the lovers of her traditional food. A small Nigerian Media Centre was built in the same premises. I re-organised the All Nigeria Community (ANC) and also the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Ghana among other achievements. What challenges did you face during your tenure as Nigerian envoy to Ghana? Trying to re-organise the All Nigeria Community was a tough one, because there are so many interests and we had to reach out to them, pacify them and let them know there can be only one ANC leader. The second of them were the issue of Nigerian traders that were being molested; their shops were locked. Through diplomacy, persuasion, friendship with the host government and with the support of the Federal Government and the Minister for Trade and Investment, we were able to lay that to rest. I also had the challenge of politics. During the presidential election in Nigeria, we had PDP and APC members wanting me to get involve in one way or the other, but the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria does not permit me to belong to a political party or take part in politics. I refused to be drawn into it. Could you recall any of those circumstance and people that tried roping you into politics during the presidential campaign? There was a day, I sat in my office when a young rich man who was born when I was in form four called me on phone and threatened to report me to the former first lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan. I even thought it was a joke, until he claimed to be serious. He accused me of being in the opposition (APC). So I told him he must be mistaken, and I disconnected the call. I am very apolitical. After my retirement, I even doubt if I will join politics, instead, I

Still on the issue of trade, you once issued a statement telling the media that an arrangement with Ghana government to give Nigerian traders and other West African traders a land where they could use as market since they were being chased out of the traditional market. How far have you gone with the arrangement? We are still waiting for the Ghanaian government to give us a land. You know such things don’t happen overnight. There may still be one or two negotiation, but I believe that market will be allocated.

Onafowokan will rather go to the academia or join the organised private sector. I used to give politics a thought when I was younger, but having spent 33years plus in civil service, politics, for me, has been ruled out of my life. At the inception of your tenure, you cited improvement of trade and investment between the two countries (Ghana and Nigeria), as one of your cardinal project. How much success were you able to make out of this? Since I came to Ghana, Nigerian businesses have improved a lot. We have added more banks: among which are First Atlantic and First Bank of Nigeria. There are others in the pipeline. Traders issue has died down. Kasapreko business in Nigeria has grown massively, as they now have presence in other states apart from Lagos. The trade volume between Nigeria and Ghana has grown immensely in the last three and half years. For me, trade and investment has always been my strongest point, apart from my other core duty which is to protect the interest of Nigeria. After assessing your performance, do you think you have achieved a commensurate level of success in attracting more investors to Nigeria from Ghana? I will say I tried, because Ghanaians are beginning to invest in Nigeria. For example, African World has investment in Nigeria, and I am instrumental to it. Medview is also flying to Ghana. There are other two Ghanaian airlines I assisted in getting their license in Nigeria. Over 10 buses travel into

Can the Nigerian High Commission under your leadership boast of having a specific figure of total numbers of Nigerians residing in Ghana? We can never know the actual figure because we have many Ghanaians who are Nigerian descendants, so they switch between two nationalities when it suits them. There are also a category of Nigerians who are in Ghana illegally because the border is porous. But to answer your question, an estimate of 1million Nigerians are in Ghana, but officially, we have about 15,000 registered Nigerians in Ghana. How will you describe your experience in other countries where you have served compared to Ghana? I think generally, I have been very lucky. I have served in London, Cuba, Moscow, Trinidad and Tobago, Spain and Ghana. I think all of them are nice postings for me. I met good people; I knew the ropes, so I was able to maneuver it. I didn’t really face difficult challenges. In Ghana, it might have been a bit different, but one cannot deny the fact that between Nigeria and Ghana. There’s a lot of love and there’s also rivalry. So we have to find a way to balance it; to protect your national interest which comes first, and at the same time, you have to find a way to make Ghanaians happy; to let them know you are their brother. And that you’ll never do anything inimical to the progress of Ghana while also protecting your national interest. Did your wife play any role in getting you to the top of your career as a diplomat? I read a book long time ago written by my mentor, late Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru. He mentioned three things one must do to be successful in Foreign Service: good health, good children and complete peace at the home front. My wife effectively takes care of the home front, looked after our children and even after my health. She has been a pillar of support. She checks on the way I dress before I step out, organises my laundry, and make sure I have a clean home to come back to. Maybe without her, I wouldn’t have got to where I am today.

Benue’s booming trade in babies Continued from pg37

solace in her aunt’s bosom when faced with pressing needs and need to survive. Unknown to her that her aunt had an ulterior motive behind the benevolence showered on her, Dooshima trusted her aunt, Madam Aandi who had entered into negotiation with a syndicate on how to sell off the baby as soon as she puts to bed until bubble burst the day the baby was taken away from her after being given N20,000. It was gathered that one Onye Ekwueme, mother of four children, an indigene of Enugu in Enugu State, had found a haven

of trading in babies in Benue rural communities when she contacted her son-in-law, John Adoga about the childlessness of her friend, also based in Enugu, who had been married for 20 years. According to Madam Ekwueme who was among the syndicate paraded in Makurdi by state police command, “It was my friend who was married for 20 years without a child and had tried several unsuccessful ways of having a baby boy which made me to contact my son-in-law living in Benue State who promised me that we could get as many as we wanted.” In an effort to meet the yearnings of his

mother-in-law, John promptly contacted his sister, Eunice, a widow with seven children, who is a petty-trader in Buruku Local Government Area of the state, and finally linked up with Dooshima’s aunt and struck the deal. Throughout the pregnancy, N80,000 was said to have been sent from Enugu for catering for the pregnant woman and her unborn baby. “We bargained and arrived at N300,000.00; we sent N80,000 to her through Eunice for the maintenance of the pregnancy. We needed a baby boy but when she finally gave birth, it was baby girl yet we proceeded to get the baby. “We finally came here with the balance of

N220,000 which we handed over to the girl’s aunt and collected the baby. Then we drove away, only to be called a few days after that the transaction had become a police case. To show our innocence we brought the girl back and thereafter we were arrested,” she said. In her own narration, Dooshima said, “My aunt gave me N20,000 and said that the strangers were from Enugu and would take good care of the baby for me. As they drove off I cried to a neighbour and narrated what happened to me; it was the man that reported to police and arrested my aunt and me, but two days later I saw the same stranger with my baby.”

news

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

LAUTECH hospital not in comatose when I handed over —Ex-CMD Oluwole Ige - Osogbo

HE immediate past Chief Medical Director (CMD), Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital (LAUTECHTH), Osogbo, Professor Solomon Olufemi Fadiora, on Monday, described as untrue the position of the acting CMD, Professor Akeem Lasisi, that the hospital was in comatose when he took over. He also contended that allegation of mismanaging N1.7 billion capital project fund was unfounded and misleading. In a statement issued yesterday, Fadiora said there was need for the acting CMD to wait for the outcome of the forensic audit of the financial records of the hospital during his four years in office before making spurious allegation, stressing that no penny was spent without approval from appropriate authorities. Apparently reacting to the recent statement credited

Dangote Foundation assures of intervention, advocacy against poor sanitation THE Dangote Foundation, at the weekend, promised to step up its advocacy campaign against preventable diseases in Nigeria. The Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation, Mrs Zuoera Youssoufou, gave this promise in a message she sent to the Community Staff School, venue of the demonstration of the United Nation’s Global Hand Washing Day observed in Abuja, in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and other organisations like UNICEF and Water Aids. Mrs Youssoufou stated that the Foundation had already planned to scale up her advocacy and intervention in the preventable deaths owing to equally preventable diseases such as poor sanitation, hunger and malnutrition, diarrhoea, cholera and dysentery. The foundation boss explained that it was in realisation of the importance of hygiene in the prevention of these avoidable deaths that made the United Nations to set aside a day to mark the hand washing to encourage children on the need to always wash their hands and maintain good sanitation.

to Professor Lasisi in some section of the media that he inherited comatose teaching hospital from his predecessor, the former CMD insisted that “the teaching hospital was in good order and not in comatose as at the time, precisely, September 21, 2015, of handing over to the new acting CMD.” The statement reads in part, “For the avoidance of doubt, I want to put the records straight for the good people of Osun and the

whole world to know. Osun State invested N1.7billion as capital project in the hospital in the last four years. It is a testimony that health is one of the cardinal points of the government. This was budgeted and approved by the government for the expansion of the hospital for new buildings and procurement of hospital equipment. “With this investment, LAUTECH Teaching Hospital was able to get full accreditations in many

departments to the extent that its medicine department was rated as second best in West Africa by West Africa College of Physicians. Other teaching hospitals in Nigeria were coming to see original innovations such as Oxygen Plant, Drugs production Unit etc for replication in their various centres. “All employments and upgrading of staff followed due process and laid down rules and regulations in line with the legislative approval of the state House of

Assembly in the interest of equity, fairness and justice, which records were there for verification. “The Laboratory Complex mentioned has a place among its contemporaries in West Africa; completed and beautiful. Furniture are not part of the constructions, they are to be purchased from Internally Generated Revenue because they were never part of the budget approved for capital projects,” the statement added.

