The Nation April 30, 2013

Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

Williams’ murder proof destroyed

NEWS

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PDP crisis: don’t cheapen Judiciary, Soyinka warns Faction suspends 27 pro-Amaechi lawmakers From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

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OBEL laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka warned yesterday against the debasement and manipulation of the judiciary to avoid anarchy.

The dramatist spoke in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital where two factions are battling for the soul of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Also yesterday, the Chief Felix Obuah-led state executive of the party suspended 27 of the 32 members of the House of Assembly, who are loyal to Governor Rotimi Amaechi.

Among those suspended is Speaker Otelemaba Dan Amachree. Their seats were declared vacant.

But the lawmakers insisted that they had secured a Port Harcourt High Court injuction barring the party from suspending them.

Soyinka, standing in front of the Governor’s Office in the Government House — Amaechi beside him — also described the choice of Port Harcourt as the World Book Capital 2014 as a great honour for Nigeria, the state and Port Harcourt.

He said he was glad to be in a position to assist the state government, using the instrumentality of literacy, education and knowledge to counter “the negativists”, “violent negativists as represented in movements like Boko Haram”.

On the deepening Rivers PDP crisis, the playwright said: “The judiciary right now, while it is trying to reform itself, recognises the fact that there are still some dark areas. It is the effect of the dark areas that seems to be creating a crisis in Rivers State right now.

“I am just alarmed. I am alarmed that a situation exists at all, where it strikes me. It appears to me that the judiciary is being manipulated. That is the impression which I had and that is an alarm which should be sounded in every corner of the nation.

Continued on page 4

•The police patrol vehicle destroyed by explosion caused by an improvised explosive device on Sunday night

Gunmen kill five in Jigawa From Kolade Adeyemi, Ringim

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INGIM, headquarters of Ringim Local Government Area, Jigawa State, was on Sunday night the scene of violence, unleashed by a gang of gunmen.

They attacked a police station and a bank, killing three policemen and two civilians.

The state government said the deadly attack lasted for over five hours.

Also attacked was the family house of the immediate past Inspector-General of Police

•A branch of a commercial bank destroyed on Sunday night.

Continued on page 4

PIB: North’s senators give fresh condition to pass bill •Senate President Mark

Non-oil producing areas must benefit in 10% fund

•STORY ON PAGE 4

•SPORTS P24 •POLITICS P45 •ENERGY P47 •MARITIME P52 •CITYBEATS P57

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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NEWS

Boko Haram de In a report yesterday, The Washington Times observes that the Barack Obama administration may be in denial of the extent to which Boko Haram is linked, ideologically and now logistically, to North Africa’s top al Qaeda outfit — al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb — which seized control of a large swath of nearby Mali

•Chief Executive Officer, Globacom, Mr Mohammed Jameel (left) greeting the Managing Director, ZTE Limited, Mr Zenghong Ma, during the $500 million signing agreement on Glo Network Expansion in Lagos... yesterday.

PHOTO: JOHN EBHOTA

•From left: Registrar- General, Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Bello Mahmud, Chairman, CAC, Otunba Funso Lawal and Board member, Dr. Ausbeth Ajagu, at the Stakeholders Forum in Lagos... yesterday.

PHOTO: SOLOMON ADEOLA

•Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (second left), Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Mrs. Felicia Adun (left), Climate Finance Consultant, R 20 Regions of Climate Action, Mrs. Denise Welch and Prof. Rosemary Okoh, during a visit to the governor in Asaba … yesterday.

•From left: Chairman, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) Governing Council, Senator Ike Nwachukwu, former Nigerian Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Chief Arthur Mbanefo and Director-General, NIIA, Prof. Bola Akinterinwa, during the 14th brainstorming session on the Organisation of African Unity and African PHOTO: NIYI ADENIRAN Union at 50 Conference at the NIIA, Victoria Island Lagos.

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OLLUSION between the shadowy northern Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb is raising the specter that internationally linked Islamic terrorism may be reaching deeper into the heart of Africa than the Obama administration is willing to acknowledge.

A clash between Boko Haram and security forces killed nearly 200 people this month, and foreign policy insiders say the group has become increasingly sophisticated and is making more use of such military hardware as rocket-propelled grenades from jihadist smuggling networks tied to Mali and Libya.

The State Department has designated three Boko Haram leaders as “global terrorists” with “close links” to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. But the administration appears to be acquiescing to the Federal Government, which is accused of committing human rights abuses while attempting to negotiate with Boko Haram.

State Department officials have become engaged in an internal debate about how to publicly define the Boko Haram threat and how the U.S. should be responding to the violence in Africa’s top oil-producing nation.

“There is cooperation between Boko Haram and (AQIM),” one State Department official told The Washington Times last week. “But we should be careful not to conflate the groups. Most individuals who call themselves Boko Haram are focused primarily on local Nigerian issues and respond principally to political and security developments within Nigeria.”

Although U.S. authorities are “of course concerned about the growing sophistication and lethality of attacks ascribed to Boko Haram,” the official said, “we are equally concerned about the continued heavy-handed response of Nigerian security forces.”

Some analysts say the administration may be in denial of the extent to which Boko Haram is linked, ideologically and now logistically, to North Africa’s top al Qaeda outfit — al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb — which seized control of a large swath of nearby Mali before it was ousted by French military forces this year.

“The fact that AQIM became a leader in the coalition that ruled northern Mali for almost a year and had free rein to operate in northern Mali, and store very high-powered weapons that originated in Libya, and had the ability to move them south and west, into Nigeria through Niger — that’s huge,” said Jacob Zenn, who has written extensively on Boko Haram for the Jamestown Foundation.

“Once AQIM took power with a coalition in northern Mali, you saw more rocket-propelled grenade attacks in Nigeria,” said Mr. Zenn, presently a le-

•A burnt motorcycle in a street of Baga after two days Haram.

Insurgency: Is th

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HE constructive engagement option, recently adopted by the Federal Government to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency, has generated a lot of controversy.

While some citizens welcome the option, others consider it incongruous to dialogue with a group earlier described as faceless.

However, some analysts want the Federal Government to go ahead, saying that the dialogue option is not a “surrender or capitulation but a bold step in conflict resolution”.

President Goodluck Jonathan on April 17 approved the constitution of a Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North, to constructively engage key members of the Boko Haram sect in a dialogue.

The 26-member committee was inaugurated by Jonathan on Wednesday, April 24.

The analysts urge the president to go ahead with the programme, even though a faction of the Boko Haram sect said that they had committed no offence to warrant the need for an amnesty.

Supporting the president’s action, Mr Ol?sa Agbakoba, a former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), said it was in the interest of the citizenry to make the country safe.

“Some say, why should the government go through all this trouble, in view of Boko Haram’s record. But I disagree.

“It is in our enlightened interest to make Nigeria stable. You sometimes stoop to gain,” he stated.

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) also hailed the decision of the president to set up a committee to dialogue with members of the sect.

Mr Anthony Sani, the National Publicity Secretary of the ACF, said that the forum’s consistent position had always been that the insurgents be given amnesty to prepare grounds for negotiations with the group.

He said it was only logical for the Federal Government to explore other

gal adviser at the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law. “So there was a link between the two chronologically.”

It is not clear whether a sea shift is occurring in the way others in Washington perceive Boko Haram.

“A year ago, those of us who were watching closely, we were cautious about what we could reasonably say about the external links with what was called ‘Boko

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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NEWS

m deadlier than Obama thinks •Women and children allegedly sacked from their houses by soldiers stand in front of burnt houses in Baga.

PHOTOS: AFP

et of Baga after two days of clashes between officers of the Multinational Task Force and Boko

ncy: Is the Fed Govt’s amnesty option the way out? options to tackle the Boko Haram issue since the use of force had so far failed.

“This is what we have been canvassing; we have been saying that since the use of force has failed, why not use other options, the option of amnesty,’’ he said.

Sani, however, called on the government to put in place a mechanism to guarantee the security of the insurgents, saying that without due assurance about their protection, the insurgents might be afraid to come out.

“ACF is fully aware of the fact that amnesty may not automatically end terrorism, especially when we know that some hard liners may not accept the offer.

“But it will most likely mark the beginning of a process that holds the promise of bringing the tragic situation to an end,” he added.

Niger State Governor Babangida Aliyu, who also supported the amnesty programme, called on the 19 Northern states to support the programme.

“President Goodluck Jonathan needs to be supported and encouraged by all Nigerians to succeed in the efforts aimed at finding solutions to the insecurity challenges,” he said.

Aliyu, who said the proposed amnesty was a good step toward resolving the problem of insecurity, however, underscored the need to explore other avenues.

He noted that there might be some international dimensions to the Boko Haram issue, urging the relevant authorities to look into that aspect.

However, some stakeholders are not happy about the Federal Government’s decision to dialogue with members of the Boko Haram sect.

For instance, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is not particularly happy about the amnesty option of the Federal Government in efforts to end the Boko Haram insurgency.

Mr Sunny Oibe, the Public Relations Officer of CAN (Northern states and

Abuja), condemned the government’s dialogue option.

“If the government has decided to set up a committee to consider granting amnesty to Boko Haram under the watchful eyes of the National Security Adviser without compensating the families of those who were killed, it then goes to show that something is fundamentally wrong with our society and government.

“How can President Goodluck Jonathan, who, not long ago said that he could not grant amnesty to ghosts, now decides to set up a committee for amnesty?

“During the administration of his boss, the late Umar Yar’Adua, he did not go about chasing the Niger Delta militants.

“Rather, the citizens from the SouthSouth region went and talked to their boys to lay down their arms and engage the government constructively.

“If the government is not careful, this amnesty for Boko Haram will encourage insurgencies throughout the country,’’ Oibe noted Also, Anthony Cardinal Okogie, the former Archbishop of Lagos, advised the government to be cautious in handling the country’s security problems, stressing the need to allow justice to prevail.

Okogie, who condemned the wanton destruction of lives and property by members of the Boko Haram sect, advised the president not to rush into granting amnesty to the sect’s members without considering the implications of the action.

“I am not against considering amnesty if the situation warrants it. But as it is, on what basis are we calling for amnesty for Boko Haram?

“We have to be cautious about the way we go about it. I have continued to ask these questions: Who are the members of this sect who thrive on human blood? Are they truly Nigerians? What exactly do they want?

“Besides, how do we compensate all

those who have lost their loved ones in the over two years of carnage?

These are issues we need to address,” he stressed.

Sharing similar sentiments, Dr Felix Omobude, the National President, Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), advised Jonathan to apply great caution in handling the amnesty option.

He said government should be wary of giving the impression that “it is honouring criminals and criminality’’, adding that victims of Boko Haram should also be compensated.

“The Federal Government should be more concerned with ways of compensating the victims of the Boko Haram insurgency; so as to mitigate their grief and demonstrate that the government also cares about them,” he added.

Afenifere, the Yoruba socio-political group, has also expressed some reservations on the government’s approach in tackling the insurgency.

A leader of the group, Chief Reuben Fasoranti, said that the group’s stand was based on the fallout of the amnesty that was earlier granted to the Niger Delta militants.

“For instance, we agree that granting amnesty in the Niger Delta region per se is in order. However, we find it hard to defend the monumental abuse going on, especially among the elite managers of the scheme.

“We are disturbed as to whether the scheme will bring a lasting peace, giving episodic restlessness still being experienced there.

“Yet, we have created a set of emergency billionaires from the amnesty programme, while the conditions in the creeks virtually remain the same.

“It is with this at the back of our mind that we have been so sceptical over the so-called amnesty for Boko Haram, which is a much more

dangerous group than the Niger Delta insurgents who were known and whose demands were clear,” he said.

Fasoranti insisted that it would amount to a tragedy for the country to embark on another money-sharing spree, all in the name of granting amnesty to another group “with all the blood that has been shed’’.

Meanwhile, President Jonathan, on whose table the buck stops, has reiterated his determination to stop the excesses of the Boko Haram sect.

He gave the assurance when he inaugurated the presidential committee mandated to facilitate a constructive engagement with members of the Boko Haram Sect “Nigerians are expecting this committee to perform magic and we pray that Allah should give you the wisdom to do so. This is because without peace, we cannot develop no matter how committed we are,’’ he said.

The president charged members of the committee to establish a link with members of the Boko Haram sect, while developing a framework through which disarmament would take place.

Jonathan also enjoined the committee to work out ways of granting amnesty to members of the sect, while developing a comprehensive victims’ support programme.

“And as we try to address the issue of the Boko Haram, we must also comprehensively address the issues directly affecting the people,’’ he added.

As there is no known alternative to peace; analysts stress the need for every Nigerian to join hands with the government in efforts to restore peace to the troubled parts of the country.

“Government should also not take any action that will promote criminality and lawlessness,’’ they, however, warn.

Haram,’” said Peter M. Lewis, who heads the Africa Studies Program at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies.

“Now there’s clear evidence that some elements of this group or this network definitely have operational and ideological ties with some elements of AQIM and possibly other Salafist armed groups operating in the Sahel,” said Mr. Lewis, re-

ferring to the vast geographic tract that runs west to east across Africa just south of the Sahara.

Despite such ties, Mr. Lewis defended the Obama administration’s unhurried posture, asserting that the situation in northern Nigeria is complex because Boko Haram remains as much an illdefined label used by petty local criminals as it is a hard-line, internationally

connected Islamic terrorist group.

“If you slap a foreign terrorist organisation designation on Boko Haram,” he said, the result may galvanise an otherwise local conflict into more of a pitched battle between jihadists and the West.

Furthermore, Mr. Lewis said, the U.S. is not in a position to “dictate terms” to Nigeria’s government about

how to deal with the situation. Although the State Department provided roughly $3 million in law enforcement assistance to Nigeria in 2012, the funds were minute compared with the tens of billions of dollars Nigeria generates in annual oil revenue.

As a result, the Obama administration has appeared willing to quietly back efforts by President Goodluck

By Obike Ukoh

•Ukoh is of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Jonathan to create an amnesty programme in which Boko Haram members might avoid prosecution in exchange for laying down their weapons.

A similar approach in recent years succeeded in taming militant activity in the south. But the effort has not yielded significant results in the predominantly Muslim north.

It also is complicated by claims that the Jonathan government’s security forces are running rampant in the North.

A Human Rights Watch report in October cited the implication of the security forces in such “serious human rights violations” as execution-style killings of detainees.

Such claims were punctuated by the high number of casualties after a twoday battle between the security forces and members of Boko Haram in the fishing town of Baga on April 19 and 20. Some reports suggested that the death toll soared to nearly 200 after security forces began burning down homes and killing civilians in response to a smaller attack by Boko Haram.

The incident appeared to cause irritation at the State Department, where Secretary of State John F. Kerry engaged in pre-scheduled talks last week with Nigerian Foreign Minister Olugbenga Ayodeji Ashiru.

Before the meeting, a State Department official told The Times that “heavy-handed tactics by security forces reinforce a perception that the government is unjust and abusive, which extremists have capitalised upon.”

“We recommend the Nigerian government employs a comprehensive security strategy that is not predicated on a force-based approach, (but) also addresses the economic and political exclusion of vulnerable communities in the north,” the official said.

With regard to specific activities of Boko Haram, however, neither Mr. Kerry nor Mr. Ashiru made mention of the group by name during public remarks Thursday.

The rhetorical sidestep may be explained by their desire to avoid lending legitimacy to the group, but also might stem from a general agreement that Boko Haram’s activities — violent as they may be — are unlikely to disrupt Nigeria’s oil operations.

The nation is one of the top foreign oil providers to the U.S. and a growing provider of oil and liquid natural gas to key U.S. allies, most notably Japan. The oil operations are centered along Nigeria’s southern coastline, far from Boko Haram’s base in the North.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

NEWS Gunmen kill five in Jigawa Continued from page 1

•President Goodluck Jonathan cutting the tape at the launch of Police Equipment and Police Week at the Eagle Square Abuja…yesterday.

With him from left are: Police Affairs Minister Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade; Inspector-General of Police Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, PHOTO AKIN OLADOKUN and Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Police Affairs Usman Bello Kumo

PDP crisis: don’t cheapen Judiciary, Soyinka warns Continued from page 1

“Witch-hunting is a very heavy word. Let me just say this generally, that I hate evidence of pettiness in governance. Pettiness at any level is unbecoming of any democratic situation.”

Commenting on the grounded state government aircraft, Soyinka said: “I am a citizen of this nation. So, I am affected personally by what is happening at the opposite end of the nation. Those who feel that any kind of transgression of the collective rights of groups will not affect, will not have a kind of ripple effect, which will affect other parts of the nation, must be living in a cloud.

“I am concerned and I will be quite frank with you. I am very much concerned about the imbroglio in which the state (Rivers) appears to be involved at the moment and my main comment is, for heaven’s sake, whatever happens internally between parties and so on, please do not debase and do not manipulate the judiciary. That is my appeal to governance at all levels.

“Please, do not manipulate the judiciary, because when you do, you have chaos, you have total anarchy and you reduce the nation to a space of complete breakdown of law and order, of what is known as anomie, which is what this nation had better avoided.”

The PDP leadership dispute was pending in a court in Port Harcourt when Justice Ishaq Bello of an Abuja High Court assumed jurisdiction in the matter. He handed victory to the faction loyal to the Minister of State for Education, Nyesom Wike.

Obuah, with whom was party Secretary Walter Ibibia and other members of the executive, also stated that the 48hour ultimatum given Amaechi would enable him to explain the status of the aircraft.

He noted that the controversy generated by the real ownership of the aircraft and its operation had brought embarrassment to the party.

The factional chairman

stressed that the party’s decision to suspend the 27-pro Amaechi lawmakers was in view of their refusal to rescind the April 22 suspension of the Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government, Prince Timothy Nsirim, his vice and all the seven councillors loyal to Wike, at the end of the 48-hour ultimatum given to them to do so.

