Peoples Daily Newspaper, Thursday 21, February, 2013

www.peoplesdailyng.com

Vol. 10 No. 39

Thursday, February 21, 2013

. . . putting the people first

‘Jonathan withholding assent to budget in national interest’ >> PAGE 2

Rabiul Akhir 11, 1434 AH

N150

Plateau Speaker No rift between escapes death as me and Sheriff, gunmen attack church — Gov Shettima >> PAGE 3

>> PAGE

APC alternative to PDP in 2015 - Gov. Aliyu Jonathan ambivalent over single term agreement

By Lawrence Olaoye, Abuja and Iliya Garba, Minna

N

iger state Governor, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, yesterday stirred the hornet's nest again when he declared that there is no more room for sit tight leaders to perpetuate themselves in power with the emergence of a mega party like the All Progressive Congress (APC).

Babangida Aliyu, the chairman of Northern Governors Forum, in an apparently veiled reference to the controversy over a single term agreement between President Goodluck Jonathan and state governors, said the emergence of APC is a "stirring call to the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP)", maintaining that the political terrain in the country will be better for it.

But President Goodluck Jonathan said yesterday he would not be distracted by the debate on whether he agreed with PDP governors in 2011 to rule for only one term.

The President, in a statement signed by one of his Senior Special Assistants, Dr. Doyin Okupe, was apparently reacting to the statement made earlier by Dr. Babangida Aliyu, that Jonathan had entered into an agreement with PDP governors that he would rule for only one term of four years, as a precondition for the support of the governors.

Contd on Page 2

R-L: Sokoto state Governor, Alhaji Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko, presenting a letter of appointment to Alhaji Muhammad Bature Shinkafi as the state’s new Head of Service, yesterday in Sokoto.

Boko Haram denies ceasefire as explosion kills 3 From Mustapha Isah Kwaru, Maiduguri

T

he ceasefire recently declared by a faction of the Jama'atu Ahlil Sunna Lida'awati Wal Jihad, better known as Boko Haram, was

disputed yesterday as the spiritual leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau, distanced his group from the ceasefire deal.

Controversy over the disputed ceasefire also heightened as it coincided with a deadly bomb explosion which went off at the

Post Office road, in Maiduguri metropolis, killing the suspected suicide bomber and two civilians.

This came less than a month after one Abu Muhammad Ibn Abdul-Aziz, claiming to be the commander of the sect, coordinating its activities in the northern and southern Borno senatorial districts, said the group entered into a dialogue with the state government and resolved to

suspend all violent campaigns for peace to prevail.

The latest position of the sect, which threw fears among residents, was contained in a pamphlet pasted in some areas of the capital city.

Residents of the affected areas comprising Hausari, Gwnage and old Maiduguri Wards, told newsmen that they woke up Contd on Page 2

PD INDEX

19th Feb., 2013

CBN RATES $ £ EURO CFA RIYAL

BUYING 154.74 239.72 206.11 0.2954 41.26

SELLING 155.74 241.27 207.44 0.3154 41.52

PARALLEL RATES EURO £ RIYAL $

BUYING 208 254.50 42 157

SELLING 210 257.50 43 158

PAGE 2

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

CONTENTS News

2-10

Editorial

12

Op.Ed

13

Letters

14

Opinion

15

Metro

16-18

Business

19-22

S/Exchange Int’l

23 33-34

2013 budget: Jonathan withholding assent in national interest - Presidency

T

he Presidency yesterday maintained that President Goodluck Jonathan's delay in assenting to the 2013 budget is in the national interest, just as efforts are ongoing to clear the grey areas that have arisen in the document.

The president yesterday continued with meetings on the budget with the leadership of the National Assembly, with no word on when the budget will be signed.

Those at the meeting with the president were Senate President David Mark, Speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar, Special Adviser to the president of National Assembly Affairs, Senator Joy Emordi, and Director General, Budget Office, Bright Okongwu.

Speaking in Abuja to State House correspondents at the postFederal Executive Council (FEC)

As President, NASS leadership meet again meeting, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, explained that government was intent on finding the best deal possible for the people on the budget.

He said it "is all about making sure the best is done in the interest of Nigerians," adding that the position of government on the issue was predicated on the submission of the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

The Presidency spokesman noted that there were grey areas in the document that needed to be cleared but assured that once this critical stage was crossed by the two arms of government, the president would sign the budget.

Abati said since the issued involved two arms of government

there would be the need for clarification but he regretted that the media appeared to present the false impression of conflict or territorial breaches.

According to him, "On the issue of the budget, the position remains the same as articulated previously by the Minister of Finance that there are grey areas in the document that are being discussed by the Executive and the Legislature and that once these are clarified, the budget will go to the next stage.

"So, there is no problem, although some of the reports in the media are trying to insinuate whether there is a conflict or problem.

"Where there are two arms of government involved in something as strategic as that, there will be need for clarifications and consultations to ensure that

the overriding objective should be in the best interest of Nigerians, to ensure that what comes out is a budget that serves our interest.

"This is not about conflict or territorial friction, it is all about making sure the best is done in the interest of Nigerians."

President Goodluck Jonathan

APC alternative to PDP in 2015 - Gov. Aliyu

Single term agreement: Who is telling the truth?

Page 4

Update

35

Earth

36

Politics

37-40

Sports

41-45

Leisure

47

Columnist

48

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU The Peoples Daily wants to hear from you with any news and pictures you think we should publish.

You can send your news and pictures to: letters@peoplesdaily-online.com pictures@peoplesdaily-online.com contact@peoplesdaily-online.com

Phones for News: 070-37756364 09-8734478

Contd from Page 1 Babangida Aliyu, speaking in Minna at the inauguration of new members of the state executive council at the Government House, said that the merger of some political parties would lead to formation of two party system.

"Nigerians will have a choice during any election", he said, adding that "those that feel that they can rule forever will also be told by the people that there is an alternative".

Governor Aliyu asked PDP to put its act together and continue to deliver on promises. With the merger of these political parties, the PDP must go out and compete favorably for the minds of the people', he said.

On the reconstitution of the state executive council which saw the dropping of three commissioners who were however appointed Special Advisers, Dr

Aliyu said he took the step to reposition the government for better performance in the remaining period it has to serve the people.

“With the 27 months we have left to leave office we are consolidating on the things we have done right, we will correct those things we have done wrongly and continue to serve the people to the best of our ability”, he said.

Aliyu admonished new commissioners that the government has more to do for the people 'but there is no time' and therefore challenged them to always be on their toes and regularly return to their communities to get the feelings of the people.

Aliyu said that the administration will continue to execute the 3-arms zone, Minna airport city, and the upgrading of

all the major towns and cities in the state projects even as he added that the Ward Development Project which has received international acclaim will be given more support.

The new Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Saidu Idris Ndako, new Chief of Staff, Mr. Joshua Bawa, new Head of Service Barrister Abbas Bello and Deputy Chief of Staff Alhaji Mohammed Saba Usman were among those that took their oaths of office.

Presidential spokesman, Dr. Doyin Okupe said: "Our attention has been drawn to issues raised by some political leaders to the effect that President Goodluck Jonathan signed an agreement with some Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party prior to the Party's presidential primaries in 2011.

"From time immemorial, for

every major event or contest in the world, there is always a time and a season apportioned. We wish to state categorically that this is neither the time nor the season to begin electioneering campaign or related discourse for the 2015 presidential elections and so President Goodluck Jonathan will not jump the gun.

"Mr. President will therefore stoutly resist any disguised or open attempt to drag him into any debates, arguments or political discussions relating to a presidential election in 2015.

"The president considers this as an invidious attempt to sway him from his chosen pursuit of the set out constituents of the transformation agenda which form the basis upon which Nigerians overwhelmingly elected him to steer the ship of the Nation in 2011," Okupe stated.

Boko Haram denies ceasefire as explosion kills 3 Contd from Page 1 yesterday morning only to find the publications posted on mosques and electric pole wires.

The pamphlets, which were written in Hausa, according to the residents, read in part: "This is a message from Imam Abubakar Shekau over the purported dialogue we reportedly entered with government and subsequent declaration of a unilateral ceasefire. We wish to categorically refute such claims as unfounded as there was never a time such a false incident occured between government and us, either directly or indirectly".

The statement also alleged that those behind the so-called truce had only intended to

deceive the general public on the actual activities of the sect for selfsh interest.

"It is untrue that we sat with government officials and decided to abandon our cause under an atmosphere that is unfavourable to us and our family". Our wives, children, relations and anyone close to us are being arrested and harassed by security operatives, so how can we dialogue with government when its agents are after us?", the statement further concluded.

The Joint Military Task Force, (JTF), has equally confirmed the circulation of the pamphlets, urging residents to disregard them.

Spokesman of the JTF, Lt-Col. Sagir Musa, in a statement issued

to newsmen said: The attention of the JTF has been drawn to some leaflets allegedly printed and circulated by Boko Haram terrorists containing message from their leader, Abubakar Shekau threatening and warning government, civil servants, politicians, traditional rulers and security agencies that the sect has not made any reconciliation with the government and that it has not declared any ceas fire".

"The task force wishes to inform law abiding members of the public to totally disregard such publication and consider it as part of the terrorists' propaganda and strategies to keep the civil populace in captivity and perpetual fear with the view to unleashing more terror on

them".

On the blast, the statement, hinted that a suicide bomber detonated an improvised explosive device, (IED), targeting JTF patrol vehicle.

"In a related development, an IED targeted at JTF patrol team exploded at the Post Office round about in Maiduguri metropolis at about 1.pm yesterday), the explosion led to the death of three civilians including the bomber and wounded two others. A JTF vehicle was damaged," it further added.

The task force, however reiterated its determination to ensure the maintenance of law, order and safety of lives and property of all law abiding residents in the state.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 3

IBB visits Ado Bayero in London

F

ormer Head of State, General Ibrahim Babangida (IBB), at the weekend, visited the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero who is recuperating in London.

Ado Bayero travelled to

London with some members of his family following a recent attack on his convoy in Kano by some gunmen. The police have already arrested some suspects in connection with the attack.

IBB, who paid the goodwill visit

on the Emir on Friday, February 8 to felicitate with him, was accompanied by some notable figures including AVM Hamza Abdullahi (rtd), Gen Halilu Akilu (rtd), Col Habibu Shuaibu (rtd) and Aminu Babangida and some

other close aides.

A member of the entourage informed Peoples Daily that Ado Bayero was in high spirit when he received the IBB delegation, and that the Emir and his family members were happy at the visit.

Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero (2nd left), and former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (middle), during the General’s visit to the Emir, at the weekend in London. With them are General Habibu Shuaibu (left), Air Vice-Marshal Hamza Abdullahi (2nd right), and General Halilu Akilu (right).

No rift between me and Sheriff, says Gov Shettima From Mustapha Isah Kwaru, Maiduguri

G

overnor Kashim Shettima of Borno state, yesterday denied media reports, suggesting there was a rift between him, his deputy, Alhaji Zannah Umar Mustapha as well as his predecessor, Senator Ali modu Sheriff.

"I made up my mind to pick Mustapha as my running mate come in 2015 election", he said.

Governor Shettima also said he has perfect relationship with the duo and had at no time had a rift with any of them.

He said no matter what people say about the former governor, he remains a leader that must be

adored and respected.

The governor was reacting to reports published by some dailies that he was at loggerheads with his predecessor and deputy governor who he is allegedly planning is to drop as runing mate in the future election.

Shettima insisted that there was no misunderstanding between him and the deputy and that if the constitution allows him a third term, he will be running with his deputy.

The governor, who spoke when political leaders from Southern Borno paid him a solidarty visit at the Government House, in Maiduguri, said he enjoys a perfect relationship with his deputy whose loyalty to him,

the party and the good of the state has never been in doubt.

According to him: "The alleged rift between myself, deputy governor and Ali Sheriff is false, I laugh it off, when I read on the pages of newspapers because there is nothing like that. I made it emphatically clear that there is no rift between us.

He said: "my philosophy is that we do not need to even fight our political opponent not to talk of ourselves in the same political family".

He stressed that all they need to do is team up to develop the state and the country at large.

The governor while stating that he will ever owe his predecessor a lot for standing by

him to become the governor of the state, said he will continue to be in his debt without been servitude and continue to work with him for the good of all the people of the state and called on journalist to do their work with all fairness.

"Sheriff assisted me to reach my present status and has been good to me as such I have no excuse for whatsover reason to quarrel with him. My religion teaches that one should reward goodness with goodnes", the governor declared.

Speaking earlier, the leader of the delegation Barrister Isa Modu chul said that their visit was to re-affirm their support to the governor and his Deputy, Alhaji Zannah Umar Mustapha.

SSS parades suspected Iranian spies

By Lambert Tyem

T

he State Security Service yesterday paraded three spies and terror suspects including the leader of Shi’ite Islamic sect, Abdullahi Berende.

Berende from Ilorin, Kwara State was arrested along with two other suspects, Sulaiman Saka and Saheed Adewunmi for running a terror cell for some Iranian elements.

A third suspect, Bunyamin Yusuf is still at large.

The terror cell which had

received huge financial support from its handlers, was asked to identify and gather intelligence on public places and prominent hotels frequented by Americans and Israelis to facilitate attack on them.

The Shiite leader was said to have also named former military president, Ibrahim Babangida and former Sultan of Sokoto, Ibrahim Dasuki as targets.

Berende,50, was paraded by the SSS alongside his accomplices and was trailed for six months by the service before he was arrested

on December 17,2012.

Deputy Director, Public Relations, SSS, Marilyn Ogar while parading them before journalists said that Berende, was observed to have made several suspicious trips to and from Iran where he interacted with some Iranians known to operate a high profile international terrorist network.

Ogar said that in the course of interrogation, Berende confessed that in 2006, he gained admission to study a six-month course in modern Shi'a Islamic teaching (Da'awa) at Imam Khomeini

University, Iran.

"Berende confessed that he was recruited by some Iranian elements when he returned to Iran for further studies in 2011 and was subsequently trained on the use of AK47 assault rifle, pistols, production and detonation of Improvised Explosive Devices and after he returned to Nigeria, he was invited by his handlers to Dubai for further briefing in April 2012; he was tasked to establish a terrorist cell in the South-Western part of Nigeria with particular emphasis on Lagos," Ogar noted.

Plateau Speaker escapes death as gunmen attack church 9 others injured From Musa Pam, Jos

T

he Speaker, Plateau state House of Assembly, John Clark Dabwan on Tuesday evening escaped death by the whiskers when some unknown gunmen attacked an evening church crusade in Christian centre in Jos South LGA. About nine others sustained gun wounds as a result of the attack which took the area by surprise. They are now receiving treatment at the Plateau Specialists Hospital.

According to eyewitnesses, the gunmen entered into the centre, the Christian Rural and Urban Development Association of Nigeria, CRUDAN, wielding dangerous weapons and demanding the whereabouts of the Speaker.

It was alleged that Dabwan drove into the premises and shortly, the attackers came demanding for him and shooting into the crowd of worshipers injuring some of them in the process.

However, in a press statement signed by the Speaker’s press secretary, Mrs Nandak Chingle, the incident happened at about 9 to 10pm when armed bandits attacked CRUDAN Guest Inn situated along Sabon Barki where the speaker along with some church ministers were having a retreat.

She said the Speaker fortunately escaped narrowly unhurt, but revealed that some people were injured during the attack and the robbers carted away several personal effects belonging to indivivual at the location.

She said the speaker while decrying the spate of robberies that have bedevilled the state in recent times called on security operatives in the state to tighten their resolve towards fighting crime and criminality in the state.

It took the timely intervention of members of the Special Task Force, STF, to scare the attackers away.

The STF conveyed the injured worshipers to the Plateau Specialist Hospital, but no arrest was made.

OUR CORRECTION In our edition of yesterday, we wrongly mentioned Senator George Akume the Minority Leader of the Senate and former Governor of Benue State as one of those facing corruption charges by EFCC. We have since discovered that the distinguished senator has not been charged to any court on corruption related issues. We regret our error.

— Editor

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUART 21, 2013

Single term agreement: Who is not telling the truth?

A

s the 2015 Presidential election comes closer, arguments as to whether President Goodluck Jonathan should contest for second term have begun to gather momentum. Although the Niger state governor and Chairman of the Northern Governor's Forum (NSGF), Dr. Babangida Aliyu, recently disclosed that the President, in the approach to the 2011 Presidential election, had reached an agreement with prominent leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including some governors on the platform of the party, that he would serve only one term after which he would hand over to a successor from the north.

Based on the principle of power rotation pioneered by the ruling PDP to ensure a smooth transition of power between the North and South, stakeholders from the northern part of the country naturally felt that they should be allowed to present a replacement for their late candidate, Alhaji Umaru Yar'Adua, who had died in office half way into his first term as President.

But in an apparent desperation to remain in office beyond 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan was said to have entered an agreement with his party chieftains to allow him contest the 2011 Presidential election, in violation of the party's power sharing agreement. President Olusegun Obasanjo, President Yar'adua's predecessor from the South, had completed his two terms.

The struggle for Jonathan to claim the Presidency after Yar'Adua's death saw the light when the National Assembly invoked the famous 'Doctrine of Necessity' to confer executive power on him.

Although the President has yet to openly declare his intention to contest in 2015, his body language and the utterances of his lieutenants suggest that he may want to have another shot at the Presidency. This reality must have prompted the Niger state governor, who is rumoured to be eyeing the exalted position, to openly tell the world that that Jonathan had to agree that he would serve only one term before he could secure the backing of the PDP stakeholders and the governors for the 2011 Presidential election. But the President has so far remained silent on the matter, leading to the speculation that he would contest the Presidency in 2015.

"I recall that at the time he was going to declare for the 2011 election, all the PDP governors were brought together to ensure that we were all in the same frame of mind. And I recall that some of us said that given the circumstances of the death of President Umaru Yar'Adua and given the PDP zoning arrangement, it was expected that the North was to produce the President for a given number of years. I recall that at the discussion, it was agreed that Jonathan would serve only one term of four years and we all signed the agreement. Even when Jonathan went to Kampala, Uganda, he also said he was going to serve a single term", the Niger state Governor said on a radio

Penultimate week, the Chief Servant of Niger state, Dr. Babangida Aliyu alleged that shortly before the 2011 Presidential election, President Goodluck Jonathan had entered into an agreement with prominent leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including some governors on the platform of the party that he would serve only one term after which he would hand over to a successor from the north. But the Presidency has since denied the existence of such agreement. In this report, Lawrence Olaoye tries to ascertain who is being economical with the truth between the Presidency and Governor Babangida Aliyu.

President Goodluck Jonathan programme recently. Before Aliyu's bombshell, the single term agreement was in the realm of speculations.

Few days to the 2011 Presidential election, Obasanjo had declared that zoning was alive in the party. While urging the public to commend President Jonathan for having agreed to stay only one term in office, the former President stated that "the practice of federal character and rotation of key political and government positions in the country would continue until the time when unity, stability and democracy have been fully established with full confidence and trust by everybody in the system and within the party and among participants for factors of competence, performance and track-records to become predominant."

This clarification came to douse the tension ignited by certain individuals that the practice of power rotation has been jettisoned by the ruling party with Jonathan's emergence as the Presidential candidate of the party. Obasanjo's assurance that Jonathan's emergence as the PDP Presidential candidate was an 'accident of history' that would be corrected in subsequent elections helped in no small measure to stabilize the polity ahead of 2011 elections. Consequently, there are indications that Jonathan's body language indicating that he may be nursing the ambition for a come-back bid was part of the disagreement between him and his estranged godfather, Obasanjo.

But there are fears that the single tenure agreement entered into by the President and other party stalwarts may not be adhered to. This is coming against the backdrop of feelers that Jonathan may have begun

Dr. Babangida Aliyu Niger state governor surreptitious moves to contest the 2015 Presidential election. The ruling PDP has consistently maintained that everyone has the right to vie for the Presidency on its platform. PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, in a recent chat with newsmen said the contest for the Presidency, and any position for that matter on the platform of the party, would be open to all. He failed to make any clarification on whether the party would enforce the single term agreement entered into by the President and party stakeholders in 2011.

Other politicians considered close to the President, even when Jonathan has placed an embargo on campaigns because he considered it a distraction to his government, have begun to openly canvass for his second term. They argued that he would neither be breaking any provision of the 1999 constitution as amended nor the PDP constitution if he chooses to run in 2015. Critics are however of the opinion that Jonathan's 2015 ambition borders more on integrity than constitutionality because, they reason, a man's word should be his bonds. But can President Jonathan be held accountable to his words?

This and more are the questions

currently agitating the minds of major political participants, especially in the ruling PDP. Even now, those close to the President have begun to fault Aliyu's claim describing it a plot to blackmail Jonathan. Niger Delta activist and human rights campaigner, Annikio Briggs is at the forefront of the theory of conspiracy and blackmail against Jonathan.

Meanwhile, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has called on the President to step aside by 2015 as a mark of honour, trust and confidence.

National Publicity Secretary of the Forum, Mr. Anthony Sani, said "What the Niger state governor said is not new. This is because Nigerians read in the newspapers at that time that President Jonathan had agreed with the PDP governors to do only one term; and that was why the governors supported him. Such was commonplace knowledge in the media.

"We also read and heard President Jonathan said in Uganda that four years was enough for him to make Nigerians experience a sea of change; and that any president who could not do so in one tenure of four years would not be able to achieve anything even if given many terms."

“

Critics believe that going by the political realities on ground ahead of the 2015 general election, Jonathan's insistence on contesting the Presidential election on the platform of the PDP, with the collaboration of the party's leadership, would only translate into mass exodus of important stakeholders from the ruling party to the opposition All Progressives' Congress (APC).

But there are doubts whether the President would toe the path of honour by adhering to the gentleman's agreement he entered into with the stakeholders. This is even more so when there are indications that efforts are being intensified by the President to entrench himself into the ruling party to the exclusion of those perceived to have the capacity to challenge him. The leadership of the party and the governors on its platform have been severally engaged in battle of sorts with those perceived to be disloyal to Jonathan.

Already, some members of the PDP National Working Committee suspected to be working for Jonathan's political detractors have been edged out.

Similarly, the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) could not successfully elect its chairman because the President chose to engage stakeholders who would not challenge him to install his 'yes' man. Also, the PDP has approached the court to join it in a suit seeking to determine Jonathan's eligibility for the Presidential polls in 2015.

In any case, Jonathan's ambition to contest the Presidency is beyond legality as his henchmen may argue. It is in the realm of morality and any attempt for him to renege on his promise on single term would only depict him as a dangerous man that should not be trusted. Critics believe that going by the political realities on ground ahead of the 2015 general election, Jonathan's insistence on contesting the Presidential election on the platform of the PDP, with the collaboration of the party's leadership, would only translate into mass exodus of important stakeholders from the ruling party to the opposition All Progressives' Congress (APC).

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 5

Jonathan approves N348bn PHCN staff benefits

P

resident Goodluck Jonathan yesterday approved the sum of N384 billion for complete payment of all outstanding benefits accruing to staff of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) with a directive that payment should commence today.

The duo of Power Minister, Prof Chinedu Nebo and Labour

Minister, Chief Emeka Wogu who said this alongside Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati while briefing State House Correspondents after the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, said this payment is meant for PHCN staff only.

Nwogu said: “I want to inform you that the agreed benefits accruing to the staff of

•Payment commences today PHCN in the last negotiation between government and the labour unions has been approved by President Goodluck Jonathan. The total package is approximately N384 billion in full payment of all outstanding benefits that

we agreed upon. It will be done within the best principle of transparency and accountability.

“Payment of the agreed sum will commence immediately and that brings to an end the issue of non-payment. So, we enjoin labour unions in the power sector to work closely with the Ministry of Power in the payment of these benefits L-R: Ministry of State for Niger Delta Affairs, Hajiya Zainab Ibrahim Kuchi, Minister of Youth Development, Alhaji Abdulkadir Inuwa, Minister of Labour, Chief Chukwemeka Wogu, Director General, Bureau of Public Procurement, Engineer Emeka Ezeh, and Secretary to the Governmentof the Federation, SenatorAnyim Pius Anyim, during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, yesterday at the State House in Abuja.

Photo: Joe Oroye

Customs nab Prof. with $1.1 million in Lagos From Suleiman Idris, Lagos

T

he Murtala Mohammed International Airport Command of Nigeria Customs Service yesterday arrested a passenger with $1.1 million at the international wing of the Lagos Airport.

The passenger identified as Prof. Ofoegbu Charles Ononuju, claimed to be the director of AZ Petroleum.

The professor was travelling with passport marked with

registration number A04008969.

According to the Customs Area Comptroller, Mr. Eporwei Charles Edike, the passenger declared the currency both on forms CDF1A and CDF1B, but the passenger claimed he was travelling with Kenya Airways flight number QR542 to Kenya to solve dispute with a Kenyan community over oil blocks .

The passenger said that accounted for his resolve to travel with such huge amount of

money.

Edike said the passenger and the currency have been handed over to officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for further investigation.

He explained that in 2012, the Nigeria Customs Service, Murtala Mohammed International Airport Command, seized over $12.1 million from 14 persons who tried to take money out of the country in contravention of extant

Police dock seven over terrorism

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin

T

he police yesterday docked seven persons suspected to have robbed three banks in some towns in Bauchi state of the sum of N40.

2 million to raise funds to support the Boko Haram Islamic group which has being unleashing acts of terrorism in the northern part of the country.

The action of the suspects, Usman Sani, Abdulrahman Musa, Mahmud Mohammed, Kabir Mohammed, Umar Danjuma, Ibrahim Musa Abba and Abdullahi Lawan, the charge said, amounts to rendering support for terrorism, an offence that is contrary to Section 4 (1) (a) of the Terrorism Prevention Act, 2011 and punishable under Section 4 (2) of the same Act.

The suspects were also accused of attacking Alkaleri Divisional Police Headquarters in Bauchi with the intent to assist and facilitate the activities of the Boko Haram terrorism, thereby violating Section 1 (I) (c) of the Terrorism Prevention Act, 2011 and punishable under Section 4 (2) of the same Act. They were also accused of arming themselves with dangerous weapons including bombs and assorted explosives; killed four police officers and a civilian in Bauchi state thereby committing an offence of terrorism contrary to Section 4 (1) (a) of the Terrorism Prevention Act, 2011, and punishable under Section 4 (2) of the same Act. Count 10 of the charge reads: “That you Usman Sani,

Abdulrahman Musa, Mahmud Mohammed, Kabir Mohammed, Umar Danjuma, Ibrahim Musa Abba and Abdullahi Lawan on or about the 4th December, 2011 at Azare town in Bauchi within the jurisdiction of this honourable court and with intent to commit act of terrorism, armed yourselves with assorted weapons, bombs, grenade and explosives, set ablaze the Area Command and Divisional Police Headquarters, Azare, causing monumental damage to the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Nigeria Police Force. You hereby committed an offence of act of terrorism contrary to Section 2 (a) (ii) and (C) (iii) of the Terrorism Prevention Act, 2011 and punishable under Section 4 (2) of the same Act”.

regulations.

Edike said the relevant government agency has been collaborating with customs to ensure that the law takes its course on the matter.

He explained that the rise in the incidence of arrests of passengers trying to smuggle foreign currency is a fall out of inter agency collaboration.

Edike said the Airport Customs Command raked in over N35 billion as revenue in 2012, a marked improvement over 2011.

as agreed.

“The process will commence tomorrow (today) and I want to assure them that this bring to an end the labour issue in the sector. This payment is only for PHCN staff and in determining who should benefit, labour and government conducted a biometric exercise. The number of people benefiting is clearly defined by this agreement”.

