Sat 03 May 2014

S A T U R D A Y COVER 49

JAMB: Between Computer And Manual Test

E D I T I O N WOMAN 21

SHOWBLAST 33

POLITICS 51

Ultimate Clubbing In The Coal City

‘How Abducted School Girls Can Be Rescued’

‘Nigerians

Should Be Taught Entrepreneurship

Skills Early’

TheGuardian Conscience, Nurtured by Truth Saturday, May 3, 2014

Vol. 30, No. 12,910

N150

www.ngrguardiannews.com

Borno To Publish Identities Of Abducted Girls If Permitted • Describes Chikwe’s Comment As Insensitive From Njadvara Musa, Maiduguri ORNO State government B yesterday said it would publish the names and pic-

Environmental officials cleaning the site of Thursday’s bomb blast in Nyanya, Abuja … yesterday.

PHOTO: LADIDI LUCY

tures of all the abducted school girls if permitted by the military and other security agencies operating in the state.

Governor Kashim Shettima spoke yesterday at the Government House, Maiduguri, in reaction to a statement by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Women Leader, Mrs. Kema Chikwe “doubting whether or not” all the girls were actually abducted by the Boko Haram gunmen on Monday, April 14, 2014, at Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok.

Chikwe, in a statement on Thursday, had said she was misunderstood and that her intention was not to doubt the kidnap.

The Governor’s request for permission to publish the identities of the abducted girls were contained in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Isa Umar Gusau, which was made available to journalCONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Nyanya Blast: Death Toll Rises To 19 From Mohammed Abubakar, Karls Tsokar and Joke Falaju, Abuja HE death toll arising from T the Workers’ Day bombing in Nyanya, Abuja, has hit 19 according to information from the Police, while 60 others are reportedly injured and receiving treatment.

In the aftermath of the blast, President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday summoned an emergency expanded National Security Council (NSC) meeting to work out strategies on how to tame the growing cases of insurgency occasioned by the frequent bomb blasts in the nation’s capital.

• 60 Injured • Jonathan Directs Security Agencies To Fish Out Perpetrators • Three Unexploded IEDs Recovered At Scene The meeting started around 11am, broke off about 1.45pm for Juma’at prayers and reconvened at 4.pm.

Briefing State House correspondents after the meeting, Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, flanked by all the spokespersons of the security agencies, confirmed that the meeting reviewed the second Nyanya bombing on Thursday and the abducted school girls at the Government Secondary

School, Chibok in Borno State three weeks ago.

He said after receiving extensive briefing from all the security agencies, the President directed all their heads to ensure that the perpetrators are identified and brought to justice within the shortest period.

He said the security chiefs briefed the meeting on the efforts so far made to locate and rescue the abducted girls and bring the perpetrators to

justice.

Maku said: “Extensive and intensive aerial surveillance by the Air Force has been carried out in all the routes leading into and out of Chibok up to Chad and Cameroun borders. Other parts of Borno and Adamawa states are also under the searchlight.

“Every information relayed to security agencies has so far been investigated, including the search of all places suspected as a possible hide-

away of the kidnapped girls.

“The police, backed up by the military and DSS, have combed and are still combing all reported places that the girls might have been taken to.

“In view of the inconsistent and contradictory information available to government on the Chibok abduction, the President has set up a factfinding committee, comprising security agencies, civil society, international organisation and other stakeholders.”

He however did not give detailed information about the composition of the committee or its terms of reference, saying such information

would be communicated to the public later.

He said the committee became necessary in view of the inconsistencies in the number of girls that were picked up.

Maku went further: “The President commiserates with the families of the deceased in the latest bombing at Nyanya and empathises with all those who were injured in the incident. He has also directed full medical treatment for the victims at government expense.

“The President also shares in the pain and anguish of the parents and guardians of the Chibok girls abducted by the

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

2 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

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Police Call For Names, Photos Of Abducted School Girls From Njadvara Musa, Maiduguri HE Borno State Police T Commissioner, Alhaji Tanko Lawal, has appealed to parents and guardians to assist the Police and other security agencies in the state in the efforts to rescue the

276 abducted school girls in Chibok town by presenting their names and photographs for documentation.

Lawal made the appeal yesterday at a news conference in Maiduguri.He said the appeal had become inevitable following the difficulties in accessing the

records of the abducted girls, noting that the school was destroyed by suspected insurgents while the students were abducted.

His words: “We want to appeal to parents of the abducted girls to please come forward with the names and photographs of

their wards, so we can come up with a tentative figure of those missing. The April 14, 2014, attack on the school by suspected insurgents damaged the entire structure, including the administrative building where records were kept.

This makes it difficult to get

Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin, left; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Kenneth Minimah;Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar and the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh during a Security Council meeting in Abuja yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

records on the number of girls actually abducted at the school.”

He further disclosed that available information had also revealed that 530 candidates registered at the school for the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE).

“Candidates from five areas – Ashigashiya, Izge, Chibok, Waraba A and Lassa, registered at Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, for the SSCE,” Lawal said.

He, however, noted that it was still not clear on the number of girls that were abducted when the insurgents attacked the school.

On the authentic figure of abducted girls, Lawal said: “At present, there are flying figures on the actual number of girls abducted. About 276 students were allegedly abducted by the insurgents going by claims of the people. Out of the number, 53 have regained their freedom, and going by the figure, about 223 girls are believed to be in the hands of Boko Haram insurgents. But we need the parents and guardians to come forward with genuine claims like names and photographs so we can get the actual figure of all abducted girls in Borno State for action and eventual rescue and release to affected parents.”

Women Threaten To March Naked Into Sambisa Forest From Saxone Akhaine, Kaduna and Njadvara Musa, Maiduguri S efforts by Nigerian A troops to rescue the school girls abducted in Chibok, Borno State, by suspected insurgents continue, communities and motorists, including farmers and herdsmen in the border towns and villages with Cameroun have abandoned three major roads leading to Maiduguri and Damaturu, the state capitals of Borno and Yobe states, from the notorious Sambisa Forest.

This is coming just as some concerned women have threatened to converge in Lagos and other parts of the country and later proceed to Borno State, from where they would walk naked into the forest in search of the students.

The women accused the government of insensitivity to the plight of the abducted girls over its failure to rescue them from their abductors.

The abandoned roads include the 141-kilometre Maiduguri-Damboa-Chibok, the 135-kilometre MaiduguriBama-Gwoza; and the 60-kilometre Gwoza-

• In Search Of Abducted Girls • Motorists Abandon Roads Leading To Forest Damboa road which served several farming, fishing communities and herdsmen in six councils of the state.

The blowing up of two bridges on two affected roads by suspected Boko Haram insurgents early this year has also prevented communities and residents from accessing the roads to reach Maiduguri

and Damaturu for their businesses and other economic activities.

The Guardian also learnt that the communities on the fringes of the forest cut off as a result include over half a dozen villages and six major towns of Gwoza, Bama, Damboa, Chibok, Askira and Madagali in Borno and

Adamawa states which share a border at Limankara village.

According to former Gwoza Council Vice Chairman, Mr. Francis Mbala Nduka, the desertion of the roads was occasioned by the incessant “attacks and killings” by suspected insurgents in 2013 and early this year.

He said because of insecurity on the affected roads in Gwoza, Damboa, Bama, Konduga, Chibok and Damboa councils, farmers

can not go to their farmlands.

He also disclosed that residents and villagers are forced to live in their houses and communities.

On how residents travel in and out of their communities, Nduka said: “We have no option than to travel through a total distance of 655 kilometres of roads in Adamawa, Gombe and Yobe states to avoid being attacked or killed by these gunmen.

Jonathan Directs Security Agencies To Fish Out Perpetrators CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 terrorists.”

He continued: “On the latest Nyanya blast, the President directed security chiefs to increase surveillance and expedite investigation into the explosion to ensure that those behind the heinous act are arrested and brought to justice.

“The President also gave instructions for additional proactive measures by security agencies to enhance public safety, including increased

public awareness for citizens to step up their cooperation with security agencies by reporting suspected activities and persons likely to cause a breach of public peace, safety and security.

“The President’s heart goes out to these our unfortunate daughters who have had to endure the trauma of abduction and separation from their loved ones. The government and people of Nigeria stand solidly by them.

“The President further appeals to the parents, guardians, relations and members of the public to furnish security agencies with all the information that will assist in the rescue of the girls.

“Government also appreciates the public outpouring of support and the sentiment expressed so far by all Nigerians, including civil society groups, who have come out to condemn the abduction of the girls and terrorism in the country.

“Government strongly

believes that the people of Nigeria, standing together, will overcome the current security challenges.

“The President has directed that the security agencies should intensify efforts to rescue the Chibok girls and assures Nigerians that wherever the girls are in the world, we will get them back, apprehend and punish the culprits.”

Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Frank Mba, yesterday in Abuja in company of the Assistant Director Public Affairs of the Department of State Services (DSS), Marilyn Ogar, and an official of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), confirmed the figure but also hinted that six other victims beside the 60, who suffered various injuries as a result of the blast were treated and already discharged from the hospital.

Mba had given a casualty figure of 12 dead and 19 wounded on Thursday, a few hours after the explosion occurred, a fig-

ure he, however, described as “provisional”, considering the time. But after a thorough check, he arrived at the new figure, for now.

He said the security challenge could only be overcome with the cooperation of the public as the threat was to everyone.

“Investigations are ongoing and we appeal to the citizens to rally round the security forces at this critical point in our history. It will take the unity of all of us to defeat terror,” he said.

The bomb attack, the second in the series this quarter to affect the suburb of the Federal Capital city, according to some witnesses at the scene “claimed more lives than is reported by the police, but not as many as the first one.”

The FPRO also said three unexploded Improvise Explosive Devices (IEDs) were recovered at the scene of the blast, but have been rendered innocuous by the security’s anti-bomb squad.

Chikwe’s Comment Insensitive, Says Borno Govt CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 ists yesterday in Maiduguri.

Shettima, in the statement, said: “We have read with very rude shock, media reports attributed to the National Women Leader of the PDP, raising doubts on whether indeed, schoolgirls were abducted at Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok, on April 14, 2014, or not. This is a clear case of bringing politics into a serious national issue that affects the lives of over 200 school girls which is highly unfortunate.

“We find that report a big affront that undermines the National Security Council which held a meeting that dwelt extensively on the matter with a directive to the armed forces to rescue the girls. By her remark, Chikwe has undermined the integrity of all of Nigeria’s security forces because her questions appear to mean that the security agencies in the country do not know what they are doing for holding a National Security Council meeting and deliberating on something that was doubtful and yet giving directives to address it.

“This incident happened 17 days ago; every Nigerian expects that by now, the security agencies must have been carrying out investigations that might have included debriefing some of the girls that escaped from captivity, and speaking with parents and other students of the school.

Chikwe’s remark seems to attack the integrity of the security agencies, giving the impression that nothing was done.”

Shettima added: “Unlike Kema Chikwe that seeks to undermine the integrity of the security agencies and the President, what we do know and believe is that the President, Goodluck Jonathan, couldn’t have deemed it necessary to host an expanded National Security Council meeting that was attended by him, all Security Chiefs, Governors of the 36 States and key leaders of this country during which the school girls’ abduction was extensively discussed if the President was not properly briefed by the security agencies under the Federal Government that school girls were abducted. The school was virtually razed down, security agencies know this and they know that the attack and abduction took place.”

The Governor noted that the Defence Headquarters have issued several statements including one that said forces were closing in on the abductors.

“We, therefore, wonder why Chikwe should make mockery of all of these patriotic efforts.

Even though most of the school buildings were razed during that attack and property vandalised, records of school girls that registered for WAEC and NECO exams cannot be a difficult one to get since the examination bodies are there with records. In addition to that, parents lodged complaints that should naturally have the names of their children or wards. It is expectedly thought that security agencies would by now have necessary information about these girls, which might include their records.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 3

4 Saturday, May 3, 2014

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NeWS

Nyanya Bomb Blast

Relatives Of Blast Victims Recount Ordeal in Claiming Corpses From Emeka Anuforo, Abuja S they counted their losses A sorrowfully, some relatives of people affected by Thursday’s blast at Nyanya yesterday lamented the increasing state of insecurity in the country, calling on government to live up to the duty of protecting citizens. early figures indicate that there were 34 injured and 12 corpses at Asokoro General hospital, and 4 dead and 29

injured at Maitama and Nyanya General hospitals.

They are also calling for new strategy and approach in curbing the continuous threats to lives and properties in the country.

Miss Ladi Mudugah, a 24year-old student of the institute of Non-formal education in Gombe State, was in Abuja on holiday and was staying with her elder sister. The explosion ripped through Ladi’s body and she

No Going Back On hosting Of World economic forum From Emeka Anuforo, Abuja eSPiTe fears in some quarters that Thursday’s bomb blast at Nyanya, might affect Nigeria’s hosting of the 24th World economic forum on Africa, the owners of the event said yesterday that the event would go on in Abuja.

The event, scheduled for Abuja next week, is expected to bring together over 1,000 leaders across politics, business and civil society including Premier Li Keqiang of China and eleven African heads of state and government.

Associate Director in charge of Media Relations at World economic forum, Oliver Cann, said in a statement in Abuja that the forum had gotten assurances from President Goodluck

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Jonathan that the event would still be hosted in Abuja.

Cann said the World economic forum on Africa 2014 would go ahead amid tightened security.

The statement noted: “The World economic forum has received assurances from President Goodluck ebele Jonathan that security arrangements in Abuja will ensure a smooth and successful meeting next week “The 24th World economic forum on Africa will take place in Abuja, Nigeria, on 7-9 May 2014, convening over 1000 leaders from politics, business and civil society.

“The 24th World economic forum on Africa comes at a crucial time for the continent, taking place under the theme: Forging Inclusive Growth, Creating Jobs.”

didn’t survive the massive damage to her system. her elder sister, Samirah Abubakar Atiku was at the mortuary of the Asokoro General hospital in company of other relatives to claim late Ladi’s body.

Atiku’s sorrow could better be imagined as she battled the sight of her younger sister.

As she found her voice amidst sobs, she cried out: “The government should do something about the security situation in the country, this is something that used to happen in the northern states, now it has reached Abuja. We are no longer safe anywhere in Nigeria.”

Mr Chukwudi Okoye was also

at the mortuary to claim the body of his younger brother, K e n .

Okoye too urged the government to rise to the occasion. he lamented: “i don’t know how to relative this story to his w i f e . ” Secretary of the Maitama General hospital, Mrs Angela effiong, told newsmen that four victims were brought to the hospital. One of the victims, she stressed, was referred to the National hospital having sustained serious burns.

One of the victims at the hospital, Miss hadiza narrated how she and her friend were waiting to board a vehicle going to Area 1 when the explosion occurred: “The first vehi-

cle we saw was already filledup. My friend suggested that we moved forward a little.

Besides us was a white car with nobody inside and before i could get to my friend, the explosion went off and that was my last moment with her.” hadiza narrated how she was thrown to the ground by the explosion. She lost a leg to the b l a s t .

“When i regained consciousness, i couldn’t stand up again. i noticed that my right leg was no more.”

The Nyanya General hospital has said that about 29 persons were brought to hospital immediately after the bomb b l a s t .

PDP Charges Nigerians To Unite Against Terrorism From Azimazi Momoh Jimoh, Abuja he Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) party has charged all Nigerians to jettison all interests and join forces with government to expose terrorists just as it lamented that it was the ordinary people that have remained victims of insurgency in the country.

PDP National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh in a statement yesterday said Nigerians must realize that regular citizens have generally become targets irrespective of religious and ethnic differences and as such, must stand

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up and join hands with government in the fight against terrorism.

With particular reference to the Thursday night bomb explosion in Nyanya (Abuja), the party stated: “Nigerians must realize that it is no longer about the President or the government, neither is it about government officials, all Nigerians are under attack.

Ordinary people and regular citizens have remained general targets of these enemies of our country. “hundred of innocent Nigerians, Muslims and Christians alike have had their lives brutally ended by the wicked acts of these terrorists.

Our people, businessmen and women, professionals, including security men, doctors and nurses, lawyers, artisans, market women, civil servants, farmers, school children, clerics, artistes, old men and women and bread winners pursuing legitimate endeavors have been brutalized and slaughtered.

“Those behind these devilish acts seek mainly to intimidate, cow, frighten and destroy us thereby imposing a regime of terror, anarchy and chaos.

They seek to decimate us as a people, destroy our common heritage and bring our nation to its knees, but they will surely fail.

CAN Condemns fresh Attack From Nkechi Onyedika, Abuja he Secretary General, T Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Dr Musa Asake has expressed shock over the fresh attack at the Nyanya motor park and urged security agencies to take decisive steps to contain the situation. in a statement yesterday in Abuja, he noted that Thursday night’s attack in Nyanya, the second in 15 days, is a clear indication of the terrorists motive to demoralise and destabilise the Nigerian work force by putting fear in their minds.

Mark Seeks Security Vigilance From Azimazi Momoh Jimoh, Abuja ReSiDeNT of the Senate, P Senator David Mark, yesterday mourned the death of Nigerians that were killed in the bomb blast that occured in Nyanya, federal Capital Territory.

Mark, who condemned the attack on innocent and harmless Nigerians described it as cowardly and irresponsible, praying that those who were injured will quickly recover. he called on Nigerians, “to more than ever before become security alert and engage in citizen policing.

TheGuardian on Sunday

SPECIAL REPORT

COVER

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

SUNDAY, MAY 4, 2014

2015 Puts Governance On hold

Ex-militant Leaders Bid Farewell To Arms fTeR amnesty, most of the ex-militants in A the Niger Delta, who once used arms to terrorise, are now social ambassadors, offering

eN months to the 2015 general elections, governance has been pushed to back seat. Some ministers have reportedly abandoned their Abuja offices, to chase party tickets in their states. They have refused to resign and President Jonathan has refused to send them home. even the Presidency has put a lot of things on hold, calculating to see which step would increase the chances of electoral victory in 2015. Some ministries are being run without substantive ministers and the delivery is poor. Polytechnics have been on strike for many months and there seems no end. The Guardian this Sunday searches for ways to balance the acts, so that politics does not harm development.

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capacity trainings and services to their communities and beyond. Boyloaf, Asari, Tompolo, Ateke and others are now running successful humanitarian/business organisations. You may call it the sunny side of militancy.

HEALTH Overcoming infertility with IVF Truth About BUSINESS GDP Rebasing IBRU

iTh its ‘underground’ economy looming larger than ever, Nigeria may need to rebase every two years to get the statistics right.

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These and more in The Guardian on Sunday. Grab your copy

SAINTHOOD: HAT makes a Saint and who determines Sainthood? Clergy explain.

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Saturday, May 3, 2014

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NEWS FG Orders Abuja Schools, Public Offices Closed For WEFA

We Need International Assistance On Terrorism, Says Atiku

From Karls Tsokar, Abuja PPARENTLY in anticipation A of the heavy vehicular traffic that would be experienced in AbujafromnextweekasNigeria hosts the World Economic Forum Africa (WEFA), President Goodluck Jonathan has directed that all public offices and schools within the federal capital be closed for the periods of the meeting.

A statement from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief Anyim Pius Anyim, reads: “This is to inform the general public that the President hasapproved,aspartofarrangements for the successful hosting of the World Economic Forum Africa, that all government offices and schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), except those on essential services, are to be closed from Wednesday, May 7 to Friday, May 9, 2014.

MedicalConsultants Condemn Insecurity, Girls’ Abduction

By Chuka Odittah, Abuja ENIOR health workers under the aegis of Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) have condemned the spate of bombings in the country as well as abduction of 200 Chibok female students by terrorists.

President of the association, Dr. Steven Oluwole who made the disclosure in a communique read at the end of a three-day National Executive Council meeting of MDCAN in Benin City, stressed that the pervading state of insecurity in the country is condemnable in addition to being detrimental to effective healthcare delivery and national peace.

“The prevailing state of insecurity in some parts of the country is worrisome.

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Group Mobilises For Jonathan’s Re-election In Southeast From Charles Ogugbuaja, Owerri PPARENTLY poised to A ensure that President Goodluck Jonathan is re-elected in 2015 presidential election, a new political pressure group under the aegis of Friends of Goodluck – 2015, has kicked off its awareness campaign in the five states of the Southeast geo-political zone.

In a statement by the Southeast zone coordinator of the group, Mr. Uche Henry Madu made available to The Guardian in Owerri, appointment of coordinators and members of the executives have been made to pilot the course of the group which is essentially to ensure that grassroots awareness even at family levels in the zone was carried out to ensure that Jonathan received bulk votes in the area.

According to the statement, the members would ensure that the President Jonathan continues to receive sustained support of his government in the southeast geo politicalzone.

From Adamu Abuh, Abuja ORMER Vice President Atiku Abubakar has stated that Nigeria should seek international support to win the war against terrorism.

Reiterating his earlier call on the federal government to enlist international help in its current war against terrorism, he commended the sacrifices and patriotism of Nigeria’s security forces in dealing with the threats of terrorist violence.

Atiku spoke in reaction to Thursday’s bomb blast at Nyanya.

In a statement by his media office in Abuja, the former Vice President said it was high time Nigeria urgently seek international support to tackle its current tough and seemingly intractable security challenges.

According to him, terrorism is relatively new to Nigeria and its security men and women are up against a deadly unconventional enemy that doesn’t bother about the rules of engagement.

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A military personnel controlling the crowd at the scene of Thursday’s Nyanya bomb blast yesterday.

PHOTO: LADIDI LUCY ELUKPO

2015: UNDP, IPAC Renew Campaign For Women’s Participation

By Kabir Alabi Garba FFORTS to enhance E women’s participation in politics beginning from the 2015 general elections received a boost during the week in Calabar, Cross River State, when a five-point demand presented by the woman leaders got unanimous endorsement by the chairmen of political parties in the country.

The occasion was the National Dialogue on Enhancing Women’s Political Participation in the 2015 Elections facilitated by the Democratic

Governance for Development (DGD) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The two-day dialogue had in attendance chairmen of political parties under the auspices of Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC) as well as members of Forum of Nigerian Women in Politics (FONWIP).

Canvassing the position of woman leaders at the close of the dialogue, Mariam Ahmed of Citizen Popular Party (CPP) listed sensitisation and education of women in politics;

amendment of party constitution to be gender responsive; adequate funding; eradication of violence associated with electioneering; and continuous dialogue for better understanding and commitment as some of the demands to foster women’s participation actively in the forthcoming general elections.

Responding, IPAC Chairman, Dr. Yunusa Tanko said the demands were not only legitimate and constitutionally justifiable, stressing that he had the mandate of his group to

create a platform of engagement with woman leaders of all political parties in Nigeria to ensure that all impediments to political aspirations of womenfolk are dismantled henceforth.

Tanko, who is also Chairman, National Conscience Party of Nigeria (NCP), however, solicited the cooperation of FONWIP in the struggle by IPAC to “liberate political parties that are not in power (both at state and federal levels) from financial obstacle created by the ruling parties to keep other parties down.”

Bamidele Suspends Campaign To Protest Supporters’ Attack From Muyiwa Adeyemi, Ado Ekiti IFFEDby the arrest of some ofhissupportersathisIyinEkiti country home on Thursday, the Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate, Opeyemi Bamidele yesterday said he has suspended his electioneering campaign.

The suspension, he said, would continue pending the time the police will assure him safety of his supporters and release of those he believed were wrongly detained at police headquarters.

But Kayode Fayemi has assured that his administration was working in collaboration with therelevantsecurityagenciesto ensure maintenance of peace before, during and after the June 21 governorship election.

Bamidele said the step became necessary following incessant attacks his supporters had allegedly suffered across the state, particularly in his Iyin Ekiti country home, in the hands of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC).

Bamidele, a member of House ofRepresentatives,spokeinIyin Ekiti while addressing newsmen on the attacks and arrest of

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• Ekiti Election Will Be Peaceful, Says Fayemi his members by the police over protest to Oluyin, Oba Ademola Ajakaye that Governor Kayode Fayemishouldnotcampaignin the town on Thursday.

Police had on Thursday arrested eight members of LP for blocking roads leading to the town to prevent Fayemi from campaigning in Iyin Ekiti.

Bamidele alleged that the tra-

ditional ruler of Isan Ekiti, Fayemi’s country home, Oba Sunday Ajiboye, stopped him from campaigninginhistowntosave Fayemi from disgrace, saying “I can confidently say I have one of the largest support base in the town.”

But the Director of Media, Kayode Fayemi Campaign

Organisation, Dimeji Daniels, who refuted the allegation, said it was Bamidele’s supporters that invaded the palace of Oluyin that day in an attempt to prevent Governor Fayemi from entering.”

He said, “Egbe, Ipole-Iloro, Okemesi, Ido-Ile, Aramoko, Ilupeju, Itaji, Iyin are a few of the towns with gory details of Bamidele’s violence machinery.

Suswam’s Wife Tasks Corps Members On Skill Acquisition From Joseph Wantu, Makurdi IFE of the Governor of Benue State, Mrs. Dooshima Suswam has lauded the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) for its Skill Acquisition Scheme and urged corps members serving in the state to make valuable use of the programme and shun evil during their service year.

Mrs. Suswam who gave the charge while commissioning a skill acquisition centre built by the NYSC and named after her at the state secretariat of the agency said the additional skills corps members would acquire wouldrepositionthembetterto face social realities.

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She condemned those calling for the scrapping of the NYSC scheme, stressing that the service year is not a waste but a period that gives one a lasting memory.

The governor’s wife noted that naming the skill acquisition centre after her makes her feel challenged and donated 10 desktop computers as well as 10 sewing machines to the centre.

Mrs.Suswamlaterlaidthefoundation of a 16-room self-contain corpers’lodge,locatedatManor Quarters, Makurdi.

Earlier in her address, the state coordinator of NYSC, Mrs. Nnenna Ukonu intimated that the skill acquisition centre was a veritable platform for corps

members to pursue skills and training to promote selfreliance, as well as enable them meet challenges of our everchangingeconomyoccasioned byurbanisationandtechnological advancements.

Mrs. Ukonu added that the scheme is in line with the National Job Policy of the NYSC targeted at reducing joblessness and over-dependence on white-collar jobs.

Attah Was A Compassionate Politician, Says Mark From Azimazi Momoh Jimoh, Abuja RESIDENT of the Senate, P Senator David Mark, yesterday mourned the death of the Second Republic Governor of old Kwara State, Alhaji Adamu Attah, describing his death as the exit of a compassionate politician.

Senator Mark, who described the late governor as a politician who lived his life for the people noted that Alhaji Attah dedicated his time to providing the basic needs of the people like hospitals, roads, schools and so on.

“His politics was people-oriented. He identified the basic needs of the people and worked assiduously to provide those simple needs of life.”

The President of the Senate further recalled that the late Attah lived and preached peace in his days as governor adding that when he was not re-elected for a second term, he accepted the wishes of the people without rancour.

“As politicians of today, we have a lot to learn from the humble political lifestyle of Alhaji Attah who served the people with the fear of God.” He condoled the larger Attah family of Ebiraland and people of Kwara and Kogi States, urging them to be consoled by the exemplary lifestyle of the late former governor.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

6 Saturday, May 3, 2014

NEWS N25bn Required To Remove Abandoned Shipwrecks –– LASG

By Kamal Tayo Oropo State Government yesLlionAGOS terday said about N25bilwill be required to effectively remove abandoned shipwrecks along the state coastline and waterways.

Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Prince Adesegun Oniru disclosed this yesterday at the ongoing ministerial press briefing to herald the seventh

…Explains Cause Of Boat Mishaps anniversary in office of the Governor Babatunde Fashola administration.

According to Oniru, there are about 200 shipwrecks and abandoned vessels currently lying on the state’s coastline including lagoons, stressing that the vessels are responsible for some of the environmental issue, especially degradation

of the coastline.

Aside its environmental effects, the commissioner stressed that such wrecks, pose a danger to navigation on the waterways as well as the health of residents due to the toxic nature arising from the decay of the wreckage.

“There are also security concerns as these wrecks can pro-

vide miscreants with hideouts for their activities. Removals of shipwrecks and abandoned vessels is not a small task and it will cost nothing less than N25billion to effectively remove the wrecks from the state’s coastline”, the commissioner stressed.

He, however, said it was not the responsibility of the state government to cough out the required amount, lamenting that efforts to get the federal

FG Restates Commitment To Reviving Manufacturing Sector

By Olawunmi Ojo HE Minister of Industry, T Trade and Investment, Dr. Olusegun Aganga has reiterated the resolve of the federal government’s to revive the manufacturing sector as the main growth engine for the economy.

To achieve this, Aganga said government, as part of its reformation agenda, is committed to increasing incentives and improving infrastructure to encourage manufacturers as part of a larger action plan to evolve a private sector-led economy.

The minister made the disclosure at the grand opening ceremony of Shongai Technologies Limited and Shongai Recycling Plant by Sona Group of Industries in Ota, Ogun State. The recycling plant is the first of its kind in Nigeria and sub-sahara Africa.

Aganga, who was represented by the Acting Managing

Director of Bank of Industry (BoI), Mr Waheed Olagunju, said government’s reformation agenda is articulated to help Nigeria make up on lost grounds in her quest for economic prosperity since independence.

“It is interesting to know that under the rebased economy, there has been some improvementinthecontributionofthe sector to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). We are however not relenting.

With our potentials and resources, President Goodluck Jonathan has launched the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) along with the National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP) in a bid to address a number of issues affecting investments in our economy.

Government is also working relentlessly to showcase Nigeria’s investment potential to the world in a bid to keep attracting Foreign Direct

Investment,” he said.

Aganga disclosed that government was also working to reinvigorate existing industries by putting in place adequate measures to protect local industries from unfair competition, and stimulate expansion of domestic production capacity.

“We have developed sector-specific incentives to address the peculiar needs of every sub-sector of the Nigerian economy. It is our hope that investors such as Sona Group would continue to take advantage of government’s policies and programmes to expand their businesses to create more employment opportunities for teeming Nigerians.”

In his opening remarks, the Chairman of Sona Group, Mr. Arjan Khemchand Mirchandani said the opening of Shongai Packaging Company Recycling Plant and the Shongai Technologies Limited was a celebration of the vision, steadfast-

ness and support of the group’s key stakeholders.

He noted that while governments shape the evolution, sustenance and success of brands through policy and actions, manufacturers shape the lives of consumers through the numerous offerings of their brands. “At Shongai, we are shaping the way manufacturers’ products and brands are perceived and enjoyed through world-class labeling and packaging solutions that make the products attractive to consumers while protecting the quality and integrity of the products to the consumers.”

Mirchandani said that with new initiative, the group’s modest contributions will in addition spin off an annual revenue of about N200 billion in the Nigerian economy, creating direct and indirect employment for about 5, 000 Nigerians while saving the economy unnecessary foreign exchange expenses.

government to aid the protecting of the coastlines have yielded little result.

Oniru, also revealed that government is currently working on a law aimed at finding and prosecuting owners of abandoned vessel on its coastline.

He explained, “Our ministry is working with the Ministry of Justice to put legislation together. You cannot anchor a vessel out in the Atlantic and whenever there is a strong wind or surge and the anchor snaps and then it is at the mercy of the Atlantic, then they leave it there and disappear, when the legislation is put together, it would be a thing of the past.

Also speaking, Managing Director of the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), Yinka Marinho said aside shipwrecks, logs could also trigger

boat mishaps.

He noted that the boat incident at Majidun going to Ikorodu was as a result of the boat hitting a log being pulled from Ondo state via Epe into Ebute Metta sawmill.

“The logs are very huge and they can’t be carry physically, sometimes the logs lose while being pulled and when this happens, it floats along the waterways whichever way the current carries it, when the boats are coming, it is not very visible to see those longs. On that unfortunate day, the boat hit the log, that size of log could affect any size of boat”.

He said LASWA was currently dredging ferry channels as well as working on legislation to tighten the waterways especially channels dredged for ferry services and commercial activities.

Governor Obiano Testifies At Tribunal, Insists He Registered Once

By Uzoma Nzeagwu, Awka OVERNOR Willie Obiano G on Friday testified at the Anambra state Governorship Election Petition tribunal, sitting in Awka, restating that he was never involved in double registration, while also insisting that he never possessed two INEC voters cards at any time.

Governor Obiano who appeared at the Justice Ishaq Bello led tribunal made the submission while responding

to cross examination by counsels to Dr Chike Obidigbo and INEC, Mr Oba Mmaduabuchi and Mr Adegboyega Awomolo respectively.

The Governor said that he registered and was issued the INEC voters card in Lagos in 2011, pointing out that he applied for transfer of the registration to Anambra state on August 19, 2013, when he decided to join the governorship race. According to Dr Obiano, it was to enable him vote from a polling booth close to his house at Aguleri.

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Saturday, May 3, 2014

7

NEWS

Oko Mayhem: Community Accuses IGP, Rector, Of Complicity, Demands Justice From Chuks Collins, Awka twist has now FthatURTHER been added to the crises have enveloped the sleepy erosion-ravaged Oko community in Orumba North Council of Anambra State, with a call to President Goodluck Jonathan to intervene in their worsening strained relationship with the management of the Federal Polytechnic (FEDPOLY), Oko.

The community had in a press briefing in Awka listed their 6point prayers to the President, including a demand for public apology from the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar and the state Commissioner of Police, Usman Gwary, “for publicly denigrading their monarch, Igwe (Prof) Laz Ekwueme.

They also urged the President “to caution the Police to stop taking sides in the crises and to focus on their constitutionally

assigned role of mediating and peacekeeping.”

They also want the Police high command to “face their constitutionally assigned duty and responsibility and effect the immediate arrest and prosecution of those involved in the arson and destruction of properties in Oko, and an alleged attempted murder their monarch and his wife, Lucy.

The community, at the press conference addressed by the

TUC Boss Recommends Community Policing As Solution To Insecurity In The North From Charles Akpeji, Jalingo HE PRESIDENT General of T the Trade Union Congress {TUC}, Comrade Bala Kiagama Bobboi has counseled that community policing is necessary for putting an end to insurgency in the northern country.

Bobboi who made this known to journalists yesterday in his home town Kakara immediately after his turberning as the Tafidan Sardauana by the Chief of Mambilla, Dr. Shehu Audu Baju, beckoned on the relevant authority to encourage community police, as that “would go a long way to

reduce the security menace presently confronting the country.”

According to him, “As an individual and a body representing an organization we strongly believe in this community policing” stating that “the spirit behind community policing is all about traditional rulers.”

He promised to use his position as the TUC boss and as the new Tafidan Sarduana, not only to assist traditional institution regain its lost glories but would also checkmating the activities of hoodlums in the community.

Advocating for proper polic-

ing of visitors into any of the communities in the country, he said other countries registers visitors as they enter into a country though the hotels.

“If our hotels system can device that strategies, it would be good for the country.’

Speaking at the occasion, the monarch who believed that nothing could be achieved without peace said, “if we want to perform our responsibilities, we must aspire for peace.”

He urged the people to be very “vigilant to outsiders because some of them are not peace lovers.”

President General of Oko Peoples Union, Mr. Cyprian Nwanmuo, accused a prominent and wealthy businessman in the state of tacitly fuelling the crises through subtle means, after he had personally called the monarch on the phone and “abused him for his (monarch’s) effrontery to criticise the council he (businessman) constituted for the polytechnic.”

While appealing to the federal government to set up a high-powered Judicial Commission, headed by a distinguished

High Court Judge and people of established integrity, to look into the lingering Oko/Fedpoly crises, with a view to unraveling the causes.

Similarly, they want the position of rector to be advertised and a transparent method used to hire a replacement for the current occupant, whose tenure expired on March 14, this year.

The community accused the rector of woeful performance in his first tenure and poor human relationship, to the extent of being at war with all the staff unions in the institution.

Col. Dungs, Former Delta Milad, Dies at 62 From Isa Abdulsalami-Ahovi, Jos ORMER Military FState, Administrator of Delta Col. John David Dungs, is dead. He was aged 62.

His death came about 24 hours after the death of his Berom kinsman, Senator John Wash Pam, a former Deputy Senate President.

Dungs reportedly slumped at home and was rushed to Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), where he passed on.

His death came about 48 hours after the death of his father, whose remains are

still in the mortuary.

A cousin of the deceased, Daniel Woshi, who confirmed his death, described it as sudden and shocking.

“We were together this morning. He even paid the salaries of all his staff today (yesterday) and had a meeting with business associates.

“He was preparing for his father’s burial. We are still in a shock.”

Born on February 3, 1952 at Riyom in Plateau State, Dungs attended Nigeria Military School (NMS), Zaria from 1966 to 1970 after his primary education.

Turkish Journalist Wins World Press Freedom Prize

By Ajibola Amzat with agency report NESCO/Guillermo Cano U World Press Freedom Prize has been awarded to Turkish journalist Ahmet Şık yesterday.

The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, presented the 2014 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize to Şık during a ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. The event started the celebrations for this year’s World Press Freedom Day, held today.

2014 Theme is: Media Freedom for a Better Future: Shaping the post-2015 Development Agenda.

According to a release from UNESCO website, the annual international conference marking the day will also be held at the Organization’s Headquarters this year, on 5 and 6 May, under the theme “Media Freedom for a Better Future, Shaping the Post-2015 Development Agenda”.

UNESCO Deputy DirectorGeneral Getachew Engida will open the event with Rémy Pfimlin, CEO of French public broadcaster France Télévision and Ahmet Şık. The two-day conference will focus on trends in press freedom, the safety of journalists and the fight against impunity, as well as the evolution of public media in southern

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8 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

METRONOTES

Nkoyo Toyo’s Agriculture Project Thrills Cross River Community

By Anietie Akpan, Calabar OR the people of Atan Okoyong in Odukpani Local Government Area of Cross River State, it was jubilation all the way last week as they took delivery of their Agriculture Business farms and Park (ABFP), an empowerment programme for AgroEntrepreneurs.

Masquerades and traditional dances of the Efik, Okoyong

F

and Annang people featured prominently to affirm the joy and happiness of the Atan Okoyong people.

This project which is the brain child of Ambassador Nkoyo Toyo, a member representing Calabar/Odukpani Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, is aimed at giving back to the people of his constituency.

Valued at millions of naira,

ABFP is a total farm estate which the Cross River State Governor Senator Liyel Imoke described as “an industry and not a farm. “This is a large project which in 15 years from now when Nkoyo Toyo is no longer in the House this project will be there. It will empower so many people and the local community will benefit.

“It is very important we support this kind of project because I believe in projects that will have impact on the people.”

While charging the beneficiaries of the project to ensure that their products are processed before exporting for a better pay, Imoke decried politicians who empower supporters with

Cross River State Governor, Liyel Imoke, Speaker House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, Nigerian Ambassador to Ethiopia, Hon Nkoyo Toyo during the launch of the agric project in Odukpani.

Omotosho Urges Nigerians To Make Job Creation Their Priority

By Abiodun Fagbemi, Ilorin.

Philanthropist, Mike Omotosho has urged privileged Nigerians not to make the issue of job creation for the youth the exclusive right of the strata of governments.

Omotosho, who identified the state of joblessness as worse than death said until Nigerians embrace true spirit of patriotism and selflessness, Nigeria may continually be a poor country existing in the midst of abundant human and material resources.

According to him, privileged Nigerians must emulate the kind gestures of the Microsoft expert Bill Gates who through a productive Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR), “has been given back to the society, what the society has done for him.”

He spoke yesterday at OmuAran the headquarters of Irepodun Local Council of Kwara State during the grand finale of empowerment program for 108 youths across three Local Councils in the state Senatorial district. These includes Irepodun, Oke Ero, Isin and Ekiti Local Councils.

At the event tagged: Omotosho- Omu- Aran Skills Acquisition Program(OOSAP), the beneficiaries who were camped and fed by the sponsor for a week, acquired such skills as soap making, candle production, tie and dye making, fishery, poultry, snail rearing, using Ankara to make shoes, bags, bangles, installa-

A

tion of satellite dish and decoder and installation of Fire Alarm system. The beneficiaries believed they could make good fortune out of the kind gestures.

Besides, the beneficiaries have been linked with some commercial banks which have promised them soft loans for effective take off of the skills already impacted in them. They were equally admonished to impact the skills to interested youths in their locality, especially the aspect that deals with effective marketing strategies.

According to Omotosho, “ I meddled into the lives of these younger people because I have an inherent passion to touch lives. I have chosen to meddle positively so I can do something to change the status quo of the helpless and hopefully in the process catch the attention of fellow meddlers who sadly also have the intrinsic desire to see change but are yet to understand that they must be the change they desire to see.

“I solely did this for a while until it occurred to me that there is only so much I can do as an individual, then came the realisation that what is needed is a platform where like minds can come together to produce the sort of tangible impact that only synergistic accord can generate. It is difficult to quantify the amount of money expended so far on this project but it is at the range of N10 million.”

motorcycles saying, “they are only driving them to their early graves, hence they should rather float education and agricultural empowerment programmes.”

He said:‘’ Commercial motorcycles (Okada) empowerment is a killer empowerment. Show me one beneficiary who after riding the bike for some years has attracted two or more motorcycles?

Which of these Okada riders have bought a taxi from the proceeds of his commercial motorcycle? Education, agriculture and vocational training to me remain the best empowerment programme.’’

According to him, ABFP was a project for young people and he advised the youths to embrace it. ‘’It takes a leader who is visionary, caring and focused to have this type of constituency project. We need to re-direct the orientation of our youths to farming. We should start calling this type of project a factory and not farm. Our youths get scared once you mention farming.

They think it is for illiterates.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal who inaugurated the ultra-modern farming facility described it as the biggest empowerment

project he has ever seen implemented under constituency project by any of his colleagues and commended Hon. Toyo for her initiative which he urged should be emulated by others to fight unemployment headlong. ‘’This project is extra-ordinary, it’s visionary. It is one project that should be emulated by all including myself.

Law makers are supposed to concern themselves with the business of law making, but because of unemployment and poverty, we have taken to empowerment projects to alleviate the suffering of our people,’’ he said.

On her part, Toyo said she embarked on the agriculture project because she was a daughter of a farmer and wants young people who have no jobs to take to farming, adding that, 21 cooperative societies were collaborating with ABFP all in a bid to sustain the project after her exit from the National Assembly.

The project sits on an expansive land that was donated by the people of Atan Okoyong and would be into various farms including rice cultivation. It will also serve as a training ground for those who want to take to agriculture.