He said: “The party views with grave concern, the unfolding facts surrounding the ownership of the purported aircraft and will not fold its arms and allow monumental fraud to be perpetrated in Rivers State. It is unacceptable and embarrassing to our great party, that pubContinued on page 59

PIB: North’s senators give fresh condition to pass bill

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ENATORS from the North are pushing for a fresh condition for the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law even as the stage is set for zonal public hearings on the contentions bill.

They want the 10 per cent provision for Host Community Fund to be extended to all communities hosting oil wells, farm tanks, pipelines and de-

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

pots.

Ahead of the presentation of the new condition, the Federal Government has started lobbying senators on the merits of the bill.

Some forces in government are pleading with Northern senators to give the PIB a chance.

The senate is expected to conduct public hearing in La-

gos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Makurdi.

But a major controversial area in the bill is the allocation of 10 per cent of the nation’s oil revenue to host communities.

It was gathered that the senators are weighing a fresh option on the Host Community Fund.

A source said: “I think there is a clearer picture to some ex-

tent. Senators from the North are saying that the 10 per cent Host Community Fund should not be limited to any region.

“They want befitting communities to be those hosting oil wells, farm tanks, pipelines and depot installations.

“The misconception before is that only communities with oil wells will benefit from the Host Continued on page 59

(IGP), Hafiz Ringim, a branch of Unity Bank and the Ringim Divisional Police Headquarters.

Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) were hurled at the police headquarters and the bank. Two police vehicles and other properties were destroyed.

Acting Governor Ahmed Mahmoud Gumel, who visited the scenes of the incident, confirmed the death of five persons.

Gumel described the attack as a robbery, adding that the criminals resorted to attacking innocent citizens, after their attempt to rob the bank failed.

The acting governor, who described the incident as “unfortunate”, urged residents to go about their businesses without panic, adding that measures had been taken to ensure security of lives and properties.

The gunmen struck with explosives and guns at about 8pm on Sunday, immediately after Ishai -– the last prayer of the day.

Residents said multiple explosions rocked the town for about five hours.

A resident said: “Policemen at the station tried to repel the attack but the gunmen had the upper hand because of their equipments and number. It

took some time before more troops were deployed in the area.

“The gunmen fled after the attack; and they killed three policemen and two guards at the bank. What I cannot say is if they carted away money from the bank; and it is not also confirmed if arms were taken from the police station.”

But police spokesman, Abdul Jinjiri, confirmed the incident.

He said: “After attacking a police station and killing three of our men, they then moved to nearby Unity Bank and killed two civilians there.

They were not able to steal any money from the bank.”

The Ringim attack came days 25 people were killed in a separate clash between security forces and suspected Islamists, who robbed a bank and attacked a police station in northeastern Yobe State.

Authorities believe insurgents are increasingly targeting banks to fund their operations, as support from local politicians dries up and Sahara-based groups are in disarray after a French military intervention kicked them out of Mali.

Jinjiri, however, declined to say if Boko Haram, which operates across the North, was suspected of being behind the latest attacks.

Terrorism a global threat to democracy, says Jonathan

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan yesterday described terrorism as a global challenge to democracy.

He spoke through Vice President Mohammed Nnamadi Sambo at the seventh ministerial conference of the Community of Democracies holding in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

Jonathan feared that such global challenges as activities of undemocratic forces abusing the freedom offered by democracy to destabilise the system as well as terrorism by non-state actors could overwhelm legitimate democracies.

He urged member-countries to strive hard in entrenching democracy and the rule of law to defeat those challenges His words: “We must continue to strengthen our collective resolve to confront current and

future challenges as a united entity and thereby engender sustainable peace and development for our people.”

The President renewed Nigeria’s commitment to the entrenchment of democratic values, saying the nation will not shy away from collaborating with others to create “a league of democratic drivers” that would entrench best practices.

He said: “Nigeria will at all times lead the way to strong democratic values amongst the nations of Africa. It is on this note that our administration has pledged to ensure that local elections in Nigeria are held according to established international norms.”

Jonathan, who said his administration was focused on strengthening democracy Continued on page 59

NCAA insists on sanction for owners of grounded aircraft

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HREE days after it grounded a Bombardier – BD 700 Global Express aircraft marked N565RS, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) yesterday said the aircraft would be penalised for gross violation of civil aviation regulations.

Acting NCAA Director-General Mr Joyce Nkemakolam said yesterday in a telephone chat that owners of the aircraft would be fined.

Nkemakolam said the fine would be determined by the regulatory body.

He said: “It would be in monetary terms. We would calculate it. The fine to be paid by the owners of the aircraft would be calculated after aviation officials have concluded series of meetings in Abuja and Lagos on what the regulations stipulate as offence for the such violation.”

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) yesterday stuck to its earlier allegation that the aircraft has been flying illegally.

ACN condemns grounding of Amaechi’s plane OR the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the grounding of the Rivers State Government’s private aircraft by the regulatory Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) was a glaring case of political witch-hunt.

In a statement issued in Lagos yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the action also amounted to gross abuse of national institutions and a pointer to what lay ahead for all perceived enemies of the President Jonathan Jonathan-led administration.

The said it was inexplicable that the NCAA, the body saddled with the responsibility to carry out its all-important duties without political interference but in accordance with stipulated global standards, has become a tool in the hands of vindictive politicians.

The statement reads: “The inconsistent reasons given for grounding the plane

F

By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

Speaking on a television programme monitored in Lagos, the General Manager, Corporate Communications, Mr

have exposed the shenanigans of those who feel they could easily pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians.

“First, the plane was ostensibly grounded in Akure because the pilot did not declare the flight’s manifest to the appropriate authorities.

“Then it was said that the plane’s clearance certificate has expired, hence it was banned from flying in the Nigerian airspace. How low can a government sink just to get at a perceived enemy?

“The questions that arise, therefore, are: Has the clearance certificate for the plane really expired? When did it expire?

“Was this communicated to the Rivers State Government before the plane was grounded? If so when? And if not why? In any case, would the NCAA have acted with so much alacrity if the plane had belonged to a state whose governor has no political differences with President Jonathan?

“While the NCAA must be free to carry

Yakubu Dati, said the aircraft had been operating illegally since the expiration of its approved flight clearance on April 2.

He insisted that going by the

out its regulatory duties without hindrance, it must be careful not to be seen to be acting on the orders of politicians. If this is the new modus operandi of the NCAA, then the nation is in trouble, and must be ready to see the reversal of the positive strides recorded in the aviation sector in the past few years,’’ the party warned.

It said while the political crisis that has torn apart the PDP and turned the President against his fellow party men is not the business of anyone outside the party, it (ACN) is compelled to speak out when national institutions are now being dragged into what is essentially an ugly ego-fight.

ACN warned those who are in position of authority to realise that any abuse of national institutions in their quest to settle political scores could bring the house crashing down on all, including those behind such abuses.

record available to aviation authorities; the last flight clearance for the aircraft was approved on March 28 on Accra/ Port Harcourt and Accra route to terminate on April 2.

With this development, the aircraft has exceeded the extra two days or 48 hours leeway for it to leave the country.

To buttress his point, Dati Continued on page 59

•Amaechi

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THE NATION TUESDAY APRIL 30, 2013

5

NEWS

How alleged bomber of ThisDay, Sun, Moment was captured, by witnesses T HE Federal Government yesterday called four witnesses as it opened trial in the case involving Mustapha Umar, accused of being the mastermind of the April 26, last year’s bombing of a building occupied by three media houses - ThisDay, the Sun and the Moment - in Kaduna.

The witnesses gave details of how Umar drove a bombladen Honda car unto the wall of the building known as SOJ Plaza; how he was captured while trying to escape after allegedly killing three people and how the police saved him from being lynched by a mob.

Before the trial began yesterday, Justice Adeniyi Ademola granted an aplication by the prosecution barring people, other than parties in the case, their lawyers, journalists and law students on court attachment, from witnessing proceedings..

The judge also ordered that witnesses in the case should

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

be protected with their identity, names and other particulars kept secret. In view of the orders, the four witnesses hid their faces by wearing mask.

The first witness, who was identified as Ismael told the court how the accused drove a car ladden with explosives into the building.

He said although the car didn’t explode, the accused allegedly killed three people when, in a bid to escape, he threw one of the explosives into the crowd.

Ismael said: "I was passing along Kontagora Road, Kaduna when I saw people gathered. I moved closer to inquire what was going on. I saw a Honda car very close to the wall of the building. I saw about two people trying to

rescue the accused from inside the vehicle.

"He was alone, sitting on the driver's seat. Thinking he was invoved in an accident, I joined in an attempt to rescue him. The moment we brought him out, he started shouting: 'I have brought bomb to this premises. It can explode any moment from now.'

"By then, the size of the crowd had increased. They started beating him, asking him to go and remove the bomb. And he told them if they remove it, it will explode," the witness said.

He told the court how he and others were later able to invite, first some policemen from the Sabongari police station, before other security personnel arrived at the scene.

The witness, who was led in evidence by lead prosecution lawyer, Simon Labaran, added that some moments later, the accused, who was held by some members of the crowd, went close to his car and brought out what looked like a fire extinguisher.

"Because the crowd was outside the premises, he threw the fire extinguisher and we heard a loud sound. Three people died on the spot, one of them was on Okada (motorcycle).

"Unfortunately for him, as he was trying to scale the fence, some youths, who had gathered, apprehended him. By this time, he has sustained injuries and was bleeding. We later handed him to the police."

He said moments after the accused was taken away, some youths set the vehicle on fire, during which the explosives

exploded. "About 4pm, when the police came to remove the burnt vehicle, I saw about 12 camp cylinders inside the vehicle. There were three in the front, three in the middle and six in the booth. They were neatly wired to the steering of the vehicle," the witness said.

On cross-examination by defence lawyer, Nureni Sulaiman, the witness maintained that the accused caused the death of three persons. The second prosecution witness, who said he was the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) at the Sabongari Police Station when the incident occured, corroborated the first witness' statement that the accused killed three people by allegedly throwing an object like a fire extinguisher into the crowd.

He said their mission at the scene of the incident was to ensure security and rescue the accused person.

Trial closes in My Pikin case

By Joseph Jibueze

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HE trial of a company, Barewa Pharmaceutical Company Limited and others ended yesterday before Justice Okeke of the Federal High Court, Lagos.

They were charged by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) with allegedly producing a contaminated medication for children named: My Pikin Baby Teething Mixture.

Those charged include the firm's Chief Executive Officer, Gbadegeshin Okunlola and two of its employees Adeyemo Abiodun and Egbele Eromosele, but Okunlola died October 27 last year.

He was 58.

Testifying yesterday, Eromosele, who is the company's Quality Assurance Manager, denied that Barewa produced the contaminated syrup which is alleged to have killed over 80 children.

He said: "The raw materials are brought to me before production of the mixture. I performed analysis of the raw materials and there was no contamination. I conduct the tests for all the raw materials.

"The test complied with specification - meaning there was no contamination there.

I followed the procedure in the purchase of raw materials, sampling and testing.

"I was guided by the World Health Organisation (WHO) Expert Committee on Verification of Pharmaceutical Preparations. We don't produce anything known as My Pikin Paracetamol Syrup,"

PDP panel cautions Tukur, Nyako on Adamawa crisis From Gbade Ogunwale, Assistant Editor, Abuja

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HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has endorsed the recommendation of a truce committee asking its national Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur and Adamawa State Governor Murtala Nyako to sheath their swords in the festering Adamawa PDP crisis.

The committee, headed by Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido blamed Tukur and Nyako for the escalation of the crisis.

The crisis erupted as a result of disagreement between the national chairman and the Adamawa Governor. The two chieftains were said to be scheming to position their children for the Adamawa governorship race ahead of the 2015 election.

A statement by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh yesterday said the leadership of the party agreed with the Lamido committee’s position.

The party said the committee recommended that the existing Executive Committees at the ward and local government levels should remain as contained in the NWC ratification of 29th August, 2012.

CAC to stop ‘baby’ directors

By Toba Agboola and Tolu Osundolire

T •Kaduna State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Saidu Adamu (left); Project Director, Democratic Governance Development (DGD) Project II, UNDP, Dr. Deme Mourtada and Director General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Mike Omeri, at the Essential Forum of NOA Peace Project, held in Abuja...at the weekend.

Four more suspected Arepo pipeline vandals arraigned for murder

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HE Police yesterday arraigned four more suspected pipeline vandals who allegedly shot and killed three Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) engineers at Arepo in Ogun State last year.

They were charged with seven counts of vandalism and murder before Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court, Lagos.

The defendants – Jigo Jiperende (31), Timi Koro (29), Johnbosco Igbhofose (26) and Peter Opidi (28) pleaded not guilty.

The four brings the number of those arraigned in connection with the crime to 10, six others having been earlier arraigned in November last year.

The others are Joel Inerepamu (25), Reuben Oluwole (60), John Isaiah (28), Ineye Okposa (40), Timi Gunugunu (22), and Olisa Saheed (25), who also pleaded not guilty.

The police said the defendants committed the alleged of-

By Joseph Jibueze

fence on September 5 last year.

The prosecutor, Justin Enang, said they had conspired at about 6p.m, to vandalise an oil pipeline located in the Arepo vicinity, and scooped out large quantities of petroleum for illegal sale.

He alleged that on sighting the NNPC engineers assigned to service pipelines in the area, the suspects who were armed with guns, opened fire, killing three of the engineers.

The alleged offences contravene the provisions of Sections 3(6), 7(a), 7(b), and 17(a) of the Miscellanous Offence Act, Cap M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

The offence of murder contravenes Section 319 of the Criminal Code, Cap C 38, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

Justice Idris ordered that they be remanded in prison custody and adjourned till May 17 for trial.

HE Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has said that it wouldno longer tolerate the use of infants as members of Board of Directors of companies. The commission also said it would ensure that unfit companies or fraudulent people are not registered.

Its Chairman, Board of Director, Otunba Funso Lawal said the agency is aware that some companies are fond of placing an infant on the Board. He said such plan will not be accepted.

It was at a stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos.

Lawal said:“We plan to stop the usage of infant as part of Board of Directors of a company. We want ensure transparency and openness. In order word, anybody that want to register must submit two current passports and other documents.

“We are also aware that some unscrupulous people want to register a company so as to be able to perpetrate their evil plan.

National Theatre: House subpoena minister over concession

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HE House of Representatives Committee on Culture and Tourism has subpoenaed the Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Mr. Edem Duke, over the alleged concession of the National Theatre land.

The Minister has today to appear before the committee or risk sanctions.

The summons was contained in a letter to the Minister by the House Committee against the backdrop of the controversy trailing the alleged plans to concede National Theatre to a hotel investor.

The letter, signed by the committee’s Deputy Chairman Abdul-Malik D. Usman,

•House angry with Minister for shunning committee From Yusuf Alli, Managing Editor, Northern Operation, Abuja

reads in part: “You would recall that, the Committee on the 5th of April, 2013 invited you for an interface scheduled for 18th April, 2013 but your Permanent Secretary requested for a shift in date via the letter dated 15th April, 2013”Your request was granted and in our letter dated 17th April, 2013 the meeting was rescheduled to 25th April, 2013.

“To the surprise and embarrassment of the Committee, neither you nor any one from your office was present on the day and the documents re-

quested of you concerning the Concessioning of the said Land were also not made available.”Pursuant to this, the Committee hereby resolved at its meeting of 25th April, 2013 in accordance to Section 89 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended to compel your attendance in order to ensure that the work of the Committee on behalf of the people of Nigeria is not hindered. ”You are hereby by this subpoena requested to appear before it on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 in Meeting Room 244 by 1.00pm to brief it on the Concessioning of the National

Theatre Land, Lagos.”Again, you are to produce 40 copies of documents related to or in relation with the subject matter as requested in our letter dated 5th April, 2013.”Worried by the controversy over National Theatre, the House had earlier asked the Minister to stay further action on the matter.The theatre was inaugurated on September 30, 1976 by the then Military Head of State, General Olusegun Obasanjo.

It was opened five months before the hosting of the 2nd World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC ’77) in January/February 1977.

A brief from Wikipedia on the National Arts Theatre reads: “Acknowledged as an architectural masterpiece and a cultural landmark, the complex covers an area of about 23,000 square meters and standing well over 31meters tall.

“The multipurpose National Theatre was established for the preservation, presentation and promotion of arts and culture in Nigeria. Although, the idea for a National Theatre was initiated by the Gowon Administration, hosting the World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture in 1977 (FESTAC ’77) was the catalyst for the birth of the monument.

The concrete arrangements

•Duke

for its establishment started in 1973 when the Federal Government appointed a 29member.

Theatre Consultative Committee to advise on the concept and organizational structure of a theatre.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

NEWS

•Chairman, Nigeria Medical Association (NMA). Lagos State, Dr Faduyile Francis (left); former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (middle); National President, NMA, Dr Osahon Enabulele (right) and NMA members when they visited Tinubu’s Freedom House office on Victoria Island, Lagos...yesterday

Atiku decries militarisation of democracy F ORMER Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has said despite the end of military rule over a decade ago, the culture of political intolerance and impunity still pervades the country.

Atiku spoke on Monday in Switzerland as a guest speaker of the Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations.

He regretted that in Nigeria and other parts of Africa’s opposition members are treated as enemies of the state.

In his paper, entitled: Deepening Democracy in Nigeria: Implications for Africa, the former Vice-President noted that as a result of lip service to democratic principles, “disregard for rules and regulations and the utter impunity with which they are committed” has led to what he called “the militarisation of democracy”.

According to him, many retired military chiefs, who came into power as politicians entered the democratic arena without being able to shed their military mindsets, thereby exacerbating the culture of intolerance and entrenching impunity, which characterises today’s political reality in Nigeria.

The former Vice-President admitted that despite the democratic challenges, the freedom of speech, association, the right to organise politically and the liberty to criticise the government were restored with the return of democratic rule.

Atiku also acknowledged that with the new democratic order in Nigeria, the nation’s courts have become more relatively independent, besides the freedom of the press that came with it.

But he regretted that demo-

cratic gains are being threatened by the persistent perception of political opposition as an enemy that has to be crushed “rather than patriots who happen to disagree simply because they hold different political views”.

