Fri 12 July 2013

TheGuardian Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Friday, July 12, 2013

Vol. 29, No. 12,615

N150

www.ngrguardiannews.com

Soyinka asks Jonathan to halt crisis in Rivers From Saxone Akhaine (Kaduna), Kabir Alabi Garba, Tunde Akinola (Lagos), Mohammed Abubakar(Abuja), Abiodun Fagbemi (Ilorin) Emmanuel Ande (Yola)and John Ogiji (Minna) ORRIED that the crisis in W the Rivers State House of Assembly has taken a turn for the worse, Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has urged President Goodluck Jonathan’s intervention.

Also, President Goodluck Jonathan has denied any role in the lawmakers’ impasse, saying any attempt to link him with the matter smacks

of mischief and blackmail.

Besides, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, said yesterday that his party would not intervene in the crisis in the House which according to him is an independent constitutional body.

Also, the Police High Command has set up a probe pan-

• President denies role in impasse • PDP won’t intervene, says Tukur • Police name probe panel • Labour, others condemn mayhem el to ascertain the alleged complicity or otherwise of its officers in the violence that erupted at the Rivers State House of Assembly.

Yesterday too, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Gov-

ernor Muazu Babangida of Niger State, Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Razak Atunwa and a nongovernmental organisation, Stop Impunity Nigeria (S.I.N.), yesterday deplored

the mayhem in the State House of Assembly.

At a press briefing tagged “A Presidential Emergency: A People Under Siege,” in Lagos, Soyinka expressed strong concern over what he termed “President Jonathan’s indifference to the political imbroglio.”

Soyinka, along with human rights activist and lawyer, Femi Falana, said the Rivers crisis, if not quickly checked would lead the country into “absolute monarchism.” He

made reference to when St. Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury was murdered in 1170 AD, on the order of King Henry II for refusing to give the monarchy power over the church.

Although Soyinka recalled that Becket’s death made him a martyr to followers of the Catholic faith, the crisis in Rivers did not follow that path.

“Why do I refer to the situaCONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Nigeria must diversify economy, says President • Govt appoints liquidator for M-Tel, NITEL • Seven firms shortlisted for Kaduna Disco, three for Afam • N59.55b proceed from Egbin sale for bulk trader, BPE From Mohammed Abubakar, Emeka Anuforo and Chuka Odittah, Abuja RESIDENT Goodluck P Jonathan yesterday admitted that the increasing exploitation and utilisation of shale gas and other alternative sources of energy by the United States (U.S.) and other advanced nations had made it more urgent for Nigeria to move faster towards the diversification of its economy.

A statement from the office of his spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, quoted the president as making the observation Rescuers at a scene of a collapsed three-storey building at Olota Street, Off Herbert Macaulay Way, Ebute-Metta, Lagos… yesterday. (Inset: A motorcycle being removed from the debris of the collapsed building) PHOTO: SUNDAY AKINLOLU AND AYODELE ADENIRAN

CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

Why we may reject Turaki panel’s report, by CAN From Nkechi Onyedika (Abuja), Njadvara Musa (Maiduguri) and Eric Meya (Sokoto) N attempt by the PresiA dential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North to secure

• Says committee no longer relevant • Suspected Boko Haram’s commander, others arrested the support of the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Abuja was met with a sharp rebuff yes-

terday.

The CAN President, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, did not mince words as he described

Braithwaite urges free legal representation for indigent suspects - Page 3

the meeting as belated and an after-thought. He flayed the composition of the committee as lopsided, declaring

that any report emanating from it would not be credible and acceptable to the Christian community.

Besides, in their renewed efforts to end terror activities, the military Joint Task Force (JTF) and members of Borno Vigilance Youths Group

(BVYG) have arrested a suspected top Commander of the group in Damboa and 26 other suspects in Bama, seizing six rifles from them.

And in Sokoto State, one perCONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Again, out of court settlement fails in NLNG, NIMASA feud - Page 3

2

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

NEWS

CAN says Turaki panel no longer relevant CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 son was killed and another arrested yesterday when a joint operation involving soldiers and State Security Service (SSS) officers stormed the hide-out of suspected terrorists.

Turaki had told the leaders of CAN that the presidential committee was not only set up to find a lasting solution to insurgency, but to uncover some underlying factors creating serious acts of insecurity so that the government would once and for all address the issues frontally towards creating a more secure society for all.

He said the meeting was to solicit from CAN suggestions on how to go about the work of the committee. He stressed that at the end of the

interface, members of the panel would like to leave the meeting much informed and better educated than they were before the parley.

“We are, most fundamentally sir, seeking your co-operation and that of the Christian community in Nigeria,” he said.

Turaki noted that when the committee “addressed the Jamahatu Nasir Islam about a fortnight, we raised the issue that it is important and we feel very strongly that we have come to a level in this country where authorities, whether civil or political, should be able to have some control over the ways our brothers and sisters go about engaging in preaching. We believe there should be some kind of control.”

According to the committee

chairman, it is the responsibility of every Nigerian, particularly religious leaders, to ensure that when they preach to their congregation or even members of the public, they use words that will encourage mutual co-existence, not words that will highlight division.

“No religion preaches hatred because God is love. We believe that there is nothing that prayer cannot do. We know no nation that is more prayerful in the world than Nigeria and we believe that it is because we are a prayerful nation that God has not forsaken us,” he said.

Turaki who observed that the committee had been asked to set up a frame-work that would facilitate the process of disarmament, noted that there were lots of

arms, particularly small ones, in the hands of unauthorised persons, adding that the committee had been mandated to come up with recommendations on how government would address the issues of support for victims.

He said: “The support and understanding of government will be in such a way and manner that these people will now have a sense of belonging, see that they have not been abandoned by government but rather, have the support of government to continue living their lives, in such a way and manner as they have been living before the unfortunate acts of insurgency or terrorism.”

But Oritsejafor, who thanked the committee for the meeting, stated that hav-

ing examined its terms of reference, CAN made the following observations: • “That the tenure given to the committee is 90 days which would elapse in a few days time. This being the case, it is our considered opinion that your invitation is an after-thought; • “That having regard to the terms of reference of your committee dealing with issues of national security, and in accordance with Section 10 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, in view of the constitutional provision for federal character, we consider the composition of the committee lopsided and unacceptable; • “That we further note that Boko Haram, having been declared a terrorist organistation and proscribed by the

Federal Government, the work of your committee has been overtaken by events; and • “That from the aforementioned, it is our belief that any report emanating from your committee would not be credible and acceptable to the Christian community.”

Oritsejafor’s response came as a big shock to members of the committee as there was absolute silence for about two minutes after the CAN president finished reading out the association’s position.

A source told The Guardian that Turaki later apologised for convening the meeting late, adding that the committee may seek extension of time from President Goodluck Jonathan.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka (right) and a lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), during the press briefing in Lagos… yesterday.

President denies role in Rivers impasse CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 tion in Rivers State as a presidential emergency?” Soyinka asked rhetorically while explaining that “reading the papers I saw that the President’s spokesmen, as usual, have been trying to distance him from what is happening in Rivers State. That is their job and I wish them luck. But they have to understand, and the President has to understand that the perception up there in the world, not mainly in the nation, is that he bears a vicarious responsibility at the very least for what is happening in Rivers State.”

He said there was a certain way a leader could convey certain coded messages to followers and they would be acting accordingly. He noted that though President Jonathan might not have openly declared support for what is going on, his comportment, his carriage and most especially, his silence might have indicated his meddlesomeness in the matter.

According to Soyinka, this is the time for the Federal Government to galvanise Nigerians to tackle terrorism that is destroying the country’s future including the “illegality” going on in Rivers State Specifically, he criticised the

perceived support of the President’s wife being enjoyed by anti-Amaechi’s lawmakers. He urged the President to curb the excesses of his wife, saying “too much is too much, she is now being used to reduce the authority of an elected governor.”

Soyinka urged the media to be cautious of the way those self-imposed leaders are reported, noting the media should nurture the mental attitude of Nigerians. He said if Nigerians could refer to Biafra in quotes, there should not be any reason why the illegal speaker should not be written in small letters.

“The media should refer to him in small letters with a quotation, then you put selfdeclared in front of it while you refer to the real one as elected because you were there, INEC was there. Stop treating this clown as an equal of the elected speaker.

Doing that is to programme yourself to the fait accompli which makes you an accomplice. You too have a responsibility of putting everything in the right perspective,” Soyinka said.

Falana also called on Nigerians to disregard what he described as “illegality” being perpetrated in the Rivers State House of Assembly.

“There is a speaker known to everyone, while the other one is unknown, even to the President.

“All the incidents happening have nothing to do with 2015 general elections; we are just dealing with a gang of power-mongers who do not appreciate the responsibility imposed on them by the constitution and Nigerians. This guy has not told anybody that he is running for any position,” he added.

But the President said he was concerned about the escalating crisis generated by the untoward political developments in Rivers State and called on all those involved in regrettable acts of political violence to show greater respect for the constitution and the rule of law.

Jonathan, in a statement by his Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, urged members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and all other political gladiators in the state to put the interest of the state and the nation above their personal egos and ambitions that seem to have got in the way of their expected commitment to uphold the principles of democracy and good governance.

“The President calls on all those who were remotely or

directly involved in heightening political tension in the state to put an immediate end to their actions which are capable of plunging Rivers State into public disorder and strive to settle their political differences without further recourse to barbaric acts of violence.”

Abati said the Presidency also regretted the continuing attempts by some individuals and groups to place responsibility for the unpleasant developments on Jonathan.

“We are constrained to state once again that there is absolutely no factual basis for suggestions that some of the politicians involved in the current dispute are acting at the behest of the President”, he added Tukur who spoke in Yola during an interactive session with journalists, said that the lawmakers were capable of resolving their internal crisis without any interference from any other quarters.

He added:” Rivers Assembly crisis is part of democracy, it happens in the United States (U.S) ,Britain and other parts of the world, so what is happening in Rivers is not special, it is part of the system.”

He warned PDP members CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

News Braithwaite urges free legal representation for indigent suspects

By Babatunde Oso MINENT jurist, Dr. Tunji E Braithwaite, has called for revolution to change what he termed an oppressive system prevalent in the country, especially in the justice administration.

Speaking yesterday when the Tunji Braithwaite Foundation (TBF) visited Ikoyi Prisons, Lagos to donate to the inmates as part of activities to mark Braithwaite’s 80th birthday, the legal icon noted that the huge cost of justice has made it impossible for the common man to get it.

According to him, no democracy in the world would allow a suspect to go to court without legal representation. “No offender should appear in court without government providing legal representation. There used to be free legal aid but that was not even provided by the government.

It was provided by a section of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), lawyers who sacrificed their time, energy and finances to assist these

• Maiden Ibru canvasses support for inmates oppressed people.

“You see a case of a man charged to court for a minor offence like wandering, according to the wretched system here in Nigeria, such a person could spend years behind bars awaiting trial. We are all witnesses to a government official who stole N7 billion and he was fined less than N1million and set free! What sort of justice is that? Many of those that are walking free are those that are even supposed to be behind bars while many of those in jail should indeed be free. This is the sad aspect of what we have seen today. Justice has been turned upside down. It is out of reach of the common man.”

He continued: “You will never find Tunji Braithwaite in company of those who are corrupt.

Two times, I have been invited to join government and I turned them down. I was arrested by 200 soldiers during the military era and locked up, yet I did not bulge. I have

always championed and defended the cause of the oppressed. I defended the late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti and Olabisi Ajala at the risk of my life.”

Braithwaite disclosed that his Chamber has offered free legal representation to the indigents for the past 53 years.

“Part of the package we are bringing here is as my Chamber has always done, TBF has decided that our lawyers are always ready to defend these people for free,” he said.

He deplored the craze for money and position in the legal profession. “Go to these election tribunals, ask them how much the lawyers take, billions of Naira and this is why there is the scramble to get the so-called Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, title.

There is a sharp dichotomy in the country and legal profession, which shuts out bright, energetic and hardworking lawyers.

The happy aspect of what we

saw here is the caring nature of the warders. The Nigerian Prisons Service men I see here deserve commendation. The environment is so clean. They encourage inmates by setting up industry, and in fact I was also given samples of products they have actually produced here and the inmates are happy. The authorities here have made provision for them to enjoy continuing education.

Though the warders are firm, but they treat them with compassion and this gladdens my heart.”

Member, Board of Trustees of the Foundation and Publisher of The Guardian, Mrs. Maiden Ibru, said she never had an opportunity to visit any prison until yesterday. “When I got here, what immediately struck me was the peaceful ambience around here. The inmates appear happy. When we got to the Chapel, this happiness continued and this created a sort of contradiction in my mind. You are not free, yet

you are happy. This struck a cord that when there’s life there’s hope.

“Like Dr. Braithwaite said, the only way out is to get some of them that need legal aid to have the benefit of this, especially those that are awaiting trial. Get them tried and ensure that those that are not guilty are freed. Can you imagine the high number of those that are awaiting trial, 1,638.

This is so unfortunate. Apart from government playing its rightful role, private organisations, non-governmental organisations also have a role to play to assist these people.”

Dr. Braithwaite would be 80 on September 17.

Other members in the entourage of TBF included former General Overseer of The Foursquare Church, Dr. Wilson Badejo, who is also a member of the Board of Trustees and the Executive Secretary, Otunba Sola Alao. TBF made a donation of 1, 800 items, which include toiletries, toothpaste, slippers, and disinfectant. Every inmate will get at least one item.

Court jails stockbroker for swindling octogenarian

By Bertram Nwannekanma USTICE Adeniyi Onigbanjo of an Ikeja High court yesterday sentenced a 27-year old stockbroker, Ayoola Coker to 30 years imprisonment for stealing N17.5 million from an 86-year old man.

The man was convicted and sentenced after he pleaded guilty to the charges during his re-arraignment on a 15count charge of stealing, issuance of dud cheque, forgery and uttering preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The stockbroker was sentenced to two years on each of the counts.

However, the sentences according to judge will run concurrently starting from December 1, 2011.

Before pronouncing the sentence, the judge noted that Coker made efforts to restitute the victim, Mr. Saheed Gbadamosi and his son, Taiwo.

J

Edo, PDP bicker over alleged plan to sell house From Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin City

HE Edo State chapter of the T Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the state government yesterday engaged in a fresh verbal duel over allegations that the latter is planning to sell the Edo House in Lagos and alleged that a top government official is planning to buy the property through a proxy.

Addressing a press conference yesterday, state chairman of the party, Dan Orbih, said money had even been transferred to Dubai and Lebanon for the alleged purchase of the said house, adding that the party was surprised that the state government was auctioning the state asset when all other states “are maintaining their structure in Lagos, being the commercial nerve centre of the country.”

GSM services restored in Adamawa Former General Overseer, Foursquare Gospel Church, Dr. Wilson Badejo (left); Founder, Tunji Braithwaite Foundation, Dr Tunji Braithwaite; Publisher, The Guardian, Maiden Ibru and Dr. Grace Braithwaite during Tunji Braithwaite Foundation’s visit to Ikoyi Prisons as part of activities to mark his 80th birthday in Lagos ...yesterday.

Again, out of court settlement fails in NLNG, NIMASA feud

By Joseph Onyekwere and Sulaimon Salau RENEWED attempt to resolve the lingering dispute between the Nigeria Liquefied and Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) yesterday failed as lawyers on both sides proceeded with their arguments before the Federal High Court in Lagos.

The court subsequently fixed today for ruling on all pending applications.

A

• Face-off may rise gas flaring In a related development, there are strong indications that more gas may be flared if urgent actions are not taken to resolve the lingering dispute between NLNG and NIMASA. When the case came up again, NIMASA’s counsel, Mike Igbokwe (SAN) told Justice Mohammed Idris that his client had informed him of the intervention of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Anyim

Pius Anyim on the dispute.

“My Lord, I need to seek clarification as to the status of this case. I was reliably informed by my client that at about 12 midnight on Tuesday, there was a meeting between the SGF, NIMASA’s Managing Director(MD) and Shell’s MD, who is also a board member of NLNG. “The NLNG’s MD was linked to the meeting via teleconference and after discussion, it was agreed that they (NLNG)

should get their lawyer to vacate the interim order and proceed to pay the money they are owing.

“I need to know if I’m on the same page with NLNG’s lawyer on this, otherwise I will proceed with my motions which are ripe for hearing,” Igbokwe stated.

But NLNG’s counsel, Wale Akoni (SAN) claimed ignorance of the meeting, insisting that the instruction from his client was to the effect that he should proceed with the court case.

“I must say I’m taken aback by this practice. I don’t have any instruction to vacate the order.

“The instruction I have is to move an application seeking to vary the order and I must say that we only agreed to pay under protest so that our vessels can be released,” Akoni said.

In response, Igbokwe said Akoni’s comments only show that they were not on the same page and expressed his willingness to move his motions.

From Madu Onuorah, Abuja EFENCE Headquarters, Abuja yesterday authorised the restoration of GSM services in Adamawa State.

The services were cut following the May 16 declaration of state of emergency in three North Eastern states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe.

Director, Defence Information, Brig-Gen. Chris Olukolade, said in a statement in Abuja that the restoration of the GSM services “is sequel to positive indications in the ongoing security evaluation of the situation in the states affected by the state of emergency.”

According to Gen. Olukolade, “this development is in line with the planned phased restoration of the facility in response to the reality of the situation in the states.

D

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

4 NEWS

Elumelu urges private sector-led China-Africa relations FRICAN business leader A and philanthropist, Tony Elumelu, has joined President Goodluck Jonathan as part of a delegation accompanying the Nigerian leader on an ongoing state visit to China.

According to a statement, the visit, which will include a meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping, will have Elumelu and other business leaders, including Folorunso Alakija, Femi Otedola and Oba Otudeko, representing Nigeria’s business interests, thus emphasising Jonathan’s commitment to leveraging the private sector to drive both development and trade and investment links between China and Africa.

Speaking at the investment forum, which attracted over 700 potential investors, their Nigerian counterparts and several governors as well as the Ministers for Trade and Investment, Aviation and Power, Jonathan said: “Nigeria today is like China 20 years ago – it is entering into a high growth phase. The economy is suitable for private sector involvement; we offer the best incentives and we have put the right structures in place to reduce the cost of entry into Nigeria. All of this is to encourage private sector participation in Nigeria.”

Elumelu, Chairman of Heirs Holdings, the pan-African proprietary investment company, said “the ChinaAfrica relationship has historically been characterised

by government-to-government engagement. However, Nigeria’s leadership – and increasingly that of a number of African countries – are embracing an Africapitalist approach where the private sector is leading transformative growth. China’s presence in Africa is important, but we would like that involvement to be more inclusive of the private sector to ensure a sustainable development path for the continent.”

Elumelu’s call, according to the statement, came on the back of the Chinese government’s drive to minimise its role in its own economy and reform State Owned Enterprises (SOE), which are still dominant. Private sector companies are however increasingly contributing to China’s overall GDP growth and the Chinese government is creating policies that will allow them to flourish.

“Globally, there is powerful evidence that the private sector is critical in driving a country’s economic growth and China is recognising that locally,” said Elumelu. “We hope President Jonathan’s state visit will mark the start of a private sector-driven approach to China-Africa bilateral relations. The onus is now on us as African business leaders to ensure that future engagements will call for, and unlock opportunities for the private sector.”

According to the OECD, trade between China and Nigeria reached nearly $18

billion in 2010, almost 10 times more than just a decade ago.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 while speaking in an interview with China Television, in Beijing. Jonathan noted that the increasing utilisation of alternative sources of energy was a matter of concern for Nigeria and other oil-exporting nations.

“That is why we have to increase the pace of diversifying our economy and moving our country away from dependence on the oil and gas industry. We must work towards greater industrialisation, add more value to our agricultural products, develop our solid minerals’ potential and other sectors of our economy before the time comes when crude oil may no longer be dominant as a global source of energy,” Jonathan stated.

At a meeting with the Nigerian community in China, the president commended the National Assembly for its ongoing process of expanding the coverage of the Local Content Act to sectors other than oil and gas, saying that the move would further stimulate domestic industrialisation and contribute significantly to the desired diversification of the country’s economy.

SATURDAY, July 13, 2013

Conscience Nurtured by Truth

Where are The Honourables?

Rivers Assembly Crisis: The return Of “Garrison” politics?

When Children School Under The Gun… Against the backdrop of the recent massacre of school children in Borno State by terrorists, would parents still have the courage to let their wards go to school in the Northeast, or, well, live in boarding houses?

to the Sacred Grove of the Earth (Igbale Aye)…

It’s tourist attraction of a kind. You can’t afford to miss the story.

ria and the opportunities for investment that they present.

to raise awareness of the numerous strategic projects under development in Nige-

Nigeria must diversify economy, says Jonathan

TheGuardian

Follow, If You Dare…

As The Guardian embarks on a journey

During the visit, Elumelu met with leading Chinese investors and business people

Ladies And The Internet Age

Hey Gals, listen to Amara: Beware of that ‘fiancee’ who wants you to send him nude photos of yours through the Internet; he may just be planning to put them to sinister use!

The Guardian On Saturday...you simply can’t put it down!

Responding to concerns raised by a member of the community about Nigerian professionals having to compete with expatriates from China and other countries for employment opportunities in the country, the President said our immigration laws and expatriate quotas provide adequate protection for workers.

“If our immigration personnel do their job as they are expected to do it, then you are all adequately protected,” he said.

Jonathan urged Nigerian students and professionals in China to imbibe the positive traits of the Chinese and come home to contribute to national development.

“You are in a country that is a super power, a country that is technologically developed, a country of hardworking people who work day and night. If you imbibe this culture and pass through their training, you will all be in a position to come home and help us to develop our own country,” the president told students and professionals at the interactive session.

He assured them that his administration was totally committed to making a positive difference in the lives of all Nigerians.

“As a people, we must build our country. I can assure you that we are working steadily to do so. Our vision and roadmap are very clear,” Jonathan told members of the Nigerian community.

Before his meeting with them, the President addressed a large audience of Chinese investors at a Nigeria-China Business Forum in the Beijing World Trade Centre and urged them to take advantage of the very generous investment incentives currently being offered by the Federal Government.

Jonathan assured the Chinese business community of the safety of their investments in Nigeria.

In the meantime, a liquidator has finally been appointed for the Nigerian Telecommunications (NITEL) Plc and the Mobile Telecommunications (M-Tel) Plc. At the end of a meeting of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) in Abuja, Olutola Senbore and Co was announced as the firm to liquidate the moribund entities.

It is not clear how the NCP’s decision would be taken by the National Assembly, as the Senate Committee on Privatisation had this week insisted that it would not allow the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to liquidate NITEL. Several attempts to sell off the entities have failed in the past.

The BPE had said in April that it would conclude the liquidation of NITEL this month after the emergence of a preferred liquidator among the five that showed interest.

This has met with opposition from the National Assembly.

The Minister of State for Fi-

nance, Dr. Yerima Ngana, told reporters after a meeting of the NCP in Abuja yesterday that the Federal Government would proceed with the liquidation of the two firms. He was silent on the Senate’s stance.

He said: “We are also happy to announce that at last, a liquidator has been appointed for NITEL and M-Tel and this liquidator was reached after several bids were received from about eight companies.

At the end of the day, five were pre-qualified and after analysis, we picked a successful liquidator, Olutola Senbore and Co.” Besides, N59.55 billion out of the proceed of the sale of Egbin Power plant has been allocated to the BPE and the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET).

Ngana said the money was for “some of the activities of both the bulk trader and BPE itself.”

He went on: “One of the major issues discussed was the continuation of the privatization of NITEL. You will recall that the last time when we met, we did not conclude the privatization of Kaduna Disco and Afam Genco.

“For Kaduna Disco, we have seven companies that have been pre-qualified and they will now proceed to the next stage. They are Axis Power Distribution Ltd, NAHCO Consortium, INCAR Consortium Aiteo Consortium, LEDA consortium Ltd, Nothwest Power Ltd, Copperbelt Consortium.

“For Afam, the companies are Primezia Energy Ltd, TES Power Ltd, Talevares Group. Fobby Energy Ltd was disqualified. These companies have been cleared to proceed to the financial bid stage.

“We have also approved for the BPE N59.55 billion out of the proceed of the sale of Egbin Power plant for some of the activities of both the bulk trader and BPE itself. For the bulk trader, N50 billion has been set aside and this will be the guarantee for the signing off of the power purchase agreement so that the generating companies will feel comfortable that they will have money to actually pay them.

“To proceed further with the privatisation of the power companies, the BPE also needs some money to continue with the several consultancy works, the sum of N9.55billion has been set aside to meet these expenses.

“We have also discussed the issue of the transfer from the pre-completion liability of PHCN to the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NEMCO). Another memo will be presented in the next meeting to give us details of what the liabilities are and the amount involved but in principle, we have agreed for the BPE to continue with the transfer of these CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Onu urges govt to implement pact with ASUU

By Gbenga Salau HAIRMAN of All Nigerian C Peoples Party (ANPP), Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, yesterday urged the Federal Government to quickly implement all the agreements it entered into with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), so that students and lecturers could return to class.

Onu, who was chairman of the public presentation of the autobiography of Prof.

Ben Nwabueze, said the Federal Government should implement the agreement promptly because of the critical role education plays in the development and integration of any nation, noting that it is time for government to hugely invest in the education sector.

Onu commended the author for putting the book together and paid glowing tributes to him for his steadfastness and commitment to a united Nigeria and for championing the cause of the masses.

NEWS

Amuwo Odofin faults poor management of funds’ report HE Amuwo Odofin Local T Council Area of Lagos State has said that at no time did the House Committee on Public Accounts indict the council administration for poor management and accountability of public funds.

A statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Chairman, Ralph Egunjobi, said indeed the Amuwo-Odofin Council, alongside others, were invited to appear before the House Committee on Public Accounts for the

purpose of discussing the Auditor-General’s report on capital projects’ account for 2010-2011, which is a regular accounting process for local government administrations in Lagos State.

“On the said date that we were to appear, the traffic situation made it impossible for the local council officials who were invited to that meeting to make it on time.

It was in the light of this that we asked for another date, which was obliged by the

committee.

“The local council was surprised to read in the dailies that it was being summoned over poor accountability.

The fact is that the committee could not look at our books that day based on the inability of some of the local council officials to make it to the House of Assembly due to the chaotic traffic situation”.

The statement added: “The local council would like to make this assertion clear that since the inception of this ad-

ministration, for the past five years, the local council has never been indicted on poor management and accountability of public funds.

“The local council would like to advise anybody in doubt to independently investigate or go to the House of Assembly to get more information on it, as well as call for the video footage of the proceedsitting. the of ings “We are using this medium to call on the Fourth Estate of the realm to always cross-

Borno ANPP disowns chairman over link with Boko Haram From Njadvara Musa, Maiduguri OME top officials of Borno SNigerian State chapter of the All Peoples Party (ANPP) are distancing themselves from the embattled state chairman of the party, Alhaji Mala Othman, who is currently in the custody of the Joint Task Force (JTF) for allegedly sponsoring activities of Boko Haram sect in the state.

Othman has been the state chairman of the party from the tenure of former governor of Borno State, Ali Modu Sheriff.

“The position of the party chairman, however, did not go down well with some of the ANPP chieftains in the state,” said a reliable source of the ruling party yesterday in Maiduguri.

Association lauds Jonathan for scrapping Land Use Act EAL Estate Lawyers’ AssociR ation of Nigeria (RELAN) yesterday commended the determination of President Goodluck Jonathan on why the Land Use Act must be removed from the 1999 Constitution.

President Jonathan on Monday in Abuja spoke at a summit organised by the Rockefeller Foundation as part of its Centenary celebration.

The theme was: “Realising the Potential of Agriculture in Africa”.

RELAN, in a statement by its Vice-President (Operations), Mr. Adekunle Omotola, noted that the Federal Government’s commitment was in line with the view of his association during its first National Summit on Land Use Act in Abuja in 2009 and the recent one in Lagos on June 20, 2013.

Omotola observed: “RELAN was not unaware that to remove the Land Use Act, it must conform with Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.

5

Representative of the chairman of the occasion, Inaolaji Aboaba (left); President/Chairman-in-Council, Institute of Strategic Management, Nigeria, Dr. Otive Igbuzor; Ekiti State governor, Kayode Fayemi and Registrar of the Council, Adeyemi Mapaderun, during the 2013 Annual Conference and General Meeting of the institute in Lagos…yesterday PHOTO: OSENI YUSUF

check reports before publishing, so as not to mislead the general public on matters of governance and accountability.”

President says Nigeria must diversify economy, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 liabilities to NEMCO.” He also spoke on the BPE’s ability to prepare other potential companies for privatisation. These include the national park, the national stadium, and the river basin.”

Meanwhile, Vice President Namadi Sambo has restated the Federal Government’s commitment to the timely completion of the Abuja (Idu)-Kaduna railway transportation project. He said the Jonathan administration had made adequate contingency plans to source funds from the Subsidy Re-Investment Programme (SURE-P) to tackle any financing gap in the project.

The contract for the Abuja (Idu)-Kaduna railway project valued at $847,308,704.00 million was originally awarded in 2010 but the execution of the preliminary stages of the project commenced in 2011.The completion period is December 31, 2014.

Sambo disclosed this in Idu during the commencement of the track-laying of the Abuja (Idu)-Kaduna Standard Gauge Railway Modernisation Project. He also stressed that the project was a deliberate initiative of the Federal Government to facilitate ur-

Soyinka asks Jonathan to halt Rivers crisis CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 trying to drag the name of the party into the crisis through their campaign of calumny and blackmail to desist from such activities in interest. their The probe panel is headed by Deputy Inspector-General of Police (DIG) in charge of Operations, Philemon Leha.

A statement by the Deputy Force Public Relations Officers (DFPRO), Frank Mba, said the panel is “to scrupulously investigate all the circumstances surrounding the on-

going impasse in the state particularly, as they relate to the actions and omissions of police personnel that were physically on ground during the fracas that occurred at the Rivers State House of Assembly.”

A statement by the NLC’s Vice President Issa Aremu yesterday, however, commended the Senate and the House of Representatives for their intervention in the political crisis.

Aremu said: “Injury to one, is injury to all concerned and as

an affiliate of NLC, we are concerned and alarmed about the worsening political crisis State.

Rivers in We condemn the recent avoidable and unnecessary violence in the State House of Assembly with all the unfortunate attendant injuries bloodletting.” and Aliyu attributed the lingering political crisis in Rivers State to what he described as “too much power” at the centre, saying that the crisis was unhealthy for the country’s democracy. young

Aliyu, who spoke in Minna yesterday during a visit by the members of the Revenue, Allocation Mobilisation (RAMFC), lamented that the development in Rivers had now resulted in the situation where the police commissioner now governs the state, instead of the elected governor.

Atunwa said: “It is to be condemned in its entirety that honourable members will attempt to storm a House of Assembly. For whatever reason, the best way to proceed is to

adopt the course of dialogue.

Where there is a political difference, I’m sure there should be dialogue to resolve the political differences.

In a statement in Lagos, the S.I.N through its group’s coBolaji Prof. ordinator, Owasanoye, of Human Development Initiatives (HDI), said: “These people cannot go unpunished. These five legislators, along with the thugs and militants who aided them, must be arrested and punished to the full extent of the law for their criminal and barbaric actions.”

the town that was blocked by soldiers in May. He said the suspects were in the custody of JTF for an investigation.

Briefing reporters on the operation which took place in Sokoto in the early hours of yesterday, the Commander of 1 Brigade, Nigeria Army, Maj.Gen. Muhammad Tasiu Ibrahim, said that following a tip-off, the terrorists’ hide-out was discovered in the general area of Gidan Dare, Kalambiroad. na According to him, the operation was clinically carried out and hugely successful. He said one of the terrorists was killed and another captured.

He stated that 11 members of the families of the terrorists, including five women and six children of different ages, were saved in line with the

rules of engagement.

He said that they were all in good condition while two of the women who were pregnant were receiving antenatal care at the medical facility in the barracks.

He lamented that at a time when others were making efforts to practise their religion the best way they understand, some hoodlums were bent on desecrating the Muslim holy month of Ramadan by planning to destroy property and spill the blood of innocent citizens.

“Every effort will be made to ensure that no innocent life is lost because only those who bear arms or amass weapons of destruction will be taken out of the way,” he assured.

Why we may reject Turaki panel’s report, by CAN CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 Out of the 28 members of the committee, only five are Christians.

Other members of the CAN delegation at the meeting included the newly-elected Vice-President and Head of Baptist Convention, Rev. Olasupo Ayokunle; Primate of All Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh, and the General Secretary, Rev. Musa Asake. Also in attendance were heads of blocs of CAN, national directors of the association, executive members of Christian Lawyers Fellowship as well as other national and state offigroup. the of cers The arrest of the Boko Haram commander, according to chairman of BVYG, Abubakar

Mallum, was made during a “house to house search” that lasted for two hours in Damboa by the vigilance youths . The suspect has been handed over to the local commanders of JTF in Maiduguri.

He said unlike the arrests in Damboa, the 26 suspects that were apprehended in Bama, however, surrendered to the vigilance youths, as they had no place to flee to as the youths armed with sticks, knives and cutlasses, identified them as Boko Haram members that had been operating in Bama for two years without being arrested by any of the security agencies.

On whether some of the suspects were arrested at their Bama hide-outs, Mallum said. “Not all of them surrendered to our members de-

ployed here to fish out the fleeing sect members. Nine suspects were arrested in communities of three wards of Bama town. We were also able to recover some rifles along with their magazines used in the killing of several residents of Bama, including the former Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, Zanna Malam Gana, and seagents.” curity He told The Guardian that all the arrested suspects, including the recovered rifles, had been handed over to JTF for further investigation. Confirming the arrests yesterday in Maiduguri, spokesman of JTF, Lt.-Col Sagir Musa, said one of the Boko Haram commanders was arrested on the road Maiduguri-Damboa while attempting to flee from

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

6 | NEWS

Court rejects EFCC’s bid to seize Sylva’s property From Lemmy Ughegbe, Abuja EPRIEVE came the way of R the former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva, as the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, yesterday dismissed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) suit to seize 48 property allegedly belonging him.

Delivering judgment on the EFCC’s request, vide an originating summons, for a temporary order of forfeiture of the said 48 property, Justice A. R. Mohammed held that it ran totally against the court process for the commission to bring about an action that is related to a charge before a sister court, for which the former governor is standing trial, saying the request amounted to an abuse of court process.

While he granted the commission leave to sustain the action, Justice Mohammed ordered that the commission puts Sylva on notice. He frowned that though the EFCC had brought a criminal action against Sylva at Court 3 of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, presided by Justice Adamu Bello, it proceeded with a civil action before him in Court 7, whereof it sought to take over the same property it listed in the charge preferred against the former governor in the criminal case.

According to Mohammed, “it would appear that EFCC is instituting a multiplicity of suits against the accused; this court cannot allow any process that amounts to an abuse and it is hereby dis-

missed.”

On January 4, 2013, when it was reported that EFCC had obtained an order of forfeiture of Sylva’s 48 property, he quickly responded through his media adviser, Mr. Doifie Ola, who said the Abuja High Court never granted any temporary asset forfeiture order to the EFCC, a claim that Mohammed now upheld.

In the said statement, Ola said that of the said 48 property, only three belonged to his boss while he acquired three long before he became governor of Bayelsa. According to the statement, Sylva’s property are intact and fully covered by the order validly issued by Justice M. Kolo of Abuja High Court on December 27, 2012.”

Sylva had applied to the court for an interim order to serve originating process on the respondent as a stay of all actions in respect of the property - Plot 262, Cadastral Zone A02, Wuse 1, Abuja, Plot 3192, located within Cadastral Zone A06, Maitama District, Abuja, Plot 232, Cadastral Zone A07, (No.8, Mistrata Street, Wuse II, Abuja) - by the respondents, their agents, privies, representatives or any other person deriving his/her authority from them.

They were not to seal off, confiscate, eject any person from the property, trespass into it or do any other thing however so described relating to the said property pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice. The application was granted and hearing in the matter fixed for January 4, 2013.

Protesting students of the University of Ibadan... yesterday.

El-Rufai, others seek reduced powers for President, minister in petroleum sector From Adamu Abuh, Abuja ORMER Minister of the FedFMalam eral Capital Territory (FCT), Nasir El-Rufai, yesterday canvassed the removal of the powers of the President to grant upstream leases or licences in the petroleum industry.

Making a presentation on behalf of the Centre for Africans Progress and Prosperity to members of the House of Representatives’ Adhoc Committee on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), El-Rufai said his aim was to avert the abuse of such privileges for political patronage.

According to him, “this clause needs to be removed from the bill. The process of leasing and licensing needs to be transparently done and all organs and officials of the state, including the President,

Court fines, jails Offa Poly’s works director From Abosede Musari, Abuja STATE High Court in Ilorin A has handed a nine-month jail term (running concurrently) to the Director of Works at the Federal Polytechnic, Offa, Kwara State, Mr. Iliya Philemon Hassan, and a fine of N150,000 in a case of forged certificate.

Hassan, who was prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), was arraigned for presenting a fake Master’s Degree certificate to his employers and declared falsely under oath to the ICPC. According to a statement from the ICPC yesterday, Chief Judge of the State, Justice J. Bamigbola, pronounced the judgment, which convicted Hassan on three counts, with three months jail term for each and fine.

“The accused person had claimed in his curriculum vitae submitted to the Registrar of the Federal Polytechnic that he had a Master’s Degree in Building Construction Technology from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria,” the statement read.

“Mr. Hassan, who was later brought to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, made similar claim when he knew that he had no

such degree. The offence is punishable under Section 25 of the ICPC Act 2000.”

The accused is now serving his jail term in Madala Prison in Ilorin.

need to have confidence in the institutions set up for this purpose to do their job.

“Including discretionary measures will create disincentive to stakeholders in the sector, as it will reinforce the opaque nature that has characterised the industry so far.

And such discretionary measures can be subject to abuse and corruption, both situations the oil and gas policy intended to avoid.”

To ensure good corporate governance, he said, the Petroleum minister should not be allowed to oversee the activities of the board of the proposed regulatory institution.

El-Rufai, who was a member of the Presidential Economic

Team responsible for the public sector reform under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, also faulted the placement of the host communities’ fund under the control of the Petroleum minister.

Arguing that the fund would be better under the control of a ministry or any organ of the state responsible for the development of host communities, he said: “The proposed regulatory institutions require space to function independently, and the minister should not sit on or chair their boards.

“In fact, it will violate the principle of good corporate governance for the minister to provide policy oversight

18 feared dead in Edo road accident From Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin City O fewer than 18 persons N were in the early hours of yesterday feared killed in a multiple road accident along the Benin-Lagos byepass.

Vehicles involved in the ac-

cident included a truck carrying drinks, a lorry and a fully loaded 18-seater bus.

The Guardian gathered that the truck veered off the road and had ahead-on collision with the tipper after which the bus hit the tipper from the rear.

Reports said while 15 per-

Nigeria records nine new polio cases in one week

By Chukwuma Muanya (Lagos) and Eric Meya (Sokoto) FTER about two weeks A without recording any case of Wild Polio Virus (WPV), Nigeria yesterday reported nine new cases of the crippling virus, bringing the number of cases for 2013 to 35.

According to the latest edition of Weekly Polio Update published by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), this is despite a sub-national Immunisation Plus Days (IPDs) held from July 6 to 9, 2013 in northern and middleband states.

However, Sokoto State is now on the verge of becoming one of the polio-free states in the country, Special Adviser to the Governor on Primary Healthcare, Ibrahim Jibril Sokoto, has said. While fielding questions from newsmen yesterday, Sokoto, said his

optimism was based on the fact that though eight cases of WPV were reported in the state last year, no single case had been reported so far this year.

Sokoto attributed the progress made in the polio eradication fight to the concerted effort of all stakeholders, including the Sultanate Council, following the special measures evolved to achieve maximum coverage.

Those measures, he noted, included the use of medical doctors in house to house campaign, and taking polio victims around to testify to people that their condition was as a result of non-compliance, as well as encouraging Quranic teachers and influential individuals to talk to the people about the safety and efficacy of the Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV).

Meanwhile, a breakdown of the figures means that, of the

over a board where he or she is a member. Furthermore, to have the minister serve as chairperson will defeat the intention of the oil and gas policy that states that, ‘public agencies in the oil and gas sector shall be fully autonomous.”

According to him, “the proposed establishment of the petroleum host communities’ fund is the most interesting board from the social perspective, but it is the least developed in the bill because, among others, it failed to spell out how the fund would be governed, or how this fund would be allocated. This needs to be addressed, or the fund will be emptied for other (more private) objec-

108 cases recorded globally in 2013, Nigeria ranks behind only Somalia, which recorded 41 cases earlier in the year after not reporting any case awhile, and besides Afghanistan and Pakistan, Kenya has seven cases.

According to the GPEI report, the most recent polio case was type one (WPV1), from Bauchi, and had the ouset of paralysis on June 18, 2013. The report read: “No new cases of circulating Vaccine Derived type two Polio Virus (cVDPV2) were reported in the past week. The most recent cVDPV2 case had onset of paralysis on November 24, 2012, from Kebbi.

“In the Horn of Africa, an outbreak of WPV1 is continuing, centred around Banadir, Somalia. The majority of cases associated with this outbreak developed paralysis before the start of the comprehensive emergency outbreak response activities.

In any case, “WPV3 continues to be at the lowest ever recorded levels. Globally, WPV3 has not been detected anywhere since November

sons died in the bus with three other sustaining injuries, the three persons in the tipper lost their lives.

Men of the Operation Thunderstorm were said to have been involved in the rescue operation.

Public Relations Officer of Federal Road Safety Corps, John Aniedi, confirmed the accident and said six persons were confirmed dead at the point of rescue.

Aniedi, who said his men were yet to fully brief him, disclosed that the injured have been taken to Our Clinic at Oregbeni quarters, Ikpoba Hill.

‘Delta supplements councils with N500m monthly’ From Hendrix Oliomogbe, Asaba HE Delta State GovernT ment presently supplements its 25 local councils to the tune of N500 million monthly, the Commissioner for Local Government Affairs, Mr. Neworld Safugha, has said.

Briefing newsmen yesterday, Safugha said the huge amount was being given to the councils because of the deductions from their statutory allocations for teachers’ salaries. The figure, he said, was originally about N200 million but rose to N500 mil-

lion following the recruitment of more teachers.

He disclosed that council workers in the state had unanimously disassociated themselves from the call for council autonomy during a recent meeting with the leadership of the Delta National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE).

Meanwhile, he said the over 200 physically challenged persons who blocked the Benin-Onitsha highway last Monday and impeded traffic flow for 12 hours, have signed an undertaking to be of good behaviour following their arrest.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Women gender group protests marginalisation From Anietie Akpan, Calabar BOUT 300 women from A Gender And Development Action (GADA) took to the streets of Calabar, Cross River State capital, on Wednesday, blocking the flow of traffic in protest against political marginalisation.

Led by the GADA Executive Director, Ada Agina-Ude, the placards-carrying women said that men marginalise and shortchange them in the sharing of political positions, appointments and access to public decision making, contrary to the constitutional provision of 35 per cent affirmative action on gender equality.

At the gate of the Governor’s Office, they demanded to see the governor to express their grievances, but were stopped by security agents. However, stating that the policy on women’s right to occupy legislative positions has remained on paper, the group called for proportional representation as done in Rwanda and South Africa.

NIS deports 120 immigrants from Edo From Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin City FEW weeks after the Edo A State government urged residents to ensure that all persons employed as security guards were registered immigrants with valid documents, the state command of the Nigerian Immigrations Service (NIS) yesterday paraded 120 illegal immigrants from Niger, Chad, Mali, Ghana and Guinea, who were picked up from across the 18 local councils of the state.

Speaking with journalists at the state NIS Headquarters

yesterday shortly before they were taken to Sokoto, Abuja and Cross River states, the state Controller, David Akwor, said over 450 of them were arrested but that after screening, 120 were found without valid travel and residence papers and were, therefore, deported to their home countries.

