Tue 27 May 2014

Mark calls for sober reflection on Children’s Day

By Chukwuma Muanya (Lagos) Azimazi Momoh Jimoh and Nkechi Onyedika (Abuja) s the nation marks this year’s Children’s Day, President of the Senate, David Mark has called for prayers for the survival of the Nigerian Child, who he said were ironically becoming endangered species in the hands of abductors and kidnappers.

He said the situation calls for sober reflection

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on the way forward wondering why the children who represent the future have suddenly become the target of evil men in Nigeria.

Mark in a goodwill message to mark this year’s occasion lamented that over 200 pupils of Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State abducted by the dreaded Boko Haram sect were still being held captives.

“In spite of the outcry across the world on the abduction of the Chibok girls, their captors remain adamant. This is inhuman, barbaric, insane and condemnable by all right thinking members of the human race”, he stressed.

Senator Mark noted, “As parents or guardians, we owe the children care and protection. How do we explain to generations

yet unborn that our girls abducted from their school by unknown persons are still being held more than one month after? This is a challenge to all of us. We cannot fail these children. All of us must put on our thinking caps and strategize on the way out.”

He urged Nigerians to put aside religious, political or ethnic considerations and adorn the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Vol. 30, No. 12,934

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‘No deal yet with B’Haram over abducted girls’ ONTRARY to claims in C some quarters, the Federal Government yesterday denied it had entered into any deal with the Boko Haram sect for the release of the abducted Chibok, Borno State schoolgirls.

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) yesterday reported that some of the girls were set to be freed in exchange for imprisoned militants.

The BBC said it learnt that the Federal Government cancelled the planned agreement shortly before the swap

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...DAY 42 43

BACK

OURGIRLS Amaechi can’t stop impeachment, says court –Page 2 Nine policemen missing after Arepo gun battle –Page 4

After Euroskeptic rise, EU leaders step into fray –Page 11

Members of United Coalition against Terrorism calling for immediate release of abducted Chibok school girls in Abuja … yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

New electricity tariffs out From Emeka Anuforo (Abuja) and Roseline Okere (Lagos) FFECTIVE from June 1, E some electricity consumers will pay far lesser than what they are currently paying for fixed charges and energy consumption.

A few others, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), will pay ‘slightly higher’.

• Reduces fixed charges for some customers, others to pay ‘slightly higher’ • Says subsidy fund for poor consumers ready soon For instance, residents of Abuja and environs, whose fixed charge was projected to increase to N1,500 from the N750 currently being paid, will from June 1 pay N702.

This is coming as NERC released the reviewed Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO), which according to the commission, would take effect from this Sunday.

Poor electricity consumers will have their electricity consumption subsidised by the Federal Government, courtesy of a Power Assistance Fund being finalised by NERC

and the Ministry of Power.

The Chairman of the NERC, Dr. Sam Amadi, who briefed reporters in Abuja yesterday, said the full details of the reviewed charges would be released soon.

Amadi, who announced that the subsidy would be captured in the next tariff review, stressed that the consultants working on the electricity CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

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Amaechi can’t stop impeachment, says court From Kelvin Ebiri, Port Harcourt PORT HARCOURT High Court has struck out a suit

by Rivers State Governor Chibuike Amaechi seeking an order of perpetual injunction to restrain the Speaker and members of the state House of Assembly from removing him from office.

The presiding judge, Justice Gabriel Omereji, based his ruling on the argument that the governor and his counsel failed in their application to disclose proof that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman and Secretary, Mr. Felix Obuah and Ibibia Walter, were working in consonance with the state lawmakers to impeach the governor. He described the governor’s application as speculative, hypothetical and an academic exercise, which deserved to be struck out.

The judge granted the submission of five anti- Amaechi lawmakers, Evans Bipi, Kelechi Worgu, Michael Okechukwu Chinda, Martin Amaewhule and Victor Ihunwo who were represented by their counsel, Mr. Dike Udenna, that the application brought by the governor was not justiceable because he

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failed to disclose the facts when he claimed that both Obuah and Walter were planning with the state legislators to impeach the governor.

Justice Omereji explained that allegations against Obuah and Walter were serious and making any pronouncement that would affect them without hearing from them was against the principle of fair-hearing, particularly as the governor had failed to list them as witnesses in the suit.

The judge said he had to strike out the paragraph13 of the affidavit in support of the statement of claim brought by the governor’s counsel on the basis that the suit was speculative and hypothetical and as such unfit for judicial consideration.

According to him, the statement of claim cannot confer on him (the governor) any reasonable course of action as his counsel was not in place to know what the second set of defendants who were Evans Bipi, Kelechi Worgu, Michael Okechukwu Chinda, Martin Amaewhule and Victor Ihunwo and the PDP officials were thinking to do without a manifestation of those intentions.

The judge, however, refused to award any cost on the judgment. The suit had as the first set of defendants the Rivers State House of Assembly and Speaker Otelemaba DanAmachree.

Seven months ago, Justice Omereji struck out the originating summons brought by counsel to Amaechi, Mr. Beluolisa Nwofor (SAN) and ordered that the matter be brought under a statement of claim.

In their counter-affidavit of the statement of claim, the five anti-lawmakers had asked the court to dismiss the governor’s suit because the matter was not justiceable and that the court could not reverse itself on a matter it had ruled on before.

The counsel to the antiAmaechi lawmakers, Udenna, told journalists that with the ruling, the lawmakers would now go ahead to impeach the governor.

“The court found as a fact that the Rivers State House of Assembly is entitled as at when due to commence impeachment proceedings. The governor is not entitled to seek to restrain them from exercising their constitutional func-

tions”, he said.

But counsel to the governor, Nwofor (SAN), explained that he was going to brief the governor and decide on the next line of action whether to appeal the judgment or not. He observed that the judge failed to consider the issues raised in the suit brought by the governor.

“The court has given its own opinion, that’s the way he understands it and the court has the right when you make an argument to take a decision and it has taken a decision and that is proper procedure in court. You must know it is a trial court. My client will of course give an instruction. I will revert to my client and whatever instruction he gives, I will comply. But the pleadings we filed contained allegations against the five members over and above what they are thinking but actions they took. We made pleadings on that, the judge said nothing about that. We pleaded actions that they have taken. We did not join Obuah and Ibibia because we have no claims against them.

What matters in court is what you are claiming,” said Nwofor.

No deal yet with B’Haram over kidnapped girls, says govt CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 was to take place, adding that officials have held talks with the group to secure the release of the girls and that an intermediary met Boko Haram leaders earlier this month and visited the location where the girls were being held.

But in a swift reaction to the claim, the Co-ordinator at the National Information Centre, Mike Omeri, told The Guardian yesterday that since the person who claimed to be Abubakar Shekau made his appearance on television and suggested swap, the group has not appointed anyone to speak on its behalf with the government.

“Who is the Federal Government to negotiate with since they have not gone beyond that television appearance?

The idea that government had negotiated with them to that level is not the correct picture”, he said.

Wondering how anyone could claim that such a deal was that close until government pulled out, Omeri however, stressed that the Federal Government was firmly committed to the safe return of the abducted girls even as he promised that “whatever we do in that regard will be communicated to the citizens of our country.”

According to the BBC, the rea-

sons for the withdrawal are unclear. It came just after President Goodluck Jonathan attended a meeting in Paris hosted by President Francois Hollande of France where leaders said they had agreed on a “global and regional ac-

tion plan” against Boko Haram.

The Information Ministry had earlier said all options were on the table after the group released a video of the girls earlier this month and suggested a swap.

Mark calls for sober reflection on Children’s Day CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 jersey of one united Nigeria in the battle against insurgents adding, “With the cooperation and collective will of all of us, we shall over come.”

Senator Mark recalled that it was in realization of the dan-

gers faced by children in today’s world and the need to address same that that National Assembly passed the Child Right Act into law.

He pleaded with some state governments yet to implement the Child Rights law to CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

NERC reduces fixed charges for some customers CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 subsidy fund were considering how the scheme operates in some other countries.

He said: “The Power Assistance Fund is not for those who don’t pay their bills or who cannot pay, so to say. It is for those who pay their bills actually. Because if you don’t pay your bill over sometime, and after due process, they will likely disconnect you. It is for poor or low-income consumers who, by way of policy, will be the one government will subsidise or mitigate the tariff they pay overall.

He said: “What we will see is that most of the consumers did not have any increase in their energy charge apart from Residential Two (R2) customers that have N1 increase in some places.

“So, instead of having a bigger Energy Charge (EC) increase that was published for 2014 MYTO since 2012, we now have the same fixed charge of N750 from the supposed N1500 which means a huge reduction and then a slight increase of about N1 or so for R2 customers.

“In Ikeja Disco for instance, R2 customers have their charges reduced because both their customer number and cost of service is opti-

mum as they have what they require to serve their customers. They are more in a cluster, so the cost is cheaper and when they did the average with the cost of price they received, their energy charge came down lower.”

On the rates for the different states, he stressed: “The fixed charge has never been uniform, whether across customers’ classes or distribution companies. The tariffs we have always set since 2012 have been disco specific tariffs. It is possible that the fixed charge of some discos may be the same in some instances, but the principle is that they are essentially different costs and sizes.

“Even among customers’ classes, what R2 pays is not the same as what R3 pays and not what C2, C3 and other customers pay. They pay differently based on the calculation. If you go to our website since 2012, you will see that fixed charge has always been different.”

Noting that review had reduced the fixed charge component of the tariff that would have taken effect on June 1, Amadi noted how the result of the review indicates a reduction of the wholesale tariff that would be paid to

generating companies as from June 1, 2014.

He said: “The general public is however to note that the wholesale tariff paid GENCOS is only one of the three components that make up the total tariff paid by consumers.

The other two parts are the transmission and distribution components. Recall that one of the indices for the minor review is ‘available generation capacity’.

Unfortunately, the wellknown fact today is that gross available capacity from the grid as of March 31 review date is 4,306 MW. This is well below the 9061 MW that NERC had, on the basis of all information available to it, projected when MYTO was set in June 2012. This is a 52 per cent reduction on projected capacity. The reasons for this huge loss has been extensively reported and explained.

“Suffice to say that the consequences of this loss of available capacity completely outweigh the benefits that were gained from the positive macro-economic indices earlier discussed. The direct consequence for the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) is that the significant fixed costs incurred by all three sectors of the NESI have

to be spread over a much lower quantity of energy projected to be sold to consumers.

For this reason, the commission regrets that the distribution element, that is, the end user or customer tariff, will have to increase, this is in fulfilment of the statutory obligation in Section 5.76 (2) (a) of the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act of 2005 which mandates that the commission sets a methodology that allows ‘a licensee that generates efficiently to recover the full costs of its business activities, including a reasonable return on the capital invested in the business.’

“It is also noted that the cost of this increase would have been much higher but for the good macroeconomic management that produced a real reduction in wholesale (generation sector tariffs).”

He stressed further: “Our commitment as a regulator is to not only ensure that Nigerian electricity consumers have access to adequate and reliable electricity, but also to provide processes and mechanisms for effective remedies for any violations of service obligations by the service providers in the new Nigerian electricity market.”

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Nine policemen missing after Arepo gun battle From Collins Olayinka (Abuja) and Sulaimon Salau (Lagos)

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INE policemen are said to be missing after the gun battle between suspected oil thieves and security operatives at Arepo, Ogun State.

The violence has made the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to shut its System 2b Pipeline supplying fuel from Atlas Cove in Lagos to Mosinmi in Ogun State.

The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Ohi Alegbe, who disclosed the shutdown in a statement to The Guardian yesterday, said it was necessary to curtail the fire incident sparked off by a gun battle between suspected oil thieves and policemen deployed to protect the pipeline.

Alegbe noted that about nine policemen were yet to be found after the gun battle that lasted for several hours on the Arepo axis of the pipeline network.

According to him, the preliminary report from the police indicates that men suspected to be oil thieves dressed in military uniforms and armed with AK-47 riffles, came in 12 boats to attack the police on guard duty at the Arepo section of the pipeline.

“The gunfire exchange between the pipeline vandals and policemen apparently sparked off an explosion on the pipeline, resulting in an inferno. The Police Command has reported that nine of its men are still unaccounted for, while those that survived the attack sustained bullet wounds and have been taken to the hospital.

“All the police boats capsized in the creek, making it difficult for the police to move in search of their men,” Alegbe said.

He noted: “Under the cir-

cumstances, it is not possible to send our engineers into the area now. However, we intend to use water from Atlas Cove to put out the fire. This will take a full day of pumping. Thereafter, based on the security situation and clearance from the police, we will move in to effect repairs.”

Alegbe assured that the incident would not affect products’ supply as all the inland depots serviced by the System 2B Pipeline have enough stock of products that can take care of demands until

• NNPC shuts major fuel pipeline the situation is brought under control.

Arepo is one of the most notorious areas hosting the NNPC product pipeline. A similar incident had occurred in 2012 where two NNPC officials were allegedly killed the vandals.

About 10 suspects had been charged with pipeline vandalism and the murder of two engineers, but they pleaded not guilty to the offence.

Suspects paraded before the Federal High Court in Lagos include Joel Inerepamu (25), Rueben Oluwole (60), John Isaiah (28), Ineye Okposa (40), Timi Gunugunu (22), and Olisa Saheed (25).

Others are Jigo Jiperende (31), Timi Koro (29), Johnbosco Ighofose (26) and Peter Opidi (28).

Meanwhile, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has sealed off an illegal lube oil blending plant in

Usubu village, near Kontagora in Niger State.

The factory manager and two other workers were arrested in the operation, which was done in conjunction with a team of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) led by an Assistant Superintendent, Mr. Ademola Oyasola.

The Abuja DPR Zonal Information Officer, Mr. Mohammed Saidu, said the department embarked on the exercise following complaints by concerned citizens

Tambuwal faults FG’s claim of economic growth

By Bertram Nwannekanma OR Nigeria to overcome its Fneedcurrent challenges, there is for enthronement of good governance in all spheres of life.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal; Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State and the Lagos Chief Judge, Justice Ayotunde Phillips, at the eight yearly conference of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law (NBASBL) in Lagos, yesterday made this observation.

Tambuwal, who questioned the Federal Government’s claim that the economy is growing going by figures from the recent rebasing of Nigeria’s GDP, which placed the nation as Africa’s largest economy and the world’s 26th, said there is nothing to show that such a claim is true.

Nigeria, he said, is full of paradoxes, as corruption and violence threaten its existence despite the churches and mosques that abound everywhere.

In his keynote address at the event, titled: “Exemplary governance: Enhancing economic development in Nigeria”,

the Speaker, who was represented by Mr. Moyo Onigbanjo (SAN), said only good governance can rescue Nigeria.

He said: “We live in a country of inexplicable contradictions. We have great human and material resources, yet we are always on the list of countries with the worst poverty index.

“Our economy is alleged to be growing, including the recent rebasing, but the lives of the majority of our citizens do not convey this testimony.

“We have more places of worship per square metre than most nations on this earth, yet corruption and violence threaten our very survival.

“We have some of the best agricultural lands in the world but we import food. We are the sixth largest producer of crude oil, but we import finished petroleum products.

“We have lived together as a nation for over 100 years, yet daily you hear stories of threats of our breaking up.

“Only good governance and

true development can unravel these paradoxes, which are clear indices of under-development.”

For Governor Fashola, there cannot be good governance when Nigerians refuse to vote in elections.

The governor regretted that only 31 per cent of the registered 6.4 million voters turned out during his re-election.

He said: “Do we vote? In India, 73.3 per cent of registered voters turned out to vote. In South Africa, 72 per cent turned out to vote in their last election. But I can’t recall when last up to 50 per cent of registered voters in Nigeria came out to vote”.

The governor lamented that such indices send negative messages to investors, adding that it takes the votes by the electorate to choose good leaders.

“Do we deserve to ask for good governance when we stay away during elections?”, he asked.

For Justice Ayotunde Phillips,

exemplary governance is critical for economic development.

She said economic development also hinges on strict observance of the rule of law and an efficient and independent judiciary.

Represented by Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade, the Chief Judge noted that good governance entails a system that encourages transparency and accountability.

While calling for reduction on cost of governance, she said: “We must also see a government whose policies are directed towards curbing excess governmental involvement in the economy through divestment of stateowned entities.”

In his remarks, the NBA President, Okey Wali (SAN), said there are no indicators of good governance in Nigeria.

According to him, good and exemplary governance can only be achieved in a country where democratic institutions are strong and independent.

SON tasked on enforcement of new cement quality

By Tunde Alao and Femi Adekoya

• Dangote to raise output to crash commodity’s price

O address the lingering crisis in the cement industry, Dangote Cement Plc, yesterday urged the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to commence the enforcement of the new cement classification and its uses.

According to the manufacturer, the move will assist to rid the nation of substandard cement and the attendant incidence of structure failures.

Besides, the cement manufacturer has resolved to further increase its production capacity to 9 million metric tonnes by August 2014 in a bid to further bridge the demand-supply gap in the cement industry and possibly ensure reduction in the commodity’s price.

Making its position known on the controversies sur-

rounding the new standard review and the classification of cement type at a press briefing in Lagos, yesterday, Director, Dangote Cement, Ekanem Etim, said that the review and the classification was coming too late after the nation and its citizens have been subjected to harrowing experience of loss of lives and properties and that the regulator should spare no further time to enforce the implementation of the new standard.

According to him, it is only economic saboteurs and profiteers that would kick against the new standard for cement production as other countries of the world have moved up beyond the level and the low grade being canvassed by some of the manu-

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facturers opposed to the new standard.

He explained that the review of the existing standard was executed by a technical committee set up by the SON comprising of all stakeholders in the building and construction industry including all cement manufacturers.

The Committee at the end of the meeting came up with a review of the standard, classified cement into three grades and stipulated their exclusive uses to guide against misapplication and adulteration.

The new review restricted the use of the 32.5 grade strength to plastering of structures only while 42.5 grade is recommended for the construction of buildings, beams, load bearing columns, pillars, block moulding and other structures and the 52.5 recommended for the construction of bigger projects like bridges, flyovers and high rise buildings.

Etim argued that several countries have phased out the 32.5 MPA and that what Dangote Cement has done is to set a minimum standard of 42.5 MPA and will go ahead and educate the people on the uses of the different grades of cement.

on the activities of the factory. According to Saidu, the company was endangering the lives of the 38 women and children working there who are constantly being exposed to dangerous chemicals without any form of protection and formal training.

The company’s manager, Mr. Philip Ambi, confirmed that the plant does not have a permit from the DPR, claiming that his boss, who was not in town applied for a licence.

Mark calls for sober reflection on Children’s Day CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 do so without further delay.

Also, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said that collective responsibility of all Nigerians is urgently required to ensure the protection of children.

UNICEF, in a statement yesterday, said the collective includes the family, community, society and the state.

It reads: “Every day in the media we hear of one form of abuse or the other against children, rape of under-aged children, child trafficking and so on. But the abduction of more than two hundred school girls recently underscores the urgent need for collective action. We need to create a protective environment for our children to ensure a bright future for them.”

UNICEF said the protective environment is based on the recognition that all children are entitled to protection – as enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Nigeria’s Child’s Rights Act 2003. “All children have a right to grow up in an environment that ensures their protection.”

The Fund said it helps to create a protective environment for a child, which fortifies them against abuse in the same way that good nutrition and good health care fortify them against disease.

“We are working with the Nigeria Police, the Immigration Service, the federal ministries, departments and agencies to achieve this,” it said.

The UN agency said: “Our best efforts in survival and development will come to naught if the child is abused later in life, and also put in harm’s way through abduction and trafficking. Even strong, healthy children can be victims of abuse. A wellnourished and immunised child who is beaten is not a healthy child.

“A young girl in school is likely to be not well-educated if she is sexually abused by her teacher. She would drop out of school. The fear of abduction will erode all the gains we have made in girls’ education.”

UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Jean Gough, added: “Let us all work together, collectively, to ensure that our children are protected against harm so they can grow into productive adults who will contribute to the development of Nigeria in future.”

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News Jonathan/Obama: A tale of two visits

Jonathan

By Olalekan Okusan NITED States (U.S.) President Barack Obama’s surprise U visit to Afghanistan at the weekend has again brought to fore the hullabaloo that greeted the aborted trip of President Goodluck Jonathan to Chibok, a village in Borno State, where more than 200 schoolgirls were abducted by the Boko Haram sect.

President Obama on Sunday secretly slipped into Afghanistan at night for a visit to the U.S. troops serving in the closing months of America’s longest war.

Air Force One landed at Bagram Air Field, the main U.S. base in Afghanistan, after an overnight flight from Washington.

Obama was scheduled to spend just a few hours on the base and had no plans to travel to Kabul, the capital, to meet with Hamid Karzai, the mercurial President, who has had a tumultuous relationship with the White House.

However, the same scenario cannot be said of Nigeria, which has continued to attract global attention over the abduction of schoolgirls by the Boko Haram sect since April 14.

The news of President Jonathan’s visit to Chibok was all over 24 hours to the trip and when the visit was cancelled, it drew the ire of Nigerians, who felt the President was unconcerned by the plight of the abducted girls.

Many see a presidential visit to Chibok as an issue of morality and compassion, but rather than empathising with the families and relatives of the abducted, the President proceeded to Paris, France, to attend a security summit.

Foreign affairs analysts, however, said that the Obama’s visit to Afghanistan cannot be compared to Jonathan’s failed trip to Chibok.

They argued that the two visits shared commonality in terms of demonstrating care and compassion, as well as boosting the morale of people to be visited.

In terms of differences, analysts submitted that the area visited by Obama was controlled by the American military with full protection both on air and land, unlike Jonathan’s where Borno is not fully being controlled by the Nigerian military, rather regular attacks on villages in the state may have raised security concerns.

Also, Obama had already landed in Afghanistan before it was made public that he was visiting the war-torn country, while Jonathan’s visit was all in the news, even before the President stepped on the plane.

Speculation was rife about the President’s planned visit to Chibok while it was in the public domain that the President was due in Chibok to meet with the families of the abducted

Obama girls, from where he would travel to Paris, France, to attend a security summit on Boko Haram, hosted by the French President.

Parents and relatives of the abducted schoolgirls had gathered at the town hall waiting for President Jonathan but they were urged to go back to their respective houses with no official reason given for the cancellation of the visit.

In a swift reaction to state the President’s position, Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the President, Reuben Abati, said the only trip that was officially known on the President’s itinerary was the one to Paris, where the President joined other regional African leaders to declare war on Boko Haram.

“Every trip by the President is usually pre-announced. The Presidency did not at any time announce a trip to Chibok today. Ignore rumors,” Abati added.

However, despite the denial, it was learnt that a presidential advance team left from Aso Villa, Abuja, for Maiduguri and early on the day of visit, the airport road leading to the Nigerian Air Force Base, and the Government House, Maiduguri, was heavily manned by security operatives, including soldiers and policemen.

They were, however, withdrawn by 9:35 a.m. when the cancellation of the visit was rumoured in the metropolis, while Borno Governor, Kashim Shettima, who had to rush back to Maiduguri from Abuja drove to Government House along with Secretary to the State Government, Baba Ahmed Jidda, but declined to comment on the Presidential visit.

“The statement issued by my office yesterday indicated very clearly that the President is scheduled to travel to Paris today.

It is, therefore, wrong and malicious to allege that a non-existent trip has been cancelled,” Abati said.

The Presidency argued that Jonathan did not go to Chibok because the girls are not being held there and also because the trip will not lead to their release.

At a press conference to announce the conclusion of a regional summit on security in Nigeria, held in Paris, Jonathan told reporters that visiting the area will not solve the problem and the major challenge is finding them.

“These girls are not held in Chibok. Sometimes, people want the President to go to Chibok. If the President goes to Chibok today, it does not solve any problem. The problem facing the President and indeed, the Nigerian government, is how to get these girls from wherever they are”, he said.

A foreign analyst, who refused his name in print, told The Guardian that it has become imperative to show compassion to the families of the abducted girls by visiting them.

“I think comparing Obama’s visit to Jonathan’s cancelled visit is wrong because they are not the same, but I think President Jonathan should have visited Chibok just to emphatise with the families of the abducted girls. Most of Jonathan’s trip has not been cancelled except the one he cancelled when he was supposed to visit Port Harcourt during the Centenary celebration and this I think was for political reasons.

“But when it comes to national interest, he should be ready to take responsibilities because he is the Commander-InChief. I think the President should remain in Nigeria until the girls are located. He must rise up to the national crisis and if the soldiers are not doing what they are supposed to do, he should sack them to show that he is serious,” he said.

President Obama on Sunday secretly slipped into Afghanistan at night for a visit to the U.S. troops serving in the closing months of America’s longest war.Air Force One landed at Bagram Air Field, the main U.S. base in Afghanistan, after an overnight flight from Washington. Obama was scheduled to spend just a few hours on the base and had no plans to travel to Kabul, the capital, to meet with Hamid Karzai, the mercurial President, who has had a tumultuous relationship with the White House. However, the same scenario cannot be said of Nigeria, which has continued to attract global attention over the abduction of schoolgirls by the Boko Haram sect since April 14. The news of President Jonathan’s visit to Chibok was all over 24 hours to the trip and when the visit was cancelled, it drew the ire of Nigerians, who felt the President was unconcerned by the plight of the abducted girls.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014 NEWS

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EKITI 2014

INEC assures of credible polls, warns against rigging From Tunji Omofoye, Osogbo HE Independent National T Electoral Commission (INEC) has told politicians who may be planning to rig the June and August governorship election in Ekiti and Osun States to look for other useful engagement, assuring that measures put in place by the commission will make manipulation of the election difficult.

He said the commission was prepared to protect its

integrity by ensuring that peoples vote count during the governorship and subsequent elections in the country.

The INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Osun State, Ambassador Rufus Akeju while declaring open a two-day workshop organized by the Osun State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in collaboration with a Non Governmental Organization,

Democracy Vanguard maintained that the forthcoming election in the state would be strictly monitored by election observers from both within and outside the country.

He explained that INEC would guide against all forms of rigging during the election, saying that the commission would strictly prevent all forms of malpractices that characterize elections in the country.

Akeju, who stressed that INEC had taken measures to prevent rigging of election said part of the measures were strict monitoring and proper supervision among others.

The INEC chief stated, “Politicians can only try to rig the forthcoming election in Osun State, but I am sure they cannot succeed with their plan going by our preparations for the poll.”

He added, “INEC has now

made rigging very difficult during elections. The ballot paper to be used for election cannot be used more than once and another person cannot use it. We have taken measures to ensure that elections count in Nigeria.”

He assured all the political parties that will participate in the Osun election of free, fair and credible polls adding that he would protect the integrity of INEC in the state during and after the poll.

The INEC boss also urged

journalists to play active role in the election and avoid being an appendage of any political party.

Earlier in his speech, the coordinator, Democracy Vanguard, Mr. Adeola Soetan urged the electorate to troop out to perform their civic duty during the election and to be defend their votes.

He advised the electorate not to sell their voter’s card pointing out that doing so would amount to mortgaging their future.

ask Adebayo to name a single project that he attracted to their town while he was a governor between 1999 and 2003.

“Today, I challenge all sons and daughters of this town to ask Adebayo for a single project or a legacy he left behind in this town after he left office in 2003. Ask him also of how many people he was able to empower within same time.

Ask him also that how many of such he has assisted in the current administration of Fayemi where he is a godfather” “Apart from his wife who is representing the slot of Ekiti State on the board of Oodua Group of Companies, his son that is a Special Adviser to the governor on Diaspora Affairs, his cousins who are Personal Assistants to Fayemi, please

ask him who again he has helped in this town.”

“It is an insult to Iyin Ekiti his hometown that nobody should aspire to become a governor again after him. He said since there are 132 towns and villages in Ekiti State, Iyin his hometown remains disqualified to serve in this capacity again” Oba Ajakaye in his response said he was happy to have one of his subjects in person of Bamidele coming out as a governorship candidate.

While praying for his success, Ajakaye said he was proud that Iyin Ekiti is gradually becoming the political meeting point of Ekiti.

He described Bamidele as his son and urged him to disregard insinuations that he was working against his interest.

Bamidele flays Adebayo for supporting Fayemi’s candidature From Muyiwa Adeyemi Ado Ekiti ABOUR Party (LP) governorLState, ship candidate in Ekiti Opeyemi Bamidele, has described the decision of the first civilian governor of the state Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo to support Governor Kayode Fayemi’s re-election bid against his ambition as a “betrayal of a kinsman”.

Bamidele also dismissed as

illogical the comment of the former governor that time not ripe for Iyin-Ekiti to produce another governor eleven years after he left office.

Adebayo and Bamidele hail from the same town-Iyin-Ekiti.

Bamidele, who spoke at the palace of the paramount ruler of the town, Oba Ademola Ajakaye said Adebayo had disappointed Iyin Ekiti where both of them hail from.

He also promised people of the town that his tenure, if elected to office as a governor on June 21 would mark a departure from “legacy of disgrace,” which he said Adebayo left behind.

Adebayo, who is one of the key supporters of Fayemi and a kinsman of Bamidele had repeatedly criticized Bamidele for leaving the All Progressive Congress (APC) to

pursue his ambition.

Bamidele said Adebayo had disappointed the town as a former governor and called on upcoming politicians among not to emulate him and urged all sons and daughters of the town to forgive Adebayo over his statements made against their collective interest.

Bamidele reminded Iyin Ekiti indigenes at the weekend to

APC urges use of e-card reader for free, fair elections From Muyiwa Adeyemi Ado Ekiti

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HE All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately commence the process that will lead to the use of the e-card reader for the forthcoming elections in Ekiti and Osun States, if indeed the electoral body is committed to ensuring that the polls are free, fair and transparent.

In a statement issued yesterday in Lagos by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said using the simple but foolproof device for Ekiti gubernatorial polls next month and that of Osun in August will make it possible for INEC to fine-tune its deployment on a nationwide scale for the 2015 general elections.

“Contrary to what INEC has said, the e-card reader is very adaptable, and its application is not subject to any environmental peculiarity once the basics of operations are met. It is therefore, surprising to read INEC’s claim that the sensitivity of the elections in Ekiti and Osun will not recommend the use of the card reader,” APC said.

The party said the most compelling reason for the use of ecard reader by INEC is that it will eliminate the rigging of elections through the use of stolen or purchased voter cards and ensure that only those with authentic voter cards are allowed to cast their votes on election day.

“Impersonation, multiple voting and endless altercations and associated tension will be eliminated at the voting centres with the use of ecard reader and not by any other means. Also, the e-card reader will ensure the automatic recording of all accredited voters with verified permanent voter’s cards in such a way that does not lend itself to manipulation, thus preventing the falsification of results at the collation centres,”

backing them to do all these.

“Part of their plans is to announce the results of Ekiti election in Abuja. Ekiti election is a test case to what will happen in 2015. But we are detercour, then it must pitch its mined to resist them and we tent with a technology that shall ensure that this election has been proven to be afford- is free and fair,” he alleged. able, dependable and formi- The APC chairman blamed dable in rooting out election Ondo State Governor, Dr. cheats and manipulators,’’ the Olusegun Mimiko for the vioAPC spokesman concluded. lence that occurred in Ikere Ekiti APC chapter also yester- Ekiti between LP and APC memday alleged that an opposition bers during Opeyemi party in the state has conclud- Bamidele’s rally in the town, ed plans to bomb the where one person was shot Government House and the and several people wounded, party secretariat. including journalists with Raising the alarm yesterday, African Independent the chairman of the party, Television.

Chief Jide Awe also alleged the Absolving the police of partistate Commissioner of Police sanship, Ekiti State Police Felix Uyanna of constituting a Public Relations Officer (PPRO), major opposition to the APC Mr. Victor Babayemi, described in the build up to the June 21 the statement from the APC as governorship poll, saying, “if very unfortunate, saying, “They not for partisanship, the com- are only trying to make the mand could not have been police the scapegoat and we watching when a serving will not tolerate that.

Commissioner, Mrs. Ronke Meanwhile, the Ayo Fayose Okusanya was being attacked Campaign Organisation in their presence by opposi- (AFCO) has condemned the tion thugs in Efon Alaaye on alleged attack on the convoy of Sunday”. the Peoples Democratic Party Addressing newsmen in Ado (PDP), Mr. Ayodele Fayose, at Ekiti, Awe said “the party has it Fajuyi Roundabout, Ado-Ekiti, on good authority that mem- by suspected thugs. bers of opposition were plan- AFCO Director of Media and ning to detonate bomb at the Publicity, Chief Gboyega Government House and also Aribisogan, alleged in a release in our secretariat. We have to issued yesterday, that APC take extra caution. The police thugs attacked Fayose’s perthat would have dealt with the sonal vehicle at about 1pm at situation have been partisan Fajuyi Park in Ado-Ekiti, believand this is highly unfortu- ing that the PDP candidate was nate”. in the vehicle.

Awe alleged partisanship of While alleging that the Fayemithe police and the Nigerian led APC government in the Security and Civil Defence State had concluded plan to Corps, saying it has worsened attack any gathering of PDP the situation, further saying supporters in the State, the that a serving Commissioner AFCO spokesperson said a of Police in Lagos State was meeting was held on Saturday, allegedly sponsoring the where it was concluded that henceforth, “no PDP gatherattackers of Mrs. Okusanya.

Awe said, “We never loved to ings must be allowed in the resort to self-help, this will not State.” augur well for the nation. If He said the attack on PDP the police cannot protect us, members in Efon-Alaaye and then we will resort to self-help Otun-Ekiti on Sunday, and yesand that will be sad. It is unfor- terday’s attack on Fayose’s vehitunate that it is the Federal cle was an aftermath of the Government that has been APC devilish plot.

• Alleges plan to bomb govt house, secretariat • Police deny allegation of bias • Fayose condemns attack on PDP convoy Mohammed said.

“This is what millions of Nigerians do daily when they use ATMs nationwide. What is therefore, the issue in deploying this veritable nemesis of election riggers and manipulators for the Ekiti and Osun elections, and subsequently for next year’s general elections?” it queried.

Mohammed said going by the total number of polling units in both states, the e-card readers required for the elections in the two states total 3,500, with sufficient provision made for redundancy to cater for malfunctioning, since Ekiti has 2,195 polling units and Osun has 3,100 polling units and the elections are billed to hold on different dates. ‘’To test-run the device before the actual elections and further strengthen the credibility of the electoral process, e-card readers should be immediately deployed to the 16 Local Government offices of INEC in Ekiti and 31 local government offices of INEC in Osun (allowing for the Area office in Modakeke) for the verification of those coming to collect their permanent voter cards from those centres,” the party said.