Pupils of Community Staff School, Abuja, washing their hands with soap and water at the Dangote Foundation sponsored United Nation’s Global Hand Washing Day, on Monday.

Niger, NUT set for war over deductions Adelowo Oladipo - Minna

THE Niger State government and the state’s chapter of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) are set for war over deductions from teachers’ salaries to acquire computer training and purchase of computers for sec-

ondary school teachers. The state government and a non-governmental organisation, had reached an agreement for the training of secondary school teachers in the state to make them computer literate and to also ensure they (teachers) had computers.

According to the Nigerian Tribune investigation, on Monday, in Minna, under the agreement, the government is to foot the cost of the programme by about 40per cent while the teachers are to pay the balance. It was further learnt that on a monthly basis, each

We won’t have out-of-school child in Nigeria by 2017 —FG Clement Idoko - Abuja THE Federal Government has pledged to ensure that all the over 10.5 million out-of-school children in Nigeria are mopped up from the streets by 2017. Government has accordingly, developed strategic roadmap for effective implementation of the Universal Basic Education (UBE) programme in line with this objective as well as strengthen the quality of basic education delivery in the country. Executive Secretary, Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Sulleiman Dikko, spoke while receiving the report of the five-year (2015-2020)

Roadmap for Implementation of UBE Programme from the development committee he inaugurated on June 4, 2015, with Professor Umar Muhammad as the chairman. Dikko expressed optimism that the Federal Government would work in collaboration with the state governments, which are directly in charge of basic education, towards ensuring that every Nigerian child is given access to basic education. He said the roadmap was developed in order to entrench strategic planning and ensure result-oriented implementation of UBE programme at national and state levels.

He noted that the absence of a clearly defined and time-bound action plan at each level of education service delivery was fundamental to the system’s inability not only to deliver on its mandate but also to assess and document achievements in programme implementation. Dikko said: “According to United Nations Children Education Fund (UNICEF), Nigeria has at least 10 million out-of-school children and Almajiris constitute about 60% of the population. What we need to do here is to introduce the type of education that will make these children enrol and be retained in the school.”

teacher would have not less than N2,200 deducted from his or her salary. The scheme was said to have started last year. Further checks revealed that while the teachers have honoured their part of the agreement, the government was reported to have reneged on its part, making the non-governmental organisation to abruptly stop the training and distribution of the computers. Disturbed by the development, the state’s chapter of the NUT allegedly put a letter of protest through to the Ministry of Education asking the government to ‘immediately’ put a stop to the deductions from members salaries. Efforts made by the Nigerian Tribune to get the reaction of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Alhaji Shuaibu, were abortive but a senior official in the ministry who preferred anonymity confirmed the receipt of the letter. “In fact, I can confide in you that we received this letter you are talking about and other ones, we are already working on the letters. I think from this month the deductions will stop,” the source stated.

Lanlehin condemns non-release of judgment by tribunal By Dare Adekanmbi

ACCORD Party senatorial candidate for Oyo South District in Oyo State, Senator Olufemi Lanlehin, has condemned the non-release of the judgment of the Justice Tanko Usman-led National and State House of Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal to him six days after the judgment was given. The tribunal, after expunging all the submissions made by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr Rufus Akeju, from its records leaving only Lanlehin and Senator Soji Akanbi in the matter, last week Wednesday, dismissed Lanlehin’s petition for impreciseness among other things. Lanlehin, in a statement made available to newsmen in Ibadan on Monday by his media assistant, Mr Taiwo Ashiru, described as worrisome and disturbing, the refusal of the tribunal panel to give him a copy of the judgment delivered on the 180th day of the petition, adding that the delay was already eating into the 60 days he has to appeal the verdict.

NIQS urges FG on use of quantity surveyors By Tunde Ogunesan

THE administration of President Mahanmadu Buhari has been called upon to immediately intervene and direct the Federal Ministry of Works to engage quantity surveyors in civil and heavy engineering projects. The appeal came to the fore during a two-day workshop on “Measurement of civil and heavy engineering projects” organised by the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS), Oyo State branch, held at the Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan, recently. In his address, the state’s chairman of the body, Samuel Folorunso Olaniyan, stated that the administration of President Buhari had given them the hope of his readiness to eliminate waste and ensure probity and accountability, adding that the old allegation by engineering of low capacity was tenable.

news

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nursing mother dumps son in Ondo Hakeem Gbadamosi-Akure

nursing mother, Esther, from Ado Ekiti, has been arrested by the men of the Ondo State Police command for dumping her nine-year old son on the street of Ondo town in Ondo West Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The nine-year-old boy, Michael Monday, was seen roaming the street of Ondo for two days before he was handed over to the police in Ondo, by a Samaritan, who noticed the young boy wandering around Iluyemi Street, Ondo around 11 o’clock in the night. Monday, who claimed to be a pupil of Saint Fidelis Primary School, Ado-Ekiti,

Ekiti State, told the police that he was dumped in Ondo town by his mother and gave a description of his mother’s address in Ado - Ekiti. He said he was from Mathew Street, Opopogbooro area in Ado-Ekiti, saying his mother dumped him in Ondo town shortly after she remarried and told the police he knew no-

body in Ondo. The police went to Ondo to verify the boy’s claim and his mother, who was located in Ado Ekiti, was found nursing a new baby and was arrested and taken to Ondo town for interrogation. The chairman of the Ondo West local government, Mr Victor Ogunya, who ordered the police to take the boy back to

his parents in Ado-Ekiti frowned over the development and condemned the level at which some parents neglect their wards. He, however, commended the police for doing a thorough job by locating the parents of the boy while he charged parents and guardians to pay proper attention to the welfare of their children.

Nigerians must partner govt on health care delivery —Adebutu OlayinkaOlukoya-Abeokuta

A business mogul and philanthropist, Sir Kesington Adebunkola Adebutu, on Monday, called on wellmeaning Nigerians to complement government effort towards developing a core of healthy citizenry for the future. Adebutu made the call at the 2015 annual medical outreach organised by the Kesington Adebukunola Adebutu Foundation (KAAF) as parts of activities marking his 80th birthday ceremony in Iperu, Ogun State. The businessman, who is popularly known as Baba Ijebu, admitted that even governments of western and developed worlds could not cater for all the needs of their citizens. To this effect, he stated that the rich should support government by ways of giving back to the society. Adebutu noted that health and education remained the vital tools of development in any society. According to him, “I am not giving free medical attention only to people in this area. We do this wherever there is need for it. “I believe that a soul that is healthy and educated can never be hungry, except he is a lazy man. And this is why I focus attention on medicine and education. “No government can provide all the needs of the people. Even the big America cannot do it. Therefore, patriotic indigenes should complement the efforts of government.” He said that the medical outreach, which started last year, would gulp hundreds of millions of naira and would be held from Monday, 19th October through Wednesday, 24th October, 2015.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Amba Asuquo (middle), representing the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, welcoming the District Governor, Rotary Club International 9125, Dr Mike Omotosho (right). With them is the President, Rotary Club of Ibadan, Mr David Oyesina, during the official kick-off ceremony of 2015 adult literacy for wives of policemen, held at Oyo State police command, Eleyele, Ibadan, recently. PHOTO: ALOLADE GANIYU

‘Compulsory registration of Fulani herdsmen in South West underway’ By Tunde Ogunesan

The leadership of the Fulani community, resident in the South West, has agreed to embark on compulsory registration of all Fulani herdsmen operating in the various states of the geo-political zone including their animals to ensure effective monitoring of their activities by their hosts and guard against unwhole-

some behaviours. This was disclosed by Sardauna Yamma and chairman of the Sarkin Hausawas in the 17 Southern states, Alhaji Haruna Maiyasin, after a marathon meeting which lasted over six hours, held at the weekend in his Sasa Palace. Addressing newsmen on the resolutions, Alhaji Maiyasin, who presided over the deliberations and

also double as the Sarkin Sasa of Ibadan land, called for cooperation of the host communities, including the various state and local governments, in supporting the Fulani leadership to effectively implement the proposed registration exercise. According to him, the meeting also mandated Fulani parents to keep close watch on their children and wards to ensure that they do

GEFTY ambassadors go to Europe for Green Awareness workshop By Doyin Adeoye

IN fulfilment of promises made, the Green Education for the Youth (GEFTY) ambassadors, left for Europe on October 18, 2015, for a nine-day Green Awareness Training Workshop on the basics of a sustainable environment. The ambassadors emerged from the first National Green Essay Competition, based on the book written by the wife of the Governor of Ogun State, Mrs Olufunso Amosun, entitled: Green Education for the Youth. This workshop is carefully designed to broaden the 12 GEFTY ambassadors’ knowledge on environmental issues, and develop

a responsible citizenry capable of arresting further degradation, deforestation and climate change issues. It also exposes the ambassadors to job opportunities in solar energy, waste management, recycling and environmental sustainability. The governor’s wife in 2013, embarked on a waste to wealth scheme, exposing youths to waste management and recycling business opportunities. This was based on the GEFTY Level II premise, which preaches how to earn a living while sustaining the environment. More than 500 youths acquired hand skills and training from the wasteto-wealth initiative held at the Opako-Adigbe Refuse Dumpsite in Abeokuta.