Atiku noted that members of the ruling parties, who oppose lack of internal democracy or abuse of power by those occupying executive political offices are either repressed and harassed, thereby undermining the institutions of democracy.

He argued that Nigeria’s economic growth of 6.5 per cent is far below what is required to “quickly lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty once and for all”.

The former Vice-President admitted that poor leadership is to blame for the problems he highlighted.

On democracy, Atiku urged Western democratic nations to play more active and deeper role in helping Nigeria with credible elections.

He urged Switzerland and other Western nations to go beyond economic investments and exert political pressure on local leaders to “open up the political space”.

We haven’t rejected APC merger bid, says INEC

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HE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday said it has not rejected the merger plan of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In a statement in Abuja by its spokesman, Kayode Idowu, the commission said it remains impartial in regulating the nation’s electoral process.

The statement reads: “The attention of the INEC has been drawn to reports in some

newspapers today, Monday, April 29, 2013, that it has rejected a bid by some political parties to merge as the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“This is to affirm that the reports in the Nigerian Tribune and the Daily Champion are utterly false. The commission has not written to stop APC’s merger bid.

“The commission, in a letter by its Secretary, dated April 23, only declined an application

by another association seeking to register as the All Progressives Congress of Nigeria (APCN), for the reason that the acronym proposed by the association is similar to that of another already seeking registration.

“The commission hereby reassures Nigerians that it will always do the right thing as a dispassionate and impartial regulator of the political process.”

Aregbesola urges Fed Govt to activate emergency SUN State Governor all that we have spent to hundreds of millions of naira call centres low Rauf Aregbesola and go down the drain. They expended on building the fa-

O

the state chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) have urged the media to prevail on the Federal Government to activate the emergency call centres his administration built to rescue people in dire security situations across the state.

The governor, who made the appeal in Osogbo, the state capital, alleged that the Federal Government was frustrating his administration’s good intention to secure the state with the emergency centres.

He said: “We have been asking the regulatory body, the

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From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

National Communication Commission (NCC), since last year, to make us operate the centres to help victims in security situations without any success. The body said we could not operate because it is a federal matter. We also asked them to activate the one the Federal Government built for the state; they refused.

“Please, help us to beg the Federal Government to do something in the interest of the security of life and property in our state. They should not al-

should make the one we built or theirs work in the interest of the people. They have a responsibility to the people.

Please help us to beg them.”

The Osun ACN, in a statement by its Director of Publicity, Research and Strategy, Kunle Oyatomi, said the Federal Government should act fast in the interest of the people.

It urged well-meaning Nigerians to join the appeal to the Federal Government to activate the emergency call centres, adding that the security of life and property as well as

cilities must be considered.

It said: “These call centres could be contacted by any cell phone by just dialing 122 to intimate security forces on emergency situations wherever they occur.

“We cannot understand why such strategic facilities exist in states and the Federal Government cannot activate them to help manage the parlous security situation in the country. The country’s security situation will improve significantly if the public could access the security personnel through the emergency call centres.”

Falana: Bauchi Assembly member’s suspension illegal

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BAUCHI High Court, presided over by the State Chief Judge, Justice Ibrahim Zango, yesterday heard that any rule or law made by a House of Assembly which violates any Nigerian law and the 1999 Constitution, as amended, is illegal, null and void.

Mr Femi Falana (SAN), counsel to the suspended member of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, Rifkatu Samson Danna, representing Bogoro Constituency, spoke in Bauchi in an address supporting an originating summons in a suit filed by the lawmaker against the Speaker and the Assembly.

The frontline lawyer, in a five-point written address before the Bauchi High Court, averred that Mrs Danna, on February 7, last year, had likened the relocation of Tafawa Balewa Local Government’s headquarters from Tafawa Balewa town to Bununu, to a Constitution amendment.

According to him, the Assembly faulted the lawmaker as using a derogatory language and consequently suspended her.

Mrs Danna noted that the quick unanimous decision of the other members of the Assembly on the motion for the relocation of the council headquarters might have taken place outside the floor of the House.

She alleged that no debates were allowed on the matter, unlike the normal practice of the Assembly.

The other lawmakers, Falana said, claimed that Mrs Danna’s contribution was derogatory and, therefore, ordered the House Committee on Anti-Corruption, Ethics and Privileges to investigate her.

Her oral and written apologies were rejected and she was given an indefinite suspension.

Among other prayers, Mrs Danna is challenging the legal validity of her indefinite suspension from the Assembly and demanding her reinstate-

From Austine Tsenzughul, Bauchi

ment with the restoration of her rights and privileges as a member of the Assembly.

She told the court that her indefinite suspension as a member of the Bauchi Assembly, through a letter dated June 7, last year, for expressing a divergent opinion, is a violation of her fundamental right to freedom of expression guaranteed by Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (Cap. A9), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

Falana said: “From the indisputable facts, it is undoubtedly clear that the Bogoro Constituency committed no parliamentary or Constitutional wrong and was not accused of violating any particular law or provision of the Standing Order of the House. So, there was no basis to have subjected her to an investigation and punish her by an indefinite suspension. Her fundamental rights to fair hearing are contained in Section 36(1) of the Constitution and Article 7 of African Charter on Haman and Peoples Rights.”

Justice Zango adjourned further hearing in the matter till May 30.

Mrs Danna’s letter of indefinite suspension said the Assembly premised its action on the fact that her apology “did not satisfy the recommendations of the Ethics and Privileges Committee” though it was clear that she did not offend the Assembly.

Falana said this was an indication that her rights were violated.

Quoting several legal authorities, the senior lawyer averred that the suspended lawmaker was sanctioned for an offence unknown to law.

He described the defendants’ action as illegal and unconstitutional.

Al-Mustapha: State’s application stalls hearing of appeal

AGOS State Government’s application for an extension of time yesterday stalled the hearing in the appeal by Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, the former Chief Security Officer (CSO) to the late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, as well as Alhaji Lateef Shofolahan, an aide to the late business mogul, Bashorun Moshood Abiola.

Both men are appealing a death sentence passed on them

by Justice Mojisola Dada of a Lagos High Court for the murder of the late Abiola’s wife, Alhaja Kudirat.

Counsel to the state government, Femi Adamson, told the

By Precious Igbonwelundu

Court of Appeal, presided over by Justice Chuma Nweze, that the application was to enable the state government file its respondent’s brief of argument.

He, however, apologised for the late filing, adding that it was caused by some hitches beyond his control.

Although counsel to Al-Mustapha, Mr Joseph Daudu (SAN) and Shofolahan’s lawyer, Olalekan Ojo, did not object the application, they expressed displeasure over the development.

The court held that the attitude of the Lagos State Government to the hearing of the appeal was not encouraging.

Justice Nweze said: “Gentlemen, as you can see, it is not the fault of the court not to hear the appeal. The counsel should desist from the attitude of filing applications late in any case.”

Granting the application, Justice Nweze ordered the state counsel to serve Ojo the respondent’s brief of argument, having served Daudu.

He adjourned hearing of the appeal till May 30.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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NEWS

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HE Oyo State Government and authorities of the University of Ibadan (UI) have urged stakeholders and philanthropists to invest in education.

They spoke yesterday at the inauguration of the multi-million naira Adebayo Akande Hall, which was built under the Public/Private Partnership (PPP) initiative.

The 120-room hall was built in partnership with the Agbaakin of Ibadanland, Chief Adebayo Akande.

Governor Abiola Ajimobi said: “God rules the world by laws. Those who work hard get results. Nigerians should work hard. What you are seeing today is the result of hard work.

There is need for well-meaning Nigerians to partner the state government and the university to improve the education sector.

“Let us all work for the progress and development of Oyo State. Chief Akande has left an indelible mark by providing an enabling environment for education to thrive.

“You make a living by what you get and you make a life by what you give. For me, Chief Akande must be commended. He is a trail blazer and accomplished entrepreneur. When you see him, he is simply-dressed, but elegantly attired.

“Those who succeed in life have three things. They are hardworking, tenacious and they take people to where they ought to be. These are the attributes of great leaders. You have demonstrated the qualities of a good leader. If not, you would not have had the courage to invest and make UI and Ibadan proud. You have epitomised what PPP should be.”

UI’s Vice-Chancellor Prof. Isaac Adewole said education requires the concerted efforts of all stakeholders.

He said: “We thank Chief Akande for giving succour to those in need.

.Ajimobi (second left) inaugurating the hall...yesterday. With him are Adewole (left), Akande (right) and his wife, Nike.

Ajimobi, UI advocate public/private partnership in education We are growing with this partnership.

The challenges we had at inception are not the challenges we have today.

The number of students increases daily and this initiative is coming at the right time. The importance of today’s event is that it is the first PPP of any sort in this university.”

Thanking Prof. Olubamiro for fa-

Ogun to replace demolished shops with malls From Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

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HE Ogun State Government yesterday assured traders, whose shops were demolished to give way for road expansion, that malls would be built for them.

Governor Ibikunle Amosun spoke at a meeting with the representatives of traders and landlords in Abeokuta, the state capital, whose buildings were demolished.

He said when the malls are built, those whose shops were demolished would be settled before other people are considered.

Amosun said: “We are going to build modern shopping malls with facilities befitting the Ogun State of our dream. The shopping malls will be ready before the Ileya and Christmas festivals this year.

“Everyone affected by the demolition will be compensated in due course.

When the malls are ready and we give u shops, we will give you six months free usage and negotiate how you will be paying later.”

Soliciting the people’s support, he urged them to be patient as the government strives to fulfil its promises to them.

He said private developers are welcome to build shops, but they must get the government’s approval and follow its specifications.

‘Promotion’ll be performance-based’ From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

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HE Osun State Head of Service, Mr. Sunday Olayinka Owoeye, yesterday said the promotion of workers will be performance-based.

He spoke during the quarterly ministerial press conference of the Ministry of Information and Strategy.

Owoeye said the Senior Management Services Department in his office was working out modalities for the implementation of the new promotion policy.

He said since the inception of the Governor Rauf Aregbesola administration, workers have been promoted regularly and salary paid promptly.

Owoeye said leave bonus is now paid based on the date of birth of workers.

He hailed the governor for increasing the vehicle refurbishing and housing loans to workers as well as paying the backlog of gratuity for teachers up to September, 2010 and Civil Servants up to December, 2010.

Owoeye urged workers to reciprocate the government’s gesture by being more dedicated to their duties. He said persons who retired from the state the public service last December, who have completed their retirement papers, would be paid their gratuity at the end of this month.

The HoS said the money released by the government would be equitably dispensed to retirees who have gotten their letters of authority. He said the Office of the Accountant-General was working out modalities for sharing the amount released.

Owoeye urged pensioners to be considerate and bear with the government in fund management, rather than give the released money to only a few.

cilitating the partnership, he said: “We want to see an Olubadan Hall in UI. If a businessman can do this for us, other Ibadan sons can do more.

This is a world-class facility. Do not be tired of us.”

Akande thanked Allah for the success of the project, saying: “Yesterday is history. Today is our responsi-

T

By Adebisi Onanuga

Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ikeja branch.

Justice Phillips said: “We learn new things every day. As new laws evolve, we have to evolve with it. Otherwise, you will be left behind and you will become a useless practitioner. We have to be abreast of new developments in law and in the world.”

Hailing the inclusion Lagos High

Ajadi; former Chairman, Punch Nigeria Limited, Chief Ajibola Ogunshola; Mr. Tayo Sarunmi; Mr. Bamidele Aiku (SAN); Chief Akin Olajide; the Chief of Staff, Dr. Adeolu Akande; the Head of Service, Alhaji Tajudeen Aremu and top government officials.

Ibadan demolition victims seek compensation

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BOUT 250 persons, whose homes were demolished or marked for demolition following the August, 2011, floods in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, have urged Governor Abiola Ajimobi to compensate them.

Their representatives, Maj. R. O. A. Salawu (rtd); Alhaji Azeez Adeyemo; Oloye Isiaka Salaudeen; Alhaji Fatai Akere and Alhaja Kudiratu Ogun made the appeal in a statement yesterday after their meeting in Ibadan.

They said they were not compensated.

After the August, 2011, floods, the government ordered the demolition of buildings obstructing the waterways to prevent a recurrence.

The victims said: “Our suffering is enormous. Some of us are homeless and are roaming the streets like luna-

From Oseheye Okwuofu, Ibadan

tics. Others are living in the remaining parts of their dilapidating buildings. Some have died as a result of devastation and deprivation, while others are bed-ridden.”

“Before the demolition, we engaged the services of J. A. Oluyinka Awomolo & Co. as our attorney to claim our rights and entitlements for us, but we are dismayed that uptil now, the government has paid us a dime, despite the governor’s promise to compensate us when he spoke with us at Agbowo.

“This is not the first time government would compensate its citizens.

During the Ogunpa channelisation project, construction of the MokolaOojo road and the Ibadan-Ilorin road project, everyone whose property was pulled down was compensated ad-

equately and promptly.

“Our case has been presented to the state government, why has the governor refused to look into it? We learnt that similarly affected claimants in neighbouring states have been compensated by their state governments.

“But we are yet to receive a kobo, despite the huge relief funds donated by philanthropists and international organisations.”

Chief J. A. O. Awomolo, the principal partner of J. A. Oluyinka Awomolo & Co., said the case of the victims had been presented to the government with the necessary documents and proofs.

He said: “This chamber has done its bit. It is left to the government to act accordingly. Of what use or justification are the donations in respect of the ecological problems, if those whose homes were demolished or marked for demolition are not compensated?”

Lagos Assembly passes vote-of-confidence in leadership

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AGOS State lawmakers have passed a vote-of-confidence in the leadership of the House of Assembly, headed by Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji.

The motion for the vote was moved at plenary yesterday under matters of urgent public importance by Mr. Yinka Ogundimu (Agege Constituency 2) and seconded by Mr. Suuru Avoseh Hodewu (Badagry Constituency 2).

Ogundimu hailed the House leadership’s conduct since the trial of the Speaker by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) began, despite “the ploys of the prosecution to delay the case and attempts by forces behind the case to blackmail the House”.

Lagos CJ urges lawyers to be current HE Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Ayotunde Phillips, has advised lawyers to continue to develop themselves.

Justice Phillips said a lawyer could become useless, if he fails to develop himself.

She spoke yesterday while opening a two-day workshop on “Entrenching Versatility in Legal Practice”, organised for lawyers by the Continuous Legal Education Committee of the

bility to leave the society better than we met it. If that is my contribution to the society, I think I will do it again and again.”

Dignitaries at the occasion include the Representative of the Olubadan, Chief Omowale Kuye, the Otun Olubadan; Prof. Akin Mabogunje; Chief Bode Amoo; Alhaji Lamidi

Court judges as resource persons in the workshop, she said it was good for “cross-fertilisation of ideas”.

Justice Phillip said: “It shows that you have confidence in my judges and in this judiciary.”

NBA Chairman, Ikeja branch, Mr. Monday Ubani said it would be difficult for any lawyer to be successful in the practice, if one does not keep himself abreast of developments around him.

By Oziegbe Okoeki

He said: “From the pronouncement of the Judge, Justice Okechukwu Okeke, at the last hearing before the case was adjourned indefinitely, it is clear that there are unseen forces behind the case, who are causing the delay in the proceedings and resorting to blackmail to achieve a sinister motive.”

The judge said “the case has witnessed an unprecedented delay by the prosecution and tactics set by persons to blackmail this court”.

Ogundimu described the “deliberate delay in proceedings by the prosecution” as an abuse of the judicial process and a ploy by detractors to slow down and frustrate the activities of the House.

He said: “Despite efforts by the court to accelerate the hearing of the case, it has been frustrated by the prosecution.

It has been a deliberate effort to slow down the activities of the House. I hail the leadership of the House for the mature way it has handled the matter, refusing to be blackmailed or slow down the activities of the House.

“Despite the frustration and delay, the House leadership ensured that the work and proceedings of the House did not suffe, as the House is not lagging behind in its activities.”

Supporting his colleague, Mr. Mufutau Egberongbe (Apapa Constitu-

ency 1) said: “We should be careful as a nation. The judiciary remains the hope of the common man and, if judges are being hunted, then the nation is in trouble.”

Egberongbe called for a reform in the judiciary to provide for a time frame within which cases are dispensed with and also to halt a situation where cases have to start afresh when transferred to another judge “because it is not tidy for development and democracy”.

Mr. Rotimi Olowo (Somolu Constituency 1) praised the judge for doing everything possible to accelerate proceedings and for his pronouncement at the last sitting.

He hailed the House and the leadership for standing firm to ensure justice is done.

Mr. Mudashiru Obasa (Agege Constituency 1) said: “The matter has become a political issue and as politicians, we have to address the political aspect.

The genesis of the case shows that there are interested parties, who for political reasons, chose to delay the case to pursue their political interests.”

After the motion for a vote-of-confidence in the House leadership was moved and seconded, the Deputy Speaker, Mr. Kolawole Taiwo, put the motion to vote and it was unanimously upheld.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

NEWS 45 years for man who stole Aregbesola’s phone From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

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STATE High Court in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, yesterday sentenced a 31-year-old man, Kelvin Igha Igbodalo, to 45 years imprisonment for stealing Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s Sony Ericson mobile phone, impersonation and fraud.

The convict stole the phone, valued at N50,000, during Aregbesola’s swearing-in ceremony in November, 2010.

Igbodalo, who was arraigned on a six-count charge of conspiracy, obtaining by false pretence, stealing, impersonation and advance free fraud, pleaded guilty.

The prosecutor, Mr. Biodun Badiora, said on May 24, 2011, Igbodalo and others, now at large, impersonated the governor and used his phone to defraud the Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, Oba Gabriel Aromolaran, of N500,000.

Badiora said Igbodalo earlier served a six-year-jail term in Ikoyi for his involvement in a murder.

He said Igbodalo also defrauded Mr. Shenge Rahman of N200,000.