It said if INEC is truly committed to a transparent, credible, free, fair and efficient electoral process in the forthcoming governorship polls in Ekiti and Osun States, then it must use the e- card readers in all the polling units in the two states. ‘’If INEC is not paying lip service to ensuring the integrity of its elections; if INEC does not want to become a collaborator in election manipulation, which has been the hallmark of recent elections under its watch; if INEC wants Nigeria to join the comity of nations where elections are being held without rigging or ran-

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NEWS Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Family members, associates celebrate Ajayi at 85 From Iyabo Lawal, Ibadan

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AMILY members and associates of erudite scholar and emeritus professor, Jacob Festus Ade Ajayi, yesterday gathered in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, to celebrate the historian at 85.

The event, held at the International Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan (UI), was also used to launch a book: J. F Ade Ajayi: His Life and Career, in honour of the elder statesman and former vice chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG).

In his lecture to commemorate the occasion attended by the Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Prof. Modupe Adelabu; Prof. Muyiwa and Bolanle Awe; Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Prof. Folorunso Adewole; Chief Reuben Fasoranti, Tokunbo Ajasun, among others, the guest speaker, Prof.

Olatunji Dare, restated the call for restructuring of the Nigerian nation.

He said this is the only way out of the myriads of problems confronting the country 100 years after creation.

Prof. Dare, a former senior editorial executive of The Guardian, in his lecture titled: “100 Years After Amalgamation: The Nigerian Condition”, regretted that the nation is yet to get out of the woods since the unfortunate merger of the Southern and Northern Protectorates.

While highlighting the problems confronting the nation to include insecurity, corruption, unemployment, infrastructural decay and collapse of public utilities, Dare, a professor of Journalism at Bradley

University, Illinois, United States of America, said that only a true restructuring of the country based on a new constitution would put the nation on the right path.

He lamented that unfortunately, the ongoing national conference, expected to solve the various problems plaguing the nation, may not achieve the desired results.

Prof. Dare said: “Roughly 50 per cent of the delegates were hand-picked by President Goodluck Jonathan; fringe organisations or bodies that had neither taken nor articulated any position on the national question were accorded representation on a scale far greater than their influence or stake in the scheme of things.

The ethnic nationality ele-

ment was whittled down; discussions on the unity of Nigeria were foreclosed; decisions were to be based on “consensus” or backed by 75 per cent majority.”

“The legal status of the conference remains unclear, for there is no law backing it two months after it began sitting.

Given the mood in many parts of the country, the National Conference may well be the last chance to restructure Nigeria peacefully and resolve those issues that have vitiated and continued to vitiate its pursuit of the prosperity and greatness for which it is so richly endowed.

“At no time in Nigeria’s troubled history has the case for restructuring been more compelling, yet President

Jonathan has chosen to play his cards close to his chest and keep the nation guessing.

Without substantive restructuring, the Nigerian state will continue to wallow in malaise”, he added.

Should the age-long, muchsought-after solution of genuine restructuring be further ignored, Olatunji agreed that “as the centre faces growing challenge from Boko Haram and other forces, its legitimacy and authority will weaken to the point that those nationalities strong enough or determined enough to break away, will do so.

“Without substantive restructuring, the Nigerian state will wither away”, Olatunji stressed, counseling President Jonathan to truly show that he

is in charge of the affairs of the country and assert legitimacy.

He deplored the nation’s recent Centenary celebration, saying that “there was hardly an inspiring note on which to celebrate the first Centenary or to inaugurate the second centenary of what President Goodluck Jonathan described as ‘a unique country’, one ‘brought together in a union like no other by providence”.

Other dignitaries present to honour the historian and his wife, Christiana, were representatives of the Osun State government, Chief Afe Babalola; Prof.

Oladipo Akinkungbe, Prof. Akin Osuntokun, Chief Lekan Alabi, Elekole of Ikole, Oba Ajibade Adewumi; Prof. Akin Mabogunje and Prof. Niyi Osundare.

Delegates seek action against environmental degradation Confab okays implementation of UNEP report on Ogoniland From Terhemba Daka and Karls Tsokar, Abuja ELEGATES at the National Conference have expressed fears that the devastating effect of environmental degradation and climate change poses a threat to the existence of some regions in Nigeria.

Also, the National Conference yesterday passed a resolution that the Federal Government should effect the implementation of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) report on addressing the environmental challenges in Ogoniland.

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While considering the report on Committee on Environment during plenary at Abuja, the delegates as were called by the presiding Chairman, Justice Idris Kutigi, each presented their positions on the report with suggested amendments after praising the efforts of the committee members.

Most of the delegates hinged their contribution on the need to address issues that bothered on the threatening effect of desertification, ocean surge and oil spillage and the attending flaring of gas. They alluded to the fact that there

was an unhealthy synergy between poverty and environmental degradation.

Making his contribution, Chief Edwin Clark, in an emotion laden voice, said there was nothing new in the recommendations brought forward by the committee, saying at 87 years old, he lives in fear that the Niger-Delta region, his homeland, is under threat of extinction as a result of environmental degradation unless pungent steps are taken to address the threat.

“If we do not do something, one day, we will be wiped out, while the rest of the people will be enjoying the things from the area.

Our environment has been polluted. We sit on top of water in the Niger Delta, yet we do not have water to drink.

“When I was a little child, all we needed to do was to put a calabash into the water and fishes will jump in.

“Now, my people eat frozen fish. There are no more farmlands, no fruits.

We have lost everything in the Niger Delta.”

He said implementing recommendation by successive committees set up by the government at different times did not do anything differently but nothing was done. Citing the United Nations 2011 report, submitted to the Federal Government where it is clearly stated that it would take 30 years to clean up the oil spills in the Niger Delta region, noting that the report recommended that $20 billion was needed to clean up the mess.

He added that it took the Federal Government two years to set up a committee to consider the report, without results.

Also, Chidinma Uwajumogu, a delegate from Imo State said issues relating to the environment should not be treated with levity as it is as it is as relevant as every other national issue.

He noted that Nigeria has failed to take advantage of the wealth in waste despite the fact that other countries have benefited from it.

“The environment is as

important as anything else we want, the less we abuse the environment, the better it becomes for us. There is a need to highlight the health challenges when you abuse the environment, today we treat diseases that we used to read about, women are sick from cooking with fire wood and all the pollution that goes with it.

“I commend the committee on the report on recycling. I would want to extend it to say that there should be responsible disposal of waste, the collection of waste is as important as the disposal, maybe it could become mandatory for every household to have three waste bins where they dispose their waste properly by isolating the different kinds of waste.”

Lidum Mittee, an addendum delegate, in his intervention said urgent measures need to be taken to control the situation, as there also need to bring up recommendation that when compensation is given it should go to people that were directly affected by the disaster.

Other delegates, who spoke on other matter, also insist that there is need to properly dredge the two major rivers in the country to enhance easy flow of water when it rises.

While calling on the need to criminalise environmental degradation, a delegate representing Civil Society Groups, Isaac Osuoka stressed the need for state government and communities to be involved in resource management.

Meanwhile while reading the amendments that needs to be done on the proposals contained in the report of the committee, the Vice Chairman, Bolaji Akinyemi asked the delegates if there’s need to amend the report to read, “Federal Government should implement the UNEP report on Ogoniland,” the decision was unanimously accepted.

The report was first mentioned by Clark and spiced

by Mittee.

GSM subscribers seek end to poor services, unsolicited calls From Gordi Udeajah, Umuahia ELECOM subscribers in the country have protested against what they called ‘poor services’ rendered by the GSM service providers and specifically urged the Nigerian Communications Commission ( NCC) to caution the firms to stop ‘Unsolicited Calls and Messages’ ( UCM ).

The call was made yesterday at a Consumer Outreach Programme ( COP) organized by the NCC at the Aba, Abia State.

They also accused the NCC of conniving with the service providers to defraud them, pointing out that if that was not the case, the regulatory body should have sanctioned the erring service providers accordingly.

The subscribers who spoke through the Chairman of Ariaria International Market Traders Association, Mr Lucky Akubueze however commended the service providers for striving to provide services even unsteadily and urged them to address all issues that militate against better operation.

While they commended the NCC for providing them the forum to interface with the service providers directly, the traders urged NCC to prevail on electricity/power providers to emulate it and hold such fora.

Addressing the forum, Deputy Director Consumer Affairs Bureau , Mrs Maryam Bayi, said that the forum with theme “ Customer Care Help Lines: A Veritable Platform for Effective Service Delivery” was one of the consumer outreach platforms where consumers come face to face with their service providers in the presence of of the regulatorNCC. She said that the outcome of the fora will also serve as feedback to the NCC as it translates into policy action and further regulatory intervention for the protection of telecommunication consumers.

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Suswam denies anointing successor From Joseph Wantu, Makurdi.

OVERNOR Gabriel G Suswam of Benue State yesterday denied insinuations that he had anointed or groomed a candidate to take over from him in 2015.

Suswam who made this known during an interview with journalists shortly after INEC issued him the permanent voters card , said based on his experience in politics, it was better candidates were allowed a level playing field for the people to choose who they want.

“Based on my experience in politics I have discovered that it is better you allow a level playing field because even if you put your child in office, don’t expect that he will do what you want, so it is better that you allow people to choose the candidate they want.”

“I have been in this game since 1998 and I have never had it easy in any of my elections, so I don’t expect that you can just get victory in election like that,” he noted.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014 | 9

PHOTONEWS

Ebonyi State Deputy Governor, Dave Umahi (left); President, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Olumide Akintayo; Ebonyi State Governor, Martin Elechi; Chairman, PSN, Ebonyi State branch, Collette Elechi, and other members of PSN, during the courtesy visit on the governor in his office.

Chief Operation Officer, Weco Systems Internationals Ltd., Nnamdi Onyebuchi (left); Director, Ulu Mba; Chief Executive Officer, Obinna Ekwonwa; Director, Godwin Obidike, and Chief Sales Officer, Ambrose Okoigbo, at the presentation of double Cisco Awards to Weco Systems board of directors, Weco Systems won Best Enterprise Partner of the year 2014, Africa and MEAR- Middle East, Africa and Russia in Lagos PHOTO: FEMI ADEBESIN-KUTI

Executive Director, Community Development Foundation, (CDF), Mr. Akin Akintola (left); Chairperson, Mrs. Jumoke Anifowose, and Vice Chairman, Mr. Tunde Ojofeitimi, at CDF Extraordinary General Meeting in Lagos...recently.

Group Deputy Chief Executive Officer, ARM, Jumoke Ogundare (left); Managing Director, ARM Pensions, Mr. Sadiq Mohammed, and Group Chief Executive Officer, Deji Alli, during the ARM Pensions yearly general meeting in Lagos... recently.

PHOTO: SUNDAY AKINLOLU

Director General, Nigerian Stock Exchange, Mr. Oscar Onyema, presenting the Top 25 CEO award to Finance Director, Fidson Healthcare Plc, Mr. Olatunde Olanipekun, representing Managing Director, Fidson Healthcare Plc, Dr. Fidelis Ayebae at the BusinessDay Top 25 CEO Awards ceremony.

Executive Director, CSR-in-Action, Ms. Bekeme Masade (left); Managing Director, Shell Petroleum, Mutiu Sunmonu, Corporate Affairs Adviser, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Kufre Ekanem, and Chairman, Promasidor Nigeria Ltd., Keith Richards, at the Business Leaders Roundtable on sustainable development held on Friday at Federal Palace Hotel, V.I, Lagos.

CEO/Managing Director, Polo Luxury Group, John Obayuwana (left); CEO, Cartier Africa, Alessandro Patti; Executive Director, Polo Luxury Group, Jennifer Obayuwana, and Area Manager, Cartier Africa and Middle East, Pierre-Emmanuel Placette during the press conference organised by Polo Luxury Group to welcome the CEO of Cartier Africa to Nigeria, which held at Polo Towers, Victoria Island.

Assistant Brand Manager, Dark and Lovely, Iretiogo Etsaghara(left); Beautiful Beginnings Mum & I Pageant Princess, Precious Olatunde; General Manager, Consumer Products Division, L'Oreal Central West Africa, Sekou Coulibaly; Human Resources Director, Enitan Ashley-Dejo, and the Group Marketing Manager, Ogbemi Kesiena, at the grand finale of Dark and Lovely Beautiful Beginnings Mum & I Beauty Pageant for School Children in Lagos.

10 Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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AfricanNews Egypt votes amid tight security ILLIONS of voters are M casting ballots across Egypt to choose a new president, for the second time in two years.

A huge security operation has been mounted by police and the military, amid fear of attacks by militants seeking to disrupt the polls.

Former army chief, Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, who deposed Islamist President, Mohammed Morsi last year, is standing against left-wing candidate Hamdeen Sabahi.

Sisi is forecast to win by a comfortable margin.

The elections are being held across two days, with unofficial results expected hours after polls close.

Shortly after polls opened, Sisi cast his vote at a polling station in Heliopolis, Cairo, amid a throng of reporters and spectators.

“The Egyptians are coming out to write their history and chart their future,” said the 59-year-old, dressed in a dark

suit and tie.

Sisi appeals to Egyptians who crave stability after years of political upheaval and anything else than an easy win for him would be a source of astonishment.

The scale of turnout will be seen as an indication of the strength of endorsement of the winning candidate.

In Cairo, voters were queuing to cast their ballots almost an hour before polling stations opened, as military helicopters hovered overhead.

“We want security first, then everything else will follow,” Manal Mohammed, a voter in the district of Imbabah, told the Associated Press.

More than 250,000 members of the security forces are on duty at polling stations across the country, according to the interior ministry.

The tight security drums home a familiar message from the military-backed interim authorities - that the dangers of Islamist militants are ever present, our correspondent says.

Militants have killed hundreds of security personnel since the army overthrew the president last July following mass opposition protests.

The militants say they have stepped up attacks in response to the state’s subsequent crackdown on Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood, in which more than 1,400 people have been killed and 16,000 detained.

Morsi is currently standing trial on a raft of charges. He strongly denies any wrongdoing.

Malawi orders recount of poll ALAWI’S electoral comM mission has ordered a recount in some areas after discovering some voting anomalies after last Tuesday’s general election.

In one constituency nearly five times as many people voted as there were names on

the voters’ roll.

The High Court on Saturday over-ruled an attempt by President Joyce Banda to annul the vote which she said was marred by rigging.

One of her main rivals, Peter Mutharika has a lead in unofficial exit polls.

Her other main challenger is a former preacher, Lazarus Chakwera, the candidate of the Malawi Congress Party, which governed from independence in 1964 until the first multi-party poll in 1994.

Banda, who came to power

two years ago after the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika, had said a new vote should be held within 90 days and she would not stand again in any new poll.

Peter Mutharika is the brother of the late president and had served as his foreign minister.

There was a heated meeting between the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) and the political parties who took part in the election before a recount was agreed on Sunday evening.

Sierra Leone confirms Ebola deaths people have died of FfirstOUR Ebola in Sierra Leone, the confirmed cases in the country following an outbreak in Guinea, the health ministry has said.

They died in the eastern Kailahun district, which borders southern Guinea where the outbreak started in March and has killed more than 145 people.

There is no cure or vaccine for Ebola - one of the world’s deadliest viruses.

But people have a better chance of surviving if it is identified early and they get supportive medical care.

Ebola can kill up to 90 per cent of those infected and is passed on through contact with the fluids of infected people or animals, such as urine, sweat and blood.

‘Scared’ Amara Jambai, the director of disease prevention and control at Sierra Leone’s health ministry, said a health

worker was among the four people who had died of Ebola.

The deaths had occurred over the last three to four days, he said.

People who developed a fever should immediately report a medical facility and an emergency medical team has been deployed to the remote area, Jambai said.

The United Nations World Health Organization said it has been informed about the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone and would help deploy essential supplies.

It said it had received information from the field that there had been six deaths one of which had been laboratory confirmed as Ebola.

Freetown-based journalist, Alpha Kamara told the BBC’s Focus on Africa radio programme that many people in Kailahun district were staying indoors for fear of catching the virus.

Militants kill Kenyan soldiers near Somalia WO Kenyan soldiers transT porting food supplies into Somalia were shot dead in a gunfight near the countries’ border, a senior police official said.

Leonard Omolo, police commander in the coastal county of Lamu, said suspected militants ambushed the soldiers late on Sunday as they pushed their car out of mud after heavy rains in the area.

The soldiers, who were transporting food to the

Somali town of Ras Kamboni, killed one of their attackers, Omolo told Reuters.

Kenya sent troops into Somalia in late 2011, after al Shabaab militants carried out a series of raids on Kenyan soil.

Kenya has seen a drop in tourist arrivals in recent months following a string of gun and grenade attacks blamed on al Shabaab or its sympathizers.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

WorldReport After Euroskeptic rise, EU leaders step into fray UROSKEPTICS celebrated E across the continent yesterday, from Britain to France and beyond, over their unmatched success in the European Parliament election.

Now they are keen to put up internal borders again, keep foreigners out of their labor markets, abolish the common euro currency and let their nations go it alone in a globalized world.

The 28 European Union leaders meeting in today’s postelection summit have a different task: making sure the surge of anti-EU and antiestablishment parties that claimed almost 30 percent of the EU’s 751-seat legislature

doesn’t dislodge the 64-year project of closer cooperation between European nations.

They will also need to look for a way to reconnect with an ever more disenchanted European electorate that stayed away from the polls in massive numbers — and cast plenty of protest votes when they did show up.

Trust in political leadership “is going down dramatically,” EU Commission President, Jose Manuel Barroso acknowledged yesterday in Sintra, Portugal.

British Prime Minister, David Cameron, faced with the rise of the Euroskeptic UK Independence Party at home, struck a similar note, saying

nothing will be business-asusual any more.

“People are deeply disillusioned with the European Union,” Cameron said after Nigel Farage’s UKIP came out on top in Britain and was slated to win 24 EU seats, compared to 19 for Cameron’s Conservatives.

The British leader who has been calling on the EU to drastically reform its ways and institutions to give member nations more space to run their own affairs will be a key figure at today’s summit.

Voters “want change and as far as I am concerned that message is completely received and understood,” Cameron said.

Battle at Donetsk airport, as new Ukraine leader rejects talks with rebels KRAINE launched air U strikes and a paratrooper assault against pro-Russian rebels who seized an airport yesterday, as its newly elected leader rejected any talks with “terrorists” and said a robust military campaign in the east should be able to put down a separatist revolt in “a matter of hours”.

Ukrainians rallied overwhelmingly in an election on Sunday behind Petro Poroshenko, a political veteran and billionaire owner of chocolate factories, hoping the burly 48-year-old can rescue the nation from the brink of bankruptcy, civil war and dismemberment by its former Soviet masters in the

Kremlin.

Yesterday’s rapid military response to separatists who seized the airport in Donetsk was a defiant answer to Moscow, which said it was ready for dialogue with Poroshenko but demanded he first scale back the armed forces’ campaign in the east.

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12 | Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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Politics The National Conference Debate

‘Only referendum can authenticate confab resolutions’ Comrade Ejoor Umukoro is the National Coordinator, Defenders of Democracy Group (DDG). He spoke to Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu in Benin City on expectations from the ongoing national conference and political developments in the country.

AN anything good come out of the National CLetConference going on in Abuja? me say that it depends on whether the outcome of the confab would be subjected to a national referendum.

Yes, so much good can come out of the confab if Nigerians are allowed to participate in the evolution of its content by referendum.

But if we are cut off from the equation and the eventual outcome of the confab is subjected to the unholy scrutiny by this present crop of National Assembly members, we may have just been playing merry-go-round with this exercise.

How can National Assembly members, who continuously vote billions of naira to themselves for personal consumption, become those who will vet such a noble idea?

How can a National Assembly, which, since the inception of democracy in Nigeria, has done nothing by way of legislation to proffer solutions to the persistent Nigerian security problems, and has made no legislation to address the apparent imbalance and inadequacies in the Nigerian constitution, vet the confab recommendations?

Do you know that the confab became necessary because the National Assembly members failed to live up to their billing, and now suddenly, they want to become relevant and decide for over 150 million people?

We say no to this demonic agenda. Nigerians must decide Nigeria’s destiny by referendum.

The fact that we are talking means Nigerians can brainstorm and come out with a solution, but then, the generality of our plural society must attest to our collective agreement by a referendum.

Then and only then can we say we have a

Nigerian Constitution, one that we all agreed to.

Critics say it is detraction ahead of 2015, do subscribe to this? Well you said that’s what critics say, that’s why they are critics, they will always see sometime sinister even in something that is good. Well this is my take on it, whether it is a distraction, or not depends on Nigerians whether we allow its outcome to be swept under the carpet or implemented would decide whether it is a distraction or not;. If we insist on its outcome if we insist on having our way by way of referendum, the way we insisted on the exit of military from Nigerian politics. If we say this is our chance and we must not let it slip, then even if it was a distraction, it will be one distraction that led to a positive revolution. A revolution that would swallow the distraction and berth a new order. Do you think President Goodluck Jonathan should seek re-election next year despite current security challenges? Oh that should not even be a question one should ask.

The man is a Nigerian, an adult, a former deputy governor, a former governor, a former vice president, a serving president and the constitution has not barred him, if he wants to offer himself for service, if he wants to seek re-election why not? We should not be emotional concerning these things, if he seeks reelection he will either lose or win. I think what we should be concerned is that the process of the election should not only be seen to be free and fair but also seen to be credible, Then whoever wins would have come on board because the Nigerian people voted for him or her. What do you think is the way forward for Nigeria in all of these? The security challenges we have had may have been partly linked to his slow approach to fighting these terrorist attack, but holistically the security challenge we have here is purely a terrorist threat and attack. And it is not peculiar to Nigeria. Nobody told Bush or the Republican Party that the twin tower bombing by terrorist led by al-Qaida disqualified him and his

Umukoro party from seeking re-election The Americans had a collective concern to rid terrorism, not blaming one person the president for terrorist act. We must divorce partisan politics from all of these and set for national answers, we are not to say it’s the president, it’s his party. He should not re-contest Do you think Nigeria will survive these? We have started to talk and I think that is a good omen, people go to war because they refuse to talk or dialogue and ironically wars end when nations talk and dialogue. The national confab is one forum we have avoided for so long, now we are talking , what we agree on must be subjected to referendum and our collective agreement as

a people would definitely set the agenda for a new order. One thing is certain is after this talk, Nigeria would never be the same again.

The people would remain but a new order will begin. Let us not forget though, I say this for those angling for separation of the nation, that power is first consultation and then consolidation before confrontation. Our historical pedigree shows we can survive these times of turmoil, our history also show that after survival we struggle in pains held captive by those who we elect or who elect themselves to lead us. This is my prophecy, a new order will emerge and we will be better as a people. Now that depends on whether our people ,the elite and common man agree to be civil in the great challenge that will face us, as we go to the poll.

Will we continue to allow Boko Haram to harass us as a people or will we sheepishly blame the president for a national menace which we should collectively deal with? Will we be genuine party men or political prostitutes jumping boat from one party to another to satisfy our selfish end? Will we continuously celebrate corruption or frown at it? These and much more will define our survival; Sin is a reproach to any nation. There are fears the next year’s general election may be marred by violence. Do you believe this? Every general election in Nigeria since independence has been marred by electoral violence in varying degrees .2015 general elections may not just be different. Whatever happens after 2015, Nigeria will not be the same again. I predict a new order. But if you mean violence of a high magnitude, the type we have never witnessed before, then of course one can safely say, if such is allowed to happen, the country may just be heading for disaster and I pray that we would still be able to remain one nation. You see, we seem to be gravitating into an avoidable implosion and self destruct. By all means we all must agree on the eventual outcome of the forth coming general elections or we may just be kissing our nation good bye and do not think it cannot happen.

Shettima regrets doubts over Chibok school girls’ abduction From Njadvara Musa, Maiduguri OVERNOR Kashim Shettima of Borno State has said that the doubts over the abduction of over 200 Chibok students by suspected Boko Haram gunmen “pained him as much” as their abductions on April 14, 2014.

Besides, he said the sum of N150 million had been set aside to rehabilitate the 53 escaped students, including their affected parents and guardians in Chibok town.

The governor made the declaration and clarification when a 26-member Presidential Fact Finding Committee (PFFC) on abduction of the schoolgirls visited him at the Government House in Maiduguri.

Leader of the committee, Brig-Gen. Ibrahim Sabo, said the body was to reach an amicable solution to release the abducted schoolgirls.

According to Shettima: “There is a whole difference between politics and governance. In politics, you tell the general public and victims about a problem, you tell them the gravity of the problem, and with emphasis, you tell them who to blame for it.

“But in governance, you identify a problem and work hard to solve it. Unfortunately for us in this interesting country, Nigeria, we all appear to lay more emphasis on politics than on governance.

“The Chibok incident, for me, has grossly exposed our weighty weakness, as leaders, in terms of assuming our shared responsibilities to the electorate that voted us into office.”

The governor said the nation has come across a situation “where men abducted young, inno-

G

Shettima cent schoolgirls, separated them from their education, from their parents, from their relations and friends and from their environment and more disturbing also, attempted to separate them from their own religion out of compulsion.”

“To every other Muslim, worldwide, these men that kill, destroy and abduct, insult Islam by calling themselves Muslims.”

He told the committee members that the Boko Haram sect has contradicted every single tenet

of the Islamic religion, adding that its members tried to change the ordained translation of verses in the Holy Quran.

The Holy Quran, according to him, has clearly said that there is no compulsion in Religion.

“But to these men of violence, there is compulsion not only in religion, but even in Islamic ideology,” he said.

“Any human, who doesn’t share their ideology deserves to be brutally killed. A Muslim that is of not of the Boko Haram sect is condemned to

death and so is Christian.

“To them, the human race should go into extinction for their doctrine to thrive.”

Governor Shettima said worst of all, a woman and a mother came out to cast doubt over the abduction of these schoolgirls from Chibok.

“That woman completely disregarded the sensitivity of that issue, the pains of the agonising parents and our pains as a government, to whom the parents of these girls cry out in desperation and unimaginable confusion and anguish,” he said.

“Every other unreasonable Nigerian that came to adopt that view only anchored the unfortunate view that was first expressed by Mrs. Kema Chikwe.”

The governor stressed that: “Doubt over that abduction pained me far more than the childish theory that as government, we staged that abduction in order to create basis to stop the extension of emergency rule in Borno.

“If a government doesn’t want extension of emergency and chooses to fake happenings, the government should rather deny that the abduction ever took place, evil as that is, because the abduction is enough basis for the emergency extension given the fact that the incident puts a message across that there is new and big threat to students in schools; hence, the need for extension of emergency rule.”

The governor recalled the issue of saying that Chibok was not safe “and we went ahead to open the school.”

Tuesday, May 27, 2014 POLITICS 13

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

Intrigues as Ondo Assembly is set to elect new Speaker From Oluwaseun Akingboye, Akure HE Ondo State House of Assembly T is, at the moment, plunged into a frenzied scramble and polarized schisms over succession into the Office of the Speaker of the House, following the recent death of the former Speaker, Samuel Ajayi Adesina who had since been buried in his Oniparaga hometown.

The death, last February 25, of the Speaker has signaled the commencement of a race by the lawmakers to fill the vacant seat thereby heating up the polity especially in the Southern Senatorial District, where the position is zoned to.

The race for the speaker of the House is coming at a time when the recent bye-election into the Federal Constituency in the Ilaje/Ese-Odo area is inconclusive and is generating verbal attacks and verbal counter-attacks between the Labour Party and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which surprisingly put up a very significant performance at the poll.

The in-conclusive poll has since become a legal contest where the Labouir Party is praying the court to declare it as the winner of the poll on the strength that it scored the simple majority.

Adesina, a third term lawmaker who started out as a member of the PDP before joining the ruling party after the emergence of the LP administration in 2009, until his death, was seen by many as a taciturn but maverick politician.

The late Speaker represented Odigbo Constituency 2 in the State House of Assembly.

In the current political power structure in the state, the Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko is from the Central Senatorial Zone, his Deputy, Alhaji Alli Olanusi and the Chief Judge, Sehinde Kumuyi are both from the Northern District while the Speaker, which by order of protocol, is the third on the list, is ceded to the southern district.

As expected, filling the vacuum created by Adesina’s death has led to a lot of politicking and horse-trading among the leading contestants mainly from the Southern District and of course, the interest of the governor, Dr Mimiko, is playing a significant role in whoever emerges as the holder of the gavel at the end of the day.

Even as many members of the Assembly lamented the death of the Speaker under whose tenure the legislature recorded no crisis, those from his senatorial zone have already signified their intention to step into the big shoes.

Among the contenders is a second term lawmaker from the oil-producing Ilaje Constituency 1, Oyebo Aladetan, who with Adesina defected from the PDP to the ruling party and presently is Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Victor Akinwe, also a second time legislator from Adesina’s Odigbo Constituency 1 and Soji Akinkurolere who represents Okitipupa Constituency 1.

Others are Iwalewa Afolabi who represents Irele and Jumoke Akindele, the only female lawmaker from the southern district and one of the founding members of the LP who, like Mimiko, contested the controversial April 14, 2007 election and engaged in a futile legal battle to claim a mandate to the Assembly. Akindele, a member of the House Committee on Education represents Okitipupa 2 constituency.

The dire need to get a strong leadership and another “bridge builder” in the Assembly to continue the good works of Adesina makes all principal parties of the state to be interested in who becomes the next Speaker.

There is a poll of opinion in the state that the leadership of the

House must not be in the hands of amateurs, whom veteran politicians argued to be the first time legislators and gate-crashers into the Igbatoro Road House of Assembly.

This political analysis favours Aladetan Oyebo who got the ticket the second time and is the Chairman of House Committee on Information and Akinwe Victor, another second time. These two legislators among the five contenders to the exalted seat have the order of seniority in the House and weight of experience to their advantage to emerge as the next Speaker. But in the heyday of their ambition, there poses a threatening sword of Damocles against their chance.

Victor Akinwe is a legislator representing from the same local government with the late Speaker and this goes a long way as a stumbling block against his emergence.

Aladetan Oyebo, though a second time legislator in the House and saddled with a very sensitive responsibility, the need for equal and even opportunity for other local governments in the area may eventually take the ticket from him.

It is argued by other members of the House that the Ilajes, who inhabit the riverine areas may not be qualified for the posh position of the Speaker again because they have as fringe benefits and exclusive right, the Chairmanship of Ondo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (OSOPADEC) and member of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

However, the influence of the State Governor is expected to play a big factor in who eventually becomes the Speaker.

Walking down the corridor of history, there is a precedent in the State Assembly in 2006, when the impeachment threat against the Speaker, Victor Adekanye Olabintan by some members of the assembly forced him to resign and install Oluwasegunota Bolarinwa in defiance to the governor, Late Dr. Olusegun Agagu of PDP. This external influence nevertheless is still so much relevant, and this intensifies the scramble for the wig and gavel among the prospective members from the southern district, as they frequent the Governor’s

Adesina Office and Government House, Alagbaka to curry the favour of the governor. Many cronies and associates of the governor are lobbied so as to mend every broken bridge with the governor and cement the already existing mutual relationship.

Three of the legislators have been purportedly screened out of the race through zoning complications and unfavourable political coincidences.

Akinwe Victor gets a red card in the air for coming from the same local government with the late Speaker; agitators say other local governments should also enjoy such dividend of democracy; the Ilajes from where Aladetan hails from solely control the NDDC and OSOPADEC effectively Aladetan is short out.

Soji Akinkurolere may have also been shut out by virtue of the fact he comes from the same constituency with the serving Senator in the district, Boluwaji Kunlere.

The only legislators who seem to be

treading the path of luck are Jumoke Akindele representing Okitipupa Constituency 1 and Iwalewa Afolabi representing Irele. These members are both from the Ikale-speaking ethnic nation in the state.

Who knows, this might be the time to politically settle the grievances and outcries of the people from the area of marginalisation by the state government in appointments and fringe dividends of democracy; and to also create an inroad politically for the party to break into the PDP stronghold in the area.

Dr. Olusegun Agagu, the political colossus of the coastal area, is gone and the political machinery of the Ikale, Ilaje, Ijaw and Apoi people needs another General. Picking the next Speaker from the area will fill the leadership vacuum and a new leadership cabal shall rise again in the coastal region.

Consequent upon some political calculations, many observers and analysts posited that the wig seemes to likely fit Akindele better than Iwalewa Afolabi.

In the history of the State created on February 3, 1976, the state has never had a female Speaker. This however could be the first opportunity to have one.

Nevertheless, as reckoned by all those who followed the trends of events politically in the Ondo State pitch of play, offside flags were raised against the male legislators for what was perceived as rough attacks and defence against the maverick political striker and mid-fielder of Ondo State politics, Governor Mimiko last year, during the 2014 budget presentation. This might be an opportunity for Mimiko to demand a pound of flesh from the erring legislators.

But the legislators are determined not to give in without a fight.

This has divided the house into two strong factions building their fulcra on the pro-Mimiko group which consisted of nine legislators led by Hon. Akinsoyinu Ifedayo from Ondo West Constituency 1and the other fifteen led by Hon. Adeniyi Akindele from Akure North during the 2014 Budget saga.

And for the record, it was gathered that Jumoke has an age-long mutual relationship with Mr. Governor and argued further that only Jumoke

Akindele out of the Assembly members from the South Senatorial District attended the 2014 Budget Presentation of Mr. Governor on December 31, 2013: the other four boycotted the session.

This has led to fresh plots, politicking and scheming by the groups to ensure their candidates emerge as the pro-Mimiko group supports Akindele Jumoke while the other group consolidates efforts to parade any of the legislators from the South Senatorial District, so as to nip the interest of the governor in the bud.

The Governor is now on his toes, deploying more efforts and logistics to lobbying and winning more members from the opposition faction to ensure the emergence of a female speaker in the house; while the anti Mimiko is working assiduously to narrow the number of contenders from its camp to one so as to counter-balance the efforts of the governor and slug it out with him to a dead-end.

There are rounds of allegation against the governor over a foul play to impose a female speaker, who would dance to the tunes of her benefactor to perpetrate a fresh impeachment plot against the incumbent Deputy Governor, Alhaji Ali Olanusi for another high profiled Akoko man, who will be groomed to succeed the governor in 2016.

Meanwhile politicians in the state are becoming worried about what they say is the un-due delay in the election of a new Speaker for the Assembly.