Mrs Amosun’s GEFTY children’s book educates children about the basis, basics and essence of going green. The National Green Essay Competition, which was held in 2014, was open to all secondary school students in Nigeria. Passionate about environmental issues, Mrs Amosun in 2013 anchored an international green conference in collaboration with the International Centre for Promotion of Enterprises (ICPE), which had in attendance members of the European Parliament; West African countries; several governors’ wives from Nigeria and members of the Federal House of Representatives Committee on Environment.

not engage in anti-social behaviours or consumption of hard drugs. The Fulani community expressed delight over the proactive measures taken by the security operatives which led to the arrest and subsequent prosecution of the suspected kidnappers of Chief Olu Falae, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, while advocating that severe punishment be meted out on all those incriminated in the kidnapping saga to serve as deterrent. The community, however, expressed reservations over the secession threat by Afenifere over the Fulani herdsmen controversy saying “the outburst by the PanYoruba socio-political group was least expected of whoever professes to be national leaders, as this could heat up the polity and also create bad blood in the land.” To this end, the Fulani community charged leaders of the various ethnic groups in the country, notably Afenifere, MASSOB, Arewa Consultative Forum and such others to “be cautious in their utterances and always make patriotic pronouncements that would unite the country and not those that would set the nation ablaze.”

Commissioner: Ayade sends 28 names to C/ River assembly Anthony Ubong-Calabar

Cross River State governor, Professor Ben Ayade, has sent a list of 28 commissioner-nominees to the State House of Assembly for screening. This is coming barely one week after the governor appointed seven Special Advisers and 24 community relations officers. Chairman, House committee on Media/ Information, Mr Nelson Ofem, who, however, confirmed receipt of the list of would-be commissioners in an interview with journalists in Calabar, on Monday, said the names would be officially unveiled on the floor of the House today, Tuesday. Ofem, who represents Yakurr I state constituency, said the commissioner-nominees would be thoroughly screened to ascertain their credibility. The lawmaker said, “A list of 28 commissionernominees has been sent to the Assembly by the governor. We will do a thorough screening of the nominees to ensure that they have no corrupt charges against them.”

Ogun fish farmers call for probe over alleged diversion of FG’s project OlayinkaOlukoya-Abeokuta

Members of the Association of Fish Farmers and Aqua culturists of Nigeria (AFFAAN), Ogun State chapter, have petitioned the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, over alleged attempt by an Ijebu-based organisation to hijack two Federal Government projects in the state. In a copy of the petition, obtained by the Nigerian Tribune, signed by the association’s chairman, Mr.Adeleke Onakoya and secretary, Mr Jide Aseniyi, the group called on Osinbajo to constitute an independent panel to probe the Ijebu Development Initiative on Poverty Reduction over its attempt to divert the projects for its own use. The AFFAN chairman said the association had expended over N50 million on the project sites before the state government allocated some acres of land to the association for the take-off of the project.

news

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Police recover 6 children, 2 pregnant girls from syndicate Alphonsus Agborh-Asaba

olice in Delta State have recovered six children between the ages of one and five and two pregnant girls from an interstate child trafficking syndicate. A man, Chidiebele Udeagba and his wife Nkiru Asouza along with four other collaborators in Akwa-Ibom and one in Onitsha, Anambra State have been arrested for the crime. The state Commissioner of Police, Alkali Baba Usman who paraded the culprits and children at the police headquarters Asaba on Monday, advised parents, especially those from Akwa-Ibom and Cross River States whose children were stolen or are missing, to report to the state police command to check if any of their beloved ones are among the recovered children. According to the police boss, the state anti robbery squad operatives immediately arrested Nkiru Asouza, following a tip off on the human and child

Your governorship bid is phantom ambition, Oyo APC tells Ladoja By Dare Adekanmbi

Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has described the bid of former Governor Rashidi Ladoja to return to the Agodi Government House, through his petition, as a phantom ambition. In a statement against the background of a press conference addressed by Accord Party on Sunday, APC, through its director of publicity and strategy, Mr Olawale Sadare, said the alleged palpable apprehension in the camp of Senator Ladoja was understandable. Sadare said: “It is most worrisome for a former governor and a senior citizen of Senator Ladoja status to refuse to be democratic enough in pursuit of a phantom ambition, in his attempt to be governor again at all cost since he left office unceremoniously in 2007.” The ruling party denied sponsoring a report in section of the media wherein it was claimed that the Appellate Court had thrown away the petition of Ladoja when the tribunal was yet to deliver a verdict on it.

trafficking syndicate cell in Asaba, who took them to Onitsha, where one Mary Okon was nabbed and the four children recovered. The suspect was also said to have led the investigating team to Akwa-Ibom State, where Ekaete Sunday, Etieno Mary Bassey, Stella John and Esther Ezekiel were also arrested while the two pregnant girls were recovered from the suspects.

Usman said the suspects claimed that the two girls were directed to them after they were impregnated to enable them nurse the pregnancy with a view to selling the babies after delivery. However, one of the pregnant girls and the six children has been handed over to the Delta State Ministry of Women Affairs and one of them handed over to her parents. The police also recov-

ered two AK47 and one AK49 riffles, K2 riffle, 43 rounds of ammunition and Vento car with registration number AE681BKW from a daredevil three-man armed gang who have been terrorising Warri/Effurun and environs. The gang according to Usman was attempting to carry out an armed robbery attack on the public when the police engaged them in a gun duel, killing them.

Meanwhile, two persons have been arrested at Aladja town, near Warri for removing parts of a dredger valued at N2 million, at a land beach. The security man meant to watch over the premises was reportedly tied down during the process of the attack. The police also recovered the sum of N419, 000 charms and two master keys from two hoodlums, who were trying to open a parked car along Airport road Warri.

From left, President, Africa’s Young Entrepreneur (A.Y.E), Mr Summy Francis; Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Vice President of A.Y.E, Ms Ibada Ahmed and A.Y.E National Head Nigeria, Mr Femi Fajemisin, during a visit by the A.Y.E members to the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Monday.

...Arrest two over kidnap of Chinese in Ondo Hakeem Gbadamosi-Akure

Two suspected kidnappers have been arrested by Police detectives in Ondo State for kidnapping a 25-year-old Chinese national, Jiang Peng Fei. The suspects include Adegbayi Akinmusayo and Lucky Akinnuoye and the police are on the trail of

other members of the gang who are at large. The state commissioner of Police, Mike Ogbodu, who disclosed this said the two suspects were arrested by his men before they could settle down to negotiate the ransom for the freedom of the Chinese. Ogbodu said three of the

suspects had visited the office of their victim, JHX Plywood factory, situated at Akinfosile, Omotosho area in Odigbo Local Government Area of the state, to monitor the activities in the factory. The Police boss said the kidnappers posed to the workers of the com-

Tertiary institutions begin indefinite strike in Nasarawa Ademola Adegbite-Lafia

NASARAWA State Chapter of the Joint Union of Tertiary Institutions (JUTI), on Monday, embarked on an indefinite strike, following the failure of Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makuraled administration to implement all its demands, bordering on its members’ welfare. The chairman of the union who is also the Chairman, College of Education Academic Staff Union (COASU), Akwanga Branch, Mr Samuel Bashayi, announced this to

newsmen in Lafia, the state capital. According to him, “the governor has refused to implement all these demands, but instead removed some of the allowances we have been enjoying such as research allowance. “We would go ahead with the strike since the government has refused to implement all the outstanding promotions of workers. “The union has given the state government enough time to put everything in proper perspective, but yet the government is playing

politics with the issue. “Having waited on the state government for so long and the expiration of the 14-day ultimatum given, the union resolved to embark on an indefinite strike to press home its demand,” he lamented. Mr Bashayi stressed that the decision to go on strike was taken at its executive meeting, adding that the strike was aimed at pressing home their demands on the issues of workers’ promotion, annual increment, as well as arrears, among others.

pany as customers who needed some information about their products with a promise to come back soon, unknown to the workers they have come on a surveillance trip. He said the armed men however stormed the plywood company two days later to pick their target, Jiang Peng Fei, who was taken away to an unknown destination. The CP said his men swung into action immediately after the case was reported and said the Chinese was rescued by a team of detectives, who stormed the kidnappers den but said only two of the suspects were apprehended while the victim was released unhurt. The police boss said the other suspect was the manager of the hotel, where the criminal act was hatched saying the hoodlums lodged in the hotel for four days without paying for their accommodation or their feeding. Ogbodu said efforts are ongoing to arrest other members of the gang.