According to him, “in recent past, foreigners have been arrested in connection with crimes in the state. So, with the assistance of the governor, beginning from Tuesday, we decided to raid and mop up illegal immigrants, and in

the course of that, we arrested 450 persons but discovered that some were Nigerians while some of the immigrants had legal documents, leaving us with about 120 illegal immigrants.”

However, on concerns that some of them might have capitalised on the ECOWAS Protocol on free movement to stay in the country, Akwor said the protocol equally provided that they must possess valid travel documents and as well come in through authorised routes where they would have immigration clearance.

Such routes, he said, include

the airports, the land frontiers and the seaports, where their passports would be stamped with the duration of initial stay, subject to extension after satisfactory reasons. He noted: “Some of them present national identity cards and of course, these are not travel documents, they are just to identify you as citizens of your country.

“We have from Mali and two Chadians, and because they don’t have valid documents, we had to send them back to their countries. A lot of them have been arrested following the Boko Haram group, so we

Uduaghan vows to fish out attackers in Warri council From Chido Okafor, Warri ELTA State governor, D Emmanuel Uduaghan, on Wednesday vowed that

Don wants single term experimented From John Akubo, Dutse ROFESSOR Umaru Pate of P the Department of Mass Communications, University of Maiduguri, has described Nigeria’s democratic system of two-term of four years for the President and governors as causing stunted democracy.

He stated that the Nigerian leaders are so engrossed with their quest for second term, once elected, that all their energy and time are dedicated to ensuring that end by all means, even at the cost of delivering on their mandate.

Speaking recently in Dutse at the opening ceremony of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) workshop for the North-West zone, Pâté pointed out that experimenting the single tenure of six years would not be a bad step.

Dagogo-Jack is U.S.’ NMA Physician of the Year HE United States (U.S.) T National Medical Association has named a Nigerian, Samuel Dagogo-Jack (MD), its Internal Medicine (IM) Section Physician of the Year.

A letter from the Chairman of NMA Internal Medicine Section, Wallace Johnson (MD), conveying the award to Dagogo-Jack, read: “It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been selected as the National Medical Association Internal Medicine (IM) Section Physician of the Year.

“You have been selected to receive this honour based on your work and research in pathobiology of pre-diabetes and diabetes and your continued dedication to the NMA Internal Medicine Section.

Dagogo-Jack

want to make our country free of criminals.”

The deportees, however, excluded those from Mali, who he said, would be sent to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Abuja because of the crisis in their country, to assess and probably grant them refugee status.

While assuring that the combing exercise would continue, Akwor urged residents to properly screen the persons they engage as security men in their houses.

President Goodluck Jonathan (2nd right) cutting the tape to inaugurate the New Nigerian Chancery Building at the Nigerian Embassy in Beijing, China. With him are Nigeria’s Ambassador to China, Aminu Waji (left); Governors Theodore Orji of Abia, Peter Obi of Anambra, Isa Yuguda of Bauchi and the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan (right)…yesterday

Edo court strikes out lawmaker’s forgery suit for lack of cause From Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin FEDERAL High Court sitA ting in Benin City yesterday struck out a forgery suit instituted by the member representing Etsako Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Abubakar Momoh, against a chieftain of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Edo State, Stanley Odidi.

Momoh had alleged that Odidi, who contested the ticket with him during the ACN primaries, forged his National Examinations Council (NECO) result.

In his ruling, however, Justice A.M. Liman said the petitioner had no locus standi to sue the defendant since Odidi had also alleged that he was deprived the ticket by Momoh, the current beneficiary.

According to Liman, “from the above analysis of the case, the plaintiff has not disclosed any reasonable cause of action nor any locus standi. Consequently, the court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain this suit. Accordingly, it is struck out.”

Meanwhile, the two-time former chairman of Etsako-East Local Council, Odidi, had earlier alleged that Momoh forged his signature to substitute his (Odidi) name, which eventually deprived him of the ticket to the election in 2011.

Last week, he petitioned the

Inspector General of Police (IGP), Muhammed Abubakar, over the alleged failure by the police to prosecute Momoh for forging his signature.

Odidi, through his counsel, A.A. Afegbua & Co, in a letter of October 4, 2011, had requested the IGP to examine some documents, particularly INEC Form CF.004, where his signature was allegedly forged to oust him from the election

and had wrongfully benefited Momoh.

Consequently, a police document of October 2011, signed by the Police Forensic Document Examiner, ASP R. Onwuzulike, and made available to The Guardian, showed that “the questioned signature in the relevant column of document marked ‘27’ is the same with the signatures in the relevant column of the

documents marked 28, 29 and annexure B and C.” Having so reported, Odidi wondered why the police was yet to arrest and prosecute the lawmaker, whom he alleged, forged his signature. The petition dated July 2, 2013, read: “It is our client’s complaint that despite the identification of the perpetrator of this crime since 2011, he was never arrested or prosecuted.”

his administration would fish out those who recently attacked Warri-North Local Council of the state.

At a meeting with the leaders of Itsekiri and Ijaw communities at the Government House Annex in Warri, Uduaghan described the attack as criminal and urged the leaders to “put pressure on our young ones not to fight back,” as “tempers are cooling down now.”

While acknowledging that some arrests had been made, Uduaghan commended the leaders of the various communities and security agents for bringing the situation under control, just as he pleaded with the indigenes to avoid rumour-mongering.

Representatives of Itsekiri and Ijaw at the stakeholders’ meeting also condemned the attack, saying it was inimical to the progress achieved since the end of the fratricidal petty wars between both ethnic groups several years back.

They sought better ways of resolving disputes and provocations, while urging dialogue in dealing with provocations. Also, the Army, Navy and Police commanders at the meeting condemned the attack and denied complicity, as alleged by one of the communities.

Lagos urges review of death penalty, denies incarceration of minors

By Bertram Nwannekanma HE Lagos State governT ment yesterday joined calls for a rethink of death penalty in the nation’s constitution, urging rather the setting up of an investigative committee on death sentence to determine whether or not it has served as appropriate deterrent to criminals.

The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Ade Ipaye, disclosed the state’s position at the monthly ministerial briefing in Alausa, Ikeja, stating that the committee should also consider whether there was an increase or otherwise in cases of armed robbery incidents between the lag period

in the execution of convicts on death row.

According to him, the result of the investigation will help Nigerians take a stance on the issue. And reacting to governors’ hesitation to sign the execution warrant and the President’s advice to do so, Ipaye noted that death penalty remains part of the country’s laws.

However, he argued that governors have the right to discretion to either grant amnesty to convicts or allow them to explore their constitutional rights of appeal.

Meanwhile, the commissioner debunked reports that under-aged persons were being kept in prisons across Lagos for 390 days on the

orders of a state Magistrate’s Court. According to him, investigations revealed that the report was misleading because the 162 persons arraigned at the Magistrate’s Court were above 18 years.

More so, he said, both the magistrate and the registrar took further steps of requiring the prosecutor and the defendants to confirm their ages individually. The governor, he added, would continue to ensure that no underaged defendant was incarcerated in adult prisons.

To this end, the state has dedicated a hot line and email to enable magistrates lodge complaints to his office in any case of improper or inappropriate conduct on

the part of any prosecution counsel or police officer, he noted.

On the move to decongest the prisons, Ipaye said the state would sustain its regular visits to prisons for the purpose of releasing awaiting trial inmates and those not supposed to be there in the first place.

However, he lamented that their efforts were being hampered by the lack of case files or legal advice for a great majority of the inmates.

Nevertheless, he said, the state has created a legal advisory unit in the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), which had improved the issuance of legal advice for 757 case files.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

AfricanNews Tunisia frees jailed ex-regime’s figures UNISIAN Justice Ministry T yesterday revealed that the nation’s authorities have released from jail two former leaders from the toppled regime who were arrested following the 2011 uprising for abuse of power.

The ministry said Mohamed Ghariani, ex-secretary general of the Rally for Constitutional Democracy party of now ousted dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and former interior minister Abdallah Kallel were ordered freed

by Tunis Appeals Court.

Kallel was arrested in March 2011, just weeks after Ben Ali was ousted, after a group of lawyers lodged an official complaint accusing him of embezzling funds from the now-dissolved ruling party.

Last year, a military court sentenced Kallel to two years in jail for the arrest and torture of army officers who were accused in 1991 of trying to topple Ben Ali. Ghariani was arrested in April 2011 for abuse of power and embezzlement.

The release came after Tunisian presidency said on Monday it would extend by three months the state of emergency in place since the uprising that toppled Ben Ali in January 2011.

50 years after, anti-apartheid veterans mark arrest of Mandela, others Ex-president continues to respond to treatment, says govt NTI-apartheid veterans in South Africa yesterday marked half a century since arrest of Nelson Mandela and 17 other members of the African National Congress (ANC) in a police raid on Liliesleaf farm in Rivonia,

A

The 50th anniversary of the Rivonia arrests is particularly poignant given that one of the leaders, Nelson Mandela, who was not arrested during the raid... is in critical but stable condition in hospital near Johannesburg.

The 1963 Rivonia treason trial that followed saw most

of the activists being sent to Robben Island.

However, the South

EU pledges more aid to CAR, urges action from donors sible for international coopUROPEAN Union (EU) has E eration and humanitarian pledged to increase its aid aid, as saying Europe would to Central African Republic to

Firebrand Malema launches political movement ULIUS Malema, South Jlaunched African firebrand, has a “radical left” political movement that could challenge his former allies in the African National Congress (ANC) at next year’s general elections.

Lambasting the ruling ANC in a volley of political invective, Malema yesterday issued a populist call for voters to abandon his former comrades and back his “Economic Freedom Fighters”.

Styled as “Commander in Chief”, Malema said the group “should be a radical left, anti-capitalist and antiimperialist movement... that should be contesting the elections.”

While not explicitly launching a political party, Malema staked out a claim to lead the millions of black South Africans whose lives have not improved much since the end of white minority rule two decades ago.

“Our enemy number one is white monopoly capital,” he said sporting a red beret, vowing to expropriate land and nationalise mines without any compensation.

“No one is going to be driven into the sea,” he said, adding, “you are going to be forced to share,” pointing to Zimbabwe as a model for reform.

But Malema saved some of his most vitriolic words for his former boss, President Jacob Zuma, accusing him of destroying the ANC. He said the storied organisation had become the “ZANC”, the Zuma-ANC.

Africa’s presidency yesterday issued fresh information on Nelson Mandela’s state of health and asserted that the global icon continued to respond to treatment.

The government also claimed that Mandela remained in a critical condition 34 days into his hospital stay.

On the day that the country marked 50 years since a police raid that led to Mandela’s life sentence, President Jacob Zuma offered an upbeat assessment of the anti-apartheid hero’s condition.

“Former President Nelson Mandela continues to respond to treatment, and is still in a critical but stable condition,” the presidency said, after Zuma visited Mandela for the second time in 24 hours.

Mandela, who turns 95 next week, was rushed to a Pretoria hospital on June 8 with a recurring lung infec-

tion.

His health appears to have seen a slight improvement in recent days.

It would be recalled that Mandela was already in custody at the time of the raid, but the documents seized during the swoop allowed authorities to try him again, leading to his 27-year imprisonment.

After his release, Mandela led negotiations to dismantle the white-minority regime and became the country’s first black president after all-race elections in 1994.

At the ceremony marking the event, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe said that Mandela was the only survivor missing from the commemoration yesterday, but he was there in spirit.

“He has always been present in many deliberations and today is no exception... even as we converse here his presence looms large in the background. That’s really the measure of the man.”

Some of Mandela’s prison mates also marked the an-

A traditional healer from the city of Qwa Qwa in the Free State region praying outside the MediClinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria where former South African President Nelson Mandela is being treated…yesterday.

PHOTO AFP

tackle a humanitarian crisis gripping the impoverished nation since rebels seized power in March.

The toppling of former president Francois Bozize by the Seleka rebel coalition plunged the former French colony into chaos.

Interim president Michel Djotodia, Seleka’s leader, has failed to establish security even in Bangui and humanitarian groups have pulled back many of their staff.

A report by Reuters yesterday quoted Kristalina Georgieva, the EU Commissioner respon-

provide an additional $8 million, bringing its total aid since the start of the year to $20 million.

“The whole country, more than 4 million people, is hit by the current crisis and suffering looting and human rights violations,” Georgieva said during a visit to the crumbling riverside capital Bangui.

“I call on our international partners in humanitarian aid and development to redouble their efforts to end the suffering of the population of Central African Republic.”

Egypt’s PM hints at role for Muslim Brotherhood in govt S police cracked down on A the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt’s Premier Hazem al-Beblawi has disclosed that he would not rule out posts for the Islamist group in his cabinet if candidates are qualified.

In an interview with Agence France Presse (AFP) yesterday, al-Beblawi, who was appointed on Tuesday, said he was still considering the makeup of his interim government after President Mohamed Morsi’s overthrow in a popular military coup last week.

But the Muslim Brotherhood has already rejected an offer from Beblawi to join the new government and called for a mass rally on Friday against what it called “a

Morsi’s loyalists kick, vow to keep up protest U.S. to go ahead with F-16 jets delivery bloody military coup”.

It pledged to continue its “peaceful” resistance to the army’s removal of Morsi.

The Islamist party’s supporters demanding Morsi’s reinstatement have been staging mass protests in Cairo near a barracks where he is believed to be held.

The party’s stance came a day after warrants were issued for the arrest of its other senior figures.

Meanwhile, the United States (U.S.) is going ahead with plans to deliver four F-16 fighter jets to Egypt despite the political unrest in the

country, senior American officials said.

The new development also came yesterday as Washington is continuing to evaluate last week’s overthrow of by the army.

U.S. massive military aid to Cairo would have to be cut by law if the removal of the Islamist leader is determined

by Washington to have been a coup.

Al- Beblawi, in the interview with AFP, said: “I don’t look at political association ...

If someone is named from (the Brotherhood’s) Freedom and Justice Party, if he is qual-

ified for the post,” he may be considered.

“I’m taking two criteria for the next government. Efficiency and credibility,” he added.

“So far, I haven’t approached anyone,” Beblawi said, explaining he wanted to decide on the best candidates before asking them to join the government.

An anti-Morsi camp meanwhile is reported to be planning a Cairo rally to mark the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan following weekly prayers on Friday.

The rally planned in Cairo’s iconic Tahrir Square, epicentre of the 2011 uprising that toppled veteran leader, Hosni Mubarak, raises the possibil-

ity of further violence following a week of bloodshed after Morsi’s July 3 ouster.

The Brotherhood’s demise has been applauded by three Gulf states, who quickly stepped in to help prop up Egypt’s faltering economy.

Kuwait on Wednesday pledged $4 billion in cash, loans and fuel, with Saudi Arabia offering a total of $5 billion and the United Arab Emirates $3 billion.

In the bloodiest incident, clashes around an army building on Monday left 53 people dead, mostly Morsi partisans.

Police were searching for the Brotherhood’s Supreme Guide, Mohamed Badie, after a warrant was issued for his arrest on Wednesday, in connection with the violence.

9

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

WorldReport UN court reinstates genocide charge against Karadzic Bosnia buries 409 Srebrenica massacre victims UNITED Nations’ (UN) court trying Yugoslav war crimes has reinstated a genocide charge against former Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, overturning an earlier decision by trial judges.

Delivering the verdict yesterday, Judge Theodor Meron told the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY): “The Appeals Chamber... reverses the Trial Chamber’s acquittal of Mr. Karadzic for genocide in the municipalities... and reinstates the charges.”

Karadzic, 68, now faces 11 charges for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. They include a charge over the 1995 massacre at eastern Bosnia’s Srebrenica where almost 8,000 Muslim men and boys were slaughtered and buried in

A

Karadzic, 68, now faces 11 charges for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. They include a charge over the 1995 massacre at eastern Bosnia’s Srebrenica where almost 8,000 Muslim men and boys were slaughtered and buried in mass graves. mass graves.

Also yesterday, Bosnia buried 409 victims of the Srebrenica massacre, including a newborn baby, on the 18th anniversary of the worst slaughter in post-war Europe.

However, judges last year dropped one of two genocide charges relating to Karadzic’s role in the Balkans country’s bloody 1992-95 war during which 100,000 people were killed and more than 2.2 million others left homeless.

At the time, the judges at the Hague-based ICTY found

that there was not enough evidence to substantiate the definition of genocide in relation to the killings allegedly carried out by Bosnian Serbs from March to December 1992.

“The Appeals Chamber finds that the Trial Chamber erred in fact in concluding that there was no evidence” to find that Karadzic had genocidal intent, Meron said.

The judge added that the trial chamber’s decision “resulted in a miscarriage of justice”.

Genocide is the gravest crime under international humanitarian law – and the hardest to prove.

Meanwhile, more than 15,000 people yesterday travelled to Potocari, near Srebrenica, to attend the mass funeral of victims whose remains were found in mass graves since last year and identified almost two decades after the 1995 killing.

A downpour of summer rain hit the memorial cemetery in the late afternoon where tearful mourners sat near rows of coffins draped in green cloth, while others laid flowers on freshly dug graves.

Among the coffins was a tiny casket containing the remains of a baby girl who died shortly after birth in July 1995 at the UN base in Potocari, where her mother, Hava Muhic, had tried to shelter from the Bosnian Serb attack.

Chinese mother tosses newborn from building CHINESE mother reportA edly threw her newborn girl out of an apartment building window to the ground, where she was run over by a car.

The news came as incidents involving suffering infants scandalised the Chinese public in recent years.

Surveillance footage from Harbin in the northeast showed a bag containing the baby hitting the roadway outside, then crushed by a vehicle. It was aired by a Heilongjiang provincial TV station.

The mother – an 18-year-old hair salon worker surnamed Zhang – gave birth on Tuesday in the bathroom of a second-floor apartment she shared with nearly 10 people, the official provincial Shenghuo Newspaper said.

In her weakened state, she walked upstairs to a window between the second and

third floors, and tossed out her daughter.

It was not clear whether the baby was killed hitting the ground, or by the impact of the car.

She was no longer breathing by the time a security guard noticed the bloodstained bag and called police.

Zhang was held on suspicion of intentional homicide and taken to hospital for treatment, where her mother told her: “How could you do this, this is murder!” the Shenghuo paper reported.

It did not say whether the car driver was being sought.

One user of Sina Weibo, a popular microblog, told the mother: “The child is innocent. The loss will haunt you all your life”.

In May a newborn baby in the eastern province of Zhejiang survived after being dropped down a toilet pipe by the mother.

Russian court finds dead lawyer guilty for tax fraud COURT in Moscow has conA victed late Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, of tax eva-

Pakistani Muslims pray before breaking their fast at a mosque during the first day of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in Peshawar…yesterday.

Islam’s holy month of Ramadan is calculated on the sighting of the new moon and Muslims all over the world are supposed to fast from dawn to dusk during the month.

PHOTO: AFP

At Ramadan, no respite for residents in Syria’s Homs YRIAN army assault on Scountry Homs in central part of the entered its 13th day yesterday, bringing no relief to people in rebel areas in the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

According to agency reports, districts in central Homs, dubbed “the capitaal of the revolution” by activists, have been under army siege for more than a year.

Speaking to Agence France Presse (AFP) via the Internet on the second fasting day, Homsbased activist, Yazan, said: “There isn’t a minute that goes by that we do not hear the sound of a rocket or a shell hit the besieged (rebel-held) neighbourhoods, especially Khaldiyeh and Bab Hud.” “Even before Ramadan, we were down to one meal a day,” he added.

Throughout the blockade, rights groups have warned of critical humanitarian condi-

There isn’t a minute that goes by that we do not hear the sound of a rocket or a shell hit the besieged (rebel-held) neighbourhoods, especially Khaldiyeh and Bab Hud. tions in rebel areas of the city, which come under daily shelling and frequent aerial bombardment.

The United Nations has said that some 2,500 civilians are trapped in the besieged neighbourhoods, and activists claimed there is no way out.

“The situation now is especially difficult for families who were forced to flee their homes because of the intense shelling” that accompanied the latest assault, said Yazan.

For about six months, people living in the besieged neighbourhoods of Syria’s third city have relied on firewood or diesel fuel for cooking.

“We eat rice and bulgur to break our fast in the evening, and thyme and olives before daybreak,” said Yazan.

“This is our second Ramadan under siege.”

During Ramadan, Muslims the world over gather with family over festive meals after sunset.

In Homs, however, “there is no electricity, no generators and no water wells” any more, said Yazan.

Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah movement is taking part in the regime’s military assault on Homs, says the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Despite the difficulties and “the military imbalance, we plan on resisting here”, said

Yazan.

The assault on Homs came after the army and Hezbollah retook nearby Qusayr, after a year-long siege of the once rebel-held town.

Elsewhere yesterday, rebels seized Al-Bajariya village in the northeastern province of Hasakeh, which is home to a majority Kurdish population, said the Observatory.

The village had been under pro-regime militia control for several months, said the Britain-based group.

And in Damascus, the army bombarded the northeastern district of Qaboon, the watchdog said.

Clashes also raged on in flashpoints in Damascus’ southern belt, and warplanes bombarded rebel-held villages in the countryside near the capital.

The observatory estimates that more than 100,000 people have been killed in Syria’s raging war.

sion, provoking fresh outrage more than three years after his death in prison came to symbolise rights abuses under President Vladimir Putin.

Magnitsky was convicted along with his former boss, the U.S.-born British citizen, William Browder, the head of the Hermitage Capital investment fund who was sentenced in absentia to nine years in a prison colony.

However, the case against Magnitsky ended with his verdict and a refusal to exonerate him, as the authorities cannot take a case against a dead man any further.

The trial of a deceased person was almost unprecedented in post-Soviet Russia and has raised concerns the judicial authorities under Putin continued to persecute Magnitsky because of the political furore over his death.

Rights group Amnesty International rubbished the

posthumous verdict as the “pinnacle of absurd”.

Convicting a dead man instead of investigating how he died set a “dangerous precedent”, it added.

Journalists packed the tiny courtroom of the Tverskoy District Court in central Moscow where the judge read the verdict so quietly that it could only be heard through headphones of television crews with microphones.

The metal cage, where defendants normally hear the verdict, stood symbolically empty of either the late Magnitsky or Browder, who is based in London.

Browder, who has overseen for several years a campaign to bring to justice officials who were implicated in Magnitsky’s death, vowed to continue his efforts despite the conviction.

“Today’s verdict will go down in history as one of the most shameful moments for Russia since the days of Joseph Stalin,” he said in an emailed statement.

‘Saudis targeting Iran, Israel with missiles’ BRITISH-based defence A analysis group yesterday revealed that Saudi Arabia appeared to be targeting regional rivals – Iran and Israel – with ballistic missiles from a previously undisclosed desert base.

The defence group, IHS Jane’s Intelligence Review, said satellite images show launch pads with some markings pointed towards potential Iranian targets and others towards possible locations in Israel.

If confirmed, the base deep in the Saudi desert would be the third missile base identified in the oil-rich kingdom.

“Our assessment suggests that this base is either partly or fully operational, with the launch pads pointing in the directions of Israel and Iran respectively,” said Robert Munks, deputy editor of the review.

It could also function as a training and storage complex, IHS Jane’s said.

The launch pads are designed

for Saudi Arabia’s lorrylaunched DF-3 missiles, which are not self-guiding and need to be aligned before being fired, the Daily Telegraph newspaper said in a report on the base.

The Saudi facility has two launch pads, one on a bearing of 301 degrees aimed at Israel and the other at 10 degrees pointing towards Iran, the Jane’s report said.

“We cannot be certain that the missiles are pointed specifically at Tel Aviv and Tehran themselves, but if they were to be launched, you would expect them to be targeting major cities,” Munks said.

“We do not want to make too many inferences about the Saudi strategy, but clearly Saudi Arabia does not enjoy good relations with either Iran or Israel.”

Saudi Arabia, a Sunni Muslim kingdom, has repeatedly voiced fears about the nuclear threat posed by Shiite-dominated Iran, while it has also denounced Israel’s atomic capacity.

10

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Politics Rivers Assembly Crisis:

‘Nigerians shouldn’t sit on the fence’ National Coordinator of the Coalition of Northern Politicians, Academics, Professionals and Businessmen, Dr. Junaidu Mohammed, who was the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives on the platform of Peoples Redemptions Party (PRP) in 1983, spoke to John Akubo in Dutse through the telephone, in reaction to the crisis in the Rivers State House of Assembly.

If PDP is undemocratic, Nigeria is undemocratic, says Mohammed

HAT does the impunity in the Rivers WAssembly portend for Nigeria’s

democracy?

If you recalled, a few weeks ago, on June 23, I had issued a press release, drawing the attention of the nation to events in Port Harcourt, and in Rivers State and in other parts of the country generally.

What I said then was that what is happening in Port Harcourt is not simply the affairs of Rivers or a matter for the Nigerian Governors’ Forum neither is it just a quarrel between (Governor) Amaechi and President Jonathan himself and the wife of the President or it is a PDP matter.

What’s at stake concerns the future of democracy in Nigeria.

And I said if care were not taken, this President would drive this nation back to dictatorship.

When I issued the statement, nobody paid attention because people are consumed by the superficial event that is happening in the PDP. The problem is that PDP is the leading party in Nigeria today; they have three quarters of everything: 3/4 of the House of Reps; 3/4 of the Senate; 3/4 of the Governors or more and also control the Presidency, which is the most powerful political institution in the country.

If PDP is undemocratic, it means Nigeria is not democratic. If PDP works with impunity and is managed by thugs, it means there can never be democracy.

It is not just the absence of democracy, and the absence of choice, which is serious, but it is the impunity with which it is being pursued.

(Former President Olusegun) Obasanjo started it by forcefully removing (former Governor DSP) Alamieyeseigha (of Bayelsa State). Subsequently, he also removed the Governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, and everybody kept quiet.

And I said, “Look, it is not the personality of Alamieyeseigha or Fayose, which was at stake but democracy. If you don’t follow the law, even if you are on the right, you will be wrong.”

What Obasanjo did started a trend whereby a president, who has limitations, who does not know his right, and who is advised by cooks and by Clark, one Kuku and one Gulak will drive this nation into a coup d’état and from then into a civil war.

I have never met Amaechi in my life even as I am speaking to you. So, it is not a question of Amaechi but democracy. Anybody that wants to comment on the issue must have at the back of his mind the future of democracy.

Except we want to go back to the military era or what is happening in Egypt, then, let us fold our arms and watch Jonathan and PDP drag us into a war.

What of the seeming aloofness of Nigerians to the happenings in Rivers?

I hope Nigerians will react appropriately by coming out to speak their minds. You

Mohammed

don’t need to go to Port Harcourt to demonstrate. Abuja is part of Nigeria, Kano is also part of Nigeria and what is being contested is about democracy in Nigeria.

Let us be very careful and be ready to learn from our mistakes because you are sure you are going to repeat the same mistakes over and over again.

I hope the media will guide the populace by telling them the consequences of what is happening now because the President is behind it; he started it. It was planned in the Presidency.

I knew three days before the President travelled (to China) what was going to be unleashed on Port Harcourt and on the House of Assembly to remove Amaechi by force. What can counter

that force with the force of public opinion.

What is your advice to Nigerians at this point in time?

I am glad you are saying it is serious now.

When I spoke on it through the press statement, I drew the attention of Nigerians to it as a serious matter.

First is the use of public opinion to force the governors to come out and declare what their stand is, especially the PDP governors because it is beyond the issue of Amaechi and the issue of majority rule.

They must also come out clear, whether they are still ready to support this President despite what he has been doing to democracy, the rule of law and the terrible corrup-

I have never met Amaechi in my life even as I am speaking to you. So, it is not a question of Amaechi but democracy. Anybody that wants to comment on the issue must have at the back of his mind the future of democracy. Except we want to go back to the military era or what is happening in Egypt, then, let us fold our arms and watch Jonathan and PDP drag us into a war. I hope Nigerians will react appropriately by coming out to speak their minds. I hope the media will guide the populace by telling them the consequences of what is happening now because it was planned in the Presidency. tion in the country and the collapse of the national economy despite the ghost we are being told about and nobody sees any ghost.

Are people prepared to speak up, and if need be are they prepared to come out and demonstrate? I will like to see demonstrations not only in Rivers State. I will like the civil society organisations to say their views and what is the view of the Nigeria Labour Congress and the labour movement generally? We want to know.

Or is it because they are now taking up government positions that they are no longer the radicals we used to know?

What is the consequence of this type of impunity? Are we going to sit down and watch a fellow Nigerian being harassed and intimidated simply because he dared to disagree with the President or he dared to express his mind to want to act in a manner prescribed by the Constitution and democracy globally?

What should be the role of the National Assembly in this matter?

Nigerians must demand from their elected representatives, particularly the House of Reps, to stand up to their responsibility as representatives of the people.

They should do the following: First, they must pass a resolution recalling the President from gallivanting around the world.

His present trip to China is useless; it has no meaning; it does not add value to the Nigerian prestige, the Nigerian economy.

He should come back. He was elected to be the President of Nigeria; he should come back and do his job.

Meanwhile, the House should institute a powerful investigative panel, made up of only the principal officers, to fly into Port Harcourt and come back and draw up articles for impeachment and proceed to impeach him (President). This is very important if they want democracy to survive.

I want to draw the attention of the political class. When there is a brake down of law and order, in the event of a government collapsing, it is not only the government in power that suffers.

I was a Minority Leader in the House of Reps in but I was detained after a coup in 1984. So, many are likely to go to jail not because they have done anything, but because they have failed to do the right thing and the right thing, in my mind, is to impeach Goodluck Jonathan.

Nothing short of that will do for the country and any attempt to whitewash this issue will not work. I want the House of Reps to stand up and do its job.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

POLITICS | 11

Rivers Assembly Crisis:

Outrage as Rivers Assembly crisis lingers

By Abiodun Fanoro, Seye Olumide, Joe Adiorho, Babatunde Oso (Lagos), Iyabo Lawal (Ibadan), Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu (Benin City), Lawrence Njoku (Enugu) and John Akubo (Dutse) HE mayhem in the Rivers State T House of Assembly, occasioned by attempts to impeach the Speaker, Otelemaba Dan Amachree, has generated debates and condemnation across the country.

While some respondents have insisted that the five legislators, who spearheaded the impeachment move, were acting with the backing of the Presidency, others argued that the entire scenario was a pointer to the 2015 ambition of the parties involved.

Among those that reacted to the issue are human rights activists, legal practitioners and politicians.

Two senior lawyers, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) and Mr. Oladipo Okpeseyi (SAN) condemned the impeachment process.

The duo described the incident as a show of shame and rule of force as against rule of law — a sacrosanct democratic element necessary for good governance they said was fast being eroded.

In the view of Okpeseyi, the fracas was “a sheer madness and a reenactment of the shameful politics of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum where the rule of Mathematics was re-written to the effect that 16 is higher than 19.”

Falana unequivocally said the occurrence was illegal, null and void and that it could neither stand the test of time, nor stand the face of law.

The purported impeachment, according to Falana, is an affront on the decision of the Supreme Court, which, in several judgments, ruled that the Speaker of any House of Assembly could only be removed by the twothirds majority of all members of the House, and not the two-thirds of the minority seating.

“The aborted removal of Rivers State Speaker by a gang of five legislators and security operatives is illegal, null and void as it violates Section 92(2) of the Constitution, which requires the votes of not less than two-thirds majority of the members of the House of Assembly,” he said.

“In other words, the (Rivers) Speaker can only be removed by votes of not lees than 22 members out of 32 members.”

A civil rights activist and top executive of the United Niger/Delta Energy Development Security Strategies (UNDEDSS), Mr. Tony Uranta, condemned the mayhem and urged Governor Rotimi Amaechi to exercise his full authority, as the chief security officer, to ensure that sanity return to the state.

“We totally abhor and condemn the mayhem and we also express our disappointment in all the key figures that were involved in the crisis,” Uranta said.

Faulting the role of the law enforcement agencies in the crisis, he said: “We do not see the law enforcement agencies carrying out their legitimate duty in the matter.

“It is also imperative of the state Commissioner of Police to cooperate with the governor and carry out his duties without taking sides in such a way that would bring peace and harmony to Rivers.”

But warning against unnecessary and unsubstantiated allegations against the person of President Jonathan over the issue, Uranta said nobody, in or outside government either at the council, state or federal level should make statements of reference in such a manner that would denigrate the office of Mr. President or the nation.

“In the same way UNDEDSS rose in defence of Amaechi when he was accused of being the brain behind the mayhem in Gbaramantu Ijo during the tenure of late President Umaru Yar’Adua; the group would likewise rise up against anybody that points ac-

Security agents and a crowd in front of the House cusing finger at the President as being involved in the crisis surrounding the Rivers State House Assembly without any concrete prove,” he said.

Warning that the Rivers crisis may spell doom for the country if not addressed on time, the Edo State chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) berated the attempted move by the five lawmakers to impeach the Speaker.

The state chairman of the party, Mr. Thomas Okosun, a former Speaker of Edo Assembly, said it was an unacceptable development and a test to our democracy.

He appealed to the President Jonathan and the National Assembly not to allow the political situation in Rivers lead to the end of democracy in the country.

“What happened in the Rivers House of Assembly, where five members attempted to impeach the Speaker of a House made up of 32 members, was barbaric,” he said.

“What is happening in Rivers State, if allowed, can have a ripple effect in others states. Therefore, we want to say that what happened deserved all condemnation; it is an attempted coup; it is a rape on democracy and should not be allowed to continue.

“Instead, those five legislators should be properly sanctioned and their sponsors, including the police, asked to desist.”

Okosun solicited support of Nigerians for Governor Amaechi, saying, “the governor has done well and deserves to be supported by all true democrats in this country irrespective of political affiliation.”

Similarly, the Chairman of Jigawa State chapter of the PDP, Alhaji Mahmud Kuit, said the crisis was an affront and threat to Nigeria’s nascent democracy.

“It was funny that five out of 32 members have the audacity to attempt impeaching the Speaker by force and inflicting serious injuries on fellow lawmakers,” he said.

“It is unbecoming for legislators to resort to fisticuffs over an issue that could have been settled by dialogue.

The Rivers State Assembly crisis is sending wrong signals about Nigeria’s democracy to the rest of the world.”

Kuit said if all these crises were because of 2015, President Jonathan should know that Ameachi would not be his only possible obstacles in his ambition to be reelected as President come 2015.

“Some are saying that the crisis is about 2015 or the purported Lamido/Ameachi ticket but I want to remind the President that it is only

God that can make one President,” he said.

“Obasanjo was in prison when he was brought out and was made president. Former President Umaru Yar’Adua never nursed the ambition to be president but providence made him president and even Jonathan never knew he would be president. So, I wonder how a single individual like Ameachi can be a threat to Jonathan.”

Kuit noted that those clamouring for Lamido/Ameachi to contest in 2015 are Nigerians and that they should be entitled to their opinion.

Two Ibadan-based Human Rights activists, Mashood Erubami and Doyin Odebowale berated the Rivers lawmakers as exhibiting “a show of shame, which should not be allowed to continue.”

Erubami, the convener of Nigeria Voters Assembly (VOTAS) and former national chairman of Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) said: “It (fracas) is not by accident, but purposely designed to achieve a hidden agenda.

“Nigerians know why a loser governor became the winner in a contest that was publicly observed. Why was the Rivers State governor suspended?

“If it has been difficult to remove the governor because of the tight solidarity of some credible legislators, the next move is to break the subsisting fraternity, which is why they are reaching for the Speaker whom the devil believes is at the gate.”

Erubami said the Rivers incident is an attempt to repeat the history in Balyesa State, stressing, “since nobody fought the evil planted in Balyesa, it could become a tradition and that is what is being rebuffed in Rivers.”

“We can only advise those pretenders behind the shameful acts to desist and allow democracy to thrive. Their act of brigandage cannot help build peace, which is mostly needed in our country. Justice must be made the precondition for peace and development.”

Odebowale, a lawyer and Classics lecturer at the University of Ibadan (UI) lamented the situation, thus: “This is not the first time such a brazen assault on the sensibility of Nigerians would be perpetrated by political office holders in their quest for dominance.

“General Olusegun Obasanjo encouraged it. Former governor of Oyo State, Rashidi Ladoja, was removed from office by thugs. Six men in the Plateau House of Assembly impeached Governor Joshua Dariye.

“The Constitution is clear on how certain political officers can be removed. Any step taken outside the contemplation of the law is illegal.”

He cautioned President Jonathan on the dire consequences of this indiscretion, and alleged meddlesomeness in the crisis.

“We sincerely hope he is not setting in motion a chain of grave events, the end of which nobody can predict. We have never had it this bad,” he said.

However, a former Commissioner of Information in Rivers State said it was the governor that instigated the violence in the House of Assembly.

According to him, there was no violence until the governor arrived at the arena.

Appearing on Channels’ morning programme, he explained that when the governor arrived, he deployed his security men to attack the House members.

“The two security officers that were kicking and dealing blows on the House members that is now lying critically ill at a private clinic are the personal security details of the governor,” he said.

But he admitted that there was no way five members of a House of 32 could impeach the Speaker.

Therefore, their action stands a nullity, he said, even as he argued that no matter how wrong the actions of the five maybe, violent attack on them could never be an option.

Still, a group, Vanguard for Greater Rivers State (VAGRIS), after its extraordinary general meeting held in Lagos, called for the immediate redeployment of the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Joseph Mbu. In a statement, its President-General, Emma Nwabrije and Secretary General, Fred Iwenjora, urged the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, to urgently redeploy Mbu for peace to reign in Rivers State.

The statement read: “We, members of the Lagos and Southwest zone of Vanguard For Greater Rivers State (VAGRIS), a non-governmental, nonpolitical group of Rivers State indigenes from all professions, having observed the current situation of things in Rivers State, including the unwarranted challenge on Governor Chibuike Amaechi by the Rivers State Police Commissioner, Mr. Joseph Mbu, do state as follows: “That by the 1999 Constitution, the governor of any state of the Nigerian Federation is the Chief Security Officer of that state and in Rivers State, that person is Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi.

“That the Constitution also stipulates that the primary assignment of the police is to maintain law and order, protect life and property and generally keep the peace.

“By the declaration of the 1999 Constitution, Amaechi and indeed all governors deserve all the respect and co-operation of all law enforcement officers and agents for the smooth running of the state.”

They argued that rather than engage himself in the pursuit of these, Mr. Mbu has entered into a war of words with Governor Amechi, a duly elected governor.

The group, however, urged Amaechi to hasten the completion of ongoing projects in the spirit of the transformation agenda of President Jonathan.

Former President of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) and now Chairman, Bomadi/Patani Council, Delta State, Dr. Chris Ekiyor, said, “the members of the House have desecrated the primary business in the hallowed chamber.”

He criticised the ruling PDP for “failing to play the expected role of an institution that should protect its citizens, but has been indulged in activities capable of removing public support from it.”

On whether the crisis could be an offshoot of the division that engulfs the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, Ekiyor said: “It is not clear if the 32 members are planning to be governors or president? I wonder why they should get entangled in the NGF crisis?

“If that is what it is, it is really a shame and regrettable. I feel legislators should concern themselves with lawmaking and oversight function,” he said.

He said the PDP has not done enough to protect President Jonathan.

“In other climes, when a party nominates a candidate, the party supports the candidate till he finishes his term as enshrined in the Constitution,” he said.

“It is only in Nigeria that I see that in the mid-term of a sitting governor or president, other members will be trying to unseat such a person.

“When I look at what’s happening in our party, you are indirectly telling us that we have failed; it is a sign of vote of no confidence on our party.

“It is not Goodluck Jonathan; it is PDP that won the election and it means they are saying that the party does not deserve a second ticket.

“We have said to ourselves that we have failed Nigerians. That is the implication of those saying that Jonathan cannot run in 2015.”

The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) has called on President Jonathan to call for a truce in the imbroglio rocking Rivers State.

In a statement in Enugu by its National Publicity Secretary, Osita Okechukwu, the CNPP said the crisis has put the life of Governor Amechi in danger.

The body said, “the kitchen-battle is getting out of hand by the day, especially with the unconscionable withdrawal of the military detachment stationed at the Rivers State Government House, placing Governor Amaechi’s life in a cliff-hanger of a thoroughly compromised Commissioner of Police.”

The CNPP reminded President Jonathan that as Commander-inChief of the Armed Forces, either by commission or omission, he is culpable in the event of more untoward things happening.

“President Jonathan should note that his legacy of a democrat and respecter of rule of law is daily being eroded by a kitchen-battle, which his cronies’ altercation with Amaechi has unfortunately degenerated to.”

The CNPP congratulated the Rivers Speaker and members “for their uncommon resolve, and patriotic stand on the turmoil.”

12

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

TheMetroSection Harvests of horror in Lagos, Kaduna •Eight feared dead, 10 injured as three-storey building collapses in Lagos, another in Kaduna

Briefs Baptist MMU seminar HE Men’s Missionary Union T (MMU) of the Lagos West Baptist Conference (LWBC) is organizing a Mission Seminar and Caring Day as part of its programmes for this year.

Acting Chairman, Deacon J. S. Kolawole, said the seminar with the theme ‘How far can you go on mission and caring?’

– Acts 1:8 – will hold tomorrow at the Covenant Baptist Church, Guest Minister is Reverend Olu Oyeniran.

Fashola commissions N1.5bn eye hospital HE ultra- modern Head OfT fice Building Complex of the Eye Foundation Hospital

The collapsed building...yesterday

By Templer Olaiya, Kamal Tayo Oropo, Odita Sunday, Isaac Taiwo, Abdulwaheed Usamah and Toyosi Ajayi RAGEDY struck in the early hours of yesterday as a three-storey building located at 29b, Oloto Street, Off Cemetery Road in Ebute-Metta area of Lagos State collapsed, killing at least eight persons.

Some residents who assisted in rescue operations said eight persons, including a couple, a baby and five others lost their lives in the unfortunate incident But government officials dismissed the figures saying only four bodies have been recovered from the rubble.

General Manager of Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, who coordinated rescue operations confirmed the number of casualties adding that 10 persons have so far been rescued from the rubbles as at the time of filing this report.

Osanyintolu said: “The building at 29 Oloto Street, Ebute-Metta collapsed at about 2.30am this morning. We have rescued10 people and four bodies recovered so far. Rescue operation is still on-going”.

The LASEMA GM said the building had already been marked by the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LAS-

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BCA) for structural integrity test before the incident.

He added: “We are on top of our challenges, we have extended rescue efforts to the ground floor. Before the building collapsed, a lot of occupants had vacated the premises”.

Also confirming the incidence, South-West zonal spokesperson of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, told journalists that the agency got information that the building started cracking at about 1:30am and finally collapsed at about 2:00am.

He confirmed that about 10 rescued victims who sustained several degrees of injuries have been taken to hospitals for treatment.

There were combined efforts by officials of the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Red Cross, NEMA, LASEMA, the state Fire Service, as well as youths in the area who made frantic efforts to rescue some other persons believed to still be trapped under the rubbles.

A pregnant woman and an 18month-old boy were among the dead, as armed police officers struggled to fight off hoodlums carting away properties. “The owner of the

Another...marked for demolition building is still on the run,” witnesses said.

According to Farinloye, an occupant defied a directive to evacuate the building as emergency agencies arrived. “The young man tried to rescue his father. Unfortunately, he lost his limbs as well as his father in the process.

“Most of these houses are not modern buildings; they are old houses family members inherited from original owners. The building that collapsed had previously been marked for refurbishment and renovation,” he said.

One of the residents of the ill-fated building rescued from the rubbles, Balkiss Abdulamid said she was at the balcony of the second floor when the building came down.

Another survivor who was so confused and looked shattered said though she had been living in the vicinity for the past two years, she just packed into the house last Monday.

Also, a three-storey building also collapsed yesterday afternoon in Kaduna, northwest Nigeria. Witnesses said that no fewer than 10 persons were trapped in the aged building.

The unfortunate incident which occured on Hadeija road, near the

PHOTOS:SUNDAY AKINLOLU

Kaduna Central Market, drew the attention of the Kaduna state Governor, Alhaji Mukthar Ramalan Yero and officials of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Nigerian Red Cross (NRC), Armed Soldiers, Police, Road Safety personnel and Nigerian Civil Defence Corps for rescue efforts.

A trader, Musa Sule, told NAN that the building located between Ibrahim Taiwo by Hadeja Road housed tenants who traded in tyres.