In an interview with The Guardian, Mr. Babatunde Sheba expressed his grievances this way, “I am totally disappointed with the entire members of the Ondo State House of Assembly over their failure to perform their constitutional role of electing a speaker since the demise of Adesina Samuel.”

In few days to come, the Ondo State House of Assembly shall get a new Speaker, who will finish the next twelve months in office. As the drama and tussle for power between the governor and the anti-2014 Budget group takes surprising twists and turns every minute in the Assembly, everyone keenly follows the trend.

TheGuardian

14 | Tuesday, May 27, 2014

www.ngrguardiannews.com

Conscience Nurtured by Truth

FOUNDER: ALEX U. IBRU (1945 – 2011) Conscience is an open wound; only truth can heal it. Uthman dan Fodio 1754-1816

Editorial Still on the spate of bombings W

HEN Jos, capital of Plateau State, was shattered by a twin bomb blast the other day in the densely populated Terminus Market area of the city, the fears that a once beautiful city may be returning to its acquired status of a killing field were justifiably heightened.

Especially because the casualty was heavy, almost beyond imagination, there is now good reason to think that the threat of suicide bombing may be spreading once again. As scores of people lay dead and the incident immediately attracted condemnation across the country, the national request is that the violence be stopped and Jos as well as other parts of Nigeria now under the threat of suicide bombings be made safe. The President appropriately described the incident as “a tragic assault on human freedom” and as “cruel and evil”. Plateau State Governor Jonah Jang was spot-on in describing the terror act as barbaric.

While the various denunciations from Nigerians had yet to die down and the bereaved had yet to wipe their tears, another bomb went off in the same Jos where soccer enthusiasts were watching the European soccer cup final. The Jos incidents, coming on the heels of an earlier bombing in Kano, are simply heart-rending beyond comprehension.

These terrorist acts call for deeper reflection about what Nigeria is not doing correctly and what we should do to curb and extirpate the insurgency ravaging the land.

A decade ago, news of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) were strange in these parts and sounded more like fables. It echoed from distant lands such as Iraq, Yemen and nearer home in Somalia. In the bloody civil war in Liberia and Sierra Leone, it was not even a weapon in vogue. Today, Nigerians now live in the danger of being bombed to death by militants, whose desires are simply evil. Many have been victims and the phenomenon seems endless so much so that the country has become a huge killing field. The devastation to life and property has become a common sight in ways that seem to inure the population against the horror of death. Each time it happens, the people shudder and the government in act of self-delusion often claims it is on top of the situation and thereafter, goes back to business as usual.

While many may continue to ponder over government’s incapacitation, one thing is clear: the spate of bombings in the country is now beyond the government, it is a Nigerian crisis and Nigerians must rise up to the challenge. The activities of the insurgents are targeted at the corporate existence of Nigeria. The intractability of the crisis, of course, indicates that the government may not have got its act right.

The country is dealing with a wave of terror and the sincere hope is that there are no fifth columnists in this matter.

A year ago, a state of emergency was declared in three states, namely, Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe which were overwhelmed by the activities of Boko Haram and only recently, the National Assembly renewed the emergency rule on the request of the President. While a state of emergency is required to deal with the enormity of the crisis, it is doubtful if it has yielded any dividend so far. The insurgent group has carried on as though there is no security cordon around it and the climax of its activities is the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Chibok. Indeed, the spate of killings is so embarrassing and has now attracted the attention of the international community which recently branded the Boko Haram group a terrorist organisation.

However, there is no illusion that the presence of assistance from the international community as well as the support of Nigeria’s immediate neighbours would mean the end of the crisis. The assistance of the international community is useful but the war against insurgents in Nigeria is a Nigerian fight and all Nigerians must brace up to fight that battle squarely. In the quest for solution, the nation certainly needs the input of all victims and key stakeholders to galvanise support for an enduring solution. As some Nigerians have well articulated, the responsibility of bringing to an end the insurgency in the North which has shattered the peace and economy of the area does not rest squarely on the laps of the President alone. It is a moral burden hanging on the shoulder of every Nigerian. Thus, a concerted national effort, harnessing the energy and goodwill of every Nigerian, is required to end the scourge of terrorism so that the country can face the urgent task of nation building.

LETTERS

What the President can do IR: I love Dr. Goodluck where within Nigeria. If his tactfully use the citizens of Ssurely Jonathan as a person, but he daughter was among the lot, Nigeria in running security; needs to do more as our will he handle the issue the way never again should a citizen be President. Nigerians should allow him finish his eight years. But we need more presidential decisions and actions on teething problems facing us. Nigeria cannot continue to have a military that was defeated on water by the militants and now a military seemingly being defeated in the desert by Boko Haram. May God continue to keep and protect GEJ. So what should he do to stem the current insecurity in the country? By way of advice, the president: • should expose and prosecute whoever he strongly feels is funding Boko Haram in Nigeria.

• should stop utilising the combined effort of the military and the international community.

• should seriously reduce going about for state visits or to birthday occasions when there is mass security alert in the land.

Over 200 Nigerian girls have since been kidnapped some-

victimized for supplying inforhe did?

He needs to be decisive and give mation to the police.

Finally, the National to the security agencies an ultimatum that these girls are Orientation Agency should enlighten brought back home safe and constantly alive. He should re-train our Nigerians on how or how not security agencies in line with to behave when there is securiinternational standards of con- ty alert, among other meascentrating security efforts on ures deemed fit. intelligence gathering and util- • Okachikwu Dibia, ity. The police must be made to Abuja, FCT

Ogun: I’m amazed!

I visited Ogun State dur- structure development and Sin IR:ing the Easter period. I was standard exceeding that of Abeokuta, Mowe and Otta. Lagos State in all the three Sincerely, I have always prayed that Ogun State should benefit from its proximity to Lagos State and improve its infrastructure and quality of life, though in my mind, I don’t see how similar level of infrastructure can be developed. There is so much disparity in the income and income capacity of Ogun compared to Lagos State.

To my astonishment, I saw an Ogun State with road infra-

towns I visited.

I am short of words and can only pray that Allah (SWT) continues to help and guide the governor and his administration to achieve more.

If we can continue like Ogun in all the states of Nigeria, then we have hope, which, most of our generation have since concluded is lost. .

Saheed Lasisi, .

Abuja, FCT

As bomb shatters Ohakim’s house The news of the calSedIR:lous explosions suspectto be bomb that rocked the Aladinma Prefab Housing Estate residence of the immediate past Governor of Imo State, Ikedi Ohakim continues to reverberate across the country.

We thank the Almighty

God for sparing the life of Dr. Ohakim and his family. I truly sympathise with the former governor and his family over the incident. Life is very precious and should not be wasted on the altar of politics with bitterness. I call on security agencies to leave no stone unturned in unveiling the perpetrators

of this ungodly and wicked act.

Imo citizens should be their brother’s keeper by reporting unusual movements to the appropriate quarters for quick and speedy intervention.

• Myke Ikoku, Imo Initiative Reporting

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

15

Opinion Imo 2015: Free education remains the key

By Luke Onyekakeyah S the clock ticks for the gubernatorial elecA tion in Imo State in early 2015 (about eight months from now), there is mounting apprehension over what becomes of the free education policy of the state under the incumbent Governor Rochas Okorocha, should he decide not to contest for whatever reason, as being insinuated. But Okorocha has not told Imo people that he is not re-contesting the governorship election. If he contests and wins, then the free education policy will continue unhindered.

There is no doubt that the Imo free education has brought immeasurable relief to thousands of students at all levels, irrespective of its shortcomings. The impact is felt more at the primary and secondary school levels, which is where the free education is needed most. For the first time, most downtrodden families, which couldn’t send their children or wards to school, have taken advantage of the policy to send their children to school, a development that is in the interest of future development of the state. Granted that the policy may not have been perfect, the truth is that it is functional and Imo children are benefitting from it. With commitment over time, the scheme would be smoothed out.

My worry is that should free education be stopped abruptly or discontinued; should there be a change of government, there would be untold consequences on the educational aspirations of thousands of Imo children. Besides, thousands of indigent families would withdraw their children from school and re-engage them in menial child-labour.

The state will come back to square one as far as education is concerned. Such a development wouldn’t be in the interest of the state.

That is why free education should be guarded jealously by Imo people. Free education should remain the key to the Government House in Owerri in 2015.

As the election draws nearer, Imo people should be wary not to trade off their right to education with empty promises of mundane

things. While the promise of roads, water, jobs, loans, etc, are good, education is the bedrock for development. We have been hearing these promises each time there is election for decades and yet the country remains largely undeveloped because those promises were never fulfilled.

Without education, these issues are meaningless. Illiterate people have no value for the best infrastructure. People should protect their own interest in 2015. People should look forward to the continuation of the free education policy. People should look out and vote only for the contestant who is ready and prepared to continue with the state’s free education policy. In 2011, the promise of free education by Owelle Rochas Okorocha turned the card in his favour. And, interestingly, he has not failed on that front.

It is interesting that so far, several contenders for the exalted political office are lining up.

There would always be a horde of well-qualified and capable men and women, who would like to govern the state. While some are old faces, others are new in the ring. In this contest, people invest whatever is within their power to outwit their opponents. Like elsewhere in Nigeria, election in Imo State could be daunting. One must be ready to stake anything (some even turn diabolical), to ensure victory.

So far, as many as 12 aspirants are warming up to wrest the Government House from Okorocha. As I said earlier, each aspirant means business. I don’t think they’re joking. And each is a potential gubernatorial material.

What each has to offer to make life better for Imo people, including improving on the free education policy is what matters. Imo people should look out for that.

At the last count, we have veterans like Chief Ikedi Ohakim, the immediate past governor of Imo State; Senator Ifeanyi Ararume; Senator Hope Uzodimma; Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, who is the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives; Senator Chris Anyanwu and Hon. Bethel Amadi. Others are Mr. Emma Ojinere; Capt. Emma Ihenacho; Chief Jerry Chukwueke; Chief Martin Agbaso; Barrister Ken-

neth Njemanze (SAN) and Ken Ojiri.

With the exception of Chief Martin Agbaso and Capt. Emma Ihenacho who belong to the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), the rest of the contestants belong to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The incumbent Governor belongs to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

There is nothing wrong under a democratic dispensation for anyone to seek any political office of his choice. It is left to the electorate to choose who should govern them through the power of their votes. In decent climes, what determines who wins are the policies and programmes the aspirants have in stock for the people. In the case of the incumbent Governor, his landmark achievements and the extent he has made life better for the people will speak for him at the polls.

Unfortunately, many in this clime believe that it is through fraudulent manipulation and vote rigging that one wins. This demented school of thought doesn’t believe in free and fair election. It believes in do-or-die politics. But it is important for the aspirants to know that Imo people have become wiser.

They have learnt how to say no to rigging and manipulation. They have learnt how to stand by their votes and insist on it. They have learnt how to declare vigil to ensure that the votes are protected.

The experience of 2011 should be a lesson that the political landscape is no longer the same. You can’t beat the people now. Those who think they can buy the votes would be disappointed. People have learnt to collect your money and still vote you out. That way, one puts him or herself in huge financial mess. You lose at both ends. Therefore, the only way out is for one to conduct him or herself properly; do what the people want and not what the godfathers want. The days of godfatherism have diminished.

As far as Imo free education is concerned, which is the crux of this comment, who wins in 2015 may not be based on party affiliation but on the individual’s personal values and commitment to the people’s welfare. The education issue may not be a party affair as the

parties to which most of the contestants belong don’t have free education in their manifesto but individuals may decide to implement free education.

For instance, whereas neither the PDP nor APGA has free education as a party policy, some state governors belonging to these parties implement free education solely in their states. PDP governors in the South-South zone and some in the northern part of the country, for instance, implement free education in their states.

Before he switched over to the APC, Governor Rochas Okorocha, who contested and won on the platform of APGA, promised free education even when another APGA state, Anambra, did not have free education. Okorocha’s promise of free education turned the table in his favour.

Based on the foregoing, it is left to the aspirants to the Imo governorship, to key in to the free education policy if they really want to be accepted by Imo people. I don’t subscribe to all the criticisms against the Okorocha free education policy. Okorocha has done what no leader has ever done in Igbo land by introducing free education all levels. Those who think the policy is not being well implemented should key in to it and improve on it.

Killing the policy is not the alternative to improving it.

My investigation shows that while there are manipulations at the tertiary level, the policy is working well at the primary and secondary school levels. That should be encouraged. The primary and secondary school levels are more critical being the foundation.

I would advise the Governor to focus on the foundation level and leave tertiary students for now. The funds expended on the tertiary education should be channeled to the primary and secondary schools. We want to grow a literate citizenry. Any person, who has passed through the primary and secondary school, could no longer be regarded as an illiterate. The state should strive to have more literate population at the foundation level.

Once again, free education will determine who governs Imo State in 2015.

Pencom and safety of new pension scheme

By Ikeogu Oke N May 16, 2014, my sister, Oluchi, wrote on her Facebook O page: “I went to pension office to get my mother’s pension, her January pay. I was humbled. I sat back to watch the humiliation and insults our senior citizens endure just to get paid. I watched old faces full of frustration and dejection. I visualised them as youths in active service. And I wondered what could be going on in their minds. It’s sad to see what our mamas and papas have been reduced to. I gathered that if they do not receive their pay on the first two days that money is being released for payment, it will become arrears that never get paid. I saw my Mathematics teacher, my Agricultural Science teacher and my Vice Principal, wonderful women that put in their best to produce sound and seasoned professionals. They deserve better.”

(Source: https://www.facebook.com/oluchi.oke.1?fref=ts) The mother in question, also my mother, retired during the old pension scheme, in contrast with the new or current scheme – in which, respectively, workers and employers with up to five employees and above are legally bound to contribute monthly 7.5 per cent of each worker’s salary into a Retirement Savings Account (RSA) opened by the worker with a licensed Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) of their choice.

The old scheme was marred by unreliability which led to what Idang Abibi (in an article titled “Pencom: One Step Forward, Two Backwards?” published in Daily Trust of May 8, 2014) describes as “the pains, anguish and absolute horrors” those who retired under the old scheme “used to face in getting their entitlements”, which still persist long after the old scheme was replaced with the new, as my sister’s Facebook post reveals. I have quoted the Facebook post to show in concrete human terms the suffering that an unreliable pension scheme can cause for retirees and pensioners.

The new scheme was ushered in through the Pension Reform Act of 2004, which established the National Pension Commission (Pencom) as its regulator. It has not only straightened out the irregularities associated with the old scheme; it has also – in the case of those retired under the new scheme – ensured reliable access to their entitlements under the scheme, called contributory pension scheme. What is more, it has created a new industry – the Nigerian pension industry – whose assets cur-

rently exceed N4.2 trillion.

Unfortunately, this burgeoning legacy of success and positive transformation seems to have come under threat through a recent action of Pencom, the same government agency legally and morally responsible for sustaining it through conscientious regulation of the industry.

To be specific: Pencom recently licensed a PFA called the NPF Pensions Limited (i.e. Nigerian Police Force Pensions Limited). Then, as if prompted by the word “force” in the name of the new PFA, it directed that contributions belonging to police personnel totalling N302 billion be transferred from previously existing PFAs to the new PFA. This is tantamount to forcing all police personnel to subscribe to the services of the new PFA and also forcing the other PFAs to surrender the accounts voluntarily opened with them by police personnel to the new PFA. Curiously, this is happening in an industry where the law insists on free choice in the opening of RSAs and provides for holders of RSAs to switch their accounts between PFAs only with the opening of a transfer window. And the transfer window was not open when Pencom issued its said directive to the PFAs. So much can be said about the impropriety of the directive by Pencom, on legal and moral grounds, besides its threat to the safety of the new pension scheme. As I have hinted at, the law is clear on free choice. And I don’t think that Pencom would like to be perceived as a regulator, otherwise a gatekeeper for the law, leading in or encouraging a breach of the law. In the least one would expect it to open the transfer window and let contributors or RSA holders (including police personnel) move freely. And shouldn’t it consider that the gains of the past 10 years, since the introduction of the new pension scheme, would have been eroded if, following the precedent it is trying to set with the Nigeria Police Force, all government parastatals and agencies, and even private companies, proceed to set up PFAs. Would Pencom be able to supervise the 1000 or so PFAs that would emerge as a result?

Besides, third party management of RSAs guarantees the independence of the scheme; it is a sort of managerial inbreeding, likely to produce unhealthy “offspring” of blackmail and coercion, to have employers control the RSAs of their workers.

The situation that would emerge from the recent action by Pencom, should it stand, would put too much of the destiny of

some workers – specifically police personnel – in the hands of their employer; that is, even after retirement. And to think they may not have a choice though the law insists they must!

Then, in an era of heightening insecurity, one would expect the police to concentrate on their primary function of maintaining law and order; – alas the implied move towards a wholesale appropriation of their workers’ RSAs from other PFAs suggests a preference for perpetrating illegality and precipitating chaos. And even if they recruit professionals to run their PFA, will they find adequate time for the attendant oversight responsibilities while grappling with security and related issues?

And we’re talking about billions of Naira whose availability could make the difference between the survival or otherwise of many people after retirement, and whose owners would surely want to avoid the anguish faced by retirees and pensioners under the old pension scheme, as my sister sketched in her Facebook post quoted above.

And there is the particularly immoral element of encouraging people to reap without planting, which is what Pencom would be doing by having the funds transferred to the new NPF Pensions Limited from investors, including foreigners, that set up PFAs and painstakingly sourced subscribers to their services from the teething stages of the industry. (Incidentally, one of the leading banks in the country recently set up a PFA. Will Pencom direct the transfer of the RSAs belonging to the bank’s staff to its new PFA? And if the Nigeria Police Force were to float a bank, would the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), perhaps following Pencom’s example, be right to direct that all monies in other banks belonging to police personnel be transferred to the new bank? Also, an RSA is a private account. I still maintain one as a self-employed pensioner.

The depths of the irregularity of its being treated as if it were not a private account, as reflected in the said Pencom directive regarding the Nigeria Police Force PFA, can in fact be plumbed endlessly, like that of the arbitrary imposition on Nigerians of a change of their vehicle number plates by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), a move later stopped by a court as illegal. And one hopes Pencom would learn from the experience of the FRSC and reverse its controversial action in question or align it with the law.

• Oke, a pensioner, poet, and public affairs analyst, sent this piece from Abuja.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Opinion The journey to Lagos anniversary

By Akinwunmi Ambode EMINISCENCES! As the people of Lagos State R celebrate the 47 Anniversary of its historic creation today, waves of nostalgia sweep yours th

truly from the vast Atlantic Ocean, through the lagoons across the famed Victoria Island to the modern mainland. How old was one then? Just four years.

Yet, one has grown up to share in the proud and rich heritage of Lagos State as bequeathed by the founding fathers whose verdant vision has transformed it into a social melting pot for the Nigerian nation. That is, irrespective of differences in race and religion, gender or geo-political nuances. Having since assumed the pedigree as the commercial nerve centre of the entire West African Sub-Region, with the everbusy ports as the catalyst, the story of Lagos cannot be told without recourse to the worthy progenitors.

Historically, the geographic boundary was known as the Mainland. Lagos Island, the seat of the Oba then consisted of farms and fishing posts. Beyond the Portuguese’s early influence the line of the Kings is a noble one. From Ashipa (1600-1630) through King Ado (1630-1669) down the lineage of Kings Gabara, Kekere to the famed King Kosoko (1845-1851), Dosunmu the great to Adeniji Adele, the revered Oba Adeyinka Oyekan 11(1965-2003) and the respected Oba Rilwan Akiolu1(2003 till date) Lagos has always presented a vast vista of a land of limitless possibilities and home of peace and plenty for all. Here, indeed several nebulous dreams have found their voice and vision, and will continue to do.

Great women and men, including Madam Tinubu of blessed memory as the leader of the market women played a prominent role in ensuring that Lagos remains a reference point in commercial activities and that the voice of the women was heard. It was such that the English and American press who visited Nigeria in January 1956 with Queen Elizabeth saw a Lagos, as symbolic of the nation, described as ‘bright,

jovial where mud huts and shanties mixed with modern buildings of striking grace and beauty’(New York Herald). But Nigeria is nevertheless ‘an optimistic and happy land’(Time Magazine.)

Lagos would, however, remain the symbol of political re-engineering and the cradle of nationalism. Here, the first most popular political party, Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP) was formed by Herbert Macaulay in 1922. Described as ‘one of the most versatile intellects produced by the 19th century Nigeria’, and called the Defender of Native Liberties, Macaulay was the rallying point for the doctors, lawyers, landlords and market women. According to Mokwuko Okoye, ‘Lagos was able to dominate provincial Nigeria as Paris dominated the 18th and 19th century France.’

While the Sir Hugh Clifford Constitution of 1923 provided for four elected members with three for Lagos and one for Calabar, the NNDP did capture the three Lagos seats in the Legislative Council. And it continued to dominate Lagos politics for some 20 years with great minds in its ranks such as Dr. Adeniyi Jones, Eric Moore, Karim Kotun and Adeyemo Alakija.

Lagos it was again that became the epicentre of the struggle for nationalism with the return to the country of patriots such as Professor Eyo Ita, and Nnamdi Azikiwe in the early 30s. Eventually, they saw to formation of the Nigerian Youth Movement in 1934. Prominent as members were Dr. J.C. Vaughan, Ernest Ikoli, Samuel Akinsanya and H. O. Davis as the moving spirits. Their struggle was for Nigeria’s political independence as did the then newly formed, Chief Awolowo-inspired Egbe Omo Oduduwa.

Between then and now, Lagos has thrived economically under its leaders, starting from the tenure of Brigadier Gen. Mobolaji Johnson, Late Comm. Adekunle Lawal, Comm. Ndubusi Kanu, Comm. Ebitu Ukiwe, Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande, Late Comm. Gholahan Mudasiru, Navy Capt. (Late) Okhai Mike Akhigbe, Brigadier Gen. Raji Rasaki, Late Sir Michael Agbolade Otedola, Col. Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Brig. Gen. Muhammed Buba Marwa, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed

Tinubu to the present administration of Gov. Babatunde Fashola (SAN). In all, the 13 of them have made tremendous contribution to the evolution of Lagos State at one point or the other. Equally worthy of mentioning are Alhaji Femi Okunnu , Alhaji H.A.B. Fasinro , Chief F.C.O. Coker, Chief Molade Okoya Thomas among others who made Lagos tick.

In fact, Jakande’s administration was particularly unique. He introduced housing and educational programmes targeted at alleviating poverty. He built new neighbourhood primary and secondary schools even as it provided free education for these two tiers. He established the Lagos State University and constructed over 20,000 housing units, all built cheaply and of great value.

After the military interregnum came one of the symbols of the democratic struggle, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the governor. The man hugely respected as the pathfinder of modern Lagos came with a vision: to transform the political and socio-economic landscape of Lagos for good. Did he succeed? Of course, yes.

When he promised 10,000 housing units during the campaigns, he delivered. During his eight-year eventful period he made massive investments in the fields of infrastructural development, education and primary health care delivery. Beyond the construction of new set of roads to meet the growing demands of an exploding population, he brought administrative restructuring in several areas such as security, LASTMA, waste disposal system, LAWMA as well as the Rapid Response Squad to effectively contain crime and criminality within the metropolis.

It was such that brought in his successor, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) who has gone ahead to build worthy legacies for all to be proud of. With a vision to transform Lagos to a megalopolis, his administration has brought to bear sanity in virtually all the areas of the economy.

From tremendous infrastructural development of long lasting roads and drainages, education, healthcare delivery, urban

transportation and waste management, he stands head and shoulders above his peers.

Having been in a vantage position to work with the last two governors for 13 years, I conclude this piece as I share with you all one lesson I learnt from serving under them by using the football anecdote. My two former bosses, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) are both great supporters of Manchester United, while I, their ward, is a Chelsea fan. I have come to regard Asiwaju as the “special one” because, like the famous bearer of that title, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, he laid the solid foundation for the evolution of modern Lagos. Like ‘Mourinho’ he has the vision and the winning formulae. In May, 2003, at his inaugural speech for his second term in office, Ashiwaju Bola Tinubu declared that “we will build with vigour on foundation laid in the first term until the momentum of positive change becomes forever irreversible in Lagos State”.

But the special one needs a special manager and an ebullient visionary to accomplish the goals. If Lagos State were Manchester United, His Excellency, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) is the quintessential and indefatigable Alex Ferguson. He brought in his Midas touch in all facets of governance to actualise that positive change in the development and growth of Lagos State.

So, where does that leave me, their student? I learnt first that in any club managed by these two managers, there is no room for a Davis Moyes. And I pledged to myself that if I am ever entrusted with the responsibility of administering a football club, I will name it Chelsea United, if just to assure my two bosses that I learnt from their different but complementary styles in building and running a formidable team.

As Lagos turns 50 in the next three years, therefore, the future beckons on whoever would take over the baton in the relay of enduring people-friendly policies to solidify and build on these worthy legacies.

• Ambode wrote from Lagos.

Freedom as Abia’s enduring democracy dividend

By Godwin Adindu RECISELY on May 29, as Nigerians celebrate the Democracy P Day, the people of God’s Own State, Abia, would be remembering the history of their liberation. More importantly, it would be a time for a thoughtful review, a time to assess the grand march to freedom, a time to put the governor on the scale. The light-bearer of the people’s mandate will be in the dock again for cross examination, to give account of his stewardship. How has Abia fared in the hand of the liberator?

Where was Abia yesterday and where is Abia now? What is the experience of the people in the new life of freedom?

These questions, among other things, would occupy the minds of Abians. Indeed, it would be a worthwhile to recall the quantum leap that Abia has had by virtue of the liberation. The stock-taking would be a vindication for Governor Orji because the Abia situation was peculiar. For Orji, it has been a concerted effort to build afresh, to lay solid foundation, to set the state on the path of progress. It seems like yesterday, yet it is four years ago. Pushed to the wall, with history beaconing , with his eyes set on the future and destiny of the over ten million people of Abia State, Governor Theodore Orji led the revolution that conquered the ancien regime, confronted a seemingly invincible dynasty and brought freedom to a vanquished and speechless people.

But, let’s keep the galaxy of monuments and the legacy projects aside, though they are great footprints in the sands of time. In my personal evaluation, Governor Orji’s greatest legacy for which posterity must sing eulogies is in the intangibles, like his deed of gift of freedom to the people. For, as Voltaire, the French Philosopher of the Enlightenment noted, freedom is the parent of all the needs of the human spirit.

Four years after, and just one year to go, Orji is stepping out to the market square to show himself approved a workman who does not need to be ashamed. For a people who have seen the two sides of tyranny and then freedom, they are better witnesses in this open trail . They are better judges and jurists in this open court of public conscience. Under Orji, there are no more tin-gods and tin-mother-gods in Abia. Nobody goes

to Igbere or Nweke Street or anywhere to prostrate before human deities of power. The word “Okija” is totally obliterated from the Abia social and political lexicon.

Throughout the campaigns in 2011 and at the inauguration, Orji spoke about his covenant with the people. He expressed determination to break off from the past, to lead Abia out of the doldrums. True to his words, he has led a successful revolution of the mind. The mental orientation towards politics and power in Abia has changed. Power is no more a matter of a cult of brotherhood headed by one family. Nobody carries a cow to any godfather to pay obeisance. Unlike in the past where people make pilgrimages to Igbere or to Nweke Street in Aba. Orji enthroned true representative democracy where all Abians of every hue and colour could have a chance to serve.

In Abia today, it is the communities and the constituencies that make nominations for commissioners and other political offices. The advisers and assistants are appointed based on merit, track record and competence. Today, meritocracy has been restored as against mediocrity. In the past, it was a case of class distortion and class destruction wherein the elite became endangered species while goons and lay-about became the ruling class.

Another great legacy of value is the stability and harmony that Orji has brought into the Abia polity. Starting from his administration, he has served with only two teams in the last three years. In the days of bondage, there would have been more than 10 dissolutions or reshuffling of cabinet by now.

Destiny thrust into his hands a society that was visibly at war, a state that was highly polarised where the parties were at daggers drawn. Precisely, he inherited war. But, he did not go the way of the Mosaic – an eye for an eye. He did not amass arsenals for a return fire. He chose the path of Mahatma Gandhi – truth, peace and reconciliation.

He embarked on a mission of reconciling the state. He threw out an olive branch and threw the door of government house open. In the new air of freedom, the exiles returned home, the old fugitives returned home to embrace their erstwhile foes. The political war-farers laid down their arms and

all, in one collective spirit, enlisted into the new vision of Abia. This was how the governor came to be the first National Peace Ambassador.

Indeed, as Orji stands at the open ground this month to give account of his stewardship, one issue will be very pertinent. And that is that the first primary duty of government is the maintenance of law and order. This should be the mother of all assessments, the most paramount indices for measuring successful leadership. How has Abia fared under Orji in terms of law and order? Abia, undeniably, has been an oasis of sanity, standing tall in the federation as a model state in terms of law and order and social harmony and this was not legislated into existence but a product of committed and pragmatic action.

In the midst of a country gripped by violence, where bloodshed either by accident or by deliberate organised crime make the headlines everyday in the papers, Abia State has remained an isolated case of a sort of haven on earth where peace reigns and where residents sleep with their doors wide open. And, I emphasize again, this did not come by fiat neither by providence but a product of judicious and strategic governance. Governor Orji toiled day and night, tasked his brain and mind to attain this state for his people. Thus, Orji is the builder of a new Abia of law and order.

In Abia today, the words equity and justice are now password. For the first time, a leader came in. Orji is setting the standard for justice by insisting that what is good for the goose is also good for the gander. He has continued to preach the gospel that equity and justice are necessary parameters for a people and a society to dwell in peace and harmony. Against all intense pressure, the governor has kept to his words that power must shift to the Ukwa Ngwa people of Abia State. Orji is also a moral revolutionary.

At the open ground, Like Paul of Tarsus, Governor Orji would stand on the podium, his hands spread out to the heavens, and say: “I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith”.

• Adindu is the President-General of the Abia Renaissance Movement (ARM).

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Focus Media as oxygen of democracy The media’s duty in ensuring balanced reporting of political activities, in view of approaching 2015 general elections, was reiterated at a recent workshop held in Abuja. ITUNU AJAYI was there.

ROADCASTING has been described as the B “oxygen” of democracy, which underscores the overall media’s role in its enhancement as strategic and invaluable.

To this end, the Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Workers Union of Nigeria (RATTAWU), in partnership with the Democratic Governance for Development Project in Nigeria (DGDP), recently organized a two-day seminar for media practitioners and chief executives of Radio and Television stations in the North Central zone, to reiterate the importance of fair and balanced reporting, in view of the approaching 2015 general elections.

Expectations for media to: live up to its role of agenda setting for political discourse; promote issue based politics; provide equal access to all political actors and the need for media organisations to avoid being used for engendering conflicts ahead of next year’s elections, were the crux of discussions by scholars who attended the meeting.

The national president of RATTAWU, Yemisi Bamgbose, explained that the seminar, tagged Promoting the Role of Broadcast Professionals and Practitioners in Peaceful, Free and Fair Elections, was put together to prepare the media for its role in electioneering away from its traditional responsibilities. Besides, he noted said the union was poised to sharpening the skills of practitioners, to enable them perform effectively and ensure that the proposed election “is credible, free and fair.”

According to him, it was pertinent for media practitioners to know what the citizens expect of them, especially in next year’s general elections. Bamgbose explained that the seminar would be replicated in three other zones, comprising Ilorin, Kaduna and Lagos in not too distant future.

He said: “Nigerians should be able to rely on whatever they hear on radio and television. A lot of irreparable errors have been committed in the past and these errors had caused the nation lives and properties too numerous to quantify. We are trying to guard against this phenomenon in future elections and that is the main crux of this workshop.”

Different authorities in the broadcasting field took turns to elucidate the irreplaceable role media practitioners had assumed over time and the need for them to maintain a high level of integrity.

The director general of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Emeka Mba said; “It is the moral, professional and ethical responsibility of the broadcast journalist to observe the principles of accuracy, fairness, truthfulness, impartiality and objectivity. It is (also) the role of the Journalist to contribute to the deepening of democracy, through free fanning and pluralism of opinions, and the encouragement of diversity of society and diversity of the political spectrum in a fair and equitable manner. As we build up to 2015, it has become very necessary to draw attention of broadcasters in the North East of Nigeria and especially in Adamawa state, to some disturbing trends in the industry, especially on political broadcasting.”

Such breaches, which constitute a flagrant violation of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, he noted, “are capable of setting the wrong tone, especially in areas where tension is already heightened as a result of the security impasse in the country.”

Mba said it was also a fact that the Nigerian media has increasingly come under pressure to become polarized, noting that information managers, more often than not, work on a tight rope.

He stated: “At times, they might be compelled by the proprietor to relay news items, whose content breach professional ethics, and most managers were known to have succumbed to keep their jobs. At times, they were asked to kill the news.”

Referring to the 2011 elections and the need for all stakeholders to improve on it in the 2015 elections, Mba advised the media to give equal access to all political parties. He said claims of denial of access formed the bulk of the complaints received by the NBC in the 2011 elections.

“The 2011 elections, no doubt, was a test of the will of the ethical and professional competence

Mba

Adewale

and integrity of journalists in Nigeria,” he affirmed. “It appears that the political culture has not changed and the political actors are yet to imbibe the spirit of sportsmanship, given their winner- takes- all approach to politics. It has become more hazardous in recent times because incumbents would want to hold on to power and would need the media to achieve their goal.”

According to Mba, the NBC, in its first official comment on the 2011 elections, stated that it received complaints from some political parties alleging denial of access by some broadcast stations. He said the commission also observed that as the election drew near, the issue of access to all other parties, including those in opposition became an obvious impediment to the neutrality of the electoral space.

The Commission, he further explained, intervened and insisted that stations “give or grant access to opposition parties.” He observed that stations also began to exhibit desperation and show loyalty to their sponsors. Their programme contents were also slanted towards their owners.

Mba called for professionalism and the application of the relevant laws prior to, during and after the elections. To that extent, he observed, the content of laws and guidelines, such as the Electoral Laws 2010 and the provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code must be strictly adhered to and enforced throughout the period.

He insisted that the gate-keeper must endeavour to tactically marry the interests of the proprietor with the demands of the profession, when issues relating to fairness, balance, equal opportunity and right of reply are concerned, “because these are the cardinal principles governing broadcasting the world over.”

