Tue 18 June 2013 by The Guardian Newspaper

TheGuardian Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Vol. 29, No. 12,591

www.ngrguardiannews.com

N150

U.S. deploys more troops to fight terrorists in Africa From Laolu Akande, New York RESIDENT Barack Obama is P stepping up America’s military strategy against global terrorism and Africa is on the list of his targets, the United States (U.S.) government’s sources have revealed. The U.S. has now increased the number of troops at its military drone base in Niger to about 180, from its initial 40 in February this year. The U.S. had earlier this year established a drone base for the sake of dealing with the Boko Haram terror threat in Nigeria, an ally of the U.S. in Africa, and the west and central African regions. According to a letter sent to the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and President Pro Tempore of the Senate at the weekend, Obama informed the U.S. Congress that he had “deployed U.S. combat-equipped forces to enhance the counter-terrorism capabilities and support the counter-terrorism operations of our friends and allies, including special operations and other forces for sensitive

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Super Eagles beat Tahiti 6-1 • Promise better outing against Uruguay By Christian Okpara IGERIA was expected to N beat Tahiti with a very wide margin to make qualification for the second round of the on-going FIFA Confederations Cup easier . The Super Eagles obliged with a 6-1 victory in Bela Horizonte yesterday. On paper, the scoreline looks massive, but in reality it still might not be enough to see Nigeria through to the second round. Tahiti, the tiny Oceania Island country of less than a million people, is supposed to be the whipping team of Group B, which has such other giants of the game as world champions, Spain, and two-time World Cup winner, Uruguay. Qualification from this CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

A cross section of children and others during the commemoration of the 2013 Day of the African Child in Abuja… yesterday.

PHOTO: LADIDI LUCY ELUKPO

Controversy over move to develop new deep seaports By Moses Ebosele

PLAN by the Federal Government to develop new seaports in collaboration with some states and the private sector has generated a controversy among stakeholders in the maritime sector. Under the arrangement, according to the Federal Ministry of Transport, no fewer than 14 ports and “a number of jetties” are to be constructed or reconstructed and equipped with modern facilities. Besides, according to the government, efforts are ongoing to develop deep sea-

ports in partnership with the private sector at Lekki and Badagry in Lagos State, Ibaka in Akwa Ibom State, Ogidigben in Delta State, Olokola in Ogun and Ondo states and Agge in Bayelsa State. While procurement processes are on for the dredging of River Benue and the construction of Makurdi River Port, work at Baro Port (Niger State), Oguta (Imo State) and Jamata (Lokoja, Kogi State) according to the government has reached an advanced stage.

But stakeholders in the sector have expressed divergent views on the viability of the port projects in some states, especially in the long run. For example, some stakeholders in an interview with The Guardian yesterday said that developing deep seaports in Bayelsa, Delta and Akwa Ibom states may be counter-productive in the long run. A deep seaport, according to experts, is different from regular ports because of its depth of water and ability to

attract very large and high capacity ships. Describing most of the projects as “political ports” that may not stand the test of time, the managing director of a prominent firm operating in the sector yesterday advised the governors of the three states (Akwa Ibom, Delta and Bayelsa) to carry out what he described as “genuine feasibility” studies before taking further action. He explained that the three states could collaborate to develop what he identified as

Pro-Jang govs move to scuttle plans to remove Tukur - Page 3

“Niger Delta deep seaport” as part of measures to save cost and ensure viability. He said: “Developing a deep sea port in Bayelsa, Delta and Akwa Ibom states is a waste of scarce resources. A deep seaport is not a motor park that must be in every state. Large ships naturally go to viable ports. I’m worried. People in this zone should be worried. Where is the market for the proposed deep seaports? Where are the industries? Why can’t people learn from past mistakes? The three governors are from the same party. I expect them to CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

News Annan urges G8 nations to tackle secret companies By Gbenga Salau ORMER United Nations FChairman Secretary General and of the Africa Progress Panel, Mr. Kofi Annan, has called on the G8 governments to tackle tax avoidance and anonymous company ownership because of their negative impact on development. According to him, secret companies are a key means by which corrupt leaders and irresponsible businesses hide the proceeds of their crimes and misdemeanours. Anan urged the G8 to crack down on the use of secret companies by putting in place public registries of who own and control companies and trusts. “In this time of change, the G8 can make a difference. For example, company ownership – as well as revenue flows Children during the commemoration of 2013 Day of African Child in Abuja… yesterday

FG plans new investment law By Bertram Nwannekanma HE Federal Government, through the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), is planning a new bill to help boost investment in the country. Already, the AGF is collaborating with the Ministry of Trade and Investment and other stakeholders in reviewing relevant Business and Investment Laws with a view to drafting legislation aimed at simplifying the legal flaw of investments and the smooth running of business in the country. The Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke (SAN), who disclosed this at the Seventh yearly conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Section of Business Law (SBL) said he had through his Eight-Point Strategy Plan articulated wide ranging reforms in the justice sector needed for the improvement of business and investment laws, policies and regulations in Nigeria.

FAO honours Nigeria, others for reducing hunger From John Okeke, Abuja

ROM the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) has come honour for Nigeria and 37 other nations for reducing the number of people living in absolute hunger in their countries by half, well ahead of international targets for the year 2015. Nigeria was presented with diplomas for meeting the MDG-1 target by the FAO Director-General, José Graziano da Silva, during a high-level ceremony attended by several heads of state. The ceremony took place during the weeklong meeting of FAO’s highest governing body, the Conference in Rome.

Pro-Jang govs move to scuttle plans to remove Tukur HE leadership of the T Peoples Democratic Party PDP lifts suspension on Wamakko (PDP) yesterday fixed Thursday for the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting just as some of its governors are planning to frustrate moves to remove Bamanga Tukur as chairman of the party during the proposed NEC meeting. The party leadership also lifted the suspension order on Sokoto State Governor, Aliyu Wamakko, following the pressure mounted by the PDP Governors’ Forum. The decision, which was taken at the end of a meeting in Abuja yesterday between the PDP governors and the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), however, left the fate of Rivers State Governor Rotimi Azubuike Amaechi, who was the first PDP governor to be suspended, hanging.

The inability of the Tukurled NWC to convene the NEC meeting since July 2012 is one of the issues being held against him by party stakeholders, including the PDP governors. Meanwhile, it emerged yesterday that the faction of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) loyal to Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang, had begun immediate campaign against moves by some PDP governors to remove Tukur at Thursday’s NEC meeting. The Guardian learnt that a select committee of PDP governors, including a governor in one of the North Central states, had begun talks with other party stalwarts to douse the tension against Tukur. The NEC meeting was one of the requests tabled before the PDP NWC meeting

at the party’s Presidential Campaign Office in Legacy House in Abuja yesterday. However, some PDP governors still angry with Tukur on account of his leadership style and the circumstances surrounding his election as party chairman, were still in strong league with some National Assembly members and state chairmen of the party to ignite the move against Tukur at the NEC meeting. At a closed-door meeting before the announcement of Wamakko’s recall, Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum and Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio, was said to have assured Tukur that the forum would prevail on other governors moving against him to sheathe the sword to forestall

any crisis at the NEC meeting. Tukur was said to have vowed to cancel the NEC meeting should those forces against him remain adamant. He told journalists after the meeting: “We are going to have NEC meeting on Thursday. Also, we have the support to rescind the suspension, which is very important thing. So, we rescind the suspension of our governor of Sokoto.” Tukur, however, warned that the party would not be lenient with any member, stating: “Be warned we are not going to sit down and allow our great party harbour indiscipline. I will plead that none of these issues will ever come up again.” Akpabio had earlier briefed journalists about how the PDP NWC was persuaded to convene the Thursday NEC meeting as well lift Wamakko’s suspension.

Firm to pay N5b for violating order on FAAN-Maevis deal By Wole Shadare and Joseph Onyekwere OR violating the concession agreement it had with Maevis Aviation Services Limited, a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos yesterday awarded the firm (Maevis Nigeria Limited) the sum of N5 billion and set aside the termination of the contractual agreement between it and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). Despite a court injunction, FAAN last year cancelled the concession agreement it had with Maevis and awarded the

same contract to generate revenues at the Lagos and Abuja international airports to Societe International Telecommunication Aeronautiques (SITA). Officials of FAAN had stormed the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and forcefully evicted Maevis workers. Maevis then filed a suit against SITA and FAAN. The court said such a contract with SITA was invalid and must be cancelled with immediate effect. It ordered SITA to pay Maevis N5 billion as general damages and relief.

Justice Ibrahim Buba, in delivering the judgment yesterday said SITA was aware of a court order preventing FAAN from awarding the contract to another company other than Maevis but still went ahead with the job. The judge said FAAN cannot award the contract to any other company than Maevis. The plaintiff (Maevis) had urged the court to declare that the Defendants (FAAN) are liable to the Plaintiff for willfully and intentionally procuring and/or inducing the Federal Airports Authority (FAAN) to breach its subsisting agreement with

the plaintiff by engaging in inconsistent and prejudicial transactions with FAAN to the detriment of the plaintiff. It sought a declaration that the defendants’ actions in willfully and intentionally procuring and/or inducing FAAN to breach its subsisting agreement with the plaintiff is impacting on the plaintiff’s ability to collect revenue due to the Federal Government, pursuant to the facilities provided by the plaintiff under the agreement. On October 1, 2007, the Federal Government, through FAAN, entered into a concession agreement with Maevis.

– can and must be made completely transparent thereby shining a light on a widespread method for hiding corruption. The G8 must establish registries on ownership of companies and trusts in all tax jurisdictions – and the registries need to be publicly available. Closely linked, tax avoidance and evasion are global issues that affect us all. The impact for G8 governments is a loss of revenue. But in Africa, it has direct impact on the lives of mothers and children.” According to the former UN scribe, “Throughout the world, millions of citizens now need the G8 leaders to take action on tax avoidance, not just because of the palpable injustice of enormous tax avoidance by major multinationals, including many headquartered in G8 countries, but also because to do so could save many, many lives around the world. Tax authorities in all regions struggle to prevent the erosion of their tax bases, but Africa struggles more than most. A G8 deal on the automatic exchange of tax information must include African authorities, giving them full access to relevant tax information.” Annan noted that the demands may seem ambitious, but it is critical. “It is not just governments who are moving ahead, but several companies too. Given this enormous momentum towards a fairer world, where unethical tax avoidance and corrupt deals become harder to hide, the leaders of G8 can be on the right side of history, swimming ahead of the tide to make the world a safer, fairer place,” he said.

Verdict on Delta’s claim to Ibori’s $15m bribe coming By Lemmy Ughegbe, Abuja HE Federal High Court, Abuja Division yesterday fixed July 10, 2013 to hear the application brought by Delta State government, claiming ownership of the $15 million bribe allegedly offered by the convicted former governor, Chief James Ibori, to the erstwhile Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu. The bribe was allegedly meant by Ibori to stop the EFCC from further investigating him over allegation of stealing of Delta State funds and money laundering during his reign as governor. Justice Gabriel Kolawole fixed the said date after the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division had struck out an interlocutory application brought by a Lagos based refrigerator repairer, Olalekan Bayode, seeking to halt it from proceeding with hearing the suit pending the hearing of his appeal on the trial court’s decision not to award the said money to him to manage.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

4 NEWS

U.S. deploys more troops to fight terrorists in Africa CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 operations in various locations around the world.” The letter dated June 14 and signed by Obama himself disclosed under the sub-heading - “Military Operations in Niger in Support of U.S. Counter-terrorism Objectives” - that “As detailed in my report of February 22, 2013, and at my direction, on February 20, 2013, the last elements of a deployment of 40 additional U.S. military personnel entered Niger with the consent of the Government of Niger.” Obama wrote that “this deployment provides support for intelligence collection and facilitates intelligence sharing with French forces conducting operations in Mali, and with other partners in the region. The total number of U.S. military personnel deployed in Niger is approximately 180.” Observers say by adding more troops to the drone base in Niger, the U.S. is sharpening its strategy against Boko Haram, upon whose leader the State Department recently placed a $7 million bounty some weeks ago. “In furtherance of U.S. counter-terrorism efforts, the United States continues to work with partners around the globe, with a particular focus

on the U.S. Central Command’s and U.S. Africa Command’s areas of responsibility,” he wrote in the letter made available to The Guardian. The letter also referred to a classified annex with “specific information about counterterrorism deployments to select countries,” indicating that among the countries and regions referred to are Somalia, Niger, Nigeria and even ECOWAS. Other areas included in the letter are Afghanistan and Pakistan where the U.S. is confronting Al-Qaeda and the Talibans, who are the only terror groups considered more brutal in global terrorism watch now, than Boko Haram. Although the U.S. State Department is yet to formally designate Boko Haram a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO), the American government is beginning to treat the group as a real terror group with the ability to threaten U.S. and western interests more than the group has already done. To go after Boko Haram and other groups, Obama’s letter indicated the U.S. government is depending on the U.S. Public Law 107-40 and the War Powers Resolutions that empowers the President in such matters.

Promise better outing against Uruguay CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 group for Nigeria and Uruguay will depend on the number of goals scored against the Polynesian nation, with Spain almost certainly assured of picking the number one ticket from the pool. At the stadium filled with fans supporting the underdogs, Nigeria started the game like a team on a mission to haul as many goals as possible, getting the first goal through Elderson Echiejile, whose fifth minute shot beat the despairing dive of Samin in goal for Tahiti. Five minutes later, Nnamdi Oduamadi made it two for Nigeria and completed his brace in the 26th minute.

Thereafter, the Nigerians started losing scoring chances even when they had the goalkeeper at their mercy. The first half ended 3-0 in favour of Nigeria. On resumption of the second half, the Tahitians, who hitherto looked timid, took the fight to the Eagles and buoyed by the massive support of the spectators got a goal back in the 54th minute through Jonathan Tanau, who rose above Efe Ambrose to nod in Vahirua’s corner. The goal seemed to have emboldened the Polynesians, but their bravado was short-lived as Nigeria resumed control of the game midway into the second half.

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar (third left); former Lagos State Governor Bola Tinubu (middle); Alhaji Dahiru Bobbo (left); Alhaji Boss Mustapha; Chief Abimbola Ogunkelu; Prof. Babalola Aborisade and Alhaji Humar Pariya, during their condolence visit to Tinubu on the death of his mother, Abibat Mogaji in Ikoyi, Lagos…yesterday.

Controversy over govt’s move to develop new deep seaports CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 come together in the interest of the poor and helpless people in their states instead of embarking on capital-intensive projects that may not be in the interest of their people.” The President of National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA), Lucky Amiwero, who spoke in a similar vein, noted that it was not economically viable to develop multiple deep seaports in the country. He said: “This is politics. But I want to advise the government to give consideration to professionalism and not politics. We need one deep seaport for mega ships in Nigeria. Seventy-six per cent of cargoes in West Africa subregion are for Nigeria. More than 86 per cent of Nigeriabound cargoes pass through the ports in Lagos. The industries within Lagos and its

environs are a major attraction. The role of industries cannot be ruled out. Industries need modern ports to move their equipment. Apart from Lagos, how many states can boast of the presence of industries? You cannot rule out the role of industries in port operations and efficiencies.” Explaining further, he said: “Deep seaports are transit points. What is the reason for developing a deep seaport in Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom and Delta states? We (Nigeria) must do things professionally and not politically. There are critical factors to consider when developing a port. A deep seaport is expensive to maintain. A port must be competitive. We have enough ports already. Most of the ports are not viable. Let’s develop our roads and rail network.” But pioneer chairman/member of the Board of Council for the Regulation of Freight

Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Iju Tony Nwabunike, said there was nothing wrong with the port projects. According to Nwabunike, the various projects would tackle unemployment challenges in the country, adding that port development and operations attract all shades of investors. “The proposed Ibaka Port in Akwa Ibom State will attract numerous investors. The investors will give jobs to unemployed Nigerians. I’m in support of government’s efforts to develop these ports”, Nwabunike added. The National Inland Waterways (NIWA) explained recently that the construction of inland river ports and jetties in 14 locations have either been completed or at between 30 per cent and 90 per cent construction rate. According to NIWA, the construction of Yenagoa Jetty 1, Owerrinta Jetty in Imo State

and rehabilitation/upgrade of Onitsha Inland River Port Complex in Anambra State have been completed. Onitsha River Port which has never really functioned since it was first commissioned by former President Shehu Shagari in 1983 was rehabilitated by the current administration as part of strategies to boost economic activities in the south-eastern part of the country. Commissioning the port in August, last year, Jonathan said the Federal Government decided to embark on the development of the country’s inland waterways transport as a way of exploiting all avenues of enhancing road, rail, air and water transportation in the country. “The river or marine transport must be enhanced and to do it, we need inland port like the one in Onitsha. Our target is to link all the ports by roads and rail so that doing business in Nigeria becomes easy. The river ports must be linked up to other areas of resource. Today, the process is being started and others on the drawing board must be completed”, Jonathan said. Onitsha port, which has not functioned since it was commissioned in August last year (2012), was rehabilitated and commissioned within the same period ports in Calabar, Port Harcourt, Warri and Koko were commissioned. The Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah, explained in an interview with The Guardian recently that Ibaka port was the first stage in the overall development of Ibaka, adding that the “partnership with NPA (Nigerian Ports Authority) is on course.” The seaport is expected to service the export processing zones in Ibaka, Ikot Abasi and Calabar.

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THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Minister tasks private varsities on quality education From Lillian Chukwu, Abuja INISTER of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufa’I, has urged private tertiary institutions in the country to improve access to quality education and boost excellence in the sector. Speaking yesterday in Abuja during the foundation-laying of the Goodluck Jonathan multi-purpose hall at the Baze University, Rufa’I stressed the importance of private sector collaboration with government in the establishment of higher institutions. “We encourage all other individuals and corporate bodies to establish colleges of education, polytechnics and universities because of the cry we have on the issue of access to education,” she said. “The (Baze) university has been established both in terms of improving access and requisite quality.” Meanwhile, the institution’s Vice-Chancellor, Micheal Hodd, said the institution was seeking approval to adopt the trimester system, which is equivalent to three semesters in a calendar year.

Rawlings, others urge Africa to tackle corruption From Adamu Abuh, Abuja ORMER Head of the Interim National Government (ING), Chief Ernest Shonekan, has warned that the quest to attract foreign investments would be fruitless in the continent if corrupt practices continue to thrive. Speaking yesterday at the start of a conference on “Emerging Democracies in Africa: Challenges and Opportunities,” which was organised by the National Institute for Legislative Studies at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, Shonekan acknowledged the existence of anti-corruption agencies across Africa but remarked, however, that democracy cannot thrive when the citizenry goes to bed daily on empty stomach. According to him, it behooves those at the helm of affairs to improve the condition of the citizenry by providing social infrastructure and

job opportunities for the teeming population of the unemployed in their respective countries, as well as improving healthcare delivery. He expressed concern at the rising tide of religious fundamentalism in West, North and the Horn of Africa, and stressed the need to empower women as well as deepen democracy by ensuring internal democracy in the political parties. “A situation where people cannot voice their opinions within their political parties or where leaders of political parties cannot be criticised by members of the same political parties is not good for our democracy,” he warned. Also speaking at the same forum, former President of Ghana, Mr. Jerry Rawlings, identified corruption as a menace bedeviling democratic governance in Africa. Rawlings, who lamented that corrupt practices were taking

toll on Africa, stressed the need to strengthen the judiciary, electoral system, and the media, as well as ensure vibrant and non-partisan civil groups in emerging democracies in Africa. He canvassed a system of dynamic and home-grown democracy, imbued with the socio-cultural background of the individual African states to provide political stability for development. “A practising democracy that cannot create the climate to correct economic ills and corruption cannot and will not be a democracy,” he emphasised. “A democracy that cannot protect the sanctity of its electoral process is engaging in a fraudulent electoral coup d’état. “Equally destructive is the unfortunate practice of using money to buy the conscience of the electorate. Our countries do not fare any better in the annual corruption index of transparency international. “While there may be a lot of

factors that enhance corruption, including the connivance of major global international players, whose jurisdiction ironically exact huge penalties for white collar fraud, Africa is primarily saddled with corruption because some members of a minority elite connive to rape the continent and ensure that the positive economic indices are only on paper and do not reach the pockets of the ordinary people at the grassroots.” Frowning at those at the helm of affairs in their respective countries in Africa that pay lip service to the fight against corrupt practices, he warned that a society that cannot provide socio-economic justice cannot boast to be a healthy democracy, considering that it will remain vulnerable and fragile. “We live in countries where poor, petty thieves get imprisoned for several years while businessmen who evade taxes in millions of dollars or a politician who misappropriates millions of state funds escape pun-

Pilgrim chief set to reposition commission By Olawunmi Ojo HE Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Mr. John Kennedy Opara, said the commission was working hard at ensuring that pilgrimage programmes yield moral and spiritual rebirth of the nation. Speaking when the executive members of the Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN), FCT chapter, paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja, Opara said that pilgrimage remained one of the several avenues that could be explored as solution to the myriad of challenges facing the country. He disclosed that NCPC has broadened its scope and runs pilgrimages all year round, adding: The family pilgrimage, to be flagged off in July, is to afford families the opportunity to pray together and by this, our lost family values would be restored.” While noting that the Christian faith was facing a lot of challenges, Opara encouraged Christians to remain fervent because, “the light has come for us to shine and very soon our trials would be over.”

New Osun CJ takes oath From Tunji Omofoye, Osogbo OVERNOR Rauf G Aregbesola yesterday swore in Mrs. Adepele Ojo as the new Chief Judge of the State of Osun, with a charge to ensure proper dispensation of justice. In his speech entitled, “In furtherance of Justice and the Rule of Law,” Aregbesola noted that the sustenance of justice is a task for all, not for the judiciary alone, adding that justice in a society also accumulates from the micro-level activities of all members. Justice and the rule of law, he said, are of great significance that the state cannot afford to leave any vacuum in their administration.

Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha (left); Speaker, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal; Chief Earnest Shonekan; Senate President, David Mark and former President of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings during two-day International Conference on Emerging Democracies in Africa organised by National Institute for Legislative Studies held in Abuja… yesterday. PHOTO: LADIDI LUCY ELUKPO

ishment,” he said. “These inequalities are recipes for the retrogression of our democracies and we cannot allow the negative tide to continue.” Nevertheless, he expects bright prospects for the continent when citizens embrace a patriotic desire for development within their societies devoid of selfish and myopic desires to enrich oneself at the expense of the nation. At the event were the Senate President, David Mark, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, their counterparts from across Africa and the Commonwealth countries.

Govt pays N192 .502b claims to oil marketers From Mathias Okwe, Abuja HE Federal Government T has released N192 .502 billion subsidy fund to oil marketers whose claims have been verified. The payment is in favour of 19 oil marketers covering 39 claims submitted by them. A statement from the Federal Ministry of Finance signed by Mr. Paul Nwabuikwu, the Special Adviser, Communications to the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance yesterday explained that the action was to ensure constant supply of petroleum products in the country. According to him: “In line with the continued commitment of the Federal Ministry of Finance to manage fuel subsidy payments in a transparent and efficient manner that protects and enhances the interests of the Nigerian people. The current status of payments is in respect of 2013 verified claims by marketers as at June 10, 2013. “In addition, earlier in the year, a total of N135, 696, 269, 214 .05 was paid to oil marketers in respect of verified 2011 and 2012 arrears.

Obi gives 200 vehicles to Anambra monarchs From Uzoma Nzeagwu, Awka

S’South, M’Belt leaders endorse Jonathan for second term From Mohammed Abubakar, Abuja of South-South LicalEADERS and Middle Belt geo-politzones rose from a meeting in Abuja yesterday with a resolution to support President Goodluck Jonathan for a second term in office if he decides to contest the 2015 elections. The leaders believed that was the only way equity, equality and justice could be guaranteed in the country. The group, which met under the aegis of the Congress for Equality and Change met with Jonathan behind the closed doors for more than one hour at the Presidential Villa. It drew attendance from some prominent leaders from the two zones, including the Senate President in the aborted Third Republic, Ameh Ebuteh; Senators Felix

Ibru; Rowland Owie, Gen. Lawrence Onoja; Senator Alex Kadiri, Air Commodore Dan Suleiman, Hon. Caro Ojeigbo among others as well as ministers from the two zones. The ministers in attendance were the AttorneyGeneral and Justice Minister, Bello Adoke, (SAN), Minister of State for Education, Nyesom Wike; Sports Minister, Bolaji Abdullahi; Water Resources Minister, Sarah Ochekpe; Petroleum Resources Minister, Deziani Allison Madueke; Works Minister, Mike Onolememen; Science and Technology Minister, Prof. Ewa Bassey. Others are Minister of State for Trade and Investment, Dr. Sam Ortom, Information Minister and Labaran Maku among others. In an interaction with State House Correspondents, the

Convener of the Group and First Republic Information Minister, Chief Edwin Clark said the group was pushing for the second term for Jonathan because they believed the President was constitutionally qualified to contest the election in 2015. According to him, irrespective of the President’s public position that he would decide whether to seek reelection in 2014, that does not affect those who believe that he has the right to recontest the 2015, noting that, the group would continue to educate those who are opposed to the President seeking re-election in the forthcoming polls. “But you know very well that I will never lead any group that is opposed to 2015, I believe in 2015, not because Clark is saying so, but because it is written in the constitution of Nigeria,

Shagari did so, Obasanjo did so. Shagari’s second term was taken over by a military man (Gen. Muhammadu Buhari) today he has been aspiring to be President, he staged a coup in 1983, I was also a Senator at that time, but when it came to Obasanjo, he did eight years under the constitution. Receiving the delegation, President Jonathan pledged that his administration would continue working diligently to build on the achievements catalogued in its mid-term report to the nation. The President also reaffirmed the Federal Government’s unwavering commitment to moving Nigeria progressively forward along the path of development articulated in the Transformation Agenda.

O ease transportation T burden and enhance the administration on their domains, Anambra State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, yesterday presented 200 Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) to all traditional rulers in the 177 communities of the state, saying that the state was experiencing revolution in all aspects of life. Obi, who disclosed that the customised vehicles manufactured by Innoson Motors cost over N2 billion, said they were completely free from charges since all had been registered. While assuring of more government commitment, he stressed that the gesture was in recognition of the pivotal roles of traditional rulers, who should be encouraged to work in relative comfort for the good and progress of the state. Also, the governor has commenced the disbursement of N6.5 billion approved for 253 secondary schools in the state for the upgrading and rehabilitation of infrastructure.

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THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

War against corruption total, says CJN From: Lemmy Ughegbe, Abuja HE Chief Justice of Nigeria T (CJN), Justice Miriam Aloma-Mukhtar yesterday said the war to rid the judiciary of corruption should be total and all-embracing, declaring that besides corrupt judges, judiciary workers also found engaging in unwholesome practices shall be dismissed. Delivering a keynote address at a three-day national workshop organised by the National Judicial Institute (NJI) for judicial librarians across the country, AlomaMukhtar said all personnel in the judiciary were duty-bound to conduct themselves in a manner that does not tarnish the public image of the judiciary. Her words: “Let me quickly add that the fight against corruption in the judiciary is not only targeted at the judicial officers but also against any employee of the judiciary who finds luxury or convenience in engaging in corrupt practices or who engages in any other unwholesome conduct.” Represented by Justice Olu Ariola of the Supreme Court, the CJN reminded the participants that as judicial officials, they are bound by the Code of Conducts for court employees and urged them not to go against the ethics of the judicial system. “If any of you compromises himself or contravenes the Code of Conduct, he or she will face the full consequences of his or her action”, she warned. But she assured that any judicial worker that works hard and conducts himself well would be rewarded, whereas “deviant, fraudulent and indolent ones may become irrelevant in our drive for a virile judicial system.” Earlier in his welcome address, Administrator of the National Judicial Institute (NJI), Justice Umaru Eri, underscored a need for scholarship and patronage of the library, saying it was an imperative for professionalism. Justice Eri said libraries served as “reservoirs for research and creativity” and emphasised the need for judicial librarians

to be “thoroughly learned and trained to keep abreast with the current trend of information storage and retrieval.” He said the theme of this year’s workshop: “Challenges facing court libraries in the information and communications technology age” was

carefully in consideration of how technology has advanced so rapidly. “The judiciary is, therefore, condemned to keep pace with the current trend, or it may become composed of ignorant learned men”, he stated. He noted that the livewire of judicial work is research into

statutory and judicial authorities, both of the domestic and international realms. Eri, therefore, said a wellstocked reference law library is important to a lawyer and to a judge in the administration of justice. More so, the administrator of the NJI observed that the use

From: Leo Sobechi, Abakaliki UBLICITY Secretary of the P Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), Mr. Osita Okechukwu, says the merger of five of the major opposition political parties vindicates the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, by strengthening the country’s electoral process. Okechukwu, who spoke with The Guardian against the background of INEC’s request on the merging parties to supply 35 copies each of the proposed manifesto and constitution, as well as affidavit in support of their claims in Form PA1, noted that the merging parties have simplified what INEC wanted to achieve by weeding mushroom parties to a manageable level.