According to him, the building had shown signs of cracks, but no one thought it was going to collapse today. It did by 3.10p.m.

Rescuers were able to pull out two women who were quickly rushed to Saint Geralds Catholic Hospital for medical attention.

It would be recalled that no fewer than 10 buildings have collapsed in the state since January 2013, claiming at least 15 lives and properties worth millions of naira.

The trend of building collapse thus prompted the state governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, to set up a Tribunal of Enquiry in May 2013 to unravel its major cause.

The Tribunal is expected to submit its findings and recommendations to the governor next month.

NSCDC uncovers illegal maternity home in Enugu From Lawrence Njoku, Enugu PERATIVES of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Enugu yesterday uncovered a maternity home where new-born babies were allegedly sold illegally to members of the public.

The illegal baby factory, according to the NSCDC Commandant in Enugu, Nathaniel Ubong, is called ‘Moonlight

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Maternity Home’ located at Coal Camp axis of Enugu metropolis.

Ubong, stated while parading one Dr. Benson Agor, arrested during the raid of the alleged illegal maternity home before news men, that the discovery was aftermath of tedious surveillance mounted by his men around the said maternity home, after they received in-

formation on the illicit deal at the home from members of the public.

But Agor, who gave his age at about 70, said that he was merely ‘rendering humanitarian services to couples, who were finding it hard to have their own babies’.

He said he had been in the business for over 10 years, adding that there was nothing secret about it.

Police detain ASSBIFIE members for picketing bank workers of the bank. of the sacked workers of the From Muritala Mohammed, Kano

ITING undue disengagement of over 1000 staff and casualization of workers, the union of bankers and assurance employees yesterday compelled the staff of Diamond Bank Plc in Kano to suspend activities while preventing customers’ entrance for routine transactions.

An industrial action that lasted several hours, it took the urgent intervention of security agents to curtail the angry labour union members who were clamouring for immediate reinstatement

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bank.

The Guardian learnt the protesting union members, after successfully barricading the bank’s main branch along Murtala Muhammed Way, were later arrested by the Police and subsequently detained at the Metro Police Divisional Headquarters in the state.

Secretary of the bankers union Hadiza Tisimi told The Guardian that the directive to picket Diamond Bank followed the persistent habit of employing cheap labor and undue sack of over 1000

She accused the bank management of directing the Police to arrest members of the union who are on active service to ensure improved welfare of bankers in the state. “ We have engaged the management of the bank several times and we also went to the Industrial Court but the bank management refused to respect the court order. The Bank has sacked more than 1, 000 workers for no just reason and they are engaging young graduates to work excessively only

to be paid N18, 000 monthly.

We were at the bank to register our displeasure only to be subjected to security harassment and many of our members were detained on the authority of the bank, ” Hadiza lamented.

Reacting to the allegations, Regional Manager of the bank, Muhammed Lawal Shuiab debunked the union’s claims, insisting that only 59 staff members were sacked based on poor performance while confirming recent promotion of over 600 employees of the bank.

Group has been commissioned by the Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), who was represented by the former Minister of Health Prince Julius Adelusi Adeluyi The Eye Foundation Hospital Group is the leading Eye Care Services Provider in Sub Saharan Africa with four outlets across the country and partners all over the world.

The hospital, which was established since 1993, is dedicated to the prevention of blindness and restoration of sight, especially for the less- privileged members of the society.

NB hosts Industrial Tree Planting Campaign Sunday IGERIAN Breweries (NB) N Plc. has concluded plans to host this year’s Lagos State Industrial Tree Planting Campaign flag-off ceremony at the company’s Lagos Brewery on Sunday, July 14, 2013. The company is partnering with the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) and the Lagos State Ministry of the Environment in the state government’s drive to plant trees all over the Lagos metropolis.

According to the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Nicolaas Vervelde: “The company is particularly delighted with this partnership because it effectively aligns with “Brewing a Better Future” (BaBF), the company’s long term sustainability agenda.”

Oshodi Tapa Chieftaincy Family gets new Olori Ebi NEW Family Head, the Olori Ebi, has been elected for the OsA hodi Tapa Chieftaincy Family . He is Alhaji Surakat Alabi Oshodi from Ewumi branch.

The new Family Head was elected at a special general meeting of the family held on June 30, 2013 at Iga-Oshodi, Lagos Island.

At the meeting, the 12 branches of the family were represented while Mrs. Ololade Oki from Obadimeji branch and Dr. Raffi Oyekan from Feyisitan branch served as electoral officers.

Speaking after the election, Mrs. Oki advised the Olori Ebi not to relent in his godly ways he is known for and which earned him the new position.

She also asked the Family Branch Heads and Elders to support the new Family Head so as to excel in his new responsibilities.

Responding, Alhaji Alabi Oshodi urged all aggrieved members to bury the hatchet and join him in the task of building a stronger , peaceful and prosperous family.and assured the entire family.

Oshodi

METRO 13

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12 , 2013

Photonews

Lagos lawmakers move into new offices amidst controversy

By Wole Oyebade ONTROVERSY has trailed the newly built office suites and its allocation to members of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

Only 36 members out of 40 could find a place in the newly built palatial edifice.

This has, according to sources, led to another round of bad feelings and infighting among the lawmakers - all Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) members.

It was revealed that by original design, three principal officers – the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Majority Leader – were to retain their recently built offices, while the rest move into the new building.

But as relocation exercises wound down yesterday, only the lawmaker representing

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Small and Medium Solutions and Partner Director, Microsoft Nigeria; Afolabi Olamide (Third left), Developer Platform Evangelism lead, Microsoft Nigeria; Oyeshina Oyetosho (right) and Team Life Saver, the Winners of Microsoft 2013 Imagine Cup Competition: Akinlaja Adedayo, Oluwole Michael, Afolabi Olamide, Adewale Adeyinka during the presentation of Prizes to the Team Life Saver, the Winners of the Microsoft 2013 Imagine Cup Competition in Lagos...

PHOTO AYODELE ADENIRAN

Amuwo-Odofin II, Ramotallahi Akinola-Hassan and her aides, were yet to get a space or have a feel of the high-end office complex.

And still operating from her old office, Akinola-Hassan, one of the least outspoken lawmakers in the House, is now surrounded by legislative officers, now occupying offices just vacated by her colleagues. The talk among Assembly workers is that “she’s been left behind,” by commission or omission.

Some officials questioned that if the old building, built three decades ago by the first Governor of Lagos State, Alhaji Lateef Jakande, when the lawmakers were 36, could accommodate 40 members later on, how come a new building only accommodates 36 out of 40?

Photonews

General Manager, VConnect Global Services, Mr. Deeponkar Rustagi ( second left) with the first prize winners at the VConnect Hackathon event in Lagos...recently

Foundation defines attributes of real men at book launch

By Nike Sotade and Bisi Alabi Williams HATEVER happened to the men? Where are the real men? That is a common question or phrase that social commentators, religious leaders, parents and single women everywhere are asking. They are lamenting young men’s shrinking status in the academia, workplace and, especially, in marriage.

The same question was the main topic at the recently held Awesome Treasures Foundation (ATF) interactive series and book launch held at the Shell Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos. The session tagged: “Marriage: Where Are The Real Men?” proved to be a hot brainstorming say- it- as –it is session.

Moderating the session, founder of ATF Olajumoke Adenowo, explained the need for the man to keep his family strong knowing that his wife and children are God’s gifts and should be treated as such.

She then asked who a real man was given that there are increasing cases of today’s males living below societal expectations for them.

Tonye Cole Group Executive Director, Sahara Group, defined a real man as the man that is made in the image and likeness of God. “He is walking in the Will and purpose of God. He respects, protects, helps, support and cherishes his wife.

That is my definition of a real man. A real man recognizes the woman”.

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He said that man understands the role of the woman, her feelings and her needs because being a real man goes with a lot of challenges. “What this means is that sometimes, a man cannot just meet up. In fact, it is tough but with prayer, love, understand and care from his wife a man can meet up”.

He advised parents to teach their young men what it means to be responsible, to work hard and to be prepared to someday get married and care for a wife and children. It is in the same vein that parents must also teach our daughters to respect men.

Korede Adenowo, MD/COO Standard Chartered Bank said: “A real man must have a good image of himself. He is not afraid of responsibilities neither does he shy away from his responsibilities.”

“It is irresponsibility for a man not to pay house rent under any arrangement with the wife, since it is his role to provide for his family. A man will always have issues because it is not easy to be a man. In fact, life will be tough, but anyone who works hard at it will excel,” he advised.

The man who cheats on his wife does not understand where he stands spiritually when he cheats. If he does, such a man will not cheat, because he is not only cheating himself, he is also ignorant of his position in a spiritual sense,” said Idorenyen Ewang,

MD L’Oreal Central W/A. He went on to say that there is no perfection because we are all made of flesh although there is a place for discipline, President, Organisation of African Instituted Churches (Nigeria Region); the fear of God and self - conMost Rev. Daniel C. Okoh (right) and Rt. Rev. M.O. Owadayo (rtd.) at the trol. “A real man takes care of OAIC (Nigeria Region) leaders’ retreat in Lagos...recently his family, builds his home and takes care of his children; he is a bold strong leader. It is a conscious step that you took when you walked into the marriage relationship.”

The book launch and interactive series is one of the ways in which Olajumoke, a multiple Award winning Architect, and the host of Voice of Change, a radio broadcast dedicated to unleashing the transformational leader in Nigerians, has been building strong Christian families and promoting a better Nigeria. Her new book, Designed For Marriage, was Besides Lagos, Nigeria is blessed with launched at the event by Goverother seaports that could ease the nor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti pressure of maritime business and State.

Her foundation, Awesome generate more revenue for governTreasures Foundation is a faith- ment and operators. But government based Non-Governmental Orseems unwilling to invest. And so, ganization that raises what we have in Calabar, Port Hartransformational leaders to positively affect Nigeria in line court, Onne, Warri, Koko, Burutu and with the Millennium DevelopSapele ports are near-zero utilisation mental Goals (MDGs) declared of perfect economic assets. by the United Nations.

Recognizing that these goals cannot be met through the conventional organs of Government alone, ATF has employed the tools of advocacy and direct intervention to help Nigeria achieve these goals, which directly address the most glaring deficiencies in our national life. INTERVIEW POLITICS

TheGuardian SUNDAY, JULY 14, 2013

South-South Ports As Wasting Assets

SPECIAL REPORT: Why Family Businesses Die With Their Owners/Founders?

How To Recover The Soul Of Nigeria,

By Gamaliel Onosode Managing Director, L’Oreal Central West Africa, Mr. ldorenyen Enang, Dr (Mrs.) Susu Enang, Founder, Awesome Treasures Foundation, Mrs. Olajumoke Adenowo, MD/OCC Standard Chartered Bank, Mr. Korede Adenowo, Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, CEO Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc. Mr Yinka Sanni, Foluke Sanni, Sylvia Cole, Group Executive Director Sahara Group Mr. Tonye Cole, former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Princess Sarah Sosan, Mary Akpobome, Alibaba and Mrs. Holloway at the unveiling of “Designed for Marriage” held in Lagos... on Sunday.

Construction of the new edifice started since the last Assembly when the members were already 40.

Chief Whip of the House, Abdul-Razak Balogun, representing Surulere II made reference to the new offices on Monday, when he informed the House that vehicles should not be packed around the building “for security reasons”, though he would not comment on their colleague that is left out of the largesse.

Spokesperson of the House and Chairman, House Committee on Information, Security, Publicity and Strategy, Segun Olulade, confirmed that the House, in its wisdom, had allocated the offices in good faith.

According to him: “The leadership of the House decided how the offices could be allocated. The offices cannot contain us because there are 36 offices instead of 37 that would have accommodated all of us, excluding the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Leader, who maintain their present offices.

“But, if you look at the structure of our present offices, you will understand that the office of the member who did not secure an office in the new building was not in the same axis with us.

“This does not suggest that she was schemed out as being rumoured by some people but it is how the leadership of the House decided it. I want to tell you that she will retain her present office till the other part of the building is constructed or better still, the House will get another alternative for her,” Olulade said.

Kano State Chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) Has Started On A Fractious Note So Early In The Day. The Development Rakes Up Images Of Why The Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) Lost Out In Most Of The Northern States In The 2011 General Elections.

BUSINESS: Not All That Glitters Is Gold: That Road To China May Be Fraught With Hidden Hurdles

The Guardian On Sunday is new, fresher, bolder; a delight to behold and more importantly, reader-friendly! Book a copy today.

14 | THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

TheGuardian Conscience Nurtured by Truth

FOUNDER: ALEX U. IBRU (1945 – 2011)

Conscience is an open wound; only truth can heal it. Uthman dan Fodio 1754-1816

Editorial The death penalty HE debate generated by the recent signing of death warrants of four condemned criminals in Edo State is not surprising against the backdrop of the existence of death penalty in the country’s statute, along with the opposition of a large section of the international community to capital punishment. To be sure, there are logical arguments in support of the death penalty, chief of which finds favour in the injunction that those who live by the sword must die by the sword. In spite of global abhorrence of capital punishment, about 682 executions were performed worldwide in 2012.

However, the arguments, persuasive as they may be, cannot discountenance the fact that the death penalty enacts a finality that is beyond human reparation, especially where the execution is found to have been inflicted on the wrong person. In that regard, it would amount to execution of justice itself; and such a situation, which has been recorded in many jurisdictions, ought not to be permitted in any progressive society.

This logic, coupled with findings that death penalty has not been a deterrence to the commission of heinous crimes, partly informed the worldwide campaign against the punishment.

President Goodluck Jonathan apparently failed to appreciate this phenomenon when, on the occasion of the global celebration of Father’s Day, recently, he urged the state governors in the country to sign the death warrants of criminal culprits on the death row. The president relied on the fact that it was entirely legal to approve the death penalty, and governors should not shy away from performing their duty of giving vent to the law.

Yet, that call, by the way, was ill-timed and inappropriate. It was read by many observers as invoking blood on the polity. The ‘father of the nation’ ought to lead, show love and compassion on a day internationally designated as ‘Father’s Day.’ Little wonder that the edifying message of the president for the occasion - that fathers should enforce discipline in their homes and act as moral models for their children - was lost. Father’s Day is about honouring all the men who have typified a father figure.

Now it would appear that the president’s call for execution of condemned criminals ended a seeming moratorium on capital punishment since 2006 which the global anti-death penalty community had regarded as hope for the West African sub-region. The number of those on death row whose warrants state governors have failed to sign, is large. Capital punishment for culprits in murder cases and other related offences is within the bounds of the country’s laws. While this legality cannot be questioned, the criminal justice process in the country remains problematic. The integrity of criminal justice is in doubt and the country’s system is fraught with sundry contradictions. Indeed, innocent victims are often caught up in the process. It is disheartening that prison formations across the country are inhabited, in the main, by awaiting trial inmates many of who have spent periods far more than they would have spent upon conviction. Calling on the state executives to exercise the prerogative of mercy would have been more appropriate given this reality of the criminal justice system.

Ultimately, government should accept that the death penalty is gradually losing its legal force in most countries across the world. More emphasis is being placed on the sanctity of life which is a fundamental human right underpinned by Almighty God’s creation of man. The sanctity of human life is such that even the worst murderers should not be deprived of their lives. Indeed, the value of the offender’s life cannot be destroyed by the offender’s bad behaviour involving murder.

Although those in favour of capital punishment have argued that a person can, by his or her actions, forfeit human rights, and thus murderers lose their right to life, there is growing preference for prison terms in place of capital punishment for criminal culprits especially in murder cases.

This is why the president’s statement, and the Edo governor’s recent action are viewed as a setback in the struggle to hallow the respect for human rights and abolish capital punishment.

The objective reality is that despite capital punishment, crimes have been on the increase. If anything, this fact dictates the need to interrogate other aspects of the political economy to account for the cause of criminality and address it from there. The manner in which the country’s production relations is organised can only but aggravate social vices in the society. The economy is largely rentier where reward is for lassitude and where resource appropriation is done through various forms of primitive amassing. This mode of accumulation has inherent implication for criminality in the society and must be addressed head-on.

No excuses, of course, for criminality. But the sanctity of life or the dignity of man ought to weigh more on the minds of leaders than it does now.

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LETTERS

Image issues in foreign policy Professor Akin Oyebode’s dren’s better tomorrow. the country. Nigeria has played SMayIR:exposition in The Guardian of Nigeria should by now be enviable roles in security and socio-political emancipation of 27, 2013 in which he elucidated the abysmal Nigeria’s foreign policy is incisive and instructive. The article has further explicitly exposed the ineptitude and inefficiency of government in both domestic and international affairs.

Nigeria has suffered and also has been abused by its rulers from the inception of nationhood. The country is like a wife who endures a continuous domestic violence from her husband with no respite. But one characteristic of her endurance is the resilience and unwavering hope for her chil-

competing favourably with the developed nations in the international sphere considering her remarkable strategic position, human capital and natural endowments.

Leadership is the bane of Nigeria’s existence and the chunk of her citizens also in mass ignorance, poverty and pauperisation in spite of their level of education.

The deletion of Nigeria from the itinerary of President Barack Obama of the United States in his much publicised forthcoming state visits to Africa is not a good omen for

Africa. The country should reengineer itself, put its house in order and ensure adequate security for its citizens for the world to take her serious. Its political leadership should also realize that they cannot deceive in this age of globalisation.

Nigeria’s socio-economic and political problems do not defy any solutions, all we need is a contextual leader with vision who will be transformational and transactional in his/ her governing approach to tackling mundane problems.

•Yahaya Balogun, Arizona, USA.

Braithwaite on Egyptian Revolution It is in this context that we see a

Guardian editorial of low standard of living is amelioSandIR:JulyThe10,unmasked.

2013 is very balanced rated. Due to the cruel neglect people’s Revolution, of the latest However, of these sacrosanct responsibili- Egyptian model in every aspect, notwithstanding the self-serving position of the AU cabal of neo-colonial power-mongers, who feel threatened in their porous comfort zone, and therefore, have hastily dubbed the Egyptian scenario, a “coup”, our own considered view of the situation is that, it is a Revolution.

Indeed, The Guardian editorial does capture the often forgotten gospel of Democracy, that Democracy is not an end per se, but only a means to an end.

That end includes many sacrosanct and inviolate doctrines in the conduct of the affairs of men, such as justice, due process, integrity and delivery of good governance by which the harshness of the citizens’

ties by their greedy and corrupt “democratically-elected governments”, the people retain the right to remove them at the appropriate moment.

at Nigeria’s door, before any further charade and fraudulent elections.

Dr. Tunji Braithwaite, Lagos.

Re: For the attention of General Buhari IR: On April 22, 2011, The the publication, however, we Slished Guardian Newspaper pub- now have reason to believe that an article on page 51 titled “For the attention of General Buhari” wherein certain allegations were made against General Muhammadu Buhari’s alleged role in the violence emanating from the elections.

The publication was based on information which we believed to be reliable at that time. Since

certain parts of the story were not verified to be correct before the publication.

We assure General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) GCFR of our highest esteem and regret any distress or embarrassment which the said publication may have caused him.

–Editor

THE GUArDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

15

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Nigeria’s bilateral trade with China hits $13b

By Ade Ogidan, Business Editor rOM a lowly $2 billion Fal trade 2002, the volume of bilaterbetween Nigeria and China grew to a yearly $13 billion last year with bright prospects of its further growth this year.

To further strengthen the trade relationship, President Goodluck Jonathan, on Wednesday in Beijing, China, said the Federal Government has evolved strategies for closer collaboration with the Oriental country.

Indeed, the President disclosed that Nigeria is currently strengthening its investment and economic ties with China because of the expo-

• Jonathan unfolds agenda for improved collaboration with the Oriental country nential increase in the bilateral trade volume between the two countries within the last few years, as well as China’s involvement in the financing and construction of key infrastructural projects in Nigeria.

Jonathan spoke during the closing ceremony of the Nigeria-China Business Forum, organised by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, in Beijing on Wednesday.

The bilateral trade volume, disclosed by Jonathan at the forum, represents over 30 per cent of China’s total trade transactions with the whole of

West Africa.

The event, which had over 300 Chinese investors culminated in the signing of no fewer than seven Memoranda of Understanding between Chinese investors, Bauchi State Government and private investors respectively.

The President said: “I want to specially commend the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment for the spectacular work done in putting together such a wonderful and world class event. I also want to thank investors for their interest in Nigeria, which is now the number one investment desti-

nation in Africa.

“The various MOUs signed between Chinese and Nigerian companies will lead to stronger economic ties between the two countries.

Nigeria and China are the two largest economies in their respective regions. Since Nigeria and China started diplomatic relations, the bilateral relations between the two countries have continued to wax stronger as the years progressed.”

He added: “Nigeria and China have had strong economic ties in trade and investment over the past years. At

Head, E-Channels, Skye Bank Plc, Chuks Iku (left); Regional Sales Director, Africa, Windcor Nixdorf, Peter Woydich; President/Chief Executive Officer, Windcor Nixdorf, Eckard Heidloff; President, Middle East/Africa, Paulo Gomez; and the Executive Director, Commercial Banking/Public Sector, Skye Bank Plc, Gbenga Ademulegun, during a courtesy visit to Skye Bank by the management of Wincor Nixdorf, in Lagos, on Wednesday.

Financial sector targets 70, 000 ATMs’ deployment by 2023

By Adeyemi Adepetun and Deborah Sunmola NDICATIONS emerged yesterday, that the Nigeria’s financial sector planned the deployment of about 70, 000 Automated Teller Machines (ATM) over the next 10 years.

The sector currently has 11, 000 ATMs. Global providers of Information and Technology solutions and services to retailers and retail banking, Wincor Nixdorf, which is privy to the plan and providing logistics for the deployments, revealed this yesterday.

Wincor Nixdorf, which has been a major player in the ATM market in Nigeria and other parts of Africa, said as part of efforts going forward, it has opened an office in Lagos for easy access to its customers.

In an interaction with journalists in Lagos, yesterday, the President and Chief Executive

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Officer of Wincor Nixdorf, Eckard Heidloff said “Nigeria is one of the most strongly growing economies in the world.

Here we’re the market leader in our business, and need to be directly available to our customers in order to support and advise them.”

Heidloff, who said the potential in the Nigerian market is enormous added that, “the country’s dynamically growing financial institutions plan new installations of up to 70, 000 ATMs over the next 10 years.

“Presently, we presently control half of the installed base ATM market in Nigeria, which is about 50 percent. Our plan is that with our presence now on ground, we have huge roles to play in providing more solutions that will aid faster deployment and remove various bottlenecks that has hindered the process before now”, he stated.

He disclosed that the country’s installed base in 2011 amounted to only about 9,600 systems, “but according to a study completed by the British market research company, retail Banking research (rBr), estimates a current total of 11, 000 systems on the basis of statements by CBN. Moreover, many Nigerian bank maintain their own branches in neighboring countries, offering opportunities for further growth.”

Against this backdrop, Heidloff said Wincor Nixdorf is very optimistic about its prospects for business in the Nigerian market, the market, which he described as very important.

According to him, in addition to Nigeria’s economic growth, an increase in prosperity is the primary reason for the growing demand for ATMs. “Currently there are only 57

ATMs per million inhabitants to cover the country’s constantly growing need for basic banking services. For purposes of comparison, in Brazil there are 780 ATMs per million and in russia 808. In order to help banks meet the increasing demands of Nigeria’s consumers, Wincor Nixdorf also intends to offer support in enhancing ATMs through new service offers or future-oriented technologies”, he stated.

He explained that the assistance would include the use of ATMs to top up payment cards or to pay bills among others, stressing that the company also believed that ATMs can contribute by enabling access to banking services to people in Nigeria who have no bank accounts of their own.

“Nearly half the inhabitants of the country, the most heavily

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15

present, China and Nigeria has annual bilateral trade exceeding $13billion. In 2002, the value of trade between Nigeria and China was just $2billion.

“The trade between Nigeria and China accounts for nearly one third of the trade between China and West Africa, and this will continue to grow bigger, indicating the importance of Nigeria to China in the regional market.

“In recognition of the strategic trade link between the two countries, the Central Bank of Nigeria recently converted some portions of Nigeria’s foreign reserve from the United States Dollars, to the Chinese Yuan.

“Beyond trade, China has been instrumental to supporting Nigeria with financial arrangement and investment in strategic infrastructural projects like rail, road and free trade zones, among others.”

Jonathan stressed that the country’s current robust, stable macro-economic environment had strategically posi-

tioned it as the preferred investment destination in Africa and globally.

According to him, “Nigeria is currently the preferred destination for Chinese companies in Africa. Presently, more than 200 Chinese companies are currently operating in Nigeria and they are doing very well.

Nigeria is open for business as we currently have some of the best incentives in the world for investors to take advantage of. Our tax policies are quite robust and the business environment we have in Nigeria is exceptional.”

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olusegun Aganga, said one of the major achievements of this forum is the big large commitment by Chinese investors in terms of investing in key sectors of the Nigerian economy. For example, the largest coal to power company in China is interested in coming to invest in Nigeria.

“Also, many big companies who are into power generation and transmission have indicated their interest in investing in Nigeria.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

16 BUSINESS

BPE presents seven bills to National Assembly on reform agenda

By Roseline Okere HE number of bills presentT ed to the National Assembly by the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) has hit seven. The bills include road sector reform bill; national transport commission bill; inland waterways bill; ports and harbour bill; postal sector reform bill; competition and anti-trust bill; and Nigeria railways bill.

The Chairman, House Committee on Privatization and Commercialization, Khadija Bukar Abba-Ibrahim has therefore, emphasized the need for the BPE to collab-

orate with the National Assembly for accelerated consideration and passage of the reform bills.

She made the remarks at the Top Management Retreat of the bureau of Public Enterprises held in Kaduna over the weekend.

Abba-Ibrahim noted that the retreat was coming at time the Bureau was in the process of concluding many critical transactions with expected huge impact on the nation’s economy.

She urged the BPE to ensure that core investors in the privatized enterprises performed their obligations

under various privatization agreements, adding “Nigerian people will benefit from the program with little resistance from Ministries Departments and Agencies as well as the labor unions.”

Declaring the retreat open, the Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Ambassador Nuhu Audu Bajoga urged the Bureau to initiate plans to further develop various sectors of the Nigerian economy.

He recalled that because of the level of transparency displayed by the BPE in the various transactions it had handled, “we took you around the world to help Federal

Government sell the NIPP power plants.”

Earlier in his welcome address, the Director General of BPE, Benjamin Dikki said that it was his desire on assumption of office to take all necessary steps to facilitate the bonding of staff to work as a team, hence the three-day retreat.

He informed that sector reforms and privatization were the main business of BPE, adding that “reforms and privatization entail a redefinition of the dynamic forces that shape the relevant sectors of the economy and changes the status quo that has not profited the generality of Nigerians and the econo-

my, but has enriched an entrenched powerful few.

He commended the Federal Government for their resolve and commitment to power sector reform, which provided the enabling environment for private sector to commit over $2.6 billion for the purchase of 15 PHCN successor companies.

Financial sector targets 70, 000 ATMs’ deployment by 2023 CONTINUED ON PAGE 16 populated in Africa, still have no access to financial services, but many do have mobile telephones, which can be used to make cash deposists at ATMs or withdraw cash that has been made available electronically.

This is possible through a software application, developed in part by Wincor Nixdorf, that enables an online connection

between mobile telephones and ATMs—thus makes it possible to authorize deposits and withdrawals at ATMs and transfer funds securely”, he stated.

According to him, many banks are also beginning to use biometric recognition methods, such as customer fingerprints for ATM authentication.

To the president, Portugal,

Middle East and Africa, Paulo Gomes, the firm is ready to improve customer usage of ATMs in Nigeria, stressing that in expanding business in the country, it will also be working and relying on the proven concept of working with local partners, which include Computer Warehouse Group Plc, SoftWorks Limited and Cyberspace Network Limited.

Executive Director, Corporate Banking, Fidelity Bank Plc, John Obi (left); Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, ABC Transport Company Plc, Frank Nneji and Managing Director, Lorin Ventures Limited, Samuel Lori, at the Fidelity Bank’s transport customers’ interactive session held in Ikeja, Lagos, yesterday

CBN introduces e-fraud reporting portal

By Chijioke Nelson HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has concluded plans to launch a portal solely dedicated for reports of frauds arising from the use of all the electronic payment channels in the country.

The initiative, which was in furtherance of the apex bank’s drive to ensure safe, reliable and efficient payment system in Nigeria, was also pioneered alongside the Nigeria Electronic Fraud Forum (NeFF) and the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS).

However, CBN has vowed to

T

• Reads riot act over dud cheques make good its threat against those using dud cheques to truncate the cash-less project being pursued in the country, in line with the global trend.

The apex bank noted that it is collaborating with the financial institutions and law enforcement agencies, to stem the tide of dud cheques’ issuance, which if left unchecked, poses a great threat to the stability of the nation’s financial system.

In a statement signed by the Director of Banking and Payments System Department, CBN, Dipo Fatokun, the registration into the portal, which will end today, is mandatory for and sanctionable against all banks, mobile money operators, electronic fund transfer switches and other financial institutions.

The statement noted that the “purpose of the portal was to provide a controlled environment where participants in the payment industry could share fraud experiences with a view to providing for better education and strategic preventive methodology that could reduce the incidences and amounts lost to fraudsters.

“In order to sustain public confidence in the payments system, especially for the successful implementation of the Cash-less Nigeria Project, it is imperative for all the stakeholders to collaborate with a view to addressing fraud risks and its associated

challenges.

“It has therefore, become necessary for all banks, mobile money operators, ETF switches and other financial institutions to get in touch with NIBSS for training and access rights to the portal.”

The apex bank explained that the deadline is today, the notice had been given to all the stakeholders since July 2, while fraud report on e-channels, using the approved format should be uploaded to the portal every Monday following the reporting week.

“Financial institutions are therefore, requested to ensure that prospective customers, from account opening, together with the existing ones, pledge not to issue dud cheques against unfunded accounts.

“Financial institutions are required to monitor cheque transactions in their customers’ accounts in order to identify those that have issued cheques against unfunded accounts on three instances with effect from the date of this circular (July 5, 2013) and render monthly report.

“Customers of financial institutions should be informed, henceforth, that CBN, in order to check this malaise, will forward the account details of erring customers to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for further investigation and prosecution”, the statement added.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

BUSINESS

17

Mobile payments hit N74b mark, agent banking scheme lagging

By Chijioke Nelson OBILE payment operaM tions may have quietly become entrenched in the nation’s payments system, going by the figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as it recorded N74 billion as at May 2013.

The Director of Banking and Payments System Department, CBN, Dipo Fatokun, who disclosed this at the 18th seminar for

Finance Correspondents and Business Editors, at Umuahia, Abia State, said that mobile payment is now a viable instrument in the pursuit of cash-less initiative in the country, since its launch in November 2011.

However, the positive development was in reverse for the agent banking model, which guideline was released over seven months, but yet to go live, as the mode of its operations was

still undergoing several checks and procedures.

“Agent banking is still in the licensing review stage and therefore has not yet gone live. However, mobile payment operations have been live since November 2011,” he said.

Agent banking, otherwise known as branchless banking, is the provision of financial/banking services by an authorised third agent to customers, through a single

FRC tasks NGOs on proper accounting

By Geoff Iyatse O ensure transparent and T accountable reporting, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) of Nigeria has urged not-for-profit entities to separate accounts of their business operations from core mandate and pay relevant taxes on such understandings as stipulated by law.

Chief Executive Officer of FRC, Jim Obazee, said this at an enlightenment programme on adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for not-for-profit entities held in Lagos.

Obazee said: “Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) – churches or mosques – that run schools, bakeries, printing press and other businesses that are not for charitable or religious purposes should present the accounts to the FRC.” This directive, he said, is contained in the Statement of Accounting Standards (SAS) 32 on accounting by not-forprofit organisations.

Obazee said it is in the inter-

UBA introduces World MasterCard NITED Bank for Africa U Plc (UBA) has introduced the World MasterCard, which is the most exclusive card in the MasterCard stable.

According to the bank, the introduction of the product was consistent with the financial institution’s strategic focus on providing appropriate products to every customer segment, which are not limited to the highly discerning customers who cherish rare and exclusive privileges.

The Head, Cards, UBA, Adedeji Olowe, explained that UBA is the only bank offering World MasterCard for its debit products in Nigeria, adding that the card programme, which is available by invitation only, can be tied to any of Naira, dollar, pounds sterling and euro domiciliary account.

He noted that the product offers many benefits such as travel accident and inconvenience insurance; extended warranty; purchase protection; concierge services; and emergency cardholder services.

The card, Adedeji stated, is exclusively made from a rare alloy of Silver Nickel, only a few materials of which exist in the world.

est of both government and the organisations to do so.

“The Economic Transformation Agenda of the President provides that existing institutions will be strengthened while new ones will be created, and SAS 32 is a

transformation tool,” he said.

Apart from providing revenue to run the country, he stated, proper accounting will attract more donors to NGOs, who will be more transparent and accountable.

business unit or distributed networks of retail outlets, like pharmacies, supermarkets, post offices, kiosks, among others.

According to Fatokun, mobile payment system as at May 2013, recorded 74,499 transactions volume through banks, valued at N11.1 billion; 10143, through cards, N100.4 million; 111,080, mobile payment agents, N2.4 billion; 275,558, money transfer, N9.2 billion; 474,741, airtime top up, N351.2 million; 894,949, bill payment, N4.2 billion; 48,874, withdrawals, N8.9 billion; and 1,826,135 in other services, N2 billion.

On the industry performance, mobile payments activities to date is put at 6.9 million transactions, valued at N74.3 billion, with 51,095 registered agents and over

5.7 million customers.

“With every new system, there are bound to be challenges, especially in power supply, poor telecommunications connectivity, lack of synergy between mobile payment operators and telecommunications firms and low customer awareness, but it is noteworthy that CBN, in collaboration with various stakeholders, is working towards surmounting them.

“In many countries, these branchless channels have made an important contribution to enhancing financial inclusion by reaching people that traditionally branch-based structures would not have reached.

Despite being the most populous African country, Nigeria is still a mid-player in the sub-Saharan financial

sector, lagging behind some of its peers.

“Agent banking and mobile payments, especially in developing economies are rapidly evolving and making tremendous impact in the lives of the citizenry, through cost reduction and various product offering at close and familiar places to the customer,” he said.

He added that despite the fact that there is no “on- size fits all” approach to issues, especially financial regulation, a proper agent network development and structures are critical, together with a clear, well understood selection and recruitment process that are consistent with the monitoring and practical liquidity management procedures.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

18 BUSINESS

VP assures on faithful implementation of $847m Abuja-Kaduna rail project From Chuka Odittah, Abuja ICE-PRESIDENT, Namadi V Sambo has restated the federal government’s com-

mitment to timely completion of the Abuja (Idu)Kaduna railway transportation project, saying the Goodluck Jonathan adminis-

tration had made adequate contingency plans to source funds from the Subsidy ReInvestment Programme (SURE-P) to tackle any financ-

Chairman, MAZ Tokheim Limited, Patrick Okpuzor (left), Chief Executive Officer, Esther Azu and Chief Operating Officer, Nduka Igwebuike at the commissioning of MAZ Tokheim Limited Lagos office…recently.

Nokia trains African App developers

By Faith Oparaugo S part of plans to introA duce its new Asha operating system globally, Nokia has organised a two-day developer bootcamp with the aim of training application developers on the functionality and unique features of the new Asha operating system.

Basically, the training also equipped them with the necessary tools to build applications for the Asha devices using the new operating system, like the recently launched Nokia Asha 501.

Speaking at the bootcamp in Lagos, Partner Manager, Developer Experience for Nokia West Africa, Olumide Balogun, said that the new Asha platform represented a fresh opportunity for Java and web developers across the globe to expand their creative prowess and build more locally relevant apps to delight customers.

According to him, since its launch in 2012, the Nokia Asha brand had witnessed strong growth in Africa, with great consumer adoption also in Nigeria. “As technology evolves, we strive to constantly update the Nokia Asha experience and provide value for our customers,” he added.

The training, which took place from June 27 to 28, was attended by 34 developers from various African countries including Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Kenya.

During the course of the training, developers were taken through the features of the OS and were introduced to new functionality through which they could create exciting mobile applications.

Also speaking, Marketing Campaign Manager, Ogbemi Kesiena added, “we are re-invented the new Asha which interact with people and we at Nokia family have not forgotten our heritage, which is strong in and out and have durability and also a full capacity touch.

ing gap in the course of the project.

Contract for the Abuja (Idu) Kaduna railway project valued at $847 million was originally awarded in 2010 but execution of preliminary stages of the project commenced in 2011.

Sambo, who disclosed this in Idu at the commencement of the track laying of the Abuja (Idu)- Kaduna standard gauge railway modernisation project, also stressed that the scheme was a deliberate initiative of the federal government to facilitate mass transportation in the country.

The vice-president noted that the SURE-P board, headed by Dr. Christopher Kolade had been directed to provide financial intervention in the case of cash squeeze on the part of government. This, he said, would aid timely com-

pletion of the project. The completion period of the project is 31st December 2014.

“In order to ensure the completion of the Abuja (Idu)Kaduna Railway Modernisation Project on schedule, government has directed the intervention of subsidy Re-Investment Programme (SURE-P) to help complement the envisaged financing gap so as to meet the counterpart funding of the project. From information available to me, I am happy to note that SURE-P intervention is making positive impact,” he said.

Still on the financing plan of the project, the vice-president hinted that President Goodluck Jonathan had planned to hold talks with the Chinese government on how to seek concessionary loans to guarantee adequate funding of the project.

“As part of president’s engagement during the upcoming proposed state visit to China later this month, the president is expected to discuss with the Chinese government on possible sourcing of concessionary loans to guarantee funding the execution of the project,” he further said.

Minister of Transport, Umar Idris, said that the ministry had embarked on the construction of Itakpe-Ajaokuta Warri standard gauge rail line, adding that the laying of the track had been completed.

He noted that construction of the overhead and underpass bridges to separate rail and vehicular traffic were at various stages of completion.

He also said that the rehabilitation of the eastern corridor (Port-Harcourt-Maiduguri) covering a distance of 1,657km was on going.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

19

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Myth or reality?

Unfulfilled promises provoke strikes, govt scrambles to resolve issues

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

20 WEEKEND

The major unions in the education and oil sectors have gone on strike over unfulfilled promises and the federal government’s refusal to honour certain aspects of the various agreements it signed with them. ROTIMI LAWRENCE OYEKANMI writes on the contentious issues there’s a growing discontent in the ShaveUDDENLY, land. Due to failed promises, trade unions been calling out their members to down tools, with more intensity in the last six months.

In the far northeast, security men are battling with the Boko Haram insurgents and the emergency rule imposed on that region has made normal life difficult for the residents. Schools and markets have been closed; many residents of the region have fled to the neighbouring countries such as Niger, Chad and Cameroon, in search of peace. In the southeast and Niger Delta regions, kidnappers are having a field day, despite modest successes by security operatives. It is, indeed, a season of unease.

Nobody is likely to accuse of the Goodluck Jonathan administration of not responding at all to the citizens’ aspirations. But one thing is clear: across the country, at the moment, many Nigerians are unhappy with the federal government. They have several needs that are not being met. And it is as if nobody is listening. The promised improvement in electricity is yet to be fulfilled. Insecurity is still widespread and security operatives are being overwhelmed. The tertiary institutions are turning out graduates, but there are no jobs. Not even Mallam Nasir, El Rufai, a former Minister, could find jobs for her daughters who are graduates. The roads, which

Jonathan

Yet, the government has continued to dilly-dally on the implementation.

Out of nine items earlier highlighted, only two of the commitments - reinstatement of Governing Councils and the Amendment of Retirement Age Act - were met. For the past 16 months, several steps, including formal and informal consultations, meetings, personal contacts, have been employed to avert resumption of the suspended action. We seem to have now exhausted all available options. Our members cannot understand why a government finds it difficult to fulfill an agreement voluntarily entered into with the Union in 2009, as well as the MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) that was introduced, following ASUU’s protest against government’s demonstration of bad faith in 2012 serve as the commonest avenue for a large chunk of the citizens to travel about, are in a bad shape. The dividends of democracy train, which began its journey enthusiastically in May 1999 with a full tank, has regrettably not

Sambo

covered even half of its destination, 14 years on. Ironically, the body language of the politicians in power does not give any indication that they truly understand the import of what is going on.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is the latest to embark on strike. The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) has been on strike for several months. The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) asked its members in 11 states to proceed on strike a few weeks ago, following the concerned state governments’ refusal to honour the pact with the teachers in respect of the 27.5 percent increment in allowances. And just last week, the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) workers went on a three-day warning strike over what they described as “antilabour” activities and vowed to embark on indefinite strike if their demands were not met.

Strikes are, indeed, not peculiar to Nigeria.

Mark

Across Europe and South America, many citizens have taken to the streets over harsh economic policies. From Spain, Greece, to Brazil, citizens are on the street, describing their respective governments’ economic policies as unbearable. And in Egypt, protests have already led to the overthrow of its first democratically elected government.

In Nigeria, the unions are protesting over one thing: failure of the federal government to fulfill its promises. Take ASUU for instance.

According to a statement by its President, Dr Nasir Isa Fagge, the union had declared a strike on December 4, 2011 to force the federal government to implement the 2009 agreement it signed with the university teachers.

There are nine items in the agreement. They include: Funding requirements for the revitalization of the Universities; Federal Government Assistance to State Universities; Establishment of NUPEMCO; Progressive increase in annual budgetary allocation to education to 26 per cent between 2009 and 2020 and Earned Allowances.

Others are: Amendment of the pension/retirement age of academics on the professorial cadre from 65 to 70 years; reinstatement of prematurely dissolved governing councils; transfer of federal government landed property to universities and the setting up of Research Development Council/Provision of Research Equipment to Laboratories and classroom in the universities.

The strike was suspended on February 2, 2012 “in the interest of the revitalization of the Nigerian universities. Faggie stated: “Following the suspension of the strike, government responded by setting up a Committee via TETFund (Tertiary Education Trust Fund) to assess the needs of Nigerian Universities in terms of infrastructure and required quantum of fund. Government also mandated the Implementation Monitoring Committee (IMC) to document and compute the financial implication of implementing the 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement.

“At ASUU’s insistence, many of these conditions have now been

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

WEEKEND 21

Tambuwal

Igwe

met. Yet, the government has continued to dilly-dally on the implementation. Out of nine items earlier highlighted, only two of the commitments - reinstatement of Governing Councils and the Amendment of Retirement Age Act - were met. For the past 16 months, several steps, including formal and informal consultations, meetings, personal contacts, have been employed to avert resumption of the suspended action. We seem to have now exhausted all available options. Our members cannot understand why a government finds it difficult to fulfil an agreement voluntarily entered into with the Union in 2009, as well as the MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) that was introduced, following ASUU’s protest against government’s demonstration of bad faith in 2012.”

Fagge said one key aspect of the agreement where the government had “demonstrated” insincerity was on the Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), components of which include responsibility allowances to Heads of Departments, Deans of Faculties and other functionaries in the university system.

He continued: “After the MoU of 26th January 2012, Government accepted in principle to pay EAA. As if to demonstrate its commitment, the IMC under the chairmanship of Dr. Wale Babalakin was assigned the responsibility of working out practical and sustainable ways to do this. When the IMC submitted its recommendations on this aspect of the Agreement, which has run into almost four years, however, the Government suddenly began to give excuses. And, finally, it set aside the recommendations of the IMC on the account of financial difficulties; these were recommendations which came out of serious engagements with officials from relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs). Our Union sees this sudden reversal of gear as a betrayal of trust.

“From all indications, it appears Government is yet unprepared to address the challenges facing Nigerian University system with the urgency that is required. This trend is dangerous, as it constitutes a threat to the relative peace in Nigerian Universities. There can be no justification for Government’s position, given what all Nigerians know about the management of the nation’s resources. It is evident that Government is highly deceptive and is not interested in sustaining relative stability in our universities. If government can

betray our Union on the 2009 Agreement, where is the basis of trust for the impending review, which was due for 2012?