He averred that the gatekeeper, even at the risk of his job, must edit or refuse to carry inciting or unverified stories, no matter what quarters they come from. The backlash can be catastrophic for the state and the station; and the gatekeeper must not only report the truth, he or she must live by it and if need be die by it.

He continued: “While he must criticize, such criticism must be constructive and must give praises to the political class when such praises are deserved. I have noticed that there is the tendency to blame the governor for lopsided coverage of opposition political parties. But more often than not, CEOs as gatekeepers are guilty of partisan self-censorship. They think for the political heads as to what they like to see on TV and what would offend them.

Selective or partisan self-censorship is a disservice to broadcasting and must be shunned.

“I enjoin journalists to be courageous enough to play the game according to the rules at all times, especially, considering the critical significance of the 2015 elections to national security, national survival and eco-

nomic prosperity among others. I think that the ultimate shape of election coverage inevitably depends on the professionalism and in particular, independence of the broadcaster and station management. Public broadcasters especially need to be firmly established on the basis of a permanent statue and their autonomy needs to be guaranteed by the letter of the law and respected in spirit. This may just be the surest way to guarantee impartiality and balance.

“The elections are the heart of democracy and in every four years, we renew this bound with the people. One of the key ingredients of having a successful election and indeed any democratic process is the participation of the media and how the media functions. The NBC needs the participations of all stakeholders. If any party is denied access, they should write the NBC and such would be addressed promptly.”

The Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC’s) Deputy Director, Voter Education and Publicity, Nick Dazang, advised media professionals and the NBC to engage stakeholders in the electioneering process.

His words: “For RATTAWU, no doubt, the interest in the elections must be even more avid and profound. As professionals and practitioners, its members are supposed to enlighten and educate Nigerians about the electoral process. They are supposed to galvanize Nigerians to participate in large numbers and to vote for credible leaders. They are supposed to provide platforms for political parties/candidates to debate and sell themselves so that the citizens can make informed and wise choices. They are supposed to set the agenda for discussion for the 2015 General Elections and ensure that there is decorum in the process.

“We also expect them to abide by the time – honoured Code of Conduct for Journalists.

We expect them to put more premium on fairness and apportioning equal airtime to contestants. At the same time, regulatory bodies such as the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) must be vigorous and remorseless in visiting sanctions on members and broadcast media (outfits), which deliberately breach the cannons of the profession. On our part, we pledge to keep our channels open, to interface with the media on a frequent basis and be forthcoming – and timely too – any time the media ask for information concerning the electoral process.

With regard to electoral guidelines, the commission is working with legal experts to gazette them, so that they have the force of law.”

On his part, the executive secretary of the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) Olusegun Olaleye said an overview of the 2007 and 2011 general elections indicated

Bamgbose that compliance by all stakeholders with the code of conduct in INEC’s electoral law in 2011 was generally better than in the 2007 elections.

Toyin Adewale, a media expert with the Democratic Governance for Development Project in Nigeria, spoke on factors that could tempt journalists to doing the bidding of politicians, which could affect their sense of judgment and independence.

Her words: “We are working with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Nigeria Guild of Editors (NGE) and some other stakeholders to try and see how we can review the code of ethics for Nigeria journalists. One thing we would be addressing in the review is the issue of remuneration for journalists because we are aware that journalists are not well paid and they are not paid on time, while some journalists are not paid at all.

“There are also challenges surrounding the issues of equity, so we are trying our best to work with media owners and bring them to the table because ethical journalism is the best. If the general public is aware that a particular media outfit is credible, such is going to enjoy more patronage and by extension, make more money in advertisements. Professional conduct is very important, so, we are working on the review of the code of ethics.”

Adewale said some Nigerians had met their untimely deaths as a result of misinformation from the media. She cited the killing of some health workers in Kano during the course of their administering polio vaccines. She said the misinformation, which alleged that polio vaccines were bad and meant for birth control, came from a local radio station and resulted in the killing of the health workers.

She also said the protest that erupted in some parts of the country after the 2011 presidential election was as a result of some statement made by some persons via the media. To forestall future a recurrence, Adewale advised the media to be very cautious when dealing with volatile reports, news items or placement of advertorials. She charged Nigerian journalists to exhibit renewed commitment to the ethical coverage of the 2015 elections and ensure that all political parties enjoy equal access.

A cross section of participants who spoke with The Guardian said their horizon was broadened by the seminar. They expressed surprise at the new dimension electoral fraud is taking in Nigeria. Some, who said they are greenhorns on the job, admitted that the knowledge acquired had equipped them on the best way to handle election coverage.

Dare Awonugba, a producer with the African Independent Television (AIT) network said the workshop beamed more light on the new rigging dimension in the current dispensation.

He explained that participants were exposed to the fact that stealing of ballot boxes was no longer in vogue, but that politicians now rig elections right from the voters’ register.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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TheMetroSection Children’s Day: It’s all gloom over Chibok girls

Briefs

From Abiodun Fagbemi (Ilorin) and Wynner Ejere (Lagos)

HE death has occurred of T Emeka Francis Amenechi of Illah, Delta State at the age of

50. He died on Wednesday, May 21.

A service of songs holds on Thursday, May 29, at the Church of Presentation, G.R.A., Ikeja, Lagos at 5.00p.m. He will be buried on Friday, May 30, after a funeral service at the same venue at 10.00a.m.

He is survived by his mother, siblings, cousins and other relations.

ODAY is Children’s Day in Nigeria, a T day set aside by the country in accordance with the United Nations mandate to remember and celebrate children as leaders of tomorrow. It is also a day to reflect on what the future has in stock for them.

However, in many parts of the country, majority of Nigerian children may not mark the day with all the parades, march pasts, parties and merriments that go with it. Rather, they would be adorned in red in solidarity with the over 200 abducted children from a Chibok school, who have been in captivity for 43 days. Children will be marching the streets from the length and breadth of Nigeria in various Bring Back Our Girls rallies, calling for the safe return of the Chibok girls.

In the last one year, Nigerian children have become an endangered specie with the spate of kidnappings, bombings, rapes, child trafficking, child labour, malnourishment infant mortality among other adversities that has plagued them due to the security challenges in the country.

Acutely gauging the mood of the nation, the Ogun State government at the weekend announced that the yearly Democracy Day and Children’s Day celebrations would be stepped down in honour of the abducted Chibok girls.

The Secretary to the State Government, Taiwo Adeoluwa and Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Elizabeth, disclosed this to newsmen.

The SSG said: “In deference to the current mood of the nation over the abducted girls, Ogun State has stepped down activities for Democracy Day and Children’s Day. The decision was taken by government to identify with parents of the over 200 school girls abducted over a month ago by the Boko Haram sect”.

He added: “Government wants Ogun residents to spend the day in sober reflection and pray for the safety and eventual release of the girls. The government also pledges to work hard and ensure the safety of lives and property.”

The abducted Chibok girls Also toning down on the Children’s Day celebration is the Anambra State government, which has directed that the occasion be celebrated with less fanfare as a sign of concern for the abducted school girls in Chibok, Borno.

Governor Willie Obiano gave the directive in a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Chief Tony Onyima in Awka. “The directive is a mark of solidarity with the over 200 female students of Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno, abducted by the Boko Haram sect last month,” it read.

The governor said that the traditional match past by school children had been shelved. He enjoined heads of primary and secondary schools to instead, hold special prayer sessions in their schools for the release of the girls. The statement further enjoined all churches in the state to conduct special prayers for the immediate release of the kidnapped schoolgirls, and for an end to terrorism in the country.

Meanwhile, the Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed also urged Nigerian parents and guardians to live up to their responsibilities in the area of upbringing of their children and wards, citing the prevailing security challenges in the country.

He said the society has failed because the parents had failed canvassing therefore prompt upholding of the family ethos and values for a better nation.

Ahmed made the call in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Alhaji Abdulwahab Oba on the occasion of this year’s children day celebration.

He noted that Nigeria is passing through one of the most challenging and traumatic periods of its chequered political history, and decried the spate of bombings, kidnappings and other forms of crimes in the country.

In a similar vein, the office of the Borno State First Lady, Nana Kashim Shettima, in conjunction with the state’s Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, has announced the cancellation of this year’s Children’s Day celebration.

A press release from the office of the Borno First Lady and signed by her Chief Press Secretary, indicated that the cancellation was to honour victims of the various attacks by the Islamic sect, Boko Haram, and to also offer prayers for safe and timely release of the abducted 275 female students of Government Secondary School, Chibok.

The statement reads: “The wife of the governor, Nana Kashim Shettima and

the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Hajiya Innah Galadima, enjoin women and children to offer special prayers on that day as Allah answers prayers of women and children because of their purity and compassion for humanity.”

However, it is not all gloom and red today as the National Commission on Museums and Monuments will be hosting 800 students in Lagos.

Head of Education Department of the commission, Mr. Emmanuel Omotosho, said the event is aimed at promoting Nigeria’s cultural values among the youths.

He added that cooking competition on different traditional cuisines, painting competition, match past, art works and braiding would be some of the activities during the event.

“The country is blessed with many rich traditions, cultures and norms that the children need to know. They would be enlightened about their importance,’’ he said.

Omotosho advised parents, teachers and students to visit museums to educate themselves about rich African culture and heritage. “The museum is a place where cultural heritage, scriptures, artifacts and collections of the olden days are kept for research and other purposes.’’

Arise Medical Outreach saves lives in Apapa community

By Wole Oyebade OR individuals that were rescued from chronic illnesses and sudden deaths, it was a medical outreach that was worth the effort last Saturday, organisers and beneficiaries, said.

Musiliu Adetona, 63, heard of the Arise Women medical outreach just like anyone. At least, he would get some drugs to treat his persistent mild headache, so he went.

But according to the doctor that examined Adetona at the outreach, he was a “walking corpse!”

“This is one of such cases we often see at programmes like this,” declared Dr. Ademola Lafenwa, a general practitioner.

Screening revealed that Adetona had a high blood sugar of 571 reading, which doctors confirmed as absurd.

“In such a situation, I should bundle him into an ambulance and straight to the hospital, because he is a dead man walking around so innocently!”

According to Lafenwa, “When we get to communities like this, I’m particularly shocked by people not knowing their health status. We see

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Amenechi dies at 50

people that are also diabetic, severe hypertension that are not even aware,” he said.

After persuasion and mild treatment, Adetona was referred to one of the hospitals in the community for proper care. Lafenwa noted that only through medical outreaches in communities, could several Nigerians be saved from incidences of irreversible illnesses such as stroke, kidney failure, heart attack and sudden death.

The general practitioner observed that a huge fraction of Nigerian population was still unaware of the need for regular health check-up.

Adetona was one of over 600 Apapa residents – men, women and children – that were beneficiaries of free drugs, after due consultation and screening for diabetes mellitus, cancer, hypertension, malaria, pneumonia and teeth care at the United Children Primary School ground, Bombay, Apapa.

On ground were two ambulances and a mobile clinic, owned by Arise Women and dedicated to such outreaches.

Convener of Arise Women of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Lagos

Province 4, Siju Iluyomade, noted that medical wellbeing of women was one of their focal programmes, providing medical intervention in every community they were led by God. Women Arise initiative rose out of the need to cater for women in the public, addressing generally wellbeing.

Iluyomade said: “Today, we are happy to be in Apapa after

similar visits to some communities in Lagos. What we have decided to do is go round Lagos State as much as we can. We will be able to expand this to the rest of the country.”

This time, they are also lending their voice to the call for release of over 200 schoolgirls that were abducted from Government Day Senior Sec-

ondary School, Chibok, Borno State on April 15. “The women are thinking of them and praying along. It is important that they are brought back alive and well.

“Every Nigerian should be well taken care of in every state. That is also why we are here, to let everyone know it is important to give everyone access to free medical services,” she said.

Pastor Festus Peter Aseni (right), Seun Akaraiwe, Theresa Ayanmi, convener, Pastor Siju Iluyomade and others at the event

PHOTO: GABRIEL IKHAHON

Amenechi

Jacob Service at RCCG, Miracle Centre HE Redeemed Christian T Church of God, Miracle Centre will tomorrow hold a programme tagged, Jacob Service at No. 19, Bello Folawiyo Close, off Mr. Biggs Bus-Stop, Ikosi, Ketu, Lagos at 6.00p.m.

The host, Pastor Moses Oladele Ikotun, said this edition would bring salvation, miracles, signs and wonders, adding that it would witness unprecedented outpouring of power of God.

Church marks week

HE Kingdom of Light MinT istries (KLM) holds its threeday Kingdom Week tagged God

The Lifter on Friday, May 30, from 10.00p.m. till dawn. Saturday, May 31, 2014 is Kingdom Institute graduation at noon and Miracle Hour at 4.00p.m. Sunday, June 1, 2014 is thanksgiving service at 8.00a.m. at the Corporate Headquarters, 1-2 Ajoke Kazeem Street, Subol Bus Stop, Idimu Ikotun Road, Idimu Lagos.

Pastor Samson Makinwa (presiding pastor), Pastor Amos Fagans from Liberia , Bishop Kayode Odunlaja and Apostle Soji John will minister.

Onyelo Obinalli, 86, for burial Saturday rites for Mr. FdiedUNERAL Onyelo Cyril Obinali, who at the age of 86, begin with a Christian wake on Thursday, May 29, at Umuduruajomai Okwelle, Imo State from 9.00a.m.-5.00p.m.

He will be buried on Friday, May 30, after a funeral service at 10.00a.m.

He is survived by Ezra Onyelo, Adolpus Onyelo, Godia Onyelo, Mrs. Mary Onuaha and Jonas Onyelo.

Obinalli

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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BUSINESS Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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Business Life assurance portfolio gulps N26.31b claims

By Joshua Nse HE rising insecurity of life and property in the country has pushed life assurance portfolio to top insurance claims’ profile in 2012, nudging claims payment to N26.3 billion.

This represents about 41.62 per cent of the total industry claims portfolio of N63.21 billion paid in 2012. It is, however, a drop of 9.1 per cent of N35.355 billion paid in 2012.

This disclosure was contained in a facts and figures released at the weekend by the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) – the market umbrella for the risk under-

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Tops insurance risk chart writers, which indicated that motor business took the second position with claims settlement of N12.97 billion; general accident took N9.69 billion; Oil and gas portfolio claims amounted to N5.53 billion, marine and aviation N4.26 billion; miscellaneous Services recorded N3.27 billion payment; fire risk took N1 billion claims, while Workmen Compensation recorded N172.83 million claims.

The volume of business written by the market in 2012 was estimated at about N2400 bil-

lion as against the 2011 figure of N217.7 billion, an increase of about 10.24 per cent.

The Director-General of the Association, Sunday Thomas, in a statement said inspite of this modest growth and a robust future outlook, the insurance companies have an obligation to restore clients to good standing after a loss.

According to him ‘‘The Nigerian Insurers Association encourages member companies to pay all genuine claims expeditiously and the compliance level has been tremendous.”

He said ‘‘the Association in recognition of possible disputes established a Customer Complaints Bureau (CCB) headed by a retired judge of the Supreme Court. The Bureau is completely independently of the Association.

The principal objective of the Bureau is to ensure that all parties to insurance transactions are fairly treated while their rights are preserved.”

According to the NIA boss, ‘‘The Bureau is an Alternative Dispute resolution mechanism which is unbiased, transparent and result-oriented. The aim is to promote sound professional ethics

and best practices.”

CHIEFTAINS of the nation’s insurance industry have appealed to the public to buy insurance protection for their lives and assets in this time of economic downturn as insurance the world over is the most favoured risk transfer mechanism.

Industry managers told The Guardian that over the years many diverse claims running into billions of naira, such as the victims of severe floods, motor accident, fire accident, to claims emerging from explosions, air crashes, have all tested the resilience of the insurance industry. Similarly,

the reinsurance industry has come to the fore in the light of its critical role in supporting catastrophe risks and in maintaining financial stability.

Specifically, operators admit that with strong financial capability, underwriting companies have embarked on the restructure of the entire systems to enable them provide improved quality services particularly in prompt claims settlement as a result of improvement in premium collection.

According to risk managers, there is a strong link between development of insurance and economic development.

In developed economies, insurance are a major source of long-term capital and have dominant share in total financial assets. They provide funding for end of service indemnity, life insurance benefits, annuity and gratuity. They also increase the depth and liquidity in stock and bond markets.

Honeywell, USTDA sign N31 billion agreement on Sagamu power project

By Femi Adekoya

O facilitate the completion of its proposed N31 T billion Sagamu

Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer-Designate, Odu’a, Adewale Raji (left); Outgoing Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer and First Vice-Chairman, Association of African Development Finance Institutions (AADFI), Dr. Adebayo Jimoh; Deputy Managing Director, Credit Agricole du Maroc, Abdelouahab Boushaba; Chairman, AADFI, Peter Noni; and Secretary General, J.A Anihere, at the 40th ordinary general meeting of the association, in Kigali, Rwanda.

CBN orders immediate upgrade of banks’ CCOs

By Chijioke Nelson

HE Central Bank of T Nigeria (CBN) may have upped its ante, as it ordered

the nation’s deposit money banks to immediately upgrade all the Chief Compliance Officers (CCOs) in their employ to a minimum of general manager status.

It also directed that the line of responsibility and reporting be moved directly to the respective banks’ board of directors.

The development, which came as a result of flagrant disregard to directives by the apex bank, has irked and raised a concern to CBN, as it now expressed readiness to monitor compliance to the letter.

The move by the apex bank was to ensure that CCOs get a level of competency, authority and independ-

Puts line of responsibility directly to board ence needed to implement the various anti-money laundering programmes in the financial institutions.

According to the apex bank, information available showed that CCOs of some banks and discount houses are below the grade of General Manager without prior approval of the CBN and equally worrisome by the fact that most of them do not report directly to their respective banks’ board.

CBN pointed out that the development indicates a flagrant disregard to extant laws and regulations on the subject.

In a circular, signed by K. O. Balogun, for the Director of Banking Supervision Department of CBN, it read: “The CBN circular, ref: BSD/2/2002 dated 8th

August, 2002 and FPR/DIR/GEN/001/022 dated 18th July 2013 directed that banks and discount houses should designate Chief Compliance Officers, not below the grade of a General Manager to, among other things, apply the provisions of the relevant Acts and circulars on money laundering at various levels of their institutions.

“Section 9(1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011(as amended) also requires them to designate, at management level, Chief Compliance Officers in their Head Offices and branches, who have the relevant competence, authority and independence to implement their institutions Anti M o n e y Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism

(AML/CFT) compliance programme.

“Section 7(2) of CBN’s AML/CFT in Banks and Other Financial Institutions in Nigeria) Regulations, 2013, stipulates that CCO shall be appointed at management level and shall report directly to the board on all matters under the regulations.”

CBN now reiterates that on the basis of the foregoing, all deposit money banks and discount houses must ensure that no CCO in their institutions is below the grade of General Manager without the CBN prior approval; and that he/she reports to the board of directors with dotted lines to the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer without interlocking roles.

Also, the particulars of all current CCOs with evidence of the CBN approval of

same and reporting line should be forwarded to the Director of Banking Supervision within one week, which will be due on May 30.

CBN however, warned that the observed lack-lustre attendance of CCOs to the monthly meetings of the Committee of Chief Compliance Officers of Banks in Nigeria (CCCOBIN), resulting in the inability of the forum to form the required quorum necessary to take vital decisions pursuant to its mandate, must stop.

It added that there will now be monitoring of attendance by CCOs at the monthly meetings of the CCCOBIN and will not hesitate to take the appropriate regulatory action to stem the unsatisfactory attendance at this important forum.

Independent Power Plant project, Honeywell Group and United States Trade Development Agency (USTDA) have signed a Grant Agreement for a feasibility study.

The grant, which was signed by USTDA Director, Leocadia Zak and Honeywell Group’s Head of Corporate Development and Investment, Dr. Teddy Ngu, is expected to aid the phased power plant development intended to address the power needs and in turn stimulate the economic development of the Southwestern region of Nigeria, with emphasis on Sagamu, Abeokuta and the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway industrial clusters by supplying a mix of captive, embedded and on-grid power generation to provide continuous and reliable power supply in those areas.

The study will also investigate the viability of providing embedded generation capacity to the Ibadan Distribution Company and power evacuation to the National Grid from the Sagamu IPP and would provide a platform to access international finance, world-class technology and service providers.

In his remarks at the signing ceremony, Dr. Ngu stated that: “Honeywell commends the USTDA for the collaboration, which is coming on the heels of the successful implementation of a similar venture to jointly fund a study for the development

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NITDA wants govt to leverage ICT for economic growth, job creation

By Adeyemi Adepetun HE National Information and Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has called for concerted efforts, especially from the Federal Government that will see to the maximization of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for economic growth and job creation.

While government must leverage ICT for economic growth, technology stakeholders under the aegis of Information and Technology Association of Nigeria (ITAN) have lamented the increasing apathy for indigenous ICT wares in the country.

The President of ITAN, Mrs. Florence Seriki, while hosting technology experts from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong and the new DirectorGeneral of NITDA, Peter Jack at a dinner on Tuesday, said that ICT should be seen as an enabler, which should be given prominent attention by all.

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• Tasks Asians on plant siting in Nigeria • Technology stakeholders lament low govt support, patronage Seriki, who said ITAN was ready to work with other stakeholders in the industry to ensure that it bridges developmental gaps in the country, noted that government policies should as much as possible encourage local content development.

While appreciating the efforts of the ministry of Communications Technology in engendering ICT developments in the country, Seriki, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of Omatek Ventures stressed that funding remained a critical challenge to most of ITAN members.

According to her, Nigerian banks still give out loans at about 18 per cent to 20 per cent interest rate, stressing that this takes serious toll on their survival.

As such, she said that local entrepreneurs need govern-

ment’s support, which should not be undermined by any bureaucracy.

In his address, Jack said ICT should be used to inform, engage and empower the citizens; stressing expanding technology reach has gone past public private partnership (PPP).

The NITDA DG said a multi stakeholder approach is needed to deepen and leverage ICT across the country.

While calling on the visiting Asian delegates to try and establish a manufacturing plant in Nigeria that will help create jobs and make the country more competitive, Jack stressed that NITDA will be working with other agencies in the ministry of Communications Technology to deepen ICT reach in the country.

He revealed that the ministry is already working to

ensure the creation of about 1.2 million jobs, stressing that already about 600,000 entrepreneurs are hoped to be created through the establishment of 200 tele centres across the country.

According to him, NITDA will engage local developers both software and hardware experts on creating contents that are indigenous and marketable in the country.

For a former president of the Association of Te l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) and Chief Executive of Teledoms International, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, there is need to create market for indigenous ICT wares.

Ekuwem said until government lead in patronizing local players, the much talked about local content creation will remain a mirage.

President, Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE), Adedoja Ojelabi (left); Executive Director, First Exploration and Petroleum Development Limited/Chairman of Session, Dr. Emmanuel Enu; General Manager, Development and Asset Management, Addax Petroleunm, Chike Nwosu; and Technical Director, Addax Petroleum, Rick Wright, at the NAPE’s monthly technical/business forum hosted by Addax Petroleum in Lagos.

Honeywell, USTDA seal deal on power project CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21 of a multi-billion Dollar gasbased industrial complex.

“This partnership on power is expected to provide substantial support to the development of the Sagamu IPP.” He revealed that the project has a potential to supply up to 140MW of power over the next five to seven years as the demand for electricity increases in these areas; some of which Honeywell will use in its Foods & Agroallied Industrial Complex that is being built on 63 hectares of land at the Flowergate Industrial Scheme in Sagamu.

The Honeywell Group currently owns and operates a 15MW gas-fired power plant in Apapa and is developing a 500MW Independent Power Plant at Akute Esorun, Ifo LGA, in Ogun State.

The Sagamu IPP project is in line with the Honeywell Group’s strategic plans to generate 1,000MW of power through a mixed portfolio.

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‘Local content has expanded Caverton Offshore Support Group was listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on 20 May 2014. Ahead of that, Chairman and Founder of the company, Aderemi Makanjuola, spoke to a group of journalists about the move, the company’s growth trajectory and the prospects of indigenous companies in the oil and gas sector under the local content regime.Business Editor, ADE OGIDAN was there.

Excerpts.

OUR company would be Y the first indigenous oil and gas services company to be listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. This is coming after Seplat’s recent listing. How important is this record to you and what are your thoughts about the future of indigenous companies in this very important sector of our economy?

We are proud of our achievements thus far and humbled to be a reference point in such a tasking sector. The year 2010 was a major milestone for us. This was when we won the single largest contract ever awarded to an indigenous company. After the euphoria, we realised that this record also thrust an enormous responsibility on us as a company.

Essentially, we felt that we were unwittingly made ambassadors for indigenous companies in the sector and that there was a need for us to demonstrate that indigenous companies with commitment and focus could achieve the same result as foreign competitors. In our minds, it simply meant that failure was not an option. So I would say that our listing is a follow up on that burden of responsibility. Just that this time the focus isn’t only on operational excellence and adherence to standards but more about the sustainability of our growth and the institutionalisation of the company.

I think that the oil and gas sector still has tremendous growth opportunities with enough capacity to enable the emergence of other technically sound indigenous companies, and with the right economic policies the possibilities are boundless.

You mentioned that you won the single largest contract awarded to an indigenous company in 2010. What was the value of the contract and with which company?

This was with Shell and the value was $648 million. It was a contract for five years plus two. We were to buy six helicopters to do the operation but it has been increased to seven with a fixed wing to enhance production. Apart from Shell, we also have contracts with Total, Addax, COTCO (ExxonMobil) in Cameroun. These are the major ones that we are concentrating on. We also operate Lagos State government helicopters.

Why did you decide to list the company and why now?

The decision to go public was signed-off by the board of directors as far back as 2008.

We felt that given the significant opportunities in the market and our positioning, the use of debt-financing to fund our growth will be limiting and so we decided to carry out global case studies on companies with similar growth trajectories. We decided that the equity fund-

ing route will ultimately give the best return on capital. So the journey to tapping into the Nigerian equity market began with our private placement in 2008 which culminated in the imminent listing. The timing was determined by a combination of the prevailing market conditions and the company’s current growth stage.

What do you mean by that?

The company has got to that stage where it needs to access more capital in the sense that more contracts are coming in. We also need to train more people and ensure that Nigerian engineers and pilots derive greater benefits from the evolving opportunities and that instead of hiring people from abroad and taking out the money, we can help Nigerians to acquire the necessary capacities and hire them.

Most family businesses hardly want to go public. Is it that you don’t have the anxieties that others have in terms of possible take-over or losing control?

Not in the slightest. When the company was founded there was a clear vision to establish a legacy business and that has always been the focus. In addition to this we operate in a very niche space within the oil and gas sector which requires a distinctive set of skills in the day-to-day management of such operations. So we pride ourselves as possessing these unique management skills and if a takeover were in the offing, I am pretty certain that the progenitors of the business would still be required to sit at the table.

So to answer your question, we have no anxieties about any possible takeover. And I say that with the greatest sense of humility. Moreover, going public does two things: it enables you to inject fresh blood into your company and it forces you to observe good corporate governance practices. That was why we engaged the services of KPMG to marshal out various aspects of the regulations and rules that will control the company and also put in place a proper corporate governance structure.

Also, going public will enable members of the investing public who want to be part of the company to invest and benefit from the growth opportunities and dividends provided by local content policies. It’s more of value added.

You said from the start you had a vision of establishing a legacy business. How do you mean?

Yes in the sense that most family-owned businesses mostly die with the founder or flounder after the death of the founder. My intention has always been to ensure that this company proves two things: one, that

Makanjuola Nigerians can establish companies that will propagate proper corporate governance; and two, that Nigerians can establish companies that will outlive them. So my concern has always been if companies in other places can be in existence for hundreds of years, why not Caverton?

You started out as a banker and you decided to go into a totally different arena. Why did you choose to do that and how did you overcome the initial challenges of being in a different field?

After decades in the banking sector, as with most things, there was a yearning for change. The type of services within the oil and gas sector was a specific area of interest for me. I had a first-hand experience about the dearth of operators’ assets in the service sector and felt that the opportunity that existed could allow for a longerterm business and so the journey began. As with most start-ups, the greatest challenge is proving that you have the competence and capability to sustain the business. In addition, I had chosen a capital-intensive line of service and so funding the capital expenses was going to be a challenge. But with a lot of determination armed with decades of banking experience I was able to

present the business in such a way that the projected cash flows and the growth feasibility were able to convince leasing companies, technical partners and the banks to commit resources and funds to bring things to fruition.

Many people heard about Caverton for the first time when Caverton Helicopters launched the intra-city shuttle in Lagos. Over time the two major companies in the Caverton group have grown tremendously. So what would you call the major milestones and critical success factors of the group?

Unknown to many people, Caverton started out as a Caverton Marine in 1998 operating a fleet of LPG and petroleum tankers as well as supplying equipment to the Nigerian Ports Authority. In 2002, Caverton Helicopters was born and we commenced the intra-city shuttle in 2004.

I will say that the major milestones and the critical success factors for the group will be inextricably linked to our commitment to safety and the frequent audits that keep us on our toes. In 2009, we passed the Shell audit which allowed us to qualify technically to tender for contracts and this opened the floodgate of opportunities. This was essentially because the Shell audit is considered one

of the most tasking in the oil industry. As such, passing it was a vote of confidence that brought Caverton into reckoning with our peers and other prospective clients. Moreover, Caverton Marine, had been awarded contracts from Shell UK (STASCO) and our vessels MT Ashabi and MT Lolade were engaged in their petroleum transportation activities in West Africa. So they were familiar with our ethos on safety and professionalism.

They were only surprised we were branching into other aspects which they found refreshing.

The two subsidiaries of Caverton were set-up before the passage of the Cabotage Act and the Local Content Act. How did you set yourself up to be able to compete in a sector that was dominated by foreign firms?

The enabling laws you mentioned are protectionist in nature and this type of laws is not unique to Nigeria.

There is the Jones Act in the US, which is very similar to our cabotage law and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in the Middle East also have similar laws to our local content law. While these laws have created the enabling environments for the emergence of indigenous companies, core com-

petence is still a basic requirement by the clients.

As such, competing in the sector for us as a company is essentially holding ourselves to a higher standard than our competitors in everything we do. This cuts across, from the conditions of service, training standards, aircraft comfort to investment in facilities that would complement our overall service offerings.

How have these protectionist laws helped the company and how have you positioned yourself to be able to take advantage of the opportunities that they provide?

Whilst these laws are there to “protect”, promote and encourage indigenous investment it is not a free pass to walk in and win any contract because you are a Nigerian company. Yes the laws and policy have helped and in a big way because when you bid for any contract one of the conditions is that your company must meet all local content requirements. However this doesn’t stop on being Nigerian alone. As a company you must show capacity to train Nigerians and invest in Nigerian infrastructure.

Plus the obvious ability to show technical competence

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opportunities for indigenous firms’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 24 which we have shown time and time again.

Caverton is seen as a success story of and as a champion for the local content. What are you doing as an organisation to deepen local capacity in the country?

We take pride in our achievements in terms of developing and training young Nigerian professionals. We have had over 50 Nigerian seafarers operating our vessels from cadet to chief engineers, even a captain. We currently are planning a training and recruitment programme for seafarers in conjunction with our partners RK Offshore of Singapore.

This is to enable our national staff members imbibe global best practices. As at 2009 we had 160 staff members within the group. But we are now over 700 of which 603 or 86% are Nigerians.

We have trained 58 Nigerian pilots and 40 engineers.

Inclusive is the initial pilots and engineering training given to fresh graduates. We have been justifiably recognised as a poster child for national content policy. But we dare say that even though we are proudly Nigerian, safety, quality and service efficiency are the trademarks that have brought Caverton to this junction. We actively promote the development of managerial skills of our nationals. Some have been sent to Harvard, some to other training institutions to develop their managerial skills and we are also putting them in positions of responsibilities to sharpen their leadership skills. When we started the contract with Shell, our first contract manager was a foreigner. But one and half years down the line, we got a Nigerian, Captain Josiah Choms, who is now the contract manager and doing such a fantastic job that Shell is very pleased with him and they saying we should train more people for such positions.

Also we are doing our best to make sure that Nigerian universities and colleges are linked to us and for us to also help develop their capacity. A case in point is the Federal University of Technology, Minna, where by 20th of June we will hand over a 500seat lecture theatre to the university. We are also working with the National College of Aviation Training in Zaria, Kaduna State as well to ensure that when the students finish their Private Pilot License training they don’t end up being air hostess or stewards instead of being pilots. We also have seen hindrances that are preventing us from training more people and we are looking into that to ensure that we have the facilities that can be used to train Nigerians in our country thereby saving time, increasing productivity, and saving foreign exchange for the country.

The company is going to list by introduction. Do we expect Caverton to go to the market soon to raise capital?

Yes. The listing by introduction was a precursor to our public offer which we expect should happen between the fourth quarter of 2014 and the third quarter of 2015. We decided to list by introduction because we felt it would

be expedient to ensure that the market is fully familiar with the company, its past and present performance prior to its fund-raising and also to ensure that we are seen to have a proper corporate governance culture.

What do you see as the prospect of the oil and gas support services sector as a whole and where do you see Caverton in that?

As I have said, the opportunities are there. In most cases now, the big oil companies are selling up their assets and moving further offshore. So that in itself is creating opportunities for Nigerians to be able to participate. The more the opportunities for exploration, the more there will be opportunities for those of us in logistics. So we are

gearing up for that. There will also be more opportunities offshore. We are targeting that as well as part of our plans for the future.

Now that you are going to list on the market, why do you think the market and the general public should be interested in Caverton?

The market and public should be interested in Caverton because of the following reasons: we are a growing company that started from humble beginnings and we have a solid track record of operational growth, income growth and dividend history; we have a track record of safety and the highest possible international standards; and our company is representative of the indigenous oil and gas local content efforts and is a

poster child for local content.

Caverton is also growing operationally with a young fleet of aircraft and marine vessels in an industry that is highly technical and we strenuously observe worldclass standards as recognised by our key clientele.

Importantly, being Nigerian we are also investing in the development of infrastructure and the training and creation of local jobs and manpower, contributing our own quota to the country’s GDP. Also, we believe that given the investments that are going into the offshore and deep water, we are poised to benefit significantly from this trend and we would like Nigerians to also benefit from the actualisation of our vision to

become the premier offshore support services provider in Nigeria and eventually in Africa.