SOGON laments poor maternal health Yinka Oladoyinbo-Lokoja

The Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics (SOGON) has raised the alarm over the poor maternal and child health indices in the country, charging the stakeholders to quickly move to save the Nigerian women. The Secretary General of the society, Dr Chris Agbogoroma, who said this in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, added that the indices as shown by the national demographic survey revealed that governments at various levels and the public still have a lot to do to reduce maternal mortality in the country. Speaking at a meeting of members of the society held at the Federal Medical Center, Lokoja, he expressed concern over the figure, adding that the efforts and interventions at various levels were yet to have any impact. Agbogoroma said, “Recent publications by National Demographic survey shows that the effort we are putting in have not made any significant impact as women are still dying in large numbers from the process of pregnancy, child delivery and within first two days after delivery.

Benue to use IGR as benchmark for 2016 budget Johnson Babajide-Makurdi

DUE to dwindling allocation from the Federal Government, Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has said that his administration would use Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) as benchmark for budget planning next year. Governor Ortom, who lamented the dwindling in monthly allocation from Federal Government, said that the ugly development has made payment of salaries and embarking on infrastructural projects more difficult. He stated that the situation called for financial discipline so as to adjust to the realities on ground, adding that his administration has to look inward to be able to meet the yearnings of the people. The Nigerian Tribune gathered that before now, the state could hardly generate average of N150million in a month but the government to improve the state IGR recently appointed new chairman, Mrs Meme Orubebe for the state revenue board.

42 news Synagogue: Court to rule on preliminary objection Nov 2

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

AyomideOwonibiOdekanyin -Lagos

Federal High Court in Lagos has set aside November 2 to give

ruling on the preliminary objections filed by the police and three other respondents in a suit filed by Messrs Oladele Ogundeji and Akinbela Fatiregun, the structural engineers of

the Synagogue Church of All Nations(SCOAN) seeking to stop the police from arresting or questioning them over the collapse of a six-storey building within the premises of the church.

It will be recalled that a Lagos Coroner, Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, who conducted an inquest into the death of 116 persons that perished in the accident, had on July 8, 2015

Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike (left) and his counterpart from Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, exchanging pleasantries after the Body of Benchers meeting at the Supreme Court Complex, Abuja, on Monday

Lagos must fulfil its potentials, Ambode tasks new commissioners, SAs Bola Badmus -Lagos Lagos State governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, on Monday, swore in the newly appointed Commissioners and Special Advisers, urging them to work round the clock and ensure that the state fulfils its potentials. In the line up, the deputy governor, Dr Idiat Oluranti Adebule will double as the Commissioner for Education while the position of Finance Commissioner goes to Dr Mustapha Akinkunmi; Dr Abdul-Hakeem Abdul-Lateef takes over as Commissioner for Home Affairs while Mr Steve Ayorinde occupies the seat of the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, among others. Ambode, who spoke after the well-attended exercise which took place at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja, urged them to dedicate themselves to the service of the state, saying their primary allegiance was to the people of the state, irrespective of creed and colour. Governor Ambode, while noting that Lagos remained the nerve centre of economic activities in the country, said the state was currently experiencing rapid urbanisation and thus required hard thinking solutions to develop befitting infrastructure to cater for the increasing population. According to him, the

challenges that come with the boisterous profile of Lagos as one of the fastest growing metropolitan city state are as many as the

opportunities that abound in it. He added that it was imperative for the commissioners and special advisers, who had been given

the platform, to write their names in gold through hard work, with the view to leave a glowing legacy in years to come.

indicted Ogundeji and Fatiregun of criminal negligence and recommended them for criminal prosecution by Lagos State. The duo dissatisfied with the recommendation, however, filed different actions at the court to stop any possible arrest, detention and prosecution by the police. Apart from the Commissioner of Police, other respondents in the suit are the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria(COREN), the Attorney-General of Lagos State and the Coroner, Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe. At Monday’s proceedings, lawyer to the engineers, Olalekan Ojo, urged the court to dismiss the respondents’ preliminary objections to the suit. According to him, Section 46 of the Constitution allows an applicant contending that his fundamental rights have been or are likely to be violated, to seek the protection of the court. He said the the applicants were by their suits seeking for an interpretation of Sections 34 and 35 of the Constitution by the court regarding the powers of the police to arrest, detain and prosecute them in the circumstances of the case.

Briefly Ibadan Poly FENG holds Alumni Day ALUMNI of the Faculty of Engineering, The Polytechnic, Ibadan, will meet on October 23, 2015 to deliberate on the future of their alma mater. The programme for this year’s Alumni Day will start with familiarisation tour, followed by the Local Organisation Committee’s preview. A lecture tagged: “The Polytechnic, Ibadan: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”, will also be delivered as part of the efforts to uphold and support the vision of the present management of the institution. It will also feature alumni talk entitled: “Developing the Alma Mater”before the end of the programme. Awards of recognition will also be given to members during the cocktail party. Mr Kunle Adegbola is the chairman, Local Organisation Committee.

abandoned babies

ASUU backs Senate to screen Adewole as minister-nominee today As group commends Buhari over his choice By Tunde Ogunesan National Treasurer of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr Ademola Aremu, has described outgoing Vice Chancellor of the nation’s premier university, the University of Ibadan, Professor Isaac Folorunso Adewole as round peg in a round hole suitable for President Muhammadu Buhari Change Agenda. Dr Aremu the immediate past ASUU chairman of the University of Ibadan, noted that he was not given to praise-singing as a unionist, adding that the outgoing VC had put his name as a performer of all time. In a release entitled “Adewole as a Minister: A round peg fit for a round hole” signed by Dr Aremu a copy of which was made available to newsmen in Ibadan, he stated further that Professor Adewole popularly called ‘IFA’ is destined to rule. According to him, Professor Adewole has unprecedented records and achievements from the time he was the provost of the College of Medicine of the University of Ibadan, culminating in the over-

whelming support given him to emerge the VC of the institution when he indicated interest. While noting that Nigeria is on the path of glory again with the nomination of Professor Adewole, Dr Aremu said the nominee had shown more commitments to health and education by rising to lead medical struggles and brokering peace with a few other vice chancellors in the sixmonth strike of 2013. “Let me be bold to say that as a unionist, we are not given to empty praisesinging. Adewole having successfully headed the

University of Ibadan (mini Nigeria) for five years can successfully govern Nigeria least of being made a minister. The story of Professor Adewole ‘IFA’ as we popularly called him, is the story of someone who has been destined to serve humanity. His achievements as a provost of the College of Medicine made him to receive overwhelming support from the university community when he indicated interest to serve on the university governing council and later on as vice chancellor,” Dr Aremu said. Meanwhile, the nomination of the outgoing Vice

Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Professor Adewole as a minister- nominee by President Buhari has been commended by a group of professionals, the Forum for Unity and National Service (FUNS), asking those raising eyebrows to think more of national interest rather than parochial selfish gain. Professor Adewole, an Obstetrics and Gynaecology expert is among the ministerial nominees awaiting screening by the members of the Senate today, following the submission of names to the lawmakers by President Buhari.

GREGORY wass found abandoned by an unknown person at a refuse dump, at Isare Street, Ilesa, on Sunday, September 7, 2014. Anybody with information that could lead to contact with his biological parents or relatives, should please, contact the Director of Social Welfare Department, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Oshogbo or Social Welfare office, Ereja, Ilesa.

Nasarawa Assembly reduces Al-Makura’s 20 special advisers to 16 Ademola Adegbite -Lafia Nasarawa State Assembly, on Monday, approved only 16 special advisers out of 20 nominees forwarded to it by Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura for approval last week This followed a motion moved by the Deputy Speaker, Honourable Godiya Akwashiki, representing Nasarawa-Eggon West under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP),

who drew the attention of the House to the present economic situation of the state, calling for a reduction in the number from 20 to 16. According to him, “My colleagues, Governor Tanko Al-Makura is requesting the House to approve 20 special advisers that will assist him in running the affairs of the state. The constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN) has empowered

the governor to appoint anybody that he wants him or her to help him in running the affairs of the state for the betterment of our people. “Our function is to give approval based on the economic and the financial position of the state government and I want to move a motion to enable the House to approve only 16 special advisers out of the 20 as requested by the governor,” he added.