Saturday, May 3, 2014 9

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METRONOTES

‘Twin Sisters’ Joined By Love For Orphans

By Ajibola Amzat HEY were born neither by T the same parents, nor in the same township. But they have several other things in common that put them up as twin sisters.

Mrs. Vivian Olakitan Ojikutu, an anaesthetic Practitioner at Kings College Hospital, United Kingdom (UK), and Dr. Folake Rogers-Saliu, the Secretary –General to the Honourable Consul to The Republic of Djibouti in Nigeria, are both Taurus.

The two ‘sisters’ celebrate their birthdays on April 23.

But the match does not end there. Each of them is the only child of her mother; they are both successful professionals in UK (Rogers has already relocated to Nigeria); they both have children who have chosen the same career path – Law and Performing Art. More importantly they both have passion for caring for children, especially the disadvantaged ones. And they are generous too. This quality indeed belongs to the Taurus.

According to astrologers, a Taurus will readily lend a helping hand to the family, friends and the needy even if it means that they would have to endure hardship or loss.

It is this spirit that led Ojikutu to found Royal Elite Association (REA) in London, a club that seeks to provide helps to members in the period of need. That spirit made Roger set up a school for the children with learning disability and disorder in the 90’s.

But the two sisters met only by chance at Sheraton Hotel Lagos a couple of years ago, and came to know much about their shared history and their passion and dedica-

tion to humanitarian cause.

They both agreed to celebrate their birthday at Heritage Home Orphanage in Anthony Village, Lagos. And rather than organize the usual Owambe party and fete a community of friends and strangers like the people of their social standing would do, the two celebrators instead choose the Orphanage as the venue to mark their special day.

And they came, not with bands and dancers to disturb the peace of the young orphans; rather they came

with gifts of food, electronics and cheques. Both Ojikutu and Rogers knew early enough that orphans would always be with us, and it is the duty of the fortunate ones to give good life to the little ones bereft of parental care.

And so they came in company of their equally large-hearted friends who are members of the association founded in United Kingdom 12 years ago

by Mrs Ojikutu. Now they call their club Royal Elites Association, REA and she is the president.

According to Ojikutu, fondly

called Aunty Nikki by colleagues, the aim of REA is to bring friends and colleagues together and help look after one another whenever the need arises. ‘We help each other in different areas of life and network to find solution to member’s problem”. In UK, where the sense of organic community is fast disappearing in response to the dictate of modern society, human association such as REA provides a sanctuary for the folks of a fragmented society.

A branch of REA is also taking root in Lagos constituted by

the returnees from UK such as Mr. Ayo Odunlami, the patron of the association; Mrs Lara Oladepo of Neo-natal Department at King’s College Hospital and Dr. Fola RogersSaliu. And all of them are committed to fixing each other problems whenever they can.

Yet Ojikutu and Rogers think it is not enough to look out only for one peer group, whose members are constituted by successful lawyers, teachers, educationists, engineers, nurses, doctors and others. There are vulnerable

children out there who also need good attention of the privileged. These are the group the duo and their group of friends choose to remember on their birthday last week.

“I lost my mum when I was five, so I was always moved to help the less privileged,” said Aunty Nikki.

In Rogers’s case, her mother had no child for 10 years and when she finally had a twin, she lost them few years later.

Therefore, she is the only surviving child of her mother.

President, Royal Elites Association (REA), Mrs. Oluseyi Nikki Ojikutu, an Anesthetic practitioner at King’s College Hospital, United Kingdom (fifth left); Dr. Fola Rogers-Saliu, Secretary-General to the Honourary Consul to the Republic of Djibouti in Nigeria (fourth left) and other members of REA, during their visit to Heritage Homes Orphanage, Lagos as part of the activities to celebrate Ojikutu’s and Rogers-Saliu’s birthday last week.

Ndoma-Egba Gives Back To Alma Mater, Constituency Anietie Akpan, Calabar UT for the intervention of a good B Samaritan 48 years ago, the Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN) would not have gone to school or his education would have been delayed because of three pounds.

Buoyed by this gesture from the good

Samaritan, today education is very important to the Senate Leader and is building aggressively educational infrastructure in his alma mater.

Besides his alma mater, the Senate Leader has built classroom blocks and executed other projects in Enugwema Secondary School, Ediba; Erosion control at St Patrick Secondary School, Idomi; built a classroom blocks at

Ogada, Abankang, Akparabong, Adijinkpor, Nsofang, Etomi, Ugep Osokom, Mfom Osokom, Wula and other places A young boy in Etomi community in Etung Local Council chatting innocently with his friend said: “The problem with our people is that they like somebody who will come and give them N500 or N1000 in the name of empowerment forgetting that the real empowerment are the various projects like roads and education that Senator NdomaEgba is giving us. I am sorry for my people.”

Senator Ndoma-Egba has built various classroom blocks, ICT centres and other structures in St Martins Primary School, Government Secondary School, Ikom (GOVISKO), where he did his primary and secondary school. He also built a permanent and standard Law Faculties in Universities of Lagos and Calabar, where he did his first degree and masters in law respectively.

Apparently showcasing his passion for education, Ndoma-Egba said: “Education is easily the story of my life, because when I was to enter secondary school, it was not easy to raise three pounds. It was during the civil war and my father was caught up in Biafra and my mother had been out of work. They did everything to raise the three pounds but they could not so the option for me was to defer going to secondary school for another year.

“As we were trekking back from Agbarabong to Ikom (distance of 2km) and crying all the way as I was trekking with my mother, somewhere around Ikom we ran into Paul Erokoro senior, that is the father of Paul Erokoro junior the Senior Advocate who had not seen us

for a while. When he saw me, he was very excited and asked what I was doing and I said I was just granted admission into Maryknoll College and he just put his hand in his back pocket and what came out was three pounds. Since then I had wondered what would have happened to me if the benevolent Paul Erokoro senior did not provide the three pounds at that point of need. For me that three pounds came at the nick of time and made a total difference in my life and here I am today.”

He continued: “So what I try to do is to try and pay back the three pounds to those at the point of their need. My scholarship programme, I am very proud that today we have over 500 beneficiaries at both the undergraduate and post graduate levels and it is costing me about N60 to N70 million to fund. I am happy that we have been able to intervene directly in the lives of those who need that kind of intervention at this point in their lives.

Excited Vice Principal of Government Secondary School Ikom, Mrs. Gift Eno Michael Omet, said: “it is really God that has touched him to really do this kind of favour for this school. This is not the only school in this state but God gave us this privilege so we are really grateful and wish to thank him and pray that God should give him more vision for his constituency.

“This kind of massive development has never happened before in this school at least for the period I have been here. I have been here for six to seven years. The message I have for others is that they should also key into this kind of vision so that the students and people of the community will feel their presence.”

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TRAVEL&TOURISM

WTM Africa Supports Responsible Tourism InitiaHE inaugural World Travel Heidi van der Watt stated: T Market (WTM) Africa, taking “The tourism businesses takplace at the Cape Town Inter- ing part in the WTM Africa Renational Convention Centre (CTICC) from 2nd – 3rd May 2014 is following in the footsteps of its sister event World Travel Market by bringing Responsible Tourism to the forefront, not only through the WTM Africa Responsible Tourism Programme which offers a number of educational sessions, but also through its support of selected charities and initiatives.

This year WTM Africa, has shown support for a number of Responsible Tourism initiatives and is working in collaboration with several organisations and stakeholders, giving a voice to the African responsible tourism industry.

In line with this, WTM Africa is hosting the first ever Responsible Tourism Speed Marketing Session today. The new event will allow small companies with a focus on responsible and sustainable travel and experiences to showcase their products and services in a relaxed environment.

Organised by Heidi van der Watt, Director: International Centre for Responsible Tourism – South Africa, the session is a first at an industry trade event in South Africa.

Commenting on the launch

Capetown

UNWTO Ministerial Meeting 2015 Holds In Seychelles HE UNWTO Commission T For Africa (CAF) Ministerial Meeting 2014 that took place

Mbanefo

Domestic Tourism Promotion: NTDC Boss Compiles Cultural Festival Calendar Stories By Ajibola Amzat HE Director-General of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, Mrs Sally Mbanefo, has requested states, local government and relevant tourism agencies to forward details of their cultural festivals to the corporation.

The details of the cultural festivals gathered would make up the National Domestic Tourism Cultural Calendar of the corporation, which will serve as a authentic portal for domestic and foreign tourists on the innumerable rich tourist sites and cultural festivals in the country.

The compilation of the Calendar of Cultural Festivals, according to the NTDC boss, is

T

to stimulate domestic tourism in the country, which will in turn attract international tourists and consequently better the lots of the country and the good people therein.

Mbanefo explained that the submission should include name of festival, site of celebration, period of celebration, brief description of festival and the historical significance, such as masquerade, water regatta, fishing or yam festival, among others.

“These details should be forwarded, with supporting videos or CD coverage of previous editions of events, to the corporation, not later than Monday, 30 June, 2014,” Mbanefo added.

in Luanda Angola has voted unanimously to hold their 2015 Ministerial Meeting in the Seychelles. The meeting follows the call by Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture to bring the meeting to the Indian Ocean Islands to coincide with the Carnaval International de Victoria of April 2015.

Twenty African Ministers of Tourism were at the meeting of the UNWTO Commission For Africa (CAF) Meeting in Angola, which was meeting under the Chairmanship of Mr Walter Mzembi, the Minister of Hospitality & Tourism of

Zimbabwe. Present also at the meeting were Taleb Rifai, the UNWTO Secretary General and Elsia Grandcourt, the Director for Africa at the UNWTO. Minister Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture said that this was great for the Indian Ocean Region and for the Seychelles. “It will be a great opportunity to showcase the work by Seychelles to use Culture and in so doing putting the people of the islands in the centre of tourism industry’s development of the islands. The carnival in Seychelles remains unique because it is the only carnival that continues to attract every important carnival of the world to parade together

and alongside Cultural Troupes from the Community of Nations. The UNWTO Commission For Africa (CAF) Ministerial Meeting in April 2015 will be an opportunity for African Ministers to appreciate the importance for their country to be present and use the carnival as a visibility platform for their own tourism industry,” said Minister St.Ange.

The Minister said he needed to now encourage other ministers from Africa to be accompanied by their own cultural troupe when they fly to Seychelles for the 2015 UNWTO Commission For Africa (CAF) Ministerial Meeting because they will all be at the Carnival Official Opening Ceremony.

Source: UNWTO

per cent in Kenyan shilling terms from a figure of about 96 billion Kenyan shillings in 2012 to a figure of about 93 bilattacks continue to shake the lion Kenyan shillings in 2013.” country’s outlook.

According to the results for the Tourism however contributed roughly 11 per cent to 2013 calendar year that have Kenya’s GDP in 2013 and projust been released by cabinet secretary, and in terms of inter- vided employment within the country’s informal and infornational arrivals, the country has witnessed a drop of about mal sectors.

Muriithi Ndegwa, managing 11.7 per cent between 2013 and director at the Kenya Tourist 2012.

Board, told CNBC Africa that “In 2012 we had a figure of about 1,236,000 and the figure Kenya’s tourism sector condropped to about 1,091,000 [in tributed 11% of our Gross Domestic Product and provided 2013]. In terms of revenue, employment to Kenyans both there was a drop of about two

Sheraton Gets New Manager TARWOOD Hotels and ReSnounced sorts Worldwide have anthe appointment of

Mr. Barry Curran to the position of Area Manager Nigeria and General Manager for the Sheraton Lagos Hotel in Lagos, Nigeria.

In his position, he will report to Mr. Hassan Ahdab, Vice President, Regional DirectorAfrica & Indian Ocean.

Prior to this appointment, Barry was Area Manager Cairo Hotels based at Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel & Spa in Egypt, a position he had held since 2012.

Barry who is Irish by birth with education from Shannon College of Hotel Management and Cornell University took on his first role with Starwood Hotels & Resorts in 2005 as General Manager at Le Méridien Pyramids Hotel & Spa. Barry has over 25 years of experience in the hospitality inin the formal and the informal dustry and has filled various management positions in sectors.

He added that recent insecu- Ireland, the United Kingdom, rity incidents had a major im- Guyana and Egypt. pact on the dip in figures, but the government has nonetheless made plans to ensure that locals and visitors are safe.

The Westgate Mall bombing, which happened in January, was a significant turning point in the threat to safety in the county.

Recently, a car bomb killed four in Pangani, Nairobi and earlier in April, there was another explosion in the capital in the Eastleigh area, which Curran killed five.

Source: CNBC Africa.com

Security Worries Impacts Kenya’s Tourism Figures ENYA’S tourism sector sufK fered a dip in 2013 as political tensions and terrorism

sponsible Tourism Speed Marketing session offer immersive experiences that enable visitors to engage with Cape Town’s ordinary citizens, discover local haunts, and explore her natural and cultural heritage with an insider’s eye.

The generous support of Reed Travel Exhibitions gives a voice to businesses that are beacons of economic hope for the communities they operate in, the natural environment they help to protect or the creativity, arts and cultures they showcase. We salute the WTM Africa team on a bold and forward-thinking decision to sponsor the first ever Responsible Tourism Speed Marketing event in Africa.”

Also in line with WTM Africa’s commitment to supporting Responsible Tourism in its many facets, is the official partnership with charity partner, The Code, an industry-driven, multi-stakeholder initiative with the mission to provide awareness, tools and support to the tourism industry to combat the sexual exploitation of children in contexts related to travel and tourism.

Source: World Travel Market

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Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 11

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Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Arts&Culture CBCIU: Promoting Peaceful Cohabitation Among Nigerians

By Kabir Alabi Garba N the spirit of “Charity must begin at home”, the Centre for Black Culture and International IUnderstanding (CBCIU) recently organized a colloquium with a view to foster peaceful co-existence among Nigerians.

With Fundamental Imperatives of Cohabitation: Faith and Secularism as theme, the three days event attracted participants from diverse backgrounds including academics and researchers whose areas of interests are relevant to the focus of the colloquium, public intellectuals, leaders of Muslim, Christian and traditional religions, representatives of religious organizations, youth and students’ organizations, traditional rulers, women organizations among others.

Indeed, the conference derived its strength from what has been perceived in several quarters as a religious war going on in the northern part of Nigeria and which, as well, threatens to spread to other parts of the country. It is being waged by an insurgent group codenamed Boko Haram.

In addition to this is the mounting religious tension in a number of states, including Osun, which hosted the conference. This is stoked largely by mutual suspicions among some sections of Muslim and Christian communities, who have continued to launch accusations and counter accusations of attempts to foist a religion on the rest of the citizens.

Coincidentally, on April 14, 2014 when the colloquium kicked off, Nyanya, a popular bus park in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), was bombed in an operation allegedly sponsored by the same Boko Haram, killing about one hundred people and wounding hundreds of others.

The colloquium therefore, turned out to be a conscious effort by the UNESCO-backed culture centre to intervene in the crises by initiating a dialogue among different stakeholders in the Nigerian society. The desire, essentially, was to work out irreducible fundamentals necessary for peaceful cohabitation in a deeply plural and increasingly fractious society like Nigeria.

The colourful opening ceremony that set the tone of discussion had in attendance, Governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. He declared it open while Professor Wole Soyinka, in his capacity as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of CBCIU presented the keynote speech.

The Nobel laureate doubled as the convener of the colloquium.

The concept that really generated intense disquiet at the colloquium was “secularism”. The divergence of views arose from some understanding of secularism as being in opposition to religious faiths, spiritual commitments and activities, indeed to the worship of God. As conceived by the organizers, secularism was proposed simply as a principle advancing the separation of the political state, political decisions and state institutions from religious faiths; and/or the prevention of the imposition of any particular religion on the state.

A typical secular state is expected to be heterogeneous, allowing the co-existence of different religious faiths, respect different, even conflicting interpretations of the relationship between man and the cosmos, but distance itself from discrimination on the basis of religion.

Viewed this way, it would be seen that secularism is not inconsistent with the declaration in the Nigerian constitution which presents Nigerians as a people “resolved to live in unity and harmony and as an indivisible and indissoluble sovereign nation under God.” Altogether, the three-day outing featured six plenary sessions during which a total of 20 papers were presented. The opening session sets the tone of the colloquium. The intellectual colour of the colloquium was laid bare right from the onset as participants were urged to prepare for frank expression of views and no hold barred intellectual argumentation.

One of the high points scored by the colloquium was the appreciation of the fact that it might be difficult to separate people from their

faiths, but with the clarification that what ought to be borne in mind by people is that different individuals and groups of people have different ways of practising and/or articulating their beliefs; and this, other people ought to be ready to tolerate.

Religion is also presented as a fascinating phenomenon simply because it tries to speculate on the unknown dimensions of the universe, and proffer interpretations for what exists beyond the physical realm. And because religion seeks to advance the work of the imagination, religion, it was canvassed, should not be a source of rancor but one which promotes healthy disagreements and spirit of accommodation, and which thus generates intellectual discourse of the most profound variety.

While several points run through all the panels and presentations, emphasis was placed on some critical issues that the colloquium would want Nigerians to consider for continued peaceful co-existence of all and sundry.

Given the fact that Nigeria is a country with a plurality of religions, there is a need for continued cohabitation, which is possible only under an atmosphere of mutual respect for, tolerance and accommodation of, as well as acceptance of the peculiarities of other faiths.

The current tension existing within the polity could in part be interpreted as a consequence of the perception either of Islamization agenda or Christianisation agenda, in short, an attempt to elevate one faith or the other to the status of state religion. Peaceful cohabitation will be facilitated through the promotion of justice, fair hearing, attitude of humility and a development of the spirit of forgiveness.

Religion is not antithetical to progress. It has in fact contributed to development in Nigeria by sponsoring education. And that no religion preaches violence. Attempts therefore to force other people to accept other religions by force is wrong headed and totally condemnable.

Secularism is not opposed to religion and/or the question of religious beliefs. It only preaches respect for, and appreciation for diversity of religious beliefs. It also urges that no religion should be elevated to the status of state religion.

That while Nigeria will continue to learn from what has happened in other places in the attempt to find solution to the Nigerian crises, it should be borne in mind that it is not all external references that can be taken as wholly applicable to the Nigerian context.

There is a material dimension to the crisis as seen in mass unemployment, lack of provision by the state for the education of young people and children.

Some of the resolutions reached at the end of the colloquium included the admonition that government should desist from continued intervention and/or sponsorship of religious affairs with particular reference to sponsorship of pilgrimages either to Makkah or to Jerusalem. It is however important to note that this particular recommendation

Governor State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (left); Chairman, Centre for Black Culture and International Understanding (CBCIU), Professor Wole Soyinka; Director, Development Policy Centre, Ibadan, Professor Bimpe Aboyade; and Deputy Governor, Mrs Titi Laoye-Tomori, during the opening ceremony of the colloquium in Osogbo on April 14, 2014

Executive Secretary, Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria (MUSWEN), Prof. Dawud Olatokunbo Shittu Noibi (right); Dr. Kamil Koyejo Oloso; and Olufi of Gbongan, Oba (Dr.) Adetoyese Oyeniyi… at the event appeared to have been over-floored.

Indeed, the Presidential Committee on the Restructuring and Rationalisation of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan on August 18, 2011 had recommended, in its report submitted in April 2012, the abolition of both the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) and Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC). However, in the government’s White Paper on the Report released early April 2014, the recommendation was rejected in addition to another recommendation that “the Federal Government stops sponsoring pilgrims and pilgrimages with effect from the 2012 Fiscal Year.”

Government, participants at the Osogbo col-

Some of the resolutions reached at the end of the colloquium included the admonition that government should desist from continued intervention and/or sponsorship of religious affairs with particular reference to sponsorship of pilgrimages either to Makkah or to Jerusalem. It is however important to note that this particular recommendation appeared to have been over-floored. Indeed, the Presidential Committee on the Restructuring and Rationalisation of Federal Government Parastatals, Commissions and Agencies inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan on August 18, 2011 had recommended, in its report submitted in April 2012, the abolition of both the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) and Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC). However, in the government’s White Paper on the Report released early April 2014, the recommendation was rejected in addition to another recommendation that “the Federal Government stops sponsoring pilgrims and pilgrimages with effect from the 2012 Fiscal Year.”

loquium canvassed, should pay attention to aspects of its programmes and policies that have continued to cause agitations and generate tensions among adherents of other religions. This is with a view to eliminating ambiguities and contradictions in such policies and actions. A programme of inter-religious education where children will be made to learn the tenets of different religions within a comparative framework should be introduced in schools.

Government should establish a centre for the study of inter-religious faiths where it will be possible for scholars to carry out sustained research in comparative religions.

Also underscored was the need to introduce and enforce the concept of compulsory education which will make it mandatory for children between the ages of six and sixteen to be in schools. Parents who keep children within compulsory school age will then be treated as offenders against the law.

Reecommended also was the need to keep young people positively engaged by providing them training and education, and by providing them with gainful employment following their graduation from schools.

There should be follow-up colloquiums, one of which should specifically be for leaders of different religions. Extra-judicial elimination is wrong and should be jettisoned. Justice and fairness are sine qua non for peace. People should be accorded equal treatment before the law and the process of trial should be swift, firm and fair.

12 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

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70 Candles For The Unblemished Bureaucrat, Anjorin career in public administration. With American education that lasted for almost 10 years, the mentorship of good teachers that traverses Nigerian and American borders, and exposure to cultures beyond that of his place of birth, he was fully minted for the government job.

The journey of his education began at United Native African School, Phonix Lane in Broad street, Lagos, where the Central Bank of NigeT 70, Alhaji Shakirudeen Adisa Anjorin still ria (CBN) building is presently located. He later got some kicks. Yes, there are vestiges of attended Ansaru-deen Grammar School beageing here and there, but his legs are still tween 1959 and 1964. “You cannot believe the swift and his intellect, sharp. In a country where volume of what we learnt in school those days. the average life expectancy is estimated to be 51 Personal hygiene, civic education, grammar, alyears according to the World Bank 2011 record, gebra; name it. I still remember many of them being healthy and of sound mind at seventy is now. It was a rounded education we had in some streak of luck. For these little mercies, An- those days” he reminisced. jorin, a native of Lagos Island in Lagos state After passing out of secondary school, he would never fail to thank Allah. In fact, he trained as a draftsman and got employment hardly sets out on any important task without with the ministry of communication. His job praying and giving gratitude to God first. Even was to draw the blueprint for engineers. But he before this interview session commenced, Al- never liked the job except that it paid his bills. haji Anjorin suggested that prayer be said first. “ All I wanted was a white collar job that would And one wonders: What is the need for a sup- allow me wear shirt and tie like the big guys plication to higher power before granting an in- then.” terview that is not likely to last for more than In pursuit of his dream, he later left for United one hour, and a conversation taking place in States in 1968 to Washington Business Institute the safety of his modest house located at An- in New York to do a two- year diploma in acjorin Street in Lekki area of Lagos for that mat- counting. Subsequently he was admitted as a ter? “I see myself as a very religious man,” he matriculated student at Brooklyn College – the rationalized his spontaneous call for prayer.

City University of New York. “As a matriculated Well, it is tricky to fault a man’s faith in God, es- student, you did not have to pay school fee pecially in Nigeria where government has failed throughout your undergraduate programme. beyond imagination in guaranteeing the wel- Though that privileged was to be enjoyed only fare of its citizens. This is a country where most by Americans that passed the matriculation exfamilies have to do extended prayer to even get amination, but the condition was not clearly a good sleep at night. In Hobbesian society such defined at the beginning. So when I passed the as Nigeria, attaining the age of seventy is indeed exam as a foreign candidate they had to extend a miracle of sort. And when a man had worked it to me too. The education Board though later for 35 years in Nigeria civil service and retired reviewed that law to exclude the non- Amerisuccessfully – in a working environment some can. But I had already benefitted from the people described as slippery slope where the scheme.” mighty meet their big fall – it is not out of place Anjorin graduated with BA in political science to rely on high power. “For thirty years, there is and economics in 1974, and started MA prono single query in my file. No sanction,” Anjorin gramme in international relations in 1977. That said with some pride that illuminated his face same year, the Lagos state government scholwith small smile. arship application forms were out, he obtained It is not uncommon to hear that career pro- and got a scholarship to do another master in gression in civil service is often determined Public Administration in New York University. more by favourtism than by meritocracy. Gov- He did the two masters degrees concurrently ernment department is the place where the bib- and wrote his final year dissertation on Congo lical quote; ‘the race is not to the swift’… applies crisis. He concluded in the thesis that diamore as a default. But Anjorin navigated the logue is key to addressing a conflict, and that a murky environment of public service with fine nation with abundant resources is susceptible diplomatese and rose to the top of his career –he to internal crises, which is often influenced by retired as a director at the Ministry of Energy external interests. Therefore the political leadand Power 10 years ago. Few get to that point as ership of a country must be astute enough to a career public servant without running into deal with complex dynamics of nation state in trap set by colleagues or desperate politicians. the era of global politics.

Yet, the Lagos Island born bureaucrat survived It was no surprise then that his career is strewn it all, attributing his triumph to God’s favour. with garlands at different ministries where he “Every step in life is ordained by God,” he worked such as Nigerian Bank of Industry, Napointed out. tional Productivity Centre, National OrientaNotwithstanding, Anjorin came prepared for a tion Agency and Ministry of Power and steel

This week Alhaji Shakirudeen Adisa Anjorin clocked 70. In conversation with AJIBOLA AMZAT, the retired civil servant reflected on his life journey in the last seven decades.

A

Anjorin where he retired 10 years ago. He successfully conducted five elections in Ogun state including the one that returned Chief Bisi Onabanjo as the governor in 1983 when he served as electoral officer for FEDECO. “My success at Ogun state made the FEDECO Chairman, Justice Ovie Whiskey to ask me to go and finish the election in Oyo which was already embroiled in controversy. I protested so hard because I had just dispensed so much energy to conclude the Ogun Election, but I was prevailed upon to carry the electoral exercise in Oyo to comple-

tion. And that I did also with success.”

At retirement, Anjorin said he is being taking things easy. But he still gets time to read classical books on politics and economics and other book of interest. Presently, he is reading the book recommended recently by Farid Zakari on his show, The End of Illness by David Agus. According to Agus, we may not wholly understand complex diseases, but we can stop them.

With a book like The End of Illness, Alhaji Anjorin may be on the path to living for another 70 years. Seventy cheers to the super bureaucrat.

By Bayo Ogunmupe\ 08034673443 http:/ogunmupe.blogspot.com

On The Path Of Winners

Awaken Your Power To Create Wealth HERE is great potential buried in us lying T dormant. You must allow it to find expression by awakening it consciously. ‘‘Now to Him who is able to do abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,’’ Ephesians 3:20. There is power at work in you that can produce beyond your wildest imagination. You only need to discover this power and put it to work.

There is error in the popular teaching on getting rich. This error has become a tool of prosperity preachers through which they spread poverty. This belief causes many to pray to God to give them wealth.

If you ever prayed to God to make you rich, sadly, God cannot give you wealth. God only gives power and ability or empowerment to you to create and gain wealth. God’s responsibility is to grant you power. It is your personal responsibility to use the power to create wealth. God does not give wealth, He empowers you to create wealth. Unless you use your God-given power you will remain poor. You have to establish a covenant with Jehovah to enable you obtain everlasting riches. ‘‘The blessing of Jehovah makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it,’’ Proverbs 10:22. That means – the blessing of God makes or creates riches when you tap into it. So it is your duty to use divine blessing to gain riches.

Indeed, ignorance of the divine power to gain wealth that God has given His covenant chil-

dren has kept us poor. Thus, it is your bounding duty to unveil that power. This can be done in seven=ral ways. One, you awaken the power to create wealth through knowledge and information. ‘‘My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children,’’ Hosea 4:6.

When God said He had given us power to get wealth, God meant He had given us knowledge and information with which to create wealth. Therefore, you must get knowledge and information from any source to get rich. Thus, it is your duty to obtain every assistance necessary to get rich.

Two, God also gives you opportunities. Opportunities are open doors, contacts, set of circumstances or ladders that bring promotion. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it because time and chance have been given to you. All the opportunities that come your way are God’s power for you to create wealth. Opportunity plus preparation equals good luck or success. When opportunities meet you unprepared they fly away.

There are opportunities everywhere, all you need do is look closer.

But the power to get wealth is your choice.

God created you a free agent. Jehovah sets before you both positive and negative pos-

sibilities. He advises us to choose good instead of evil. Where you are today is the result of the choices you made in the past.

Where you will be tomorrow will be determined by the choices you make today. The freedom to choose is a power given you to create wealth. Other powers that God has given you are the gifts, talents, potentials and creativity that abound with you.

Your treasure is tied to your talent. Your acres of diamonds are tied to your gifts. Your wealth is tied to your creativity. Wealth beyond your dreams is tied to the creative power within you. Don’t ignore your gifts, talents and the creative well within you. You should give God’s word a place in your life. It empowers you for wealth creation. It helps you understand life and its ways. The scriptures equip you to win the race of life.

Prayer changes things. It has worked for me, it can work for you too. The power to get wealth given you is the power of prayer. Little prayer, little power. Much prayer, much power. Prayer helps you move God to act in your favour. Prayer helps you create abundant wealth. When Jesus added prayer to his baptism, the Heaven opened above Him. Prayer opens the Heavens over your head. In making money, it isn’t how much you make, it is what you do with your gain that determines your riches. Moreover, in order for you to arrive your El Dorado, you must find out

the pathway that leads to wealth.

Our champion this week is Sir. George Jessel, British jurist, the greatest English trial judge in equity. Jessel as solicitor general (1871-73) was the first professing Jew to hold important governmental office in England.

Benjamin Distraeli who had become prime minister of Britain in 1868, was born into Judaism but was baptized a Christian at the age of 12.

The son of a merchant, Jessel was born in London in February 1824. He died in 1883. He attended University College, London and called to the bar at Lincoln’s Inn. He was appointed queen’s counsel in 1865 and elected to parliament as a Liberal in 1868. From 1873 he was master of the rolls, sitting both as a judge in the Rolls Court and as a member of the Court of Appeal. Later after the statutes of 1875 and 1876 had made the master of the rolls the president of the Court of Appeal, he was exclusively an appellate judge.

Jessel’s rapid and efficient work as trial judge in equity contrasted sharply with the dilatory Enclish chancery proceedings bitterly satirized by Charles Dickens in his novel Bleak House (1852). The clarity of his judgments made them exceptionally useful precedents, they were rarely reversed on appeal. He effected the fusion of law and equity under the Supreme Court of Judicature acts of 1873.

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Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 13

14 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

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SHORT STORY

By Segun Durowaiye (08055356855) OLA Oyinlola had never had it so good. His B life was sweet and beautiful. Everything worked perfectly well for him. He was an ac-

No Money, No Love (1)

countant with an oil company, and he was only 25 years old. Girls fought each other for his love. He was rich, tall and handsome. Girls swooned over him, and would do anything just to be with him. His tastefully furnished duplex at Ajao Estate, Lagos was always filled with delectable and sultry girls. He was even confused as to who to pick as wife among the bevy of beauties thronging his ultra-modern duplex daily.

He loved posh cars and he had about five sophisticated brands. He spent money like there was no tomorrow. He liked to attend owambe parties. That was where his praises were sung by the current fuji and juju musicians. You just can’t beat him when it comes to matters of cash. He had a way of ‘spraying’ money to the delight of girls and musicians. With calculated regal dance steps, Bola doled out hundreds of thousands of naira with smiles radiating his face. Some men who hated his guts used to call him ‘Mr. Money-Miss-Road, referring to the reckless and careless way he spent money.

When he turned 26, he felt all he needed in life was a wife. And so he picked Lara and proposed to her. Surely, Lara was a lucky girl. They had a magnificent wedding that gulped almost five million naira. Everything was bankrolled by Bola. A lot of celebrities and top government functionaries were in attendance at the ceremony. The young couple were full of smiles throughout the ceremony. It was even aired on the TV. Lara was a beauty among beauties. She stood out among the numerous girl friends Bola had. She was light-skinned, tall, spotless and charming. Her carriage was angelic. Her skin was enchanting, and her eyeballs were seductive and disarming. She had the sweet and impeccable voice of an opera singer. She had a perfect curve and walked gaily like someone who was mindful of the hardness of the soil. Small wonder Bola chose her as wife among the raving beauties that were always around him.

Throughout the memorable wedding ceremony, Lara was just giggling heartily; ditto Bola. Their smiles were infectious. After the wedding, Bola still continued his play-boy attitude. He dated more women and young girls. Sincerely, they would never let him be, with all these cash in his pocket. The best way to relieve himself, he thought, was to frolic and gallivant about with numerous girls who crowded around him like ants over sugar.

“My dear friend,” Bola said to a close pal at a party one day, “the first law of life is

money. When you have it then you are alive and worthy of being called a human being. Without it you’re dead. I’ll keep on dating women throughout my life…. I’m enjoying every bit of the sweet game!”

“But Bola,” the friend replied reflectively, “I hope you’re saving for the rainy day ‘cos life isn’t a bed of roses.”

“No, but in the life of a rich man,” Bola snapped, “I can never be poor in my life, poverty is not in my dictionary. Is that right?”

Lara thanked her stars for being the apple of Bola’s eyes. And for being the woman who won his heart. There was so much money to spend for the young couple. Lara was a full time housewife when the relationship began.

But a few months later, Bola gave her a whopping seven million naira to open a supermarket in highbrow Alade Market off Allen Avenue in Ikeja, Lagos. There was definitely no cause for quarrel between the young couple. Lara had two brand new cars for her business and private use; and also a personal driver at her beck and call. A year after the marriage, they were blessed with a baby boy they named Ayotunde.

The couple were among the happiest on earth for all these blessings. On the back windscreen of Bola’s cars was a sticker aptly describing the philosophy of the owner. It reads: ‘With money all things are possible’.

Then the unexpected happened. Bola lost his job due to the economic recession plaguing the nation. He couldn’t believe himself that such an untoward and calamitous occurrence would stop his sweet life. ‘This is a bad dream!’ he thought. Such a nightmarish experience was unthinkable to say the least. And he wasn’t prepared at all for it. It is a saying that when troubles or problems come, they come in torrents. It wasn’t a funny situation at all. Bola suddenly fell from grace to grass within a period of five months. He started by selling his fleet of cars to make ends meet. The first car he sold was his BMW 7 series, followed by a sporty jeep of the Toyota brand.

He sold one car each month and for five months he had sold all his five exotic cars.

He was a fast spender and the bills he paid on a daily basis had increased to alarming proportions. Yoruba people always say, ‘the size of one’s head determines how big one’s cap would be’. His bills were always piling up, and being jobless he needed no soothsayer or seer to tell him to sell his properties in exchange for money. Suddenly, his former loving wife Lara started complaining and nagging that she

couldn’t withstand the untold hardship that was now their lot.

“Me, drink garri and groundnut, Bola?” she said angrily one day. “You must be kidding! You’d better look for another wife. I can’t share in this poverty-stricken life!”

“But darling, you don’t have to…?

Bola gestured to plead but she interrupted him halfway.

“Don’t darling me!” Lara fired back sharply, “I’m leaving today! I’ve had enough! I can’t raise my kid in this kind of environment.

Is that clear?” That was it! That same day, Lara packed out of Bola’s house and left for an undisclosed destination with her kid. Bola was actually becoming a shadow of his former self.

Since he lost his job, everything in his life looked like Armageddon. He had been running from pillar to post all in an attempt to get another job but all of these moves were fruitless. His numerous girlfriends deserted him and disappeared. It was as if he had contacted an infectious disease that was so deadly, like the HIV/AIDS virus. About a year later, he was living like a beggar, he was as poor as a church rat.

His landlord had ejected him since he couldn’t afford to pay the exorbitant house rent when it expired. Rosaline, one of his former girlfriends saw him at the bus stop the other day trying to board a full and rickety ‘molue’ bus. She shook her head and hurriedly walked away. Such was the nasty experience Bola faced when he descended as low as a poor man. He now looked gaunt, unkempt and lonely. His only consolation was the university certificate that was always in his hand. His shoes were torn, old and worn out. His clothes were faded and patched. He looked sunken, hopeless, weary and sad.

For two years Bola’s situation remained the same. He was poverty personified.

He was now squatting with an old friend who was a civil servant in the Ministry of Works.

The old friend by name Gbenro allowed Bola to squat with him in his one-bedroom apartment purely on humanitarian ground.

Gbenro was equally poor and deep in penury.

What do you expect of a civil servant, but still on monthly basis he received his measly salary; so he was better off than Bola who had nothing to get at the end of the month. Inside the one-bedroom apartment Bola shared with his friend there was nothing suggesting wealth or opulence. There was no television, fridge or even a fan. He had only a transistor

FITNESS

By Oyinkan Talabi(Bodyworks@theequilibrumcenter) ASSAGES have for a long time been M viewed as luxurious. Well... yes they are, but are affordable and necessary luxury for a balanced body and life . Massage is actually considered to be one of the oldest health practices in the world. The body stores tension and stress from daily living, work and trauma.

A massage is basically rubbing down the body to release the stress. There are different techniques, different trigger point in the body, different oils, the basic purpose is realignment and balance.

Some of its’ benefits are; Reduced tension, general anxiety and stress in the body.

Pain management in conditions such as arthritis, sciatica, muscle spasms, low-back pain.

Helps pregnant ladies with shorter, easier labour and delivery. It also shortens your stay in the hospital after delivery.

Enhanced immunity by stimulating lymph flow—the body’s natural defence system.

Improved range of motion, by exercising and stretching weak, tight, or atrophied muscles.

Improves the condition of the skin, the body’s largest organ.

Increases joint flexibility.

Promotes tissue regeneration, reducing scar tissue and stretch marks.

Improves blood circulation, which means that much needed oxygen and nutrients are

getting to the cells and organs.

Reduce post surgery adhesions and swelling.

For the ladies, massages help to prevent or relieve muscle cramps.

Relaxes and softens injured, tired, and overused or cramping muscles.

Release endorphins—amino acids that work as the body’s natural painkiller.

Relieve migraine pain.

Getting a massage can do you a world of good.Experts estimate that about ninety percent of illnesses are stress related. And perhaps nothing ages us faster, internally and externally, than high levels of stress. The emotional balance and sense of wellbeing you get from a massage can often be just as important and valuable as the other more tangible physical benefits.

Combined with working out, you will definitely look and feel more youthful than ever.

Budgeting time and money for massages at regular intervals is truly an investment in your health. There are many spas that offer various types of massages. You can also get someone to come to your home and massage you there so you don’t have to encounter traffic after.

Remember, just because a massage feels like a pampering treat doesn’t mean it is any less therapeutic. Think of it as a necessary part of your health and wellness plan. And who says pampering yourself has to be a bad thing.

Live life and don’t let it live you. Remind yourself of these benefits if you start to feel guilty about getting massages! Love your body......bodyworksnigeria.com

The Importance Of Massage

radio placed on an old creaky table. The room was bug-infested.

The two friends shared the same bed, because Gbenro was still single. The room was located in the slum of Mushin, in Lagos. It was a hovel oozing poverty. You needed to see the ramshackle, leaky roof housing the two friends.

Whenever it rained they would scurry to get some buckets and position them at various leaking portions. The ceiling would continue to leak two days after the rain might have stopped. Such was the horrifying situation in Gbenro’s room. Bola bore the pathetic condition with endurance and courage. There were very big rats in the room; they seemed to have perfected there tunnel network so skillfully that the occupants of the house considered them as neighbours.

At times when Bola was alone in the room after a long, job-hunting trek he would sit down on the wooden chair and ponder about his heartrending situation. After reflecting a while, the tears would stream down his visage. ‘Look at me…’ he thought, ‘I that once shook the town with so much money… imagine the plight I now bear… my wife has run away with my kid… my sweet looking girlfriends have vanished when faced with my poor condition… oh, God why am I suffering this way? I that once painted the town red with so much gusto… wither are all my sweet-looking girlfriends? Wither are my sweet-talking pals who enjoyed life with me when the going was fine? Why is life so cruel with me despite the fact that I’m a university graduate? Is there even God at all? I just can’t believe all this can happen to me… oh yeah…yeah…I know what to do… I’ll commit suicide…I’ll kill myself and end it all. How can I be so poor that I’ll live in this kind of place? I’ll commit suicide …if I kill myself I know the angels in heaven would say I am a strong man…that is the only solution to the problem I am facing now…” As Bola continued thinking alone that afternoon, the sad tears streamed down more and more from his eyes.

It was a Tuesday morning. Bola was alone that day. His friend Gbenro had gone to work. His mind was greatly troubled. He was thinking about the best way to commit suicide.

He had been battling with this thought for the past three hours. He thought of hanging himself. ‘No, that wouldn’t be good.’ he concluded.

‘What about poisoning?’ he reasoned “No, that would be an expensive death,” he whispered to himself. “I don’t have money to buy a rat poison…”

“Ha, ha!’ he exclaimed, “The railway line! That’s it!” he made up his mind to go to the railway line, lie on the rail tract for an on-coming train to crush him to death.