NUC decries destruction of property at UNIUYO From: Inemesit Akpan-Nsoh, Uyo HE Acting Chairman, InterT Ministerial Committee on Campus Safety from National

Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun (right); Chairman of the state Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Alhaji Taju Bello and the Deputy Chairman, Olusiji Taiwo, at the Nikkah ceremony of Taofeeq and Sekinah Bello at the Darlington Hall, Ilupeju, Lagos…yesterday PHOTO: CHARLES OKOLO

Ogun forestry operators urge govt to license private investors From Azeez Olorunlomeru, Abeokuta ITING the need to harness C the huge revenue accruable from forest resources and agro-allied products, stakeholders in Ogun State have urged government to formulate a policy that will give public-private partnership the opportunity to invest and own a private forest. Speaking at the 2013 distinguished lecture series at the Federal University of

Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), tagged: “Think, eat and save, reduce your footprints”, the guest lecturer and President of the Nigerian Tree Planters, Giwa Bisiroipe, said government had over the years used the forest reserves as an internally generated revenue avenue rather than as a process to encourage citizens to participate in owning private forests, which invariably boosts the agriculture and other agro-allied products in

the state. Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Forestry, Mr. Ayo Olubori, said for the government to eradicate the scourge of illegal timber trading in the state, both the stakeholders and government must agree on the issue of use of automated system for forestry operations and the biometric data processing. Speaking through his Director of Forestry, Mr. Dolapo Odulana, he said the

Suspected cultists snatch police rifle, kill youth leader in Edo From Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin City HE renewed cult war in Edo State, which has claimed about 20 lives and at least 10 persons so far arrested by the police, took a twist as suspected cult members snatched a rifle from a police inspector attached to the Surveillance/Anti-Robbery Squad Team A of Ogidan Police Station on Saturday night. The Guardian gathered that the affected officer was on duty with his colleagues less than 50 metres from the police station when the incident happened. But it was gathered yesterday that police authorities might have remanded the officer. The incident was said to have occurred at about 7.30 p.m. on the day and barely 24 hours after, a youth leader in Ova community in Egor Council, Victor Odigie, was reported to

of information technology in the performance of the judicial functions is no longer a matter of discretion but has become imperative as judges and judiciary workers now see information technology as the means by which they do their jobs.

‘APC merger vindicates INEC’

have been trailed by three masked men into a bush path leading to his house, shot him inside his Mercedes Benz car and fled. The three men, who were said to have trailed their victim on a motorbike, abandoned the bike and removed the plate number before they fled the area. The deceased was said to have been rushed to a public hospital where he was confirmed dead and his body has since been deposited in a morgue. The reported clash between the rival cults suspected to be members of Eiye and Black Axe Confraternities started about six days ago. Also, The Guardian gathered that members of the rival cult group went to the house of one of the suspects currently on the run, whose father was said to be a member of one of the warring groups, to resolve issues bordering on money. It

was learnt that while they were settling the issue, the suspect went upstairs and came back with a pumpaction gun and shot a member of the rival cult group on the leg. His colleagues rushed the victim to the hospital while the suspect fled. Consequently, colleagues of the victim mobilised and went for reprisal attack, visiting the homes of members of the rival cult group. It was learnt that the skirmish, which led to the various attacks, started from Ogbelaka area of Benin City and spread to Idu Owena, after Ugbowo, Isihor, Ugbiyoko, Textile Mill Road, New Benin and Igbesanwa areas. The development led to the convening of an emergency security meeting by Governor Adams Oshiomhole where he charged security operatives to fish out the killers, which led

to the arrest of the 10 persons. Nevertheless, efforts are still being made to find peaceful resolution to the crisis. Edo State Police Commissioner, Folorunsho Adebanjo, who could not confirm the number of persons killed so far, described the killings as unacceptable and vowed that the police would handle the situation. According to him: “We are not relaxing at all. We are in search of the leaders; some persons have been arrested while some are on the run. The killings will stop because our members are all on alert now. I can assure you that anybody arrested will be dealt with seriously. “All security agencies in the state are concerned. The governor is equally concerned, residents of the state are concerned; so we will not relent to stop this madness. It is very sad that people no longer value human lives, it is sad,” he said.

government has generated N25 million in the past two years through timber and non-timber forest activities of the ministry of which over 30 per cent of the said revenue amounting to N77 million accrued to the state coffers between January and April this year. Bisiroipe stated that the reason why illegal timber trading encroached on government reserve is because the government has refused to do the needful and based on the demand for the timber products, people tend to look for alternative. “The government closes and opens the reserve at will. When they are supposed to open it during the dry season, they will not but they will open it during the rainy season when they know that people will not have access to the forest.” Rodipe added that in getting a tangible result, the state government should partner with the Nigeria Tree Planters and motivate all the stakeholders in timber trading, as well as make beneficiaries of annual forest concessionary allocation own private forests of not less than 50 hectares of land for planting 100,000 tress annually before they can renew their forest concessionary allocations. This measure, he said, will motivate and boost tree planting and encourage timber stakeholders in tree plantation ownership and possibly eliminate the endemic illegal timber trade in the state.

Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Adebisi Balogun, has described the destruction of property, materials and building in the University of Uyo (UNIUYO) as enormous and dastardly. He stressed that it was beyond the increment of transport fare from N100 to N2,000. Speaking with journalists in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital yesterday, after on-the-spot assessment of the burnt buildings, materials and destruction of many buildings, he retorted thus, “the damage is really extensive.

Power sector reform documentary film underway By Azeez Olorunlomeru N its bid to put the power sector reform in proper perspective, a non-governmental organisation, “Project Light Up Nigeria”, has concluded plans to produce the 1st Nigeria power sector documentary film to enable the citizenry have more insight into President Goodluck Jonathan’s power sector agenda.

AFED holds congress June 20 HE South-West Regional T Coordinator of the Department for International Development (DFID), Mr. Adesina Fagbenro-Bryon; Director of Private Education and Special Programme (PESP), Lagos State Ministry of Education, Mrs. Sewanu Amosu, are some of the guests expected at this year’s Association For Formidable Educational Development (AFED) annual national congress with theme: “The Millennium Goal, The Journey So Far”. The event, scheduled to hold on Thursday, June 20, at the Combo Hall, LTV8, Lagos, is part of measures by the association to restore standard in the school system.

NEWS 7

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

FCT procures N2.7b cabs to ease Abuja transportation

Benue teachers end strike From Joseph Wantu, Makurdi HE Benue State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) yesterday called off its strike following the acceptance of the state government to implement the new minimum wage. Addressing journalists yesterday at the Government House, Makurdi, the state chairman of the union, Godwin Anya said the state chapter has accepted to call off the strike after the meeting with the national body and with the assurance by the state government that it will start the implementation of the minimum wage to NUT members by August 1, 2013. According to the memorandum of understanding signed by both parties and presented to reporters, he noted ‘that the Benue State government will implement the minimum wage applicable to Benue State to primary school teachers.

Russia lauds Nigeria over conflict resolution From Lillian Chukwu, Abuja IGERIA has been lauded by the Russian government N over its “big brother” role in African affairs and efforts at resolving regional conflicts in the continent. Speaking at the recent celebration of Russian National Day, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Nigeria, Nikolay Udovichenko said that “Russia welcomes the important role of Nigeria in African affairs and world policy, its valuable contribution to the settlement of regional conflicts.” In a statement yesterday, the Russian envoy said: “The latest BRICS Leaders-Africa Dialogue Forum in Durban is a bright example of the attention that we pay to Africa.” He stressed the importance of further development of the mutually beneficial RussianNigerian cooperation. Udovichenko noted that the June 12 Russian National Day holiday reflects not only the historical path of the Russian State, but also the major political and economic changes that have been happening in the past two decades.

‘State creation not over, says Eze From Lawrence Njoku, Enugu HE Senator representing Enugu North at the T National Assembly, Ayogu Eze clarified yesterday that the process of state creation is not dead, stressing that it was not true that the issue had been discontinued because the agitations failed to meet basic requirements. Eze, who is a member of the Constitution Amendment Committee and chairman, Senate Committee on Works, said that the door was still open for creation of new states, explaining that the committee erroneously based its assessment on requests submitted in 2010 instead of the ones filed in 2013. The lawmaker, who doused the worry of the state agitators, especially those of the proposed Adada State, said categorically that the error was not targeted on them and urged them to keep the hope alive.

From Terhemba Daka, Abuja O ease transportation problems in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Bala Mohammed has disclosed that his administration has expended about N2.7 billion to purchase 1000 taxis under the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme (SURE-P). The move is coming two weeks after the implementation of the restriction of mini buses from plying the city centre for commercial purposes. The new policy which restricts the mini-buses to some routes and the introduction of highcapacity ones to operate in the city centre, authorities say would drastically reduce the problems of road accidents, traffic gridlocks and congestions in the city among others. Speaking at the launch of 160 taxis out of the first batch of the 1000 new vehicles purchased at the cost of N2.669 million per unit in Abuja yesterday, Mohammed said the move is expected to serve as a palliative measure to mitigate the chaotic traffic situation in the territory following the removal of the busses popularly known as Araba in the territory. Launching the new taxi scheme at the Old Parade Ground, Vice President Namadi Sambo explained that the initiative was to facilitate an efficient and affordable transport system in the nation’s capital to ease the human and vehicular movement thereby limiting crime, insecurity and accident rate. Sambo, who noted that the initiative which is tied to the welfare scheme of the citizens under the Federal Government’s transformation agenda, also pointed out that a city could only be active when there exists an effective urban transportation system.

Minister of Water Resources, Sarah Ochepke (left); Minister of Information, Labaran Maku and Minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Ita Ewa at the 2013 ministerial platform in Abuja … yesterday.

S’East, S’South professionals raise panel on development From Lawrence Njoku, Enugu MOVE at harnessing the A resources of the 11 states of the South-East and SouthSouth geo-political zones with a view to identifying states with comparative advantage as a way of quickening the development of the two zones have been launched. Already, a committee made up of representatives of governments, professionals, socio–cultural, economic and religious groups drawn from the 11states has been constituted to work out modalities to ensure its realisation and work out a 10-year plan on the development of the two regions. Under the auspices of the South-East, South-South Professionals of Nigeria, the meeting which held in Enugu yesterday, also had in attendance, representatives of the Ijaw Professionals, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, South–East Economic Commission (SENEC), BRACE Commission among others. Addressing reporters shortly after the meeting, President, Ijaw Professionals, Dr Denzel Kentabel, said the goal of the committee was to identify opportunities inherent in the two zones with a view to attaining development of the entire regions in the next 10 years. Flanked by President, SouthEast, South-South Professionals, Emeka Ugwuoju among others, he stated that time had come for the two regions to put efforts together towards identifying areas of comparative advantage and explore them for the development of the two zones. “We have realised that each of the zones have various economic commissions which are working very hard to iden-

tify opportunities in their regions and develop them, but we feel that we can build a synergy that can make this move faster to the benefit of the two regions. For instance, what we are looking at areas of healthcare, transport, agriculture, tourism, employment among others. We want to identify how these have worked in the various states,

what their costs implications are and how if we come together, we can improve on what is available to move the zones forward”, he said. He said that the committee would prepare a schedule on this to be deliberated upon by representatives of the two regions during her forum in November this year, where far reaching decisions would be

taken, adding that the vision of the group was to ensure the overall development of the zones before the next 10 years. Also speaking, Ugwuoju said that the group was not an arm chair critic, but was formed so as to continue to provide support to the governments of the two regions in their efforts to develop the zones and better the lots of the citizenry.

8 NEWS

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

UNICEF charges communities on harmful practices against children From Charles Akpeji, Jalingo OR the much-desired Fharmful dream of eliminating socio-cultural practices affecting children to be achieved, communities, irrespective of religious beliefs, must be at the vanguard of the crusade, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Female genital mutilation, the branding of children as witches, which had been deeply rooted in African culture, to mention just a few, are some of the harmful social and cultural practices the international organisation has been frowning at. In a statement made available to The Guardian from the D-Field Office of the organisation in Bauchi State, in commemoration of the Day of the African Child, the body stressed the need for community leaders to rise to the challenges of putting an end to the surges, which have continued to dehumanise children. The UNICEF Director of Programmes, Nicholas Alipui, echoed the need for the communities to be at the forefront in the campaign, as “nothing is as powerful as a community itself seeing the harm being done to its own children and deciding collectively to end the practise.”

Further drumming that “communities are key to the health and wellbeing of African children subjected to harsh practices”, the need to urgently bring on board policy that will discourage such practices, he said, has become vital. According to him, national legislative and policy reforms need to be brought in line with African regional legal instruments such as the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, particu-

larly its protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa and the Africa Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.” Sad that at the root of “these abuses is inequity”, he regretted why some traditions, such as child marriage, so-called honour killings, breast ironing and female infanticide are well still seen as acceptable in the African society. The practice of female genital mutilation, especially among children, was said to

have been over-concentrated in 29 African countries, as well as in the Middle-East with 36 per cent of girls aged 15 and 19, were said to have been cut compared to an estimated 53 per cent of women aged 45 and 49. Evidence, according to UNICEF, shows that engaging entire communities around human rights on female genital mutilation, especially among children, will lead to greater understanding and abandonment of the harm-

ful practise. Reiterating the continued readiness of UNICEF to “help prevent harmful practises by putting in legal frameworks and codes of conduct to address and punish perpetrators”, the organisation, Alipui added, will go further by harnessing the “leadership of faith-based and other communities to change norms or stresses that perpetuate violence and cause parents, teachers or care-givers to violently discipline children.”

Court dismisses suit against media coverage of divorce case From Lawrence Njoku, Enugu CUSTOMARY Court in A Ibagwa-Ani, Nsukka Local Council Area of Enugu State, yesterday refused an application praying it to stop media reportage of a divorce suit pending before it. An Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mr. Benjamin Wordu, who is also the Area Commander in charge of Onitsha Police Area Command, had prayed the court to order the media to stop reporting the divorce suit he brought before it, seeking to end his 14-year-old marriage with Mrs. Juliet

Nkem Wordu, his wife. The ACP, who had earlier testified before the court, accused the wife of disobedience to his instructions. Accordingly, he is asking the court to terminate the marriage, which is blessed with four children. At the resumed hearing of the suit, Wordu’s counsel, Offorkansi Clement, asked the court “to make an order restraining the press from further covering this proceedings because it has come to our notice that the press has been publishing this news verbatim and it is not in the interest of this matter, because that is tantamount to ridiculing the children and family of the said marriage”. He said: “I bring this application under Part 3 Sub-section 10 of the Customary Court Laws of Enugu State. In addition, Order 12 Rule 6 of the Customary Court Law equally provides that this court has the power to control its activities in the interest of peace and justice”. The defendant’s counsel, J.U. Ugwuoke, however, opposed

the move, stressing that the press is a serious organ in the society, with its own duties and obligations to the society. “In the performance of those duties, even proceedings at the Supreme Court are reported. Indeed, judicial proceedings of all kinds are reported in the media, both in the print and the broadcast media. This is also a court, so your worship, your own court is not different from other courts. “Hearings in this court are conducted in the open, even this particular matter. So, I don’t think it will be right to stop anybody, even the press. We refer you to Order 2 Rule 9 of the Customary Court Rules. If it is in the open, nobody is restrained. I urge this court to discountenance this application in the interest of justice”, Ugwuoke submitted. President of the court, Sunday Ugwude, in his ruling, said though the court had powers to regulate its proceedings, it could not stop the press from doing its work, unless when the reports were contrary to the proceedings.

It ordered the applicant to produce any evidence showing any media report that was different from the proceedings of the court. In her testimony thereafter, Mrs. Wordu urged the court not to dissolve the marriage. “I love my husband; I entered the marriage with love, I love my home too, as well as my children. We both brought them into the world and I feel it is right that two of us should join hands to raise them up. “Secondly, he made a mistake in his first marriage, which is blessed with a son; I don’t want such mistake again. I would not want a situation where my children will be given to another woman or his sisters”, she told the court. She blamed certain interests in the family as responsible for the discord between them, insisting that the marriage is not irreconcilable. Mrs. Wordu narrated how she received a text message from one of her husband’s relatives, informing her that she had been barred from entering their family house.

Imo monarchs condemn attack on Okorocha From Charles Ogugbuaja, Owerri MO State monarchs in the Icommunities over 600 autonomous in the state at the weekend condemned the recent attack on the convoy of Governor Rochas Okorocha, saying it was unwarranted and a complete disregard of the person of governor, as well as his office. Addressing journalists in Owerri, Chairman of Imo State Council of Traditional Rulers and Obi of Orodo, Mbaitoli Local Council Area, Eze Samuel Ohiri, accused youths loyal to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aspirant in the rescheduled Imo House of Assembly election for Oguta Constituency, Eugene Dibiagwu, for causing crisis and disaffection. Okorocha’s convey was attacked on Sunday, June 16, while on his way to Awa, Oguta Local Council, to solicit support for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate in the June 29 polls, Walter Uzonwanne.

Trial of pipeline vandal stalled By Joseph Onyekwere HE trial of a pipeline vandal T was yesterday stalled at the Federal High Court in Lagos following the inability of the prison authorities to produce the accused in court. The prison warder informed the court that he had failed to produce the accused because the prison authorities had not obtained any record of proceedings in the case. As a result, Justice Mohammed Idris said he would on October 2, 2013, try the accused charged with pipeline vandalism. The accused, Alex Johnson (36), is standing trial on a twocount charge of vandalism and stealing of petroleum products. Justice Idris adjourned the case to October 2 to enable the warder obtain all necessary documents from the court and produce the accused on the next adjourned date.

‘How to check parasitic diseases’ From Abiodun Fagbemi, Ilorin O tackle the prevalence of T infectious parasitic diseases in the country, the Federal Government has been urged to improve the socio-economic and environmental indices and behaviour that encourage parasite transmission. A Professor of Zoology at the University of Ilorin, Samuel Ugbomoiko, made this submission yesterday in Ilorin, Kwara State capital, while delivering the 134th Inaugural Lecture of the university. Ugbomoiko urged the Federal Government to see the occurrence of parasitic diseases like tungiasis, scabies, pediculosis, schistosomiasis and other soil transmitted helminths as “a social defect” and thus formulate the appropriate political will to address them.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

WorldReport Mandela’s wife thanks world for supporting ailing husband RACA Machel – the wife of G former South African President Nelson Mandela –

U.S. President Barack Obama (second left) at a news conference with European Council President Herman Van Rompuy (left), European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron at the G8 Summit in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland…yesterday. PHOTO: AFP

G8 leaders meet, West mounts pressure on Russia over support for Syria HE summit of eight leading T industrial nations (G8) kicked off in Northern Ireland yesterday with Western leaders upping pressure on Russia over its support for Syria’s regime. Host of the summit, Prime Minister David Cameron, who was dressed casually without a jacket or tie, individually welcomed the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States (U.S.) on the banks of a lake at the Lough Erne golf resort. Going by media reports, increasingly isolated from fellow G8 leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin was likely to get a frosty reception at the two-day summit in the lake-fringed Lough Erne golf resort.

Europe would ‘pay price’ for arming rebels, Assad warns Planned face-to-face talks between Putin and U.S. President Barack Obama were set to be especially prickly, with both leaders now offering military support to opposing sides in the war. However, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad warned yesterday that European powers would “pay the price” if they sent weapons to rebel forces seeking to topple him. “If the Europeans deliver weapons, then Europe’s backyard will become terrorist, and Europe will pay the price for it,” he was quoted as saying by German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Sending weapons to rebels would lead to terrorism in

Europe, he said according to an interview to appear in today’s edition of the newspaper. “Terrorists will return, battlehardened and with an extremist ideology,” he was quoted as saying. Assad pointed to one rebel faction, the Nusra Front, and said: “It represents the same ideology” as al-Qaeda and “aims to establish an Islamic state”. Assad also denied claims by U.S., British and French that his forces had used chemical weapons against his people during the escalating conflict in Syria. “If Paris, London and Washington had any evidence

for their claims, they would have submitted it to the global public,” said Assad, whose comments were published in German. “Everything that is being said about the use of chemical weapons is a continuation of the lies about Syria,” he added. “It is the attempt to justify more military interference.” In Moscow yesterday, the foreign ministry said Russia would not permit a no-fly zone to be imposed over Syria, an idea that media reports claimed is being mooted in Washington. But Cameron, who had initially hoped for G8 talks to focus on finance and trade, said yesterday his priority was to ensure a peace conference on the Syrian conflict takes place later this year.

‘Britain, U.S. monitored e-mails, calls at summits’ OMING on the heels of C alleged widespread surveillance of phone and Internet by United States (U.S.), it was again revealed yesterday that British and American spy agencies monitored the e-mails and phone calls of foreign dignitaries at two international summits in London in 2009. This disclosure was published by the Guardian of London yesterday, citing documents it received from former National Security Agency contractor, Edward J. Snowden. It followed reports in The Washington Post and the Guardian two weeks ago, also based on documents provided by Snowden, that disclosed widespread U.S. surveillance of phone and Internet use by ordinary citizens in order to detect patterns that could indicate terrorist activity. The description of high-

The description of high-stakes summit espionage leaves the British government in a diplomatically awkward position, with heads of state – including President Obama – already arriving in Northern Ireland yesterday for the start of the Group of Eight summit. stakes summit espionage leaves the British government in a diplomatically awkward position, with heads of state – including President Obama – already arriving in Northern Ireland yesterday for the start of the Group of Eight summit. Meanwhile, Snowden said yesterday he would release more details on how the National Security Agency can gain direct access to Internet data on private sector servers. “More detail on how direct NSA’s accesses are is coming,” he said, in an online interview hosted by the Guardian newspaper, repeating his allegation that U.S. federal agents have access to private users’ emails and web traffic.

Last month, Snowden quit his job as a contractor working for the U.S. National Security Agency in Hawaii, fled to Hong Kong and then began leaking details of vast programmes to gather telephone call records and monitor Internet traffic. The U.S. government has condemned the leak but partially confirmed his allegations, insisting that the previously secret programmes are vital tools in the intelligence services’ battle to protect America from terrorism. The young intelligence technician yesterday dismissed claims that he was working as a Chinese agent. The 29-year-old old systems technician accused U.S. offi-

cials of making the claim to distract from their own misconduct and accused the news media of having a kneejerk response to allegations against “Red China.” The latest revelations by the Guardian focused on two London summits in 2009 hosted by then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown, at a time when nations were scrambling to win a broad deal aimed at addressing the global financial crisis. British intelligence agents, the newspaper said, had gone as far as setting up fake Internet cafés and tapping into cellular networks of diplomats and foreign officials. At least some of the documents posted on the Guardian’s Web site contained the logos of the NSA as well as Canada’s security agency, suggesting that a portion of the activities were part of joint or shared operations.

thanked the world yesterday for its messages of support for the ailing anti-apartheid icon, which she said had eased “the burden of anxiety”. The South Africa’s first black president, 94, was rushed to a Pretoria hospital on June 8 with a recurrent lung infection and remains in a serious condition although he is said to be improving. “Our gratitude is difficult to express. But the love and peace we feel give yet more life to the simple ‘Thank you!’,” Machel, 67, said in a message. “So much love and generosity from South Africans, Africans across the continent, and thousands more from across the world, have come our way to lighten the burden of anxiety; bringing us love, comfort and hope,”

she said. “The messages have come by letter, by SMS, by phone, by Twitter, by Facebook, by email, cards, flowers and the human voice, in particular the voices of children in schools or singing outside our home,” Machel wrote. “We have felt the closeness of the world and the deepest meaning of strength and peace.” She referred to Mandela by the clan name Madiba by which he is affectionately known in South Africa. “Madiba once said: ‘What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made in the lives of others..’ I have thought of his words on each occasion the world stood with him, making a difference to him, in his healing.” Mandela, who is due to celebrate his 95th birthday on July 18, has been hospitalised four times since December.

Over 1,200 African migrants reach Italy by boats BOUT 1,200 migrants A reached Italy over the weekend after attempting the perilous sea passage from Africa in flimsy vessels, the Italian coast guard said yesterday. Reuters quoted the coast guard as saying it had rescued most of the migrants at sea after intercepting nearly 20 boats and was still searching for others but it could not confirm reports that up to 10 people had died during the attempted crossing. This year’s first wave of summer heat has brought with it relatively calm waters, prompting impoverished immigrants desperately seeking work in the European Union to set off in rubber rafts and wooden boats. Many do not survive the passage. Italian media reported that

95 immigrants were saved from a large raft. The survivors told of as many as 10 who had died after a Tunisian fishing boat cut loose the tuna cages it was dragging and that several immigrants were clinging onto. “We do not have a confirmation of this,” a coast guard spokeswoman said. “These are rumours from people we rescued but we found no bodies.” Italy’s Foreign Ministry said it had not heard of the incident, which reportedly took place in international waters. In 2008, a picture of 27 Somali immigrants clinging to the tuna nets of an Italian fishing boat came to symbolise a tragic summer in which many boats sank in choppy waters during the crossover, drowning unknown numbers.

WikiLeaks’ founder, Assange, ready to remain in Ecuador embassy for ‘five years’ S Britain and Ecuador failed A to agree over his future, WikiLeaks’ founder, Julian Assange, has signified his intention to stay holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy for five years, the country’s foreign minister has said. Assange has been in selfimposed exile within Ecuador’s London mission for almost a year in an attempt to avoid extradition to Sweden – where he faces accusations of rape and sexual assault. The Huffington Post reported that the WikiLeaks founder’s statement of defiance came after William Hague and Ecuador’s foreign minister Ricardo Patiño failed to make a “breakthrough” over the future of Assange. Ecuador has offered Assange asylum but the British government has said it would arrest him should he leave the embassy’s grounds. The foreign secretary and Patiño held a 45-minute meet-

ing yesterday morning but the British government said “no substantive progress was made” in resolving the impasse. However, the pair did agree to establish a “working group” to find a diplomatic solution. Patiño, who met Assange on Sunday, said the fugitive was in “good spirits” despite being confined to the small embassy in Knightsbridge, central London. “I was able to say face to face to him, for the first time, that the government of Ecuador remains firmly committed to protecting his human rights and that we continue to seek cast-iron assurances to avoid any onward extradition to a third state,” he said. “During the meeting, we were able to speak about the increasing threats against the freedom of people to communicate and to know the truth, threats which come from certain states that have put all of humanity under suspicion.”

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Reminiscence

20 Years After June 12

Remembering not to forget (1) By Kayode Fayemi RESIDENT Franklin Delano P Roosevelt famously declared December 7, 1941 — the day on which Japanese forces carried out their attack on Pearl Harbour — “a date that will live in infamy.” There are dates that stand out in the annals of time, often because they carry such import that they can simply not be forgotten. Every nation has those dates that live on, as it were, in perpetuity beyond their first appearance in a calendar year. For us in Nigeria, June 12 is one of those dates that refuse to go away quietly. It is a date that clings on stubbornly to our national memory resisting all attempts to usher it into irrelevance. One of our great failings, as Nigerians, is that we do not remember enough; we do not rigorously fulfill the civic duty of memory, a duty of care that is incumbent upon us to guard our own history and keep alive, through remembrance, events of national importance as eternal flames of consciousness. Without a sense of history, not only shall we consistently prove prone to repeating the tragedies of the past; we will also be perennially incapable of seizing the future. A sense of history gives us a vital narrative context within which to situate our journey as a nation. It is through history that we find our bearings and navigate the terrain of national evolution, for within our history lies our hope. One of the alarming developments of our time is that history is no longer rigorously taught in our schools, and a generation has arisen that knows next to nothing about June 12; of the great sacrifices that were invested to secure the freedoms that we are now enjoying. They have heard nothing of the perfidies and betrayals orchestrated by the highly placed at the time or the epic courage of ordinary people who voted in Nigeria’s freest and fairest election, and taking to the barricades when their votes were casually nullified. We have, as a nation, almost completely forgotten the atmosphere of terror that suffocated life under the darkest era of military dictatorship in Nigeria’s history; the crude totalitarian abbreviation of liberty and life by overzealous security agents and murderous death squads. The stories have all faded from our collective memory — of intrepid journalists who went underground, to continue their calling, to publish truth as guerilla journalists risking the harassment of the wives and children they left behind; of brave activists that fled into exile and those unfortunate ones that were abducted, disappeared into the regime’s dungeons or assassinated. Yes, we commemorate certain days such as Independence Day or Democracy Day or May Day. But these commemorations have been reduced to empty rituals and shallow pageantry lacking contemplative depths. They do not inspire us to reflect on the sacrifices and toils of those whose courage and patriotic selflessness made these dates worthy of commemoration. Behind each of these national

Abiola

days, we will find stories of heroism, hope and faith starring Nigerians that gave their lives both figuratively and literally for a better future for their children. Sadly, the spiritual and ethical capital they stored up is inaccessible to much of the younger generation because they have not been taught. Our national anthem proclaims that the labours of our heroes shall never be in vain; yet, an alarming number of young Nigerians have scant idea of who these heroes are or what their labours were. Thus, we cannot draw inspiration from the past with which to contemplate our future. This devaluation of historical knowledge is worrisome if only because of the place of remembrance in the construction of a national ethos. The great nations of the world are distinguished by their assiduously maintained reservoir of national memory. The horrors of the holocaust are branded in the Israeli national consciousness. Americans look back at the words and deeds of the founding fathers in determining the contemporary essence of the American dream. South Africans can look back at a rich tapestry of suffering and struggle under apartheid that finally gave birth to a new democratic nation. Collective memory and a shared history is one of the pillars of nation-building. Nation-building is the work of generations, each transmitting the wisdom and epiphany accumulated from their life downwards. With this bequest of inherited memory and wisdom, each generation is progressively wiser than its forebears because of the gift of hindsight. It means that we need not reinvent the wheel and that we can recognise pitfalls on our path and avoid them. A lack of regard for history breaks

Fayemi

the continuum of collective wisdom, rendering us both blind to our past and to our future. A lack of historical awareness does not simply diminish the quality of education our children are receiving; it also impoverishes public discourse. Much of the tenor of public commentary and punditry on our shores these days is needlessly negative and pessimistic, largely because there is no larger contextual sense of where we are coming from. We must seriously begin to remedy this deficit in how we raise our children and in how we frame public discourse. What the commemoration of June 12 does, therefore, is that it avails us of an opportunity to interrogate a seminal event in our history, to seek out new dimensions of wisdom that can be gleaned with the benefit of hindsight. It offers us an opportunity to reflect upon how far we have come and how far we have yet to cover on the road before us as a nation. Beyond Abiola IN commemorating June 12, we are doing more than celebrating the life of Chief Moshood Abiola although his life is certainly worthy of celebration. It is impossible to discuss June 12 without dwelling however briefly on the man who was most closely connected to that date. Indeed, his personal odyssey helped imbue that date with its significance. Abiola was known as one of the wealthiest tycoons of his day, with friends and traditional chieftaincy titles from everywhere across the nation. His generosity was legendary as were his philanthropic exploits. Because his rise was a quintessential rag to riches story, it resonated with Nigerians who believe that no condition is permanent or that the circumstances of one’s birth need not necessarily dictate the opportunities of his life.