NNPC mega station, six others sealed in A’Ibom for pump adjustment From Mike Etim, Uyo

I

t was a show of shame as motorists watched in utter dismay as the NNPC Mega Station located in Itam, Uyo which was opened by the government to sell fuel at official pump price was temporary sealed for pump adjustment.

The station came under axe when men from the Department of Petroleum Resources paid an unscheduled visit to the station and found out that the pumps dispensing products were calibrated to show underdispensing such as selling nine for 10 liters of fuel.

At Mobil Station, Oron Road, Uyo, a long queue of vehicles waiting to buy fuel had to leave after the station was also sealed for delivering 8.2 liters of fuel as 10 liters.

The operations controller of DPR, Sir Frank Umoeka, expressed dismay at the attitude of the fuel marketers in cheating unsuspecting motorists and affirmed the agency’s readiness to protect the right of the public and close down erring fuel stations.

Umoeka condemned the action of unscrupulous marketers who make attempts to derail government’s intention at making life meaningful and easy for the masses and assured that the inspection exercise will be a continuous one.

Reps advocates single digit interest rate

By Umar Muhammad Puma

T

he House of Representatives yesterday mandated its Committee on Banking and Currency to liaise with the Central Bank of Nigeria, to consider the possibility of implementing a single digit benchmark interest rate for Nigeria and report to it in two weeks.

A motion brought to the floor

by Rep. Nadu Karibo (PDP Bayelsa state), noted that the monetary policy rate of any country determines the rate at which banks access funds, and the rate at which they lend money to investors and businesses.

He observed that Nigeria ranked among countries with very high interest rates in the

world, stating that the resultant effect on the economy was that the lending rate rose to between 17% and 25% or more.

The politician regretted that the high interest rate would make it difficult for investors to raise money, stating that even when they managed to borrow, it would be difficult or impossible for them to repay.

He also regretted that the ugly situation had resulted in the collapse of many businesses in Nigeria while some investors in the country were compelled to borrow money offshore. This, he further noted, resulted in high cost of running business in Nigeria.

The Bayelsa-born politician further expressed worries that whether investors raised money locally.

PAGE 6

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Mudi Spikin dies at 84 From Edwin Olofu, Kano

A

L-R: Suspected terrorists, Abdullahi Mustapha Berende, Saheed Aderemi Adewumi and Sulaiman Olayinka Saka, were paraded by State Security Services yesterday, in Abuja.

Photo: Mahmud Isa

ABU to honour Danjuma, launch N50b development fund – VC

By Maryam Garba Hassan

A

rrangements have been concluded by the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, to confer a doctorate

degree of Science (HonorisCausa) on General TheophilusYakubuDanjuma at a special convocation ceremony slated for Saturday, March 2, 2013.

A statement by the

Advert

Special Media Adviser to the Vice-Chancellor, Waziri Isa Gwantu, issued yesterday said that the occasion would also be used for the launch the institution's N50 billion

fund for the phase two development of the institution.

The two events, according to the statement, will take place at the MammanKontagora convocation square during which the Danjuma is also expected to be chief launcher of the development fund with former Head of State, Gen. Ibrahim BadamasiBabangida, as chairman of the occasion.

The statement noted that President Goodluck Jonathan who is Visitor of the University, Vice President Muhammad NamadiSambo, who is an alumnus of the university, governors,

ministers and top g o v e r n m e n t functionaries, alumni of the University from different parts of the country, members of the national and state houses of Assembly and students of the university will also grace the ceremony.

According to the statement, "a brochure containing detailed designs and costing of projects conceived as part of the Phase II Development Plan have been prepared by a consortium of the university's alumni for those who are interested in picking and executing one or two projects as their contribution to the university."

FCT Muslim Pilgrims Board restructures

By Maryam Garba Hassan

A

uthorities of the FCT Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board have announced a restructuring of the board, for optimum service delivery.

A press statement by acting director of the board, Hajiya Fatima Suleiman Gummi, explained that the decision was in line with the directives by the FCT Minister of state, OloyeOlajimokeAkinjide, to reposition the board in order to ensure better and qualitative performance of the staff.

According to the statement, the Head of pilgrims' welfare,

MalamAbdurRahimYahaya, is now Head of operations of the board while the Public Relations Officer, MalamAliyu Usman becomes the Head of pilgrims' welfare services.

The statement noted that some other staff of the board at the area councils have been redeployed to the headquarters while two staff of the board were redeployed to serve as area officers in each of the six area councils.

Hajiya Fatima warned all staff to desist from acts capable of tarnishing the image of the administration, in line with the administration's zero tolerance.

foremost nationalist and p o e t , AlhajiMudiSpikin, is dead.

He passed on yesterday morning at the AbdullahiWase Specialist Hospital, Nassarawa, in Kano municipal.

Spikin who died at the age of 84 was a founding father of Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU).

A great poet, Spikin was incarcerated several times during his lifetime for his political activism and his brand of poetry.

The deceased who has since been laid to rest in accordance with Muslim rites is survived by two wives, 24 children and a number of grand children.

ICAN set to sponsor bill on corruption From Edwin Olofu, Kano

T

he Institute of C h a r t e r e d Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) says it is set to sponsor an anti-corruption bill at National Assembly to complement current efforts at combating the scourge of corruption in the country.

ICAN’s National President, AdedoyinOwolabi, dropped the hints in Kano during an interactive session with reporters shortly after he paid sympathy visit to the Kano state emirate council over the recent attack on the Emir.

According to him, the institute decided to sponsor the bill to fight corruption in another dimension, to encourage whistle blowers in to expose corruption.

He noted that the corrupt people in the society are in the minority but that they have done monumental destruction to the system.

According to him, the anticorruption bill is designed to encourage Nigerians to participate in the fight against the scourge.

"The Institute recognizes that corruption is a major challenge to a fluid economy and has therefore set aside funds to help the whistle blowers confront the issue head on.

"We blame the country's poor educational system and the decay in infrastructure as the reason behind the mass failure of ICAN students and unless government does something urgent the situation will remain the same because the Institute is not ready to comprise its standards just to pass students," Owolabi said.

PAGE 8

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

L-R: Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Senate President David Mark, former President of Ghana, Mr. John Kuffor, and Chairman, The Sun Newspapers, Mr. Orji Uzor Kalu, during the 10th anniversary of the The Sun Newspapers, on Tuesday in Abuja.

Photo: Mahmud Isa

L-R: New Secretary to the Niger state Government, Hon. Ndako Idris Kpaki, being congratulated by thestate Governor, Dr Mu'azu Babangida Aliyu, shortly after being sworn-in, yesterday at the Government House, in Minna.

L-R: Chairman, Northern Governors Forum committee on reconciliation, peace and security, Air-Vice Marshal Mukhtar Mohammed (rtd) receiving a souvenir from the Nasarawa state Governor, Alhaji Umaru Tanko Al-Makura during his visit to the governor, yesterday in Lafia.

Photo: NAN

1

Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (middle), appealing to the disengaged staff of National Identity Card Commission (NIMC), during their twoday protest at the gate of National Assembly, yesterday in Abuja.With are Hon. Aminu Suleiman (left), and Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Samson Osagie (right).

Photo: Mahmud Isa

1 Members of Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), North-West during a rally, yesterday in Kaduna.

Photo: NAN

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

By Ikevhukwu Okaforadi

T

he senate President, David Mark, has advocated fiscal federalism to allow states develop on their own with their abundant natural resources.

Mark, who was represented

by Deputy Senate President, Sen. Ike Ekweremadu during yesterday’s plenary, mandated its committee on solid minerals to embark on a holistic assessment of solid mineral development in Nigeria.

The resolution was sequel to a motion by Sen. Abu Ibrahim (CPCKatsina) on the development of solid minerals sector as a panacea to the bankruptcy of States and creation of jobs in Nigeria.

Mark decried the current trend in which States depended on the central government for their survival, saying “In a situation where the federal government appropriated everything to themselves and then feeding the rest of the States like a baby is really not sustainable”.

“So, it is important that we begin to think about it on how to ensure that we will run our federal system in the best way as others are running their federal system.

“It is important at this stage for us to find a way of engaging this subject in such a way that we will be able to have what is actually called a true federalism.

“This will enable every part of Nigeria to exploit the resources that God has given to them and

PAGE 9

Mark advocates fiscal federalism contribute to the centre which is the standard practice in most federations.

In his submission, Sen. Ahmed Lawan (ANPP- Yobe) said the federal government has failed to account for the funds sourced through the Natural Resources Development Fund (NRDF) Lawal said if judiciously utilized, the money would have helped to empower the sector to create jobs for the teeming population of unemployed youths n the country.

“About N873 billion was deposited in the NRDF account but sadly, nobody can account for this money. Substantial part of the amount has been used to service other sectors of the economy. ‘‘I believe solid minerals sector can do more than oil in the provision of jobs and infrastructure. We must do something to salvage our

economy,’’ he added.

Also speaking, Sen. Smart Adeyemi blamed the State governors for paying more attention to receipt of federal allocations while they neglect the abundant mineral resources in their States.

Adeyemi urged the federal government to change its economic policies by diversifying the economy to facilitate creation of jobs.

“It’s the lack of vision and commitment of State Governors who depend on federal allocations.

“We must change our economic policies and diversify to be able to create jobs, ‘’he said.

Sen. Olubunmi Adetumbi (ACN – Ekiti) said the federal government should be held responsible for abusing the funds meant for the development of solid minerals.

He said a sizable portion of the fund had been used to service budget deficits at the expense of

developing the solid minerals sector to enable the States earn 13 per cent derivative like the oil producing areas.

“The agency of government responsible for development of solid minerals is responsible for the abuse of this fund. The greatest saboteur to this policy is the federal government itself.

“A huge portion of the fund has been used to service deficit budgets and not to develop the solid minerals.

“Federal government should lead by example. It must live up to its promises by accounting for the N783 billion in the last ten years, ‘’Adetumbi advised.

In his contribution, Sen. Ayogu Eze ( PDP- Enugu) called for the return to fiscal federalism to allow the States to exploit mineral resources and pay royalty to the federal government.

The federal government should wake up to its

responsibility by providing the necessary funding to enable States to exploit the solid minerals.

“If the owners of the mineral resources are allowed to explore and pay royalty to the federal government, all will be well with the States.

“It’s a shame on the part of this country that we make such provisions and they are not utilized. There’s a need for the federal government to become responsive to the development of solid minerals,’’ he said.

Similarly, Sen. Ita Enang (PDP- Akwa Ibom) called for strict compliance with existing laws guiding the exploration of the solid minerals in the country.

He alleged that some governors deny the federal government its lawful revenue under the guise of illegal mining.

“It’s time that we allowed true federalism in this country. Some States are exploring solid minerals and keeping the proceeds under the excuse that it was illegal mining,’’ he said.

N40m scam: Wema securities manager bags two and half-year jail

By Sunday Ejike Benjamin

A

n Abuja High Court sitting before Justice Abubakar Sadiq Umar has sentenced former manager of Wema Securities and Finance Plc and Rainbow Global Ventures Limited, Akin Oladipupo, to two and a half years imprisonment for defrauding customers.

The convict was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), together with his company on February 13, 2006 on a ninecount charge bordering on dishonest conversion of various customers’ money to the tune of over N40 million.

In its bid to prove its case against the convict, EFCC tendered three exhibits and called three witnesses.

In a judgment delivered on January 28, 2013, Justice Umar convicted the accused person on four out of the nine count charge but acquitted him on the others.

The convict bagged six months imprisonment on the first count and two years imprisonment on counts two, three, eight and nine without an option of fine.

The sentences are to run concurrently with effect from the date of delivery of judgment.

L-R: Cross River state Commissioner for Education, Professor Offiong Offiong, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Dr. Mac John Nwabiala, Principal, Federal Government Girls College (FGGC),Calabar, Dr. IjeomaEssien, Minister of State for Education, Barrister Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, and Acting Executive Secretary, Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Prof. Charles Onocha, during the minister's inspection of Federal Government Universal Basic Education intervention projects in the South- South region, yesterday in Calabar, Cross River state.

Photo: Justin Imo-Owo

Minister decries poor private sector presence in forest mangt

By Muhammad Nasir

T

he Minister of Environment, Hajia Hadiza Mailafia has decried the low level of private sector participation in Nigeria’s forest management.

Mailafia expressed the view in Abuja at a two-day national stakeholders’ workshop on the implementation of forest instrument in the country.

It would be recalled that the Non-Legally Binding Instrument on All Types of Forests (NLBI), also commonly known as the “Forest Instrument,” was adopted by the UN Forum on Forest (UNFF) in 2007.

The primary purpose of the instrument is to promote commitment and action on all forests to enhance sustainable

forest management and the contribution of forest to the eradication of poverty.

The minister was represented at the occasion by the Deputy Director, Forest Conservation in the ministry, Mr. Simon Adedoyin.

She said the low level of private sector investment in forestry had affected the government’s goal of achieving inter-connectedness to soil, water and climate change mitigation and adaptation. ‘’Despite the concerns shown by the government on the precarious state of the nation’s forest resources, the level of implementation of forestry development programmes are not commensurate with the level of degradation due to funding constraints,’’ the minister said.

Earlier, Mr. Salisu Dahiru, Acting director, Federal Department of Forestry, said the objectives of the national workshop were to raise awareness and build capacity among stakeholders.

Dahiru, who was represented

by Mr. Muyideen Badru, an assistant director in the ministry, said the workshop was aimed at sensitising stakeholders to the purpose of implementing the forest instrument for the attainment of sustainable forest management.

‘The forest instrument covers a broad spectrum of issues beyond forest and its implementation requires close cooperation between different authorities and agencies,’’ he said.

In a goodwill massage, Ms

Louise Lobisa, Country Representative of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Nigeria, said FAO would work with the Federal Government and stakeholders on domestication of the instrument and its further implementation. ‘’The FAO recognizes and commends the government’s efforts in this respect which guide the use, development and management of the country’s valuable forest resources,’’ she said.

Also, Mr. Thomas Fameso, Deputy Director, Forest Utilization noted that the adoption of the non-legally binding instrument on all types of forests by the UN General Assembly had reinforced the global commitment to sustainable forest management.

PAGE 10

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUART 21, 2013

8,000 villagers benefit from UNDP projects

By Josephine Ella Ejeh

T

he Coordinator, Enyinda Development Centre, Abakaliki Local Government Area of Enugu state, Chief Udenwe Michael, has disclosed that no fewer than 8,000 residents of smaller communities in Eketube Enyinba/Edda of Enugu state have benefited directly and indirectly from developmental projects supported by the Global Environment Facility-Small Grant Programme (GEF-SGP)

implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) since its commencement in 2009.

Chief Michael, who stated this while addressing the threemember delegation consisting of SGP National Coordinator, Mrs Ronke Olubamise, Dr Chris Ugwu, member and SGP national steering committee, Volunteer and Media Practitioner, Kehinde Akintola, said the communitybased programme which covered 30 villages is supervised by Neighbourhood Environment

Watch Foundation, headed by Kelechi Okezie.

He disclosed that 30,000 economic trees including 12,700 Moringa plants, Ogbono, 5,000 palm trees were distributed to farmers, with each farmer getting about 500 trees.

He further revealed that the community has embarked on replacement of the economic trees on yearly basis to expand the current boundary of the community forest while farmers have adopted tree-planting on their farms having realised the

enormous benefits of this effort, and trained hundreds of youths within various smaller communities on how to raise the Moringa nursery rather than going to Abakaliki.

The delegation was also informed that a few people including women have started small businesses in Moringa seedlings to interested community members as well as enhancing the restoration and reforestation campaign. Some of the traditional herbalists have also subscribed to the campaign

because they appreciate the importance of sustainable exploitation of the forest resources.

Confirming the efforts of the NGO, Village Head of Eketube Enyinba Community, Chief Thomas Nwuzor, who also cultivated some of the economic plants around his palace, said "the Community geared up efforts to ensure the success of the project".

"The only problem is that when dry season sets in, it affects the plants but we have overcome the challenge. We are going to take care of those plants within the village wards".

In her remarks, SGP National Coordinator, Mrs. Ronke Olubamise, emphasised the need for the benefitting communities to buy-into and also ensure that the message and its benefits are shared with other community members who had not participated before in the programme in order to ensure sustainability after GEF-SGP support has stopped.

NDA Regular Course 21 to honour Airforce chief

By Joy Baba

M

L-R: Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, and Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abatti, jointly briefing journalists on health sector in the country after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, yesterday at the State House, in Abuja.

Photo: Joe Oroye

Jubilations, as retired Oyo teachers receive monthly pensions From Inumidun Ojelade, Ibadan

I

t was jubilation at the Oyo State Government Secretariat, Ibadan on Tuesday as primary school teachers who retired from service from 2011 received their first monthly pensions.

Governor Abiola Ajimobi had on Monday approved the commencement of pension to the retired teachers with effect from

Tuesday, February 19, 2013.

It would be recalled that the Oyo tate government had said that the massive fraud discovered at the Local Government Pension Board, a body responsible for the payment of pension allowances to retired primary school teachers and local government workers, had prevented the retired teachers from being placed on monthly pensions.

The situation had also

hampered the payment of their gratuities, a situation that led to series of meetings between them and the state government.

The payment, which began in Ibadan on Tuesday, was presided over by the Chairman of the State Local Government Pension Board, Chief Lasisi Ayankojo and other officials of the board.

The highly elated retired teachers commended the governor for coming to their aid

after several months of waiting for the monthly pensions.

For instance, Mr. Olusegun Obasanjo, one of the beneficiaries, said that he felt relieved with the payment, as he had almost lost hope of receiving the pension.

Another retiree, Mrs. Alice Modupe Adigun, blamed their plight on fraudsters at the Board, who had prevented them from enjoying their pensions since retirement.

Bomb explosion: Group lauds Shettima's intervention

By Christiana Dayo Popoola & Zainab Yahaya Kandi

F

ollowing the bomb explosion that rocked Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, destroying properties worth millions of naira including a mosque, a group known as Christian and Muslim Youths Development Initiative, have commended Governor Kashim

Shettima's swift intervention and promise to reconstruct and expand the mosque.

Describing the act as despicable and capable of the derailing the fragile peace in the state, Chairman of the group, Mr. Deinde Toyin Komolafe promised to visit the state to commiserate with members of the public who lost valuable items to the explosion.

" We are ready to meet with the representative of the state government from time to time to dialogue on various tactics that can be adopted to maintain the peace and unity among all the religious group and ethnic nationalities that are resident in the state", he said Komolafe said that the governor has shown through his action that he is a detribalized

Nigerian and a true nationalist who woke up to his responsibilities.

The group called on the security operatives to be more alert and urged those behind the dastardly act to sheath their sword for the sake of peace and unity of the country.

He appealed to the religious leaders in the state to unite in moving the country forward.

FG urges Bayelsa to donate land for girl-child school

M

inister of State for Education, Barr. Ezenwo Nyesom Wike has called on the Bayelsa State government to allocate land for the construction of a Special Girl Child Model School.

A statement issued Tuesday in Abuja by the Special Assistant Media to Minister of State for

Education, by Simeon Nwakaudu said the minister spoke during a meeting on Tuesday with the governor, Mr Seriake Dickson who was represented by his deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah.

The statement said the minister disclosed that out of the 16 Special Girl Child Model schools

approved for some states by the Federal Government, it was only in Bayelsa that construction work is yet to commence.

According to him, "The Federal Government approved the school for Bayelsa State in 2011 and contract was awarded thereafter. We plead that the land be allocated so that the contractor

can move to site".

Responding, Bayelsa State deputy governor, Rear Admiral John Jonah, assured the minister that the state would allocate the land for the girl-child school adding that the Bayelsa State government was already working on the promotion of girl-child enrolment, the statement added.

embers of the 21 regular course of Nigerian Defence Academy forum will on Saturday, February 23, 2013 honour its chairman and current Chief of Air Staff, (CAF)Air Marshal Alex Badeh to a civic reception in Yola, the Adamawa state capital.

The occasion which is expected to be graced by many dignitaries including governors, members of the National Assembly, Chief of Defence Staff, Service Chiefs, traditional rulers and captains of industries, would begin by 12 noon with Alhaji Bamanga Tukur as the chairman.

It would be recalled that Badeh was appointed CAF in October 2012.

SURE-P not a political tool - Jigawa Coordinator From Ahmed Abubakar, Dutse

T

he Coordinator, Jigawa state wing of the Subsidy Reinstalment Programme (SURE-P), Alhaji Yusuf Alhasan has said that there is no linkage between the agency's empowerment programme and 2015 election.

The Coordinator made the disclosure Tuesday to Peoples Daily in an interview in Dutse while speaking on the stage of the agency's preparation to empower 3, 000 youths in the state.

Alhaji Yusuf Alhasan explained that "there is no linkage between this programme and the 2015 election, in fact there is still a long journey from now to 2015, and this is one of President's Jonathan good policies to address the menace of poverty and unemployment leading to crime and insecurity in the county".

He said this office had screened the first batch of 3, 000 people which earlier commenced last year and would be engage in the environmental sector with a N10, 000 monthly allowance each.

PAGE 11

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUART 21, 2013

Love your family, tell them happy 'valentine insurance'

R

ecently, people all over the world were busy celebrating St. Valentine's feast, sending gifts and expressing love to friends and well-wishers.

Many people would have bought material gifts to their families, which to them would make an indelible mark in their lifetime, no doubt. But the question is, could this be achieved? The answer is capital no.

If you are searching for gifts that will remain indelible in the minds of your family; analysts say, give them the kind of gift that will sustain them when you may not be there to provide again. To these analysts, no amount of love you show your family today with material gifts would linger for long time when you are gone.

Take a life insurance that will provide for your family and take care of their needs when you will

not be there, and they will not forget you, they said.

Now, ask yourself this question- "Would my death leave anyone in a financial bondage?" If your answer is "yes", it may be time to get serious about shopping for life insurance. It can offer peace of mind, ensuring that your debts or loved ones would be taken care of in the event of your death.

Some of the life insurance from which you can choose are term life insurance. Term life insurance is very straightforward. When you choose this type of coverage, you pay for a specific duration of time. During that period, your chosen beneficiary receives the benefits of your policy in the event of your death. You should know that there are sub-categories that fall under the category of term life insurance.

Whole life insurance is another

type of coverage to consider. This type of policy covers you for your entire life rather than a specific term. A whole life policy will cost more on average and have higher premiums than term life policies, however, the investment potential and lifelong coverage are appealing to some insurance shoppers.

Variable life, have more investment opportunities, which includes stocks. This policy type is similar to universal coverage because the returns are either used towards premiums or allowed to accumulate in an account.

Your beneficiary receives either the value of the policy, or the value of the policy, in addition to a portion of, or the full cash investment returns account.

Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual

commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Valentine and was established by

Pope Gelasius I in 500 AD. It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as "valentines").

Staying free of debt: What you should do S taying out of debt is usually a matter of good financial planning.

It involves prioritising and understanding the difference between need and want. It takes some practice to establish good financial habits; many people manage to be debtfree by following a few rules.

Spending less Today's easy credit tempts many into spending what they can't afford. The golden rule is don't buy something unless you are sure you can afford it. Know what your income is and what your bills are. "Cut off miscellaneous expenses. Make a budget and stick to it," says Ikechukwu Iheagwam, a cash and liquidity management analyst at ARM. "Budgeting is a process of controlling the money one spends based on a monthly income. Keeping a budget, a detailed plan of how one spends monthly income will ensure that one does not spend more than one has. People who end up in debt often do not have a clear idea of

where their money goes each month. The process of tracking spending involves keeping a

record of every Naira spent,'' said a public servant in an interview. ''One can see what type of

expenses that should be cut back on, and in turn save money.''

Paying cash

Debit cards are handy but can make you spend more than you can afford. Pay cash if you can. If you don't have the money, then you probably don't need it.

Experts say that paying cash puts one in control of expenses, as spending power will be a factor of the cash at hand.

Buy on sale Buying in bulk can be cost effective for a large family. ''Take advantage of month end or festive period as products tend to go at discounted prices during these times," an expert in the fashion industry said.

Pay off credit cards Pay more than the minimum, and spend what you can pay off.

"Break the habit of paying only the minimum required every month, as it prolongs the repayment period,'' a personal banking analyst said. ''The larger it takes one to repay, the more interest banks make and the less cash one would have," the analyst added.

Financial intervention for your parents?

S ometimes it's hard enough just keeping track of your own finances. But, as many of us have learned, life gets even more complicated when your parents come to you for assistance with their money matters - or worse, when they don't ask for help but really should.

Many people are fiercely independent and hate to relinquish control over any aspect of their lives, especially personal financial

Quote The money power preys upon the nation in times of peace and conspires against it in times of adversity. It is more despotic than a monarchy, more insolent than autocracy, more selfish than bureaucracy. It denounces, as public enemies, all who question its methods or throw light upon its crimes. -Abraham Lincoln

matters. Some are downright suspicious when anyone, including their own children, tries to intercede.

But don't give up Try to become familiar with your parents' financial, medical and legal records while their health and finances are still in good shape so you'll be able to spot any warning signs that something's amiss.

Indicators that your parents might need a hand include: Unpaid bills, late payment notices or utility shut-off warnings.

Calls or letters from creditors or collection agencies.

They have had to choose between filling prescriptions and buying food, utilities or other necessities.

Unlikely magazine subscriptions or cheap prizes - signs they may be targets of telemarketing or get-rich-quick schemes.

Seemingly unnecessary home

improvements; or conversely, signs that they can't afford needed repairs.

Uncharacteristically lavish spending on vacations, new cars, etc.

If your parents initially are reluctant to share their financial and legal information, tell them you're working on your own financial planning (budgeting, creating a will, retirement savings, etc.) and would like their advice.

That will lead naturally to discussions about their own plans.

Or, bring in an impartial party, such as an attorney, financial planner, social worker or trusted friend to guide the conversation.

Offer to help your parents organize their finances. Set up and periodically update files containing: Details of all major possessions and relevant paperwork (such as property deeds, car registration, jewellery, etc.).

Outstanding and recurring debts (mortgage, car loan, medical

bills, utilities, etc.).

All income sources, including Social Security, pension, 401(k), investment accounts and savings.

Bank accounts, credit cards, safe deposit box contents and insurance policies, including password, agent and beneficiary information.

Will, trust, power of attorney, health care proxy, funeral plans and other documents showing how they want their affairs handled.

Contact information for their lawyer, accountant, broker, financial planner, insurance agent and other advisors. A few other tips: Help your parents create a detailed budget so they always know how much money is coming in and going out. Free budgeting tools are available at www.mymoney.gov, the National Foundation for Credit Counselling (www.nfcc.org), www.mint.com, and Practical Money Skills for Life, a free personal financial

management program run by Visa I n c . (www.practicalmoneyskills.com/ budgeting).

If you're helping pay or process their bills, request that duplicate account statements be sent to you as well, so you can quickly spot any errant activity.

Set up automatic bill payment for utilities and other monthly bills to avoid late payment fees. Just make sure the account is always sufficiently funded.

Many retirees must file quarterly tax returns - a daunting task for anyone. Offer to help with the paperwork; or, if they work with an accountant or tax preparer, ask to attend the next meeting.

Don't be afraid to ask your parents if they need help managing their finances. Chances are, in 30 years you'll thank your own kids for the offer.(Source: www.moneyning.com)

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 12

EDIT ORIAL EDITORIAL

F

Odi gets justice, at last, but...

ourteen years after their community was sacked by soldiers, the people of Odi in Bayelsa state are laughing last. But will theirs be the best laugh?