To be concluded next Saturday

Saturday, May 3, 2014 15

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DIARY

Former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (right) and Princess Amor Torres, Founder, “We Care For Humanity”, an affiliate of the United Nations, during their visit to Asiwaju Tinubu at his Bourdillon, Ikoyi-Lagos residence to officially notify him of his Award, as the “African Political Hero of the Year”, that will be presented to him at the United Nations Head Quarters in New York, United States, alongside Comrade Ayodele Adewale, who will also be honoured as the “ Africa Grassroots Leadership of the Year

Financial Controller, Megacare Group, Mr. Kolawole Ladipo; Managing Director, Megacare Group, Mrs. Olayinka Oredola; General Manager, Megacare Limited, Dr Nkem Chimezie and Online Consultant, Mrs. Jumoke Onuoha during the media launch of the company’s online portal, megacareonline.com in Lagos…recently

Mr. Uzoma Innocent Obialeri and his wife, Evelyn Obialeri during his chieftaincy investiture as Ome Udo I of Ezi-Mgbidi, in Imo State…recently

Mrs. Oluseyi Nikki Ojikutu, an Anesthetic practitioner at King’s College Hospital, United Kingdom; Barr. Beatrice Irune; Legal & Education Consultant To FONS-BERNY Educational Services Lagos and Dr. Fola RogersSaliu, Secretary-General to the Honourary Consul to the Republic of Djibouti in Nigeria during the birthday ceremony of Mrs. Ojikutu and Rogers-Saliu at Eko Hotel and Suites …recently

Representative of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Acting Managing Director, Bank of Industry, Mr. Waheed Olagunju, Chairman, Sona Group, Mr. Arjan Khemchand Mirchandani and Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Ogun State, representing Governor Ibikunle Amosun, Mr. Gbenga Ashiru, during the official grand opening ceremony of Shongai Technologies Limited and Shongai Recycling Plant in Ota, Ogun State… recently

Mr. Collins Edemeroh and his bride, former Miss Jumoke Joshua during their wedding at The Redeemed Christian Church of God, Senior Police Officers Quarters, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos…recently

Master Godwin Anowa cutting his fourth year birthday cake in Lagos…recently

Onyinye and Tochukwu Ugafor during their traditional marriage at Nkwerre, Imo State…recently

16 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

TheGuardian

Saturday, May 3, 2014

www.ngrguardiannews.com

17

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Love&Life

... Celebrating The Feelings You Share!

with SIMON Egbo 07032944123

IN THIS EDITION

True Love Story: ‘IF YOU LOVE HIM, LET HIM GO, AND MAKE HIM BEG HIS WAY BACK’

RELATIONSHIP AND LOVE TIPS FOR THIS WEEK:

Princess of

14 Truths About Romantic True Love

Love

Below are 14 ways to help make it happen. You may be surprised to learn that true love is not only attainable; it may be closer than you think.

Romantic true love must be created. It does not ‘just happen.’

You become capable of creating romantic true love when you commit to your own truth.

You commit to your own truth by dedicating yourself to becoming aware of the complex and wide range of your thoughts, feelings, and experiences as they continually shift and change.

You become aware as you move beyond whatever blocks you from being open to the truth of your experiences.

You move beyond your blocks to truth by learning to observe your thoughts and feelings in a compassionate way, even if those thoughts or feelings are scary or inconvenient.

Once you are committed to your own truth, you can work to create a romantic true love relationship.

Working to create a romantic true love relationship means seeking a partner who is also committed to awareness of his or her own truth, or encouraging an existing partner to commit to awareness of his or her own truth.

LOVE ADVENTURE

‘I Broke Up With My Boyfriend But I Don’t Feel Anything’

Once you and your partner are both individually committed to truth, you can work to build a relationship that supports truth.

In a relationship that supports truth, there is space and respect for both people to have whatever thoughts and feelings they may have, even if those thoughts and feelings are scary or inconvenient.

If you want to be our next Princess of Love, e-mail or forward your photos/data to simonclar@yahoo.com Or call 07032944123 or 07031028714

Name:

Oseola Temitope Occupation: Student

Fertility Problems/Fibroid/Seeking Male Child: Do you have Fibroid, sexually transmitted infection/disease, find it difficult to get pregnant, have any form of infertility problem, miscarriages or need a baby boy or girl? Call 07025350586, 08122352054.

Low Sperm Count/Premature Ejaculation – Solution is here.

Call 07025350586.

Baby Sex/Gender Selection – Decide the sex of your baby (male or female). Call 07025350586, 08122352054, 08131161840.

Romantic Poems When I First Met You - A Love Poem For Him, I Know You

By Katie When I first met you I felt like I had known you forever, telling you my secrets and what I didn’t want ever. you listened to me I bet you thought I’d never end, who would ..........

Love Quote He who is not impatient is not in love

Truth in a relationship does not mean communicating every thought or feeling with your partner and causing unnecessary pain; truth in a relationship means that both partners feel safe to be open and honest about anything that seems important to share.

When there is respect and space for each person’s truth, you do not have to hide from the truth in fear of your partner turning mean, denying or invalidating your thoughts or feelings, or intentionally saying or doing things to hurt or abuse you.

A relationship where it is safe for truth to emerge will challenge and support both partners toward increasing awareness and connection to the spectrum of their own truth.

Once you and your romantic partner are both committed to being true unto yourselves, and you are building a relationship that supports truth, only time will tell if it is romantic true love.

Love Connections Women Seeking Relationship/Marriage Stella, 33yrs of age, fair, beautiful and homely, a nurse and employed from Anambra State, needs a devout Christain man, who is employed or into business btw 33yrs and 42yrs of age for marriage. Pls call 08037297847.

Precious, average in height, fair in complexion, needs a mature man for a serious relationship, btw the ages of 40-45 yrs. Pls call 08082962536.

Kemi, 21, student, tall, slim, dark, pretty, needs a responsible wealthy man. 08123518082, 2348033138671.

Sindy, 37 yrs, from Anambra, a teacher needs a cute and Godly guy with a decent job for a serious relationship 30-42. Call 08130433177.

Call professor love on 07032944123 for relationship/marriage counseling and direct hookup.

Pls call before texting your request.

Men Seeking Relationship/Marriage Andrew, from Akwa Ibom State, intelligent and

very hard working needs a very understanding working class or business lady, 30yrs and above for a relationship. Pls call 08062167049.

Silk, tall, chocolate in complexion, simple and easygoing, needs a mature lady btw the ages of 30 -45yrs, working class with very good sense of humour, for a blissful affair. Pls call 07012251411.

Michael, based in Lagos, very hard working, needs a working class lady btw 28-38 yrs for a serious relationship. Call 09092415124.

Ayomiposi, 28yrs, tall, cool and hard working based in Lagos, needs a mature and cool headed lady, working or business class, btw the ages of 35-48yrs for a genuine relationship. Pls call 08188970747.

Kadi, a genius in womanology, humble and intelligent, needs a very mature, intelligent and hard working lady. Pls call 07056823470.

No flashing pls.

If it is romantic true love, it will endure, growing and evolving to continue to support truth, integrating whatever arises into its fabric. For example: ‘Sometimes I detest my husband.’ ‘Sometimes I feel thrilled by my partner.’ ‘Sometimes I wish that my wife would just stop talking and leave me alone.’

‘Sometimes I look over at my partner snoring and I find him totally unattractive.’ ‘Sometimes I feel suffocated by my marriage.’ ‘Sometimes I feel incredibly fortunate to be married to my spouse.’

‘Sometimes I feel rejected by my partner.’

‘Sometimes I feel alone, even with my partner sitting right next to me.’ ‘And amid all of this, I still want to be together.’ ‘Our bond remains strong.’ ‘We both keep growing.’ ‘We keep going together.’ ‘We keep loving each other.’ ‘This must be true love.’

THe GUARDIAn www.ngrguardiannews.com

18 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

Love&LIFe ‘IF YoU Love HIM, LeT HIM Go, AnD MAKe HIM BeG HIS WAY BACK’ noW we have all heard this saying before, K but it’s so true. even if it breaks your heart, it’s better to have your heart broken now.

Believe me it will be much better to get over him now than if many years go by. If it’s meant to be it will, trust me on this. I have seen it over and over again with myself, friends, family, daughters and so on. Don’t get me wrong, many couples who are together for years break up and go back, but it still applies. Let them call you crying and begging you to take them back!

Guys leave for basically five reasons I can narrow down.

1. They no longer love you or want to be with you.

2. You have a fight.

3. They are just confused, maybe not sure, and need time alone to think it out.

4. They want to cheat or are cheating.

5. They are just jerks, they were with you to see what or how far they could get.

You will figure it out if you just sit back and wait. If you want him back time will tell.

Don’t just sit back and wait either. Go out and have fun. even if you are not having fun, act like you are. My boyfriend used to get so upset because he would see me out, or talk to my sister and friends and they would tell him, ” oh, I saw her here, or saw her there with so and so, she was dancing and having a great time.” If they love you, this will bother them big time! even if I was broken hearted and crying inside, he never knew it or thought it.

This one works great. I used to actually leave a message on my answering machine saying ” Hi this is Gia, I’m out for the night, will call and check messages, leave a message.” Works every time, I would have 100 hang-ups from his number. p.s. one little tidbit. Unless your girlfriends are true girlfriends, don’t even tell them you are upset. I have seen so many times where these so called friends are just waiting to make you look bad, or change things, or out and out lie to jump in and sink their teeth into your man. Don’t ever give these friends your plans, thoughts or true feelings. You know these friends, we have all had them, they just hang around to get your man, just waiting for a chance to pounce.

I had one friend who would always want to come visit me, yet sit next to my boyfriend and talk to him the entire time. She acted like I wasn’t even in the room. It was sickening. I had heard when we had a short break up she was going into his service station every day

TRUE STORY with every car problem in the world. How convenient. She was just a little slut who didn’t care about me or actually any female. She wanted their men!!! We all know them too!

Big Big Rule here: if he leaves you for another woman, then you really have to be tough.

Block him out of your mind all together. every time you think of him just focus on something bad about him and something good about yourself, or think of the most

‘I Broke Up With My Boyfriend But I Don’t Feel Anything’ Don’T know why this Iwere is happening. We together for two years, broke up for several times and back again, but now its final.

The moment I broke up with him really kept me wondering. ‘Why am I not feeling any pain or sadness?’ I don’t even feel any regrets though he was the only man I have ever loved and have loved me so deep.

Should I be happy or sad? I really don’t know why it seems to me that all of what we have gone through are worthless. He is courting another girl right now but I don’t care. I used to cry a river to him before but then I just don’t feel anything.

Is this really a natural reaction or I am just in the process of moving on?

Pls I need comment from readers pls.

Thanks.

LOVE ADVENTURE

gorgeous man alive.

Many times men will leave for a fling and want you back.Let’s face it, some men just cheat, and sometimes you can never ever change this, even if you have been with them for years. Let him go, as much as it hurts, don’t call him. Don’t ride by his hang outs, just let him go. Many times these are just flings and once he realizes this he will want you back. It’s up to you if you want him back, but many times that’s all it is, the grass is always greener on the other side, they think. You have to have the best

lawn……..and you do! Maybe just not his type.

If he really loves you, this will make him so jealous. If he doesn’t care, he doesn’t love you again. Move on. He will come back, if he doesn’t, you don’t want to make a fool out of yourself chasing or calling him. Just leave him alone and see if he misses you. If he really loves you, he will, and he will call you. There is nothing worse than a woman running around chasing a man that doesn’t want her.

Then his ego gets going and not only is he bragging to all of his friends, but he is putting you down to other women.

I’m sorry, I can deal with a lot of things, but not my ex telling other women I’m chasing him and won’t leave him alone.!! never ever done it, and InotHAve won’t. The way I see it, they are worth it. If it was meant to be, it will. If not, it’s time to Move on! It is hard ladies, but if he doesn’t want you there is nothing you can do to change it. Sometimes guys just need a break, and when they are away from you, they will realize how much they miss you and how much you mean to them. They will come back to you if that’s the case. There are plenty of fish in the sea. It’s not a good feeling to be with someone not knowing if they really love you, or are with you because they feel bad from your crying and begging. If they do not really love you, you don’t want them anyway, and never settle for second best. If you feel you are being used, or if he only comes back because someone else doesn’t want him, tell him, take a hike buddy.

Go out and have fun.Love will come around again when you least expect it!!! Trust me.

GIA CHAneL eZIne Advice: pls dear readers mail your comments or reactions to this email :simonclar @yahoo.com Download the Color of Love App free at

https://itunes.apple.com/ng/app /the-color-of-love-guidefree/id767393599?mt=8

or search for Color of Love in the Apple App Store on your IPhone or iPad and download

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 19

Get A Balance In Your Life

By Alita Joseph REMEMBER a time when I went in search of job and the Editor asked me if I was a mother. At another time, one categorically told me that he would not employ me because I was likely to become pregnant on the job.

Many women female workers have been sent out of order by male bosses who tell them that their time on the job is not meant to ferry children to and from the hospitals. Attitudes like these are what make the female worker feel confused about her time; especially at work.

She wants to prove that she can do it - the office work as well shining in the home frontso even when she does not have to accept the work given her; she does so to the detriment of other parts of her life because she is too tired to give time for her personal life.

If you ask yourself how much is achieved within this extra period spent at work, you will discover that you have not done anything that you could not have done well at official hour. Your relationship is the area that suffers most when you feel constantly exhausted. When you feel groggy and stressed all the time, it is time to get a balance in your life.

Start by: Setting Boundaries Decide what is important. Plan what you have to do so you have time to nurture your relationships, which includes family and friends. Create time for it. Note however that time spent with your partner may mean that you would not have enough time to give other areas of your life.

But working on that relationship may open your eyes to areas which are not very important but which you have spent energy exhausting strength trying to build.

For example, you cannot leave

I

work early because your boss always gives you an assignment at 4pm; a job that you may not finish at closing time. Why not go to him early and enquire about the project that you need to discuss together? If you close at 5pm, pick up the children at 5.15.

By 6.30, sans traffic, you are home; you are rested and feel relaxed enough. You partner will feel relaxed too if he meets you smiling. You need your friends and family too, but getting a balance demands that plan when you must have quality time with them; not stressful time.

So, does your union get the most of your time?

Know What You Can Do You know you can plan what to do with your time. You can say what you can contribute to make your home habitable and happy. You can also make your partner love you. But be aware that as much as you plan to have more time to work on your relationship, that you cannot change your partner’s mind if he thinks otherwise. If he does not see any reason why you are making all the fuss, you would not be able to change his mind. So, do your part, drop hints here and there and he may meet you half-way.

It Would Not Be Smooth Running Challenges come with changes, so be prepared to face any challenge.

Think of the result of what you have decided to do and be fully prepared so that you are not set back. If the changes will affect your job for example, you should be prepared. If your boss for example is the type whose day does not begin until late afternoon, you may not want to jeopardize your new found energy and happiness by continuing in the old way, which means you may want transfer if he refuses to see your point.

What Do You Want?

By Kemi Amushan E tend to get in a bad love situation from time to time with the men in our lives.

Are you in that kind of situation right now? I plead with you not to worry. No matter what your problem is, your solution is just a few good decisions away! And you can make your first good decision right by reading through this in-depth newsletter.

First of all, tell me what you think about Sexual Equality. Basically, it is the idea or advocacy that women should be equal in every right with men, whether it comes to work, responsibilities, social expectations, opportunities, and so on.

Some women think it is the best thing to ever happen to us, while other women think it has only led to even more discrimination and exploitation against women. What do you think? For me, I tend to look at outcomes rather than intentions. And when it comes to sexual equality, the outcomes are rather mixed.

Let us the discuss the pros and cons of sexual equality. The great thing about sexual equality is that it opened up a world of economic opportunities for you and me. Today, if you wanted to be a billionaire entrepreneur or a bestselling author, or a world leader, you totally can! You pretty much can be whatever you want to be. What is more is that you can dress how you want, worship how you want, work how you want, etc. That is the great thing about sexual equality.

Now the bad thing about it is that (Just a few of my observations over the years): - Marriages today have a 45-50% chance of divorce.

- Single motherhood is on the rise.

- Teen pregnancies are on the rise.

- Careers put on hold, dreams broken, etc.

- The risk of becoming successful but terribly unhappy.

So here is the bad news: you are in danger of all these and more, and you may not even know it! I want you to quickly take a look at these toxic situations and tell me which of the ones you find yourself in:

W

It is not enough to make changes, especially risk a job that you like. So what do you want to achieve by sacrificing everything to your relationship? It is your right to close early from work. It benefits you to have a social life that involves friends and relatives. But what does the extra time to your relationship achieve? It is your home and your partner or

‘I slept with him after just a few dates and now he’s avoiding me’ Back in the day, it was “okay” for guys to have sex on the first date... but it was not “okay” for women. Today, though, it is different. Women now think that if guys can have fun, women should be able to have fun too and should be able to enjoy sex whenever they want to.

And sure, you can. I just do not recommend it

RELATIONSHIPS

family. But you have to be clear what you gain.

You have to be sure that your work is the cause of friction in your relationship. You will also be sure that he will be considerate enough to take care of your needs if you leave your work.

You hear women say that they wanted to pursue a passion but left

if you are looking for a serious relationship.

Here is why. Imagine you were building a big, beautiful mansion. What would happen if you did not build a foundation for it, and decided to put up the walls right away? Trust me that it will just take one storm, and the mansion comes crashing down. Relationships are like that. Without a foundation, any big event whether good (like sex) or bad (like an argu-

Relationship Killers

it because of their husband’s disapproval. I do think that a partner who sees his spouse involved in a worthy goal would encourage her. He may disapprove if he is led by a feeling of insecurity that her success threatens him, or he is selfish. If you realize your wish, you are happy and your satisfaction makes positive impact in your relationship.

ment) will destroy it.

What is the foundation? It is love. In short, if you want a serious relationship with him, you need to know how to turn his lust into love before you make love! But in the case whereby you have already slept together and now you feel he is drifting away from you, do not worry - you can still get him back and “re-start” the relationship and make him fall in love with you, all over again.

‘I have been single for way too long, and when a nice guy comes my way, I immediately wonder if he is ‘the one.’’

Here is another belief the sexual equality movement has given rise to: The idea that you have every right in the world to approach, date, chase, and even propose marriage to men. And you are definitely free to try. I just do not recommend it at all. Why not? Because for years now, I have watched hundreds of women ignore a simple advice, and go ahead and chase their men anyway and the vast majority of them failed miserably. Sorry to say this, but no matter how popular the idea gets, it will not change the fact that when it comes to love and dating, it is the guy’s job to chase. Keep this in mind: Chasing brings out the best in him.

Being chased brings out the worst in him!

Now here is a problem: What if you love him, and he says he loves you too but he keeps insisting on having sex with you? How do you say “no” without hurting his feelings, or risking losing him? My short answer is this: Learn how to turn his LUST into love.

Remember, sexual equality is a great thing.

But great things come with great responsibilities. And if you want a happy, lifelong relationship with a good man, it is your responsibility to admit the things that do not work - like pursuing and promiscuity - no matter how “empowering” they may be.

So enjoy being a woman! You have every right to. Just remember our lesson for today: If you want to find true love and happiness, do not follow what is popular. Follow what works.

Trust me and you will find true love and happiness.

To the happiness you deserve, good luck in love and life. Cheers.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

20 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

08116706852 Email: amara@amarablessing.com

WEEKEND with AMARA

What Do You Want In Your Future Partner?

HAT are the qualities you want in a man?

W Girl: He must be God-fearing, neat and well groomed, honest, decent, with a vision for his life and home, bla bla bla.

What do you want in a woman?

Boy: She must love God, be neat and properly raised, decent, good in the art of housekeeping...the list is often endless.

I can only say bravo and kudos for knowing what you want in your future partner. It’s always beautiful to know what you want and more beautiful to know that you are not willing to accept anything less. We all set standards for ourselves in life even though we don’t always meet those standards. But I love it when I see those who are focused and who know what they want from life.

You know what you want from life, in a relationship; do you know what you deserve? I must also let you know that you are not alone in this because almost everyone wants the same thing you want in a spouse. But have you asked yourself if you are anywhere close to being those things everybody wants from his/her spouse?

You want a God-fearing man/woman; do you fear God? Do you even have a conscience? You want to marry a woman who can always intercede for you. You want a man who will be the spiritual head of your home. Have you tried to make yourself to become that for someone in future?

You want a very decent spouse; what’s your dress sense like? You still sag with bare chest out for the whole world to see; you always have your boobs out for every fly to perch on, you have five earrings on your ears, you have another on your tongue and eyes; your body is nothing short of a public toilet and yet you want a decent man/woman for a spouse.

Your makeup, instead of making you more beautiful, turns you to a masquerade that should be dreaded. Everything you do is in the excess, your false lashes look abnormal, your false nails are way too long, you are close to wearing panties outside the house and yet you desire a very decent spouse. My mother says, “odikaodi kpoba, odikaodi azuru” (you will al-

ways attract your likes).

I agree with you; you sure need a man of vision who can lead the way. We have been conditioned to believe that it’s the man who must have a vision for his home. You move about aimlessly; you loiter the streets from morning till night; your going to school is just for the sake of it; you have no vision apart from graduating and partying.

All you think of is what to wear for that weekend party. Your favourite TV channel is E-125 on DStv and your favourite programme is the Khardashians. Now let me ask you; do you have a vision for your life? If you do, what vision do you have for your own life? What vision do you have for your spouse? Where do you see you five years from now? What would be your contributions to his life? What are you bringing to the table if eventually you become his Mrs? You have no right to ask for a spouse with vision if you have none for your life and home.

You want a girl who can cook and keep the

home and yet the only place you visit is a night club. While you date her, you take pleasure in eating out and visiting all the big hotels and restaurants in town. You can only get a girl who would be out every night-ladies night out, and come back the following morning to throw her pants on the floor of your bedroom and sometimes on your face. It’s also possible you get a very good girl who you would subject to torture as long as she lives with you.

The girl/boy should be honest; it’s a good one.

But why is it that the only truth we get from you is ‘good morning’? You are lucky to be a part of the GSM generation and so things are easier for you. As far as you are concerned, there is no point saying the truth, even to your partner. Right where you are telling your likes that you want a God-fearing man, you have five social media accounts with different names and pictures.

A friend told me how his cousin’s fiancé was left in shock when she saw that the very man

Working Actress

By Omoni Oboli AM Omoni Oboli and I represent Naija! I’ve Itouches been in the studio trying to put finishing to my movie, ‘Being Mrs Elliott’. It takes hard work to make a good thing come out well enough to be appreciated by the viewers. Entertainment is serious business! The work done to package a live show, an album, a movie, a stage theatrical performance, a TV series or a documentary is nothing short or grueling. Why then do we do it and keep at it? It is simply for the passion and the thrill of doing something you truly love, knowing that the gratification we get from seeing the final outcome far outweighs the pains in the process of it’s making.

As a producer, I run into many people who claim that they have dreamt of being ‘celebrities’ all their lives and would be happy if I would help them speed up the process of getting there. What I hear is their desire to become ‘celebrated’, but the work they need to do to be accorded such a status is the one thing that they don’t seem to present. They want to become great without doing great things; they want to be heroes without being victorious; they want to be fathers and mothers without the responsibility of first being a good husband or wife; they want to be promoted without doing the job or earning the position. These and so many other things they want without the accompanying pain of the process. They look at the President and assume they can do a better job than he when they haven’t even been able to do the needful in their own small associations. Day dreamers everywhere, and performers are few!

I understand that we have seen a turn in our society, whereby hard work is not commended, and the people who would have been productive in our society are only looking for the fast and easy way to get to the ‘position’ rather than master the art of their craft so that they can defend their position when they do get there. In contrast, the world is full of tales of people who sat in their little corner of the world doing one

she has been in touch with is her fiancee’s cousin. She put up a newspaper advert asking for a man in his forties. She lied that she was in her twenties (she was in her thirties). My friend continued chatting with her and talking on phone. On the D-day, my friend went to work, well dressed, hoping to finally meet his dream woman. He had told his colleagues that someone special was coming. There entered this lady who was asking for the given name. When they called my friend, he realized that the very lady he was in touch with for months and who he supposedly didn’t know, was in his house with her fiancée the previous night. This brought that lovely relationship to an end.

Like I said earlier in this article, it is not wrong for you to know what you want. It is normal for you to want a Mr. or Mrs. Right, but in doing this, make yourself a Mr/Mrs Right. Make sure you are that which you desire in a spouse. God is too merciful not to allow you mess up the life of His precious child.

No Pain, No Gain thing repeatedly until they perfected it. They perfected it unaware that the world was watching and marveling at their expertise in what they were doing, so that when the opportunity came to expose them to the world, they were already too skilled in their craft to fail. We celebrate these men and women, and we identify them by their craft, but we tend to forget they came through a process. The mess we surmount then becomes our message, and the tests we pull through become our testimony.

I have been training for years before I even knew that I could do what I am doing now, and so have many others in various walks of life who are being celebrated rightly. I say rightly, because many people are also being celebrated for their criminal activities because they are ‘successful’ so far. They too have been training themselves for years before they became notorious. We should not be looking for success by any means necessary just because people will celebrate you. To build something, you have to be diligent, but to destroy something, the only skill needed is

the searing of your conscience.

My last production was both pleasurable and stressful: Sleepless nights and constantly tasking my brain to stay focused on maintaining the quality of the production kept me on my toes from dusk to dawn sometimes. I had a great team that made it all come together, and they too went through the process of birthing these stories and bringing them to life. I have seen many people break down after such grueling sessions and understand why, and I’ve seen many people think that they can do what we do, easily, just by watching the movie. It’s the same thing I hear from football fans the world over, that they can coach teams better than so and so, and they can do better than Messi or Ronaldo.

Everyone has an opinion, and it is good to have one because that’s what creates the fans, but to step into the shoes of those players or coaches takes a process and a keenness to achieve even half of what they have been able to accomplish.

Here’s the thing; there are always more people watching the game than the professional

I have been training for years before I even knew that I could do what I am doing now, and so have many others in various walks of life who are being celebrated rightly. I say rightly, because many people are also being celebrated for their criminal activities because they are ‘successful’ so far. They too have been training themselves for years before they became notorious.

We should not be looking for success by any means necessary just because people will celebrate you. To build something, you have to be diligent, but to destroy something, the only skill needed is the searing of your conscience.

players and coaches.

There are always more fans than entertainers or celebrities.

So then, it can’t be that easy to get to those positions, or be celebrated, without the necessary skills to stay up there, or else you will be spewed out quickly. What must we do then? Learn the skills needed, and perfect your craft such that people would want to celebrate you. Don’t sit on the sidelines wishing you could do it, or believing you could accomplish what you haven’t even tried to do. Get the skill and do the hard work and watch how people will respond to you. Better still, do it till you learn to enjoy your craft without the accolades and then you will be better prepared to excel and keep on excelling when the accolades do come.

I didn’t get to where I am by chance. I didn’t set out on this journey to become a celebrity either.

I just loved to act and the celebrity status happened on me, like it did for many others. This is not to say that it is wrong to aspire to be a celebrity, but I’m saying that being a celebrity is not a skill but a status that acknowledges you because of your skills. So desire it, if you want, but focus on building the skill to get you there and keep you there. Don’t forget to support Nollywood by watching a Nollywood movie at the cinema today and buying an original DVD. Stay focused and keep smiling!

Twitter: @omonioboli Facebook: www.facebook.com/omonioboliactress

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 21

WOMAN Joycee Awojoodu, curator of the Abuja Global Shapers, the youngest platform of the World Economic Forum, spoke to DEBO OLADIMEJI on SHAPE Africa 2014 scheduled to hold in Abuja from May 5 to 6, on careers and what hope is there ahead for Nigerian entrepreneurs.

‘Nigerians Should Be Taught Entrepreneurship Skills Early’

HE curator of the Abuja Global Shapers, T Joycee Awojoodu has always been involved in community service projects since the age of 12, advising the Maryland State County Executive in the United States (U.S.), in a Youth Advisory Council; volunteering in a state hospital, co-founding a sickle cell foundation, and working in youth leadership organizations.

She began her career at Constellation Energy, a Fortune 100 company in the U.S. At the age of 23, she started a successful energy brokerage firm focused on the supply of renewable energy, natural gas and electricity across four states in the U.S. Most recently, she decided to move to Nigeria to pursue her ambition of contributing to the realization of stable and reliable electricity for all.

She started her work in Nigeria in the Renewable Energy Research and Development Team at the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC). Currently, she is the Technical Assistant on Research, Analysis and Informatics to the Minister of Power.

Awojoodu was born in the mid 80s in Georgetown, Washington DC, U.S. “I am from Osun State. My parents, Mr. Oloye Olalekan Awojoodu and Florence are two highly successful Nigerians. My mother is a medical technologist, managing a hospital laboratory in the U.S. and my dad is a highly accomplished architect known for the design and construction of several buildings in the capital of the U.S. “I schooled in Maryland U.S, and completed my university studies at Goucher, located in Towson, with two degrees, one in Economics (energy focused) and another in Business Management,” she revealed.

While she started her university studies with a passion for Medicine and the Sciences after being heavily influenced by her father, she quickly realized that she was more drawn to Business Studies. She found it thrilling to look for gaps in markets and high demand areas and come up with business ideas and business models to meet the need.

Awojoodu was recently nominated for the Future Awards Prize in Public Service, 2013. She is very proud of her role as Curator of the Abuja Global Shapers, the youngest platform of the World Economic Forum. Besides, she has received several leadership awards including the T. Rowe Price Scholar Award, a Renie Academic and Leadership Award, and an Umoja Community Service Award.

“The Abuja Global Shapers hub carries out a number of projects, namely our employability and entrepreneurship workshops which comprise CV reviews, interview skills, dress to impress workshops and more. Our CONNECT series, is a platform created to mobilize young professionals and entrepreneurs to network, exchange ideas and help build each other professionally and personally towards the advancement of our society at large, and The Shapers ‘Meet the Leader Series,’ is a platform for Shapers and other youths to engage with decision-makers and world leaders to ensure that our voices are heard. Through these various programmes and more, we have touched over 1000 young Nigerian’s lives.

“We would like to see tens of thousands of young people positively impacted through our community projects. Our mission is to tackle challenges through innovation while nurturing a progressive community that is changing the image of Nigeria. Our motto is ‘Shaping Our World’, and our values are: our belief in the infinite potential of youth and the power of collaboration; bold leadership with purpose and dignity; power of technology and creativity in impacting our communities.”

Awojoodu said SHAPE Africa 2014, which will hold in Abuja on May 5 and 6 and organized by the Abuja Global Shapers, is an opportunity for the Abuja hub to showcase bold solutions young people are initiating to tackle some of Africa’s biggest challenges.

She said: “Our goal is to amplify the voices and work of young African change agents and

Awojoodu seize the opportunity to provide a platform to engage potential partners and international media in the great work that young people are championing across the continent.”

She disclosed that to address the unemployment problems in the country, first and foremost, the educational curriculum should be adjusted to reflect current Nigerian realities.

“By the time I was 13, I started learning job skills because internships and community service programmes were compulsory. These experiences gave me exposure to the work atmosphere early on. Internship programmes in Nigeria should be scaled up and emphasized in order to enable young people to have access to work place environments which affords them the opportunity to acquire tangible skills while in search for permanent employment. A middle ground needs to be implemented and inculcated in Nigeria and the private sector should be encouraged to take on more interns.

“I would like to see more human capacity development in the form of vocational schools and training centres instituted in Nigeria.

There is need for centres to be set up with internet access provided for Nigerian youth to take advantage of Mass Online Open Courses (MOOCs) that are free in universities all around the world. This permits people the ability to continually advance themselves and enhance their CVs while job-hunting, which undoubtedly will make their profile and background more attractive to employers,” she said.

She said that in the power sector, a young person who may not have finished university should be able to take up training in a skill such as meter installations or data management.

“There are several sectors and industries that offer great potential for being a ‘catchall’ for jobs. The government and the education sector need to make other certifications and professions more attractive and move away from the ‘university education or nothing mentality.’ Parents also need to be encouraged and sensitized to allow their children to consider alternative skill sets,” she said.

Lastly, Nigerians, she said, need to be taught entrepreneurship skills early. “Even if the government and the private sector were to make millions of jobs available, there still wouldn’t be enough to go around. Almost every country globally battles with unemployment, therefore young people need to be empowered and encouraged to also consider entrepreneurship from young ages which will facilitate the creation of jobs for others.

“I am a big proponent of entrepreneurship and strongly believe that if you fail at something, you must get up, dust yourself off, analyze the situation and try again. If entrepreneurship was easy, everyone would do it but it is rewarding and it can pay off tremendously. In Nigeria, access to finance is definitely an impediment for young entrepreneurs but I have seen a wave of optimism recently as policy measures are being put in place to make finance more accessible

and cheaper.

“I believe in starting small and scaling up and forming partnerships and collaborations when possible. Nigerians are a relentless and resilient people which serves us well. I stand by the principle that if one follows his or her passion, the money will come. The first requirement is to take that bold step and seek mentorship where possible. If you read biographies of some of the most successful people, often times many of them studied the actions and steps of other successful people. Entrepreneurship is a sacrifice, but the greater the risk, the greater the reward. Experience is the greatest teacher.”

Her biggest role model is her mother. She has never met someone so keen on putting others before herself. Her mother, she says, is a selfless individual committed to ensuring that her children achieve their hearts’ desires by continuously offering support.

“From a young age, she instilled in me the principle of faith and the need to put God first.

She exemplified not just through words but also by her actions. Her teachings have left a big impression on me to serve others,” she said.

Awojoodu’s favorite food is sushi, a Japanese cuisine. She does not believe in regrets but rather believes that every experience in life, whether positive or negative, is a chance to grow and learn.

“I spend time with loved ones; there is nothing more relaxing than being in a familiar territory in the comfort of those who know you best.”

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

22 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

WOMAN

‘For Children, No Legacy Compares To Good Education’ To the seasoned educationist, Lady Loretta Nwosu, no nation rises significantly beyond the size of its educated citizens, just as the lot of any family is not more colourful and successful beyond the extent to which its members have been empowered through education, vocations and enterprise. She spoke with FELIX KUYE in Lagos about bringing up responsible children through education and the role of private schools.

HE foray into children’s education For T nearly four decades, I have given myself totally to the training of the growing child and the adolescent, a vocation which took off with a handful of toddlers in a modest two bedroom flat in Surulere but which has today grown into a dual campus institution, occupying a combined land mass of more than 48 acres in Festac, Lagos and Agbara, Ogun State. As the founder and proprietress of Loral International Schools - established in 1976 and running programmes from Nursery/Primary through sixth form college, I have understandably developed a deep passion for moulding the lives of children and the youth.

Discipline in the life of a child Nwosu Discipline is something that should never be compromised in the task of bringing up every is no investment or legacy as enduring as givchild. It is one of those virtues that shape the ing good academic and sound moral foundalife, and determine the success or failure of tion to a child. children as they grow up to engage in one en- Source of inspiration to set up a school as an deavor or the other. Teach a child in the way indigene of the South East where trading is that he should go, and when he grows up he predominant would not depart from it. This is critically true I grew up in the mission school where my faand how I wish parents would take this as a ther was a teacher. Naturally, I had long develcreed and a responsibility. oped interest in the teaching profession. At a I grew up in a disciplined environment and time, my father advised me to set up a school can only hand down the same virtues of disci- instead of any other line of business. In the pline and seriousness to my own children (I part of the country where I come from, tradhave three of them) and the hundreds of my ing and business are predominant attractions other children whom the Lord, through their for every youngster so much so that many, esparents, have been entrusted to my care. There pecially boys, willingly drop out of school in

order to face business squarely. We have since discovered that it was a wrong indoctrination and a flight of fancy. With education you are likely to perform better in business. Thank God things are changing now. In many schools these days, children from the South East form the bulk of pupils in every class, a demonstration of the new passion which parents from the East have developed for education. They would spare no amount of money to give the best education to their children.

Role of private sector in Nigeria’s educational development The emergence of more private schools is unstoppable. Without a shred of doubt, private

JUSTHUMAN Save Suliat From The Stranglehold Of Tumor Of The Jaw

By Bukola Ogungbe

Below is a re-run of story on Suliat Balogun who is suffering from tumor of the jaw. The first publication carried last week was incomplete.

Suliat Bola Adepoju, a 42-year-old woman, is suffering from ameloblastoma, tumor of the jaw. She is seeking the help of Nigerians to undergo a surgery.

OR Suliat Adepoju, the Fstarted tumor of the jaw ailment in 1999 as a slight swollen jaw. After visiting a doctor, she had a surgical operation at the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, and that took care of it.

Later, the tumor started recurring and she visited Me

Cure Health Care Limited, Oshodi, Lagos, where she was told that she would have to undergo surgery in India.

“After five years of taking drugs after the first operation at UCH, the pain recurred.

Then, I went to Me Cure, Oshodi, and complained to the doctor who told me that the facilities I need for treatment are not available in Nigeria; that I have to go to India for a surgery the cost of which is put at N6. 4 million. This money covers ticket to India, treatment, and contingency expenses,” Suliat said.

The tumor has severely distorted her face and stopped her from normal search for daily bread.

She says she has been told that if the turmor is left untreated, her nasal and oral airways could be obstructed, and breathing properly might become a great challenge. She, therefore, pleads with concerned persons, religious bodies and corporate organisations to assist her raise funds for the surgery.

She expressed her gratitude

to God saying that He has been helping her, through kindhearted Nigerians. They assist her with daily feeding and most of them wonder how she still manages to do morning evangelism even with the swollen jaw.

“I still do morning cries (evangelism), and it is only through the grace of God that I don’t have severe headaches. The doctors are surprised about

my sickness, as severe headache is expected, and they term it a miracle,” she said.

Suliat who is single, pleads with concerned persons who are touched by her story to please send financial assistance to the account details below: Account name: Bola Adepoju Bank: First Bank of Nigeria Account number: 3078356590 Phone number: 07068731860

LUTH Says It Carries Out The Operation HE Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) has said TA statement that the operation can be carried out here. by its Public Relations Officer, Hope Nwawolo, for and on behalf of the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Prof.

Akin Osibogun, said: “The Management of the LUTH finds the claim by the ‘doctor’ in Me Cure, that the patient can only be treated abroad, very embarrassing.

“This erroneous pronouncement was made without contacting any teaching hospital, particularly, the LUTH, that has undertaken several of such cases very successfully.

“Management hereby states that the facilities and adequate expertise to comprehensively manage the published case are available at the LUTH. “This can be done at a very reduced cost of N1.5 million.

Please, kindly bring the import of this to the general public to minimise the national embarrassment the article has brought to the nation, particularly, the healthcare sector.”

Suliat

ownership of schools has been a blessing to the nation. Like every industry or enterprise from which government at all levels collect taxes, schools have been a key contributor to economic growth in terms of revenue generation. In addition, employment opportunities given to thousands, if not millions, of Nigerians in private schools are a blessing. More importantly, private ownership of schools is a vital complement in a sector as crucial as education where government alone can never fully satisfy the demand of the ever growing population as is the case in Nigeria.

Proliferation of schools and challenge of unqualified teachers In the first place, I don’t agree with those who think that we have too many schools already.

Rather, I believe more are still required so that young children in particular can attend schools as near to their homes as possible.

However, the issue of proliferation of schools can be seen from the standpoint of free enterprise. Everybody is free to come in provided you satisfy the conditions laid down by the Ministry of Education. Of course, we would expect that the supervising ministry which set the standards would have the willpower and the resources to monitor compliance. No two schools can be exactly the same. So with more schools, families now have wider options from which to choose, taking cognisance of such parameters as school fees, quality of education offered, proximity to the house, adequacy of facilities and so on.

Qualities of a good school Qualified teachers and good facilities. Those who are involved in the training of children must not only have the prerequisite academic qualification to handle the classes assigned to them, they must possess the personality and moral standing to act constantly as role models to the children they are mentoring. Nothing gives a teacher more joy than to see his or her products excel in life.

Born at Oguta in Imo State, Lady Loretta Nwosu is an alumnus of Holy Child Catholic Teacher Training College, Ifuho Ikot-Ekpene and Moray House of Education in Edinburg, Scotland where she studied Child Education and Psychology. A respected Catholic and recipient of many awards and chieftaincy titles, Nwosu is the Yeye ni wura of Igbesaland in Ogun State; Lolo Ugochinyelu of Ozubulu and Ada di-ora-nma of Oraifite.

TheGuardian

Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 23

www.ngrguardiannews.com

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Weekend

By Shaibu Husseini T is very rare to find an actor in Kannywood Isinging, who does not combine acting with maybe directing, writing or producing. From Ali Nuhu to Sani Danja, it is now very common to find an actor introduce himself as an actor and singer or even an actor, singer, producer, writer and director. One of those who wear all five caps and who is reputed to be good at what he is doing is the amiable Kannywood practitioner, Yakubu Mohammed. The handsome actor who has put in over a decade as a practitioner has his hands on almost all the major trades in the line of movie production.

Mohammed has been able to successfully combine his demanding job as an actor with producing, directing, screenplay writing and singing. Those who have followed his career say he is good at what he is doing. They also say that he is having a good run as an actor, producer, singer, writer and director.

Star of over 50 Kannywood movies including ‘Gabar Cikin Gida’, which received rave reviews, Mohammed has risen to become one of Kannywood’s most sought after actor. A movie critic described him once as one of the very few actors of the Kannywood industry that producers always turn to whenever they want an actor who can interprete a role with unerring skills.

Born in Bauchi State and raised in Jos, Plateau State, Mohammed had the intention of studying Geology and Mining but he ended up studying Mass Communication first at diploma level at the University of Jos and later at the Bayero University Kano. It was while he was an undergraduate that he joined Kannywood. “I joined in 1998”, he said.

But before he joined Kannywood, Mohammed, who has acted in over 100 movies, wrote a number of poems and short stories during his days in early school and as an undergraduate. As he kept on writing, the actor and model who has over a thousand songs to his credit, looked forward to the day he will have the opportunity to have them either staged or produced as a film. He also composed and wrote a couple of songs but it was never his intention to sing. Like he said, he simply “wanted to be behind the camera or the stage, producing and directing”.

But today, Mohammed does more than just producing and directing. “I didn’t plan to be a jack of all trades and master of all as some of my colleagues refer to me. I just wanted to be behind the camera, directing and producing.

Even being a singer came to me naturally. Yes, I wrote songs but I had no intention to be a singer. Things just fell in place for me when I joined Kannywood and I worked to ensure that I understood the different trades. I think it is divine. I am destined to do all that I am doing today and what has helped me is that I space them out and work at my pace”, he said.

Mohammed started off in Kannywood writing scripts and working behind the scene. He trained on the job, rose through the ranks and in no time he found himself calling the shots and signing works as a producer. But as he worked behind the scene, a few of his colleagues talked him into taking up roles as an actor. They mounted pressure on Mohammed and in no time he found himself in front of the camera.

“I later fell in love with acting because I found out that acting takes away the actor’s burden, worries and sorrows even if it is only for a tem-

CELEBR ITY

Yakubu Mohammed: Kannywood’s ‘Master Of All’ porary moment. Once you fall into the character, it takes over your being. You only focus on how to make a perfect presentation and make sure your message gets across properly”.

Co-founder of ‘2ffect Empire’, a production company he runs with the multi-talented artiste Sani Danja, Mohammed and Sani have led the company to sign some movies including ‘Gabarcikingida,’ ‘Saninake so’ ‘Romiyo’, ‘DakaiZanGana,’ ‘Sisingwal,’ and ‘Mailaya Mai zamani’.