You just said Caverton’s vision is to become the premier offshore support services company in Africa and not just Nigeria. What accounts for this continental vision?

Caverton’s vision to transcend Nigeria’s borders was borne out of our overall strategy to diversify geographically because of the constant demands for our services across the continent.

We presently have enquiries from Morocco all the way down to Mozambique and we think it makes business sense to begin to work assiduously towards the goal.

Presently we have a nine-year contract with COTCO in Cameroun which we have

been operating for the past two years. We have been invited to bid in Ghana; and we have also been invited to come for discussion in Congo. Why Africa? Well, because this is the area of specific demand today. That said, we have also received enquiries from Malaysia and you never know, Africa might just be the beginning.

Apart from possible share offer, are there other things in the pipeline?

Caverton has a number of major announcements coming up in the next few months and I will rather wait for the appropriate time to make them. I will say they are all ground-breaking and one is particularly very ground-breaking as it will be a first for sub-Saharan Africa.

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BUSINESS Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Fashola seeks FG’s collaboration to boost energy profile

By Isaac Taiwo OVERNOR of Lagos State, Babatunde Raji Fashola has called on the Federal Government to collaborate with state governments to bring permanent solution to epileptic power supply crisis currently rocking the economy.

Fashola spoke at one of the 2014 Breakfast Forum with the theme Power Sector Reform: Overcoming Institutional and Regulatory Challenges in an Era of Liberalization” which took place at Ikeja, Lagos recently.

The Governor who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Energy and Resources, Mrs. Iyabo Obasa, said the main important thing was to ensure regular power supply in the country irrespective of which tier of government that proffers the solution.

Fashola said that the Lagos State Government has been doing a lot which has been quite evident in solving the problem of electricity in the State but certainly need the co-operation of the Federal Government especially in the area of Gas. “Lagos State Government needs the co-operation of Lagos State Government in the area of Gas which is very

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crucial to generating electricity and since this falls within the power of the Federal Government, there is little the state government can do without the full cooperation of the Federal Government,” he said.

The Guest Speaker, The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Power, Ambassador Godknows Igali who was represented at the occasion by the Director, Federal Ministry of Power, Sanusi Garuba lamented the state of electricity in the nation as he went down the memory lane of various challenges that had confronted the sector.

“There was a time we were running the sector with just 1,000 megawatts which even at critical period dropped to 750 megawatts and the sector became insolvent.

“We realized later that there was need for strong political will, regulatory laws as well as rule of law to put things in proper perspective.

“That was why the Federal Government went all out in effecting changes by calling in private partnership and it will interest Nigerians to know that for the new investors to move on without a hitch, the Federal Government instituted Nigeria Electricity Liability

Company to inherit all the liabilities of PHCN. “This with a lot of other things were done to effect new changes in the sector” he said.

Special Adviser on Research and Strategy, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission who represented the agency’s chairman, Dr. Sam Amadi said the

Government has been doing a lot to bring respite to the sector, putting in a lot of reforms. He asked Nigerians to be patient that in no time, power sector would be like the GSM which when it started, the tariff was high but now, there is competition among many investors.

He added that the new investors are facing some

challenges, which with time will definitely fizzle out.

The Honorary Counsel, Denmark High Commission, Jakob Berjer said it was unfortunate that since he came to Nigeria 13 years ago, there had been no improvement in the Sector.

He lamented that with the huge amount being spent on diesel, it will be very difficult

for investors to thrive. He attributed the problem in the sector to nothing but corruption.

The stakeholders at the event urged the Federal Government to bring solution to the problem of energy in the country and that Nigerians are tired of rhetoric’s without action.

Director-General, Lands, Ogun State, Olawale Oshinowo (left); Regional Business Executive, South West II, Sterling Bank Plc, Rasak Aboyeji; and Commissioner for Finance, Ogun State, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, at the investment forum organised by the state government.

MTN, Microsoft, Ecobank drive SMEs financial forum RRANGEMENTS have been A concluded for business owners in the category of small and medium scale enterprises to improve their capacity for business development and growth with a capacity building programme known as SME Financial Forum. The second edition of the Forum is scheduled to hold in Lagos on Tuesday June 3rd.

The forum is organized by SME Business Platform which hosts Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Live radio programme in association with the telecom giant, MTN Nigeria, on Inspiration 92.3FM in the past two years.

The organizers of the event in

a statement said the Forum would bring together all the key stakeholders in the Small and Medium Enterprise subsector of the economy to brainstorm and network to get the best option for financing businesses in the SME categories.

Already the key stakeholders that would be at the event includes, the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), the Nigeria Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI), the Nigerian Association of Small and Medium Enterprises(NASME), the Association of Small Business Owners of Nigeria (ASBON)

among other numerous subgroups under them.

Also there will be a heavy presence of financial institutions, investment clubs and corporate organisations at the event to make presentations of their support and corporate assistance and opportunities available for SMEs in their organizations.

Some of the institutions include MTN Nigeria, Microsoft Nigeria, Ecobank Plc, BoI Microfinance Bank Ltd, Heritage Bank, Leadway Assurance Ltd, Regcharles Finance and Capital Ltd, Vconnect Global Services, Interswitch, Paris Klub among several other corporate participants.

EY partners CIPFA, IASeminars on public sector accounting initiative RNST & Young (EY), the E Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) and IASeminars have concluded arrangements to jointly offer a comprehensive range of training courses on International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) in selected countries around the world.

The move is coming on the backdrop of the recent sovereign debt crisis, which has reinforced the importance of credible and transparent reporting of government financial reports.

IPSAS has already been acknowledged as a strategy

to enhance the quality of financial reporting and is being adopted around the world by an increasing number of governments, public authorities and international organizations, including the United Nations, while the European Union is considering the development of European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS) based on similar principles to IPSAS. Meanwhile, the joint IPSAS training courses slated for June 11, 2014, at the Sheraton Hotel & Towers, Abuja, will also feature an official launch event of EY, CIPFA

and IASeminars, collaboration and will be hosted by the British High Commission.

Speaking on the CIPFA’s Policy and Technical Director and a member of the IPSAS Board, Ian Carruthers, said: “CIPFA is delighted to be working with EY and IASeminars on this important project.

There is a growing international demand for highquality IPSAS training, and this new collaboration will help provide the skills needed to operate within the increasingly demanding world of international public finance”.

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Forex: The challenge of ‘trading news’

By Chijioke Nelson HE analysis of policy stateT ments and trending news with respect to the response at the foreign exchange seems to be a Herculean task for most traders.

The challenge stems from the fact that foreign exchange trading cannot be separated easily from the economic development issues of the country’s legal tender- currency, as it is part of the matrix of growth measurement.

Specifically, ‘trading the news,’ as popularly referred to in forex market, “is usually an intimidating subject for foreign exchange (forex) traders and to be candid, it’s much easier to study technical indicators, Fibonacci retracements or moving average crosses, rather than read between the lines on Central Banks Monetary Policy speech and make split-second trading decisions,” the Marketing Manager, MTrading Limited, Abolaji Soneye, said.

According to him, trading currencies is dynamic, yet unique, because the forex market is open 24 hours a dayfrom 10pm GMT on Sunday

until 11pm GMT Friday).

“Economic data tends to be one of the most important catalysts for both short-term and long term movements in any market, but this is particularly true in the currency market, which responds not only to United States economic data, but also to news from around the world.

“Many traders take advantage of these news releases to make profitable trades, as there are lots of volatility and money movement during the period of news releases and there is always some piece of economic data slated for release weekly, that traders can use to inform the positions they take,” he said.

Soneye pointed out that news trading is based on surprises, as it may or may not have anything to do with overall market direction, but primarily based on the market perception and psychology by comparing the forecast/actual releases at the time.

He noted that the high volatility during news release period makes it a window of opportunity for the experienced traders in the field to make money and also a graveyard,

for most of the dumb monies that participate during this period, as a result of poor or non-trading plan dominated by emotions.

“Trading the News is one of the most difficult skills to learn, as entering a trade should not be done on a whim,” he added.

However, he explained that traders, sometimes interchange news trading with fundamental analysis because for many, they are one and the same Pointing out the differences, he said that fundamental analysis accounts for the overall outlook of particular cur-

rency based on its economic data releases, like interest rates, consumer price index, Gross Domestic Product, trade balance, monetary policy, and other breaking news that affects the longer-term value of the currency.

News trading, however, is based on surprises, while tak-

ing advantage of the variation between the forecast/actual releases at the time.

News trading seldom considers prior releases unless significant revisions are updated, but for fundamental analysis, prior releases are starting points of comparison, and a better than prior release figure is usually considered positive, regardless of the forecast Fundamental analysis remains unchanged, unless there are significant evidence in both market sentiment and concrete economic data, unlike news trading where the market could become volatile immediately after release.

Nevertheless, trading the news and having knowledge of how the macro economic data of various economies affect the currency market gives an edge in trading and making consistent profits.

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ECB faces new asset purchase dilema HEN the European Central Bank (ECB) W President, Mario Draghi, secludes himself with Europe’s top minds in central banking this week, he won’t be able to escape one question: What’s next?

After all but promising that he’ll ease monetary policy in June, the ECB President must now manage market expectations as banks from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to Societe Generale SA speculate whether he’ll go further and deploy large-scale asset purchases in coming months.

Draghi will today open the first ECB Forum, a gathering of policy makers and academics to be held annually in the mountains northwest of Lisbon.

What Draghi says in three appearances over the next two days could provide clues on how he plans to overcome the stubbornly-low inflation that’s threatening the euro area’s return to economic health.

Officials have said they’re working on a package of possible measures for the June 5 policy meeting, including interest-rate cuts and liquidity injections, while holding out the prospect of quantitative easing as a more-powerful option.

“An important part of the package will be the accompanying words,” said Francesco Papadia, a former director general of market operations at the ECB and now chairman of Prime Collateralized

Securities in Frankfurt.

“If he says that the council has given a first installment of measures and will be ready to do more if needed, especially when it comes to bringing inflationary expectations more quickly toward two per cent, this could give more weight to the easing package.”

Draghi will host a dinner today and give a keynote address at 9 a.m. local time tomorrow at the event in Sintra, Portugal, which the bank is keen to promote as a European answer to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s annual monetary conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He’ll wrap up with closing remarks in the afternoon on May 27.

Big-name thinkers on monetary policy such as Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman and Princeton University’s Markus Brunnermeier will address the getaway at Penha Longa, a resort that traces its origins back to a 14th century monastery. They’ll be joined by policy makers from International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde to Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem. ECB Executive Board members Vitor Constancio, Peter Praet and Benoit Coeure will chair panel discussions.

The ECB may use the occasion to elaborate on what Draghi meant when he told reporters on May 8, after leaving rates on hold, that the Governing Council is “dissatisfied” with the outlook for consumer

prices and “comfortable” with action in June. Inflation has been below one per cent since October, less than half the ECB’s goal, and economies from Italy to the Netherlands contracted in the first quarter.

So far, investors have taken him at his word. The overnight rate that banks expect to charge each other a year from now, as measured

by Eonia forward contracts linked to ECB meetings, was at 0.05 per cent on May 23. It was at 0.14 per cent on May 7, a day before the last rate decision.

The euro fell to a three-month low of just above $1.36, after climbing as high as $1.3993 on May 8.

Ninety percent of economists in the Bloomberg Monthly Survey predict the European Central Bank president will ease policy in June. Most forecast a simultaneous cut in the benchmark rate, now at 0.25 percent, and the deposit rate, which is at zero. That would make the ECB the first major central bank to charge for holdings lenders’ excess cash overnight. Denmark ended its experiment with negative rates last month.

A much lower likelihood is given to asset purchases, which were seen by just 8 percent of the economists in the survey. While Draghi has said that is a policy option, officials have so far stopped short of the quantitative easing programmes conducted by the Fed, Bank of England and Bank of Japan.

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Appointments Strengthening national housing scheme for workers nothing, the Organised Labour took the only honorable decision open to it, discontinue further contributions to the fund. The decision was a reflection of the desire and wish of the workers without a dissenting view. The wrath of the workers was so palpable and ceaseless; they re-christened the Fund, the National Housing Fraud!”

The problem could only worsen in such situation.

Amid population growth, accelerated rural-urban migrations, galloping inflation, frightening unemployment figures, demolitions among others, housing deficit had jumped to 17 million, even as some put it at 20 million units.

The current ray of hope with the NHF started with the housing reform programme of then President Olusegun Obasanjo, Prof. Mabogunjeled committee, and more acceptable housing plan by the FMBN. The administration also created the Ministry of Housing. NLC lifted the suspension on contributions and remittances by its members to the National Housing Fund.

Jonathan

By Yetunde Ebosele and Wole Oyebade steps aimed at paving the way for Nigerian workFersRESH to own houses may have commenced, going by conclusions reached at an housing forum in Lagos. Personal shelter occupies prominent position in the hierarchy of needs of an average worker across the country.

High optimism on improved housing scheme for workers was raised after a one-day interactive forum on the reregistration of Nigerian workers into the National Housing Fund (NHF), held in Lagos, recently.

Already, based on trust coupled with outlined terms and conditions, the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and its affiliate unions have embraced the proposed housing scheme for its members It would be recalled that the National Housing Fund and the plan to shelter Nigerian workers has come a long way.

Established by Act 3, 1992, the National Housing Fund was designed to facilitate provision of houses for Nigerians at affordable prices.

Also, it was to ensure constant supply of loans to Nigerians for the purpose of building, purchasing and improving of residential houses; provide incentive for the capital market to invest in property develo p m e n t .

Housing remains a major challenge to most Nigerians.

Current national housing deficit is about 14 million according to the National Bureau of Statistics, though

Omar could be as high as 17 million units in the estimate of the United Nations.

With average national housing deficit of 16 million units at average cost of N3.5m per unit, Nigeria needs N56 trillion to meet existing gaps.

Nigeria needs to produce at least 720,000 housing units per year, to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) objective on housing, says World Bank.

NHF, as constituted, has this at heart, encouraging the development of specific programmes that would ensure effective financing of housing development in particular low cost housing for low income workers; provide proper policy control over the allocation of resources and fund between the housing sector and other sectors of the Nigerian economy; and, provide long term loans to mortgage institutions for lending to contributors to the fund.

Section 3 of the Act identifies sources of the fund to be contributions by Nigerians in public and private sectors, investment in the fund by commercial and merchant banks, investment in the fund by insurance companies registered under the insurance Act, and financial contributions by the federal government for long-term loans.

Section 4 which dwells on contributions by workers, states that a Nigerian worker that earns N3, 000 and above per annum shall contribute 2.5 per cent of his basic monthly salary to the fund, and an interest of four per

cent shall be payable on the contributions made.

The fund shall be managed and administered by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), which shall ensure that the proceeds from the fund are utilized to finance the housing sector of the economy through wholesale mortgage lending to primary mortgage institutions.

Learning from the past Benson Upah of the NLC observed that in spite of the inherent contradictions and weaknesses in the establishing Act, Nigerian workers keyed into the project with an abiding faith and enthusiasm. “Their salaries were deducted with a religiosity that stunned everybody. The Law delivered everything, everything under the sun except houses!”

Continuing, he said: “The few houses that were delivered were basically out of the reach of our hapless members. In due course, it was obvious that the poor were contributing money to build houses for the rich and sustaining a huge bureaucracy in the bank.

“As is customary with workers, they did not keep quiet.

All the engagements that took place between FMBN and the leadership of the workers yielded practically no improvement.

Astonishingly, and perhaps, expectedly too, the bank did not accept liability for their failure to deliver houses to the contributors.

“In acknowledgement of the futility of obeying a law that

yields no dividend and of holding further dialogue with a bank that offers little or

Upah noted that its decisions were informed by the positive changes in the bank (FMBN) by its Managing Director, Gimba Kumo, which “include improved housing delivery to workers, the readiness of the bank to collaborate with the NLC and other core stakeholders to provide more affordable, livable and durable

houses to workers; restructuring of the bank to accommodate the interests of major stakeholders such as NLC and TUC; and the amendment of the Act establishing the Bank to increase its capital base as well as remove restrictions that make access to houses difficult.”

Prospects on housing Upah, at the forum, reiterated NLC’s position: “We at NLC believe that shelter is next to food in social ranking. We believe the gross housing deficit is not only scandalous but constitutes clear and present security threat. We hold the view that if the question of housing is addressed, corruption could be reduced substantially in public life.

Similarly, we believe that a robust housing delivery system could jump-start the economy and create millions of jobs.

“We believe owning a house is not a luxury but a basic right as enshrined in Section 2 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). As a follow-up to this, it is our considered view that the country has the resources to ensure that the majority of its adult population has houses of their own.

“We believe government at all levels, private organisations and individuals should be involved in the provision of housing for the citizenry. We believe with the right legislation and policies, the chal-

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Peoples’Digest

Published in association with

Employer Branding: the “new” competitive ground

By Aruosa Osemwegie GPHR, SPHR

In a world of constant change, the fundamentals are more important than ever – Jim Collins Employer Branding: Friend or Foe? ELL, it’s like a knife. It could be both a friend and a foe. You can use a knife to an advantage and you can misuse it to a disadvantage. When you have a desired objective a knife can be a friend. If you have a chunk of beef that you have decided to cut into small parts, having a knife handy would be a delight.

However, if you went to boarding school, like I did, and you had a somewhat large chunk of edible beef, the presence of a knife, which would aid sharing may be considered a curse … as you didn’t want to share it in the first place. The same mother who would purchase knives for use in the kitchen and thus see it as a friend, would detest a misplaced knife that is suddenly accessible to her toddler. Likewise, Employer Branding is both a friend and a foe. In the world of 2014, your Employer Brand may downright be working assiduously against you, albeit imperceptibly and you could also deliberately cultivate it to deliver top and bottom line results. Here is why this conversation is important, sorry, actually urgent and timely: your employer brand though created by you is owned by the market (the world in essence). Two, everyone has an employer brand whether they know it or not. Three, every day and in every way, you are adding to your employer brand by your actions and inactions. Maybe lastly, with the internet and social media in particular, the opportunities to upend or up your employer brand is now ubiquitous – open to you, the organisation; open to customers; open to employees and open to the public. This much was indicated by LinkedIn’s 2013 Global Recruiting Report which we started to dissect in last month’s article. Let’s roll up our sleeves and begin to slice through this matter … the clock ticks.

Employer Branding: making the business case I have seen organisations go to great extents and great costs to hire. I have seen full page adverts paid for “just” for advertising vacancies. I have seen foreign and local consultants paid decent money “just” for them to help organisations seek out and shortlist the right people. I have seen Nigerian companies pay foreign firms to help them hire into roles here in Nigeria. I have seen budgets been cut for recruiting trips to be made to local AND foreign schools/nations “just” to be able to attract the students to these organisations.

I have seen companies pay for candidates to make local AND international trips “just” for interviews.

Consultants are been regularly paid to administer selection tests “just” so that companies can eventually employee people. I have also seen where adverts where repeated for a period longer than envisaged because the organisation couldn’t find the talent it sought. Some even gave up. I have seen, repeatedly, where invited candidates didn’t show up either for selection tests or interviews. You didn’t get that. I mean I have seen where organisations had to schedule more selection tests because the people they initially invited didn’t show up – even though they had submitted their resumes. Obviously from the above data, it is evident that organisations go to great costs…time…planning “just” to be able to hire people. This begs the question: Why? The answer? Human capacity is limited. One person cannot do the work of ten people. All business expansion/growth plans rest on your ability to find people to do the work. Finding staff is thus not a humanitarian service but a business imperative.

Hence, the ability to attract and retain staff is a competitive advantage. Employee attraction and retention is as important as customer attraction and retention and is therefore the business of forwardthinking executive management teams.

Employer Branding: the unveiling Employer branding, you may say, is the art and science of employee attraction and retention. It is the perception of an organisation as a desirable employment destination. The term ‘employer branding’ describes how an organisation markets what it has to offer to potential and existing employees.

Marketers have developed techniques to help attract customers, communicate with them effectively and maintain their loyalty to a consumer brand.

Employer branding involves applying a similar approach to people management (ref. CIPD).

Employer brand denotes an organisation’s reputation as an employer (Wikipedia). “Employer branding is the process of promoting a company, or an

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organization, as the employer of choice to a desired target group, one which a company needs and wants to recruit and retain.

The process facilitates the company’s ability in attracting, recruiting and retaining ideal employees – referred to as Top Talent in recruitment – and helps secure the achievement of the company’s business plan. If employer branding is the process, the employer brand is the identity of a company as an employer of choice.

For effective employer brand promotion, however, the company can only attract current and future employees if it has an identity that is true, credible, relevant, distinctive and aspirational”universumglobal.com. “Your employer brand is the image of your organisation as an employer and place to work as perceived internally and externally. Your Employer Value Proposition (EVP) communicates that image to your target audience(s) and reinforces why talented people would want to join (and stay with) your organisation” - ipsos-mori.com. Steven Rothberg puts it this way: “Employer branding is the communication of an organization as a great place to work. More specifically, a negative employer brand means that the organization is a poor place to work while a positive brand means it is a great place to work. Note that the organization itself helps to create its own brand but much and often most of the brand is created by employees, vendors, customers, partners, competitors, media, and others”.

Benefits of having a distinct and attractive employer brand A positive employer brand has priceless benefits to the business.

• Talent attraction and recruiting – it increases your ability to attract top talent to your business. It also increases your ability to convert interested candidates into employees. It reduces your actual cost and time to recruit.

• Employee retention – it raises your ability to keep employees. Loyal employees are a gem – customers benefit and the organisation benefits. If you have invested in them, you want to keep them. If they embody your culture, you also want to keep them. A compelling employer brand helps you do that.

• Engaged employees – your business, your organisation, your corporate brand is inextricably linked with the type of employees that you have. Your customers can feel it when your employees are emotionally attached to the company or not.

Business costs have the potential to reduce when you have engaged/attached staff.

Innovation is higher when you have engaged staff. Again, a positive employer brand helps to create an environment that increases employee engagement.

• You gain positive word of mouth; positive media exposure and eventually a huge boost to your overall corporate brand Don’t bother with employer branding as there are no jobs anyway But a CEO may say, “Aruosa, thanks but I don’t need to craft a compelling employer brand because there are no jobs anyway, so I can always get the staff I need anyway”.

My response?

“Sir may I make the assumption that you are building your business for the long term?” “I mean is your organisation going to be around, waxing stronger and stronger, into …say the next 30, 40 years?

“Yes, it would”.

“Then I think you need to bother”.

“So are you saying I should only be concerned about employer branding because of the long term?” “Right now young man my concerns are short to medium term”.

“Long term can wait”!

“No, that’s not all that I meant, please let me explain” “Aruosa, in fact are you saying”, CEO interjects, “that all Nigerian companies that have been around for over 20 years sur-

vived and thrived because they had crafted an employer brand?” “I put it to you that in Nigeria, I can do just fine without been bothered with this American idea called employer branding or whatever”! “Sir, like I said please let me explain. If you are considering building an organisation that will outlive its founders; that will remain prosperous way into the future; and that will be a desirable destination for employees, then you will require an employer brand.

The inevitability of an employer brand Specifically, here are the ground-breaking nut-cracking no-nonsense reasons why you may be toast, eventually, without a distinct and compelling employer brand. 1) the increasing competition for staff as the number and quality of employers increases; 2) sustainable enterprise development, which forces business founders, sponsors and investors to think long-term and to thus make decisions that perpetuate their enterprises beyond immediate profits; 3) changing times characterized by the focus on ideas, innovation, technology and social media; 4) the increase and aspirations of Generation Y and the 5) rise and rise of ‘new’ alternate industries or professions or businesses.

The inevitability of an employer brand – 1) Increasing competition for staff Cumulatively, if you do an all-industries swipe, you would notice that there are more organisations/options for employees – even with the existence of mass unemployment! Okay even if you don’t agree, am sure you would agree that if not for the huge blight created by the tripod insurgency in the North, pipeline vandalisation and the obsession for power come 2015; that we would have started to see more growth and development? Even in the midst of this all our economy has kept on growing (‘joblessly’ though) and we have woken to become the largest economy in Africa! This talks of economic potential and capacity. It would seem as though we are at the throes of “the day of the employee” – where they could call the shots regarding employer choice.

Let me buttress with a few examples, this would help the doubting Thomases some more. The field of e-commerce/e-retailing/e-payment received a huge jump-start in the last four years due in large part to CBN’s cashless policy. I just read a few weeks ago that Western Union had signed an agreement with Paga, which would make it possible to receive money sent from overseas through Paga. And I thought really! We now have entirely new and old-but-strengthened employers within mobile money and epayment. Same with e-commerce/e-retailing.

And we have not seen anything yet. The list looks like this: Interswitch, Etranzact, Simplepay, Paga, Pocketmoni, Jumia, Konga, etc.

The employees’ market powered by Power But the strongest possibility for the growth of the employees’ market is from the power sector… next would be the post-PIB Oil sector and the Agriculture sector. By the way PIB stands for Petroleum Information Bill. “New” employers

would arise from the Transmission Company (TCN), seven Generation Companies (GENCOs) and eleven Distribution Companies (DISCOs).

And the regulator Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), also from the non-core assets and liabilities arm, Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMCO) and the several IPPs. Like I said in my book, The Unemployment Manifesto: “the privatized entities (GENCOs and DISCOs), the Transmission company and the regulator, NERC, will also be served by an army of suppliers, service providers, contractors, IT service providers, real estate agents, travel agents, branding and advertisement coys, consultants, civil and engineering works, outsourcing agents, tax compliance and audit, recharge card production and sales, automobile sales and maintenance, training services, cleaning and pest control services, banking and treasury services, and a host of others. From all these would be natural entrepreneurial opportunities for groups and individuals and a horde of employment opportunities as well”.

The inevitability of an employer brand – 2) Need for sustainable enterprises It seems we have gotten tired or are getting tired of companies that are a ‘flash of success’ – now you see them, now you don’t. The business landscape is strewn with many businesses and CEOs that made short term decisions and lost out. Locally, all you need to do is to browse through the history of banking in the last twenty years to see for yourself.

Internationally, don’t go too far, just recall the 2008 Global Financial crisis. There is agreement that we need to build to last. Building sustainable enterprises requires a long term focus that makes the need to have in place (whether deliberately designed or not) a distinct, well cultivated employer brand.

According to the work done by Jim Collins and Jerry Poras in their book, Built to Last, most of the characteristics required to build lasting institutions requires having core values and a purpose beyond just making money combined with the key dynamics of preserving a core ideology while stimulating progress. What makes it possible for an organisation to go from good to great? What Jim Collins’ research team found out which is well documented in their book, Good to Great, incidentally, are qualities that make employer branding still an inevitability.

Let me share two examples.

The first thing they found common to organisations who had gone from good-to-great was that they had leaders who had a Level 5 Leadership quality - which according to them is a paradoxical blend of personal humility and professional will. Hear them: “Level 5 leaders channel their ego needs away from themselves and into the larger goal of building a great company. It’s not that Level 5 leaders have no ego or self-interest. Indeed, they are incredibly ambitious – but their ambition is first and foreContinued on page 35

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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PEOPLES DIGEST 35

Our Schools Must Prepare Our Students for the World of Work

By Abolaji Osime OUNG people in schools today will be joining Y the work force tomorrow. The question therefore is whether Nigerian schools are preparing students for the workplace or just preparing them to memorize and regurgitate during examinations. Nigerian students need to move away from memorization of irrelevant facts/information to understanding what is being taught with the objective of using it creatively to solve problems and come up with creative solutions and products in the 21st century work place.

Schools should teach technical content, innovation, creativity and generic skills needed in the 21st century workplace. Some of the remarkable innovations coming out of America through Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Marc Zuckerberg have not come through regurgitation of what is memorised but taking what they have been taught in class to create what does not exist through innovation. We are looking for the Steve Jobs and Marcs Zuckerbergs of Nigeria but we need to create the conducive environment that will make this happen. President Obama during his remarks to the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce commented as follows “I am calling on our nation to develop standards and assessments that don’t simply measure whether students can fill in a bubble on a test, but whether they possess 21st century skills like problem-solving and critical thinking and entrepreneurship and creativity” “We are living in a world where what you earn is a function of what you can learn” Bill Clinton, former American President. This famous quote summarizes in a nut shell what the participants at NESG Technical & Vocational Education Design Work shop agreed at the recently concluded NESG Summit.

It was obvious to all participants at the Summit that if Nigeria is to realize its vision of becoming one of the twenty largest economies in the world by 2020, it will need to transform its youthful population into highly skilled and competent citizens capable of competing globally.

Furthermore, a major part of the responsibility for preparing such a workforce rests on its education sector’s ability to provide education that will guarantee employment to the teeming population of youth.

As the job market and economy changes, experts on education and the economy are increasingly

worried by the growing gap they see between the skills Nigerian graduates have and the skills, knowledge and habits that employers are seeking. Employers are asking that employees have relevant vocational, technical, innovative, creative skills as well as communication, interpersonal, presentation, entrepreneurial, analytical, problem solving and technology skills. They need to be aware of their commercial and business environment also.

In a recently conducted Educational and Employability survey by Phillips Consulting, it was reported that the most sought after skills by employers was Technology/computer skills and subject/discipline knowledge.

Other skills that employers wanted were listed as Teamwork, Interpersonal Skills, Verbal Communication, Ability to Think Critically and Analytically.

Furthermore, the global economy has changed from an Industrialized economy to a Knowledge economy, resulting in demand for a different skills set. A knowledge economy requires Nigeria’s educational institutions to develop knowledge workers and knowledge Technologists - who are flexible and analytical and who can be the driving force for innovation and growth.

Unfortunately our educational institutions are not producing the type and quality of skilled workers that employers want, due to massive disconnect between the needs of the private sector and the curriculum delivered by educational institutions.

Our Nigerian educational institutions continue to deliver curriculum that is irrelevant to the 21st century workplace thereby rendering thousands of students unemployable. In addition, less than 1% of secondary education is oriented towards technical and vocational skills in our schools. Women’s participation in scientific and technical occupations is as low as 10%. With over 60% of fresh Nigerian graduates classified as “unskilled”, yet this is in spite of the serious shortage of skilled workers and Technicians in oil and gas, construction, industrial and services sectors. In the oil sector, indigenous Nigerian companies are unable to meet up with the 60% local content stipulated by government, as skills such as offshore drilling, amongst others, are minimal in Nigeria.

Employer Branding: the “new” competitive ground Continued from page 34 most for the institution, not themselves”. If you ask me Level 5 Leadership is where employer branding begins. A CEO would only invest in employee attraction and retention if and only if, he or she is humble and professionally wise enough to admit that ‘one person cannot make a forest’.

The ability to attract and retain the right staff is a competitive advantage The second characteristic of organisations that went from good-to-great is what they called First Who . . . Then What. I quote: “When we [Jim Collins’ team] began the research project, we expected to find that the first step in taking a company from good to great would be to get a new direction, a new vision and strategy for the company, and then to get people committed and aligned behind that new direction. We found something quite the opposite. The executives who ignited the transformations from good to great did not first figure out where to drive the bus and then get people to take it there.

No, they first got the right people on the bus (and the wrong people off the bus) and then figured out where to drive it. They said, in essence, “Look, I don’t really know where we should take this bus. But I know this much: If we get the right people on the bus, the right people in the right

seats, and the wrong people off the bus, then we’ll figure out how to take it someplace great.” The good-to-great leaders understood three simple truths. First, if you begin with “who,” rather than “what,” you can more easily adapt to a changing world. If people join the bus primarily because of where it is going, what happens if you get ten miles down the road and you need to change direction?

You’ve got a problem. But if people are on the bus because of who else is on the bus, then it’s much easier to change direction: “Hey, I got on this bus because of who else is on it: if we need to change direction to be successful, fine with me.” Second, if you have the right people on the bus, the problem of how to motivate and manage people largely goes away. The right people don’t need to be tightly managed or fired up; they will be self-motivated by the inner drive to produce the best results and to be part of creating something great. Third, if you have the wrong people, it doesn’t matter whether you discover the right direction; you still won’t have a great company. Great vision without great people is irrelevant.

Employer branding is about finding, getting and keeping the right people on the bus.

Schooling must be creative.

The fact is there are jobs in Nigeria in critical growth areas that need technical and vocational skills but our students are not trained in the skills needed in these sectors (for example, agriculture, construction, mining, etc).

The lack of adequate attention paid to Technical and Vocational education in our educational institutions has resulted in rising youth unemployment and poverty in Nigeria. What happens to the millions of students that drop off the educational system at JSS3 and SS3 levels each year? Where are the technical and vocational centers that will take this capacity and provide up to date and relevant skills?

For example, in an interview with Alhaji Aliko Dangote, he said that a total of 8000 Technicians were needed in the $9 billion refinery and petrochemical investment of which he will be recruiting 300 every year.

Recently, we understand that his company interviewed 550 secondary school leavers, out if which 200 were short listed and only 50 were eventually engaged. Alhaji Dangote mentioned that one of the major challenges to industrial development is not really funding, but rather the absence of highly trained and experienced human resources to drive growth.

McKinsey in a survey of over 2,800 employers around world revealed that 4 out of 10 employers cannot find employees to fill entry level positions in their companies and this had limited their businesses. Most Analysts believe that the major issue in the 21st century labour market is the skills gap challenge; with the unemployment problem soaring every day.

One way of closing the skills gap is certainly creating an educational system that provides skills required by employers, in a country like Nigeria where youth unemployment is estimated to be above 50%. The challenge of closing the skills gap is urgent and must

be addressed immediately to arrest the soaring unemployment and crime rate. To close the skills gap, educational institutions and employers must come together and collaborate to ensure skills requirements are communicated to the relevant institutions and such institutions should equip their secondary level students and Graduates with the required skills and exposure.

Such a collaboration was made possible at the recently concluded NESG Summit on Education where experts were pooled from Government agencies, private sector and educational institutions .The task to resolve some of these issues was given to the participants of the NESG Design Workshop Group on Technical and Vocational education.

Some of the key questions addressed were as follows: What are the key challenges involved in developing Nigeria’s workforce that will fulfil the needs of businesses, organisations and the industry sectors in Nigeria?

How can we start to build practical solutions that result in truly effective education for employment?

What interventions and reforms must be put in place to address some of these issues?

At the close of the workshop, it was the general consensus that Nigerian institutions must prepare future ready students; they must be responsive by providing them with education that is relevant for employment in the private and public sectors.