This is how it all began. On November 5, 1999, gangsters reportedly killed 12 policemen deployed to keep the peace in that riverine community. Fifteen days later, the government of Olusegun Obasanjo, who only the previous May had been returned to power as an elected president, sent in troops to pacify the community. Three days after, no building was left standing. Locals estimated over thousands were killed by the troops, but the government said only "armed bandits" were killed and that no building was destroyed.

On Tuesday, February 19, Justice Lambi Akanbi, a federal high court judge in Port Harcourt resolved the argument, ruling in favour of the community in a suit brought by it. The suit filed by the community's lawyer, Lucius Nwosu, a SAN, asked for N100 billion in damages, a formal apology and an order that the government rebuild the entire community. The judge slashed the compensation to N37.6 billion, to be paid within 21 days, but did not rule on the reconstruction request. In his judgement, Justice Akanbi said the invasion of Odi was a "brazen violation of the fundamental human rights of the victims to movement, life and to own property and live peacefully in their ancestral home."

The judge described the government's counter affidavit as

"worthless". Apart from the groundswell of public sympathy that the invasion created for the community, the government and the Nigerian military did not help their case by their halfhearted approach. Their lawyers did not put in an appearance throughout the trial, claiming that they were not formally invited. But there was ample evidence to the contrary. Besides, remarks by sitting President Goodluck

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It is difficult to say, therefore, if Jonathan will pay the compensation ordered by the court in a case against a different government than its own Jonathan, himself from Bayelsa where he was deputy governor at the time really undid the case of the military.

According to him, when he visited the community afterwards he saw the bodies of "only men, women and children who couldn't run", not any militants. And so did Obasanjo's obduracy that the invasion of Odi was justified - to avenge the killing of law enforcement officers.

The mood of the community was understandably expansive. "Today, this compensation and this justice delivered will show the truth that the people are

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law abiding and that they believe in the rule of law," said Perye Brown, a former chairman, Bayelsa State Youth Council. In direct contrast, the Jonathan government showed not too surprising a lack of concern: "Always in the law, arguments can go one way or the other. So really, it doesn't matter which way it goes", said Mr. Nkolika Awa, a representative of the federal attorney general who was in court that Tuesday.

The Odi case had a similar trajectory to the 2001 military invasion of Zaki Biam town in Benue state, again ordered by Obasanjo for the killing of a dozen soldiers and policemen sent to the area to separate two warring communities. The matter went to court; the government lost and was asked to pay compensation to bereaved families worth N41 billion.

Obasanjo's immediate successor, late President Umaru Yar'adua visited Benue to personally apologise on behalf of the government for the Zaki Biam massacre.

However, this is where the Odi and Zaki Biam similarity ends. The comments of President Jonathan and his officials on the Odi case show that Jonathan does not consider the judgement an indictment of his administration but that of Obasanjo before him. The two, though kingpins of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have not been seeing eyeball to eyeball of late. It is difficult to say, therefore, if Jonathan will pay the compensation ordered by the court in a case against a different government than its own.

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PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 13

Nigerian media: Issues in editorship and professionalism

By Bisi Olawunmi

A

s members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors converge at Premier Hotel, Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, for their biennial conference from February 28 to March 2, 2013, there is need to ponder the state of the Nigerian media. It has to be admitted that the Nigerian media enjoys the accolade of being one of Africa's most vibrant. Editors have led the media posse, as the people's vanguard, on various occasions to confront authorities when policies are deemed to be anti-people, the most recent example being the media's strategic role in the opposition to the increase in the price of petrol, that eventually exposed the fuel subsidy scandal.

Yet, media performance can be much better. In this regard, the issues which demand attention include fairness and accuracy; rabid political partisanship in editorial content as well as media credibility. There is the issue of poor quality control of editorial content, particularly news stories, which is the flagship product of the media. In all these, the ownership factor is crucial.

However, as the professional leader, the editor is the pivot of any media establishment, in spite of competing forces seeking control of the media. A key competing force is the media owner - public or private. There is the widespread notion that the media owner, like the person who pays the piper, has the right to dictate the tune in editorial content. This is a fallacy, given the media's primary

BY Abdulhamid Babatunde

T

here is a popular adage that states that a child who washes his hands well can dine with elders. By implication the physical and social gap between a child and his elders is not necessarily sacrosanct and to earn the rare privilege of rubbing shoulders with the elderly, the young must, as it were, pay their way with respect and due process.

The elders cherish and jealously protect their exalted positions in the hierarchy of life as a veritable badge of honour bestowed, not by man or any self-preserving feat, but by the singular divine grace of God Almighty. It is the divine origin of longevity and its attendant privileges that denies the elderly the exclusiveness that could have been a befitting seal on membership rites against the chance intrusion by the young with spotlessly clean hands. The passage of time and the coming of age have not however made the elderly comfortable with even the few fortunate "children" who get dinner tickets to the elders' high table.

The seemingly simmering stand-off between Nasiru El-Rufai and his erstwhile gerontocratic dinner mates has all the features of a blind date gone bad. Though none has made an issue of the obvious role of age (and lack of it) in the display of such unspeakable table-manners before respectable elders by a youngster who was assumed to have qualified for mingling with the aged, a detached and less sentimental

mandate as a public trust. For the privately-owned media, it is a dual mandate - as a business and public trust. Hence, while the investor has a right to expect returns from a media company as a business, it is for the editor to determine the editorial content that strikes a balance between the investor's expectations and what serves the public good. It is a responsibility that he should neither abdicate nor compromise. Where the owner is government , such a media outfit should function mainly as public service, not business, as is currently the case with the commercialization of news, particularly in radio and television stations owned by federal and state governments.

To surrender publicly owned media to market forces is a repudiation of government's fundamental service to the people and a denial of their right to know and be heard as such policy shuts out a significant section of the polity. It is a policy the Editors' Guild should contest.

It is understandable that governments, private owners, special interest groups and even advertisers would seek to influence or control the media in their desire to sell a point of view, to be positively projected to the people through the media or to contain resistance by the masses. The editor is the bulwark against these assaults on the media by power blocs and he can only resist such assaults successfully by imbibing professional integrity.

A prerequisite to acquiring professional integrity is to acquire

professional training - being a trained journalist with a university degree in mass communication or journalism, a training that emphasizes the ethics of the profession. So, a major challenge for the Nigerian Guild of Editors is professionalizing the position of editor and other editorial cadres and their equivalent positions in the broadcast media.

A situation where just anybody can get into a media establishment, parade himself or herself as a journalist and even aspire to be editor should not be allowed to continue.

With over 100 universities, polytechnics and monotechnics offering courses in mass communication and journalism in Nigeria, there is a pool from which to build a class of professional journalists. A concession might, however, be given to non mass com graduates in the media to undertake a postgraduate diploma course in mass communication to upgrade their status. A professional journalist is expected to know the limitations of owners in terms of editorial content. There are studies which support this stand.

Scholars, including Peter Golding, Noam Chomsky and James Curran, note that while governments and other media owners are inclined to determine the editorial line in newspapers and broadcast stations, "they exercise these powers within structures which impose limits".

They thus contend with regard to media control that "owners, advertisers and key political players cannot always do as they

would wish". Sadly, some editors, lacking professional integrity, by their obsequiousness, give media proprietors the impression that they (owners) can always do as they wish. A trend where some editors tag along, as seeming bagboys, on the entourage of their proprietors on local and foreign trips diminishes the position of editor.

I often cite the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) as an example of a credible government-owned media, largely due to the professionalism and integrity of its pioneer Editor-in-Chief, Mr. Femi Adefela, a tradition that has been sustained by NAN's current managing director, Mrs. Remi Oyo, a former NAN staff, even when she had served in the politically partisan position of media aide to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

An important issue with editorship is accountability. If editors hold officials of government and other institutions accountable to the people, if they decry impunity, they also must be accountable to their audience readers, listeners and viewers.

Freedom of the press cannot be freedom to be irresponsible in their editorial content. In this regard, newspaper editors need to subject themselves to the arbitration of the Nigerian Press Council when aggrieved members of the public petition the Council on alleged media excesses.

Treating summons from NPC with levity does not accord with media ethics.

A key function of the editor is quality control of media content to

Danger! El-Rufai at work

view of the brouhaha bats reveals that it is a classical case of youthful exuberance clashing with senile dementia. It may well go down in the politics of aging as yet another example of the need for segregating screens between the young and the elderly.

Fortunately, the history of Nasiru-El-Rufai's sensational snuggling into the hallowed ranks of his elders and subsequent subversion of the age-old rites of passage is not occulted, though several of his stunned mates swore it was another unnerving manifestation of the "Giant" gnome behind their diminutive comrade.

He literally bulldozed his way into the alarmed attention of Nigerians when his now lamenting patron noticed how El-Rufai's clean hands would immaculately handle some

dirty jobs lined up for the Federal Capital's master-plan. The sheer misery and scale of destruction OBJ had in mind for Abuja's restoration needed not just youth and exuberance but also a deceptively negligible physique that would leave victims shocked and awed. The worst the shattered victims came up with were curses and spells which then seemed to merely bounce off El-Rufai's oversized body guards, but could now be haunting their tormentors.

The young intruder into elderly chambers derived immeasurable instigation from his sadistic assignment whose monumental devastation of lives and property hugely satisfied that genetic streak that is said to drive small people into improbable extremes of hyper-action which

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even larger homo sapiens would fear to contemplate. In no time he had also demolished whatever remained of the social and age distance between young and old in the federal cabinet with particular impact on his patron and sponsor, himself swooning from the ogogoro of power. Thereafter, beginning with the then Vice President Atiku who was even more stunned than El-Rufai's mates by the ambitious audacity of the "small boy", minister after minister in the apex leadership cult watched with bewilderment as El Rufai picked and chose whatever caught his fancy in their schedules of duty and dealt with them as he deemed fit.

No Nigerian had any doubt who was de facto VP then and, as they say, the rest is history!

But now history has turned out

the history of Nasiru-El-Rufai's sensational snuggling into the hallowed ranks of his elders and subsequent subversion of the age-old rites of passage is not occulted, though several of his stunned mates swore it was another unnerving manifestation of the "Giant" gnome behind their diminutive comrade. He literally bulldozed his way into the alarmed attention of Nigerians when his now lamenting patron noticed how El-Rufai's clean hands would immaculately handle some dirty jobs lined up for the Federal Capital's master-plan

ensure fairness and accuracy. It would, however, seem that this function has been largely abandoned given the many embarrassing errors of fact, spelling and grammar in media fare, even on the front pages of newspapers ! In this regard, the media needs government intervention to assist with capacity building for the overall public good. I will end this piece by returning to the issues of professionalism, integrity and monetization in the media with a quote from the 1947 report of the U.S. Commission on Freedom of the Press, headed by Robert M. Hutchins: " Whatever may be thought of the conduct of individual members of the older, established professions, like law and medicine, each of these professions as a whole accepts responsibility for the service rendered by the profession as a whole, and there are some things which a truly professional man will not do for money". The Nigerian Guild of Editors need to make a 'truly professional man' of editors and other cadres of journalists by initiating a peer review on qualifications and a mechanism to bring erring editors and other journalists to order. Editorship is a distinguished position whose prestige and authority can only be enhanced where ethics, professionalism and integrity rule.

Dr. Bisi Olawunmi is a Fellow of the Nigerian Guild of Editors and lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, Bowen University, Iwo. to be a very potent brew causing some really serious accidents in the present and future of our elderleaders. We can clearly see that even the chief elder whose whimsical and capricious exploitation of the Presidency once found good use for Malam Nasiru's immaturity now regrets ever bringing him into their conclave and would not even have him adorn his Foundation's London launch as a human trophy of past conquests of peoples will. The rest of the variously exposed, betrayed and humiliated targets of ElRufai's bibliographic bombshell now aim their venomous vendetta at his book as the reality of evil outliving devils stares them in the face. But Nigerians just can't stop laughing last at the sordid spectacle of big men's dirty linen littering the arena like refuse heaps. All thanks to the youthful yeoman whose uncharitable public reputation may have been salvaged by his selfless demystification of the ruling class he was privileged to join.

And so the elder-rulers' wrinkled underbelly of senility, selfishness, insatiable lust for power, rabid parasitism and assorted abuses of power and office is laid bare for all to see and understand why leadership (or lack of it) is the lingering problem of Nigeria and why, by divine determination, the youngster who washes his hands to eat with elders may help rid us of their voracious appetite for the prosperity of our nation. Amen!

Abdulhamid Babatunde, exEditor, lives in Kaduna

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 14

What to learn from Eagles' victory

By Edwin Ofili

T

he triumph of the Super Eagles in the African Cup of Nations gladdened the hearts of many after a fitful start.

The win was not expected considering that the majority of the team members were debutantes and some of the best players were excluded from the team. There is also a preference for foreign coaches in the country because of their perceived better knowledge of the game, their ability to resist unhealthy influence on the choice of team members and their ability to get all the cooperation that is needed from the sporting authority in Nigeria. But we had a local coach, Stephen Keshi, who had to overcome peculiar challenges to working as a local coach to the Nigerian football team.

The success of the team has encouraged stock taking and some, if half-hearted, reevaluation of the national attitude towards sporting administration. The speaker of the House of Representative, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, has pointed out that a local coach has done as well as we would expected from a foreign coach and insists "never again shall we go cap in hand on a recruitment drive for foreign coaches." The praise of "local content" in the wake of the Super Eagle's victory is in stark contrast to the usual call for foreign coaches that occasions the loss of a football

By Eseoghene Al-Faruq Ohwojeheri

A

bout ten years ago I lost a friend in an armed robbery incident. Obviously the armed robbers were not satisfied with robbing they needed to make a point by harming someone in the house and my friend's mother was their target. As they swung the axe my friend who was the scholar of our class in secondary school protected his mother with his head….he died; no national award, no post mortem speech from the Governor and of course no celebrity burial; he was just another guy, the fact that he took a battle axe to his head for his mother was irrelevant This and many more of it happens in a country wherein people get millions both in local and foreign currency for playing football; a country wherein comedians shake hands with the President and women who kiss strange men on camera in the name of acting take home National Award and an immoral youth who made fame singing about his private part is given special opportunity to interview the President in a desperate campaign strategy because the thinking is that the community is populated by zombies and bimbos who will vote in a PHD holder on the "honour" of a nuisance whose only relevance to society, apart from lewd music, is competition in air and space. Thus the question every sane Nigerian should be asking is when will this madness of underserved honour stop?

reason that tournament. while the The opinions of S i e m e n s , the general Halliburton and populace, Peoples Daily welcomes your letters, opinion articles, text other bribery f o o t b a l l messages and ‘pictures of yesteryears.’ All written scandals have enthusiasts and caused several contributions should be concise. Word limits: Letters - 150 policy makers participants in are very fickle words, Articles - 750 words. Please include your name and Europe and in this regard. a valid location. Letters to the Editor should be addressed America to be For the to: prosecuted, none readers who of the Nigerian have no interests The Editor, participants in football or any Peoples Daily, 1st Floor Peace Plaza, have been s p o r t i n g 35 Ajose Adeogun Street, Utako, Abuja. prosecuted. activity, I do not Email: opinion@peoplesdaily-online.com W h e r e wish to alienate SMS: 07037756364 criminals - the you with sports kinds that steal jargons. I am just in billions - are trying to point out the Nigerian attitude to opportunity? And how do they prosecuted, they get a small fine changing conditions and highlight ensure that cronyism, option that enables them enjoy the how we learn from it. It is a subject sentiments, sectionalism, remaining. Indeed, Nigeria is a where big-time of frequent complaints that tribalism, etc do not ruin country Nigerians do not appreciate their whatever effort is made at criminality gets rewarded and no own. The victory of the Eagles in encouraging Nigerian good deed goes unpunished. So the football tournament has participation in important many people trying to be lawabiding citizens get harassed when changed that. But I fear this is aspects of national life? momentary. Politicians have It is important to realise that they voluntarily choose to pay tax; made their sound-bites praising the wariness of Nigerians to the tax man or official of one the performance of a local coach, having fellow Nigerians agency otr another brings one tax who was roundly criticised for his superintending over important bill or another having found a earlier decisions, and portfolios in the country is maga who has money to be paying extrapolating from this that local widespread and not without tax.

Try starting a business and the participation, not only in football, reason. Many Nigerians trust but other fields of endeavour - like foreigners to handle important next person - your employee, local our oil industry - where foreigners tasks not only because they think government agent, etc - is trying are preferred, should be foreigners have superior skills, or to squeeze as much money out of encouraged. But how serious are are inherently better, but because you as possible either by stealing the same politicians about this? the foreigners are held to a from you (employee justifying it How do they plan to empower different standard. The foreigners as "na where man dey work e dey Nigerians so that they are able to have better legal systems that chop, na why dem call am perform when given the punish corruption. This is the workshop") or taking advantage of

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your ignorance of the tax code to charge you for non-existent tax.

But steal from the federal coffers, and you get a fine less than a tenth of the stolen sum. The foreigner is not less crime prone than a Nigerian, they just have less incentive to commit crime.

In all the reflections on the victory of the Super Eagles, something struck me as surprising.

An important observation I had on the attitude of Nigerians to the Eagles.

Nigerians were concerned mainly about performance! This is key.

Nigerians wanted the Eagles to play well and bring back the cup.

This is not the case with other aspects of national life.

Challenge this way of thinking, and you get the refrain "wherever you get the appointee from, you can look for someone of similar qualification from my part of the country and find them". You get a faulty defence of an anachronistic way of thinking, but interestingly very few people in Nigeria are concerned or even know the ethnic makeup of the national team. This is the reason why, despite inconsistency and bad management, the Nigerian football team has been able to produce many internationally renowned football players but the Nigerian government and civil service has produced no person of international acclaim. Anybody we have in government that is reckoned with internationally has to be produced outside the shores of this country, and the attitudes of the Nigerian people have much blame for this.

Goldie: Lest we immortalize nuisance The death of the musician from Ekiti, Goldie Harvey, and the attempt to make it seem like we lost an icon is another and perhaps the worst of all this madness. I do not believe that death, which we will all face, should make you a hero except you died an honourable death. When people just drop dead we grieve and console the family not tell blatant lies as to who they were. This is why the statement of the Ekiti State Governor is worrisome. Mr. Kayode Fayemi is reported to have described Goldie as a "great daughter of Ekiti State" and one has to wonder upon what was this greatness achieved? Are people now great for singing meaningless songs with promiscuous suggestions or for taking and publishing suggestive photos of themselves?

Since when did we consider it greatness to appeal to the sexual cravings of perverts and run after men on camera in the name of a reality show that is far from reality? Since when did it become great achievement that a lady is even thought of as being a junkie in her life time? How can this be great?

In the past fathers will tell their children "don't bring shame to this family" but nowadays shame and shamelessness is celebrated with such noise that you think the Devil himself is in charge of people's life and even he has gone crazy.

Ironically, around the same

period this unfortunate death occurred Governor Theodora Orji of Abia State was commending Mrs. Nwanyieze Prosper for winning the Purity Queen title for a lady who kept her virginity until her marriage; surprisingly some Nigerians criticized the Governor and even 'accused' him of giving her a car whereas Governor Kayode Fayemi was praised for describing Goldie as a "bright star" among other accolades including that she lived a "fulfilled life".

Indeed the world is upside down.

The problem with giving honour to people who did dishonourable acts is that people will definitely emulate them. The Dolly Parton's of this world made it a fashion for women to expose their cleavage; years on women have lost their husbands to such exposure and homes have collapsed; the Dr. Dre's of this world made being "gangster" a fashionable thing and years later the gangsters are increasing and we even have a gangster in the White House killing innocent people with Drones….Martin Luther's dreams became a Nightmare. And this list goes on and on; for every irresponsible person you honour you make irresponsibility the "swag", the same way for every man who dies for his mother you honour you make standing up against oppression and protecting the weak the in-thing….make your choice.

Lastly, we must clarify two

issues. The first one is with regards to speaking "evil" about the dead while the second one is the "who are you to Judge" comedy.

Firstly, the dead has already met what he or she put forward hence there is no need to speak of its evil. What there is need to do however is to either call the living to an example to live by if the dead is worthy of emulation or to warn the living to stay away from a wasteful lifestyle like that of the dead who lived life as if death was never going to come and this is the real lesson here; life is short, if you live it like Goldie your death may come and meet you in that state; what will you tell your Creator? We cannot pretend this is not the lesson here; it will be one lie too many Secondly, they ask us not to Judge and we say to them since we are in the spirit of not judging kindly don't judge the location of your mouth so that you put your food in your nose. We say to them that in this spirit of not judging please cross the road without judging that a vehicle is close enough to knock you down; maybe when you are in the air you will realise your stupidity.

We do not Judge a person who has Faith that he or she will be in the hellfire, we do not Judge that the person's bad is more than his/ her good, we do not Judge if God will forgive a believer…..but we Judge that fornication and the promotion of it is EVIL, and that the one who represented evil dead

does not make evil good.

Some others will say an adult can do what he or she likes and you don't have to force your life on others. The question we have for this set of confused mentally colonized perverts is that this same justification is given to homosexuality and it will soon be given to incest so that if a grown up man and his grown up daughter say they fell in love and want to marry your kind will say well it's their life, it does not affect me….can you see now that you are sick?

The lessons can be summarized as thus: Death can come at any time; be prepared to meet your Lord. Fame and fortunes are but illusions. What matters is your relationship with your Creator. The enjoyment of this world is fleeting; don't let it deceive you. Live a good life; one that does not involve promoting lewdness or any type of evil; death and Judgment is real and it is no respecter of status.

It was the honour given her musical mentors that led the lady to not just music but a meaningless form upon which her life ended so let's ensure that we do not turn scum into icons because people will sure emulate them.

May God Almighty give the family fortitude to bear the lost and guide them aright.

Eseoghene Al-Faruq Ohwojeheri wrote in from Benin City

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

By Bayo Oluwsanmi

P

resident Barack Obama recently delivered the first State of the Union address for his second term. It was a speech of "movement leadership" that inspires and persuades. Obama with feisty humility was at his oratorical best. Full of an explosive ball of energy and with ringing clarity, he mapped out the journey ahead for the next four years. As I watched Mr. Obama I yearned for a Nigerian President that will tell us what he'll do and where we're headed.

Part of the built-in accountability measures of the Presidential system invented by the Americans is the annual State of the Union address by the President.The political basis for the State of the Union address is in the US Constitution.

In spite of the racist arrogance and unyielding opposition of the Republicans, Mr. Obama took a stand for what is right. He reminded his political foes - the GOP - that leadership is service… "What are we waiting for?" he bellowed, "so let's do it!" It has not been easy for Mr. Obama taking a stand for what is right when the hallucinating right wingers remain the biggest impediment.

Leaders learn by leading, and they learn best by leading in the face of obstacles. As weather shapes mountains, so problems make leaders. One of the most visible gifts of a leader is his ability to use his experiences to grow in office. Two examples readily come to mind: After years of experimenting with all sorts of political systems, we finally settled so it seems, for the American brand of democracy

PAGE 15

Shadow over substance - the presidential system. Like anything copied, imported, or stolen outright by Nigerians, there is always the albatross the "Nigerian factor" that mars or muddles the core utility of the thing that we sheepishly imitate.

By excluding checks and balances and other features that guarantee accountability, the framers of the 1999 Constitution did not apply either common sense or wisdom. Instead for the new system to be a transition from oppression to opportunity, it has become a legal euthanasia that snuffed life out of our people. What we have now is a ruling class that has become an insurrection against the ideas and ideals of a democratic government.

The federal governments we've had since independence had foolishly pursued shadow instead of substance. Once upon a time, we were conscripted into farming under the aegis of Operation Feed the Nation Program.

I was in lower six of a higher school certificate course. All students of higher institutions were mandated by the then Obasanjo military regime to work on farm for the entire summer holiday.

The government promised the nation that the program would lead to food sufficiency and hunger would be banished in Nigeria forever. An armada of fertilizer ships jammed the Nigerian ports. Most of the fertilizer became dung hill even before they could be shipped to farms where they were needed.

Nigeria's River Basin

Authorities gulped so much money that by now every hamlet in Nigeria especially in the arid areas should be flooded by irrigation waters. Under the Jonathan administration, the pursuit of shadow over substance has taken on a viral sensation. The GEJ administration is synonymous with shadows: using shoes for hammers, newspapers for umbrellas, and a finger nail to tighten a screw.

Few examples will suffice.

Remember the fanfare, photo ops, and propaganda that accompanied cassava bread on the breakfast table at Aso Rock? We were told cassava bread would overthrow the regular bread in a bloodless coup so much that there would be no trace of remains of white and wheat bread. Today, we're not sure what's on the breakfast menu at Aso Rock. The principal argument by the Jonathan administration for removing the subsidy on gasoline was that the accrued savings would be used for job creation. After a bitter internecine war over removal of the subsidy, a still born baby named SURE-UP was born.

How many jobs have been created

by SURE-UP? Your guess is as good as mine. The multitude of the unemployed still clogs the arteries of our streets.

On power supply, the government action is more laughable than annoying.

Repeatedly, the Jonathan administration keeps promising that the next year would be better than the previous one. The number

of megawatts that would jolt supply to desirable levels oscillates precariously whenever anyone confronts the administration on the issue. The goal post for the year when we will enjoy 24/7 uninterrupted power supply is being moved from year to year.

The money spent on trips for wooing investors from abroad is large enough to industrialize the country. What happened to the foreign investors? The government wants to spend N60 billion for 10 million phones for farmers.

According to the Federal Department of Agriculture, the ewallet project will educate, inform, and communicate with the farmers in the rural areas on the latest and best practices as well as current prices of commodities in the market. Hogwash! I bet, Nigerian farmers need to reach out and touch their counterparts in

an elite few and relegates the generality of the citizenry to poverty and misery.

Wielding their powers at the detriment of the Nigerian masses, they perfected the art of stealing from the people. Through variegated avenues, like the security vote, they divert public funds into their personal accounts.

The object of the security vote is murky. After all, the federal government (through the police and other security organizations) is, primarily, responsible for security. The constitution does not empower the states to have their own police force. And the state governments' quasi law enforcement agencies are paid

from the state coffers, not the governor's security vote. However, the security vote is money voted for the governor's use by the state assembly which, constitutionally, he is not obligated to account for.

Through the security vote, billions of naira are handed over to the governors every month. Ikedi Ohakim, as the governor of Imo State, received 26 billion naira in four years as security vote. In 2011, the governors of Rivers, Kaduna and Ondo States received N7.5bn, N8bn and N6bn respectively as security votes. Governor Musa Kwankwaso of Kano State succinctly made the point when he said that security vote is "another way of stealing public

funds".

In their conspicuous consumption and wasteful spending, Nigerian governors now have a new fad. Their new fad is private jets. Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom and Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State amongst other governors are now jet owners.

Godswill Akpabio, in June 2011, bought a $45 million (7.2 billion naira) jet. The cost of Rotimi Amaechi's private jet is $45.7m (N7.31 billion naira).

Apart from gratifying his insatiable greed and indulging his outrageous fantasies, a state governor does not need a private jet - an almost redundant but inconceivably expensive gadget. A state has no foreign policy.

Therefore the job of a governor does not demand foreign travel. With the abject poverty, crumbling social infrastructure, high unemployment, social deprivation, environmental squalor, etc that are the hallmarks of our beloved country, it boggles the mind to think of the opportunity cost of a governor's purchase of a private jet. The money could have been put to more constructive use in: education, health, job creation, housing and other areas where it benefits the people directly.