Star of ‘Shu’uma’, ‘Nas’ and countless other productions, Mohammed describes the experience of being an entertainer as “very good and enriching”. He said: “The experience has been very enriching. I enjoy what I am doing. I love impacting people positively, and my work offers me the opportunity to achieve that”.

Publisher of ‘Noble Icon’, a magazine published in Abuja, Mohammed who is married, has also produced a movie for Family Health International with funding by the USAID. Titled ‘Jankunne’ (The Awakening), the success of the movie as Mohammed hinted, earned the movie a mention in the famous ‘Wall Street Journal’.

Mohammed spends time with his family when he is not on any set. In between, the actor who named his late father as his role model, reads “anything readable”. He also spends his off screen period reviewing his works. He speaks about his late father: “I lost my father when I was nine years old. One thing that he instilled in us, his children, before his death, was the pursuit of education. He wasn’t a rich man, but was somebody who believed that, with education, with knowledge, one could get to the very top in his chosen career. I am sure in his grave he will be happy that I followed his advice and made good his expectations of me”.

If his father were to be alive, would he have resisted his incursion into acting? “No, he would not have resisted it”, Mohammed replied and adds: “I think what would have mattered to him is my getting well educated.

But you see, unlike what people think of us as filmmakers, filmmaking is a respectable and noble profession. We are responsible people trying to make positive impact on the society.

But it is getting better. I mean, the level of appreciation of what we do and our contribution to society.”

And what is the future for Kannywood? Mohammed who sees a great future for Kannywood, replies: “Very bright future. We have done well as an industry and there is still plenty room for improvement. We have massive followership even beyond the shores of this country. So we have a large market. What remains now is the enabling environment for us to improve on the quality of our works, which keeps improving day by day. But I know we will get there and my prayer is to be a part of that story”.

CelebrityExtra and more….

Oscars Approves Selection Committee For Nigerian Films HIS is good news from California, T USA for practitioners of the Nigerian film industry. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), organizers of the annual Oscars, has approved a 12-man Nigerian Oscars Selection Committee (NOSC) that would be charged with the responsibility of paving the way for an entry from Nigeria to be considered annually for the Oscars.

The Oscars is considered the world most prestigious award for films and filmmakers. The committee is made

up of stakeholders drawn from within and outside the industry and they include the prolific producer and director, Charles Novia, film exhibitor and distributor and Managing Director of Film House, Kene Mkparu, film festival organizer, Chioma Ude, notable actor, Ramsey Noah and film critic and journalist, Shaibu Husseini.

Others are current Director General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Emeka Mba, former Managing Director of MNET Biola

Alabi, notable Nollywood producer and director, Mildred Okwo, distributor and content developer Akin Salami, Managing Director of Bloomberg Television Africa, Olumide Amure and notable marketer and line produce,r Ngozi Okafor.

The committee is to be chaired by the producer and director of the ground breaking film Ije, Chineze Anyaene.

Speaking at a conference to announce the inauguration of the committee, Anyaene disclosed that every year, countries with an approved selection

committee may submit one film for consideration for the Foreign Language Film category of the award. The producer and director stated that members would consider submissions on seven criteria, which are – story, direction, acting, cinematography, sound, music and universal theme.

She also stated that films that would have a chance of being considered at the level of the committee will be films that are produced in indige-

nous language “with little or no use of English language”.

She clarified: “It is important to reiterate that the film that will be selected by the NOSC will only be eligible to be considered for the best foreign language film award category and would not qualify in the other categories. So every Nollywood movie selected each year will compete with movie from 85 other countries for the coveted category. The Academy will then pick a shortlist of five foreign language movies ahead of the ceremony”.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

24 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

GARDENING

With Sereba Agiobu-Kemmer

sereba.agiobu.kemmer@ngrguardiannews.com

SSESS your plot and understand your garden’s character A and you will be well on your way to becoming a blossoming gardener.

The first thing to determine is what will grow in the spot available for your garden.

The three chief factors determining what will grow in a particular spot are sunlight, soil type, moisture. In addition, temperature and wind, also determine the character of your garden. Having done the soil analysis of your plot, you now know the type of soil/soils amendments to be carried out with compost and fertilizers for nutrients that the soil lacks.

This set of conditions working together determines the character of your garden and what you can grow successfully in it.

You’ve figured out your garden character, make a record of it, before you start digging.

Draw a sketch plan showing all its characteristics, such as light conditions, soil type etc. you will use it all the time as a source of reference on what plants are suitable to use and in taking design decisions.

While waiting for the soil to settle with the amendments and nutrients dressings, research the proper outdoor plants for your area before planting to insure their long lasting beauty.

Create garden with native plants to support and invite wildlife. It is better to choose plants suitable to your garden conditions for optimum growth success.

While some measures can be taken to make your garden a hospitable place for particular plants, your experience will be more rewarding if you learn to work with nature.

Now you can create your garden based on knowledge, of its character and what best to plant. You can make out the garden planting plan, garden design and garden style.

Planting Plan A planting plan gives specific instructions, often for a contractor about how the soil is prepared, what species are to be planted, what size and spacing is to be used and what maintenance operations are to be carried out under the contract.

Owners of private gardens may also use planting plans not for contractual purposes, but as an aid to thinking about a design and as a record of what treatments employed and what has been planted. A planting strategy is a long term strategy for the design establishment and management of different types of vegetation in a landscape or garden.

Planting can be directly established by a landscape contractor (also known as a landscape gardener). Landscape contractors work to drawings and specifications prepared by garden designers or landscape architects.

Planting Designs Planting design requires design talent and aesthetic judgement combined with a good level of horticultural, ecological and cultural knowledge. Designing a garden often goes beyond which plants you want to grow and the type of function you want your garden to have. Thematic elements can also influence the look of a garden. It includes the two major traditions: formal asymmetrical (Asia), formal rectilinear planting design (Persian and Europe) and naturalistic planting design.

In Asia the asymmetrical traditions of planting design in Chinese gardens and Japanese gardens originated in the Jin Dynasty (265-420AD) of China. The gardens’ plantings have a controlled but naturalistic aesthetic. In Europe the arrangement of plants in informal groups developed as part of the English landscape garden style, and was strongly influenced by the picturesque art movement. Thematic elements can also influence the style of a garden.

Garden Styles Garden styles generally are either formal or informal Formal gardens tend to use geometric shapes for their layout, circles, rectangle, squares straight lines. Plants spacing, color, and layout are very precise.

Informal gardens tend to use curves and free flowing forms.

The color combinations are more relaxed and varying plant heights will mingle together. I think most home gardens tend to be this type. Learning the type and styles of gardens and the general principles of plant placement will help you design your garden.

Popular style elements Formal gardens Keep formal gardens simple. The plan should aim for balance and symmetry for an air of calm elegance. Use strong well defined lines and boundaries, such as groomed hedges, walkways, perhaps even a reflecting pool. Employ single color plantings, aiming to match or complement your house color, fence or another element. Add stylish pots, urns, gazing balls, or statuary. Keep everything in moderation so it doesn’t look cluttered.

Asian (Japanese) gardens What makes this style of garden is more in the design philosophy than the type of plants used. Space, a sense of proportion and balance are the hallmark of a Japanese garden. As one writer puts it, “nature is the ideal that you must strive for.” Japanese gardens are beautiful and peaceful places that strive to represent perfect harmony in nature. They are designed based on three basic principles: reduced scale, symbolization and borrowed view. This style of garden derives beauty from a blending of different elements including sand, rocks, water, plants and ornaments such as lanterns, bamboo fencing, water basins, or even a small ‘tea house’. Of course there is more than one kind of Japanese or Asian garden. Rock gardens have strategically placed rocks and sand raked into intricate designs, while strolling gardens require visitors to walk along a path, visiting certain spots that prompts them to look at specific elements. Tea and pond gardens are also typical styles. Choose fine textured traditional plants in pots or in the ground. Try bamboo, dwarf conifers, Japanese

Lawn-free, no mowing, professionally hardscaped garden with pebbled walkways and rockcapes.

Desertscape garden design

Garden focal point is pond with Canna lilies

Minimalist tropical garden design

Pretty mix of palms, succulent aloes, purple tradescantia pallida creates exotic tropical border

Romantic style garden with waterfall cascading into pool.

Small space home garden on raised bed and planter

Tropical border of dramatic foliage and colorful flowers.

Garden Survey, Design, Planting Plan maple, Iris, Azalea and flowering fruit trees.

Tropical plants Tropical garden emphasize lots of big bold dramatic leafy foliage plants such as coleus, hibiscus, taro, banana, pawpaw, shrubs, trees, ferns, orchids, tillandsia. In the ground or in large containers use bright flowers in hot colors like yellow, red, orange, and bi-colors. Then include water feature such as a pool, fountain, or stream. You can add drama with extras: bird house or cages, colorful pots, gazing balls, and playful or handcrafted décor and statuary.

Cottage gardens Cottage gardens should be overflowing with blooms, so plant these informal gardens, with a generous hand. A cottage garden design showcases full planting of old fashioned favorite feminine flowers include lots of roses and other fragrant plants (including herbs). Keep the plants well tended (remove spent flowers and stems) but allow them to express their natural exuberance. Finally, add some charming touch-

es – whimsical bird house, or wind chimes.

Arid climate gardens If your area is a little on the parched side or you just love sandy deserts filled with architectural cacti and succulents, you may want to opt for a dry climate and water wise garden.

Employ a naturalistic layout, perhaps, with a dry stream bed or stone pathways, rock features, and choose plants that thrive in the hot sun, including but not limited to cacti and succulents. Then strategically place accents of colorful or more water needy plants in pots in groups.

Bog Garden Soil moisture is obviously tied to the climate of the area where you live, but even in a small yard there can be wide variations. If your garden is at the bottom of a hill, marshy or riverside area, the soil may remain wet for long periods of time. In this situation you can try creating a raised bed, but it is best to stick to plants that enjoy having their feet wet. It is always best to work with nature.

Ogbukagu SHOWBLAST /33

WEEKENDBEATS /36

With Open Doors, Nosa Steps Out Bold

With Heroes,

Ignites Culture Interest

MONDAYS–FRIDAYS IN THE GUARDIAN

SATURDAY, May 3, 2014

An Atrocious UTME Result Exposes The State Of Nigerian Education HE recently-announced results TMatriculation of the 2014 Unified Tertiary Examination (UTME) conducted by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) were abysmal, which raises an eye brow at the dubious standards of contemporary Nigerian education.

Out of 1,015,504 candidates who sat for the Paper and Pencil Test (PPT) and the DualBased Test (DBT) on April 12, only 47, which represents 0.0046 per cent of the total candidate registered for the exam scored 250 and above.

Appalling as they are, the results constitute only the tip of the iceberg. Only 109, 836 candidates obtained scores of 200 and above, representing 10.82 per cent of the total. Nearly 90 per cent of those who sat for the examinations were unable to attain scores equivalent to 50 per cent of total obtainable scores.

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The implications of the 2014 UTME results are sobering in their enormity. The UTME is a so-called “gateway” examination. This means that it is taken by candidates from all socio-economic backgrounds, educational attainment and ethnic groups. It is therefore a reliable yardstick of general educational performance.

Alas, in spite of all the educational reforms in several states of the federation, despite the increase in the number of expensive private schools, and notwithstanding the intrinsic intelligence and determination of many Nigerian youths, very little has changed for the better.

This raises concern and suggests that governments, non-governmental agencies and the educational institutions across the country may need to take a very hard look at their current strategies.

Now, questions are been asked; could it be that current pedagogical practices are too closely attuned to passing examinations, and are consequently not wide-ranging enough, or maybe the cancer of examination malpractice has so engulfed the country’s educational system that it has comprehensively crippled candidates’ ability to perform well without it?

These and so much more has the

entirely nation wondering, some even wonder if there is a disconnect between resource input and expected outcomes?

Apparently, a change of attitude at the leadership level is crucial to reversing this unhappy trend. In more serious countries, a performance like this would be considered nothing less than a disaster, and in addressing it, correspondingly serious measures would be taken.

Unfortunately, Nigeria is a country where failure is rarely identified for what it is, to say nothing of sanctioning those who are culpable.

“Thwarted at every turn”, is where states like Ekiti and Edo, which have courageously tried to address fundamental issues like that of teacher competence, find themselves.

Basically, there will have to be a comprehensive reform of the nation’s educational system, if the situation is to change.

An accessible reporting system should be developed to enable all schools to be monitored closely, and systems of financing education, especially at the primary and secondary school levels, must be clearly identified and ring-fenced.

Meanwhile, measurable teacher and student performance yardsticks must be established to enable educational institutions to be objectively assessed.

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ASUP Strike:End ASUP Strike Now Or Face The Consequences HE lingering ASUP Strike embarked T upon some 7-months ago have taken many faces of late. The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP are doing everything within their means to bring the strike to an end within the shortest period of time. We have recorded many stories already on the ugly nature of the strike especially as it keeps hundreds of

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thousands of students at home and make them frail to politicians in the fast approaching elections.

We recall the statements of the SHOWBLAST /33 Supervising Minister of Education, Mr Wike which says, “ The Storm Is Over: ASUP And COEASU Strikes‘ and wondered the storm he was actually referring to, considering the fact that things even got intensified two days ago as the protesting Lecturers In Abuja were dispersed with tear gas and hot water CARTOON SERIES /35 by men of the Nigeria Police when they attempted to make their way to the National Assembly, which left our hearts broken into fractions.

In frustration, particularly because the there seems to be end in sight, polytechnic students around the country as well as their beloved parents and other concerned fellows have pleaded one more time with President Goodluck Jonathan to intervene in the situation.

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COEASU Strike: SSUCOEN calls For Minister Of Education Sack HE Senior Staff Union of Colleges T of Education (SSUCOEN) SouthWest zone, on Tuesday, called on the Federal Government to sack the Supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike.

This was disclosed by the union’s South-West zonal chairman, Comrade Oladapo Olalere, during a press conference held at the NUJ Press Centre, Iyaganku, Ibadan.

"The non- implementation/review of 2009 FGN/ SSUCOEN salary agree-

ment should be met hence, some state colleges won’t call off the two-month old nationwide strike, says Olalere.

To press home their demand on sundry issues including: “nonfull implementation of CONTEDISS salary structure, non-implementation of 65 years retirement, among others, the union had, on Monday, January 6, 2014, embarked on a seven-day warning strike.

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26 Saturday, May 3, 2014

CAMPUS FG Sets Up Committee To Resolve HND/Degree Dichotomy Councils of Federal Polytechnics and Federal Colleges of Education during a Special retreat in Kaduna said that, the SGF and members of the committee met with Academic Staff Union of Jonathan to address the issue of dichotomy Polytechnics, ASUP, last week to resolve the between HND and Degree holders Report reaching our news desk has it that, the dichotomy.

According to a statement signed by the Special Minister of state for Education, Nyesom Wike, Assistant to the minister on Media, Simeon asserted that the issue of dichotomy between HND and Degree holders will be resolved in no Nwakaudu, Wike “noted that other demands have also been resolved, pointing out that the distant time.

Wike, while addressing chairmen of Governing issue of the release of white-paper for visitation panels to Federal Polytechnics and Federal Colleges of Education is being concluded at the Office of the SGF. NBA asks Fashola to consider He then called on the chairmen of the Governing Councils of Federal Polytechnics and Federal plight of parents and reduce Colleges of Education to assist the federal governschool fees ment by deploying their relevant skills towards HE Chairman of the association, Onyekachi resolving the lingering strike action.

“Wike urged the striking unions to reciprocate Ubani, made the call at a media briefing ahead of the branch’s 2014 Annual Law Week. the gesture of President Jonathan by calling off The State Government had in 2012 raised fees their strike and resuming academic work in the in the institution from N25,000 to N198, 000 interest of the nation.”

“Permit me to call on our lecturers to call-off for students offering arts and social sciences, their protracted strike to enable academic activiwhile medical students are being charged ties commence in the Polytechnics and Colleges N350, 000 per session. of Education. Let us show understanding with He went on to say that the Government should empathise with the parents of the stu- government and the challenges before it and calloff the strike, he says. dents considering the economic situation in “We acknowledge the importance of teacher the country. education and polytechnic education and as “The Babatunde Fashola’s Government must responsible government we will not down-play appreciate what parents are going through their roles in national development and prosperieconomically by reducing the fees,” he said. ty.”

On the ongoing national conference, the The statement read further: “In his remark, NBA chairman urged Nigerians to offer sugChairman of Committee of Chairmen of gestions on how the process should be hanGoverning Councils of Federal Polytechnics, Chief dled in the best interest of the nation.

Ebenezer Babatope appealed to the striking lec“We feel very strongly that the salvation of turers to work towards resuming academic activthis great nation lies in a roundtable where ities in line with the commitments made by some of the issues plaguing the nation will be President Jonathan to further develop honestly discussed and practical solutions Polytechnics and Colleges of Education. proffered, he says.

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COMMITTEE headed by the Secretary to the A Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator Pius Anyim was set up by President Goodluck

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NCC Launches New E-learning Project In Imo Schools ENATOR Hope Uzodinma and Raphael SRepresentatives Igbokwe, both members of the House of were special guests of honour at the launch of Advanced Digital Awareness Programme for Tertiary Institutions (ADAPTI) and Digital Access Programme (DAP) projects which took place in their constituencies, which was chief hosted by the Executive Vice Chairman NCC, Dr. Eugene Juwah ADAPTI is one of the programmes through which the Commission introduced to bridge the digital divide existing in the academia with the provision of computers and other ICT facilities to equip the lecturers and other experts in order to improve their ICT skills and also to enrich the students.

Apparently, computers and other state-of-theart e-learning suites for the academics in terti-

ary institutions across the country are provided through ADAPTI by the NCC. Since its introduction in 2008, more than 297 institutions of higher learning have benefitted from the programme. And this is in addition to the introduction of the wireless cloud, a complimentary package comprising of laptops with wireless internet facilities, with 144 other institutions, including some that already have ADAPTI, also benefiting from it.

Another programme through which the NCC introduced to bridge the digital divide existing in our secondary schools through classrooms fully equipped with computers and other ICT facilities, including a generator and internet connection to enable the schools and its immediate environment to have access to the internet is the DAP.

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uki@poisenigeria.org,

Experience is the best teacher, but the tuition fee is very high. I am Uki Dare, C.E.O of Poise’ Graduate Finishing Academy, mother of two and wife of one. I will share with you lessons I have learnt from my experiences around transforming from a young lady with big dreams to a young C.E.O with massive goals. I won’t bore you with long prose and philosophical arguments I promise to be real and answer all your questions in just TWO WORDS.

Just Ask

Uki Dare Just Ask

How do I know if she likes me? I know why he acts like that, is it not him!? Why would she do such a thing to her sister? Let me ask Janet if Tito gave her the book yesterday so I will know if she will give me? They will not like it, let me not even bother trying. Should I ask her for money or should I just leave it, she looks broke and she didn’t give Fred when he asked her yesterday.”

replied, “Oh boy! Be there! Stop judging sha.

The girl is a fine babe, leave the man alone and face your work.” This scenario continued forever. Even when Chinonye suddenly quit 6 months after, everyone took it as proof that something was going on between them and she must have resigned because the relationship with Jeff went sour.

4 years later, Jeff ran into Chinonye at the Cinema. “Hello Chinonye, how are you doing?

Have you ever thought in this way? Are you try- It’s good to see you. So what are you up to ing to figure out what someone is thinking by now?” “Not much Sir but I am doing well, I asking everyone else except them? Is this a have a small business I am doing after all that good strategy? Let’s discuss it. happened to me?” Jeff was curious, “What happened to you exactly?” Chinonye Aigbode works with Jeff, they had been workexplained “Sir, when I left Glitz limited, it was ing together for close to two years. When not as if I had another job or something to do.

Aigbode joined Glitz Limited, Femi was already I just could not take the stories that were working in that unit. They all lived in the same going around anymore. Someone confided in area which was very far from work and Jeff me that I needed to be careful around you their boss had a car. Though they all closed at because you had never been so nice to a staff, the same time, Aigbode and Femi would go so everyone felt something was going on home by public transport while Jeff would between us. I was very surprised. One day, I drive himself home. Jeff was very jovial in the was late to work and I was having an arguoffice and Aigbode often wondered why he ment with Towobola, then she spat out that I couldn’t give them a ride since they all stayed should not think that because I was dating in the same area and they had such a nice rela- you I could do anything I liked.” That was it tionship. For almost two years no one ever for me. I just couldn’t stand my reputation brought it up until Chinonye joined the team. being tarnished in such a manner and I realA week after she joined, Jeff started gaving her a ized the whole office must have been dislift to her bus stop and the tongues stated wag- cussing it. That was why I resigned with ging. immediate effect. I didn’t want to cause trouble so I could not tell you. Do you still work “Can you imagine? So because Chinonye is a there?” Jeff was stunned. He tried to mask it. lady, she is worthy of a lift. Hmm! I respected “It was nice seeing you again sir, Enjoy the this man oh! I never taught he could be like movie. Bye.” Jeff mustered a “Goodbye” and all this. This is ridiculous.” Said, Aigbode. Femi

the one who asked for a ride or if Jeff offered because they assumed they already had the answer. It was actually none of t heir business, but still they talked about it. At the end of the day everyone got hurt.

he could think about was “How many people in the office were saying this about me, and for how long? How come no one ever told me so I could remedy my reputation? What is the meaning of this?” He left the cinema and went back home. Only one word can describe how he felt.

Betrayed.

From that day, Jeff’s behavior to his colleagues changed drastically, he went from being the jovial boss to being super strict and till today, nobody knows why.

The End

Here are my two words for those of us who have given up on asking for something: Even innocent assumptions can kill, because they have a way of feeling like fact. Don’t assume…Just Ask If you have a question, stop trying to guess the answer when you can…Just Ask Don’t let the fear of rejection make you call someone in Abuja to just to find out if your neighbor (who is in Lagos with you) will let you use her iron…Just Ask

Don’t spend 20 months designing the perfect product without finding out if your target This is an example of something that happens in will be interested in what you are doing…Use our offices, our schools and even our homes and Surveys businesses. We relate with people based on so Asking ‘Do you think she will give me?’, ‘Do many assumptions, rather than simply asking you think they will agree?’ or ‘Do you think he the question that we have on our minds. will like to?’, ‘Has he forgiven me?’ are all Aigbode did not ask Jeff if he could give him a good questions they can help you prepare a ride because he assumed that Femi must have good pitch but at the end of the day, the asked before. Since Femi had been working there longer, Aigbode assumed Femi knew Jeff surest way is to, meet the person in question, better. Femi never asked Jeff if he could give him ignore the apprehension nibbling inside you a ride because he felt that it was out of place and and… he should let Jeff be the one to make the offer.

JUST ASK When Jeff didn’t, Femi assumed it was because he did not want to. Jeff never thought of offering them a ride, because he knew they would find it What are some tough questions that you have hard to say no and he didn’t want to cramp their been unable to ask? Lets discuss strategies for asking tricky questions on the Poise’ style. He expected that they would ask if they Graduate Finishing Academy Blog needed his help and when they didn’t, he poisegfs.blogspot.com. Post a comment there assumed it was because they didn’t want to go with him. Chinonye was bold enough to ask, but or if it is private you can send an email to uki@poisenigeria.org. I look forward to readbecause she was a lady, once again everyone ing your comment. assumed they knew why Jeff offered her a ride (he didn’t). No one asked Chinonye if she was

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FROM THE DESK OF THE CEO

National Development Strategy Series can be as important as or even more important than the people that are getting the things done. A System is a way of Life. If it is the system of the Government to follow the rule of Law, then it will attract the most sophisticated Investors to its territory, however if the system of that Nation, that society or that community is to undermine creative people, take over private property without recourse, or to completely erode the confidence of the people in NICHOLAS OKOYE, the last hope of the masses being the Courts Founder EMPOWER NIGERIA Initiative, then that society, community or Nation is heading down hill.

In Nigeria it is no longer news to say that PILLAR THREE: Nigeria has been dancing on the brink now for more than a few years, and the only reason we have not fallen off the edge is because as there are people that are actively trying to tear us down, there are just as many or even more people that are working day and night to lift Paper 1. us up as a Nation. It is the activity of these NATION builders that has prevented Nigeria from going off the edge or falling off the brink.

AM GOING deep into my nine pillars of And it is the efforts of such people as these National development with the third Pillar Nation Builders. Myself included as I write in listed as the Systems, the Structure and the Infrastructure of a Nation. I will discuss why this this newspaper every week, I speak on the is so important and how we can get this going Radio, host a Leadership Summit, promote Entrepreneurship, mentor youths, host Peak for our developing in Nigeria. As I have disPerformance Seminars etc, these efforts and cussed in full the first two Pillars of what I believe are the drivers of National Development many others like them will continue to swell the ranks of Nigeria’s Nation builders and I want to reiterate the nine here again so that readers can follow properly in case they missed sooner rather than later we will all overcome the destroyers and banish them from our socithe first aspect of the National Development ety forever.

Strategy Series which I started back in January 2014.

SYSTEMS, STRUCTURE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

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for the salon is available in the local markets but many of them are fake as the standards have not been enforced, and the ones that are reliable are way too expensive for you. Somehow you price the equipment and it will cost you about two million to get the drier, blower, standard chairs and all the other equipment needed for a standard salon. Then you tell a few of your potential customers that you are only looking for N4.4 million and you are in business. They then remind you that they will not come if there is no light in your salon. So you go and price the cost of a 10 KVA modest generating set for N1 million to 1.5Million depending on the brand. So your simple dream of operating a community hair, makeup and barbering salon is now N5.4 to N6 million away. You go all over the place to seek financial assistance and you are told that you have to register your business first and you will need references. If you are in Lagos then you have to have a number of additional permits from Signs to personal income tax registrations. And anybody that has been in business knows that you have to have the salary of the initial staff set aside up front for the first six months as that is what it will take to build the confidence and loyalty of your customers. So you now need N8 million.

And that is the Nigerian System. So it is easy to answer a question ……is the Nigerian System designed to encourage the establishment of Small businesses?.... the answer is an empathic NO.

IS NIGERIA”. Or the term…..” IT IS THE NIGERIAN SYSTEM”. At first I did not know what this meant, but later I came to realize that this simply means that the Nigerian System is such that things will not work normally, you need to pay money to get anything and everything done from any Government department, and that while you are at it, you could loose your shirt, your property or even your life and nobody will give a damn. How did we develop this kind of culture or this kind of system? And how in God’s name do we believe that we can go far if we continue like this. It will not work I can tell you that for FREE. The new Nigerian System we need

We need a new Nigerian System which is based on the Rule of Law and fair play. A system that promotes Innovation and creativity. There is a I stated that in order for a National Government very large and growing debate about the rebasIf you need N8 million to set up a simple to be able to succeed in its drive to achieve its NIGERIAN SYSTEM ing of the Nigerian economy in the last few neighborhood salon then we are really in troutarget of higher standards of living for its citi(The…..“This is Nigeria” ….attitude) ble. How will we create the jobs that are need- weeks. And many have condemned it saying zens, full employment for its youths and an ecoed to grow the economy in real terms if we are that it does not reflect the poverty in the land nomic growth rate that is positioned to keep Think about it for a second, you are a very tal- undermining the creation of new businesses? and so they are not going to buy into it. the smooth circle of progress turning that will However I have made a very strong argument ented hairdresser and you have quite a num- Do our officials even know the damage they continue to provide for the people of the that the rebasing is in order and in fact it will ber of people that will pay good money for are doing to Micro and Small businesses by NATION in question, that NATION needs to have many benefits for Nigeria, not the least in your services once you get started. However imposing so many rules and barriers for this anchor its plans, policies and spending on the that fact that many global companies will start you have no place to call your hair salon so you level of business person? Our System needs Nine Pillars of National Development. to rethink their Africa plans with Nigeria at the go out to seek a place. You get to a popular help and that is the truth. fore front. However one side of the debate that business district and the property agents tell And I have stated that these nine pillars include has not come to fore is the reason why our you that the rent is one hundred thousand I remember when I first came back to Nigeria the following Naira a month but you must pay for two years from the United States where I was working as unbanked and poverty levels have not up front. That is a whopping two million four a Financial Consultant and Global Investment improved even though the economy is growPillar 1; Government Policy ing at alarming rates. Well the reason is very hundred thousand naira (N2.4miilion), and Adviser with Merrill Lynch in Boston, everysimple, we are running a nonproductive, nonyou haven’t even started yet.

The equipment where I went I used to hear the term …….“THIS Pillar 2; Access to Capital creative and non innovative society. I had this discussion recently with a friend of mine and it Pillar 3; Systems, Structure and made so much sense. We are growing Infrastructure without creating anything new. All our transactions are service based or Pillar 4; Talent and Skills hunter based. And the according to a Professor friend of mine, the Hunter Pillar 5; Markets mentality is that non creative mindset.

You seek out already made animals, Pillar 6; Energy products or anything to shoot down and claim for your own. Whereas the Pillar 7; Strategy framer mindset is the one that seeks to create something new from nothing, Pillar 8; Action to build new creations, from a little seed with a lot of effort, timing and Pillar 9; Communication patience, something new is borne and created and the World is better for it.

I have discussed the first two Pillars in previous In Nigeria we have become and have editions and I advise students and public offibeen operating as a Nation of Hunters cials who have found this information useful to with the crude Hunter mindset. We get past copies of the Guardian for a review of are unwilling and frankly many of us what I said about those two key and strategic are unable to focus on creating anyPillars of National Development. thing new. To put in the work required to innovate required commitment and so we will not produce the wealth that goes with the economies where Systems innovation and creativity are the rule.

We need a new SYSTEM in NIGERIA, it is The first question that would come to mind is important for inclusion and for to ask what I mean when I say systems. For a spreading the wealth for all citizens.

Nation or a society the System of doing things The Nigerian Judges and the entire Judiciary have continued to fail Nigerians. Cases last far too long and in many corruption cases the Judiciary does not provide itself as a reliable partner in the building a Nigerian System we can be proud of. Apart from Gov Lucky Igbinedion and Gov Alamieyeseigha no other former Governor or highly placed Politician has been convicted in recent times, in spite of the hundreds of cases that have been filed. In fact many politicians and now Civil Servants too, have judgments signed by Nigerian Judges that have barred them from arrest, investigation or prosecution. This is a practice that is only obtainable in Nigeria, as nowhere else in the World can a Judge in good conscience grant a suspect freedom from investigation, arrest and prosecution which by definition creates Super Citizens that are NOT answerable to the Law. To build a New Nigerian System we must start with the Judiciary.

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GUIDE TO PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURAL LEADER

By Nicholas Okoye

nokoye@empowernigeria.com

Self Confidence: nobody wants to deal with someone that is not sure of himself or herself. You owe yourself a duty to build up the confidence you need to get the things you want out of life. You need Self-confidence for your career, you need it for your business, and you need it for managing your family. If you do not have self-confidence then please find a way to acquire it, because you cannot do without it. And the best way of building Self Confidence is by acquiring knowledge. Once you have become an authority in a given field you will see your confidence will go through the roof.

Initiative: in Nigeria we are not known for taking initiative. Largely because we have Leaders who do not reward initiative. In fact many of our leaders punish creative and innovative people in their organizations and prefer people who toe the line and keep things …the way it’s been for the past fifty years. However without initiative you cannot be a very effective leader or entrepreneur. Taking initiative simply means knowing what task needs to get done and being able to do it without being told what to do. How can you not just love a person like that. Tell you what, if your boss doesn’t appreciate you, let us know at the Academy, we know a few bosses that would love to have people with initiative.

Imagination: There is nothing in this world today, whether it is a plane flying in the sky or a ship on the sea or a 100 floor sky scrapper, a telephone, a photocopier, a camera anything, that did not have its first start in the mind of an imaginative person. The person first imagines things, writes them down and then goes about tackling the complex problems involved in bringing these imaginations to life. That is why the Nations with the most imaginative citizens are the most successful nations, have the highest standards of living and have the most affluent citizens. As a Nation many Nigerian citizens are lacking in imagination we must change this now.

Enthusiasm: How can you expect to be successful at anything let alone entrepreneurship or business if you do not have sufficient enthusiasm for your product, your service or your industry. This is the primary reason why people who are involved in a labour of love, (meaning they love their work or the love their industry or they love the person for whom they do the work), will always do much better than others who are just working to survive or just to pay the bills. You must have enthusiasm for others to believe you, accept your message and embrace your ideas. As an entrepreneur you cannot do without enthusiasm.

EVAN SPIEGEL PIEGEL was born in 1990 the oldest child of two attorneys. He was into all things geek growing up and while in 6th grade with the aid of his computer teacher built his first computer. Spiegel was an all rounder and was proficient in snowboarding and throwing parties as he was tech savvy.

While in high school he worked with Red Bull, a company he admired their marketing brand. He also worked as a software developer at Intuit and as a paid intern at Abraxis Bioscience. After high school, he studied Graphic design and advertising at the Art center college of design, before attending Stanford where he received a degree in product design in 2012.

While at Stanford, his outgoing personality landed him an opportunity to meet major tech players, including Google executive Eric Schmidt, co-founder of YouTube Chad Hurley and his mentor Scott Cook the chief executive of Intuit.

The idea of Snapchat was born from a causal conversation with his college fraternity brothers in Stanford. Snapchat is a photo sharing application that allows users to send pictures, videos and text messages that self destruct in 10 seconds unless saved by the receiver. The application also notifies the sender whenever a video or a photo is saved.

The self destructive function is the reason behind the application’s success.

Everyone at Stanford including his tutor thought it was a terrible idea and no one would use it. The photo sharing application was not Spiegel’s first attempt to launch his enterprise. He attempted almost 34 projects one of which was ‘Future freshman’ a website designed to make it easier for students to get into college. An undeterred

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Spiegel and his partner Bobby Murphy launched Snapchat in 2011 in Spiegel’s father’s living room.

Spiegel worked on branding and designs while Murphy worked on coding. Without much media attention in the early days, Snapchat relied on word of mouth among teenagers. In February 2012 the application had 40,000 users and was processing 60 million messages a day. In June 2012, Snapchat closed a $60 million funding round which valued the company at $800 million, a huge sum for a company that has never earned a cent in revenue. Spiegel and Murphy also earned $10 each from the deal.

In June 2013, Snapchat introduced Snapkidz for users less than 13 years of age. Snapkidz allows children to take snaps and draw on them, but they cannot send snaps to other users and can only save snaps locally on the device.

Today Snapchat is listed under the top 10 iTunes app store application and processes over 350 million messages a day. Spiegel and Murphy recently turned down a $3 billion offer from Facebook and a $4 billion offer from Google to sell the company.

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Friday, May 3, 2014 33

SHOWBLAST

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Darey rocking with one of the guests at the party

Ultimate Clubbing Rapper Naeto C, DJ Spinall and Freeze Stories by Chuks Nwanne AVING produced notable artistes such as Tuface Idibia, Mr. Raw, Flavour, Waje, Phyno and other popular entertainers, who are currently playing big in the country’s showbiz industry, Enugu, the capital city of Enugu State, has indeed become a major entertainment spot in Nigeria. Take away Lagos and maybe Port Harcourt, the Coal City remains a formidable force when it comes to showbiz.

Be it reality TV show auditions, live music concerts, film production, music video shoots, art exhibition, comedy shows…

Enugu is obviously having its fair share of the fun. Perhaps, the peaceful environment and stable polity may have helped in positioning the city as an alternative to Lagos when it comes to entertainment. At least, there’s no fear of Boko Haram bombing, usual intimidation by the dreaded Area Boys or Niger Delta militants. So, for corporate organisations, who seem to have found love in the showbiz industry, Enugu will always be a preferred host.

Last week, for instance, the Coal City bubbles with activities, as celebrities, stakeholders in the showbiz industry and top officials of the Nigerian Breweries Plc stormed the area for yet another leg of the Gulder Club Ultimate, the famous urbane clubbing event, which hops from city to city, with lots of fun and excitement.

The gig, which had already visited Lagos and Port Harcourt, practically transformed Polo Park GRA, the venue of the party into a giant multi million-naira ultimate cruise liner. The exterior was customised with detailed elements of seashore, a walkway tunnel and stylish ushers in sailor uniforms. The red carpet glittered with stylish guests, who showed different shades of fashion.

The two-day event opened on a high note with Flavour’s Jazz band thrilling guests to live performances of popular local and foreign tunes. Their performance was followed

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by a display by the indigenous Ikorodo dancers. Dressed in colourful traditional outfits, the group treated the audience to electrifying dance routines, as they stepped to popular contemporary tracks by the DJs. Anchored by radio presenter Freez, the night was spiced with world-class displays

from amazing international acts including Cyrl Wheel, Flame Oz and Gandini Jugglers, who turned the fictional to reality at the event. Africa’s hottest disc jockeys DJ Neptune, DJ Caise, DJ Spinall and Big N on the famous GCU floating turntables spun back to back hit songs, which included the likes of

Entry Opens For AFRIMA 2014 HEAD of the maiden ediA tion of the music award ceremony billed for October

2014, the International Committee of the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), a continental showpiece to celebrate the rich musical heritage of Africa and her talented artistes for the economic growth of the continent, has opened submission of entries for musical works across Africa for the 2014 edition.

According to the body, entries will open from May 15, 2014 to July 5, 2014. Submission will be received from music professionals of African origin living either on the continent including artistes, songwriters, video directors, music producers and music journalists as well as unrecorded artistes, who can upload their songs/videos on YouTube.

Works to be submitted must be produced in the year under review –May 31, 2013 to July 4, 2014. Detailed information about eligibility and format of submission is available on Entries www.afrima.org. should be done by completing the registration form on

AFRIMA website and other AFRIMA social media platforms namely Twitter: @AFRIMAWARDS and Faceb o o k : www.facebook.com/AFRIMA2 014. A URL link of the uploaded work on YouTube, SoundCloud, MySpace, and other compatible platforms must be included in the space provide on the entry registration form.

For hard copy entries, “download the registration form and the completed copy alongside two copies of the entry must be sent to the nearest physical address provided on the AFRIMA website. Qualified entries will be selected by the Academy of AFRIMA, which consists of the Jury and College of Voters,” the organisers said.

Revealing further information about the make-up of the Academy, AFRIMA Regional Director, Central Africa, Mr Ernest Ewane, said “The Jury comprises of 13 people who have spent reasonable amount of years in the music industry and have vast knowledge in music, who do not perform or produce songs anymore and people who are well respected

in the industry across Africa and Diaspora. They are professionals with impeccable understanding of music.”

AFRIMA Co-Producer/Regional Director East Africa, Mr. Mike Strano added, “After the Jury has performed the duty of selecting qualified nominations, it collapses into the Academy which consists of 527 members to vote for the categories. In this process of selecting nominees and eventual winners of the coveted award trophy, AFRIMA is very keen to uphold its FACE IT value, which stands for Fairness, Accountability, Creativity, Excellence, Integrity and Transparency. The task of the International Committee of AFRIMA is to ensure that the Academy is not biased along ethnicity, region or age lines in terms of composition.

So, there will be equal representation for all music genres,” he said.

The 2014 All Africa Music Awards will produce a starstudded, world-class event in Nigeria on October 21 to 25, 2014, with live performances and television broadcast to 84 countries on 109 television stations around the world.

Wizkid’s Caro, Davido’s Aye and not forgetting the city’s very own favourite Phyno’s to the delight of the cheering crowds till day break.

Rapper Naeto C, comedian/musician turned lawmaker Tony One Week, Burna Boy, Yemi Alade and fast rising rapper Sym 19 were some of the guests spotted at the gig.

Anchored by Darey Art Alade and Freeze of Cool FM, the party saw the City’s finest radio presenters Tobe Dadiva in a chic all black ensemble and Lorenzo Menakaya glammed in a one-of-a-kind suit on the red carpet, with Enugu State Commissioner of Culture and Tourism Mr. Joe Mamel as special guests.

Speaking at the party, the Marketing Manager, Gulder and Legend, Emmanuel Agu informed that, “initiatives like Club Ultimate furthers Gulder’s commitment to providing superior, unprecedented experiences for consumers across the country while ensuring Nigerian’s enjoy ultimate entertainment.”

According to Senior Brand manager, Onyeka Okoli, ‘As Club Ultimate moves to other regions, Gulder promises to deliver unparalled experiences for her consumers across the country while ensuring that Nigerians enjoy ultimate entertainment.’

In deed, it was an urbane thrilling spectacle of sight and sound with laser beamed lights and multiple baseline speakers, supported by international acrobatic acts from Cyrl Wheel, Flame Oz and Gandini Jugglers.

The audience went wild in excitement as the DJ’s thrilled guests with insanely massive performances and party mixes for two special nights, making it the biggest club event the Coal City has seen in years.

Though Coal City fans generally appreciate good music from any artistes, they seem to have special preference for songs produced by artistes from the state. For instance, tracks from the likes of Flavour, Phyno, Mr. Raw and even songs from Enugu-based upcoming stars, got positive responses from the obviously excited crowd, as they danced along.

34 Friday, May 3, 2014

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SHOWBLAST

YOUTHMAGAZINE Mercy, A New Song From Praiz N preparation for the reIX3m lease of his latest album, music artiste Praiz has

The Executive Directors, Nollywood Movies Award, Dipo Winsala (Left) and Alfred Soroh, Michael Adeyanju and Titilola Odufuye at the press conference... In Lagos PHOTO: FEMI ADEBESIN-KUTI

NMA 2014… Organisers Unveil Centenary Edition Stories by Chuks Nwanne

stage for the 2014 edition of the award, which is expected to be better than the OLLOWING a successful outing last previous editions. year, the organisers of the Nollywood “We are looking forward to it and we Movies Award (NMA) have unveiled plans are proud of what Nollywood is doing for this year’s show billed for October 18, for Nigeria and Nigerians. So, this is our at the Intercontinental Hotel, Victoria Is- way of giving back to the industry and land, Lagos. The formal unveiling, which the people driving it forward. Last year, was held at the Protea Hotel, Maryland, our star prize was a Nissan saloon, which Ikeja, Lagos, borught together members was won in a live ballot on the night by of the production team for the award, actor O.C Ukeje, winner Best Actor NMA Nollywood practitioners and partners. award 2013,” the second Executive DirecIn his opening remark, the Executive tor, Alfred Soro said.

Director of Nollywood Movies TV, organTo give mileage to the award ceremony, isers of the award, Dipo Winsala recalled the organisers have entered into agreehow the award project was conceived in ment with both local and international 2012. media companies, who will help in the “Having operated the Nollywood area of broadcast and publicity.