PAULINE was found abandoned in a dilapidated building on Araromi Street, Ilesa, on June19, 2015 by an unknown person. Anybody with information that coud lead to contacts with her parents or relatives, should please, contact the Director of Social Welfare Department or the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs office, Secretariat, Osogbo or Social Welfare office, Ereja, Ilesa.

communitynews

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Sustain the peace, Oyo gov charges NURTW by gbenga olumide

yo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, has enjoined members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Oyo State council, to sustain the peace and unity that had been reigning in the state in the past four years. Governor Ajimobi gave the charge at the state congress of the union held at SABLAK Events Centre, Sanyo area of Ibadan, on Monday. Ajimobi, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transport, Mrs Mopelola Adetoro, said: “I appreciate the way you organised the election. Your comportment shows that there is peace in Oyo State. In fact, I must commend you for the peace we have been experiencing in the last four years. It is the peace that has made it possible for us to achieve what we have achieved.” In his speech, the National President of the NURTW, Alhaji Najeem Yasin, advised the newly elected officers to demonstrate exemplary leadership and sacrifice. Alhaji Yasin, who was represented by a former Chairman of NURTW in Kwara State, Alhaji Musa Ikhalumeh, said the elected officers and followership must strive, through collaborative effort, to employ the vast human and material resources at their disposal in order to take the union to an enviable height. He also urged the elected officers to run an inclusive government so that unity and harmony will prevail among officers and members of the union at various organs. Yasin, however, warned members to desist from what he referred to as “spe-

cial turn” or “priority loading” which is being perpetrated by state, branch and unit officers.

According to him, “this obnoxious system of loading of vehicles at motor parks which prevents

Royal fathers from Nsan in Akamkpa Local Government Area of Cross River State have expressed gratitude to the governor of the state, Senator Ben Ayade, for choosing their community as venue for the groundbreaking ceremony of the 260 kilometre road to be performed by President Muhammadu Buhari today. In a press statement issued on Sunday and jointly signed by the two royal fathers, Ntufam Godwin Ntui Ogar and Ntufam

by abolished. “ Henceforth, loading of vehicles in motor parks where our union operates

The Chairman, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Oyo State Council, Alhaji Taofeek Oyerinde (second right) and another officer taking the oath of office, on Monday.

must be in the order of first come first serve regardless of whoever owns such vehicle (s). In his acceptance speech, the state Chairman, NURTW, Alhaji Taofeek Oyerinde, who was reelected, said in view of the fact that the brand of vehicles being used are no more available, the union is negotiating with Sterling Bank and an auto assembly plant for the supply of 250 units of eight-passenger buses for members, particularly members who are operating within Ibadan. While promising an inclusive government, Alhaji Oyerinde who was returned unopposed, said he would carry out his duties diligently and effectively, adding that he would do his best in ensuring the welfare of members at all times. He, therefore, sought for the cooperation of members so as to achieve his aims. Aside Alhaji Oyerinde, 25 executive members were returned unopposed.

Why many communities are without monarchs —Fayose Meddling in Obaship tussles by highly placed individuals rather than allowing the will of God to prevail has left many kingdoms without monarchs after the demise of former monarchs. This view was expressed by the Ekiti State gover-

nor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, in Erio-Ekiti last Friday, during the presentation of certificate and staff of office to the new Elerio of Erio, Oba Johnson Oluwadare Bamigbade. According to a press statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary,

Mr Idowu Adelusi, on Saturday in Ado Ekiti, Governor Fayose said he would never meddle in obaship tussle and that he had warned government workers particularly those in the chieftaincy affairs department never to be involved in shady

deals. The governor said he had been able to install eight kings in the last one year “ owing to my transparency and honesty in dealing with issues relating to the process.” Fayose added: “I will make attempts to ensure

‘Review revenue allocation formula to favour LGs’ A call has been made for the review of Nigeria’s revenue allocation formula to give the highest share of the nation’s earnings to local government areas in the country for the growth and development of the grass roots Prince Ayodeji Abass-

Aleshinloye, a former chairman of Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State, made the call during his participation as a special guest on ‘Eyi – Ara’, a popular radio and television network programme of the Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo

Royal fathers applaud Ayade over road construction Ubong Anthony-Calabar

members of the union from enjoying the first come first serve procedure of loading vehicles is here-

Saviour Ndifon Edem, they commended Governor Ayade for his bold stride in the construction of a highway across the state which, they said, would change the economic and social fortunes of the state as people would be able to move their farm produce easily to markets within and outside the state. They asserted that Ayade had since assumption of office taken giant strides to position the state as one to be reckoned with in the comity of states and assured him of

their support and that of the people of their communities. “We assure His Excellency of our support and that of our people as he makes purposeful efforts to position the state as one of the best in the country,” he said. The traditional rulers said the selection of their community as the venue for the groundbreaking ceremony, is a sign of the recognition the governor accords the land and people of Akamkpa and prayed God to continue to grant him wisdom.

State (BCOS), as part of his grass-roots advocacy to mark this year’s World Food Day. Explaining the reasons for mass hunger, unemployment and impoverishment of Nigerians, especially at the grass-roots level, the ex-council boss blamed lack of adequate funds and autonomy for the incapacitation of local councils in the country to measure up to the legitimate expectations of the people for optimal service delivery. “A situation as it is now in the country that gives the local council, the tier of government closest to the people, the least revenue allocation will not augur well for democracy and development except the allocation formula is reviwed to give local government areas the highest allocation,” he said. Prince Aleshinloye also

posited that agriculture as the basic industry at the grass-roots level should be encouraged, supported and subsidised to make it attractive and as a solution to youth unemployment, food insecurity and poverty in the country, since according to him, “with the collapse of global oil market and the attendant dwindling national earnings from oil and gas, agriculture as solution to poverty, hunger, unemployment, and dwindling national income is the most realistic bailout. With this scenario, local government should be the central focus of reviving agriculture and rural economy.” He, therefore, commended President Muhammadu Buhari for his emphasis on agriculture as the a cardinal focus of his government and appealed to Nigerians for support.

no town is without an oba so that what should accrue to such towns are not denied them.” The governor also presented certificate and staff of office to the new Alawo of Awo-Ekiti on the same day. Earlier in his welcome address, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr Kolapo Kolade, said the selection processes of the two monarchs were keenly monitored and done in accordance with the traditions of the people of the two communities and extant rules. Mr Kolade enjoined the two monarchs to work harmoniously with their people and co-contestants in the race in order to accelerate development in their communities. Giving a vote of thanks after the installation of the Elerio, the wife of the state governor, Mrs Feyisetan Fayose, who hails from Erio, thanked the governor for toeing the path of honour in the selection process of the monarch which, she said, was very transparent. She pledged the continuous upport of Erio community to the Fayose administation.

44 news

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

PDP reacts, blasts Adesina over outburst

As APC slams PDP, says FG’ll not micromanage anti-graft agencies From Leon Usigbe, J acob Segun Olatunji and B ola B admus

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described presidential spokesperson, Mr Femi Adesina, as an embarassment to the Presidency, following his reaction to the opposition party’s allegation of selective application of the war against corruption against PDP members and calling President Muhammadu Buhari a dictator. National Publicity of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, had at a press conference on Sunday, made the allegation following the interrogation of Senate Minority Leader and former Akwa Ibom State governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a move he said was meant to weaken the PDP. Adesina, in his reaction, had retorted that the PDP sounded like a broken record which should be thrown away. “The opposition seems to have run out of ideas so soon. Daily, we hear the same jaded, hackneyed allegations from them. I think they really are to be pitied. They need help. A broken record that repeats itself ceaselessly is of no use, than to be thrown away,” Adesina had said. In a statement issued by Richard Ihediwa, Personal Assistant to Metuh in Abuja, on Monday, the PDP spokesperson, however, observed that Adesina “in his habitual deceptive and diversionary manner, left the critical issues of governance raised by Sunday’s press conference addressed by the PDP national publicity secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh and as usual, embarked on insults, shadow-chasing and fouling of the media space with uncouth language.” The statement added: “This office has noted Mr Adesina’s several previous unwarranted personal attacks and insults deliberately targeted at the person of the PDP national publicity secretary, in his desperate attempt to impress his paymaster and retain his job. “Our answer remains that inasmuch as we know that this Presidency aide lacks depth on his current assignment and has no credible defence, being overwhelmed in his job of trying to launder the image of this government, the characteristic resort always, to lies,

malice and vituperations should not be an option. “While we appreciate the fact that Mr Adesina is not conversant and knowledgeable in politics and intricate issues of governance, he should have applied the common sense of covering his hollowness in this regard and save the Presidency the embarassment of an arrogant attempt to wave off very serious questions hanging in the face of the present administration. “May we remind the Presidency that Nigerians are still waiting for its response to salient national issues raised by the PDP national publicity secretary, bordering on relentless abuse of power, selective application of war against corruption, witch-hunt of opposition elements and perceived political opponents, threats to democratic institutions and government’s clear of lack direction on economic issues. “How can Mr Adesina explain the fact that while former PDP governors and ministers are being arrested, their APC counterparts,