The purchase of private jets by Nigerian governors is nauseating absurdity. Its preposterousness becomes more evident when it is considered that neither the prime minister nor the King of Norway owns a private jet; they travel on

America, Germany, Canada, Afghanistan and other nations for consultation on subsistence farming.

The Jonathan administration's shadow versus substance vis-à-vis Nigerians can be likened to a famous passage in Plato's Republic. Plato pictures a multitude of men as prisoners in a subterranean cave. Their backs chained to a fire, looking at the shadows cast by the fire on the rocky wall they mistake them for realities. The Greek philosopher concludes that "real knowledge and wisdom" only begin when we reject these shadows and climb the steep sides of the cave and fight for the real things. Why do we have to cling to the shadow when the substance is within our grasp? We have become shrunk with fear that we're contented to the consigned cave the oppressors built for us.

Bayo Oluwasanmi can be followed at byolu@aol.com

“

The Jonathan administration's shadow versus substance vis-à-vis Nigerians can be likened to a famous passage in Plato's Republic. Plato pictures a multitude of men as prisoners in a subterranean cave. Their backs chained to a fire, looking at the shadows cast by the fire on the rocky wall they mistake them for realities

The delusion of untrammeled power

By Tochukwu Ezukanma

G

overnor Rotimi Amechi, Rivers state governor and Chairman, Nigerian Governors' Forum recently urged Nigerians to "pray that God will do something new in our lives and keep the governors alive (to continue) to lead the people…"

Evidently, he is totally detached from the mood and sentiments of the generality of Nigerians, and therefore, cannot realize that most Nigerians are sick and tired of their governors. In addition, Nigerian governors are not just leaders; they are dangerous leaders.

Leaders seek power with a sense of mission. They desire power out of moral conviction, commitment to a cause and an unwavering resolve to better the lot of their people. As such, power can be subordinated to the public will and made accountable to the people; and thus, employed as a selfless servant of the people. Dangerous leaders seek power for selfish reasons: fame, pomp, selfenrichment and the entrenchment of the privileges and pretensions of the political class.

And as such, power degenerates into an overbearing instrument of the self-absorbed power elite; and is invariably, deployed as a ruthless enemy of the people.

Power deployed as the enemy of the people steals from the people, undermines the public good, subverts a principled distribution of the national wealth, panders to the greed and selfish ambitions of

“

The powers of these governors in their home states are further reinforced by the spinelessness and gutlessness of the average Nigerian citizen who cannot raise a voice in dissent and/or protest.Essentially, their powers are untrammeled, bordering on the absolute. And just as "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts, absolutely", power also deludes and absolute power deludes absolutely

commercial airlines. Not even the British Prime Minister owns a private jet. He flies British Airways. The income per capita in Norway is about $72,000.00.

In Nigeria, it is only about $2,700.00.

Under the auspices of the Nigerian Governors Forum, the governors constitute a formidable cabal that can effectively challenge the presidency and the federal government. They usurp powers not ascribed to their office by the constitution. They impede the functions of the local governments and in some cases, seize and misappropriate funds allocated to them by the federal government. Cringing at the overbearing presence of the governors, state assemblies are reduced to rubber stamp parliaments.

And federal legislators knuckle under their state governors, taking permission from them before taking a stance on national issues.

The powers of these governors in their home states are further reinforced by the spinelessness and gutlessness of the average Nigerian citizen who cannot raise a voice in dissent and/or protest.Essentially, their powers are untrammeled, bordering on the absolute. And just as "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts, absolutely", power also deludes and absolute power deludes absolutely.

Tochukwu Ezukanma is reachable on macin18@yahoo.com

PAGE 16

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Dietician recommends eating avocado for a healthy weight mgt

A

Cross section of the protesters who stormed the FCT secretariat yesterday to support the African First Ladies House. Photo: Josephine Ella Ejeh

Over 1,000 women, others protest in favour of African First Ladies House

By Josephine Ella Ejeh and Adeola Tukuru

T

he Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Mohammed yesterday boycotted the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting to address over 1,000 protesters comprising, women, men and youths who stormed the FCT Secretariat at Area 11, Garki to protest against the welling criticisms that have recently trailed the FCT administration’s proposed N4 billion for the building of the African First Ladies Peace House in Abuja.

The protesters under thirteen umbrella bodies, drummed their support for the project and their dissension against those opposing it with placards with diverse inscriptions which read: “Anti-peace mission are women haters, Nigerian women support African First ladies peace mission, Fashola consultant governor, Soyinka: Educated illiterate without sense and widows support Bala’s FCT”.

“We the peace-loving, progress driven women, youth and believers in the Nigeria and Abuja protest wish

to categorically state that we are in absolute support of the African First Ladies Peace Mission and the FCT administration.

“We believe unequivocally that the proposed African First Ladies Peace Mission House is not a property or an NGO belonging to the Nigeria First Lady or any individual, that proposed African First Ladies Peace Mission House is the secretariat of the African First Ladies Peace Mission of the African Union(AU)”, a letter they presented to the minister for onward presentation to President Goodluck Jonathan which Peoples Daily obtained read in part.

They argued that “It is in the overall interest of the Nigerian people and mankind generally and in pursuit of its responsibility that the FCTA has embarked on the construction of the African First Ladies Peace Mission Secretariat in Abuja.

“In the past, the FCT administration has built edifices such as the Women Centre and National Hospital for women and children both of which were championed by former first ladies and these buildings are today still being used and enjoyed

by the public,” they further argued.

This was as they appealed to the President “to ignore and disregard all distraction as posed by those who are bent on seeing the administration fail”.

The protesting groups includes the National Council for Women Society, Market Women Association, United Women Traders Association of Nigeria, Friends of Abuja, Youth of Social Network, Farmers Association of Nigeria, Zenzelen Organisation and women in business.

Others are Kasuwa da Kasuwa Mobilisation Team, the Widows Organisation, Youth Mobilisation Movement of Nigeria, Hairdressers and Barbars Association of Nigeria and Disabled Organisation of Nigeria.

Addressing the protesters, the minister assured them that he would take the copy of the letter presented to the president and the National Assembly as directed by them so that what they have said will be made clear to them.

He said the First Lady, Patience Jonathan has done so much for Nigerian women and children, pointing out the African Peace Mission is the embassy of the peace mission in

Nigeria and the first lady inherited it from my predecessors.

Senator Mohammed further explained that the FCT administration has the responsibility to build public buildings for ministries and peace missions.

“It is not our building; it is your own building because Nigeria is recognised in the committee of nations. Nigeria promised to provide the secretariat the way and manner we provided the ECOWAS secretariat. Is it in the constitution?

The United Nations Building is not in the constitution, the ECOWAS building is not in the constitution but it is a diplomatic practice. We have to do it in order to make Nigeria great.

“Nigeria is recognised by all other countries and the Africa first ladies have chosen to establish their headquarters in Nigeria for sensitisation and mobilisation because what we need in Africa is peace. And this embassy is going to bring peace to the African women so that we can have development.

“We are not playing politics with the lives of Nigerians. Whatever we are doing is for the benefit of Nigerians,” he added.

FRSC urges motorcycle riders to comply with motorcycle registration in Kuje

T

he Unit Commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in Kuje Area Council,Federal Capital Territory(FCT), Mr Samuel Egwuatu has called on motorcycle riders in the territory, to comply with the ongoing motorcycle registration.

Egwuatu made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at an awareness campaign for motorcycle riders in Kuje recently.

He said that the exercise was to

enable them to recover such motorcycles in the event of theft, among other advantages.

According to him, the reflective jackets and registered motorcycles will help to reduce the rate of crime and accidents.

He urged the riders to demonstrate a safe riding culture as demanded by road safety authorities, to prevent frequent accidents.

“We demand that everybody in the society should comply with the

road safety rules and regulations, especially the motorcycle riders, so that we can have an accident free society,” Egwuatu said.

CSP Ismaila Magaji Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Nigeria Police Force Kuje Division, who spoke with NAN, urged the motorcycle riders to comply with the rules.

Magaji, who was represented by Mrs Rosemary Owendu, Administrative Officer, Kuje Division, however, warned that violators would be arrested,

prosecuted and if found guilty, punished in accordance with the law.

“We actually aim at repositioning the motorcycle riders for safe riding to reduce frequent motorcycle accidents on the roads”, Owendu said.

A motorcyclist, Mr Bello Adamu, described the registration as a welcome development.

NAN reports that FRSC, in partnership with the Nigeria Police, Kuje Division, organised the event.

(NAN)

dietician in the Garki General Hospital, Abuja, Ms Yemisi Olowookere, said that eating avocado was good for weight management because it could speed up the metabolic rate.

Olowookere told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that its mono-unsaturated oil content could help reduce over eating.

She explained that the oil content reduced the urge to indulge in food high in sugar or saturated fats.

“A 100 gm of avocado or less than half a medium avocado provides 3.2 gm of dietary fibre.

This gives it the highest concentration of dietary fibre of any commonly eaten fruit,’’ the dietician said.

She said that fats in avocados were high in biological value and were primarily unsaturated, as they contained no cholesterol.

“Avocados are among the most protein rich of fresh foods, they contain all essential amino acids and rich source of vitamin B6, iron, fibre among others. High fibre intake is important because it lowers risk of cardiovascular disease, some types of cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity,’’ she said.

According to her, these vitamins not only promote reproductive functions, but because it is a powerful anti-oxidant, it protects against cancer and aging.

Olowookere said that they helped to lower cholesterol level and recommended them for circulatory disorders, like anaemia and nervous disorders.

She said that avocados should be part of children and adolescent’s diet, also athletes, exhausted or stressed adults can also add it to their diet.

She added that the elderly and all those wishing to naturally and medically increase their vitality should take avocado.

“Avocados are very rich in Vitamin B6, which helps keep the nervous system in good working order and it is beneficial to some women suffering from premenstrual pains.

Avocado also contains Vitamin A in the safe beta carotene form”.

She said avocados were filled with potassium, a mineral necessary for maintaining the right balance of water in the body.

“Phosphorus, an important mineral for bone health, is also found in avocados. Avocados are particularly rich in important antioxidants such as Vitamin E and C,’’ she added.

According to her, by eating an avocado a day, one benefits from the large daily intake of Vitamin E, necessary for boosting energy and strengthening the immune system.

She added that children would get more vitamins from avocados than they would from any other fruit.

Olowookere recommended that avocados should be taken moderately because of the high caloric value.

(NAN)

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 17

2 club owners in court for allegedly assaulting customer T wo club owners in Garki are standing trial for alleged joint act and criminal force, assault and causing previous hurt before a Karu Senior Magistrates Court for allegedly beating up a customer.

The Police yesterday arraigned Austin Godfrey, 35, and Owel Joseph, both of Ebiza Night Club, Area 11, Garki, Abuja.

The prosecutor, Sgt. Ambi

Ayuba, told the court that the accused persons were standing trial for alleged joint act, criminal force, assault and causing grievous hurt.

Ayuba said one Chinenye Arungba of Trinity House, Mabushi, Abuja, reported the case at the Garki Police Station on Feb. 16..

He said the complainant went to the accused persons’ night club but while he was leaving the premises around 2

a.m., the accused conspired among themselves, blocked the exit and beat him.

The prosecutor said that the complainant sustained serious injuries on his jaw for which he underwent three major surgeries at the National Hospital.

The offences are punishable under sections 79, 265 and 247 of the Penal Code Law. The accused persons pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

The Senior Magistrate, Mr Bashir Alkali, granted them bail in the sum of N100,000 and a surety each in like sum.

He said that the sureties must submit one of their recent photographs to the court registrar and their addresses must be verified by the prosecutor before they are released on bail.

The case was adjourned to March 27, for presentation of witnesses and hearing. (NAN)

INSIDE FCT COURTS Man, 18, jailed for theft, causing hurting

T

he Kubwa Upper Area Court, Abuja, has sentenced Abubakar Idris, 18, to one year imprisonment for theft and causing grievous hurt.

The Presiding Judge, Malam Munir Lawal, who passed the sentence after the convict pleaded guilty to the charges, however, gave him an option to pay N5, 000 fine for each charge.

“The court is lenient because having pleaded guilty to the charges, the convict did not waste the precious time of the court,’’ Lawal said.

Police prosecutor Echendu Kelechi had told the court that the convict was arrested on Feb, 4 with some iron rods suspected to be stolen.

“When the officer on patrol, Ajayi Tena of the Dutse Police Station, Abuja, attempted to interrogate him, he stabbed the officer with a knife,’’ Kelechi said.

He said the offences contravened the provisions of Sections 288 and 247 of the Penal Code. (NAN)

Woman in court for allegedly assaulting a man

T L-R: Chairman of Federal Capital Territory chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), AlhajiYunusaYahaya Suleiman, Minister of State for FCT, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, Minister of FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed, PDP Chairmanship flag-bearer for Gwagwalada Area Council, Hon. Adamu Mustapha, and Senator Philip Aduda, during the flag-off campaign and handover of PDP flags to candidates of the party, on Tuesday at the Gwagwalada Area Council of FCT. Photo: Mahmud Isa

Man, 36, jailed for cheating A

n Abuja Grade 2 Area Court has sentenced one Bulus Dama, 36, of Masaka in Nasarawa State to six months imprisonment for cheating.

The Presiding Judge, Mr Ahmed Ado, passed the sentence after the accused pleaded guilty

to the offence.

Ado, however, gave the convict an option of three thousand naira fine and an additional N30,000 to be paid as compensation to the complainant, one Mr Ibrahim Mohammed.

The Police Prosecutor, Mr

Simon Ibrahim, told the court that on Feb. 16, Mohammed of Plot 665, CBN Quarters, Utako, Abuja, reported the incident at the Utako Police Station.

Ibrahim said that on Feb. 15, the accused deceitfully collected recharge cards valued at N30,000 on the pretence of

paying the complainant later.

He said that the accused however, converted the recharge cards to his own personal use and refused to pay the complainant.

The prosecutor said that the offence contravened Section 322 of the Penal Code. (NAN)

Mechanic docked for alleged criminal breach of trust, mischief

O

ne Ebi Nkanu,mechanic of Galadima village, Abuja, is standing trial before a Karu Upper Area Court for alleged criminal breach of trust and mischief.

Police prosecutor Philips Akogwu told the court that an officer with the Benue Liaison Office, Mr Bernard Nengar, reported the matter at the Asokoro Police Station on Feb. 16.

Akogwu said that Nengar complained that he entrusted a

BMW 7-series car belonging to the Benue State Government House, to the accused in October 2012.

“Nkanu was asked to check and service the air conditioner of the vehicle and bring it back to Nengar, but instead the accused kept the vehicle for four months.

“The accused only returned the vehicle on Feb. 14 after using it throughout the four months.

“The accused caused more damage to the car. By the time he returned it, he had damaged the shock absorber, air bags and tyres,” he said.

Akogwu also said that the accused contravened the provisions of sections 321 and 327 of the Penal Code, but he pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The accused’s counsel, Nathaniel Odushola, made an oral application for his client’s

bail.

Odushola assured the court that if granted bail, his client would ensure that he appears throughout the duration of the trial.

The Presiding Judge, Alhaji Umar Kagarko granted bail to the accused in the sum of N100,000 with a credible surety who must reside within the jurisdiction of the court.

He adjourned the case to March 8 for hearing. (NAN)

he Police have arraigned a 35-year-old woman, Eucharia Onyeogara of Madalla, Niger, before an Abuja Area Court for allegedly colluding with 10 others to beat up one Mr White Ebezim.

The police prosecutor, Sgt Christopher Roko, told the court that the case was reported to the Utako Police Station on Feb. 15,by Ebezim of Kadokuchu Abuja.

Roko said that on Feb 12, while Ebezim was in the accused’s shop at Utako, Onyeogara ordered 10 young boys who pounced on him beating him up with sticks.

He said that Ebezim did not provoke the accused.

He said Onyeogara was charged with joint act and assault which contravened provisons of sections 79 and 264 of the Penal Code.

The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The judge, Mr Ahmed Ado, granted the accused bail in the sum of N20,000 with one surety in like sum.

“I admit the accused to bail in the sum of N20,000 with one surety who must be a civil servant of any grade level and must reside within the jurisdiction of the court,’’ Ado ruled.

He adjourned the case to March 14, 2013 for hearing.

(NAN)

PAGE 18

Foundation advocates for free and fair FCT elections

By Adeola Tukuru

T

he President General, Global Foundation for Unity, Peace and Development, Dr Olusegun Adeleye has said that the successful conduct of free, fair and transparent elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) will depend largely on the ability of stakeholders to conform diligently to the provisions of the law notably in the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.

Olusegun stated this at the just concluded workshop organized by the Police Community Relation Commission (PCRC) in Kuje Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) with theme: “Enduring Peace before and after the FCT council election”.

He further advised candidates to continue to maintain peace, unity of purpose and political development in all the local governments so that everybody can continue to maintain that status of political trailblazers for all other segments of our national life.

Also the President of the Police Community Relation Commission (PCRC), FCT Chapter, Mr. Nick Eze said there is the need to address the issue of security during election in all the various communities in the FCT. In his words: “In PCRC, it is our responsibility to create awareness to bring the general public together in the importance of keeping to the rules of maintaining peace and order during election, it is time for us to look at the past and begin to make amends so that we create the necessary atmosphere for political activities and give the people the confidence to come out of their houses and vote for the right candidate”.

In his keynote address, the Chairman of Kuje Area Council, Hon Danladi Etsu Zhin recalls that during his electioneering campaign in Kuje he had promised to pay serious attention to securing the lives and properties in Kuje Area Council in FCT, which the residents can attest to.

He lauded the PCRC for being able to initiate this program and create awareness during a time like this and also tasks the candidates of ACN and PDP candidates’ chairmanship in Kuje Area Council to maintain peace and tranquillity during their electioneering campaign.

“If you want to lead the people, you shouldn’t engage in any form of violence. The way you portray yourself is how the people will look at you and give you leadership,” he said.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Traditional ruler of Jikwoyi urges parents to teach wards local dialects

T

he traditional ruler of Jikwoyi in the FCT, Chief Bawa Jetta, has urged parents to teach their children how to read and write in their local dialects.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that parents should endeavour to speak their dialects with their children, adding that the children would learn how to speak English language in school.

Jetta said that the teaching of only the three major languages in

Nigeria was not good enough since other languages were fast going into extinction.

He said that content speaking of a dialect preserved and promoted such language and saved it from extinction.

According to him, our children now only speak English, if possible, they will learn how to speak Hausa, Yoruba and sometimes Igbo which are the ones being taught in schools.

“This is affecting us from the

minority tribes. Our local dialects are not represented at all. We are left behind and we, the parents, are the major contributors.

“In a society where the parents choose to speak to their children in English, is not the best. English, we know is very important, but as a child goes to school, the child will get used to speaking English, either from the teachers or friends.

“As parents, we should encourage our children, teach them how to read

and write in their local language.

Teach them how to count numbers in their dialects,’’ he said.

Jetta noted that over 80 to 90 per cent of children in his domain could not speak their local dialects and this had affected the community adversely.

He called on government to include the teaching of local dialects in schools curricula, adding that it should be made compulsory for every child.(NAN)

Some traders on the look-out for customers as they displayed their wares along the newly constructed bridge by the entrance to Federal Housing in Kubwa, yesterday.

Photo: Miriam Humbe

Parent appeals to UBEB for learning facilities

By Usman Shuaibu

A

parent residing in Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Emmanuel John, has appealed to the FCT Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB) to

provide enough teaching and learning materials for primary schools in the territory to improve the standard of primary education.

John, who made the appeal in an interview with Peoples Daily in Gwagwalada, said lack of teaching and learning

materials were the bane of educational backwardness.

He commented that over the years, teachers have had to grapple with the problems of insufficient teaching materials.

He urged the authority of UBEB to deem it fit to give priority attention to the welfare

of teachers, stressing that unnecessary deduction of teachers’ salaries by the government was uncalled for.

The Parent of five children also pleaded with the government to curb pending issues affecting teachers in the FCT.

17-year-old wins FCT Minister’s Essay Competition

M

iss Lorrita Mogbolu, 17, of Government Secondary School, Bwari, on Tuesday in Abuja emerged winner of the Maiden Edition of the FCT Minister’s Essay Competition.

Mogbulo, who contested alongside 287 students from other schools in the FCT, went home with a cash price of N50,000, laptop, certificate and a plaque.

Miss Suur Mchiage-Tsavser, of Redeemers Secondary School emerged winner in the junior category going home with a cash price of N30,000, a laptop, certificate and a plaque.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 83 public and private secondary schools, comprising of Junior and senior, participated in the competition

organised by FCT Archives and History Bureau.

The Director, FCT Archives and History Bureau, Mr Charles Nnodim, said during the presentation that the competition was aimed at promoting research among students and ensuring they had a background on record management.

“The essence of the programme is to promote research among the students as well as sensitising Nigerian Youth to imbibe the culture of record management and archives administration for future leadership roles,” he said.

Nnodim said the competition was one the bureau’s annual sustainable outreach programmes with each year’s topic focusing on the activities of a particular Social

Development Agency (SDA) of the FCT administration.

He said that the 83 schools comprising of schools across the six area councils of the FCT were invited, while only 55 schools responded.

The director said that the girlchild education policy of the Federal Government was yielding positive result as all the winners from the junior and secondary schools were girls. ”It is clear from this exercise that the girl-child in the FCT is already ahead of her male counterpart in academic excellence,” Nnodim said.

The Minister of the FCT, Sen. Bala Mohammed, said that the competition would serve as a talent hunt to enable the administration identify and adequately harness the

God-given potentials of the participants.

Mohammed, who was represented by the Director, Education Resources Centre, Hajiya Ramatu Ibrahim, said the bureau embarked on the annual essay competition to correct the impression that archives were meant for historians or librarians.

“On the need to correct these erroneous impression, the bureau has embarked on this annual competition as one of its schools outreach programmes in order to catch them young, especially in the art of records keeping and archival administration,” he said.

He commended the bureau for organising the competition and all the schools that participated.

(NAN)

BUSINESS

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Email: aminuimam@yahoo.co.uk

By Abdulwahab Isa

F

ollowing enquiries from stakeholders in the wake of reports that a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos presided over by Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke on Monday February 19, 2013, which gave judgment against Access Bank Plc and three others in suit No FHC/L/CS/07/13 involving Capital Oil and Gas Ltd and businessman Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, the bank says it remains confident of the success of the recovery actions it has initiated.

Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke, had in the judgment, among others, voided police’s interim reports and complaints by the Presidential Committee on the Verification and Reconciliation of Fuel Subsidy Payment, linking Ubah and his company to fuel subsidy claims fraud.

In a statement issued by the bank’s Secretary/Legal Compliance, Sunday Ekwochi, Access assured its stakeholders that “the recovery actions it embarked upon against Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah and Capital

PAGE 19

INSIDE

- Pg 20

SON to review LPG standards

Mob: 08033644990

Access Bank confident on debt recovery moves against Capital Oil Oil and Gas have not been, in any form or substance, affected nor prejudiced by the proceedings or judgment.”

The bank said its statement was informed by the need “to correct any unfortunate misinformation” contained in media reports of the judgment. It denied being a party to the suit marked: FHC/L/CS/07/13 in which the judgment was given.

“Access Bank Plc is not a party

to the above captioned suit instituted by Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah and his company Capital Oil and Gas Limited.

“The subject of the suit and reliefs sought therein are unconnected with the actions instituted by the Bank for the recovery of the monies due to it from Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah and Capital Oil and Gas Limited. The plaintiffs in the above suit did not seek any declaration, injunctive

relief or damages against the bank.

“The honourable court in its considered judgment of February 19, 2013 did not make any declaration nor grant any perpetual or interlocutory injunction against the Bank in favour of the plaintiff or any other party in the proceedings.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Bank confirms that the recovery actions it embarked

upon against Dr Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah and Capital Oil and Gas have not been in any form or substance affected nor prejudiced by the proceedings or judgments of the honourable Court in the above mentioned suit.

“The bank remains confident of the overwhelming success of the recovery actions it has initiated against Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah and Capital Oil and Gas Limited.

Nigeria to reduce gas flaring to two per cent by 2014 - FG

By Etuka Sunday

T

he Federal Government has revealed plans to reduce gas flaring to two per cent from the current 11 per cent by 2014.

At the 2013 Nigeria Oil and Gas conference taking place from 18-21st February in Abuja, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani AlisonMadueke, said, “The intention of government through our gas industrialisation programme and other measures put in place is to ensure that gas flare is reduced to two per cent in 2014 in order to meet international best practice.”

According to AlisonMadueke, Nigeria has already succeeded in reducing gas flaring to less than 11 per cent compared to 30 per cent in 2010.

Alison-Madueke added that, in the last 12 months, the upstream sub-sector maintained a production of 2.4mn bpd, as well as increasing gas production.

The decision to boost the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) to a medium-sized oil and gas company had yielded good results in the last two years, she said.

The petroleum minister added that through the support given to the NPDC, production capacity had increased from 50,000 bpd to 140,000 bpd in 2012.

L-R: Senior Vice-President and Managing Director of Addax Petroleum, Mr. Cornelis Zegelaar, Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, Group Managing Director of NNPC, Engineer Andrew Yakubu, General Manager, External and Government Affairs of Addax Petroleum, Mrs. Dorothy Atake, Director Department of Petroleum Resources and Executive Secretary Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Engineer Erest Nwapa, during Nigeria Oil and Gas conference and exhibition, on Tuesday in Abuja.

Photo: Mahmud Isa

CAC registers 20,800 companies in four months

By Abdulwahab Isa

T

he total number of new companies registered within 24 hours since the commencement of the 24-hour start-to finish business registration by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) currently stands at 10,723.

This is contained in CAC’s latest report titled ‘Statistics for new registration services for Abuja and Lagos offices’, released to the

Ministry of Trade and Investment, on Tuesday in Abuja, according to Yemi Kolapo, senior special assistant on corporate communications, to the minister.

A breakdown of the report showed that the total number of applications for business registration received by the commission within the last four months was 20,800. Of this number, Abuja head office received 19919 applications, while Oregun and Yaba offices received 653 and

228 applications, respectively.

According to the report, the total number of applications processed within 24 hours in CAC’s Abuja head office was 10,292; while the Oregun and Yaba, Lagos offices processed 398 and 33 applications, respectively.

The report also showed that the total number of applications processed outside 24 hours but within 72 hours were 8,759. Of this number, the Abuja office accounted for 8,416, Yaba, 150 and Oregun,

Management Tip of the Day

I

Persuasion doesn’t require manipulation

f you’re trying to convince people outside clear reporting lines to collaborate with you, you’ll need to use your powers of persuasion.

This doesn’t involve manipulating your colleagues, but rather leading them to a shared solution. Here’s how: Establish credibility. If

you have a history of wellinformed, sound judgment, your colleagues will trust your expertise.

If you’ve demonstrated that you can work in the best interest of others, your peers will have confidence in your relationships.

Frame goals on common ground. Tangibly describe the

mutual benefits.

Vividly reinforce your position. Ordinary evidence won’t do. Make numerical data more compelling with examples, stories, and metaphors that have an emotional impact.

Source: Harvard Business Review

193.

The report, however, stated that the total number of applications that were pending after three days stood at 1,318 with the Abuja office accounting for 1,211 applications.

The Oregun and Yaba offices had 62 and 45 applications, respectively.

The registrar-general, CAC, Bello Mahmud, said it was important, in line with the directive of the Minister of Trade and Investment, Olusegun Aganga, to let the public know that the 24-hour registration service was working and also state common errors that had made some applications fall out of the 24-hour deadline.