Movies channel on SKY 329 in the United “This award is the representation of Kingdom, we decided in 2012 to stage the Nollywood internationally. We are not inaugural Nollywood Movies Award. We here to compete; we are here to help imfelt the need to give back by way of recog- prove the industry. So, October 18 is on nition into the industry that has brought the course to be a Nollywood Night To over a million jobs to Nigeria, and is one Remember; not just in Nigeria, but also of the biggest exports after crude oil. We right across Africa, the UK, Europe and believed that its practitioners – the peothe rest of the world. With the theme, ple that are making it happen – deserve 100 Percent Nollywood, NMA is going to to be valued and appreciated,” he said. be better this year,” the commercial diAlready, plans have reached advanced rector, Ope Bankole said.

F

According to Bankole, the award event will be screened live by a number of channels.

“Coverage is key of this award being successful. We have a strong relationship with Vox Africa on DsTV and GOTV, Africa Movie Channel on Startimes Channel 243 and we are also in discussion with TVC Africa, ONTV and AIT Network,” he said.

In the United Kingdom, the event will broadcast on Nollywood Movies, SKY Channel 329 and Vox Africa, SKY Channel 199. The team has also entered into partnership with radio stations and online platform within and outside Nigeria, all aimed at giving the award project a favourable mileage.

To ensure a successful outing, NMA has also entered into an agreement with Media Specialties Limited, who will be handling the marketing aspect of this year’s event. Speaking at the unveiling, Michael Adeyanju said the marketing company signed an agreement for the purpose of the marketing of the 2014 centenary event and all associated products and services, including the Nollys Blog and its NMA media inventory.

Pride Magazine Partners AMAA S movie stars, celebrities A and stakeholders in the motion picture industry get set to storm Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, for the 10th anniversary of the Africa Movie Academy Award (AMAA), the organizers have appointed Pride magazine Nigeria, an affiliate of Pride UK, as the official magazine for the 10th Anniversary of the movie award.

According to the Managing Editor of the Magazine, Ms. Latasha Ngwube, the publication is excited to be associated with AMAA, a hugely successful continental brand that celebrate film makers in Africa and the Diaspora.

“Pride Magazine Nigeria is a celebrity, lifestyle and leisure Latasha

magazine. Our partnership with AMAA will give us the opportunity to spotlight the celebrities that will grace the awards in Nigeria and report the event in a unique and refreshing manner,’’ she said.

Meanwhile, Pride Nigeria website is the sister platform for Pride magazine Nigeria. The website is a daily online magazine with the latest in celebrity news, weddings, album launches, events, advice, news and much more. It has zest, freshness and depth not found else were is committed to entertaining, informing, educating and keeping visitors up to date with valid information, news, personality profile, lifestyles, fashion, interviews and entertainment. Some of

the most incisive features, news, stories, entertainment and general information are available on the site.

AMAA is founded on the best film tradition with the main objective of promoting African filmmakers and other professionals in the industry and their works internationally, uniting Africa through the arts and celebrating the Continents diversity.

As an annual celebration of the brightest and best in African cinema, AMAA remains the biggest gathering of filmmakers across Africa and the Diaspora. It brings in class and style to confirm the status of Africa as the formidable powerhouse in the global movie-making business.

dropped a new single, Mercy, a deviation from the style set by his previous works. In the new track, he blends his normal RnB with copious Afrobeat rhythms, throwing obvious elements of Soukous into the dance compelling mélange produced by Password.

The song intros with a couple of synth keyboard strikes that fade under Praiz’s distinctive vocal cue for the kicks, hi-hat and shaker at 00:08. It is a love song, a song of commitment that would definitely stay on repeat at wedding receptions.

The song is about how Mercy, obviously a lady, has taken over the artiste’s mind and how urgently he wants to show how much he loves her. The way he played on the dual function of the word Mercy as a name and mercy as an English noun for compassion gives the song a whiff of well

placed lyrical playfulness that works well as a hook.

The syncopated arrangements subtly flowing in and out throughout the 4:10minute song, bestows an appropriate dose of jazz on the piece.

The artiste has also release the video for the single. Directed by Patrik Elis, the video which features heavyweights like Limpopo master, KC, Kukere crooner, Iyanya, as well as newly minted MTN ambassadors Timaya, Sean Tizzle and hot rapper, Vector, showcases the talent of Praiz in a way music lovers have never seen him bursting a few kick-ass dance moves in the

Praiz

Terry G Clears The Air On Hotel Brawl Rumour AST week, a section of the media reported that music Lartistes Gabriel Amanyi aka Terry G, was allegedly involved in a messy fight at the Treasures Exclusive Garden, off Bola Tinubu Road, Iju, Lagos.

According to the reports, the incident happened at about 6p.m on Wednesday, April 23, when Terry G and his boys allegedly came to the hotel to relax. One of Terry G’s boys reportedly jumped into the pool without paying and was asked to come out by one of the security guards and the owner of the hotel, but he turned deaf ear. He was then dragged out of the pool and his colleagues allegedly reacted violently which resulted in a free for all fight.

However, the Apako crooner has come out to debunk the reports, claiming that there is no iota of truth in the reports flying around. In a statement issued by the singer, who was recently unveiled as a Peace Ambassador, he explained that, “right now, I’m not happy over the reports

Terry G

circulating on social media.

Yes, I do crazy hit songs, yes, I act crazy in my videos; I do all that for the money. How on earth at this point of my career will I be involved in such? I am not writing to convince anyone because every lovely Nigerian is entitled to his/her own personal opinion.

He continued: “I might have a thick skin as a celebrity but am also human; I have blood flowing in me and not engine oil. It’s only natural to feel bad when such stories are not true. Is it wrong for me to settle a misunderstanding between two parties without waking up in the morning to see such ‘headlies’ and not headlines? Will I at this point swim at a public hotel without paying,” he quizzed.

While acknowledging the role played by the media is shaping his music career, the singer said, “you have played a positive role in my career right from my RnB days to this day.

Please, always try, not only on my behalf, but also to my other colleagues, to confirm any story from both parties before publishing. My energy is for entertaining my fans worldwide and not for street brawls; life is for the liv-

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KEEP IT REAL...

Saturday, May 3, 2014

YOUTHMAGAZINE

with Kemi Amushan

Events

What We Deserve As Women

I

In association with

Band Aid

Amushan Kemi treat you with anything but respect. He would go out of his way to make you hapT gets tiring going in and out of relationships you know. I don’t know about py and show you that you are important. you other ladies out there, but I am cer- He would never purposely do anything that hurts you, makes you uncomfortable, tainly over dating men and having relationships that end up being disappoint- or scares you.

Another term for respect is admiration. ments.

When you admire someone, you think Having been single for a while, I found highly of them, you want the best for myself lowering my standards a bit. I them, and you appreciate them. Never setthought, “Maybe I’m being too picky.

Maybe I’m being too rigid about certain tle for disrespect, disapproval, or degradation. You deserve better than that. deal breakers.” Guess what? I wasn’t.

I realized I was ignoring some of the red flags that I knew I should run from. It led Direct Communication: A gentleman would not be okay with his to ending another relationship pretty damn quickly, along with kicking myself partner wondering about him and his intentions. He would make them very for contemplating settling.

I recently read a book and immediately clear. Having relationship talks, answering serious questions, and dealing with awkhad to answer so many questions and ward situations that arise would not make after my last dating disaster, I found myself re-evaluating what I was looking him run.

A man would face them head on, try his for.

There are a bunch of qualities we individ- hardest to resolve any issues, and be honually wish and hope for in a man. For me, I est with you about his feelings because he respects you and wants you to feel secure love when guys know how to cook and and happy in the relationship. have fun. There are certain things one woman can handle that would send another lady packing – say nail biting or Honesty and Trust: A man who is worthy of you would be sloppiness.

However, instead of focusing on the per- honest and trustworthy. In return, he sonal quirks that are different in each guy, would also put his faith and trust in you.

He would never give you cause to question instead of nitpicking and trying to find him or be jealous. He wouldn’t play games something early on what annoys us, we need to take a look at the bigger picture. with you or purposely cause you to feel Relationships are a two way street. Every less-than. He would make you feel so woman deserves a man who not only tries secure even a night at a strip club wouldn’t cause you to question his loyalty. to make her happy, but actually does.

Every woman deserves to date a man who The type of man every woman deserves goes out of his way to treat her well. A man would not engage in jealous or paranoid behavior. He would remain calm under who shows that he appreciates her. He should treat her this way because that is pressure and be confident in you and your how she treats him. In short, every woman relationship. If something caused him to wonder, he would ask you about it directly deserves to date a gentleman. and then move on. In turn, he would There are 6 basic things every woman expect you to talk about what’s on your deserves from the man she is dating: mind and he would never lash out or Respect: answer any other way than truthfully.

A man who is worthy of you will never

35

Ambition and Encouragement: A gentleman works hard and plays hard. He is ambitious because he is passionate about bettering himself. A gentleman would understand that a good woman is attracted to his ambition and drive, not the salary he makes or the gifts he buys.

He would also be encouraging and supportive of her passions and ambitions. A strong woman with a demanding career would not deter or intimidate him. He would never look down on what she cares about or does with her time. He would find her more attractive because, like him, she has her own personal life and her own passions and goals.

Every woman deserves to be with a man who respects and admires her for her beauty and her brains. A man who appreciates who she is inside and out. A man who can’t wait to get her into bed but cares about more than just getting his. A man who inspires and encourages her to go after her passions without ever asking her to change who she is.

Every woman deserves a man who puts effort into the relationship because he wants her to be happy. A man whose words and actions constantly show her how much he cares about her. A man who communicates openly because he wants to be on the same page as her.

Every woman deserves a man who stands by her side and defends her. A man who understands that women get hit on, regardless of their relationship status, and takes it as a compliment rather than a reason to start a fight, because he trusts her. A man who never plays games, makes her wait around, or lies. Every woman deserves a gentleman.

To our happiness. Cheers.

BY SEGUN DUROWAIYE

Date(s): 04/05/2014 Location: Terra Culture, Tamiyu Savage Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Promoter: M-IKAZ TICKETS: 3,000.00, 5,000.00 MORE INFO: www.afritickets.com

WIE Africa 2014 Date(s): 03/05/2014 Location: Intercontinental Hotel, Lagos Promoter: Women Inspiration & Enterprise TICKETS: 45,000.00, 55,000.00, 85,000.00 BUY TICKETS HERE: www.afritickets.com

Sweet Mothers Ball 2014 Date(s): 11/05/2014 Location: The Civic Centre, Ozumba Mbadiwe Avenue, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Promoter: 2910 Limited TICKETS: 25,000.00, 200,000.00 MORE INFO: www.afritickets.com

One Week Intensive Event Planning And Management Training Date(s): 12/05/2014 Location: The Q&Q Place, 5 Alade Lawal street, opposite Anthony Village, Lagos.

Promoter: Pleasant Jay TICKETS: 30,000.00 BUY TICKETS HERE:www.afritickets.com

African Fashion Week Nigeria Date(s): 18/05/2014 Location: Eko Hotel and Suites, Adetokunbo Ademola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos Promoter: 2910 Limited TICKETS: 5,000.00, 15,000.00 BUY TICKETS HERE: www.afritickets.com

Public Speaking And Presentation Training Workshop In Lagos Date(s): 17/05/2014 Location: Precinct Comfort Hotel, YabaSurulere, Lagos.

Promoter: LiveSpeech Coaching TICKETS: 31,500.00 BUY TICKETS HERE: www.afritickets.com

36 Saturday, May 3, 2014

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YOUTHMAGAZINE

WEEKENDBEATS

With Open Doors, Nosa Steps Out Bold

Nosa

By Ijeoma Opara T last, gospel and soul singer Nosa Shadrax Omoregie has launched his 14track album, Open Doors. The singer has kept low profile in the industry after releasing his first single, Always Pray For You since December 2009, which later became a hit.

Currently signed under Chocolate City record label, the new work is something listeners can easily relate with because of the messages that come with the songs.

Aside from dealing with everyday life issues, the songs are delivered in very clear and simple words for the ordinary man to understand. It reflects a sense of hope, with a blend of different genre of music, from R’n’B to hip-hop, Jazz, highlife, classical and even indigenous grooves.

“I do as many genre of music as I can lay my hands on, but the message is to inspire and let you know about God. My message is the same way Jesus preaches; I do songs that will inspire people, I talk about prayers, hope, being a star or the best you can be, my album is like a companion,” the singer hinted.

Coming with an album after five years, the Edo born talented artiste noted that people’s demand for an album immediately after his single, was a huge challenge for him.

“For me, I wanted people to get to know me; they might have second guess about you with just one single and might not really know what you are about. But I think an album after five years of thorough planning is worth it,” he said.

For Nosa, dealing with dishonest people in the industry has been a challenge in his music career, adding that, “those who you can’t trust financially, getting certain stakeholders to hear your music especially radio, wasn’t easy at that time. There are times when people write you off or look

A

down on you; I went through all that before I got signed on with Chocolate city in 2012.”

On how his deal with record label was sealed, he informed that, “my next door neighbour, Jeffrey Daniel, at that time, got to know about

my song (Always pray for you) through my cousin and after about two weeks of delaying, he decided to listen to the song; he was blown away and then he started looking for me. At that time, he was a judge on Nigerian Idol and Audu Maikori the CEO of Chocolate City, was a co-judge.”

He continued: “When I met with Audu, he wanted to hear other songs, so, I played some others for him; he was very impressed and immediately we were talking about a contract. But I had some issues I wanted to sort out; I didn’t want my spirituality to be affected and I wasn’t sure they wouldn’t tell me not to drift from my message. I was so concerned about that and so there was a little misunderstanding between us.”

At that point, he decided to be on his own.

“Many people didn’t believe me when I told them I turned down Chocolate City.

After a year plus, I got a call from Audu and the rest is history.”

As for his source of inspiration, Nosa said, “I am Christian and I should inspire you with what I do; I like to talk about life as a whole. I am not just doing church songs; I do what relates to your everyday life (heartbreaks, hardships in the country, love). That’s why my songs affect people more than the regular gospel songs. I have a love track called Why you love me, where I asked God out of gratitude, why he loves me so much, knowing how far he has brought me. I also presented it in a way that you could sing it to your wife, parents or friends, who have been there for you.”

The graduate of Electrical Engineering from the University of Benin started writing songs while in school in 2006. On his use of Pidgin in his songs, the songwriter and producer said he wants to carry everyone along.

“Not everyone can flow with the grammar, but on the other hand, everyone, who understands big grammar understands Pidgin English. So I can carry everybody along if I add a little pidgin because most of us try to make the message too poetic and grandeur for the guys on the street. I have a message of hope and if I package it in a very expensive manner, they may not be able to relate with it. Although, I don’t really choose to do it in pidgin but when I think about the message which I hear first before the music, I think of the best way to relate this to people, Pidgin comes to my

head.”

Recalling how he found love in music, he said, “I discovered I could sing at the age of seven and at that time, every member of my family belonged to the choir including myself. As a choir boy, I just took up the challenge to do some choir songs; I got this software, which helped me greatly; it really helped me express myself. I used to think production was for only those who could play the instrument; I have the music theory in my head but I can’t express it with any instrument. But then, when I acquired a software, which brought out the sounds in my head to stimulate real life instruments, it changed my life.

So, I started doing some beats and remixing songs. I felt the urge to write; my stepbrother and myself worked together,” he narrated.

Though his new album features collaboration with rapper M. I., Nosa plans to have more collaboration in the future.

“I am open to any since I don’t have a particular genre,” he said.

His influences are from Boys to Men, Bob Marley, King sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey and other indigenous musicians.

“My mum is from Ukwuani in Delta state and growing up around her, people who played a lot of indigenous music have influenced my style. I listen to Jazz, classical, hiphop and any other genre of music as long as there is a message.”

Sticking with his real name for his stage name, Nosa wants to be seen as the guy next door.

“I want people to feel like I am talking to them, so that you can say Nosa has blessed me and it sounds like you know Nosa, your guy,” he enthused.

Born into a polygamous family, his mum the first wife out of three wives and him (Nosa) the last child of his mother, his father currently owns his oil firm in Port Harcourt, while his mum, a retired school head teacher runs a small scale business.

“I didn’t see my dad as much as I should; he was in another place. My mum took care of me; I was last and my elder once had grown so much.”

When asked if he would venture into other businesses, he said, “I want to do music as a hobby; where I make more money to record more songs. I will eventually get into business because I have so many ideas I want to explore. Because I’m not a bad spender, I will be able to save well to delve into other things,” he concluded.

Ogbukagu Moves To Ignite Interest In Nigerian Culture With Heroes Reality TV Show

By Onyedika Agbedo HE show is basically about the “T Nigerian culture, about our heritage. Our kids don’t speak our local languages anymore. We want to use the show to make sure that our children go back to their roots and begin to cherish those aspects of our lives that are unique to us.”

With these words, the Chief Executive Officer of De Havillah Timeless Productions, Jos, Chinyere Ogbukagu, recently unveiled Nigeria’s first cultural reality TV show, ‘The Heroes: Back to the Roots’.

Speaking at the unveiling in Lekki, Lagos, Ogbukagu, who is the Producer of the show, said auditions for the show would soon commence at 12 designated centres nationwide.

She announced that prospective participants in the reality TV show are to obtain the form at all branches of the First City Monument Bank nationwide by paying into the Havillah Timeless account, with which they can attend auditions at the centres listed against the dates on the show’s website.

Ace actor, Segun Arinze, and Movie Director, Ifeanyi Onyeabor are among the experts that have been assembled to make ‘The Heroes: Back to the Roots’ a suc-

cess. While Arinze will host the show, Onyeabor serves as the Technical Director.

Arinze, who expressed confidence that the show will be a success, noted that ‘The Heroes: Back to the Roots’ if well harnessed will open up a new vista for the generation coming after us to understand where Nigeria is coming from.”

He added: “The essence is to understand our grassroots. We need to understand our culture and get back to it. We need to add value to our heritage. That is what the show is set to achieve.”

The Nollywood star said he was already looking forward to taking the final 37 contestants who would emerge from the various states of the federation and the FCT into the house for the specific tasks which would stem from their deep knowledge of the Nigerian culture.

Also speaking on the essence of the show, Onyeabor said: “A people without culture are like a people without a past, a foundation. Culture is a veritable medium for galvanising a people predicated on attitudinal behaviours, dress sense, foods, ways of life, heroics

and visionary latitudes.

This reality show, therefore, is an expository presentation to the front burner that will drive cultural content until sustenance and to largely put an end to the alarming drift to the doldrums, as many youth are alien to their culture and resultantly, roots. A disproportionate but shocking percentage of the youth do not know how to cook, speak their native languages, be identified through dressing, distances from their roots and foundational past as a people linked with the apron strings of culture.”

The show will avail winners with SUV, cash prizes and movie roles.

Saturday, May 3, 2014 37

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YOUTHMAGAZINE

WEEKENDBEATS

An Oscar Selection Committee for Nigeria

By Shaibu Husseini IgERIAN filmmakers can now look forN ward to having their films compete in the foreign language film category of the Academy Awards otherwise known as the Oscars. The Oscars, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences holds annually every February in California and it is reputed to the biggest and most respectable award ceremony for motion picture practitioners in the world.

Nigeria has never had a chance to have works by its practitioners feature at the Oscars since it began over 89 years ago even though there is a window (the foreign language film category) that provides countries with opportunities to showcase their best cinematic effort annually.

Each year, the Academy invites entries from countries with a well-constituted selection committee, to compete for the foreign language film category. Only entries submitted by a properly constituted Oscar Selection Committee are accepted by the Academy for consideration. The absence of such a committee, charged with the responsibility of selecting an entry and recommending same to the Academy for final selection and nomination is perhaps the reason NIgeria has not been able to feature at the Oscars. However countries like South Africa, Egypt and Chad have competed in the foreign language category with South Africa picking up the diadem in 2005 with Totsi. The closest mention NIgeria has received at the Oscars was when the Nigerian born British actor Chinwetel Ejiofor was nominated in the leading actor category of the 2014 Oscars.

But with the constitution of Nigerian Oscars Selection Committee (NOSC), the country and practitioners of its local industry have a chance to explore and expand the power and potential of film and new media they now have a chance to compete at the Oscars.

At a press conference to unveil the members of the committee, Chairman of the Board of the Nigerian Oscars Selection Committee Chineze Anyaene disclosed that the 12 member Committee will on behalf of the Academy “recognize, and celebrate the art of the cinema by showcasing Nigerian films and filmmakers to the Academy’ popularly known as the Oscars for the category of best foreign film.”

Anyaene, who produced and directed Ije that is reputed to be Nigeria’s highest grossing film at the cinema in recent history also stated that it will be the responsibility of the committee to “pick one work from the several entries that will be entered that will be submitted to the Academy as the feature film from Nigeria for the best foreign language film category.”

Anyaene chairs the selection committee, while members include film director, producer and writer Charles Novia, current Director general of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Mr. Emeka Mba, notable Nollywood actor Ramsey Noah and founder of the African International Film Festival (AFRIFF) Chioma Ude. Other members of the committee are former Managing Director of MNET Biola Alabi, film journalist and critic Shaibu Husseini, notable producer and director Mil-

Chineze

Bimbo Ogunsemi (left), Brand Manager Knorr brand Nsima Ogedi-Alakwe, Knorr Taste Quest Season 2 winner Dixon and Abiona Babarinde of Coscharis at the grand finale... in Lagos dred Okwo, managing Director of Filmhouse and FilmOne distributors Kene Mkparu, Ngozi Okafor, Akin Salami and Olumide Amure.

Anyaene explained that care was taken in selecting members of the committee.

“We ensued that the committees members were first Nigerians and then we ensured that they are individuals who were directly or indirectly involved in the industry. From the names I reeled out you will see that they cut across and the committee is expandable but at no time will it be less than 12,” she said even as she also disclosed that thee will be honorary members of the committee, which will include persons occupying the office of the Minister of information, Culture, Director general of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, Director of Culture, Director general of the National FIlm and Video Censors Board and the managing Director of the Nigerian Film Corporation.

Also Anyaene stated that there will be a sub committee that will screen each entry submitted before they are considered by the Nigerian Oscar Selection Committee.

Speaking on the procedure for selection, anyaene, who was joined at the press confer-

ence by four members of the committee including Chioma Ude, Kene Mkparu and ngozi Okafor stated that the committee members will be required to screen each of the movies presented by the sub committee and then “vote the movie deemed fit to represent Nigeria at the foreign film category.”

However, she clarified that members with interest in a film in any award year will not be eligible to vote. ‘’We shall excuse the member for that year and then continue.”

She also explained that in the year that Nigeria does not have an entry to send in, the committee would post a no submission entry to the Academy. ‘’We are just starting and it begins with a call for entry. Once entry closes, we will begin screening and once we don’t find a good film that will best compete in that category, we will submit a no entry form and wait for the next year. But I know we will have entries and it is the responsibility of the committee to identify these works and showcase them. The work does not stop with our picking the entry. We shall also help in promotion of the film internationally because if you are familiar with that cate-

gory, only five films eventually make the nomination out of 76 countries. So it’s very competitive and so only the best will be good enough to represent us.”

Next step for the committee, according to Anyaene is to hold series of industry engagement and interaction with the players of the Nigerian motion picture industry.

“We will soon host members of the Academy who will be here to hold seminars and workshops with us the committee members and the industry players. We have also set up a web site where information on the submission procedure can be sourced. But we won’t leave it at just the website, we will hold interactions occasionally with the industry players to let them know what we expect. One rule that is clear about the category is that the film to be entered should be about 60 percent indigenous language and then you can have 40 percent English. But it will be best if it is 90 percent indigenous language and just 10 percent English for that category. The other thing that must be made clear is that films for the best foreign category are not eligible for competition in the main award. It’s just for the Oscars Foreign Lan-

Knorr Taste Quest… Dixon Finds Fame, Fortune

By Ijeoma Opara AVINg battled for weeks with fellow conH testants in the Knoor Taste Quest Season Two kitchen, under the watchful eyes of the three judges, Dixon Olakunbi was recently declared winner of the just concluded cocking competition, a TV reality show sponsored by Unilever Nigeria.

The business executive, who was full of surprises winning the big prize, was so grateful to have emerged the best.

“I’m hoping this is the beginning of better things to come, more endorsements, the sky is the limit,” she sang.

Dixon beats four other contestants to claim the grand prize of two million naira cash, a Ford Eco Sport SUVcourtesy of Coscharis Motors, and Kenwood kitchen equipments.

Meanwhile, veterinary doctor, Nwando Onuigbo, who came second, got one million naira, with Kenwood kitchen equipments, while System Analyst Olabode Akinyoola, came third place owning N500, 000 including Kenwood kitchen equipments. Other contestants went home with consolation prizes of Kenwood Kitchen equipments.

Speaking after the announcement, Dixon revealed, “before I was declared the winner, I had this tension within me because I was competing against people, who got skills and talent; it was more about working with time and

planning ingredients as there was no secret recipe. I don’t think anybody gets to the point where they feel that they are confident on what to expect because just as viewers tune in, we come on stage and meet ingredients we have never seen before or know their names.”

Though emerged winner of the contest, Dixon, however, noted, “I don’t think my calling lies in opening a kitchen, my interest lays in dessert and appetizers and I might want to perfect the skill. I am not sure about making it commercial now, but I don’t mind opening a charity kitchen, where you cook for free or probably own a cookery show”, she added.

The finalists were given a stipulated time to prepare a three-course meal; the Starter ingredients include catfish, garden egg, avocado, cous cous, quinoa and ‘atarodo. The ingredients for the main meal were lamb, corn, breadfruit, plantain, rice, fettuccine, zucchini, pumpkin, aubergine, leeks and chocolate. While the desert ingredients comprised of mango, melon, flour, and butter.

Dixon’s meal however earned the best choice from the three judges. At the end of the fiercely contested exercise that was laced with tension and drama, the contestants all filed out to present their dishes one after another, but it was Dixon’s meal that unanimously earned the best reviews from the obviously impressed three-man judging panel.

Second place winner, was however excited

to have reached the end of the game.

“I am happy with the way things turned out, I have always loved cooking, although not so seriously but now I am going to take it a step further with these equipments and the prize money.”

The head of jury, Doctor Roberts noted that the choice of winner was based on the consistency of how the meals were cooked, tasted and presented.

“It was a much leveled playing field and in a competition, the best can be the last and vice verse; I think Dixon worked very hard to stand out”.

Brand Building Director, Foods, Unilever, Nigeria Nsima Ogedi-Alakwe, who was extremely satisfied with the results, noted that the excitement from the crowd and contestants shows that everyone is comfortable with the outcome.

“This programme has been on for 14 weeks with 14 contestants and it shows the winner obviously displayed skills, good attitude and some kind of talent that sets her apart from her contemporaries.”

On the unique features of the second season, she added, “In season one, in terms of auditioning we did only Lagos but this season, we added Calabar and Abuja. In terms of entries we grew to 10,000 entries, about 200, 000 followers on social media and four million people viewers on TV every week.”

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THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014

FASHION

Young Designers Of The Week

By Myles Igwebuike and Kemi Amushan

Their names are Graham Chike who is the sales and creative director and Anthony Obuh who is the business development manager of their brand called Maducho Luchi. This dynamic duo are the faces behind the UK-African Shoe Brand They walk us through their brand, journey, struggles and perspective on African Fashion. raham: I would take the liberty to G refer to myself as a honest and focused being. I always have a lot to talk about, and I’m still learning the art of “keeping it brief”. Born in Nigeria, from Nnewi in Anambra state. Grew up in the Gambia and Lagos. Did my secondary school in Gambia and Nigeria. For now I have a Bsc in Computer Science from the American University of Nigeria, and an Msc in Internet and Distributed Systems from Durham University in Britain. I strictly do the Fashion Business. Decided to drop my job seeking immediately after my Masters Degree. I believe I can make things work with no job experience. To me, job experience in this age and time could be unnecessary. I have a very important story to write in the very near future on the desperate yearning for employment by our youth. Most of them come out with degrees and instead of going hands on into something they love doing while applying the knowledge from their degrees to make it work perfectly; they rather hang around and wait for jobs that hardly ever come. I could have gotten a good job with my degrees but I opted to be an entrepreneur to help my immediate community. For the records, I plan on getting more degrees, but work experience may never be part of my resume’.

So when I encourage my fellow youths to come out and become great entrepreneurs and they need an example, I present myself. This path is never easy though, you have to cry for a little while before the good times that last forever comes.

Anthony: I am the first from a family of 4.

I would like to describe myself as someone with a high level of perseverance. If I think it is worth getting, I will make sure it is gotten. I grew up in Delta state, Nigeria. Growing up was not very easy, I experienced life from the bottom points and it has helped me mold myself into a versatile young man. I have an MSc in Oil and Gas Management Operations (University of Central Lancashire) Preston, United Kingdom and a BA in Economics from American University of Nigeria. As you have easily guessed, we met at American University of Nigeria in 2007.

Their rise to fame all started in September 2012, when they met with their 1st creative director. Then there was no name to the brand to be honest. They just wanted people in the United Kingdom to feel shoes designed and made in Nigeria. They loved it, and in February 2013 when they both returned home after their various programmes, they started

Maducho Luchi. Since then it has been

many ups and downs. But they are over a year old now and have gathered some good level of acknowledgement by users and celebrities. They have also managed to ship luxury shoes to many parts of the globe and generated revenue that has kept the brand running fluently.

Graham and Anthony both shared the excitement of the job from bringing the shoes to life and getting good reviews from clients to the joy of changing business cycles and seeing great results which is immeasurable.

Furthermore, they spoke to us about the high points and lowest points of their career and to be honest, they said there where many of them. “We can’t even remember which could stand out as the highest. But to have made shoes that were highly appreciated by a soccer player in the English Premier League was definitely one of them and being able to build a business model that ensured we tripled our sales capacity in a month”. And their lowest point would range from when you have big ideas but lack the funding to bring them to life to when a member of the team has to be kicked out because of inconsistency.

Their short term goals is to Ensure that their brand goes Global. It is doing well for now and they believe there are ways to improve it. They also want to be able to invest in ideas by many of the young people around. So that together they can make this nation a better place for the generation to come. Another short term goals is to increase sales. They have drawn new methods for sales. They also want to have more production and better finishing done in Nigeria. And they’ld soon be setting up something big as regards that. And they also plan on starting their female collection.

Their take on fashion is quite simple. The industry in general is very profiting if you are creative, talented and have the right drive you would hit it big and well. Even in Nigeria, with the right amount of creativity you can break into our budding fashion industry and make a good name for yourself. The problem we have is that we try to copy each other a lot. And we don’t even just copy, we photocopy. It is never a good look. But for everyone putting in creativity and has the right passion; you name them, they are blazing the trail. So no, fashion is not overrated. You have to dress the way you want to be addressed.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014

39

FASHION

The Rise of The Man Bag

By Myles Igwebuike O I broke my bad habit of stuffing all my stuffs into my pockets after I lost my car keys in the mall, yes in the mall and please don’t ask me how. Before I got my man bag I researched all over and even went to some cool stores to check out what they had.

Here’s the thing, men all over the world are gradually accepting to carry bags. Let’s face it, year after year we move to a slimmer silhouette and the design of our trouser, the fits getting tighter, stuffing your pockets is becoming unrealistic, never mind horrid.

A bag in this present day is not generally seen as a women’s fashion accessory alone, now you can go to the store and see a wide selection of bags for men. This major accessory empowers you to add some edge as well as masculinity to your outfits. A bag is definitely a great choice when adding new additions to any man’s wardrobe.

Bags are made for the same purpose we purchase them, giving us an alternative in which to carry your phone, ipad, wallet, loose change and keys, grooming stuffs, contact cards, chocolates for random broads (oya I’m guessing I’m the only one who does that lo, guys it works though trust me*winks*)…but you get my drift, A bag is not only a necessity it’s an

S

accessory. The secret is to get the right make, colour, texture that suits your personal style So what are the bag styles you should be looking at this coming season?

Men’s Holdall Bags Currently a very popular style of bag for men, a classic holdall is perfect for occasions such travel, business and gym use. What was typically a bulky bag in the past has been transformed into a stylish and sleek form of luggage, with the latest collections on the market being a lot lighter in weight.

Holdalls generally give off a very masculine vibe, probably to do with the ‘bigger is better’ ethos that men tend to adopt. As such they look great when paired with classic masculine pieces; think shirts, suiting, tailoring and thick outerwear as well as some mainstay trends. The Military and Rocker inspired trends are perfect for integrating a holdall, as the large bag produces balance to chunky complimenting footwear such as boots, as well as hard and edgy leather jackets.

Men’s Satchels bags These are popular too, you can just sling it around your chest and go wherever, it’s more of a laid back lazy back, and usually paired with slacks, jeans slippers loose fitted clothing for informal events and outings. It could also be called a man purse. The men who wear these aren’t all necessarily gay. They are just metrosexual or have a really good sense of style. Just because a man dresses decently doesn’t mean he’s homosexual.

Classic Hand Bags Okay so this is the most classic and sophisticated of them all, but here’s the thing about these bags, they’re very official but when paired with the wrong outfits it looks tacky.

These bags should be held with proper business looks, like suits and blazer looks (you can get some bags to match your shoes if you want to be bad like that). But I prefer wearing them with a nice clean bishop neck shirt with some dark denim.

So guys go out there and get your bags today, say no to your girlfriend when she wants to borrow it. Lol.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

40 Saturday, May 3, 2014

FASHION HE second graduation cereT mony of Zaris Fashion & Style Academy took place in Lagos recently in a sassy style

By Nike Sotade ZARIS Fashion & Style Academy, an upscale fashion training institute in Lagos recently held its second graduation ceremony at the Sheraton Hotel in Lagos where 89 students trained in pattern cutting and dress making received their certificates.

The theme of the event was “Create the Fashion, Create the Future” inspired by the very creative and innovative young designers being graduated by the Academy into the Nigerian Fashion industry.

Delivering a lecture with this theme title, Anwuli Ojogu, a communication consultant and entrepreneur with August Media, enjoined the students to “seize the opportunity to create a niche for yourselves by recognising every opportunity that comes your way”, urging them further to start small and dream big.

President of the Fashion Designers Association of Nigeria (FADAN) Mrs Funmi Ajila-Ladipo was also on ground to ginger the young designers with her presence and inspirational words as she enjoined them to have “a passion for fashion” which she said has been her staying power in the over two decades that she has been in the industry.

The main attraction of the event was the spectacular fashion show presented by some of the graduating students. They went retro to parade the 50’s, 70’s and 80’s styles with a touch of modernity.

In her congratulatory speech, the Chief Operating Officer of Zaris Fashion & Style Academy Mrs Tessy Osibodu said she was very hopeful that the students would excel in their chosen career path.

Apart from the FADAN President, other dignitaries who graced the occasion included ace designer Larry Kay Ojomo (Mon Ami), Adeola Oshinnaike (BISMOL), Adewale Adegbaiye (KIJIPA), Kola Yusuf (KOLA KUDDUS) amongst others. Other distinguished guests were Major & Mrs. C.K. Aggreh (Rtd), Mrs. Adejuyitan a senior lecturer at theIndustrial design department of the Yaba college of Technology, Mr Majiyagbe Babajide - SMEDAN The graduating designers did not only parade their pieces, they also sang and danced in a smooth choreography to entertain the guests.

Here are some of the amazing pieces put together by the young talents, some of who told The Guardian that their vision as designers was to one day hit the international market with their big brand names!

Talents On Parade At Zaris Graduation Ceremony

Maybelline Unveils New Product In Lagos

BY Geraldine Akutu AYBELLINE New York recently launched its new product, the new Clear All In One Smooth Powder into the market. The new powder, which was introduced into the Nigerian market in March, has been labeled as the powder of a new generation.

With numerous benefits included within, Maybelline New York ensured the affordability of the Clear Smooth All In One powder.

It is created specifically for African skin, controls shine, conceals flaws, smoothes, evens the

M

skin tone, mattifies and brightens the skin, making it stand out more than just a compact powder. It contains SPF 25 sunscreen that protects the skin and complexion from the harsh effects of the sun. To crown it all, it comes in six shades.

Maybelline New York intends to host a series of events to herald the introduction of its new super powder, beginning with a premium launch event that will see celebrities and fashion and beauty insiders in attendance. Mini makeup studios will also be set

up in selected Universities across Nigeria to introduce the powder and bring the Maybelline New York experience alive on campus. These will be flanked by contests and activities on their vibrant social media platforms.

According to the Managing Director of L’Oreal Central West Africa, Idorenyen Enang: “ We believe that beauty is character.

This product is suitable for all skin types and has no skin irritation. In line with the DNA of the Maybelline New York brand, which is product accessibility, the brand

recently got into a strategic partnership with House of Tara studios, an indigenous makeup retailer with nationwide presence, which will now stock its products.

For Maybelline New York, this means that more people can be afforded the opportunity to interact with the brand’s innovative products everywhere in Nigeria.”

L’Oreal Central West Africa, a subsidiary of L’Oreal Group, the No 1 beauty company worldwide with a presence in over 130 countries, set up operations in Nigeria in November 2011.

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 41

SOCIETY British Council Celebrates Queen Of England At 88 The British Deputy High Commissioner, Peter Carter recently hosted a party to mark the 88th birthday of the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth II. Here are some faces that graced the occasion, which took place at his residence in Ikoyi, Lagos.

Head of Interim National Government, Chief Ernest Shonekan GCFR, CBE; Peter Carter and Director, UK Trade an Investment, Mike Purves

Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly Rt. Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji, British Deputy High Commissioner, Peter Carter and Former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku cutting the birthday cake

Former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku and Mike Purves

Guests at the party

The Most Reverend Dr. Ephraim Adebola Ademowo, Archbishop of the Province of Lagos and Bishop of Lagos, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) and the British Deputy High Commissioner, Peter Carter

Wale Adebajo(right) and other staff of British Council

Founder and Senior Pastor, House of the Rock Churches, Pastor Paul Adefarasin and Carter

The Iya Oge of Lagos, Chief Mrs. Opral Benson with Carter

President of Coscharis Group, Dr. Cosmas Maduka with Former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku

Peter Carter speaking at the event

42 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

SOCIETY CSR-In-Action, a group recently launched a book titled 3C-Index, Nigeria’s first private sector CSR ranking of business along sustainability lines. Here are some faces that participated at the launching of the collective social investment report, which took place in Lagos

Bekeme Masade, Executive Director, CSR-in-Action and Chief Host presenting the book

MS Masade presenting the collective Social report which feature Nigeria’s first ranking of business along sustainability lines, the 3c-index, to Ms Yemisi Ransome-Kuti, while Prof Juan Elegido and Mr. Daniel Obi media Business Editor, Business Day look on

Obi, Ransome-Kuti watch while, Masade present the collective social investment report to over-all winner of the ranking of business along sustainability lines- Access Bank represented by Mrs. Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan

Ms Ijeoma Aso, Managing Director UBA Foundation, Masade, Mrs. Katja Schille-Nwator, Manager, leadership Development and CSR, Tony Elumelu Foundation and Mrs. Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan of Access bank

Ms Patricia Akinlotan, Senior Manager Communications, Seven Energy and other company representatives listening to presentations from reviewers

Mr. Meka Olowola, Managing Partner, Zenera Consulting and Niyi Ogundogba, Managing Director, Westbrand Designs and Graphics Ltd

. Masade, Prof. Juan Elegido, Vice Chancellor, Pan Atlantic University and Ransome-Kuti, Chairperson of the occasions

Mrs. Ini Onuk, Lead Consultant, Thistle Praxis Consulting and Mr. Nifesimi Osiyemi, CSR Co-ordinator, Access Bank.

Saturday, May 3, 2014 |43

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

FOOD&DRINKS

By Chinelo Nwagbo HE secret of staying healthy and aging gracefully depends greatly on one’s diet.

It is therefore essential to follow nutritious and an adequate balanced diet for healthy living. Vegetable soup served with semovita or pounded yam is one of many nutritious foods that can be eaten to help live a healthy life and attain general body wellbeing.

This dish deserves a place in human diet for a healthy living because it provides a very nutritious and highly complete dish as far as balanced diet is concerned. It is a dish that stands out because of its taste, method of preparation, potential nutritive value and therapeutic properties.

It is rich in protein, vitamin (vitamin A, C, D, K, B-complex group of vitamins like niacin, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin and pantothenic acid), mineral (selenium, iron, folates, calcium, manganese, magnesium, zinc, copper) and vegetable fibre. These nutrients are essential for a healthy living.

Consuming vegetable soup is a fundamental for people that want to live a healthy life and take extra care of their health. It is also an ideal dish for pregnant women, nursing mothers for their wellbeing. Children and adolescents need vegetable soup for physical growth and development. Consumption of this soup helps the convalescing patients to recover quickly from their illness, replace worn out tissues and also build a strong immune system against diseases and infections because of its nutrient content.

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Ingredients Quantities Beef 8 medium pieces Smoked fish 1 medium size Stockfish head 1 medium size Pumpkin leaves 3 medium bunches Water leaves 2 medium heaps Onion (optional) 1 small bulb Fresh pepper 3 medium size Palm oil 3 cooking spoons Crayfish (ground) 3 tablespoons Maggi cube 4 Water 4 cups Salt to taste Method of preparation Wash and season the beef with salt, maggi cube, few slices of onion and team with washed stockfish head till juice dries up.

Add 2 cups of water, and cook till soft.

Add the crayfish, washed smoked fish, pepper and palm oil to the pot containing the meat and stockfish.

Stir and allow to boil for about 10 minutes.

Recipe For General Body Wellbeing (Vegetable Soup Served With Semovita)

Add the remaining maggi cube and the shredded waterleaves.

Add the shredded pumpkin leaves and cover the pot.

Simmer for about 8 minutes, then stir.

Add salt to taste.

Simmer for another few minutes, stir.

Remove from heat and serve with semovita or eba or cassava fufu.

HEN it comes to taste of W red wine, connoisseurs say this can be sweet, off-dry (semi-sweet) or dry (not sweet). The best way to make your choice is just to try out the brands available until you arrive at what suits your taste-

movita flour is left.

Continue stirring until the mixture becomes thoroughly cooked.

You may have to bring down the pot at this Method of preparation stage and continue stirring until a thick Pour water into a pot and place over heat. lump of consistent and thick mass is formed.