who have more damaging petitions with anti-graft agencies are being rewarded with ministerial positions, with yet others granted APC tickets for Kogi and Bayelsa governorship elections respectively? “Perhaps, Adesina is confirming that the nation now has two separate laws for prosecuting the war against corruption; one, to nail PDP members and perceived opponents of government and the other, to protect APC members and friends of the present administration. “We challenge Adesina in the euphoria of trying to satisfy his paymaster to defend him by showing Nigerians any APC member that has so far been invited or arrested by any anti-graft agency, other than PDP members and perceived political opponents such as Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki. “It is unfortunate that in trying to wear his master the garb of a democrat, Mr Adesina has, instead, muddled up and bungled his assignment with his arrogant

posturing on important national issues. Whereas this media aide may have done well in the confines of his newsroom as a media professional, he has so far succeeded in making a mockery of the office of a spokesperson of the president of a country like Nigeria. “Our final take, therefore, is that the Presidency must note that Nigerians are still waiting for a proper response on the issues raised instead of invectives from an aide who apparently talks before he thinks.” Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress (APC) declared on Monday, that the Muhammadu Buhariled administration will not micromanage the anticorruption agencies, saying it was wrong for Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to accuse the APC-led Federal Government of unleashing the agencies against the opposition. The APC made this declaration in a statement issued in Lagos, by its national publicity secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, even as it dismissed the allegation by

the PDP that the anti-corruption war of the Buhariled administration was selective. According to the party, such allegation made by the PDP against Buhari’s government is a worn-out argument. The party said the ceaseless cry of selective anti-corruption battle was a bogey invented by the PDP to intimidate the anti-corruption agencies and stifle the fight against corruption, declaring that such effort would not work. “The ceaseless cry of selective anti-corruption battle is a bogey invented by the PDP to intimidate the anticorruption agencies, and it will not work. It is the PDP’s strategy to stifle the fight against corruption. “How can the PDP claim to support the anti-graft battle when every time any of its members is called in for questioning, it runs to the media to shout that the battle is ‘selective’? Is it possible that anyone who is invited for questioning will not belong to a party, an ethnic group or a certain

faith?” APC queried. The party said the anticorruption agencies had a duty to investigate petitions sent to them, irrespective of who was involved, but noted that invitation for questioning was not the same as conviction. The APC said those who had nothing to fear must be willing to clear their names by honouring any invitation by the anti-graft agencies, pointing out that only the guilty needed be afraid. The party urged the PDP to stop being hysterical over such invitations, which it said were not going to stop simply because the opposition had called a press conference to cry wolf where there was none. “Those who have nothing to fear must be willing to clear their names by honouring any invitation, and only the guilty needs be afraid. The PDP must stop being hysterical over such invitations which are not going to stop simply, because the opposition has called a press conference to cry wolf where there is none,” the party said.

Saraki: Appeal Court adjourns judgment indefinitely Sunday Ejike - Abuja THE much anticipated judgment in the appeal filed by Senate President, Bukola Saraki against the Federal Government slated for Monday, has been postponed indefinitely by the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division. The court has not fixed date for the judgment, but a registrar of the court, Kristi Aruna, told lawyers in the open court that the court had resolved to communicate a new date to parties in the matter. She, however, did not give detailed information on why the judgment fixed for Monday by the Presiding Judge, Justice Murorain Adume, was put off. Supporters of the Senate President left the court of appeal disappointed, when they realised that the judgment would not be delivered after all. The appellate court which heard the appeal argued by Joseph Daudu, on behalf of Saraki and Rotimi Jacobs, for the Federal Government, last Friday, had fixed Monday to deliver judgment, having granted accelerated hearing in the appeal. In the appeal, Saraki had challenged the power of the

Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) to prosecute him on false assets declaration on five grounds, among which were that the tribunal was unlawfully constituted, having not formed quorum

and that the tribunal lacked power to assume criminal jurisdiction on the matter. Saraki was docked before the CCT by the Federal Government over allegations bordering on false and im-

proper declaration of assets allegedly acquired during his tenure as governor of Kwara State, from 2003 till 2011. According to the charge sheet No. CCT/ABJ/01/15,

Saraki was also accused of operating an American Express credit card account during his tenure as governor, where he allegedly wired at least $3.4 million to from a Nigerian account.

Election tribunals: PDP warns Appeal Court against interference Leon Usigbe and Jacob Segun Olatunji - Abuja THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has warned the president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, of what it observed were reports of undue interferences emanating from her office, in the activities of various election petition tribunals and other judicial cases, ostensibly to sway them against the PDP and in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC). A statement issued by the national publicity secretary of the party, Chief Olisa Metuh, in Abuja, on Monday, noted that while it would not want to believe that the president of the Court of Appeal was so involved, given the sensitivity of her office, it, however, wished to caution, in very strong terms, that such was completely unacceptable, as it principally detracted from

the sanctity of the judiciary as the citadel of justice and erode the trust reposed on it by the people. It said: “We expect the president of the Court of Appeal to understand that an impartial judiciary is critical to the survival of our democracy and the stability of this nation. “In this regard, therefore, we urge her to ensure that there is no further interfer-

ence in electoral matters in tribunals and courts, as they must be allowed to run through the full course of justice. “Furthermore, we wish to reiterate our earlier call on the Chief Justice of the Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, to guide jealously the independence of the judiciary he heads and ensure that any activity that tends to undermine the sanctity

of this arm of government is stiffly resisted in the interest of democracy. “In any case, the PDP restates that it will continue to closely monitor proceedings in various tribunals and other judicial cases and will use every means within the ambit of the law to ensure that nobody, no matter how highly placed, interferes in judicial matters, especially political cases.”

2 Oyo pilgrims detained by Saudi authorities for drug-related offence TWO of the 1,191 pilgrims from Oyo State who performed this year’s Hajj were detained by the Saudi Arabian authorities for a drugrelated offence. Secretary, Oyo State Pilgrims Welfare Board, Alhaji Adeleke AbdulKareem, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan, on Monday.

Abdulkareem said the affected pilgrims were females, adding that one of them escaped, while the other was still in detention. He said the drug found with the pilgrims was Tramador, a contraband in Saudi Arabia, which the pilgrims had been warned against. The secretary also said

two other pilgrims from the state died due to ill health before Arafat day. Abdulkareem said the last batch of pilgrims from the state arrived Nigeria on October 11. He warned pilgrims to always comply with the rules and regulation of the Saudi authorities to avoid being arrested or tarnishing the country’s image.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

foreig naffairs with seyi gesinde

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ritish Prime Minister David Cameron, on Monday, unveiled a new strategy to combat extremism, saying the battle was “perhaps the “defining one of this century,” but his proposals were condemned by Muslims as demonising their communities and set to fail. The Counter-Extremism Strategy has been promised by Cameron’s government for months, designed primarily to counter the ideology promoted by Islamic State militants, al Qaeda and other Islamists which the authorities said can lead young Britons onto a path of violence. “Subversive, well-organised and sophisticated in their methods, Islamist extremists don’t just threaten our security, they jeopardise all that we’ve built together our successful multi-racial, multifaith democracy,” Cameron wrote on his Facebook page. “So we have to confront them wherever we find them.” British police arrested a record number of people last year on suspicion of terrorism offences, and say they have thwarted a growing number of plots hatched by young Britons, some of whom had been radicalised in just weeks via the Internet. Earlier this month, a 15-year-old boy was jailed for life for inciting an attack on a World War One commemorative event in Australia from his bedroom in northern Eng-

British PM David Cameron.

Cameron unveils new strategy to combat extremism land. Under the wide-ranging proposals, Reuters groups deemed extremist by promoting hatred will be banned; places where radicals thrive including mosques could be closed and the regulator Ofcom will get tougher powers to address TV and radio channels airing extremist material. The new law would also give parents worried that their 16 and 17-year-old children might travel to join Islamic State the power to apply to have their passports removed, while anyone with a conviction for terrorist offences or extremist activity would be banned from working with children.

Joint commission to meet as Iran nuclear deal moves forward The international agreement on Iran’s nuclear program moves forward Monday with the first meeting of the Joint Commission responsible for monitoring how both sides implement their parts of the deal. Monday’s session, according to VOA brings high-

North Korean supreme leader, Kim Jong-un

Ex-PM held over $1 billion bank scam

ranking officials from Iran and the group that includes the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia, Germany and the European Union back to Vienna, the city where they agreed in July to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for needed sanctions relief.

The plans are designed to target all hate groups, including far-right organisations, but they were met with immediate opposition from Islamic groups who variously described it as “war on Muslims” or containing “McCarthyist” undertones. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), the country’s largest umbrella Islamic organisation, said that while terrorism was a real threat, the government’s strategy was based on poor analysis and risked alienating those whose support it needed. “Whether it is in mosques, education or charities, the strategy will reinforce perceptions that all aspects of Muslim life must undergo a ‘compliance’ test to prove

otherNEWS

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif

North Korea rejects nuclear talks, calls for peace treaty North Korea has rejected fresh talks over its nuclear programme, dismissing overtures from the United States and South Korea and calling instead for a peace treaty with its neighbour.