Explaining the reasons some applications were not processed within the CAC’s 24-hour start-to finish timeline in the period under review, Mahmud said many customers failed to comply with “laid down requirements for business registration,” stressing that the corporation could only deliver after filing, when all requirements had been fulfilled.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

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Ayodele Samuel <gtms06@yahoo.com> 0806 372 7788

COMPANY NEWS

Union Bank

U

nion Bank of Nigeria Plc has transferred the legacy pension for post-2005 pensioners to their Pension Fund Administrators (PFA) in line with the Pension Reform Act (PRA) 2004.

The PFAs will consequently take over full responsibility for pension payments for affected pensioners (excluding pre-2006 pensioners) with effect from February, 2013.

The affected pensioners have been informed via letters and SMS. In addition, a contact centre has been set up on the 4th floor in Union Banks Head office (Stallion Plaza) in Lagos.

ITU

I

n order to met up with the June 2015 date line from analogue transmission to digital terrestrial broadcasting,the International Telecommunications Union has approved H.264 video encoding standard that will help video transmission faster and easy to access using only half the bandwidth.

The International Telecommunication Union’s H.265 standard is intended to help keep video flowing among smart phones, tablets, TVs and other devices as screen resolutions increase.

This will help to reduce the burden on wired and wireless networks, where video makes up a substantial portion of today’s traffic. Vendors and service providers are expected to phase in the new standard gradually as products and services outgrow the limitations of current technology.

NACCIMA

T

he Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) has commended the Oyo state government for its transformation of Ibadan into a modern state capital, which will attract foreign investment and facilitate industrial growth.

The NACCIMA National President, Ademola Ajayi said this during a courtesy call on the governor in his office in Ibadan yesterday.

Ajayi however urged the Governor to give priority attention to the Chamber of Commerce and the Organised Private Sector in his state. He said this necessary partnership will fast track industrial development of the state, as well as reduce unemployment.

T

he Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has express its readiness to focus said on the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) sector of the oil and gas industry as a result of demands by operators for a review of requisite standards in the system.

SON Director-General, Dr Joseph Odumodu said a review of standards for LPG is underway because there are variants of LPG products in the Nigerian market and many people have complained that they have seen some marketers importing LPG brands with high bromine content.

The law currently allows SON to certify all LPG tanks produced in Nigeria or imported from other countries before the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) issues licences to the owners.

Items in this category are LPG tanks, hoses, valves, regulators, skid stations (mobile filling plants), gas burners, cylinders, and others.

SON also issues approval for the importation of LPG cylinders and other LPG equipment to ensure that they

SON to review LPG standards

DG, SON, Dr. Joseph Ikemefuna Odumodu

meet the requirements of relevant standards, with the result that the SON registration numbers are engraved on all cylinders.

Odumodu said Act 56, Section 12 (2a & 2b) gives his agency the responsibility to invite such stakeholders as manufacturers, producers of the LPG, marketers, scientists, oil & gas sector operators, consumers, government agencies and gas filling plant owners to a technical committee meeting to discuss the standards.

He informed that a review does not necessarily mean that the standard would be changed but that it could be retained if presentations and submissions of stakeholders convincingly require so.

“Any aggrieved party as regards the review of a standard should attend the TC meeting and make his or her point known to the stakeholders and all different views will be discussed by the experts and a

Stakeholders wants Abuja Commodities Exchange transformed

S

takeholders, comprising the Technical Working Group (TWG) set up by the Federal Government to develop a new road map for the revitalization of the Abuja Securities and Commodities Exchange, are exploring the possibility of a Public Private Partnership as part of strategies to make the Exchange a worldclass institution.

The Managing Director, Abuja Securities and Commodities Exchange (ASCE), Mr.Yusuf Abdulraman, disclosed this on the sidelines of the election of new executives of the Commodities Brokers Association of Nigeria(CBAN), in Abuja.

He noted that the TWG has as members, the Minister of Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, and other

key ministers and heads of Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government such as the Ministers of Finance, National Planning, Communications Technology, Agriculture and Rural Development.

Others are the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Directors-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE).

The TWG, he said was currently working out modalities to revitalise the ASCE in order to enhance the country’s agricultural valuechain.

He said, “The revitalization process started in 2011 and the initiative came from the Minister of Trade and

Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, who saw it as a key, common man project because he felt that if he could revitalise the Abuja Securities and Commodities Exchange, the Nigerian farmer will make more income from his farm produce.

“This will encourage more farmers to go to the farm and produce more agro commodities, which will ultimately enhance the Federal Government’s Agriculture Transformation Agenda.”

He said the TWG, however, agreed that private capital should be on the higher side so that the project could have less of public participation.

“So, Nigeria will soon have a Commodities Exchange which is predominantly financed by the private sector,” he noted.

PIB: LCCI berates NASS over slow pace

T

he Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has kicked against the pace at which the National Assembly is considering the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), saying the process has lost steam.

LCCI President, Mr.Goodie Ibru, in a statement said the development gives cause “for serious concern, having regard to the imperative and urgency of reforms in the oil and gas sector, which is plagued by gross sub-optimality, policy uncertainty, inefficiency and corruption.”

“The PIB offers the framework to overhaul the petroleum industry for optimal value for the economy and its people. Regrettably, the process of passing the bill is being

obstructed by forces seeking to promote other interests over national interest.

He urged the National Assembly to “accelerate the process of consideration of the bill in the larger interest of the economy and its people. The economy is well-positioned to leverage on an efficient and competitive oil and gas sector to achieve the much desired transformation,” he said.

“We need to unlock the huge potential for job creation, backward integration, robust investments in refineries, investments in distribution and marketing of petroleum products, development of petrochemical industries and numerous multiplier effects that would be generated for the

economy.

He added that there would be huge savings in foreign exchange that would result from self-sufficiency in petroleum products production, as investments in refineries become attractive to investors.

Ibru observed that resources currently being committed to importation of petroleum products are horrendous and clearly not sustainable. “But for as long as we perpetuate the status quo, for so long will the economy remain vulnerable.”

He said the Chamber looks forward to the urgent passage of a PIB that would ensure transparency in the oil and gas sector and driven by technocrats so that the economy and the citizens could get optimal value.

decision that will be of benefit to the country will be taken,” Odumodu said.

He disabused the assertion that the review would favour one side of the stakeholders against the other, saying the reason for the review was to give stakeholders opportunity to look at salient issues dispassionately and arrive at what is best for the sector.

He pointed out that on the other hand, the re-qualification of cylinders is done every five years and will ensure that every cylinder will be inspected and re-tested to determine if it could serve their term as specified or scrapped.

Why new Trade policy is delayed

T

he Chairman of the Enlarged National Focal Point and the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment Mr. Dauda Kibgu, has charged members of the Committee to complete the process of trade review so that Nigeria would have a new trade policy that can give focus and direction to the country’s national and Intellectual trade activities and engagement.

Mr. Kigbu gave the charge during the meeting of the Enlarged National Focal Point (ENFP) on trade matters held at Shehu Yar’adua Centre in Abuja.

Kigbu said that the ENFP was expected to consider the draft trade policy for Nigeria which has been developed with a view to making inputs and finalization .

He recalled that the last policy was put in place in 2002 and was overdue for a review adding that the review of Nigeria’s trade policy was an important assignment and members of the committee to put in their best.

Kigbu said that, the Enlarged National Focal Point on trade matters was an interagency body charged with the responsibility of preparing Nigeria’s position on all trade issues at National, Regional, Continental and Multilateral levels.

In their deliberations, the stakeholders recalled that Nigeria has pursued an unstable and unpredictable tariff policy, with very high rates in some cases, and duty charges imposed with little or no consultation with interested parties adding that Nigeria is now follows consistent and predictable policy having adopted the ECOWAS Common External Tariff (CET), in line with its West African Partners.

The meeting noted that Nigeria has imposed Non Tariff Barriers (NTBs) in the form of trade restrictions or bans on the import of certain products.

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PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

By Hauwa Anaja

G

one are the days when agriculture was seen as an occupation for the old and illiterate. Technology has made it such that Agriculture has become attractive and many elites are keying into it.

That's why it may seem natural to see graduates managing farms, a situation many have described as worthwhile.

Ricketts Olorunpelumi Amighty is a 23 year-old graduate who is into fish farming in Kubwa metropolis of the Federal Capital Teritorry (FCT).

He began fish farming while studying water resources, aqua culture and fishery technology in the Federal University of Technology Minna, Niger state.

For Amighty, having the knowledge about what business he wanted to venture in was just the major boost he needed.

"Nigeria imports at least fifty percent of the fish we consume in a year," he laments. So, some schools of thoughts are of the opinion that government should convert some of the money spent on importing fish, to improve aquaculture and other aspects of agriculture."

But Amighty is not waiting on government to create this environment before keying into the sector.

"So, after graduating, I got some start up fund from my parents, and fortunately for me, I found land, so, I started."

He tells me of the journey so far. "To start a fish farm, the basic thing you require is land; consistent adequate water supply and a conducive environment to rear them. For me the most preferred type of pond is the earthen pond because it is very cost effective and they grow better and they are said to be sweeter as a result of the fact that it is their natural habitat.

"So I dug up three ponds which have the capacity of keeping at least 1,500 fishes each,'' he explains.

Exploring agro-business the fish farming way

A typical fish pond Easy as it sounds, the question that comes to mind is, can anyone just start a fish farm?

Amighty explains.

"Sure, all you need is to at least have the basic knowledge about fishes, you see, for me, that

was not a problem because I do have the knowledge. "Having knowledge just makes you better you know, in caring for them, what they need to eat, etc. Infact it helps you cut cost a lot," he says.

Like the saying goes, life itself is a challenge. Amighty tells me the challenges in fish farming.

"From my own point of view, the major challenge is finance and the market of course. A lot of people still buy the imported frozen fish, and like I said a lot of money is spent on importing them, so, the Nigerian government has to really address this if it really wants to ensure food security and create employment.

"Because even the ones imported are not enough to feed the whole country," he adds.

However, in order to confront the funding challenge, Amighty says, other areas need to be explored.

"I don't wish to operate on a small-scale for long, so, in order to grow I have employed more hands who would help me to increase my output because there are times when I may not even be able to meet the demand.

"Therefore, I have five workers, who I employ on contract basis, and as a way of generating more funds, I am exploring other business opportunities, like owning my own clothing label, that is I make labelled shirts, so that one business can complement the other, and life goes on," he smiles.

With the growing rate of

unemployment and the increasing population of eligible workers, there's no doubt that youths are exploring many means to earn a living.

Nigerian youths constitute about 70 percent of its population, and they form the major workforce of the country and out of this, over 45 percent, are unemployed.

A study by the British Council in Nigeria says if Nigeria fails to plan for its next generation, it faces ethnic and religious conflicts and radicalism, as a result of growing numbers of young people frustrated by lack of jobs and opportunities.

Indeed, this is evident in the recent security challenges witnessed in the country, occasioned by the insurgency in the North, militants in the Niger Delta, and kidnappings in the South and parts of the North.

Some youths are however exploring agribusiness to employ themselves, despite the glaring challenges of financial and moral support.

It is thus left to government to provide the necessary business environment required to not just reduce the unemployment figure, but ensure food security, for the general good of humanity and country.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 22

Customs generates N199.1m in Kebbi

NSC, shipping association to partner on quality services to port users

he Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) generated N199.6 million in 14 months at Maje customs outstation in Bagudo Local Government Area of Kebbi State, Mr Aliyu Bello, an Assistant Comptroller of Customs said yesterday.

He said that in 2012, the station generated N170.1million from duties paid on 1,710 imported vehicles. Bello added that N29 million was recorded by the station on imported vehicles from January to February.

He said that the station would improve on its revenue generation activities by being vigilant.

The assistant comptroller said that the station looked forward to a Customs Processing Centre (CPC) to be established in the area.

Bello added that the proposed centre would enhance revenue generation and reduce delays experienced at the station during transactions.

He said that the station had enjoyed maximum cooperation with the business community, especially in blocking all illegal routes used by importers along the border. (NAN)

From Ngozi Onyeakusi, Lagos

T

T

he Shipping Association of Nigeria (SAN) says it will collaborate with the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) to bring quality and competitive services to port users.

Mr. Val Usifoh, the Chairman of SAN, said this during a courtesy visit by the executives of the NSC at its headquarters on Tuesday in Lagos.

He said that the association had been partnering with the NSC for over 20 years, particularly on cargo interest.

“We are here to assure you

that the efforts we have jointly been making to make our ports progressive, viable and competitive should continue during this leadership. Nigerian Shippers Council is here to implement government’s policy and our duties are to support them.

“We receive complaints from cargo interests and they also receive complaints from shipping companies through our association, `` he said.

Usifoh said that the collaboration with NSC would make Nigerian ports competitive, cheap and efficient.

He said that the visit by the association would create synergy and make Nigeria a first choice destination for shippers.

“We have disagreed with Nigerian Shippers’ Council over 15 years ago and now we have discovered that partnering is the key to development. Partnering is the key to grow our business; partnering is the key in progressing government’s policy,” Usifoh said.

He said that NSC had been supportive in terms of tackling challenges in the ports, saying that “Nigerian Shippers Council is more or less a mediator’’.

Usifoh said that mutual trust and synergy mattered in making the maritime sector more prosperous.

In his response, Mr Hassan Bello, the Acting Executive Secretary of the NSC, said that he appreciated the visit. He said that the council had been receiving stakeholders in the last two weeks, adding that the interaction had created opportunities for exchange of ideas.

Bello said that the collaboration with stakeholders would enable NSC to perform its statutory roles of stabilising commercial shipping in Nigeria.

9 fuel-laden ships to discharge at Lagos ports

N

ine ships are waiting to discharge petroleum products at the various oil terminals within the Lagos ports, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has said.

NPA disclosed this in its daily publication, ‘Shipping Position,’ made available to newsmen on Tuesday in Lagos.

It indicated that five of the ships would discharge petrol.

The document said that two ships would discharge diesel, one would discharge base oil, while another ship would discharge bulk gas. It said that one ship would discharge general cargo.

The report said that 75 ships, carrying different cargoes, would sail into the ports between Feb. 19 and March. 10. The document indicated that 13 of the ships would arrive with petroleum products, while 11 would sail in with new and used vehicles. It said that 26 other ships would arrive with containers.

Other ships are coming with bulk wheat, bulk sugar, rice, bulk malt, fish, truck heads and bulk fertiliser.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 22 ships are currently discharging containers, bulk wheat, salt, steel product, ethanol, general cargo and petroleum products.

(NAN)

Welders at the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) welders training award of certificates, yesterday in Abuja. Photo: NAN From Osaigbovo Iguobaro, Benin

G

overnor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo state has signed the Tax Administration Bill into law, with a firm commitment to prudently deploy the resources of the state for the good of the people.

Speaking shortly after signing the law yesterday, in Benin city, Oshiomhole said taxes collected will be put to good use for the people to get value for their money.

Oshiomhole signs Tax Bill to law Governor said “I have just signed the law to make provision for the administration and for the collection of revenue due to Edo state. With this law, Edo State Revenue Board now has a formal legal basis for existence and every effort will be made to comply with the spirit and letter of this law and this is consistent to our commitment to reform various institutions of state and bring about long lasting positive

changes in revenue collection”.

Oshiomhole noted that “this law will help us to eliminate wastages in the system, to improve efficiency and enhance revenue collection. It is my hope that the level of compliance on tax related matters will increase and we will not need to resort to court or use other self help means to collect taxes due to government.

“It remains only for me to

reassure the good people of Edo State that taxes collected will be put to good use. As tax payers, you have all become stakeholders. He who pays tax has a right to question and to engage government on how his or her taxes are used. You have a right to influence the priorities of government. You have a right to insist that government delivers on its promises”, he added.

NNPC demolishes illegal structures along its pipeline at Arepo in Ogun

By Etuka Sunday

T

he Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), on Tuesday in Arepo Village, Ogun, demolished all illegal structures constructed along its pipelines’ right of way.

The affected structures include shops, fences, street gates, block industries, welder workshops and churches.

Armed soldiers and other security officials, including those of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), were seen supervising the exercise.

Also, some people whose properties were affected were seen removing the debris, while others were seen in groups discussing the development.

Farmers who planted cassava plant along the route were also seen removing them pre-maturedly.

An official of the NNPC, who spoke on condition of anonymity, noted that the exercise was as a result of the pipeline explosion that killed over 30 suspected petroleum pipeline vandals in the area recently.

It would be recall that Dr Ade Abolurin, Commandant

General, NSCDC, recommended the demolition of the structures to curb incessant explosions caused by vandals.

Ogun state Commandant, NSCDC, Mr Aboluwoye Ebenezer, said that the exercise started on Monday, adding that his men were fully on ground to monitor the situation.

Pastor Remi Johnson, Celestial Church of Christ, whose church was affected said that they were not aware that their structure was close to the NNPC’s right of way.

“When we bought this place,

we were told that the pipeline was far from us. We are not happy that part of our church was demolished.

“There is nothing we can do.

The main people that caused this problem are the vandals.

“The government should go after the vandals, who are destroying the NNPC pipes,” Johnson said.

A dry cleaner, whose shop was pulled down, Mr Etim Epko, said that they were not angry with the government, rather, they were vexed with the vandals that exposed them to the current problem.

PEOSPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Report as at Wednesday, February 20, 2013

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PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Non-stop shoutingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; heard in Pistorius home A

witness heard "non-stop shouting" coming from the home of Paralympic track star Oscar Pistorius shortly before his girlfriend was shot dead, the lead detective in the murder investigation said during the second day of his bail hearing.

Warrant officer Hilton Botha also told the Pretoria magistrates court on Wednesday that Pistorius' girlfriend, model and law graduate Reeva Steenkamp, was hit by three bullets, in the head, elbow and hip.

Pistorius, a double amputee known as the "Blade Runner", broke down in tears as Botha presented

his testimony. The day ended with the bail hearing being adjourned until Thursday morning.

The shooting has stunned South Africa and the millions around the world who saw the track glory of the athlete, who had no lower legs, as an inspiring tale of triumph over adversity.

Steenkamp was in a locked toilet adjoining Pistorius' bathroom when she was shot in the early hours of Thursday last week.

Botha said the angle at which the shots were fired through the door suggested the shooter had aimed specifically to hit somebody

in the toilet.

Botha, who arrived at the scene at 4:15am local time (02:15 GMT) to find Steenkamp dead at the bottom of the stairs, also said police had found unlicensed .38 ammunition in Pistorius' house in an upmarket gated compound north of Pretoria.

Botha said police found two containers of testosterone and needles in Pistorius' bedroom, as he said the athlete was a flight risk and should not be granted bail.

State prosecutor Gerrie Nel also had to correct Botha when he initially called the substance

"steroids.''

Pistorius' lawyer, Barry Roux, said on questioning the detective, who was described as a 16-year police veteran, that it was not a banned substance and that police were trying to give the discovery a "negative connotation.''

"It is an herbal remedy,'' Roux said.

"It is not a steroid and it is not a banned substance.''

On Tuesday, Nel told the court that he would elaborate on the state's version that Reeva Steenkamp and the athlete had a fight and that she fled to the toilet before Pistorius shot through the door four times and killed her.

Tunisia seeks new premier to escape political crisis

Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki (R) speaks with Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali as they met in Tunis.

T

unisian leaders began the search for a new prime minister on Wednesday to try to lead the North African nation out of its gravest political crisis since an uprising that inspired a wave of Arab revolts two years ago.

Rached Ghannouchi, the powerful head of the main Islamist Ennahda party, said the group had not named anyone to replace Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali, who resigned on Tuesday, but that

he expected a new government to emerge this week.

"We need a coalition government with several political parties and technocrats," Ghannouchi told reporters after talks with secular President Moncef Marzouki.

Jebali quit after his plan for an apolitical technocrat cabinet to prepare for elections failed. He had proposed it after the assassination of opposition leader Chokri Belaid

on February 6 shocked Tunisia and widened Islamist-secular rifts.

Eventually it was Jebali's own Ennahda party that scuppered the idea, extending a political impasse that has cast a shadow over Tunisia's fledgling democracy and ailing economy.

Tunisia began a transition to democracy after the peaceful overthrow of President Zine alAbidine Ben Ali in January 2011, electing a National Constituent

Assembly to write a new constitution, and then forging a deal under which the moderate Ennahda agreed to share power with its secular rivals.

But disputes have delayed the constitution and the failure to tackle unemployment and poverty in a country that relies on tourism has dismayed many Tunisians and led to frequent unrest.

"Today I cannot send a message of reassurance to investors abroad because local investors in Tunisia are not reassured and the outlook is not entirely clear," said Wided Bouchamaoui, president of Tunisia's Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Negotiations on a $1.78 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund cannot be concluded amid the latest uncertainty.

"Once a new government is named, we will inquire about its intentions/mandate. Once the political situation is clarified, we'll assess how best to help Tunisia," an IMF spokeswoman said.

Standard and Poor's lowered its long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit rating on Tunisia on Tuesday, citing "a risk that the political situation could deteriorate further amid a worsening fiscal, external and economic outlook".

French special forces in Cameroon helping hostage probe

F

rench special forces have arrived in northern Cameroon to help locate a French family who were kidnapped on Tuesday and moved to Nigeria, a local governor said on Wednesday.

The abduction of three adults and four children highlights the risk to French nationals and interests in Africa since Paris sent forces to Mali to oust Islamist rebels.

"French special forces came in yesterday from N'Djamena to help with the investigation. They left yesterday and came back today," Augustine Fonka Awa, governor of Cameroon's Far North Region, told Reuters by telephone.

He declined to say how many French military arrived from

their regional base in Chad's capital, which is about 40 miles from where the French tourists were taken.

French Defense Minister JeanYves Le Drian said on Wednesday evidence pointed to Nigerian Islamists Boko Haram, but there did not appear to be a direct link to France's intervention in Mali.

"We believe it's the Boko Haram group that carried out the kidnapping, but we don't know for sure. Unfortunately, terror breeds terror," Le Drian told France 2 television.

Asked to confirm or deny whether France had sent special forces, a spokesman at the Defense Ministry in Paris said only that their presence was an unfounded rumor.

Kenya's chief justice threatened over Kenyatta

K

enya's Chief Justice Willy Mutunga says he has been threatened with "dire consequences" if the courts barred presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta from contesting next month's election.

Mr Mutunga said he had received a "poison-pen letter" from an outlawed group "extolling" violence. Mr Kenyatta's Jubilee Coalition said it condemned any threats to the judiciary.

His candidacy has been controversial because he has been charged with crimes against humanity.

The case at the International Criminal Court (ICC) stems from allegations that Mr Kenyatta fuelled violence that followed the disputed 2007 presidential election.

Mr Kenyatta and his running mate William Ruto are due to be tried at The Hague about a month after the 4 March election.

Pressure groups asked Kenya's High Court to disqualify them from contesting the election because of the ICC case.

But the High Court refused, in a ruling on Friday.

It did not have the power to annul Mr Kenyatta's candidacy, the court said.

More than 1,000 people died in the violence which swept through Kenya after the 2007 election.

The violence ended after a coalition government was formed.

Mr Kenyatta and Prime Minister Raila Odinga are the frontrunners in next month's election.

President Mwai Kibaki is stepping down after two terms in office.

Mr Mutunga said he had received the "poison-pen letter from the Mungiki Veterans Group/ Kenya Sovereignty Defence Squad", a banned group which was heavily involved in violence after the 2007 poll.

French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian "French gendarmes visited the site of the kidnapping yesterday in coordination with Cameroonian

police to assess the situation and were protected by French military," he said.

Chief Justice Dr Willy Mutunga

PAGE 34

Asia and Middle East

A

ccusations by a U.S. computer security company that a secretive Chinese military unit is likely behind a series of hacking attacks are scientifically flawed and hence unreliable, China's Defence Ministry said on Wednesday.

The statement came after the White House said overnight that the Obama administration has repeatedly taken up its concerns about cyber-theft at the highest levels of the Chinese government, including with Chinese military officials.

The security company, Mandiant, identified the People's Liberation Army's Shanghai-based Unit 61398 as the most likely driving force behind the hacking. Mandiant said it believed the unit had carried out "sustained" attacks on a wide range of industries.

The Chinese Defence Ministry, which has already

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

China says U.S. hacking accusations lack technical proof denied the charges, went further in a new statement, slamming Mandiant for relying on spurious data.

"The report, in only relying on linking IP address to reach a conclusion the hacking attacks originated from China, lacks technical proof," the ministry said in a statement on its website (www.mod.gov.cn).

"Everyone knows that the use of usurped IP addresses to carry out hacking attacks happens on an almost daily basis," it added.

"Second, there is still no internationally clear, unified definition of what consists of a 'hacking attack'. There is no legal evidence behind the report subjectively inducing that the everyday gathering of online (information) is online spying."

As hacking is a cross-border, anonymous and deceptive

phenomenon, by its very nature it is hard to work out exactly where hacks originated, the statement said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei, asked about the U.S. taking up its concerns about hacking with Beijing, said: "China and the U.S. have maintained communication over the relevant issue".

Unit 61398 is located in Shanghai's Pudong district, China's financial and banking hub, and is staffed by perhaps thousands of people proficient in English as well as computer programming and network operations, Mandiant said in its report.

The unit had stolen "hundreds of terabytes of data from at least 141 organizations across a diverse set of industries beginning as early as 2006", it said.

Most of the victims were

located in the United States, with smaller numbers in Canada and Britain.

The information stolen ranged from details on mergers and acquisitions to the emails of s e n i o r employees, the company said.

But the C h i n e s e D e f e n c e Ministry said China's own figures show that a "considerable" number of hacking attacks it is subjected to come from the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei United States.

Protesters clash with Japanese whalers, call for naval intervention

A

nti-whaling activists called on Wednesday for Australia to send a naval vessel to the Southern Ocean after a confrontation in which they said a Japanese whaling ship collided with two of their protest vessels, damaging their

flagship.

"The Nisshin Maru has rammed the Steve Irwin and the Bob Barker, but both vessels continue to hold their positions," Paul Watson, the founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society which runs the protest

boats, said in a statement.

Watson also accused Japanese coastguard personnel of throwing concussion grenades at their protest ships during a confrontation in the frigid waters near Antarctica and said the Bob Barker was taking on

water in its engine room.

Australia said it was confirming the report of the incident. Neither the Japanese government nor its whaling authority immediately responded to the Sea Shepherd's account of the clash.

The Sea Shepherd group has clashed with the Japanese fleet for nine whaling seasons in the southern hemisphere summer, and has lost one of its ships, the high-speed trimaran Ady Gil which sank after a collision with a whaler in January 2010.

Pakistan bomb victims' burials begin Islam.Some protesters present at the

M

A mass grave under construction for the victims.

uslims in the Pakistani city of Quetta have begun burying victims of Saturday's bomb attack.

Relatives had refused to bury those killed in the attack for three days in protest at official inaction.

The burials were marked by a tense atmosphere as both security forces and officials reportedly fired shots into the air. No one was injured.

Almost 90 people were killed in the bombing, which was claimed by Sunni militant group Lashkar-eJhangvi.

More than 160 people were injured in the blast, which targeted an area populated by Hazaras, an ethnic group who practise Shia

burials said the victims should not be interred until the army agrees to intervene in Quetta, reports say.

On Tuesday, Pakistani police said they had arrested 170 suspects over the attack.

Security sources said police killed four people, including a bomb-maker accused of anti-Shia attacks.