The defence counsel, Mr. Amaechi Ngwu, urged the court to be lenient with his client.

Justice Jide Falola sentenced Igbodalo to 10 years in prison for each of the first three charges and five years each for the last three counts.

The terms will run concurrently without an option of fine.

This means Igbodalo will spend 10 years in jail.

Three men arraigned for ‘terrorism’

By Adebisi Onanuga

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HREE men were yesterday arraigned before a Chief Magistrate’s Court in Ikeja, Lagos, for alleged terrorism and possession of explosive substance.

They are Ebenezer Akinbolade (45), John Damilola (30) and Tolulope Vincent (30.

Police prosecutor Barth Nwaokoye said on April 13, the accused, armed with explosives, attempted to harm Alhaji Adewale Nurudeen, whom they had business with, around 2:15pm at Emco Guest House on Yetkem road, Lagos.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the three-count charge.

The Chief Magistrate, Mrs. A. Demi-Ajayi, granted the defendants N1 million bail each with two sureties in like sum.

She adjourned the case till June 5.

PUBLIC NOTICE

CAVEAT

ODEBIYI I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Odebiyi Olayinka Folashade now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Lawal Olayinka Folashade. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

This is to inform the general public that the property situated along Alhaji Jamiu Eletu Street, Awoyaya, Ibeju-Lekki Local Government, Lagos State, belongs to Mr. Alexander Azukaego Nwokolo(C/o of Overflow Properties & Investment Limited of No. 60 Oguntolu Street, Shomolu, Lagos).

Whoever transacts any business on same does so at his own risk.

•Fayemi (in brown on the front row) with Course 35 participants of the Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS)...yesterday.

Mentorship has been bastardised, says Fayemi E KITI State Governor Kayode Fayemi has said the programmes of his administration are based on the people’s needs.

He said he has no political godfather, who sets the tone of governance.

Fayemi spoke yesterday in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, while hosting participants of the Course 35 of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, who are in the state on a study tour.

He said he has mentors and not godfathers.

The governor said it was impossible for him to impose the will of a godfather on Ekiti people, who are known for their intelligence.

His words: “I do not think we should denigrate mentorship. Mentorship in politics has been bastardised, but we do not suffer any problem of godfatherism because it cannot succeed in this state.

“Everybody in Ekiti is a governor and has a sense of how government should work. Ekiti people are my

•’The people’s needs determine our programmes’ godfathers because they send me text messages everyday on what they want done and that is exactly what I do because we run a participatory government.”

Fayemi said if he had got into office through manipulations or godfatherism, it was unlikely that he would respect the wishes of the ordinary citizens.

He said a credible system would produce good governance and stressed the need to demystify political offices to bring the government closer to the people.

The governor said the nation’s democracy is fragile because citizens are not carried along in decision-making and they have deserted the country, leaving it in the hands of charlatans.

He stressed the importance

of investing power in the people, adding that it is the only way to rid the country of bad governance.

On Ekiti’s politics, Fayemi said he had no reason to play bitter politics, adding that all the political actors were his kinsmen, who share in the homogeneity of the state.

He said he was not interested in leaving behind a legacy of insensitivity and brigandage, which characterised previous administrations.

The governor said if he did not resort to violence while trying to reclaim his mandate in court, there was no reason for any political “element” to heat up the polity now that the state is enjoying relative peace.

Highlighting the programmes of his adminis-

tration, Fayemi said the essence of any transformational agenda was to make the majority of people in the society happy.

Fayemi said regulatory frameworks are needed for the agenda to serve the needs of the majority and meet their expectations.

He said his administration has been fair and has not interfered with other arms of government.

The governor said he has always supported local and international capacity-building programmes.

The leader of the NIPPS course participants, Prof. Aja Akpuru-Aja, said the team was not in the state for faultfinding, but fact-finding, so that state governments can develop their own templates of development and move in the same direction with the Federal Government to achieve the vision 20:2020 goals.

Aja said to achieve the goals, Nigeria needs to invest more in infrastructure, human capital development and security.

Lagos defends new Lekki bridge/tollgate

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HE Lagos State Government has defended the ongoing construction of a bridge with a tollgate over the Lekki Lagoon.

It was rumoured that motorists may have to pay N500 every time they use the bridge.

The state said no law in Nigeria compels it to always provide roads and other public infrastructure “free-ofcharge”, adding that it does not intend to make profit from the fee.

The government said the Lagos and Lekki Lagoon, across which the bridge is being built, falls within the Inland Waterways and its regulation “has always been within the executive and legislative control of the state government”.

PUBLIC NOTICE THIS IS TO INFOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC THAT THE CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY NO 85/85/ 2002D DATED 30TH DAY OF APRIL 2002 FOR THE LANDED PROPERTY ALONG AYONUGA STREET/AIYETORO STREET,FADEYI IN MUSHIN AREA OF LAGOS STATE, BELONG TO MR BABATUNDE DAVID OJO AND ABOSEDE AMOPE OJA IS MISSING ALL EFFORT TO TRACE PROVED ABORTIVE.GENERAL PUBLIC TAKE NOTE

•N500 toll fee excessive, says lawyer

By Joseph Jibueze

It said as a responsible government, it has an obligation to address the perennial traffic problems in the LekkiIkoyi axis.

The government said: “Many of such projects are required on the Lekki-Epe axis to make life easier for residents and the government’s resources are overstretched.”

It said the inclusion of the toll option was to enable the state pay back the construction cost, maintain the roads and replicate the project in other parts of the state.

These were contained in a counter affidavit by the state in response to a suit filed by activist lawyer Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa.

Adegboruwa sued the state at the Federal High Court, Lagos, for “attempted imposition of toll fee on the Lekki Admiralty-Ikoyi Suspension Bridge”.

The lawyer sought a declaration that under the National Inland Waterways Authority Act; the 1999 Constitution; the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and other prevailing statutes, the state government is not conferred with jurisdiction, authority or

power of control or management over any federal navigable waterways in Nigeria and, in particular, the Lagos and Lekki Lagoon, as to entitle it to impose toll fee.

He urged the court to hold, among others, that the collection of tolls or any other fee on any road from him and other citizens of Nigeria constitute a contravention of their fundamental right to free movement.

The lawyer said the imposition of N500 per trip per vehicle for an indeterminate period of time “is arbitrary, exploitive, oppressive, inhuman and callous in the circumstances of the economy of Nigeria and is therefore illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.”

Adegboruwa said the government did not carry him and other Lagosians along or consult them in the process leading to the proposed imposition of the levy, and that most people who live and work within the Lekki and Ikoyi axis, including him, are opposed to the levy.

He sought an injunction restraining the defendants – the Attorney-General of the Federation, the National Inland Waterways Authority, the Lagos State Government and

the state Attorney-General – from collecting any form of payment from the applicant and any other citizen of Nigeria for the use of any part or portion of the AdmiraltyIkoyi Suspension Bridge.

Parties in the suit adopted their briefs yesterday after arguments. The state filed a Notice of Preliminary Objection.

Lagos, represented by the Attorney-General, Mr. Ade Ipaye, contended that Section 315 (1) (b) of the 1999 Constitution empowers the House of Assembly to modify a federal enactment.

Ipaye said the government has not decided whether to toll the bridge, the amount to be paid or the category of users to be charged as the bridge is still under construction.

The lawyer said Adegboruwa is not compelled to commute across the bridge as he has always made the journey without it.

He said: “Besides, there are alternative routes to Lekki and Ikoyi. In the circumstance, the applicant has no cause of action, as his case is premature and inchoate.”

Ipaye said the suit was wrongly filed and urged the court to dismiss it.

Justice Seidu adjourned till July 9.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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NEWS Jonathan has no hand in Amaechi’s challenges, says presidential aide

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HE Presidency yesterday broke its silence on the feud between Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi and Minister of State for Education, Nyesom Wike.

“Neither President Goodluck Jonathan nor the Presidency has a hand in the current challenges facing Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi,” the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Alhaji Ahmed Gulak, said yesterday.

He also told reporters in Abuja that the President has not said he would probe former President Olusegun Obasanjo or any of the ministers that served under him.

According to him, Dr Jonathan has maintained that no minister has his authorisation to canvass for votes for him or to tell Nigerians whether or not he will seek a re-election in 2015.

Gulak also reacted to a statement credited to the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, at a cer-

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

emony in Oyo State, where she reportedly canvassed for votes for Dr Jonathan ahead of the 2015elections.

The presidential aide said the minister was not in a position to represent the opinion of the President.

He said: “We have said it before that whether or not Mr. President will contest in 2015 will be unveiled to Nigerians in 2014. Whatever anybody is saying or doing is on his own.”

Contrary to speculations, the Special Adviser said his principal was not keen on who becomes the next Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF).

Gulak said: “Mr. President is ready to work with any chairman of the NGF. The President is a constitutional organ while the NGF is not a constitutional organ. If you are talking of the National Economic Council (NCC), where all the governors are mem-

bers, you can say the body can relate with the President, because it is a constitutional organ.

“As far as Mr. President is concerned, the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) is not a constitutional organ. The body cannot pursue certain things as the President is at liberty to listen to their advice.

“So, why should Mr. President care about them? He does not care about who becomes the chairman of NGF.” On the grounding of Amaechi’s aircraft, Gulak said the matter has nothing to do with any witch-hunting but that it is about obedience to laid-down rules.

He said: “If you are a governor and you are flying a private jet, you must do it within the extant laws. There are laws governing the use of private jets in this country and the world over. The fact that you are a governor does not give you the licence to flout the laws governing your country.

“Nigerians should be told in clear terms that no gover-

19 die in Niger, Katsina road accidents •PHCN worker electrocuted in Minna From Jide Orintunsin, Minna

N •Jonathan

nor is above the law. The fact that you have immunity does not mean you should flout the law the way you want.”

The presidential aide said there is nothing wrong with a probe, adding that it is an examination of what is happening or what has happened.

Gulak denied any move by the Federal Government to probe former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration.

According to him, the administration does not see anything wrong with the National Assembly nvestigating various sectors of governance in line with its oversight function.

Baga: Some displaced persons still in the bush, says NEMA

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HE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) yesterday said some displaced persons in the recent Baga crisis in Borno State are still hiding in the bush.

A statement by Mr Abdulkadir Ibrahim, the NEMA Information Officer for the Northeast in Yola, the Ad-

amawa State capital, noted that despite the return of normalcy in Baga town, most of the displaced persons are still scattered in the bush.

“Other people are taking refuge in the homes of their relations in the neighbouring communities,” it said.

The statement explained

that humanitarian workers, led by the agency, have begun the distribution of relief items to displaced persons.

It added: “This is in line with President Goodluck Jonathan’s directive to the agency that immediate relief materials should be given to the people.

“The Director-General of

NEMA, Muhammad Sani Sidi, had despatched a team of officers with the relief and medical items to affected persons in the area.”

NEMA’s Director, Search and Rescue, Air Commodore Charles Otebagde, expressed concerns about the people still hiding in the bush.

INETEEN people died at the weekend in road accidents in Niger and Katsina states.

In Niger State, the dead include a Superintendent of Police (SP), Benjamin Ofulue, and 11 others. They died at Kompani Dorowa on the Minna-Suleja Road in Niger State.

Ofufule was the Officer-in-Charge of Transport and Workshop at the Niger State Police Command.

The accident, which occurred on Sunday morning, involved a Minna-bound commercial Volkswagen Sharon station wagon car from Abuja and an 18-seater Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Sports Council Hiace bus. They had a head-on collision at 7am.

The police officer, a juvenile and seven other passengers died on the spot.

Police spokesman Richard Oguche, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), said all the occupants of the Volkswagen car died. The driver and some passengers in the 18-seater Toyota Hiace bus also died.

Oguche said the bodies of the accident victims had been deposited at the Minna General Hospital’s mortuary for identification.

The police spokesman said Ofulule was returning to work after visiting his family in Abuja at the weekend.

A casual worker with the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), Habibu Isah, was electrocuted, also at the weekend, at Maikukule, a suburb of Minna, the state capital.

The electricity worker was reportedly electrocuted on Saturday following a sudden restoration of power when he was rectifying a fault on a high tension line.

He was said to have begun the repairs when there was an outage. However, while on the job power was restored.

The body of the electricity worker hung on the pole.

Oguche blamed the electrocution on Isah’s alleged negligence.

He said the victim did not take the necessary safety precaution by wearing rubber hand gloves before starting the repairs on a high-tension line.

A motor accident has killed a family of seven on the KatsinaKano Road in Rimi Local Government Area of Katsina State.

Police spokesman Aminu Sadiq, a Deputy Superintended of Police (DSP), told reporters that the accident occurred at 8pm on Saturday at Lambar-Rimi town.

Sadiq explained that the accident occurred when a Peugeot car from Katsina and a Honda Civic car from Kano had a headon collision.

Tunde Savage dies at 66

I didn’t know I’d be chosen, says Taraba Speaker

T

T

ARABA State House of Assembly’s new Speaker Haruna Tsokwa has said he had no idea he would replace his impeached colleague, Istifanus Haruna Gbana.

Tsokwa spoke yesterday in his office in Jalingo, the state capital.

He said: “It is God that has chosen me. I didn’t know I was going to be chosen. I didn’t even think of it.

“There are many other good members too, but God’s favour located and shone on me for my colleagues to vote me as the

•Tsokwa From Fanen Ihyongo, Jalingo

Speaker.”

Gbana, his deputy as well as the former Majority Leader were removed on April 22 by the House for alleged “gross misconduct”.

Tsokwa said he would work hard for the House to ensure good governance.

HE death has been announced of former entertainment czar, Mr. Babatunde Idowu Savage.

He was, for several years, responsible for oganising the popular “Miss Nigeria” pageant.

According to family sources, Mr. Savage died at the St. Nicholas Hospital, Lagos, last Friday, after a brief illness. He was 66.

The ebullient Savage, who, as General Manager of Times Leisure Services, a Division of the Daily Times of Nigeria Plc, supervised the “Miss Nigeria” pageant, became the driving force behind the annual event.

Popularly called TS, the late entertainment executive, was until his death the chairman and Chief Executive of Tukod Associates Limited and TUTASASA Limited.

He is survived by his wife, Lola, and children, Mrs. Yetunde Agoro, Mr. Babalola Savage and Mrs. Bidemi Olorunfemi. Funeral arrangements will be announced by the family.

•The late Savage

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

11

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net

Following the approval of Federal Executive Council, we have concluded arrangements to commence the construction of not just one, but five brand new world class international airport terminal.

- Ms Stella Oduah, Minister of Aviation

Notore , foreign firm to build 500MW plant

Glo, ZTE sign $500m upgrade agreement

By Toba Agboola

N

OTORE Power Lim ited (Notore Power), an indigenous independent power producer (IPP), has just signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ContourGlobal to develop, construct, finance and operate a gasfired power station. The plant would have an available capacity of 500 MW at its existing facility at the Notore Industrial Complex in Onne, Rivers State, Nigeria.

The plan is to sell the electricity generated by the plant to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading PLC. The signing took place in Abuja.

ContourGlobal is an international power generation company with power generating assets of more than 3000 MW in operations or under construction in 15 countries on four continents.

Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Notore Power , Mr Femi Solebo, expressed delight at the official commencement of the project through the signing ceremony.

He said: “We are delighted at today’s event. This marks the commencement of change in Nigeria. We are committed to enhancing the quality of lives of Nigerians and electrical power is definitely of serious need in our nation today. We are happy to be partnering with ContourGlobal, a worldacclaimed and trusted organisation and we are confident that this project would be delivered as promised”.

President and Chief Executive Officer of ContourGlobal, Mr Joseph C. Brandt, Said:”ContourGlobal has always given special consideration to Africa since its creation in 2006.”

DATA STREAM COMMODITY PRICES Oil -$107/barrel Cocoa-$2,686.35/metric ton Coffee - ¢132.70/pound Cotton - ¢95.17pound Gold -$1,800/troy ounce Rubber -¢159.21pound MARKET CAPITALISATIONS NSE JSE NYSE LSE

-N10.6 trillion -Z5.112trillion -$10.84 trillion -£61.67 trillion

RATES Inflation -9% Treasury Bills -7.08% Maximum lending -22.42% Prime lending -15.87% Savings rate -2% 91-day NTB -15% Time Deposit -5.49% MPR -12% Foreign Reserve $48b FOREX CFA -0.2958 EUR -206.9 £ -242.1 $ -156 ¥ -1.9179 SDR -238 RIYAL -40.472

By Lucas Ajanaku, Asst. Editor (Business)

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• From left: Executive Director, Lagos and West, Keystone Bank, Mrs. Yvonne Isichei; Executive Director, Bloomberg TV Africa, Mr. Rotimi Pedro, Bloomberg Media Group official, Lindsey Oliver, Managing Director/CEO, Keystone Bank Mr. Philip Ikeazor and Executive Director, Operation & Technology, Keystone Bank, Mr. Ademola Adewale, during a courtesy call

by Executives of Bloomberg TV Africa to the bank in Lagos...on Friday.

NCC directs MTN to raise tariff

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N a bid to create a level playing field for telecoms operators, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has directed MTN Nigeria Communication Limited to raise internal mobile tariffs.

NCC in its recent industry review, phone calls between MTN customers cost three times lower than calls to other networks. The report stressed: “This is indicative of the likely establishment of a calling club for MTN subscribers.”

MTN, which has about 44 per cent of the market, must cut the difference in price and face further scrutiny to ensure the competitive landscape is even for all operators, the NCC insisted.

Nigeria, Africa’s fastest growing telecoms market with a population of 167 million people has a subscriber base that is slightly above

By Lucas Ajanaku, Asst. Editor (Business)

113 million at the end of 2012, according to the NCC. MTN Nigeria is the market leader with 47 million lines.

Globacom had 24 million subscribers, Airtel-23 million customers while Etisalat had 14 million, according to data on the NCC’s website.

The report also showed that MTN and Globacom were found to “jointly control about 62 per cent of the public terrestrial transmission infrastructure,” raising concerns they may “squeeze the margins of their competitors who are also their customers.”