US President Barack Obama and his South Korean counterpart Park Geun-Hye during a recent meeting said they were ready to engage with Pyongyang if the country agreed to give up its nuclear weapons.

our loyalty to this country,” said Shuja Shafi, the MCB’s Secretary General. Muslim groups are not alone in their scepticism. Some lawmakers in Cameron’s own party are uneasy at the measures, while counterextremism experts said the message of militants should be challenged not banned.

A court has extended the detention of Moldova’s former Prime Minister Vlad Filat for 30 days as his possible role in a $1bn banking scam is investigated. His liberal PLDM party in Moldova’s ruling coalition condemned the move as “purely political” and “a violation of his rights.” He was arrested on Thursday, suspected of involvement in the disappearance of $1bn (£646m) from three Moldovan banks, BBC said. The scandal has thrown Moldova into economic and political chaos. In recent weeks thousands of people have protested in the centre of Moldova’s capital Chisinau, demanding that the government and top civil servants resign. The missing money is equivalent to an eighth of the ex-Soviet republic’s entire GDP. Moldova is one of Europe’s poorest countries. The scandal caused a rapid fall in the value of the national currency, the leu, hitting Moldovans’ living standards. Mr Filat, leader of the

PLDM, was initially detained for 72 hours, accused of theft from the state-run Banca de Economii. Earlier parliament had stripped him of immunity from prosecution. He denies wrongdoing. Anti-government protesters welcomed his detention. One of their leaders, Renato Usaty, called it “our first victory.” Moldova’s central bank has withdrawn the operating licences of Banca de Economii and two other banks - the private Banca Sociala and Unibank. The scandal erupted in April, when the central bank found that the three banks had lent $1bn to unidentified beneficiaries.

Ex-PM Vlad Filat of Maldova

Pastor fatally shoots attacker during service Detroit police have confirmed that the pastor of a storefront church shot and killed a man who tried to attack him during a service. Assistant Detroit Police Chief Steve Dolunt tells the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press the shooting happened on Sunday after-

noon just after the start of a service at the City of God church. Dolunt said the man and the pastor had prior “issues.” He says the man was threatening the pastor with a brick when the pastor pulled out a pistol and shot him several times. The man died a

short time later at a hospital. Authorities didn’t immediately release the names of either man. Dolunt says prosecutors will review the case to decide whether the shooting was justified. The pastor was taken into custody for questioning.

Russian intelligence says it foiled terror plot The Russian intelligence agency FSB says it has detained a man who was planning to blow up a train in southern Russia and go to fight in Syria. The Associated Press in a report said the local news agencies on Monday quoted FSB as saying they

Chinese President Xi Jinping. PHOTO: AP.

detained the Russian man, an assistant train driver, in the Krasnodar region last week. The FSB said the man moderated a “terroristleaning” social media group and was going to join Syria militants after blowing up a train.

Russian President Vladimir Putin

Chinese cyberattacks on US companies continue, report says Chinese hacking attempts on American corporate intellectual property have occurred with regularity over the past three weeks, suggesting that China almost immediately began violating its newly minted cyberagreement with the United

States, a report has said. “We’ve seen no change in behaviour,” said Dmitri Alperovich, a founder of CrowdStrike who wrote one of the first public accounts of commercial cyberespionage linked to China in 2011.

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Nigerian Tribune

Editor: Ganiyu Salman tribunesporteditor@yahoo.com 08053789060

Nigerian Polo Federation lauds MTN on Yola Polo 2015

Simon

Champions League: Simon listed for

Valencia clash

IGERIA winger, Moses Simon has been included on Gent UEFA Champions League squad despite missing his Belgian club’s league game last weekend due to flu. Belgian champions, Gent are away to Valencia tonight in the Champions League. They lost their opening Champions League game 1-2 at Russia’s Zenit St.Petersburg, while Valencia were 1-0 winners at Lyon in France. Simon, who was dazzling in the Super Eagles’ 3-0 win over the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon

in a recent friendly, was not listed by Gent for a league game at Mouscron-Peruwelz last Friday. Gent won 2-1 on the road to

GLOBACOM, has congratulated the Super Eagles Team B on their victory over the Stallions of Burkina Faso in the first leg of the 2016 African Nations Championship (CHAN) final round qualifier. The Eagles, who defeated the Stallions 2-0 in Port Harcourt last weekend, will face the Burkinabes in the return leg clash in Ouagadougou next Sunday,

reclaims title

LAGOS State put up a spirited effort on Sunday at the men’s final of the fourth edition of the Victor Ochei international wheelchair basketball tournament to claim the N1.5million cash star prize and a giant trophy after emerging the 2015 champion. The finals witnessed by the sponsor and former Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Honourable Victor Ochei; president of the Wheelchair Basketball Federation, Honourable Bukola Olopade; the Director-General, Lagos State Sports Commission in Lagos, Mr Ayo Agbesuwa and the Liaison Officer of the National Sports Commission in Lagos State, Pastor (Mrs) Tayo Oreweme, among others saw a determined Lagos team reclaim the title they lost last year after recording 39 points to 34 victory

from 11 matches, same as KV Oostende, but they enjoy a better goals difference.

Globacom hails Eagles, Eaglets

Wheelchair basketball: Lagos

by Niyi Alebiosu

move to the top of the Belgian league. They have recorded 23 points

against Oyo State. In the women’s finals, Delta State outclassed Imo State by 14 points to five as they went home with a giant trophy and N500,000 prize money . The third place prize of the women’s category went to Oyo State who defeated Ogun State, while Edo State beat Ogun State, 53-1 in the men’s category. The duo of Remi Obasanya and David Segun were awarded N100,000 each after they emerged the Most Valuable players of the tournament. Speaking after the medal and trophy presentation to the teams, Ochei expressed delight at the improved level of the competition, as he pledged his continued support for the sport as the grand patron of the federation. Ochei lauded Olopade for his tenacity and vision in his bid to reposition wheelchair basketball in the country.

while the aggregate winner will qualify for the CHAN tournament billed for Rwanda in January next year. Globacom also congratulated the Golden Eaglets on defeating the United States of America (USA) 2-0 in their group A opening game at the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile. Nigeria went ahead in the 50th minute through Chukwudi Agor, while Victor Osimhen increased the tally in the 61st minute. The Eaglets top the group after hosts Chile and Croatia played a 1-1 draw and will face Chile today. “We are delighted by the weekend of victories. The Super Ea-

From left, the National Zonal Customer, Marketing Manager Activation, Guiness Nigeria Plc, Mr Olufemi Folarin; EMMOB lucky winner of N100,000 Mr Ajibade Olawale and the Marketing and Innovation Director, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr Gavin Pike, during the week 3 cheque presentation in the ongoing Guinness ‘Every Minute Made of Black’ Football Promo held in Lagos.

gles and Golden Eaglets really made Nigeria proud, “Globacom said in a statement in Lagos. “We urge the teams not to rest on their oars as they progress in both competitions. “We especially urge the Eagles to re-enact the Port Harcourt victory when they visit Ouagadougou or at least secure a draw in order to seal the CHAN ticket. We also believe that the Eaglets will also consolidate their win over USA when they face Chile on Tuesday,” the statement further said. Globacom also commended the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for motivating both teams to victory, just as it enjoins Nigerians to support them with prayers.

THE Nigerian Polo Federation (NPF), has commended MTN, for its immense support towards the growth and development of the game in the country. The NPF president, Francis Ogboro, who was speaking during a special dinner hosted in honour of the players and officials of the NPF following the just-concluded Yola Polo Tourney, praised the ICT giant for partnering with the Yola polo Club to organise this year’s edition of the tourney. According to Ogboro, MTN’s involvement in the promotion of polo and other sports in Adamawa State has provided a platform for youths and other sports enthusiasts to direct their energies to gainful activities. While describing MTN as a leading light with respect to NPF-sanctioned tournaments in the country, Ogboro, further noted that the company has made a huge impact on the promotion of the game in Nigeria through its sponsorship of polo competitions nationwide. He said: “MTN has remained a reliable partner with us over the years and the NPF, along with the entire Nigerian polo family are grateful to this wonderful company for this. Beyond developing the game, MTN’s sponsorship has helped engaged our youths positively. “

47 tribunesport

Tuesday, 20 October, 2015

Mourinho downplays Falcao early exit rumours Chelsea manager, Jose Mourinho has responded to rumours that Radamel Falcao may end his loan spell in January, claiming he speaks to the Colombian every day and knows nothing about a premature end to his season-long loan. Rumblings in the press suggested the striker is unhappy at Stamford Bridge and could move back to Monaco before the end of the season, but the Blues boss played down the rumours. Speaking in Kiev ahead of the club’s Champions League match with Dynamo Kyiv tonight, Mourinho maintained that the striker would not be leaving in January. “First of all I don’t know if it’s true. I speak with him every day, it’s quite strange that the press knows something that I don’t, or my club know,” the Chelsea boss said. “He has to give us more than Diego Costa. We normally play with one striker and I always go for the performance level for the position - the best one plays.” Mourinho also fielded questions on winger Eden Hazard, after the Belgian was dropped for the win over Aston Villa last Saturday, and refused to say whether the 24-year-old would be recalled for the Dynamo clash.