Allow to boil and gently pour in the semovita Mold and serve with vegetable soup. into the pot using a small cup and at the same E-mail: chineloeby@yahoo.com time turning the mixture with spatula or wooden spoon as it thickens until no more se-

Semovita

Wine Sweetness

By Ekwy P. Uzoanya

Ingredients Quantities Semolina flour 2 milk cups Water 1 cup

buds.

Wine level of sweetness is determined by the amount of residual sugar brought about by the process of fermentation, which takes the naturally occurring sugars in the grape and converts them into alcohol through the use

of yeast.

With this understanding, a wine label indicator can often serve to give you clues to the residual sugar content leading to the alcohol level.

They say, in table wine, in most cases, the lower the alcohol level, the higher the

residual sugar content and the sweeter the wine.

Alcohol level of 10 to 12 per cent, for instance, is an indication that it did not go through the full process of fermentation before all of the grapes’ natural sugars were converted to alcohol, and is therefore sweet.

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Saturday, May 3, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

HOME&DECOR

By Ekwy P. Uzoanya ARPET still remains the C favourite choice of floor covering for many homeowners. There are many reasons for its popularity. It is relatively affordable, comfortable, easy to install, and it is available in more colours and textures than any other type of flooring. Carpet has more warmth and softness than hardwood, marble or vinyl, which makes it safer especially for homes where children play and can therefore trip and fall. Carpet is also very highly recommended for selection as foundation for furniture and other accessories.

Furthermore, carpets can hide irregularities in the floor, contrary to hard surfaces. They can be used on nearly all types of surfaces, and are easier to install than other flooring.

However, there could be carpet rippling, a problem arising from improper installation. Carpet ripples may begin to appear in less than a year after installation. Proper stretching and tacking will correct these.

Another way to handle this problem is to make it a point to never drag any heavy fur-

niture across the surface of a carpet. The force exerted by dragging a heavy object across the surface can easily be enough to rip the carpet right off the tacking, damaging the carpet backing or causing the strip to get lose in the process.

Get the correct pad thickness or density. If the padding is too thick, in some cases it can cause the carpet to disengage from the strip used to hold it down the floor.

Also, older carpets can pose health risks. Dust, dirt, bacteria, mould and mildew (especially where humidity is high) can settle in and get locked in the fibres, making it difficult to get them out.

Chemicals used in homes ranging from pesticides to actual carpet cleaners, can also find rest there and release harmful substances into the air, thereby worsening indoor air quality.

It is therefore important to have good housekeeping plans. Frequent vacuuming and deep cleaning of carpets will help to limit and remove many potential contaminants, leaving less to circulate in your air. Air purifier and good ventilation can also help improve indoor air quality.

Decorating With Carpets

Preserving Glassware Beauty LASSWARE can look simply stunning and the G right pieces lend beauty to a dining setting.

There are so many options to choose from that will fit into your dream of the perfect piece for any of your cherished occasion.

Glassware requires careful handling and care to retain their beauty. Follow some tips to keep them in top form.

Add a few lemon skins to rinsing water to cut through grease. Vinegar also works and glasses will dry without streaking. Rub a thin paste of baking powder and water on the glass, and rinse well and dry with a soft cloth to create a beautiful shine.

Glass tumblers sometimes get stuck inside one another. Separate them by putting ice cubes into the top glass, and stand the bottom one in a bowl of hot water. The top glass will contract while the bottom one expands and they should be able to gently ease them apart.

Chipped glass can be unsightly, and can ruin a set of glassware. Rub the chip with extra fine sandpaper until it is smooth. Also rub the surrounding area so that the repair is not so obvious.

Vases of glass and decanters have great decorative value, but they easily get discoloured and dull. Try using a solution of with two spoonfuls of white vinegar into the vase or decanter, shaking vigorously and then rinsing to restore shine.

To treat stains, fill with water and 30 millimetres of ammonia. Rinse out after several hours. When putting vases and decanters into storage, place a small silica sachet inside to absorb moisture and guard against mustiness.

TheGuardian

Saturday, May 3, 2014 |45

www.ngrguardiannews.com

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

NaturalHealth Natural Health With G. C. Ihesie

Mobile phone no: 08033065263, E-mail: ihesie84@yahoo.com.

The Health Benefits of Scent Leaf N one of our previous articles, we noted that Ithedue to climatic and biotic factors, diseases and remedies to treat them are region-specific.

Therefore, diseases that have their origin in tropical Africa, for example, can only be effectively prevented, managed or treated with remedies found in tropical African soil.

In herbal medicine, herbs are generally regarded as any plant materials (leaves, flowers, seeds, stems, bark rhizomes and or roots) that can be used in healing and care of the human or animal physical body.

Herbal medicine practitioners believe that when these plant materials or the preparations made from them are used appropriately, they are capable of transmitting healing radiation or “life force” to us; invigorating our perception, nervous and glandular systems; eliminating toxins from our blood and tissues, thus helping to normalise the body’s functions and in some cases raise its energy levels; and correcting some of nutritional deficiencies and imbalance or realigning our body’s natural defence mechanism.

They can also be used in the specific treatment and the prevention of certain diseases.

To optimally realise the full benefits of herbs, the practitioners recommend that herbs should be used as a whole in the form nature provides them, for only the use of whole herbs or plant materials as nature provides them, left unchanged in their original form, can guarantee and augment radiant health.

If, however, a fraction of the herb’s constituent elements is isolated or extracted and used as an “active ingredient” with the intention of achieving definable physiological effects, as is hitherto done in the pharmacological industries, the socalled active ingredient devoid of its natural associated synergetic factors becomes a “drug” that could be more potent than the parent herb and could therefore have marked dangerous and toxic side-effects.

A notable British herbalist, David Hoffmann, in his book, The New Holistic Herbal, published in the United Kingdom (UK) in 1990 by Element Book Limited, wrote: “From a holistic perspective, the whole plant must be respected as an integrated biologically evolved unit that is beyond the analytical comprehension of science.

“It will only be when science steps beyond the analytical reduction units it has placed on itself that a deeper understanding of plant chemical synergy will emerge.”

This, however, does not mean to say that a good knowledge of herbal toxicology and the study of the constituents of herbs is out of place in herbal medicine, but herbal study should be done within a holistic context and also to estab-

lish a sound scientific basis for modern herbal medicine, since this will go long way in removing the magic, superstition and fear that were in the past associated with the practice of herbal medicine.

In this article, we are considering the health benefits of Scent Leaf- one of the aromatic herbs that are known and used extensively throughout the whole West Africa.

Botanical Name: Ocimum gratissimum.

Family: Labiatae, Mint family.

Common English Names: Fever plant, tea bush, scent leaf, mosquito plant, thymol tree.

Local Names: Igbo- Nchuanwu, Yoruba: Efirin nla, and Hausa: Dai daoyaata gidaa.

Ocimum gratissimum It is very rare to find a rural home where scent leaf is not planted for one purpose or another.

Some people plant this highly aromatic herb around homes simply to repel mosquitoes (which is why it is sometimes called “mosquito plant”), and others for the purpose of purifying the environment and driving away “evil spirits.”

In some communities, the whole plant is burned to fumigate a room after birth for the same purpose.

However, in most of cases, the scent leaf is planted around homes for its culinary flavouring values and to serve as a handy first aid herb that becomes useful in the treatment of common digestive tract problems and other minor health issues.

Scent leaf is widely used as a seasoning for pepper soup, because of its strong aromatic flavour.

Parts Used: Whole plant and leaves Chemical Constituents: The leaves and other aerial parts of fever plants yield essential oil, which are mainly thymol, eugenol, methyleugenol, etc that possess strong antifungal and antibacterial properties.

Other constituents include alkaloids, tannins, flavonoids, etc.

Therapeutic properties: The scent leaf plant is considered to be carminative, digestive, laxative, anti-emetic, antimicrobial, anti-malarial, diaphoretic, tonic, stimulant, expectorant, decongestant, diuretic, anticonvulsant, hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective, insect repellant, sedative and cicatrizant (wound healing).

Internal Uses: In folk medicine, Ocimum gratissimum is extensively used throughout West Africa as tea (infusion) or decoction (boiled), but it is mainly used as a fresh extract.

As an infusion, about 20 to 40 grammes of the leaves are allowed to infuse for about 10 to 15 minutes in 1 litre of boiling water.

The tea is given with pure natural honey, which enhances the healing values.

Carminative/Digestive Aid: Fever plant has very powerful carminative and digestive properties.

It stimulates peristalsis and the production of the digestive juices necessary for proper digestion.

It helps in eliminating or preventing the formation of gas and relaxes the intestinal muscles and disinfects the entire digestive tract.

Therefore, taking one to two tablespoons of the fresh leaf extract with a pinch of salt is very useful in treating stomach problems, such as flatulence; abdominal distension; indigestion, especially when it is due to nervous tension; stomach gripping; colic; abdominal pain; chronic diarrhoea and dysentery; constipation; and to expel worms.

Fever plant also stops vomiting and nausea, belching and hiccups.

Antiseptic/Antibiotic: The essential oil (thymol) present in the leaves and inflorescences gives the plant very strong antifungal and antibacterial properties.

A decoction of the leaves or the fresh extract is taken orally as a useful remedy for sexually transmitted infections, “non-specific urethritis” and urinary tract infections.

It is used for douching in cases of vaginitis and chronic candidiasis.

Studies have shown that scent leaf is sensitive to most of the organisms responsible for gastrointestinal infections, such as Salmonella, Shigela, E. coli, etc.

Therefore, the fresh extract of the herb is taken as a very useful home remedy for recurrent typhoid infections.

Diaphoretic/Febrifuge: Taking hot infusion of fever plant will induce perspiration and bring down feverish condition.

It is very useful in the treatment of fever, no matter the cause. It is particularly good for recurrent malaria attacks.

The decoction could also be used as an aromat-

ic bath at the same time.

Tonic/Sedative: Infusion of the leaves taken with honey is refreshing and stimulating.

It will allay fatigue due to a hard day’s work, stops dizziness, improves memories, and calms the body in time of stress and anxiety.

Other uses: In folk medicine, taking about 30ml (three times daily) of the fresh extract made from the leaves of Ocimum gratissimum, combined with those made of Balsam pear and lime juice (all in equal proportions), will not only prevent fibroid formation, but will at the same time eliminate fibroids at their seeding stages (i.e. when they have not grown so big).

A decoction of the leaves and those of Utazi (Gangronema latifolium) is used for cleansing the womb and treating abdominal pain after childbirth to prevent liver damage associated with alcoholism and to lower blood sugar levels in diabetic patients.

The raw extract made from the leaves of fever plant, bitter leaf and fluted pumpkins serves as a rejuvenating tonic for diabetics.

A tincture (alcohol extraction) of the leaves of Ocimum gratissimum and root of Zanthoxylum xanthoxyloides (Yoruba: Orinata) is taken twice daily for seven days to help treat painful pile and dysmenorrheal.

A mixture of the dried leaves of scent leaf, cassia alata, lemongrass and mistletoe is taken as tea to help control high blood pressure.

External Uses THIS plant combines analgesic and anodyne in most external treatment of diseases.

The raw extract is used for vaginal douching in most cases of vaginal infection.

The extract from the mixture of the fresh leaf and few seeds of Alligator Pepper is used as eardrops for all kinds of ear infections and earache.

The fresh juice is used as nasal drops and decongestant in cases of sinuses, head cold, headache, nose bleeding (epistaxis), catarrh and allergic rhinitis and cough (internally).

The fresh leaves are applied as poultice to ease rheumatic and arthritic pain and lumbago.

It could also be applied on sprain and to reduce localised oedema.

The decoction is used as a compress during traditional bone healing to reduce pain.

The fresh extract could be mixed with native palm kernel oil and used externally or internally for haemorrhoids.

The fresh sap is applied on the tooth to remove an infected tooth and to relieve toothache and gum problems.

Aromatic bath prepared from the plant is recommended in the treatment of rheumatism and paralysis.

PetLife With Dr.Tunji Nasir AST week, we did an interesting Lof pet piece on the on-going education Stop Killing Your Puppies owners about one of the deadliest diseases plaguing the canine world, especially at puppyhood.

More than ever before, it is even becoming more germane to light more torches on the subject.

The problem that I have observed in the control of parvoviral infection and many other diseases, is the seeming recalcitrance of majority of pet owners who ordinarily should know about what should normally prolong the lives of their pets. To the contrary, I have found that for reasons that are still beyond my comprehension, most efforts at educating clients have fallen into the deep abyss of nonchalance.

Just what are the reasons for this?

Sometimes, unfathomable excuses are given –pecuniary, lack or inadequate knowledge, lack of interest in being responsible owners or just plain “I don’t care attitude”!

I must also say that the situation is not being helped at all by the industry I belong to, for reasons that are very inexplicable.

All over the world, respected authorities have set guidelines for vaccination of puppies and kittens and these guidelines are consistently being reviewed to meet exigent situations and circumstances in different climes and at every life stage of the pets. To my chagrin, a lot of veterinarians have failed to comply with a lot of these guidelines and have also failed to pass same to their clients.

A careful investigation into this has revealed that complying substantially with these guidelines could have a telling effect on the incomes of most generalists or general practice veterinarians because administration of vaccines could become

less frequent and visits to the clinic diminished.

The concept of over-vaccination, which is a big fight between vaccines producers and immunologists on one hand and veterinarian on the other, has certainly divided the industry and the animals are paying the price for the “contentious concepts”.

It is now believed that pets are being over-vaccinated by veterinarians who unwittingly are subjecting these animals to certain adverse effects which have been expoused (I am going to discuss these later) and also, that some veterinarians are vaccinating puppies too early in life.

It is agreed by most guidelines that puppies should not be vaccinated before 8 weeks and by some standards, 9 weeks. However, instances have been recorded whereby puppies are vaccinated by 5 weeks, when the impact of the MDA (Maternally Derived Antibodies) is still current and would render such exercise a nullity. The reason why this is being done is totally inexcusable and I cannot really understand the hurry of certain owners and breeders in getting puppies vaccinated that early.

I know I have had to counsel a lot of breeders and colleagues about the practice and its link to the unnecessary exposure of our puppies to dis-

eases like parvovirus. Still, it appears this counsel has gone unheeded.

So I ask why should we deliberately invite problems to our domain in the guise of whatever reason? It is a garb that owners, especially breeders, who are influencers of opinion in the pet community, should remove from their psyche.

Of course, there are several conditions that should be met before an enabling environment is created for vaccinations; these and others will be discussed yet once again next week.

But, for now, it is necessary to appeal to pet owners to search for current information about what is trending in the care of their pets. They should not just sit there to be fed with archaic information and practices. Let’s save our puppies by not vaccinating too early and also insisting that our veterinarians should do serological titre testing to know if our pet has been immunized after the series of vaccinations is completed.

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46 Saturday, May 3, 2014

HEALTHINTERVIEW Under this IT hospital that we run now, any of our patient could access our services at any of our branches, irrespective of which of the centres he registered. He does not have to go to the branch where he registered or where he is known before he could be attended to. As soon as he presents his card, data about him would be checked on the computer and he would be attended to

Aworinde

Bisola Aworinde is the Executive Director of May Clinics, a private hospital established about 36 years ago. With branches spread across Lagos State, the newest of the branches located at Lekki is scheduled for dedication tomorrow. One with a nonmedical background, he spoke with ABIODUN FANORO on the advantages to hospital management the usage of a non-medical background person as chief administrator. He also shared salient views on the need for standardization of hospitals in the state and the need for a review of the National Health Insurance Scheme, among other issues.

‘NHIS Should Be Reviewed To Fix Its Weaknesses, Inadequacies’

HY is May Clinics opening new branches As a major player in the health sector, how suf- talking about is not essentially in the area of W rather than concentrating on one where it ficient are the primary and secondary health furniture or other aesthetics, rather it must be could expand and reap the benefit of economy of scale?

Your observation that most hospitals prefer to concentrate on one branch and keep expanding there rather than opening new branches is correct. Also, as you implied, a lot of advantages are certainly inherent in such an arrangement, especially in terms of optimal capacity utilization, running cost, in relation to the cost of acquiring new building, payment of service charges to government agencies, employment of new staff, payment of their salaries and so many other relevant logistics.

But having being in the industry for well over 36 years, May Clinics believes that it has got a responsibility to put the people first and not financial gains as we are compelled by this long years of existence to review our operational philosophy and social concept to significantly accommodate social or corporate responsibilities. What I am saying is that we cannot afford to operate without being sensitive to the aspirations of the people, who have stood by us over the years, while at the same time reflecting the progressive goal of government, which is to partner with it to take healthcare, particularly primary and secondary healthcare to the nooks and crannies of the state and beyond. We know we could save a lot in terms of operational cost if we maintain just one hospital and the people who believe in our services would continue to come. However, we are of the view that we should also share in the extra stress it costs them to come to our Ilasamaja complex. That is one of the reasons why we decided to establish new branches, one in Ilupeju and the latest one at Lekki, Lagos.

facilities available in the state?

First, appreciation must go to the Lagos State Government for its well thought concern for efficient and accessible primary and secondary health policy. Its policy that these facilities are spread all over the state and its efforts to achieve this cannot be denied. But I must say that in spite of government’s stride in this direction, including its policy of encouraging the private sector to complement it, a lot still has to be done. The primary and secondary health facilities available in the state both from government and the private sector, cannot meet more than 30 per cent of the state’s over 40 million population. When I talked about primary and secondary facilities, I mean quality, modern and standard facilities. If you look at the hospitals that have the capacity to deliver primary and secondary healthcare in Lagos, they are very few.

To improve on the present quality in this area, what should government do?

One thing that the government must do is to introduce standard. Today, standards are being introduced across Africa. The standard we are

in the quality of services provided by hospitals.

Of course, this would be determined by the quality of the staff and the equipment to work with. When patients are fed with low quality standard, it is very dangerous and un-helpful to the patients health-wise and resource-wise.

If a hospital does not embrace quality care, the patients are at risk.

Ensuring standard would on the long run help to stamp out quacks once government creates standard and makes it the rule, it would encourage investors to invest in medical facilities. It would encourage foreign investors to bring in better and modern equipment. Standard would automatically be a chain of development, which would boost the sector as well as promote good health.

As part of efforts to promote standard, isn’t time government began to categorise hospitals in the state?

It is good to categorise hospitals to limit the service a hospital should render to its true capacity. This would also enable patients to know the capacity of a hospital as well as the extent it could go in terms of handling health cases. This would promote specialization

After more than a decade of existence, I think there is a need to review the NHIS with a view to finding out its weaknesses. In my view, one that has clearly played out is what I called its narrow or discriminatory goal. It is very sad that the scheme discriminated against operators in the informal sector despite the sector’s huge contribution to the national economy. Today, it is only those in the formal sector that the scheme covers.

where a health provider may say, for instance, that he or she wants to specialize in the primary health or limit himself to that. Another may come out to say, he or she only wants to take on secondary healthcare. Based on the funds at his or her disposal, a provider may just want to limit his or herself to the primary healthcare because he or she has no funds sufficient enough to set up a secondary healthcare.

The National Health Insurance Scheme is over a decade old. In your view, what are some of its major deficiencies?

The NHIS is a laudable programme and is being consolidated by government. After more than a decade of existence, I think there is a need to review it with a view to finding out its weaknesses. In my view, one that has clearly played out is what I called its narrow or discriminatory goal. It is very sad that the scheme discriminated against operators in the informal sector despite the sector’s huge contribution to the national economy.

Today, it is only those in the formal sector that the scheme covers.

How could the informal sector be brought in?

How to bring in the informal sector is a decision that has to be taken by government and the HMOs. Having said that, there is currently a model being sponsored by Pharma-Access Foundation for market men and women, which I think could be adopted and re-modeled to accommodate the informal sector. It is called the Haja Community Healthcare. Under the programme, market men and women who ordinarily would not have visited hospitals for healthcare, are enrolled with some hospitals where they visit regularly for medical check-up for serious diseases like diabetes, breast-cancer, asthma, hypertension and many heart-related diseases. They are also treated for some other diseases.

This is however, heavily subsidized by the donors. The programme has been on for about five years and the awareness among the people is on the increase. About 10 hospitals across Lagos are involved. Certainly, this is one model that government should catch on to bring the informal sector into the operation of the NHIS. May Clinics is being managed by a non-medical Chief Executive Officer in your person as against the general practice in Nigeria. Where did you borrow this experiment and how successful has it been?

The practice of separating the administration managing hospitals from professionals providing medical services is the order of the day in America and in Europe. What this simply means is that there are two sides to a hospital, the business arm and the medical arm. In May Clinics, we started the experiment since 2007 and it has been working effectively. I think it is a big headache for a medical doctor to attend to patients all days and still has to be bogged down by the business or the administrative part of it.

Usually, medical doctors by training and orientation, are very humane, their primary and secondary thinking at all times is first to save life, thereby unconsciously relegating the business side of the enterprise. Yes, it is a very good thing to put lives first, but there is the need to balance it. Since we introduced this style, I have worked with many medical directors who have come to understand the need for that innovation for a successful medical business. They have all agreed with us that it is the best way to ensure the sustenance of health businesses.

Were there no occasion of frictions?

In any human relations world wide, friction is normal. It should also be expected and should also be seen as a normal but temporary thing when you are introducing a new concept or you are bringing in an innovation.

Why in your view is this concept is not generally patronized in Nigeria?

It is a question of trust. Most hospital owners appear not to have trust in hiring separate administrators to handle the administration and the business aspect of their hospitals. There could also be the fear of who is truly the boss. For instance, where the owner decides to be the medical director. In my view, there is room for choic-

Saturday, May 3, 2014 47

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With DESMOND EKEH desmondekeh@yahoo.com; 08023215535, 08111813032

Tourism And Nation Branding: Why Nigeria Is Still Behind Despite Potentials

By Abiodun Obisesan N 2013, the IBISWorld global tourism market Iglobally research report showed the tourism industry was worth $1.4 trillion. The report also revealed that emerging economies accounted for a much-improved share of the tourism industry.

The mobilisation and packaging of unique locations and activities for visitors to experience and admire is increasingly becoming an expanding source of income for many countries across the globe. For economies like Morocco, South Africa, Tunisia, Mauritius and Kenya, tourism has always been a priceless source of revenue. With the number of visitors clocking eight to nine million, Morocco and South Africa have remained table topers in Africa’s tourism league.

Although Nigeria might not be a major player in conference tourism, there are diverse historical sites and monuments that could offer quality attraction in other segments of tourism.

Exciting festivals abound among the different ethnic groups. Archaeologists, through their researches and excavations, have also analysed diverse and interesting artefacts surrounding the people and cultures of Nigeria.

The puzzle among most Nigerians is, with all these potentials, why is tourism contributing marginally to the fortunes of our country?

Why is the tourism industry in Nigeria not contributing the desired input to the country’s gross domestic product? What could be the reason that even those who come for business travel never take out time to actually explore the tourism opportunities of this country?

A renowned analyst on tourism, Dr. Austin Tam-George, who is Executive Director of the Institute of Communication and Corporate Studies (ICCS) Lagos, opined that the Nigerian tourism sector remains under-developed in Nigeria.

According to him, it is mainly because of neglect by government at all levels. “Even private investors have shown only half-hearted commitment to the sector at best. But if we want to move the country beyond an extractive economy, then our current negligent attitude towards other sectors, including tourism, agriculture, education and health, among others, must change.

“With over 400 ethnic groups, Nigeria has a rich cultural tapestry that we can showcase to the world. We must see our vibrant diversity as a country as our greatest source of strength.

Since 1960, we’ve done little more than problematise our diversity. We need to change this

Tourism Minister, Chief Edem Duke. perception. But to achieve this, the divisive and anti-development character of our politics will have to change,” he said.

Other tourism analysts say that, to boost tourism, Nigeria also needs to invest in infrastructure. For a country not at war, Nigeria has one of the worst infrastructure deficits in Africa. Mother Nature has also blessed the country with vast land, beautiful climate and land formation, especially with the swampy coastal lands to the thick rain forests and the savannah. There are also the parks, hills, lakes and games reserves in their natural habitat.

These cultural, natural and artificial materials offer attractions that could be explored as an alternative source of sustainable revenue to cities and governments.

Tam-George believes that Nigeria can change all of that through a single-minded commitment to develop and standardise our roads, bridges, canals, airports and telecoms pene-

WHO Declares Swipha Nigeria GMP Compliant WISS Pharma Nigeria Limited (Swipha) recorded a historic milestone recently after becoming the first company in Nigeria and indeed the whole of West Africa to be declared compliant with the World Health Organisation (WHO) Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP).

Swipha is one of only six companies in Africa to have attained this level of manufacturing excellence, thereby positioning the company to become a Nigeria multinational pharmaceutical manufacturer supplying top quality products to the private sector, NonGovernmental Organisations (NGO’s) and government clients globally.

The feat would not have been actualised without the visionary leadership, guidance and fervent support for this pioneering programme by the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Dr. Paul Orhii and his team.

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With this development, Swipha and NAFDAC have placed Nigeria on the global map of only 11 countries that manufacture finished pharmaceutical products comparable in quality standard to developed countries.

To this end the Orhii and his team recently paid a courtesy visit to Swipha Management to congratulate the company on the feat and urge the company to strive as much as possible to maintain the standards already attained.

The Chairman/CEO of Swipha, Mr. Colin Cummings expressed appreciation that NAFDAC supported the Nigeria Pharmaceutical Industry with training, technical assistance and audits with PMG MAN coordinating.

Cummings also expressed appreciation for the enabling environment provided by the Federal Government under the Transformation Agenda of the President, His Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, and the supervision of the Federal

Ministry of Health headed by Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu.

He said: “Swiss Pharma Nigeria Limited was incorporated in 1976. We manufacture, market and distribute pharmaceutical products that meet international standards. We are among the top pharmaceutical company in Nigeria to be ISO 9001: 2008 Certified. To re-affirm our leadership position we have yet again recorded a “first” with the WHO GMP Compliant Certification.”

According to Cummings, “Swipha produces a variety of Swipha branded products in its factory in Lagos that are subject to GMP and GLP (Good Laboratory Practice for Quality Control). Further indicating the high standards in its factory, Swipha also produces branded pharmaceutical products on behalf of some of the world’s largest multinational pharmaceutical companies on a contract-manufacturing basis.

tration. This, according to him, will create millions of jobs and increase mobility of internal and external tourists to all parts of the country.

Explaining further why Nigeria’s tourism potential remains untapped, Tam-George stated that Nigeria’s over-reliance for decades on oil and gas economy, which still accounts for over 70 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP, is a major draw back.

“Agriculture, which is the largest employer of labour in Nigeria, contributes less than 20 per cent to the GDP because it is still at a largely subsistent level. Despite its vast potentials, tourism contributes even less than agriculture to the overall GDP. A recent trend by state officials to equate tourism with simply organising carnivals in cities also complicates the problem for the industry. Tourism is much more than a colourful and episodic fanfare,” he explained.

As a direct response to the need to maximise these advantages, Style Weeks Limited, a tourism and event marketing consultancy, is partnering with the Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation to organise one of Nigeria’s most innovative tourism expo tagged ‘The President’s Tourism Investment Forum (TIF) 2014’.

The event is scheduled to take place at the Congress Hall, Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Maitama, Abuja on July 23 and 24, 2014, as well as the Presidential Villa Banquet Hall on July 25, 2014.

A pre-event–tourism development workshop will also take place at the Intercontinental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos on May 14 and 15, 2014, where the Nigerian Tourism Development Fund would be launched. The essence of this initial workshop is to set the right tone that will elevate the Abuja summit to the desired crescendo.

Bismarck Rewane, a popular financial and travels analyst in his blog thinks that successive government in Nigeria have not made tourism a major goal in the country. “We have not even started nurturing our historical and anthropological assets to position them to become attractive. This is why many do not consider Nigeria, even domestically, as a destination for rest or relaxation or as a destination for historical, cultural or anthropological discovery or excursion. The infrastructure that supports tourism simply doesn’t exist. If you are arriving at the airport or you go to any Nigerian website, there is no reference to places like the Yankari Game Reserve.”

It is mind-boggling that Nigeria has always had a tourism policy. In 2006, a comprehensive ‘Tourism Master Plan’ was even drafted under President Obasanjo. Analysts hold that the problem has always been implementation. Even the best policy is meaningless without implementation.

Clearly, tourism is a huge industry with many stakeholders. No government can run it alone. Government could catalyse progress in the sector through infrastructure and regulatory oversight.

In the opinion of some tourism experts in Nigeria, government’s involvement in the President’s Tourism Investment Forum (TIF), especially after unveiling a new tourism brand identity for the nation’s tourism sector termed ‘Fascinating Nigeria,’ would most likely drive promotional activities in our culture and tourism sector and put Nigeria at par with South Africa’s ‘It’s Possible’ brand campaign.

IABC Will Grow Communication Business In Nigeria, Says Nwakama

By Okechukwu Ikonne N his capacity as the President of International Association of Business Communicators, Nigeria Chapter, Chido Nwakama has affirmed that the global institution is strategically positioned to enhance and accelerate the communication business in Nigeria.

Established in 1972 through a union of three professional bodies in the United States of America and Canada, IABC brings together professionals who are involved in the business of communication and it is represented in about 68 countries globally.

In view of the growing influence of the communication profession on businesses in Nigeria, Nwakanma said IABC is strongly committed to building a strong capacity among communication practitioners in the country.

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This, according to him, informed the recent partnership the body signed with the Pan Atlantic University through its School of Media and Communication (SMC) to deliver a global certification course in communication through the provision of facilitations and training. ‘‘The Global Certification programme will start from 2015 and we want to ensure that Nigeria takes a leading position. Nigeria must participate from the very beginning of that programme because we have a huge market,” Nwakanma said.

He stated that the certification would commence at two levels and aligned with the generalist/specialist and the strategic advisor level.

He added that the Global Communication Certification programme is open to all communication professionals and non-IABC

members, adding that it provides a common and consistent platform for assessment.

Nwakanma noted that the Global Communication Certification Council would hold its inaugural meeting soon and would focus on governance processes, background briefings and its first level of certification.

He said IABC is basically a non-profit organisation of 14,000 members who are committed to improving organisational effectiveness through communication.

“Our conception of communication goes beyond the typical focus only on PR. IABC membership takes in people from various areas including people in advertising, photography, editing, graphic art, all of those fields that have to do with improving organisational and business communication,” he said.

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THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014

BRANDNEWS Chain Reactions Set To Represent Nigeria At Cannes TRATEGY and reputation management consulting firm, Chain Reactions, has emerged the winner of the 2014 National Cannes Young Lions Competition (PR Category).

The national competition was the pre-selection stage to represent Nigeria at the 2014 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity to be held in Cannes, in June. The different categories competed for included Media, Film, Design and Public Relations, with entries received from representatives of firms in the marketing communication sub-sector.

The duo of Ophylia Ibekwe and Efetive Eguko flew the flag on behalf of Chain Reactions Nigeria. Their winning presentation, which was adjudged the best by the jury, was a response to a brief to raise funds for a social cause being promoted by a nongovernmental organisation. In addition to the trophy that was presented to them for their feat, the two ‘young lions’ will also wear the Nigerian colours as the country’s ambassadors to the Young Lions PR Competition at Cannes, France, in June 2014.

Commenting on the accomplishment, the Chief Strategist, Chain Reactions Nigeria, Mr. Israel Opayemi, saluted the duo for their brilliance, which he said, was motivated by their immersion in the company’s core value of ‘can-do spirit.’

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Adibba.com Strengthens Online Retail With ‘Paga’ Partnership DIBBA.COM, a budding e-commerce platform in the counA try, has engaged Paga Nigeria in a partnership arrangement to give the nation’s teeming online shoppers from electronics

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Mortein Strengthens Brand Affinity With Community Engagement EADING insecticide brand, L Mortein, has strengthened brand affinity with the consumers through its involvement in a community engagement in Lagos where hundreds of residents trooped out for malaria screening exercise conducted in partnership with the Lagos State Ministry of Health.

The community engagement, held at Tego Barracks open field, Marine Beach, Apapa, was one of the activities to commemorate this year’s World Malaria Day. For Mortein in particular, the day also featured the presentation of Mortein certificates and baby gift items to some new babies at the

General Hospital, AjeromiIfelodun and Primary Health Centre, Ijora. Among the beneficiaries were Mrs. Gift Odia and her baby boy and Mrs. Kafayat Tajudeen and her baby girl. The children were picked for being born on April 25, the day set aside globally to commemorate the World Malaria Day. Speaking at the event, the Marketing Director of Reckitt Benckiser, Mr. Oguzhan Silivrili, said the company’s decision to partner with all levels of government and fight malaria aligned with its mission and vision of providing consumers with healthier lives and happier homes.

He said for this reason, Mortein Anti-Malaria

Campaign was launched in Nigeria and across some other African countries, two years ago, as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility. ‘‘The vision and mission of RB (Reckitt Benckiser) globally is actually providing consumers healthier lives and happier homes. That is our vision and that is why we wake up every day, and go to the office to create innovative solutions for the consumers.

To achieve that vision, we see that malaria is a serious threat to the health of the consumers and that is why we are taking it very seriously and partnering with government to fight against it,’’ he said.

Siliviri also pointed out that, in furtherance of the campaign against Malaria, about 500,000 new mothers in Nigeria would be engaged through series of awareness and education programmes that would help them to be free from the disease this year.

He explained that the intervention became necessary due to the alarming death rate among children under the age of five and pregnant women as a result of malaria. He noted that the mosquito-borne disease has become a global health concern, as millions of deaths are reported to occur annually due to malaria.

to fashion some value for their money.

By this partnership with Paga, customers on the site would have the option of paying for their shopping using Paga by simply clicking on the “Pay with Paga” button. At checkout, Adibba shoppers can pay securely with value from an existing Paga account or with a debit card at no additional cost.

Speaking on the partnership, Adibba CEO, Chris Edeji, said: “At Addiba we are committed to creating a stress-free shopping experience for our customers and we’re staying true to that commitment by partnering with Paga to offer convenient payment options. Now, customers have the freedom to choose the payment option that works for them when they shop on addiba.com” Paga is an indigenous mobile payments company that allows users to send or receive money, buy airtime and pay bills and merchants like Adibba, and many more through their payment platform which is accessible online at www.mypaga.com or through their agent network. It holds a promise of bringing consumers their cash anywhere, anytime.

SO&U Young Creative Professionals Win Miami Ad Scholarship ANKING tops in the keenly contested 2014 Miami Ad School R Scholarship competition, two creative staff of SO&U, a leading advertising agency in Nigeria, have been offered half tuition scholarships for international students.

The scholarships, which are for use at any Miami Ad school campus worldwide, was won at the recently concluded Miami Ad School Scholarship Competition designed to connect with fresh talents and receiving entries from different parts of the world.

Reacting to the news, one of the award recipients, Ms. Adenike Akinbisehin, excitedly expressed gratitude to the organisers of the competition for creating a platform that “encourages and rewards creative excellence.”

Adenike explained that her decision to participate in the competition was to enable her “imagination roam, without having to consider limitations posed by cultural or production concerns.”

She added that the competition, which was “an exciting opportunity for growth was fun and was indeed one of her proudest achievements.”

Funke Akindele Backs MultiChoices’ ‘BoxOffice’ To Check Piracy

By Lawrence Amaku NOLLYWOOD thespian and film producer, Funke Akindele, has thrown her weight behind the initiative by Multichoice to check violation of intellectual property of artists with the introduction of the latest innovation tagged ‘BoxOffice.’

The implication of the innovation is that henceforth, DStv subscribers and movie lovers in Nigeria will no longer have to wait for too long before viewing newly released movies, as Multichoice, is set to bring the theatre closer home to them.

Speaking during an interactive session at a film maker’s forum at the Pan-Atlantic University in Lagos, Funke Akindele, whose blockbuster movie, Jenifa, shot her to stardom few years ago, berated the activities of unscrupulous characters who pilfer and pirate original intellectual productions even before they are released.

“Piracy has been with us, for quite some time now, and I am in full support of DStv and their latest innovation of BoxOffice where film viewers can subscribe to their preferred film. At least, this move would minimise the effect of pirate activities in the Nigerian film industry,” she said.

BoxOffice is a service that allows subscribers to conveniently rent and watch the latest blockbuster movies in the comfort of their homes, right on their DStv Explora decoders.

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Chief Operating Officer, Berger Paints, Mr. Jatin Madan (left); Managing Director, Aspire International Limited, Mr. Godday Okhio; Director, Berger Paints, Dr. Oladimeji Alo; Chairman, Berger Paints, Mr. Clement Olowokande; and Managing Director, Berger Paints, Mr. Tony Nygard, at the unveiling of the company’s New Colour World Outlet in Lekki, Lagos…recently.

Polo Avenue Showcases Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana New Collection

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ECENTLY, Polo Avenue, the multi-brand specialty luxury retailer in Victoria Island hosted a preview event showcasing the 2014 Spring/Summer collection of Gucci and Dolce & Gabbana.

The preview event was a gathering of top fashion editors, fashion elites and several HNIs in Lagos. It was an opulent shopping affair where guests had the opportunity to get a first look and purchase the latest accessories, leather goods and shoes by Gucci and Dolce & Gabbana.

The first of its kind in Lagos, the preview event’s guests included Nkiru Anumnudu, Ruth Osime, Grace Osime, Dimeji Alara, Lanre DaSilva, Bola Balogun, Chin Okeke and Elohor Aisien and many more. While shopping, guest sipped on champagne provided by Pernod Ricard, who sponsored the cocktails for the event.

According to the Executive Director of Polo Avenue, Jennifer Obayuwana, “the essence of the preview event was to give our customers the opportunity to view and experience the newest collec-

tion in an intimate setting.

This is part of our commitment at Polo Avenue to provide Nigerian luxury consumers an elevated luxury shopping experience that is unparalled in creativity and bravura.”

The Gucci S/S 2014 collection features fringes, tassels and a use of bold colours such as royal purple, turquoise, metallic purple and lipstick red. With the coveted item of the women’s collection being the Nouveau Leather Fringe Shoulder bag, which has double tassel with bamboo details, the collection

provides the perfect insertion of colour and buoyancy for any wardrobe.

Stefano Gabbana described the Dolce & Gabbana S/S 2014 collection as a dream of Sicily. The collection is inspired by coinage, architecture and sculptures. This is apparent in the leather goods and shoes with the use of coins and neutral mosaic colors. Also, within the collection are floral and crystal embellished leather goods and shoes in several colors.

The collection features an array of selection for special occasions to everyday use.

Experts Harp On Innovation At THAF’s Entrepreneurial Lecture

By Adeshola Ogbodo HE Hayford Alile T Foundation, a not-forprofit, non-governmental organisation, committed to advancing and supporting education and entrepreneurial development in Africa, recently held the 2014 edition of its annual National Entrepreneurial Lecture series.

The lecture coincides with the 74th birthday of the organisation’s founder, Apostle Prof. Hayford Alile OFR, a distinguished technocrat and erstwhile DirectorGeneral and Chief Executive of The Nigerian Stock

Exchange.

Themed, “Innovating for Market Distinctiveness”, the lecture, which held at the Julius Berger Hall, University of Lagos, was chaired by Mr. Paul Andrew, a highly respected financial guru, who stood in for Mr. Fola Adeola, while Ms. Evelyn Oputu, Chief Executive Officer, Bank of Industry, was the guest lecturer of the occasion.

Chairman of the occasion, Mr. Paul Andrew, in his opening remarks, emphasised the need for creativity and innovation in today’s marketplace. He stated that innovativeness is one of the key ele-

ments that drive market competitiveness.

“We live in a knowledgedriven economy where creativity and innovation drives competitiveness. You can edge out competitors by simply infusing creativity and innovation in your business,” he said.

While delivering her lecture titled: “Innovating for Market Distinctiveness,” Oputu, cited the example of two companies: 3M and Apple Inc., which almost went moribund but rebounded to become multibillion dollar corporations as a result of innovation which they grafted into their DNA.

She said: “Innovation may come as new-product development, research and development, and engineering. It may be by way of incremental improvements to existing products; or commercial innovations involving creative marketing, packaging or promotion to grow existing products; or may bring fundamental changes leading to breakthroughs in market share and profit levels.”

The event was the third edition of the THAF National Entrepreneur Lecture Series, which is usually held to also commemorate the birthday of its founder, Apostle Alile who was born on April 24,

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Cover

Ojerinde

‘People Are Getting More Conscious About Computer-Based Test’ country namely in Jigawa, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, place to ensure that the innovation works?

Ekiti, Delta, Abia, Taraba and Benue, those I think the arrangements that we want to talk places can take about 120 candidates. We hope about is that last year we were able to come that with time we will be able to expand our out with only about 55 centers all over the horizon to other parts of the country, but our country, but now, we have gotten about 159, centre in Abuja here can take 250 candidates at that is about three times what we have last a go and that is our plans for other places too if year, which is a very wonderful development God helps us. to the extent that the tertiary institutions that Do you know that the prisoners are now we didn’t use last year have now come up; ready to do our examination on Computereven private institutions, private establishBased Test? We have about 150 or so in Kaduna ments, private individuals have established

By Kanayo Umeh, Abuja and another 25 in Ikoyi Lagos. We are going to ComputerBased Test Centers.

We had about hat informed the Board’s decision to introgive them the opportunity to do the exam CBT. 300 applicants, willing centers, but when we duce the computer-based test for JAMB How will the Board take care of issues like elecscreened them, we discovered that we could applicants? tricity to power the computers during exams? use only 159 for the country.

First of all, we think it is one of the ways by When I said 300 applicants applied, they did In other countries that we are going to be which we can reduce examination malpractice not all qualify because they didn’t have what examining their candidates we are going to and the global trend now is the use of technolwe call back up electricity like inverter or UPS if use Computer-Based Test.

I think we are lucky ogy, so we should not be left behind in Nigeria. the power fails on their part, in fact, we have that a lot of people are now anxious about the On the other hand, the problems being told them that we will concentrate on generause of CBT and we discovered that last year encountered by candidates in terms of missing they performed relatively better, there were no tors rather than electricity from the defunct results, malpractice, incomplete results and examination malpractices, there were no miss- PHCN because it can fail us, but if they have things like that will be eliminated totally and inverters that can last for the next 20 to 30 mining results and there were no complaints of in any case, we think it will improve the techutes before they change to electricity, so be it. If any sort. nological know-how of Nigerian children you don’t have all theses facilities, we wouldn’t We think we should continue; we have put in Did the Board take into account the computer accredit you and that is what has led to the place a lot of measures to be able to conduct literacy level of Nigerians before taking such sharp reduction from over 300 applicants to CBT with effect from May 17 till about 31st of decision? only about 159 acceptable applicants.