“It is in the light of the above, especially having exhausted all other options, that ASUU-NEC at its meeting in Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, between 29th and 30th June, 2013 resolved to call out all its members on a nationwide strike action, beginning from Wednesday, 3rd July, 2013. The strike action is comprehensive and total.”

However, The executive secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof Julius Okojie has expressed disappointment over the union’s action. He told The Guardian that on the issue of the EAA, the government has not reneged on its promise. According to him, the figure submitted by ASUU was very high and the government asked for the list of the authentic academic staff to be paid the EAA. He described ASUU’s decision to proceed on strike as “unfair.” He declared: “They (universities teachers) get their salaries. On the issue of allowances, why can’t they persevere? The government did not say it would not pay. What we said was that not all lecturers are entitled to Earned Allowances. The figure they (ASUU) came up with was huge and we said there was a need for harmonisation, because not all of them are entitled to it. We needed to determine which lecturer deserves to get the earn allowance.”

But the NUT’s grouse was with the state governments of Cross River, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Ogun, Edo, Kogi, Niger, Borno, Benue, Zamfara and Sokoto which had refused to pay the 27.5 increment in allowances to the teachers. The union’s president, Mr. Michael Olukoya told The

Interior Minister, Abba Moro told state correspondents at the FEC meeting on Wednesday that the government was concerned about the persistent disruptions in the academic calendars of the nation’s tertiary institutions. Moro also stated that FEC frowned at the incessant strikes and called for more interaction between the government and teachers to stop strikes

Guardian that the union resorted to going on strike after all efforts by the union to make the state governments appreciate the need to fulfill their promises failed. When critics accused the union of not asking if the concerned state governments were in the position to pay the money, Olukoya said the union was sure that states could afford it. That position does not hold water, he insisted. “The states only need to re-arrange their priorities to get the required funds to pay the teachers.

Asked how long the strike would last, he responded: “The struggle started in 2008. We have been patient enough. The strike shall remain until we are paid.”

For NUPENG, part of the reasons for going on strike include: demands for labour rights for workers in the major oil companies; crude oil theft and poor funding of the Nigeria Navy.

Besides, since all its members’ tankers ply all the roads across the states to deliver petroleum products, the union also demanded that the government fix the roads.

The union had, for many years, insisted that various fatal accidents involving tankers that had led to loss of lives have been due to the very bad condition of the roads. They also stated that some of their members, who were killed on the major highways by bandits, were attacked at bad spots of the road, where the tankers were forced to slow down. Another issue that bothering NUPENG is the insecurity across the country.

Their members have been attacked and killed and they want the government to act. The union also wants higher pay for their members.

Although, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu and the Labour Minister, Emeka Wogu met with the union’s leaders to avert the strike, an agreement could not be reached.

The three-day warning strike, which was called off last week, disrupted normal activities in several states as many car owners scrambled for fuel at the few filling stations that did not run out of the product during the period. The price of a normal cylinder of gas, which cost N2, 800 before the strike, has shot up to N3, 500 and is yet to revert.

ASUP also proceeded on an indefinite strike in April, following government’s failure to implement agreements. Some of the contentious issues include: release of White Paper on the Visitation Panel to federal polytechnics; noncommencement of needs assessment of Nigerian polytechnics; worrisome state of stateowned polytechnics/monotechnics; non-migra-

Fagge

Olukoya

tion of members at the lower cadres on CONTISS 15 salary scale, and continued appointment of unqualified persons as rectors by some state governments.

Besides, the polytechnic teachers are aggrieved over the failure of most state governments to implement approved salary packages (CONPCASS) for polytechnics and the 65 years retirement age benchmark. The non-establishment of a National Polytechnics Commission is also in contention, because the teachers are tired of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE). They are also not happy with the “snail speed” associated with the amendment of the Federal Polytechnics Act. Although, there was a meeting between the union, led by its national president, Mr. Chibuzor Asomugha and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim, nothing concrete could be agreed upon to avert the strike. The union has vowed to continue with the strike until all conditions are met.

Efforts are however on to resolve the strikes.

With regard to the NUT, an agreement has been reached with the Ekiti state government, which offered 16 per cent. The Cross River state branch also suspended the strike when a deal was reached with the state government.

And in Edo state, a sort of truce has also been reached. As at Wednesday, Comrade Patrick Ikosimi, the chairman of the state’s branch of the NUT and his team, met with Governor Adams Oshiomhole in an effort to resolve all issues.

Efforts are also on to resolve the issues with ASUU and ASUP. This is against the background of the plea by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to University teachers to call of their strike “in the interest of Nigerian youths and education.”

Interior Minister, Abba Moro told state correspondents at the FEC meeting on Wednesday that the government was concerned about the persistent disruptions in the academic calendars of the nation’s tertiary institutions.

Moro also stated that FEC frowned at the incessant strikes and called for more interaction between the government and teachers to stop strikes. His words: “We believe ASUU should find other means of reacting to issues rather than resorting to strike, which is inimical to the progress of the education sector. It affects the children who now seek education in countries as small as Benin Republic which constitutes a waste.”

22

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

23

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

ExecutiveBrief In association with TRIPPLEA ASSOCIATES LIMITED

EDITION 270

EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT INFOTECH4DEXECUTIVES CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE EXECUTIVE FINANCE ennesaret Resources Nigeria Limited (GRNL) is an indigeG nous company involved in Training, Certification and mentoring in Non Destructive Testing (NDT), Welding and Safety of Technical professionals or proposed technical professionals for the Oil and Gas Industry to ensure they are equipped with the right competencies to occupy middle and high level technical positions in the industry. The organization also offers training and certification for the following international bodies amongst others: NEBOSH, ASNT, API, AWS etc. The Managing Director of the organization, Engineer Akinwale Eso, an alumnus of Lagos Business School and Shell Intensive Training Programme (SITP), in this interview spoke on the Focus of a CEO. He had worked for three Oil Service companies before setting up Gennesaret Resources Nigeria Limited.

What do you do as an Organization?

Gennesaret Resources Nigeria Limited offers training and certification for the following international bodies amongst others: NEBOSH, ASNT, API, AWS etc. We are also involved in the areas of Project Resourcing/Procurement, Pipeline Laying Installation, Pipeline Maintenance, Upgrading of Oil & Gas Facilities, Lifting Equipment Inspection/Certification, Tubular Inspection, Corrosion Monitoring and Prevention, Fabrication and Maintenance of Tanks, Quality Assurance/Quality Control Services, as well as other services to the Oil/Gas and Industrial Companies in Nigeria. We also offer training for welders, fitters, scaffolders etc both in Nigeria and also in the training facilities outside the country of our alliance partners. We bring in the approved facilitator to groom the candidates and then bring in the international certification body to come and conduct an examination and the candidates who pass are certified.

Gennesaret Resources offers these various trainings to individuals who want to personally upgrade themselves, corporate organizations who want to upgrade their staff; government bodies who want to upgrade their people and position them properly. We are also into training consultancy and various specialized technical training for companies. Our trainings and certification are universally relevant to any sector of the economy that strives for international standards. In more developed countries even the civil service makes use of all these trainings and certifications.

What is the relevance of NEBOSH, ASNT, API, and AWS in Nigeria?

Akinwale Eso

Gennesaret: Bridging the Educational gap using latest Technology I’ll take them one after the other. NEBOSH is an acronym for National Examination Board of Occupational Safety and Health, based in the United Kingdom. It is currently the most recognized Safety training and certification in the world.

Gennesaret Resources is an accredited agent of NEBOSH with number 953, which enables us to represent NEBOSH in Nigeria. NEBOSH has many certifications but the most common and relevant to our landscape is NEBOSH International General Certificate (IGC) which is basically an internationally accepted entry standard as a Safety Professional. We also have NEBOSH Technical Certificate for Oil and Gas which is a more specialized certification centered on the oil and Gas Industry.

These NEBOSH courses are important and necessary for as many who want to take Safety as a Profession or companies which believes in Safety as a culture. A State like Lagos State has even taken Safety to a higher level by having a Lagos State Safety commission and the least qualification of their staff should be NEBOSH IGC. In the Niger Delta if most of their Youth could be trained as Safety Professionals using NEBOSH as a platform then youth restiveness and unemployment would have been reduced to the barest minimum.

require to have a fulfilling course study. The course duration varies based on the minimum requirement of the certification body and also the experience and educational level of candidates.

At our head office located at 1st Floor, Izzi House, 315 PH/Aba Expressway, Beside UBA, Rumuokwurushi, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and Lagos office at ground floor, Wing B, Elephant Cement House, Alausa, Ikeja, we have established a dedicated customer care desk to handle all old and new customers alike with a swift response. Customers can also contact the help desk at round the clock online by mail on info@gennesaretresources.com or through 08034012002 and 07040805587.

ASNT is an acronym for the American Society of NonDestructive Testing based in the United States. It stands as the most recognized body regulating the practice of NonDestructive Testing in the world. Non-destructive Testing is a professional course meant for engineers or technicians to verify the integrity of Welds, joints, pipelines, tanks etc without destroying them in the process. It is very relevant in the oil and Gas Industry in many ways. It can be used to verify the integrity of pipelines in service or out of service to prevent rupture. NDT as Non destructive Testing is called is one of the most relevant services rendered during a turn.

What is your assessment of the industry in view of the proliferation of training and certification consultants in the country?

In Nigeria we have regulatory bodies that supervise trainings at various levels such as Center for Management Development, International Training Fund, Oil and Gas Trainers Association of Nigeria, Nigerian Institute of welding, Department of Petroleum Resources and also so many international and local bodies that help to ensure that quacks are starved in the industry.

What is the future of NEBOSH in the country?

Because the country is developing and aspiring to be among the top industrialized nations, NEBOSH, as the most recognized safety Certification worldwide will be a MUST. In our quest for technological advancement we must ensure we reduce causalities and incidences to a zero level and this also attracts good investments.

Our mission and vision is to ensure International training and certifications are affordable and accessible to all Nigerians. With this main purpose in mind, success is very sure.

Passing of professional and international certification exam has often been a huge task what level of success have you been able to achieve?

API is an acronym for American Petroleum Institute based in We have been able to achieve 80% success level in all our internathe US which regulates a lot of activi- tional trainings and certifications. The reason is we bring in the very best tutors and when we realize our candidates are not meetties and inspection duties for both ing up; we put them through extra coaching and mentoring. upstream and downstream all over From our experience, we’ve realized that Nigerians are as intellithe world. The American Petroleum Institute has various certifications reg- gent as any other people in the world; the challenge is to have the ulating various aspects of inspection. same opportunities that the foreigners are exposed to as per techWe have API 653- Above storage Tank nology.

Inspection, API 510- Pressure Vessel How do you strategically use your time as an entrepreneur? What Inspection, API 570- Piping Inspection; key activities would you recommend entrepreneurs use their API 580- Risk based inspection, API 571- time for?

Corrosion Inspection etc. Each of the Entrepreneur should spend ample time learning, reading and aspects is a worldwide industry strategizing. They should set realistic and attainable goals to requirement for the Oil and Gas ensure they get sustainable results. Even while relaxing there are Industry. This certification offers the films and books entrepreneurs can read to improve themselves holders a senior technical position in without stress. Time, to the entrepreneur is an asset that must the oil and gas industry. It is mostly for not be toyed with or handled with levity. experienced Professionals in the Many entrepreneurs complain about not succeeding in business inspection industry. due to lack of funding, how do you cope with funding issues in AWS is an acronym for American your business?

Welding Society based in the US. It reg- Funding is just 25% of the entrepreneur’s problem. The major ulates welding activities worldwide. problem is complete knowledge of what you want to do, how you The most common examination of the want to achieve it and milestones to achieve the dream.

American Welding Society is the certi- Remember the journey of thousand miles begins with a small fied welding Inspector Certification. step. I will advice entrepreneurs to have a board of Directors who The holder of this certification super- will support, guide and mentor the businesses. The challenge we vises and guides the Welders. This is a have is having an entrepreneur who cannot defend his vision and must course for our young Engineers hence finds it difficult for anyone to buy in. who have a knowledge of welding.

What’s your assessment of educational system in terms of manHow accessible are your programmes? power development?

All these programmes are very accessi- Because we are in a global environment and cannot be in isolable and available almost all year long. tion, our educational system must be developed to match those Most of the international certification of its counterparts in developed nations of the world. In Nigeria bodies dictate the examination dates most of the technical courses in the University and Polytechnics however it holds at least once a quar- do not have a rich practical content using latest technology and ter. The courses are available to indimodern methods, hence a fresh graduate is always bereft of the viduals who want to develop themstandard he should be. This gap is what Gennesaret Resources is selves, to corporate organizations who trying to bridge. want to develop their staff and to What would you describe as your major setbacks and what lesGovernmental bodies who want to develop their people. We have our gen- sons did you pick from them? Major setback for us is just comeral programmes and also our corpo- munication. We have thousands of Nigerians who need our servrate programmes we do in the premis- ice but medium of communication in Nigeria is tough. Not so es of our clients. In the service Sector many read newspapers, listen to TV, Radio and the wide geographical landscape of Nigeria also makes bill boards a tall we are involved in Non Destructive option. We are just doing our best to advertise our services Testing Services, tank Inspection, through all legitimate ways possible but most importantly referPipeline Inspection and Manpower rals from our previous clients have been very helpful and encoursupply services. aging.

What should a trainee expect?

Leadership philosophy and how do you get in touch with everyA trainee should expect an internationally standard course with full prac- body at all levels in the organization. My leadership philosophy is ‘develop the factory and the office will be easy to build’ meaning ticals and illustrations. Very experienced trainers of international repute start from developing the least in your team and life will be easy for those at the top. We run a very sound and open structure, with over twenty years of relevant experience, a conducive learning envi- hence communication with all members of the Gennesaret team is cordial, open and trustworthy. ronment and all the support they

For Advertisement and Enquiries 08025070837 08156388800, E-mail:editor.executivebrief@trippleagroup.com

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12 , 2013

24 | EXECUTIVEBRIEF

Executive Management

By Mandy Swift eveloping unshakable belief is going to one of your key business success strategies. Many of the greatest people in history had nothing but belief to sustain them in the early days or even years of their endeavours. Mary Kay Ash’s mascot for her cosmetics company is a bumblebee.

Because of its tiny wings and heavy body, aerodynamically, the bumblebee shouldn’t be able to fly. But the bumblebee doesn’t know that, so it flies anyway. (Taken from ‘Unstoppable’ by Cynthia Kersey). You may feel Unstoppable when you first dream of success in your business. You may feel Unstoppable in your first few weeks or months but as the challenges come and the first nagging doubts begin to gnaw away, how you do maintain that unshakable belief? You may feel that successful people are simply ‘born’ with a radiating inner self-confidence and belief in their abilities. And some may well be. If you are struggling a little bit at the moment though and wondering if you ‘have what it takes’ to achieve the success you dream of, take heart from the fact that many more had to dig deep and cultivate that seed of belief, nurture it and develop it until it became a light so bright that nothing could distinguish it.

Below are 5 simple steps that you can develop and use. Add them to your other business success strategies and watch your results soar!

STEP 1: Take Immediate Action.

D

Belief comes from achieving success and success is only possible by taking action. The only time results come before work is in the dictionary, so step up to the plate now and take action. The benefit here is twofold: one, become so busy that there is simply no time in your head for the negative self-chatter; you are simply too busy taking action!

And two, the busier you are, the quicker you will begin to gather the evidence of success that will fuel your belief. It is the ‘Be-DoHave’ principle. First you have to ‘Be’ in your head the person you wish to become. Second you have to ‘Do’ the things that all successful people do. And lastly, you can ‘Have’ the things that successful people have, and that includes an Unstoppable belief system.

STEP 2: Turn Off The Negative Mind Chatter. “You become what you think about” and countless other quotes remind us that “thoughts are things”.

For most of us, the voice inside that says, “Who do you think you are? What makes you think you can be so great?” like a relentless tidal wave, on and on, is unfortunately much louder than the voice that says, “I possess all the attributes I need to become a fantastically successful business person, and every day I am learning more”. And sometimes the volume button can be turned up so loud it completely drowns out the sound of our positive thoughts. Fortunately, it is relatively simple to ‘flick the switch’.

The conscious mind is only capable of focusing on one thought at a time. Armed with this

INFOTECH4DEXECUTIVES line with the Central Bank Icy,nofKaymu.com.ng, Nigeria (CBN) cashless polione of Nigeria's fastest growing online marketplace has introduced an e-transaction payment service called SafePay. This, it said is geared at making online transactions safe and easy for Nigerians. The Managing Director of Kaymu, Lukas Zels, said SafePay was a necessary step to empower Nigerians through e-Commerce.

He explained that SafePay “is an escrow service whereby buyers pay directly to Kaymu for items bought plus the cost of delivery, and sellers send item purchased to the buyer before receiving the money from Kaymu.” He said the rationale was to make transactions across Nigeria safe for buyers and sellers. This will create a great environment for trade on our platform. Most especially, small and specialized sellers with great products will benefit from the huge audience that they can securely sell to, now.”

Business Success Strategies - Developing Unstoppable Belief knowledge and a healthy chunk of self-discipline, every time you notice a negative army of thoughts taking up residence, you can make the conscious effort to replace those thoughts. Instead of focusing on what you do not want, or what you cannot do, simply replace it with the question “So what do I want? What can I do to achieve my goal? How can I approach this differently?”

3. Understand That Fear Is A Normal & Natural Response.

Fear is a natural reaction to change. It is simply the emotion we feel every time we step to the edge of our comfort zone and our body responds with that genetically programmed ‘Fight of Flight’ response.

Everybody experiences fear.

The difference between successful and unsuccessful people, however, is their response to fear. Successful people understand that ‘feeling the fear’ is just their body’s internal warning system saying to them “Uncharted territories ahead, no flight plan available, are you sure you want to proceed?”

They acknowledge the fear and ‘do it anyway’. Most of us are conditioned to pull back at this point, however. We misread the fear signal as ‘Danger: No Entry beyond This Point’.

Successful people on the other hand, understand that the fear is really saying is: ‘Warning: Proceed with Caution’.

4. Prepare For The Inevitable Criticism & Rejection Is Part Of The Package. If you know something is on its way, you can prepare for it. Fact number 1: People fear change and the unknown.

How many people resisted the idea that the world was round because the magnitude of the concept was just too much to comprehend? Fact number 2: the negative comments of others merely reflect their limitations, not yours. Deal with it by getting rid of the naysayers and surrounding yourself with a mastermind group of positive people who will inspire you.

5. Ignore The “Experts”. These experts may be self-appointed state your intentions to somebody and their will almost always have an ‘expert opinion’ on the matter. Perhaps more dangerous, however, are the ‘real’ experts. Why? Their opinion is founded on the facts and results produced by research.

The problem is that this research is always conducted on an idea or a product that relates to the past. It is impossible to do ‘future’ research and therefore it is impossible to ‘know’ the outcome of a new idea or a new venture. At most, these people can offer a calculated opinion. And history has proven over and over that expert ‘opinions’ do not amount to very much. Here are just a couple of my favourites: “No one will buy a tape player that doesn’t record” - opinion of market researchers at Sony.

“Personal computers are a hobbyist fad.” Prediction of IBM, Intel, HP, Atari and countless other electronics companies.

Armed with this knowledge, go out there and implement these

ideas into your business success strategies. Most of all take action. After all, knowledge is useless without action.

a Customer Service Nigerians to enjoy safe e- Customer Experience Turning Horror Story, Into a Love Story transaction with Kaymu R SafePay

By F Lee Tomlinson

According to the MD, the platform would provide both parties with a secure eCommerce transaction. “If goods bought are not delivered to the buyer or doesn’t meet the expected conditions as displayed online, Kaymu refunds the money paid to the buyer and the seller gets their goods back from the buyer.” “With this, more buyers will purchase a seller's items and a seller has the guarantee to receive payment for his goods. However, he will receive the goods back, if a buyer eventually does not buy again. As for the buyers, they have the guarantee to receive items paid for or a refund of their money, in addition with delivery costs”, Zels added.

Both Kaymu buyers and sellers are quite pleased with this payment solution; “with

Kaymu Safepay, I can now pay safely online without any fear of fraud. I can also prepay for the product without having to wait at home to pay when delivered. Kaymu SafePay has made online shopping more convenient for me.” Said Ganiyu Rasheed, one of the satisfied customers of Kaymu.com.ng “Kaymu provides us with a payment tool that is easy and convenient. We can now tell our customers to use Kaymu Safepay to prepay for their products. Seeing that we support payment with Kaymu, our customers from places where we don’t offer cash on delivery are willing to buy online. We have obtained a lot of business opportunities through Kaymu Safepay” added Tito Philips, Jnr. a successful seller on Kaymu.

ecently I had an unfortunate experience while leaving the parking lot of my local Landmark Theater. The details of what went wrong are, in this case, unimportant. Suffice it to say that while trying to leave the parking lot at the theater, which is part of a bigger mall, we were subjected to some silly, insulting behavior on the part of the parking attendant.

What is important is how this horror story became a love story thanks to an amazing business owner who truly "gets" what to do when things go wrong for his patrons - as they do for even the best of us.

So, here's the "rest of the story" to quote the late, great Paul Harvey.

within minutes - apologizing for the experience. And, as I suspected, it was the Mall parking folks and not Landmark's staff who were the problem, but Ted promised to kick some butt with the Mall owners to rectify the situation.

something out of the ordinary. We give a second and a third chance because we have come to love and depend on the superlative way we are normally treated.

Plus, now Mr. Cuban has me so devoted to Landmark that Ladies and Gentlemen, this is not only will I forgive small the way to handle a customer transgressions, but I want to complaint. Fast and be part of the solution to any Apologetic! Make it Right. problem I encounter, rather Landmark Theaters' success is a than just a complainer. I want product of the owner's comto be part of the solution. He's mitment to providing his made me feel important by clients and customers with paying attention to me and amazing customer service. Mr. now I feel a little like a memCuban clearly recognizes that ber of the family. Now that's movies are movies, theaters are the power of truly great custheaters, and the only point of tomer service. I salute you Mr. differentiation is the quality of Cuban and your amazing service. team. Everyone else, watch, As fate would have it, one of Bravo Mark. You have me for listen, learn, and imitate! my colleagues had the e-mail life (though I address of the inimitable, high- still can't suply successful, charismatic bilport the Mavs - I lionaire entrepreneur Mark think you Cuban, who owns those very understand). same Landmark Theaters (as One last thing, well as the NBA's Dallas Mavs despite my chalGo Clips and Lakers. Sorry lenging most Mark). And, my colleague just recent visit to for the heck of it sent an e-mail Landmark to Mark Cuban about the park- Theaters, my ing lot incident. Now the story loyalty remains gets amazing. Within minutes intact because he got a response from Mark of all my previCuban that said, "Thank you. ously great I'm on it!!!" You must be kidtimes with ding. When was the last time Landmark. One you could figure out even how major benefit of to reach a mogul like Mr. great customer Cuban? When was the last service is that it time you got a response much engenders less a personal response in loyal, not just minutes, from anyone, anysatisfied cuswhere, with any company? My tomers. So if guess is rarely or never. But it customers, like gets better. Mark then sends a me, have a crapcopy of the note to his CEO, a py experience, Mr. Ted Mundorff at Landmark we consider it Theaters. And guess what? Ted an aberration, also personally responds -

Action is the foundational key to all success. Pablo Picasso

THe GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

26 ARTS

Film For Aluu 4, other mob victims, Don’t Walk Away campaign gets underway Stories by Anote Ajeluorou ones of students of University of Port LthatoVeD Harcourt (otherwise known as the Aluu 4) were murdered by a mindless mob in Aluu community, Rivers State, victims of 2011 election violence in parts of the North and other similar victims of mob attacks all over the country may now find a platform to take action.

While efforts are ongoing to redress these brutal murders, a lot more could still be done to prevent future occurrences by concerned citizens through a campaign just launched in Lagos.

Known as Don’t Walk Away, which is also the title of a short docu-film on a similar brutal mob attack on a 12-year old boy eight years ago in Lagos, the campaigners seek to galvanise action amongst citizenry on the need to take action in a mob situation to avert the needless death of innocent Nigerians. The campaign is built around the Abimbola ogunsanya-made docu-film, a former NTA staff, who has gone on to make other sterling documentaries.

Importantly, ‘Don’t walk Away’ campaign is predicated on the famous saying, ‘evil triumphs when good people do nothing’ to redeem social malaise. Those averse to such evil are urged to make a pledge to do something positive when they see evil on rampage, such as the horror of the Aluu 4!

And at Unity Centre, Isaac John Street, Ikeja GRA, last week, organisers unveiled the docufilm Don’t Walk Away and launched the campaign to raise awareness given the disturbing trend that condemns a section of society to the bestial age when man’s inhumanity to man assumes a frightening dimension. eight years ago, ogunsanya ran into a mob baying for the blood of 12-year Samuel while returning from work. Samuel, a street beggar, had been accused of stealing a baby and the angry mob wanted his blood even when it could not trust the source of the alarm that said he stole a baby. That an accusation had been made was enough for the mob to have Samuel’s head on a platter. This is in spite of Samuel’s eloquent protestations to the contrary; no one was ready to listen to his story of innocence. ogunsanya went to work and interviewed Samuel while he was in the mercy of the mob. A man in the mob crying for the boy’s blood didn’t know who raised the baby-stealing alarm; all he, and the others, wanted was to have Samuel pay for his crime! Fearful for her own life and her other children, even Samuel’s mother denied ever knowing him; Samuel was from a broken home. A motor tyre was strung around Samuel’s slim body, doused with petrol and set alight. Samuel writhed and convulsed just as the mob cheered on until he succumbed to death.

According to the organisers of the campaign,

Media Coordinator, Don’t Walk Away, Charles Urhoboghara; publisher, Brand IQ; Secretary to Surulere Local Government, representing Sen Oluremi Tinubu, Rev. Funmi Braithwaite and producer, Don’t Walk Away, Abimbola Ogunsanya during the launch and press conference of ‘Don’t Walk Away’ campaign at Unity Centre, GRA, Ikeja last week… in Lagos “What has made an impression on ‘Don’t Walk Away’ supporters such as Afrobeat maestro, Femi Kuti is not so much the horror of Samuel’s ghastly death, as the extraordinary dignity of the little boy who managed to tell his life story in a twominute interview while surrounded by a mob baying for his blood. His articulate account of how he found himself begging on the streets of Lagos shows him to have been both intelligent and almost certainly innocent of the crime of ‘baby-stealing’ for which he was killed.

“When members of the mob were interviewed before the murder, they were unable to give specifics of what Samuel was accused of. one commented that “They said he wanted to kidnap a child at a school” and was unable to say exactly where. The fact that he knew nothing about the accusation did not stop him being a main perpetrator of the crime, pouring petrol onto Samuel before he was ignited.

“Samuel’s story is a vivid example of the gross injustice and horrific cruelty of mob killing.

‘Don’t Walk Away’ campaigners hope it will touch the hearts of millions when it is released on the Internet. The campaign leaders believe this will launch a national debate on mob violence – or ‘jungle justice’ – and how people can be motivated to intervene and prevent future lynching”.

In the discussion the disquieting docu-film generated in shocked audience, Senator oluremi Tinubu in her keynote address commended ‘Don’t walk Away’ campaigners for bringing the

vexed issue of mob justice to national discourse, saying she identified with it and would make efforts to highlight in the upper legislature. She noted, “I heard about the utterly despicable violence that caused the untimely death of Aluu 4 in Port Harcourt last year when a petition was brought to the Senate by a parent of one of the victims. Such despicable acts of violence is a reflection of the deep rot in society…

“It’s equally grievous that spectacles of mob action or jungle justice have provided a source of entertainment to many who stand by and sometimes record such atrocities without attempting to rescue the victims. We all have critical roles to play in sensitising the populace towards effecting a change of attitude to mob action”.

Tinubu called on individuals in such situations to promptly report mob actions to the police before they escalate so as to save lives.

Maker of the docu-film, ogunsanya said he didn’t savour the experience of watching a poor die in the hands of a mob, but that he was one man against a mob, and very little he could have done to save Samuel. He added that he could have been joined with the boy for the stakes. He also noted that Samuel’s mother denied him by her instinct for survival because she could also have been killed as well as part of a baby-stealing ring.

While local TV stations and film festivals

refused to accept the film, ogunsanya said it was adjudged the Most Compassionate film by Qatar Film Festival, just as Al Jazeera cable TV was ready to offer him huge sums to have unfettered right to it. But ogunsanya said he refused to sell it, noting that he made the film to bring about a change in attitude. He noted that selling the film would have pitch Nigeria against the world, as he was sure Al Jazeera would have presented Nigeria as a nation of bestial beings from the film’s expose, adding, “The film is about making a change, not about the bestiality of Nigeria, as against the world”.

Secretary to Surulere Local Government Area, Rev. Funmi Braithwaite, who represented Tinubu, said she had averted a similar mob action in Badagry years ago when she created a scene that eventually attracted the police a few metres away. She noted, “So, don’t walk away from such mob justice. If you walk away, your conscience will condemn you for life for not preserving the life of a fellow man”.

Publisher of Brand IQ, Mr. Ntia Nsukuma described ogunsanya as a hero for having the courage to film Samuel’s pathetic story for posterity, pointing out that Samuel did not die in vain. Nsukuma said the story of child witches in parts of Nigeria was another example of mob action, which he noted stemmed from a culture of impunity and a threat to security in society, which he said must be curtailed.

Ugbomah’s Moviemakers Hall of Fame inducts new members today

By Anote Ajeluorou

Arguably the most elderly, vibrant and hard working filmmaker on the Nigerian movie scene, Chief Eddie Ugbomah, will today at national Theatre, Lagos, launch a gallery, induct and exhibit his films NDoUBTeDLy a fulfilled enterU tainment promoter and filmmaker with 13 celluloid films (eight in 35mm and five 16mm) and six home videos, Chief eddie Ugbomah will today, Friday 12, 2013 hold an exhibition of his films, conduct an induction ceremony into Moviemakers Hall of Fame he established years ago and launch a gallery for the hall of fame. Time for

the event scheduled to hold at the VIP Lounge of the theatre is 3pm.

Regarded as Nollywood’s most consistent critic, who is forever unhappy with the approach of younger movie producers, whom he says are unwilling to learn the rubrics of the trade, Ugbomah said the hall of fame is one of the legacies he would leave behind as an elder in the industry to celebrate practitioners who often do not know their true worth. He believes he is under-celebrated as the only Nigerian who has shot the most celluloid films till date.

Ugbomah considers himself the least celebrated filmmaker in the country, but bemoan his lot, as usual, he is rolling out the drums himself in celebration of his immense achievements.

The indefatigable Ugbomah launched his autobiography, Chief

Eddie Ugbomah: His Films at 70 at National Theatre two years ago. His films were shown to mark his achievements as filmmaker; they will also be shown again today.

Going down memory lane, Ugbomah said The Death of Black President was his most highly budgeted film back in 1988. It cost five million British pounds to make; it was also a box office hit. His other films include Black Gold, Oyenusi, The Mask, The Boy is Good, Apalara among others. He said they all made good rounds in the cinema circuit, especially at the National Theatre.

However, the former chairman, Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) disclosed that he would soon cut all his celluloid films into DVDs so as to make them available to younger people, who never saw his films back then.

Chief Eddie Ugbomah (middle); Fidelis Duker and Zeb Ejiro at Ugbomah’s 70th birthday

ARTS 27

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Revue

VC, University of Port Harcourt, Prof. Joseph Ajienka (left); with literary giants: Gabriel Okara and Elechi Amadi

UNIPORT’S Arts Village… keeping entrepreneurial dreams alive

By Kabir Alabi Garba

based in Broadway New York (NY, USA) has been marketing videos and DVDs spread HE problem of high rate of unemployacross the entire educational spectrum. ment among university graduates may “These videos, which run for between 30 not be totally blamed on the socio-economic minutes to one hour cover topics such as hardship that the country is experiencing.

Teaching Skills and Strategies, Professional Rather, some job seekers simply lack basic Issues and Student Teaching, Mentoring, techniques that guarantee success at job Managing Change and so on.” interviews.

The premiere, he asserted, “fits into the Interestingly, the Institute of Arts and European/American trend of teaching Culture, University of Port Harcourt has not through drama and screenplay. It is my cononly identified this shortcoming, it has also viction that an artist experience can be transelected to curtailing it through the producformational exposure to a piece of good tion of a film, titled, Who is Afraid of Job inter- drama, particularly the experience generated view? from a play production, can give meaning The film, which features popular Nollywood not only to individual/personal life but can actor, Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen, as director, transform a society.” premiered recently at the New Theatre Hall, The VC took the audience through the theAbuja campus of UNIPORT. It is an adaptamatic engagement of the film, saying, “Listen tion of Professor Julie Okoh’s screenplay to Moses speak to Daniel (the downcast with the same title. Okoh is Director of the Jobseeker). Moses: Employers often hire peoInstitute. ple who present themselves well in an interThe premiere, which attracted top officials view over those with better credentials. of the university, according to the Vice Don’t you know that most finalists for job Chancellor, Prof. Joseph A. Ajienka, marks a interview are more or less evenly matched in significant milestone towards the ivory terms of qualifications? But what gives some tower’s match to being an entrepreneurial an edge over others is the kind of question university. they are able to ask and the rapport they Ajienka expressed satisfaction that for the stimulate during the interview. first time in the history of Nigerian universiTo these Daniel meekly replies: ties, “the Institute of Arts and Culture (Arts Daniel: They never taught us any of those Village) UNIPORT has blazed the trail in the things at school. Neither how to choose a production of an educational video film, career nor how to prepare for Interview. They Who is afraid of job interview? only taught us course related to our field of Europe and USA, he recalled at the premiere, study. That’s all. And I excelled in all of them. “have since realised the immense benefit of I made a first class. Little did I know that it educational videos and DVDs. Little wonder takes more than intelligence to pass an that for over six decades, the Insight Media Interview.

T

“The screenplay we are premiering this afternoon is an eye opener to the average Nigerian university graduate. The pedagogic purpose is to transform the Nigerian university graduate from ‘a perpetual interview practitioner’ to an instant employee,” the VC said.

The premiere, he reiterated, was in pursuance of the vision of the Institute of Arts and Culture (Arts Village) “which is to put artistic creativity at the heart of the Niger Delta experience and also to make the Institute one of the foremost centres of excellence for artistic pursuit in Africa, especially for the production of manpower for the bourgeoning movie industry in Nigeria as well as in our neigbouring countries.

“When our graduates perform well in interviews, they are employed. When they are employed, they experience a change of life, they enrich the quality of their lives and the quality of the people of the Niger Delta/Nigerian Society.

“We congratulate the Institute of Arts and Culture (Art Village) on its modest achievement. It is only beginning. We expect the Institute to produce many more educational films that will compliment the fantastic accomplishment of the ‘Crabites’ our Nollywood stars,” he revealed.

Shortly before the premiere, the VC had addressed the media, detailing various breakthroughs in research and development that UNIPORT has recorded lately, in addition to celebrating the making of the educational film.

The VC commended the Director of the Institute, Prof. Okoh as well as members of staff. The Institute of Petroleum Studies (IPS) was also acknowledged for initiating the idea of the film and the College of Continuing Education (CCE) for sponsoring the production and the premiere.

The Art Village, Ajienka said, came into being, first to consolidate the gain of the university as a Centre of Excellence in Art that has trained a galaxy of our Nollywood stars, and most importantly to develop and practice art professionally.

The Institute, the VC, went down memory lane, was established in 2011 to function in collaboration with the national and international Arts Institutes, Academies and the entertainment industry to run programmes in Performing Arts, Visual Arts, Photography, Films, Television, Creative Writing, Costume and Make up in the University.

“Within two years of establishment, the institute has developed and run academic programmes, Continuing Education Diploma Programme (CED), Capacity Building Certificate programmes (CBC) and Long Vacation Youth Programme. We are also concluding plans to commence a Professional Post Graduate Programme,” he said.

According to him, also established are professional Art schools in the Institute in partnership with the industry. These are Adams Febresima School of Music; Jonathan Dagogo Green School of CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

28 ARTS

… Uniting ‘town and gown’ for flourishing artistic enterprise CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

Photography; School of Film and Media Studies in partnership with Trend City TV; Ola Rotimi School of Drama and Theatre Arts; School of Dance; Jubilee Owei School of Fine Art and Design; as well as Elechi Amadi School of Creative Writing.

Each of these schools, he informed, would operate as dual platform as an academy and as an atelier (Practice).

And as part of strategies to encourage creative writing in the university, three very distinguished literary workers have been appointed as Writers-in-Residence on account of their widely acknowledged exploits in African and world Literature.

They are celebrated playwright, novelist and polemicist, Elechi Amadi; famous poet laureate and novelist, Pa Gabriel Okara; and avid researcher, novelist and great pioneer in the short story genre, Ifeanyi Aniebo.

“The university is very proud to be associated with these distinguished men of letters,” the VC said.

He made reference to his inaugural speech as the 7th Vice Chancellor of the university as he underscored enormous strength of entrepreneurship in nation building.

He said, “the Institute of Arts and Culture was established in line with the vision of this Administration to make the university of Port Harcourt a world class Entrepreneurial University that is researchintensive. I am very happy to inform you that we have recorded some landmark entrepreneurial developments in music, video/film and photography. We are in the process of establishing a recording studio.”

Also, four professional chairs have been endowed to assist the university conduct meaningful research in various Art related areas. These are Yemisi Shyllon Chair of Fine Art and Design; Rex Lawson Chair occupied by seasoned music director, Prof.

Onye Nwamkpa; Ikoli Harcourt Whyte Chair of Choral Music; and Nemenibo Chair of Music.

According to Ajienka, the University has participated in the Garden City Literally Festival (now Port Harcourt Book Festival) organised by the Rainbow Books. “We are happy that Port Harcourt will be 2014 World Book Capital and the University will be active in promoting the event associated with this development.”

Corroborating the VC, Prof. Okoh used the occasion of the premiere to promote the Arts Village, which she described as an international Art Institute established in 2011.

According to her, the institute is designed to function in collaboration with national and international Arts Institutes and Academics and also in partnership with Art Entertainment Industries to offer courses in performing arts, visual arts, film, media arts, photography, costume design and creative writing to various categories of students.

Okoh said, “the mission of the Institute is to enrich the quality of life of the people of the Niger Delta Region through diverse programmes in creative arts education of the highest quality. Our motto is ‘Imagination, Creativity, and Empowerment.’ It is our conviction that artistic experience is transformational.

Exposure to the arts, particularly to the experience of producing arts, helps one to give meaning to one’s life and to the lives of others. Education in music, theatre, dance, film and the visual arts is one of the most creative ways we have to hone our children’s enthusiasm for life and spark their imagination and creativity. Hence, we strive to provide training that will prepare them to become confident and economically independent young men and women.”

The institute, she explained further, “offers short workshops, six months, one year certificate, two year diploma programmes. In addition, we have some foundation course designed to help candidates remedy their creative and language handicaps. The Institute is very flexible. It allows a student of any background, qualification and skill to take up any course at any level after completing the requisite remedial courses. Advanced post-graduate Diploma and Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) programmes are also in view. Each student is awarded a certificate at the end of each programme.”

When in full operation, IAC, will also organise yearly programme of arts events,

A drama presentation by the students of Theatre Arts

festivals, conferences, seminars and tours.

“Currently, we organise outreach programmes to benefit local communities. We present every month either drama, poetry or musical evening session on the day of Senate meeting. We invite to these performances senior members of the university community as well as friends of the university from our neighbouring communities. We also use the occasion to recognise those who have in one way or another contributed to the growth of Arts, or to the growth of the university in general.

“Though, we have not been giving cash reward to anybody, due to circumstance beyond our control, we shower our honouree with the gift God has endowed us with. We sing, clap, and dance for them and with them. We make the evening a memorable day in their lives,” she said.

The IAC has also been reaching out to neighbouring communities through its yearly open air Christmas performance, usually scheduled for the week preceding Christmas Day. The general public is invited through special invitation cards, posters, and banners. Admission is free. By so doing the institute tries to foster relationship between town and gown.

She described Who is Afraid of Job Interview? as the Institute’s maiden attempt “to make our mark in the educational film industry.

Others are already waiting for production.

We invite you to partner with us to flood the Nigerian movie industry with Uniport products. We have the skill, we have the manpower, but we don’t have the enabling capacity. Together we can do it. And if we make up our mind to do it, we shall succeed in keeping our jobless children out of the street.”

And in the spirit of ‘town and gown’, the institute has also assembled a team of seasoned academics and technocrats who have been saddled with the responsibility of translating the IAC’s vision into reality.

Among them are Prof. Femi Shaka Okiremuette; veteran TV producer, Adiela Onyedibia, who produced Chinua Achebe’s classical novel, Things Fall Apart as television series; Prof. Onyee Nwankpa; Dr. Asodionye Ejiofor; and Seiyifa Koroye.

An interactive session with the team including Prof. Okoh during which detailed background information about the institute were reeled out to the two visiting journalists from Lagos preceded the premiere of Who is Afraid of Job Interview? on June 27, 2013.

Prof. Femi Shaka (right); Prof. Okoh; Adiela Onyedibia; and Prof. Nwankpa… during the interactive session with the visiting journalists from Lagos

Koroye

Dr. Ejiofor

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

29

Issues In The News

Africa’s Future – and China Inc. Africans are asking whether China is making their launch or eating it – The Economist E return to the beginning. Emerging Africa has sought to approach the trend of the continent’s emergence from a somewhat different lens – one not of hagiography but of interrogation; not of looking at the surface but at what’s beneath; and strategic underpinnings of wealth and poverty. We have discussed Africa’s presumed emergence in the global economy, and I have argued that Africa’s “rise” has not yet happened because the factors that will drive the continent’s renaissance are not yet in place. Chief among those factors is a re-invention of the African mind; a re-invention that imbues it with a worldview, mental infrastructure, a philosophical foundation for its prosperity in which Africans think through the world and their place in it before they embark on action.

The worldview dimension is a constant in the rise of every civilization or economic power in history. Africa cannot escape the need to confront this depth of being and its translation into public policy and transformation. Thus, premature celebrations of a golden dawn for the continent based on what is still decidedly a consumer economy that produces little that is value-added may lead to a false dawn. On the other hand, what is happening in Africa today presents an opportunity, which, if seized and utilized effectively, can move the continent on to a turnaround destination. The basis of success in fact no secret at all: produce, or perish, or remain in perpetual economic submission, through lopsided world trade and foreign investment, to the economies that do.

Thus, Africa has no automatic future. The continent will have a future that it shapes by itself, whether one of prosperity or one in which this moment in time will look, in hindsight, much like the hopes and euphoria yielded by the decolonization of the continent half a century ago. In the context of this approach to prognostication in which our rational future is what we make it, there are five factors that will be most influential in determining that future.

The first is how Africa confronts the challenge of constructing worldviews in its constituent states as well as a continental worldview in a world in which the greatest challenge for the continent is now economic, not the liberation struggle of decades past.

The second will be how Africa handles its demographic challenge – will it yield a dividend or will it become a youth bulge? The third is how Africa handles the challenge of jobless growth, and the fourth is how the continent deals with the challenge of developing homegrown science, technology, innovation and its human capital. The fifth is whether African countries can develop and execute transformation strategies with discipline, and also understand and manage the risks they face in a world of globalization in which the continent has not fully defined itself relative to an all-encompassing phenomenon. That phenomenon requires inner strength to understand, co-opt, or resist as may be necessary. Globalization has made Africa a continent for the taking by the new forces of global capital, but at the same time presents it with an opportunity to move forward that is almost inevitable.

From the nature of today’s global political economy we can conclude that foreign aid, one of the major reasons why Africa fell behind because it robbed many African countries of the incentive to strive for an endogenous development path, is in decline. But it did enough damage that its consequences are still felt in the continent, with many Africans still seeking and relying on foreign assistance and no exit strategy from the vice-grip of the aid mentality. All development begins, first, in the mind.

And to develop, minds must be free to determine their collective destiny. With few exceptions, to juxtapose “aid” and “development,” as in the phrase “development aid,” is an oxymoron.