Ever mindful of his beginnings, Abiola retained an earthy, empathic disposition towards the lessendowed that made him accessible to the lower strata of society. His own life’s journey, which had taken him from the clutches of poverty to the heights of wealth and fame, also made him a complex public figure brimming with contradictions. He was a capitalist as well as a populist, as adept at boardroom manoeuvres as he was with engaging with market women. He was fluent in the corporate-speak of the rarefied heights of the business world, on good terms with the civilian and military elites and had friends in every corner of the globe. Yet, he had an admirable facility with proverbs that endeared him to the common people and made him an impressive communicator. When he sought the highest office in the land in 1993, that pursuit put him on collision course with the forces of martial tyranny. The nullification of his victory, and subsequent incarceration until his demise, formed the final chapter of a full, eventful and accomplished life. Nevertheless, it would be wrong to see June 12 as being simply about Abiola’s politics. It is more than that. His pursuit of power intersected with the popular Nigerian yearning for democracy. He became the symbolic vessel of a popular discontent with the failed promises of military dictatorship. So, for us today, remembering June 12 means more than reflecting on Abiola’s quest and his heroic adherence to principle even when all hope of regaining his mandate seemed to have been extinguished. It means contemplating the eruption of democratic energies that propelled Abiola to victory and sustained a prodemocracy movement for years

until the end of military dictatorship. Some observers have referred to June 12 in almost mystical terms. For example, my friend, the journalist Dapo Olorunyomi, wrote in 1994: It is unlikely if politics, ethno-national relations, and social discourse can be the same again after the events of 12 June. Here is an instance of what philosophers are wont to characterize as the sudden leap in history — the turning point of time. In comparative intensity only the anti-colonial struggle and later the Nigerian civil war threw up as much passion and emotion. If there was one idea therefore that could pave the path to a Nigerian nation and by consequence, its literature and culture, 12 June had the full potential. In a similar vein, the renowned essayist, Adebayo Williams, remarked: “For Nigeria, then, 12 June is the equivalent of a midnight child, a monster infant. As we have seen, it is a date imbued with mystical portents. It is a destiny. How we handle it will surely determine Nigeria’s survival.” These turns of phrase towards the metaphysical and the spiritual were simply ways by which the writers sought to convey the transcendental significance of June 12 and the momentous events that followed in its wake. In the months after the nullification of his victory, Abiola himself came to realise that June 12 transcended his entirely legitimate and rightful claim to the presidency. The quest to actualise his mandate had morphed into a broader movement embodying larger questions such as where sovereignty resides. Indeed, in one sense, the June 12 debacle can be summed up as a struggle over the true location of sovereignty in Nigeria — whether it was in the bowels of a bankrupt military establishment or whether it lay with the people. The coalescence of disparate civil society actors and political players of various shades under the umbrella of a broad pro-democracy movement sought to answer that question in favour of the people. The unyielding message of the pro-democracy movement was that sovereignty belonged with the people not with a military cabal. Only the people — the authentic repository of popular will — could legitimise authority through the exercise of electoral choice and their democratic bequest of power to those they had anointed. These were some of the issues that were thrown up by the June 12 debacle. These issues transcended Abiola and account for why the pro-democracy movement did not wither after his incarceration. In this regard, it is fascinating to observe the evolution in the way June 12 is commemorated. At first, any event marking June 12 was inevitably an event celebrating Abiola and placing his persona in entirely understandable focus. Yet, as the years have gone by, June 12 commemorations have shifted from Abiola, becoming less about his struggle than about Nigeria’s quest for freedom. • Dr. Fayemi, Governor of Ekiti State, wrote this piece to commemorate the annulled June 12, 1993 presidential election.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

20 Years After June 12

‘We’ll continue to demand special status for Lagos’ Senator Oluremi Tinubu, vice chairman, Senate Committee on Labour, Employment and Productivity and member of the Committee on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), represents Lagos Central Senatorial District. On Friday, June 15, 2013, she addressed the seventh edition of her quarterly Town Hall meeting with her constituents. The next day (before the demise of her husband’s mother, Alhaja Abibat Mogaji Tinubu), she fielded questions from newsmen on her two years of representation at the Senate, reports TUNDE AKINOLA. OULD you say that you were ready to W serve when you contested for the Senate?

party. I am the vice-chairman of the Senate Committee on Labour, Employment and Productivity and some people would say, oh, do labour people, who are in the struggle, dress the way I am? But I say, this is the new face of labour, and it is in my blood. If you fight for the common good for the people, you don’t have to dress in towels and deceive them. But they know who are theirs’ and you can see me with the rapport I have with the common man and my heart is saying, who is going to give them justice? Who is going to fight their cause? So, I want to see where social security is directed to the young persons. I want to see them have access to free health care, to go to school, and to have three square meals on the table. Therefore, my request is very simple. My request is that people can live like very decent human beings. They don’t have to keep begging for food; they don’t have to sleep under the bridge. That is my concern. What is your report card in the Senate? I have sponsored two bills aimed at providing social security for Nigeria’s elderly citizens and amending sections of the Labour Act, which restrict employment opportunities for women, which have passed the second reading. I am currently working with other senators on a third bill aimed at providing special economic assistance to Lagos State. How far has that bill gone to being passed? You know, the Senate turned it down; they said it could not be included in the Constitution amendment. But by the Grace of God, we will have it. When we have the right government for Nigeria, they will know the need why Lagos should be given that special status as General Murtala Muhammed recommended years ago for Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano. What is your reaction to the threat by the British Government to cut off assistance to Nigeria on account of the bill prohibiting homosexual marriage? I don’t see any reason any government would talk down on the government of another country. Is it not the freedom of choice? Why should you now breathe down a country’s neck and give them ultimatum? We are Africans and we never ask them to wear some of our traditional clothes. We have culture and we also have tradition and this (prohibition of homosexual marriage) is according to our tradition and culture. Even their gay rights is conflicting and now, I don’t know whether they will give us another Bible and send new missionaries to us because the Bible they left with us says (homosexual m a r riage) it is

I am from a political family. There is no time that we are not ready to serve. We have been serving at the state and at the national levels for a long time now. We have been in the process, trying to bring succour to the people and I don’t know how more ready, I don’t know how more ready you want me to be. For one, my husband has been a very visible active player, but if he hadn’t gotten the support from home and the understanding, I don’t think he would have been able to go this far. So, asking me, maybe it took a decision for me to say, maybe I should go in and do this? Is it a familiar or an unfamiliar terrain? It is a familiar terrain for a long time now. We have paid the price to even be here today. I will tell you; it’s like maybe this battery that they used to have in the U.S; that is Eveready. It is like where you want to be and in what capacity you want to serve. So, I am always ready. What is your primary concern in the Senate? My primary concern is one, the rate of poverty of our people. When we look at the system, we are talking about the structural development; how far have we gone? This wasn’t the Nigeria that I grew up to love. I keep saying it; that I was not from a very wealthy family but we were comfortable; we were the then middle class; we could aspire, we could dream to be whatever we wanted to be. I am here today because that dream kept me, but when I look at what we have today, I look at the young people and my concern is for the young, not for the old. What kind of Nigeria do we want to leave for them? A good parent would leave an inheritance for the children but what inheritance, what legacy do we want to leave for the up coming generation? What they see is corruption. We see our children doing a lot of this yahoo-yahoo business, a lot of kidnapping, cultism and I am worried. If we go wrong, we should be honest enough to say that we have done wrong. The German Chancellor (Angela Merkel) was saying yesterday (last Friday) that her generation had done wrong to the young generation, but look at Nigeria. Europe is saying they have sinned by accepting that they didn’t create jobs for the young people and we Nigerians are still lying under SURE-P, we are still lying under Sovereign Wealth Fund. I am concerned and my primary concern is respect for the rule of law. My greatest challenge in the Senate is that out of the 56 committees, the opposition ACN only has three chairmanships. Nonetheless, we strive to stay true to the populist developmental objectives enunciated by our Tinubu

wrong and I think in the Koran, it also says it is wrong. What is the fate of the 2013 budget? What can I say? Being in the opposition, whatever your views are, they are not even respected. To me, that is the way they want to see it because one day, the Senate will be crying foul, the next minute, you don’t understand what is going on. So, they go back and forth with the budget. And the budget that is passed does it translate into anything? At the end of the day, they ended up declaring state of emergency. So, I am just as confused. If one man could transform Dubai, it doesn’t take a lot of people to transform Nigeria, too. And that is why Nigerians must look critically on (President) Jonathan in 2015 or whoever the PDP chooses. Lagos is Lagos today because somebody sacrificed. You all know what Lagos looked like after the military government left. But we tend to forget. We see the bridge that (Governor Babatunde) Fashola has just commissioned and we think that is how Lagos used to be. No, it wasn’t. You almost talk like a comrade? I am a comrade. I said that this (touching herself) is the new face of labour; it is in the blood. I also came from the trenches. I never talked about June 12. Everybody would give themselves the entire accolade and I would just look. I paid dearly! Why are the opposition senators always desirous of getting juicy committee positions in the Senate instead of remaining in the opposition? If I wanted a juicy committee, I wouldn’t be in the Labour, Employment and Productivity committee. I can only speak for myself. I

have been a rookie in the Senate and I don’t know about the juiciness of the committees until I learn. I think one of the things that the chairman of a committee gives is to wield more powers to work. For me, I am quite satisfied wherever the Senate President has put me, but the ACN, we want to work. You were absent when the Senate endorsed the President’s proclamation of emergency rule in three Northeast states. We would like to know how you would have voted if you were present given your party’s opposition to the proclamation? The state of emergency came rather too late, after security votes had been wasted and could not be accounted for. To me, I look and see the pretense, and these are not the things you would want to say. It is still the more you look, the less you see and I just pray that a lot of innocent lives are not lost. So, it is still chasing shadows. The problem with Nigeria and terrorism is the level of poverty. Until it is addressed, people are still going to be aggrieved; they are still going to be angry. So, my view on state of emergency? I never supported it and I still don’t. I don’t believe in it. But your senators voted for it? They voted for it for their own reasons, but I didn’t vote and you can count this (rejection) as my vote. Would you agree with the suggestion by the ACN national leader (Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu) that the work of the legislature should be made part time? Governance truly is expensive. When you look at the national budget, it is mainly on paying salaries. If my husband (said that), I think he misses me, too (laughter). If it is part-time, it would be nice so that credible people can go into the Senate and go back to their daily chores. Are you running for the office of governor? Even to run for this office, it is this press that started it. So, can the press start it again? No, don’t start it oh! Truly and truly speaking, it is never my ambition to run for governor of Lagos State. Remember, my husband did it for eight years and I was not outsider to it. It is not a place for the tenderhearted. It is a lot of work to govern Lagos, and I am not the type that doesn’t put hard work into whatever I do. I don’t think I have the strength to say that I want to govern the present state of Lagos. There is still a lot of work to be done in Lagos, a lot of work. It is not a child’s play. I am still i n

training, as far as I am concerned. My first

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

TheMetroSection Markets stand still for Mogaji • In Lagos, traders close shops in honour of their late leader, Alhaja Mogaji

Briefs ACN in UK commiserates with Tinubu over mother’s death, holds Fidau prayers Saturday HE leadership of the SteerT ing Committee and the entire members of Action

Traders at Oshodi Market, Lagos...yesterday By Tope Templer Olaiya ORTY-EIGHT hours after the remains of Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, mother of former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu, was committed to mother earth, Lagos State government has directed that all markets in Lagos should remain shut in her honour as the third day prayer would be observed today. Alhaja Mogaji, popularly known as Iya Oloja of Lagos of Lagos State and President-General, Association of Nigeria Market Women and Men, died on Saturday at her residence in Adigun Street, Ikeja, Lagos. Buying and selling was put on hold in most major markets in Lagos yesterday. Although some markets in the North

opened for business, markets in the Southwest observed the closure as a mark of respect for the deceased. Markets were shut on Lagos Island, Mile 12, Mushin, Iyana Ipaja, Oshodi, Yaba, Obalende, Isolo and other areas. Despite the shutdown, some hidden market transactions were going on while goods were been impounded from those who refused to close their shops by market taskforce. However, the lockdown was only for a few hours in many of the markets monitored. While the gates and stalls of all the major markets were closed, by midday, shadow business resumed in some of the markets, often referred to as ‘black market.’

Others, in defiance, opened their stalls and sat, waiting for customers. The order was not carried out at Ladipo spare parts market at Toyota Bus-stop. The most hit, however, were fruits and perishable goods market, which did not receive or distribute supply to traders and shoppers. While the market shutdown caught many people unawares, most traders said it was normal when one of their members die to lock their shops in honour of the departed. According to the Iya-Loja-General of Lagos Island, Alhaja Iyabode Fagbemi, there was nothing strange in closing the market yesterday. “This is the standard practice always ob-

The late Mogaji served whenever any of our members die and the person we are talking of here is the leader of all market men and women nationwide. By Wednesday, the market will be reopened. So, two days is not too much for us to bid our leader farewell. By next tomorrow, there may be other developments but this is all I can say for now,” she said. At the popular Kotangora Market located on Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway yesterday, the hustling and bustling associated with the market was missing. The effect of the shut market is beginning to take its toll on Lagos residents as most families found it difficult getting food items to feed their families. Most food outlets were also affected, as they could not get supplies.

Former NNPC employee arrested over pipeline vandalism By Odita Sunday PERATIVES of the Special Task Force on Anti-Pipeline Vandalism Unit of the Nigeria Police have re-arrested a former employee of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Bashiru Majiyagbe, who was sentenced to five years imprisonment for pipeline vandalization. Bashiru, who finished his sentence a few weeks ago, was re-arrested at Odi Ifediwo area of Ogun state, while vandalizing NNPC pipeline in that area again. Bashiru, who was queried by operatives said he worked as a security man with NNPC before he was arrested. “I was employed by NNPC to guard the pipeline in 2002. My records are there that my line was always protected because I never allowed vandals to come near the area where I was guarding. The vandals had approached The suspect, Bashiru me severally with thousands of naira but I refused because I wanted a clean record and hoped that I would be the dividend of the job because all this while, I had risked promoted. But along the line, I discovered that NNPC of- my life for nothing. Those vandals could be deadly, if you ficials were ingrates. They were in their offices, while I did not allow them to work. was left in the bush to protect pipeline and I was given “Those days, I was doing this job with sincerity, I was stipends. We complained severally and were told that dreaded because I used all within my reach to protect the the contractor who employed us on behalf of NNPC was pipeline. “ to be held responsible and I decided to help myself,” he On his arrest and conviction, Bashiru accused one Doconfessed. sumu for betraying him by informing NNPC that he was He said it was when he started cooperating with the allowing vandals to operate. vandals he began to enjoy his work. “Dosumu was sacked because NNPC suspected him. He According to him: “It was then that I started enjoying came to me and asked to operate in my area and I refused.

He decided to leak my secrets to NNPC. Normally, whenever there is a drop in pressure, we would be alerted and to reduce the heat on the vandals or us, we would tell them that there was a leakage. Dosumu out of envy reported that all those leakages were the activities of vandals and that I was very much aware,” he said. He added: “I was at our weekly meeting on September 14, 2008, when policemen came and arrested me. I was later told that there was a petition against me, alleging that I was into NNPC pipeline vandalization. I was remanded in prison and later convicted to five years.” In prison, Bashiru said he met most of the vandals and quickly joined their association. He urged Nigerians to help him beg the police to give him another chance. Speaking on his arrest, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Friday Ibadin, who is in charge of the task force, said that police got a tip-off that vandals were operating in Odi Ifediwo area of Ogun State and swung into action. “Policemen led by Sector Commander, Lagos, DSP Onaghise Osayande, cordoned off the area and in the process arrested Bashiru. They also recovered a DAF truck with Registration Number XJ359DKA and also discovered the spot where they planted three valves with hose of about 100metres. I was shocked to realize that Bashiru who I arrested five years ago was free and back to the same crime,” he said.

Police beg family of slain boy for forgiveness, promise justice By Odita Sunday HE Lagos State Police command has assured the family of Olusegun Ebun, father of the nine-year-old boy, who was felled by the bullet of a trigger-happy policeman in Lagos last Thursday, of justice. Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Umar Manko sent his Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, Mr. Samuel Adegbuyi, to commiserate with the family and inform them of the unflinching resolve of the command to ensure that the

policeman who killed their son would be made to face the full wrath of the law. Manko said there was an urgent need for the police to reassure the family that the matter would not be swept under the carpet. According to him: “We have the responsibility to commiserate with the family and reassure them that justice would be done. I have to send my officers led by a Deputy Commissioner of police not only to commiserate with them, but to also reassure them that the policeman who did the shooting would face the full weight of the law.”

The late Timilehim “The policeman in question has been arrested and we would soon charge him to court because we did not send him to kill innocent citizens. We will not handle the matter with kid gloves, we must en-

sure that justice is done” The joy that existed in the home of Mr. Olusegun Ebun suddenly disappeared at the weekend after men of the Lagos State Police Command snuffed life out of their son with a stray bullet. On June 13, 2013, the Ebun family went to pick up their son, Jide, from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. Every family member was virtually in a happy mood because the 17-year-old boy had been in Canada where he went to study. The father of the house, Olusegun, his wife, Funke, his first son, Jide, his only daughter,

Damilola, and the last child of the house, nine-year-old Timilehin, were in a Sports Utility Vehicle, a Nissan Pathfinder, with registration number HD844EKY driving back home from the airport. Timilehin sat in the centre of the back seat with his two siblings where he was playing a hand-held game. The reunion was, however, cut short by trigger-happy policeman. On getting to Mile 12 end of Ikorodu Expressway, a police stray bullet pierced through the windscreen of the vehicle and hit Timilehin who died on the spot.

Congress of Nigeria (ACN), United Kingdom (UK) has commiserated with its leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the demise his beloved mother, Alhaja Abibatu Asabi Mogaji. A statement signed by the Chairman, and Secretary of Steering Committee, Dr. Philip Idaewor and Mr. Femi Durodola respectively read: “We commiserate with our leader and the entire family on the irreplaceable loss of the rare gem that Mama was to us all. Though Mama is gone, we are comforted and take solace that she is gone to be with Almighty Allah. ” Meanwhile, the ACN, UK has concluded plans to organise the eighth day Fidau prayers for her on Saturday, June 22, at the Muslim Association of Nigeria (MAN) Mosque, old Kent Road, in London.

Book presentation HE presentation of a book T in honour of Professor of Maritime Economic History, Prof Ayodeji Olukoju, who is also Vice Chancellor, Caleb University, Fellow, Nigerian Academy of Letters and former Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Lagos, will hold today at the Arts Theatre of the Faculty of Arts, University of Lagos by 11.00 am. The launch is being organized by the Caleb University, in collaboration with the Organization of Historical Research in Nigeria and the Faculty of Arts, University of Lagos. Entitled The Third Wave of Historical Scholarship in Nigeria: Essays in Honor of Ayodeji Olukoju, it was edited by Saheed Aderinto and Paul Osunfodunrin.

Frank Owelle dies at 86 HE death has occurred of T Chief (Sir) Frank Ikem Owelle at the age of 86. Until his demise, he was the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Cifomex Limited, Unicoco Hotel Limited, Aba. He was also the Chairman of the old Anambra Local Council, former Chairman of the General Cotton Mill, Onitsha, former Director of Colgate-Palmwine Nigeria, Director of International Equitable Association, former Managing Director of the defunct East Central State Agricultural Development Authority. A devout Catholic and a Knight of St. Mulumba. He was elevated to the Papal Knighthood of St. Gregory the Great by the late Pope John Paul II. The funeral ceremonies will begin on June 25, 2013 with a service of songs at his Aba residence while his interment is between June 26 and June 27 in Nsugbe, Anambra State. He is survived by his wife Chief (Mrs.) Cecilia Owelle, and eight children including the Managing Director, Total Aluminium Systems Plc, Chief Frank Owelle (Jr.).

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

TheGuardian

14 | THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

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 Reversion of Ajaokuta Steel Rolling Mill HE reported reversion of the Ajaokuta Steel Rolling Mill (ASRM) to Nigeria, T from the Indian company, Global Steel Holdings Limited, to which it was concessioned, is an advertisement not just of the crass failure of the privatisation scheme, but also of a monumental generational loss to Nigerians. That it has taken the authorities six years to undo what they should not have done in the first place is pathetic and uncomplimentary of the excitement of possible job openings being brandished by some government officials. Had there been due diligence on government’s part, the company would not have been found competent or suitable for the responsibility it was given to drive the rolling mill. Now that it has recovered the complex, government needs to go back to the drawing board to decide what exactly it wants to do with the set-up that has proved to be every inch a drain of public purse without a discernible corresponding benefit. Disclosing the reversion of ASRM to newsmen, the Chairman Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory, Senator Smart Adeyemi was excited that the development would lead to the provision of 10,000 new jobs. How this will materialise however is a puzzle considering that either before or after it was privatised under the concessioning programme, Ajaokuta has not yielded any product. The plants have not functioned since 2005 when they were given to the Indian company. Shortly after the privatisation, allegations of downsizing and asset stripping rocked the complex until it finally shut down operations. Since 2007, the Federal Government had been in arbitration with Global Steel and Global Infrastructure Limited at the International Chamber of Commerce, London, culminating in the reversion to the government. As part of the new arrangement, Global Steel agreed to withdraw its claim of $1 billion it initially demanded as damages. Much was expected from the government campaigns and case studies regarding the privatisation and concessioning of unproductive public enterprises. The options appeared as urgent imperatives to reform the Nigerian economy. In particular, the argument to ‘get government out of the business of business’ appealed to the working class who were in search of jobs. Since 1999 however, the results of the country’s privatisation and commercialisation of federal assets are mired in controversy. Nigerians are severely punished for the ASRM which concession was terminated in 2008, following an unimpressive performance of the concessionaire, including reports of unfair labour practices and of generally undermining the lofty concept of privatisation; the net result being billion dollars loss and rationalisation of the Nigerian gross capital formation. In short, Global Steel appeared to have further compounded the woes of the multi-billion dollar steel engineering complex and rendered it comatose. No Nigerian institution, which includes the Obasanjo Presidency at the time, the labour unions, the export inspection arm of the Customs Service and, in specificity, the Bureau for Privatisation, which signed off the plant in the formal sense, was positioned to checkmate the transnational irregularities at ASRM. Having spent the better part of six years at international arbitration over the ASRM, Nigeria is yet in several other expensive court and arbitration contentions in as many erstwhile privatised assets. This was the plant that cemented NigeriaRussian relationship, built from the civil war collaboration, and was considerably touted by the National Development Plan 1975-80 as the metallurgical phoenix to foster Nigerian technology. An estimated $20 billion is believed to have gone into the complex over the years. The optimism about job creation for the youths, and of patriotism over perceived neo-colonialism is misplaced in this instance. To the world at large, the issue, apart from that of pathetic abdication of post transaction diligence by the local institutions charged with that duty, is that Nigeria has invalidated yet another transaction from the privatisation and commercialisation process to join the comatose legacy of Aluminium Smelter Company, Delta Steel, Aladja, Enugu Coal Mines, Nigercem, and Virgin Atlantic among many others. Sloppy work and reprehensible attitude have continued to haunt the country’s performance in international commerce; and the world has unreservedly come to view Nigeria as a destination with a high propensity to breach commercial contracts or for a failed public service. Although Global Steel’s eventual gesture to relinquish its claim for damages of $1 billion on Nigeria is viewed in international legal circles as an act of benevolence bestowed on a malingering partner, that is only because the Nigerian authorities failed to properly document or take pro-active action against breaches committed at the plant. She could have obtained a binding retribution from Global Steel for asset stripping. Nigerians are the worse for this track record, as they suffer the double jeopardy of reputational damage as an investment destination and the sloppiness of a few inflicting, very painfully, on the majority of citizens, a tradition of generational waste of capital formation. The ASRM debacle in the London Arbitration is a lesson for the executive and legislature to cut losses at these debilitating arbitration processes and devise a solution to counter inchoate commercialisation and privatisation that have shrivelled the nation’s patrimony. A major remedy that can be officially procured for Nigerians is for government to put ASRM to productive venture, employing Nigerians gainfully, and contributing to the country’s development.

LETTERS

The argument for constitutional death penalty his renunciation of his mem- penalty be “deterrence” and if bership of humanity, insofar in all of history no other crime as humanity excludes homi- has been deterred by imprisonment or flogging as well, it the submission by Professors of cide in its definition. Law at the Nigerian Institute for Therefore, the duty of a good stands to reason that “deterrence”, as a purpose, can’t lead government is to fulfil that Advanced Legal Studies. According to a newsreport, the clearly expressed wish of the good thinking on how best to law institute professors urged murderer to quit humanity by punish homicide. Deterrence instead badly the National Assembly to abro- imposing the death penalty deflects attention from the irregate constitutional death penal- upon him. That is the versible act of intentional jurisprudence of the death ty for homicide and treason penalty, not deterrence that’s homicide by focusing wholly because “it is a matter of on how to preserve the murderdespair to hear that people still its spin-off. I had myself pondered aboli- er, but preserving the murderer clamour for death penalty in is meretricious premise for tion of death penalty at a the (36) states in Nigeria”. sound jurisprudential thought. But there’s no despairing occa- point in my life but quickly Putting a heinous criminal sion in urging death penalty for discarded it as daft because I out of society and out of his could not fit it as a reasoning irreversible homicide, except for the Advanced Law Institute’s mode into assessing the pun- heinous predilection to homiown un-reasonable counter-sug- ishment for other crimes. In cide, forever, is the reasonable purpose of death penalty other words, those who gestion. imposed on someone who kills oppose death penalty argue it The jurisprudence for death penalty is the more convincing does not deter heinous crimes another person un-lawfully, given that the person he had because it does not rest solely like murder, but this “deter- murdered lost his life, forever, rence” mantra obscures on deterrence, as putatively misrather than illuminates. In my since re-incarnation is moreso understood. Rather, anyone conclusively denied in law. who intentionally kills another view, if the reasoning stan• Seyi Awofeso, dard for opposing death unlawfully thereby announces Abuja. IR: May I implore the Senate SRepresentatives and the House of to dis-regard

Still on the single term proposal IR: The single term proSGovernors posed for President and may not take immediate effect, not least because the Constitution would be on the side of whoever sees it as an encroachment on his right to seek reelection. However, seeking re-election does not mean that one would win that election. With this in mind, may I propose that the

single term amendment, if adopted, be made to commence in 2019 rather than 2015. If the one seeking reelection is defeated in the 2015 election, the incoming President or Governor would know that he or she can only serve in that position for four years. They would not be entitled to contest in 2019 when the new provision takes of. I do not make this sugges-

tion because of President Goodluck Jonathan who, I believe, should be man enough to honour his pledge not to seek re-election in 2015. If, however, President Jonathan makes an unambiguous commitment not to seek re-election, the single term provision can take off at the federal level in 2015 and at the state level in 2019. • Anthony Akinola, Oxford, England.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Business Appointments P27 Unending burden of working children

Underwriting firms to float $20m oil, gas insurance pool By Joshua Nse HE Nigerian Oil and T Energy Insurance Pool (NOEIP) may soon take-off to

tackle capacity gap challenges in oil and gas underwriting. Specifically, the committee set up for the take-off of the

underwriting pool for insurance entities has commenced the registration of members with a minimum subscription of $250,000

per line, with 50 per cent paid-up in order to achieve a retained pool capacity of $20 million. Besides, the pool would be

Managing Director, Sterling Bank Plc, Yemi Adeola (left); Chairman, Alhaji Suleiman Adegunwa; and Company Secretary, Mrs. Justina Lewa, during the company’s completion board meeting in Lagos, yesterday.

Sterling Bank to raise N12.5b from rights issue By Bukky Olajide TERLING Bank Plc has conSN12.48 cluded plans to raise billion through the issuance of rights issue from its existing shareholders between June 24 and July 31. The bank’s Managing Director, Yemi Adeola announced the plan at a completion board meeting held in Lagos yesterday. Adeola said that rights issue of 5.89 ordinary shares of 50k each would be sold at N2.12 per share for expansion of business operations, adding that it would be issued on the basis of three new ordinary shares for every eight ordinary shares held by shareholders as at May 20. According to him, out of the proceeds of N4.24 billion would be used for branch expansion, N1.82 billion for infrastructure upgrade, while N1.21 billion would go for information technology. According to him, N12.13 billion will be used to increase the bank’s working capital. He explained that the rights issue was the beginning of the bank’s capital raising journey agreed upon by the shareholders in 2012. He said that the manage-

ment had laid solid foundation for the bank’s franchise in the last seven years as its shareholders’ funds had reached over N40 billion. Adeola disclosed that the bank would open additional 48 branches across the country to strengthen its retail banking franchise. “Size is becoming key and relevant in the industry and we will establish more branches to strengthen our retail banking and enhance

our corporate banking services,” he said. Adeola said that shareholders needed to be excited with the rights issue following its discount price and assurance of consistent dividend payment in the years ahead. The managing director said that the bank would raise a tier two capital before the end of the year to consolidate on its operations. On the establishment of offshore branches, he said that

the nation’s market was huge and needed to be captured first before embarking on offshore expansion. The bank’s Chairman, Alhaji Suleiman Adegunwa, said that part of the proceeds would also be used to fund the growth of the bank’s loan book. The issuing house to the issue is Sterling Capital Markets Ltd, while CardinalStone Securities limited will act as stockbrokers.