“As a result of the determination outlined above, the Commission has resolved that the Dominant Operator in the mobile voice market shall be required to adhere to the following obligations: “Accounting Separation:

The Commission will immediately enforce and implement Accounting Separation on the dominant operator “ Collapse of On net and Off net Retail Tariffs: The differential between the on– net and off net retail tariffs will be immediately collapsed. The tariff for on net and offnet will be the same, and subject to periodic review. “ Submission of Required Details: The Commission may require the dominant operator to submit details on specific aspects of its operations from time to time as the need may arise.” The regulator added that the Commission shall make a determination of pricing principle to address the rate charges for on-net and offnet calls for all other operators On the dominat operators in the Wholesale Leased

Lines and Transmission jointly dominated by MTN and Globacom, NCC said it will impose price cap/price floor for wholesale services and price floor for retail services which shall be subject to periodic review.

It also plans to “immediately enforce and implement accounting separation on the joint dominant operator.”

The regulator added that it may require any of the joint dominant operators to submit details on specific aspects of the operations from time to time as the need arises.

“The determination shall take effect from 1st May 2013 and remain valid and binding on licensees for the services specified in relevant market segment of this sector until further reviewed by the commission,” the NCC said.

Power sector gas debt reduces to N20b

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HE power sector’s gas debt has reduced from its estimated N30 billion in 2012 to about N20 billion, the Minister of Power, Prof Chinedu Nebo has said.

Speaking at the Nigeria Economic Summit Group forum in Abuja, yesterday, Nebo explained that “as at the second half of last year, the debt was about N30 billion and now it has been reduced to just above N20 billion.”

He said the “market operator commenced the payment of 100 per cent of NGC (Nigerian Gas Company) invoice in August 2012, and we expect the trend to continue. In other words, we know about this debt and we are working to ensure the right things are done.”

Meanwhile, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison -Madueke, said the Federal Government will bridge the gas to power demand gap by 2015.

Mrs. Alison -Madueke,

• PHCN: Govt to ensure adherence to labour law From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

who was represented by the Group Executive Director (GED), Gas and Power of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. David Ige, said it was estimated that by year end, gas demand by National Integrated Power Projects ( NIPP) will soar by an estimated 340mmcf/day coming notably from Geregu and Ihovor.

Her words: “Several efforts are being taken to enssure gas supply grows in line with this demand. In the short term to end 2013, about 130 mmcf/d is expected in the west. However, between 2014/2015 almost 1000mmcf/d is forecast to be added. This will bridge the gap in demand by NIPP. “In the East, the short term objective will be to

utilize already available gas for which either delays in completion of the power plants, or other infrastructural projects prevent gas usage. These are expected to be addressed through 2014/2015, thereby bridging shortfalls in the East. In essence, with our current supply plans, there is confidence that NIPP demand can be met by 2015.”

She said the pipelines to Geregu, Olorunshogo, Alaoji and Omotosho have all been completed and providing permanent supply arteries to the plants enough to meet “both current and future demand requirements.”

Mrs. Alison-Madueke noted that given the scale of the ongoing infrastructure projects, the sector is vulnerable to the usual challenges of project slippages

and contractor related issues, adding that these were being addressed to ensure minimal impact on the supply agenda.

She said that a key dis-incentive to supply growth is the payment performance of the power sector, adding that for 2013, the overriding issue is less about gas supply sufficiency, but more about dealing with electricity transmission problems.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Power, Prof Chinedu Nebo yesterday said in the emerging new scheme of things, the Federal Government will ensure that private sector operators adhere strictly to the nation’s labour laws, and treat Nigerian electricity workers with the dignity they deserve.

He stated that the nation’s electricity workers are a most valuable asset, whose experience and competencies are indispensable, even in the new dispensation of privatisation.

ATIONAL operator, Globacom, yester day in Lagos, signed an agreement with Chinese equipment vendor, ZTE, to upgrade its infrastructure nationwide for efficient service delivery.

Group Operating Officer (GCOO) of Glo, Mohameed Jameel, who spoke at the siging ceremony at Mike Adenuga House, Victoria Island, Lagos, said the contract which will see the telco pay the sum of $500 million to ZTE, was necessitated by the desire of the firm to serve the customers better.

He said ZTE has only four months to deliver the job given to them, adding that the infrastructure upgrade will be holistic in line with the ever-changing technology in the telecoms sector.

“The entire network is being modernised to carry data services more efficiently because it would have been increased manyfolds. Every inch of the network will be modernised,” the GCOO said.

He promised that the telco will continue the network expansion and modernisation drive because it is only by doing so that the userexperience of the subscribers of the network could be redefined. “The asset of any network is the quality of services it provides its customers,” Jameel said.

PIB: Senate proposes Lagos, Abuja, others for hearings From Sanni Onogu, Abuja

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HAIRMAN, Senate Joint Committee on the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), Senator Emmanuel Paulker, yesterday said the committee may conduct public hearings in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Kaduna.

Paulker spoke at a oneday PIB workshop organized by the Joint Committee in Abuja.

The lawmaker said the workshop was meant to refresh the memories of the members of the committee on the PIB before they embark on public hearings.

He said: “We are engaging services of professional to enlighten us on the bill once more so that when we go out for public hearing in various locations, we would be versed in everything concerning the bill.

“Since we now want to commence the process of passing the Bill, there is need to invite professionals to refresh the memories of Senators of members of the National Assembly.”

12

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

BUSINESS NEWS

NIMASA to release cabotage fund, says DG

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HE Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), will soon release the amount that has accrued to the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF). the Director-General, Ziakede Akpobolokemi, has said.

He said the agency would commence the disbursement of the fund to qualified Nigerian ship owners once the processes involved are concluded.

Akpobolokemi told reporters in Lagos that the release of the figures will put to rest speculations on the exact amount that has accrued to the fund.

He denied insinuations in certain quarters that invested interest within and outside the corridors of power who want to corner the funds for other uses instead of vessel acquisi-

By Simeon Ebulu

tion and repairs, was part of the reasons why CVFF has not been disbursed over the years.

He said the agency which remains Nigeria’s apex maritime regulatory authority and recognised by the global maritime watchdog, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), will not only make the exact amount public, but will also ensure it is disbursed to qualified beneficiaries as soon as possible.

The NIMASA helmsman, said he is working at getting the actual figures before making it public.

“Well, I will need to get the records to give you the exact figure. So I may need to go and get information from the department responsible for it.

Getting the exact amount is im-

portant because the figures keep on changing by the day.

If I give you any figure now, by the time I get back to Finance Department there may be some variation because from the report they have given from time to time, the figures keep changing.

“As the boss of the agency when I make any declaration, or say anything that has to do with money, it should be categorical and specific to the last

kobo. It should not be figures based on guess work or imaginations,” he added.

He NIMASA will fulfil its mandate by focusing on its core functions for the benefit of Nigeria and Nigerians, adding that the agency will not relent in its drive to maximise the huge potentials in the maritime sector of the economy and make Nigeria a force to be reckoned in the comity of maritime nations.

CVFF was established under the Coastal and Inland Shipping Act, 2003. It is derived from the two per cent deduction from all contracts awarded under the Cabotage regime. It was designed to empower Nigerian ship owners to acquire adequate tonnage.

It is meant to empower maritime operators to participate in coastal and inland trade currently dominated by foreign ship owners.

• Akpobolokemi

Dickson flays critics over BDIC

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AYELSA State Governor, Seriake Dickson, has faulted the position of critics on the inauguration of the Bayelsa Development and Investment Corporation, (BDIC), saying the body is aimed at attracting investments to the state, as well as

make it the delight of local and foreign investors.

He said contrary to its opponents, The BDIC, is aimed at charting a more diversified economic base from the current dependence in the Oil and Gas sector of the economy.

Warning the people against playing politics with the economic development of the state, the Governor noted with dismay the position of some politicians in the state on his administration’s economic policies which gave birth to the establishment of the BDIC and other agencies of the government.

Seriake said to boost its economic profile, the state is beaming its searchlight on tourism, Agriculture, Oil & gas and Infrastructure, amongst others.

On the choice of South Africa as corporate office of the BDIC, said: “ The BDIC is looking to attract investment from all major markets and economies, with South Africa being one of such countries. The Johannesburg office represents their second international presence after the re-

cently opened London, office.

“It is hoped that through its presence, the BDIC will attract partnerships with Southern African investors on a PPP (Public Private Partnership) into the identified economic sectors of Bayelsa State. It will also interface with the Nigerian consulate to fast track immigration requirements for prospective investors looking to visit Bayelsa State.

“The BDIC’s vision is to be an enabler for transforming Bayelsa State into one of the top economies, not just in our country but also in Africa. Our mission is to protect, stimulate and grow the wealth of all Bayelsans through responsive, innovative and sustainable investments while acting as a catalyst for socio-economic development of our state,” said Dickson.

Etisalat, EDC empower SMEs

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S part of its commit ment to continually empower Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and guide them to maximise their potentials for growth, , Etisalat Nigeria, recently hosted SMEs at the 2013 SME Toolkit Nigeria Conference in partnership with the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC), of the Pan African University.

The conference, which took place at the Lagos Business School (LBS), according to a statement, was held on Wednesday, April 10.

The SME Toolkit is an international online platform of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank, available in over 35 countries in the world, which offers free business management information and training for SMEs. Speaking at the conference, Head, High Value Events

and Sponsorship, Etisalat Nigeria, Ebi Atawodi, said that partnering with the EDC in promoting the growth of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises through the SME Toolkit conference was one of the core platforms the company has chosen to drive the development of businesses in Nigeria.

Speaking in the same vein, Director, Enterprise Development Centre (EDC), Peter Bamkole, thanked Etisalat for partnering with the EDC to drive the growth of SMEs. The SME toolkit global partner conference brings together about 300 trainers, users, experts, content and service providers to discuss how to effectively deploy the e-learning methods through the onilne platform.

The conference was held in Nigeria for the first time which also coincided with the 10th ananiversary of the SME toolkit globally.

Fed Govt frowns at youth unemployment

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HE Federal Govern ment has described as unacceptable the figures from the National Bureau of Statistics indicating that 1.8 million youths end up in the labour market yearly.

The government’s displeasure over this figure was expressed by the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi OkonjoIweala yesterday in Abuja at an interactive session with Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of companies in Nigeria.

She also decried recent

From Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor), Abuja

figures, which suggested that the unemployment rate in the country has risen to about 23.9 per cent.

To address this crisis, the government, she said, introduced the Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS) under which “so far 1,937 firms have registered for the scheme out of which 1,371 were verified and only 293 were approved.” She said 1,078 were rejected for their inability to meet government’s minimum requirements.

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COMMENTARY FROM OTHER LANDS

EDITORIALS

Welcome, MNP •A good idea, but it can only be meaningful if the problems in the networks are solved

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ITH the launching on April 22 of the Mobile Number Portability (MNP) by the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), Global System for Mobile (GSM) communication subscribers in the country now have the opportunity of changing from one network to another without losing their number. This has been on the drawing board for some time; as a matter of fact, its launch has had to be postponed in the past to ensure that things go well once it takes off.

For the GSM subscribers, this is good news; the fear of losing their number if they changed network had been the beginning of wisdom for them in the past years. Even when they felt so dissatisfied with telephone service providers, they had been forced to remain stuck to them simply because they did not want to lose their numbers.

That is expected to be history with MNP now operational.

We congratulate the NCC for making the MNP a reality. Although telecoms still has some basic challenges, like calls dropping, subscribers being billed for short messages that are not delivered, connectivity challenges, and what have you, we cannot deny the fact that Nigeria has come a long way in teledensity. From about 450,000 lines in the days of the Nigerian Telecommunications (NITEL), the country now boasts of over 110 million telephone lines.

At the advent of the GSM in 2001, the country was seen as one vast virgin land for investors who might be interested in providing GSM services in the country; this has been proved right with the

current number of subscribers hooked to one network or the other.

In spite of the challenges, it must be acknowledged that there have been improvements in the telecoms sector; some forced by competition and others by happenstances. For example, when GSM services began in the country, lines went for as high as N30,000 each, today, they are literally free. Also then, subscribers paid as much as N50 per minute for calls; this has drastically reduced. There was also the challenge of per second billing which Nigerians craved for at a time but never came because the operators said then that it was impossible. However, this too became history when a few years after, another service provider came and made that its cutting edge.

Without doubt, we have come a long way in telecoms, the MNP only being the latest in the course of the journey. It is part of the ways of ensuring that subscribers get value for their money. For now, we cannot boast of that in view of the hiccups in the system, some of which we have mentioned. But it would be unfair to close our eyes to some of the challenges facing the operators. Apart from the problem of electricity that has forced them to install at least two high capacity generators wherever they have their masts, which means a lot of money being spent on fuel to power them and the huge cost of maintenance, the challenge has become compounded with the attacks on masts in some parts of the country. Even in areas where there is relative calm, the service providers operate at the mercy of ‘area boys’ and

other miscreants who attack their facilities if the companies refuse to offer money to ‘protect’ such facilities.

All said, there is still much room for improvement. MNP is good, but it should not be seen as any magic wand or cureall panacea for the challenges in the sector. Many people change their network because the systems are congested. This problem would remain unless the systems are expanded; it is immaterial if subscribers can port or not.

What we have to work on now is ensuring that we do not start to experience another round of technical hitches occasioned by MNP.

‘All said, there is still much room for improvement. MNP is good, but it should not be seen as any magic wand or cure-all panacea for the challenges in the sector. Many people change their network because the systems are congested. This problem would remain unless the systems are expanded; it is immaterial if subscribers can port or not. What we have to work on now is ensuring that we do not start to experience another round of technical hitches occasioned by MNP’

Nigeria Corruption Inc.

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• Retired judge worries over corrupt power brokers

USTICE Mustapha Akanbi, retired President of the Court of Appeal has lamented that indicted ex-governors, ministers and party officials have remained the power brokers in the country, wondering how the war against corruption would work under their influence.

As a former chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), Justice Akanbi is well situated to know the debilitating consequences of public corruption on the country. He made this observation at the meeting of the National Association of Law Teachers (NALT), held recently in Ilorin.

We share in Justice Akanbi’s concerns that indicted public officials who ordinarily should be quarantined if not incarcerated have returned through surrogates to further destroy the system. This is possi-

‘It is important that President Goodluck Jonathan realises that by virtue of his position, he remains the chief culprit of Justice Akanbi’s stinging indictment. This is because he has the moral and political authority to ensure that the fight against corrupt practices achieves the needed result. Where it is failing as many, including the international community have confirmed, then he must accept the responsibility for the failure’

ble because of the weak state institutions, and also the unfortunate inability of our country to develop a critical mass of civilian population to stop these fellows on their track. Justice Akanbi also called on ‘the President, governors, political leaders, and top civil/public servants, emirs, obas and obis to imbibe the spirit of leading by example and be in the vanguard of struggle to eliminate corruption or reduce it to tolerable level.’ While the call is laudable, it is unfortunate that most of those he is appealing to seem to have lost all sense of patriotism.

Nonetheless, we commend Justice Akanbi for raising his moral voice against a major national challenge. We must also ask the President and other national leaders to hearken to this voice of reason.

We reecho his worries that because the purveyors of corruption are the political godfathers, ‘more often than not, mediocre, incompetent and corrupt hands find their way to positions of power and authority which they use and manipulate to their own advantage and not to the benefit of the society or public good.’ Furthering his unimpeachable thesis, he argued that ‘the end result is that the nation begins to drift and slide dangerously down the slippery road of economic ruination.’

In our view, our country is already farther down this ignominious road, and only a quick reversal of course can save the final consequences.

While pressuring the political class to change from its ruinous ways, we believe the civil society and state institutions have

a huge responsibility to whip the recalcitrant leaders into line. Of course these critical groups range from professional bodies, to labour unions, religious bodies, security and anti-corruption agencies, the courts, the press and other influential bodies, that need to push together to save our country, otherwise our fate will continue to spiral in the negative as Justice Akanbi further argued. He had forewarned that, ‘in the process, there is general desecration of societal and normative values, low level performance in both socio-economic and technological development and ultimately a putrefying decadence, the stench of which often puts off or prevents other nations, with a record of transparency and probity, from wanting to interact or do business with a corrupt nation’.

While urging action on all national leaders, it is important that President Goodluck Jonathan realises that by virtue of his position, he remains the chief culprit of Justice Akanbi’s stinging indictment. This is because he has the moral and political authority to ensure that the fight against corrupt practices achieves the needed result. Where it is failing as many, including the international community have confirmed, then he must accept the responsibility for the failure. Unfortunately the President has by his conduct also shown lack of the needed enthusiasm to fight corruption. Worse still, most of his close friends and associates form a chunk of these indicted but influential expolitical heavy weights.

A conservative backlash threatens immigration reform

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HE BACKLASH has begun against immigration reform, specifically the provision that would legalize the status of 11 million undocumented immigrants and ultimately give these people a shot at citizenship.

Led by conservative Republicans and whipped into a froth by right-wing radio talk-show hosts, opponents of reform are banking on derailing the measure with a strategy of delay and dismemberment.

The focus of these efforts is the House, where many Republican backbenchers remain unsold on immigration reform despite the party’s disastrous loss of the Latino vote in 2012.

On Thursday, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and an opponent of a pathway to citizenship, served notice that the delay-and-dismemberment plan was under way. Rather than wait for a comprehensive immigration bill to wend its way through the Senate, or for a roughly similar plan to emerge from a bipartisan group in the House, Mr. Goodlatte said his committee would consider a series of smaller bills.

That strategy gives conservatives a chance to say they were for immigration reform before they were against it. They may vote for bills that would tighten border security, provide a steady source of migrant farm workers and expand a program that companies may use to verify the immigration status of employees. Then, decrying “amnesty,” they can shoot down measures that would extend legal status and eventual citizenship to most of the undocumented.