If, as it appears to be the case, African countries have chosen to take the path of free markets as their route to development, it remains necessary to interrogate the phenomenon as we sought to do. Without interrogating the nature of capitalism, making the necessary choices that flow from such an interrogation, and applying it to public policy – including each African nation defining for itself the role of the

W

government in economic development and transformation – free markets will not automatically bring prosperity. They have worked in the West and in Asia, but in the latter have been strongly directed and modulated, while in the former strong regulation – which the economies of African countries lack – has led to a payoff from capitalism even as these societies accept its dark side. So far, they have not worked for Africa.

Clarity on the role of the government in free markets is essential. Many African governments are abdicating their ultimate strategic responsibility for the economic trajectories of their countries in a false belief that unfettered free markets will bring development. It will bring profits to a few, but may not bring development without a guiding hand – a hand on the steering wheel. That hand should be, unapologetically, that of the government.

Capitalism can be seen as a means to an end and not an end in itself, otherwise it might not deliver prosperity. There is no greater proof of this than the rise of China on the basis of an approach that turned capitalism on its head by making it simply a tool, an extension of state strategy. This is an important lesson for the emergence of the African continent: we can write our own rules for ourselves. Unless and until the continent is confident enough to assert itself again in the management of its own economic systems, it will be “blown about by every wind of doctrine,” from the Washington Consensus to the Beijing Consensus and other fads in between. Thus, African cultures and societies hold in them innate characteristics that can be leveraged to develop variants of capitalism that will lead to prosperity, provided the fundamentals such as property rights, capital formation and innovation are developed.

Nigeria in sub-Saharan Africa’s largest economy after South Africa, and there is therefore no better prism through which no look at the possibilities and challenges of economic transformation in Africa. The country has the popu-

lation size, the market, the entrepreneurial drive, and the political complexity, but has been hobbled by the wrong choices in public policy formulation and execution, as well as corruption. I have argued that Nigeria needs to address certain foundational questions if its transformation agenda is to become properly aligned.

These foundational questions include whether the country’s political structure, a federation that is nevertheless perceived as having an excessive concentration of power at the centre, needs to be re-engineered in order to truly release the West African nation’s economic potential, or whether the problem is in fact not with the structure but with the people who run it. There is no automatic answer to this conundrum, but the country must confront the strategic choices available to it and make a decision.

The second foundational question is the right balance between the political legitimacy of economic decision-making in a democracy and

Clarity on the role of the government in free markets is essential. Many African governments are abdicating their ultimate strategic responsibility for the economic trajectories of their countries in a false belief that unfettered free markets will bring development. It will bring profits to a few, but may not bring development without a guiding hand – a hand on the steering wheel. That hand should be, unapologetically, that of the government.

the need to give technocrats a free hand to reform the economy and avoid the politicisation of rational economic choices. Again, this is not an easy conundrum. And the third foundational question is the tension between the instincts to save and spend in Nigeria’s political economy.

Three paradigm shifts are necessary for Nigeria: it must break the “resource curse” and move away from a mono-product economy to economic diversification, from an economic mentality of comparative advantage to one of economic complexity in which manufacturing is not based on natural factor endowments but on productive and competitive advantage; the buy-in of the Nigerian citizens to the Nigerian federal government’s Transformation Agenda is an essential paradigm shift, and must be secured through the “manufacturing of consent” through positive and evidence-based propaganda; and Nigeria must build its institutions if the country is to achieve economic transformation. Political will, leadership and effective public policy are important conditions if that transformation journey is to make measurable progress.

Finance is an essential ingredient of economic growth and transformation, but in a world in which excessive financialisation led to a destructive global financial crisis that wiped out over 12 trillion dollars of value from economy, how should Nigeria and other African countries utilize finance for economic transformation? The key is to focus on utilizing finance as a tool for capital formation for economic development, which includes human development, not just achieving growth statistics. This requires an emphasis on development finance through the work of development banks (China and Brazil provide excellent examples), a focus on increasing financial access for the poor, and on issue such as the effectiveness of microfinance and the very urgent priority of establishing a large presence of venture capital firms to finance small and medium enterprises.

And there is a misplaced faith in the transformative powers of foreign investment in African policy and leadership circles. Foreign investment is one of the major instruments of globalization and global capital. It is good that Africa is now increasingly seen as a viable destination for investment, but this is a self-interested view in the context of the pulverization of the economies of several advanced industrial nations in the wake of the global financial crisis and economic recession, and not necessarily a wave in Africa’s strategic interest. While foreign direct investment can play a catalytic role, this depends on the existence of conditions that are not present in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. These conditions include a skilled workforce and infrastructure. Besides, the question must be asked: how many jobs have FDI created in Africa? This means that efforts to attract FDI to African countries have to be extremely targeted towards attracting investments that will precisely develop these two location factors, create jobs, and are structured with the national interest of African countries uppermost in the minds of their leaders.

The real path to economic transformation and global reckoning for Africa lies in science, technology and innovation, as well as the development of its human capital. If African countries combine these with a deeper understanding of the global dimensions of transformation such as the real nature of the international society in order to pursue the continent’s interest in a sharper and more effective manner, contextualizing the role of international economic institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank, they will be better positioned for transformation.

Finally, how should this worldview, the mental infrastructure, be built in Africa? First, it will require crafting and clear articulation by small committees of “wise men” – and women – who are versed in the fields of philosophy, culture, history, economics, the humanities, business, law, science & technology and politics who will advise the heads of state and governments of each African nation. The leadership of the major political parties should be members of this committee and sign an undertaking that binds the party to the document, which should be owned by all the parties. This will ensure that

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Issues In The News

Africa’s Future – and China Inc. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27 whichever party is in power is likely to agree to make the document a broad philosophical lodestar which would not replace a party manifesto. This committee will map out a worldview, a philosophical statement of the country’s relationship with ultimate reality that spells out clearly a view of each of the seven components of a worldview: • A model of the world: How the world is structured and how it works.

• Explanation: Where do we come from? (This could be a historical explanation).

• The future: The national destination, and what path will take it there.

• Values: Ethics for national transformation.

• Action: A broad outline of how the destination-state will be attained.

• Building blocks: Theories, concepts and models on which the worldview is constructed.

The committee’s deliberations should address all significant aspects of the national condition. The outcomes of its deliberation should be a crisp, easily readable and understandable but profound statement of the group worldview. At this stage, a private sector strategy consulting firm with global exposure and experience should now be engaged to flesh out the worldview into a clear national strategy, or to embed it in national transformation strategies where one exists.

The next step is to secure the buy-in of the citizens, the manufacturing of consent, through a well-executed propaganda campaign that should be conceptualized, guided or executed by experts in strategic communications, but not media firms, and in collaboration with grassroots civil society groups. There is a difference between the two. Town hall meetings, specific stakeholder consultations, and radio, visual and social media should be deployed in this effort. The worldview must also become a part of the curriculum at all levels of education in the country.

It should become the inspiration for governance and the economic transformation agenda of any African government.

The effort to inculcate this worldview into national discourse will have to be sustained on a permanent basis. Devising a way out of the problem of disjointed policy continuity will be a major challenge. But nation-building and economic transformations on the basis of worldviews don’t happen instantaneously.

They take time, and increase in strength and intensity with the passage of time as they are validated by concrete outcomes.

Africa and a Rising China I cannot conclude this book without mention of the relationship between Africa and China. That relationship resonates in many contexts, the global as well as the domestic, and has implications for the continent’s possible future in terms of how far China has come in a short 40 years since it became a member state of the United Nations and achieved global reckoning, as well as in terms of how it turned its destiny around by first achieving internal economic transformation that was subsequently globalised from a standpoint of great strength. Also, China is an example – of great relevance to Africa – of how a large population can be harnessed to bring about a demographic dividend of gargantuan proportions. And, not least important, it offers a classic example of the importance and potency of a coherent worldview backed by masterful strategy, which is what Emerging Africa recommends to Africa.

Some observers have come to see the China-Africa relationship as a paradigm shift in Africa’s path to development and in its international relations in general. It may be a paradigm shift in international relations, but for whom exactly? It is certainly not a paradigm shift for Africa’s development, for the reasons we shall discuss below. But it could offer an inspirational path to Africa’s future for reasons that have not yet been emphasized by many analysts of this important relationship.

Thus, as Africa seeks new paths to development – and new “partners” in that context – the continent’s relationship with a rising China has gained increased strategic importance not just for Africa and China, but for the global strategic balance of power.

In that calculus, markets – and who has access to them – play a major role. This has led to fears of Africa as a new “Sino sphere,” and a “new colonialism” if the continent is not careful and strategic in its engagement with China, an emerging superpower seeking its own interest. The strategic engagement between China and Africa presents as opportunity for both parties in which Africa must ensure that, contrary to its history of engagement with Western world powers as nothing more than exploited client states, its own strategic interest must also be served by this relationship.

After several centuries of being strikingly inward-looking, China began to expand outward in search of relationships that would help underpin its newfound capitalist wealth. Previously led for centuries by monarchic dynasties, China was established as a communist nation (the Peoples’ Republic of China) in 1949 after the Chinese civil war in which the communists, led by Mao Zedong, chased the previous nationalist government out of China’s mainland to Taiwan. By 1962 the PRC had broken ranks with the similarly communist government of the Soviet Union and had begun to position itself as the “other” socialist superpower: The country became a nuclear power in 1964. However, it was the admission of the PRC to the United Nations in 1971 – and with it China’s seat as one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – that brought communist China into full reckoning as a global power.

With the death of Mao, communist China’s founding father in

1976, Deng Xiaoping emerged as official leader of China in 1978.

Deng promptly began an economic reform programme that was to lead to China’s status today as a rising economic power and, with a population in excess of 1.3 billion people – a fifth of the world’s population and the world’s most populous country – a geostrategic as well. Commenting on the contradiction of a communist party presiding over a capitalist economy, Deng famously said: “it doesn’t matter if the cat is black or white. What matters is that it catches mice.”

Today, China has one of the fastest growing economies in the world. It has $3.2 trillion in foreign reserves, making it the country with the highest levels of foreign reserves in the world. Some analysts predict it may have the world’s biggest economy well before the end of the first half of the 21st century, overtaking the United States. It has already overtaken Japan, becoming the world’s second largest economy in 2011. The present status of China, besides what many observes see as its future possibilities, has created a fundamental shift in the global strategic power balance. In a world that has been effectively dominated by a single Western hegemonic power (United States) since the end of the Cold War, another power has risen in the East. The West and the rest of the world have beaten a path to China’s door. As the New York Times Magazine writer James Traub wrote, “Beijing no longer sleeps.”

The third summit of the forum on China-Africa cooperation, held in Beijing in November 2006, drew 48 African leaders and was given wide global prominence. That meeting was a pointer to several aspects of the Sino-African dynamic. The summit approved a three-year action plan to create a new “strategic partnership” between China and Africa based on equality and mutual benefit. The plan included a doubling of aid to Africa from 2006 levels by 2009 (to about $1 billion), a five billion dollar China-Africa development fund, debt cancellations, a further opening of the Chinese markets to export from lowest developing countries (LDCs) in Africa by increasing the number of products receiving zero-tariff treatment from 190-440, and a pledge to build 30 hospitals, 30 malaria treatment centres and 100 rural schools in African countries. Chinese trade with Africa, valued at $3 billion in 1995, grew to $50 billion in 2007, $106 billion in 2008, and hit the $200 billion mark in 2012.

Relationship Dynamics The dynamics of China’s relationship with Africa are complex and multifaceted. First, China has not just discovered Africa. The two regions have a historical relationship going back to the 1950s when China supported Egypt’s seizure of the Suez Canal, backed the decolonization vision articulated at the Bandung Africa-Asian Conference in 1955, and established diplomatic relations with Ghana upon its independence in 1957.

Second, China’s relationship with Africa in the 1960s and the 1970s was rooted in three things: China’s competition with the Soviet Union for global socialist influence, a belief in a shared history of humiliation which led to China’s strong support for the anti-colonial struggles of several African states, and China’s ultimately successful effort to isolate Taiwan internationally, which led to the displacement of Taiwan from the United Nations by communist China in 1971 – made possible by the strong support of African countries in the UN General Assembly.

Third, with China’s economic transformation, its influence in Africa is now driven more by the need for raw materials and en-

These foundational questions include whether the country’s political structure, a federation that is nevertheless perceived as having an excessive concentration of power at the centre, needs to be re-engineered in order to truly release the West African nation’s economic potential, or whether the problem is in fact not with the structure but with the people who run it. There is no automatic answer to this conundrum, but the country must confront the strategic choices available to it and make a decision. ergy to support its economy than was the case in the socialist past when “solidarity” was the dominant factor. But this fact is not hidden – African countries understand it, and both parties are also increasingly anxious to ensure a win-win relationship for both China and African countries, going forward. That relationship will be increasingly tested. Recent attacks against Chinese workers in Ethiopia and Zambia are evidence of some backlash against the increasing China’s presence in Africa, despite the largely warm reception this rising power has received from Africa’s political and business leaders.

Fourth, African countries are inspired by China’s success. China has increasingly come to embody the possibilities for a strategic turnaround in the fortunes of the global south.

Fifth, the rise of Sino-Africa relations is clearly part of China’s strategic global positioning in its competition with the West.

Whatever reservations may have been expressed about China’s mercantilist-driven push into Africa, African countries have generally found their development partnership with China more concretely beneficial and more satisfying than their experience with the Western donor countries. As one commentator pithily observed, “China has done much more for Africa than Bono, Live Aid and Oprah put together.” Those donors appear to be experiencing profound disquiet over China’s growing influence in Africa. China overtook the United States as Africa’s largest trading partner in 2009.

China’s approach to its aid and trade relationship with Africa attaches no strings (except, of course, regarding non-recognition of Taiwan!) in the face of issues such as human rights. It is viewed as offering far more practical and concrete kinds of support, such as infrastructure development that is essential for Africa’s transformation, but has been neglected by traditional donors. China funds or undertakes projects decided by African countries rather than dictating priorities, and is quicker to deliver on aid promises than Western countries. That these projects are concrete physical and social infrastructure projects has helped China gain a strong foothold in the continent. “If you want concrete things you go to China. If you want to engage in endless discussion and discourse you go to the normal traditional donors” were the words of a senior UN official in Africa.

The real point, however, is whether who “gives” Africa more is going to be the basis for the continent’s economic transformation.

The “business is business” approach is controversial. It stems from a much lesser degree of risk aversion than Western powers, including a completely different paradigm of viewing political risk almost completely as an opportunity. It has elicited criticism from human rights groups, donor agencies and China’s geostrategic competition. African countries and some Western analysts consider these criticisms a double standard. They recall the support the traditional donors have provided to many regimes with questionable human rights records in Africa and elsewhere, and they have not-too-distant memories of how some present-day China critics on human rights propped up apartheid in South Africa. As the economist Jeffrey Sachs noted, “the blemishes of siding with unsavoury allies are certainly not unique to China.”

China’s trade and increasing foreign direct investment in Africa is highly concentrated by country and by sector. Twenty-one per cent of China’s exports to the continent in 2007 went to South Africa, 12 per cent of Egypt, 10 per cent to Nigeria, and 7 per cent, 6 per cent and 5 per cent to Algeria, Morocco and Benin respectively, while 34 per cent of its imports from Africa were from Angola, 20 per cent from South Africa, 11 per cent from Sudan, and 8 per cent from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Meanwhile, 70 per cent of registered African exports to China consist of crude oil and 15 per cent are raw materials, statistics that speak volumes about the nature of the Africa-China commercial relationship and about Africa’s disadvantaged position in international trade.

Strategic Foresight Against this backdrop, certain strategic positions seem clear.

The first is that the responsibility for respecting and enforcing the human rights of Africans is first and foremost that of Africa’s leaders, not the Chinese. If human rights are abused in Africa, African leaders should be held accountable. It appears rather paternalistic to treat Africans and their rights as rhetorical pawns in a power game between world powers, all of which have human rights blemishes too.

TO BE CONTINUED

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ThE GUARDIAn, Friday, July 12, 2013

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Date(s): 20/07/2013 Location: Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

Promoter: Thespian Family Theatre The Thespian Family Theatre once again brings to you the magic of the theatre. This summer holiday, Thespian Family Theatre debuts this series with a popular story projected in a contemporary Nigerian setting with an intriguing twist.

Tickets: Children=2,000. Adult= 5,000. VIP= 10,000.

GET TICKETS HERE: www.afritickets.com

Bond & Bliss

A HUSBAND'S WIFE

Robin Thicke after Andy Murray for new video

hART-ToPPER Robin Thicke has revealed he hopes to C film a new version of the video for his hit single Blurred Lines - with Andy Murray taking the starring role. The Canadian singer was appearing on ITV’s Lorraine, when he announced that he was after the Wimbledon champion for a “remix” of the track.

Murray recently named the former no 1 single as one of his favourite pre-match tracks, which may have inspired Thicke to dream up the remix. And if Andy accepts, it sounds like he’s in for a treat. Gorgeous models in skimpy outfits were a central part of the original video, and Robin already has plans for the sports-themed update. he explained: “Beautiful girls in various tennis outfits with rackets strategically placed.”

Mariah Carey dislocates shoulder on video shoot

ARIAh Carey has been hospitalised after dislocating M her shoulder. The #Beautiful singer is said to have injured her shoulder while on a music video shoot on

Date(s): 28/07/2013 Location: D'Signature Arena, 38 Lingu Crescent, Aminu Kano Crescent (By UBA) Wuse 2, Abuja Promoter: Jigga Entertainment Ltd This event is an exclusive evening of fun for couples. There will be lots of give-aways and goodies for outstanding couples. we will also have Entertainment, Games & Attractions, Wow your partner and the audience and Rock the dance floor.

Tickets: 7,000.

GET TICKETS HERE: www.afritickets.com

Date(s): 10/08/2013 Location: Terra Kulture, Tiamiyu Savage, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Promoter: M.IKAZ A Husbands wife is a drama filled story of a husband going through midlife crisis and his wife having to deal with it. How far will a man go to reclaim his youth The play takes the audience through the dramatic journey of this couple. It carries a strong message while it effortlessly exhibits witty humor.

Tickets: 3,500.

GET TICKETS HERE: www.afritickets.com

BUY TICKETS TO ALL YOUR FAVOURITE EVENTS ONLINE NOW!

For more information: www.afritickets.com

Sunday (July 7), with the New York Post reporting that Carey was admitted to hospital to have the joint reset.

Mariah’s publicist Cindi Berger later confirmed: “Mariah was injured while filming a video for the remix of ‘#Beautiful’, directed by her husband nick Cannon.

“She was taken to hospital late last night, where doctors reset her shoulder. She is fine and is recovering at home.”

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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celebration of his 70 birthday, as well IonNasstage, 53 years of performing professionally friends and admirers of Orlando Julius recently staged a special gig for the renowned saxophonist, who is still waxing stronger at his age. Held at the Prince of Anthony Hotel, Anthony Village, Lagos, the celebration provided the Afro highlife legend with the opportunity to pay a glowing tribute to a departed highlife icon and senior colleague, Fatai Rollig Dollar.

At 70, Orlando is still his very old self; he still plays his sax with so much dexterity and his voice still intact. Alongside his wife, Latoya, he sang out his heart for the audience, most of who have followed his music journey. you needed to see how the veteran artistes jumped on stage in excitement as he displayed with his pretty dancers. It was a night when the various components of dance, highlife performance and contemporary Nigerian music came together to create an evening of fun and excitement.

The maestro himself set the tone for the electric evening, performing some of his hits with the band, to the delight and pleasure of early guests at the event. It was, indeed, a marvel to watch as the sexagenarian do the dance routines with younger members of his band; the energy is still there. His ever delectable and equally agile and fleet-footed wife, Latoya was at her best, swinging to the sound of Orlando’s beats in quick succession; is was a couple’s deal.

By the time Orlando and his band took a break, younger acts took the stage to celebrate the veteran in songs. Rush, a promising upcoming act took the first slot, strumming her guitar, with her voice rigging life that of the nightingale; she’s a lady to watch. Femi Rocks was next with his jazzy rendition that got some guests asking for more. Sexy Steel, a musician and fashion designer known for his hit track Bebedi Alhaja, set the set stage ablaze as he got the guests on the their feet.

...The buzz in town

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Stories by Chuks Nwanne

70 hearty cheers for Orlando Julius

Tribute proper commenced with Jesse King the “Buga” exponent, who rocked the stage with his band; a special tribute was also rendered in honour of the late Fatai Rolling Dollar. The highpoint of the night was the request segment, where guests made request of their Orlando’s favourite

songs; Orlando Julius grated the request and played the tracks to the admiration of the guests. It was indeed a convergence of the icons of highlife, jazz, contemporary Afro-pop music and music enthusiasts.

In his remark, a representative of the organisers Olawale Obadeyi, informed that,

Cape Town beckons Africa’s Next Top Models INALLy, the much-anticiFModel pated Africa’s Next Top search is here, as the organisers have announced plans to begin scouting for supermodels from different African countries that will participate in the show. The show, which will be aired on M-Net’s AfricaMagic channels later this year, promises to produce top class models that will represent the continent globally.

The first historic season of Africa’s Next Top Model will be filmed in Cape Town, South Africa. Aspiring models that want to get a chance to travel to Cape Town, South Africa and ‘Live the Beautiful Life’ must attend one of the scouting auditions taking place in the selected locations. Supermodel, Oluchi Orlandi will be present at all the scouting auditions to personally select the 12 lucky girls for the film-

ing. Also, South African Fashion apply, but no male models.

Designer, Thula Sindi, be presThe audition comes to Lagos, ent at the scouting auditions in Nigeria, on July 23, at the FedNigeria and Angola. eral Palace “The competition is open for Hotel & anyone from any country on Casino, the continent can audition. If Victoria the auditions aren’t being held Island, in your specific country, then Lagos. you can audition in the country closest to you. All Africans are welcome! This competition is for all of you! Live the beautiful life! Come to the auditions and stand a chance to be on a shoot of a lifetime in Cape Town, South Africa,” Oluchi said.

However, applicants must be 18-27 years old at the time of application, at least 5’7” (170cm) in height, and must not have an existing contract with a modelling agency at the time of application. Plus-sized models are eligible to

“the Prince Of Anthony decided to host the musical legend as its contribution to re-awakening a robust yet afrocentric night life in Lagos, in general and Anthony Village in particular. The hotel will continue to contribute its quota towards the growth and development of the entertainment industry in Nigeria.”

Notable among guests at the gig are the legendary ‘Mathematical’ Segun Odegbami, the eclectic songstress yinka Davies, Mandy Uzonitsha, Femi Esho and others.

A pioneer and innovator, Dr Orlando Julius Ekemode has been vital to the creation, growth, and popularisation of Afropop. He has also had great influence on American soul and the parallel roots of modern Afrobeat and jazz. His hit track Back to the Roots, which he did with the American singer Lamont Dozier and his group, remains evergreen.

Starting in the ‘60s, Orlando Julius fuses traditional African sounds and rhythms with those of American pop, soul, and R&B. In his early life as a musician in Nigeria, he played with such popular highlife musicians as Rex Williams, Eddie Okonta, the American Jazz great Louis Armstrong, V.S. Akinbosun, I.K. Dairo and others.

He later formed his own band called the Modern Aces- a band, which gave a very good account of itself in the music world. The saxophonist later moved to the United States where he worked with top musical acts such as the Crusaders, Hugh Masekela, James Brown, Isaac Hayes, Chaka Khan and Rufus, Gil Scot Herron, the Ojays, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Staple Singers, Curtis Mayfield etc.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

SHOWBLAST Timeout with Wande Coal, Airtel Channel Partners WAY from the usual corpoA rate office setup, it was a rare moments of exclusive entertainment, fun, excitement, dance and laughter for the hundreds of channel partners of Airtel Nigeria and other dignitaries, who recently converged at the exquisitely Eko Hotel & Suite, Victoria Island.

Conceived by the telecommunication company, the event was an opportunity to cele-

brate business partners of Airtel for their contributions to the growth of the business during the past fiscal year.

Though not a speech making evening, the event, which was anchored by IK of the Big Brother Africa fame, gave the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya, an opportunity to set the tone for the evening with a welcome remarks.

“Our esteemed Channel Partners have been busy all day in a serious strategic session and we felt it would be proper for all of us to spend the next few hours in a more relaxed atmosphere so that we can interact, socialize and have fun.”

Nigeria’s hip-hop artiste, Wande Cole’s performance was one of the high points of the night. Opening with his latest single The Kick, the Mushin-born performer was a delight to watch as he rocked the stage, combining musical and dancing dexterity of a superstar.

From Guinness, opportunity comes for African filmmakers N a bid to support African IDiageo, motion picture practitioners, Premium Alcoholic beverage producer and parent company of Guinness Nigeria Plc, has unveiled the Guinness Africa Made of More Programme.

The project is a Pan-African search for the most talented African filmmaker for the production of a global TV commercial for brand Guinness.

With the theme Guinness Made of More, the competition is open to anyone who is passionate about filmmaking. It underscores Diageo’s pioneering approach to marketing and its belief that some of the richest and untapped creative talent resides in Africa and that talent should be celebrated the world over.

Speaking on the project, Managing Director of Guinness Nigeria Plc., Seni Adetu, said, “We are proud to be a part of this landmark project and wish all the contenders the very best as they showcase the rich and unique creativity of the African Continent and make us all proud.”

Guinness will fund the winning film to run on Pan-African TV, showcasing the winning filmmaker’s work as well as bring the winner back to Cannes Lions in 2014 giving them a global stage.

On his part, Austin Ufomba, Director, Marketing and Innovation of Guinness Nigeria said the programme will take place

over the next 12 months, during which Diageo will provide mentoring, educational tools and inspiration to encourage young creative talent to bring to life the Guinness Made of More campaign and show through film what it means to them.

“We believe that Africa, especially Nigeria can inspire brilliant creativity and with this project we are simply providing a platform to showcase that. We feel that this Guinness project can actively help give African creativity and talent the global stage it deserves. I sincerely believe that Guinness will be back from Cannes in 2014 with an awardwinning film from Africa!”

Fifteen filmmakers were selected from several countries across Africa including Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania and they will showcase the Guinness Made of More theme through compelling stories told in an exciting and interesting way.

Grants and bursaries will also be offered to help create a viable platform for filmmakers to start their productions. Ultimately, the project will create opportunities to document how people across the continent set out to find and tell the story of what makes themselves, their community, town, region, country or continent ‘Made of More’.

Tinsel calls for audition S part of its contribution to A the development of local initiatives and productions in Nigeria, AfricaMagic, Africa’s leading television content provider is once more throwing its doors open to aspiring actors and actresses in the city of Lagos to audition for roles in the popular multi-camera soap opera, Tinsel.

The audition which is scheduled to hold in Lagos on July 12, 13 & 15, from 7am to 5pm, at the Protea Hotel, Leadway; 1, Mogambo Close, Maryland Estate, is seeking to cast several new roles. It aims to provide

opportunities for talented Nigerians to live their dreams of starring in the popular soap opera, as well as launch their acting careers to a continental audience.

To audition, interested persons are required to come along with an individual and a recent studio 5 by 7 ‘clear’ photograph colour portrait photograph.

Since its debut to a continental audience in 2008 when the first season was launched, Tinsel, a thirty minutes series, has won the heart of many DStv viewers both in the country and on the continent.

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Bayelsa Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Vivian Odi-Owei; Director General, Bayelsa Tourism Development Agency, Ebizi Ndiomu Brown and Chief Nike Oshinowo, CEO, AOE Events and Entertainment Limited during the partnership signing agreement for the Nigeria Centenary Pageant in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State.

Nigeria’s Centenary Pageant contestants to camp in Yenagoa FTER weeks of delibera- tourism is the next gold mine A tions, Bayelsa State has awaiting to be explored, adding been named as the first host that state government is explorfor the Nigeria’s Centenary Pageant camping. The oil rich state will play host to the 37 contestants (representing the 36 states and Abuja) expected to compete for the crown, following the signing of a partnership hosting agreement between the State government and AOE Events and Entertainment Limited, organisers of the event.

Speaking at a media briefing held recently in Yenagoa to unveil the host, the Director-General, Bayelsa Tourism Development Agency, Ebizi Ndiomu Brown noted that

ing all avenues to attract tourists to the state.

While assuring the safety of guests and participants, Ndiomu observed that, “in the last one year, Bayelsa has become one the safest and most secure states in Nigeria. In fact, it is the state with the least number of crimes. The issue of crime and criminality has become a thing of the past because of the security measures put in place by our visionary leader, Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson.”

She assured that the state would go the extra mile to provide a conducive environment

for camping of contestants, noting that the event will afford Bayelsa State the opportunity to attract tourists, foreign and local investors and drive the tourism agenda of the state government.

Also speaking at the event the Chief Executive Officer of the AOE Event and Entertainment Limited, Chief Nike Oshinowo informed that Bayelsa won the hosting right due to the existing peace in the state.

“Though many adjustments have been made to the centenary pageant, the camping in Bayelsa would enable the state to show the nation and the world what they have to offer.

Through our eyes, the world

would experience Bayelsa with her people, culture and her values,” she said.

Oshinowo, a one time Beauty Queen in Nigeria, said the camping in Bayelsa would be turned into a TV reality show in which the nation will vote in or out their favourite contestants.

She further stressed that the Centenary Pageant, at its Grand Finale, will not feature the usual swimwear segment due to cultural and religious considerations.

“At the Finale, each state will showcase states traditional costumes, while Nigerian Fashion Designers would be given the opportunity to showcase their designs.”

Behold Mbryo, Ruggedman’s protégé S the Nigerian music industry continA ues to grow in leaps and bounds, most of the artistes, who set the tone, are gradually grow old in the business. This might not be necessarily as a result of age but more from the fact that they have been on the scene for a relatively long number of years.

One of those

artistes is rapper Ruggedman (real name, Michael Stevens) who has been at the forefront of the evolution of contemporary rap music in Nigeria for more than a decade now.

Ruggedy Baba, as he is fondly called, having succeeded in etching his name in the book of Nigeria rap and hip-hop has found a successor in Mbryo.

Born Prince Maxwell Oghenemine Omoferi to the family of Rev. Omoferi Akpedeye in Warri, Delta State, Mbryo grew under a strict pastor father, who restricted him from external socialisation. This encouraged extra-closeness to his siblings and they came up with a family band.

Mbryo started playing the drums at the age of seven, Piano at 12 and a few other instruments later.

With a Diploma in Mass Communication from Olabisi Onabanjo University, (OOU), Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, Mbryo moved to Lagos where he met with rap artiste Ruggedman.

The notable rapper recognising the talent of the young man, immediately took him under his wings and having satisfied himself as to the seriousness and dedication of the young man to his art and talents, went on to sign him on to the Rugged Records imprint in 2012.

There has since been no Mbryo looking back as Mbryo has

been recording song after song under Ruggedman’s tutelage. December 2012 saw the release of collaboration, Money Making Music (MMM), featuring Ruggedman. His first official video for the song, Remote, one of the tracks off the MMM album is picking up on air at home and abroad, especially in the UK where the artistes is gradually making inroad.

Work has also begun earnestly on Mbryo’s debut album, which will feature collabos and production inputs from recognisable industry names such as Olamide, Wande Coal, 2face Idibia, Praiz, Davido, Tiwa Savage, Seyi Shay, Vector, Don Jazzy, Legendury Beatz, Del B, Popito, D’Tunes and Sarz. A couple of songs off the album are already making waves on air; Popito produced Remote, while D’Tunes produced the second, Ragabomi.

Meanwhile, Rugged Records is currently running a promotional club campaign tagged Ragabomi Nite. The campaign is to promote the song and introduce the artiste to the various towns and states being visited. Ilorin was visited last weekend while Abuja, Jos, Benin, Port Harcourt, Calabar, Uyo, Ibadan and Benin Republic are being lined up.

“I thank God for bringing me this far.

Being an artiste demands a lot of commitment and hard work. I am going to give it my all to make it work,” Mbryo said.

ThE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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ShOWBLAST Destiny Child rolls out plan for Season Two a successful hostFtheOLLOWING ing of the maiden edition of Destiny Child Gospel Music

Judges for the Destiny Child Gospel Music talent hunt show

British Council partners Future Awards for the International Young Media Entrepreneur Of The Year prize hE Central Working ComWilliams, Director with The Fu- strate business success in the Ojoma Ochai, Assistant Country Director of the British CounT mittee of The Future Awards ture Project. classic terms of business Africa (TFAA) has announced “This is a first with TFAA as we growth (profit, market share, cil in Nigeria. “We are its partnership with The British Council on The Future Awards Prize in Media Enterprise 2013.

“We are very excited to announce the introduction of a special category, The British Council and The Future Awards Africa Prize for ‘The International Young Media Entrepreneur of the Year’,” said Adebola

step on the continental stage, and it furthers the search for outstanding young entrepreneurs in the media and entertainment sectors where our continent has many trailblazers,” he said.

The search begins for young persons working in the creative sectors who are able to demon-

employees) and/or in terms of his or her reputation (creativity, quality and aesthetic) amongst peers.

“We are excited to partner with The Future Awards Africa to identify spectacular young entrepreneurs in these sectors as part of our support for creativity and enterprise,” said

After USA, Bantey heads for the United Kingdom FTER successfully touring 7 A states in the United States of America including Atlanta Geor-

Bantey

gia, Chicago, California, New York, Maryland, New Jersey and Texas, talented Nigerian Music producer and Pianist, Bantey has embarked on another music production tour od the United Kingdom. The project, which kicked off on July 8, will take Bantey to different cities in the UK. While in the U.S, he was able to experiment with some world class producers and sound engineers such as Carlos Wilder; metal producer, Justin James, Deelily, and Grammy award winning sound engineer, Manny Maroquin, who mixed Rihanna’s Umbrella ft JayZ,

as well as Kanye West’s Stronger.

Overtime, Bantey, whose magic fingers has earned him great respect in Nigeria’s music industry and abroad, has worked with great artistes such as Flavour, Sunny Nneji, Tiwa Savage, Folake Umosen, Roy (MTN Project Fame runner-up), UK rapper Skyyboii, Adlan Cruz and others. With an amazing production talent cutting across several genres of music such as hiphop, R&B, Jazz, Salsa, Rock, Reggae, Soul, Techno and even Juju, Bantey remains an emerging artiste in the country.

particularly heartened that TFAA has sustained its integrity and capacity to highlight the brightest and best young people over the past eight years.

With the incredible energy of its team and excellent board of judges, we echo the endorsement by the World Bank of the awards as The Noble Prize for Young Africans.”

Nominees should be young people working in the media, with entrepreneurial and leadership abilities, potential to change their sector, market awareness and understanding.

The nomination is on and closes July 25 2013. The British Council, alongside members of The Future Awards Africa team, will judge this category.

The winner gets a trip to the United Kingdom to participate in a programme with valuable networking and idea exchange with their international and UK peers in the media sector, some of whom are themselves winners of the same award in their own countries. The awards event holds in August 2013 and there will be no public voting for this edition of The Future Awards Africa.

Media Partners include Channels TV, Silverbird TV, Nigeria Info, TW, Ventures Africa & Guardian Life.

Music production gospel according to Chimex

By Chika Onwukwe RECENT visit to Jilord Studio on Ezeiweka Road, Onitsha, was an eye opener as well as a big lesson. It was a day that gave insight into what music production is all about; who a producer is and the qualities of a good sound engineer. From movie soundtrack to evergreen songs especially gospel music, Chimex Alex has carved a niche for himself in the music industry. having produced renowned gospel artistes such as Chinyere Udoma, Rosemary Chukwu, Destined kids, Paul Nwokeocha, Chioma Jesus, James Arum and others, the Imo State native strongly believes that the church has played a vital role in the development of the music industry.

“Sincerely, if you interview some artistes both circular and gospel, you will notice that greater percentage of them must have passed through church choir

A

or band and they are the ones making huge impact as producers/sound engineers and singers in the Nigerian music scene,” he said.

For Alex, though both the producer and singer are on the same pedestal, the success of any music lies in the creativity of the producer.

“They work together to achieve the desired objective, but the producer must be a complete musician to produce well.

Some singers cannot play any musical instrument but producers are jack of all trade masters of all. When you dig deep, you will find out that they all started from the church.”

Though music is inborn, the producer noted that there’s always a platform to discover and shape such ability.

“This is what the churches have been doing over the years unnoticed,” he said.

Meanwhile, to produce a good music, Alex is of the opinion that the producer

should display a high level of commitment and equally have a deep knowledge of the project at hand.

“Study the attitude of the artiste to know the best way to follow him or her in order to bring the best out of the person. Then go deep inside of you and come out with something great in terms of creativity. Ensure that the songs are good enough depending on the genre of music. Always consider the lyrics, melody line, structure, rhyme and rhythm because all these come together to make a good noise.”

For Chimex, it takes talent and humility to climax in your chosen career especially music production, where absolute concentration is paramount.

“Moreover, one needs to learn from seasoned hands to know the fundamentals of the job before answering a music producer. When you listen to the works of Cobbams, ID Cabassa, J Mathins, you will understand what I mean.”

Talent hunt, organisers have unveiled plans for the Season Two of the show, which aims at discovering fresh gospel music talents from different part of the country.

Speaking a briefing held recently in Lagos to herald the show, the founder of the project U-Cheena noted that the platform was created for Nigerian gospel artistes to showcase their talents and prepare for professional gospel music career.

“The first Season was a great kingdom success, with the emergence of six talented singers known as Supreme Six. Making up the group is Israel Funsho, who emerged as the overall winner, Femi Flame, Rasine Brown, Shalom Olurunfemi, David Agbrako and Ojoh Frances. They will embark on a nationwide tour tagged Product of hope, during which they shall be performing hit songs from their just concluded album.”

Announcing plans for the Season Two of the contest, U-Cheena informed that auditions would be staged in Abuja, Makurdi, Owerri, Port harcourt, Uyo, Asaba, Benin, Ekiti and Lagos, on August 15. Registration is free for all

young gospel musicians with various genres ranging from Rock, R&B, hip-hop, Reggae, Urban contemporary music etc.

“The contestants should be 18years and above before they can participate in the show,” she said.

Meanwhile, a new judge has been added to the three from Season One. The four judges for this season include: UCheena, Samsong, Tim Godfrey and Wole Oni, who will be participating for the first time.

Iphy, a host, has been included in the new season.

The search for Destiny Child will be broadcast on TV stations within and outside the country, including Kingdom Africa, African Magic Entertainment, AIT, Channels TV, Loveworld Plus, Praise World Radio, Dove TV, Super Screen, Ekiti TV, CRBC, DBS, Enugu State Broadcasting TT and X2D. The winner will go home with a new car, N1 million, Autograph Record deal worth N3 million, while the first runnerup will go home with Autograph Records deal worth N2 million. The second runner-up goes home with Autograph Records deal worth N1 million.

Club Ultimate berths in the Garden City with Denrele ITh resolve to thrill and W reward loyal consumers across the nation with an experience of a lifetime, Gulder brand has concluded arrangements to introduce Club Ultimate, a flagship event in a series of new exciting and innovative experiential campaigns to excite consumers and celebrate loyalty and friendship.

According to the senior brand manager, Onyeka Okoli, “the Gulder Club Ultimate idea is a virtual club idea. A ‘never been seen before’ experience to engage and excite consumers, transforming a simple strategic venue into a spectacular location for the most exciting clubbing event ever experienced in the region.

Club Ultimate promises to be a special night with Gulder; a night of enchantment and memories.”

The first Club Ultimate event is scheduled for July 26, 2013, at the Aztech Arcum, Port harcourt. The 2000-seater-capacity hall, which is located at Stadium Road, will be transformed into an elegant nightclub featuring some of the most amazing displays from entertainers around the world, who will bring to life the surprise package that Gulder

Denrele

has in-store for guests at the event. It will feature guest appearance from popular celebrities and music from some of the trendiest disc jockeys in the entertainment industry.

Access to the event will be through a special IV card that allows Radio Frequency Identification check-in and can automatically update the Facebook profiles of the guests. Consumers of Gulder nationwide can be rest assured that the ‘Club Ultimate’ experience would be coming to a location near them in the coming months.

“The show is constantly on the move, and can appear at any Nigerian city at any given time,” he said.

Meanwhile, notable presenter, Denrele Edun, has been selected to host the show.

Denrele who has honed his skills as the ultimate entertainer through years of hard work and determination, will be hosting the red carpet session, which will feature celebrity guests and a special surprise package from Gulder to be unveiled for the delight of guests and consumers at the event.

Denrele will also be hosting the main event.

The GUARDiAn, Friday, July 12, 2013

40 ARTs

Arthouse nnenna’s Akaraka still showing

T ART Twenty One, eko hotel and suites, Victoria island, A Lagos, nnenna Okore’s art exhibition titled Akaraka is currently showing till the end of August 2013.

Public presentation of It’s Fully Paid

BOOK written by Bishop Paschal Mogbo and titled, It’s A Fully Paid, would be presented to the public on the 13th of July, at the Yahdaw hall, TReM international headquarters, Anthony Oke, Gbagada expressway, Obanikoro, at 10am.

nominees for The Future Awards Africa season 8 out

FTeR a full year receiving nominations from across Africa, A the Central Working Committee (CWC) of The Future Awards Africa has today released the nominees List for 2013.

The list of five nominees each is released for 15 categories.

The nominees will be hosted to an invitation-only reception by the Consul-General of the United states in Lagos, nigeria on Thursday, 11 July.

Return of the helper 2013

eTURn of The helper (ROTh) conferences continue to be a R blessing to women every year. This year ROTh is focused on entrepreneurship. The event will take place at the incubator, 7/8 Chief Yusuf Abiodun way, City of David, Oniru, Victoria island.

The event comes up on the 20th of July, from 9amto 4pm.

Orange is the colour code.

Compiled by Florence Utor

Ace performer, Jimi Solanke (middle) and his family cutting his birthday cake while Dejumo `Lewis moderates

P.R.E registers his appearance with Take It Up

By Tony Nwanne screens. he featured in Port harcourt, London, and Paris with Burna Boy, which earned him LThOUGh, his entrance into the music prominence with his fans. scene is new but David Kosowei etete, who Currently in Lagos to focus on his music is fondly called Pretty, Real and entertaining, career, P.R.e. lived between the UK and nigeria, P.R.e. has continued to make wave with his spending a considerable amount of time cutkind of music. ting his teeth in the UK underground hip-hop P.R.e, who hails from the south-south region scene before moving back to nigeria in of nigeria, Bayelsa, has brought his own 2009. The dread-locked, charismatic, rapper brand of Afro infused rap and R&B to the made a name for himself especially amongst nigerian and international scene. the nigerian community in London, which led Formerly a member of the duo “Twisted to him opening for nigerian hip-hop sensaMinds”, he recently opted out to focus on his tion, MTV award winner and BeT award nomisolo career. With confident and poised, P.R.e nee, M.i, for his first UK performance. is outspoken with his own individual style, A versatile lyricist, poet and hip-hop aficionawhile running his entertainment company, do, P.R.e is inspired by a variety of artists such Twisted Mind records. as Jay z, notorious B.i.G, Damien Marley, Overtime, since his debut into the music Wyclef and Usher. he is constantly working on scene, he released his first solo single, Tatashe, during the summer of 2012 and followed it up his craft and has worked with numerous big name producers and artists to develop his sigwith Take It Up, produced by Leriq, featuring nature flow and production skills and is taking Tuface. The energetic, up-tempo track is a on the nigerian music scene with his own remix of Take it Down, a pet project from his exciting brand of entertainment. time in Port hacourt. The video was directed he believes with his kind of music, he is here

by Clarence Peters and has Tuface making an for that person in question to to stay, and will definitely meander his way appearance. cope. through to the top.

“The result is simply exhaustion The video for Tatashe, which was shot in “i know i’m here to stay because i studied south Africa, enjoyed significant airplay and and frustration; the story will music in school, and i know the rudiments P.R.e’s versatility and passion for music is also simply show nigerian’s what music, apart from that i have a huge passion clear on Bad Oh feat. Phenom, the video for some young and ambitious doing music. since i came back to nigeria, i this has been a firm favourite with the public. women go through have listened to different kinds of music that in their pursuit to advance them- he then released Gbeborun (produced by nigerians like, so i try to infuse the nigeria side Xela) and Let You Know (produced by DJ selves in their chosen profesto make them feel the songs”, he said.