Private sector must also play its part in ensuring it collaborates with Tertiary institutions and other educational institutions to review the curriculum, and ensure it is relevant to our national development needs. Employers should also work with institutions to provide internships, apprenticeships and job shadowing so that the practical skills are learnt by students before they graduate.

Abolaji Osime is CEO Global International College and Facilitator Design Workshop for Technical and Vocational Education at NESG Summit

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Making housing affordable for Nigerian Workers CONTINUED ON PAGE 36 lenge of housing could be addressed speedily.

“In keeping with its promise of commissioning pilots as a strategy for wooing workers, Katsina State housing project has been commissioned with fanfare. However, since then, we are not aware any pilot scheme has been commissioned. A break in momentum could be dangerous to this fragile re-union. Similarly, the state-level committees have not been formed. There could be a backlash as state councils play a key role in contributions and remittances to the NHF.” Special Assistant to the MD/CEO FMBN, Oladapo Fakeye noted that one of the bank’s new management strategies was to engage critical stakeholder groups and develop strategic partnerships with the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association (NECA), TUC & NLC. Fakeye, who was represented

by Sheu Usman, informed that between December 2010 and April 2013, the Bank recorded N82.1 billion as NHF Collections. That is, 61.2 per cent of the cumulative NHF collections of N134.1 billion were collected in the last 41 months.

“Average monthly collection rose by 174 per cent from N730 million to over N2 billion on average. Over the recent 41 months under review, N33.4 billion and N23.8 billion were disbursed as estate development (construction) and mortgage loans respectively.

This translates to 47.8 per cent

and 48.3 per cent respectively of the cumulative loans of N69.8 billion and N49.3billion recorded since commencement of the NHF Scheme. By aggregation, the total disbursement of N57.2 billion recorded in the past 41 months constitutes 48 per cent of the N119.1 billion to date.”

In terms of Housing delivery, a total of 76,571 were recorded.

That is, Estate Development Loan - 39,425; NHF Mortgage Loan - 23,396; and Mortgages financed via MBB - 13,750.

Still on the current state of the National Housing Fund, Moji Babajide added that total amount refunded to qualified retirees or next-of-kin of deceased contributors stands at N2.7b.

She added that about N32 the Bank from the Capital Market to fund the purchase of over 14,000 houses by civil servants during the sale of FGN non-essential houses in 2006 raised billion.

The Cooperative Loan window was recently introduced to cater for the informal sector Babajide stressed that it was imperative for workers to know the basis NHF Contributions refund. This is based on contributor’s attainment of 60 years of age; retirement from employment and becoming incapacitated; death (payment to Next-ofKin of Deceased); putting in 35 years in service; that applicant has no outstanding mortgage loan among others.

NHF mortgage loan requirements and processes: Up-to-date, continuous NHF contribution for minimum of

six months and satisfactory evidence of income source to guarantee loan repayments.

Explaining the ease of access, Babajide reiterated that NHF is open to all Nigerian workers earning N3, 000 p.a.; open to private sector, public sector and the self-employed.

Individual needs to only complete Form NHF-2 to be registered; only 2.5 per cent of monthly income required as

contributions.

Minimum continuous contribution period of six months qualifies contributor for mortgage loan.

Contributions can be paid to any of 36 state offices (in each state capital) and two district offices (Apapa & Ikeja) in Lagos.

Challenges Besides the inadequate funding for mortgage financing in

the country, Babajide observed that there is still lack of Contributors’ awareness of the NHF scheme and lingering resistance by major stakeholders. Where the scheme is well recognized, there are incidences of deductions from workers’ salaries without remittance or underremittance to the Bank. All of these must change if all workers must have houses.

During the interaction, workers were indeed excited at the prospects and promises of the scheme, though urging the FMBN and government to do more to restore confidence in the scheme.

Workers observed that onetoo-many frequent changes at the ministerial level and head of the mortgage bank might be impeding continuity in the scheme.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Community Development and Co-operatives, Ogun State, Mrs. Yemi Olanrewaju; Area Sales Manager, Consolidated Breweries Plc, Ayoola Sodipo; and Commissioner, Ministry of Community Development and Co-operatives, Ogun State, Chief Samuel Duro Aiyedogbon, during the presentation of The Most Community Friendly Co-operative Organisation of the Year Award to Consolidated Breweries, in Abeokuta, Ogun State

APPOINTMENTS Tuesday, May 27, 2014 37

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Future leaders to drive growth, says report

By Adeyemi Adepetun

REPORT by professional A services firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, (PwC), has shown that the next generation of leaders are poised to drive better growth as they get set to inherit the leadership of their family businesses.

The report titled: “Bridging the gap: Handing over the Family Business to the Next Generation”, noted the Millennial (a generation of entrepreneurs born in the eighties and 2000s, otherwise called Generation Y) are more ambitious, have bigger ideas about growth, and are poised to work harder than their predecessors, the Baby Boomers (those born between 1946 – 1964, also known as Generation X ) .

The research, conducted between February 3 and March 14, by Kudos Research and whose results were analyzed by Jigsaw Research, was commissioned by PwC. It showed that 86 per cent of the respondent millennials want to do something significant and special; 80 per cent have big ideas for change and growth; and 88 per cent say they have to work harder than others to ‘prove themselves’.

The survey, which looked specifically at the issue of succession – how family firms are planning for this; how the next generation

views this; and the challenges all family firms face in implementing this, exposed three peculiar types of gaps that exist between the Generation X and Generation Y and which need to be bridged for effective transition to include the generation gap, the credibility gap, and the communications gap.

On the generation gap, the survey showed that it is increasingly common for these millennials to seek work experience outside the family firm. Only seven per cent of the next generation had gone into the family business straight from school, as their parents and grandparents typically did; 31 per cent went to university first and 46 per cent had worked for another company before taking a role in the family firm.

The report further showed that many (14 per cent) of the next generation entrepreneurs have taken business degrees to help prepare themselves for succession; 34 per cent have taken management and training courses and are looking to apply what they’ve learned to the family firm.

On credibility gap, the survey showed that bearing the family name is not enough on its own to impart credibility, with many of the next generation thinking it can even work against them. It revealed that the next generation entrepreneurs

would have to work harder than others to ‘prove thems e l v e s ’ .

The report, on communication gap, showed a tendency for some in the older generation to overestimate how well they have run the business, while underestimating their children’s capacity to do this as competently as they did.

Director Advisory Services in PwC Nigeria, Dr. Okechukwu Mbonu corrob-

orated the report saying that “members of the current generation often comment that their children aren’t sufficiently entrepreneurial and aren’t prepared to put in the long hours they did to build the business; while down the hall their children are wishing their parents would embrace the possibilities of new technology, and be more receptive to new ideas.

“This sort of impasse can slow down decision-making, and lead to the phenomenon of the ‘sticky baton’, where the older generation hands over management of the firm in theory, but in practice, retains complete control over everything that really matters.

On the way forward, Dr. Mbonu said that “The firms that manage succession well are those that plan many years ahead - ideally,

five to seven years in advance - accompanied by ‘sensible conversations’ that address roles, responsibilities, and timings.”

The study involved 207 interviews conducted with the next generation members likely to take over the family business from a range of sectors in 21 countries, with a focus on those with a sales turnover of more than $5 million.

CIPM inducts 650 new members

By Toyin Olasinde HE Chartered Institute of T Personnel Management (CIPM) has advised new set of inductees to adhere strictly to the ethics of the profession and make practical contribution to the growth of the nation.

Speaking at the induction ceremony recently, the Director Client and Partner Relations, Pendaxia Limited, Gbenga Owolabi who spoke on the theme “Embedding entrepreneurial culture in organsations”, said the use of

culture should be encouraged in Human Resources development.

He explained that as HR professionals, there is need to keep close tap on development in technology.

CIPM President, Victor Famiyibo also used the opportunity to advise inductees “to be well behave in their professional dealings and spheres of influence demonstrated and exemplify the values of the institute.”

Victor added that ethics of professionalism is very important to achieving suc-

cess and overcome challenges associated with business operations, corporate institutions, social and economic environment of work.

He said: “As members of this prestigious professional body, it is expected that you demonstrate best practice in the development and effective deployment of your competencies as human capital professionals and by this, command the due respect our profession.”

He advised the inductees to always promote excellence in the acquisition and appli-

cation of knowledge and skills in their specialised field as part of measures to effectively contribute towards sustainable national development.

Speaking further, he advised the new inductees to always imbibe the culture of continuous self-development through study, experience sharing and thoughtful application of best practices in the w o r k p l a c e .

He also pointed out that the 650 new members are the highest ever recorded in CIPM.

West African ceramics bags NIA excellence award for best local content manufacturer FWestOREMOST of the tiles in Nigerian, African Ceramics Ltd has bagged the Nigerian Institute of Architect (NIA) Excellence Award in the category of companies with most local content products in the Nigerian building and

construction industry.

The award was presented to the company on the heels of a three-day conference session of the Sixth edition of the Lagos Architects Forum 2014 in Lagos and was organized by the Lagos State

Chapter of the NIA. Receiving the award from the President, Association of Consulting Architects Nigeria, Tayo Babalakin, the Size Analyst, West African Ceramics Ltd, Sachin Katare eulogized the body of Architects for its unmatched

professionalism exercised in organizing the forum with the theme Lagos 5.0Architecture and Real Estate Development and the impeccable standards which guide members of CONTINUED ON PAGE 39

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38 Tuesday, May 27, 2014 APPOINTMENTS

Ex-ITF boss attributes N10b savings to 2011 act amendment From Isa Abdulsalami Ahovi, Jos HE immediate past Director-General of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Prof. Longmas Sambo Wapmuk, left over N10billion in the account of the Fund.

Wapmuk disclosed this recently at the headquarters of ITF in Jos while handing over to the new helmsman, Mrs. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko.

He attributed the development to the amendment of the ITF Act of 2011 coupled with the prudent management of resources.

After enumerating his achievements during his

T

eight-year tenure as ITF Chief Executive Officer, Wapmuk extended his appreciation to Fidelis Tapgun, who, he said, was instrumental to his first appointment of four years which was further fortified

by Josephine Tapgun, for the second opportunity when she was appointed Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment.

Wapmuk thanked both the previous and present management teams for their cooperation and support because, according to him, without that, ITF would not have been where it is today, hoping that the present

focus of the Fund which is technical vocational training shall be carried forward.

He expressed gratitude to the Governing Council, the supervising ministry of ITF, management and staff, urging them to toe the same line of cooperation given to him by extending it to his successor.

Responding, ChukkkasOnaeko stressed the importance of discipline and work ethics, urging all departments, units and field officers to synergise to ensure smooth operations.

She said the successes recorded by her predeces-

sors, especially the immediate past one, would be built upon in order to achieve a more dynamic and robust organisation.

According to her, “The National Industrial Revolution Programme (NIRP) of the Federal Government which is being anchored by our parent ministry, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, has saddled us with a huge responsibility.

Our role, therefore, cannot be over-emphasised here especially when one considers the impact of the National Industrial Skills

Development Programme (NISDP) which the Fund is driving at the moment.”

As a major stakeholder, she said, “my expectation is for us as an organization to key into the NIRP and NEDEP programmes of the government.

This calls for collaboration with all parties to deliver on this mandate.

“In the area of capacity building for our teeming clients, I expect you to partner with me in developing NEED-based training programmes that would drive the economy to create more jobs in the organised Private Sector (OPS), develop competence of youth to be self-reliant and selfemployed. The task is enormous but I believe with your

support and cooperation, we can achieve this goal.”

Stressing the importance of fund in every endeavour, the new chief executive officer wants both the management and staff of the Fund to step up their acts in the area of revenue generation in order to ensure effectiveness in their mandate delivery.

She believed that staff motivation and industrial harmony are essential to peace and tranquillity in any organisation, adding that she would embark on visits to Area Offices and Training Centres to have first-hand information on their mode of operations with a view to giving the support they need to perform optimally.

NIRA gets new COO, Udeagu HE Executive Board of T Directors of the Nigeria Internet Registration

Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi receiving an award from the Coordinator of Local Government Female Elected Executives and State Legislators Forum, Dame Maureen Tamuno during a solidarity visit by members of the forum to the governor at Government House, Port Harcourt.

Association (NIRA) has named Mrs. Edith Udeagu as the new Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Secretary to the Board.

President of NIRA, Mrs. Mary Uduma made this disclosure in Lagos and said that Udeagu takes over from the acting COO, Akinbo Cornerstone, who was seconded from the Board since July 2013, following the resignation of the erstwhile COO, Opeoluwa Odusan.

She noted that Udeagu who resumed at NIRA on Monday, May 12, was born in 1960 to Ambassador and Mrs. V. N. Chibundu, a career diplomat of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1960, attended

various institutions in multiple countries across continents culminating in a her first degree, B.Sc Mathematics with Computer Science (Second Class Upper) from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (1983) and a Master of Science degree in Optimization & Computing from Loughborough University of Technology, Loughborough, Leicestershire, United Kingdom (1985).

Mrs. Udeagu, she said worked in the Information Technology (IT) Unit of Mitchell Farms of Ibru Organisation, before moving to the IT Department of the Central Bank of Nigeria in Lagos as an Assistant Manager in 1990.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014 APPOINTMENTS 39

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UNICEF, others partner ministry in survey on violence against children From Omotola Oloruntobi, Abuja HE Federal Ministry of T Women Affairs and Social Development is conducting a National Survey on Violence against chil-

dren with the support of the United Nations Children Education Fund (UNICEF), Centre for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Population Commission (NPC).

West African ceramics bags NIA excellence award for best local content CONTINUED ON FROM PAGE 37 the institute in conducting themselves professionally.

Speaking on the award, the Chairman, Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Architects, Ladipo Lewis said that the NIA Excellence Award for Best Local Content is a special recognition of merit given to an indigenous company whose operation from sourcing raw materials to the processes of delivering the final product entails the utilization of local contents in terms of value creation in the Nigerian economy, systematic capacity development, and the thoughtful use of material and human resources locally sourced. He said that West African Ceramics Ltd is one of such companies, which have consistently stood out in local contents.

“The NIA as a professional body recognizes companies in the built environment which makes immense contribution to the Nigerian economy through systematic development of capacity, value creation, and engagement of local materials and Nigerian human resources in their production process.

Yearly, the Lagos State Chapter seeks to identify that company that fulfils the most use of local contents and recognize that company on a special occasion such as this forum with this award.

This year 2014, West African Ceramics Ltd has again merited the award from the chapter.”

The immediate past Chairman of the Lagos State Chapter, NIA, Abimbola Ajayi said the essence of the award goes deep to de-emphasize importation of raw materials and products. She hailed West African Ceramics for its consistency in meeting high standards that match the Asian and European counterparts with local contents.

Arc. Ajayi said that “the company has not only met Architects demand for exotic tiles with standards that match the cravings for foreign tiles but have created jobs for Nigerians in its effort to meet our specification through its careful engagement of Nigerian raw materials and human resources.”

Expressing its appreciation for the award, Katare thanked the members of the NIA for recognizing his company’s efforts in satisfying architects and Nigerians at large.

The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Zainab Maina, explained that the survey is expected to provide data on prevalence rate of violence in terms of gender, geography and nature of cases.

Maina stated this in Abuja at a roundtable discussion on emerging issues of Girl Child Protection in West Africa organized by the Ford Foundation.

According to the Minister, “the outcome of the survey will provide Nigeria with accurate and researchbased data that will ensure informed and evidencebased programming for effective child protection in the country, especially in view of the emerging issues affecting the social and security protection of the girl-child in Nigeria.”

Hajiya Maina recalled that the Federal Government inaugurated a National Joint Task Force for the prevention of child sexual abuse and other forms of violence against children.

She stated, “The establishment of the task force was particularly informed by the emerging social problems articulated above due to the Federal Government’s concern of the negative consequences on the girl child”.

She added that other interventions being embarked upon by her Ministry to protect the girl child include advocacy on the negative consequences of early marriage and ensuring access to

adequate and quality health services as enshrined in the Child Rights Act. Meanwhile, the Minister also reiterated her call for the release of the abducted Chibok school girls, describing the act as disheartening and totally condemnable.

“We continue to pray that the girls will be saved and returned safely to their respective families”, Hajiya

Maina said.

In his address, the Secretary General, West African Civil Society Forum, Abdoulaye Diallo stressed the need for Child Rights to be given top priority at both regional and national agenda.

“Child Rights should be handled as a developmental priority rather than only as a human rights or religious

issue. It is regrettable that Child Rights issues are not a priority under the ECOWAS legislation,” said Diallo.

Speaking in the same vein, the representative of Ford West Africa, Innocent Chukwuma said the threat of the Girl-Child being endangered was more of a reality now than ever before.

40 APPOINTMENTS Tuesday, May 27, 2014

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‘Splitting AGF’s office may lead to duplication of functions’ From Anthony Otaru, Abuja HE creation of two offices of T Accountants-General of the Federation at the Federal level is uncalled for and may lead to duplication of functions, Accountant-General of the Federation, Jonah Otunla has said.

According to Otunla, the duplication of functions will increase overhead cost and create conflicts in the administration and management of government financial resources.

Otunla made the submission

in a memorandum recently submitted to the ongoing National Conference in Abuja.

The conference is currently reviewing calls to split the office into two.

According to the proposed arrangement, the AGF will be responsible for the administration and disbursement of all allocations from the Federation Accounts to the three tiers of government while the office of the Accountant-General to the Federal Government would supervise and administer Federal Government accounts

solely.

The calls for the creation of the two offices came as a result of the fears that the interests of various states and local governments had not been adequately protected in the administration and disbursement of the federation accounts, which is assumed to be solely under the AGF. But Otunla in the memorandum, argued that the creation of both offices would be at variance with international best practices as well as give room for the duplication of treasury activities.

He explained that there are clearly defined allocation principles and formulae approved by the National Assembly for the distribution of revenue among the three tiers of government, adding that there is no justification to split the office into two.

In his words, “Splitting the OAGF into two offices will lay a bad precedence, which may open a floodgate for demands for the splitting of similar offices and the establishment of such offices such as AuditorGeneral for the Federal Government; Attorney-

General of the Federal Government; SurveyorGeneral of the Federal Government; StatisticianGeneral of the Federal Government and Secretary to the Federal Government.”

He further argued that since the Federal Government is currently grappling with the modalities of cutting down over bloated size and numbers of government agencies in view of the urgent need for capital development, splitting these offices would defeat the intentions of the government.

He said the concerns and

fears that have informed the calls for the creation of two offices of AccountantsGenerals at the centre have been addressed by checks and balances, control mechanisms and institutional regulatory frameworks, which are already in the statute books “The Government Integration Financial Management Information System is fully operational and it is geared towards greater accountability and transparency in the management of the treasury and other financial institutions at the centre.

ICAN reviews new professional examination syllabus

By Faith Oparaugo HE Institute of Charted Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) has reviewed its new professional examination syllabus.

Speaking at the public presentation of the syllabus recently in Lagos, the President of the institute, Alhaji Kabir Mohammed said this developments was to make professionals equip their skill and competences that will enable them access useful information from a maze of complex business data and strategically transform themselves into business intelligent.

According to him, “we must hone our ability to multi task, be a global player and communicate expertly like a diplomat to diverse stakeholders and provide leadership in resource generation and allocation decisions”.

T

He noted that such proficiency could only come through a combination of proper theoretical and practical training based on wellstructured, robust and appropriate training curricula.

He added that the syllabus would equip the students with the skills to deal with scenarios, develop analytical competences and take strategic business decisions.

“The syllabus complies not only with best international benchmarks but also enables a progression from knowledge to skills and ultimately to professional competences.

“Unlike the outgoing syllabus, a lot of flexibility has been introduced into the new syllabus in order to retain the subsisting credit system the candidates may write one or two subjects instead of writing all the subjects in a particular level”, he said.

Chief Operation Officer, Weco Systems Internationals ltd, Nnamdi Onyebuchi (left) Director, Chief Ulu Mba, Chief Executive Officer, Obinna Ekwonwa, Director, Chief Godwin Obidike and Chief Sales Officer, Ambrose Okoigbo at the presentation of double Cisco Awards to Weco Systems board of directors, Weco Systems won Best Enterprise Partner of the year 2014, Africa and MEAR- Middle East, Africa and Russia in Lagos at the weekend PHOTO: FEMI ADEBESIN-KUTI

Tuesday, May 27, 2014 APPOINTMENTS 41

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Engineers seek technology-driven development From Collins Olayinka, Abuja

HE Nigerian Society of T Engineers (NSE) has called for the establishment of National Council for Science, Engineering, Technology and Innovation (NACSETI) to serve as a platform for the sustained development of Nigeria.

The President of NSE, Ademola Olorunfemi, who stated this at the first quarterly briefing of the Society in Abuja, said such body will coordinate and ensure Nigeria deploy Science, Engineering, Technology and Innovation (SETI) as the bedrock of a breakthrough in science and technology endeavours.

He listed Singapore, South Korea, China, and Malaysia as countries that achieved industrialisation without relying on natural resources.

W h i l e lauding government over the rebasing of Nigeria’s economy which rates Nigeria economy the biggest economy on the African continent, NSE stated that the challenge confronting the country now is how to convert the new rating to collateral economic and social security of Nigerians.

Olorunfemi went ahead to proffer ways Nigerians can benefit from the

largest economy in Africa toga thus: “Government must carter for the needs of farmers, lead in making strategic investment in agriculture complimented by private sector investment, enforce Nigerian content in all its ramifications by patronising Nigerian goods and services - that deliberately patronize Nigerian Engineers and other professionals, buy made-inNigeria goods, computers and peripherals, transformers and other power equipment. Agro processing machines and mills, local building materials, furniture and fittings and vehicles.”

In order to ensure NSE is positioned to advise government appropriately on critical sectors, he hinted that the Society has established a Monitoring Action Groups.

The NSE boss highlighted that monitoring groups are saddled with the responsibility of monitoring policies and programmes affecting critical sectors of the nation’s economy for the purpose of engineering input and liaising with relevant stakeholders from public and private sectors to ensure coordinated action for a sustainable infrastructural development.

While lauding government over the rebasing of Nigeria’s economy which rates Nigeria economy the biggest economy on the African continent, NSE stated that the challenge confronting the country now is how to convert the new rating to collateral economic and social security of Nigerians.

The national engineering body also called for the privatization and recapitaliza-

tion of Nigeria Railway Corporation to pave way for the injection of much-need-

ed current technical expertise based on global standards and investment funds.

He added: “A new route system needs to be built for double rail system that would include the much desired East-West track route to reduce travel time, improve efficiency and optimize operations to facilitate private investment in the rail system.

Olorunfemi also stated that fabrication and local manufacture of equipment by indigenous firm should

be encouraged and revamped.

The Society also urged government to design a robust iron and steel development agenda as contained in the erstwhile Iron and Steel Development of government as enunciated in the late 1970s as a way of revamping the comatose iron and steel sector.

Olorunfemi cautioned that there is no country in history that has prospered on the basis of buying and selling of goods and services produced elsewhere.

Profiles International canvasses best performance among firms

By Faith Oparaugo HE Country Director of Profiles International in Nigeria, Tilda Mmegwa has stressed the need for Nigerian companies to enhance their status through best in class performance, improvement in tools and methodologies.

Specifically, she pointed out that it would help Nigerian companies attain true global competitiveness and adopt international best practice in their operations.

Speaking at a performance intelligence conference recently, tagged “The key to

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achieving exceptional organizational results”, Mmegwa said the essence is to build the capabilities of the private and public sector institutions and position them to produce higher and better results for national development.

According to her, a lot of milestones are achieved in the area of recommending policies, adding that the challenges still remain with effective implementation capable of delivering expected and desired outcomes.

Also speaking, Executive Vice President, Profiles International United

Kingdom (UK), and Deiric Mccann added that for companies, what to improve in their performance need to improve their communication skills.

He advised companies to create and maintain a work environment where people are emotionally and intellectually committed to the organisation goals.

“Create a common sense of purpose where people are more inclined to invest extra energy and even some of their own time in their work.

“Instill in your people an energetic and positive attitude that inspires them to

do their very best for the organisation”, he said.

Mccann added that high levels of employee engagement have been shown not only to contribute enormously to the organisational bottom line, but it’s also an almost unbeatable competitive advantage.

Profiles International is a world leader in using performance intelligence tools and methodologies to help organisations achieve peak performance and efficiency, with headquarters in Texas, Unites States of America as well as 25 offices in 125 countries, including Nigeria.

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Idoma indigenes task govt on alleged marginalisation From Saxone Akhaine, Northern Bureau Chief

DOMA Indigenes, under INational the aegis of Idoma Forum (INF) have protested against their alleged marginalization in the country, while urging the Federal Government to address the plight of the people and also demonstrate to them a sense of belonging in the country.

The President of the Forum, Okopi Momoh who led a delegation of Idomas to the Secretariat of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) to facilitate with the

NDE audits training programmes, loans beneficiaries From Collins Olayinka, Abuja HE National Directorate of Employment (NDE) has concluded plans to conduct a tracer study of its training and loan beneficiaries in the 36 states of the federation and the FCT Abuja.

A statement issued in Abuja by the Assistant Director, Information and Public Relations of the Directorate, Edmund Onwuliri, said the first phase of the tracer exercise is slated to kick this week in 12 states.

Onwuliri expained the audit exercise is designed to examine the current status of NDE sponsored enterprises in the last 5 years (2009-2013).

It also seeks to determine the robustness of NDE training programmes for selfemployment, ascertaining the multiplier effects of the various businesses set up by the Directorate, determine the adequacy or otherwise of NDE resettlement packages.

He listed other objectives of the exercise to include identifying problem(s) militating against the smooth operations of the enterprises, to determine factors that bother on timing and spread of various schemes within the 6 geopolitical zones of Nigeria and to provide NDE Management with information that will guide it in repositioning the Directorate for more efficient service delivery.

The NDE spokesperson added that the training of field officers and enumerators for the survey has been concluded at the headquarters and zonal offices of the NDE nationwide.

Subsequently, the actual execution of the survey will hold simultaneously in the following states between the hours of 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Saturday for 12 days: Abia, Ebonyi, Bayelsa, Delta, Oyo, Ogun, Taraba, Bauchi, Benue, Kwara, Jigawa and Katsina states.

The enumerators are expected to deploy already established survey and statistical methodology such as sample frame, sampling technique and sample size to generate the needed data from the survey. It is also expected that quantitative and descriptive statistical techniques will be applied in analyzing data generated from the study for eventual utilization in decision making and programme implementation.

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Secretary General, Colonel John Ubah (rtd) on his new office, said that “many of you will attest to the role that Idoma people have played in the development of this country”.

He spoke of the role the ethnic nationality played in sustaining the unity of the nation, saying that “during the civil war, our men played a very significant role to keep the country one and the survival of the Nigeria people of today, the integration of the Nigeria of today can be traced to the patriotic role the idomas continue to play”.

According to Momoh, “ we did not stop to keeping this country as one because we have our sons in government who have continued to play significant role in the polity. The current Senate President, Senator David Mark was a military

we formed ACF in the year 2000. As a matter of fact it is supposed to be an organ that speaks for the whole North on social, cultural and economic wellbeing of the people of the North. The idea is that ACF is apolitical. We don’t want to be partisan Administrator. Our men played their roles very well in military era. They are also playing roles very well in this democratic period.

What David Mark has done as Senate President in Nigeria today is significant, throughout the past eight years”.

He also explained “the first Northerner, an Idoma, to get a master degree was a permanent representative in the United Nations. So, Idoma people have done very well for this country”.

But, he lamented, “we are

wondering why have the people who have helped Nigeria to stabilize so much have been marginalized in Benue State, for example”.

He remarked that “in the State, the Idoma people have not had any opportunity to produce the Governor, we have not had any opportunity to lead in the State House of Assembly, we have never had an opportunity to be the Chief Judge in the State.

“We are bringing this to ACF for Nigerian public to hear us; that the Idoma people

having done so much for Nigeria does not deserve to be treated so. We are here to cry out to Nigerians that as minority, we need economic development and other infrastructural development of our land. We need a sense of belonging in this country”.

Besides, while commending the group on the visit to ACF Secretariat, the Secretary General, Ubah said that the ACF is an organisation that does not promote political interest, saying that the entire north is its constituency.

Ubah explained: “we formed ACF in the year 2000. As a matter of fact it is supposed to be an organ that speaks for the whole North on social, cultural and economic wellbeing of the people of the North. The idea is that ACF is apolitical.

We don’t want to be partisan.

“Anybody who joins the ACF thinking that he can use it as a platform to gain a ticket to become a governor or to become a Vice President, they will be disappointed.

As much as we encourage political parties or people in power to do things that will cater for the wellbeing of the North and Northerners without coming out to say we support PDP or whatever party”.

He argued further “You can see that the position I am occupying is not political appointment like a minister. So with this, don’t expect much from me. At the same time the position is so crucial, so you have a duty to pray for me so that during my time ACF works hard towards achieving the vision of the founding fathers”.

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Edo labour unions get incentives, fault politicians over defection From Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin City

OLITICIANS in Edo state P who recently resigned from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have been criticized by the organized labour over comments credited to them which claimed that one of the reasons they resigned was fears that the state governor had at a public function said he would wish to hand over to a labour union person like himself when he finishes his second term in 2016.

Meanwhile, the state governor, Adams Oshiomhole, has directed the reinstate-

NOA, TAN sign MoU on job creation From John Okeke, Abuja ATIONAL Orientation N Agency of Nigeria (NOA) and Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on job creation and youth empowerment.

Speaking at the event in Abuja, the TAN Publicity Secretary, Udenta Udenta said the organisation was poised to harness youths potentials by providing them with opportunities to develop their skills and training them in marketable job oriented skills in order to help them realise their potential as young social and economic entrepreneurs.

According to him, “we have in mind to create one million youths oriented jobs in the next four years. It is something I consider possible”.

He added, “The issue of job creation is very high. To create job is like creating a platform within the environment and job creation and partnering with this agency will further advance this agenda.”

Udenta noted that working in synergy with the NOA would create enabling environment to harness the potentials of Nigeria youth.

“Today is historic because we are two energy merging together. Energy coming from government and energy from Non-Government institution. It is a proof of access that endowment should collectively harnessed to create this enabling environment that is going to empower Nigerians to the creation of sustainable jobs that will improve their human development index to ensure the a good number of youths are included into the workforce that would lead into the social and economic growth,” He added.

Earlier in his remarks, the Director General, National Orientation Agency of Nigeria (NOA), Mike Omeri, noted that one of the mandates of the agency was to promote the dignity of labour.

According to him, job creation is not only the responsibility of the government, adding that organization like TAN are need to assist the government to create more jobs for the teeming unemployed youths.

ment of the names of over 250 workers that were deleted from the payroll of the state government and yearly increase of salaries of the state government till the end of his tenure in 2016.

Other approvals included the “approval of relativity to the workers of Edo state, 10 per cent increase on the salary of health workers which has commenced; The reinstatement of workers of Edo Line into the payroll of the Edo state government with effect from 1st of May, 2014”.

State chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Emmanuel Ademokun and his Trade Union Congress (TUC) counterpart, Charles Oronsaye at a joint press conference recalled that the governor had on May Day celebration also announced that “all

Oshiomhole

those who had extension because of their study leave

without pay who were earlier removed from payroll are

now to enjoy their services extension” and that whenever salaries were increased in any sector, it would be spread to workers in the state”.

While expressing gratitude to the Governor for the pronouncement, Ademokun described it as a landmark that would be difficult to beat in the state.

“The accomplishment of these promises will leave no one in doubt that you are indeed the labour ambassador in government. It is our prayers that God will increase you in wisdom”.

“We members of the organized labour were shocked to note that anybody will advance the inclusion of workers in government as a reason for their resignation. We wish to put on record our resentment to any attempt by anybody

or group of persons to undermine our feelings and sensibility.”

But he did not spare politicians who he said were using Labour to further their political interests when “members of the organized labour are citizens of Edo state and have the right when they so wish to ascend to any position in our state. We members of the organized labour were shocked to note that anybody will advance the inclusion of workers in government as a reason for their resignation. We wish to put on record our resentment to any attempt by anybody or group of persons to undermine our feelings and sensibility. It is to be noted that members of the organized labour are citizens of Edo State and have the right when they so wish to ascend any position in our state”.

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Labour Confusion as IPMAN holds parallel election From Collins Olayinka, Abuja HE centre appears to no longer hold at the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) as two sets of Executive officers now lay claim to the leadership of the Association.

The association “Presidents’ were simultaneously elected on the 10th and 12th May 2014 with Lawson Obasi and

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Chinedu Okoronkwo emerging.

There is fear within the oil and gas sector that the lingering crisis if not nipped in the bud could snowball into another round of fuel scarcity as marketers are presently torn between the two leaderships.

This comes as past leaders of IPMAN, 21 depots and five zonal leaders have declared their allegiance to Chinedu

Okoronkwo and members of his Exco.

The leaders who unanimously spoke in Abuja at the weekend in support of the new IPMAN Exco, pledged to work with the new national leadership led Okoronkwo to ensure steady supply of petroleum products to Nigerians.

The leaders explained that no IPMAN President has ever emerged through court

Maritime workers call for relocation of tank farms

By Toyin Olasinde ARITIME workers in the country have joined their voices with those of other stakeholders who have been calling for the relocation of Tank farms from Lagos and other ports formations across the country.

Specifically the workers under the aegis of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, MWUN maintained that their continued operations close to the ports was dangerous to lives and properties.

At its National Executive Council, NEC, meeting in Lagos, President-General of

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MWUN, Anthony Nted, lamented that government appeared to have relaxed on earlier promise to relocate the tank farms.

According to him, “we observe that petrol tankers have permanently taken over the Apapa/Oshodi Express road and all access roads to our seaports. The resultant grid-lock has made movement of people and goods in and out of our seaports and work places within the Apapa industrial/commercial area impossible. This has further compromised the efficiency and service delivery level of our ports and also inflicted an avoidable heavy man-

hour loss on the Maritime industry in particular and the national economy in general. The presence of tank farms in the Port area is no doubt responsible for the uncontrollable flocking of petrol tankers on all major roads leading to the port.

“We have repeatedly called for the relocation of the tank farms from Tin Can and Apapa, for both safety of lives and property and economic reasons. Although the government had earlier promised to relocate these tank farms away from their present sites, we are surprised that they have not done so yet.

process but through succession route established by the Association.