4th WAUG: OAU, UNN renew rivalry in hockey Abiodun Jimoh- Nsukka The hockey event will take the centre stage today at the ongoing 4th West African University Games (WAUG) hockey and football championship at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) Sports Complex, Nsukka, Enugu State. According to the fixtures released by the tournament director of the hockey event, Salisu Jabbo, Obafemi Awolowo University, (OAU), Ile Ife team will clash with the hosts and arch rivals, UNN hockey team in one of the games. Also, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (ABU) will begin the defence of the title they won at the Bayero University, Kano (BUK) in 2009, as they face the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) in the second game, while Bayero University, Kano, (BUK) will tackle the Federal University of Technology, (FUT, Minna) Minna in another fixture. In the women’s hockey, University of Ibadan and UNN will clash in a two-legged affair to determine who wins the gold being the only two teams which registered for the event. However, nine universities hockey teams comprising seven

Remy

Lewandowski:

You can’t compare me with Messi, Ronaldo Bayern Munich striker, Robert Lewandowski has called for comparisons with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to stop, insisting that the trio are different types of players. Poland international, Lewandowski has been in sensational form at the start of the 2015-16 campaign, scoring a phenomenal 12 goals in just eight Bundesliga matches, and 15 in his last seven in all competitions. The 27-year-old’s strike rate has seen him compared with La Liga’s leading duo of Messi and Ronaldo, but Lewandowski is adamant they all play in different positions and that he is only focusing on making the most of the best moment in his career. He told Goal: “They are different players, in different positions. Cristiano plays offensively on the left side, Messi centrally. I play up front. Of course I work back, take part in combinations and don’t wait 90 minutes for the ball. I want to participate in the game. “Often I am searching for space for 80 minutes. In the 81st the situation comes: I have space and can score the goal. Or I distract two defenders and create space for my colleagues. This is football, this is a team sport. We work together well, so it is easy for me. “I am 27 and I want to be better every year, score more goals. My best time comes now. Hopefully it will carry on as long as possible! To be a striker, sometimes it is not easy. To reach the crucial situations, I have to fight in every game.” Guardiola

male and two female teams are participating at the championship which runs from October 15 through October 25. Meanwhile, the tournament director has assured of fair officiating during the championship, adding that hockey rules would be strictly adhered to in all matches. “We are not going to go below the standard of the game as we had meetings with the technical officials, team coaches, umpires and other stakeholders to intimate them of the new rules of the game,” Salisu said. Meanwhile, the vice chancellor of UNN, Nsukka, Professor Benjamin Ozumba is optimistic that UNN would emerge victorious at the end of the championship. He stated this while speaking with Tribunesport at the venue of the football event on Monday, while moving round the event venues. Ozumba, disclosed that he moved round to ask series of questions from the players, coaches and other stakeholders about the organisation of the competition. “I am happy with the weather and I appreciate the support from all the staff of this institution. Our team is equally doing well and we are hopeful of emerging victorious at the end of the championship,” he said.

Pedro, Remy out of Dynamo clash C

helsea will be without forwards Pedro and Loic Remy for tonight’s Champions League visit to Dynamo Kyiv. Manager Jose Mourinho told a news conference on Monday that both players had minor in-

juries and would not be risked against the group G joint leaders. Premier League champions, Chelsea have made a poor start to the season but were boosted by last Saturday’s 2-0 home win over Aston Villa. The Londoners, who won the Champions League in 2012, have three points from two games in group G, one fewer than Kyiv and Porto.

Guardiola will remain at Bayern —Rummenigge Bayern Munich is confident Pep Guardiola will sign a new contract to stay on as manager beyond the end of this season. The Spaniard, 44, has been linked with Manchester City, and walked out of a news conference after being asked about the England job in September. “It is clear that there are other good-looking brides out there,” Bayern chief executive, KarlHeinz Rummenigge said. “But we are optimistic that Pep Guardiola will stay at Bayern.” Speaking ahead of Bayern’s Champions League clash with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium tonight, Rummenigge added: “I have said that in the second half of 2015 there will be a

discussion and then there will be clarity. “That talk is still pending but it will still take place sometime before the end of the year.” The former FC Barcelona boss, Guardiola has led German club Bayern to two Bundesliga titles since taking over in 2013, yet he questioned at the start of this season whether he was the right man for the job. He said he would step down if he ever got the feeling somebody else would be a better choice, leading to speculation that he will leave next summer.

SIDELINES

no 16,352

TUESDAY, 20 October, 2015

n150

Two students of Yaba College of Technology, recently nabbed for hemp smoking, in their statements said: Richard: “I don’t feel comfortable unless I smoke hemp.” Eze: I can’t assimilate in class without smoking hemp.” Now, ‘cooling off’ with the police, by the time they are let off the hook, they would have learnt the hard way that it is actually possible to cope with their studies without smoking Indian hemp.

The Golden Eaglets assemble for prayers after their victory over USA at the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile.

FIFA U-17 World Cup:

Eaglets seek 2nd round ticket against hosts D EFENDING champions, Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets will battle with the host country, Chile in a second group match of the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup, as they look set to book a place in the second round of the competition. The game will kick off 12 midnight of October 20 Nigerian time. The coach Emmanuel Amuneke-led team opened their campaign last Saturday with a 2-0 win over USA, while hosts Chile were held to a 1-1 draw by Croatia. A win over the hosts will land the Eaglets in the

next round of the tournament even with a game left against Croatia. Amuneke said their winning start will further boost the confidence of the fourtime world champions. “It was important we won the first game since it would boost our confidence going into the next game against hosts Chile, so we are happy but will continue to work harder,” he said. Nigeria has won the trophy four times and is now seeking a fifth title, while Chile is gunning for its first-ever title as its best performance at the competition was the

bronze won at Japan ’93, when it beat Poland 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Nigeria is participating in the competition for the 11th time, while this is Chile’s third appearance, having played at the 1993 and 1997 editions. Both countries have not met at this level before. The 1994 African Footballer of the Year, Amuneke however, warned his wards to guard against complacency saying they should not be carried away by the victory over the Americans. He also warned his wards to expect a

Today’s Champions League fixtures Arsenal BATE Leverkusen Dinamo Zagreb Dynamo Kyiv Porto Valencia Zenit

vs Bayern M vs Barcelona vs AS Roma vs Olympiakos vs Chelsea vs Maccabi Tel Aviv vs Gent vs Lyon

dogfight against the hosts in the match billed for the Sausalito Stadium in Vina del Mar tonight. The Golden Eaglets on Monday morning trained at the Enap Oil Company Training Centre in Con-Con district of the beautiful city where all the 21 players were involved to perfect strategy for the match. “Tomorrow’s match against Chile is a crucial game and you must expect a dog fight. But we must approach the match with discipline and responsibility; we must be ready to fight for 90 minutes,” said the former World Cup star.

Champions League: Arsenal need ‘something special’ to beat Bayern —Wenger Arsene Wenger has insisted that Arsenal will need “something special” to beat Bayern Munich in their Champions League clash tonight. The Gunners continued their impressive Premier League form this season with a 3-0 win at Watford last Saturday to stay within two points of leaders Manchester City. It has been a different story in the Champions League, where back-to-back defeats against Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiacos have left Wenger’s men in an unenviable position ahead of their double-header with the

Bundesliga giants. And the Arsenal boss insists that the match with Pep Guardiola’s side will be a tough test. “We play against a big team, but we have proved ourselves from a bad position in the Champions League and we want to make something special against Bayern because that’s the only way we can stay in the race,” Wenger said. Some of Wenger’s selections in the Champions League so far, most notably the decision to rest goalkeeper Petr Cech, have come under the microscope, but he sug-

gested it will be a familiar line-up that takes to the field against Bayern at the Emirates Stadium. “For me the game was important because I knew to win was vital to stay in touch with the top teams and best way to prepare for Tuesday night,” Wenger said after the win at Vicarage Road. “I don’t know yet (whether I will make changes) but there’s no obvious reason to change the team completely. “Maybe one or two, I don’t know yet. I will see how everyone recovers.”

Giroud

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. 20/10/2015.