Klem), the video for which has just hit our sion”.

The soap chronicles the life of Allison Bolatito, a young, upwardly mobile professional who works in a new generation bank, married to an abusive husband she later divorces to prove she educate and enlighten youths ticularly impressed with the he CiTizen’s Book on could do it all alone.

Governance, a concise prac- on democracy and good gov- simplicity and lucidity of the tical guide on nigeria’s democ- ernance, and empower them language employed, which he to conceive and develop prac- said would make it easy for racy and system of goverstudents and lawyers alike to nance, was launched yesterday tical socio-political and ecounderstand. he recommended at the Bankers house in Lagos. nomic values necessary for it was launched with the sup- their positive contributions the book to all who wish to familiarise themselves with port of a youth initiative called and active participation in public management and the the principles of our constituProject A.n.Y. (Awaken family is our genuine desire to political affairs of their imme- tion. nigerian Youths). its author, live up to our company’s corFemi Olubanwo, partner in Adekunle Osibogun, a solicitor diate community. porate mission of creating an the law firm of Banwo & and advocate in the law firm of The project, Awaken enabling environment where nigerian Youths, he pointed ighodalo, stated that the Banwo & ighodalo, said, “The our workforce is motivated to book’s objective is to enlighten out, said ‘any nigerian Youth’ author had pulled off the enviengage in unorthodox thinkable task of producing an outcan be a leader, so all nigerians on and about the ing at critical time while we standing, useful text that balroles of their democratic insti- nigerian Youth should be carry along our stakeholders.” ances both the elementary and enlightened on the operatutions, their fundamental While receiving the cash rights and civic duties, within tions of government and the scholarly approaches to underdonation on behalf of the the democratic system of gov- concept of good governance. standing our political system, children, widow of the late while it remains an easy read it is believed that The ernment”. musician, Mrs. zaynab Osibogun explained that the Citizen’s Book on Governance for the layman.

Olagunju, prayed for unendwould aid and develop politi- The book launch is one of the motive for writing the book ing success for the staff and cal consciousness amongst all initiatives of the law firm of was borne out of the need he management of Daily need Banwo & ighodalo to encourdiscovered while working on nigerians. industry. age its lawyers to engage in iniWhile commenting on the Project A.n.Y, an initiative tiatives that positively impact designed by Young Progressive book, honourable Justice Oguntade J.s.C. (Rtd) was par- the society. nigerians initiative (YPni) to

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Allison’s Stand set to hit TV screens

By Tony Nwanne V viewers in nigerians are in for exciting times as plans have been concluded to commence the broadcast of Allison’s Stand, a mind-blowing suspense filled television drama series.

Produced by Maxima integrated Media, Allison’s Stand is the imaginative empathy, which mirrors the lifestyle of an ideal nigerian career lady who desires to reach the top of her career and still be the best mother to her daughter even without the help of her husband.

According to Chief executive

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Officer, Maxima integrated Media limited, Oluwafemi Ogundoro, the soap opera is one that everyone can relate with and learn from, saying, “The soap is one that everyone can relate with; if you are an ambitious and independent woman who seeks to get to the top of your career, then that oftentimes comes with paying a price. You may need to make some sacrifices here and there. if you are unlucky to find a partner that is not supportive or a partner that is never there for you then it is going to be very hard

Daily Needs gives scholarship to Rolling Dollar’s children According to the Marketing he Management of Daily Manager, Mr. sola Adeyi, “To us T needs industries Limited at Daily Needs, we are ever conhas announced donation of n500,000 cash to the family of the late highlife musician, Pa Fatai Olayiwola Olagunju, widely known as Fatai Rolling Dollar who died on June 12, 2013 at age of 86 years.

Daily needs industries, makers of De-Deon’s syrup of haemoglobin is donating the money in furtherance of the robust relationship between the late musician and the company while he acted as its brand ambassador for over five years.

cerned about family healthcare, Children’s future and education. These cherished Vision is what informed the management decision to donate N500,000 cash to support the scholarship of the bereaved younger children of the late Fatai Rolling Dollar. It is our belief that this will succeed in supporting the immediate educational needs of the Children.”

Adeyi noted further that this scholarship donation, amongst other supports for the deceased

The Citizen’s Book on Governance now out T

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

ARTS 41

Literature 79 harvests euphoria of the independence days. Why celebrate the birth of an abiku? But, like the offiHE first black Africa’s first Nobel laureate in cials in the play, the Nigerian officials in charge of the independence celebrations Literature, Prof. Wole Soyinka, will tomorrow clock 79. Indeed, the drums will be rolled rejected the play.”

Indeed, that part of independence celebraout in celebration of a man who continues to tion where the play was to be staged was loom large in the life of his native country, aborted. Nigerian officials, ever self-righteous, Nigeria. Unfortunately, just as in previous years, Soyinka will not be part of any of the cel- refused to accommodate the play. It cut too ebrations lined up for him. In fact, he has kept keenly to the heart of the matter, which was a low profile on the occasion of his birthday in their ineptitude to steer a buoyant country that carried the hopes and aspirations of milthe last 10 years.

Soyinka will do the same this year even as the lions of Africans both on the continent and in the Diaspora. They could not allow a universiTeju Kareem-led Zmirage’s Open Door Series ty upstart to upset their apple cart. But their Project WS, a platform for International zealousness could not avert the doom and Cultural Exchange, will celebrate the man gloom Soyinka’s play predicted. It took barely tomorrow. The theme chosen for this year’s cultural exchange is, ‘Memoirs of our Future’. four years in 1964 before the seams began to Soyinka obviously casts a long shadow on his come apart, with the election fraud in the country’s future, just as he has been an active Western Region’s House of Parliament that soon snowballed into great conflagration participant in its convoluted history since whose fire could not be quenched until 1970 independence. He embodies all that Nigeria when the Nigerian Civil war ended, with milaspires towards, but which she falls dismally lions of lives lost and an opportunity of buildshort. ing a healthy nation gone with the wind.

But Soyinka and many others like him in Soyinka would be imprisoned for two excruwhom the patriotic zeal burns bright will not ciating years while the war raged for attemptaccept Nigeria’s failure. Nigeria should not ing to persuade both sides to consider the have been a failure if the voice of this inimoption of peaceful settlement. The cryptic itable Nigerian had been hearkened to way novel, The Man Died is the product of that back in 1960, at the dawn of what has now prison experience. Ever since Soyinka has crubecome a nightmare for a nation that promsaded for a better society built on a true demised so much but delivered so little 52 years ocratic foundation. He and others in National on. It was in 1960, at that landmark event of Democratic Coalition (NADECO) fought the independence euphoria that Soyinka’s prophetic vision, which also became the hall- military to a stand still until 1999 when the junta relinquished power to civilians in what mark of his other ilk, Chinua Achebe, first Soyinka and many others have called a quasicame to light when he crafted the famously democracy, a democracy that is yet to properprophetic play, A Dance of the Forests. ly address the yearnings of millions of Like Achebe, Soyinka had been a student all through the London conferences that eventu- Nigerians who merely standby and watch, with corruption at its most profligate state. ally led to independence from colonial rule.

They were witnesses to the process that would Distinguished Professor of English at New Orleans, U.S., Niyi Osundare has described the soon lead to their country’s freedom from corruption in the country as the ‘Grand British rule. As some of the first young men Commander of the Federal Republic of and women to attain the elusive university Nigeria!’ degree on home soil at the first Ivory Tower, University College, Ibadan, they were at vinOWEVER, while Soyinka continues to tage point and saw what ordinary Nigerians decry Nigeria’s inability to fully transit to did not see. And so armed with a keen creative vision, they foresaw what was in store for their meaningful democracy; while he continues to nation that was in the process of coming into call for a national conference with the peoples of Nigeria coming together to decide their being; they urged certain sacrifices to be perfuture and the enthronement of fiscal federalformed. But no one heeded. ism and other healthy parameters that guarSoyinka and his fellow literary high priests antee equal social, economic and political did not hide their heads in the sand like the rights to all citizens, the Nobel laureate has proverbial ostrich; rather, they stuck their found passion in his first love, promotion of heads out and spoke out although to a deafened citizenry, a citizenry that was largely illit- Yoruba, nay African, indigenous culture. erate and gullible and unschooled in the ways As he turns 79, Nigeria’s jewel of a lion though still fiery in the need to exorcise the the modern world works. Just like Achebe’s demons that have continued to strangulate novel, A Man of the People was to show some Nigeria’s political space, he continues to push six years later in noting the anti-people’s for cultural reformation and restoration. Only stance of the ruling elite and the consequent military revolution that followed to topple the recently he came out with an African religious manifesto, which he urges all of humankind first civilian government, Soyinka’s dark and stark play, A Dance of the Forests was an augury to adopt. In his new book, Harmattan Haze in an African Spring, the literary giant postulates of what was to come, the rudderless leaderthat since the two biggest world religions ship the country would consistently have. It Christianity and Islam - have been the biggest presages a country set on a wrong course; 52 promoters of violence for several centuries, it years on, Nigeria has yet to come to the right was time the world looked the way of African road it should take. religions in which he grew up, which he As one commentator said of A Dance of the Forests, “The play was written by Wole Soyinka avowed have never caused a brother to be set up against brother in cowardly defence! to celebrate Nigeria’s independence in For Soyinka, the legitimacy of any religion October 1960. The Gathering of the Tribes stands to be questioned when it becomes an referred to in the play is, therefore, the new agency of violence against fellow man in some Nigerian polity. The Tribes’ celebration is, abstract defence of its essence. No African relihowever, dented by the fact that (i) the commissioned totem, which was supposed to rep- gion or god or their priests for that matter, he resent the spirit of the gathering, turns out to argues, ever ask their adherents to fight on their behalf like the promoters of Christianity be a sacrilegious epitome of evil and (ii) the and Islam religions unabashedly do. Herein representatives of the ‘proud’ ancestral past should the world learn from the religious harturn out to be victims of past despotism and mony Africa’s religions promote to diffuse violence crying for justice. Their presence causes a play-within-a-play, depicting past evil, needless tensions the destructive agencies of to be enacted. The work (A Dance of the Forests) the two foreign religions foisted on Africa.

Also, as chairman of the Governing board of ends in a spate of negative prophetic utterthe Centre for Black Culture and ances and a climactic failure to lead a halfInternational Understanding, Osogbo, estabchild (abiku) to safety. The play, therefore, lished in honour of German scholar, Ulli Beier, aims at countering the (now) unfounded

By Anote Ajeluorou

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Soyinka to promote indigenous culture and their expressions, Soyinka has been consciously promoting the rich culture of his Yoruba people all over the world. The Osun Osogbo Grove that Beier’s wife, Suzanne Wenger, gave international status also falls into this sphere. He has begun the fetching of Osun water and take it to Yorubas in the Diaspora like Brazil, Cuba and other Latin American countries with significant Yoruba presence to carry further the healing and restorative powers of Osun Osogbo.

Like an elder who will not allow the goat to suffer parturition pains in tethers, first class literary high priest and avatar, Soyinka is beginning to feel the burden of old age and the need to come home and assume his position in providing cultural, religious and traditional direction for his many children at home and abroad. This is a sacred duty he owes his many grandchildren and others who must sit at the feet of the grand old man and learn something about how the world works.

And, Kongi will not flinch from his ascribed role!

ERHAPS to cap Soyinka’s celebration at 79, P we shall drink from the fine wine Osundare has brewed to toast the man, when he says, “Wole Soyinka at 79? The inimitable dramatist himself must be surprised at the longevity which fate has so generously placed on his plate; for hardly any other Nigerian writer of

note has run a greater political risk than he has done, nor constituted a serial persona non grata to successive Nigerian governments, military or civil.

“He survived General Gowon’s gulag and was magnanimous enough to accept the ex-military ruler’s ‘bygone is bygone’ after the cessation of hostilities. He outsmarted General Sani Abacha’s hired assassins and lived to pen a ‘beatified’ epitaph for the goggled murderer.

General Ibrahim Babangida taught him never to dine with the devil without a very, very long spoon. Some Nigerians are still wondering who that ‘masked gunman’ is/was, who held up a radio station in an effort to embarrass a satanically oppressive Premier.

“And this political activism is matched by an equally impressive literary and professional achievement. For the past 50 years or so, there has been no silence in Soyinka’s house of words/ideas. Those who expected a lull after the 1986 Nobel glory have only found a writer still setting forth at dawn, his temperament primed at the rising sun.

“It is absolutely impossible not to marvel at the staying power of this Long-Distance Runner; this zestful wine which mellows into grace every passing year.

“So Happy Birthday, Akoni. Here’s 79 cheers to the Lion who deserves his Jewel!”

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

ARTS

VisualArts Nwokolo at 50…

Bridging traditional, contemporary art spaces

By Tajudeen Sowole N over two decades of studio practice, Alex Ibirthday Nwokolo, who recently marked his 50th in a quiet fashion, has been strengthening the essence of art just as his new period blurs the lines between traditional and contemporary practices.

Nwokolo has in the past few years stayed in the middle of the divide between traditional and ‘contemporary’ renditions, crossing from one period to another and distilling what could be a futuristic, or timeless contents.

In the last six to seven years, Nigerian artists have been sharply divided over art contents, making observers, particularly critics, take another look at the rising penchant for contemporary art – against the strong and well-rooted tradi-

Alex Nwokolo

tional expressions. Quite interestingly, Nwokolo is of the generation of Nigerian artists who were nurtured in the traditional era, who is still making a strong impact.

However, his last exhibition, Authenticity of Thoughts, which was held at Terra Kulture last year was a shift from the traditional paintings for which he was known to more radical renditions of two dimensional sculptures in mixed media of soft metals, woods and acrylic, stresses the increasing consciousness of artists in general not to remain in the ‘business as usual’ terrain.

About two years before Authenticity of Thoughts, Nwokolo’s canvas started oozing with big close up of unidentified faces he called Oju (Face). In 2011, he came out bold to exhibit Oju as a series in a show simply tagged Untitled at Omenka Gallery, Ikoyi, Lagos. It was two textures of Oju: a soft, smoother surface newspaper waste collage and oil impasto. He had explained the acceptability of Oju, noting that it transcended the home art market. One of the pieces Fragmented Hope recorded the most appreciated bidding during the Philips de Pury and Company Art auction of African works in the U.S. three years ago.

That Nwoklo’s Authenticity of Thoughts was held at a time of much anxiety over contents, the show lent a voice to his generation of artists in the traditional divide, and admonishes that sticking to the regular painting on canvas was a matter of choice and not a lack of idea. It has since become a common argument by proponents of ‘contemporary’ contents that artists who are glued

One of Alex’s new works Holding Cell-I to painting on canvas ‘lack strong concepts’.

But the truth is that art appreciation in Nigeria unapologetically leans heavily on the traditional side.

Also, stepping into his new period of art, perhaps to establish his skills as a bridge between the traditional and contemporary divide, Omojola could look back at 50 and recall other significant periods in his career. “It’s a difficult task for me to say this and that are the most significant periods of my career”, Nwokolo said a few days ahead of his 50th birthday. “Remembering such periods should be the business of those who document art and artists.

Artists are like scientists; we just work and leave historians to determine which periods was what”.

What comes next after 50? It’s a blank one for now, he said, adding, “But as my art keeps evolving, new ideas come; for now I take things as they come, no scripting”.

Having shared a bird’s eye-view of painting styles with master, Ghanaian Prof. Ablade Glover for quite a while, Nwokolo now brings similar rendition into sculptural techniques,

using soft metals and other materials. When he showed Authenticity of Thoughts last year, he explained that the “desire for change and the need to have global perspective in my art instigated a stimulus for this current direction in the evolution of my work”.

In a kind of relief, the sculptural touch of the works was indeed an extension of his thickened canvas in the traditional painting.

“Revisiting some of my previous works, you will recall that I have always been interested in creating 3-Dimensional form on a 2-D surface”.

Over 10 years ago, Nwokolo also saw today by combining the business of framing at Framemaster with his studio practice. Between 1978 and 1980, Nwokolo started cutting his interest in art as a member of National Museum Art Club, Onikan, Lagos.

He later had formal trainings, getting National Diploma in General Arts (Distinction) 1986 – 1988; Higher National Diploma in Painting (Distinction) 1989 – 1991; and Master of Fine Arts (MFA) 1998 – 2000.

Omojola’s exposes Unseen Expressions on canvas ROM his last solo art exhibition tiFcontinues tled My Experience, Funso Omojola to reflect on his sojourn into the creative business of visual arts.

Next is another solo he titled Unseen Expressions, which opens from July 13 ending 27, 2013 at Yusuf Grillo Gallery, Yaba College of Technology (Yabatech) Lagos. Almost like a series of his last show, he says the new outing is a revisit “of my perception of art when I just came to Lagos, newly from Ekiti”.

With over two decades of studio practice in Lagos, he now confesses that his joy and passion for art before his arrival in Lagos in 1987 was far from “colourful”. Art, he recalls, “was beautiful in monochrome, but never thought it could be expressed in colours until I arrived Lagos”.

Though he argues that thematically, one of the over 40 works for the exhibition, a panel of 25 miniaturised canvases in cubic shapes and embossed images, is the titled-piece, another work, The Land is Green seems to explain the concept of Omojola’s Unseen Expressions better.

It’s a decorative portraiture of an unidentified lady sandwiched by two panels inscribed with flowers.

The works, he says, supports his ar-

gument that “my art is not just about me alone”, but getting people involved”.

For his choice of the titled -piece, however, the embossed technique, which he discloses “was achieve through acrylic in a relief form”, asserts his seemingly sculptural quality, even as a painter.

On his technique, lines seem to play a great role. For example, in

Crossover, acrylic on canvas, the five paneled, he says “create the beauty of my crossing over with a better day in moonlight shape”. And what has the lines got to do with it? “I used the lines and wave of colour for both the aesthetic and message of movements”.

And comes the sculptural characteristics of his paintings in Face of Lagos, an acrylic on canvas in relief of five compartmented pieces that

depicts the beauty of Eyo masquerade. “It’s my style of arranging panel together to create beauty of mind, so that culture is appreciated and the people may be able to relate with the meaning better”.

From the archives comes a set of large canvas populated with miniatures of legends and popular quotes.

Some of these images include that of Mahatma Gandhi, Julius Ceaser, Obafemi Awolowo, Prof Wole

Soyinka, Nnamidi Azikiwe and Malcolm X. And quite of interesting is that Omojola’s idea of words on marble cuts across ages and generations. For example, the artist finds, late rap star Tupac Shakur’s ‘For every dark Night, there is a brighter day’ worth listing among world’s words on marble.

About a decade before Shakur realized the potency of resilience, Awolowo, according to Omojola’s assemblage of prints had said: ‘After rain comes sunshine, After Darkness comes the glorious dawn.

There is no sorrow without its allay of joy; there is no joy without its admixture of sorrow. Behind the ugly terrible mask of misfortune lies the beautiful soothing countenance of prosperity. So, tear the mask”.

And also of interest is a print of former Hollywood sex symbol, Marilyn Monroe who states: ‘I don’t know who invented high heels, but all women owe him a lot’.

Omojola’s strength in intellectual and painting content is not exactly in the decorative and reproduced prints of iconic images, but in semiabstract impressionism, so suggests quie a number of works expected to be on display during the exhibition.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

AutoWheels Automobiles with best resale value in five years

Lexus LX570 SUV

Toyota FJ Cruiser

Jeep Wrangler Unlimited F your car is an investment, buying one should be as much about the return on that investment in the long run as it is about getting from here to there now.

While it’s tough to think long term about an investment that depreciates in value as soon as it leaves the lot, it’s not as if the value of that vehicle immediately falls off a cliff.

Unless you decide to run it into the ground or buy a model not known for its longevity, there’s still going to be some resale value down the road.

The folks at auto pricing and valuation site Kelley Blue Book note that depreciation costs a car owner more than gas, maintenance or insurance during the first five years of new-car ownership.

Kelley Blue Book has been publishing its residual value guide since 1981 and knows a thing or two about resale value.

The 2013 model year has been extremely kind to Toyota Motors, thought not so much to Detroit Three loyalists.

Toyota and its Lexus division were named best brand and best luxury brand, respectively, for their ability to retain their cars’ value over the first five years of ownership.

Despite the automaker’s spate of recalls and its struggles after the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in 2011, Toyota took six out of KBB’s 22 vehicle categories while Lexus won two of three luxury categories (the Porsche Panamera won best high-end luxury car).

Though Honda Motor

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Company swept the small and midsized car categories and Toyota won both pickup honours, the Detroit automakers weren’t completely shut out.

The Ford Fusion Hybrid won best hybrid/alternative energy car over the Lexus ES 300h, General Motors’ (GM) Chevy Volt won best electric car over the Toyota Prius Plug-In and GM’s Chevy Camaro took best sports car and best high-performance car ahead of the Porsche Boxter and Lexus IS. There are only a handful of cars that give owners a big portion of their investment back five years later.

According to Kelley Blue Book, the following vehicles are a car buyer’s best chance of getting half their money back or more once it’s time to sell: Toyota FJ Cruiser MSRP: $26,880 Resale value retained after five years: 63 per cent, no other vehicle comes close to the resale value of Toyota’s odd-looking midsize SUV. It looks like it’s getting ready to invade a country and is equipped as such. Its available four-wheel-drive system, hefty 260-horsepower 4.0litre V6 engine and 5,000 pounds of towing capacity are beastly, while its interior is made for messy adventures.

Rubber floors and waterresistant seat fabric are made to withstand mud, ash and anything else you track in.

Meanwhile, it has enough gauges to make sure you never get too lost on your backwoods outings. It’s an outdoor workhorse without

equal, which is why buyers will still pay dearly for it after half a decade of rugged outings.

Toyota Tacoma MSRP: $17,525 Resale value retained after five years: 57 per cent The Tacoma has taken this award 10 times for one big reason: You can beat the hell out of it and it’ll come back for more.

Durability is a big deal in the Tacoma’s world, where car buyers who don’t feel they need all the size and strength of a Ford F-Series or Chevy Silverado are drawn to its offroad agility, flexible cargo options and easy handling. At a combined 23 miles per gallon, the base model Tacoma gets the mileage of a small SUV without sacrificing any of its midsized truck power.

When you’re content with fetching big items from the hardware store or taking a yard full of leaf litter to the dump without flashing chrome or flexing muscle, this is the understated truck to buy, even if it’s secondhand.

Jeep Wrangler MSRP: $22,195 Resale value retained after five years: 55.3 per cent It’s loud, it’s not terribly reliable, it sucks up gas at a combined 19 miles per gallon and it doesn’t store a whole lot unless you get the stretchedout unlimited version.

That said, nothing looks quite like it and nothing’s an acceptable off-road substitute at this price.

The ground clearance and four-wheel drive come in

Porsche Cayenne Turbo awfully handy in miserable winter weather, while that removable hardtop makes it a sweet open-air ride in the summer.

Car buyers don’t pick up a used version of the Wrangler because they want to truck the kids around or make grocery runs.

They buy it because they want a “Jeep,” and all the frivolities that go along with it.

Honda CR-V MSRP: $22,695 Resale value retained after five years: 50.7 per cent Honda’s small family crossover of choice makes moms and dads swoon with its redesigned exterior, spacious interior with 70 cubic feet of cargo room with the seats down and tech toys such as its informational display, navigation and rear camera.

The combined 26 miles per gallon certainly don’t hurt, either.

Toyota Land Cruiser and Toyota 4Runner MSRP: $78,255 and $31,340 Resale value retained after five years: 49 per cent The cars with the highest resale value are almost exclusively SUVs. The Land Cruiser and 4Runner are great examples of why.

The 4Runner is the mix of the big school and soccer shuttle families want and the bike and kayak hauler weekend warriors crave.

Meanwhile, the Land Cruiser is the most expensive Toyota available and the last in a dying breed of big, affluenceflaunting gas-guzzlers.

You’d think the 4Runner and Land Cruiser and their average

combined mileage of 20 and 15 miles per gallon, respectively, would be in less demand after gas prices flirted with $4 a gallon last year.

It turns out that used-car buyers are OK paying more at the pump if it means getting these apartments on wheels at half price.

Porsche Cayenne MSRP: $49,600 Resale value retained after five years: 47.3 per cent This beast gets 22 miles per gallon on the highway. It gets a whopping 300 horsepower and tops out at 142 miles per hour in its base model.

It comes with toys including the Porsche Communications Management system to link your various media and electronics, a rearview camera and Bose surround sound speakers.

As much as the 24 cubic feet of rear space and 63 cubic feet of combined cargo space want to make the argument for this vehicle as a family hauler, it’s a more of a midlife crisis with a motor.

The Cayenne is Porsche’s bestselling car in the U.S. by far.

That’s a lot of parents who just can’t let their Porsche dreams go.

Lexus LX MSRP: $81,530 Resale value retained after five years: 47 per cent Oh, so you say this beast retains value? That’s good.

You should expect some equity when your car’s starting price is close to that of a small house. With 383 horsepower from its 5.7-litre V8 engine, 7,000 pounds of lowing capacity, 83 cubic feet of max-

imum cargo space and lots of screens and heated seats, this rolling boutique hotel room has to work overtime to make up for a paltry 14 miles per gallon of fuel economy, including only 12 miles per gallon of city driving. There are city buses blessed with better mileage.

Honda Civic MSRP: $18,165 Resale value retained after five years: 46.9 per cent It’s a bit snug for a family car, but the Civic’s combined 33 miles per gallon and nearly 40 miles per gallon on the highway make it tempting for households on a tight budget.

It seats five with a surprising amount of space left over, is coated in airbags to keep everyone safe and has a new display that shows fuel efficiency, music info and even family photos. The utilitarian small sedan also tends to hold up well over the years, making it a gem for used-car buyers who aren’t just waiting for a far less efficient SUV to get cheaper.

Scion Tc MSRP: $19,965 Resale value retained after five years: 46.5 per cent Meh. It’s a small two-door that gets an OK combined 27 miles per gallon. So why is it expected to go like hotcakes in 2018?

A relatively low buy-in price, a surprisingly roomy backseat and a look sportier than most of its pint-sized competition.

Plus, that Toyota connection goes a long way when it comes to the Tc’s estimated reliability.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

44 AUTOWHEELS

Volkswagen introduces conventional hybrid vehicle the dawn of the comShaveINCE bustion age, true car nuts disdained gas mileage as the obsession of the weakminded and unskilled; there’s no bigger punchline in the business than the Toyota Prius.

The success of the Tesla Model S has begun to change the culture, but when it comes to supercars, faster and more powerful roughly equals better, while efficiency gets dismissed with prejudice.

Well, the Volkswagen XL1 may be the transformative alternative-energy vehicle, the one that finally arouses the car fiend from his gas-hungry stupor.

The XL1 is a different conception of a car, a German engineer’s dream of hyper-miling.

It contains no driving joy or spirit, just lots of cool, stripped-down design details, an anschulss of movement and MPG that gets an average of 262 mpg. This is ze car we’ve been waiting for.

The XL-1 doesn’t have a rearview mirror, which makes sense, since it also doesn’t have a rear window.

Other things not present in this car: Wheels thicker than a street bike’s, a backseat, or any semblance of wind resistance.

It has a drag coefficient of 0.189, which, if you’re not keeping score, is almost impossibly low, less that your average bumblebee’s.

Because of this, its engineers claim the XL1 can glide at reasonable speed on the autobahn using only eight horsepower.

The XL1 looks like a Blade Runner hovercar and drives like something from Disneyland’s Autopia, but without the attendant stink.

Though it has an “S” mode, which ostensibly means “sport,” you’d be hard-pressed to detect such a function in the powertrain.

The XL1 represents the car as blue-ribbon science fair project. But unlike other megacars, which are built to maximise speed and power, this one, more than ten years and upward of a billion dollars in the designing, contains not one centimeter of wasted space or poundage.

The engineers eliminated power steering because it would have added 10 kilograms.

For maximum lightness, the core of its body and chassis is comprised of a one-piece molded carbon-fiber monocoque.

The magnesium wheels get wrapped in custom-light Michelin rubber. The windows lower with hand cranks.

There’s no radio — the sound system wraps through the Garmin GPS — and no place to plug in your smartphone, because Bluetooth is lighter.

All of this results in a car that weighs 1,753 lbs. Under its rear hatch lies a two-cylinder diesel that generates 47 hp, which would have been fairly weak in 1960, much less in the era where the average Hyundai generates up to 200 hp.

The XL1 has a 27-hp electric battery, which can propel it about 31 miles on its own, up to 62 mph.

It can fully recharge, Volkswagen says, in an hour and a half.

The maximum speed overall,

using the full hybrid drivetrain, is 94 mph. There’s a 2.6gallon fuel tank, which lets the XL1 achieve a total range of 310 miles — since it can’t be run at maximum efficiency all of the time.

The car is a design marvel, with a front that looks as smooth and modern as a Mercedes S-class, and a rear that doesn’t so much taper off as disappear into the void.

Even the rear wheels are hidden by metal coverings, making it look like the car is balancing entirely on its forelegs.

When viewed from the rear, XL1 is angular and beautiful, a shiny metal bolt, or maybe a super suppository.

In true supercar fashion, the doors open in dramatic gullwing style, making the XL1 look like a personalized drone.

When both are up, the car’s cockpit manifests dramatically, like a robot Easter egg.

The trunk opens with less style, but contains a nifty-looking carbon-fiber XL1 logo, and enough cargo space to hold a small weekend bag.

Inside, the seats are high-end canvas, looking appreciably cool and sporty. Everything else is streamlined and light.

The steering wheel has a flat bottom, like a race car’s, or at least a racing simulator’s. In general, “simulated” is the best way to describe the way the XL-1 drives.

To repeat, the car has no rearview mirror. It also doesn’t have side mirrors, which the engineers replaced to reduce drag. In their place are sidemounted cameras, meaning that when you drive the car, you have to watch two camera feeds at once at once to not only monitor your blind spots, but every spot.

The XL1’s other quirks, like the whooshing sound of the carbon-disc brakes, the strange growly noises the engine makes in diesel mode, and the lack of power steering, not to mention the raw,

Volkswagen XL1 low overall feel of the ride.

You have to sacrifice a little comfort and performance.

But for a car you need to drive yourself, one that contains no lane-departure warnings or other modern safety features, not having a rear-view mirror is just dangerous.

The XL1 was actually better to drive at higher speeds. It got up to 140 kmh in due time, and held its speed without trouble. Sure enough, I could feel the glide. It was almost counter-intuitive. These kinds of cars are supposed to be better in the city, but this one almost felt like a cross-country runner, tireless, with hidden reserves. Also, there wasn’t as much traffic, so it removed a certain level of panic from the experience.

Volkswagen has made 50 of them so far. They’re using a few for test-driving, and the rest are currently in the hands

of fortunate Eurozone residents who won an essay contest about green energy and urban design.

The plan, VW says, is to manu-

facture about 250 total, but they won’t say whether they plan to sell or less them, won’t say exactly when, and won’t give an idea about how much

they’re going to cost. It’s only going to be Europe, though; residents of North America will either have to spot a rarity in the wild or see one in a museum in the future.

ExxonMobil, FRSC launch safety campaign on road accidents

By Taiwo Hassan XXONMOBIL, in partnership with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), has launched a pan-Nigeria road safety campaign as part of a series of road safety programmes to address the menace of road accidents.

The three major areas of focus for the campaign are seat belt usage, speed reduction and use of phone while driving.

The Corps Marshall and Chief Executive of FRSC, Osita Chidoka explained that the

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partnership with the oil company was because road crashes have been a source of concern not only to the people of Nigeria but to most developing countries.

He said in the next few years, road crashes may be the third highest “killer of mankind”.

The FRSC boss said that road crashes do not just happen, they are caused and can be averted, thus, the need for this campaign which is a national reawakening to address the challenges of apathy associated with road usage in the country.

He commended the growing partnership between FRSC and corporate bodies particularly ExxonMobil, which he said has shown commitment to issues of road safety and security of human life in work places.

ExxonMobil’s Executive Director, Udom Inoyo, said that accidents are preventable with the right attitude, adding that the motivation for ExxonMobil in partnering with FRSC is to ensure that Nigeria can make a positive change to road safety statistics.

Ford cuts price of 2014 electric Focus by 10 per cent Motor Company FitsORD will reduce the price of 2014 Focus Electric compact car by 10 per cent, the latest in a series of price cuts by major automakers on their battery-powered

Ford Focus

cars.

The 2014 Focus Electric, which will reach dealerships in the next few weeks, will have a starting price of $35,200, Ford spokeswoman Amanda Zusman

said. That is down $4,000 from the $39,200 base price on the 2013 model.

The new price, which excludes government credits and other charges, will keep Ford’s first electric

passenger car “competitive” in the market, Zusman said.

Since the model’s launch last year, Ford has built 2,517 Focus electric cars and sold about 1,593. During the first six months of 2013, Ford sold 900 of the cars.

So far this year, General Motors Co. (GM) and Nissan Motor Co. have also taken steps to make their electric and plug-in cars more affordable as others pile into the segment with new models.

Last month, GM announced it would offer incentives of up to $5,000 on the Chevrolet Volt plugin hybrid, which starts at nearly $40,000 before federal and state tax credits.

Earlier this year, Nissan dropped the U.S. price of its 2013 Leaf electric vehicle by more than $6,000, bringing its base price to below $30,000.

U.S. regulators are pressuring automakers to boost the fuel economy of their lineups by 50 percent over the next dozen years. But sales have struggled for a range of issues, including a lack of charging infrastructure for plug-in vehicles.

Sales of electric and plugin cars more than doubled during the first six months of the year, according to hybridcars.com, which tracks “green” car sales. But they accounted for less than one per cent of overall U.S. auto sales.

The 2014 Focus Electric, which will reach dealerships in the next few weeks, will have a starting price of $35,200. That is down $4,000 from the $39,200 base price on the 2013 model.

The new price, which excludes government credits and other charges, will keep Ford’s first electric passenger car competitive in the market

THe GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

AUTOWHeeLS 45

Hyundai Genesis, Veloster get U.S’s agency award He all-new Hyundai T Genesis and Veloster have been listed as one of the brands that excelled at this year’s AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Awards (VSA).

The brands topped the aspirational luxury car and sporty car categories respectively. Specifically, VSA survey measures how satisfied an owner is with his/her new vehicle.

AutoPacific’s VSAs objectively measure owner satisfaction with 51 vehicle attributes ranging from interior comfort and convenience to fuel economy and performance.

This study by the Southern California-based automotive research firm summarises the results of responses from over 52,000 new vehicle owners.

“Winning AutoPacific’s vehicle satisfaction award confirmed that the Hyundai Genesis has joined the big leagues,” said George Peterson, president, AutoPacific.

“Out-pointing all other Aspirational Luxury Cars, Genesis has won this award four out of the last five years.

This proves that Genesis is a smart buy for drivers wanting an excellent car at an excellent value.”

“The Hyundai Veloster is a sporty car with extremely aggressive styling that resonates with its buyers,” continued Peterson.

“With an attractive price point and head-turning styling, Veloster tops the AutoPacific satisfaction ratings with its owners giving very positive reviews.”

The 2013 Hyundai Genesis features either 3.8-litre or 5.0litre direct-injection engines, optional eight-inch Driver Information System (DIS) display and an ultimate navigation system with Blue Link® telematics.

The 2013 Veloster features a three-door design along with an all-new turbo model, with a new 1.6-litre, 201 horsepower, direct-injected twin-scroll turbocharged engine, aggressive bodykit and unique 18inch alloy wheels.

“The AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Awards are an important indicator that Hyundai is continuing to hit the mark when it comes to pleasing consumers,” said Scott Margason, director, Product Planning, Hyundai Motor America. “We are pleased that both Genesis and Veloster owners rank their purchase decisions so highly – an excellent reflec-

tion on both of these classleading vehicles.”

In addition, both the Genesis and Veloster come with advanced safety features and

are equipped with Assurance Connected Care powered by the Hyundai’s Blue Link telematics platform.

Assurance Connected Care is

a suite of safety and car care features providing Hyundai owners with free proactive services including automatic collision notification, SOS

emergency assistance, enhanced roadside assistance, monthly vehicle diagnostics reports and maintenance alerts.

2013 Hyundai Genesis couple

KIA motors offers auto service discount for customers

U.S. to rejig rail-safety standards for efficiency

By Taiwo Hassan

NITeD States’ rail-safety U regulators plan to issue new crashworthiness stan-

ANA Motors Limited, the D sole distributors of Kia Motors in Nigeria, is offering customers who want to service their cars a 10 per cent discount.

According to the company, customers would not only have the opportunity to get five per cent cash back, but also get offers on cars more than five years old.

Chief Commercial Officer of the Service Division of Kia Motors Nigeria, Gitesh Yagnik said the company’s move to offer the servicing discount was to show its customers of its support to their quest for quality service delivery.

“We always strive to provide ‘family like care’ for parts and service to all our

Kia Cerato valued customers and they can avail them at any of our Kia service centres.

“We seek new customers, but always keep our old customers satisfied. This campaign is specifically for Kia customers who have pur-

chased their vehicle before 60 months period.

He continued: “During this season, we want our valued customers to benefit from the promotions and discounts being offered on Spare parts and

dards this year that would eventually let faster and lighter passenger trains run on lines including the Northeast Corridor.

The Federal Railroad Administration said yesterday it will follow the recommendations of a safety advisory council and write rules for how well equipment on high-speed passenger trains should be able to survive a crash.

The recommendations are designed to make dedicated high-speed lines in California and along the Northeast Corridor available for use at speeds of as much as 220 miles (354 kilometers) per hour and as fast as 125 mph on some tracks where freight

trains also run.

New standards mark a “move away from prescriptive regulations towards more performance-based regulatory environment,” Joseph C. Szabo, the agency’s administrator, said in a statement. “They will better align our approach to passenger safety and the use of rail equipment with the rest of the world.”

The standards would create baseline safety requirements for a new generation of trains, according to the statement. Trains would also have the flexibility to operate along lines used by freight and passenger systems at lower speeds.

The railroad agency, the Transportation Department unit that regulates interstate freight and passenger opera-

tors, updated its crashworthiness standards in 2010. It said further strengthening of passenger railcars would cost $4.1 million over 20 years, mostly for engineering and testing development.

Passengers in a May 17 MetroNorth Railroad crash in Connecticut were protected by strengthened railcar frames and designs intended to absorb and dissipate impact energy through the structures, rather than transferring it to passengers.

The accident involving two commuter trains injured 76 people out of about 700 riders, with no immediate fatalities. Casualties would have been worse if lawmakers and regulators hadn’t acted to improve car designs in recent years, said a safety advocate who helped write the laws.

The experimental safety vehicle programme: Driving evolution He 1970s transformed the T automobile industry in countless ways, many of them similar to the changes that

Volkswagen first ESV vehicle

came over the US after the frontier was settled. Sanity prevailed over exuberance, adventure took a back seat to

safety, and government made its presence known like never before. One way that it did so was by announcing the

experimental Safety Vehicle (eSV) program in 1973, a program designed to encourage automakers to develop new

safety technologies.

Responding to the challenge, companies came forward with vehicles that ranged from the brilliant to the ludicrous. In 1972, GM was already working on a vehicle with an enhanced front bumper and steel side beams in the doors.

Large B-pillars provided rollover protection and allowed for wraparound windshields to increase visibility.

A cutting-edge device called an air bag also made an appearance in that vehicle.

Designed to protect the driver, it deployed during crashes with speeds exceeding 30 MPH. Volkswagen introduced its first eSV in 1972. The car was designed to ensure survivability for passengers at speeds of up to 50 MPH. It included forward-thinking innovations like anti-lock brakes and

three-point safety belts with force limiters and pretensioners. On the other hand, it also had features like an overhead “safety blanket” that dropped down on the heads of passengers in case of an accident.

The eSV program has continued into the 21st century, spawning ongoing developments such as rear-facing cameras, collision sensors, and seats that push seats inward in the event of a crash.

Looking towards the future, ideas currently being tested include sensors that detect when the driver is tired and cars driven entirely by computers.

None of this is as exciting as a 1960s muscle car with 4-barrel carbs, of course. But, as even cowboys must admit, it’s worth giving up a little excitement for safer roads and a better world.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

BusinessTravel Mobile phone usage on board: Myth or reality?

Newly acquired Arik’s A330-200 airplane to be deployed on the airline’s long haul.

Stories by Wole Shadare S regular travellers, we are familiar with this instruction by elegantly dressed cabin crew that all mobile phones must be powered off before take-off.

Some airlines go further asking passengers to keep mobile phones switched off for the entire duration of the flight.

In Nigeria, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) makes it a criminal offence for any one who deliberately makes call when an aircraft is in flight.

Passengers have been warned not to be complacent about turning their phones off during flights after it was found that many people frequently leave them turned on despite requests by cabin crew.

The debate over the use of mobile phones on planes has raged for many years without reaching a solid conclusion.

However, it makes one wonder how true this could be. If electronic gadgets were able to interfere with airplane communication and navigation systems and could potentially bring down an airplane, you can be sure that the Department of Homeland Security wouldn’t allow passengers to board a plane with a mobile phone or iPad, for fear that they could be used by terrorists.

But now, as some airlines toy with the idea of allowing phone use onboard flights, aviation

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experts have warned that electronic devices can create a ‘perfect storm’ of conditions which has the power to down a plane.

The electromagnetic waves emitted by phones and even tablet computers and iPods can interfere with a plane’s electronics, according to an investigation by the New York Times.

Mobile phones can cause plane accidents, say experts. Although difficult to prove, it is believed some accidents have been caused by phone signals affecting navigational equipment.

A plane crash in New Zealand in 2003 has been cited as an example of phone’s causing accidents.

Older planes can be particularly affected as they do not have enough protection against modern devices and the risk is also increased with altitude.

Some airlines such as Ryanair and Virgin are considering allowing phone use on board by installing new technology to relay mobile phone signals.

British Airways already allows mobile use in business class on flights from London City Airport.

However, several carriers are still refusing to lift the ban.

Another reason people found that makes the most sense was the fact that when you make a call, at say 10,000 feet, the signal bounces off multiple available cell towers, rather than one at

PHOTO: SOLA OJEDOKUN

However, it makes one wonder how true this could be. If electronic gadgets were able to interfere with airplane communication and navigation systems and could potentially bring down an airplane, you can be sure that the Department of Homeland Security wouldn’t allow passengers to board a plane with a mobile phone or iPad, for fear that they could be used by terrorists a time.

According to experts, the frequent switching between cells creates significant overhead on the network and may clog the networks on the ground, which is why the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) not the Federal Aviation Association (FAA) banned cell use on planes.

Since towers might be miles below the aircraft the phone, an additional concern could be that a phone might have to transmit at its maximum power to be received. This will increase the risk of interference with electronic equip-

ment on the aircraft.

Contrary to the fact, a few airlines do allow mobile phones to be used on aircraft, however with a different system that utilises an on-board base station in the plane, which communicates with passengers’, own handsets.

The base station - called a picocell - is low power and creates a network area big enough to encompass the cabin of the plane. The base station routes phone traffic to a satellite, which in turn is connected to mobile networks on the ground.

Many reasons have been adduced for restricting mobile phone use on airplanes.

Airlines need passengers under control and the best way to maintain that cattle-car atmosphere might just be with a set of little rules beginning at takeoff.

The barrier is clearly political, not technological. No one in a position of authority wants to change a policy that is later implicated as a contributing factor toward a crash.

Therefore, it’s a whole lot easier to do nothing and leave the policy as it is, in the name of “caution.” (Since old airplanes with analog systems may still be vulnerable to interference, it’s best to make the rule consistent.)

In the end, it is not really an argument whether mobile phones should be allowed. The whole point is what is the exact reason for restricting their use on board?

Allures of Dubai’s Burj Al Arab there we see a tremendous synergy with Emirates Holidays, towards achieving this goal. We have noticed that Burj Al Arab has become a must-visit destination for Nigerian want to develop. travellers, and we hope this trend is here to Emirates Holidays is looking to strengthen stay.” its position in the Nigerian market in recogHe noted that the connectivity that Emirates nition of its enormous potential, as its partoffered between Lagos to Dubai helped nership with the Burj Al Arab is really the strengthens its presence in the market, built coming together of two iconic brands.