Nigeria’s inactive phone lines hit 44.6 million By Adeyemi Adepetun with agency report IGERIA’s inactive teleN phone lines have grown to 44.6 million in the first quarter of 2013, going by the latest subscribers’ data statistics obtained from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). The data showed that connected lines as at March stood at 161.9 million, while the figure of the active numbers was 117,281,669.

According to The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the inactive lines were 38.5 million in the last quarter of 2012. The NCC statistics revealed that the additional 6,128,397 lines were dormant, thus jerking the number to 44.647,096 in March 2013. The Subscriber Data showed that of the 44,647,096 telephone lines, Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) network had a total of 31,061,267.

Also, the mobile section of the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) had a total of 11,544,933 inactive lines, while the Fixed Wired/Wireless network had 2,040,896 dormant lines. From the 117,281,669 active telephone lines on the operators’ networks in the first quarter, the GSM had a share of 114,172,440. The CDMA had 2,703,604 active lines, while the Fixed Wired/Wireless network had continued on page 16

protected by an appropriate reinsurance arrangement to shore up and protect the pool’s capacity. As a result, Africa Reinsurance Corporation (AfricaRe) has been appointed to manage the pool. A source at the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) secretariat confirmed at the weekend that the pool has come into being and the committee appointed for the project take-off are registering members’ subscription for the implementation of the pool to develop local financial and technical capacity for oil and energy underwriting. He told The Guardian: “A committee is working for the actualisation of the Nigerian Oil and Energy Pool and our members are subscribing to the arrangement. Also, Africa Re has been appointed to manage the underwriting pool.” Both the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and operators have acknowledged the fact that it has become apparent

the industry still have yawning capacity gap in the industry to meet the local content Act 2010 provisions which required local insurance and reinsurance firms to underwrite a minimum of 45 to 70 per cent of oil and gas businesses by 2010. This realisation prompted the inception of an industry committee initiated by NAICOM to explore the possibility of an oil and gas pool. The committee report said the objectives of the pool are to develop local financial capacity, achieve bulk purchase of reinsurance arrangement; develop technical capacity and improve local underwriting skills; provide technical underwriting information to member companies; curp capital flight by way of reinsurance premium overseas, and compete with international reinsurers and guarantee premium reduction. Industry sources said similar arrangements exist in Angola and South Africa insurance market.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

16 BUSINESS

Govt moves to criminalise oil spillage O

IL spillage may soon become a criminal offence, courtesy of a bill currently before the National Assembly, to curb the environmentdegrading practice. The Minister of the environment, Mrs Hadiza Mailafia, affirmed in Abuja yesterday, that the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), an agency under the ministry, had presented the bill to the National Assembly that would make oil spillage a criminal offence. “We are working on the proposed bill presented by NOSDRA to the National Assembly;

Nigeria’s inactive telephone lines hit 44.6 million CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16 405,625 subscribers. Meanwhile, the installed capacity in the industry increased by 25.5 million from 211.8 million in last quarter of 2012 to 237.3 million in first quarter of 2013. The installed capacity refers to the total infrastructure that a network provider put in place to accommodate a certain number of telephone lines without having congestion or poor network quality. The GSM networks had an installed capacity of 182,065,415 in the last quarter of 2012, which increased to 207,653,213 in first quarter of 2013. The CDMA had an installed capacity of 18,400,000 in the first quarter of 2013, unchanged from the figure of last quarter of 2012, while the fixed networks had 11,342,677 lines in last quarter of 2012. It, however, increased to 11,362,677 in first quarter of 2013. Teledensity of Nigeria’s telecommunications industry climbed to 83.77 per cent in first quarter 2013, compared to 80.85 per cent in the last quarter of 2012. Teledensity measures the percentage of a country’s population that has access to telecommunications services as determined by the subscriber base. Nigeria’s teledensity is currently calculated by NCC on a population of 140 million people, until a new and official statistics of the populace is released. The data showed that although operators were working aggressively to increase subscriber base, some SIM card holders were not activating the SIM cards they bought. NAN reports that the increase in the GSM installed capacity showed that the operators’ were ready to accommodate more subscribers, even as the CDMA operators had decided. It must however, be noted that more lines may become inactive if they are not registered. The NCC has set June 30 deadline to disconnect all unregistered SIM cards in the country. The telecommunications operators have called on their subscribers to confirm the status of their SIM, whether registered or not so as to avoid them being disconnected.

when it comes up, there will be more stringent measures on those oil companies that pollute the environment. “Remember, this is transformation agenda in action; before now, these things were happening unattended to, but now, we are determined to transform the environment sector.’’ On measures to mitigate effect

of flooding, she said that the Federal Government had started dredging some major rivers to allow free of water across the country. She pointed out that the ministry had stepped up sensitisation exercise on the need to keep the environment clean to avoid a recurrence of the 2012 flooding. The 2012 floods affected over

seven million people, including 2.3 million displaced people and 363 people who died. The flood also destroyed or damaged about 597,476 houses valued at nearly N2.6 trillion. Mailafia added that the ministry was working with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources to install early warning systems in some dams across the country.

``We also expanded the community flood early warning systems; greatest of all we are working with NEMA to mitigate the impact of flooding. ``I have the privilege of also attending a regional conference that involved all West African countries because when the environment is affected, it is not only in Nigeria, it is a regional prob-

lem. ``So we had a regional network in place working to promote effective management of water resources in the region and I am glad to inform you that because of the effort of the Nigerian government we have achieved a lot.’’ Besides, she said that ministry had embarked on tree planting campaign to safeguard the environment.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

BUSINESS 21

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

CIS reaffirms Exchange’s capability to finance projects By Helen Oji HE Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) has reaffirmed that the Nigerian capital market is deep enough to provide funds for infrastructure development and other capital-intensive projects in the country. Besides, the institute has urged the companies in the power and housing sector to list on the Nigerian stock market to enable them leverage on the opportunities inherent in the stock market to enhance their businesses. The President of the institute, Mr. Ariyo Olushekun, while intimating the market community on the arrangements made so far for its forthcoming second yearly workshop, expressed optimism that the

capital market had the capacity to finance any long-term projects in the country. He explained that its second yearly workshop, slated for July 2nd, 2013 at Abuja, would afford the government and key private sectors in the economy the opportunity to brainstorm on issues affecting both the power and housing sector to enable them unlock opportunities in these sectors that would help move the country forward. “These two sectors are keys to unlocking this economy, and we see so many other products that could come from these two sectors, especially in the housing that can create tradable products for us as stockbrokers on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.”

The CIS boss explained that about N3.4 trillion was lying idle with the Pension Funds Administrators, adding that they had the mandate and commitment to create products where these funds could be invested. “The Pension Commission (Pencom) told the CIS that N3.4 trillion is lying idle with the PFAs and challenged the stockbrokers to come out with good products where such funds could be invested. So our market has the capacity to finance any project. Transcorp is already in the market and raising money from the market, so are some other companies raising funds through the private placement, because they do not want to expand their shareholdings.”

ICAN honours NDIC boss at awards night HE Institute of Chartered of his managerial ability, ment of the corporation T Accountants of Nigeria which had inspired deposi- under the able leadership of (ICAN) has commended the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) for its contributions toward the safety, soundness and stability of the Nigeria’s financial system. The Abuja District Society of ICAN made the commendation, when it conferred the district’s 2013 Merit Award on the Managing corporation’s Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim, at a gala Night, in Abuja. The Chairman of the Abuja District of ICAN, Shehu Usman Aladire, said that the ICAN Merit Award was conferred on the NDIC helmsman because

tors’ confidence in the nation’s banking system. He cited the increase of deposit insurance coverage levels from N50, 000 to N200, 000 per depositor of deposit money banks (DMBs) and the extension of insurance coverage to depositors of microfinance banks (MFBs) and primary mortgage banks (PMBs) at N100, 000 per depositor of the MFBs and PMBs and the second upward review to N500, 000 and N200, 000 per depositor of DMBs and MFBs/PMBs. Another landmark achieve-

the MD/CEO, according to the ICAN, was the establishment of the bridge bank as a failure resolution option in the interest of depositors and other stakeholders. While stressing that the NDIC’s initiative was internationally applauded, ICAN also noted with delight that the bridge bank approach adopted in 2010 prevented systemic crisis and outright liquidation of the affected banks that would have had dire consequences for depositors and other stakeholders in the nation’s banking system.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Appointments Unending burden of working children

Jeddy-Agba

Wogu From Collins Olayinka, Geneva, Switzerland HEY are seen on streets, T plantation farms, factories, market places participating in endeavours that are clearly below their ages. They have many appellations - toddlers, young adults and juveniles – yet they are conscripted into endeavours they are ill equipped for. In Nigerian cities such as Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, children are pushed to streets to render commercial activities that fetch money either to pay their school fees or help in delivering daily source of meal to the family. While the society looks the other way, it systematically wastes and kills the fulfillment of tomorrow’s leaders. The need to halt the abuse of children who are declared the most vulnerable group, may have spurred the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to declare June 12 of every year as the International Day against child labour. Expectedly, in marking the 2013 edition of the day, the ILO has rolled out the statistics to show the level of suffering children are subjected to worldwide. The international labour body said that an estimated 10.5 million children worldwide – most of them under age – were working as domestic workers in people’s homes, in hazardous and sometimes slavery-like conditions. Six and a half million of these child labourers are aged between five and 14 years old. The situation of the girlchild is even more precarious as the more than 71 per cent of the 10.5 million of figure are girls. According to the latest figures in a new ILO report tagged: “Ending Child Labour in domestic work”, the children work in the

homes of a third party or employer, carrying out tasks such as cleaning, ironing, cooking, gardening, collecting water, looking after other children and caring for the elderly. Vulnerable to physical, psychological and sexual violence and abusive working conditions, they are often isolated from their families, hidden from the public eye and become highly dependent on their employers. Many might end up being commercially sexually exploited. Commenting on the findings, the Director of the ILO’s International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC), Constance Thomas, warned that the continuation of children en-slavery would stunt global economic growth. Her words: “The situation of many child domestic workers not only constitutes a serious violation of child rights, but remains an obstacle to the achievement of many national and international development objectives.” The report, launched to mark the 2013 edition of the World Day Against Child Labour, calls for concerted and joint action at national and international levels to eliminate child labour in domestic work. “We need a robust legal framework to clearly identify, prevent and eliminate child labour in domestic work and to provide decent working conditions to adolescents when they can legally work,” Thomas stressed. Painting a more worrisome scenario, the report reveals additional five million children, who are above the minimum legal age of work in their countries, are equally involved in paid or unpaid domestic work globally. The report alleged a global conspiracy of silence that

hid the crime from the public glare. It posits that child domestic work is not recognized as a form of child labour in many countries because of the blurred relationship with the employing family, saying, “the child is working, but is not considered as a worker and although the

Ryder child lives in a family setting, she or he is not treated like a family member.” This familial and legal “care vacuum” disguises an “exploitative arrangement”, often characterised by long working hours, lack of personal freedom and sometimes hazardous working conditions. The hidden

nature of their situation makes them difficult to protect. The report calls for improved data collection and statistical tools so that the true extent of the problem can be ascertained. It also presses for governments to ratify and implement ILO Convention 138,

concerning the minimum age for admission to employment and ILO Convention 182, on the worst forms of child labour. However, it stresses that domestic work is an important source of employment, especially for millions of

Continued on Page 29

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

APPOINTMENTS 29

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Finding solution to child labour Continued from Page 27 women. This has been recognised in the landmark ILO Convention 189 concerning decent work for domestic workers which, the report says, should also be promoted as part of the strategy to eliminate child labour in domestic work. Thomas added: “Domestic workers of all ages are increasingly performing a vital task in many economies. We need to ensure a new respect for their rights and to empower domestic workers and their representative organizations. An essential aspect of this new approach involves tackling child labour.” For his part, the ILO Director General, Guy Ryder, described child labour as a fundamental abuse of human rights. He added that child labour denies girls and boys the right to be a child, to access quality education, and to hope for the future. Child labour, in its worst forms it exposes children to slavery, hazardous work and illicit activities, including drug trafficking and prostitution. Ryder observed that while significant progress has been made in reducing the number of child labourers worldwide, 215 million girls and boys remain at work, over half of them in the worst forms of child labour. Child labour is most difficult to tackle when it takes place behind closed doors away from the public eye. This is frequently the case with child labour in domestic work, with children sometimes working far from their families and

communities. ILO estimate shows two out of every three children engaged in domestic work in the home of a third party, are working below the legal minimum age or in hazardous conditions. The majority are girls and some are working as a result of forced labour and trafficking. Stories of abuse are all too common. The ILO Chief stated that on the 2013 edition of the World day against Child labour, the tripartite bodies must make a strong appeal for urgent global action to tackle child labour in domestic work. Ryder said: “In particular we urge ILO member states to ratify and ensure effective implementation of the ILO’s Conventions on child labour and on domestic work. Just two years ago the ILO adopted new standards, Convention No. 189 and Recommendation No. 201, which emphasise that domestic workers, like other workers, have the right to decent work. Convention No. 189 also states that the minimum age for domestic workers should be consistent with the provisions of the ILO’s child labour Conventions. These require that children should not work below the legal minimum age for employment or work and that young workers above the minimum age should be employed in safe conditions.” He further submitted that in addition to preventing child labour, governments should take measures to protect adolescents of legal working age employed in domestic work. This

includes limiting their hours of work, prohibiting night work restricting work that is excessively demanding, and taking measures to ensure effective protection against all forms of abuse, harassment and violence. While on this World Day against Child Labour, the world focuses on the problem of child labour in domestic work, Ryder stated that it must also restate the imperative of addressing the root causes of all forms of child labour. The ILO helmsman stressed the need to ensure that all children had access to a quality basic education and is learning, at least to the minimum age of employment. “We need national social protection floors that enable families, regardless of their circumstances, to send their children to school and to keep them there even in times of hardship. And in today’s world we need to be more focused than ever on creating decent jobs for adults across as many sectors as possible. Our message on this World Day is clear: there is no place and no excuse for child labour in domestic or any other form of work,” he submitted. Meanwhile, addressing the gathering at the International Labour Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, the President of Malawi, Joyce Banda, has pledged her country’s support to intensify efforts against child labour, at time when some 215 million children worldwide are affected by this problem. She said: “I am personally concerned that child labour

remains a huge problem in most developing countries, including Malawi. This is largely due to the high levels of poverty, among other things. It is evident that when families do not have decent employment that gives them an income, the children in such families will be prone to child labour.” President Banda also referred to the key role that decent work can play in helping a country find its way out of poverty and in enhancing its resilience against economic shocks. “Noting the high levels of poverty in my country, I set out a vision for Malawi which is ‘to eradicate poverty through economic growth and wealth creation.’ I want to ensure that Malawi achieves growth that brings meaningful change in the lives of the people,” she said. President Banda also had a special mention for the role of women, calling for societies, “to develop comprehensive strategies to nurture women in the informal and formal labour markets, aim for equal pay for equal work and ensure that the women’s voices are present in the labour union,” Highlighting the importance of social dialogue, President Banda pointed out that when she “inherited a failing economy, one of the first things I did was to initiate dialogue with Malawians and Malawi’s development partners, and through this dialogue we were able to identify very practical solutions to our economic challenges in the immediate, short and medium term.”

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

BUSINESS

Nigeria food import reduce by N857b, says Adesina From Joke Falaju, Abuja GAINST the backdrop of A the N11 trillion spent yearly on food import in the past, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Akinwumi Adesina, has said that food imports have reduced with N857 billion as at 2012, even as the sector now account for 75 per cent of the total non-oil export revenue. Adesina disclosed this while presenting the mid-term report of the ministry at the ongoing ministerial platform organised by the Federal Ministry of

Information. He maintained that the agricultural sector recorded the huge success with an effective collaboration between the Federal Government and the state government. Adesina added that the total contribution in terms of gross economic impact to the economy is N591 billion, while the total net contribution is N174 billion from five value chains five value chains of cassava, Rice, Sorghum, Maize and Cotton in the rural areas . The minister stated that the net economic impact of N174

billion generated by the sector compared to the ministry’s N30 billion budgetary allocation was an impressive performance. This according to him generated a multiplier effect on job creation. “In terms of jobs, our target is to create 3.5 million jobs by 2015, we have created 2.2 million jobs already in 2012 and early 2013 that is 77 per cent of the total target for 2015,” he added. “We are 80 per cent above target that we set for ourselves in the first year, and that is also 45 per cent of the 20 million metric tonnes by

2015, I want to say that I am very proud of every single one of my staff for all the hard work that they have done. I thank every state governor who made this possible, because it is a collaboration between the federal and the state government,” he said. The minister maintained that the sector have added about nine million metric tonnes of domestic food supply, claimed that food importation has reduced drastically. “In the beginning, I told you that we wanted to build 20 million metric tonnes of

food by 2015, that is five million metric tonnes per year, in our first year till date, we have added nine million metric of food in domestic food supply, from the raining season and the dry season, compared to five million that we said we were going to do,” he added. The minister said that the agricultural sector had received a commitment of $8 billion to the existing and planned investment in the country. According to Adesina, the rice revolution in the country led to the total production of high quality 1.1 mil-

Nigeria to lead Deloitte’s expansion strategy in Africa ELOITTE, one of the leading professional servD ices firms in the world, has announced the formation of an integrated practice across Africa,

lion metric tonnes of rice in one season, adding that all the additional rice needed for sufficiency in 2015 was done in one season. “Now what has happened in terms of the economic value, that is how much have we added to the economy from this work , the dry season rice transformation has injected N77 billion in terms of gross economic impact, in terms of the net impact, in terms of the net impact, after you subtracted the costs of seeds, costs of fertiliser, and the labour that went into that, net total contribution is N32 billion,” he

Ernst & Young’s World Entrepreneur award winner emerges HE Founder, President/Chief Executive Officer T of Chobani, a United States of America-based organisation, Hamdi Ulukaya, was recently named the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the year 2013, at an awards ceremony held in Monte Carlo’s Salle des Etoiles. Ulukaya was picked from among the 49 country finalists vying for the title across 47 countries, each of whom had already been named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the year in their home countries. Turkish-born Ulukaya founded Chobani in upstate New York in 2005 and launched Chobani Greek Yogurt two years later. Less than six years after launch it is the best-selling yogurt brand in the U.S., with yearly sales approaching $1 billion. Chobani has 3,000 employees and operates the largest yogurt factory in the world selling its products to Australia and the UK as well as the U.S. Speaking on Ulukaya’s achievement, Ernst & Young’s Regional Managing Partner for West Africa, Henry Egbiki, said: “Hamdi’s success records are uncommon and very inspiring. This is a testimony of true entrepreneurial spirit. It is a well-deserved honour. I believe his achievement will inspire every aspiring entrepreneur across the globe.” The Global Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Ernst & Young, Jim Turley, said: “Over the past 26 years, entrepreneurs have done more than any other group to stimulate innovation, job creation and prosperity during both periods of growth and in more challenging economic conditions. “Hamdi epitomises the vision and determination that set entrepreneurs apart and is very worthy of the title Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the year 2013.” Also, the Chief Executive Officer/Chairman of Genomma Lab Internacional and Chairman of the judging panel, Rodrigo Herrera, said: “Hamdi personifies the entrepreneurial spirit and is a real role model for any aspiring entrepreneur. The judges were impressed by his courage and perseverance.”

with Nigeria playing a strategic role in the new growth process. The establishment of the integrated Deloitte Africa and the dedicated investment in Nigeria by Akintola Williams Deloitte (AWD), will ensure clients are served seamlessly and a demonstration of its commitment to the Nigerian and African market. Deloitte has a presence in 34 countries in Africa and these firms have been clustered into English, French and Portuguese-speaking areas, and also the Middle East aligned firms in Africa, to better facilitate the service delivery to their clients. The legal integration of these firms will move Deloitte into a completely different league, further cementing its market leading position in Africa. Deloitte in Africa is represented by over 350 partners, over 6 000 professional staff and revenues in excess of $ 664 million. The English speaking African practice is managed by a representative board, which will oversee operations across 15 countries in South, West and East Africa, serving the overall interest of its clients. Nigeria and Ghana will be part of the West African cluster. Lwazi Bam, the CEO of Deloitte Africa, asserts that as part of this integration, the firm has designated Nigeria a “priority market,” hence AWD will receive substantial financial investments aimed at enhancing the quality and breadth of services provided to its local and cross border clients. This will leverage off the great depth of expertise already on the continent and across the globe. As part of these expansion plans, AWD announced the formation of a new governance board and the appointment of Olufemi Abegunde as the chairman. Olufemi Abegunde currently leads the firm‘s Oil & Gas practice. Tawanda Gumbo who previously was the CEO of Deloitte Zimbabwe/Malawi and has most recently been the leader of the Consumer Business practice in Nigeria will serve as the Transitional Leader. The current CEO of AWD, Adeniyi Obe, will retire at the end of the month.

Edo attributes decline in oil revenue to wells ceded to neigbouring states He said “it is almost impossible, for instance, for you to rely on Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) on data. “Even if it makes the data available, they may be short by six months, and in one way or the other, they are able to skew it in their favour,” he said. Meanwhile, the state government said it would said. The commissioner also said in spite of being a sanction any mining company, which failed to gas “haven”, Edo had been denied its fair share meet its corporate social responsibility to its host communities in the state. of the oil derivation funds. He claimed that Edo was the biggest source of The Commissioner for Special Duties-Oil and gas to the Nigerian Gas Company, a subsidiary Gas, Mr. Orobosa Omo-Ojo, made government’s of the NNPC, saying: “no other state is as blessed position known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Benin. as Edo in gas deposit. Omo-Ojo said that the ministry had concluded He said that if the authorities did the right thing and the state was allowed to have its legit- plans to tour the state to identify erring companies. imate revenue, “we will be getting twice what He said that the tour of the state would begin in we are currently getting from the derivation Edo North Senatorial district in the next two fund. “This is the biggest challenge that we are hav- week. The commissioner said efforts would be made ing. Our ceded oil wells to Delta and Ondo is impeding economic growth and development to assess projects undertaken by such companies for its host communities. of the state,” he stated.

…. May sanction erring mining firms HE Edo government has attributed the decline fied. T “This is to prevent the oil well from becoming in its oil revenue to the ceding of its oil wells to Ondo and Delta by the Federal Government. contentious with others still in dispute,” he The Commissioner for Special Duties, Oil and Gas, Mr. Orobosa Omo-Ojo, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Benin. Omo-Ojo said that the ceding of its oil wells had continued to deny the state of revenue to boost its economic growth and development. He said that the ceding was “malicious and illegal”, and expressed regrets that no attempt was being made to redress it. The commissioner alleged that an attempt was also made to cede another oil well to Delta but the state government resisted it. “We are, therefore, calling on the boundary commission now to do the right thing so that the demarcation between Ethiope West in Delta and Orhionmwon in Edo can be properly identi-

“If we find out that any of the companies has not deemed it fit to give back to the host community in terms of tangible social responsibility projects we will penalise them. “We are very serious here because these resources are not finishing and the companies need to start giving back to the people and their communities where they operate,” he said. The commissioner said that the state had more than 13 solid minerals deposits in commercial quantity, including Gold, limestone, clay and bitumen. He said the Federal Government was making more revenue from the state’s resources than it generated from haulage and road taxes. “All we are trying to do as a ministry is to ensure that we monitor the operations of these companies alongside maintaining harmonious relationship with the host communities. “This is why we are advocating a review of the law and when Edo is allowed to manage its resources, it will be one of the leading states in terms of accruals from solid minerals,” he said.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

APPOINTMENTS 41

Ondo disbands farmers’ unions From Niyi Bello, Akure OISED to streamline the P activities of farmers’ association and agro-commodity producers, Ondo State government has proscribed existing farmers unions and individual commodity lines. Senior Special Assistant to the state governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, on union matters, Dayo Fadahunsi,

who announced the proscription, said government was setting up an umbrella body to cover all the farmers in the state. The governor’s aide, who spoke at the inauguration of the Technical Committee on Re-Organisation of Farmers in the state, noted with serious concern that the proliferation of farmers associations and groups in the state was counter-productive and

that it constantly results to acrimony and chaos. He said the associations were proscribed so that government could assist the farmers to have a single virile and formidable association that would unify all farmers’ groups for prompt dissemination of ideas, inputs and information on agricultural activities in the state. According to him, “govern-

ment has always taken it upon itself to intervene in the troubled unions and associations in the state. Government has an option of outright proscription or intervention. Nobody is above the law, government will rather deal with one body instead of factions”. The Permanent Secretary in the state Ministry of Agriculture, Kole Ogunsuyi, said the inauguration of a

Accenture’s Head of Product Operating Group, Mrs. Juliet Anammah; MTN HR Executive, Mrs. Amina Oyagbola and Director of MBA Programmes in Lancaster University, Dr. Jonathan Matheny, at the Lancaster Alumni Forum in Lagos.

technical committee to oversee the affairs of farmers in the state was necessary in view of the fact that the agriculture sector was critical to the state. He noted that the state government had committed huge resources to the development of the all-important sector “which, perhaps, is the highest revenue generating of government and the highest employer of labour in the state.” He recalled that that the apex farmers’ organisation in the state was established in 1988 following concerted efforts by the ministry of agriculture to create a common forum for farmers through which they can express themselves and pursue meaningful goal. Ogunsuyi explained that the

five-member technical committee headed by Mrs. Mosun Adesuyi would among other terms of reference, examine the existing farmers associations in the state and determine their suitability to act as the apex body that will strengthen the farm commodities associations. He said the committee will also look into the associations’ disposition to admission of new members and their membership drive adding “The five-member technical committee is considered by government as men of good integrity and who are competent to handle this onerous but surmountable task that will bring an enduring peace and harmony to all farmers organisations in the state.”

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

APPOINTMENTS 43

Court orders hearing notice on lottery commission By Joseph Onyekwere Yunusa of the Jhas USTICE Federal High Court Lagos ordered that hearing notices must be served on the National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) in a case filed by an Etisalat subscriber, Pascal Ozioko, against Etisalat Nigeria over alleged fraudulent promotion. Counsel to the plaintiff, Jude Odom, had joined the NLRC as first defendant in the suit. The suit is compelling Etisalat to publish the names of alleged winners in a lottery in which it seeks to give out monthly Range Rover Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV), and a daily sum of N500,000 to participants. At the resumed hearing of the case, Odom informed the court that the bailiff of the court had mistakenly served hearing notices on Etisalat, instead of NLRC as directed by the court. He said Etisalat Nigeria had already been served hearing notices and so, there was no need for a repeat. He therefore sought for a short adjournment to ensure service on NLRC. Justice Yunusa adjourned the case to today (June 18) for service to be effected on proper defendant. The plaintiff had filed the suit on July 2012, claiming the sum of N100 million against Etisalat, as damages for misleading its subscribers in an

alleged fraudulent lottery. Counsel to Etisalat Mr. Ejike Ikejiuba had challenged the competence of the suit filed by the plaintiff, arguing that “Etisalat” was a non-juristic person, and so, cannot sue or be sued. He had urged the court to strike out the name of the company, since the suit was not instituted in its proper name of incorporation. As a result, the court on December 6, 2012, struck out the name of Etisalat from the suit.

After regularisation, the plaintiff re-instituted the suit on April 10, in the company’s proper name. The plaintiff averred in his statement of claim that in November 2011, he received several SMS from Etisalat, advertising a lottery. He averred: “Etisalat represented to its subscribers that Range Rover were to be won monthly, and a daily cash prize of N500,000, if subscribers answered daily questions sent to them. Each text

was to cost N100 and each correct answer attracted points to the subscriber, to qualify him for the prize”. He said that Etisalat represented that subscribers with the highest points were to win the prizes, adding that he spent almost all his savings sending answers to the questions which eventually earned him 10 million points, to which he received an SMS from Etisalat congratulating him for obtaining the highest point.

Credit firm gets new chairman, independent director RC Credit Bureau C Limited has appointed Mrs. Caroline Anyanwu as new chairman of its board and Mr. Frank Chikezie as independent director. The new chairman is an Executive Director with Diamond Bank Plc. Mrs. Anyanwu, an executive director with Diamond Bank Plc, replaces Victor Etuokwu of Access Bank Plc who had chaired the board for two terms of four years while Chikezie replaces Mr. Sesan Bamisile who retired after serving his maximum tenure of four years as the company’s pioneer independent director. Mrs. Anyanwu has been on

the board of CRC since the formation of the company in 2006 except when she was on special assignment at Finbank Plc. She joined Diamond Bank in 2006 from United Bank for Africa Plc, where she was Head of Credit Risk Management. She had worked in various roles in the bank, including strategic planning, financial control, retail banking, operations and business process re-engineering. As a first class graduate of Statistics, she started her professional career in PricewaterhouseCoopers in 1985 where she qualified as a chartered accountant before moving to banking

in 1988. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and an honorary member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria. Chikezie, Managing Director/CEO of Global Heights Consulting Limited, is a thoroughbred banker, financial management consultant and trainer. He has over 25 years experience during which he worked at ICON Limited, Manny Bank and Fidelity Bank Plc. He has an MBA in Financial Management from the University of Lagos as well as M.Sc. in Economics.