The authorities have previously been accused of turning a blind eye to the killing of members of the Shia minority.

Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf has ordered an operation aimed at "eliminating those responsible for playing with innocent lives", although he has not released further details.

Tzipi Livni joins Netanyahu's coalition government

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Tzipi Livni

ormer Israeli opposition leader Tzipi Livni has agreed to join a new coalition led by the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Mrs Livni, head of the centrist Hatnua party, will be justice minister and chief negotiator with the Palestinians.

The party has promised to push for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

Mr Netanyahu is in discussion with other parties on joining his government, after winning elections.

Mrs Livni told Israeli Radio that Hatnua and Mr Netanyahu's Likud parties

shared "a common goal" and that she had not betrayed her voters.

Hatnua (The Movement) won just six of 120 seats in the Knesset in the 22 January polls.

Mrs Livni has previously criticised Mr Netanyahu for his handling of the Palestinian issue, accusing his joint election grouping with the Yisrael Beitenu party of right-wing "extremism".

Speaking on Wednesday, Mrs Livni downplayed past disagreements, saying "we understand there was nothing personal" and said that she had spent hours in talks with Mr Netanyahu.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 35

EMERGENCY UPDATE

NEMA strategises for improved DRR

By Mohammed Kandi

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he National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has mapped out strategies to improve on its frame works that would brace up against routine challenges, as well as enhance capacity development of emergency preparedness, mitigation, response and disaster risk reduction (DRR) in Nigeria.

Recently, the NEMA's North West Zonal Office under the leadership of its Zonal Coordinator, Alhaji Musa Ilallah embarked on courtesy visits to respective disaster managers across the seven states in the zone to enhance perfect collaboration in carrying out their mandated tasks.

A statement issued by the Zonal Coordinator, Alhaji Musa Ilallah recently, said this development comes as a result of a wide range of human and natural hazard induced disasters, adding that, "some of these disasters include ethno-

religious crisis, political chaos, floods, drought, food insecurity & malnutrition, population migrations, Internally Displaced Persons (IDP's), refugees and others."

"While health epidemics like Polio, Meningitis, Cholera and Lassa fever) are recurrent diseases that continue to pose great threat to the lives and livelihood of the populace, the multiple humanitarian challenges posed by these disasters could have far reaching impact on the situation," Ilallah said.

The zonal coordinator stated: "Naturally, despite all the effort being put in place to tackle disasters in a timely manner, the multiplicity of crises affecting the zone overstretches its capacity while the critical challenges still remain."

"NEMA faces several constraints having to take on responsibilities of other first responder agencies to take the lead in some critical disaster management but who lack the

capacity to do so. Consequently, the bulk of tasks still fall back upon the agency due to the limited human and material resources available for disaster response among responder agencies and stakeholders," he stated.

"In view of these challenges the agency has given signals of a new commitment by the authorities to work with respective stakeholders to tackle the country's humanitarian issues which the UN has been requested to provide support to address and notably assist in the elaboration of this policy," the coordinator explained.

Meanwhile, areas visited by the Agency include the States Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs), States Fire Services, Federal Road Service Corps (FRSC), State Ministries (health, environment, local government, works, youths and sports etc.), Nigeria Security & Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and other security agents.

Photographs of participants at the recent 4th Africa Regional Platform for DRR in Arusha, Tanzania alongside the 5th Africa drought Adaptation Forum planned for 11-12 February 2013.

YOUTHS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY

By Abubakar Jimoh abujimoh01@yahoo.com

Mitigating the impacts of global warming on biodiversity

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he earth has hitherto witnessed series of atmospheric changes, among which is the ongoing increasing global warming that has continue to wreak havoc on humanities.

The phenomenon of the dredged global warming are generally facilitated by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrous oxide, and methane, which traps heat and light from the sun in the atmosphere and speed up the earth's temperature level.

Apparently, global warming has posed negative effects to the weather in particular and by extension, to the agricultural conditions across the world as drier situations have continue to prevail across Sahel region of Western Africa, Southern Africa, Mediterranean, and parts of Southern Asia.

Consequently, drought becomes longer and more intense since 1970s particularly in the tropics and subtropics. Weather patterns have turn out to be less predictable giving chances to unexpected outbreaks of natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, and copious incidents of desertification around the world.

Also, the accelerating atmospheric warming has caused reparative effects on the surface layer of the ocean, thereby expanding it in volume and thus raising sea level which has complicated life in various parts of the world. Besides, the erosion of cliffs, beaches, and dunes increases and hence invade the river banks resulting to heavy flooding.

In its own accounts, Youths Against Disaster Initiative (YADI) observed that constant rising temperature level would cause a great harm to plants, which are naturally are sources of food to man and animals. YADI further stated that the impacts of global warming could heighten the amount of tropical diseases such as malaria mostly found in the tropics and transmitted by mosquitoes, yellow fever, and encephalitis.

In a bid to immune the Nigerian environments against hazards of global warming, the Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Alhaji Muhammad Sani-Sidi recently reacted that responding to the challenges of global warming would require fundamental changes in energy production, transportation, industrial and government policies, and development strategies around the world. This he said has prompted his sensitization campaigns against global

warming within and outside the country.

His words: "Forest preservation is an essential tactic to keep carbon dioxide emissions from reaching the atmosphere. It has been reported that trees, especially young and fast-growing ones, soak up a great deal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store carbon atoms in new wood. There is a need to reduce the growing rate of deforestation particularly in the tropics."

Undoubtedly, the industrial demands for agricultural products such as rubber must have prompted high incident of deforestation and soil changes across the globe. Arguably, such practices has accelerated the industrial growth, but may have paved way for intense global warming.

Therefore, there is the need for adequate environmental and wastes management through the adoption of systematic recycling to tackle global warming.

According to YADI, "recycling reduces pollution, as a product recycled creates less pollution than new one. It can also save energy by reducing the need to process new material, which usually requires more energy than the recycling process."

In the same vein, NEMA has cautioned individuals on the use of electrical gadgets such as leaving turned on television, computer, and light. It advised that individuals take time away from television and spend more time outdoors; while excessive use of mechanical engines like cares, buses, trucks that generate fume must be reduced.

At industrial level, the carbon dioxide brought to the earth surface through the natural gas drillings around the world must be properly captured, compressed, and injected into an aquifer deep below the seabed from which it cannot escape. In most cases, the process of carbon capture should include transporting the gas in compressed form to suitable locations for underground storage.

There is the need for a review and implementation of the global Environmental Protection Laws.

This would help to promulgate proper environmental use guidelines; and timely sanctions against injudicious use of agroallied materials by industries. For instance, United States has embarked on serious effort against local and regional air pollution since the declaration of Clean Air Act of 1970, amended in 1977 and 1990. This can also be achieved in Nigeria through sufficient reforms of the Environmental Protection Boards across the country.

PAGE 36

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Moribund N200m ambient air pollution monitoring stations T

he air we breathe is our basic life support system and we depend on it every minute of our life; night and day, asleep and awake.

The average human being is said to take more than 500 million breathe in his or her life, if what is inhaled is not as clean as it should be, its effects on lungs and health in general may therefore be multiplied hundreds of millions of times.

The effects of acute air pollution are well known. The chronic effects of long term air pollution are less dramatic but more insidious and more deadly.

Air pollution affects more than human health. The blackened buildings of many cities now stand testimony both to our failure to control air pollution and to clean up properly after it.

Based on this, in 1998, the then Federal Environmental Protection Agency (now Federal Ministry of Environment) installed an Ambient Air Pollution Monitoring Station at its headquarters in Abuja. The then Director General of the agency who became pioneer Permanent Secretary of the ministry of environment commissioned it, and promised that such stations were to be installed in capital cities across the ecological zones in the country, to identify the sources of air pollution in order to put appropriate control measures in place.

I was reliably informed that after the commissioning of the station that cost the tax payers N200 million, with pump and pageantry, never functioned for a day since

then. But with the creation of the Federal Ministry of Environment, good stock taking was expected.

Till date, air pollution that ought to be a key environmental issue as far as people's health are concerned have been criminally neglected by those In authority.

The only notable fall-out from the installation of the station was the program initiated by the then FEPA to reduce vehicular emission and safety standards in collaboration with Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) 995. This led to the formation of a Consultative Committee on Vehicular Emission with members drawn from line

ministries, Departments, Agencies and Associations like Nigeria Union of Road Transports Workers (NURTW) and Road Transport Employers Association (RTEAN).

The committee was to sensitize the public on the dangers related to vehicular emission and the need to evolve and enforce safety emission standards for the country. The committee later organized Vehicular Emission Reduction Campaign Rallies in Lagos and Kaduna.

The exercise was intended to cover the whole country as a major step towards the enforcement of vehicular emission standards in Nigeria.

Under the enforcement strategy, FEPA was to determine and establish pollution-related offences;

Air Ambient Quality Monitoring

ENVIR ONMENT ENVIRONMENT WATCH

By Ambrose Inusa Sule, mnes globenviron@yahoo.com 0703-441-4410 (sms only) FRSC would arrest and educate erring drivers, while SON's responsibility was to ensure that vehicles that come into the country and their accessories for emission control conform to our national standards, if any.

What a laudable program that has been allowed to remain moribund after just two outings in Lagos and Kaduna?

Today, as more than any period, air pollution mostly in urban centers and cities across the country remain one of the most dangerous environmental problems that requires urgent attention from the authority.

Nigeria as one of the most rapidly urbanizing countries in the world deserves some attention from the authority on air pollution control and abatement.

The inadequate public transportation system to cater for the influx of people to urban areas has brought in its wake an unusual pollution problem air pollution.

Following the increase in urban population with its consequent poor standard of living, due to the rate of unemployment, most people have taken to the use of motor-

NGO advices reduction on fossil fuel consumption

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nternational Centre for Energy and E n v i r o n m e n t a l Development (ICEED) has advised that Nigeria cuts down its dependence on fossil fuel consumption as part of measures to reduce effects of the climate change.

The Executive Director of the Center, Mr Ewah Eleri, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja.

Fossil fuel is a general term for buried combustible geologic deposits of organic materials, formed from decayed plants and animals that have been converted to crude oil, coal, natural gas, or heavy oils.

This is by exposure to heat and pressure in the earth’s crust over hundreds of millions of years.

The burning of fossil fuels by

humans is the largest source of emissions of carbon dioxide, which is one of the greenhouse gases that contributes to global warming.

Eleri also advised that the Federal Government extends campaigns on climate change mitigation and adaptation measures to the grassroots and put it on the front burner of national discourse to translate into concrete actions at the grassroots.

He said that methods of reducing greenhouse gases’ emissions had been adequately encapsulated in the climate change policy and the responsibility lay on the relevant agencies and line ministries to implement the policy.

According to him, by 2030, Nigeria’s clean energy contribution to the overall Nigerian energy mix should be

about 30 per cent or 40 per cent.

Eleri also urged the country to shift emphasis from nonenvironment-friendly electricity energy sources to environment-friendly ones.

He advised the Federal Government to invest more on solar energy in order to boost the campaign against climate change.

Eleri said that although the Federal Government could legislate for the states on issues concerning the environment.

He said that states like Lagos, Kaduna, Delta and Cross River were working in tandem with the requirements and dictates of climate change mitigation efforts.

“Everybody cannot be said to be marching at the same pace; the learning curve of the governors is also different, some are deep and some are shallow.

“So, not all the states are on

one page on that issue,’’ Eleri said.

He, however, urged the Federal Government to quickly access the Copenhagen and Global Environmental Facility Fund, for climate change reduction.

NAN recalls that in 2009, a 10 billion-dollar-a-year “Copenhagen Launch Fund” was established at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to help bridge the gap between the developed and developing countries in efforts to fight climate change.

Also, Britain and France proposed the creation of an environmental fund totaling 30 billion dollars to be evenly spent during the years 2010, 2011 and 2012, in efforts to help developing countries fight the effects of global warming.

(NAN)

bikes for mass transportation.

This has invariably increased the health risk associated with the gas emission from these poorly maintained motor-bikes.

The exhaust from this transportation system has become one of the major polluters of our cities and urban areas. They have continued to alter air quality in the atmosphere over the years.

Mostly in Lagos and Kano, air pollution from motor-bikes and other rickety vehicles, is so palpable that one could literally chocked on a busy day?

According to an Environmental Health Officer, these gases and particulate have serious effects on people's health including what he described as neurophysiologic effects.

He said, "The high level of exposure to complex air pollution affects overall quality of life and adversely contributes to asthma, allergies, cancers, neurotoxicity and immune suppression."

According to reports by the World Health Organization (WHO), "Road traffic is the fastest growing source of pollution in Europe and some other countries; more people are dying as a result of air pollution than are being killed in (traffic) accidents."

In the report, 21,000 people in Austria, France and Switzerland die prematurely every year from respiratory or heart diseases that are triggered by air pollution.

In a separate report, it is estimated that in 36 Indian cities over 110 people die prematurely every day as a result of air pollution. In a city such as London that has less pollution, thousands asthmatics to wheeze, 40 to be admitted to hospital with respiratory problems, and 27 excess deaths all within a-3day period in greater London.

Due to paucity of data in Nigeria, only God knows how many dies or hospitalized on daily basis due to air pollution.

The serious nature of airquality problems cannot be overemphasized, as there's the need for the authority to urgently put in place, effective planning and controls to reduce this environmental problem.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 37

Nigeria not a failed state, Presidency

By Lawrence Olaoye

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L-R: Kaduna state Governor,Alhaji RamalanYero, and Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Senator IsaiahBalat, during the water retreat, recently in Abuja.

Photo: Joe Oroye

APGA feud: Massalla faction concedes to Okwu’s leadership

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi

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nother twist yesterday greeted the conflict rocking the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), as the chairman of one of the factions, Sadiq Massalla, yesterday conceded the fight, accepting to join forces with the group inaugurated last Saturday to take over as the interim leadership for the party under Maxi Okwu, an erstwhile member of the party.

Voluntarily relinquishing his position as a factional chairman to pitch tent with the Okwu led APGA, Massalla said he arrived at decision after reading the judgment of the court which sacked the entire Executive Council of the party.

Speaking to journalists in Abuja, Massalla said he fully supports the meeting of the National Caucus of APGA

which agreed not to appeal the judgment, as well as backs the steps taken by the leadership of the party to organise a proper convention to enthrone genuine leadership as directed by the court.

He said he was kicking against the judgment owing to improper information, adding that since his lawyer has advised him properly, he has realised that the National Caucus acted in the spirit and letter of the judgement by the court.

“By the action of the Caucus, I have reverted back to being Deputy National Chairman North of the APGA,” he said, adding that it is a sacrifice he must make for the good of the party.

On this basis, he called on all members of APGA to accept the court judgment and disregard Victor Umeh, whom he said has been feeding the public with lies.

Meanwhile, Peoples Daily gathered that Massalla left his camp to join the Okwu’s group, which is backed by Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State, owing to a conflict arising between him and the National Secretary of his former faction, Ifedi Okwenna.

According to a reliable source in his former camp, the issue started when Okwenna could not give account of the four Million naira he got from governor Obi, while the battle for APGA structure was raging.

According to the source, while Okwenna claimed he got only one million from Obi, the governor actually confirmed that four million was made available to the former. It would be recalled that Massala had rejected the court ruling in a press conference he addressed, but suddenly accepted it under a

circumstance that has remained a surprise to the public.

Also speaking, the interim Chairman of the party, Maxi Okwu, said his mission is to reconcile the aggrieved factions and individuals in the party, saying he will not remain as the chairman.

He noted that the crisis in the party has become shameful, saying that efforts should be made to recover the party from extinction, pointing out that it is the potentials in the party that has made it susceptible to conflict.

“Every aggrieved member will be reconciled, even the founding father of the party, Chekwas Okorie, will be brought back, but those that refused to come back can go their ways,” Okwu stated.

Meanwhile, a national rally is being proposed in Awka for a convention that will bring in new set of leaders for the party.

2015: Group endorses Senator Lawan for Yobe governorship From Ahmed Kaigama, Bauchi

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roup under auspices of Yobe Youths Network for Justice (YNJYJ) has endorsed the Chairman, Senate committee of public

accounts, Senator Ahamad Ibrahim, to contest Yobe state governorship slot in 2015.

In a statement signed by its Chairman, Comrade Ibrahim Garba, and made available to newsmen in Bauchi, the group said as a true representative of

the yearnings and aspirations of his people in the Senatorial Zone, Ibrahim has come to represent a distinct and sound voice on the floor of the Senate at all times on account of his eloquence and incisive analytical prowess

It stated further “It is therefore ideal and proper to render an account of achievements of Distinguished Senator Ahamad Ibrahim Lawan, on why he deserves to be governor of Yobe State 2015.

ollowing the statement credited to Professor Ben Nwabueze that Nigeria is sliding into a failed state, the Presidency yesterday said such comment is an act of irresponsibility and unpatriotic, adding that available figures do not suggest such.

This is even as the Special Adviser on governors and governance to the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Osaro Onaiwu aligned himself with the presidency describing the comment as unpatriotic. Prof. Nwabueze had on Saturday said at the Igbo Youth Movement in Enugu that the nation is gradually sliding into a failed state.

Reacting to the comment yesterday, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe said “a failed state is where there is erosion of legitimate authority, where there is instability and the country cannot afford to provide public services like the provision of light, good roads, water supply and security services.

“There are guarantee laws and services in Nigeria, even in states of Borno and Yobe where there are security challenges like the Boko Haram. Even today, Nigeria is providing security services to Mali.

All these have not suggested any iota of failed state. They are dreaming negative dreams for the country and it will not happen.

None of the indices of failed state is applicable to Nigeria. There is no breakdown of law and order in Nigeria,” Okupe said.

Onaiwu said Nigerians are in the habit of running down their country, adding that it is even more disturbing when negative comments are coming from elders who one way or the other fought against undemocratic regimes in the past.

“Now that our democracy is displaying stability even in its infancy, these statesmen should be thankful to this government for tackling some of the fundamental problems that were thrown at us by regimes that were not accountable to anybody. Problems that we all know cannot be solved overnight,” he added.

He however declared that one way to determine whether Nigeria is a failing state or not is to look at the Foreign Direct Investment which he said is already over $9 Billion the largest in Africa.

He said, “I doubt if all these foreigners pumping money into our country think Nigeria is a failing state,” he added that “they see better communication, they see better transportation, they see a pool of educated youths, they see improvement in power and security amongst others.”

PAGE 38

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PDP mourns Esiri

By Lawrence Olaoye

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Anambra state Governor Peter Obi, briefing journalists during his official visit to the State House, on Monday in Abuja.

Photo: Joe Oroye

he leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed shock over the death of veteran actor, Justus Esiri, describing it as a national loss.

PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh in a statement yesterday described late Esiri as an epitome of virtue who used his talent to teach values and patriotism and urged the younger generation of Nigerians to emulate him.

The Party said Esiri contributed immensely to the development of the nation’s movie industry adding that his memory, especially his role as Headmaster in the Village Headmaster series which aired on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), will remain fresh in the hearts of Nigerians.

“The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) received the news of the death of veteran actor, Justus Esiri with deep sadness. Esiri was an epitome of virtue who used his talent to teach values, patriotism and hard work especially to the younger generation of Nigerians.

“He contributed immensely to the development of the nation’s movie industry and his memory will remain fresh in the hearts of Nigerians. The nation will indeed miss his wealth of experience and dedication to duty”, the statement said.

2015: Group faults call for Borno D/Gov. withdrawal Adamawa PDP accuses From Mustapha Isah Kwaru,Maiduguri

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group in Borno under the aegis of Southern Borno Leaders of Thought, yesterday faulted a claim that the state Deputy Governor, Zannah Umar Mustapha was fraternizing with the former governor, Ali Modu-Sheriff and as such would not receive the support of Biu people in the 2015 electioneering.

The group was countering the position of another group, Biu Progressive Youth Forum, urging Governor Kashim Shettima to drop his deputy, as running-mate by 2015 general elections.

It argued that the romance between Sheriff and Zanna was ‘unacceptable’ due to the former’s alleged perceived

‘marginalization’ of Biu people in the appointment of public offices during his eight years stewardship.

But the Borno leaders in a statement signed by its chairman and secretary, Alhaji Abdullahi Shettima, and Mr. Steven Msheliza, described the claim of the rival forum as misleading, capable of heightening tension and causing confusion in a state that is just experiencing relative peace.

“We were amused by the claim of a faceless group that called itself Biu Progressive Youth Forum in some national dailies yesterday. We would not have reacted to the claim as contained in the statement purportedly authored by equally faceless persons but for

the deliberate attempt of the socalled forum to mislead the public, cause confusion and heighten tension in our dear Borno State which is currently enjoying gradual return of peace.

“We believe it is not only uncharitable but inhuman for anybody to start raising any dust in Borno now regarding 2015 because our people are just recovering from the pains and anguish of the crisis that has claimed many innocent lives and several properties”, it said.

The group noted that the purported forum demonstrated its ignorance of the mood and the feeling of Borno people as clearly shown in the statement and by claiming that the deputy governor was fraternizing with the former governor.

“Whatever that means to them is unclear to us because both Sheriff the incumbent governor and his deputy are members of same political family and our illustrious sons. Should they be fighting themselves at the expense of the development of our state? the group queried”.

It said though it was not the official mouthpiece of the government but it believed Zannah would not have “fraternized” with the former governor, as claimed, without the knowledge of his boss (Shettima).

The group also described as unfounded the allegation of marginalization of Biu as claimed by the forum, saying many development projects were executed in the last dispensation in the state.

2015: APC has enough time to consolidate

By Nasiru Mu’azu Isa

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ice Chiramn, House of Representatives committee on Customs, Honourable Ibrahim Bello, has said the new political party APC has enough time to consolidate and become a strong opposition party in 2015.

Bello made the statement during an interactive session with newsmen in Kaduna, saying “We have enough time for this merger, this time

around. We have enough time for this marriage to be sealed among these four political parties. The dynamism of opposition is what Nigeria needs”.

On the issue of a presidential candidate, Hon. Bello said that is not the focus of the party right now, “We are consolidating and building bridges that will make us stronger” he insisted.

“The issue of presidency in respect of this merger is never a

part of issue now. What we want is formidable understanding, unity of purpose, all interest and ambitions kept aside and that issue will come up when the time comes”, he observed.

Bello assured Nigerians that the party will choose an honest and credible person who will lead the nation forward when the time comes.

He said recently members of the custom committee went on oversight at the ports to check on the new scanner machines

and said the issue of loss of custom revenue could be blamed on the bureaucracy of the Ministry of Finance.

On the issue of the SEC, Bello said the House of Representatives will not agree with the executive until they can prove the report on the capital market investigation wrong.

“We are not going to hold anybody to ransom. We have no malice, but justice must be seen to be done”, Bello insisted.

Atiku of causing crisis From Umar Dankano,Yola

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he lingering crisis rocking the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP)has taken a different dimension with the state chairman of the party Alh.Mijiyawa Kugama accusing the former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of being the architect of all the crisis plaguing the party in the state.

During a press conference in Yola, the reinstated Kugama alleged that the former Vice President has evolved different media tactic to put down the executives of the party in his own state. The PDP boss alleged that Atiku has declared total media war on Adamawa state party leadership as well as the state government led by the ruling PDP through his media houses.

He alleged that Atiku was heating up the polity in order to cause disunity among the party faithful by giving wrong information to the general public about the leadership of the party using his media houses as instrument of propaganda.

He, however, disclosed that the party leadership has since petitioned Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) about the conduct of Atiku media houses stressing that the party will use the stick and carrot approach to deal with Atiku as a card carrying member who should not take himself above the party interest

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

2015: Ahmed, Saraki charges opposition parties on communal development From Olanrewaju Lawal, Ilorin

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overnor Abdulfatah Ahmed and immediate past governor of Kwara State, Senator Bukola Saraki, have challenged opposition parties in the state not to wait until elections period before contributing to the development of the people in the state.

Governor Ahmed who challenged the opposition parties during the flag-off of road grading in Oko-Erin ward, Kwara Central Senatorial district

by Saraki’s at the weekend noted that a party that loves its electorates would not wait until election before taking care of their needs.

Ahmed who declared his administration redainess to tar all the graded feeder roads by Saraki said the former governor has always demonstrated leadership by example adding that his gestures in supporting present government in education, water and roads should be emulated across the country. He noted that the meaning of continuity “is value for money”, stressing that there would not be abandoned projects in the state.

Saraki, who spoke earlier, had warned opposition parties to stay away from the people of his ward if they cannot help them.

He said his motive to bring two grading bulldozers to OkoErin ward was to show the electorates that it was not only on television that they would be seeing their representative contributing to the development of the nation but that the physical projects should also be felt at home.

Saraki recalled that his late father, Dr Olusola Saraki, was not a kind of politician that do wait until election before imparting on the communities stressing that if opposition parties mean well for the people of the state, they should be competing in capital projects before elections period.

PAGE 39

3rd Mainland Bridge: PDP commends Works minister for saving N28bn

By Lawrence Olaoye

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he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday commended the Minister of Works, Arc. Mike Onolememen, for saving the nation N28 billion from a contract for under-water inspection of Lagos Third Mainland Bridge.

The party in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief

Olisa Metuh, recounted that Onolememen rejected the N33 billion contract proposal for the inspection when he discovered that the actual cost of the project was only N5 billion.

According to the PDP, the minister’s action was yet another testament to the anticorruption stance of the President Goodluck Jonathanled PDP administration.

It said the minister has saved the nation a huge sum of

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head of the FCT Area Council election slated for March,16th, 2013, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate has received large turnout of youth from Rimba/ Ebagi ward during the campaign visit by the stalwart of Abaji Peoples Democratic Party ,FCT .

The campaign group led by the present council Chairman Hon. Yahaya Musa Muhammed called on community members, most especially those that are eligible to vote to come out enmass to vote for the PDP candidate, Hon. Yahaya Garba Gigbe.

He said the changes witnessed in rural communities is as a result of good agenda of PDP in FCT,

The PDP which said it is very proud of the Minister, charged him to remain steadfast and continue to resist temptations from fraudulent persons and companies.

The leadership of the party also called on other government functionaries to emulate the Minister of Works and ensure that due process is always followed in all activities of government in line with the anti-corruption stance of the party.

It also charged contracting firms in the country to desist from such fraudulent tendencies especially the practice of inflating contract costs to defraud the nation.

The Minister of Works, who appeared before the Senate on Monday told lawmakers that he rejected the proposal when he used his engineering experience to discover that the firm, which only reached for solutions and recommendations without technical inspection, inflated the cost of project inspection to N33 billion when the entire job will cost only N5 billion.

PDP Crisis: Youths call for Jonathan, governors’ intervention

By Lawrence Olaoye

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L-R: Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal,and Hon. Garba Umar Uba, after the plenary season, recently at the National Assembly in Abuja. Photo: Mahmud Isa

Rimba/Ebagi youths backs PDP candidate in Abaji

By Adeola Tukuru

money which would have been carted away by unscrupulous contractors but for his patriotic stance and application of his engineering experience for public good.

“The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) commends the Minister of Works, Arc Mike Onolememen, for his display of patriotism in turning down the N33 billion proposal by a contracting firm for underwater inspection of a section of the Third Mainland Bridge after his direct discovery that the actual job will cost only N5 billion.

“This is a rare display of patriotism and another testament to the anticorruption stance of the President Goodluck Jonathanled PDP administration. The minister in applying his engineering experience which enabled him to discover that the entire job will cost only N5 billion shows his patriotism and justifies the confidence reposed on him by President Goodluck Jonathan,” the statement said.

calling on every individual to continue to support the present administration as the incoming shall do more.