In poll after poll, large majorities of Americans say they favor granting legal status to illegal immigrants, most of whom have been in the country for more than a decade and are vital to the U.S. economy. Even if some conservatives cling to the idea of “self-deportation,” most Americans acknowledge that 11 million people cannot be bullied into leaving the country and should not be left in legal limbo.

Recognizing that, a number of Republican leaders have taken the lead in pushing for a comprehensive bill, courageously urging their party to drop the myth of mass deportation. In effect, these lawmakers are pleading with their colleagues not to commit long-term electoral suicide by continuing to alienate the nation’s fastest-growing minority voting bloc. Still, they face a struggle.

The most prominent among these leaders is Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), a putative contender for the party’s presidential nomination in 2016, who is taking abuse on conservative talk radio for having helped draft the Senate bill. Mr. Rubio has been joined by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who appeared last week at a series of events in Chicago, plugging a comprehensive approach alongside a pro-reform Democrat, Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (Ill.).

“We need it for national security reasons. We need it for the economy,” Mr. Ryan said. “We do not want to have a society where we have different classes of people who cannot reach their American dream by not being a full citizen.”

This is common sense, but it is also the kind of talk that has been unwelcome in many Republican circles. The question is whether the GOP, after so many years of denial, is capable of weaning itself from its delusions.

– Washington Post

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CARTOON & LETTERS

METAMORPHOSIS OF THE NIGERIAN

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IR: Oka-Akoko branch of First Bank Nigeria Plc came on stream in 1978.This writer was among the first callers to have eagerly opened an account with the bank; and it has remained the only bank I have patronised so far. Even though the populace is largely agrarian, it was nevertheless sited in the place because of the town’s huge population and its potential to attract a large number of customers. Happily, this has been largely achieved.

Curiously, since its berth in the town, the bank has remained in the same old one storey building it has rented and occupied for more than three decades. It’s not as if this is

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An appeal to First Bank bad in itself but obviously, the building is too narrow and too small. If it was considered ideal then at inception, the same thing cannot be said about it now. The clientele has grown so large that it now becomes increasingly difficult for users and customers alike to do busi-

ness with ease and comfortably. The place is always choked up that it feels like one is in an oven. The space has shrunk so much so that more often than not, customers would queue up from inside and spill over onto the ever busy highway at the risk of being knocked

down by daredevil “okada” riders and commercial drivers plying the road to and from Abuja. Why it’s been such a Herculean task for the FBN to have its own building is very curious and difficult to conjecture.

Any time I visit home and in an

I weep for Baga town

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IR: I join lovers of humanity to lament the brutal and malodorous massacre of innocent civilians at Baga town. I also deprecate and publicly deplore in strong terms the killings of security forces by men who have since sold their soul to the devil.

It beat my imagination that at a time when peace process effort had begun, few species of “gallow birds” still hide under the cover of terrorism to desecrate the sanctity of humanity. We must not forget that an attack on our security forces is indeed an attack on the state. I believe members of our forces have the right to life just as others civilians. Consequently, I think the rules of engagement do not dictate to security agents to fold their hands and watch with amusement when they are under life-threatening attack. The Baga ‘comdie noire’ would have been averted if community leaders were on the quivive and sincere. The onus is on them to alert security forces of the presence of criminally minded characters in their abode. They kept silent and allowed their land to serve as safe haven for wanted agents of doom.

If they had provided the security forces with security report, a more professional approach could have been adopted to smoke them out. It is a known fact that terrorists all over the world use human shields and civilian populated areas to plan and launch attacks. So trying to fish them is usually very difficult especially during an emergency response operation.

Let me use these medium to appeal to Nigerians regardless of

religious and other social divides to support the proposed amnesty to those murderous machinators and children of Erebus who have killed and promised to kill more in a shell display of satanic braggadocio. We must never be tempted to see the amnesty approach as weakness but sign of political cum spiritual maturity.

While those opposed to the amnesty should not forget the powerful mantra of Desmond Tutu

which says that “if you want to make peace, you do not talk to your friends, you talk to your enemies”, for the umpteenth time I want to submit that violence does not pay and we must reject violence. The Baga ‘cause celebre’ accentuate the vantage point of John .F. Kennedy that man must put an end to war or war will put and end to man. Please let there be peace in the Land.

• Ehi G.O. Benin City

attempt to do business with the bank, each time I’m disappointed. When the ATMs are not malfunctioning, the bank will be closing to customers as early as 12 in the afternoon. I was at the bank on Thursday and Friday, April 25 and 26 respectively when there was no one to attend to me. The reason as usual was that the servers were down and had been like this for all of one week and without any solution in sight. And to imagine that this is the only FBN bank serving the whole of Akoko currently. The nearest bank is in Owo and Emure in Ekiti, a distance of about 40 kilometres away! The one in Ikare which is close by is yet to commence operation after it was looted and vandalized by armed robbers a while ago. This is not good enough. The people of Oka and indeed the whole of Akoko deserve better treatment than they are currently getting.

I therefore call on the FBN authorities to do something very urgent to reverse and improve on this situation by building a more befitting, enduring, bigger and spacious FBN office building in Oka and the reopening of the Ikare branch forthwith so as to lessen the people’s financial headaches as they seem to be facing now.

• Alana Olusegun, Abeokuta.

Amnesty for Aba residents

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IR: There was a time Aba, the Enyimba city and the commercial nerve center of Abia State was a no-go area in terms of insecurity, ranging from kidnapping, armed robbery, ritual killing and other related vices. The development brought almost to a halt all social, political, commercial and developmental activities in the town and even culminated to people relocating to other less violent areas for safety.

However, the situation was later laid to rest by the intervention of

the federal troops. Thanks to Governor Theodore Ahamefula Orji who initiated the move.

Aba has been a wonderful and vibrant city since inception. In fact it was the envy of the neighbourhood states until after sometime when it became an eyesore as a result of infestation of dilapidated and moribund industries including myriad of deplorable roads. This pitiable situation made people’s lives unbearable and boring.

Now normalcy has returned to the town the residents expect the

rehabilitation of those moribund industries like: Aba Textile mills, Aba Metallurgical complex, Aba Glass Industry and many others including the reconstruction of the abandoned roads that was truncated as a result of the insecurity situation to continue in order to bring succor to their lives like other residents in the neighbourhood states.

No doubt, the kidnap saga discouraged and diverted the state and federal governments attention from making the town a befitting

edifice. But that notion should not linger so long.

I therefore plead on behalf of Aba residents for amnesty as the town has been the pride of the state in particular and the nation in general.

It should not be forgotten that Aba is the home of the former CAF champion, Enyimba Football Club and the site of Ariaria International market.

President Goodluck Jonathan should help rebuild Aba • Nkemakolam Gabriel Port Harcourt

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COMMENTS

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ther plotting to scuttle the NGF BRAHAM Harold Maslow (1908poll should Amaechi secure the 1970), the American psychologist, number to win; or walk out afspoke of a hierarchy of needs. ter losing to paint the election While basic needs (breathing, food, as some farce – talk of water, sleep etc) occupy the base of the (un)presidential bad faith! pyramid, self-actualisation (the creative But in this presidential swagger of a man/woman who has made huffing and puffing, strategic good) perches at the summit. thinking would appear to have Between these two extremes are safety taken a fatal flight. If not so, (innate security), love/belonging (famOlakunle the president and his men ily confidence and security) and esteem ought to have carefully x-rayed lordbeek@yahoo.com, 08054504169 (Sms only, please) Abimbola (societal appreciation and respect): and the NGF power centres before you need to climb through these rungs plotting their moves. That apto gain the summit. parent failure is all so reminisThis is, of course, no psychology cent of the search-corrupt-andexposé. But linking Maslow’s hierarchy destroy calamitous tactics of the Obasanjo third term gambit, to the twin main dramatis personae in the raging storm over ated with crushing Amaechi: and the controversial grounding as beautifully exposed by Nasir El-Rufai in The Accidental Pubthe impending Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) election is of the Rivers government airplane would appear the latest lic servant. rather revealing. indication.

President Obasanjo listened to political and careerist witches Performance-wise, one has attained self-actualisation in his But between Governor Amaechi and President Jonathan, the and wizards who told him what he wanted to hear. The result elected office. The other is languishing at the base, still fumcontrast is stark. was a spectacular collapse of his third term pipe dream and the bling over basic needs. But both are angling for future tours of The one would spend less than eight years as governor; yet well-earned disgrace, even if the former president continues to duty – or, in any case, reportedly so. That accounts for the has an ample lot to show. The other, if his second term bid live in denial of the debacle by hiding behind the proverbial raging war over an otherwise innocuous election! gels, would likely spend nine years as president – more than finger.

Enter Rivers Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, sitting the required eight – but may have pretty little to show, if the Is President Jonathan headed for the same ditch? That is hard NGF chair. morning shows the day, from his parlous performance so far. to say, until you analyse the NGF power centres.

As far as performance goes, two-term Governor Amaechi, However, Dr. Doyin Okupe, with his presidential public afThe opposition NGF governors’ camp would appear a no-go who nevertheless would end up spending less than eight years fairs staff in tow, on a visit to The Nation the other day, believed prescribed by law because of his delayed assumption of office area, even if Anambra’s Peter Obi and Ondo’s Segun Mimiko it was only a matter of time before President Jonathan started (25 October 2007 instead of 29 May 2007), appears to have garmight go with the president. Incidentally, Governor Obi was dazzling Nigerians with tangibles. nered enough swagger to aim for higher office. reportedly at the dinner, at which the president allegedly told It would appear, therefore, a titanic (?) tussle between a Remember former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s imperithe attendees to go for Amaechi’s jugular. clumsy “Oga at the top” and a nimble lower fry in the Nigerian ous diktat that Amaechi’s gubernatorial nomination had deThe PDP Governors Forum? That is a house divided against Animal Farm (apologies to George Orwell), particularly with veloped a “K-leg”; and also the legal challenge that eventuitself. Most of the president’s opponents are second-term govthe president assuming the Obasanjo-era almighty president ally reclaimed the governor his seat, even if his party, the ernors who have less to lose than if they were seeking a second and “party leader” – a thorough and thorough corruption of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had brazenly replaced his term. Besides, Governor Akpabio, the body’s chair, has been so the American presidential system. name on the ballot with his cousin’s, Sir Celestine Omehia? tactlessly tactless it is doubtful if he can rally anybody for the Yes, over there, the sitting president by convention is party Despite these setbacks however, Governor Amaechi has president, beyond preaching to the converted (who seem to leader. But that deference comes from reverence to the presienough on ground to show (in model primary and secondary lack the number) and barking impotent threats at opponents. dential office, which incumbent is no insufferable power brute, schools, healthcare, infrastructure, sports and security: ridding The Northern States Governors Forum? The body language but a meek lamb of the constitution, created, nurtured and Rivers of the militants’ terrorist threat in kidnapping), to jusof Niger Governor, Muazu Babangida Aliyu, the chair, speaks completely directed by the rule of law, never by brazen arbitify a future political ambition. He therefore appears made, of a regal distancing from the president and his cause. In open trary power. with or without a second NGF term. balloting, how many of them would risk voting the Jonathan In President Jonathan’s case, that misguided role is double So, why this contest-and-be-damned mentality in his camp? way, given how the traditional North feels about power in jeopardy. The more fixated he is with crushing Amaechi, the The NGF chairmanship, with its attendant networking, keeps 2015? And how many, in secret balloting would, without prymore distracted he is from scrambling up Maslow’s pyramid alive Governor Amaechi’s reported vice-presidential ambiing presidential eyes? This is another house divided against by superlative performance, and the more he damns himself tion, a ticket media reports claim he hopes to share with Sule itself but united by a primordial cause. as unworthy of the 2015 presidential en core he clearly covets.

Lamido, the Jigawa governor. That sure does not sit well with But even if the president vanquishes Amaechi, what does he But the president and his handlers appear for now too irate Governor Amaechi’s political traducers. prove – that Goliath has slain David? Big deal! But at what cost? to think clearly.

Enter then, President Goodluck Jonathan. He appears fixReally, all this furore over NGF election is much ado about That explains the “Judases” metaphor of the rather tactless nothing. It is a massive distraction all round.

Godswill Akpabio, Akwa Ibom governor, on being made chair “All this furore over NGF election is much The president bullying the governor or the governor slaying of the no less tactless PDP Governors Forum, a forum that the president does not remove the quacking basis of the Nigeado about nothing. Let us hope the combatcould well destroy NGF itself. Like the Christ and Iscariot, the rian state. After all the noise of battle, the hoop of victory and Jonathan presidential Judases are within, not without. ants would not find themselves under the the puncture of defeat, let us hope the combatants would not No thanks to them, for one, there are emerging talks of many rubble of once upon a country!” find themselves buried under the rubble of once upon a counopposition governors pulling out of NGF. For another, there try! is counter-talk of Jonathan’s gubernatorial storm troopers ei-

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epublican ipples

Much ado about NGF

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UST when the appeasement template described as amnesty for the Boko Haram seems given, the nation woke up to a dramatic escalation of hostilities in Baga, a fishing border town in the North-east between the men of the military Joint Task Force and the Boko Haram. At the end of the confrontation, the casualties were numbered in multiple scores depending on who did the counting. The military high command put out its own figures of the dead at 36. The leaders of the community also gave their version as between 185 and 200.

But then, it is not only the number of casualties that is in dispute, even the day the hostilities broke out and the series of events that led to the skirmishes have since been contested.

While most accounts gave the weekend of April 19 as the day the hostilities broke out, some accounts actually point at an earlier date of April 16. As if to further compound the puzzle, the military couldn’t be sure – days after – whether it was the multinational troops in the JTF that engaged the insurgents or exclusively Nigerian troops.

Of course, the only area of broad agreement is that civilian lives were involved. The JTF said six civilians were killed the rest 30 were alleged to be members of the Boko Haram.

And as for those to be held responsible for the mayhem, again, it is a matter of who to believe. Whereas the commander of the multinational force, Brigadier General Austin Edokpaye, puts the blame squarely on the door-steps of the Boko Haram who he accused of using civilians as human shield while firing on soldiers, what the locals saw was the heavy hand of soldiers in the mission to avenge the death of one of their men. Some accounts actually blamed the extensive destruction which followed on the house-to-house search embarked on by the soldiers after which the residents were chased out and their abodes set on fire.

It doesn’t help that attention has since deflected from the murderous activities of the Boko Haram sect to the role of the guardians drafted to keep the peace. Today, the military is the one on the spot – accused of deploying excessive force against the insurgents thereby causing heavy collateral damages. It seems a case of the military providing fresh ammunitions for those who see them as the problem and hence are pressing for the withdrawal of troops from the North-east.

No doubt, the point cannot be sufficiently made that the death of one innocent soul to the raging insurgency is one too many. Whether it is one lone service man mauled in the course of national duty or the dozens of innocents caught in the middle of the raging fire between the security forces and the Boko Haram. However, just as the use of excessive force by the military must be deplored, and hence the need for thorough investigations to establish and bring to book those

Policy Sanya Oni sanyaoni@yahoo.co.uk 08051101841

Baga: A postscript individuals found in breaches of relevant services rules, part of the problem isn’t just the tendency to jump into conclusions before the full facts are established but to see the servicemen as expendables.

How many people died? We do not even know at this point.

The one that we know for certain is that an officer of the JTF died. But then, does the number really matter? Are these fellows not Nigerians with dreams and aspirations? The point is that every life must be seen to count; whether we are dealing with one life or dozens, the difference must be seen only in terms of the multiples of avoidable tragedy.

In all of these however, the greater tragedy must be the predictable, knee-jerk response to a foreseeable outcome. Most predictably, the response has been superficial – the same standard blame game: the military must be blamed for the multi-layered problem they didn’t create. I struggle to find the required due sensitivity accorded the task force in the rather difficult operating environment and the sacrifices they are called to make, more so in an environment where the next individual standing by may well be a terrorist waiting to lob yet another IED. I find none. More palpable also is the lack of resolve to confront a common threat by those who should assume the role of drum majors for peace.

At this point, I do not want to delve into the argument as to whether or not the military by its well known record of brutality against unarmed civilians is not wholly responsible for the way the ordinary citizen perceives them. Neither do I want to venture into the debate as to whether the nation can afford to defang the military simply because a few serving personnel exceeded their brief. In the same vein, no one questions the right of citizens to demand acceptable standards of conduct from our servicemen whether in combat zones or among the civil populace.

The issue is whether we are not looking in the wrong

direction for solution to a general malaise. First, I do not think that anyone should misunderstand the job that the military is called to do; theirs is to find and fix the insurgents wherever they may be found using all available instruments including force. Secondly, I do not also think that anyone should suffer the illusion that the military is anything but a facilitator in the search for peace. Just as it seems inevitable that mistakes would be made in the course of duty, it is precisely the job of the civil society to call them to account. I do not think that the civil society has failed in this duty – whether it is Odi, Zaki Biam and now in Baga.

The problem is the attempt to amplify the failings of the JTF, and to present it as the problem. They were not the problem in the Niger Delta any more than they will be the problem in Borno and Yobe. In both situations, they were drafted in to deal with the specific problem.

Does anyone imagine that the only reason anyone is talking of amnesty today is because the Boko Haram has not succeeded in overrunning the vast territories of the North?

How about imagining the North-east without the JTF in the current circumstances? Surely, the federal government does not seem to have exclusive monopoly of bad faith!

I conclude by re-affirming an earlier thesis that there can be no such thing as an imposed solution to the Boko Haram problem. The problem is fundamentally for local authorities – working with the federal authorities – to solve. Even if the federal government succeeds in smashing the infrastructure of the insurgency, the issue of the fundamentalist ideology behind it would still have to be addressed. That, for me, is the only ground on which the proposed amnesty can stand – or make sense!

‘I do not want to delve into the argument as to whether or not the military by its well known record of brutality against unarmed civilians is not wholly responsible for the way the ordinary citizen perceives them. Neither do I want to venture into the debate as to whether the nation can afford to defang the military simply because a few serving personnel exceeded their brief’

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COMMENTS Be patient my soul,thou hath suffered worse than this -Anonymous.