EU chief decries jobless economic growth From Collins Olayinka, Geneva, Switzerland IME for the world to move T away from economic development to the economic paradigm that prioritizes job creation has been indeed come, the European Council President, Herman Van Rompuy, has said. In his address to the on going International Labor Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, Rompuy posited that the ILO has a key role to play in helping to address the challenges that Europe faces. The President of the EC called for immediate measures to help create jobs, boost economic growth and preserve social stability in Europe. “Five years of low growth or no-growth, not to say a recession, have resulted in higher unemployment levels, unprecedented since the eighties. This is affecting the lives of millions and could eventually threaten the social fabric of countries and our Union, and fighting it is our number one political priority today,” said Rompuy. He went further: “Growth and jobs are the ultimate goal of all the reforms..., but reforms take time to bear fruit. So we also need measures with an immediate impact, to help create jobs, to spur economic activity, to preserve social stability and human dignity.”

In his welcoming remarks, ILO Director-General Guy Ryder assured President Van Rompuy that “we are ready to be partners to address the crisis, with an emphasis on decent work, promoting enterprises, good governance, investment and social justice.” Van Rompuy put special emphasis on the issue of youth employment, saying the European Council has redirected considerable amounts of EU funds, which have directly benefited 800,000 young people in the eight most affected countries. He said that all EU countries have signed up to the Youth Guarantee, a commitment that every young man or woman should receive a good offer of employment, education or training within four months of leaving school or becoming unemployed. “Two countries already have it, but it’s a unique achievement to have 27, soon 28, countries commit to this high standard – which I believe is fully in line with the ILO’s philosophy. The time is now for full mobilization to turn that commitment into reality, as quickly as possible. I want EU leaders to focus on it at our next summit at the end of the month,” he stated. He also stressed that need to work with the ILO and its social partners to promote economic job growth.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

APPOINTMENTS 47

Unified Payments appoints new directors O aid efficiency in its servT ice delivery, Unified Payment Services Limited has appointed new directors to handle key services in the firm. Mr. Babatunde Okeniyi is now director, Marketing and Sales and Sina Joseph is director, Information Technology & Operations. According to a statement made available to The Guardian, the firm noted that Okeniyi would bring to his new position, institutional knowledge of Unified Payments, wealth of experience of about two decades and valuable industry contacts. Until his new appointment, Okeniyi was director, IT/Operations in Unified Payments, a position he attained after working as group head, Operations. Prior to becoming a member of the Unified Payments family, he worked in different institutions including Citibank Nigeria and UBA Plc where he was general manager/group chief information officer (CIO). Okeniyi is a fellow, International Academy of Cards & Payments, alumnus of Lagos Business School where he completed his Advance Management

Programme (AMP), Obafemi Awolowo University (B.Sc.) and University of Lagos (MBA). On the other hand, Sina Joseph brings to Unified Payments, a wealth of experience spanning over two decades. “After a fulfilling career in Citi Bank Nigeria, Joseph joined the services of Access Bank where he worked and rose to the position of chief information officer. He subsequently worked in Keystone Bank (formerly Bank PHB) as general manager and head of Information

Technology. “Upon disengagement from Keystone Bank, Joseph enrolled for his General Management Programme (GMP) at the Harvard Business School and completed in May, 2013 before returning to Nigeria to join the services of Unified Payments effective June, 2013,” the statement added. In addition to being an alumnus of Harvard Business School, Joseph is an alumnus of University of Benin where he graduated first class Degree (B. Sc. Hons.) in Industrial Mathematics.

Stakeholders hold investment forum today O address issues relating to Speaking at a press briefing on sectors to bring out new ideas T economic diversification, the modalities of the confer- that will lead to the creation of stakeholders within the finan- ence, the coordinator of the cial sector have concluded plans to hold an international conference to such end. The conference, which commences today in Abuja, would assist stakeholders to examine investment opportunities in the country and diversification in the Nigerian economy. According to the organizers of the event, the forum will help in bringing together stakeholders and draw their attention to Nigeria’s non-oil investment opportunities while addressing the issue of how financial institutions can remain a catalyst for the sustainable growth of the economy.

forum, Ebun Odukoya, noted that the conference, put together by Cowrie Partners alongside Oxford Business Group and the NorwegianAfrican Business Association (NABA), would showcase the areas of investments that can diversify Nigeria’s economy especially given the vast opportunities in the aviation, real estate, agriculture, power and infrastructure development in the country. According to her, “the one day event will encourage prospective investors and financiers to visit Nigeria to meet with the Nigerian public and private

the environment that attracts fresh investments and sustain business”, she said. Among top Nigerian speakers include the former Nigerian Head of State Chief Dr. Ernest Shonekan, former Governor of Cross Rivers State and Partner, Cowrie Partners, Donald Duke, Minister of Trade and Investment Nigeria, Olusegun Aganga, Princess Stella Adaeze Oduah, Hon Minister of Aviation Nigeria, Professor Chinedu Nebo, Hon Minister of Power Nigeria Dr Akinwumi Adesina, Hon Minister of Agriculture & Rural Development Nigeria, among others.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

APPOINTMENTS 53

174 labour disputes resolved in two years, says Wogu From Itunu Ajayi, Abuja S part of measures to A ensure labour friendly work environment, the ministry of labour and productivity in the last two years resolved not less than 174 complaints and disputes between employers of labour and their work force. Presenting the scorecard and mid-term achievement of the Ministry of Labour and Productivity, the Minister, Chukwuemeka Wogu explained that 213 of labour complaints and trade disputes were declared, out of which 174 were resolved through mediation and conciliation. He added that the president himself had to wade into some of the knotty disputes, which were usually resolved after such intervention, with a special reference to the intervention of the president in the minimum wage issue. He, however, added that 25 of such cases that could not be resolved by the ministry got the intervention of the industrial court. Wogu said that unknown to many, conflict occupied a sizeable proportion of what the ministry handles. He said that the ministry had continued to create jobs through National Directorate of Employment which had over the years provided vocational skills acquisition training to

school leavers, provided entrepreneurial training to graduates of tertiary institutions, training for rural employment and the training of workers on the payroll of the government. The minister said that in order for the federal government to be able to measure its progress in tracking the progress recorded in job creation, the ministry had developed an action plan that would demonstrate the commitment of government to making tangible and measurable progress by its continued coordination, monitoring and deal with other matters related to employment. He added that as a way of engaging the unemployed, the ministry provided 4,379 soft loans to set up micro and cottage enterprises, provide temporary jobs for graduates of tertiary institutions, offered 53,925 employment counseling services to the unemployed at job centres and participation of 139,371 candidates in the skill acquisition, vocational, technical and agricultural trades. He, however, called on the private sector to get more involved in the creation of jobs, noting that there’s no part of the world where public sector lead in job creation. The minster noted that stoppage of actualisation and out-sourcing could not

be forced on the private sector, adding that all the government could do was to encourage them to create permanent jobs. Wogu said that government agencies would be compelled to stop actualisation and out-sourcing. To this regard, Wogu said that a landmark achievement had been recorded in the oil sector where those who had been on the casual list of the sector would be given full complement of their retirement benefit as it applies to full-scale workers. Describing the ministry as one of the oldest ministries in the country, Wogu said that the ministry had been able to attain the achievement of its mandate of labour administration by effecting and supervising all the ratified and domesticated International Labor Organisation (ILO) standards, productivity enhancement, promotion of industrial peace and harmony in all sectors to encourage and attract direct foreign investment and public private partnerships in the privatisation processes where deemed necessary. He noted that by the end of June when all necessary arrangement at privatising the power sector must have been put in the right perspective, more jobs would be available for Nigerians.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

BUSINESS 71

Auto stakeholders want govt to remove subsidy on PMS By Taiwo Hassan UTO stakeholders have called on the Federal Government to fully deregulate the downstream sector and remove fuel subsidy on petroleum products being imported into the country. The move, they said, would ensure that importation of quality premium motor spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol. According to them, the current petroleum subsidy regime had led to nefarious activities in the nation’s oil and gas industry, especially in the downstream sector, adding that fuel subsidy beneficiaries still remained the oil marketers who were giving licences to import petroleum products rather than Nigerians. Chairman of Weststar Associates, distributor of Mercedes Benz range of automobiles in the country, Benson Uwatse, who made this disclosure at an industry forum in Lagos recently, said that unless the federal government totally removes fuel subsidy on PMS and allow full deregulation to take place in the sector, there would be continued importation of poor petroleum products into the country., that the fuel consumed in the country did not meet international standard. He also said that poor PMS imported was the reason why the multinational oil companies had failed to participate in fuel importation in Nigeria, since they could not compromise their business. According to him, total removal of petroleum subsidy regime would not only bring ideal competition in the industry, but also allow multinational oil companies’ participation in the downstream sector, which might lead to setting up of standard refineries to compliment the already ones. Uwatse explained that fuel import by the major marketers was halting the nation’s auto industry, pointing out that it was only Nigeria and Zimbabwe that were still using unleaded petrol among 87 countries that had signed the treaty in the 90s. He said that the fuel imported by the major oil marketers had about 98 per cent unleaded petrol, adding that the blended fuel was damaging vehicles in the country especially the new manufactured ones shipped through the gateways. The chairman, however, lamented that vehicle dealers in the country were spending a lot of investments for Nigeria bound vehicles, adding it was due as a result of the blended fuel. “Fuel subsidy is killing us in this country and unless the federal government remove this fuel subsidy and allow full deregulation of the downstream sector to take effect. Because as at now, there is no fuel subsidy, government is only adding monies into the pocket of those oil companies importing petroleum products. These oil companies import poor fuel into the country and this is damaging our economy especially the auto sector, because most of the petroleum products being alleged or claimed to have

been imported are already mixed or blended and this is damaging vehicles. Unless, the Federal Government removes the fuel subsidy regime, we will not see quality fuel in the country and even

the participation of multinational oil companies in fuel importation. As at now, we are spending fortunes for Nigeria bound vehicles because of poor fuel we are using in the country,” Uwatse said.

Managing Director of the company, Mirko Plath said that there was no fuel subsidy regime in the country rather than government was wasting public funds and enriching the pocket of the major oil

companies involve in shipping petroleum products. According to him, most of the automobiles in developed countries consume low fuel emission known as Euro 3, but admitted that because Nigeria was still using blended petrol, so vehicles meant for Nigeria

market came with Euro 5 and this cost more to fixed in the automobiles. He said that any vehicle that travels 2, 000 kilometres journey within Nigeria must be subjected to oil and engine services, because of blockages cause by the blended fuel.

Customs, Heritage Bank seal deal on improved revenue drive By Chijioke Nelson HE Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has appointed Heritage Bank as a designated Customs duty collecting bank, in a move designed to further strengthen the agency’s renewed drive for improved revenue generation for government. The development was sequel to a signed agreement between NCS and the bank on May 20, 2013, in Abuja, for col-

Executive Directors of Enterprise Bank, Audu Kazir (right); and Mrs. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe (second left); two loyal customers of the bank, Chinonso Agbasiere (left); and Chijoke Amamchukwu (second right), during a welcome gathering for the two after an all expense paid return trip to Dubai, in Lagos.

laborative efforts between the institutions to ensure smooth operations in their revenue generation strategy. Heritage Bank, with its recent successful deployment of the world acclaimed Finnacle 10 banking software, it disclosed a strong intention to crystallise a robust branchless banking platform that is highly technology-driven, while promoting business efficiency across many frontiers.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

THE GUARDIAN,Tuesday, June 18, 2013

BUSINESS

Sweden, foreign banks pledge N174b credit facility to local companies By Taiwo Hassan S part of efforts to boost trade and foreign direct investment, the Swedish government, in conjunction with a consortium of international banks, has pledged $1.125 billion (N174.3 billion) credit facility for any local haulage company operating in Nigeria that is interested in buying premium Mack trucks from Lanre Shittu Motors, the authorised dealer in the country. The move was to address the challenges being faced by local haulage companies in accessing funds locally from the banks due to the high interest rate and other contingent modalities associated with the credit facility. The Vice-President, Business Development, Mack Global Brand, Frank Oliveria said that the decision of the Swedish government and the international banks to pledge the credit facility was meant to boost the penetrations of more premium Mack trucks vehicles into the Nigerian market. According to him, the Nigerian auto market was key to the company’s global trading, adding that the company

was only worried about the enormous complaints from local haulage and construction companies about securing credit facility from local banks to get the company’s premium vehicles. He said that the credit facility pledge would go a long way in strengthening both countries bilateral trade relationship, adding that Nigeria and her citizens would benefit more because it would further generate employment opportunities and trade facilitation. “Nigeria is a very important market for Mack trucks, and having new safe, efficient Mack trucks is very important for Nigeria. We now have a solution to the main financing road block that used to hinder customers from purchasing new Mack trucks. “Prohibitively, high interest rates offered by local banks have made it difficult for haulage and construction companies to purchase new premium heavy trucks, many time forcing them to settle for older used models not suitable for the difficult conditions in Nigeria. Mack is changing that,” Oliveria said.

Speaking on the single digit interest rates, the company’s vice-president added that customers interested in purchasing new premium heavy-duty trucks would have access to international financing rates in the single digits. According to him, this gesture was made possible by the use of international banks guaranteed by European and American Export Credit Agencies (ECAs). He said that qualified customers could secure financing of up to 85 per cent of the total purchase price of the new equipment, adding that the other 15 per cent is required as a down payment before the trucks were delivered. Oliveria admitted that perfecting the financing agreement was not easy especially by the two countries, pointing out that Swedish government was committed to further develop the country’s auto industry. He noted that there were huge demands for the brand by customers, but due to lack of credit facility from the local banks, securing the vehicles had not been easy.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

NigeriaCapitalMarket NSE Daily Summary (Equities) as at Monday PRICE LIST OF SYMBOLS TRADED FOR 17/6/2013

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

82 CAPITAL MARKET

NSE Daily Summary (Equities) as at 17/6/2013

LOSERS

PRICE GAINERS

CIS reaffirms stock market capability to finance capital-intensive projects By Helen Oji HE Chartered Institute of T Stockbrokers (CIS) has reaffirmed that the Nigerian capital market is deep enough to provide funds for infrastructure development and other capital-intensive projects in the country. Besides, the institute has urged the companies in the power and housing sector to list on the Nigerian stock market to enable them leverage on the opportunities inherent in the stock market to enhance their businesses. The President of the Institute, Mr. Ariyo Olushekun, while intimating the market community on the arrangements made so far for its forth coming second yearly workshop expressed optimism that the capital market has the capacity to finance any long-term projects in the country. He explained that its second yearly workshop, slated for July 2nd, 2013 at Abuja, would afford the government and key private sectors in the economy the opportunity to brainstorm on issues affecting both the power and housing sector to enable them unlock opportunities in these sectors that would help move the country forward.

“These two sectors are keys to unlocking this economy and we see so many other products that could come from these two sectors, especially in the housing that can create tradeable products for us as stockbrokers on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.” The CIS boss explained that about N3.4 trillion is lying idle with the Pension Funds Administrators, adding that have the mandate and commitment to create products where these funds can be invested. “The Pension Commission (Pencom) told the CIS that N3.4 trillion is lying idle with the PFAs and challenged the stockbrokers to come out with good products where such funds could be invested. So our market has the capacity to finance any project. Transcorp is already in the market and raising money from the market, so aresome other companies raising funds through the private placement because they do not want to expand their shareholdings.’’ The Chairman of the CIS 2nd National Workshop Committee, Mr. Albert Okumagba, who was represented by Mr. Bisi Oni, a technical committee member of the workshop, explained that the workshop will help in

addressing issues on power and housing and also unlock the economy. “The minister of power has agreed to preside over the breakfast meeting, while chairmen of the sessions on the theme ‘The new Nigerian Power Market-Opportunities in the Emerging Scenarios’

are Dr. Oba Otudeko, Chairman, Honeywell Group and Tony Elumelu, Chairman, Heirs Holdings Limited. “ Other dignitaries expected to grace the occasion include, Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Ositadinma Nebo, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for

the Economy, Dr. (Mrs.) Ngozi Okonj-Iweala, Minister of Land , Housing & Urban Development, Ms. Amal Pepple , Dr. Sam Amadi, Chairman/CEO, Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) among others. The special guests for the

occasion, according to him includes: Vice President of Nigeria, Arc. Namadi Sambo, Senator David Mark, Governors of 10 states, Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange among other dignitaries.

Chairman, Africa Finance Corporation, Adebayo Ogunlesi (left); President/Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Alli; Executive Director/General Counsel, Dr. Adesegun Akin-Olugbade, at the fifth yearly general meeting of the company, in Lagos.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Opinion Imo, Okorocha and 2015 By Luke Onyekakeyah WO developments in the country’s political T arena have raised apprehension about what the future holds for Imo State, especially from 2015, should the Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, decides to take a plunge to the unknown that would create a serious vacuum and truncate the on-going educational and infrastructural projects of the government. First is the unending crisis in the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), which has polarised the party and demoralised many of its faithful from the top to the grassroots. The APGA crisis, which erupted shortly after the demise of its spiritual leader and presidential candidate, Dim Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu, Ikemba Nnewi, in November, 2011 has festered for too long and has taken a toll on the party. The uncertainty hanging over APGA as a result of the lingering crisis could force some people to seek alternative platform to realise their political aspirations. It was the great Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe who said that in politics, there is no permanent friend or permanent enemy but permanent interest. I don’t know why some APGA stalwarts appeared to have decided to make permanent enemies in a political enterprise. Second is the emergence of the yet-to-be registered All Progressive Alliance (APC), an alliance of major opposition parties including Congress for Political Change (CPC), Action Congress of Nigeria (CAN) and All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), which could upset political calculations in the next general elections. The frustration of Nigerians with the established political system since 1999 when the current political dispensation began has fueled the desire for a change. The ordinary people want to reap the dividends of democratisation. Whichever way this change comes is okay by the people. Several governors, particularly in the opposition have since identified with the APC. Imo State Governor, Okorocha, though elected on the platform of APGA, has not hidden his interest in the new association. But the governor has neither declared for the new association nor relinquished his membership of APGA. Whatever anyone may say at the moment is mere specu-

lation. The instability in APGA is to blame should any of its members decides to quit. Based on the foregoing, Imo people are concerned about what would become of the state and its pro-people projects should the governor take a bow. There are insinuations that the governor is leaving APGA for APC probably because of his recent appearances in the fold of the new association. But as I said earlier, there is no basis for that so long as the governor has not made any categorical statement on the issue. But there is yet another insinuation that Governor Okorocha should contest for president in 2015. Governor Okorocha was recently told by two delegations of leaders of thought from Enugu and Ebonyi states led by Gen. Joseph Okoloagu and Chief Ben Nwaobasi respectively, to “make himself available for the presidential election in 2015”. The groups reportedly said, “after a thorough scrutiny of the records of prominent Igbo politicians, none has the credentials that match Okorocha’s, to lead Nigeria of today. The group visited the governor at the Government House in Owerri. To start with, the question of Okorocha leaving APGA for another party, for me, may be likely if the centre can no longer hold in the party. As a matter of fact, the need may be warranted except APGA stems the unending political feud; see reason to bury the hatchet and reconcile. Even at that, the damage done to the party’s image is enormous and will require supra normal and selfless commitment to rebuild. No sensible person will remain under a roof that is shaky and be comfortable. The wise thing is to seek refuge elsewhere. Some may ask why Governor Okorocha cannot do something to help resolve the crisis in the party that brought him to power. I don’t know what effort he may have put to reconcile the aggrieved parties without success. The courts have not been able to settle the matter either. The latest move by Chief Ralph Uwazurike is a welcome development if the gladiators would listen. The only way to resolve the APGA crisis is for the aggrieved individuals to personally decide to end it. In this regard, Chief Victor Umeh, Maxi Okwu, Governor Peter Obi, Alhaji Sigir Maidoya, among other party leaders, must personally make up their minds to end the crisis and revamp the party. Except this is done, especially in the run up

to the Anambra State governorship election coming up next year (about seven months from now), the party may have no chance of winning the election. That will be sad. Regarding Okorocha’s romance with APC, again, this might not be unconnected with the crisis rocking APGA. Early in his tenure, I had written in this column cautioning the governor to shun any move by anybody to lure him to leave APGA and join the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). That was after a high-powered delegation of PDP led by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Emeka Ihedioha, paid him a courtesy visit no sooner than he was sworn in as governor. I had reminded him of the costly mistake made by his predecessor, Ikedi Ohakim, who joined the PDP in the second year of his tenure. That, among other issues, cost him his re-election bid. My assumption then was that APGA was going to remain strong and formidable. But in-fighting within the party is dealing a deadly blow on whatever the party stands for, thereby, making fresh permutations imperative. It is on that ground that Okorocha should be pardoned for making any moves. What I am not comfortable with is the call for Okorocha to abandon his job in Imo State to vie for president in 2015. This, absolutely, is a wrongheaded advice and a worst form of political gimmickry. The truth is that Okorocha has initiated major development projects that are of critical importance to the Imo people. The education revolution and the infrastructural projects are badly needed by the people. The governor cannot afford to abandon these laudable projects for anything else. Being a governor and addressing the needs of the people at the grassroots is more important and beneficial than seeking selfish lofty position at the top. The people won’t benefit much. Imo people will lose should the governor abandon the projects he has at hand. The free education programme would likely be abolished while the infrastructural projects will be abandoned. Going by our historical experience in this country, I don’t know what those who have been president in the past did particularly for their state. The only thing the people gained was the applause, which quickly fades away as soon as the one is out of office. The applause doesn’t put food on their table nor give their children free education.

Again, historically, it is leaders at the state or regional level that made lasting impression. In the First Republic, it was the premiers of the regions that brought development and endeared themselves to their people. Examples include Dr. Michael Okpara’s, Dr. Akanu Ibiam, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Chief S. l. Akintola, Sir Ahmadu Bello, among others. During the Second Republic, Chief Sam Mbakwe recorded remarkable progress in Imo State, which endeared himself to the people. At present, Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State, Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State and Rotimi Amechi of Rivers State, among a few others, have left indelible mark. Governor Okorocha would do well by continuing on his chosen projects instead of abandoning them halfway. There have been conflicting arguments in the newspapers about Okorocha’s performance in Imo State. While some claim that the governor is not doing well, majority of opinion hold that he is indeed on the right track. My interviews with some Imo people to seek their impression about Okorocha’s performance are revealing. There is a general acclaim that the governor is doing well, giving him a pass mark. He should improve on this. Some say the governor is carrying too many things at the same time. My reaction is that there is nothing wrong with that. I reminded my respondents that that was how Governor Sam Mbakwe did it. Mbakwe embarked on the Imo Concorde Hotel, Imo Airport, Wetheral Road, one cottage industry in each of the 27 local governments of the old Imo State and rural access roads all at the same time and recorded huge success. Some respondents talked about the free education programme – the free books, uniform, etc, as well as the massive roads development of Okorocha administration. Many acknowledged that many schools have received the materials, particularly those in the urban centres. All these would likely be suspended if the governor leaves. Governor Okorocha should strive to deliver dividends to the people. Once he makes his mark, the people will still vote for him. But what he shouldn’t do is to contemplate leaving and abandoning his projects in 2015 for something else.

Appraising Osun’s new tablet of knowledge By Pelumi Alawode It is only when the minds of men have been properly and rigorously cultivated and garnished, that they can be safely entrusted with public affairs with a certainty and assuredness that they will make the best of their unique opportunity and assignment. – Chief Obafemi Awolowo. NYONE who conscientiously observes the policy initiatives of A the current administration in the State of Osun since inception may not be hard-pressed to aver that it is increasingly working its fingers to the bone in order to make the effects of governance felt in all households in the state. Through many of its “O’projects”, the Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola administration is unusually raising the bar of governance. Indeed, here is a governor who with uncommon hardihood and ideas is making life more meaningful for the generality of Osun citizens. What I personally find incredible is that in less than three years of assuming office, this O’Governor (as some people warmheartedly brand him) has initiated a highly comprehensive reform that the Philistinic and rapacious PDP administration deemed impossible in the education sector of the state for an unbelievably uninterrupted seven years! In various aspects of the education sector of Osun today is striking evidence of how structured thinking and judicious use of resources can make a huge invaluable difference in the life of a people. Certainly, as clearly stated in the epigraph to this piece, only rigorously cultivated and garnished minds can make the best of the opportunity availed them to serve the public. One of those beneficial projects Governor Aregbesola’s government will be forever remembered for is the newly launched computer tablet, an I-pad-like learning device christened Opon Imo. It was reported that about 150,000 units of the device would be given free of charge to both students and teachers in the state’s public schools – 20,000 for teachers and 130,000 for students in the high schools. With the introduction of this learning device, there is no doubt that the lacuna between teaching and learning,

and access to requisite materials will be greatly reduced. It is noteworthy that the tablet of knowledge is preloaded with different tutorial notes, past questions, and textbooks on 17 subjects that students register for in the West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE), the National Examination Council (NECO), and the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). This is a potent elixir for students; they will be motivated to really settle down for business, as the tuneless music of lack and dearth of necessary learning materials would have been taken care of. Experience has shown that where students are availed of the required learning materials their capacity to excel is greatly enhanced. I am confident that the use of this device will greatly increase the capacity of our students for remarkable performances in their studies. Also, with this Opon Imo, it is certain that public schools in the state will no longer produce students who are happily alien to the use of computer, which every young adult in current time can only neglect to their own disadvantage. For the government, parents, and teachers, it is all the way a winwin situation. In other words, while government saves money from buying textbooks (each computer tablet has about 65 textbooks), the teachers as well will no longer be tortured with teaching students who know nothing about the unsullied joy of possessing textbooks. Let me observe here that those who whoop and whine about the substantial billions of naira that the government will save from not having to buy textbooks because students can now access them on the tablets are only being mischievous. Only asinine kind of opposition politics would inspire anyone to condemn and howl negatively against a prudent government, which has even demonstrated in more ways than one that it is committed to allocating resources across the various sectors of the State astutely. I think it is a sensible and laudable move for the Aregbesola government to even recognise in the first place that it can make savings from the huge investment it is making in the education sector. What is more, even parents, especially those with financial challenges, now have their burdens significantly crashed as they may not have to worry about how to buy textbooks for their children. Whether the nagging nabobs of notorious negativities in Osun find it palatable or not, the different households in the state are firmly convinced that they have a

government which adds lasting values to their lives. The Opon Imo device is also said to contain six extra-curricular subjects – Sexuality Education, Entrepreneurship, Yoruba Proverbs, Civic Education, Yoruba History and the Yoruba Traditional Religion. This is a welcome development, as it will go a long way in equipping the minds of the students with knowledge in other useful areas other than their school subjects. The fact that the students may not be examined on these areas suggests to me that the government is directly awakening the consciousness of the students to the inexorable need for them to stuff their minds with knowledge not purposely for the sake of examination. Their capacity for dialectical thinking will be developed and they will not suffer from the malaise of insular and shallow thinking mostly favoured by charlatans and pedestrian souls. Surely, as they furnish their minds with the knowledge from those diverse subjects, they will know something about everything and everything about something. That is how to produce sound and round students. Precisely, the aspect on Yoruba history, traditional religion, and proverbs are part of the effective ways of imbuing these students with the understanding of their culture. Surely, with its manifold brilliant and remarkable initiatives in the various sectors of the State of Osun, especially the education sector, the Aregbesola government is not unmindful of the tested and true view that the extent to which a government accords attention to its educational system will determine the level of the socio-economic development of the state or country, after all it has been proven again and again that there is a direct relationship between education and development. As the computer tablet affirms, the State Government of Osun knows what is at stake if it does not modernise its learning system. I can only cheer parents, teachers, and other stakeholders to help in ensuring that the students make valuable use of the device. The government must also continue to deepen this ICT-compliant learning system, even as it allows the worrywarts to keep clutching their permanent crutches of baseless bellyaches. • Alawode, a retired secondary school teacher, lives in Ile-Ife, Osun State.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Opinion Accountability impediment to good governance (2) By Emeka Ejikonye Continued from yesterday HE accounting activity involves the evaluation T of reports on both the efficiency and effectiveness of resources deployed in pursuit of an objective and thrives on an audit apparatus superimposed on the administrative reporting relationships to guarantee reliability and the rendering of perfect reports. The auditing goes beyond mere attestation to the reliability of the report to incorporate performance evaluation of the individual rendering it. That is, ‘public accountability’ is not just about the rendering of account but assurance that the account so rendered is reliable and not just about performance evaluation but assurance that the report on such performance aligns with the administrative standard laid down by the government. So expanded is the procedure that the auditor becomes more an arbiter helping to determine appropriate criteria for evaluating administrative performance. Therefore, ‘public accountability’ is simply ‘administrative performance auditing’, which means, “the examination and analysis of an agency’s method of operation to guarantee strict adherence to the set standard”. Focus is on the ‘faithfulness’, ‘efficiency’ and ‘effectiveness’ of the public service delivery venture. Thus, the first seeks strict adherence to administrative due process, the second aims at actualising the public policy objective at the minimum cost and maximum benefit for every kobo spent while the third focuses on broad accomplishment of the policy objective. To this extent, ‘public accountability’ is quite different from ‘fiscal accountability’, on which federal governments of Nigeria fixate. Focused strictly on the examination and certification of the financial statements of the agency, the latter does not cover the many elements of the former. ‘Public accountability’ involves much more than the analysis of the financial records to embrace the review of the entire operational environment. The non-financial aspects of this more sophisticated accounting procedure include such features as evaluation of the decision-making and communication

processes, techniques of staff development, motivation and establishment of job requirements, organisational structure, personnel and physical facilities, and methods of control and feedback. These are analysed in terms of operational faithfulness, efficiency and effectiveness with a view to prescribe solutions where there are deviations. This way, the accounting apparatus traces public resources to public ends by relating the actual operation of the agency to laid-down performance standards through query of the propriety of its activities in relation to the social dynamics of its mission. The query covers the whole operational spectrum and, in all cases, speaks an administrative language. The added scope involves in-depth familiarity with such decision-making tools as ‘independent-mindedness’, ‘initiative’, ‘inquisitiveness’ and ‘imagination’. Management terms like ‘control’, ‘propriety of conduct’, ‘deviation’ and ‘adequacy of standards’, ‘organisational structure’, ‘forecasting’, ‘efficiency’ and ‘effectiveness’ are common to the task. It involves observations, discussions with management and staff, review of financial and non-financial records, analysis of variations between the actual operation and the specified performance standard, and the maintaining of a questioning attitude as to why the agency officials conduct its operations the way they do. In real, practical, terms, the existence of public accountability in governance hinges on the operation of two basic factors. First is strong administrative control of the bureaucracy by the executive to make government agencies representative of the diverse interests in the society. Second is the assertive participation of a representative legislature in the governance especially the extent to which legislators control the discretion of the President in public revenue and expenditure practices. Herein, emphasis is on such features as the constitutional power of the parliament to oversight the executive, existence of suitable machinery for providing the legislators with access to information or sanction, and their honesty, good faith and adoption of a guardianship role as against unbridled pursuit of selfish-interest. Zooming in to the specific case of federal governance in Nigeria, from the first perspective of

the executive arm, the decisional choices are quite clear. For ‘public accountability’ to be firmly established into the administrative system, the President, in his/her capacity as the only elected chief executive officer, must take personal responsibility for decisions on two critical issues. First, who between the Honourable Minister and Permanent Secretary should pilot the affairs of ministerial administration? His/her answer to this query is inevitable; it is a sine qua non. There can only be one chief executive officer, who must double as the chief accounting officer, in every organization; the Nigerian situation cannot be different. The choice is between the Office of the Honourable Minister and the office of the Permanent Secretary; one of the two must be liquidated and the other retained if we must make real progress towards national development. Thence, the retained office is empowered with an administrative-performance-auditing device for linking the occupant to the field operational level via coherent and systematic monitoring and evaluation of the service delivery process. Second, the Office of Minister of State must operate strictly as second-incommand to the retained chief-executive-cum-chief-accounting office. The occupant must no longer be a Cabinet-rank official (that is, he/she must cease to attend meetings of the Federal Executive Council (FEC)). The prevailing arrangement fosters a lot of unhealthy rivalry that is inimical and debilitating to the public service delivery venture. It suffices that these two decisional choices are inevitable if public accountability must thrive to propel the executive apparatus of federal governance in Nigeria. Today, providence has put Dr. Goodluck Jonathan in his present capacity as the occupant of the exalted Office of the President, in the best position to latch onto and exploit this rare opportunity in the annals of the evolutionary history of federal governance in Nigeria. If he does not take due advantage of the divine opportunity provided throughout the duration of his tenure, God will surely anoint some other Nigerian in the future with the Grace for this inevitability; for our survival as a corporate entity depends on it. It is an issue of the free-will. May God grant him the critical Grace for grasping the essence!