Already, Tour Brokers International (TBI) has partnerships and created new business opportunities through dedicated Burj Al Arab sales been approved as its general sales agent. and press trips.

Vice President, Commercial Operations, As part of the exclusive package, the guests will Emirates Holiday, Dina Al Herais said that be offered welcome drinks upon arrival and luxthey had a strong product to appeal to urious, full-size sets of Hermes amenities for Nigeria’s discerning clientele, who will expehim and for her. The package is also designed rience Arabian hospitality at its very best.

Speaking in the same vein, General Manager, for families travelling with children, entitling up to three children below 12 years to stay on a Burj Al Arab, Heinrich Morio disclosed that complimentary basis. During Ramadan, fasting Nigeria was one of the key markets that they guests can take advantage of complimentary inplanned to focus their efforts on. suite Iftar or Suhoor, instead of morning breakHis words, “Our experience in meeting the needs of these guests gives us the opportuni- fast. ty to create a number of memorable offerings In addition, all guests receive unlimited complimentary access to Wild Wadi Waterpark, and events for this particular market, and OTELS can deploy an innovation strategy H to ensure they stay ahead of the game and focus their creative efforts on areas they

The iconic 7- star Burj Al Arab Hotel, Dubai. complimentary children’s video games and free access (for up to three children) to Sindbad Kids Club.

Emirates Holidays, the tour operating arm of Emirates – one of the world’s fastest growing airlines, and Burj Al Arab –the world’s most luxuri-

ous hotel, have partnered to bring an exclusive Dubai luxury holiday package for travellers from Nigeria.

Emirates Holidays and Burj Al Arab are offering travellers the opportunity to enjoy a luxurious holiday in Dubai for three nights for the price of two.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

BUSINESSTRAVEL

47

Airlines re-design economy class seats for greater comfort

By Chika Goodluck-Ogazi OME airlines are now introducing new Saircraft. “slimline” seats in economy class of their These seats, in addition to weighing less, allow airlines to increase capacity without significantly affecting passenger comfort.

The seats may or may not feature moveable headrests and generally do not feature adjustable lumbar support.

Slimline seats are being further refined, with chassis seats now available to give passengers more space.

For passenger safety, airline seats are equipped with seatbelts, and there is a “Fasten Seatbelts” sign above each seat, which is lit up when passengers are expected to remain seated with the seatbelt fastened.

This is during taxiing, take-off and landing, although turbulence may also prompt the captain to turn on this sign.

Some of airlines that have introduced such seats to some of their aircraft include Aer Lingus, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, American Airlines, and Avianca.

Meanwhile, Nigerian domestic carriers pro-

vide comfortable seating and a dedicated premier cabin for the customers. Some of the airlines aircraft have seats that have the ability to be converted to a fully flat bed of 180°. Arik Air, for instance, has individual 17” video monitors at each seat, equipped with in-seat power with 50 per cent more legroom in cabin and with the a seat pitch of 34.

Many airlines provide maps of their seating configurations on the various aircraft they fly.

They also show seat maps for a wide range of airlines and aircraft, along with descriptions of the best and worst seats on the aircraft.

Window seats are located at the sides of the aircraft, and usually next to a window, although some aircraft have seat rows where there is a window missing.

Usually, passengers who want to have a view, or a wall, which they can lean on, prefer window seats.

Passengers in seats adjacent to the aisle have the advantage of being able to leave the seat without having to clamber over the other passengers, and having an aisle they can stretch their legs into. If a seat block has three or more seats, there will also be middle seats, which are unpopular because the passenger is sand-

wiched between two other passengers without advantages of either window or aisle seats.

While there are some exceptions, most commercial aircraft seats are forward facing and on military aircraft seats are frequently rearward facing.

Southwest Airlines previously offered a few rearward-facings seats on some aircraft but that scheme has now ended. Rearward-facing seats are also common on business jets, to provide a “conference” type layout.

Airplane economy-class passengers of the future could enjoy almost as much luxury as those travelling in first class thanks to a revolutionary new kind of airline seat.

British Airways and United Airlines also have rearward-facing seats in its Club World and United Business (Intercontinental Business Class) Cabin. It has been argued that rearward-facing seats are safer because in the event of a crash, the sudden deceleration will propel the passenger into a rearward-facing seat instead of out of it, meaning the force is distributed over the entire seat back, instead of the straps of the seat belt.

The argument against such seats has been

based on passenger comfort, safety and cost. It could be argued that passengers who desire the natural layout of forward-facing seats may be uncomfortable with a rearward layout.

On the safety aspect, the argument has been that during a plane crash, debris, such as luggage, will fly forward in the cabin, quite possibly into the passengers in rearward-facing seats. On the cost aspect, rearward-facing seats need additional strengthening, which adds extra weight and therefore higher fuel costs.

Singapore Airlines has launched its next generation of cabin products, set to be the new industry benchmark for premium air travel.

Customers travelling on select flights between Singapore and London will be the first to experience the new cabin products from September 2013 in first, business and economy classes. The new seats and KrisWorld in-flight entertainment system will be progressively rolled out to other routes as additional new aircraft enter service.

Singapore Airlines is also investing nearly $150 million to introduce the new products on an initial eight Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The investment programme will be extended as the new products are introduced on Airbus A350 aircraft scheduled for delivery in the years ahead.

Etihad, South African Airways begin codeshare service

By Chika Goodluck-Ogazi TIHAD Airways and South Africa Airways have comE menced codeshare services following regulatory approval, which enables both carriers to offer codeshare and interline services to key destinations on each other’s route networks.

Under the first phase of the codeshare agreement, Etihad Airways passengers can now travel on Etihad Airways’ marketed flights from Johannesburg to four major destinations on the SAA network including Cape Town, Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth.

Destinations like Livingston, Lusaka, Ndola, Harare and Victoria Falls are currently pending subject to local government approval.

Also passengers travelling from Africa can now access SAA marketed flights on Etihad Airways scheduled service from Johannesburg to its hub in Abu Dhabi, and across the airline’s fast growing global network to Bahrain, Kuwait, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.

Other major destinations currently pending regulatory approval include Shanghai, Singapore and Jeddah.

The Chief Strategy and Planning Officer, Etithad Airways, Kevin Knight said: “Increasing our reach into Southern Africa is critical in meeting the demand from growing numbers of leisure and business passengers travelling between Africa and the major emerging markets in the Middle East, Asia, the Indian subcontinent and Australia.

He added: “The partnership agreement with South African Airways reflects our strategy of forming alliances with airlines around the world to enhance the global reach of our network.”

According to the airline, phase two of a wide ranging Memorandum of Understanding signed in May 2013 makes provision for the two airlines to explore areas of further

Managing Director, Touchdown Travels, Mr. Dayo Adeola receiving his Diamond Prestige award as the highest revenue earner for Virgin Atlantic Airways from the Country Manager, Mrs. Rachel Coffey at the Colours recognition Awards at Eko Hotels, Lagos…recently. commercial cooperation that provide costs saving and operational efficiencies, which can be achieved through synergies and collaboration across a number of areas including reciprocal Frequent Flyer Programme participation, ground handling, procurement and training.

Etihad Airways launched its service between the UAE and South Africa in 2005, and currently operates scheduled services to eight destinations in Africa and the Indian Ocean including Johannesburg, Khartoum, Casablanca, Cairo, Nairobi, Lagos, Tripoli and Mahé in the Seychelles.

Jordan to boost trade with Nigeria as Royal Jordanian begins air services to Lagos

By Wole Shadare

RADE and tourism between Nigeria and T Jordan are expected to receive boost following the launch of direct flights between the two countries during the week.

Royal Jordanian airlines, the national carrier of Jordan began two direct weekly flights to Lagos penultimate week from Amman as it promises to offer genuine hospitality on board its modern fleet.

With the airline, travellers can fly to Amman and then continue to any of the 60 destinations in the airline’s network or more than 850 destinations with its Oneworld partner airlines.

Royal Jordanian also connects travellers directly to the holy sites including ‘Bethany beyond the Jordan’ and ‘King Hussein Mosque’ in Amman.

From Jordan, travellers can continue their journey with convenient connections to Mecca and Jerusalem.

Nigeria’s Ambassador to Jordan, Taofeeq Arapaja, said at the launch of the airline in Lagos that the direct flight operations also

present mutual economic advantage with increased traffic as traveller would spend only six hours instead of two-days to get to Jordan.

Arapaja, who described the launch as a quantum leap in Nigeria’s ties with foreign countries, disclosed that the airline had over 14.6 frequent flyers and account for 65 per cent of traffic in West Africa.

Speaking earlier, Bassel Kilani, head of media of the airline explained that ‘the importance of Africa and economic and industrial boom that the continent is witnessing called for the decision by Jordan to operate direct flights to Lagos.

“Feasibility study shows that running a regular flight to Nigeria will be useful to our expansion strategy that goes beyond flying to the traditional markets of Europe, United States and the Far East.

“Traffic on this route is bound to boost relations between Jordan and by extension, the Middle-East and Nigeria and will give businessmen the opportunity to find new investments in the light of huge natural economic resources that Nigeria is known

Traffic on this route is bound to boost relations between Jordan and by extension, the Middle-East and Nigeria and will give businessmen the opportunity to find new investments in the light of huge natural economic resources that Nigeria is known for for,” he said.

Kilani assured travellers that Jordan is an ideal destination for those seeking cultural knowledge and spiritual enhancements since it is famous for Christian religious sites such as Mount Nebo and others.

For those wishing to journey to the Middle

East and Arab Gulf region, Amman will be a gateway, particularly for pilgrims who wish to travel to Jerusalem and Saudi Arabia as they can easily access the towns by land.

Also, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Petra, is without doubt Jordan most valuable treasure and great tourist attraction.

Among other places that are of interests to tourists are the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth, the Red Sea beaches of Aqaba and the unique Rock formations of Wadi Rum. Also speaking, Zakeer Majali, head of sales of the airline assured travellers of quality products and services to all classes of passengers adding that the airline planned to introduce B787 to the route in the next one year.

He disclosed that the airline had over 120 passengers from Lagos on its inaugural flight, explaining that its alliance with many airlines offered it the opportunity to distribute passengers to all parts of the world.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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FridayWorship

By Afis A. Oladosu In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful “O you who believe! Fasting has been pre“Surely, the religion with Allah is ISLAM,complete submission”... Qur’an 3:19 scribed upon you just as it was prescribed upon those before you, in order that you may gain taqwa (God-consciousness, selfrestraint) Quran 2:183 “Fasting is for me and it is I who would reward the believer who fasts-” Hadith Qudsi. broken by not thinking of worldly ness, arguing and controversy; making of conquering the enemy of Allah and matters, except for those matters that it observe silence and occupying it abating appetite, if at the time of RETHREN, fasting became obliga- are conducive to religious ends, since with remembrance of God, Great and breaking it one not only makes up for tory on the Muslims during the they constitute provisions for the Glorious is He, and with recitation of all one has missed during the daytime, 2nd year after the Hijra, migration of Hereafter and are not of this lower Quran is one of the ethics a believer but perhaps also indulges in a variety the Prophet from Mecca to Madinah. world. extra foods? learns in fasting. The Prophet is quoted of Thus the Prophet fasted nine Those versed in the spiritual life of the to have said: “Two habits annul fasting: It has even become the custom to Ramadans in his lifetime. heart have even said that a sin is backbiting and telling lies.” stock up for Ramadan with all kinds of As we began this year’s fasting, I recorded against one who concerns Three: Hear not what displeases Allah. foodstuffs, so that more is consumed sought the opinion of our spiritual himself all day with arrangements for A Muslim who is fasting should during that time than in the course of forebears on its inner dimensions. I breaking his Fast. Such anxiety stems endeavour to close his ears to every- several other months put together. It consequently found that of al- from lack of trust in the bounty of the thing reprehensible. This is because in is well known that the object of fasting Ghazalli highly instructive. According Almighty and from lack of faith in His Islam that which is unlawful to utter is is to experience hunger and to check to him fasting can be divided into promised sustenance. To this third likewise unlawful to be heard. desire, in order to reinforce the soul in three: ordinary fasting, fasting of the degree belong the Prophets, the Fourth: do not do anything that Allah piety. If the stomach is starved from elites in the spiritual realm and fast- friends of the Almighty. It does not has forbidden. In other words, the early morning till evening, so that its ing of the elite of the believing elite. lend itself to detailed examination in value accruable to the believer would appetite is aroused and its craving The first, which is ordinary fasting, words, as its true nature is better be redeemed in full once we keep all intensified, and it is then offered delimeans abstaining from food, drinks revealed in action. our limbs and organs away from sin. It cacies and allowed to eat its fill, its and sexual relations during the day As for Special Fasting, this is the kind is meaningless to abstain from lawful taste for pleasure is increased and its though the person fasting may practiced by the righteous. It means food only to break one’s fast on what is force exaggerated; passions are actiindulge in vain talks and watch for- keeping all one’s organs free from sin unlawful. A man who fasts like this vated which would have lain dormant bidden scenes and images. and six things are required for its may be compared to one who builds a under normal conditions.

The second, fasting of the elite, means accomplishment. One: see not what castle but demolishes a city. The The spirit and secret nature of fasting avoiding the pitfalls in the ordinary displeases Allah. Prophet Muhammad, unlawful is a poison: it is deadly to reli- is to weaken the forces, which are fasting; it entails keeping one’s ears, on him be peace, says: “The furtive gion, while the lawful is a medicine, Shytan’s means of leading us back to eyes, tongue, hands and feet - and all glance is one of the poisoned arrows of beneficial in small doses but harmful evil. It is therefore, essential to cut other organs - free from sin. Satan, on him be God’s curse. Whoever in excess. down our intake of food to what one The third variant or form of fasting- forsakes it for fear of God will receive One important caution that is very would consume on a normal night, fasting of the elite of the believing from Him, Great and Glorious is He, a apposite is the need for Muslims to when not fasting. No benefit is derived elite- refers to fasting of the heart faith the sweetness of which he will avoid over-eating during this season. from the Fast if one consumes as from unworthy concerns and worldly find within his heart.” Our Prophet reminds us that there is much as one would usually take durthoughts, in total disregard of every- Two: speak not what displeases Allah. no receptacle more odious to Allah ing the day and night combined. thing but the Almighty, Great and Guarding one’s tongue from idle chat- than a belly stuffed full with lawful Moreover, one of the properties conGlorious is He. This kind of fasting is ter, lying, gossiping, obscenity, rude- food. Of what use is the fast as a means sists in taking little sleep during the

Marhaban ya Ramadan

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daytime, so that one feels the hunger and thirst and becomes conscious of the weakening of one’s powers, with the consequent purification of the heart.

During this month, it is essential that our hearts should swing like a pendulum between fear and hope. For, we do not know, for certain, if our Fast will be accepted, and through that become one of those who would find His favour. In other words, we should pray to Him to accept our acts of worship despite their inadequacies. This is how one should be at the end of any act of worship one performs.

It is related of al-Hasan ibn Abil Hasan al-Basri that he once passed by a group of people who were laughing merrily.

He said: ‘Allah, Great and Glorious is He, has made the month of Ramadan a race-course, on which His creatures compete in His worship. Some have come in first and won, while others have lagged behind and lost. It is absolutely amazing to find anybody laughing and playing about on the day when success attends the victors, and failure the wasters. By God, if the veil were lifted off, the doer of good would surely be preoccupied with his good works and the evildoer with his evil deeds.’ Those who are focused on attaining eternal bliss hardly have time to indulge in idle sport; those who are destined to suffer eternal reprimand usually find ease in displeasing the Almighty.

From al-Ahnaf ibn Qays: it is reported that he was once told: “You are an aged elder; Fasting would enfeeble you.” But he replied: “By this I am making ready for a long journey, Obedience to God, Glorified is He, is easier to endure than His punishment.’

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

NigeriaCapitalMarket NSE Daily Summary (Equities) as at 11/7/2013 PRICE LIST OF SYMBOLS

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

CAPITAL MARKET

NSE Daily Summary (Equities) as at 11/7/2013

LOSERS

PRICE GAINERS

NSE’s market capitalisation rises by N63 billion

By Helen Oji QUITY transactions in the E Nigerian Stock Exchange closed in an upbeat yesterday, occasioned by price gains recorded by most bluechip companies, as market capitalization rose further by N63 billion.

Volume of shares traded also increased marginally, as investors purchased 737.320

million shares worth N6.717 billion in 5038 deals against 213.244 million shares valued at N3.217 billion traded the previous day in 5815 deals.

Specifically, at the close of transactions yesterday, the NSE All Share Index grew by 199.26 basis points to 37327.66 points from 37128.40 traded the previous day while the market capitalisation appreciated by N63 billion or 0.54

per cent to N11.821 trillion from N11.758 trillion recorded on Wednesday.

Precisely, Julius Berger led the gainers table, appreciating by N3.52 kobo to close at N70.02 kobo, Nigerian Breweries Plc followed with a gain of N1.56 kobo to close at N163.56 kobo while Mrs Oil, PZ Cussons and NASCON appreciated by N1.20 kobo, N1.01 kobo and N0.89 kobo

respectively to close at N19.00, N40.01 kobo and N13.49 kobo.

Okomu Oil on the contrary led the losers chart, decreasing by N1.40 kobo to close at N46.60 kobo, trailed by Port Land Paint with a loss of N0.29 kobo to close at N6.10 kobo while May & Baker depreciated by N0.26 kobo to close at N2.44 kobo.

Other stocks that recorded price depreciation were Transexpress and Livestock which loss N0.25 kobo and N0.18 kobo respectively to close at N2.26 kobo and N4.72 kobo.

Further analysis of yesterday’s trading indicated that United Bank for Africa (UBA) of the banking sub sector was more active during the day,

having accounted 492.435 million share valued at N4.111 billion, UBA Capital trailed with exchange of 28.570 million shares worth N32.084 million while Zenith Bank recorded a total of 20.014 million shares valued at N409.095 million. GTBank took fourth position with account of 18.152 million shares cost N474.872 million.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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Opinion Lessons from the third Egyptian revolution

By Vincent Bamigboye “A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government” – (E .P. Abbey 1927–1989) IKE millions the world over, one watched Lended the unfolding drama that eventually the 12-month Presidency of Mohammed Morsi of Egypt on July 3, 2013 exactly a year after he was elected by more than 50 per cent of Egyptian voters. It was a very terrible sad end to what one initially thought was a democratic dividend of the “Arab Spring” in the most important Arab nation.

Historically, the first Egyptian Revolution was launched by the Association of Free Officers under the leadership of the charismatic Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser. This led to the eventual overthrow of King Farouq and the enthronement as President, General Muhammad Naguib on June 18, 1952 with Nasser as his deputy. Naguib lost out in an internal power struggle and was replaced by Nasser who eventually assumed the leadership of Egypt Revolutionary Command Council and the Egyptian Presidency in 1954.

Nasser proved to be a popular, dynamic and visionary leader whose time witnessed remarkable achievements and changes both in Egypt and surrounding Arab countries in general. He survived several assassination attempts by the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood. His premature death from stroke, at the age of 52, on September 28, 1970 resulted in outpouring of grief in the Arab World.

Colonel Anwar Sadat assumed the Egyptian Presidency after Nasser. A courageous and astute leader, Sadat’s most important achievement was the Israeli/Egyptian Peace Treaty

for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. This has resulted in years of enduring peaceful co-existence with Israel till date. He was assassinated by dissident Army Officers loyal to the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt during the annual Army Victory Parade on October 6, 1981. His deputy, Air Chief Marshal Hosni Mubarak, survived the attack and assumed the presidency in what turned out to be Egypt’s longest-serving leader since Muhammad Ali Pasha.

Mubarak presidency was characterised by widespread corruption and abuse of power. There was the persistent rumour that he was grooming one of his sons as his successor. Mubarak was in power till February 11, 2011 when he was swept aside by popular uprising by the Egyptian people. The Egyptian Armed Forces refused to suppress the insurrection in what turns out to be the second Egyptian Revolution.

He is currently being tried for crimes while in government.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces which succeeded the Mubarak Government conducted elections which brought President Mohamed Morsi of the Freedom and Justice Party of the Muslim Brotherhood to power on June 30, 2012. Dr. Morsi, a PhD holder and University Lecturer, turned out to be a huge disappointment in government. He allowed the interest of his Muslim Brotherhood of 750,000 members to over-ride the interest of 80 million Egyptians. Morsi’s actions were always weighed heavily in favour of the Muslim Brotherhood who took most of the available positions without recourse to due processes. He failed to reach out to the opposition. By the end of June 2013, the Egyptians had had enough and wanted

him out. There were persistent demonstrations by millions while the Tahrir Square was filled with opposition and their supporters. On July 1, 2013, the Egyptian army gave the politicians 48 hours’ ultimatum to sort things out. Instead of addressing the issue at hand, Morsi was busy denigrating the Army and issuing empty threats. Morsi had forgotten that the Egyptian Army, a widely-respected institution, has a long history of saving its people from the Pharaohs, King Farouq and even one of its own in the person of Hosni Mubarak. At the end of the ultimatum, the Egyptian Army Chief, General Abdul Fatah al-Sisi, in a move that enjoyed the support of most Egyptians, the Grand Imam Ahmed el-Tayeb, the Coptic Pope Tawadros 11 and the opposition leaders, announced the removal of Dr. Morsi. He was replaced with the Head of the Egyptian Constitutional Court (Chief Justice) Adli Mansour who now has the mandate to conduct fresh elections. That was the third time, in modern time, the Egyptian people and the Army would remove their leader in a popular revolt.

What lesson, if any, for Nigeria in the Egyptian revolutions? The nearest the Nigerian people ever had on consensus was the June 12, 1993 election that was scuttled by the Nigerian army under General Ibrahim Babangida. Protest marches by the people against the annulment of the election were ruthlessly suppressed by the Nigerian security apparatus . The current political dispensation was only possible because the Nigerian army had lost credibility in governance. They however made sure they left on their own term and with one of their own, General Olusegun

Obasanjo, in place. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (another bumbling intellectual in government) has held 160 million Nigerians hostage since May 1999. President Jonathan, the PDP, and, recently, his Ijaw people, assume that their interests are far greater than the collective interests of the suffering Nigerian masses.

What may have prevented the Nigerian masses from popular revolt is the lack of trust for the alternative which is the Nigerian military. One cannot imagine the Nigerian military taking over the government and handing same to the incumbent Chief Justice as their counterparts in Egypt did recently. To an average Nigerian Army coupist, it would be party time! Can you imagine our respected traditional rulers and jet-owning pastors being on the side of the people? Recently retired Chief of Army Staff and former Defence Minister General Theophilus Danjuma castigated the corrupt and callous Nigerian leadership since independence. Danjuma should know what he was talking about, having been a recurrent decimal as either kingmaker or power behind the Presidency. Equally, the Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, publicly stated recently that with insecurity, corruption and pervading hopelessness, Nigeria is ripe for a revolution. Both Danjuma and Tanbuwal are members of the Nigerian establishment. They know, just like the rest of us, that all is not well with our nation.

Yet all hope is not lost. As long as there are still Nigerians of conscience, the Nigerian state and its dream will be saved from the greed and callousness of the greedy and purposeless elite.

• Bamigboye, Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, wrote from the United Kingdom.

May this Ramadan renew our world!

By Cornelius Afebu Omonokhua ANY people wondered why Blessed Pope John Paul II M kissed the Koran in 2006! The Pope had longed to go to Iraq because Abraham is claimed as a father in faith by Muslims, Jews, and Christians. Pope John Paul II was fully aware of the depth of man’s inhumanity to his brothers and sisters. He was aware of the violence in the world and how the degradation of the human persons has been painted in human blood. He was aware of how some world leaders manipulate religion to their selfish and political ambition.

His many Mea Culpas on behalf of the Church and the world has created a new understanding between peoples of different faiths and promoted dialogue, tolerance, and cooperation in the place of anathemas, persecution, and rivalry.

He acknowledged Abraham as a figure of unity to enhance a political change for a better world.

No wonder then that the Holy Father received a delegation that included the Shiite Imam of Khadum Mosque, the Sunni President of the council that operates the Iraqi Islamic Bank, and a member of the Iraqi Ministry of Religion who saw this encounter as a grace from heaven. Although Iraq has been accused of violations of human rights, this Islamic state is known to be tolerant of Christians. Many Catholics hold positions in government, commerce, education and other establishments in Iraq. The Chaldean Patriarch of Babylon (Iraq), His Beatitude Raphael I Bidawid, who was a major spokesman for the delegation, applauded the Pope’s actions and words as a true sign of concern from the Successor of St. Peter. In Islam, a gift represents the giver so the Muslims gave to the Pope what is the most dear to their heart and most important to them, their holy book.

This was why the Pope showed his deep appreciation to this intimate self-donation, by bowing and kissing the Koran as a sign of respect. The Pope appreciated the suffering of the Iraqi people, particularly the women and children. The Blessed Pope John Paul II respects the culture and traditions of every nation hence he kissed the ground of all the nations he visited in his sojourn on earth.

The Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue (PCID) has never failed to send a good will message to Muslims all over the world during Ramadan. This is an expression of how much the Church regards the Muslims in the declaration on the relation of the Church to non-Christian reli-

gions (Nostra Aetate), proclaimed by His Holiness Pope Paul VI on October 28, 1965, that: “The Church regards with esteem also the Moslems. They adore the one God, living and subsisting in Himself; merciful and all- powerful, the Creator of heaven and earth, (Cf. St. Gregory VII, letter XXI to Anzir (Nacir), King of Mauritania (Pl. 148, col. 450f.) who has spoken to men; they take pains to submit wholeheartedly to even His inscrutable decrees, just as Abraham, with whom the faith of Islam takes pleasure in linking itself, submitted to God. Though they do not acknowledge Jesus as God, they revere Him as a prophet. They also honour Mary, His virgin Mother; at times they even call on her with devotion. In addition, they await the Day of Judgment when God will render their deserts to all those who have been raised up from the dead. Finally, they value the moral life and worship God especially through prayer, almsgiving and fasting. Since in the course of centuries not a few quarrels and hostilities have arisen between Christians and Moslems, this sacred synod urges all to forget the past and to work sincerely for mutual understanding and to preserve as well as to promote together for the benefit of all mankind social justice and moral welfare, as well as peace and freedom” (Nostra Aetate 3).

In this Ramadan, 2013, I join my voice to that of the Universal Church to wish the Muslims all over the world and the Muslims in Nigeria in particular a grace-filled Ramadan. To our Muslim brethren, I pray that as you begin your fast and penance, “In the name of Allah, most gracious, most merciful; praise be to Allah, the cherisher and sustainer of the worlds; most gracious, most merciful; master of the day of judgement. Thee do we worship, and thine aid we seek. Show us the straight way, the way of those on whom thou hast bestowed thy grace, those whose portion is not wrath and who go not astray” (Al F tihah); may your prayers and penance be acceptable to God who is the author of life and desires to sustain the life he has created by teaching all men and women the message of peace.

May this holy season open the gate of peace to the whole world! May the gate of hell be firmly locked for all good people who worship the true God and surrender to him on the right path! In this season of mercy and compassion may the heart of men and women be completely transformed to such an extent that no one may ever qualify any aspect of Islam again with “terrorism”. May Allah bless and

protect all the Muslims who are making efforts to rescue Islam and other religions from the dungeon of some politicians who have taken the advantage of the sensitive nature and the vulnerability of religion to their own egoistic whims and caprices. Almighty Allah, your religion has been abused and manipulated to promote violence whereas your name Oh God is love, mercy, compassion, peace and all that is good. In you Oh God, there is no wrong nor can you be associated with the evil of killing innocent people. Prove to us in this Ramadan that you do not enjoy violence and that no one is allowed to kill in your name. Teach us again that we are brothers and sisters from a common source and like a father; you do not enjoy the sight of your children killing one another in your name. Do not allow any one creates you in his image and likeness for many fight in their own name and claim that they are fighting in your name.

May this Ramadan change the heart of everybody from evil to good so that our world will once again enjoy love and peaceful coexistence! O God of peace and love, any bomb blast at this sacred season of penance and fasting will contradict the spirit of Ramadan and the faith of Islam. Akin to the Lenten song of Christians, touch the hearts of all the sponsors and executors of terrorist activities to cry to you God of mercy and compassion so that you may look with pity upon them. Put into their hearts and mouths the song of the prodigal son: “Yes I shall arise and return to my father,” If they truly repent, accept their penance and contrite heart like you did to David when he committed adultery with Bathsheba and killed her husband Uriah, the Hittite. In your compassion, blot out their offence. Wash them more and more from their guilt and cleanse them from their sin (Psalm 50:1)! It is still fresh in my mind how we used to look forward to Ramadan. I can not easily forget how we celebrate with Muslims during their festivals in the past. I pray that this culture of peaceful co-existence will be experienced in the whole world and in Nigeria in particular today. Beloved brethren, as you begin the Ramadan, I wish you love and peace!

• Fr. Prof. Cornelius Afebu Omonokhua is the Director of Mission and Dialogue of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, Abuja and Consultor of the Commission for Religious Relations with Muslims (C.R.R.M), Vatican City (comonokhua@hotmail.com).

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Opinion Ekiti Reps and suspension of Opeyemi Bamidele

By Bola Tinubu T has been reported that members of the Ekiti State IHon. Caucus in the House of Representatives suspended Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, as their leader because of his alleged declaration to contest the governorship election next year.

I have not seen an official word through the party machinery about this action. However, I feel compelled to speak, to dispel rumour and false report from assuming the aspect of fact.

The news of the purported removal of Opeyemi Bamidele came as a surprise. The decision of the members of the Ekiti House Caucus in this regard truncates ongoing efforts at reconciliation, notwithstanding the fact that the party leadership is working hard to reconcile all sides.

What took some members of the leadership of the party to Ekiti State recently was a continuation of the process of appeal and reconciliation. The objective here is to first understand and iron out the issues that have resulted in a gulf between Opeyemi Bamidele and Governor Kayode Fayemi on one hand and the party towards building a formidable political house in Ekiti.

From my vantage point, I don’t believe the members of the Ekiti Caucus could possibly take such a step for such a scant reason. I trust their democratic pedigree to highly believe that they would not be used to take this false step, which would violate established party rules, processes and traditions.

For instance, decisions of this critical nature must be

done with the consultation of the national leadership of the party. From what I can gather, our National Chairman and the party’s leadership were never consulted or notified about the pendency of such a stark action.

For that reason alone, if such an action has been taken, those who did so should retrace their steps, to avoid creating an unnecessary difficulty for themselves and the Ekiti chapter of the party.

Beyond the issue of procedure and rules, there is the tiny matter of internal party democracy to consider.

I have said before, any party member has a right to contest the governorship of Ekiti or any other state. Any other person, including Opeyemi Bamidele, has the right to.

This right is so fundamental to internal democracy that I do not believe he should be sanctioned at this point where the most he has done is make unofficial statements about contesting. Our party cannot join the club of other parties that punish members for expressing interests in an office.

While Opeyemi Bamidele’s position may not be popular among his colleagues, he has the right to believe as he does.

We must protect and smother unpopular and minority positions. If we don’t like it, we vote against it at the appropriate time but we do not punish people simply for thinking differently; this is how we must grow our democracy.

Thus, Opeyemi Bamidele was expressing his democratic rights. To unilaterally suspend him, as Leader of the House Caucus, is a questionable one they should re-

consider. It would appear to contravene the letter and best spirit of party democracy.

While we have no problem in him pursuing his democratic ambition without intimidation and persecution, we will continue our efforts at persuading him not to rock the boat and play into the hands of our opponent, particularly the PDP shenanigans.

Political conflict, challenges and resolutions are the hallmarks of political association and leadership; orderly means of all efforts at democratically resolving those conflicts are not endless in any way.

Accordingly, I urge our five lawmakers: Robison Ajiboye, Bamidele Faparusi, Bimbo Daramola, Dr. Ifeoluwa Arowosoge, and Oyetunde Ojo to reverse themselves and embrace the process of amicable resolution already put in place by the party, and that have been producing good fruit.

To do otherwise is to give comfort to those who would seek to divide the Ekiti State chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria.

We appeal to those promoting these divisions to sheathe the sword in the interest of the party and its ardent followers.

We cannot forget so soon the struggle and what it cost us to get to where we are today. We owe it to the Ekiti people and all democrats in the country to sustain and protect this hard-won democracy.

All true progressives must rise up in defence of individual freedom and promotion of democratic values. We shall overcome for the good of all.

• Asiwaju Tinubu is leader of ACN.

History as cue for national dialogue (3) • Continued from yesterday

By Felix Oragwu IGERIA was again run as a quasi UniN tary Military administration by another Northern Nigeria Military General following the death of the Military leader (General Sani Abacha) in office due to natural causes. Soon after, Alhaji M. K. O. Abiola (then in detention by the General Sani Abacha military regime) while fighting strenuously to regain and actualise his election mandate) died while in detention in controversial circumstances. With the death of both General Sani Abacha and Alhaji M.K.O Abiola, the way was clear for another Northern Nigeria General to run the FMG from 1988-May 28, 1999.

From May 29, 1999, Nigeria was run by an elected Civilian Government following the concession given by the Northern Nigeria Military and Political leadership which allowed only Yoruba ethnic nationality candidates to run for the Presidential Election ostensibly to assuage the anger of the terrible Political Power loss and wrong against the Yoruba people by the annulment of Presidential election won squarely and fairly by a Yoruba ethnic national but apparently on the alleged unwritten condition that Northern Nigeria political elite should resume the leadership of Nigerian government thereafter.

Things worked out as planned because the Northern Nigeria political civilian leadership won the election of 2007, but however confusion set in, following the death in office of the elected HausaFulani President due to natural causes in 2010, when the Northern Nigeria political leadership wanted to stop the Vice President, an Ijaw ethnic national from Southern Nigeria from stepping

in as a new President in accordance with the Constitution written and given to Nigeria by the Northern Nigeria led Federal Military Government.

Although this was eventually allowed, however, since then hell was let loose on Nigeria. The country has since been going through a wave of crises after crises of political instability, insecurity, ethnic nationality conflicts, pervasive corruption in government, poverty among the generality of the population, no real progress, etc, which has been climaxed by a vicious, violent and destructive insurrection namely, Boko Haram destructive insurgency in the Northern states of Nigeria making Nigeria almost ungovernable ostensibly as alleged because of the loss of the Nigeria’s government presidency by the Northern Nigeria political leadership elite to a non-Northern Nigeria candidacy.

The tension, destruction and despondency being generated by the most vicious, destructive and violent emergent Boko Haram insurgency is now ravaging Nigeria and threatening Nigeria with another Civil War and a possible collapse of Nigeria as a nation.

One observes recently with consternation the following disturbing bold headlines in the Nigerian media, namely that: • “Arewa Consultative Forum (a Northern Nigeria political leadership grouping) will not support Jonathan (the incumbent Nigeria’s President of Ijaw ethnic nationality from Southern part of Nigeria) candidacy for President in 2015”, • “Oodua Group (a Yoruba ethnic nationality grouping) warns Yoruba leaders against any alliance with Hausa- Fulani” (i.e. Hausa-Fulani eth-

nic nationality leadership of Northern Region of Nigeria), for 2015 Presidential election”, • the Ruling Party at the Federal Government level announcing that “there is no vacancy in Aso Rock and that the incumbent President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR will get automatic ticket for the Presidency in 2015”, • the Ohaneze Ndigbo (an Igbo ethnic nationality grouping) “has vowed that for equity and fairness to reign in Nigeria, an Igbo ethnic national should be allowed by all Nigerians to be the sole candidacy for 2015 Presidential election”, • the leadership of National Assembly Constitution Review Committees reported denial of the above worrying issues of Nigerian nationhood by “saying that there is nothing wrong with the current Nigeria’s Constitution only the change in the attitude of the people is required and some minor changes such as reduction in the tenure of elected President, immunity clause against criminal activities of elected officials when in office, adding more States to existing mostly non-viable States of the Federation so that more people get opportunity, and such matters as public holidays, land matters , registration of births and deaths, road safety matters etc, now inexplicably in the Exclusive Federal List being made concurrent matters with the existing States as well as new ones and creating a third tier of governance by giving autonomy to existing 774 Local governments away from the control of their respective State governments”, • the worrying Media Report of June 24, 2013, of John Campbell, former US Ambassador to Nigeria and author of

“Nigeria Dancing on the Brink”, serious warning, “about the implications of complacency of Nigeria’s political leaders and the elite over the seeming alienation of the core North (ie Northern Nigeria)”, and • the issue of pervasive poverty and unemployment resulting from Nigeria’s skewed Federation, already exhaustively treated in my Book, in particular, the endogenous domestic capacity building for the production of modern technologies including electrical power production and distribution infrastructure (now hovering between 2000MW and 4000MW for a country of over 160 million), the prime energy that drives competitive wealth creating manufacturing economy and globally competitive industrial capital goods and industrial materials for which the driving endogenous capacity for rigorous R&D and technology innovation is yet to be built and sustained in Nigeria’s economy.

The above Nigeria’s historical events and developments , in my view, are so serious for Nigeria’s sustenance as a Nation State that it is better and wiser to use the Year 2015 not for any election but to plan, prepare and hold a Sovereign National Conference or National Dialogue of all the representatives of Nigeria’s diverse religious and diverse ethnic Nationalities (both large and small) to enable them sort themselves out and agree freely and voluntarily, without force and without coercion on the Terms of their Union or of Nigeria’s Federation so that Nigeria can sustain lasting real unity, real peace and real progress.

Concluded.

• Oragwu, a Technology Development Consultant, lives in Lagos.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

GLOBAL STOCKS

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Stocks gain, dollar falls on Bernanke comments ORLD stock indexes rose while the dollar W weakened on Thursday after Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke signaled the U.S. central bank may not be as close to winding down its stimulus policy as markets had begun to expect.

Copper and other commodity markets also gained on the view that continuing stimulus from the Fed and from Europe’s and Japan’s central banks would support global economic growth. Copper prices hit their highest level in nearly a month.

Bernanke said late Wednesday the overall message from the central bank was that “a highly accommodative policy is needed for the foreseeable future.

Despite minutes from the Fed’s June meeting stating that half of its policymakers

think the $85 billion-amonth stimulus program should be wound down by the end of the year, Bernanke’s message was enough to shift the market’s outlook.

“His statement that they will be highly accommodative for the foreseeable future is pretty clear and the market loved it,” said Doug Cote, chief market strategist at ING U.S. Investment Management in New York. “That statement was very clear and that is what the market is reacting to because he is in charge.”

U.S. stimulus has kept interest rates low and supported equity markets, and there is concern in financial markets that if the Fed unwinds its support too soon, that could slow the recovery of the world’s biggest economy.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose more than 1 percent, putting it within range of an all-time closing high.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was up 142.93 points, or 0.93 percent, at 15,434.59. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index .SPX was up 17.40 points, or 1.05 percent, at 1,670.02. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was up 43.69 points, or 1.24 percent, at 3,564.45.

MSCI’s world index .MIWO00000PUS rose 1.4 per cent, while the panEuropean FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 climbed 0.6 percent.

The dollar, which had touched three-year highs before the Fed’s minutes were released on Wednesday, slipped against a basket of currencies. The dollar index .DXY fell to 82.418, its lowest since June 25 and down around 2.8 per-

cent from the three-year high of 84.753 touched just two sessions ago. It last stood at 82.974, down 1.27 percent.

“The dramatic drop in the dollar highlights how one sided (dollar bullish) the market had become and how quickly traders raced to close out long dollar positions,” said Camilla Sutton, chief foreign exchange strategist at Scotiabank in Toronto.

Large swings in currencies, stocks and bonds over recent weeks have highlighted the tricky task the Fed and other central banks face as they try and wean markets off the cheap and easy money they have provided during the global financial crisis.

Portuguese, Spanish and Italian bonds and Lisbon’s stock market .PSI20 bucked

the wider global move higher as tensions continued to bubble on the euro zone’s debt-strained periphery.

With Portugal’s coalition government teetering, President Anibal Cavaco Silva urged a cross-party deal with the main opposition socialists to try and ensure the country keeps to its bailout deal.

Italy was also in the spotlight, and by proxy Spain, after Rome failed to hit the top of its pre-flagged target in a 3- and 30- year bond sale. That followed this week’s rating downgrade and political difficulties.

U.S. Treasuries prices extended gains briefly after data showed domestic jobless claims unexpectedly rose in the latest week, spurring bets the Fed might delay plans to reduce bond

purchases.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes last traded 19/32 higher with a yield of 2.6022 percent, down 8.7 basis points from late on Wednesday.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose to its highest since June 18 at $7,049.25 a metric ton (1.1023 tons) in intraday trade.

Oil futures were down sharply, however.

Brent crude oil futures fell $1.08 to $107.43, after hitting $108.93, its loftiest since April 3. A monthly IEA oil report damped bullish sentiment. U.S. crude dipped from a 15-month high as investors took profits after three weeks of sharp gains.

The price was down $2.12 at $104.40 a barrel after peaking at $107.45 earlier.

Mortgage buildings

U.S. mortgage rates for 30-Year loans rise to two-year high .S. mortgage rates for 30U year loans rose to a twoyear high, increasing borrowing costs amid signs of an improving job market.

The average rate for a 30year fixed mortgage climbed to 4.51 percent, the highest since July 2011, from 4.29 percent last week, McLean, Virginia-based Freddie Mac said in a statement today. The average 15year rate increased to 3.53 percent from 3.39 percent.

The 30-year rate, which climbed from a near-record low of 3.35 percent in early May, has risen on expectations that the Federal Reserve will reduce bond purchases as the economy returns to health.

Improving employment is bringing more buyers into the market as competition over a tight supply of listings drives up prices.

Payrolls rose by 195,000 workers in June, the Labor Department reported on July 5, exceeding the 165,000 gain projected by economists in a Bloomberg

survey.

“Housing affordability has deteriorated slightly in response to the rise in mortgage interest rates, but remains considerably better than the historical average,” Paul Diggle, property economist at Capital Economics Ltd. in London, wrote in a research note yesterday.

“With price gains still going strong, there are few signs that the rise in rates will

derail the housing recovery.”

U.S. home prices rose 12.2 percent in May from a year earlier, the largest increase since February 2006, according to Irvine, California-based CoreLogic Inc. Freddie Mac’s weekly data is mostly collected from Monday to Wednesday. It largely doesn’t reflect a drop

in bond yields after Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke yesterday called for maintaining stimulus efforts.

Refinancing Decline The 30-year rate is still well below the average of about 5.3 percent for the past 10 years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

While housing demand remains strong, the rising rates are slowing refinanc-

ing. The share of mortgage applicants seeking to refinance was 64 percent last week, the lowest since May 2011, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wedenesday.

Lenders have had to reevaluate borrowers preapproved for loans a few months ago because of the higher rates, which can decrease purchasing power,

Joe D’Alessio, a loan officer at HSBC Holdings Plc in New York, said yesterday in a telephone interview. Rising financing costs have yet to slow the momentum of the housing recovery, he said.

“The market hasn’t really caught up with the rates,” D’Alessio said. “There’s still very low inventory, so sellers aren’t really reducing purchase prices.”

Sinopec beats bond freeze as China Inc. readies for acquisitions investors seeking signs offers companies another Chinese companies seized up cent gain against the dollar Hong Kong stock exchange FniesOR of whether Chinese compa- way to finance overseas in early June, as China tight- this year -- the biggest among and ratings company reports. will accelerate overseas takeovers. ened liquidity and Federal emerging-market currencies - Another $4 billion was raised takeovers, the bond market offers clues.

Firms from China Petroleum and Chemical Corp. to China Huaneng Group Corp. sold a record $22.8 billion of dollardenominated notes in the second quarter, before interest rate jitters froze the market, data compiled by Bloomberg show. With bank lending tightening in China and the economy cooling, the money raised with dollar-bonds

“The companies that utilized the window to raise cheap funds in the first half are obviously in a better position to pursue M&A deals in the near future,” said Bob Partridge, a Hong Kong-based managing director who oversees China transaction advisory at Ernst & Young LLP. “As soon as opportunities crop up, they will be able to pull the trigger with ready cash.”