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N Nigeria, being good, upright, truthful and forthright could be a bad idea especially if you are in public office. It has also emerged in the past few years in our country that dictatorship, high-handedness, intolerance and vindictiveness can lice successfully with democracy, albeit, Nigeria’s brand of democracy. And where you have all these in abundance as is the case here, cronyism, nepotism, incompetence et al become the order of the day with corruption reigning supreme.

To understand what I am talking about, let’s take a look at the on going face-off between Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers state and ‘Oga and Madam at the top’ in Abuja’ President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan.

In between, throw a certain character called Nyesom Wike, who sits in cabinet with President Jonathan as Nigeria’s Minister of State for Education, but who in reality is a tool in the hands of Madam and does all the dirty jobs for the First Family, including trying to destabilise the Rivers State government to soften the ground for Madam, an Okrika from Rivers State, to have her boy installed as the governor of the state now or sometime in 2015. All these geared towards getting Rivers State and its two million or so votes in Jonathan’s corner in the 2015 presidential election.

Rivers votes have always been crucial to winning a presidential election in Nigeria. I recall as a teenager in the second republic how votes from the old Rivers State tilted the balance in favor of Alhaji Shehu Shagari of the then National Party of Nigeria (NPN). Glued to my father’s radio, I was monitoring the result of the 1979 presidential election state by state as being announced by the then Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO).

With most of the result out, Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the then Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) was in the lead with over four million votes closely followed by Shagari, and optimism was in the air, especially in the old western region that Awolowo was on course to clinching the country’s presidency.

But overnight the picture changed when the result from Rivers State was released and NPN got over one million votes and catapulted Shagari to over five million votes. That put paid to Awolowo’s presidential ambition that year and the result put Rivers State as a must win for any presidential candidate in Nigeria.

That trend has not changed as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the successor to NPN has consistently benefited from this solid backing from Rivers since the advent of this democracy, up to the 2011 presidential election that brought in Presi-

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S the 2014 gubernatorial election draws closer in Osun State, the signs are that it will not be business as usual for political gladiators jostling for the gubernatorial seat currently occupied by the incumbent governor Rauf Aregbesola. Not only has the governor shown that he is a leader that makes things happen, he also discovers resources in places one thought were barren.

The truth of course is that Aregbesola continues to create opportunities in places where many cannot imagine exist. He takes something average and makes it exceptional.

Rather than make excuses, he always finds a way to make things happen by his numerous programmes that have lifted Osun to the best among the states in Nigeria. A state that was noted for poverty and underdevelopment has since climbed the topmost ladder among the states that have reduced poverty among its citizens, coming first in terms of environmental friendliness, and leading among the states that were involved in rural development using the six point integral action plan as compass.

Former President of America President Bill Clinton once declared in 1983 at his gubernatorial inauguration that “education is the key to our economic revival and our perennial quest for prosperity. We must dedicate more of our limited resources to paying teachers better; expanding educational opportunities in poor and small districts; improving and diversifying vocational and high technology programs…. Without competence in basic skills for our people cannot move on to more advanced achievement.”

The governor obviously took the charge to heart when at the inception of his administration, raised primary school basic funding grants from N74 million (spent by the ousted regime for eight years) to N424million a year Today, the Aregbesola administration feeds over 250,000 elementary pupils daily with about N400 million monthly. Secondary school funding grants has been raised from N117million to N427 million per year.

Thirty percent tuition fees reduction for tertiary institutions were carried out to the appreciation of parents and students, indigene

Understanding Jonathan/ Amaechi family feud dent Goodluck Jonathan.

Rightly or wrongly, however, the Jonathan camp believes that could change in 2015 if Governor Rotimi Amaechi is not in their camp in the run up to the next presidential election. And it does appear to them that the governor’s body language is not in sync with their 2015 ambition. This, those close to the governor say is not true as Amaechi is totally committed to not just the PDP but also the Jonathan presidency both now and post 2015 election.

The problems they say are the people around the president (read my lips, Nyesom Wike & co) who would rather create a gulf between Jonathan and Amaechi for their own selfish ends. They say the President and Governor Amaechi used to be in the same corner right from Jonathan’s days as Vice President to late President Umar Yar’Adua. And amidst opposition to Jonathan elevation to the position of acting President when Yar’Adua took ill, Amaechi it was said stood by the man from Otuoke, and finally when he ascended the presidency and later ran for election in 2011, the governor delivered Rivers votes to the president. So, at what point did their “quarrel” start?

It is very difficult to say the two are quarreling as both have denied this, but it will also be playing the fool to say all is well between them. All that can be said about the unease between them is that it doesn’t bode well for Rivers State on one hand and our democracy on the other hand. While both have refused to acknowledge it, their seeming quarrel can not but be related to the 2015 presidential election. Jonathan believes rightly or wrongly that Amaechi plans to team up with a presidential candidate, most likely from the north, to challenge him in the coming presidential election. And the governor has vehemently denied this, both in pri-

vate and publicly. He had even gone on the record to say Jonathan is a good man and means well for the country, but that the president is surrounded by some “bad” people.

This is what everybody close to the President seem to be saying, but not a few Nigerians are confused when they hear this as President Jonathan has not convinced them that he is nice or meant well for the country. And examples abound to prove their point.

Jonathan, apparently driven by determination to return to office in 2015, from recent events and actions of the Federal government, doesn’t seem to believe Amaechi. The governor it does seem from the point of view of the president must be muzzled or bullied to tow the line or punished if he refused.

If recent events are anything to go by, then the punishment option appear to have been taken by the Jonathan camp even when there is little or no evidence to suggest that Amaechi is against the President’s 2015 project.

Remember the on going feud between Rivers and Bayelsa States over disputed oil field along their border in the Kalabari area? Not a few in Rivers State believe this was punishment on the people for the “sins” of Amaechi. Similarly oil fields have been ceded from Rivers to Akwa Ibom State in what many believe to be compensation for Governor Akpabio’s support for the president.

Other punishments bordering on security and even economic matters have been meted out to Rivers all in a bid to show Amaechi ‘we have the federal might’.

Directly the presidency is fighting to ensure that Amaechi does not return as chairman Nigeria Governors Forum when the Forum elects new officers in a few weeks time. Why you may want to know?

Amaechi as Chairman of the Forum has been

Aregbesola: Raising the bar in governance

By Yomi Obaditan bursary award was raised from N3000 to N10,000. Additionally, 98 UNIOSUN medical students were sponsored to Ukraine, just as 750,000 pupils were kitted with school uniforms free of charge. A number of state of the art elementary, middle and high schools are being built all over the state, in various stages of completion. Tablet of Knowledge (Opon Imo) is on its final practical test in three schools in the state, to be ready for distribution to 150,000 students and teachers in all the senior secondary schools in the state free of charge.

The implication of these achievements for would be gubernatorial candidates and their political parties is that the benchmarks already set by the incumbent will have to be met and those who aspire to defeat him will not only promise to do what he has done but demonstrate the capacity and record of achievements to surpass him.

The second huddle that the aspirants will have to clear is ability to create employment opportunity to surpass that of Aregbesola who has now employed over 50,000 youths from the state. Numbered among these are the 20,000 employed within his first 100 days in office. Of the number, 18,000 are now fully engaged. The second batch of 20,000 youths came on board this February, while about 10,000 others were recruited into the state civil service either as teachers, doctors’ engineers and other professionals. Those aspirants must be ready to go beyond rhetoric but meet their promise with action it is then that the people will give them a consideration. It is important to recall that this OYES has earned the state an award by the World Bank which also recommends the scheme to the federal government.

The third huddle to be scaled by the other

gubernatorial gladiators is in the area of agriculture. Governor Aregbesola has shown that the land is fertile enough not only to feed the state but the nation. It is no longer news that the agricultural revolution in the state has started yielding results. The farmers and their friends will forever remain grateful to the governor for providing them with N1billion support for the cooperatives.

Indeed, 1,765 hectares were cleared for farmers to make farming easier, 28 cooperative groups were supported to plant 17 kilometres stretch maize, 10,000 capacity cattle ranch were established at Oloba, Iwo and has also been recognized by the World Bank. Beefarming, the first of its kind is already on at Oyan.

The farmers that benefited from these projects and assistance will not want to lose the governor that supports them, and the aspirant that will defeat their friend will not only promise but must have been tested and trusted by the people.

On road infrastructure, the previous government of Oyinlola Olagunsoye built 553 kilometres of roads in 90 months. Governor Aregbesola in 24 months has done 513 kilometres of roads, apart from the 218 kilometres being done by the local government authorities in the state. The people will not compromise on the man that has opened up rural areas and has since received the recognition and backing of the World Bank as the best among the four states under the supervision of the World Bank supported Rural Access Mobility Programme (RAMP).

In the area of peace and security, it is on record that no security outfit existed until this government came on board. The administration successfully set up the Swift Action Squad (SAS), equipped them with initial five Armoured Patrol Cars and 25 Patrol vans, state-of-the art multi-force, security control

speaking the minds of his colleagues especially on the vexed issues of excess crude account, sovereign wealth fund, true federalism, fuel subsidy and so on to a presidency that doesn’t seem to want to listen.

For speaking truth to power on behalf of his colleagues, the presidency wants him out as NGF chairman and have been using the Governors of Benue, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, expectedly Bayelsa states and to some extent Katsina State to cause trouble for Amaechi in the NGF. We all know the story of the creation of the PDP Governors Forum, to frustrate the Rivers State Governor, even when both the PDP and Governor Akpabio, the PDPGF chairman, have denied it.

The story of insecurity of lives and property in Rivers State prior to the coming on board of the Amaechi administration is well known, so also is how the Governor has successfully restored peace to his domain. Part of the measures was to spend millions of Naira to equip the security forces deployed in the State. But while the security forces were grateful, their masters in Abuja appear less so.

As we write, two armoured helicopters meant for security operations in Rivers state and environs, fully paid for by the state government have been denied clearance at the port in Lagos by the federal government who believe (wrongly) the choppers are meant for the so called Lamido/Amaechi 2015 project, which only exists in the imagination of the presidency. You can see how there minds work in Abuja. These are equipments that can be used to fight terrorism anywhere in Nigeria.

To cap it all, the war on Amaechi by Jonathan’s Federal Government has been taken to the ridiculous level of impounding the governor’s official aircraft for allegedly violating aviation rules and regulations.

Having covered the aviation beat for years, I know the powers invested in the regulatory authorities and as such would not pick issues yet with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) over their actions regarding that aircraft. But they had better be on solid ground else they would be dragged into the political mess by Jonathan and be disgraced.

Amaechi, we all know cannot be kept quite and will continue to say the truth. And as long as he continues to deliver the dividends of democracy to his people, he will always triumph, no matter the odds. He has gone through this before and emerged victorious. His current travail this will not be an exception. He should be patient.

President Goodluck Jonathan is however advised to beware of his latter day friends, the Nyesom Wikes of this world.

centre, mega police stations and community policing network.

The social ethos of Omoluabi is transforming the state from the violence-prone state in the pre-Aregbesola era to a peaceful one to underscore the fact that the virtuous status of the state is not mere rhetoric but the ideals that has unified groups.

Today, the aged, especially those who have no relations to cater for them are being taken care of under the administration’s social welfare programme. The critically vulnerable elders, numbering 1600 are on monthly allowance of N10,000. Some are being looked after in the hospitals in the state. Others receive home-based medical care. The mentally challenged are not left out as some of them are now restored back to normal health and returned to their communities.

So those who want to serve Aregbesola a quit notice should be reminded about these benchmarks. For no matter the tirade and negative propaganda, issues that benefit the people will be the basis for success at the polls and not cheap lies, diatribes and blackmail. Aregbesola has given the people of Osun the dividends of democracy. It is for his opponents to show their stuff and their antecedent to let the people make their choice. This is the hallmark of democracy.

• Obaditan writes from Osogbo, Osun State

‘On road infrastructure, the previous government of Oyinlola Olagunsoye built 553 kilometres of roads in 90 months. Governor Aregbesola in 24 months has done 513 kilometres of roads, apart from the 218 kilometres being done by the local government authorities in the state’

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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INSIDE

TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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Website: http://www.thenationonlineng.com

NIPSS boss hails FCTA on hospital facilities

N5billion security fund for Abuja

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Iwuanyanwu seeks rotational ministerial slot for FCT

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Council chief seeks more fund - Page 27

HE Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) knows the security challenges facing it and is quite prepared to tackle them.

The FCT will generate about N5 billion for its proposed Security Trust Fund, Minister of the FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed has said.

Senator Mohammed disclosed this while answering questions during an interactive session with participants of Senior Executive Course 35 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru near Jos, in his office.

The minister further said the FCT security trust framework is underway to complement the funding of security agencies in Abuja.

He aded that the proposed FCT Security Trust Fund will be chaired by at least a retired Inspector-General of Police to enable him bring his experience to bear in managing the funds.

A statement issued by Assistant Director/Chief Press Secretary to the

From Gbenga Omokhunu and Grace Obike

FCT Minister, Muhammad Hazat Sule said corporate organisations operating in the Federal Capital Territory are ready to cooperate by contributing to the proposed trust fund.

He said that despite Federal Government’s allocation to the security agencies, the FCT

Administration currently expends between N60 million and N80 million monthly on security agencies in the Federal Capital Territory.

He assured that the agencies resolve the security challenges in and around the 8,000 square kilometres of the Federal Capital Territory.

The minister further assured that people’s movements are monitored by the security agencies, adding that the traditional institution in the

Despite Federal Government’s allocation to the security agencies, the FCT Administration currently expends between N60 million and N80 million monthly on security agencies in the Federal Capital Territory

QUOTE Despite Federal Government’s allocation to the security agencies, the FCT Administration currently expend between N60 million and N80 million monthly on security agencies in the Federal Capital Territory

territory has been assisting with useful intelligence reports on a daily basis.

Senator Mohammed remarked that the FCT Administration is contemplating purchasing a helicopter for the security agents for surveillance purposes.

Director-General of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, Professor Tijjani Muhammad Bande appreciated the warm reception accorded his team.

Professor Bande said that they were impressed with the kind of equipment provided by the FCT Administration in the District Hospitals, particularly Asokoro District Hospital.

The FCT Minister of State, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, the FCT Permanent Secretary, John Chukwu; FCDA Executive Secretary, Adamu Ismaila and other top government functionaries in the FCT Administration were present at the interactive session.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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ABUJA REVIEW

NIPSS boss hails FCTA on hospital facilities From Bukola Amusan

•Dr Onakomaiya

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HE Director-General National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies Kuru, near Jos, Professor Mohammed Tijjani Bande has commended the FCT Administration for providing state-ofthe-art equipment in its general hospitals.

Professor Bande made this com-

mendation when the participant of the Senior Executive Course 35, 2013 National Institute went to Asokoro District Hospital on study tour.

He said: “We are really surprised and shocked to have seen these sets of very important equipment in public hospital. This clearly shows the determination of the FCT Administration to provide quality and accessible healthcare services to the people.”

The Director further stated that the visit to the FCT was to interact with the management staff of these facilities and to see things on ground on the strengthening of institutional framework in line with the transformation agenda of the Federal Government.

He also added that the tour enabled the participants to clearly understand the concession agreement on Public Private Partnership (PPP) between the FCT Administration and Garki Hospital as well as

achievements recorded and challenges experienced.

Speaking earlier, the Secretary, FCT Health and Human Services Secretariat Dr. Demola Onakomaiya said Asokoro District Hospital has a patient attendance of over 15,000 monthly, with 2,520 deliveries in 2012, out of which 729 were by caesarean sections with C/ S rate of 28.9 per cent and the maternal mortality ratio of 278/

100,000.

The secretary added that clinical activities in the hospital cover all major areas of internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, family medicine, anesthesia, pathology and radiology.

He added that recently, the hospital had been provided with a 64 slice computerised tomography scan, digital X-rays and digital fluoros-

We are really surprised and shocked to see this set of very important equipment in a public hospital. This clearly shows the determination of the FCT Administration to provide quality and accessible healthcare services to the people

copy, even as he said that echocardiography has also been introduced to complement existing electrocardiography.

Dr. Demola added that the hospital has full accreditation by the West African Colleges of Physicians and the National Post-graduate Medical College of Nigeria for training of resident doctors in the field of family medicine and provisional accreditation from the West African College of Surgeons for the training of resident doctors in the field of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

He further added that in an effort to decongest the city hospitals and to provide medical services to the grassroots, the FCT Administration recently awarded the contract for equipping of three cottage 60-bed hospitals in Gwagwalada, Shere and Karshi which are currently at various stages of completion.

He also disclosed that 120-bed hospital at Karu and 60-bed hospital at Zuba are awaiting equipment installation which have all been supplied and delivered to the sites.

Iwuanyanwu seeks rotational ministerial slot for FCT

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HIEF Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu has advocated the rotation of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) ministerial slot among the country’s six geo-political zones.

Iwuanyanwu spoke at a dinner organised by his friends to mark his 70th birthday in Abuja.

He lamented that since the FCT was created, nobody from the Southern part of the country has had the privilege of administering the city.

The elder statesman, who said he could not mark his 70 years on earth last year due to the demise of his heartthrob, however thanked the organisers of the event for the honour done him.

He said: “I was 70 last year. I could not celebrate it because of what happened to me. My wife who was my girlfriend in the university was recalled by God. “It was a very painful experience and I did not have the joy to celebrate my 70th birthday.”

He said although he fought for Biafra during the Nigerian Civil War, he has since become an unrepentant advocate of its unity.

He said since age was no longer on his side and having vied for the office of the President in the past, he wanted some salient issues in the polity to be redressed to keep the country together.

He called for the restructuring of the country along the six geo-political zones to prevent the South-East from becoming a permanent minority.

He lamented that the status of Abuja as the Centre of Unity and home for all is fast fading away.

He equally said this was a major concern for other ethnic groups that have invested immensely in the city.