May. On our part, we have constructed about Yes, our design is such that if you can use a If manual exam is phased out how would JAMB 10 centers; at least nine offices outside Bwari mobile handset, you can do the CBT, if you can take care of applicants in rural areas where and one in Bwari.

In other offices across the read ABCD when the answer comes out for you and you know that the answer is either A, or B, or C, or D, if you can read any of them, you I have said it, if you can use a handset, then you can be able to do our exam. I punch and that’s it. You don’t even need to use the mouse, except you know how to use, but think seeing is believing; when we are doing it, just come along or you go to a rural use the cursor. Use the cursor to you right and place where CBT is taking place and see the reactions of the young kids in the then to your left, finish. And we give them maximum of 15 minutes orientation and before you various centers. It is not a sophisticated design. Of cause in future, there will be know it, they are coping. That is our experience what we call multimedia approach, but for now, no way. so far and it has been very wonderful.

What are the measures the Board has put in

Registrar of Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Dibu Ojerinde speaks on the newly introduced Computer-Based Test, how to curb examination malpractice and other issues affecting education in the country.

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computer literacy is very low?

I have said it, if you can use a handset, then you can be able to do our exam. I think seeing is believing; when we are doing it, just come along or you go to a rural place where CBT is taking place and see the reactions of these young kids in the various centers. It is not a sophisticated design. Of cause in future, there will be what we call multimedia approach, but for now, no way.

What is the JAMB doing to prevent the issue of hackers and slow Internet?

Well, as for slow Internet, the bandwidth must be increased. When we started, we used 6 units, then when we increased it to 12 units, we discovered that it was getting faster and now we are using about 18-24 units, so it very fast and that is what has happened to the extent that when we send the information from the office here, in 3 minutes time, it lands anywhere in the world, so that is one achievement.

As for the problems of hackers, when I tell you the things that we have been doing, I hope the hackers also will not go and counter what we doing, but we are making effort and we are trying to make sure that they cannot hack it.

Is it true that the Board deliberately reduce the number of people that wrote the examination using Paper Pencil Test this year?

We didn’t reduce them, we just told them these are the available spaces; we have about one million who sat for the Paper Pencil Test, because we told them these are the space and some of these available spaces are not even full. It depends on where you are, some of the places are not even full, of cause it depends on where you are, okay. To the extent that we have a place which normally would have taken 540, we have 400, we have in some places 295, particularly in my town, we have only 442 candidates instead

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‘Penal Code Is Making Exam Cheats’ Prosecution Difficult’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 49 of 540; in fact multiplied to about five centers available. It is not deliberate, it seems to that people are getting more conscious and appreciative of the use of the Computer-Based Test than Paper Pencil Test.

Why is JAMB asking parents to pay for admission letter, are you trying to increase you revenue base?

We don’t ask people to pay for admission letters, we are only saying that people should go and print their admission letters. Instead of mailing the letters which may never get to them because of unknown addresses, or instead of telling them come and collect your letter here, we said don’t worry, go to the internet and print your letter of admission. We do five thing online; one: register online, two: you check your result online, three: you change your course or whatever you want to do online, four: your name or whatever, you letter of admission, you collect it online; you don’t pay for it and then, there is another one that we do and that has reduce the crowd in our office here or other states of the system, if you see anybody trying to come into this place, they are not coming to say that they don’t have their letters of admission; they may have other things to worry about, this is the truth.

There are reports that the literature books JAMB asked students to buy, that questions were not set from them how do you respond to that?

Who said that? This year, 15 questions were from there. They gave you wrong impression. Everybody, whether you are a social science student, you are medicine student, engineering, agric, education, you are supposed to answer those questions and why are we doing it? We are doing it to increase the reading culture of Nigerians and that’s it, and you will now discover that they are not reading, that’s why most of them are failing; they are not even reading their books. So the questions are there.

We learnt that some of the authors are close to JAMB board members, how true is it?

They should be close to us because we are using their books. Do you want us to be using our enemies’ book? Let me tell you the procedure, we said we wanted books that Nigerians can read, we approached the National Library of Nigeria and Nigerian Authors Association, so the two bodies worked together to say these books are good for the Nigerian children. The books went through the normal procedure of acceptance, in fact NERDC also had to come into play before we accepted it, but we don’t necessarily have to go to NERDC, but in any case that is the situation. I don’t even know Chukwuemeka Ike. Is the author still living? I don’t know him, but they choose the books for us.

How many exam cheats’ has JAMB prosecuted since its inception?

There are many, but the only thing is that we are not supposed to be the prosecutor, we are supposed to be witnesses, what we do is send them to the police and when the police take them to the court and we become witnesses, but unfortunately it has not been very easy going by the Penal Code; it makes it very difficult to prosecute them.

A lot of them have taken us to court before to complain that we didn’t release their results and that we have cancelled their results for one reason or the other. They have never won.

There was a case of somebody who dragged the case until he got his masters degree, even when he appealed, the Court of Appeal now

said sorry, JAMB was right. He combined University of Ibadan and JAMB, he got bachelors degree wrongly from University of Ibadan, UI protested, he went to court and the court now said ok, for now let him continue, then the case was going on, he finished his bachelors degree, went into masters degree and now the case has been decided; all the bachelors degree became null and void, it happened just last year. So thing are happening.

Is the problem of the Penal Code hindering the Board from successful prosecution of exam cheats?

I am not a lawyer, but they know their tricks here and there. We have the 1999 Examination Malpractice Law, Act no. 33, but it has been difficult implementing it, but I think the National Assembly is now working on a new law for West African Examination Council (WAEC) which we think would apply to us also. As soon as that law is compiled, they are going to implement it.

Some parents are complaining of extortion from JAMB in the form of N100 for scratch cards, what do you have to say about it?

Well, they will always complain, if you want something good, I think you must be ready to pay for it. But what is extortion? Let me tell you, around 2007/2006, if you come to this place, you will see the crowd by the gate, they come all the way from Port Harcourt, from Lagos, from Maiduguri, from Sokoto, asking for their results and so on and we are saying no, don’t come here again, stay where you are and get it online.

Now Nigerians, what do we want?

The money you will spend to come from Lagos to Abuja and to Bwari here and back is about ten times of what we are asking you to pay to get the services rendered in the comfort of your rooms.

Well, if they don’t want it, okay, let them leave it. We are not forcing you to check your result, when we are ready, we will send the results to the institutions of your choice and you can check it over there. It is not extortion as far as I am concerned; it is more of paying for the services that are being rendered. Alright, listen, the documents are on the internet; we have a bandwidth which this documents are occupying, the internet service providers are not going to give it to us free, so we are going to be paying for the something from the little money they paid for the registration which by the time you add everything together, it is even not sufficient. Government is still subsidising it.

I am sorry that idea of saying extortion is a new dimension, nobody said that last year, nobody said it 2-3 years ago when they are getting things easy, now because they don’t read their books and they are failing when they get to the internet, they will say we are exporting them, no way! I don’t believe that is the way it is; let us learn to pay for services being rendered.

We are not welfare organisation and you should make money from your enterprise. I am not saying that we are making money from this outfit, but let people pay for the service.

Why do we still witness mass failures in JAMB examination?

There is nothing like mass failure, you see JAMB exam is not a fail, pass dichotomy system. Have you see or heard of somebody who scored 270 could not get admission into any tertiary institution whereas somebody scored 220 and he is admitted, have you ever heard it? Such things do happen; it depends on your choice. A medical student who scored 270 but could not get admission into some universities two years ago, even this

and even English, go straight to that.

How can they now say you pass well in JAMB, but you don’t pass well in post UTME? Even if they give them biology chemistry physic, let us look at the standard of the thing they do, how do they come about the questions, how professionally were they developed? These are some of the things that go to examinations.

With due respect to my colleagues in the university, they are good examiners, but they are not trained item developers; not all of them, even if tertiary institutions and only 1.6 mil- you have those who are trained for that post-UTME in the faculties of lion candidates took the examinaeducation. The ones in the faculty of tion and they have the prerequisite science are not trained for that, they of SSCE, we will take all of them. We are trained to teach sciences and to don’t need to even take JAMB again, examine science the way they want to but competition and survival of the examine it, but as professional, we do fittest is what is happening. it in a different way.

Why is that some who do well in If I take a typical objective test used JAMB fail to pass post-UTME? by our institution to assess these chilPassing exam or success in examinadren, by the time we tear the items tion takes many things into considinto pieces for you, you will be sureration; what are the types of quesprised. There are roles for such a tions were given the children? How thing and as far as I am concern, I am prepared are they for that exam? not saying that they are not doing What is the reliability of the child himself; I am not talking of the relia- the right thing, but if you are nurse, bility of the test, in other words, you you are not a doctor, a doctor is supposed to know more than you in as a child how consistent are you?

Reliability is talking of consistency in terms of diagnostic approach, and look at it holistically, a nurse is to disyou ability to prove that yes I have pense in Nigeria anyway, in some this ability. We may also say what is other part of the world it may be a the reliability of the test will give first compared with the second one? different case.

Have you raised the observation to How consistently is that second in measuring the ability of the individ- the university authorities? ual? Let me give you example, some- We say it every time. We tell them, body wanted to study medicine in a how can you be asking a medical student to come and tell you the presitypical university, you know the questions we give them are based on dent of Ukraine, the Russian president and things like that, ask them biology, chemistry and physics as thing related to what you just gave well as English. When such person now go for post-UTME they were ask- them so they will be able to cope. We have been raising it and now this is ing him about tsunami and who is the president of Ukraine, it is not rel- another way of raising it.

Why is the UTME limited to one year? evant to what he wants study. Yes you may say that you are doing gen- If they say we want to use it to make money, so be it. If they want, let us eral studies, but the concentration now use it for 4-5 years and then see must be on the profession that he who will complain again. Let me tell wants to study. What is the correlayou, what we are doing now is more tion of who is the president of of achievement test rather than aptiUkraine with medicine?

The things that are related to medi- tudinal test. Aptitude is a thing that goes with you from time to time cine are biology, chemistry, physics whereas achievement is based on syllabus.

There was somebody who dragged his case until he got his masters degree, even when he appealed, the Court of Appeal now said sorry, JAMB was right. He combined University of Ibadan and JAMB, he got Bachelors Degree wrongly from University of Ibadan, (UI) protested, he went to court and the court now said ok, for now let him continue, then the case was going on, he finished his bachelors degree, went into masters degree and now the case has been decided; all the bachelors degree became null and void, it happened just last year. So thing are happening. year it would happen, but you applied for agric, you applied for education, you applied for environmental sciences with 250, 230, 220, you get an admission.

In terms of magnitude, which one is greater: is 270 or 220? Of cause 270 is greater, you will think that 270 would be given priority before 220, but they didn’t do the same do the same subject, they didn’t apply for the same course, they did not even apply to the same university. Some of these things create their discrepancies in terms of who is going to be admitted and who is not going to be admitted.

The only thing that we can argue about is if one scores 280 another person scores 260 or 240 and we are now forgetting 280; you don’t take 280 and they are admitting, then we should query it, but you have to go and take further post UTME from the various institutions to be able to prove that you are the rightful owner of the score.

One of the things that will help us in this exercise is the Computer Based Test, so that when you get your result in Computer Based Test, you will know it is your result, nobody helped you, you didn’t spy, it is you ability and therefore, if they confront you with another computer based test as post UTME, you will be able to say yes, you are the owner of your result and that you will prove it. We have seen that and it is currently small with the post UTME than the Paper Pencil Test. So this is the situation, people don’t fail JAMB, only that they are not admitted. For example if you have two million spaces in our

Ojerinde

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Politics ‘Govt’s Dialogue Committee On Ending Insurgency Set Out To Fail From Inception’ Mallam Shehu Sani, the leader of the Northern Civil Society Coalition and President of the Civil Rights Congress (CRC) in this interview, proffers solution to ending the menace of Boko Haram insurgency, speaks on the abduction of the schoolgirls in Chibok in Borno State and possible outcomes of the ongoing National Conference, among other issues.

From Saxone Akhaine, Northern Bureau Chief

A

week after President Goodluck Jonathan and all the State governors issued an ultimatum to Nigerian security agents to rescue the abducted schoolgirls, nothing positive seems to be happening on the issue.

What do you think is the way forward?

Ultimatum, lamentation and shouting will not solve the problem. What will solve the problem is, first, to identify what the problem is. The problem is that over 200 school girls were abducted by the insurgent group, Boko Haram and they are now held hostage.

We are dealing with a hostile situation and there are two ways by which we can approach such situation. One is to apply force to free those girls from their captors and second, is to send a team of negotiators.

Now, the application of force is not advisable; it is going to be very tragic because the captors are armed.

We cannot contemplate the use of force to free these girls. And for the fact that nobody even knows where these girls are, makes any attempt to use force less attractive. There is so much myth about the girls being held in Sambisa forest, and we have also heard from recent reports that the girls have been taken out of where they were initially held, through Chad, Cameroun and also Niger Republic for marriages.

Secondly, the other option we can explore is negotiation. By negotiation, I mean sending a team of people who will act on behalf of the state to negotiate for the release of those girls in captivity.

I had suggested that such team should comprise those who facilitated the botched, Dr. Datti Ahmed’s earlier initiative. They should bring in some of the insurgents who are in detention. They should bring in some respected Islamic clerics and most of them should be leaders of other Islamic sects, like the leaders of the Quadiriyya sect, Tijanniyya sect, Ahmaddiyya sect, Shiitte sect, Sunni sect and some members of Borno Elders Forum.

They should also bring in some few journalists from Maiduguri area that were very conversant with the ongoing crisis in Borno State.

They should empower them to reach out to the insurgents and negotiate the release of these girls. This is the only way by which I believe we can get out of this problem.

Obviously we have failed these girls by virtue of the fact that we ought to have protected them when a similar incident happened in Buniyyadi and other places in Borno State.

We simply waited for the unfortunate incident in Chibok to happen; we simply waited to learn geography only after an earthquake.

We had the opportunity to protect all the schools in the northeastern part of Nigeria going by the fact that for the past three years, the insurgents have been killing students, teachers and burning down schools. We ought to have learnt that such educational institutions are targets and preventive measures could have been taken, but we failed to do that.

Do you think that as a country, our soldiers and other security agents have been doing

Shehu Sani enough in the current fight against the insurgents?

I think the only way to assess the performance of Nigerian soldiers and other security forces is to see if their activities have been able to diminish the violence of the insurgents.

The insurgent group has learnt to initiate their strikes; they have learnt to survive certain emergency and military onslaughts.

They have even learnt to survive the cutting off of communication lines in the northeast.

If you apply a half measure towards treating a problem, all that you would do is to make such vices or germs or bacteria come with resistance to what you are trying to apply.

So, I believe that the Nigerian military and security forces are not adequately motivated, trained and armed to perform such a herculean task of fighting the insurgents.

The insurgency is new in our national lives.

Nigeria Army has a history of fighting a civil war, which we won. They also have a history of credible performance in peacekeeping operations in Africa. I believe that the solution to the problem is not only by having an army or security outfit that is well equipped to fight it but by seeking way in which young minds could be attracted to join in the fight.

What is happening in our country is part of our history. It is partly as a result of what we did wrongly in the past or what we refuse to do. It is a challenge to those of us that are citizens of the country in this era. It demands wisdom, national unity and solidarity. It calls for a collective action towards finding solution to it, because if we are not careful it is capable of annihilating us.

Some people in other part of the country think that what is happening in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe is a problem for the North or a problem for the Northeast. But, the way and manner in which the insurgents were able to launch successful attack in Abuja without anyone being arrested clearly shows that no part of Nigeria is safe.

As long as there is no peace and stability in the northeastern part of Nigeria, nobody in

other parts of the country would be able to sleep.

What do you think may have happened to the committee set up by the Federal Government to work out modalities of reaching out to the insurgents?

There is no doubt that the committee was made up of credible Nigerians who are men and women of repute. But the task before them is beyond them and they are not capable of addressing it right from day one. A dialogue committee headed by a serving minister, from my own knowledge of the insurgency, is not a committee that the insurgents can listen to. Dialogue committee that has the participation of women is not a committee, which the insurgents can listen to or talk to. Right from the beginning, the committee was not meant to succeed. Infact, going by President Jonathan words on the day of the inauguration, he said, “I expect you to go and perform magic.

Now, for any student of English Language or Literature, you know, whenever you are told to go and perform magic, means that you are told to go and perform an impossible task.”

I declined to serve in that committee because I know from the onset that it is going to fail. It is going to fail because of the following reasons. First, I am the person who initiated the first dialogue process in which I took the former President Olusegun Obasanjo to the family members of Boko Haram. And secondly, I was in Dr. Datti Ahmed’s peace talk, which was facilitated by a freelance Journalist, Ahmed Sarkida, which I was privy from the very beginning to the end of it. And then, it is not possible when all these two attempts were frustrated by the government; and for the government to simply come out unilaterally with a committee to which most of them were its own people and headed by one of its own to say this is what we want and this is how we want to go about it.

The committee failed for the following reasons. First, they were given the mandate to go and dialogue with the insurgents. At the

same time the government imposed a state of emergency.

At the very time the dialogue committee was calling on the insurgents to come out from their hidden holes and talk with them, that was the time that soldiers under the shadow of a state of emergency in the north eastern part of Nigeria were threatening that any insurgent who brings his head out will be choked off. That is a contradiction.

Secondly, you cannot dialogue with a group that already has a price tag on the head of its leader. The United States has put a price tag on the leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, which was commended by the Federal Government. So, how do you expect when the leader is already on a danger list of foreign powers and also commended by the Nigerian Government to come and sit down and talk with the government.

The third aspect of this is that at the very time the committee was given a mandate to go and dialogue with the insurgents, it was also at the time a law was enacted that outlawed Boko Haram and also criminalised any attempt by anyone to talk to the insurgents.

So, all these things put together have made the work of the committee so impossible.

It is also impossible in the sense that while some members of the committee were interested in sitting down to dialogue with Boko Haram group, some security members of the committee were simply interested in who do they want to dialogue with and what is the security interest to them.

If you look at the whole mission of the committee, it was meant to fail because right from the beginning Boko Haram said they are opposed to amnesty and then the Government went ahead to set up an amnesty committee.

Actually, before I decline to serve in the Kabiru Turaki-led Presidential Committee On Dialogue And Peaceful Resolution Of Security Challenges in North, I made all possible contacts to reach out to the insurgents

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‘Terrorism Has Tarnished The Image Of The North’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 51 and inquire of the possibility whether I will be of use and whether they are prepared to sit down with the committee. The response I got from them is that they are not prepared to sit down and talk with the committee. And if we are all going to talk to them they are not prepared to sit down and talk. And I know very well that we are going nowhere.

So, I have to simply decline. And again, if you also look at it very well, the committee has gone into other activities that are not within its schedule, one of which is misinforming Nigerians of dialogue going on between them and the insurgents, which actually never happened.

The insurgents came out consistently and dismissed the issue. The committee also came out with the false hope to Nigerians of agreements of ceasefire, even to the point of getting somebody in the name of Abdulazeez to go to the media and claim that he is a member of the Boko Haram group and that he has endorsed the ceasefire, which of course at the end, the real group came out and also dismissed such talks and ceasefire.

Nigerians were misled and misinformed by the leadership of the committee. Millions of taxpayers’ money was wasted while the committee keeps on gallivanting from one state to another seeking public opinion, while the issue is simply about the fact that you have a mandate to go and reach out to the Boko Haram group. For the very fact that they couldn’t make a breakthrough, all they did was to come out and make a report which is submitted to the Government and which of course, the ideas are not quite different from the ideas and suggestions that many people have been voicing out.

Many people believe that you know so much about the insurgents. Is it true?

I don’t know so much about them, all I try to do is simply to say as a private citizen what can I do to contribute towards bringing an end to the violence and to restore peace to my country.

I was a leading figure in the struggle against military rule and the restoration of democra-

cy in Nigeria. We stood up and fought the military, we organized mass action on the streets.

The last one was when I was sentenced to a life imprisonment for my activism and for the fact that I wanted democracy to be restored back to my country. Now, I can comfortably say that I am a stakeholder in the democratic process and also in the need for the corporate existence of Nigeria.

As a citizen of this country who has interest in the unity and the preservation of our democratic ideals, I believe that I shouldn’t simply be a critic or someone who simply laments.

I should go beyond that, and that is what made me to do what I do today, taking all the risk to reach out to the insurgents and offer myself as someone who can initiate a process. Whatever you have interest in, you will simply learn so much about it.

Within the period I have been making contacts and reaching out to broker peace and end this senseless killings and violence, I have come to know so many things which I believe that using such knowledge to bring peace to my country is what is very much needed.

I don’t share their ideals and views. I don’t share what they believe in, but I am interested in peace. I believe this violence has consumed enough lives, to the point that we all need to be seriously involved in resolving it.

This is not the time for partisan politics. But, I have seen that the political class has been exploiting the situation for their own political gains.

The government, in the event that they have been unable to find solution, had went about looking for scapegoats, shifting blames and casting aspersion on the opposition. The opposition also had made capital in the event of every incident of violence and bombings by using it to expose the weaknesses and ineptitude of the government. But, in all we are confronted with an insurgency that is threatening us and what I know is that whenever you have a bushfire raging in the bush you find out that both rats, lizards and snakes have one common

goal which is to see to how they can save themselves from the raging fire. At the moment you see all the malice between rats and snakes dissolved by reason of the exigencies of that period.

I know more by getting involved in the issue and contributing towards finding a solution.

But it seems you have good relationship with the sect members before now considering the way you took the former president of the country, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo to the sect leaders sometimes ago?

I could have taken the former President there without making contacts. I run a human rights organization in the northern part of Nigeria, which is the Civil Rights Congress for the last 15 years that I came out from prison.

My office has been providing legal services to religious groups, secular group, individuals whose rights were trampled upon. Many people whom we helped may turned out later to be people who were aggrieved and may turn out to be people who may take a path to fighting differently.

So, I can tell you that I simply took the initiative of using all the links and contacts which I have as a result of my years of my interactions and relationships with so many people in the north to see to it that we get a signal to a dialogue process which was positive.

In the cause of my efforts towards peace, I met people that may not be big names but that are very influential and crucial and are still very influential in terms of bringing about peace in our country.

Terrorism and the violence going on in the northern part of the country has tarnished the reputation of the North. It has stained the reputation of Muslims and crippled the economic activities. It has instilled fears and brought in hopelessness. It has demonized the region and portrayed our country in bad light. It has also led to capital flight and diversion of resources that ought to be used for infrastructure, health, education, but now used for security.

I am deeply concerned about the future of

my country and the long-term effect of this kind of violence. That is what made me to get involved.

By having interest and getting involved, I have actually been in touch with people in different places in the north eastern part of Nigeria that I believe are key to resolving this problem.

One mistake the government has consistently made is that it has continuously reposed her confidence on the Emirs, some high placed religious leaders and political elites in the north, most of whom are targets of the insurgents. There are people on the ground, with very strong contacts that could be of use in solving the problem.

One thing I would suggest is that I will need a forum of leaders of Islamic sects and they will be able to engage the Boko Haram group and also engage them intellectually.

If you look at the philosophical foundation of this insurgency, they are fighting based on the teachings of Sheikh Al-Islam Ibn Tamir who was a Turkish Islamic scholar that lived in the 12th to 13th century. What I believe that we need to do is to understand that Boko Haram is one sect out of several other sects in the northern part of Nigeria.

The Shiitte is a sect, the Hammadiyya has a sect leader, the Tijjaniyya has a sect leader, the Sunni has a sect leader. Why have we not brought in such sect leaders like Shiekh Ibrahim El-Zak Zakky, Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi, Sheikh Isiaka Rabiu, Sheikh Gumi, and others. Why have we not brought them to the table for them to engage the Boko Haram; that if what you are fighting is Jihad, now this is the position of Islam or what Jihad is all about. But, nobody simply invites them.

And what we have also forgotten is that the leaders of these sects so much depend on the umbrella of Islamic group that organise events.

The fact is that the leaders of these Islamic sects are not prominent members of any prominent group. We simply have to consult and engage them. I believe that solution lies with getting them fully involved in the process.

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Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 53

NEWSINTERVIEW

‘Declaring Total War Against Insurgents Will Be Counter Productive In Rescuing Abducted Girls’

By Onyedika Agbedo

Niger Delta activist and Coordinator of Ijaw Monitoring Group (IMG), Comrade Joseph Evah speaks on the abduction of over 200 school girls in Chibok, Borno State, and the efforts being made to rescue them from their Boko Haram abductors. He, however, warns against the declaration of a full state of emergency in the north-east states and total war against the insurgents, saying it will be counter productive.

HE Federal Government has been clueT less about the school girls that were abducted in Chibok, Borno State. What is your take on that?

It is very sad! The Boko Haram monster is now uncontrollable. In the beginning when we saw the symptoms of Boko Haram insurgency and all that, we advised the President on what to do. I am not a security expert but there are certain things you will see and you will not need a scientist to tell what it is all about, based on native intelligence. In our area, there is a proverb that says that even if the cock did not crow, you will see the next morning.

When the symptoms of Boko Haram insurgency began to manifest especially after the bombing of the Catholic Church in Abuja before the Police Headquarters bombing followed, our advise to the President was to declare a total state of emergency in one or two of the affected states. The advice was based on the fact that Boko Haram has many motives. The major motive before we started having foreigners coming to join them to bomb Nigeria was political.

What is happening in the north-east now is just like what happened in the Niger Delta in those days. In the Boko Haram matter, some governors had insisted on implementing Sharia Law. Nobody said you should not practice your Sharia but by the time it becomes part of your political ideology and campaign, ignorant people will be carried away with that.

So, in this Boko Haram matter, some politicians hired these people, created this name, empowered them and gave them weapons to torment their opponents. Now, the thing is beyond their control. This was the exact thing that happened in the Niger Delta, where political thugs turned their political struggles into Niger Delta struggle.

Currently, we are in a situation in which some states are as if they are not part of Nigeria. Therefore, the president should have declared a full state of emergency in the affected states. That would have been a signal to other states in the area that if they don’t deal with the matter, the state of emergency will extend to theirs. If that had happened, the states would have done everything within their powers to stop the Boko Haram threat from escalating into full insurgency because politicians cannot do without enjoying free money.

Do you support calls for the extension of the state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States now that the first six months have elapsed?

There will be serious problem if the President declares full state of emergency in those states now. If President Jonathan declares full state of emergency in these state that are in the opposition party, it will be interpreted in another way that will take the battle against Boko Haram to another dimension. In fact, things will go out of control. So, he has to be careful.

When we gave him that advice initially, he was playing politics and did not take it. He did not want to offend anybody. Now, that chance has been blown because we are already in an election period. If he goes

Evah ahead to declare a full state of emergency in these states now, the dimension it will take will be so rough that the whole world will focus on Nigeria beyond what we are already experiencing. So, I don’t advise that.

Why do you think Boko Haram have been succeeding in their attacks in spite of the presence of troops in the area?

It is because of our neighbouring countries. Our neighbours — Chad, Niger and Cameroon — have not been cooperating with Nigeria in fighting this war. I say this especially of Cameroon. I don’t know whether we offended them with what we gave to them in the name of Bakassi Peninsula. Most of the Boko Haram fighters, allegedly from Libya, Mali and other countries, who are pursuing this unholy agenda in Nigeria, are within these borders. They want to make Nigeria ungovernable and they have been penetrating through their borders to Nigeria.

What these neighbouring countries don’t know is that by the time it will backfire, they will not be spared. These countries, especially Cameroon, should undertake a study on the role Cote d’Ivoire played during the war in Liberia and what is happening in Cote d’Ivoire now.

So, I want President Jonathan to involve the international community in full scale and engage these countries that are aiding insurgents to invade Nigeria. The intervention of the international community is key now because the thing is coming down to the south. I don’t know why the international community has not intervened yet.

Do you support calls for total war on the insurgents?

No! In fact I prefer dialogue more than even military operations. The most important thing is to let these people know that what they are doing is wrong and get them to have a change of mind. For example, look at the kidnapping of young school girls.

What is the meaning of that? These young girls are mothers. These people who are perpetrating these atrocities were born by women. If they are properly educated, can they kidnap young girls, future mothers, and threaten to kill them? These girls represent their own mothers. So, looking at these girls that they abducted, they should reflect about their own mother.

So, we cannot be talking about total war against these insurgents. For example, if we decide to go for total war, what about the lives of these girls. One life is important not to talk about 200 plus lives and nobody can predict Boko Haram any longer.

So, we still want Moslem leaders and other elders in the country, especially in the north, to pursue the dialogue option. I’m also using this opportunity to appeal to the conscience of the Boko Haram members that these girls are like their mothers. So, as they cannot kill their mothers, they should not kill these girls. In fact, when we are talking about war crimes, it is mainly about women and children. Therefore, they should not harm them. So, there should not be a total war; there should not be total declaration of state of emergence. The dialogue option should still be explored and followed up.

Away from Boko Haram activities, the National Conference has been progressing for sometime now. How would you assess the proceedings so far?

The idea of the National Conference is a very good one. We congratulate the President for coming up with the idea. But you know that Nigeria is a complex society.

So, with the tension everywhere, there is the need to bring down tension. I think the President’s idea of convoking a National Conference brought down the tension a bit regarding those who were threatening left and right. But that does not mean that there the threat have entirely ceased around the country.

However, the unfortunate thing in that conference is that 70 per cent of the people there are the ones that caused the problems we are facing in this country. Now, from what we are seeing in that conference, some of them are not ready to repent.

What makes you think so?

Take for instance the recent Nyanya bombing by Boko Haram. During the conference proceedings after the bombing, Femi Falana moved a motion that the conference should realise that the Nyanya bombing is a serious threat that is similar to what happens in Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan. He called on the conference members to reflect and make recommendations to the government on how to curb insurgency in the country.

In that very conference we have retired Inspectors General of Police, retired National Security Advisers, retired State Security Service staff and other people with in-depth knowledge of how to handle this sort of crisis. Some of these experts have no opportunity to advise the President because they have no access and that very forum was an opportunity.

But some shameless elders comprising former governors and ministers, among others, stood up and said that the conference mandate did not cover Nyanya bombing. When I heard it, it was as if I was dreaming. I could not believe what my ears heard. Meanwhile, these are people that will cause a stampede that will lead to the death of many people when somebody storms the conference hall and declares him/herself Boko Haram. These were the people that the Nyanya bombing meant nothing to simply because their children, wives, relatives or even cars were not involved. These people are not normal. If it were in Ghana during the Rawlings days, he will bring out these people and give them 10 strokes of the cane each.

Apart from the conference members not taking up the issue of the Nyanya bombing seriously, have the proceedings been impressive enough because there have been contentions here and there?

We have seen one or two tension soaked sessions especially in the conference when Ms Ankyo Briggs was shouted down for raising the issue of resource control. We are surprised that some people went to that conference with the intention to exchange blows with one another.

Also, the tension that is gathering with some people saying that Christians are being favoured more than Moslems is not necessary. We don’t want this conference to worsen our situation because religion is the most sensitive issue in this country. So, if some people are saying that the conference has been programmed to favour Christians or Moslems, I want to warn that religious issues are like bombs on their own. Therefore, we want delegates at the conference to stop whipping up religious sentiments when addressing issues.

I also expected the conference to empower the Chairman to suspend those who make careless statements or try to fight there. There is nothing like that going on. If that were happening, you would not have seen people pointing hands at Ankyo Briggs and threatening her to stop her arguments on resource control. As far as I’m concerned, that place is lawless and I don’t understand where we are going with this conference. There is no discipline among those who are discussing Nigeria’s future. It is unacceptable!

54 | Saturday, May 3, 2014

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Change of Name ABATI: Formerly Miss Abati Abimbola Woleola, now Mrs Oluwaponmile Abimbola Woleola Former documents valid. Public note.

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CONFIRMATION

OF

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NNABUIHE: Formerly Miss Chinyere Oluchi Nnabuihe now Mrs Chinyere Oluchi EmmaAniebue . Former documents remain. Fidelity Bank & public note.

NNAJI: I, formerly Miss Osinachi Akuoma Nnaji now Mrs. Osinachi Akunna Odimuko. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

NWADIRE: Formerly Miss Nwadire Uchechi Doris now Mrs Ugochukwu Uchechi Doris. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

NWAGWU: Formerly Nwagwu Okechukwu now Ibeh Okey Macdon.

Former documents remain valid. General public note.

NWAJAEBICHI: Formerly Chidinma Juliet Nwajaebichi now known as Mrs. Chidinma Juliet Ihezue. Documents remain valid.

Public note.

NWAKANMA: Formerly Miss  Ijeoma Rebecca Nwakanma, now Mrs Ijeoma Rebecca StanleyOnugu. Former documents valid. Public note.

NWANKWO: Formerly Miss Grace Chikodi Nwankwo now Mrs Grace Chikodi Chijioke. former documents valid. NYSC, public note NWANMUO: Formerly Miss Nwanmuo Adaeze Sonia, now Mrs Nlemadim Adaeze Sonia.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

NWOGU-IKOJO: Formerly Dr. Eric Ezenwa Nwogu-Ikojo, now Dr. Eric Ezenwa Asimadu.

All former documents remain valid. UNN, UNTH, General Public note.

NWOGU-IKOJO: Formerly Dr. Mrs Ifeoma Nwabuogo NwoguIkojo, now Dr. Mrs Ifeoma Nwabuogo Asimadu. All former documents remain valid.

ESUTTH, General Public note.

KASALI: Formerly Miss Rashidat Ibilola Kasali now Mrs. Rashidat Ibilola Kasali-Quasim.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

NNEBEDUM: I, formerly Miss Rosemary Udoka Nnebedum now known as Mrs. Rosemary Udoka Alozie. Former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

NWODO: Formerly Miss Nwodo Ogechukwu Geraldine now Mrs Ibenero Ogechukwu Geraldine. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

KOMOLAFE: Formerly Miss Modupeola Adetoun Komolafe now Mrs. Modupeola Adetoun Potokri. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

NSOFOR: Formerly Miss Onyinyechi Nsofor now Mrs Onyinyechi Oragui.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OBASI: Formerly Miss Obasi Elsie Chiamaka now Mrs. Onwubuya Elsie Chiamaka. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

LEBEANYA: Formerly Miss Lebeanya Amarachi Gladys, now Mrs Amarachi Gladys Onyewuchi.

Former documents remain valid. Fed. Poly Nekede, general public note.

MBACHU: I, formerly Miss Chineze Ifunanya Mbachu now wish to be known as Mrs Chineze Ifunanya Onuoha. For-

NWACHUKWU: Formerly Miss Nwachukwu Ifunanya Beauty, now Mrs Onyele Ifunanya Beauty. Former documents remain valid.

General public note.

NWACHUKWU: I, formerly Miss Nwachukwu Uzoamaka Sophie, now Mrs Okonkwo Uzoamaka Sophie. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OBATOYINBO: Formerly Miss Oluwaseun Oluwadamilola Obatoyinbo now Mrs. O l u w a s e u n Oluwadamilola Unuigbe. Former documents valid. Public note.

OBIDIUME: Formerly Miss Obidiume Chidinma Faith, now Mrs Chidinma Arinze Amazikwu. Former doc-

uments remain valid.

Public note.

OBIORAH: Formerly Miss Obiorah Chinyere Nkemakonam now Mrs Anachuna-Obiorah Chinyere Nkemakonam. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

OCHIOGU: Formerly Miss Ochiogu Chika Mirian now Mrs Ugonabor Chika Mirian. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

ODEDAIRO: Former Miss Odedairo Ololade Gbemisola now Mrs. Adekeye Ololade Gbemisola. Former documents remain valid.

General public note.

ODEDINA: Formerly Miss Adeyoola Olufunmilayo Odedina now Mrs. Adeyoola Olufunmilayo Adanijo. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

ODEYEMI: I, formerly Mr. Rufus Odeyemi Afeniforo now Mr. Rufus Oluwayemisi Afeniforo. All former documents remain valid. Guardian Newspapers and general public note.

ODHIGADA: Formerly Odggada Patience Azino now to be addressed as HenryAbogba Patience Azino.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

ODIGIE: I, formerly Miss Odigie Uayemen Faith now to be known as Mrs. Ikhinobele Uayemen Faith. Former documents remain valid. General public please note.

ODUNOLA: I, former Odunola Mukiala Aremu now Odunola Success Aremu Steve.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OFFOR: Formerly Miss Jennifer Chinasa Offor now Mrs. Jennifer Chinasa Chuks Okoroafor.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OFO-MUOGBO: Formerly Miss OfoMuogbo Chioma Agartha now Mrs Ohuoha Chioma Agartha. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

OGAZIE: Formerly Miss Ogazie Judith Ifesinachi now Mrs Chukwunyere Judith Ifesinachi. Former documents valid. Public note.

58

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Saturday, May 3, 2014

Change of Name OGBUGO: Formerly Miss Ogbugo Glory Uchechi now Mrs Ufomba-Chidi Glory Uchechi. Former documents valid. Abia-poly, public note.

OGBUNACHARA: Formerly Charity Chiadikwu Ogbunachara now Charity Chiadikwe Obichukwu.

Nigerian Airspace Management Agency. Public note.

OGUNLOLA: Former Miss Ogunlola Temitope Abiodun now known as Miss Dada Abiodun Temitope. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OGUNLOLA: Former Mr. Ogunlola Joseph Yusuf now known as Mr. Dada Joseph Oluwasegun. All former documents remain valid. Public note.

OGUNLOLA: Former Mr. Ogunlola Moses Oluwadamilare now known as Mr. Dada Moses Oluwadamilare.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OJOBOR: Formerly Miss Blessing Ogechi Ojobor,now Mrs blessing Ogechi Ogala. Former documents valid. Public note.

OJO: Formerly Ibukun Ojo now Mrs. Ebosele Ibukun. All documents remain valid.

OKENWA: Formerly Miss Okenwa Amagechukwu Susan now Mrs. Onuorah Amagechukwu Susan. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OKIDE: Formerly Miss Roseline Ukamaka Okide,now Mrs Roseline Ukamaka Okoye.

Former documents valid. Public note.

OKOH: Formerly miss Ene Jocelyn Okoh, now Mrs Ene Jocelyn Idoko.

Former documents valid. Public note.

OKONKWO: Formerly Okonkwo Chioma Maureen now Mrs. Nwobu Chioma Maureen. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OKONKWO: Formerly Miss Chinazo Evelyn Okonkwo now Mrs. Chinazo Evelyn Njokanma.

Documents remain valid. Queens Eye Hospital, NYSC, University of Benin note.

OKORO: Formerly Miss Okoro Blessing Nneka, now Mrs Uhara Blessing Nneka. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

OKOYE: Formerly Miss Okoye Okwudili Okwuchukwu now Mrs. Ezekiel Okwudili Okwuchukwu Veronica.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OKOYE: Formerly Miss Bridget Uchechukwu Okoye now Mrs Bridget Uchechukwu Ikwuagwu Ogwogwo.

Former documents valid. Public note.

OKUESO: Formerly Miss Mojisola Okueso now Mrs. Mojisola Irri. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OKULAJA: Formerly Miss Bukuola Michelle Okulaja, now Mrs Bukuola Michelle Egbetola. Former documents valid. Public note.

OLABISI: Formerly Miss Clara Idowu Olabisi now Mrs. Clara Idowu Akinwande. All former documents remain valid. General public note.

OLADELE: Formerly Miss Oladele Fehintoluwa Mary, now Mrs Agomoh Fehintoluwa Mary. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

OLALUDE: Former Olalude Abiola Adefunke now Omosigho Abiola Adekunle. All former documents remain valid. Public note.

OLAMERUN: Formerly Miss Olamerun Modupe Adedoyin now Mrs Sellers Modupe Adedoyin. All former documents remain valid.General public note OLAYIWOLA: I, formerly Miss Oluwakemi Adebukola Olayiwola now Mrs. Oluwakemi Adebukola Winsala. Previous documents remain valid. Public take note.

OLOGUNEBI: Formerly Miss Bolanle Bose Ologunebi, now Mrs Bolanle Bose Joju. Former documents valid.

Public note.

OLOJEDE: I, formerly Olusegun Olojede now wish to be addressed as Olusegun Folarin. Former documents remain valid. General Public take note l: Former Mrs. Olubajo Bernice Funmilola now Mrs. Olumide Bernice Funmilola. Former documents remain valid.

Unilag and public note.

OLUBIYI: Former Miss Olufunke Temitope Ol-

ubiyi now Mrs. Olufunke Temitope Soyombo.

All former documents remain valid. Public note.

OLUDU: I, formerly Ms Oludu Olamide Motunrayo now known as Mrs. Dare Olamide Motunrayo. Former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

OMORAKA: Formerly Omoraka Ufuoma Peace now Mrs. Badru Ufuoma Peace. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OMOTAYO: Formerly Miss Omotayo Ojo Bolanle now Mrs. Oladipo Bolanle Modupeola. All former documents remain valid.

Public note.

ONABOLU: Formerly Mrs. Murenikeji Adetoro Onabolu now Miss.

Morenikeji Adetoro Adesina. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

ONOTU: Former Rosemary Ugegbe Onotu now Rosemary Ugegbe Wyse. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

ONUOHA: Formerly Uju Onuoha Chukwu now Obinanuju Chidera Anthony. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

ONUOHA: Formerly Miss Onuoha Chikamso Blessing now Mrs Agu Okocha Chikamso Blessing. Former documents valid. NYSC, Public note.

ONWUEGBUCHULAM: Formerly Miss Onwuegbuchulam Udokaku Bethel now Mrs. Udokaku Bethel Uche Chionye. All former documents remain valid. Public note.

Chinyere Linda Ukanwoko. Former documents valid. ABSU, NYSC, public note.

ONYEZE: Formerly Miss Onyeze Rosemary Chinenye, now Mrs Ugwuanyi Rosemary Chinenye. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

ONYIA: Formerly Miss Onyia Destiny Adaeze, now Mrs Uchenna Destiny Adaeze. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OREDUGBA: Formerly Miss Oredugba Omolara Olufunmilayo, now Mrs Olaniyi Omolara Olufunmilayo. Former documents valid.