From the other perspective of the legislature, the onus for establishing ‘public accountability’ into the administrative system of federal governance in Nigeria resides pointedly with the leadership of the National Assembly. Strengthening of the capacity of the federal legislators to control the President’s discretion in revenue and expenditure practices hinges squarely on the skills, steadfast resolve and strong will of the Principal Officers in both Chambers to bring about the long overdue assertion of the Parliament vis-à-vis the Presidency in the Nigerian federal governance. Certainly, the prevailing scenario of total lack of statutory provisions for independent National Assembly procurement and review of information on the deposits and withdrawals of public funds is responsible for the scenario wherein the executive exerts full discretionary authority in government fiscal matters. The inevitable conclusion from this exposé is that the pervasive corruption, fiscal indiscipline, absence of statistical data, and wrong deployment and underutilization of skilled workforce bedevilling the Nigeria federal governance are mere symptoms of the root impediment to the under-performance of successive Nigerian federal governments in public service delivery; that is, the absence of ‘public accountability’ in the governance. In other words, the firm establishment of the twin tenets of ‘public accountability’ into the administrative system of federal governance in Nigeria will loosen the vice-grip and, eventually, eliminate these unethical tendencies riding roughshod over the polity. Surely, critical for achieving this noble objective, in the prevailing scenario of huge discretionary authority and little operation-control, is the creation of an institutional structure that cuts back on the ‘discretionary authority’ and enhances the ‘operation-control’ by strengthening the monitoring and evaluation of the public service delivery process. The second commentary in this series entitled, “Public Accountability of Public Budgeting” (The Guardian, Monday, November 12, 2012, and Tuesday, November 13, 2012), has vividly revealed that this is one of the cardinal functions of government budgetary practice. • Concluded. • Ejikonye wrote from Federal University Wukari.

Transforming education sector in Abia By Mercy Ozuobi DUCATION is obviously the most powerful weapon that can be E used to change the world, says the great freedom fighter and legend Dr. Nelson Mandela. But how far have we as a people and a nation strived to promote quality and affordable education as a means of changing our great country Nigeria for better. Before now, Nigeria education system is ranked among the best in the continent of Africa. Then there were few schools mostly public, and government at all levels lived up to expectation in funding and promotion of good and qualitative education. The country was good for it and a lot of Nigerians benefitted from it. But since the policy of private ownership of schools came into existence, the rat race for proliferation of schools becomes the order of the day, not for affordable and sound education, but purely for commercial purposes. Beneficiaries of public schools, who are in position of authority today loot public treasury at ease, refuse to fund public schools, and at the same time use the looted funds to establish their own private schools using their stooges as proxies to run them. In the face of all these, the education sector has continued to dwindle unabated with shocking performance year in, year out. That is where we are today as a country. But despite all these, the present government in Abia State has taken the bull by the horn in addressing the age-long rots and challenges that have bedevilled the education sector in the state. Before the present government in the state came into office, the state of educational infrastructures, condition of service for workers and learning environment for students in all the state owned schools were pathetic and appalling. The governor, Chief Theodore Orji, who is also a product and beneficiary of public schools leaves no one in doubt of his government’s commitment to see that education is prioritized. That is why on coming on board in 2007, the government increased the monthly subvention of all the tertiary institutions in the state. The State Scholarship Board that has been moribund was reactivated. With the reactivation of the Scholarship Board, the regular bursary disbursements to indigent Abia students was resurrected and beneficiaries have continued to enjoy it till date. The Board has also reactivated the Overseas Scholarship Scheme through which it has granted bursaries to over 40 students of Abia State origin studying in the United States of America, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Asia.

Not resting on his oars in providing education for the children of the state, the governor has instituted a private scholarship scheme known as Ochendo Scholarship Scheme, which took off with 25 undergraduates in various disciplines within the country as beneficiaries. The project, which is strictly private has the respected Catholic Bishop of Umuahia, Most Rev. Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji as Board Chairman. One of the beneficiaries of the Scheme, Mr. Solomon Odochi Chibuzo of the department of Animal and Environmental Biology Abia State University Uturu, emerged the overall best graduating student of the university during her last convocation with CGPA 4.8. He was rewarded with automatic employment by the university authority. That is how the poor boy through Ochendo Scholarship Scheme became empowered. The government has also increased the fleet of buses in its FreeSchool-Bus Scheme for students in secondary and primary schools and had also repackaged the scheme to ensure effective and efficient service delivery. Teachers’ salaries and allowances are being paid regularly and as at when due. The same goes with their promotions and entitlements that accompany it which hitherto were stunted by past government. That is why as teachers were on strike in some states now over the non-payment of 27.5 per cent “teachers peculiar allowance” by their state governments, teachers in Abia State are doing their work happily and wholeheartedly. Besides, all the state owned tertiary institutions have remained citadels of academic excellence with full accreditation and excellent student performances. Similarly, approximately N2 billion has been expended in massive renovation works in primary and secondary schools to ensure their suitability for learning with the project spread across the three senatorial zones in Abia State. Recently, foundation was laid for the construction of modern schools in three senatorial zones of the state. The state government had released the sum of N5.4 billion to the management of the state university, ABSU to tackle infrastructure projects in the school. The government had also restored peace and harmony between the university and its host community, complete liquidation of the arrears of six-month salaries of staff, which gulped a whopping sum of N960,000,000. The government had also redeemed her promise to implement the 2009 FGN/University Staff union’s package in the university from January 2011 which cost the government an additional N528,000,000. Before now, the University Surgery and Medicine programme was facing the threat of de-accreditation by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, the government had rescued the university by

providing all the requirements for the full accreditation of the programme. The governor approved and awarded contracts for two major projects for the school, namely Medical Complex and an Auditorium for Abia State University Teaching Hospital located in Aba. The projects are going on rapidly. These interventions in the educational sector has already started bearing fruits as can be seen from the plethora of laurels and awards garnered by the state at various national and zonal competitions. Obviously in the face of the giant stride made in the sector by the present government in Abia State, there are still some daunting challenges confronting the education sector in the state just as it confronts the sector nationally today. But with the successes recorded in the sector in the state so far within the short time, it is convincing that if the successive governments in the state in the past had toed the path of the present government in addressing the rots in the sector, the situation would have improved more than what we are witnessing today. The neglect the sector suffered during the past administrations in the state was largely responsible for the mess in the sector, which the present government is gradually cleaning with the meagre resources at her disposal. In those days, there are no classrooms and desks for pupils and students to use for learning. Due to lack of conducive offices for teachers, they mostly operate from their homes and visit the schools at their convenient times, hang around and go home. In the commercial city of Aba, most teachers were also engaging in trading to the detriment of their professional job. They were alternating their trading activities and teaching job, thereby impacting wrong knowledge on the hapless students. Classrooms and school buildings were more than dilapidated and students and pupils normally stay under the trees to learn. Year in, year out, budgetary allocation for the sector ends in the figure bandied by government and nothing more. But the situation is quite different today as the sector is witnessing a drastic and rapid transformation that must be sustained and consolidated by incoming governments in the state. Due to the enormity of challenges confronting the government in the state in other sectors, which is being attended to at the same time, it may not conclude all her programmes in the education sector before 2015. So, there is urgent need for continuity in the ongoing transformation of the sector for a better tomorrow for the state, her citizenry and the country at large. • Ozuobi (Mrs.), a teacher wrote from Umuahia, Abia State.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Law

Quote of the week Order derived through submission and maintained by terror is not much of a safe guaranty; yet that is the only “order” that governments have ever maintained. True social harmony grows naturally out of solidarity of interests. In a society where those who always work never have anything, while those who never work enjoy everything, solidarity of interests is non-existent; hence social harmony is but a myth.... Thus the entire arsenal of governments - laws, police, soldiers, the courts, legislatures, prisons - is strenuously engaged in “harmonizing” the most antagonistic elements in society. —~Emma Goldman, Anarchism judicialeditor@yahoo.co.uk/ 08033151041 Desk Head: Ibe Uwaleke

‘Immunity for president, governors sacrosanct in a democracy’ Interview From Adamu Abuh, Abuja

An Abuja-based senior lawyer and erstwhile Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Chuka Odom has been monitoring the on-going process by the National Assembly to amend the Constitution with keen interest. From his observation, he wants members of the hallowed chambers to take a second look at the Land Use Act in the interest of Nigerians. He also believes that it will be wrong to strip the President, his vice and the 36 governors and their deputies of immunity from criminal prosecution while in office. Above all, he is also urging the National Assembly not to forget to create one more state in the South East to make for equity and fairness. According to him, Nigerians stand to reap immense socio-political and economic benefits in the whole process, if the Constitution is amended in the overall interest of the different groups of the country. E set the tone by saying: “I believe that H some areas of our constitution need to be amended. I will give you a few areas that an amendment would add value to our economic growth and political stability. It is virtually a consensus based on verifiable empirical data that land title is, especially in a developing economy key to middle class growth and participation in the economy. Most successful developing economics have deployed this simple but effective tool to grow their economy and in turn witnessed quantum leap in their Gross Domestic Product (GDP). “When I served as Minister of State for Housing, I identified this need as a critical

Chief Odom

key factor to unleashing the latent asset trapped in over 90 per cent of the entire land mass in the country. I embarked on advocacy tours to states to seek the buy-in of state governors to consent to the amendment of the Land Use Act. The requirement of governor’s consent to commercial transactions wherever land is used as collateral is killing this economy and increasing the cost of doing business. It is driving away investors in droves. I could not conclude the process before I moved to the FCT. “However, my point is that an amendment of the relevant sections of the Constitution to remove the double entrenchment of the Land Use Act, would pave the way for

a holistic review and amendment of the Land Use Act to bring it in conformity with current realities and best practices. This document was a product of military mentality and command economy that is outdated. Such a vital document that regulates the entire land asset of a country as huge as Nigeria should not have been left in the archives for nearly 40 years. It betrays the lack of vision of successive governments as to the right approach to grow this economy.” Further listing the inherent benefits that would accrue to Nigerians if the land use Act is amended, he said: “In my view the most pressing issues in Nigeria today are insecurity, collapse of basic infrastructure and utilities, weak public institutions that create a conducive environment for corruption and poor economic governance. In spite of the indices of growth, majority of Nigerians live in abject poverty. And the sad part is that, there is no end in sight. These are the issues that should engage the minds and brains of policy makers in authority. These statistics of growth defies the situation on ground. Improvement in the lives of ordinary folks is the real index growth. The manager of the economy should focus on them rather than on statistics”. dom maintained that it is needless creating additional states because virtually all existing 36 states could hardly cope on their own without relying on monies from the federation account. His words: “This current effort at creating more states when the existing ones are not economically viable is taking politics to an absurd height. Even the proponents know that the proposed states would not be viable. Their major motivation is to create new fiefdoms to govern and log into the monthly sharing from the Federation account. Do you know that there are very few states in Nigeria that can survive for 90 (days) if they do not receive statutory allocation from oil revenue.” “I think it is about time that the political elite begin to think of our corporate survival as a country rather than pander to their selfish desires to continue to be “relevant”. They should spare a thought for the 160 million “irrelevant” Nigerians they profess to serve.” Nevertheless, he said, it would be fair and politically expedient to create one additional state in the south East Zone to bring it into parity with the other five geopolitical zones in the country. He said it would not only be fair and desirable, but that it would soothe the frayed nerves of the Igbos, who had “ long been marginalised in the entity called Nigeria.” On the proposal to strip the President, Vice President, and Governors and their deputies of the immunity from criminal prosecution, he opposed the idea, arguing that the objective would be defeated at the end of the day. He said: “The protection from criminal prosecution otherwise known as immunity from prosecution is granted to the President, Vice President, governors and deputy governors by the constitution. “It is codification of the common law practice of shielding certain categories of executive persons from frivo-

lous and vexatious litigations by political opponents. The idea is to stop undue distraction of these public office holders while discharging their statutory functions. It is not intended to place them above the law or above their fellow citizens. “In all common law jurisdictions if an office holder is indicted for any offence bordering on crime, such an office holder is forced by public opprobrium to quit or is impeached. Consequently, the person is arrested and prosecuted. “In Nigeria, it is an abused privilege and it has become a shield for all sorts of misconduct on those enjoying the immunity. However, it would be unproductive and would serve no useful purpose to remove it. The argument is that it’s removal will discourage graft since the office holder could be liable to be arrested while in office and even jailed. It is not difficult to see that this will result in, unimaginable confusion given our tendency to manipulate every good intention of the law. “Now let’s look at former executive office holders who had been charged or indicted with crimes bordering on stealing and graft. How many of them have been successfully prosecuted and jailed? How many of them have not successfully manipulated the judicial process and continue to walk the streets free? So, if you cannot prosecute those who had left office and are not protected by any immunity, how are you going to prosecute an incumbent without immunity? What would happen is that these people are going to deploy public funds to defend themselves and it would be a bazaar for lawyers. “ It would also lead to an abuse of court process because people would instigate litigations for the purposes of being settled. The whole country will be one huge courtroom and nobody can predict the ensuring confusion. On the emergency rule declared in some parts of the North, the former Minister said: “Politics apart, the President has a constitutional duty to protect the territorial sovereignty of the country. This sacred duty overrides every consideration and to that extent the declaration of a state of emergency in the three northern states is appropriate if it is the only way to secure the territorial integrity of those parts of the country”. He expressed support for the declaration of emergency rule in the troubled states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, saying it was in the best interest of the citizenry. “There is a lot of information the President is privy to which is not in the public domain, so to that extent, people should be slow to criticize him on leaving the governors in their posts for now. It is a constitutional matter and the declaration is the first step. “The concern should be what impact the declaration would have on the on-going efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the crisis. Our recent experience shows that the use of force achieves limited success. In the end rehabilitation and reintegration of these people is the only route to a permanent solution. That may be why the President did not go for all out emergency rule so as to leave the Governors to continue to work with the Amnesty Committee to achieve a permanent solution. “We should support the President as this is akin to a war situation and give him time to implement his plans to return peace to the troubled parts of the country. We should not forget human rights issues associated with war situations. The President may also have considered all these and felt that leaving democratic structures in place would help safeguard the safety and rights of many innocent people that may be caught in the crossfire.”

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

86 LAW

LawPeople

Achievement of your happiness is the only moral purpose of your life, and that happiness, not pain or mindless self-indulgence, is the proof of your moral integrity, since it is the proof and the result of your loyalty to the achievement of your values. —Ayn Rand

Profile By Bertram Nwannekanma

VERCOMING the barriers to O quick dispensation of Justice in Nigeria has become a major issue in the nation. Therefore, any effort geared towards tackling delays in the nation’s justice delivery system is seen by stakeholders as a step in the right direction, especially when it tacitly acquiesces with the maxim that “justice delayed is justice denied.” It is, therefore, in this regard that Mark Ibekwe’s advocacy of peaceful resolution of cases outside the court system readily comes handy. Though, the Lagos-based lawyer may not be in the category of such heavyweight arbitrators such as Afe Babalola and Bayo Ojo, however, Ibekwe’s works and philosophy, which centre on peaceful out-ofcourt resolution of disputes, have no doubt become apposite in tackling court congestions. This is so because the component of this philosophy encompasses alternative dispute resolution mechanism, which is seen by many as being key towards addressing delays in adjudication of cases in Nigeria. Ibekwe’s belief is that cases should be subjected to cost-benefit analysis before they are filed in court. Cost of litigation includes time, financial resources, stress, bitterness and acrimony between the parties. If the benefit to be gained does not justify the cost, then the parties should amicably settle the dispute. This economic consideration will not only help to decongest our courts but ensure quicker dispensation of cases as well as engendering harmony among feuding parties. Incidentally, Ibekwe’s interest in law came from his mentor and maternal uncle, the late Chief Felix Onyeahasi, who qualified as a lawyer in the early 60s. Then, he made up his mind not just to read law but to evolve a mechanism that would ensure that warring factions did not only resolve their disputes but become friends again after. As a young boy, he watched people throng to his uncle for legal solutions, which he dispensed speedily through mediation and dreamt of becoming a lawyer. “As a little boy, I saw my uncle adjudicating in all manner of disputes in his chambers. I also admired his candor in his handling of the matter and the respect the profession brought to him”. The revered lawyer do not only believe that mechanism should be devised to reduce the number of cases in court, he is also advocating for the appointment of more magistrates and judges in our courts. According to him, litigation as a means of conflict resolution is now ineffective and inefficient because of delay in our justice delivery system. Given the fact that litigation is now ineffective and inefficient, Ibekwe is advocating out of court peaceful resolution of disputes through dialogue in order to engender social harmony. A highly cerebral person, who has written several published articles, Ibekwe wants lawyers to consider and explore other alternative dispute resolution mechanisms as well as avoid frivolous and time-wasting

Ibekwe

Imbibing culture of amicable resolution of disputes applications. According to him, some of the cases pending in our courts ought not to have been filed in the first place and should have been settled amicably out of court. He said; “Often, credit is given for conducting contested cases in court, but is not given for amicable resolution of disputes out of court. The ultimate purpose of any legal system is to create order and social harmony. Peaceful out of court settlement of disputes creates social harmony. Contest in court generates bitterness and acrimony”. Today, Ibekwe has remained an advocate of alternative dispute mechanism and has been resolute in the campaign for quick dispensation of justice in Nigeria. Born on March 10, 1962 to the Ibekwes’ family of Umukaje Village in Eziama Town, Isiala Mbano Local Council of Imo State, his motivation for career in law received a boost from his mother, the late Veronica, who played a pivotal role in his becoming a lawyer because she wanted him to be as educated as her brother. Then, it was a measure of achievement for a family to have a son to be a lawyer, a doctor or an engineer. Naturally, his father, Matthew Ibekwe, wished that his son should be a lawyer, a doctor or an engineer. He converted his wish into intense desire and his son became the first lawyer from his village and the second from his town. Besides, his father was a trader who sold Secondary School textbooks and stationeries and by the virtue of that, he appreciated the value of education.

“ Often, credit is given for conducting contested cases in court, but it is not given for amicable resolution of disputes out of court. The ultimate purpose of any legal system is to create order and social harmony. Peaceful outof-court settlement of disputes creates social harmony. Contest in court generates bitterness and acrimony”

Young Ibekwe attended Central School, Eziama, Isiala Mbano between 1970-1975. It was, therefore, smooth sail for him during his days at Community Secondary School, Obizi, Mbaise where he made a Division One in West Africa School Certificate Examination (WASCE) in 1980. By 1981, he gained admission to read Law, graduating in 1985 from University of Calabar. In 1986, he was called to Bar, having graduated from Nigeria Law School at the age of 24. Between 1999 and 2001, Ibekwe bagged Masters’ Degree in Industrial and Labour Relations from the University of Lagos and later in 2001-2003 was awarded a Masters’ degree in Law from the same University of Lagos. Ibekwe cut his legal teeth shortly after his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in the Chambers of his uncle, Chief Felix Onyeahasi. Upon the death of his uncle, Ibekwe started his private legal practice by founding Mark Ibekwe & Co. His first time in court was before the Chief Judge of then Gongola State (now Adamawa and Taraba States), during his NYSC year. According to him, he was to go to court with a senior, but unfortunately, his senior colleague fell ill and the responsibility of going to court alone fell on him. It was an application for extension of time within which to file and serve a statement of defense. Ibekwe, who had not read the file was not prepared and had to face the court with fear and trepidation. Although, any activity done without preparation is usually done with fear and trepidation, Ibekwe was lucky that the application was granted because it was non-contentious. He has gone through that experience to handle several criminal and civil cases at all levels of the courts involving many clientele with great success. Ibekwe, chairman of the Judiciary Monitoring Committee of Nigeria

Bar Association, Ikeja Branch and a Notary Public, considers a particular case in his career as most challenging not on the basis of raising any novel issue of law but because it created a moral dilemma for him. Before the case, he had written an article published in a foreign academic journal condemning the Igbo Customary Law that denies women succession rights to the estate of their husbands or fathers. In that article, he had argued that this social practice was discriminatory and anachronistic. However, shortly after the publication, he got a brief that required him to take a position contrary to his convictions and the position he had canvassed in that article. He said: “I was able to handle it by advising that the matter be settled amicably and a consent judgment was entered. “The matter was a contest over succession to an estate of an Igbo man who died intestate leaving real and personal properties in Lagos and in the South East geopolitical zone. The deceased was survived by nine children (a son and eight daughters) from two women. The son was born outside marriage. The deceased did not contract a statutory marriage and was not a product of such marriage. The deceased personal law was therefore, Igbo Customary Law. This Law (before the decision in Mojekwu v Mojekwu) was to the effect that succession to an estate of an Igbo man is by the male issues of the deceased to the exclusion of all others, the eldest son succeeding to the headship of his father’s estate. On the failure of male issues, succession to the deceased estate is by brothers of the

full blood and half-brothers, the former having priority over the later. Nowhere in Igbo land does the customary law give a widow or a daughter the right to inherit the estate of her husband or father. In Mojekwu v Mojekwu, it was held that this particular Igbo Customary Law is unconstitutional, repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience. In spite of the decision, this social practice still persists. The lawyer, who said he would have been an accountant if he had not studied law, belonged to several professional bodies such as Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Institute of Chartered Secretaries & Administrators, London (ICSA), Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (IPM), Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) and Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR). His areas of interest in Law include Corporate Law, Industrial/Labour Law and Insurance Law because these are the areas he has industry-relevant distinctive competencies. He believes that the process of appointing judges should be more transparent and open to every eligible candidate and at the initial stage should be by examination and not by recommendation. Recommendation should come in at the last stage of the process. According to him, the academic qualifications for such appointment should be raised since the basic qualifications are becoming increasingly inadequate. “No doubt, some judges even with just only the basic LLB and BL qualifications are very sound, skilled and knowledgeable having read widely and extensively. But what about those who have not read extensively and widely? How is society to be sure that the level of skill possessed by such persons is of the requisite standard? “Judicial work is the result of a combination of time spent, effort expended, and skill employed. The ultimate productivity of a judge depends to a large extent on the third factor of his skill. “The legal profession is a sophisticated knowledge-based industry. A judge is a leader in this industry. As a leader, a judge must be equal or greater than the people he is leading. You lead by being ahead. You cannot lead from the rear. “The NBA (umbrella body of lawyers) should be more involved in the process of appointment of judges. Applying the input/output systems theory of management, you find out that lawyers generate the input of our justice delivery system by filing cases in court. The judges convert these inputs into outputs in the form of rulings, orders and judgments. These outputs are also received by lawyers. Since lawyers perform such a crucial role in the system, the NBA should play an equally commensurate role in the appointment, performance appraisal and promotion of judges. “Using stakeholders analysis approach, you find out that lawyers are the most important stakeholders in our justice delivery system. Why sideline them when important decisions concerning that system are being made? Mr. Ibekwe, a public commentator on politics and sports is married with children.

Do you know… Exhibit: A document or thing shown to a witness and referred to by him in his evidence. See Oladele v. Aromolaran II [1996] 6 NWLR (Pt. 453) 180 at 226, [S.C.], relying on Stroud’s Judicial Dictionary, 3rd Edition, Vol. 2 at p 1024; Apata v. Ayoyemi (1960) SCNLR 608, (1960) 5 FSC 275.

LAW 87

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

LawReport Any judgment given against a party without hearing notice is null and void (2) In the Court of Appeal, Nigeria, In the Lagos Judicial Division, Holden at Lagos, On Friday, March 22, 2013, Before their Lordships: Ibrahim M.M. Saulawa, Justice, Court of Appeal; Chima Centus Nweze, Justice, Court of Appeal; Joseph Shagbaor Ikyegh, Justice, Court of Appeal, CA/L/255/93 Between British Airways (appellants) Mr. Chas Munn and Oladapo Agidi (respondent). E submitted that one very vital question H which arises in all court proceedings, and on which the final verdict in a trial may depend, is the question of the person on whom the burden of proof of the whole case of a particular issue lies. He explained that if the person on whom the burden of proof lies fails to discharge that burden, the judgment may, on that account, go against him. He canvassed the view that, in civil cases, the burden of proof preponderates, that is, the court is expected to give judgment after placing the totality of the respective evidence adduced by the parties on the imaginary scale of justice, weighing them and finding out which of the two is heavier before arriving at its decision, Bisimilahi v Yagba-East Local Government (2003) FWLR (pt 141) 1939, 1965; Mogaji & Ors v Madam Rabiatu Odofin & Ors (1978) 4 SC 91, 93. He explained that the respondent filed and served its statement of claim. There was no statement of defence controverting the statement of claim. The respondent breathed life into its pleading by virtue of its testimonies and documentary evidence in court. There was no response to its oral and documentary evidence. There is a preliminary point we intend to dispose of before returning to the approach of the lower court. Counsel for the appellant argued that the respondent did not prove its case on the balance of probabilities. Wait a minute! She would appear to be laboring under the wrong conception of the expression “proof on the balance of probabilities.” As it is well-known, one important aspect of every civil suit is the proof of the content of the pleadings, per Mukhtar JSC (as she then was) in Ohochukwu v AG Rivers State and Ors (2012) LPELR-SC. 207/2004.