He said “The developmental projects we are witnessing in our various communities is as a result of good governance of People Democratic Party to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people; I urged you all to come out en-mass on election day to vote for P.D.P candidate so that more transformation will be witnessed.”

The chairman also called on youth to shun violence and embrace peace in their various communities to enable government to site more projects in their areas.

Comrade Ibrahim Gana who

spoke on behalf of youth at Ebagi said they have mobilized themselves to work for P.D.P in the forth coming Area Council elections. He added that they were already waiting for the victory of P.D.P candidate as the awareness level had now reached the peak in their wards.

The PDP aspirant thanked the youth of the communities he visited and promised them government support in education, farming and employment if given the mandate. He said they should come out very early in the morning on Saturday March,16th, 2013 to cast their votes for him and urged them to man their polling units very well so as not to allow political thugs to create disruption to the election exercise.

eople’s Democratic Party (PDP) youths under the aegis of the PDP Youths Congress (PDPYC) has called on President Goodluck Jonathan and PDP governors to intervene in the crisis rocking the party, saying; “The PDP house is crumbling and if urgent corrective steps are not taken, the Dr Bamanga Tukur-led National Working Committee (NWC) would kill the party.”

The Congress, which said it was worried at the rate due process of law was being jettisoned by the NWC for crude and retrogressive actions, added that; “the last week Friday’s decision of the NWC sacking the South-West Zonal Working Committee and recognizing the Buruji Kasamu-led faction of the party in Ogun state is a total affront on the rule of law.”

In a release issued yesterday by its Convener, Mr. Oluwole Durojaiye, copy of which was made available to journalists online, PDPYC said it was clear that the Bamanga Tukur-led NWC does not mean well for the party and it should be given the red card that it deserved.

Queried PDPYC: “if a judgment of a lower court had been appealed against and the Appeal Court had already granted a stay of execution of the judgment, what interest does the NWC has to have directed the withdrawal of the appeal?

“And if a notice of withdrawal of an appeal was filed and other parties to the

case have also notified the court that they are not parties to the notice of withdrawal, shouldn’t the NWC have waited for the Court of Appeal to adjudicate on the notice of withdrawal before going ahead to give effect to the already stayed judgment of the lower court?

“Then, why hasn’t the NWC acted on the order of Justice O. E. Abang in Suit Number FHC/ L/CS/282/2012, which nullified the National Convention that produced the entire members of the NWC? “Why is the Bamanga Tukur-led NWC choosing which court order to obey and which one it should not obey, and in the process acting in contempt of the Appeal Court?”

The youths said further; “From all intent and purposes, there must be a certain interest being protected by the NWC and it is painful that this is being done at the expense of our great party, the PDP. “If not, what made the issue of the Ogun State and the South-West Zonal Excos so urgent that an emergency meeting had to be held to address it? Was there a valid court judgment or order that would have been contravened had the NWC not acted as it did last Friday?

“All these are questions our President and governors must ask the Bamanga Tukur-led NWC before they destroy our party and jeopardize the chances of we, the youths that are desirous of using the party platform to achieve political greatness like our president and governors.”

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PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

2015: 20 parties endorse APGA From Ayodele Samuel, Lagos

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L-R: Chairman, House Committee on ICT, Hon. Ibrahim Shehu Gusau, Deputy Chairman of the committee, Hon. Tajudeen Yusuf, and member of the committee, Hon. Faparusi Bamidele, during the one day public hearing on Cyber Security Bill,yesterday at the National Assembly. Photo: Mahmud Isa

APC, a political liability for opposition in Nigeria, says FCT Minister

By Stanley Onyekwere

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he minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Muhammed, has described the newly formed All Progressive Party (APC) as a still birth waiting for burial even as he referred to the party as a political liability for opposition in the country as it is bereft of the necessary ingredients to survive in the nation’s political terrain.

Bala made the assertion on Tuesday when he led the FCT Minister of State, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide and other PDP stalwarts in

the territory to flags off campaigns in Gwagwalada and Kuje Area councils for the March 16 council elections in the Territory.

According to the minister, the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) still remains the party to beat as it is the best and biggest political party in the country because of its strong structures and achievement over the years.

“Come March 16 we will bury the so called mega opposition platform that has no leg, eyes or any sensory organ; just a vegetable and a still birth, and therefore a political liability to the opposition in the

country”, he stressed.

The minister, who declared what he described as operation capture Gwagwalada from the ruling opposition party, explained it is the heart of the territory, and therefore cannot continue to be outside the PDP, however denied having any stake in determining how the election is going to be conducted as it is squarely in the hands of Independent National Election Commission (INEC) at the National level.

On the prospect of the party in the forthcoming election, Mohammed said that with the

party’s pedigree, they are ready to play politics without bitterness with the opposition, saying ‘not because we are in power but we have really shown that to be in power you have to carry people along, and we have captured the aspirations and yearnings of the people in the process’.

“The Party have had leakages in the territory because of internal party problems that sprang up after primaries arising from disgruntlement, which most often cause division and rancour within the ranks in the party, which the party is working assiduously to resolve”, he explained.

2015 Presidency: CNPP urges Aliyu to dump PDP for APC From Iliya Garba, Minna

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onference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), Niger state chapter, has resolved to impress on Governor Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu to dump the Peoples Democrtic Party (PDP) and join the newly formed All Progressive Congress (APC) so as to give him the opportunity of clinching the presidency in 2015.

The state chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Isah, who disclosed the move at a press briefing shortly

after the meeting of the members in Minna , Niger state capital on Tuesday said, “We are sending genuine invitation to Chief Servant of Niger state , Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu to join his fellow progressive governors in ensuring the safe delivery of truly progressive party as a successful alternative to the PDP in 2015".

He disclosed that the CNPP in Niger state has set up a powerful delegation to meet and deliver the invitation to the Chief Servant shortly as well as to search for a

credible candidate for the position of governorship in the state.

The chairman pointed out that the decision of the members to put pressure on Aliyu to join the newly formed progressive party is to facilitate his contest for presidency in 2015 as president Goodluck Jonathan has indicated interest to re-contest for a second time. He stressed that the mega party is already a successful alternative to the PDP in 2015 but needed a candidate that is fearless, tested and trusted like the governor.

Furthermore, the Conference called on the facilitator of the emerging mega-party to, as a matter of emergency, invite the leadership of other political parties to a roundtable in order to make the mega party a successful alternative to the PDP in 2015.

Meanwhile, all members that attended the meeting unanimously passed a vote of confidence on the leadership of CNPP as well as applauded the developmental efforts of the PDP led administration in the state.

he 20 political parties under the aegis of the Patriotic Alliance of Nigeria PAN, an association of opposition political parties, yesterday adopted the All Progressive Grand Alliance ahead of the 2015 general election.

Addressing newsmen after a closed door meeting in Lagos yesterday PAN spokesman and the National Chairman of the Action Alliance, Dr. Dele Jadi, said that the group choose APGA because of its transparency and clear cut political ideology.

"APGA has a clear cut ideology on issues that will facilitate National development; hence the decision to adopt the party as a platform for the 2015 election," Jadi said.

PAN, a group comprising of 20 registered political parties also added that the platform will be an all inclusive alliance in the forth coming election. He noted that the parties are not going into a merger but an alliance using APGA to present a single candidate for the presidential election.

The meeting which have in attendance representative of the political parties including Accord Party, Citizen Popular Party CPP, African Democratic Congress ADC, New Nigeria Peoples Party NNPP, Advance Congress of Democrat (ACD),United Democratic Party UDP, Allied Congress Party of Nigeria ACPN, Mega Progressive Peoples Party MPPP among others also expressed its readiness to support the new interim chairman, Barrister Maxi Okwu, on the onerous task of repositioning APGA for the election.

Responding to newsmen after the meeting, APGA Interim National Chairman assured that the party will not disappoint Nigerians. He said the only credible platform which the Nigerian masses can identify , stressing the party leadership appreciate the opportunity to use the party for the huge alliance.

He however said that despite the current challenges facing the party, APGA's leadership has set up a committee to reconcile aggrieved members of the party.

Okwu said he will continue to foster the unity which PAN is known for in the new alliance, stressing that selfish political interest has been the bane of political alliance in Nigeria.

He clarified that APGA was not involved in the newly formed All Progressive Congress (APC).

PDP swears in new Auditor, inaugurates S/West caretaker c'ttee

By Lawrence Olaoye

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he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday swore-in Alhaji Adeyanju Fatai as its new National Auditor after the sack of his predecessor, Chief Bode Mustapha.

This is coming as the party National Working Committee (NWC) chaired by its Deputy

National Chairman, Dr. Sam Sam Jaja also inaugurated the South West Care Taker Committee of the party chaired by Chief Ishola Filani.

The oath of office was administered on the new National Auditor by Chief Joe Gadzama (SAN) at the party's Abuja headquarters under the Chairmanship of the Deputy National Chairman who stood in

for his boss, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.

Jaja said the inauguration was done consonance with the court order which nullified the congress that brought in the sacked Chief Segun Oni led executive committee of the South West.

The Deputy National Chairman cautioned the newly inaugurated members of the caretaker committee that the task

before them was unenviable just as he charged them to endeavour to reconcile party members from the region.

He urged them to subsume their personal interests under the larger party interest so that the dream of regaining lost states in the South West could be realized.

Jaja added that the motive for setting up the Filani led committee was not to be vindictive but to

reposition the PDP in the South West.

Responding on behalf of members of the committee, Filani assured the NWC members that he would ensure that the task given his committee is accomplished.

He however clarified that the committee was set up not to spite former President Olusegun Obasanjo or any member of the party in the region.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 41

Emenike out of World Cup qualifier versus Kenya

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FCON Golden Boot winner, Emmanuel Emenike, will miss next month’s World Cup qualifier against Kenya at the UJ Esuene Stadium, Calabar because of hamstring injury.

The Spartak Moscow forward, who tormented Eagles’ opponents at the 29th AFCON before injury forced out of the final, will be missing in action for 8 weeks.

Emenike, who was shocked at the level of the injury, told a wire service from his team’s training camp in Spain that the team’s doctor has confirmed that he will be out for next two months against the two weeks the Eagles medical staff said.

“I expected the medics with the national team to tell me how long I would be out of action, they gave me wrong information that I will be out for two weeks, but that was a lie and I am not happy with it. On getting to my team’s camp here in

Spain, they told me I will be out for eight weeks after examination,” Emenike disclosed.

“I should have been told right from South Africa that I will be out for this long, rather than coming to discover here at my club. It was not funny at all.

“After doing well for Nigeria at Nations Cup, my club expected me to come back and perform better and not to return with injury when I am needed.”

The striker admitted rues the injury stressing that it is a big blow to him and his Russian club.

“I don’t know what to say because this is a big setback for me and my club,” he said.

“I was as desperate as anything to return back to action for my club but it was a different story entirely here but all the same, I hope to be back for good and better soon.”

Flying Eagles humble junior Pharoahs in Egypt

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he Flying Eagles yesterday gave indication of what to expect at next month’s Africa Youth Championship (AYC) in Algeria by posting a convincing 3-1 win over their junior Pharoahs counterpart.

Christian Pyabara fired a brace as the AYC defending champions came from behind to beat their hosts at the Degla Stadium outside Cairo.

The hosts had taken the lead against the run of play in the 50th minute through a header by Ibrahim El-Sayid El-hadad off a corner.

But the Nigeria junior Eagles fought back and deservedly drew level in the 61st minute when Sharks forward Pyabara finally smash home a rebound after his first attempt came off the post.

Skipper Abduljaleel Ajagun then extended the

Flying Eagles lead in the 77th minute he jabbed home from inside the box after yet another flowing team buildup from the right.

Pyabara then made it 3-1 in the 81st minute when he headed home a delightful cross from the left by Kingsley Madu. Ajagun could have widened the margin eight minutes from time but somehow he missed in front of a begging net.

In the first half, the Flying Eagles were by far the better team and created the better chances but could not put any away. The two teams will again square up on Friday night at the same venue.

The Flying Eagles will then depart for Tunis on Saturday morning to continue the build-up for the defence of their AYC crown. The 2013 AYC in Algeria will kick off on March 16.

CAF 2015: Nigeria may draw Senegal, Cameroon, Egypt

By Patrick Andrew

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FCON defending champions, the Super Eagles of Nigeria could be drawn together with seven times winners Egypt, four times champions Cameroon and Senegal.

This may be possible

following the Confederation of African Football (CAF) disclosure of its seeding for the draw for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations that will be held in Morocco.

The draw will take place on March 10 in Morocco during CAF General Assembly, with the qualification

Stephen Keshi, Super Eagles head coach

procedure reverting to its normal format as opposed to the modified mode for the just-conclude edition.

Already, 48 teams are on the starting line and seeded in four pots of 11 teams each according to their current ranking.

Though Egypt, Cameroon and Senegal all failed to qualify for the 29th edition of the tournament-all but the Senegalese Lions missed the tournament for the consecutive times after missing first the jointly hosted edition in Gabon/ Equatorial Guinea and the recent fiesta held in South Africa.

Nonetheless, CAF seeded all three teams on Pot Two while Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Mali and Ghana-

all semi-finalists of the last edition and the quarter-finalists are seeded.

Seedings Pot one: Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Mali, South Africa, Cape Verde, DR Congo, Zambia, Tunisia, Ghana.

Pot two: Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Senegal, Cameroon, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Gabon, Uganda, Congo, Central African Republic.

Pot three: Ethiopia, Benin, Angola, Niger, Z i m b a b w e , E q u a t o r i a l , Mozambique, Malawi, Burundi, Liberia, Sudan.

Pot four: To be determined after the preliminary round.

Emmanuel Emenike

IG urges NFF to sustain Eagles’ tempo

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he InspectorGeneral of Police, Alhaji Mohammed Dikko Abubakar has urged the executive committee of the NFF to sustain the Super Eagles’ winning aura by remaining committed and focused in its plans and programmes for the team.

The IG, who is a former board member of the NFF, said yesterday that the present board has the capacity to deliver more international trophies to Nigeria if only the leadership sustains its management tempo.

Speaking when Aminu Maigari led some members of the board and

management team to the office of the IG, the head of Nigeria Police urged them not to succumb to distractions but to keep their pecker up and ensure that n e c e s s a r y administrative discipline is maintained.

“I have no doubt that with even greater commitment and focus, your administration has the wherewithal to plan well for Nigeria to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals and perform well at the finals,” said IGP Abubakar.

Further, he urged them to continue to instill discipline and commitment in the players adding that these qualities would

assist the Eagles to achieve greater success.

Maigari praised the IG for his support to the team adding that the Super Eagles’ victory at the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa was achieved with the prayers and support of all Nigerians.

“We praise you for always being there for the Nigeria Football Federation and the moral support you give all the time by being present at crucial games involving the national team.”

Maigari was accompanied on the visit by some board members, Super Eagles’ head coach and some members of the NFF management team.

NRA President says FIFA’s goal-line technique could malfunction

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he Nigeria Referees Association (NRA) has lauded FIFA for adopting the goal-line technology to resolve “disputable’’ goal-scoring decisions in matches, but noted that the gadget could also malfunction during matches.

Ahmed Maude, the President of the NRA made the remark during a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Lagos.

“Football is a game for human beings, so referees are human and liable to make mistakes, I don’t know how

these gadgets will work but how error proof are they?

“It is a welcome development, it will make football more interesting, there are lots of technologies that have been introduced that have helped to improve the game.

“Machines can fail just like human beings, I guess we will just have to make this work, mistakes are natural in soccer,” Maude said.

He, however, disagreed that the gadgets could relegate referees to the background, when it would be

eventually adopted worldwide.

“No it cannot make referees useless; the new technology cannot substitute a referee, that’s impossible! It’s an era that will serve its own purpose and its technology something new could come again tomorrow it can only get better,” the president said.

Tuesday’s decision became imminent after FIFA’s rule-making panel- IFAB- decided last July to approve goal-line technology at competitive matches after two systems passed extensive tests.

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PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Isima’s death shocks coaches

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x-Nigerian footballers, Christian Chukwu and Henry Nwosu, have expressed shock over the death of their 1980 Africa Cup of Nations teammate, Okey Isima.

Chukwu also known as Chairman and Nwosu were members of Nigeria’s squad that won the Afcon in 1980 alongside Isima.

“I’m still shocked by the news because Okey was such a gentleman who was intelligent.

Suddenly the memories of 1980 and how we won the Nations Cup is beginning to play back.

The memories of playing with him in the final of the 1980 final against Algeria is beginning to look like yesterday though it was more than 30 years now,” said Chukwu.

“Our paths also crossed beyond the national

team then because we were teammates at (Enugu) Rangers. He was a very professional footballer and always put in everything in matches and even training back then.”

Nwosu also said: “Okey was a close friend.

When I came into the national team around the late 1970s, early 1980s, he was always encouraging me as I was still in schoolboy then.

He was very experienced at over 20 years in age at that time and was playing for a big club like Rangers.

“His death is a big loss to his family, the nation and everyone close to him. He had big plans of his own to help develop the game in the country but unfortunately he’s gone.”

Isima died at the age of 56 in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja penultimate day.

We got AFCON funds 48 hours to tournament, says NFF

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Late Okey Isima

Keshi denies warring with Maigari

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uper Eagles head coach, Stephen Keshi, has dismissed insinuations that he was at loggers drawn with the leadership of the NFF executive committee.

Though he admitted that there were some issues which

needed to be sorted out with the football federation, he said there was no time he did say that these issues were with the president of the NFF, Aminu Maigari.

“I wonder what people want to gain by saying I’m fighting the NFF, I’m at war with Alhaji

Maigari, who in the first place found me worthy of employment as national team’s coach?”

Eagles Spokesman, Ben Alaiya, said in a release that Keshi praised the leadership qualities of the Maigari led board and called for total support to enable the board

Kofarmata in search of golden touch with Pillars B

ello Musa Kofarmata, appears set to rediscover his golden touch at his home town club, Pillars, where he developed into a cult figure from 2007 through 2010.

Kofarmata, who returned to

Bello Kofarmata

Pillars after an uneventful spell at Heartland FC was one of the scorers as the Nigerian champions hammered Olympic de Bangui 5-1 in a CAF Champions League preliminary round first leg

match in Kano.

Ganaru played him behind top strikers, Gambo Mohammed and Nasiru Ibrahim, in the match that Pillars sparkled.

Speaking a day after his first goal in a competitive match for Pillars, he said: “My best is yet to come.”

The former Under20 international helped Pillars to the semi-finals of the competition in 2009 and in 2010 played at group stage with Heartland.

Back in 2010, Heartland splashed N5million (about $33,333) on Kofarmata, but the forward struggled to impress.

For Kofarmata, who learnt his trade at defunct Buffalo, the goal mattered a lot as he had spent more time searching for goals rather than celebrating goals at the Naze Millionaires.

The move was to take his career to the next level, but turned out to be the reverse. As a result, he retraced his steps to Kano, where it all began.

Kofarmata’s decision to exit Pillars was fully maximized by Ahmed Musa, who has since headed for Europe and big forward, Mohammed.

Ironically, while Kofarmata was struggling at Heartland, Musa hit 18 goals to emerge league top scorer in 2011 and erased the previous all-time record of 17 goals.

Mohammed, who also started

his career at Buffalo l i k e Kofarmata, has now turned out to be

do more for Nigerian football.

“I have never and will never fight my President, all I have asked for is support from him and am getting that over 100 per cent so let those wanting us to start a war leave us a alone”, he said. the fans favourite.

2012 Federation Cup: To compound his misery at Heartland, the forward lost his place in the finals of the 2012 Federation Cup to rookie, Emeka Ogbuh, who partnered Brendan Ogbu in the attack.

Ogbu’s goal eventually earned Heartland the trophy.

“Kabiru Umar and I played in the attack against Prime in Ilorin. Umar got a red card and missed the finals. However, I can’t explain why the coaches left me on the bench,” he told supersport.com.

Super Eagles After representing Nigeria at the FIFA Under20 World Cup hosted by Canada, in 2007, Kofarmata eventually made his Super Eagles debut in 2009.

He was in the Nigerian squad that failed to qualify for the inaugural CHAN competition in Cote d’Ivoire.

Kofarmata scored twice against Burkina-Faso in Calabar in round one, but Nigeria eventually lost 2-3 to Ghana in the final round and failed to progress to the competition.

And in 2010, he replaced Peter Utaka when the Eagles hammered Congo DR 5-2 in a friendly ahead of the World Cup, in South Africa.

With limited playing time at Heartland, the forward eventually lost his place in the national team.

Perhaps, an impressive performance for will in domestic and continental assignments will earn him a return to the Eagles as Stephen Keshi prepares the home lads for the CHAN in South Africa.

CHANGE OF NAME I, FORMERLY KNOWN AND ADDRESSED AS MISS. ANAJEKE NKECHI CALISTA, NOW WISH TO BE KNOWN AND ADDRESSED AS MRS. NWAIFE NKECHI CALISTA. ALL FORMER DOCUMENTS REMAIN VALID. NGO VILLAGE, IGBOUKWU IN AGUATA L.G.A. ANAMBRA STATE AND GENERAL PUBLIC SHOULD PLEASE TAKE NOTE.

he Nigeria Football Association (NFF) yesterday revealed that it got the funds for Super Eagles’ participation in the just concluded Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in South Africa only two days to the tournament.

Mr Emeka Inyama, a board member and Chairman of the NFA Media and Publicity Committee, disclosed this in Abuja in an interview.

It would be recalled N1.4 billion was released by the Federal Government for the Super Eagles’ participation in the tournament but the money was released in bits to the NFF by the National Sports Commission (NSC).

According to Inyama, the team were supposed to have received the money two months before the tournament. People may be celebrating the Super Eagles’ today but the team only got money 48 hours to the competition.

“These monies were supposed to have come one or two months to the time to help them prepare for the competition.

“Nobody cares to know how the federation borrowed and financed the team’s camping, paid players match bonuses and hotel bills before the tournament.

“However, the federation is doing all it can to ensure that, despite the paucity of funds, football is taken to the next level in Nigeria,’’ he said.

Inyama’s revelation comes after the NFF was criticised by some Nigerians for its poor handling and lack of trust in the Stephen Keshi-led Super Eagles.

He said it was pertinent for Nigerians to know how the FA sources its funds and would be glad if the FG could come to their aid.

“The resources of the FF cannot accommodate, at a time, the almost nine national teams that we cater for. What the government provides for football is inadequate for things to be done; that is why sometimes we owe the coaches.

“A situation where you have N1.8 billion from government and maybe another N1 billion from sponsors, making it N2.8 billion and the budget of the FA is over N4 billion given the number of teams, definitely it must run on deficit,’’ Inyama added.

He, however, confirmed that in spite of the shortage of funds, the FA had released N6 million to John Obuh, the Flying Eagles’ coach, as part payment of backlog of salaries owed him by the football house.

The NFF board member gave assurance that the balance of the money would be paid to the coach when he returned from the U-20 Africa Youth Championship (AYC) beginning on March 16 in Algeria.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

RESULTS MEN 60m 1. Mike Rodgers (USA) 6.53sec 2. Nesta Carter (JAM) 6.56 3. Antoine Adams (SKN) 6.60 400m 1. Nigel Levine (GBR) 46.34sec 2. Lalonde Gordon (TRI) 46.73 3. Richard Strachan (GBR) 46.78 800m 1. Michael Rimmer (GBR) 1min 46.55sec 2. Abubaker Kaki (SUD) 1:46.57 3. Mukhtar Mohammed (GBR) 1:46.58 1500m 1. Abdalaati Iguider (MAR) 3min 37.45sec 2. Bethwell Birgen (KEN) 3:37.57 3. Marcin Lewandowski (POL): 3:38.34 3000m 1. Mo Farah (GBR) 7min 42.00sec 2. Florian Carvalho (FRA) 7:45.77 3. Lee Emanuel (GBR) 7:51.46 60m hurdles 1. Omo Osaghae (USA) 7.51sec 2. Sergey Shubenkov (RUS) 7.58 3. Xie Wenjun (CHN) 7.60 High jump 1. Aleksey Dmitrik (RUS) 2.33m 2. Robert Grabarz (GBR) 2.29 3. Ivan Ukhov (RUS) 2.29 WOMEN 60m 1. Murielle Ahoure (CIV) 6.99sec 2.Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (JAM) 7.09 3. Barbara Pierre (USA) 7.09 400m 1. Natasha Hastings (USA) 50.88sec 2. Perri Shakes-Drayton (GBR) 51.37 3. Eilidh Child (GBR) 51.50 800m 1. Ekaterina Poistogova (RUS) 2min 02.25sec 2. Jenny Meadows (GBR) 2:02.86 3. Lynsey Sharp (GBR) 2:03.07 1500m 1. Genzebe Dibaba (ETH) 4min 00.83sec 2. Siham Hilali (MAR) 4:07.99 3. Elina Sujew (GER) 4:10.96 3000m 1. Helen Clitheroe (GBR) 8min 50.16sec 2. Lauren Howarth (GBR) 8:52.00 3. Ancuta Bobocel (ROM) 8:52.86 60m hurdles 1. Danielle Carruthers (USA) 8.11sec 2. Loreal Smith (USA) 8.12 3. Tiffany Porter (GBR) 8.12 Pole vault 1. Holly Bleasdale (GBR) 4.70m 2. Yarisley Silva (CUB) 4.70 3. Katie Byres (GBR) 4.35 Long jump 1. Shara Proctor (GBR) 6.78m 2. Cornelia Deiac (ROM) 6.54 3. Lauma Griva (LAT) 6.41 Triple jump 1. Olha Saladuha (UKR) 14.61m 2. Trecia Smith (JAM) 14.20 3. Cristina Bujin (ROM) 13.92

PAGE 43

Ahoure shocks Olympic champ Fraser-Pryce as Farah shows class

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lympic sprint champion ShellyAnn Fraser-Pryce was upstaged on her indoor debut by Ivory Coast’s Murielle Ahoure who took victory over 60 metres at the Birmingham grand prix over thw weekend.

Britain’s double Olympic champion Mo Farah had a better start to his season with a comfortable victory over 3 000 metres.

The London Games 5 000 and 10 000 gold medallist was untroubled throughout the race but put on a turn of speed over the final lap to the delight

of the crowd to win in seven minutes 42 seconds.

Farah, 29, will compete in the New Orleans half marathon next week and then run the first half of April’s London marathon as part of his build-up to the world championships in Moscow in August.

“It was brilliant. It was important that I tried to win my only indoor race.

Definitely looking forward to the outdoor season,” Farah told reporters.

The anticipated 60 metres matchup between two of the world’s top sprinters, Jamaican Fraser-Pryce and

American Carmelita Jeter, who finished second to her in the Olympic final, failed to materialise as Ahoure pulled away with surprising ease to win in 6.99 seconds.

Fraser-Pryce, whose appearance in the earlier heat had been her first race over the distance, was second in 7.09, with Jeter fourth in 7.18.

Ahoure, who finished seventh in the London Games final last year, was surprised by her sub-seven second time.

“We didn’t really plan to run indoors at all. My goal is the world championships

outdoors so I’ve just been training for the 100. It’s great to come here in the middle of training and drop a time like that,” she said.

American Michael Rodgers held off fastfinishing Olympic 100 metres relay gold medallist Nesta Carter of Jamaica to win the men’s 60 final in 6.53.

Genzebe Dibaba, younger sister of threetime Olympic champion Tirunesh, faded over the final lap to fail in her attempt to break the world 1 500 indoor record.