A former President and trustee of IPMAN Bestman Aniekwe noted: “Today the 20th May 2014, we the former Presidents of IPMAN and elders of IPMAN hereby reaffirmed the validity of the election of the 10th May 1014, which produced Elder Chinedu Okoronkwo as IPMAN National President and other elected executives of IPMAN. We hereby endorse

this election and we will continue to give them our support.”

For Habu Jajire, a former IPMAN President said he rose through the rank to become president, saying, “I rose through the ranks; I was a marketer, secretary of a depot, chairman of a depot, Deputy National President of IPMAN before I finally became the National President of IPMAN. I have never seen where President comes through the court.”

According to the immediate past President, Aminu Abdulkadir, the election on the 10th May 2014 was a redeem of the pledge he made to IPMAN members to organize an election at the end of his tenure.

“The President of IPMAN has been ushered in through the mandate of IPMAN members nationwide. The will of the people has spoken on 10th May 2014, therefore when IPMAN decide, ours is to endorse and stand by the mandate of the people.

NUPENG faults MEND’s involvement in refinery bombing From Collins Olayinka, Abuja HE National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has faulted the claim by the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) that it is responsible for the fire outbreak at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Refinery in Port Harcourt and PPMC jetty in Okrika.

Speaking on the fire outbreak in Abuja, the National President of NUPENG, Igwe Achese, said the claim by MEND was meant to divert attention and hide the identities of those behind the attack.

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While putting the fatalities at over 50, Achese debunked reports that put the number of the dead in the incident at seven.

He explained that some criminals were scooping fuel near the NNPC pipeline, and some of them were smoking cigarettes.

He added: “Petroleum products are highly volatile, it is not an issue of MEND; anyone can claim to be MEND. When you begin to create false alarm, that is a huge threat.”

Achese, who disclosed that he personally visited the site of the explosion, cautioned against hitting the polity

with reckless claims of responsibilities for act that have the capacity to threaten the economic survival of the nation.

“We should not heat up the political environment, when these issues are not even true. Yes, there was an explosion and it had to do with product theft” he added.

While, calling on security agencies to be alert to threats, he alleged that security agents were stationed not too far from where the explosion occurred.

MEND in a statement issued last Tuesday had said the explosion was intended to bring down the facility.

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MarketReport EQUITY MARKET SUMMARY

AS AT 26-05-2014

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PRIMERA AFRICA

May&Baker receives shareholders’ nod to raise N3b equity fund Stories by Helen Oji HAREHOLDERS of May & Sunanimously Baker Nigeria Plc have approved the company’s plan to raise up to N3 billion in new equity fund with a view to strengthen the company’s balance sheet and enhance profitability.

The shareholders, who gave the approval at the company’s yearly general meeting in Lagos, at the weekend, authorised the board of directors “to raise additional equity capital of an amount up to N3 billion or any fraction thereof either locally and or internationally through any or a combination” of rights issue, private placement and public offer.

The resolution highlighted that the new capital issue would be for the “purposes of enhancing the company’s working capital and financing the development of the company’s businesses”.

To create headroom for the new capital issue, shareholders also increased the authorised share capital of the company from N1 billion, consisting of 2.0 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, to N1.90 billion, consisting of 3.8 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, by creating additional 1.80 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each.

The Chairman of the company, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (rtd), said the recapitalisation is an important measure to reduce the company’s current high debt-to-equity ratio and the resultant high financing costs.

According to him, it is

imperative that shareholders inject more equity to the company to make it stronger and put it in better position to face the challenges in the industry.

He outlined that the management of the company has been implementing measures to improve the performance of the company and deliver returns to shareholders.

“These measures include strategies to sustain revenue growth through more aggressive marketing and product development initiatives, better management of working capital and aggressive reduction in overhead costs,” Danjuma said.

He noted that the consolidation of all pharmaceutical manufacturing operations of the company at its PharmaCentre in Ota would help to improve operational efficiency and capacity utilisation while curtailing excess overhead costs.

The Managing Director of the company, Nnamdi Okafor, while fielding questionms to Journalists in a recent forum said:“We are not going into any major capital investment any more. What we are going to do is to shore up our working capital so that we will be able to compete strongly in the market and be able to deliver value to shareholders. The money will be majorly for working capital.

He added that the proceed would be used to strengthen its core business areas which include; Pharma centre, foods, beverages, international partnership and biovaccines.

SEC reiterates commitment to financial literacy HE Director General of T the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Arunma Oteh has stressed the Commission’s commitment towards ensuring that more Nigerians become financially literate.

Oteh stated this at the weekend, while receiving members of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) in her office.

According to the DG, the commitment to financial education, among other considerations informed the decision of the Commission to partner with the entertainment industry to educate Nigerians on the relevance of becoming financially literate.

She said: “As the apex regulator of the capital market, we need to raise financially literate citizens who spend wisely and save wisely.

She continued:” We believe if people are well schooled, they will be able to make informed financial decisions. We are keen on ensuring that Nigeria has financially responsible citizens”.

Oteh emphasized that integrity and discipline are very important to the Commission, as it must strive to be a role model in all it does.

“We must be a role model in everything we do because our work entails regulations and enduring that our markets are where we want them to be and also ensure that Nigeria is the preferred investor destination” she said.

Earlier, the President of the Institute, Dr. Nelson Uwaga commended the SEC for the meritorious service it has been rendering to the nation and the economy, as well as its efforts in turning around the nation’s capital market.

“We wish to commend the SEC on its role in restoring confidence in the capital market. Without doubt, your organization has also been making noticeable efforts to realize its mission to develop and regulate a world class capital market with the capacity to contribute to the nation’s economic development” he said.

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Law

Quote of the week Make peace with silence, and remind yourself that it is in this space that you’ll come to remember your spirit. When you’re able to transcend an aversion to silence, you’ll also transcend many other miseries. And it is in this silence that the remembrance of God will be activated. —Wayne W. Dyer

National Assembly, not referendum, fit to implement confab decisions As discussions in the ongoing national conference enter plenary after various committees had submitted their reports , stakeholders are, however, divided on how to implement the outcome of the conference. While some are calling for a referendum, others are of the opinion that lack of legal framework backing the discourse makes the National Assembly the only means to inject the decisions arrived into the constitution. In this encounter with BERTRAM NWANNEKANMA, the former first Vice President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and Port Harcourt- based legal practitioner, Blessing Ukiri justifies why referendum is not a viable option in the present circumstance.

INTERVIEW SKED his views on the ongoing National A Conference, Ukiri said from the developments in the conference, it is clear that every Nigerian and indeed, most delegates, feel that there a lot of things to talk about Nigeria, that things are not what they are supposed to be, especially the constitution of the country.

Instead of descending into abyss, people feel there is a need to talk. Though, I really don’t understand what is new about what they are saying because since in the 50’s, we have been talking. Don’t forget that we had conferences with the colonial masters. It appears to me that our focus is surely not lack of talks or but purely attitudinal. Nigerians, are indeed, very complex people. It does not matter how beautiful a constitution may be, if the people are not interested, it will not work. The conference, to me, is a welcome development but what we are going to do with the outcome is still what is still very doubtful, because of the statements coming from the National Assembly. Of course, people are already preemptive. I believe that it is better that we sit down and talk, than descend into a guerrilla warfare. The North is already becoming ungovernable, so if there is any opportunity to talk, those who are taking arms against the country, who have been infiltrated by the enemies of Nigeria, should be able to voice out their grievances, whether they should be attended to or not, but we would have known why they are killing innocent people.

On how to conceptualise the views of the various committees, the respected lawyer said the diverse views could be conceptualised into a document but the will to implement the decisions is what really matters.

“You can see that people are really sceptical.

The reason why I support the national conference is that there is a need for us to talk about the Nigerian nation. Everybody agrees that all is not well with Nigeria and everybody seems to have some answers. If you ask a child what is Nigeria of his dreams, he will tell you. That is not what we see in other countries, they know that things are wrong.

“Let us proffer solutions, since we agree that something is wrong. Let the will to implement these recommendations be expected from the leadership, if we have a leader that is sincere. This is an opportunity for him to take some bold steps that will leave a different Nigeria than what we have today.

“However, the legal structure to implement the decisions that would come is not there because the conference is not a creation of the constitution but we are really practising a true democracy. We see delegates as representatives of Nigerian nations or people, whatever thing, they come out with , it will not be difficult to have it implemented by a way of amendment , the difficulties and where there appears to be legal issue, the problem is that, we already have in place a National Assembly that is endowed with law- making. Don’t forget that it requires 2/3 majority of the country to effect an amendment to the constitution. If you believe that the National Conference is truly representatives of Nigerians, then we already had 2/3 majority of the country. How do we go about it? I believe that if the National Assembly is up and doing, some views and unanimous decisions that could

Ukiri come out of the conference should find a place in the ongoing amendment of the constitution. So, it will not be difficult to implement. To that effect, I still believe that the National Assembly should have something to do after the conference.

On the call for a referendum, Ukiri said referendum would be very expensive and a complicate issue. To me, it is most unnecessary, if the National Assembly is in place, it is much easier to have the decisions find their ways into the constitution through the National Assembly than the referendum because I feel that the delegates came from various geopolitical zones are quite representative of the entire nation.

If they come up with decisions, since we have

electoral representatives, it is easier to say, ok! these are what the views of Nigerians appear to be, put it to the constitution. I believe that referendum will take too long to achieve and unnecessarily, very expensive, will cause a lot of delay, the National Assembly is better suited to implement the decisions.

On the elongation of the National Conference time-frame, the constitutional lawyer said, he is in support of the elongation but said it was good to also give them a timeframe, otherwise some Nigerians would want it forever because of the sitting allowance.

“But I think a conference of this nature is important and is not like an adhoc committee with a strict time limit but the time allotted

I believe that referendum will take too long to achieve and unnecessarily, very expensive. It will cause a delay. The National Assembly is suitable to implement the decisions of the conference

must be feasible going by the multitude of the issues at hand.”

Asked whether the conference was not too close to the election year, he advised that whatever came out of the conference should be for the overall interest of Nigerians and they should be implemented. Any decision that is of the overall interest of the country; my advice is that the President should be bold enough, fair enough to ensure that they are implemented. However, on the way they should be implemented, the technocrats have to decide but my view is that unlike previous conferences, they should not just be documentations of ideas but they should be well-implemented.

For those criticising the president for the timing, every Nigerian have been clamouring for one conference or the other. Some people call it Sovereign National Conference; it could have taken place any day, anywhere. There is no better time, there is no particular time that is suitable, and I don’t see myself through that, a president, who is likely to run in an election that this conference could be used to his advantage.

I don’t think so going by the composition of the conference. Some of the delegates are statesmen. The president must be gambling.

If this conference fails, he is going to be in trouble in 2015. So, the opposition can see the timing as a way of criticising the president but it is better that we sit down to talk than buy arms to engage the insurgency because if you don’t give people an opportunity to talk, find a way to ease their anger, give them opportunity to, at least talk and air their grievances. That is not something the president should be terribly crucified for. I do not give in to what people do with politics. I don’t see any sense in the president convoking a conference of this nature when he has election to run. I don’t see any benefit. It could confer on him.

On the composition of the conference, he said: “My doubt is that as strange bed fellows, whether they would come out with any consensus. Then, there is some cheering news. If they don’t, at least, you have given them an opportunity to see things.

Everybody talks about social injustice, inequalities and all that. There is an opportunity, I have no doubts that many Nigerians are tired of the way we are now. In some issues, there will be consensus not on everything though. I am one of those who believe that the Federal Government is taking too much from the Federation Account. The reason why there is always acrimony between states and Federal Government has been because the Federal Government has so much money. You talk about corruption, everybody looks at the states, forgetting that they are taking less than 40 per cent of total income of the country. The 70 per cent that the Federal Government is spending, how credible has the Federal Government been? I believe that we should remove some of the items, the Federal Government should be less attractive and people will concentrate on the grassroots and there will be development, Abuja is just for all us, if you turn Abuja as a golden city, it will just be one golden city in Nigeria but if several states should develop, you have 36 golden states. I support that some powers be taken off the Federal Government and that will be better for us.

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LAW Tuesday, May 27, 2014

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

LawPeople

“Change is one of the most vibrant elements we can use to create a different tomorrow.”

— Steven Redhead, Keys to The Laws of Creation

NBA has lost its vibrancy, says Adekoya

By Bertram Nwannekanma HE National Executive Committee (NEC) of T the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the second highest decision- making organ, second only to the Annual General Meeting (AGM), at its quarterly meeting at Abuja recently, lifted the ban on campaigns and decided that Abuja should host the elections.

The association also approved July 14 and 15, 2014 as the dates for elections.

Pursuant to that, aspirants have started campaigning to woo members of the Bar on their ability to steer the ship of the association in various positions.

One of such aspirants, Mrs. Funke Adekoya, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and former NBA National Treasurer, who is eyeing the NBA Presidency, believes that she is the right person for the job.

Adekoya, the only female in the race and a former first Vice President of the association is worried that the Bar Association is in a state of decline.

According to her, the association should protect the interests of its members. “ I don’t think we are doing it. And I don’t think we are doing it adequately, if at all. Many lawyers are disenchanted with the Bar association both at the branch level and the national level.

“If you ask any lawyer to come for a branch meeting, they will ask you: ‘What is the association doing for me to have my daily bread? I don’t have time to come and sit in any branch meeting.

“This shows the level to which we have fallen. I am running this election so that we can raise the Bar, raise the Bar back to where it used to be - where a legal practitioner was respected and trusted by civil society, to the period where we would speak and other segments of the civil society listened to us because we were always on point and on time with our interventions into what was going on.

“We need to look at our internal structures within the association and change the things that have made our members to be disenchanted. They feel they don’t have a voice, they feel they cannot participate in the affairs of the association at the national level. So, the first thing is the issue that no observers are allowed at NEC meetings, it is a generally unpopular decision and I for one, will take steps to overturn it. We are not a secret society.

Attendance at NEC meetings is an opportunity for members across the country to socialize among themselves, to network among themselves. And those who are not NEC members, who attend with their friends who are NEC members, use it as an opportunity to decide to become more involved in the administration and management of their branches, either by contesting election at branch levels or at the national level. It is a breeding ground for our next set of leaders.

Then, people say we don’t get any membership benefits, we don’t derive anything from being members of the Bar association. We pay our practising fees but we don’t get anything out of it. There are so many things a professional association can do for its members, which we are not doing. That’s another reason why I am contesting this election.

We should be able to protect the interests of our members to ensure that the work of legal practitioners is not encroached upon, but is actually expanded. The Bar association ought to be advertising legal services on behalf of its members, which other associations such as the medical association and the dental association do for their own members.

Then, we must work with other arms of government - especially the police - to make them understand why we want more lawyers employed by the police, so that they can prosecute crimes. This is not just for our own benefit as lawyers but also for the benefit of the Police Force because with more skills and learned people in their Prosecution Department, whether at the Magistrate’s Courts or the High Court, there will be a higher level of competence in presenting the prosecution’s case before the

Adekoya (SAN) courts. This is something the Bar association needs to do.

We must liaise with our members in the National Assembly to make them realize why the legislations that affect the profession, which are now pending before the National Assembly are their obligation to make sure that they are speedily passed. An example is the Administration of Criminal Justice Bill and many other pieces of legislation that will actually make the country to move faster in the justice delivery sector. We keep on saying it but we have not liaised with our members in the legislative arm of government to ensure that they are on the same page with us. We should co-opt some of our members who are in the National Assembly to the National Executive Committee as a means of having quick interactions with them. We have some of them who are there already, like the Speaker of the House of Representatives but we need to spread out and even have more. These are some of the things that I would like to do.

“We also need to deliver Continuous Legal Education (CLE) to our younger members in a manner that is fast, in a manner that is Information Technology (IT)-compliant, in a manner that is easily accessible to all our members across the country, so that no one is left out because he is practising in a small town in Gombe, or he’s practising in Damaturu, or he’s practising somewhere outside of Sokoto and cannot afford to travel to Lagos or Abuja or Kano to attend courses.

These are the things that other professional associations do for their members, and this is what I plan to do. And that is my agenda.

The voice of the Bar is not heard when we should be heard, and my agenda is to make sure that we respond positively and quickly to the issues that affect us both as members of the Bar and as Nigerians.

On the high practising fees lawyers pay, Adekoya said the complaint about the amount of practising fees is that people are saying, “what are they doing with the money?

“Now the branches are supposed to get a 10 per cent subvention. As Chair of the Capacity Building Committee, every single branch said that amount was not enough, and proposed an increase to 20 per cent. And I forwarded that recommendation to the Secretariat but it was not implemented. I will implement it if I win, not just to implement it but also as a first-line charge. It is their money.

It is their share of the practising fees. If there are no members, there will be no branches; if there are no branches there will be no national body. So that’s the first money we should pay when we collect practising fees.

The second thing is that members are complaining about registration for conference fees, and so it is tending to exclude the members from attending conferences. I, as a Senior Advocate, I agree, those fees are too high! Last year, we paid N100,000 as Senior Advocates.

This year, if you don’t pay by the end of May, it goes up to N110,000. If you pay in August, it will be N120,000. It is not that a Senior Advocate cannot afford to pay N110,000 or N120,000, it is the fact that the association has not reasoned that in addition to our own payment, we will pay for our juniors to attend.

And so they shouldn’t look at as, ‘Oh, you are just a Senior Advocate.’ You have a lot of peo-

The voice of the Bar is not heard when we should be heard, and my agenda is to make sure that we respond positively and quickly to the issues that affect us both as members of the Bar and as Nigerians

ple hanging on under you as well. The fees too are so high that they discourage attendance. I think we should review it, and if I am elected, we will review it downwards.

On the issue of discipline among legal practitioners, the renowned arbitrator said “discipline is a two-fold structure.”

“Firstly, you have to look at why there is so much indiscipline and breach of professional ethics. And then you need to make sure that you curb that. When you have curbed that, then you can go against the members who breach the code. And one of the things I am looking at is, “there is so much indiscipline and breach of professional ethics for two reasons.”

One, our younger members are not being properly exposed to the ethics of the profession. It should not just be a course in the Law School. It is something we need to push as an association with the law faculties and National Universities Commission. It is a course taught throughout the university career. It’s a continuous thing – you continue to teach professional ethics, the rights and wrongs.

Then secondly, we look at how we can raise employment opportunities, because many of our members get involved in what they shouldn’t do, because they don’t know that it is wrong and, secondly, even when they know, they are hungry, they want to cut corners.

Once we make sure they know what is wrong and we provide opportunities so that they don’t cut corners and do the wrong thing just because they want to earn a little money, then when they misbehave, we are totally justified in speedily dealing with them, so that confidence in the profession will be regained and retained.

Before no, there was this talk about getting a consensus candidate. Is there any move to still get a consensus candidate? A consensus candidate means that all the parties in a particular zone would agree that that we cede the position to one particular person. As long as one person disagrees, there cannot be a consensus candidate.

Anything can happen between now and the date of the elections. So, I will not rule out that there may be a consensus candidate. All I can say is that, as at this point in time, the chances are very slim; and as far as I am concerned, I am working hard to persuade the electorate that I am the best candidate for this position and that they should support me.

The other candidates are also doing the same. I am not sure that we can all agree that there will be a consensus candidate.

Asked how she intends to cope, being a woman, Adekoya said the Presidency of the NBA is not a one-man affair. That is why the president has many other national officers to support him. That is why the president has three vice presidents, has a treasurer, has a financial secretary, a welfare secretary and a legal adviser.

And if everybody is allowed to do their jobs, then, it is not a stressful exercise at all. The problems that we are actually seeing in the Bar association today is that people are trying to put all the powers of all the officers in one place. That is not what it is supposed to be. S I don’t see it as more stressful than running my law firm here, where we have 60 people – 25 administrative staff and over 40 lawyers in three different offices, one of which is even outside Nigeria.

And I was the Managing Partner, and I ran it successfully from the day we started for four years till 2008. I don’t see any difference. It’s a question of having structures in place and having procedures in place. Once the structures are in place, then the staffers know this is the process. If it is a disciplinary complaint, it goes to the administrative staff in the secretariat; they review it; it then goes to the legal adviser who looks at it and says, ok! fine, take the next step. If there are procedures in place, when the disciplinary complaint comes to the secretariat, the staffers know what the procedure is. The procedures are there, the structures are there, the process runs seamlessly.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014 LAW

THE GUARDIAN www.ngrguardiannews.com

79

LawReport Once arbitral award is prima-facie good on the face of it, court will refuse to set it aside (4) In the Court of Appeal, Lagos Judicial Division, Holden at Lagos, On Thursday, February 14, 2014, Before their Lordships: Sidi Dauda Bage, Justice, Court of Appeal; Joseph Shagbaor Ikyegh, Justice, Court of Appeal; Tijjani Abubakar, Justice, Court of Appeal CA/L/895/2012 Between CELTEL Nigeria Bv (appellant) and Econet Wireless Limited Delta State Ministry of Finance Incorporated O.O. Networks Limited DTSG ECOSHARES Limited Bromley Asset Management Limited FBC Assets Limited Akwa Ibom Investment & Industrial Promotion Council Ibile Holdings Limited First City Telecoms Limited LAC Telecoms Limited All Speaks Nigeria Limited S & D Ventures Limited Oceanic Securities International Limited Boye Olusanya Tunde Hassan-Odukale Conoor Investments Limited Bolaji Balogun Broad Communications Limited Oba Otudeko Foluke Otudeko Ato Adeboye (respondents).

OWEVER, there appears to be a shift from H the position stated above by the introduction of a new dimension to the state of the law that a respondent who files an appeal or crossappeal against the judgment complained of may use a respondent’s brief to align with an appellant’s brief for the purpose of the reversal of the judgment appealed against.

Thus, in Adenuga v. Odumeru (supra) for example, it was pointed out that because the th 4 -7th respondents to that appeal did not file an appeal against the judgment on appeal.

They could not use their brief to attack the judgment appealed against by way of aligning themselves with the appellant in the said appeal.

And, based on these cases, the 2nd and 4th, 6th, 8th, 7th and 9th respondents, who also appealed separately against the decision of the court below, are entitled to use their respective respondents’ brief in the present appeal to align with the appellant in arguing/urging for the decision of the court below to be set aside or reversed.

The preliminary objection by the 1st respondent to the briefs of 2nd and 4th, 6th, 8th, 7th and 9th respondents, accordingly, fails and is hereby overruled. The said briefs, wherever appropriate to the just determination of the appeal, will be countenanced in the course of the discussion.

In my respectful opinion, the issues formulated by the appellants are adequate and apt for the discussion and, I hereby, adopt the said issues for the discussion.

It is common ground between the parties and I agree with them that the shareholders’ agreement made provision in Clause 25 for arbitration, in the event of dispute.

The venue of arbitration and the applicable law are stated in clause 25.1 to be Nigerian, thus bringing into force/application the Nigerian Law on Arbitration codified in the ACA bearing on the Shareholders’ Agreement. It is instructive that Section 7 of the ACA provides for the appointment of arbitration by the High Court.

A dispute arose between the parties with respect to the Shareholders’ Agreement. The dispute was first taken by 1st respondent to the High Court, which issued a Notice of Arbitration of the dispute. Following Clause 25.1 of the Shareholders’ Agreement, the 1st respondent turned round to apply in writing to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court

Justice Bulkachuwa (PCA) (Ukeje, CJ) to appoint arbitrators for the dispute. Ukeje declined in writing to make the appointment, on July 23, 2007.

The 1st respondent then approached the High Court of Lagos State on November 13, 2007, under Section 7 of the ACA to appoint arbitrators for the dispute. Before the request under Section 7 of the ACA would be treated to finally by the High Court of Lagos State. The 1st respondent re-applied to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court now Mustapha, Ukeje, CJ, having ceased to be a judicial officer.

The new Chief Judge of the Federal High Court (Mustapha) acceded to the request and appointed three arbitrators for the dispute. The three arbitrators accepted their appointments.

One of them later declined and was replaced.

Some of the respondents at the arbitration, including the appellant, objected to the mode of appointment of the arbitrators by Mustapha CJ. The arbitrators heard the objection, which they dismissed. The arbitral proceedings then proceeded to finality. All these facts are not disputed by the parties.

The first question in the appeal is whether the appointment of the arbitrators made by Mustapha CJ, after his predecessor-in-office, Ukeje CJ, had declined in writing to make the appointment under Clause 25 of the Shareholders’ Agreement was proper.

The argument made by the appellant and supported by the 2nd and 4th, 6th, 8th, 7th and 9th respondents is that the written refusal of Ukeje CJ, to appoint arbitrators under the Shareholders’ Agreement foreclosed re-application to Mustapha CJ, as the refusal by Ukeje CJ to make appointment had exhausted the arbitration clause on the appointment of arbitrators under Clause 25 of the Shareholders Agreement.

The 1st respondent and the other respondents in opposing the appeal, however, contend on the other hand that the contractual arbitral provision in clause 25 of the Shareholders’ Agreement is ministerial, not judicial or quasijudicial, does not have an air of finality, as the issue can be re-opened and a new appointment made even after the predecessor-in-office of the person making the new appointment had declined to make the appointment.

The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court (FHC) was, by the agreement of the parties in Clause 25 of the Shareholders Agreement, to appoint arbitrators, which appears to me, to be an administrative function conferred by the parties on the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court by Clause 25 of the Shareholders’ Agreement.

The application to the CJ of the FHC was thus to fulfill the contractual clause binding on the parties in which the role of the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court was to facilitate the process of arbitration by appointing arbitrators to arbitrate the dispute within the contractual arrangement of the parties in Clause 25 of the Shareholders’ Agreement.

Accordingly, I am of the considered view that the refusal of Ukeje, CJ, to appoint arbitrators did not tie the hands of the successor-in-office,

Mustapha CJ, to reconsider or review, favourably the fresh request for the appointment of arbitrators. Because in administrative matters, consistency should not be pursued at the expense of the merit of individual cases: exigency or expediency is the answer.

The application to the CJ of the FHC was thus to fulfill the contractual clause binding on the parties in which the role of the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court was to facilitate the process of arbitration by appointing arbitrators to the dispute within the contractual arrangement of the parties in Clause 25 of the Shareholders’ Agreement. Moreover, the parties did not challenge or object to the professional competence, personal integrity or probity of the arbitrators, showing the parties had confidence in the arbitrators, which is the bedrock of arbitration.

The statutory machinery is, therefore, uncompromising. Once applied on full throttle leading to appointment of arbitrator(s), that would be the end of the matter. That is why there is no right of appeal from the decision of the appointing authority in Section 7 of the ACA. Abuse of process will only arise if multiple processes over the same issue are filed and sought to be pursued concurrently to annoyance, harassment, or torment of the opponent(s), such that the opponent(s) is exposed to waste of time and resources, as well as psychological pressure brought by the other party or (parties) to achieve unwholesome or unlawful results.

Arbitration does not remove the jurisdiction of regular courts. It is only a stop-gap process to settle disputes. See Magbagbeola v. Sanni (200) 4 NWLR (pt. 756) 193 at 205.

It follows that a dispute referred to arbitration merely has the effect of staying proceedings in the regular court in respect of a pending suit over the same subject matter.

The avowed aim of settling the dispute by arbitration did not, therefore, have any ulterior or unlawful motive. So, it cannot be said it was an abuse of process. At any rate, I venture to state that where an abuse of process is detected by a party at litigation, the remedy appears to me to be for the said party to apply to the regular court where the case that is abused is pending to use its inherent powers to restrain the arbitral proceedings on ground of abuse of process, not to wait after the arbitral award is made and seek to set aside the award on ground of abuse of process.

I respectfully add that even if the filing of the two parallel cases was an abuse of process, it was an irregularity that did not occasion a miscarriage of justice. See by analogy Edet v. State (supra) where it was held inter alia that it was best an irregularity not occasioning a miscarriage of justice to commence proceedings in another court without withdrawing the same proceedings pending in a different court.

Also, it is hard to understand that parties who decide to put their fate in arbitrators would turn round to accuse the arbitrators chosen by them of abuse of process.

In other words, arbitral proceedings are not to be subjected to scrutiny with the finesse of a toothcomb. Suffice it to say that the object of examining proceedings of an arbitral tribunal is

to ensure that at the end of the day, the arbitrator(s) reached a practical, sensible, just and fair decision on the face of it, or that at first sight, not beyond or beneath the face of the award made by it.

What a court called upon to set aside an arbitral award and an appellate court called upon to adjudicate on the decision of the setting aside the court has to decide is, whether the arbitral award was prima facie good or right on the face of it, not whether the reasons (whether of law or facts or both) given by the arbitral tribunal for the award were right or sound, unless the reason(s) form part of the award.

None of the parties to the award can object to it either upon the law or the facts, simply because the award is not in his favour. See also Arbico (Nig) Ltd v. N.M.T. Ltd (2002) 15 NWLR (pt. 789) 1 at 31-32. The grounds of law or facts alleged by the appellant (supra) were more or less errors arising from the process of reasoning of the arbitral tribunal.

The alleged grounds of law or facts, like the lack of pleading or the pleading point, for instance, were not shown to be apparent on the face of the arbitral award or in a document actually incorporated in or appended to the award as forming the basis of the award. So, all the arguments on error in law and on facts canvassed by the appellant with a view to setting aside the award, which were also unsuccessfully urged at the court below, are equally of no force in the appeal. See Foli v. Akese (1930) 1 WACA 1. Mutual Life and General Insurance Ltd v. Kodi Iheme (2013) All FWLR 336.

I would affirm the holding of the court below rejecting the arguments on error in law and on the facts accordingly.

By Section 48 (a) (iv) and (v) of the ACA, an arbitral award may be set aside if it dealt with a dispute not contemplated by the parties or not falling within the terms of the submission to arbitration.

What the arbitral tribunal found was that the Transaction Documents including a legally workable draft escrow agreement with the FBN breached the Offer Letter Contract, which led to the inevitable breach of Shareholders’ Agreement, so that at the end of the day, it was the Shareholders’ Agreement that was the rudder of the arbitral award, not the reasoning process followed by the arbitral tribunal process followed to arrive at the award. The Offer Letter Contract was, therefore, not part of the arbitral award. The court below was, accordingly, right to resist the invitation by the appellant to set aside the arbitral award. I too agree and affirm the said stance of the court below.

I conclude that the clause in the Offer Letter Contract, which arose from the performance terms of Clause 17.2.2 of the Shareholders’ Agreement as it related to the Shareholders’ Agreement, that the arbitral tribunal decided did not determine the crux of the Offer Letter Contract itself. Therefore, the arbitral tribunal did not exceed its mandate in deciding and making the arbitral award, in my view.

The arbitral declaratory award, therefore, did not materialise into giving the 1st respondent a self-executory and/or enforceable compensation or remedy. In other words, the declaratory award was, therefore, toothless, as it had no enforceable element in it.

It is the award of some damages to be sorted out at a future date that the arbitral tribunal made that had the teeth to bite. So, the practical and tangible take-home arbitral award in favour of the 1st respondent was the damages.

Accordingly, I do not agree with the appellant that the arbitral tribunal committed misconduct by awarding double compensation (if any) to the 1st respondent.

In conclusion, I find no convincing basis to disturb the decision of the court below upholding the arbitral award, which is good on its face. The appeal, though vigorously argued by the appellant, and vigorously resisted by the 1st respondent, has no merit.

On the whole, I see no substance in the appeal and hereby dismiss it and affirm the decision of the court below (Adefope-Okogie, J.) upholding the arbitral award in question. Parties to bear the costs.

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80 Tuesday, May 27, 2014 LAW

FamilyLaw

The love of family and the admiration of friends is much more important than wealth and privilege. –Charles

Obtaining probate in Nigeria: Argument for its retention and modification (2)

By Fred Latimore Oghenesivbe HE court will at this point access T and value both real and personal properties of the testator, utilizing the services of licensed estate valuers employed by the court. After evaluation, ten percent of the total value of the estate is required to be paid by bank draft as probate duty. The Court after receiving the ten percent payment of the value of the testator’s estate, then proceeds to invite the executor and witnesses of the testator’s will to appear in Court for the purpose of proving and signing relevant will documents. This stage is known as the making of the Will.

This is perhaps the climax of the procedure as the executors and witnesses come together to witness the most significant event in the approval of probate.

It is essential that after the making of the Will ceremony in court, the draft of the minutes and the order of the grant are made by the court and draft is passed to both the probate registrar and probate Judge for approval. Upon approval, the draft for the grant of probate is made by the Court and checked for mistakes and corrections by the Chief/Probate Registrar.

And finally, the applicant/executor is then granted probate by the court.

The procedure mentioned above is legal and systematic where the application for probate is non-contentious, that is, the application for probate by the executors is not being challenged by the beneficiaries or other interested parties in the estate of the testator. The same cannot be said to be the case where the Will or application for probate is being contested. It is trite that the court will generally give enough room for grey areas in an application for probate or issues raised in the Will are first dealt with before probate is granted to the appropriate executor or executors.

When a caveat is filed by an interested party, challenging the probate, the court will invite the caveator to explain or give reasons why he is challenging the probate.

Thereafter, the executor is issued a citation by the court to within 21 days prove the Will or renounce the probate. If the executor fails to enter the citation, it means he is no longer interested. Same applies to the caveator who fails to appear in Court to defend the caveat within three months upon filling the caveat. In Lagos State, once probate has been applied for, the interested party must file the caveat within three months or remain silent forever.

Once caveat is entered, it is referred to a Judge of a competent court for determination.

It is trite that the registrar of probate cannot grant probate when a caveat has been entered. It is the responsibility of the executor who applied for probate to prove that the caveat so entered by the caveator is void. Thus, in Dr. Stephen Dan-Jumbo & Ors v.

Bernard Dan-Jumbo & Anor, 13 [1999] 11 NWLR pt. 627 445 SC, the probate granted was revoked due to the legal fact that the caveat entered has not been lifted before probate was granted to the other party. It follows therefore that once a caveat has been voided the caveator must be put on notice before probate is granted to the executor.

Appointment of an administrator pendente lite may be necessary in some situation. In the case of DanJumbos, the matter took some time before judgment was obtained. In some cases the dispute can last for several years leading to the dissipation and wastage of the testator’s estate. To protect the deceased’s estate the court is empowered by law to appoint administrator pen-

dent elite to manage the estate pending the determination of the dispute in a court of law. This was the decision handed down by the Court of Appeal in Kunle Ladejobi & Others v.