Thus in law, a plaintiff must show a prima facie case before the need to consider the defendant’s case would arise, Aromire v Awoyemi (1972) 2 SC 1, 10-11. It simply means that while the burden of proof, in the sense of establishing the case, initially lies on the plaintiff, JSC Ltd v ISC Ltd (1942) AC 154, 174, approvingly, adopted in Ezemba v Ibeneme (2004) LPELR-SC. 142/2000; (2004) 14 NWLR (pt 894) 617, the proof or rebuttal of the issues which arise in the context of the proceedings may shift to the defendant and vice versa as the case progresses. A court is said to decide a case on the balance of probabilities of preponderance of evidence when it puts the totality of the evidence adduced by the parties on an imaginary scale before coming to a decision as to which evidence to accept or reject. However, as shown above, in the instant case, the defendants/appellants did not join issues with the respondent (plaintiff at the lower court) since they did not file any statement on defence. The basic rule of pleadings is that where a party fails to deny any material averments in any pleadings specifically, he is deemed to have admitted the same and no further proof of that fact is necessary, Honika Sawmill v Holf (1994) 2SCNJ 86, 104. It follows that the question of proof on the balance of probability will surely be inappropriate. From our perusal of the rationale of all building authorities on this point, the law seems, somewhat, settled that, in circumstances such as this, where the defendant did not file any defence, issues cannot be said to be in controversy. Hence, the plaintiffs entitled to succeed on a minimal of proof, Onubruchere v Esegine (1986) 2SC 385, 395; Odulaja v Haddad (supra). Against this background, this issue should have been resolved in favour of the respondent. On this issue, counsel for the appellants noted that the PW1 (at pages 13, 14 and 15 of the record) testified that there was a contract of carriage of goods by air with the first appellant. She maintained that this brought the case within the provision of the Carriage by Air (Colonies, Protectorates and Trust Territories) Order 1953 which incorporated the Warsaw Convention 1929, that is, the applicable law. On the appellant’s contention with regard to the provisions of the carriage by Air (Colonies, Protectorates and Trust Territories) Order 1953, counsel for the respondent took the view that the appellants were, as it were, trying to raise a defence to the suit at the appeal stage. He maintained that even a trial court was not permitted

Justice Bulkachuwa Acting PCA to conjure up or imagine a defence for a litigant. He contended that where a defence avails a party and he fails to rely on it, the court is not permitted the indulgence of donating such a defence or defences to such a party merely because of the intellectual sagacity or the fecundity of the judicial mind of the prestige judge adjudicating over the matter. He maintained that the appellants did not also consider it necessary to defend the suit to prove that they took reasonable and measurable steps to avoid the damage or that it was impossible to take such steps. He submitted that the reckless attitude of the appellants towards the short landing of the respondent’s missing item amounted to willful misconduct. In other words, all the actions of the appellants, amounting to willful misconduct, which extinguished totally all the liability limits, would have been used by the judge in upholding the respondent’s case at the trial. Some prefatory remarks are inevitable here for the avoidance of any obfuscation of thought. We are aware that the current law that regulates or governs the international carriage of goods and persons by air in Nigeria is the Civil Aviation Act, 2006, which domesticated the Montreal

Convention 1999. However, the applicable, at the time the cause of action arose, was the Warsaw Convention, 1929, which was adopted in the carriage by Air (Colonies, Protectorates and Trust Territories) Order, 1953. Thus, it is that law, which prevailed at the time the cause of action arose, that would be considered in the resolution of this issue, A-G Lagos State v Dosunmu (1989) 3 NWLR (pt 111) 552. Happily, superior courts in Nigeria have, most admirably, disaggregated the nuanced provisions relating to the breadth and limits of the rights and obligations of the parties as ordained in the said Warsaw Convention. The consequence of this dereliction of their procedural obligation is that the appellants were deemed to have waived the said defences, Mobil Producing (Nig) (Ltd v LASEPA (supra); Kastina LA v Makudawa (supra). Having waived them, it is now too late in the day to seek to place reliance on them. Worse still, although they failed to plead these defences, they did not deem it fit to seek the leave of this court to raise them for the first time in this court, F.R.I.N v Gold (2007) 11NWLR (pt 1044) 1, 16. We, therefore, endorse the unassailable contention of counsel for the respondent that the lower court, in the circumstances, was not expected to conjure such defences against the respondent. It could not be otherwise for mystical conjurations are, indubitably, arcane matters beyond the purvey of a court of record, which is supposed to conduct its pleadings in the most transparent manner and, above all, in accordance with the procedure ordained by, and thus, known to, the law. We resolve this issue against the appellant. In all, although we have resolved issues two and three against the appellant, they are still entitled to judgment based on our resolution of the first issue in their favour. The fatal of, unilateral, moving the fixture for judgment, from September 27, 1993, to July 1993, without any notification to the appellants has, succeeded in hunting down the, otherwise, brilliant judgment of the lower court: a judgment that exhibited so much industry! The brilliance of the said judgment notwithstanding, we are under obligation to nullify it because it offended an inviolable canon of our adversarial jurisprudence, namely, that a party is entitled to be notified, from day to day of the proceedings against him. Appeal allowed. We hereby enter an order setting aside the judgment of the lower court. Parties shall bear their costs.

FGN v. Senator Mohammed Ndume: A test of admissibility of electronic evidence (2) By Adeniji Kazeem HE court further held that after a juxtaposition of the provision of Section 84(2) (a)-(d) of the Evidence Act with the oral testimony of PW3 which was buttressed by Exhibit P7 (the account of how the contents of the phones were downloaded into the DVDs), it would amount to “needless leaning on technicalities” to lean on the side of rejecting the DVDs merely on the ground that they were “computer generated products” and the detailed procedure and steps prescribed by Section 84 (2) (a)-(d) of the Evidence Act were not followed, the court held thus “My view is that against the elaborate testimony of PW3 as to what he did when he “exploited” Exhibit “P5” and “P5A” and the contents of exhibits “P7” already tendered and admitted in evidence, it will be sheer affectation and a needless leaning on technicalities to reject these “computer generated” products for the simple reason that there has been non-compliance or substantial compliance with the provisions in Section 84 (2) (a)-(d) of the Evidence Act4... A testimony such as PW3 has given as to what he did whilst “exploiting” Exhibit P5” and “P5A” to produce the DVDs are in my view, sufficient to assuage any fear which learned Counsel for the

defence entertained in the authenticity of the DVDs. The testimony of PW3 as the maker is in my view, sufficient proof of their attestation even without the need for any further “Certificate”. Exhibit P7 was intended by my understanding of the general tenor of PW3’s evidence, to serve as a “purveyor” as to how the contents of the three DVDs were produced; • The court reasoned that the condition of Section 84 (2) (a)-(d) are merely directory since the witness tendering the document was also the maker of the documents/computer generated products and the provisions are meant to serve as a guide for the admissibility of materials as the DVDs; • In determining the issue raised by defence-that it is the original or authentic copy of the DVDs that is admissible-the court held that PW3’s testimony to the effect that he submitted the DVDs to PW2 was enough proof that it was the original copies that was tendered in court. The court went further to state thus “in our new and advancing world of information communication technology, I can say that in relation to such “computer generated products”, it is near impossible to differentiate between the “primary original” and the copies made out of it except and until the

Mohammed Bello Adoke (AGF) CDs are played and the quality of what is shown indicate that its production may not be “original”; • On the issue of certification pursuant to Section 102 of the Evidence Act, the court stated that not all documents produced or prepared by a public officer qualifies to be a public document, even if the extended meaning of a public officer in the Supreme Court case of Ibrahim v J.S.C Kaduna State were to be applied. He made this submission relying on the

case of Abdul & 5 Ors v. Benue State University & Anor.7 He, therefore, held the DVDs are electronic evidence, which is not in the realm of ordinary documents. As a result the ordinary rules of certification of public documents may not apply in this case, more so, the maker of the document has identified it as the document he made. The court also held that it was in the interest of justice to admit the DVDs into evidence. Issues Nigerian jurisprudence is transiting into a brave new world where technology will suffuse and dominate the decisions of our courts. Almost all matters whether civil or criminal will soon have a technological flavour. Electronic contracts and capturing of crimes electronically is already part of our daily lives, so we need to be prepared for the challenges of interpretation by our Courts. In fact, electronic evidence is emerging to the extent that brain-imaging technology is expected to be utilised as a means of proof. This suggests that a more flexible approach aimed at a more radical and steady amendments to the rules of evidence will be necessary in Nigeria. With the fast pace of technological advancements as against the recent legislation on electronic evi-

dence, judges if not properly educated, may in their bid to do justice be compelled to adopt a liberal posture in deciding cases. This will in turn have the effect of producing a “scattered” body of rules of evidence and uncertainty about the correct position of the Nigerian law on electronically generated evidence. The ruling under review delivered by the Federal High Court is particularly landmark because it is one of the first opportunities for a superior court of record to dissect our new provisions on electronic evidence. It is also very important because it involves a capital offence involving terrorism. Any proceedings that may ultimately lead to the withdrawal of the liberty of any person must be properly scrutinised. Honourable Justice Gabriel Kolawole’s decision is a mighty leap from the past and I am particularly happy that we are finally on the track to catching up with the rest of the world. The court’s decision to admit the DVDs that were alleged extractions from the seized telephones and the distinction between primary and secondary evidence serves as the fulcrum of my analysis of this Ruling. • Kazeem is a Lagos-based ICT lawyer.

CONCLUDED

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

88 LAW

FamilyLaw

The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think - rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men. ~Bill Beattie

Child’s support: A legal obligation HEN does a parent’s child support obligaW tion end? There is no clear-cut answer. Parents have a moral and legal obligation to financially support a child from the moment that child is born until that child becomes emancipated. In its most simplistic form, emancipation is defined as the time when a child is expected to be self-sufficient or self-supporting. There is no fixed time or age when a child becomes emancipated. For example, a child is not automatically considered emancipated on his or her birthday. Generally, a child is not deemed emancipated until he or she has completed his or her education. Whether or not a child should be expected to be self-supporting depends on the facts of each case. Some children are disabled or ill and will never be self-sufficient. Other children suffer from the “Peter Pan Syndrome” - - they simply do not want to grow up. However, most children fall into a “gray area”. Some children need more time than others to get their life on track. But how much time is sufficient? Consider the following situations: •Is a parent obligated to financially support a child who postpones college for several years after his 18th birthday? •Is a parent obligated to financially support a child who becomes addicted to drugs? •Is a parent obligated to financially support an unmarried child who gave birth while in high school and is attending college? •Is a parent obligated to pay for graduate school?

There are no c l e a r - c u t answers. Family Court judges have wide discretion in deciding these cases which are sensitive. Whether or not a child is deemed emancipated is not so much a question of age as it is of needs. Emancipation past and present The concept of emancipation and a parent’s obligation to support a child after he or she reaches the age of majority is actually no different today than it was 60 years ago. In Cohen v. Cohen, the Court held that the financial obligation to support a child terminates when that child reaches full age, although it might continue indefinitely if the child were crippled or unable to support himself or herself. The cost of a child’s college education was specifically addressed by the Court, which held that parents would be required to pay for college when college would be considered normal for that family, the child shows scholastic aptitude, and one or both parents have the financial ability to pay tuition. The Cohen case was decided 60 years ago. The age of majority then was 21. The age of majority is now 18. The courts have, in fact, expanded

the definition of emancipation. Generally, a child will be deemed emancipated when he or she “moves beyond the sphere of influence and responsibility” exercised by a parent; obtaining independent status on his or her own. So what does it mean for a child to move beyond the sphere of influence and responsibility of the parent? A child is deemed emancipated upon entering the armed forces, upon his/her marriage, or upon completing his/her education. A child is presumed emancipated upon turning 18, but this is only a presumption, which can be refuted depending on the facts and circumstances. A Court may determine that a child is or should be self-sufficient based upon a specific occurrence or event in the child’s life. The best interest of the child is always paramount. Simply stated, the law is not black and white. The facts and circumstances must be carefully presented and scrutinized. Evaluating specific circumstances Several years after graduating from high school, your child changes his or her mind

and decides to attend college. How does the law treat this “change of heart”? In the case of Sakovits v. Sakovits, this son told his father after he graduated from high school that he did not want to attend college but wanted to go into his own business. The father gave his son money to start his own business. The son lived separately from his parents and was continually employed. The father no longer paid child support. The Court entered an order emancipating the son. At the age of 22, the son changed his mind and decided he wanted to attend college. The court decided that the father was not obligated to contribute to the son’s college education based on the following facts: Years before, the son told his father that he did not want to go to college. The father relied on this statement and gave his son money to start a business. There was also a significant lapse of time between high school graduation and college. However, the court noted that there could be situations where a child may be self-sufficient at one point and becomes dependent again at another point. In other words, it may be possible for a child to be “temporarily” emancipated. Child support for disabled children New Jersey case law requires parents to contribute to the cost of necessary care and maintenance of an adult child who has become so disabled, due to a pre-existing mental illness or emotional disorder, that the capacity to maintain him or herself is lacking. TO BE CONTINUED

YOU AND THE LAW —-With Dupe Ajayi Legal position of Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy HAPTER Two of the Constitution of C the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, sets out a number of socio-economic benefits which any government in the country should provide for the citizens. These benefits include education, employment, accommodation, health care and a host of others. This innovative provision was first made in the 1979 Constitution. It should be noted that this category of rights belong to the second generation rights as opposed to the first generation rights which are civil and political rights under Chapter Four of the same Constitution. While the rights in Chapter Four are referred to as Fundamental Human Rights, the rights in Chapter Two are referred to as Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy. Naturally, the enshrinement of these socio-economic objectives in the Constitution will give the impression that they are binding on the government and are legally enforceable at the instance of any citizen. However, the legal position is that those objectives, as noble as they are, do not confer any rights capable of being enforced by any citizen. By virtue of section 6 (6) (c), of the Constitution, those objectives are non-justiciable, in other words, no citizen that is aggrieved by non-provision of those benefits will be allowed to enforce it in a court of law. The argument in support of the concept of the non-justiciability is that making those rights justiciable will lead to constant confrontation between the executive and the legislature on the one hand and the judiciary on the other. It was also argued that allowing judges to make pronouncements on

whether government policy and programmes conform with fundamental objectives and directive principles of State policy will amount to asking judges to make political value judgments. Those directives therefore, are only meant to serve as a guide to the government as to the desirable programmes the government should implement. However, based on observation of thinkers and even practical experience of life, it would appear that the second set of rights is as important as the first one. This is because the full realization of civil and political rights without the enjoyment of economics, social and cultural rights is almost an impossibility. As Julius Nyeyere noted, “what freedom has a subsistence farmer? He scratches a bare living from soil, provided the rains do not fall, his children work at his side without schooling, medicine or even good feeding. Certainly he has the freedom to vote and to speak but these are meaningless”, as quoted by Julius Ihonvbere, “Underdevelopment and Human Rights Violations in Africa”. Shepherd G. W. et al (ed) Emerging Human Rights: The African Political Economy Context, New York: Greenwood Press, 1990), p. 63. Similarly, in Minerva Mills Ltd v Union of India Air (1980) SC, Justice Bhagwati of the Indian Supreme Court observed thus: “The large majority of people who are living in almost subhuman existence in conditions of abject poverty and for whom life is one unbroken story of want and destitution, notions of individual freedom and liberation,

though representing some of the most cherished values of a free society would sound as empty words bandied about in the drawing rooms of the rich and the well to do, and the only solution for making these rights meaningful to them is to make the material conditions and usher in a new order where social economic justice will inform all insinuations of life, so that the preconditions and fundamental liberty for all may be secured”. Harold Laski also contributed to the discourse, when he observed that liberty does not mean the absence of restraint but includes economic liberty which means the security and opportunity to find reasonable significance in the earning of one’s daily bread. It connotes the experience of those social conditions which in modern civilization are necessary guarantee of individual happiness and the maintenance of that atmosphere in which men have the opportunity to be their best selves. Liberty is no longer conceived merely as a negative restraint on government not to interfere with the freedom of citizens except in accordance with law, liberty now implies not only freedom from fear but including freedom from want, ignorance and disease, the presence of which will render negative freedom potently spurious. The above underscores the significance of those socio-economic objectives enshrined in the Constitution and which informs the argument of some other thinkers that they should be justiciable. In some other jurisdictions with similar provisions in their constitutions, efforts have been

made to elevate those socio-economic benefits to the level of largely enforceable rights through judicial activism. In the Indian case of Mohini Sain v State of Karnaketa Air (1992) SC 1858 1864, reported in Osita Nnamani Ogbu, Human Rights Law and Practices in Nigeria, CIDJAP Press Ltd, Enugu, 1999, the court held that right to life necessarily includes right to a means of livelihood as well as other rights that make enjoyment of rights to life meaningful. Similarly, the same Indian Court held in Olga Tellis v Bombay Municipal Corporation, where some slum dwellers approached the court to restrain government from evacuating them from their shelter without provision of alternative accommodation on the grounds that their eviction would deprive them of their right to life because their shelters were the only place that is close to their employment. The court held that the important face of right to life is the right to livelihood. If the right to liveli-

hood is not treated as part of the constitutional right to life, the easiest way of depriving a person of his right to life would be to deprive him of his means to livelihood to the point of abrogation. Such deprivation would not only denude the life of its effective content and meaningfulness but would make life impossible to live. Deprive a person of his right to livelihood and you shall have deprived him of his life. Our take on the issue is that government may not at all times be financially capable of providing all these benefits. It may therefore be an exercise in futility to call on courts to make pronouncement on failure of the government to provide those benefits without the pronouncement translating to any practical value to the citizens in whose favour the pronouncement is made. So, it is better to allow citizens to exercise the political options of the power of vote to enthrone a government that will take their well-being as priority.

LAW 89

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Pardon across jurisdictions of the globe Issues in the news By Lawal Gbenga Adeniyi N the wake of the presidential pardon granted former Bayelsa State governor, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, along with others, a consular staff of the United States Embassy in Abuja issued a mild rebuke of the Nigerian government. Whereupon the latter retorted that Washington was meddling in Nigeria’s internal affairs. Thereafter, the diplomatic spat, which simmered for a while appeared to have cooled off without further incident. Except as another manifestation of the typical American double standard, it should have been truly shocking to those familiar with the pardon regime in the U.S., and elsewhere, that Washington disapproved of President Goodluck Jonathan’s due exercise of his constitutional powers of the prerogative of mercy. Pardon is a universal relic of the monarchical exercise of benevolence to mitigate the harshness of criminal punishment, or to prevent the institution of criminal proceedings altogether. Even with the collapse of autocracies and the subsequent rise of democracies, the prerogative of mercy persists as a component of the criminal justice system. Yet, although it is a capricious power that is reflective of discretion, it is rooted firmly in a country’s Constitution. Advanced and developing countries have a place for mercy in their criminal justice systems. There are three broad purposes that a pardon, or more generally clemency, serves. It is available to undo a wrong, given the imperfection of the judicial system. U.S. Chief Justice William Taft (who, incidentally, is the only person ever to have served as U.S. President, and later Chief Justice) stated the rationale for a pardon in Exparte Grossman thus: “The administration of justice by the courts is not necessarily always wise or certainly considerate of circumstances, which may properly mitigate guilt. To afford a remedy, it has always been thought essential in popular governments, as well as in monarchies, to vest in some authority other than the courts power to ameliorate or avoid particular criminal judgments.” A pardon is also indicative of mercy. In other words, while the decision to convict was correct; however, for reasons of undue hardship or excessive inequity, the full penalty associated with the conviction is not exacted. Another purpose of the pardon is forgiveness. In this case, the person was convicted, and served the full penalty for the conviction; but thereafter, the person encounters difficulties arising from the stigma of conviction, or other legal constraints. Where there is demonstrable evidence that the ex-convict has become a responsible member of society, then forgiveness by way of pardon helps in expunging the criminal record and in the restoration of his full rights and liberties. Under the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 (as amended), the presidential power of pardon is provided for in S. 175, which states, inter alia, that “The President may grant any person concerned with or convicted of any offence created by an Act of the National Assembly a pardon, either free or subject to lawful conditions”. The only constraint on the exercise of this power, is the requirement that

President Jonathan the President first consults with the Council of State, as provided for in S. 175 (2). When the pardon for Alamieyeseigha and others was announced at the end of a Council of State meeting in March this year, President Jonathan’s spokesmen tended to bungle the issue by stating, at first, that the pardon was granted by the Council of State, whereas the President is the fit and proper person to grant pardons. What is important, however, is that there is no member of the Council of State, at least those who attended the March meeting, that has denied that President Jonathan tabled the matter at their meeting. None has also come out to disapprove of the pardon of all those who benefitted from the presidential benevolence. One point to note is that an unconditional presidential pardon in Nigeria also means not just the restoration of the civil and other liberties of the beneficiary, but the expungement of the criminal record. Thus, such a pardon beneficiary is no longer an ex-convict. In Falae v. Obasanjo (No. 2) (1999) 4 NWLR (Pt. 599) 476, Musdapher, JCA, held at page 495: “A pardon is an act of grace by the appropriate authority, which mitigates or obliterates the punishment the law demands for the offence and restores the rights and privileges forfeited on account of the offence...The effect of a pardon is to make the offender a new man (novus homo), to acquit him of all corporal penalties and forfeitures annexed to the offence pardoned.” In the U.S., presidential pardon is governed by Article II, Section 2 of the US Constitution, which provides: “The President ... shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.” Chief Justice Taft explained as follows: “It is a check entrusted to the Executive for special cases. To exercise it to the extent of destroying the deterrent effect of judicial punishment would be to pervert it; but whoever is to make it useful must have full discretion to exercise it. Our Constitution confers this discretion on the highest officer in the nation in confidence that he will not abuse it.” President Abraham Lincoln is reported to have made extensive use of pardons. In one famous instance, he dispatched a rider with a handwritten message to halt a military execution. “Colonel Mulligan—-if you haven’t shot Barney D—-yet—-don’t. A. Lincoln”. It is, therefore, surprising to knowledgeable observers that the U.S. government, through its Consular staff in Abuja, would choose to berate the Nigerian government for the pardon granted Alamieyeseigha, when there is no scintilla of evidence that the pardon was procured by brokerage. Instead, the overwhelming evidence points in the direction of a contrite

Alamieyeseigha, who has also plunged selflessly into community and national service, by working to ensure relative safety of the creeks and other riverine passageways that are crucial to oil production and export. France represents a unique example of the endurance of clemency. Pardons were scrapped in the immediate aftermath of the Revolution of 1789, but were restored during the reign of Napoleon. Today, the Executive (President) grants pardons, while the Legislature is responsible for amnesties. Every year since 1988, on Bastille Day, pardons have become a policy instrument for decongesting prisons, and thereby reduce overcrowding in penitentiaries during the hottest season of the year, a move, which also prevents prisoner revolts. The French President cannot delegate the power of pardon; he is also not required to give reasons for any pardon; and the exercise of the power is not subject to judicial control. However, a pardon in France does not eliminate the civil liability of the convict; moreover, the sentence remains on his judicial record. In India, the world’s most populous democracy, the presidential power of pardon is granted by Article 72 of the Constitution. As Krishna Deo Gaur notes in Indian Penal Code, “Pardon wipes away the guilt of the accused and brings him to the original position of innocence, as though he had never committed the offence.” In the Indira Gandhi murder case, Kehar Singh v. Union of India (AIR 1989 SC 653), the Supreme Court of India held that the presidential pardon power was beyond the scope of judicial review. However, in October 2006, the Supreme Court set aside the decision of the governor of Andra Pradesh in remitting the 10-year sentence imposed on a murder convict who had served five years and two months. The court held that the powers of pardon, reprieve, or remission must be exercised for bonafide and valid reasons, with the exclusion of religion, caste and political loyalty as grounds for clemency. The President or the Governor has to consider the effect of the clemency on the victim’s family and the society in general. To conclude, it is worth noting that all legal systems have clemency measures in one form or another. Such measures are legal provisions that suspend judicial proceedings or erase the penalty imposed at the conclusion of the trial. The statute of limitation, which defines the period during which an offence can be prosecuted, is one such measure. Other measures nolle prosequi, include amnesty, and pardon, which have been discussed in this article. Recently, U.S. authorities found two banks that had laundered nearly U.S.$ 1 billion in drug money. The authorities declined to prosecute officials of the bank, on the excuse that the banks were too important to the U.S. economy, and that prosecution would hurt the system. Also, the U.S. Justice Department has granted a blanket amnesty by declaring that it would not investigate, nor even prosecute, those whose conduct precipitated the global financial meltdown of 2008. While the exercise of the pardon power has often been criticised in most jurisdictions, including the U.S., the continued existence of the power itself says something about its enduring value, which in the circumstances of the recent Alamieyeseigha pardon is power properly utilised by President Jonathan. • Adeniyi, a lawyer, sent this contribution from Lagos.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Sports Uneasy truce in Eagles’ camp over bonus issues HE dispute over bonuses T that threatened Super Eagles’ participation in the on-going Confederations Cup still appears to be festering, with claims and counterclaims from players and officials. Although the Super Eagles agreed to take part in the World Cup warm-up tournament in Brazil, they arrived well behind schedule with skipper, Vincent Enyeama telling a media briefing the row had only been resolved ‘for now’ and would be revisited later. The impasse with the Nigerian FA has overshadowed the African champions’ final preparations for the tournament where they met Oceania minnows, Tahiti, in their opening match yesterday. “I don’t really want to talk about this issue, it should not have gone into the press and I don’t want to elaborate on it much,” said Enyeama, who was sitting alongside Coach, Stephen Keshi. “It went on for the last four days and we don’t want to spend our energy on it now. It is over for now, it is settled for now, but after the championship we will revisit it.” The Super Eagles’ players had reportedly been promised $10,000 for each win in the tournament and $5,000 for a draw, but the federation announced just before the team flew to Brazil that it could not afford such a level of bonuses and would have to halve them.

It is incomprehensible because the NFF President, Aminu Maigari and myself sat down with the management of the Super Eagles, including Coach Stephen Keshi, to explain why we had to slash the bonus and other measures taken as a result of our financial constraints As a result the Nigerian squad refused to leave their hotel in Windhoek, Namibia, where they drew with Namibia in a World Cup qualifier last week, until the intervention of FIFA SecretaryGeneral, Jerome Valcke. But the Nigerian FA is clearly still at loggerheads with the players, insisting they had fully explained why they had to halve the bonuses. “We are shocked, like every Nigerian, at the attitude of the players,” Nigerian Football Federation General Secretary, Musa Amadu was quoted as saying. “It is incomprehensible because the NFF President, Aminu Maigari and myself sat down with the management of the Super Eagles, including Coach Stephen Keshi, to explain why we had to slash the bonus and other measures taken as a result of our financial constraints,” he said.

Odemwingie may join Crystal Palace Eagles’ estranged SwhoUPER striker, Osaze Odemwingie, is expected to leave West Brom this off-season, may join newly promoted Crystal Palace, according to reports from England. Odemwingie is expected to depart the Hawthorns this summer after the relationship between the club and player broke down following a failed move to QPR in January. Crystal Palace are said to be keen to snap up the 31-yearold Nigerian, who is valued at around £3 million by the Baggies. West Brom boss, Steve Clarke, however, refused to be drawn on the speculation but he did suggest the situation will be resolved sooner rather than later. “It’s a situation that will be resolved over the summer. That’s why we have got a technical director and a chairman who like to do deals,” he told Express & Star. the

“That’s their job. It would be nice if people stopped asking questions on it. It will be resolved in its own time and hopefully there will be a resolution.”

Super Eagles’ John Obi Mikel controls the ball during Nigeria’s official training session at the Minerao Stadium, Belo Horizonte, Brazil…yesterday.

Rugby Federation names squad for Cote d’Ivoire test matches HE Nigeria Rugby Football T Federation (NRFF) yesterday announced the squad for the Cote d’Ivoire tour, where they will play three test matches in the Africa Nations Cup (1C) from June 22 to 29. The squad is much changed from the side that played in the Africa Nations Cup last year in Botswana, with 15 uncapped (at 15-a-side) players in the 24man squad. Team Manager, Mark Dean was very positive about this fact and highlighted the progression of Nigerian rugby over the last 24 months, as well as, the improved identification of talented players both in the domestic leagues in Nigeria and the exiles programme overseas. According to Dean, “this year we have been able to select players, who are playing their club rugby at good levels in France, the UK, the U.S.A and Nigeria. “Obviously the larger the pool of talent we have to select from then the faster the elite level of

rugby in Nigeria will develop and provide that aspirational link to develop the grassroots domestic game.” Nigeria play test matches against Mauritius, Morocco and Zambia as they bid to improve their IRB ranking and also further their aim of qualification for the 2019 RWC in Japan. Nigeria, ranked 90th in the world, will have their work cut out for them against Zambia, ranked 15 places above them, and even more so against Morocco ranked 33. In the squad are forwards: James Doherty (Richmond), Adedoyin Layade (Marseille), Francis Ugwu (Old Mid-Whitgiftian), Usani Ewah (Dallas), Ayo Salau (Loughborough), Abdul Abdulsamad (Barewa RFC), Moshope Osinibi (Old Alleynian), Moyo Osinibi (Old Alleynian), Chukwuma Osazuwa (Heriots), Ebenezer Ikediashi (Beckenham), Emmanuel Akinluyi (Cambridge), John Kura

(Racing RFC), and Adam Aigbokhae (Caldy). The backs include David Akinluyi (Esher), Temi Okenla (Old Mid-Whitgiftian), Toto Odulaja (Loughborough), Martin Olima (Blackheath), Gbade Adewola (Cardiff University), Ade Adebisi (London Skolars), Nuhu Ibrahim (Kano RFC), Tan Mbonu (Enfield Ignatians), and Tiwa Obisesan (Canterbury). The NRFF said some players, who are on standby, may ber called upon for the tour as the need arises. They are Samson Yahaya (Nigeria Police Ikeja), Jay Udo-Udoma (Barking), Ono Jatto (Unattached), Joseph Mogaji (Worthing), and Rhodri Ihenacho (Hull University), all backs. The forwards are, Olayemi Lawal (London Nigerian), Olisa Ufodiama (Imperial College) and Felix Ogbole (Kaduna RFC). Aside Manager, Mark Dean (Samurai), there is also coach Gavin Hogg (Bury St Edmunds) and physio, Emma Mark (Esher) in the team.