Public note.

OSANYINLUSI: I, formerly Osanyinlusi Angela Yetunde Olufisayo now wish to be addressed as Mrs. Omotoso Angela Yetunde Olufisayo. All documents remain valid.

Public please note.

OSAWARU: Formerly Miss Pamela Iroghama Osawaru now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Pamela Iroghama Ohen. All former documents remain valid. Public note.

OSIAH: Formerly Miss Gift Chinyere Osiah now Mrs Gift Chinyere Peter Erebi. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OSITA: Formerly Mr. Okonkwo Celestine Osita now Okonkwo Celestine Uchenna. All former documents remain valid. General public note.

Miss Mayowa Oyerinsola Oyewole, now Mrs Mayowa Oyerinsola Obogbeni. Former documents valid. Public note.

POROYE: Former Poroye Kikelomo Anu now Kikelomo Olubusayo Alonge. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

SOBODU: Former Miss Sobodu Bukola Mary now Mrs Akano Bukola Mary. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

SAMUEL: Formerly Miss Bukola Oyinkan Samuel now Mrs. Bukola Oyinkan Ayo Idowu. All former documents remain valid. Public note.

SANKEY: Formerly Miss Sankey Dorcas Nnaye now Mrs. Alfred Dorcas Nnaye. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

SOYANNWO: Formerly known and addressed as Miss Olukemi Olayinka Soyannwo and Miss Olufikemi Olayinka Soyannwo now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Olukemi Olayinka Adekoya. All former documents remain valid. CSCS and general public please take note.

TAIWO: Formerly Miss Taiwo Aminat Oloade now Mrs. Olugbemi Ololade Aminat. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

UMEZURUMBA: Formerly Miss Ihuoma Chizaram Umezurumba now Mrs. Ihuoma Chizaram Okwuonu. All former documents remain valid.

National Root Crops Research Institute Umudike, public note.

USORO: Formerly Miss Emem Gabriel Usoro now Mrs Emem Wisdom Patrick. Former documents valid. Public note.

UTIT: Formerly Miss Magdalene Ita Utit now Mrs. Magdalene Ekemini Umana. Former documents remain valid.

BASSE Engineering and public note.

UZOEGBU: Formerly Miss Uzoegbu Gladys Ijeoma now Mrs Onyedibe Gladys Ijeoma. Former documents valid.

NYSC, public note.

UZOMBA: Formerly Miss Uzomba Onyinyechi Daphne now Mrs. Chukwuemeka Onyinyechi Daphne. All former documents remain valid. Public note.

VICTOR: I, Mrs. Roseline Victor now addressed as Mrs. Roseline Eshioriameh. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

THOMAS: Formerly Miss Marie Darline Thomas now Mrs. Marie Darline Okhimame.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

IF FOR

ONWURAH: Formerly Miss Chizoba Chinwe Onwurah now Mrs. Chizoba Chinwe Godfrey. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

ONYEBUCHI: Formerly Miss Joy Onyebuchi now Mrs. Joy Ndubuisi Obioma. All former documents remain valid.

Abia State Ministry of Health, public note.

OTUMARA: Formerly Miss Alero Otumara now Mrs. Alero Oweghoro. Former documents remain valid.

General public please note.

ONYEKACHI: Formerly Miss Obiageli Hope Onyekachi now Mrs. Obiageli Hope Udom.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OWOYE: Formerly Miss Motunrayo Olabisi Owoeye now Mrs. Motunrayo Olabisi Ifediniru.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

UDOGU: Formerly Miss Udogu Evelyn Ngozi now Mrs. Iyebutemeh Evelyn Ngozi Udogu.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

OYEWOLE:

UKWU: Formerly Miss Ukwu Kelechi Linda

Formerly

UMEALO: Formerly Ngozi Chukwujekwu Umealo now Onyeagba Chukwujekwu Umealo.

All former documents remain valid. General public note.

TAIWO: Former Miss |Funmilayo Temitope Taiwo now Mrs. Funmilayo Temitope Kehinde Taiwo. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

OTEKILEH: Formerly Miss Ann Uche Otekileh, now Mrs Ann Uche Oduware. Former documents valid. Public note.

OTUFOWORA: Formerly Wemimo Ojuolape Otufowora now Mrs. Wemimo Ojuolape Awojoodu. Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

ONYEOCHA: Formerly Miss Chinyere Linda Onyeocha now Mrs

now Mrs. Ifechigha Kelechi Linda. Former documents remain valid. Public note.

UDE: I, formerly Miss Ude/Udeh Augustina Chika, now Mrs Onwuzulike Augustina Chika.Former documents remain valid.

Public note.

UDEOGU: Formerly Miss Uzoamaka Grace Udeogu now Mrs. Uzoamaka Grace Nwobilor.

Former documents remain valid. Public note.

THE PURPOSE OF THIS CHANGE OF NAME YOU WANT TO BUY A COPY PLEASE CALL 0802 306 4437

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60 Saturday, May 3, 2014

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TRANSITION

Adieu, Nkiru Danjuma… The Icon Of Our Time

By Bayo Ogunmupe T was a funeral that took on the colour of a Icitement carnival. The crowd of dignitaries, the exof ordinary folks and the good weather added colour to the event.

In the unprecedented crowd were government officials including the former DirectorGeneral of the Nigerian Communication Commission, Mr. Nick Ndukwe, corporate moguls, SANs and Pentecostal giants. Pastor Obong Ntia, the Resident Pastor of the Living Faith Church, Ota, represented Bishop David Oyedepo and officiated at the funeral. They came from far and near to the funeral of Dr. Nkiru Ogbenyanu Nzegwu-Danjuma.

The crowd told a story that the late Danjuma led a good life that endeared her to thousands of people who could not sit back at home and miss witnessing her final rite of passage.

Danjuma died on Saturday, March 15, 2014, at 56 years. She is survived by Barr. (Miss) Saratu Obianuju, Asibi Nwando, Jessica Maryam and Jenniffer Maimuna Danjuma.

In a sermon at the wake-keep that lasted from 5-7 pm on Thursday March 26, 2014, at Harbor Point, Ikoyi, Pastor Niyi Beecroft of the Living Faith Church quoting from Psalms 1035, Galatian 1:16 and Acts 7:24 said the success of a man’s life is measured by his devotion to God. As early as 7am on Friday, the bereaved family members and sympathisers moved to 171A Dophin Estate, Ikoyi, for her lying in state and later proceeded to the Vault and Gardens Chapel, Ikoyi, where her remains were intered.

Dr. Chu Nzegwu in his tribute said: “You amazed me with larger than life testimony of your various experiences with God. I owe my rebirth and dedication of my life to Jesus in the early 90s to her evangelism.”

Danjuma Her sister, Barr. Ifeyinwa Obiamaka Nzegwu, wrote: “Thousands would attest to your selfless giving not only to those in need but also to spread happiness and the word of God.” Also in her tribute, a sister and friend of the deceased, Mrs. Mary Ofong, said: “You welcomed all, defended those you could, fed the hungry and clothed the naked. You were a tower of strength to many people.”

Barr. Babajide Koku (SAN) described her as a woman of a strong determination and zeal for excellence. “The Bar has lost a gem,” he said.

Pa Johnson Odetoki Shodipo (1914-2014) HE death has occurred of T Pa Johnson Odetoki Shodipo. He died in Lagos at the ripe age of 104 recently.

Born in 1914 at Oke-Aro Village near Alagbado Railway Station in Ogun State to the late Chief Showemimo, a farmer and High Chief and the late Madam Fatima Bayewun Shodipo, a kolanut trader from Bida, Niger State, the late Shodipo attended Lagos Government School, Epetedo, for his primary education before enrolling at the Methodist Boy’s High School, Lagos, for his secondary education.

He was recruited into the Nigeria Marine, Dockyard, Apapa in 1940 through a thorough entrance examination. He was posted to the HQ as the time keeper for scoring the highest marks in English and Mathematics. His daily income then was two shillings and six pence compared to the eight pence per day that some other jobs offered.

Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) was then the ideal and the best organisation to work. He heard of the recruitment and sent in his application. He took the entrance examination and was offered immediate employment in the Nigerian Railway Traffic Training School in 1942.

After six months intensive training with the Nigerian Railway in Ebute-Metta, Lagos, he was posted to the northern region as a Traffic Officer. He worked in Zaria, Kano, Kafanchan, Jos and

Shodipo Sokoto to mention just a few.

In 1946, Papa married his wife, Mama Sabinah Obafunke Green in Lagos, who was of Sierra Leonean descendants but was born in Lagos. In 1957, while serving as a Station Master in Lagos, the late Shodipo met Mama Roseanne Adedigba Shodipe at Kajola Station.

The outbreak of the Civil War in 1966 caused his transfer back to Lagos where he was able to settle down with his family. The late Shodipo spoke all the three major Nigerian languages.

In 1976, he retired from the Nigerian Railway Corporation after 34 years of meritorious service.

He was a full and active member of Methodist Church, Palm-Avenue, Mushin, Lagos. The late

Shodipo served and worshipped the Lord all through his entire life, having started as a youth member of Hoares Memorial Methodist Church, Yaba. He settled down with his family in Papa-Ajao, Matori and joined the local circuit of Methodist Church, Palm-Avenue in Mushin. He served as the secretary to Elder’s Union for 10 years while he was also keeping the tithe register of the church.

The late Shodipo devoted his retirement life to the service of God and humanity. His truthfulness and commitment to service made the leaders of the church to appoint him as the Treasurer of the church.

From 1985 to 1993, he was responsible for the safe keeping of the Lord’s purse. This was a great challenge at over 70 years of age as he personally counted, recorded and banked all church money for the period. He was given a commendation and an award of recognition as the trust treasurer for the Church (1985-1993).

He equally served as patron to the following church societies: Elder’s Union, Helper’s Union, Wesley Guild and Emmanuel Band.

He is survived by children, grandchildren and great grandchildren amongst them Mrs. Abiodun Fadipe, Mrs. Oluyemisi Adepitan, Mrs. Aderonke Gbadebo, Mrs. Abimbola Adeniyan, Mr. Akintunde Shodipo, Mr. Olurotimi Shodipo and Mr. Tolulope Shodipo.

Barr. Amina Oyagbola described the late Danjuma as a woman who believed in the best and first class education. “She was a woman who was ready to help anyone and everyone.”

Head of Johanan Chambers, Barr. Edwin Osagie Arasomwan said that Danjuma would be remembered and honoured for her indefatigable pursuit of truth and excellence.

He described her as an ideal mother who contributed her quota to the peace and development of the society adding that, “her philanthropic gesture cut across ethnic and religious boundaries.”

The late Danjuma was born on November 13, 1957. She was the third of the four daughters of the late Chief George Nebolisa Nzegwu, Gbosa Obi of Onitsha and the late Mrs. Enyi Elizabeth Obura Nzegwu of Aduba family also from Onitsha, Anambra State.

She earned an LLB Law Degree from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria. She was loved by all! One of her lecturers, one Prof. (Mrs.) Gonesekera was particularly fond of her and their friendship flourished even after Mrs. Gonesekera’s retirement.

The late Danjuma was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1982 thereby becoming a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. She furthered her education by obtaining a Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) in Jurisprudence. She was also a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK).

Danjuma started her over 30 years experience as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the prestigious law firm of Chief Kehinde Sofola (SAN). She later served as Company Secretary of Commercial Trust Bank for 10 years.

In 1990, she set up Johanan Chambers, a vibrant law firm reputed as one of the most successful law firms in Nigeria with specialty in property law and litigation. She

served on the Board of several companies including Volkswagen of Nigeria and was Chairperson of Cledop West Africa Limited, Dominion Airline and Capital Oil Plc. She was a member of the Board of Regents of Covenant University, Ota, and Advisory Board Member of Banking and Financial Law Report.

She authored many books and publications that include The Role of Company Secretary in Corporate Management and The Bankers Liability and the City of Refuge. She was also a distinguished poet with several works and was a member of Writer’s Boarder.

The late Danjuma got born-again in 1988 and served God diligently as a member of the Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM). Her zeal for God was recognised by the ministry and she was given an award in November 1988 “in recognition of your unflinching, yet silent support and commitment to the work of the ministry, and the expansion of the Kingdom of God”.

Danjuma was a willing vessel of God. Prompted by the Holy Spirit, she started an all women fellowship in her home tagged “Daughters of Zion” — a gathering of women of diverse calibre and calling who met monthly in her house for over 15 years. She reached out to the less privileged and found joy in visiting the elderly.

A valuable, dedicated and committed member of the Living Faith Church (Winners Chapel, Ota), she inspired many church members especially the students of Covenant University. She worked very closely with Dr. David Oyedepo, — the presiding Bishop of the Living Faith Church Worldwide — in different capacities.

Enkay, as she was fondly called by her friends, was an all round success. She was a devoted mother who raised four intelligent and accomplished daughters who are following her professional steps.

Associates Commiserate With Joe Gadzama Over Wife’s Death

By Henry Michael-Ihunde and Uluba Mai Jawur T is with a heavy heart that IJ-Kwe members of the Firm of Gadzama commiserate with our Principal Partner, Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama, SAN, whose amiable wife of immeasurable value passed on Monday, April 7, 2014, at the age of 42, after a brief illness.

Until her death, Mrs. Janada Joe-Gadzama worked with the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and was known by all as a warm, affable and easy-going woman.

She stood like a rock behind her husband and was his friend and confidant.

She was also a loving mother, mentor and teacher to the children. She was the epitome of humility and compassion, effectively balancing her work schedule with the task of managing

Gadzama the home, bringing- up the kids and being there for her

husband.

The late Janada was a beacon of light and all who met with her were awed by her simplicity and gentility as she readily sought to make sure everybody around her was happy at all times.

Words truly cannot express the sadness that we feel at this point but we submit entirely to the will of God Almighty and express our gratitude to Him for making her a part of our lives and affecting same positively within such a short period.

We love her and will definitely miss her but we know God loves her more.

She is survived by her husband, Chief Gadzama and six children, one of whom is Madu Joe-Gadzama, a Bar Part II student at the Nigerian Law School.

We pray for God’s strength and favour to enable her husband and children bear this irreparable loss.

Rachael Kehinde Akindele For Burial May 10 HE funeral rites of the late Prophetess Rachael Kehinde T Akindele (nee Oduyelu) who recently died at 82 years will commence on Friday, May 9, 2014, with a wake-keep at Holy

Akindele

Trinity School, 1 Close, off Lafenwa/Aiyetoro Road, Abeokuta, from 5–7p.m.

Her commendation service and interment will hold at the same venue on Saturday, May 10 after which guests will be immediately entertained at Holy Trinity Primary School, 1 Playing Ground, off Lafenwa/Aiyetoro Road, Abeokuta.

She is survived by many children, grand children and great grand children, including Mr. Wale Akindele, MD/CEO, First October Global Resources Limited.

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Saturday, May 3, 2014 61

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Sports DStv Premier Basketball League

Top Players, Music Stars To Thrill Fans At All-Stars Game Also speaking on the game, General Manager, “Like I said earlier, the players are professional skills and give the fans a taste of what to expect Marketing, MultiChoice Nigeria Martin Mabutho, enough to know what it takes to win this game. in the remainder of the season. explained the decision to hold the game thus: “It So, they need to bring out their best and try to “What we try to do is to bring the game to the ASKETBALL lovers will today, at the Sports is a way of celebrating the mid-point of the league, play as a team and take the chances that would fans and see that they can enjoy themselves Hall of the University of Lagos Sports Centre, and re-energising for the second stanza of the seacome their way,” Ahmedu added. when they come to watch basketball games. be treated to the best of the slam and dunk son.

While assuring the fans of immense fun “It is all about the fans today as our sponsor, game, as 24 players from the DStv Premier “The All-Star event this year already has the potenNomigo says he expects a tough game. The MultiChoice Nigeria has lined up other side Basketball League vie for honours in the all-stars tial to be bigger and better than last year’s edition.

Dodan Warriors coach promised that the game attractions to excite them. I am also sure that game, which takes place by 1pm.

In addition to featuring top players from the two would bring out the best in the players. both teams are ready for the game and would The mid-season encounter, will pitch players conferences of the DStv Premier Basketball “I was not part of last year’s event, but we want give the fans something to cheer about,” the from the Atlantic Conference against their League, we will also have Nollywood actors and to show basketball fans what the DStv League is NBBF president noted.

Savannah Conference counterparts in what musical icons like Patoranking, Oritsefemi, Sean all about. So, they will surely get to see some of Reinstating the federation’s commitment to promises to be a thrilling encounter.

Tizzle, Phyno, among others in attendance.” the best moves, which will make them yearn for basketball development, Umar stated that the Apart from exciting the crowd with their He added that the two teams made up of on air more.

NBBF would continue to bring up ideas that breathtaking skills and moves, the players will personalities from Beat FM and Channel O will He, however, said that the game was not a must- would benefit the teams and ensure that the also be battling to win the N1m top prize, even slug it out in this year’s event. win despite the victorious team smiling home national team benefits from an improved as the Savannah Conference team hopes to win He also highlighted that, “One of our major focus with cash prize. “The Atlantic Conference won league. the game, which it lost last season. the All-Star game last year and hopefully we can He also called on stakeholders to team up with areas in MultiChoice is sports development. We Ahead of the epic game, the Nigeria Basketball retain the title, but the idea behind the game is the federation to take basketball to an enviable know that basketball is a lifestyle sport, which is Federation (NBBF) had released a list of 24 playhighly entertaining. It is that excitement that we to thrill the fans.” height. “This is another opportunity to call on ers and six officials from both conferences of the want to bring to Nigerians. We want basketball to President of the NBBF, Tijani Umar noted that basketball lovers and stakeholders to join the DStv Premier League. be associated with fun, excitement and the famithe game was part of the federation’s drive to NBBF in improving the fortunes of basketball in According to the NBBF/DStv League Director, ly,” Mabutho added. make basketball more interesting and accessible the country.”

Agboola Pinheiro, 12 players and three officials MultiChoice Nigeria is the major sponsor of the to the fans.

To make the All Star game a memorable one, were selected from the two conferences for the DStv Premier Basketball League, which also He explained that the match would also afford MultiChoice will blend live basketball action game with Kano Pillars and Mark Mentors domithe players the opportunity to showcase their with musical performances from select artistes. involves live coverage of league games by nating the Savannah Conference list.

SuperSport throughout the season.

“The Savannah Conference will be handled by coaches Peter Ahmedu (Mark Mentors) and Abdulrahman Mohammed (Gombe Bulls) with former international, Lawal Garba as Team Manager. Coaches Adeboye Aderiboye (Oluyole Warriors) and Chris Nomingo (Dodan Warriors) will handle the Atlantic Conference team with former international, Deji Jaiyeola serving as Team Manager,” Pinheiro disclosed early this week.

Coach Sani Ahmed of Kano Pillars is head coach of the Savannah All-Stars team, but will be absent due to family commitments, while Head coach of the Atlantic Conference, Lati Erinfolami, of Islanders, who is also coach of First Deepwater Basketball team is already in Ilorin for the second phase of the Zenith Bank Women’s League.

Players picked from the Savannah Conference are Abubakar Usman, Dele Ademola, Mathew Monya, Onyeka Okeke and Adeolu Ojoh from Kano Pillars, Stanley Gumut, Abdul Yahaya, Akpara Akiti and Timothy Kwor from Mark Mentors and Chibuzor John from Plateau Peaks.

John Mathais and Joseli Ibrahim from Gombe Bulls complete the list.

The Atlantic Conference players are Chiwendu Nwaigbo and Ibrahim Okpe from Islanders, Obum Onyia, William Ndouba, Solomon Ajebeyi and Boniface Synesius from Union Bank, Azouma Dike and Mamadou Savadogo from Dodan Warriors, Lanre Alimi from Kwara Falcons, Emmanuel Balogun (Customs) and Femi Adekanye of Oluyole Warriors.

Ahmedu told The Guardian that the game would give the players the opportunity to showcase their skills and win over fans that would throng the match venue in search of a good time.

“It is an all-stars game and it gives the players an opportunity to showcase their skills, while also striving to win the top prize. We have not trained together, so I rely more on individual brilliance of the players to win the game.

“I have seen all the players perform during the first stanza of the league because my team played against the others in the Savannah Conference. So, the team’s technical crew knows what to do to bring out the best in the players,” he added.

While admitting that it would be good for the Savannah Conference to win the game, he, however, stated that that depend on the players, whom he said have the capacity to rise to the occasion.

Players jostle for possession in the DStv Premier Basketball League Games between Custom and Oluyole Warriors at the sports hall of the National Stadium, Lagos.

By Adeyinka Adedipe

B

62 Saturday, May 3, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

SPORTS

The Oracle Is Back – How Will Africa Fare?

Mikel Obi and Stephen Keshi at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa in 2013 HE oracle is back. Those who want to know how Africa will T perform at the 2014 World Cup had better keep a date with this page.

We have spoken with some renowned persons in the international football media and published their initial impressions.

We have also looked at the documents of betting syndicates and expert pundits and know their thinking.

Now, it is time to go ‘inside’, to consult with the ‘oracle’ who will be looking closely and steadily into the World Cup crystal ball to see what no one else is seeing. That’s what we start today.

Our interest for now is limited to African teams and their opponents in their different groups. This is the fuzzy picture that emerges as we get closer to actual preparations of the teams.

Group A This is the group of Cameroon, Croatia, Mexico and Brazil.

Corroborating every data–driven analysis around the world, and not withstanding the expected pressure of being host and of the public protests that will affect the championship and morale, Brazil will emerge from this group as leader.

So, will the Cameroon join them? It is not expected, but it is not impossible also. Even the crystal ball, for now, does not see anything clearly.

Like the Cameroon, Mexico also has a pool of ageing players, particularly in defense. They only managed at the last moment to qualify for Brazil by playing an inter-continental play-off with New Zealand.

Croatia also barely qualified via a similar play-off route against a weak Iceland team. They also will be playing under the unusually harsh humidity of Brazil at summer time.

So, for the Cameroon to qualify may not be quite as far fetched as its looks on paper. With their very physical style of play and familiarity with the weather conditions, their major challenge will be the past-their-peak army of Indomitable Lions led by Samuel Eto they will parade.

Recall that they also did not catch the World Cup train but for the intervention of fate that presented them three ‘free’ points because Togo defaulted on some technical issues during the qualifying group matches!

So, the oracle warns: do not write-off the Cameroon even if everything points to the contrary!

Group C This is Cote D’Ivoire’s group that includes Colombia, Greece and Japan.

Colombia with Falcao (if he recovers enough to play and be effective) would be a huge mountain to climb. Greece are not a world-class team. They came second to an ordinary–playing Bosnia Herzegovina in their European group. Coming from Europe the heat of Brazil will make them easier ‘meat’ to be chewed up.

Japan will pose a more formidable opposition. Their performances during qualification and during the 2013 Confederations Cup when they even defeated Italy, makes them dangerous customers.

Cote D’Ivoire are the most highly rated team in Africa at the moment. They present the only player with the talismanic credentials that every team that will go far requires – a leader that presents the additional dimension needed to make a difference! Brazil has Neymar, Argentina has Messi, Portugal has Ronaldo, and Colombia, Falcao. Cote D’Ivoire has Yaya Toure, undoubtedly the best African player of the present era whose

presence and performance will influence how far the Elephants go in Brazil 2014.

The Ivoriens, even with age catching up with some of its experienced players, have the quality to come out of this relatively weak group.

This group is very open, therefore, and the oracle can see some faint outlines of Elephants in the distance.

Group G Ghana will have their hands full against Germany, Portugal and the USA. Their only advantage is that Brazil 2014 is not expected to be a European World Cup even with experienced campaigners like Germany and Portugal in the championship. The oracle sees dark clouds that reveal little for now.

On paper, Germany looks very good to lead the group. They have the players and the experience of playing and winning at this level.

Portugal do not have such credentials, and even with the best player in the world in their team, few are confident they can come through in this group. Cristiano Ronaldo has never done for Portugal what he does regularly for his clubs. This is because in Portugal he is a one-man army!

The USA are hard workers, always giving 100 per cent in effort.

But they do not have the depth in technical strategy and players to become a dominant force. They always struggle even when they win.

So, even though pundits are not giving them much of a chance, Ghana are in the oracle’s distant vision.

It warns other teams to beware Ghana with their short and long passing, their running, physical play, self-confidence, organisational discipline and flair.

Group H If there is one group where anything is possible, including the possibility of Algeria leading the group, this is it!

Algeria are a real ‘dark horse’. Nothing favours them except that very little is known about them and so little is expected!

Russia look like the European version of Algeria – little known about them and little public expectation. The only thing going for them is the discipline and experience of their coach Fabio Capello. Unfortunately, a coach is only as good as the players he has. And Russia do not boast an array!

South Korea, are not very different. They have a few players playing in secondary European teams, but no outstanding ones to anchor any great surge at the championship. No much is known about them. Their performance in qualifying is littered with ups and downs that paint an inconsistent team. They struggled to qualify. Little is expected from them. Their greatest credential their consistent consecutive appearance at the last 8 World Cup championships.

Belgium are in a different class. Every international analyst and pundit predicts that Belgium will be a major challenger at the World Cup. The team was unbeaten throughout its run to Brazil.

They have a squad of young, gifted players playing regularly in several top European clubs. Add to that their group opponents, and you can’t fault all those predicting they will lead group H. The oracle does not see differently. Algeria has a chance and all should watch out for the Desert Warriors, as they try to re-enact their incredible records of the early 1980s.

Group F Nigeria is teamed with Argentina, Iran and Bosnia. Iran are not a pushover even though they do not have big players. They defeated South Korea away from home to qualify for the World Cup. That is significant. They may lack the players in number and quality but they make up in their determination, work ethics, and ability to absorb pressure.

Bosnia Herzegovina are very dangerous customers by all standards. They have deep experience in football, technically, being a part of rich football tradition of former Yugoslavia. They always create and score goals, as their records show qualifying for the World Cup. Nigeria will have a hard time in every match, but they will

defeat Iran because they are a better team, and the Bosnians will find it hard to cope with the harsh humid conditions, plus the strength and pace of the Nigerians!

So, the oracle sees the Eagles soaring high up in the skies of Brazil along side Argentina.

How will Nigeria fare against Argentina? It is the last group match. Argentina has beaten Nigeria in all their three previous meetings at this level. This is either a huge challenge for Nigeria or a psychological burden. Either way, that would not stop Nigeria’s stride into the second round against all the predictions of the analysts and pundits!

Week 3 Questions I thought my World Cup Football Mastermind would be a piece of cake for most Nigerians.

I am wrong!

It only means readers are not working hard enough to win my super prizes even with the aid of modern technology.

Here are very cheap ones for week 3. Remember, send your answers, one at a time, only via SMS short code!

1. In what year did CAF officially secure Africa’s first slot for the World Cup? 2. In 1977, late radio commentator, Ernest Okonkwo, famously described Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the World Cup in these words: ‘Nigeria scores Nigeria’. Which player was he referring to?

3. In 1994, Rashidi Yekini scored Nigeria’s first goal at the USA ‘94 World Cup. He gripped the net and released a scream that reverberated all over the world. Whilst screaming

what did he actually say?

4. Who captained Nigeria in the last World Cup qualifying match against Algeria in 1981?

5. Who was the Ghanaian that played for Nigeria against Tunisia in Lagos in 1981 during the 1982 World Cup qualifying match?

6. The Black Stars of Ghana would have qualified for the semi-finals of the 2010 World Cup but for this Uruguayan Player who parried a goal-bound ball. What is his name?

7. Which was the first African country to win a match at the World Cup? 8. Throughout his football career Christian Chukwu played only one World Cup qualifying match in which he was not Captain. What match was it and in what year?

9. Which African country has represented the continent the most at the World Cup? How many times?

10. Nigeria’s national teams used to have Team Managers. Who was Nigeria’s Team Manager to the USA 1994 World Cup?

Saturday, May 3, 2014 63

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

SPORTS English Premier League

Diego Costa Agrees Chelsea Move Diego Costa has agreed to join Chelsea this summer. A deal worth £75 million, including transfer fee and salary, was finalized at a meeting in London less than 24 hours after Costa’s penalty inspired Atletico Madrid’s 3-1 Champions League win over the Blues on Wednesday.

Chelsea will pay around £35 million for the striker, although a significant portion of the transfer fee

includes agents’ fees.

The Europa League champion will also more than triple the wages of Costa, who is believed to earn around £50,000 per week at the Estadio Vicente Calderon.

Chelsea is set to hand the 25year-old a five-year contract worth £150,000 a week.

As reported by Goal in April, the west Londoners hope to confirm the deal before the end of the season and ahead

Silva Available For City LAyMAkER David Silva Goodison Park this weekend P could return for title before concluding their camfavourites Manchester City’s paign with home matches Diego Costa

Newcastle Fans Plan Walkout During Cardiff Game

N

EWCASTLE fans are planning a walkout in today’s game against Cardiff in protest over the club’s management.

It is set to take place in the 69th minute and comes after the worst losing run since 1986-87 that has seen them slip from European contention to a possible finish

outside the top 10.

“It’s the lack of ambition that has driven fans to think there must be some symbolic way to protest,” said fans group spokesman Mark Jensen. “It’s a club that’s falling apart.”

According to the statement issued by protest organisers Newcastle United Supporters Trust, the 69th minute has

Sports Market Intl Goes Monthly HE Sports Market T International Magazine published by Ventolite Sports Limited officially hits the newsstand on Tuesday in a grand ceremony where it was presented to Nigerians at the Colonades Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos.

The publisher of the magazine, Patrick Ukah, said at the presentation ceremony that the 32-page all-colour magazine would now be on sale in Nigeria on a monthly basis.

He stressed that, the tabloid whose main focus would be on the business of sports, would at all times serve the interest of the country’s sports lovers who have the edge to go the extra in squeezing out the business aspects of sports.

“We intend to touch on the important sector of the society and the youth.” He said.

The magazine was reviewed by three renowned Nigerians selected from the media industry, the advertising industry and the marketing industry. They are Ted Iwere, the Managing Director/Editor-in-chief of

Patrick Uka

Daily Independent Newspaper, Bayo Ojo and Dr. ken Onyeali Ikpe (MD/CEO Mediacom Nigeria).

Ted Iwere in his comment said the magazine is not for pleasure but strictly business as the content spans sports marketing and rise management.

“The magazine scored well on the editorial side and also got it right on the side of business.

It is a well produced magazine and it is destined to go places.”

Iwere who is also the Captain of the Ikoyi Club Golf Section added that: “The next level is to go the way of the future, going digital online.”

He noted that, Sports Market International magazine is a wonderful tabloid whose chemistry is right and he urged the business and Nigerians as a whole to support the magazine.

The chief launcher, Gabriel Ogbechie (Managing Directo Rainoil) who also unveiled the magazine to the public urged corporate Nigeria and individuals to support the magazine a situation he said would make it last the test of time.

He pledged a three-year full page advert of Rainoil in the magazine as his full support for the survival of Sports Market International.

Other dignitaries present at the occasion include Rotimi Pedro (MD of OSMI Sports Group), Hon. Tunde Popoola (Secretary General of the Nigeria Olympic Committee), and Larry Izamoje (Chairman Brila Group) among others.

been chosen as a reminder of the last time the Magpies won a major trophy - the 1969 Fairs Cup, now better known as the Europa League.

NUST board member Jensen said owner Mike Ashley was only interested in the club as a business.

“He had no previous attachment to Newcastle,” said Jensen. “Any money he put in has been as an investment that he hopes to get much more out of at the end. If Newcastle were run with ambition, then we can all be winners - Ashley and the fans.”

crucial Barclays Premier League trip to Everton today.

The Spaniard missed last weekend’s win at Crystal Palace after being carried off on a stretcher with an ankle injury in the previous game against West Brom.

The 28-year-old has now recovered and his availability gives City a lift ahead of the final week of the season.

Manager Manuel Pellegrini said: “David is a very important player for us. He will be in the squad list. The only player we have injured is Jesus Navas.

All the rest of the squad are fit.”

Winger Navas has missed the last three games with an ankle injury.

City, in third, trail leaders Liverpool by three points but still have three games to play as opposed to their rivals’ two - and also have a superior goal difference.

They play the first of them at

against Aston Villa and West Ham. Pellegrini expects Everton, who still have an outside chance of qualifying for the Champions League, to provide tough opposition.

of Costa departing for the World Cup, where he is expected to be an integral member of the Spain squad trying to defend its 2010 crown.

Representatives of the London club have held a series of meetings with Costa’s camp in recent months and the latest set of talks around the two clubs’ Champions League showdown has closed the deal.

Speaking in the wake of Wednesday night’s win, Costa admitted that he had a few offers on the table from rival clubs, but said that he would focus on Atletico’s pursuit of the double before making a decision on his future.

Atletico coach Diego Simeone had paved the way in April for Costa to leave by admitting that the Spanish club was powerless to stop him being sold to a club of Chelsea’s financial might.

Fixtures Today West Ham v Tottenham 12:45 Aston Villa v Hull 15:00 Man Utd v Sunderland 15:00 Newcastle v Cardiff 15:00 Stoke v Fulham 15:00 Swansea v Southampton 15:00 Everton v Man City 17:30 Tomorrow Arsenal v West Brom 13:30 Chelsea v Norwich 16:00 Monday Crystal Palace v Liverpool 20:00 Tuesday Man Utd v Hull 19:45 Wednesday Man City v Aston Villa 19:45

Men’s Clinic Win ARM 20th Anniversary Golf Tournament

By Eno-Abasi Sunday ITH 60 netscore garnered W over 18 holes, Team Mens’ Clinic Nigeria lifted the Director’s Cup at the ARM 20th Anniversary Golf Tournament, which took place Thursday at the Lakowe Lakes Golf and Country Club, Lekki, Lagos State.

The tourney, which format was Team stroke play (best net score per hole), saw the better gross score for the hole counting for the total team score.

The corporate golf tournament had players organised in teams of two from each com-

pany competing for the ARM Directors Cup. Golfers with unofficial handicaps, were given a handicap by the tournament director based on 18 for men and 24 for ladies or as otherwise instructed.

The tournament was at the instance of Asset & Resource Management (ARM) Company Ltd, which was celebrating its 20th year in business.

The fun-filled tournament, which was rounded-off with an elaborate prize presentation ceremony/awards dinner, drew participation from over 30 blue chip firms from different parts of the country includ-

ing ExxonMobil, Chevron, Addax Petroleum, Peugeot Citroen, Guarantee Trust Bank, Deux Projects Limited and MTN, Stanbic IBTC, Sahara Oil, Total Oil, Starwood Hotels, Berger Pains among others, size up themselves on the lush green course of the club.

Other firms that participated in the tourney were Mainstreet Bank, Sea Bulk Nigeria, Interswithch, Airtel, Custodian and Allied Insurance and CMCL Golf Tours Ltd. Peugeot Citroen, with a 62 netscore finished 2nd and Deux Projects Limited ended

Golfers tuning up ahead of the ARM 20th Anniversary Golf Tournament, at the Lakowe Lakes Golf and Country Club, Lekki, Lagos State…on Thursday. Team Mens’ Clinic Nigeria won the event

the day in third place. Addax Petroleum, and Guarantee Trust Bank completed the top five places.

According to organizers, “the anniversary event, while a celebration of our momentous milestone, was intended to capitalise on the unique opportunity for ARM to give back to the society and our stakeholders.

Lakowe Lakes Golf and Country Club is an 18-hole championship golf course managed by the world’s foremost golf management agency, the International Management Group (IMG).

The 6730 metres course provides a tough but fair challenge, with lush fairways, picturesque lakes, strategically placed bunkers and generous greens.

One of the participants at the event described it as “a great opportunity to fraternize with friends, exercise the body and rejoice with an indigenous firm that has done well for itself, it staff members and its patrons.

Though held on the globally acknowledged Workers Day, he stressed that it was important for workers to find time to exercise their bodies and generally take their minds off official and economic worries.” By doing so, he said good health would be guaranteed and the body rejuvenated for greater and even better performances.

TheGuardian

www.ngrguardiannews.com

Saturday, May 3, 2014

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

Ibile Games: Lagos City, Wesley Girls Schools Shine In Squash Event THLETES of Lagos City A Senior College and Wesley Girls High Secondary School were outstanding in the junior category of the Squash event at the ongoing Lagos State Sports Festival tagged Ibile Games.

Adegoke Temiloluwa of Lagos City Senior College won the gold medal of the boys’ event beating Adegoke Onaopemipo of Morocco High School, who picked the silver. The duo of Michael John of Herbert Macaulay High School and Ayomide Oladipupo of Lagos City settled for bronze medals in the final played at the Rowe Park Sports Centre, Yaba.

In the girls’ event, Tutu Abudusalam of Wesley College Girls High School won gold medal. Kemi Oyewole of Rumratul Ismaliyah School settled for silver medal, while the pair of George Kehinde of Herbert Macauley and Idowu Ogunyemi of Lagos City won bronze medal.

Lagos Island West Local Government carted home seven of the nine gold medals available in the dart event of the Senior Category of the Games.

The local council won gold in TDB Men’s Singles, 701 Men’s Singles, 501 Men’s Singles, 701 Men’s Doubles, TDB Men’s Doubles, 301 Mixed Doubles and TDB Women’s Doubles, leaving Ibeju Lekki and Agboyi Ketu to pick the remaining two gold medals in 301 Men’s Singles and 501 Mixed Doubles.

Results in the table tennis events showed that the mixed doubles final was won by the duo of Ganiyu Ashimiyu and Sidi Yahaya. They beat the pair of David Fayele and Aminat Fashola 11-13,12-10,11-9,11-7 at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.

Surmer Zanaib and Toyin Joseph of Baptist Secondary School beat Adeyemi Kehinde and Sani Taiwo of Somolu 112,11-3,11-4 in the Girls doubles final.

In the Deaf Table Tennis, Samuel Ede and Kayode Shofowu of Iru Victoria Island LCDA beat Babatunde Awosanya and Mustapha Olajide of Apapa lganmu in the men’s doubles. In the women’s doubles, Munirat Yokosi and Omotayo Abass of Ojo Local Council defeated Bilikisu Issah and Moriamo Odunola of Iru Victoria LCDA 11-7,11-6,9-11,11-1.

Player/coach, Segun Toriola led the Nigerian team to victory over Turkey yesterday at the World Team Table Tennis Championship in Japan.

Racism: Saha Calls For Tougher Measures OUIS Saha wants football L clubs to be hit with multimillion pound fines if their fans are found guilty of racist abuse.

The problem of racism in football is in the spotlight again after a fan threw a banana at Brazil wing-back, Dani Alves during Barcelona’s win at Villarreal.

Alves’ response - to peel and

take a bite of the banana before carrying on with play sparked a show of solidarity from his peers, who started posting pictures of themselves with bananas on social media websites.

Saha, who was racially abused during his playing career in England and while at Lazio, thinks the banana picture campaign, led by

Barca and Brazil team-mate Neymar, trivialises the issue.

The former Manchester United striker thinks a better way to combat the issue would be if football took its lead from the NBA, which banned and fined Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling US dollars 2.5million (£1.5million) for making a racist remark in a

taped interview.

Speaking at the launch of the Soccerex global convention in Manchester, Saha said: “Football needs to start handing out those kind of fines.

And believe me, people would change their behaviour if that happened. Right now (the authorities) are scared.

“If (big fines) can be handed

2014 World Team Table Tennis Championship

Nigeria Surmounts Turkey, Faces England In Quarterfinal HE trio of Segun Toriola, T Aruna Quadri and Ojo Onaolapo yesterday improved

England’s Paul Drinkhall will lead his team again Nigeria today.

Nigeria’s chance of gaining promotion to the elite division in the world after beating Turkey in a knockout match of division two in the ongoing 2014 World Team Table Tennis Championship holding in Tokyo, Japan.

Having finished second in Group E behind Czech Republic, Nigeria was drawn against Turks, who are rated higher. However, the team raised their game against the Turkish team with Toriola

bashing Vang Bora 7-11, 11-6, 911, 9-11, while inspirational Quadri overwhelmed Ibrahim Gundu 11-7, 11-3, 11-4.

Southpaw Onaolapo completed the rout with a hard fought 11-7, 11-8, 6-11, 5-11, 6-11 win over Gencay Menge. The match ended 3-0 in favour of the Nigerian team.

An elated Quadri said he was satisfied with his performance so far in the tournament, while looking forward to making it to the last four of the

group.

“It has not been easy since the competition started, especially getting use to time zone in Japan. But we are getting better with each match. The guidance of Toriola has been very helpful and we are sure that we can make it to the last four,” he said.

Today, Nigeria will battle their Commonwealth Games’ rival, England in the quarterfinal encounter to decide the eventual

team that will gain promotion to the championship division in 2016.

Also yesterday, Egypt overcame India 3-0 to set up a quarterfinal clash against Czech Republic. Other quarterfinal pairing will see Italy take on Slovenia, while Iran battles Slovakia.

Meanwhile the Nigerian female team improved their chance of avoiding relegation after beating Peru 3-0 to set up a rematch against Turkey today.

Published by Guardian Newspapers Limited, Rutam House, Isolo, Lagos Tel: 4489600, 2798269, 2798270, 07098147948, 07098147951 Fax: 4489712; Advert Hotline Lagos: 7736351, Abuja: 07098513445 (ISSN NO 0189-5125) Acting Editor: All correspondence to Guardian Newspapers Limited, P.M.B. 1217, Oshodi, Lagos, Nigeria.

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out to clubs whose fans are racially abusive then let’s do it. That would be a big message to the world that this is not acceptable.”

UEFA and FIFA have increased punishments for racist behaviour in recent years, but the banana-throwing incident in Spain shows racial discrimination is still a problem in football.

Neymar’s picture of himself with a peeled banana has been liked over half a million times on Instagram.

Other footballers like Sergio Aguero, Mario Balotelli and David Luiz posted similar pictures online. Various celebrities, and even Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, have also followed suit.

Saha hopes people do not forget there is a serious message behind the campaign. “I am happy for this reaction, but I dislike the fact that we laugh about it,” said Saha, whose parents come from the French island of Guadeloupe.

“It’s not funny at all. It looks like everyone is saying, ‘we can’t change anything, so let’s laugh about it’.”

Saha was racially abused twice during his four-year spell at Everton - firstly from the stands in 2011 and the year later on Twitter.