The dollar bond market for

Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke signaled an end to stimulus measures by the U.S. central bank.

Dollar bond sales used to be the domain of a few state-run enterprises and domestically focused real estate developers, while most Chinese companies mainly That changed as yield premiums on dollar bonds versus Treasuries reached a three-year low in January. The yuan’s 1.6 per-

- also made bond sales denominated in the greenback more attractive to Chinese issuers because the cost of repaying the debt falls.

In at least $4.7 billion of the total bond sales in the quarter, acquisitions were specified as a use of proceeds. That compares with at least $3 billion in the year-earlier quarter, according to a Bloomberg News search of marketing materials, statements to the

in the most recent quarter to refinance debt stemming from takeovers, the documents show.

“With this new avenue of financing, Chinese companies are better positioned to pursue investment opportunities abroad,” said Fang Fang, JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s head of investment banking in China, whose bank helped Cnooc Ltd. sell $4 billion of dollar bonds in May.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

56

Sports Etisalat, MTN upbeat ahead Telecom Games kick off

Ukraine 2013 IAAF World Junior Championship

Mixed fortunes for Nigerian athletes, Ugeh injured

HEAD the kick-off of the A 2013 Nigeria Telecom Games (NTG), goalkeeper of

Oduduru, Adewale, two others crash out From Gowon Akpodonor, Donetsk, Ukraine E N S A T I O N A L SAsamu Oluwatobiloba Esther was the cynosure of all eyes at the Olympics Stadium, Donetsk, venue of the on-going IAAF World Youth Championship yesterday, as she brushed aside tough opponents in the 800m race to hit the semifinal.

But it was a bad day for erstwhile medal hopeful, Divine Oduduru and Adewumi Deborah Adewale, who failed to cross the semifinal hurdles.

Asamu, who beat an Ethiopian athlete to finish third behind two Kenyans at the AYAC Games in Warri, Delta State in March, was applauded for her performance and trick in yesterday’s event.

Running in heat 4, the Nigerian had some tough opponents from Kenya, Australia, Germany and Canada, among other countries to contend with.

Midway into the first round of the race, Asamu was caged by her opponents, a usual trick in the 800m race. But she was able to free herself just before the real battle began. She had a season’s best of 2:06.59 seconds before the event as against the 2:o3.37 seconds by Australia’s George Wassall and 2:05.96 seconds of Canada’s Kailee Sawyer.

With three curves to the finish line, Kenya’s Emma Stahr was on her heel, but Asamu pulled away like a jet, giving the Australian a hot pursuit.

It was close to the finish line, but try as she could, she could not catch up with the Australian, who breasted the tape before her. She finished second in a time of 2:09.56 seconds, a performance the vice president of the AFN, Tunde Abdulkareem described as ‘wonderful.’

Before the stunning performance from Asamu, two Nigerians had did new personal bests in the boys’ 110m hurdles.

Bashiru Abdullahi actually began the day’s business for Team Nigeria with a personal best of 14.08 seconds in heat 3 of the boys’ 110m hurdles to qualify to the next round.

Before the race, many were skeptical about Abdullahi’s chances of qualifying, considering the records of his fellow competitors.

While Abdullahi season best was 14.12 seconds, Euan

Dickson-Earle of Great Britain had a season best of 13.70 seconds. Another athlete, Ville Aarnivala of Finland had a season best of 13.92 seconds.

But the Nigerian was able to scale through, beating his challengers from Great Britain, Finland and Italy in the process.

In heat 4 of the boys 110m hurdles, another Team Nigeria’s athlete, Ifeanyi Atuma, ran a personal best of 13.83 seconds to berth in the next round, pushing aside his challengers from Trinidad and Tobago, China and Algeria. Jamaica’s Jaheel Hyde won the race in 13.47 seconds.

The semi-final and final of the boys’ 110m hurdles will take place later today.

Meanwhile, the chances of Kasie Ugeh winning a medal in the competition may have suffered a setback, as she got injured during the triple jump event.

She was listed for triple jump by Team Nigeria, but her good record on field events during the qualifiers, made the IAAF to capture her for the long jump event here in Donetsk. Ugeh was taken to the IAAF Medical Center late on Wednesday, where a scan was carried out on the injured leg.

It was a bad day for Team Nigeria in the evening session yesterday, as the athletes crashed out one after another. First to kiss goodbye were the duo of Omeiza John Akerele and Samson Oghenewegba Nathaniel in the boys 400m. They failed to make it to the final, just as the country’s only hope in the boys and girls 100m, Divine Ouduru and Adewumi Deborah Adewale failed to cross the semi final hurdles. They finished sixth in their respective races.

Super Eagles’ midfielder, Sunday Mba (right), tries to get the ball past Ivorian defender, Baresi Gloudoueu, during the first leg of their 2014 African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifier in Kaduna. Nigeria won 4-1. The Eagles will meet the Ivoirians in the second leg of the tie… next week.

PHOTO: AFP.

Etisalat Nigeria, Chima Nnorom is insisting that they are the team to beat after two unsuccessful attempts at winning the football event. But captain of the cup holders, MTN Nigeria, Joseph Akpata, countered that they are poised to win a hat trick of trophies.

Etisalat lost in the finals of the maiden edition in 2011 and in 2012 to MTN Nigeria but Nnorom, who won the Most Valuable Player award in 2011, believes they have the clue to beating their arch rivals this term.

“After the narrow loss in the finals last year, we only took a short break to refresh and returned to training, playing a number of high profile friendly games to fine-tune our game”, disclosed the goalkeeper, who kept a clean sheet until the finals in the 2011 edition.

On their chances against MTN, Nnorom said, “we are very confident with the level of cohesion we have built to defeat all comers. We are now ready to dethrone MTN.” Akpata said his team is not under rating any opponent and will approach all matches with a consistent level of seriousness. “MTN is coming to defend the trophy we have held for two seasons and we actually are poised to make it a hat trick of winning the trophy,” declared Akpata.

Countdown to South Africa 2014 CHAN Qualifier

Mba tops Keshi’s list for battle against Cote d’Ivoire SUPER Eagles’ Head Coach, Stephen Keshi, yesterday called to camp 24 players, who will fight for shirts in the 2014 African Nations Championship final qualifying leg against the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire, in Abidjan on July 27.

All the players are expected to report in Abuja on Monday with 20 players expected to make the trip to Cote d’Ivoire. Keshi has invited four new players Kwara United’s former junior international defender Ganiyu Ogungbe, Kano Pillars’ midfielder, Rabiu Mohammed, junior international striker, Abdullahi Gero of Enugu Rangers and Osadinye Joseph of Warri

Wolves.

Playmaker Sunday Mba, who scored two goals and made two others in the commanding 4-1 win, tops the list that also includes goalkeeper and skipper, Chigozie Agbim, defenders, Godfrey Oboabona, Azubuike Egwuekwe, Chibuzor Okonkwo, Olufemi Oladapo, Ayo Saka, Muhammad Gambo, Ifeanyi Edeh and Dele Olorundare.

Having never previously qualified for the African Nations Championship – the flagship tournament for players plying their trade in their country’s domestic League in the continent.

Nigeria has a firm leg in next year’s finals in South

Africa, and Coach Keshi has promised there would be no room for the Ivorians to attempt a spectacular come-back in the return leg at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny.

The full list Goalkeepers: Chigozie Agbim (Enugu Rangers FC); Daniel Akpeyi (Heartland F C ) Defenders: Azubuike Egwuekwe (Warri Wolves FC); Godfrey Oboabona (Sunshine Stars FC); Ganiyu Ogungbe (Kwara United FC); Kwambe Solomon (Sunshine Stars FC); Chibuzor Okonkwo (Enugu Rangers FC); Kunle Odunlami (Sunshine Stars FC); Benjamin Francis

(Heartland FC); Ezekiel Bassey (Lobi Stars FC) Midfielders: Sunday Mba (Enugu Rangers FC); Rabiu Mohammed (Kano Pillars FC); Olufemi Oladapo (Shooting Stars FC); Ayo Saka (Enyimba FC); Mohammed Jiya (Bayelsa United FC) Strikers: Muhammad Gambo (Kano Pillars); Gomo Onduku (Bayelsa United FC); Ifeanyi Edeh (Enyimba FC); Ezekiel Mbah (Akwa United FC); Abdullahi Gero (Enugu Rangers FC); Osadinye Joseph (Warri Wolves FC); Haruna Babalo (El Kanemi Warriors FC); Etebo Oghene (Warri Wolves FC); Dele Olorundare (Sunshine Stars

Abdullahi blames administrators for Eagles’ bonus row From Ezeocha Nzeh Abuja OOTBALL administrators in the country, yesterday received knocks from the Minister of Sports/Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Bolaji Abdullahi, yesterday dealt several knocks on football administrators in the country over their role in the bonus row that embarrassed the country, when the Super Eagles refused to leave their hotel rooms in Namibia for the just conclud-

F

Insists on Code of Conduct for players ed FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil.

The minister, who described the incidence as a national disgrace, regretted that the row has been a perennial occurrence in Nigerian football, as well as, in other sports, stressing that football as well as other sports administrators in the country have not been able to fashion out an acceptable means of handling such issues, rather they use

their discretion to determine what players and athletes should receive as bonuses during international events.

Abdulahi, who spoke while inaugurating a five-man panel to investigate the events that led to the bonus row in Namibia, charged members to take a deeper look at the circumstances surrounding the row, stressing that they must look at other larger issues that con-

cern Nigerian athletes, especially their entitlements and their behavioral pattern while representing the country.

“You may rightly recall that the event here is inspired by the unfortunate incident that happened after our game in Namibia and the build up to the Confederations Cup. But there are also larger issues that the incident will help us to unfold. Part of this is that the governance of our football teams and athletes, espe-

cially those representing the country in international championships has been led much by discretion and preferences of individual actors and stakeholders, rather than any modified system that can lead to predetermined behaviour.

“This is a concern because the issue of match bonus especially has been a perennial occurrence in the country, those, who have continued to follow our sports in this country all know about it.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

57

GolfWeekly

Okatta (left) tunes up alongside another golfer before teeing off at the last edition of Le Meridien Open in Akwa Ibom State

PHOTO:ENO-ABASI SUNDAY

Again, Okatta baits 60 would-be pros with three tickets for training in South Africa Stories by Eno-Abasi Sunday BOUT 60 Category One A players sourced from different clubs around the country would next month be locked in a duel to win three tickets and qualify for professional training in South Africa ex gratia, courtesy of Abujabased Category One player, Emeka Okatta.

The first set of beneficiaries of this largesse Kamalu Bako of Kano Golf Club and Victor Ojeabulu of Benin Club (golf section) returned to the country Monday after acquiring the training. The third person, Christopher Francis of Minna Cantonement Golf Club, Minna, Niger State, could not making due to his inability to tidy his own end of the logistics before departure date last year.

As in the first edition, the three top finishers in this year’s qualifying contest, which would be staged alongside the Abuja Ladies Championship next month, would have their training fees, return tickets and accommodation paid for by Okatta as they fight to realise their dreams of playing the game professionally.

According to Okatta, for strategic reasons, all the beneficiaries would be required to pay, while undergoing profes-

sional training in South Africa, their repatriation fee and feeding money.

He stressed that the opportunity this time would be given to only young Nigerians within the ages of 12 and 20 years, because this calibre of players would be able to maximise their potentials in the everchallenging international tour.

“There is no point getting a

30-year-old amateur golfer turn professional because there is actually little or nothing he can do in the local or international scene. In other words, his career would be ending as he is starting because at that age, most international golfers like Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy had already made their marks.

“So if we want to encourage professionalism, people with-

in this age bracket are the ones to be supported to turn professional. Since we are bent on enforcing this, we would write to the different clubs in the country to send their qualified junior players within this age bracket and they must be accompanied with their original birth certificates as no sworn age declaration would be accepted. If, however, we have course to doubt the birth

certificates presented by any of them, we would definitely take steps to verify,” he stated.

He added that three players would be invited from about 25 golf clubs round the country. “All of them would slug it out the first two days while the top placed nine would progress to the third day. The top placed three in this final group would then qualify for the professional training.

On what he intends to gain from the exercise, he said, “The main objective of doing this is to encourage golf development in Nigeria by producing players that can compete in the Sunshine Tour and the European tour. I believe that this is the best way to go now so that Nigeria will have players who can compete favourably with their peers in the international circuit.”

Delta Open Golf Championship will lure youths, says Mayuku HAIRMAN of Delta State C Golf Association, Daniel Mayuku, says the newly introduced Delta State Open Golf Championship has the capacity to attract many more youths of the state to the sport.

Mayuku, former captain of the Ibori Golf and Country Club, Asaba, while speaking at the ongoing tourney said in a state where a good num-

ber of the youthful population was gainfully employed in the sporting industry, instituting a major golf event would do a lot in sensitising more towards the many benefits golf has over other sporting disciplines.

“Delta is undoubtedly the bedrock of Nigerian sports and we have proven that in virtually all sports except in golf. And as the chairman of

the sport, it would be my joy that we end up with more youth benefiting from the sport,” he added.

Mayuku said, apart from the socio-economic benefits that the state capital Asaba reaps from the influx of close to 200 athletes, officials and golf entrepreneurs, hoped that soon indigenes of the state would occupy prominent places in the country’s

golf milieu.

“The Ibori Golf and Country Club is one of the best facilities in the country and the state has invested in it to help athletes use it to hone their skills. Today we have a crop of local players that we are presently encouraging and we hope more will join through this effort.”

In all, 114 professionals and category one players teed-off

the first phase of the event on July 9 and the field included, Ghana’s top star, Emos Korblah, who currently lead the Professional golfers’ Association of Nigeria (PGAN) Order of Merit.

Prominent players like Oche Odoh, Gift Willy, Umoh Edet, Vincent Torgah, Gboyega Oyebanji among others are also fighting for honours at the event.

Ekong leads Nigerian delegation to US Junior World Championship EMBER of the Liaison M Committee of the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), Emmah Ekong will be at the head of the Nigerian delegation to the 2013 United States (US) Junior World Championship, which tees off

at Torrey Pines Club and Resort, San Diego, California, United States, next week.

Five Nigeria kids will fly the country’s flag at the championship. They are Tokunbo Pedro, Anita Uwadia, Georgia Oboh, Diana Osmond and

Jordan Thompson. All but one, are already practicing in the States. Diana, who is still in the country, will depart with Ekong over the weekend.

Ekong, who is also a member of the Nigeria Golf Federation (NGF), informed The Guardian

that she would arrive the venue of the competition just in time to facilitate the registration of the Nigerian flag bearers, who had earlier been duly entered for the championship.

“Registration ends on the 14th of this month and I will arrive

the venue just in time for it.

But as we speak, they are practicing and generally preparing themselves for the championship having been there for more than a week now.

Osmond, on her part has been practicing here,” Ekong stated.

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Heroes Of Linda Eseimokumoh: Pride of She came from a community in the present day Bayelsa State, where combat sports (wrestling) is a tradition. But Linda Eseimokumoh’s decision to pitch her tent with track and field in her elementary school days at Ebedebiri, a community in Sagbama, received the blessing of her family members, friends and the entire kingdom. Before travelling to Texas Southern University in the United States alongside Mary Onyali-Omagbemi in 1984 on a scholarship, Eseimokumoh won dozens of medals in track and field for the old Rivers State and Nigeria. She was a junior athlete, when she was included in the nation’s team to Los Angeles ’84 Olympic Games, though, she did not participate. She captained Nigeria’s junior team to Accra, Ghana, for the 1984 West African Games, where she won a gold and silver medal in the 100m and long jump events. She got a scholarship from the late politician, MKO Abiola, on return to Lagos. As a senior athlete, Eseimokumoh was part of Nigeria’s team to the 1987 All African Games in Kenya, where she picked a silver medal. She also made the World University Games’ team to Yugoslavia that same year and returned home with silver. That was after bringing honours to Toru Ebeni Secondary School in Sagbama, where Governor Henry Seriake Dickson equally made his mark as a schoolboy wrestler between the late 70s and early 80s.

Speaking with Gowon Akpodonorin Calabar during the 2013 Cross River/All Nigerian Open Championship, Eseimokumoh said sports remain an effective tool for disciplining young minds. She also recounted how her father, a schoolteacher and sprinter in his youthful days, influenced her sporting career.

UTSIDE the main bowl of the U.J Esuene O Stadium in Calabar were a group of young boys and girls running, jumping and throwing javelin, shot put and discuss. The sun was beginning to set and the atmosphere reminded Linda Eseimokumoh of her own childhood.

She ran on the same patch of grass at the Toru Ebeni Secondary School in Sagbama Local Government Area in then Rivers State some decades ago, a platform she used to climb to the pinnacle of her athletics career.

In her family of 16, everybody owned some form of allegiance to one sport or the other.

The boys were more active in the combat sports synonymous with the Ijaws, but Linda took after her father, Fredrick, who was a sprinter in his youth.

Beside the athletics foundation already laid by her father, the young Linda wanted to follow the footprints of her cousin, Patrick Eseimokumoh, who was representing Germany in the shot-put event at that time.

The teacher’s effort in making his kids fall in love with sports yielded fruits soon after. “My dad encouraged me personally when he discovered that I had the God given talent to excel in athletics,” Eseimokumoh told The Guardian. “In those days, inter house sports was a big deal and every member of my family and the entire community would troop to any venue once the news filtered out that Linda was going to run. I enjoyed the atmosphere so much, especially seeing the crowd watching me in action.”

The seed of Eseimokumoh’s athletics career was planted during her elementary days at Ebedebiri in Sagbama, but it was watered and nurtured to stardom at Toru Ebeni Secondary School also in Sagbama. Then, Bayelsa had not been separated from Rivers State.

“As I said, I started sports at a very tender age and I was doing everything. I ran the field sports, javelin, discuss and even shot put. I was also in the long and high jumps. It was later in life that I narrowed my talent down to the races. Honestly, I was a delight to watch on the track in my youth days.”

One competition Eseimokumoh will live to remember in her secondary school days was the contest between her college, Toru-Ebeni Secondary School and Teacher Training College (TTC) also in Sagbama. That was in the late 1970s.

Then, Eseimokumoh was already gaining ground in the sprint event and was the best athlete in her school.

She recalled: “As at that time, there was one girl by name Zuokemefaa also dominating the sprint for her school (TTC). The two schools met in an inter house sports competition in Sagbama and all attention were on me. Before this time, many people thought that Zuokemefaa would beat me easily.

“The arena was filled to capacity and I was a bit tensed up. But just before the race, I told myself that this is the moment I needed to prove my talent. I did it, though the victory did not come easy. From the starting block almost to the finish line, we ran chest to chest. I struggled to outrun her at the last lap and before she could adjust’ it was over. That was my most memorable day as a young athlete for my school. My family members and people from my village and schoolmates carried me and danced round the field. I went and embraced Zuokemefaa at the end. It was at this point I knew I was a star,” she stated.

In 1980, Rivers State gathered all athletes from the hinterland to the capital (Port Harcourt) for trials in preparation for Bendel ’81 National Sports Festival. It was an opportunity for the young Eseimokumoh to showcase her talent at the state level, but there was a stumbling block.

She explained: “I was already a known sprinter in the Ijaw region, especially after beating Zuokemefaa in that competition in Sagbama. One morning, my school principal, Mr. A.A Taribi, announced to us on the assembly ground that there was a signal from Port Harcourt that athletes should come for trials. I was so happy, even though the word ‘trials’ sounded so strange to me at that time. The principal said that the school

Eseimokumoh

had no money to send the Games Master and me to Port Harcourt. I became sad, but something happened a few hours later.

“When I got into my classroom, the principal sent for me. He told me that he would raise some money for me to attend the trials in Port Harcourt simply because he believed I had the talent to write the school’s name in

gold. I was so relieved and till the end of the trials in Port Harcourt, I always remembered that word of encouragement from my principal,” she stated.

In line with destiny, the trip Port Harcourt was the turning point in Eseimokumoh’s athletics career. She recalled with nostalgia.

“It was the first time I would compete with

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

School Sports Bayelsa, queen of the track athletes from other parts of Rivers State. Few hours before my race, one of the zonal coordinators noticed that I had no spike shoes.

They quickly arranged for one and it nearly created a problem for me because it was the first time I would use spike shoes to run.

“I came first in the 100m and everyone was surprised. I also finished second in the long jump event. My Games Master was now walking tall in the midst of his colleagues. One thing that came to my mind was those words of encouragement by my principal. I had just written the name of my school in gold,” she stated.

The performance in Port Harcourt was a direct invitation for Eseimokumoh to prove herself at the festival in Benin City. She did.

“When we got to Bendel ’81, I met established athletes who had just returned from the Moscow ’80 Olympics because the festival in Benin City was thrown open. The likes of Rufina Uba and Mosu Showome were already US-based athletes and they were at the festival to compete. I was so excited running with such big stars. I finished fifth in the 100m. I can’t even remember my position in the long jump. When I returned to Sagbama, my father was so excited when he heard that I came fifth position in the sprint. As a former sprinter, he knew what it takes for a rookie to finish fifth position in the midst of established stars. He brought me a gift.”

What Eseimokumoh lost at the Ogbe Stadium in Benin City she gained in Calabar during a national junior competition in 1983.

Then, the country was preparing for the Los Angeles ’84 Olympics Games and the competition in Calabar was part of the selection of athletes for camping.

Looking back to the incident in Calabar 30 years ago, Eseimokumoh recalled: “That was the first time I heard about the Olympics Games,” she said. “I came first in the 100m and 200m events, though the 100m race was so tensed because so many US-based athletes were on ground to fight for shirt for the Olympics.”

The young Eseimokumoh was included in Nigeria’s team for the tour of USA preparatory to Los Angeles ’84 Olympics as the best sprinter in the land.

During the tour, Eseimokumoh so thrilled Americans with her speed and style in the jumps that she got a scholarship from American government even before the Olympics started.

Eseimokumoh moved into New York with the Nigerian Olympics team, but she was dropped in a circumstance she can’t explain.

“I was the only female sprinter in the team, but they dropped me as we were about to move into the Olympics Games proper. Nobody told me anything. It was later I heard

The male team was captained by Gabriel Okon. When we returned to Nigeria, MKO Abiola hosted the contingent in his house in Lagos and gave scholarship to every gold medalist including me. I spoke on behalf of the team as the captain. I did not use Abiola’s scholarship because it was supposed to be used in Nigeria. Already, I had a scholarship from American government and I left the country with Mary Onyali on the same day for USA for further studies and sports.

I came first in the 100m and everyone was surprised. I also finished second in the long jump event. My Games Master was now walking tall in the midst of his colleagues.

One thing that came to my mind was that words of encouragement by my principal. I had just written the name of my school in gold. that I was dropped because I didn’t make the Olympics standard at home. I took it in good faith.”

The disappointment of not appearing at Los Angeles ’84 Olympics Games not withstanding, Eseimokumo pushed on with her career. She was made captain of Nigeria’s junior team to the 1984 edition of the West Africa African Games in Accra, Ghana, where she captured the 100m gold. In that team were the likes of Mary Onyali, Falilat Ogunkoya and Tina Iheagwan.

“The male team was captained by Gabriel Okon. When we returned to Nigeria, MKO Abiola hosted the contingent in his house in Lagos and gave scholarship to every gold medalist including me. I spoke on behalf of the team as the captain. I did not use Abiola’s scholarship because it was supposed to be used in Nigeria. Already, I had a scholarship from American government and I left the country with Mary Onyali same day for USA for further studies and sports,” she stated.

Eseimokumo came from the United States to make Nigeria’s team to Nairobi ’87 All African Games, where she picked a bronze medal in the 200m event. She also got a bronze for Nigeria at the World University Games in Yugoslavia same year.

At the Texas Southern University, Eseimokumoh combined with Beatrice Utondu and Mary Onyali to create collegiate records at various competitions.

Looking back on her days as a schoolgirl athlete and how school sports can be revived in Nigeria, Eseimokumoh said: “Sports outside Nigeria is better managed because it is not exclusively in the hands of government. Out there, sports are managed by parents. This is what I want Nigerian sports to copy. Let us Nigeria keep sports exclusively for parents and the Ministry of Education. I think government should take its hands off sports and give it completely to local government councils and the Ministry of Education. This will make school sports more effective.

“My involvement in sports has taken me round the World. In addition, I got admitted into a university in USA and I am proud of it. All the time I engaged myself in sports, my father was my indirect coach and friend.

My uncles (late HRM Dr. Harris Eseimokumo and Chief Anderson Eseimokumoh) were so happy with me as the medals kept on rolling in. They were happy that I promoted the name of the family through sports,” she stated.

Eseimokumoh has a word for young Nigerian athletes: “No education, no sports. I say this because if you are not educated and you shine in sports, it can only last for a period of time. If you get injured at your prime and you are not educated, you are doomed for life. But if you are educated, you can work anywhere with your certificate when you

In her youth days

no longer excel in your chosen sports.

“I am educated and I am proud of it anytime, anywhere. So my advice is that every athlete should endeavor to get at least a degree in any discipline. I still relate with some of my school mates till this moment. For instance, when I returned from the United

With Mary Onyali-Omagbemi

States, I called Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa State Governor). He was in the House of Representatives at that time. He came to pick me. He was a great wrestler for our secondary school in his days. I was a year ahead of him. That is how sports people relates all over the world,” Eseimokumoh added.

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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SchoolSports Okota campus lifts trophy at Golden Bunch anniversary football tournament ESPITE their hectic journey D from Okota, the football team of the Okota Campus of Golden Bunch School confirmed their superiority over their Yaba counterpart to lift the trophy at 10th anniversary football tournament held at the University of Lagos Sports Centre.

From the start of the encounter, which was watched by parents and guardians, the Okota team was winning side as they netted two goals in the first half to the admiration of their game master.

At the resumption of the second half, Yaba team reduced the tally but their efforts was futile as the Okota side increased the lead toward the end of the match to end the match at 3-1.

According to the Proprietress of the school, Modupe Ogundimu, the tournament has also helped to identify talented athletes among the students, adding that sports would continue to be part of the school curriculum.

“I want to say that there are many distractions being encountered by students nowadays and to keep them away from this, it is imperative to engage them meaningfully and that is why sports remain the best option. For us at Golden Bunch, sports is part of us and we will continue to encourage it among our pupils,” she said.

She, however, said that other sporting activities lined up for the anniversary include a tennis tournament holding at the Railway Compound in Yaba.

In the schedule of event lined up for the two-week anniversary and made available to The Guardian, other activities put in place for the celebration include parents aerobics/fun day, inter school reading, spelling and debate competition.

Action from the final match involving ISL and Benue’s St Joseph during the 15th Milo Secondary School Basketball Championship held at the Indoor Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos at the weekend. ISL won 56-47 to emerge as winner in the boys’ event of the competition.

Milo Secondary School Basketball Championship Fallout

ISL’s tortuous journey to national podium Stories by Olalekan Okusan OR more than a decade, International School, Lagos (ISL) dominated basketball among Lagos schools and they had won series of trophies but their efforts to cuddle the trophy at the yearly Milo Secondary School Basketball Championship have not been rewarded.

When the Coach Ernest Ijeoma-tutored side made

F

their debut at the national finals in 2008, they were no match to other teams, as they lost all their matches in front of the Lagos fans at the Indoor Hall of the National Stadium.

In 2009, they failed to make it to the national finals but they made a return in 2010 as they managed to finish third.

Like they did in 2010, they also settled for third place at the 2012 edition and many basketball buffs believed the team had failed to live up to expectations of its teeming Lagos fans.

This year, ISL began their journey in Lagos, where they once again emerged the state champion to represent Lagos at the zonal qualifiers tagged Western Conference final in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

In Ibadan, they fought hard and made it to the final but they met their waterloo against Ogun’s Adedokun International School, Otta. But as luck would smile on them, they were selected as one of the best losers that will fea-

ture in the Lagos grand finale.

Without losing any match in the group stage after playing against Katsina’s Government College, Funtua, and Benue’s St. Joseph Secondary School, Makurdi, ISL boys made it to the semifinal stage where they also defeated International School, RSUST, Port Harcourt, to set up a final clash against the Benue team.

That they beat the Benue side in the group stage did not hold water as ISL were made to work hard in the final.

The climax of this year’s tournament was the dramatic comeback of the ISL side that stunned Benue’s St. Joseph’s Secondary School to win the title for the first time.

From the beginning of the match, the Benue boys were more determined than the ISL boys and this gave them 14-13 lead in the first quarter. But the second quarter witnessed the resurgence of the Lagos lads, who won the second quarter at 25-23.

Once again, the Benue boys

with inspiration from skipper Sam Ogwuche took the lead in the third quarter, which ended 42-37 in their favour.

The last quarter lived up to is billing with fans enjoying every minute of the last 10 minutes with Benue taking a 10 points lead with just less than five minutes to the end of the encounter.

However, some tactical errors from Benue team coupled with brilliant display from the Lagos boys became the magic as the home team took charge to end the game at 56-47 to the admiration of the fans.

The win made ISL to etch its name in the annals of history as the first school in Lagos to win the 15 year-old national championship.

For Coach Ijeoma, the journey to stardom was not that smooth for his lads.

“We have been making efforts to win this trophy for more than a decade even when we had the best team in the country but we failed at

several attempt. But the journey to the grand finale was tough even while qualifying from Lagos and also making it from the zone. But we thank God that our dream has become a reality.

“All these were made possible through the support of the school authority led by the Principal, Mrs. Adora Ojo as well as the head of Physical Health Education (PHE) in the school. The contribution of all the teachers and my colleagues in the department cannot be underestimated.

Before the finale, we played friendly matches and the school supported us throughout,” he said.

Ijeoma also hinged the feat achieved by the team to the belief of parents and guardians of the 12 members of the team, saying, “I think the parents of the 12 good boys that I worked with should also be commended because they never doubted my ability,” he said.

Finals of GTB Lagos Principal’s Cup hold tomorrow HE orange colours will dot T every corner of the Teslim Balogun Stadium tomorrow

Players contest during the semi-final of the season four of GTB Lagos Principal’s Cup played at Onikan Stadium in Lagos. The finals hold tomorrow at Teslim Balogun Stadium.

PHOTOS: FEMI ADEBESIN-KUTI

as the finals of the GTB Lagos Principal’s Cup hold.

As the climax of the season four of the championship, CMS Girls Grammar School and Jubilee Senior Model will clash in the girls’ final, while Ogunmodede Senior College will confront Keke High

School in the boys’ category.

To berth in the final, Jubilee Senior Model defeated Ikotun Senior High School while CMS Girls Grammar School overcame Government Senior College 3-2 to seal a place in the final.

Ahead of the final, Coach Sulaiman Ahmed of Jubilee Senior Model, said his lads are determined to lift the trophy.

“The team came out boiling and determined to win the cup, that is why we took out time to train and master some skills to be able to excel during the final stage. But, as it is, we will, we are fully prepared for the final match because we don’t want to take it for granted,” he said.

It was at the detriment of Oriwu Senior Model College

that Ogunmodede Senior College qualified for the final after beating the Ikorodu team 2-0 victory in the semifinal, while Keke High School edged out LABASCO of Agege 2-1 to qualify for the final.

Over 313 Schools from the 20 education zones of Lagos State took parting this year’s tournament with 24 teams playing in the district finals.

SPORTS | 61

THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

Guardiola wants Thiago at Bayern AYERN Munich Coach, B Pep Guardiola has admitted he has asked Sporting Director, Matthias Sammer and Chairman, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge to sign Barcelona midfielder, Thiago Alcantara.

The Spain international initially seemed destined to move to Manchester United, but a number of recent reports suggest Bayern is now leading the race to sign the 22-yearold.

Guardiola has now confirmed die Roten are keen to lure the playmaker to the Allianz Arena, although he was unable to give any clarity on the status of the Bavarians’ interest.

“I have asked (Matthias) Sammer and (Karl-Heinz) Rummenigge to sign Thiago,” Guardiola said at a press conference. “I don’t know what will happen in the future, but I would like to work with him at

Bayern.

“I would like to sign Thiago because he is from Barcelona and I know him really well. I worked with him at Barcelona B as well and he is a really good player.”

The manager went on to say that his wish list for players started and ended with his former forward. “(He) is the only player I want, that’s what I told them. It’ll be him or no one,” he said.

“We have many players but we the need the special (quality) that Thiago brings.

The club will decide. I told them my opinion. I don’t think it will be a problem. I spoke to club about my concept and told them why I want Thiago.

“Nobody will leave Barcelona, unless they feel they won’t play much. He wants to play. That’s why I proposed him to the club.”

Liverpool plans further signings Manager, to the club, who will help his LclubIVERPOOL Brendan Rodgers says the first team challenge for honare targeting players, ours. who will strengthen their starting line-up.

The Northern Irishman has already brought in Spanish duo, Luis Alberto and Iago Aspas, as well as, Belgian international, Simon Mignolet and veteran defender, Kolo Toure this summer.

But Rodgers admits he’s not yet finished in the transfer market and insists his primary focus is to bring players

Rodgers told Liverpoolfc.com yesterday, “our recruitment team are doing a great job behind the scenes in compiling lists of players that we can afford and might be available for us.

“What we’ve done in the early part of the summer is to improve the squad. That’s something I feel we’ve done with the players we’ve brought in.

The midfielder has a contract with the Catalan club until the summer of 2015, but the failure to participate for a stipulated amount of minutes in 201213 has seen his exit clause plummet from 90 million euros to an attractive 18 million euros. However, his minimum fee release clause

Negredo unsure of future LVARO Negredo has admitA ted he is facing a key decision over his future but insisted he is happy at Sevilla and will only move if it benefits the club and himself.

Negredo has been linked with a move elsewhere this summer, especially after Sevilla brought in attacking reinforcements earlier this week in the shape of Colombia forward Carlos Bacca from Club Brugge.

Manchester City are reportedly interested in landing Negredo, and he admits he is facing a dilemma in terms of whether he should stay or go.

He enjoys life at Sevilla but wants to play for a successful club and is prepared to leave if an agreement can be reached that suits everyone.

“Right now I’m at Sevilla and I like it very much. If I stay then that will be fine, but if I leave then it will be because it benefits both the club and myself,” he said.

“I’m happy on a personal level but collectively we have not achieved the goals we wanted. Now perhaps I am at a decisive moment for my future.”

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THE GUARDIAN, Friday, July 12, 2013

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TheGuardian

Friday, July 12, 2013

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

By Raheem Oluwafunminiyi OR many around the world who are as shocked as this writer at events unfolding in FEgypt, there is no denying the fact that the country is in both trying and troubled times.

Not many would have believed a coup, as quiet and quick as it was, yet supportive of most Egyptians, could remove a democratically elected government which came into power just over a year ago. Having seen events taking place in what became known as the Tunisian Uprising in Tunisia, the Arab Spring quickly saw itself spilling over to Egypt whose sit-tight leader who had held the state for over 35 years was swiftly forced to resign amidst protests at the famed Tahrir Square.

It was believed for the first time that Egyptians were serious about taking the destiny of their country in their own hands. Even when the chequered 15-month tenure in office between February 2011 and June 2012 prompted unprecedented criticism of the military, the military, of course, had to back down by quickly holding elections which for the first time in nearly 30 years brought Egyptians, both old and young out to vote towards a shaky path to democracy. By the time Mohamed Morsi and his now faltering Muslim Brotherhood came to hold the reins of power, it all seemed Egypt was on the path of a new era. A lot was expected by most Egyptians who had all come out to remove the last vestiges of the Hosni Mubarak era. An embrace of democracy, secularity and freedom more than ever before among other obvious demands, were some of the expectations the ever boisterous Egyptian youth yearned for and did not need to ask their new government before they were granted. The moment these began to lack, Egypt would once again embrace another round of revolution. But why did Egypt’s revolution go wrong

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Egypt and the lesson of another removal just a year after its people seemed to have set things right?

Aside from the fact that too much was expected from the Morsi Administration, owing to years of political and economic decadence, the new government was not willing to act within the ambit of political consensus. The Morsi government saw itself as having arrived and therefore, felt all powers should be arrogated to it to make the revolution workable. It would be recalled that from as early as November 2012, there had been calls by the Egyptian military, as a result of Mr, Morsi’s divisive policies, most especially when he issued decrees that put him above the law, placing them outside judicial scrutiny, to stem the tide. Also, the constitution which was to serve as a road map for Egypt was highly criticised by a wide section of the populace and the opposition for its Islamist leanings. As a result, the government began to

lose the support people had for it from the beginning.

Morsi was never interested in consensus not until when protests became worse, with him repeatedly claiming he was willing to share power with his opponents and then once again restated he would agree to a government of national unity and parliamentary elections within months. Morsi’s albatross was his inability to see the impending disaster and listen to wise counsel.

The statement coming from the military noted that a clear warning that the Egyptian state was on the brink of collapse was given by the Army chief to Mr Morsi, while they extended several invitations for dialogue to end the political deadlock which had begun rearing its ugly head in the last couple of months, yet the Morsi Presidency rejected all advances. With national security further threatened, the military had no choice but to take control of the surging unrest.

Since the removal of Morsi, commentators have been asking whether the event was a coup or revolution. The African Union swiftly met at Addis Ababa, and suspended Egypt from the continental body until the restoration of constitutional order. The Nigerian government on the other hand, and being a big player on the continent, also called Morsi’s removal a coup and ordered a quick return to democratic institutions while Western media and their leaders have been quite cautious to call the events there a coup. Whatever the case, the yelling, protests and political logjam which had been brewing since January, cannot but prove to be a revolution if the series of varying forces calling for Morsi’s removal is anything to go by. The fact that the people had once again, like the actions which swept Mubarak away, called on Morsi to leave, with the military and powerful police force listening to the yearnings of the people goes to show that Egypt has come of age and would do anything to protect its 2012 revolution.

Morsi and his supporters argue that the Administration was confronted heavily at all fronts with a hostile bureaucracy left over by Mubarak yet failed to act in ways that could stem the tide. As the political imbroglio continues, with Egypt torn between pro and antiMorsi supporters, there is a need for leaders most especially in Africa to learn and understand that the people are what make a society.

The moment they are taken for granted, as was evident under Morsi, it gives room for changes. Egypt may have successfully truncated the democracy she had steadily built; however, the implication of this for the region and Arab world will continue to be debated in years to come, if not to further the Arab spring of 2011.

• Oluwafunminiyi is a social commentator and could be reached via creativitysells@gmail.com

Editors, media and nation building

By Tayo Demola HE art of editing a book involves a whole lot of things depending on the editor. To edit a T book, an editor is required to edit all the errors and make the book generally acceptable and appealing to the reading public. It could be a tasking job but when properly edited, a book that people would ordinarily disregard after reading can end up selling millions of copies in the market. That is what editing can do to any book and it is the job of the editor to remove or add anything that will affect the quality of the book as the case may be.

In editing, an editor will come across several styles of writing and presentation by authors and it is the duty of the editor to polish these writings to a certain level of maturity and acceptability such that the reading public will appreciate the works of such authors and yearn for more of their books. Editing requires a lot of hardwork and in the process of editing a book, an editor may be required to re-write the book and remove all the jargons therein.

Editing and proofreading are not the same because you can only proofread a book after editing it. Proofreading should be the last stage before finally going to press to publish a book. In proofreading, a proofreader majorly concerns himself with the spelling and punctuation errors but editing involves quite more than that. Editing requires a higher level of language use, grammar, proficiency, talent, thinking and imagination on the part of the editor who will read a book several times over and know what to do in order to make that book a masterpiece through editing.

Therefore, it can be said that an editor is an excellent writer who is not only skilled and talented in writing but also in editing.

A good editor must be a good writer because it’s not possible for a person to edit books without being a writer himself. Is it possible for somebody to be a football coach without having been a footballer himself? If he coaches a football team, with what skill will he deploy in coaching them when he does not even know the nitty-gritty of playing football?

The only way he can have an in-depth knowledge of football as an aspect of sports is for him to have been a footballer and not just being a footballer for the sake of it but a good

one at that!

Is it possible for a person to teach others without having the rudimentary knowledge of whatever he is to impart? Whoever embarks on such ignoble journey has not only opened a gateway of embarrassment and scorn unto himself but would have ended up belittling himself before the very people he is to teach. You cannot give what you don’t have, so if you cannot write or even spot the slightest errors in any write-up, then it will be impossible for you to edit any book or claim you are an editor.

A good writer can develop into an editor with talent, skill, training and practice. A good editor must be a voracious reader in order to devour several styles of writing to enhance his editing skills.

When you read some very powerful and captivating books, you will think the author is so excellently gifted in writing but alas that may not be the case because it is possible that the author just wrote down his ideas in a boring and uninspiring style but when the editor picked up the book, he deployed his editing skills to polish it to make it a masterpiece bestseller. A good editing work must generally start from the title to the last word of the book and anything that will hinder the message of the book from being properly understood by the reader must be removed by the editor.

A good editor must look at the content,

message, style, tone, and presentation, logical sequence of events and chronology of ideas as well as a whole lot of other elements which will make the book irresistible to the reader.

In editing articles, journals, magazines and newspapers, the editing skill needed is similar to that needed to edit books but not entirely the same. This is because a newspaper or magazine is somewhat transient but a book is more permanent in nature and books are more likely to stand the test of time than newspapers and magazines. In editing newspapers and magazines, the editor must preoccupy himself with editing several aspects of the articles, stories and features submitted by various writers and contributors which include the title, content, message, style, tone, presentation as so on. It is critical to note that a magazine or newspaper editor is usually subjected and restricted to the economic and sociopolitical philosophy or ideology of the publisher and such editor must ensure that all articles and write-ups are tailored to fit into a certain editorial style as directed by the publisher.

A good editor must be versatile and adaptable. He must read wide on various issues and be willing to learn new styles of writing which keep evolving everyday as more authors emerge. Editors must be openminded and dynamic in their editing style

The YOUTHSPEAK Column which is published daily is an initiative of THE GUARDIAN, and powered by RISE NETWORKS, Nigeria’s Leading Youth Development Centre, as a substantial advocacy platform available for ALL Nigerian Youth to engage Leadership at all levels, engage Society and contribute to National Discourse on diverse issues especially those that are peculiar to Nigeria. Regarding submission of articles, we welcome writers‘ contributions by way of well crafted, analytical and thought provoking opinion pieces that are concise, topical and non-defamatory! All articles (which are not expected to be more than 2000 words) should be sent to editorial@risenetworks.org To read the online Version of this same article plus past publications and to find out more about Youth Speak, please visit www.risenetworks.org/youthspeak and join the ongoing National Conversations’’.

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and should not necessarily expect all writers or authors to conform to a certain dogmatic style of writing. Every writer should be allowed to express himself in his own style of writing while the reading public can appreciate a writer based on the quality of his work.

In Nigeria, editors will do better if they realise that they have a high stake in nation building and should not relegate their prestigious duties to the background. Nigerian editors and publishers should consistently and properly censure whatever material they are to bring out to the public and ensure that only the best material is eventually published. The Nigerian media is awash with too much sensationalised news reporting and little or no investigative journalism which should be the selling point of any credible media outfit. Virtually every news item is politicised or blown out of proportion by the media which should not be the case because the media is so crucial to national development that any modern nation cannot develop without the media. It amazes me the type of material, information and pictures which some media outfit publish which at times should not have been published in the first place. This calls for proper regulation of our media laws by the government and sanction for those who violate the required standard in publishing. Morality has been thrown to the dustbin by many newspapers and magazines in Nigeria that publish pornographic and half nude pictures of women and young girls just to sell their paper. The media should also refrain from publishing materials that are defamatory and outright falsehood calculated towards character assassination of a person which is presumably the hallmark of Nigerian politics. Every Nigerian has the right not to be defamed in any way and it is the duty of editors to ensure that materials brought before them are properly scrutinised and authenticated before going to press.

Therefore, editors, publishers and the media generally have a great and indispensable role to play in national development and it is their duty to ensure that their responsibility is not compromised, for the sake of posterity.

• Demola is public affairs analyst and director/CEO, Book Editors Nigeria, Lagos.