Odutola Holdings Ltd & Others, 14 [2002] 1 WRN 94 at 106-7, where Aderemi, J.C.A. stated thus; “His (Kunle Ladejobi) appointment by the court to my mind carries the force of law. My understanding of the contention of the cross-appellants is that because the administrator pendent elite – Kunle Ladejobi has not formally applied for and obtained Letters of Administration, he lacked the legal capacity to perform the functions appurtenant to his office with relation to the estate of the deceased. With due respect, I cannot conceive any other force of law which is higher than that given by the court in the course of the appointment. The order of appointment made by the Chief Judge of Ogun State on August 1, 1997 was made pursuant to the exercise of his judicial powers under the law until it is revoked judicial notice of its sanctity must always be taken by any

court of law…”

The Ladejobi’s case explains the power of the court to appoint administrator pendentelite to protect the estate of the deceased in a situation where the executor and the beneficiaries are engaged in a legal tussle over the validity of the testator’s Will. It follows that in a case where the estate of the deceased is in the state of dissipation, the court will upon receiving information would promptly appoint an Administrator pendent elite to administer the affairs of the estate pending final determination of the case. It is trite that in many states of the federations, there is in operation an administration of estate law, which prescribes the duties, rights and obligations of the personal representatives. The Will, which names and appoints executors prescribes also what the testator wants his executors to do with regard to the administration of his estate. It is the sum total of the two instruments that map out the perimeter of the powers of an executor. It is necessary at this juncture to highlight some the powers and

functions of the executors who have been duly granted probate by the court. These functions include; Legal title, power to sell properties, appointment of trustees for the beneficiary, invest the proceeds of the estate, give proper account of the proceeds, sue and be sued, pay testator’s debts and other liabilities, are some of the powers granted to an executor.

Upon the grant of probate the executor is vested with legal title to the estate of the deceased.

Accordingly, the estate vests on the executor immediately upon the demise of the testator and so are all interests therein. He takes possession of the deceased’s estate to take inventory, carry out evaluation, and provide security, do the needful, which a prudent man will do to preserve and secure his own property.

It flows from this legal reality that the executor to a large extent is the legal owner of the testator’s estate while the beneficiaries holds equitable title to the estate. The duties of the probate also include to invest prudently such that would yield profit for the deceased estate, sell property or deceased business as a going concern, appoint trustees for some of the beneficiaries where necessary or upon request, as well as do such other things as contained in the testator’s Will with diligent, honesty and integrity.

The procedures legally put in place for the grant of Probate has gone a long way in preventing unauthorized persons from meddling with the administration of the deceased’s estate. It is a well known legal truism that the umpire and supervisory roles of the Court has helped in a great deal to check-mate the activities of executors in the management of testator’s estate especially where the beneficiaries are infants and young children without any surviving parents.

Senate conditional extension for period of emergency desirable but illegal

By Malachy Ugwummadu

O

N Tuesday, May 20, 2014, the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in exercise of its constitutional powers, under Section 305(6)(c) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), endorsed a six-month extension of the proclamation of the state of emergency in the northeastern states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe on eight separate conditions read out by the Senate leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN). The conditions as communicated and reported by the Nigeria media include: • Expansion of the cooperation and collaboration of the international community with a view to arresting the ugly incidence of terrorism in Nigeria; • Proper kitting, arming, welfare and care of the Nigerian Armed Forces and troops deployed to arrest the insurgency; • Sustained military operations in order to rout out the insurgents; • Special recruitments into the Armed Forces of screened and vetted youths, particularly those in the civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) who will receive emergency training and be deployed in the troubled zones in order to beef up the strength of our troops; • The Federal Government, in conjunction with the state governments, to come up with an economic marshal plan to revive the economy of the economically and educationally backward parts of our country; • Monthly progress report to the Senate by all security agencies, including the Ministers of Defence, Police Affairs, Service Chiefs, NSA, DG, SSS on the basis of which the Senate can review

Adoke, AGF or possibly revoke the proclamation of the state of emergency; • The President should prepare and submit to the National Assembly supplementary budget to meet any establishment’s financial requirements needed to combat the insurgency (Although there is no substantive budget yet) (Emphasis mine); and • Mr. President should immediately approve intervention funds to the affected states for development.

Desirable as the above conditions handed

over to President Jonathan may be, particularly on the need to meet the security exigencies of the moment, we humbly hold the view that predicating such an extension on any condition(s) whatsoever is against the express provisions and spirit of Section 305(6)(c)(d) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. It is accordingly, illegal, null and void and of no effect or moment. The prerogative to issue a proclamation for a state of emergency under Section 305 of the Constitution is exclusively that of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. To be sure, Section 305(2) accords the National Assembly a complimentary role after the issuance of the proclamation and transmission thereof to consider the situation and decide whether or not to pass a resolution approving the proclamation. The conditions that would exist and justify such proclamation by the President are as set out under Section 305(3)(a-g). It is also correct that the National Assembly can withdraw its approval of the proclamation within two days when in session or 10 days when it is not in session in which case the proclamation ceases to have effect Section 305(6)(b).

By Section 305(6)(c) and (d), the National Assembly (Senate inclusive) can extend the period of a proclaimed state of emergency provided it is done before the expiration of the period of the first six months and not for a period longer than six months afterwards.

Indeed, each House of the National Assembly can, by a simple majority, revoke the proclamation but cannot itself issue a proclamation in any circumstance.

It follows, therefore, that if they cannot pro-

claim a state of emergency but can only extend or revoke, they surely cannot give conditions for the extension of the already proclaimed state of emergency. At any rate, in what manners are the condition(s) expected to operate? Are they conditions precedent or subsequent? If they are conditions precedent, it means the endorsement for the extension will only become effective upon the fulfillment of those conditions. On the other hand, if they were intended to be conditions subsequent, it would mean that the endorsement for extension already given is ineffectual because those conditions are yet to occur or materialise.

In a wider sense, one can apprehend the open attempt to usurp the powers of the executive arm of government from the 9th condition on the motion, which was withdrawn dealing with retention of the respective service chiefs and security agencies on the basis of their performance index with specific emphasis on the defeat of the insurgents. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended did not envisage a situation in which the Executive would exercise its powers under Section 305 based on conditions imposed by the Legislature.

We, therefore, urge Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to reconsider the illadvised conditions attached to their endorsement of an extension for the proclamation of the state of emergency

by President Goodluck Jonathan.

• Ugwummadu is a Lagos-based lawyer.

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Court grants ex-Chevron worker bail over alleged N5bn land scam

By Yetunde Ayobami-Ojo FORMER member of staff of Chevron Nigeria Limited, Michael Adenuga has been granted bail by a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja over alleged fraudulently converted landed property worth N5.5billion to his personal use.

The presiding judge, Justice S. Ogunsanya granted him bail of N50 million with two sureties in like sum.

A

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Adenuga over allegation of fraudulently converting landed property worth N5.5billion to his personal use.

The prosecuting team led by Jamiu Musa alleged that Adenuga and his company Convenant Apartment Limited between September 2011 and February 2014 at Aiyetoro Ikota area of Lagos State converted to himself

about 22. 68 hectares of land situated at Ikota Peninsula The anti-graft agency had alleged that the defendant forged a Lagos State land sales document, alleging that a Swiss firm had sold the said land to him.

The anti-graft commission also claimed that the defendant had tendered the document before its officials at its Lagos office with the intent to deceive them.

Adenuga had pleaded not guilty to the three-count charge preferred against him.

Earlier, defendant counsel, Mr. Ehis Badmus while arguing the bail application prayed the court for liberal bail conditions because of his health.

He said that his client is diabetic and has high blood pressure that remanding him in the Kirikiri prisons would further worsen his condition.

He added that defendant did not jump the administrative bail granted to him by the commission and cited Section 115 of the Evidence Act. However, Justice Ogunsanya while ruling on the application granted him bail in the sum of N50 million with two sureties in like sum.

She said the money should be paid by a bank draft drawn in the name of the Chief Registrar of the Lagos High

Court and should be deposited into an interest yielding account.

She ordered that one of the sureties must be a blood relation while both sureties be resident in Lagos State.

The judge further directed that the sureties should be gainfully employed and must produce three years tax clearance payable to the state government and subsequently adjourned trial till June 4, 2014.

2014, to leave the telecoms firm with a credit balance of N95,039,753;95.

Olagunju further explained that the bank, in a letter dated February 10, 2014, informed the company of the development and requested that it informs it

of any of its accounts it would want the credit balance transferred and requested also that it evacuates some stock, it had earlier alleged, were stored in the premises or it would take “alternative legal steps to remove the items.”

Firm, bank disagree on sale of mortgaged property

By Yetunde Ayobami-Ojo

TELECOMMUNICATIONS company, General A Telecoms Plc and the First Bank Nigeria Plc, have disagreed over the sale of the firm’s mortgaged landed property.

While General Telecoms Plc alleged that the bank acted at variance with a pending interlocutory injunction in a Lagos High Court and in total disregard to the due process of law, the bank faulted the suit, saying it acted within the law to sell the said property.

The firm, in a petition to the Bankers’ Committee, alleged unprofessional manner being exhibited by First Bank Nigeria Plc in the sale of the property.

In the petition signed by its Attorney, Mr. Michael O. Omonusi and addressed to the committee, the telecoms firm complained that First Bank Plc has, without its knowledge or consent, allegedly sold to an unknown purchaser its mortgaged property at No. 4, Marconi Road, Palmgrove Estate, Lagos, valued as at August 2009 at over N195 million.

According to the petitioner, it received an overdraft facility from the bank on November 7, 2008, using the property as security under a mortgage dated March 3, 2010.

General Telecoms Plc further alleged that First Bank, without its knowledge or consent, illegally altered the mortgage from N20 million to N26 million as stated in the mortgage deed prepared by it and in its custody and presented same to the Governor of

Lagos State to obtain consent to the ‘forged’ mortgage deed and registered it also with the Lagos State Land Registry as No. 25, Page 25 Volume 2038 and the Corporate Affairs Commission, Abuja.

It admitted having difficulty meeting up with the servicing of the facility at some point, but was able to secure a concession from the bank to vary the term of the mortgage on agreed reconciled indebtedness of N31 million to be paid to the bank within 12 months, commencing from February 25, 2013, to redeem the mortgaged property.

But counsel to First Bank, Mr. Tomiloba Olagunju, in a counter-affidavit dated March 31, 2014, to the telecoms firm’s motion on notice, argued that the company’s claims were a selective narration of the transaction between the two parties, faulting the interlocutory injunction being sought by it to stop the bank from selling the property when it has already been sold.

General Telecoms, he said, defaulted the terms of repayment of the facility despite several demands from it and a concession by way of a waiver of some portion of the debt.

It also appealed to the Bankers’ Committee to restrain the bank from allegedly using unauthorised means to illegally dispossess it of the property in the face of the pending court action before Justice Bola Okikiolu-Ighile of the Lagos High Court 39 (Commercial Division), Lagos.

However, the bank added

Missing schoolgirls: A matter of human rights, security

By Kolawole Olaniyan (Continued from Tuesday, May 20, 2014) N implementing these steps, the government must also uphold the rule of law and respect for human rights in its law enforcement response to violence and crime in the country.

Preventing and combating violence and crime must not put security before human rights, which can lead to erosion of basic human rights and fundamental freedoms of the citizens.

Absent a serious political investment in public securi-

I

ty with respect for all human rights, the government cannot secure effective protection of the right to life, liberty and security of the person. Indeed, true security requires full protection of all human rights for all.

It is time for the government to wake up and smell the coffee. If Nigeria is to foster peace, it must turn towards justice and respect for human rights.

(Concluded) • Olaniyan is legal adviser at Amnesty International in London and the author of ‘Corruption and Human Rights Law in Africa’.

that General Telecoms did not adhere to the terms of the agreement and was forced to cancel the concession. After several meetings between the two parties, Managing Director of General Telecoms, the bank stated, was informed of its

resolve to recover the loan sum from the security offered by it and the mortgaged property was valuated and sold for N145 million and the sum applied to liquidate the company’s N42,710,246.05 indebtedness to it as at January 29,

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Sports Iran, Bosnia matches more important than Argentina game, Says NFF From Ezeocha Nzeh, Abuja HE Nigeria Football T Federation (NFF) yesterday dismissed threats by

The Super Eagles and officials of the Nigeria High Commission in London, led by Dr. Tafida and Ambassador Lawal at the Nigeria House…yesterday.

Countdown To Brazil 2014 World Cup

Envoy predicts Eagles victory in Brazil, as team begins full training IGERIA’S High N Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr. Dalhatu Sarki Tafida, has predicted that the African champions will be the surprise package at the Brazil 2014 World Cup. The Super Eagles, including all the 30 players in Coach Stephen Keshi’s provisional squad for the World Cup, were guest of the Nigerian High Commission in London yesterday.

Speaking when he hosted the team at the Nigerian House in London on Monday afternoon, Tafida, said his prediction was based on the team’s pedigree, the sound technical bench and the support of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and that of President Goodluck Jonathan to the team.

He assured the team that himself and 170 million Nigerians will be praying daily for the team and pray for luck to be on the side of the team.

“I know President Jonathan

will reward you excellently and I will also be in Abuja, when a huge reception is organized for the team after the World Cup and I am very sure the president will not fail to say thank you, just play your part and leave the rest to him”, he said.

In reply, Head Coach, Stephen Keshi, said he is working in tandem with NFF to ensure that the team is devoid of injuries in the run-up to the World Cup but noted that friendlies must be played to keep the team in shape both physically, mentally and socially because the players have not been together for sometimes and there is need to ensure that all of them are on the same page.

The reception ended with the players enjoying Nigerian delicacies at the High Commission, with Dr. Tafida thanking the NFF for ensuring that a Nigerian will be at the helm of affairs at the Mundial.

“Other Africans have white coaches and they are envious

of Nigeria and a few others I am sure you will daze the world in Brazil,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Super Eagles are leaving nothing to chance as preparations effectively commenced last night in London with the team’s first training session ahead of the World Cup in Brazil next month. The team trained at the Fulham FC training ground.

All the 30 invited players invited except Brescia of Italy midfielder, Nnamdi Oduamadi and France-based star, Sunday Mba, were in camp and attended the team’s training session in the evening.

Team secretary, Dayo Enebi Achor, explained that the duo had hitches with their travelling documents and were scheduled to make it to the team’s camp any time from now, a development Head Coach Stephen Okechukwu Keshi frowned at.

However, the technical crew was happy with the entire

Guinness begins Fly with Eagles 2.0 campaign, wants semifinals berth NE of the official sponsors O of the Super Eagles, Guinness, has thrown its weight behind the team, as they prepare for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which kicks off on June 12 in Brazil.

The company believes that with adequate support, Nigeria would get to the semifinal of the competition. To this end, it has launched the Guinness Fly with the Eagles 2.0 campaign.

During the 2013 African Cup of Nations in South Africa, Guinness played a major role in galvanizing support for the Super Eagles as the team went on to win the tournament for the first time since 1994.

To further create excitement and generate support for the Super Eagles, Guinness created the world’s largest football jersey and this provided a unique opportunity to have goodwill messages sent to the

team during the tournament in South Africa.

Announcing Guinness’ renewed drive to mobilize support for the team, Managing Director/Chief Executive, Guinness Nigeria Plc., Seni Adetu, said the latest the gesture is based on his company’s desire to ensure its consumers and fans of the Super Eagles continuously have opportunity to support their team.

squad’s response to arrival in camp and the camaraderie that existed among all the players.

“It’s one big family here and this is the spirit we should carry to the World Cup,” declared Lille of France goalie, Vincent Enyeama.

There are also no injury worries with the team as all the players had been visiting the gym to maintain fitness before training started.

The players were also very happy with the recall of team captain, Joseph Tambarin Yobo and Osaze Odemwingie.

Yobo, himself declared during breakfast that he was overwhelmed by the shower of love by his teammates. “I am humbled and I pray that I will justify the confidence reposed in me,” he said.

Argentina that the Super Eagles will fall when they meet in Group F at the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup. Rather than fret over Argentina, the NFF said the Super Eagles would only need to concentrate on their first two matches against Iran and Bosnia Herzegovina, stressing that winning the two matches would put them at a better position to face the South Americans.

NFF General Secretary, Musa Amadu, said yesterday in Abuja that even though Argentina were viewed as a big football nation, they should not be rated on the individual performance of their players, stressing that no team is built on individual players.

Amadu assured that the Eagles boasts players, who would stop the likes of Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero and Di Maria, stressing that the federation has ensured the enabling requirements needed to do well at the competition.

“We do not look at every team based on their individual players. Argentina is not a oneplayer team, it is not about Messi, Aguero or Di Maria that makes up the entire team.

They work as a team. Yes we know that Argentina is a big country in football and we have played them before.

“Before Argentina, we have to look at the big task at our hands on June 16 in the match against Iran, which we must try to win and also get a good result against Bosnia Herzegovina before we talk about Argentina which comes up on June 25.

“Every arrangement has been completed for the successful camping of the Super Eagles in both the United States and Brazil.”

He said the team would fly straight to their US camp immediately after Wednesday’s friendly match against Scotland.

He added: “All the 30 players are capable of representing Nigeria, but we can only go with 23 players comprising three goalkeepers and 20 others; and I am confident that every player will be given the opportunity to try and prove their capacity to represent Nigeria in training by the technical crew.

“Technically, I will say there are two friendly matches for the players to express themselves before the coach makes his final list. These are apart from the one against Scotland before he submits his final list on June 2. They should be able to select the best players,” Amadu assured.

Amalaha’s new African record thrills weightlifting boss PRESIDENT of Nigeria Weightlifting Federation (NWF), Chibudom Nwuche, has given a pat on the back to Nigerian teenage lifter, Joy Chika Amalaha, who on Sunday set a new African record in the weightlifting event of the on going African Youth Games in Gaborone, Botswana.

Amalaha, who won gold for Nigeria in the 58kg body weight category, put up an amazing performance as she lifted 87kg in snatch to set a new African record.

The 14-year-old Ebonyi Stateborn lifter went ahead to lift 102kg in clean and jerk, an effort that was equally a new African record.

An elated Nwuche while con-

gratulating Amalaha for her feat, noted that he saw the splendid performance coming going by the high level of discipline always displayed by the athlete.

“I am happy with the splendid showing of Amalaha in Botswana. She has really done Nigeria proud by not just winning gold but setting a new African record. Amalaha is a bundle of discipline. She displayed that last year in Malaysia when she competed and won gold for us in the junior category. She is a lifter that will go places and the Nigeria Weightlifting Federation (NWF) will continue to monitor her performance and encourage her to become a world beater,” Nwuche stated.

Nigeria withdraws from Wheelchair Tennis World Cup IGERIA’S growing reputaN tion in global wheelchair tennis has suffered a huge dent following the country’s withdrawal from the BNP Paribas World Team Cup, which served off on Monday at the Nieuwe Sloot Tennis Centre in Alphen, Netherlands.

The World Team Cup is wheelchair tennis version of the Davis Cup and the Federation Cup. When Nigeria won the African qualifiers held in March in Kenya by beating Morocco there was widespread optimism that the country could grab a promo-

tion to the World Group I following the rapid improvement of the game in the country.

The improvement was highlighted by the nation’s participation at the Beijing 2008 Olympics and the 2012 Olympics in London, which makes the latest development a major setback for the game in the country.

The triumph in Kenya was the third in a row for the country’s men team, which makes them Africa’s topranked nation.

However, the gap between Nigeria and their nearest rivals, Morocco, would be nar-

rowed at the end of the tournament due to their unexpected absence.

Nigeria’s place was occupied

by Romania following Sunday evening’s draw, which has Canada and Italy in Pool 4.

At the finals of the CBN championship, which served as the last phase of preparations for the 31-nation tournament featuring 52 teams, some of the players had complained about lack of motivation from government, but promised to make a mark in the tournament as a way of securing sponsorships and also getting more domestic tournaments.

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Countdown To Brazil 2014 World Cup

Tread softly to avoid injuries, Nwosu cautions Eagles

By Alex Monye ORMER Super Eagles’ capFcautioned tain, Henry Nwosu, has Coach Stephen Keshi and his players to tread softly as they prepare for the Brazil 2014 World Cup to avoid injuries that may affect Nigeria’s outing at the Mundial Coupe.

The Eagles will meet Scotland in an international friendly in London tomorrow.

The game at the Craven Cottage is one of the tune up matches lined up for the Super Eagles as they prepare for the World Cup, which kicks off on June 12.

Speaking with The Guardian yesterday, Nwosu opined that the Eagles should use the friendly game to prove to Coach Keshi that they have what it

takes to be in Brazil, adding, however, that they should avoid anything that would put them under unnecessary pressure.

To discourage the players, especially those that are not sure of making the final squad, from being cagey and unnecessarily hard in training, Nwosu advised Keshi to find ways of reassuring the players of his impartiality in his squad selection.

Nwosu, however, believes that Keshi has the pedigree to excel in the World Cup, saying the former Mali manager has succeeded imbibing the spirit of reliance and steadfastness on the Eagles since he took charge of the team. ‘’Keshi has all it takes to make Nigerians happy in

Brazil. My advice for the players as they prepare for the World Cup is to try to convince the coach that they have something to offer him in Brazil.

“The players should avoid putting themselves under unnecessary pressure as they bid to impress the coach. When a player focuses on impressing the coach, he would become susceptible to injury. All the players need to do is to give their best on the field of play. A player does not need to die on the pitch to impress his coach.

“The Eagles should try as much as possible to play as a team, rather than the players trying to prove they are not what they actually are,’’ Nwosu said.

Sani Kaita (right) blocks Argentina’s Lionel Messi from the ball during Super Eagles’ South Africa 2010 World Cup group game against the South Americans. Kaita now plays for Enyimba. PHOTO: AFP:

Glo Nigeria Premier League

Kaita: All I want is to make my stay in Enyimba successful Eagles former midSis UPER fielder, Sani Kaita, says he enjoying life in Aba. It’s

Director General of the National Sports Commission, Gbenga Elegbeleye, decorating winners at the on-going Gaborone 2014 World Cup.

Sharks would m sustain the momentum till the end, Ogunbote assures fans T is a third consecutive away game from which Sharks FC ran home with a point and this time, they came from behind to force a draw against their hosts Warri Wolves on Sunday.

Expectedly, talks of Sharks becoming a huge title contender gathered more pace courtesy of that result, which extended their unbeaten sequence to nine games, while also opening a threepoint gap at the summit of the table.

The Blue Angels, managed

by Gbenga Ogunbote, have now stayed on top of the log after eight consecutive match days and with such a

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disciplined display at Wolves on Sunday; they simply don’t look ready to relinquish that lead.

Ogunbote, who is not new to leading title-charge is, however, not having illusions that Sharks are safe and dry with the title, but believes it is still early to start thinking of ending the season at this same position.

In a chat with lmcng.org after Sunday’s draw, Ogunbote said his team is not getting carried away.

“It’s my prayer that we continue with this run till the end of the season. But I won’t tell you lie, it’s too early to be talking about end of the season.

not hard to see why.

The South Africa 2010 World Cup star played a pivotal role in midfield to oversee a second home win for Enyimba against Nembe City at the weekend.

Kaita gave Enyimba all three points when he blasted a 35th minute strike from long range to help the team overcome Kaduna United on Matchday 13. It was his first game in Aba since joining the Nigerian giants on loan and he capped it beautifully.

Against Nembe City on Sunday, he was formidable in midfield, forming a superb partnership with Sokari Kingsley.

Beyond his match-winning performances, however, Kaita is adored by the fans.

After the game against Kaduna United, the fans mugged him, demanding autographs and selfies. After the emphatic triumph over Nembe City, despite not getting on the scoresheet, Kaita was again surrounded by happy fans, calling “Kaita, Kaita.”

When EnyimbaFC.net caught up with the midfielder after he had successfully broken free from the throng of fans, it was clear he was happy with the reception of the Enyimba faithful.

“Yes, I am happy to be here,” he said, adding, “because everything here is perfect for me at this point in my career.

“The fans here are absolutely amazing and I get a lot of pleasure playing in front of such great people. But it’s not just the fans, there are a lot of other great things about Enyimba and about Aba that I find very appealing,” Kaita revealed.

“There are wonderful players here, very good coaches and the club operates in a very organized way, so I am happy to be here, happy to be playing for Enyimba and enjoying myself very much.”

But while Kaita is having a great time in Aba, playing for Nigeria’s most successful side, he remains keenly aware that the club have not

hit their full strides yet.

“Of course, it concerns me, just as it concerns the rest of the team, but we are working really hard to change things.

But for me I believe it should be a game by game assessment. We should take it one game at a time and do our best to get maximum points whenever possible.

“Enyimba remains a big club despite how things might be at this point but I am very sure that we would change the situation and eventually climb to the top of the table.”

Kaita further expressed confidence in the development of the Nigeria

Professional Football League and said the future was bright for Nigerian club football overall.

“There is certainly a lot of improvement in the Nigeria Premier League and it is obvious that it would get even better. There is definitely room for improvement in some aspects, but it is clear that the right things are being done.”

“But for me, all I want is to make my stay in Enyimba successful and give the fans something to truly be happy about,” he concluded.

•Culled from Enyimbafc.net

Gaborone 2014 African Youth Games:

Team Nigeria wins nine gold, two bronze medals EAM Nigeria continued T from where it stopped on Sunday afternoon as the country won four more gold medals and another bronze medal to make it nine gold and two bronze yesterday evening.

Nigeria benefitted from international rules, which tripled the two gold medals won in the weightlifting event on Sunday and make it six and added with the other three won in Judo, Badminton and Table Tennis has increased the gold medal haul to nine.

A top official of the National Sports Commission (NSC) clarified,

“yes we are supposed to have won two gold in weightlifting, according International weightlifting body, but in the African Youth Games the gold medal is counted three so the two gold Nigeria won in the weightlifting boys and girls category counted six in Nigeria’s favour.

“So the total gold medal won is nine. Three other gold medals were won in Judo, where Esther Etim made Nigeria proud. Others include the one won by Team Badminton and Table Tennis gold won by Oginni Olasunkanmi,” the NSC Director General, Gbenga

Elegbeleye disclosed.

Team Nigeria also won another gold medal in Cycling Team Time Trial Girls.

The young athletes have been fired up by the presence of the Minister of Sports, Dr. Tammy Danagogo and the NSC Director General, Gbenga Elegbeleye, who have been encouraging the athletes to put up their best in their respective sports in the ongoing Gaborone 2014 African Youth Games.

The competition, which commenced on Thursday last week, would be rounded off on Saturday.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Conscience, Nurtured by Truth

By Charles Ikedikwa Soeze BVIOUSLY, in 1954 the United Nation’s O (UN) General Assembly recommended that all countries should set aside a Universal Children’s Day (UCD) to be observed as a day to celebrate children and draw attention to their problems. In spite of this, it is disappointing to state that since then the challenges facing our children especially in Africa and other third world countries is frightening and calls for quick solution. For example, the continued abduction of school girls in Chibok, Borno State, North East of Nigeria.

Happily, the UN General Assembly recognised that children all over the World have rights that must be documented, adopted by major states, promoted, projected as well as enforced and subsequently adopted in 1959, the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, which addressed the rights of children and youths under 18 years of age. In 1989, the UN General Assembly adopted the convention on the Rights of the child which covers in its 54 articles all the rights of children from healthcare to education to the freedom from exploitation and the right to hold opinion.

There is the popular saying “Morning shows the day, just as the child shows the man”. This indicates why a day is set aside every year to evaluate progress made in efforts to promote, protect and project the rights of children. All over the World, children’s are usually celebrated on the 27th of every May. Celebrating children’s day take special forms in each member-country of the United Nations. For example, in Gambia, children take over the reins of government for this one day in the year, to expose them in the practice of governance. In other countries, children are sometimes given the opportunity to take over the television stations and consequently direct, produce and anchor programmes that show the major issues that affect them.

In the case of Nigeria, school children usually troop to various stadia, public places in towns and cities all over the country to engage in march past and listen to speeches from our leaders while some establishments participate sometimes by organising parties, excursions as well as study visits for students.

However, despite the fact that most member-states of the UN are signatories to the convention, the basic rights stated in this convention are still being violated with impunity in these countries that have adopted the convention. Children over the places are still being openly abused and neglected both at the family, community and governmental levels. However, Nigeria adopted May 27 of every year as its Children’s Day and has remained faithful and honest to the observance of the day. Furthermore, it is crystal and abundantly clear that children’s issue go far and above celebration of Children’s Day. Apart from the celebration, there is the need to look at how children have fared before and after the passage of the Child Right Bill (CRB) that was passed into law by the National Assembly in May 2003. Nigeria, being a signatory to several international conventions on children, is obliged to take legislative, social and educative measures to further protect children from the following: Physical or mental violence, neglect, or maltreatment while in the care of parents or guardians, employment that is likely to be hazardous to their health or interfere with their education and development, sexual exploitation and abuse among others.

Please send reactions and feedback for YOUTH SPEAK to:

editorial@risenetworks.org and 07067976667- SMS ONLY

Children’s Day in Nigeria According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), 215 million children are in hazardous work and that Africa is worst hit. The ILO celebrated the World-Day against Child Labour 2010 events with a clear message to member-nation on the negative impact of child labour and the danger inherent in the slow pace of efforts by nations of the world to end the phenomenon. It was revealed by the ILO that the events were held in more than 60 countries.

It included governments, employers and workers, other United Nations Organisations and non-governmental organisations and high level panels who organised media events, awareness raising campaigns, cultural performances and other public events.

In Geneva, Switzerland where the global event, International Labour Conference took place, hundreds of local school were joined by the Conseiller of Etat, Mr. Charles Beer, ILO officials and visiting conference delegates, who participated on a “Children’s Solidarity event” at the place des Nations (United Nations House)”.

Furthermore, the ILO Director General, Mr. Juan Somavia, used the occasion to paint the pathetic picture of hazardous conditions of many children around the world who were involved in child labour. In Africa, it was a pathetic story as Somavia stated that the situation was worrisome in Africa where the worst form of child labour takes place and more children were working in hazardous conditions. Somavia added that the World Day Against Child Labour (WDACL) came at a

critical juncture in the global campaign ending its worst forms by 2016.

At the WDACL, it was stated that what is needed is access to quality education for all children, at least, until the minimum age of employment, extending social protection that provides a buffer for families and enable them to keep all children, girls and boys in school, and productive employment for adults. In other words, with an integrated decent work approach and a decent work route out of poverty, children can realise their potential families and communities can enjoy better standards of living and greater stability.

In Nigeria, little efforts are being made by both government and organisations to reduce or eliminate the worst form of child abuse because we are deeply rooted in poverty, ignorance and cultural attitudes of the people. However, these efforts, in most cases are not backed by appropriate data to enable national authorities and the international communities to measure the nature and perhaps the extent of child labour in the country and identify areas where action is required to take it.

It is flabbergasting to say that in Nigeria like many other African countries, ILO policies are often violated, despite the fact that many countries of the world have developed statistical monitoring and information systems on child labour, often with the support of ILO’s Statistical Information and Monitoring Programme on Child Labour (SIMPOC).

In a speech at the presentation of “The state of the world children 2002”, the then First The YOUTHSPEAK Column which is published daily is an initiative of THE GUARDIAN, and powered by RISE NETWORKS, Nigeria’s Leading Youth Development Centre, as a substantial advocacy platform available for ALL Nigerian Youth to engage Leadership at all levels, engage Society and contribute to National Discourse on diverse issues especially those that are peculiar to Nigeria. Regarding submission of articles, we welcome writers‘ contributions by way of well crafted, analytical and thought provoking opinion pieces that are concise, topical and non-defamatory! All articles (which are not expected to be more than 2000 words) should be sent to editorial@risenetworks.org To read the online Version of this same article plus past publications and to find out more about Youth Speak, please visit www.risenetworks.org/youthspeak and join the ongoing National Conversations’’.

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Lady, Chief (Mrs.) Stella Obasanjo (of blessed memory) said, “Many more children are still engaged in exploitative child labour, putting them at risk of human trafficking with ten Nigerian children daily passing through the Nigerian border into slavery in other lands, and figures in respect of HIV/AIDS among Nigerian children are extremely alarming and it is getting worse by the day”.

According to her, “If you look at current statistics in the state of world children report, the situation of the Nigerian child in education, health and protection are particularly bad, when compared to some other poor countries in sub-Saharan Africa.”

It seems to me that the ugly development is strangulating children gradually out-of-existence. Economic down-turn or economic ‘cuyoyo’ according to the late Dr. Tai Solarin, former Headmaster of Mayflower School, has suddenly turned children into bread winners for many families. They can be seen in our streets hawking all sorts of wares, some begging alms, with forlorn hope of augmenting the poor earning of their financially weak parents. Street hawking has turned a lot of them into hopeless youths with a bleak future. The families among them are exposed at tender ages to sexual harassment and molestation. Others are sometimes rendered useless or in extreme cases lose their lives after being hit by reckless drivers.

Many first visitors to Nigeria are usually appalled at the number of children engaged in street hawking and begging on our roads, and the advent of sachet water popularly called “pure water” has increased the number greatly.

In order to proffer solutions to the above, there is the need for an apostle of accountability and probity in public service. In other words, we should preach and practise the gospel for the benefit of our children. In this connection, we should see our children as “Ethiopia Tikden” an Amharic expressing meaning “Ethiopia first”.

It is therefore no exaggeration to say that our children suffer because many aides in Africa are victims of extreme flatters and sycophants whose only delight is to be at the corridors of power, lick, wash and watch the boots of our leaders and, in the process enrich themselves even to the level of stupidity and irresponsibility quite noticeable before the mass audience.

In the 1997 joint UNICEF and Federal Office of Statistic report on the progress of Nigerian children, it was stated that children in especially difficult situations made up the bulk of the domestic labour force. This is not astonishing in view of the increasing poverty that forced many families to take their children out of school and utilise their labour to add to the family income for survival.

In order to check abuses of the rights of children, state governments that are yet to adopt the Child Rights Act (CRA) should get their legislators to pass them into law in the state.

It is my candid opinion that the Federal and all States Government should commence immediate enforcement of all the provisions of the law, including prosecuting and convicting those that flout the law.

Finally, for our children to develop properly and compete favourably among children from other countries and to enable Nigeria move forward in the right direction, we should think clearly, correctly and scientifically which is the greatest of all powers that a man can possess.

• Soeze is a mass communication scholar and retired Assistant Director (Administration)/ Head, Academic and Physical Planning (A&PP) of the Petroleum Training Institute, (PTI), Effurun, Delta State, Nigeria.