Dibaba, 22, took over from the pacemaker at the

halfway stage and, clear of the field, was inside worldrecord pace with 200 metres to go.

But grimacing down the home straight she clocked 4:00.83, missing Russian Elena Soboleva’s world mark of 3:58.28.

Olympic champion Ivan Ukhov had to settle for third in the high jump behind fellow Russian Aleksey Dmitrik, who cleared 2.33 metres for victory.

London pole vault silver medallist Yarisley Silva finished second to Britain’s Holly Bleasdale on a countback after both athletes cleared 4.70 metres.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce

Murielle Ahoure

Amao optimistic 2012/2013 league season will be best

F

atai Amao, former Coach of Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) of Ibadan, on Tuesday said he was optimistic the country’s football league was on the verge of producing its best moments.

The league, formerly known as the Nigeria Premier League (NPL), is now to be referred to as the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

Amao, who believes that the league’s interim board has the integrity to take the country’s top flight division to its

pinnacle, hopes to see a change in the administration of the league next season.

“I have a lot of confidence in the league’s board. They have the requisite competence to bring the best out of our league and take it to its highest level. As such, I am optimistic that we are about to witness one of the best moments our league has to offer,” he said.

He, however, said the change in the league’s name was less important, noting that the most important thing was

organising a wellstructured competition.

“The change of name matters less because it will not serve as a benchmark for measuring how well the league has fared.

Therefore, it’s neither a negative or positive decision.

“What is important right now is the organisation; in terms of logistics, security, officiating, match venues and sponsorship packages,’’ Amao said.

He added that the postponement of the

Police Games: Zone 3 to send 132-man contingent

T

Mohammed Abubakar, IGP

he Zone 3 Police Command, comprising Adamawa, Gombe and Taraba states is sending a 132-man contingent to the 10th Nigeria Police Force Games, tagged “Port Harcourt 2013’’.

The AIG in charge of the Zone, Alhaji Mohammed Tambari, disclosed this yesterday in Yola when he received the Games Unity Torch at the zonal headquarters, and assured that the zone was fully prepared for the competition and hoped to perform well.

He said that the Games, apart from keeping the policemen fit, also provided them the opportunity to contribute to sports development.

The AIG named policemen and women like Samuel Peter, Kikelomo Ajayi, Chioma Ajunwa and the late Sunday Bada as some of those who made the police and nation proud in sports.

The Games is scheduled to commence on February 23 in Port Harcourt.

league’s kick off date to March 9 should be seen as a move aimed at setting a good standard.

“I think the postponement is a positive move because there is no point rushing things

when you know you are not fully prepared.

“We need to set a standard that will reflect quality and I believe that the date has been shifted in a bid to get it right,” Amao added.

Powerlifing coach wants focus on infrastructure development

A

national powerlifing coach, Samuel Archibong, has asserted that the country’s athletes would achieve international limelight, if the needed infrastructure for development and training were in place.

Archibong, who spoke yesterday in Lagos, was of the view that the country has enormous talents but lacks the desired infrastructure to boost their training. He also said that the athletes are not being given adequate encouragement to strive on in their chosen careers.

“All over the world the best athlete comes out from Nigeria. If you could go to other countries you find out that the best athlete there is a Nigerian because we are not encouraging athletes here.

“That’s why you see them, they run out and nationalise (naturalise) in other countries. If you can put all these things in place we have the best athletes in this country.

“For you to make an athlete be great you need to encourage them spiritually, physically, mentally. You need to put them in camp, they have to go for training tours and see the other countries; how they train and they see facilities of training.”

Archibong also stressed the need for the right people to be put in the right places in order to avoid poor administration of sports in the country.

“In Nigerian sports you find out that you have a round peg in a square hole.

How can you take a carpenter to be in weightlifting?

How can you take a mechanic to be a lawn tennis chairman?

“Its wrong, so you end up getting nothing out of it. Put the right people in the right places so you’ll see its going to be well in sports in Nigeria.”

Achibong expressed the hope that sports in the country would thrive but stressed that a lot must be done in the country to get it right.

PAGE 44

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

DHQ holds walk/run event to mark international military sports day

By Joy Baba

T

he Defence Headquarters (DHQ) is organising the 2013 walk/ run event to mark the International Military Sports Day, tagged “CISM Day Run’’, an official said in Abuja yesterday.

The DHQ Director of Physical Training and Sports, Rear Adm. Alfred Sam-Sele, announce the plan to newsmen and added that the activities would help to promote peace among the Armed Forces.

Sam-Sele, who was represented by the DHQ Deputy Director of Sports, Commodore Andrew Dacosta, said the event was in accordance with the philosophy and ideals of International Military Sports Council (CISM).

He said “CISM was founded in 1948 in Nice by a French Sqn. Ldr., Henri Debrus. He founded it with the militaries of France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg and Denmark to promote peace through sports between armed forces.’’

Sam-Sele said CISM organised various sporting events for the armed forces of its 133 member-countries as well as soldiers, ratings

and airmen, who might have previously met on the battlefield.

“This is in accordance with the philosophy and the ideals which were set in CISM’s mission statement in 1998, signed by all the member-countries,’’ he said.

Sam-Sele said it was for the purpose of marking the presence of CISM felt worldwide that the CISM Day Run was introduced in 2006.

He said CISM Day Run’s introduction was with the aim of promoting the practice of sports in the military context, bringing together the sports community in contact with the armed forces.

According to him, since 2006, the CISM Day Run has been held every year on Feb. 18 to celebrate the anniversary of the council.

“In recognition of the day, CISM-Nigeria, under the auspices of the DHQ, is joining other member-nations to organise a 5km walk/ run to mark the CISM Day Run for 2013.

“This year’s event is the fifth edition to be conducted by CISMNigeria and since the actual day of the anniversary fell on a working day, which is Feb. 18, the event will be held on Feb. 23.

“This is a Saturday and 800 participants are expected to take part in the event,’’ Sam-Sele said.

Players of Kano Pillars displaying the league shield

3SC return to IjebuOde camp

S

hooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) of Ibadan say it will soon return to its Ijebu Ode, Ogun camp, ahead of the 2012/ 2013 Nigeria Professional Football League season which starts on March 9.

Ajibade Babalade, 3SC’s Team Manager, who disclosed yesterday in Ibadan, said that the team plan to return to IjebuOde for the last phase of its preparation for the league.

“The Oluyole Warriors will soon be returning to their IjebuOde camp to roundup its preparation for the 2012/2013 Premier League season,’’ Babalade said.

The manager said that the club suspended the camping in Ogun following the postponement of the league by its management board.

He said that the club’s players were now training at the Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, Ibadan in order to remain in form for the league.

It would be recalled that the management of the club chose the Ijebu-Ode camp ahead of the league season to avoid distractions. But the league had suffered several postponements.It was originally scheduled to start last October but was later shifted to December.

The league was later rescheduled to start on Feb. 16, 2013 but was again postponed till March 9.

The management of the club, in a desperate effort to win a continental ticket this season, had mandated the players to sign a Code of Conduct to be of “good behaviour’’ throughout the competition.

The club has signed on 35 players for the season and upgraded four others from its feeder team.

CAF Champions League: Ganaru upbeat about Pillars’ group stage qualification

continue like this, they will go far in the competition,’’ he said.

The return leg would be played in Bangui on Feb. 28.

B

Dolphins gearing up for new season, says Manager

aba Ganaru, Head Coach of Kano Pillars FC, has said that his team would qualify for the group stage of the ongoing CAF Champions League, following their brilliant start.

Ganaru said in Lagos that the 5-1 victory over Olympique Real de Bangui showed that the team was poised to go places.

Kano Pillars had defeated their Central Africa Republic opponents 5-1 in the first leg of the 2013 Orange CAF

Champions League in Kano. “ I am very optimistic that we are going to qualify for the group stage of the competition. We started on a brilliant note by beating them 5-1 and it is a good way to start the qualifying stages,’’ Ganaru said.

The coach added that the team would not get carried away with the result from the first leg, but would work harder to secure the ticket for the group stage.

“Our main goal is to clinch the

ticket for the lucrative group stage of the CAF Champions League and we won’t relent until we achieve our objective. We are already preparing for the return leg match and it will be better than the first leg,’’ he said.

Ganiyu commended his players for the hard work they had put into the encounter and their adherence to the tactical plan for the match.

“The players played according to my instructions; and if they

D

olphins FC of Port Harcourt General Manager Dumbo Awanen has declared that the club is ready for the 2012/ 2013 football season, which starts on March 9.

Dolphins will play away against Akwa United of Uyo at Uyo Stadium. Awanen said in Port

NPL clubs yet to comply with mandatory N50m bond - Idoko

M

ike Idoko, a member of the Nigeria Premier League (NPL) Interim Board, says that clubs are yet to comply with the mandatory N50 million bond required from them ahead of the 2012/2013 season.

Idoko said yesterday in Lagos that the bond was put in place, to curb the incessant incidences of clubs owing their personnel salaries and sign-on fees indefinitely.

“There are lots of challenges besetting the league and we had to put necessary measures in place to address some of the issues, the N50 million bonds is a safeguard measure.

“The clubs are complaining that the policy is too sudden and that they don’t have the means to comply because the 2013 budget was yet to be passed.

“The bonds we are asking after is for clubs insurance, but they

are pushing that the measure should be adopted in the 2013/ 2014 season instead of the upcoming season,’’ he said.

He added that the emergence of the Super Eagles as the new AFCON champions meant that things must be properly done because the NPL was now in the limelight.

Idoko, who is also the Chairman of the Ondo State Football Agency, told said the board

wanted to address the issues before the eventual beginning of the league.

He added that the postponement of the original kick-off date of the 2012/2013 season had made it impossible for the NPL to run a fully fledged season.

“But club owners want to play a full fledged season, but we feel an abridged league will be better,’’ he added.

Harcourt that the club had done enough preparations and preseason build up.

“I am personally happy with the pre-season preparations of the club and I know we are ready for the season.

He said the Dolphins were in Nnewi where it had pre-season camping, and Lagos where it played in a tournament with amateur teams and added that it then went to Aba to play against Enyimba.

The manager also said the club recruited top quality players for the season.

“I am also happy with the quality of players we have signed on this season and when you watch them train and play you see the determination for them to excel in the season.

“I believe we will finish among the top four in the League by the end of the season,’’ he said.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 45

Peoples Daily CLASSIFIED

1

2

3

PICTORIAL 1] In an entertaining qualifying campaign, Argentina were crowned continental champions on home sand, Brazil suffered their maided regional defeat and Paraguay qualified for the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup for the first time.

2] Chelsea interim boss Rafael Benitez says he could manage Spain in the future. Current national manager Vicente Del Bosque has yet to say whether he will continue after the 2014 World Cup. 3] South African athlete Oscar Pistorius, charged with murdering his girlfriend, tells a court he thought he was firing at an intruder.

4] Barcelona's Dani Alves has urged Brazilian compatriot to join him at the Spanish giants as speculation continues to build over the young star's future.

5] Great Britain's Laura Robson is knocked out in the first round of the Dubai Duty Free Championship by Yulia Putintseva.

4

5

PAGE 46

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

Coach attributes lack of sponsorship for poor growth of traditional sports

F

emi Akinsanya, a Lagos State Traditional Sports coach, has attributed the limited growth of the indigenous sports to failure of philanthropists to promote them.

Akinsanya, who trains athletes in traditional wrestling, called “Kokowa’’ in the local parlance, made the assertion yesterday, stressing that regular sponsorship of competitions across the country was the only way to make the sports, including Dambe (Ttaditional boxing), Langa, Ayo and Abula popular.

“Failure of individuals and corporate organisations to see meaning in indigenous sports as they see in others has been the central problem militating against the development of all traditional sports.

“If the government, individuals and corporate

organisations can create more room for competitions, the future of these sports will be bright,’’ he said.

The coach lamented that philanthropists turned down the association’s appeal for sponsorship for programmes targeted toward talents discovery.

“Traditional wrestling cannot gain its expected ground in our country if the society still shunned their sponsorship, a sport can only develop when there are competitions for athletes. “All these sports are still struggling to gain ground and what I know is that if we take them serious at our local level, they will soon gain entrance into the global sports scene,’’ he said According to him, traditional sport has a long history in the country but their growth does not correspond to their years of existence.

Coach says W/African tennis tourney “Majority of the players players will perform were discovered from the

N

asiru Bello, Head Coach, Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), said yesterday that he was hopeful that the Nigerian team to the West African Cadet Table Tennis Championships would not disappoint.

The Nigerian team comprising nine players will

depart Lagos for Cote d’Ivoire on Feb. 21 by road for the championships, holding between Feb. 21 and Feb. 24.

Bello, who disclosed this in Lagos, added that most of the players were selected because of their exceptional performance at the recent National Schools Sports Festival in Port Harcourt.

school sports festival in Port Harcourt and there is no better way to test them than exposing them to international tournaments,’’ he said.

Bello said the exposure would give them the needed experience to develop adding that nine players had been training for a month to

Kwara Judo Association seeks Japan’s assistance

T

he Kwara Judo Association says it has requested the assistance of the Japanese Government in developing the game in the state.

The chairman of the association, Yisa Gana, disclosed this in Ilorin at a forum of the state’s chairmen of sports associations.

Gana, who is also the Deputy Speaker, Kwara House of Assembly, told the forum that his association had officially notified the Japanese Embassy in Nigeria on the request.

The chairman, who said that the request also included the provision of judo facilities in the state, noted that Japan was the origin of the game.

“This necessitated the reason for the association to seek assistance from the country. The lack of judo facilities in Kwara is worrisome. The state does not have the facilities; even coaches were not available.

“We make use of facilities at the University of Ilorin for training of athletes and officials,” the chairman said.

According to him, most of the judo athletes in the state had been poached by neighbouring states due to lack of judo facilities and coaches for training.

He assured the association’s commitment towards the resuscitation of the sport in the state.

The deputy speaker added that he had also used his position in the House to improve on the budgetary

provision for the state Sports Council in the 2013 appropriation bill.

“I have used my influence to improve on the budget. The budget will be passed within the week and we have looked into the request of the sports council. So the council should rigorously pursue what is meant for them to ensure full and proper implementation,” he said.

Earlier, the chairman of the forum, Lanre Sagaya, noted that the time had come to develop all areas of sports in Nigeria.

Sagaya, who pledged to make the difference in sports in the state within a year, however, stressed that the council needed support from government, corporate bodies and public spirited individuals.

prepare them for the regional championships.

“I made sure that the players started preparation immediately after the school sports festival and with what I have seen, they will not disappoint. They may not be exceptionally good now, but with time and experience, they will improve,’’ he said.

Bello named the players for the U-18 male category as Jide Omotayo and Kehinde Awobajo, while that for the male U-15 category is Michael Obayomi, and Ahmed Osibanjo and Martins Abass are to feature in the male U13.

In the female U-15 are Ifiok Udoh and Mary Mbah, while Tosin Oribamise and Blessing Eniola will feature in the U13.

The officials are Segun Oguntade, who is the Chef de Mission, while Nasiru Bello and Ajayi Olubode are coach and assistant coach, respectively.

Cycling coach laments dearth of competitions

T

he Chief Coach of Lagos State Cycling Association, Lateef Oloko, yesterday said that dearth of competitions was crippling the sport’s development in the country.

Oloko in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos said that lack of competitions had stalled activities in the state associations.

According to him, they rely mostly on national competitions organised by the Nigeria Cycling Federation (NCF) but there

are no such now and it is affecting them.

“Cycling is suffering because of lack of competitions.

We have been saying we do not have equipment.

Although we now have modern bicycles procured by the state government, but we still lack competitions.

“I appeal to the NCF to integrate more grassroots competitions into their programme to propel state associations to action,’’ Oloko said.

The coach also appealed to the NCF to woo corporate

organisations formerly sponsoring its competitions to come to the aid of the sport.

“We have many corporate organisations that sponsored competitions before but they have withdrawn, I think the NCF should try and woo them back,’’ he said.

Oloko urged former champions to stake their monies in the development of the sport. The coach said that former champions of other sports had helped developed their own sports by organising competitions in their own little way.

Lagos FA to introduce female league, says Chairman

F

alade Oyekan, the Chairman, Lagos Divisional Football Association (LDFA), said yesterday that plans were underway to introduce female league in the division.

Oyekan said when that the league the league is fully operational, it would ensure the promotion and development of female

football in the division.

“We are already planning to start a female league as a way of developing female football at the grassroots in the division this year.

“Female football is as

CHANGE OF NAME JATAU - I, FORMERLY KNOWN AND ADDRESSED AS MRS. ROSE JOHN JATAU, NOW WISH TO BE KNOWN AND ADDRESSED AS MRS. ROSE JAIMU JATAU. ALL FORMER DOCUMENTS REMAIN VALID. SHADAWANKA BARRACK, BAUCHI CONCERNED AUTHORITIES AND GENERAL PUBLIC SHOULD PLEASE TAKE NOTE.

Babatunde Fashola, Gov. Lagos state

important as male football; all of us can see the development in female football across the globe and we must not be left out in the race. Effort will be made to scout and nurture talents in female football,’’ he said.

The chairman, however, added that the division would not relent in its efforts to improve on its existing male league.

He appealed to private bodies and individuals to support the division in its determination to promote and improve grassroots football.

The LDFA is one of the five divisional football bodies under the Lagos State Football Association (LSFA).

The others are Ikorodu, Ikeja, Badagry and Epe.

Oscar Pistorius

Sports Minister expresses shock at murder charge on ‘Blade Runner

S

outh Africa’s Sports minister Fikile Mbalula has expressed shock and disbelief that star athlete Oscar Pistorius, alias “Blade Runner,” has been charged with the murder of his girlfriend.

The “Blade Runner’’ pleaded not guilty to a charge of pre-meditated murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp on Feb. 14 at his residence.

“We strongly believe that no one is above the law. None of our sporting heroes and heroines should be associated with such acts of violence against women and children,’’

Mbalula said.

He said Pistorius was an international sports icon and has been a role model to many South African youths.

“I must say I am in complete state of shock and disbelief in the context of increasing abuse against women,’’ Mbalula said.

“Many questions are being asked, but we have no answers. It is only the courts that can provide answers to all these questions.

“My appeal is that we should all apply the principle of innocence until proven otherwise by a law court,’’ Mbalula said.

PEOPLES DAILY, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

PAGE 47

SUDOKU

Say what?

Yesterday’s solution

Some Interesting Facts •The moon is moving away at a tiny, although measurable distance from the earth every year. Do the math and you will clearly see that 85 million years ago it was orbiting the earth at a distance of about 35 feet from the earth's surface. This would explain the death of the dinosours; the tallest ones, anyway.

•The most common name in the world is Mohammed.

•The name for Oz in the "Wizard of Oz" was thought up when the creator, Frank Baum, looked at his filing cabinet and saw A-N, and O-Z, hence "Oz." •The name Jeep came from the abbreviation used in the army for the "General Purpose" vehicle, G.P. •The name Wendy was made up for the book "Peter Pan." •The national anthem of Greece has 158 verses. No one in Greece has memorized all 158 verses.

•The Neanderthal's brain was bigger than yours is.

•The oldest known goldfish lived to 41 years of age. Its name was Fred.

•The only 15 letter word that can be spelled without repeating a letter is uncopyrightable.

•The only nation whose name begins with an "A" but doesn't end in an "A" is Afghanistan.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

A 30-tonne whale smashes into fishing boat, in Mexico.

Source: TheSun.co.uk

www.peoplesdailyng.com

. . . putting the people first

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2013

SPORTS LA TEST LATEST

Pele slams Neymar, fears for Brazil

B

razil legend Pele has criticised Neymar's poor form for Santos and the national team, expressing fears the team will not do well at next year's World Cup on home soil.

"I am very worried by the Brazilian side. We had three years with (coach) Mano Menezes and did not obtain any benefit from those three years," said Pele, 72, in an interview with Estado de Sao Paulo daily published yesterday.

"Neymar, every time he plays for the Selecao, he becomes an ordinary player," complained "O Rei" (the king), who recently returned from a hip operation and who has spent recent weeks tucked away at his house in Guaruja, a coastal town near Sao Paulo, where he has been composing songs - including one for the World Cup. "In all the games abroad he played badly. They all think he can solve the Selecao's problems (but) Neymar is not ready to shoulder this pressure. He does not play abroad. European football is different from the Latin American game.

"We from Santos say he is the best in the world but he is aready more concerned with media appearances than playing for the team. He is preoccupied with changing his style, his haircut," Pele complained of his young compatriot.

Watching recent Brazil games on television, Pele further observed that in his view the team "has no structure, no harmony."

Luiz Felipe Scolari, who led Brazil to the 2002 World Cup, returned in early December after Menezes' sacking to work alongside another former coach in Carlos Alberto Parreira and has, in Pele's view, "already radically changed the team.

"But the experience has to be undertaken with new players.

We already know how the experienced ones, such as (the recalled) Ronaldinho play."

Champions League last 16 updates AC Milan 2 v Barcelona 0 Galatasaray 1 Schalke 1 ADVERT: BUSINESS: NEWS: LAGOS:

0803 0805 0803 0805 0803

QUO TABLE Q UO TE UOT QUO UOTE What Nigerians need is action, seeing the leaders that have rendered them impoverished behind bars, their assets impounded and used for the betterment of the common man. This is the utmost desire of the Nigeria masses.

— Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL)

Theories of BH (2) - Northern troubles T

he official government explanation for the BH infers that it is a member or members of Cartelopia's Northern constituency who is/ are fuelling such wanton murder.

Why? Because they are upset with Prime Minister Jonah for insisting on running for the 2011 presidential election and winning! It is common to see, in print and online, an oft repeated (but actually fictional) allegation that certain politicians/ Northerners vowed to make the country 'ungovernable' for him should he win the election.

Clearly if such a categorical and publically articulated intention had ever been made then the maker of that statement should by now have at least been questioned if not implicated in the now countless incidents that have killed hundreds, since such statement was made!

High profile masterminds On November 22nd, 2011 Cartelopia's Secret State Service (formerly the Security Service of Spin(!)) arrested and arraigned a high profile, known face under supposed charges of 'sponsoring' the activities of BH. The Senator (no less) was charged afresh early last Monday (12/12/11) under the newly operative AntiTerrorism Act on four counts.

The headlines reflected the mood that greeted news of the arrest, first of Konduga alias AlZawahiri (self-proclaimed BH spokesman) and then, that of the rather popular and well-liked Senator.

'BH Sponsors Named'!!

Flabbergasted shock and surprise.

Relief.

A 'we-knew-it' triumphalism.

Only the Senate provided a cautious 'lets-wait-and-see-thecharges' attitude. But the victory dance continued nonetheless. Of course, after 14 months or so of mindless violence, it is understandable that such an arrest would be 'welcome'. The sentiment expressed by an online commentator sums it all: 'Well-done SSS. This means BOKO now has a face.'

Indeed. What a coup.

Finally(!)

The fact is that a previously highly publicised arrest of the 'masterminds' of one of the worst atrocities claimed by the BH, the August 26th United Nations building bombing, had not gone down well.

First of all, the two suspect masterminds had been arrested

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CAR TEL OPIA CARTEL TELOPIA With Aisha Yolah ayolah06@yahoo.com 08086296783 (text only please) on August 21st, days before the August 26th blast, yet they were alleged to be part of the plot while in custody. In addition they both appeared to be handicapped, each missing both forearms. While a 3rd suspect - the main brain who the SSS said was' just back from Somalia'- was described as being on the run. Public reaction was scathing. Not much has been heard about that case since then.

Evidence by implication Up until November 22, 2011 things were clearly not looking good for even the more professional among the security services, the SSS. The accused Senator is a Northerner from the original territory of the BH in the North East and he is also a politician.

Referring to the now convicted BH spokesman who implicated the Senator, the spokesperson for the Secret State Service (SSS) stated that 'his arrest further confirms the Service' position that some of the [BH] extremists have political patronage and sponsorship.'

Which brings us to the other important event that took place recently: A peace and security conference which was held by members of the Northern Region.

It held for most of a week,

beginning December 5th, 2011.

It was hyped as a major- last ditcheffort to find solutions to the current insecurity and underdevelopment where most atrocities have taken place: in the North. Most commentators have not expressed confidence in the outcome.

The trouble for me is that discussion of the wider socioeconomic factors that have provided a fertile ground for fear, violence and desperation is not the same as discussing the reasons for, or identifying who the actual criminals are behind the bombings and killings. The first is a socio-political and economics discussion while the second, though related to the first, is actually an investigative, specialised policing and intelligence matter.

Accusation means guilt Security and intelligence implies concrete facts, evidence, surveillance and other specialised aspects of basic policing required to maintain public and state security. A newspaper editorial (The Nation of 13/12/11) remarking on the failure of such conferences noted how the fear of being targeted by the BH sect had

“

Up until November 22, 2011 things were clearly not looking good for even the more professional among the security services, the SSS. The accused Senator is a Northerner from the original territory of the BH in the North East and he is also a politician. Referring to the now convicted BH spokesman who implicated the Senator, the spokesperson for the Secret State Service (SSS) stated that 'his arrest further confirms the Service' position that some of the [BH] extremists have political patronage and sponsorship

led to a conspiracy of silence at the conference. Reason? Not for personal safety, no but 'because prominent northern politicians and public officers are financiers of the sect.'

Categorical , unequivocal.

The newspaper then cited as evidence for such an assertion that 'a former minister was said to have twice bailed' the BH leader [who was killed in 2009], as well as the fact that a Senator and former governor, named by Konduga alias Al-Zawahiri as 'alleged backers of the [BH] sect', are both Northerners. The Nation of course would rather not tell you that that 'former minister' doing the bailing was actually a Christian. It would spoil the narrative.

Having finally got our Muslim Northern Senator firmly in place, you would expect charges reflective of the SSS comments and those gloating headlines. He would no doubt be charged with backing, directing and/or financing the sect's bombing, killing etc. activities, all these months, right? But a careful look at the substance of the charges tell a different story: The charges The Senator received information on or about October 4 [2011] from convicted BH spokesman Konduga known as AlZawahiri regarding planned attacks on judges of the Borno State election tribunal and the National Assembly, but failed to disclose the information to a law enforcement officer as soon as reasonably practicable.

He is also accused of providing telephone numbers of certain public officers, including the Attorney General of the Federation 'on or about October 4'[2011], to this Al-Zawahiri or Konduga 'for the purpose of communicating terrorist messages to the said persons'.

The third and fourth (?) counts accuse him of being 'in possession of Konduga's mobile phone number but failed to disclose this fact to a law officer as soon as reasonably practicable, knowing that it will be of material assistance in arresting Konduga. The offences each carry sentences ranging from 10 to 20 years imprisonment.

None of these charges worryingly - even refer obliquely to any of the numerous and well documented ACTUAL bombings, murders, or motorcycle riding assassinations carried out by the BH since last year or even for that matter 'on or about October 4, 2011.'

This piece was first published on 15th Dec, 2011. Konduga was given a 3-year sentence, in SSS custody. The Senator's case continues. Our worry for our country and repeat of this 4-part series also continues.

Published by Peoples Media Limited, 35, Ajose Adeogun Street, 1st Floor Peace Park Plaza, Utako, Abuja. Kano office: Plot 3, Zaria Road, Opposite Kano State House of Assembly. Lagos Office: No.8 Oliyide Street, off Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos. Tel: +234-09-8734478. Cell: +234 805 727 9862. e-mail: contact@peoplesdaily-online.com; pmlnewsdesk@gmail.com ISSN: 2141– 6141