Pillars, Wolves, Sunshine battle for Survival in Federation Cup IGERIA Professional N Football League (NPFL) defending champions, Kano Pillars, Sunshine Stars of Akure and Warri Wolves are among 34 teams that will be involved in the Round of 64 games of this year’s Federation Cup competition tomorrow. Wolves go up against Dynamite FC of Benin City at the Rojenny Stadium in Oba, near Onitsha, while Sunshine Stars, semi finalists in last year’s CAF Champions League competition, will tackle Fountain FC of Ekiti at the Ilorin Sports Stadium. Pillars take on Global Academy of Anambra at the

Confluence Stadium in Lokoja. Edo State darling team, Bendel Insurance will also be involved in the fireworks, as they play J. Atete FC of Delta in Akure for a place in the Round of 32, while Sharks of Port Harcourt face Kogi United in Warri and Plateau United of Jos and Wikki Tourists of Bauchi battle at the Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano. Katsina Sportlight play Bagu Mission in Kaduna, El-Kanemi Warriors are up against Apa United in Bauchi, Gombe United are at Bussdor of Owerri’s throat in Abuja, Adamawa United and Nasarawa United have

issues to resolve in Gombe, Nembe City tackle Igbo Ambassadors of Ebonyi in Owerri and, Enyimba of Aba face Police Machine from Nasarawa in Ado Ekiti. Already, City of David (COD), the Lagos club coached by former Super Eagles’ gaffer, Augustine Eguavoen, as well as, JUTH FC, MFM Lagos, Ingas of Enugu, FC Taraba, Abia Warriors, Makwada FC, Niger Tornadoes, Remo Stars and Samba Kurna FC have qualified for the Round of 32 games, having triumphed against opponents in matches played last week. Only four matches are to be

decided between this weekend and next week Wednesday, for various reasons. The match between Enugu Rangers and Danlawan of Jigawa will come up next week Wednesday at the Jos Township Stadium, as the Coal City Antelopes are involved in this year’s CAF Confederation Cup competition. Yarma Light of Gombe square up against Akwa United in Katsina on Sunday, while Gateway FC tackles Premier League side, 3SC, in Akure same day and Prime FC of Osogbo and Bayelsa United do battle in Benin City on Tuesday next week.

PHOTO: AFP.

40 schools storm Chrisland for chess tournament HE organiser of the yearly T Inter-primary School Chess tournament, Lanre Ajibola has sent an appeal to Lagos State government to expedite action on the memorandum of understanding that was signed to take the game of Chess to public schools in the state and make it part of their curriculum. He said chess is a game that helps to challenge the thinking ability of children at their formative stage and helps them to strategies. The Team Nigeria captain to the last All African Games held in Mozambique, made the remark in Lagos, while reeling out the programmes lined up for the 6th edition of the Peda Inter-primary at Chrisland School, Opebi. Over 40 schools have signified their interest to compete in this year’s tournament, which is open to under age kids. He revealed that this year’s tournament has been divided into two categories of under-7 and above 7. In the under 7 kids, schools are expected to present three players and one reserve while those in the above 7 category will present 6 players and 2 reserves. Some of the schools expected to feature in this year’s tournament include Home Science, Corona School, NEPA Staff School, Salvation International and defending champion, Chrisland School. The organisers also revealed that the children would be presented with medals, badges and trophies, as well as, getting an opportunity to participate at International junior tournaments, while the schools can also win air conditioners, refrigerator and sound system.

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

SPORTS 91

AFN/Cross River All Nigerian Open

Forget 100m gold, Asumnu tells Okagbare, others By Gowon Akpodonor OR three seasons, two U.Sbased stars, Oludamola Osayomi and Blessing Okagbare maintained a healthy rivalry in the 100m of the All Nigerian Open Championship with the latter having the upper hand on each occasion. A new entrant, U.S-based Gloria Asumnu came into the scene last year dimension came last year and narrowly missed the crown. The stage is set for another edition of the All Nigerian Open in Calabar and the Imo State-born Asumnu says it is her turn to wear the crown. For years, the competition, formerly known as Mobil Track and Field Championship has lived up to expectations as ground of rivalries for the country’s stars athletes.

• Egwero is man to beat In the twilight of her career, Mary Onyali-Omagbemi, who is Nigeria’s most decorated athlete, battled hard to keep elegant Endurance Ojokolo at bay at the National Stadium, Lagos. Onyali and Ojokolo won the 100m titles three times backto-back. Their rivalry came to a head at the 2003 All Africa Games in Abuja, where Onyali beat Ojokolo to the gold in the women’s 100m. The likes of Deji Aliu and Uchenna Emedolu also had great rivalries in the men’s 100-metre dash. With Osayomi no more in good shape for the contest, Asumnu feels she has what it takes to whistle the crown from Okagbare tomorrow (Wednesday) at the U.J Esuena Stadium in Calabar.

Going by the programme of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), the winner of the women’s 100m title will be decided tomorrow afternoon, while the men will take their tune on Thursday. Speaking with The Guardian shortly after winning the 100m race at the Warri CAA Grand Prix on Friday, Asumnu said that her target was the 100m title this time. “I am in Nigeria to win the title this time around having lost it narrowly to Blessing last year. I don’t care who goes into the contest with me in Calabar.” Female athletes, who must contest in tomorrow’s 100m race must have ran 11.65 seconds, which is the standard set by AFN for this year’s All Nigerian Open in Calabar. For the men, they must have run 10.60 seconds. Those wishing to compete in the 400m must have run 48.50

(men) and 55.00 (women). Though, the women’s 100m contest is likely to be between Okagbare and Asumnu, other young athletes such as Peace Ukoh and Mariam Bassey are waiting to cause an upset. This year’s edition promises to be highly competitive as it serves as qualifying event for the country’s athletes, who hope to represent Nigeria in the 14th IAAF World Championship in Russia this August. As for the men’s 100m race on Thursday, all focus will be on Ogho Oghene Egwero who defeated America’s Matthew Pritchest to win the Warri CAA Grand Prix/Relays in a time of 10.16 second on Friday. Egwero will to battle against the likes of Fred Agbaje, junior athlete Harry Chukwudike, Eko 2012 National Sports Festival star athlete, Nicholas Imhoaperamhu, Chuks Onyaku and out-of-form Obinna Metu.

Gloria Asumnu and Blessing Okagbare battling for supremacy during the 2012 All Nigerian Open in Calabar.

First Deepwater players, coaches get reward for league win By Adeyinka Adedipe LAYERS and coaches of First Deepwater Basketball Club have been rewarded for winning their fourth consecutive Zenith Bank Women Basketball League title at the weekend. The Oil and Gas girls, as the team is fondly called, defeated Dolphin Basketball Club 84-76 in the finals to lift the trophy at the sports hall of the National Stadium, Lagos. Chairman of the club, Babatunde Babalola said that the 15 players would get $1000 each while the two coaches would get brand new cars. He stated that the

GSK Head, Marketing (nutritionals), Cherry Eremosele (middle), flanked by two officials of the company, Adeola Fadipe and Tolu Odukoya-Ijogun, at the maiden Cyclefest Lagos held at the National Stadium, Lagos… on Sunday.

team was being appreciated for its hardwork and dedication, promising that everything would be done to encourage the team to achieve more. Babalola noted that the victory over Dolphin did not come easy, praising his team for displaying its champion stuff when it had its back on the wall. He said, “the match was a keenly contested one and my players had to use their wealth of experience to beat Dolphin. I must add that that is what champions are made off and I will continue to support the team.”

Federation Cup

According to Babalola, the focus of the team would shift to the African Club Championship where it hopes to better its seventh place finish last year. He also hinted that new players would be brought into the team while some would have to depart as the management continues to search for players that would make the team stronger. “I must admit that all the players have done their best since inception but some will have to leave after we review the team’s performance this season. We intend to bring in new and exciting players that will bring in fresh ideas into the team.”

You can beat Kano Pillars, NEROS

Table Tennis

By Olalekan Okusan

Coach of the team, Lateef Erinfolami thanked the management of the team for its support and stated that winning the fourth title wouldn’t have been possible without its backing. He also said that Nigerian players plying their trade outside the country would be brought in to beef the team for the African Club Championship. Erinfolami said the team’s target was to do well at the continental event, calling on his players to give their best at the championship. He said preparation would commence for the continental showpiece immediately and urged the players to be battle-ready.

Cyclefest winner, Ajibade, lauds Lucozade boss tells Global Academy Sport, wants more sponsors in cycling EROS Pharmaceuticals Kano Pillars at Lokoja and we Quadri wins Portuguese league title ADIQ Ajibade rode to the Sahead finish line last Sunday of a throng of over

2000 cyclists that participated in the maiden Cyclefest Lagos sponsored by Lucozade Sport and made a passionate appeal to corporate organisations in the country to key into the new cycling revolution. Ajibade, who rode his first bicycle at the age of 13, was effusive in praising Lucozade Sport for leading the way in reviving the sport in Nigeria and said the country’s cyclists would have become global players in the sport if events like Cyclefest was held regularly. “ I want to start by thanking Lucozade Sport for this opportunity, because professional cyclists have been crying for sponsors so as to have an event like this even if it is once in a year. “I really want to beg companies doing big business in Nigeria to follow in the steps of Lucozade Sport and we will have more youths taking up the sport and reducing idleness, which leads to criminal activities,” pleaded Sadiq, who represented Oyo State in the competition. Officials of Lucozade Sport

described the event as a perfect fit for their brand and pledged to support all such sporting activities that promotes healthy living. The Head, Marketing, Nutritionals at GlaxoSmithKline, Cherry Eremosele, said the turnout was fantastic with over 13 states represented. This, she said is justified their decision to partner with the organisers to revive Cycling. In her words, “we at GSK have a passion for promoting and supporting sporting activities which promotes healthy living, so it is important that Lucozade Sport, world’s leading sporting drink is part of this quest to revive and encourage professional and recreational Cyclists in Nigeria.” Winner of the women category, Glory Odiase, from Rivers State attributed her success to hard work and dedication, saying, “I feel so happy, my victory today is all down to hard work. You can see that Rivers State also took the second and third positions in this category, it is a good testament to our dedication to training and preparations.”

boss, Poly Emenike, whose company sponsored the 2013 Anambra FA Cup, has urged the state’s representatives in the Federation Cup, Global Academy, to play without fear when they meet Kano Pillars in the national competition tomorrow. Speaking ahead of the round of 64 games slated for tomorrow, Emenike said, “we sponsored the competition (the NEROS Pharmaceuticals Anambra State FA Cup) that brought about their representing the state, we as well desire they do well in the national level and make the state proud. “They have a date with

urge them not to entertain any fear about the pedigree of Kano Pillars being the Nigerian League Champions and as well topping the league after the first stanza of the 2013 NPFL season.” He said that “Federation Cup is always full of surprises both in Nigeria and in the English FA Cup, so it is not out of place to charge them to do the ‘impossible’ as the case may be.” Emenike, who spoke through his consultant, Akonam Obiefuna of Scorecard Productions Limited, further expressed his willingness to make football grow to higher standard in the state.

Quadri (second standing left) with teammates and officials of GD Toledos Club after claiming the Portuguese table tennis league title in Lisbon at the weekend.

IGERIA’S Aruna Quadri finally cuddled the Portuguese table tennis league trophy after third attempts, as the former African champion inspired GD Toledos to a resounding 4-2 win over Sporting Club in the final playoff of the league. Playing away to Sporting Club in Lisbon, Quadri’s team had won the first leg 41 but the home team retaliated with a 4-0 win in the second leg played on Saturday. But the organisers of the league – Portugal Table Tennis Association decided that as both teams were leveled, a final decider should be played to ascertain the eventual winner of the league. And the final decider was played on Sunday with Quadri leading his team to a 4-2 win to claim his first title in the European league. An excited Quadri told The Guardian from Portugal that he was happy guiding the team to victory eventually after the exit of his Chinese teammate last month. “Nobody gave us any chance of winning the

league especially when our Chinese player left the team after we qualified for the playoff. But we were encouraged with the kind of support we got from the management of the team. “Before the final, I was ill and my club did everything possible to ensure that I recovered. I think this is a great club that gives quality attention to players’ welfare and this alone will motivate any player to give his best. “For me, I will still play for the club next season and hoping to win the league back-to-back. I am so happy that in my third attempt I was able to clinch the trophy. This year has been fruitful for me and my club having won the Portuguese Cup and league trophy, this alone is a double laurels in one year,” Quadri said. The Guardian recalled that Quadri has played in the final of the Portuguese league playoff in the last three years since moving to Portugal three years ago. Out of the 68 editions of the league, Sporting has won it 32 times with Toledos won it once in season 2010/2011.

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THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Brazil 2013 Conferderation Cup Control your temper, Cafu warns Balotelli RAZIL legend, Cafu B believes that Italy’s Mario Balotelli could become one of the best players in the world if he learns to control his temper. The 22-year-old Milan star netted the winner in his side’s 2-1 Confederations Cup win over Mexico on Sunday, taking Italy level on points with Brazil in Group A. However, Balotelli made the headlines for all the wrong reasons earlier this month when he was booked twice and sent off within four minutes of the Azzurri’s World Cup 2014 qualifier against Czech Republic. And two-time World Cup winner, Cafu has urged the young forward to make the most of his talent, while warning him to curb his temper on the field, as reported on Goal.com. “Balotelli could become one of the greats of the game. He has a particular character, though. He must learn to control himself in order to give his best on the pitch,” the Brazilian told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Nigeria’s Coach, Stephen Keshi (fourth right) speaks to his players during an official training session at the Minerao stadium in Belo Horizonte, Brazil on Sunday.

The odds stacked against Keshi’s Super Eagles HE fact that they played T Tahiti in the opener is probably the last piece of good news Nigeria boss Stephen Keshi received — and that was a while back. Since then, the Super Eagles have hit road bump after road bump, most of them not of his making. It began on April 2, when Emmanuel Emenike was injured playing for Spartak Moscow against Anzhi Makhachkala. Two weeks later, Ruben Gabriel announced he was withdrawing from the Confederations Cup. A week after that, Kalu Uche and Victor Moses also raised the white flag. And on Friday, Ogenyi Onazi, who had suffered a knee injury during Nigeria’s World Cup qualifier against Namibia the previous week, was also ruled out. To recap what this all means: Keshi is without his top goal scorer from the Cup of Nations in February (Emenike), an oversized midfield enforcer, who was arguably the player of the year in Nigeria last season (Gabriel), a forward, who notched 20 goals last season

in the Turkish league and who would have been especially important given Emenike’s absence (Uche), a winger who was a mainstay at the Cup of Nations (Moses) and his midfield general (Onazi). Not exactly ideal for a squad that looked somewhat thin even before the Cup of Nations and shocked the world with its drive and cohesion in becoming African champions. But the woes don’t end there. A dispute between the players and the Nigeria Football Federation meant the squad delayed its departure for the Confederations Cup. Nigeria left Saturday, which meant they eventually arrived at their hotel in Belo Horizonte at 3 a.m. on Sunday, giving them 25 hours to acclimate and prepare for the Tahiti game. The good news? They played Tahiti. The bad news? They played Tahiti. Yep, it works both ways. It’s true that, on paper, Tahiti — with their one professional player, 33-year-old Marama Vahirua — aren’t very good. This is true even compared to

past Tahitian sides. They are here because, after strolling through their group stage at the OFC Nations Cup and edging the Solomon Islands in the semifinals, they got to play New Caledonia rather than New Zealand in the final. That was because the Kiwis somehow contrived to lose their semi-final, a feat made possible — it has been alleged — by some rather festive behavior the night before. That said, this is exactly the kind of scenario bigger teams hate, as they have little to gain apart from the three points. You see it every time a big European nation plays San Marino or Andorra. The opposition puts nine men behind the ball (expect Vahirua to be rather lonely up front), the neutrals all rally behind the underdog, and unless the favorite scores straight away, it finds itself frustrated and desperate as the minutes tick by. It’s difficult to even play well when the disparity between the two teams is so huge. Nor does the assumed winner learn much about itself because it never quite knows if it got to the ball first simply because the

other guys are slower or weaker or if it actually hit a pass or completed a movement well. Keshi made history as one of only two men to win the Cup of Nations as both player and coach. He proved many naysayers wrong, showing that Nigeria didn’t need a fancy foreign boss and that a former Super Eagle could rally the players and maintain discipline. In fact, on talent alone, Keshi’s Nigeria rank well behind other Super Eagles

though, if Keshi were judged on results in this competition and, if things don’t go to plan, it costs him his job. He has built a real team and has already delivered one piece of silverware. Simply getting to grips with Brazil ahead of the World Cup and allowing some of his crew to gain experience should be the real objective. When the A-listers return and he once again has his big guns on board, that’s when you can judge him. • Culled from espn.co.uk

Our finishing let us down, Del Bosque insists Coach, Vicente Del SnowPAIN Bosque believes his team is in the driving seat in FIFA Confederations Cup Group B after overcoming Uruguay 2-1 in Recife. First half goals from Pedro helped by a large deflection and Roberto Soldado put the world and European champions on their way to victory, although Luis Suarez reduced the deficit with a superb freekick late on.

“These are three magnificent points that leave us in a very good position in the group to go into the next two games,” said Del Bosque. The coach was delighted with his side’s performance but rued their missed chances and admitted they struggled in the final stages of the match, which he put down to the difficult conditions inside the stadium. “It was a good game and we

dominated for almost the entirety of the match, but by the end we were under the cosh a bit,” he said. “We were patient and adopted a combination of keeping control of the ball and playing direct football. We did almost everything well, we defended carefully, we got the ball back quickly, we created good football but couldn’t finish off our attacks and at the end we were a little worried.

Confederation Cup is perfect end to season, Soldado admits OBERTO Soldado had a R night to remember on Sunday as Spain entered the

Spain’s forward, Juan Mata (right) contests with Uruguay’s midfielder, Nicolas Lodeiro during their FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 Group B match, at the Pernambuco Arena in Recife at the weekend. PHOTOS: AFP

teams, but what they lack in ability they more than make up for in the qualities some say Nigeria traditionally lack: cohesion, organisation and spirit. Yet you feel that this Confederations Cup comes at the wrong time and with the wrong preamble for Nigeria. Few expect them to get out of the group; the bookies suggest they’ll battle it out with Uruguay for second place and a chance to face Brazil in the semis. It would be a shame,

fray at the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013. The Valencia striker was handed his major tournament debut for La Roja and he took advantage of the opportunity, scoring his side’s second goal against Uruguay, a strike that would eventually prove decisive. After the match, the visibly content forward spoke exclusively to FIFA.com. “Truth be told, I’m extremely happy,” said Soldado with a broad smile. “Obvously, I’m satisfied with

my own performance, but more importantly, we managed to win the match. To have played a part in that is a real source of motivation,” he added, clearly savouring what was, for him, an ideal scenario. The free-scoring front man had no trouble remembering the build-up to his 32nd minute goal, but was quick to share the plaudits heading his way. “I may have put the ball in the net, but I have to pay tribute to Fabregas’ role in the goal, by feigning to shoot, he drew the two central defenders towards him, leaving me all alone. He then delivered an

excellent pass to my feet, leaving me with just the goalkeeper to beat, which I managed to do,” he recalled modestly. Humility and redemption Soldado’s joy is not solely the result of his accomplishments during Sunday’s game. In the run-up to the last two major competitions at which Spain have competed (the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ and UEFA EURO 2012), the attacker was among the last players to be dropped from the final squad. This was therefore a chance that had been a long time in the making, and he had no intention of letting it pass him by.

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THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Warri Wolves recalls suspended vice chairman HE Management of Warri T Wolves FC has recalled its Vice Chairman, Alex Amudo, who was suspended for anticlub activities, just as the club appointed Kenneth Nwomucha, who has been on acting capacity, as substantive chief operating officer. In a statement by the Media Officer, Moses Etu, Amudo was recalled after a crucial meeting yesterday morning after he has shown enough remorse over his action. The Executive Chairman of the Delta State Sports Commission, Amaju Pinnick, who presided over the meeting, enjoined all to work together to achieve the objective set for the Club this season. Meanwhile, the club has intensified preparation for the Federation Cup cracker with Dynamites Football Club of Benin scheduled for tomorrow at Rojenny Stadium, Oba, Anambra State. Speaking on the match, Coach Solomon Ogbeide told the players that the FA Cup was a different ball game and so they must not underrate the Benin boys as they are capable of springing surprises. He urged the players to be focused as Warri Wolves has not gone beyond the group stage of the competition in their history, something, he said must be wiped off this season. “I want to thank you for what you have done in the league, but the Federation Cup is a different ball game, where small teams try

to outshine the big ones. We have to put into consideration that we have never gone beyond the group stage but this time we have to erase that and go for the trophy.” Also speaking, Omofomah

El Kanemi and Kano Pillars vying for position during the 2012 Federation Cup group phase in Lagos. Both teams are still in the running for the title this year. PHOTO: FEMI ADEBESIN-KUTI.

Squash federation appoints committee for national league IGERIAN squash will soon grammes. N be given a new lease with Speaking after its meeting the planned introduction of in Abuja, President of the feda national league, even as the board has promised to intensify its sponsorship drive. The newly inaugurated board of the Nigeria Squash Federation also plans to stage a competition in June in either Lagos or Abuja, and has se t up various committees to execute the pro-

Tiwa Warriors savour MISTON tourney victory EAM Manager of Tiwa T Warriors of Akoko, who on Sunday won the maiden Mimiko International Soccer Tournament, Churchill Obi, has described the victory as one of the best things that have happened to his career. Tiwa Warriors at the Akure Township Stadium on Sunday defeated ODSFA Football Academy to lift the maiden edition of Mimiko U18 Soccer Tournament (MIST O N ) . Speaking after the encounter decided by a penalty shoot out, Obi described the route to the final as tough, but was happy to have won the tourney. “I feel excited getting to this stage… we struggled to get to this stage, but I am happy we won the trophy,” he said. But to ODSFA Assistant Coach, Bobola Akinfolarin, the game was won by the luckier side. “The game was decided on penalties so the luckiest team won, I give kudos to the officials,” he said. Olarewaju Oladele of Tiwa Warriors won the Most Valuable player of the tournament, while the fair play award went to Kharahaman Sports Club of Turkey. Alimi Sunday of Fountain FC won the highest goal scor-

Freedom, who joined Warri Wolves from Dynamite FC promised to detonate them when they meet tomorrow. He, however, said he would not celebrate if he scores against them.

er of the tourney with four goals, while Ibrahim Maji won the best goalkeeper h o n o u r . The event, which started on June 5 and ended on June 16, was initiated by an NGO, Caring Heart Sporting Foundation.

eration, Adamu Erena, said the federation plans to hold events regularly in order to reposition the game, adding, “we plan to hold our first competition in June to kick start our activities. This board wants to reposition the game of squash in the country. “We also want to introduce a squash league, which will see players play regularly. Towards actualising our goals, we have set up three major committees, including sponsorship, marketing and publicity to be headed by Adedoyin Adeyela; finance headed by Brigadier General Shehu Yusuf, and technical, led By Bola Mogaji. “They have the mandate of the board to raise funds, create awareness about competitions, upgrade facilities and also monitor players.”

THE GUARDIAN, Tuesday, June 18, 2013

TheGuardian

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

By Stanley Buzim E are at the time of the year when banks W present annual reports and provide justification for the continued confidence of their shareholders based on competitive returns. A number of banks have made public their reports with two of Nigeria’s biggest banks crossing the N100 billion pre-tax profit mark. The top five Please send reactions and feedback for YOUTH SPEAK to: banks, by most indices, collectively earned about editorial@risenetworks.org and 07067976667- SMS ONLY N400 billion in pre-tax profit for the full year 2012. The top five banks and their ranking in the 2012 Global Top 1000 Banks by The Banker Magazine of London are Zenith Bank (322), First Bank (338), GTB (455), Access Bank (541) and UBA (563). Together they control more than 50 per cent of deposits in the Nigerian banking industry. The landmark profits by these banks which come as a delight to shareholders after the downturn occasioned by the global financial crisis of 2008/09 can be attributed to a number of factors. Foremost are the high interest rates on government bonds and Treasury bills which averaged over 10 per cent for most of 2012. Banks devoted a significant chunk of their investible funds to government instruments as credit to other economic segments became less attractive. Another key factor was the resurgence of the bond market; as many as 11 states governments have issued bonds of varying amounts as at close of year 2012. Banks found a veritable source of low risk and high yield investment in the bond markets with coupon rates mostly in double digits. Furthermore, the Federal Government’s effort to buoy the bond market through tax incentives in order to attract investors can be described as the icing on the cake. Interest earned from investing in federal and state government bonds is exempted from tax. With high interest rates on government instruments, tax incentives and relief from the burden of bad debts provided by AMCON, Nigerian banks couldn’t have wished for more. Year 2012 can be described as a dream year for banks. The enviable position of these banks among their peers both in Nigeria and the African continent is underscored not only in terms of profits and deposit liabilities but also in their strong pan-African image which only a few of South Africa’s biggest banks surpass. They have, following the 2005 consolidation exercise, shown mettle and drive in pushing for dominance on the African continent. All the top five banks listed above have as much as 44 subsidiaries in 18 countries across Africa and in United Kingdom or the United States of America, while some have representative offices in South Africa and China. An interesting and vital fact with respect to these banks which may be lost to observers and commentators is that three out of the five banks Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Lamido Sanusi came into existence less than 25 years ago. The trio of Access, GTB and Zenith were established funds for maximum impact in the society. A wards should leave no one in doubt as to the following liberalisation of the banking industry scenario, in which the government is the real beneficiaries of the use of public funds to by the Babangida Administration in the late largest borrower of funds and little or no capintervene in the banking sector – the owners 1980s. It is gratifying to note that with strong ital projects to show for it, is in my opinion, of the banks benefit far more than depositors drive and astute management style they have negatively skewed. in the long run. achieved such giant strides. The top tier banks in particular and all the Financial intermediation by Nigerian banks Few will discountenance the success stories banks collectively, under the negligent watch has been disproportionately skewed in favour these brands represent and the potential ahead of the industry regulator and other governof governments and the top end of the ecoof them. The concern for this writer, however, is ment entities whose purview cover or impact nomic pyramid – blue chip companies. One of the limited impact on the Nigerian society that the banking sector, have failed to channel the the unintended consequences of the CBN has provided them with the opportunity to capacities and capabilities of our banking intervention was the tightening of credit to thrive and conquer not just the local scene but set sector towards achieving a balanced and posthe lower base of the economic pyramid foot on the global stage. The primary role of itive financial intermediation; one that has MSME (Micro, Small and Medium banks in the economy is that of financial inter- real positive bearing on our economy. This is Enterprises). Banks were apparently given a mediation. Financial intermediation involves more worrisome when considered against basis to avoid those considered riskier borchannelling funds from segments with surpluses the cosy relationship these banks enjoy with rowers. to those in deficit. It might be appropriate to state our political gladiators and functionaries in In recent times, the government has become that financial intermediation can have little or no the corridors of power. Also, no segment of the borrower-of-choice for banks, as governimpact if it is unduly skewed against those who the private sector gets as much protection as ment bonds and CBN’s Treasury Bills have need it the most or are best placed to utilise the the banking industry; as demonstrated in the become preferred investment options as 2009 CBN intervention which, to date, has against lending to the real sector. Rightly so, ploughed more than N4 trillion of public banks have every right to put their money funds into salvaging the industry. While the where their mouth is, but what should be of CBN has repeatedly stated that the protection concern is sustainability and long-term effect. of depositors as the reason for its action, the Government’s unending cycle of borrowings profits being declared just two years afterfrom the domestic economy at high interest

Nigerian banks can do better

It is high time the CBN sought ingenious ways to control inflation and get our banks deliver on their promise. Significant reduction of CBN rates will force them to seek other avenues for their investible funds. Also the deployment of an interventionist mechanism that will channel funds at competitive interest rates to small businesses would be welcomed.

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’’. Also join our on-line conversation

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The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises remain a critical segment whose potentials in the Nigerian economy have been severely limited due to lack of bank credit. The benefits of adequate loanable funds to this segment are huge; from job creation to tax revenues not least are the multiplier effects on security and youth restiveness. rate is not sustainable. An interesting discourse for public consumption would be an in-depth analysis of the level and impact of the cost of governments’ borrowings on our public finances. Payment of double digit interest rate between 12 per cent and 15 per cent to fund government short-term needs (much of which goes to maintaining the wheel of government and not capital expenditure) does not lend to the principle of financial prudence. Besides regulatory protection and use of public funds to prop the industry, a significant portion of deposits held by banks are governments’ funds. On average the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) shares over N700 billion monthly among the three tiers of government. It becomes alarming when the CBN now has to pay very attractive interest as high as 12 per cent at present on Treasury Bills to the banks in a bid to mop excess liquidity and contain inflation. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) Rate is at present 12 per cent and serves as a benchmark rate for banks in lending to the economy. The rate paid by CBN on its bills and its benchmark MPC rate would be of little concern but for its adverse effect on banks’ intermediation. Banks would prefer to leave funds with the CBN instead of funding productive private sector businesses. This position was confirmed by the CBN governor in a recent interview in which he stated inter alia “banks are focussed on government bonds and blue-chip borrowers whereas the middle markets are the job creators.” By its short term approach, the industry regulator has created a vicious circle that benefits a few and crowds out the majority of society’s economic base, individuals and small businesses, through a combination of high interest rates and limited loanable funds. The CBN has often stated that its primary objective is control of inflation. This is very well in line with its statutory mandate. But the fixation with interest rate as the only means of controlling inflation is certainly not leading us to the Promised Land economically. The number one spender in the economy remains the Federal Government in particular and all tiers of governments collectively. It is no longer news that as much as 70 per cent of government’s spending is for recurrent expenditure leaving a paltry 30 per cent for capital votes. It is the same funds that CBN spends so much to curtail their inflationary effect. It is high time the CBN sought ingenious ways to control inflation and get our banks deliver on their promise. Significant reduction of CBN rates will force them to seek other avenues for their investible funds. Also the deployment of an interventionist mechanism that will channel funds at competitive interest rates to small businesses would be welcomed. The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises remain a critical segment whose potentials in the Nigerian economy have been severely limited due to lack of bank credit. The benefits of adequate loanable funds to this segment are huge; from job creation to tax revenues not least are the multiplier effects on security and youth restiveness. While a CBN-led or directed initiative is welcomed and awaited, this is also a call on our banks and the top tier banks in particular to see supportive advances to the MSME segment as a natural responsibility they must bear. As our banks revel in the easy profits thrust at them by our dysfunctional and less than ideal market and regulatory environment, let them channel some energy and resources towards a more inclusive and progressive financial intermediation that will deliver economic prosperity to the majority.

Buzim is an accountant and SME consultant based in Lagos.