Iwuanyanwu said: “Many years ago, we all thought that Lagos was congested and everybody agreed that the Federal Capital should actually move out of Lagos.

“I want to say that I was with Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe on one occasion when he made the comment that they wanted the capital to be somewhere between Abakaliki and Ogoja.

“Chief Obafemi Awolowo insisted that it should be in Lagos but at the end of the day, it was decided it would be Abuja and Abuja everybody agrees is the best.

“Abuja is central to everybody. But we were told that in this capital city, nobody will say he is an indigene.

This capital city will belong to everybody; that every Nigerian will be here. We were thinking that we needed a place like Abuja.

From Sanni Onogu

“Even if Nigeria disintegrated, Abuja must be protected. I think that was what we had in mind.

“I think really something is happening and if we are not careful, we will lose that status.

“Taxpayers’ money was spent in acquiring this place and rehabilitating the people who were here. So, I think, frankly speaking, we, during this period of our 100 years’ anniversary, should make sure that Abuja is the Abuja we all dreamt of; which is a federal capital where everybody can come and stay. Even if Nigerians refuse at any time and say they don’t want to stay together, this Abuja will be there.

“That is what I thought it is and I am sure that is why many Igbo are investing here.

“If one could have the belief that one day somebody will say ‘I am an indigene and you are not an indigene’ and he probably passes a law to nullify all my efforts, I think it will just make nonsense of what we have been made to believe.

“I am saying this because I am getting old but we have some of you here who are younger. I think Nigeria should look at these two issues.

“Once these issues are resolved, I assure you that the future of this country will be very great. Everybody will be very happy.

“The reason people of Southern Nigeria are asking for a Sovereign National Conference is because they believe that for a country with the type of cultures we have, we require a constitution that will be good enough for our cultures.

“Frankly speaking, I think that Abuja is a place for all of us. It means then that the minister for Abuja should rotate among the six geo-political zones.

“Nobody from the Southeast, Southsouth or Southwest has been the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory; this must be done to reflect the fact that Abuja is for everybody.

“That will give Igbo comfort and assurance that their investments here are not in vain.”

He insisted that a country can only survive when the members are honest with one another.

He added: “In 1914, Dr. Frederick Lugard amalgamated Nigeria. I am an engineer as well as a student of history. I am completely satisfied that Lugard was a trader of the Royal Niger Company.

•Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu cutting his 70th birthday cake in Abuja. With him are Alhaji Imam Kashim (left); former Minister of Education, Dr Mrs Chinwe Obaje and Chief Chuks Okafor of Chikason Group

I think that Abuja is a place for all of us. It means then that the minister for Abuja should rotate among the six geo-political zones…Nobody from the Southeast, Southsouth or Southwest has been the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory; this must be done to reflect the fact that Abuja is for everybody “He amalgamated Nigeria not for unity or to give Nigerians political power but to enhance British trade.

That was all.

“But you see, it became a geographical expression. Today, it is a political expression and I believe that this is the only hope we have as Nigerians.

“If Nigeria breaks up, there is no hope for the Blackman again.

“Before the amalgamation, we in Igbo land had our own signs. We had our own technology. We had our own religion.

“If anybody tells you they didn’t have leadership, he is telling you a lie. We had leadership. But you see, it does not matter if we quarrel, we always come together again.

“I have been advocating that resources and power should be allo-

cated according to the six geo-political zones. If at the end of the day democracy is one man one vote, it means then that I can never achieve political power if I have five children and my northern brother has 100 children.

“If we don’t say it today our children will ask us where were we? I can’t live for 100 years. This is the time for us to correct this anomaly.

“We must, during this period, agree to have a very strong federation of Nigeria. We must be able to have all the elements and ingredients that are necessary for a strong federation.

Chairman of the dinner, Alhaji Kashim Imam praised Chief Iwuanyanwu for his achievements at 70, saying he is a detribalised Nigerian.

Imam said: Chief Iwuanyanwu is a

man that all Nigerians respect, whether Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba, wherever you come from, he is a Nigerian that we all respect.

“He is successful in all ramifications.

He is successful in business. He is successful in politics.

“Most of us in politics refer to him as our leader. We formed the United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP) together in the residence of Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu in Owerri, Imo State.

“I used to tell people that it was Chief Iwuanyanwu that was instrumental to the formation of UNCP. “And he has remained active since then. I see him every now and then at the meetings of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“All Nigerians that know him can testify that he is a man of integrity.

“He is also a philanthropist per excellence. He is a newspaper guru. He is a sports guru. He is a business guru.

Chief Iwuanyanwu does not belong to the Igbo alone. He now belongs to all Nigerians.”

Among dignitaries present at the dinner were Senator Chris Anyanwu, Senator Austin Anosike, former Minister of Education, Dr Chinwe Obaji and Chief Chuks Okafor of Chikason Group, among others.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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ABUJA REVIEW

Council chief seeks more fund T

HE chairman of the Bwari Area Council Peter Yohanna Ushafa has called for two per cent special allocation from the consolidated account for the six area councils in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Mr. Ushafa made the call while receiving participants of the Executive Course Batch 35 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, Plateau State, who were on study tour to

Stories from Gbenga Omokhunu and Grace Obike

the FCT. He also made similar request for the FCT Administration, adding that such special allocations will enable the FCTA and the area councils to meet up with the infrastructural challenges facing the territory, which he said, was as a result of daily influx of people to the territory.

“The FCT area councils are, at

The FCT area councils are, at present, receiving the same allocation with their counterparts across the country, even as we pay our staff the same amount with those in the Federal Civil Service and that is not the practice with staff of local councils in the states

F

ORMER National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo, has identified the reason the country has never experienced uninterrupted power supply. Corruption in government circles is to blame, he said.

To worsen the situation, Nwodo accused government of not being sincere with the people on governance, adding that regular electricity supply is being sabotaged by the powers that be.

Nwodo who spoke in Abuja at the African Energy and Infrastructure Magazine Forum, revealed that: “Every effort to privatise the power sector so that we can have competitionm, fresh people and ideas introduced in the industry was strongly resisted by people who are benefiting from what you and I are suffering today. ”Nigeria imports more generators than any other country in the world. As we speak, every effort to implement the road-map in or-

present, receiving the same allocation with their counterparts across the country, even as we pay our staff the same amount with those in the Federal Civil Service and that is not the practice with staff of local councils in the states,” he said.

He said as a result of that, FCT area councils are finding it difficult to meet up with some of the challenges which the residents are experiencing, especially at satellite towns as well as local communities.

“Such special allocation can be kept somewhere not necessarily at the councils’ account but should be targeted at financing critical projects at the satellite towns in order to meet up with people’s needs in those areas and as well decongest the city centre,” he said.

He, however, told the visiting group that the FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed does not tamper with the councils’ funds as being practised in some states.

The council chairman said his

administration has made life meaningful for his people in the past three years in the areas of rural health, education, water, rural electrification, road and security.

Earlier, the leader of the delegation and a management staff at the institute, Professor Ibrahim Jumare had informed the council chief that the participants who were drawn from both public and private sectors, were on study tour of the territory to ascertain how government policies are affecting ordinary people at the grassroots.

He said the theme of their course is “Strengthening Institutional Framework and Transformation Agenda in Nigeria.”

Professor Ibrahim said government’s transformation agenda could only be said to be working if people at the grassroots are feeling the impacts of government’s policies and programmes positively. He expressed his satisfaction with the council chairman for his effort to transform his communities.

•Senator Mohammed

The chairman later led the group to the palaces of Sarkin Bwari, Alhaji Musa Ijakoro and Esu Bwari, Chief Ibrahim Yaro as well as to the ancient Ushafa Pottery Centre where the group called for the upgrade of the centre to a tourism centre in order to attract both local and foreign investors.

‘Why we don’t have uninterrupted power’ der for you and I to have electricity 24 hours is under sabotage.”

Nwodo, a former governor of Enugu State, said for effective development to take place, as is the case in any developed country, government must check corruption and put the right people in the right places.

His words: “We have reached a point where the mistrust for government is so high. Government must be as sincere as God to the people. Today, we have a situa-

tion where you actively participate in an electoral process by voting in an election and before you finish voting, they have announced the result. So the populace does not have confidence in government even when it has intention to do the right thing. The people will still doubt. We need government to build confidence, we need to trust government.

Most of these problems will be solved if government is sincere.

“There is a lot of rot in the

There is a lot of rot in the power sector.

It is one of the sectors in our economy that has refused to grow with the population. We did not increase our generation of electricity, neither did we improve transmission of electricity

power sector. And this rot came over many years. The power sector is one of the sectors in our economy that has refused to grow with the population. We did not increase our generation of electricity, neither did we improve transmission of electricity. You cannot be distributing what you are not supplying. On top of all of this, there was monumental corruption. Corruption in which our infrastructure in the energy sector was decaying and people were importing repaired spare parts that have nothing to do with the installed equipment.

“Added to this is over invoicing. Materials were left in the open for years to rot under the sun and the wind when they were supposed to be used to re-energise the power sector. This development brought us to where we are today. When I was the National Chairman of the PDP as we were about to bring this government in place, we were discussing priorities for the current administration. And we said that the number one priority was power, number two priority was power and number three priority

was power, because if we generate power, it has the multiplier effect. We need to generate power in order to move the economy.”

He went further that: “Even our brothers and sisters working in the power sector, who if they can look to the future will have more secured jobs when private enterprises begin to generate and transmit electricity. But the fear of losing their job today makes it impossible for government to privatise.

“There are certain better things that we must swallow in order to move forward. And until we as a people realise that we have to do that, we will not move forward.

Our petroleum industry is the least developed petroleum industry amongst petroleum industries discovered at its own age. We do have a problem and what we need more than anything else is the political will to drive this machinery.

He said government must explain this process boldly to the understanding of each and every stakeholder. And when people understand and buy into it t can implement it.

Director of Urban Affairs dies

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•Vice-President Mohammed Namadi Sambo presenting a Certificate of Transactions to the Chairman of Transcorp, Tony Elumelu. With them is Acting Director-General, Bureau of Public Enterprises, Benjamin Dikki during the Presidential Power Reform Transactions signing ceremony at the Presidential Villa in Abuja PHOTO: AKIN OLADOKUN

HE Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed has described the death of the FCT Director of Urban Affairs, Mr. Abin Daniel John as shocking and a monumental loss to the Federal Capital Territory Administration.

Mohammed said this when he paid a condolence visit to the family of the deceased at his Zone 6, Wuse I District Abuja residence.

The minister expressed his condolences to the widow, children as well as other dependents of the late director, even as he urged them to take solace in the fact that their breadwinner lived an exemplary life.

According to a statement issued by the Assistant Director/Chief Press Secretary to the minister, Muhammad Hazat Sule, the minister emphasised that “it is not how long a person lived on this earth but how well.”

Senator Mohammed reiterated that the Federal Capital Territory Administration would miss his quality but selfless service, especially his contributions to municipal management of Abuja.

He prayed that Almighty God should grant his gentle soul eternal rest and grant his family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

The late Mr. John, until his death, was the Director of Urban Affairs in the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council of the FCT. The late Director, who was born on February 22, 1956 in Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna State, joined the services of the FCT Administration on May 26, 2005.

The late Abin was a holder of Bachelors Degree in Geography as well as Masters in Urban and Regional Planning and was appointed Director on April 25, 2007.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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ABUJA REVIEW

N150m plan for indigenous students

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ELP is on the way for cashstrapped indigenous students in Federal Capital Territory schools. An organisation, the Youth Federation for World Peace is set to raise N150 million to support 100 indigent students in the Territory.

The students are to be selected in conjunction with local chiefs who will identify the students and justify their eligibility for the cash support.

The programme being coordinated in conjunction with the Dependable Basic Concept Partners, Abuja, according to its National President, Eras Darlington Eguaoje, is aimed at securing the students’ future.

Eguaoje, who spoke with newsmen in Abuja on the fundraising scheduled for May 27, 2013 said the project, if properly sustained, will give children a sense of belonging in the society.

“The programme will empower

From Bukola Amusan

the students, thereby giving them a sense of belonging. It will also enable them to contribute to the peace, unity and development of the nation,” he said.

He further said that although the project is starting in the FCT, it will be replicated in other states in order to actualise the dream of good education for the Nigerian child; especially the less-privileged ones.

The Project Initiator, Charity Davou Dawang said as an exbanker she had been in contact with some of the indigenous children and parents and feeling their plights came up with the initiative to start education empowerment for the indigenous children in order to safeguard their future.

“If this is not addressed early enough, it may send very wrong signal to the future of the FCT,” she said.

The programme will empower the students, thereby giving them a sense of belonging. It will also enable them to contribute to the peace, unity and development of the nation

T

HE publisher of African Energy and Infrastructure Magazine, Dr Ken Giami, has said that African continent requireds annual investment of $93 billion over the next 10 years for it to catch up with other developing regions.

Giami stated this at 2013 African Energy and Infrastructure Conference and Awards in Abuja, with a theme: Bridging Africa Energy and Infrastructure Deficit.

He disclosed that even though Africa is a continent with tremendous economic growth, investment and rapid rising standards, energy and infrastructure deficit has contin-

• From left: (Standing)Borno State Deputy Governor Mustapha Zanna, his counterparts from Nasarawa State Damashi Barau, Kebbi State, Ibrahim Aliyu, (sitting) Deputy Governors of Gigawa State Ahmed Gomel and Imo State, Prince Eze Madumere at the National Economic Council Meeting at the Presidential Villa.

PHOTO AKIN OLADOKUN.

Seminar handbook unveiled

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N a bid to tackle the various challenges facing participants at seminars, conferences and workshops, a handbook on necessary safety tips has been presented to the public in Abuja.

The book entitled “Safety Tips Handbook for Seminars, Workshops, Conferences Participants and Tourists” is written by veteran journalist,

From Bukola Amusan

Ismaila Jimoh, who said he was inspired to write the book as a result of the challenges that face conferences and seminar participants.

He said: “As a journalist who has been monitoring the ugly development for about a decade now, it became a moral duty for

me to put instructional materials together in order to correct such mistakes.

He enjoined would-be conferences and seminar participants to avail themselves of the information the handbook contained so as to bring out the best in their presentations.

‘Africa needs $93b to fill infrastructure gap’ From Gbenga Omokhunu and Grace Obike

ued to rob it of realising its true potential.

“In the power sector, the entire installed generation capacity of 48 sub-Saharan African countries is 68 gigawatts, and 25% of that capacity is unavailable because of aging plants and poor maintenance. It is dramatic since inadequate access to energy is the single largest impediment to economic growth. No country in the world has developed its economy without abun-

•Good roads are crucial to development

dant energy supplies,“ he said.

Giami, who is also the Publisher of African Leadership Magazine said for Africa to fill the energy and infrastructure gap and make its population more productive ,it must key into the global conversation which has moved to renewable energy.

He said: “The change in conversation from fossil fuel energy sources to sustainable, environmentally friendly alternatives delivers another opportunity for Africa to partake in the benefits of this coming change.”

He called on African governments to invest in human capital, research and development and global market place of ideas through international organisations, world class universities, transnational corporations and other development partners with expertise to craft bold and visionary energy and infrastructure future for the continent.

In his keynote address, the Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo, disclosed that efforts are being made by the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration to explore vari-

•Power supply is imperative

ous renewable energy sources for viability in producing electricity.

He said: ”The establishment of Roadmap for Power Sector Reforms on August 26, 2010 reflects Mr. President’s commitment to wage a war on darkness on many fronts, from several angles, and yet as a concerted effort. In a sense, this gathering makes us willing “conscripts” in that war. It makes us eager participants in a collective struggle to push back the boundaries of darkness and expand the frontiers of light.”

29

TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

a boom of litigations surrounding generational ‘ There’s wealth transfer. Increasing disputes arise upon death, divorce or mental incapacity. There’s no typical wealth plan that fits every individual See page 37

E-mail:- law@thenationonlineng.net

INSIDE: ‘Why NJC should recall Salami now’ -Page 31

’

The killings shook the nation. Many are yet to recover from the shocking news that 185 people were killed during a military assault in Baga, the border town 180 kilometres north of Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. To the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the action is a crime against humanity, which should go before the International Criminal Court (ICC). Lawyers are divided on whether the ICC should step in or not, reports JOSEPH JIBUEZE.

Lagos judges, magistrates to get sentencing guidelines -Page 32

Court restrains Lagos, market leaders over Akanimodo -Page 33

Eastern Bar sets up electoral committee -Page 35

‘Parliamentary system best solution to corruption’ -Page 37

Experts seek review of laws on air safety -Page 38

• Women allegedly sacked from their houses by soldiers stand in front of burnt houses in the remote northeast town of Baga.

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Is Baga a case for International Criminal Court

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OU can hardly find it on the map, but Baga, the border town 180 kilometres north of Borno State, has become popular over night. Curiously, it became popular because of a tragedy–the killing of hundreds, during a military invasion of the town. No fewer than 185 persons were said to have been killed, but the military is disputing the figure.

Human rights agencies reported a high number of civilian casualties and the government has been under pressure to investigate whether excessive force was used. President Goodluck Jonathan has vowed to conduct an inquiry into whether the troops departed from the

AFP PHOTO / STR

rules of engagement.

The Multinational Joint Task Force (MJTF) comprising Nigerian, Chadian and Nigerien troops under the command of Brig. Gen. Austin Edokpaye, is said to be responsible for the massacre.

Many natives were reported to have sworn that they saw soldiers chase Baga locals out before torching their homes. They were said to have also mowed down fleeing civilians.

The casualty figure is being disputed. The military claims that the figure is not up to 185.

•Continued on page 30

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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LAW COVER CONT’D

Is Baga a case for International Criminal Court?

• Continued from page 29

The Senator representing Borno North, Senator Maina Ma’aji Lawan, was quoted as saying that what he saw when he visited his constituency.

The excessive firepower allegedly deployed by the soldiers has been condemned.

Many are wondering: Is the government’s action lawful – to organise joint military action and apply the rules and techniques of international peace keeping operation against innocent citizens in an attempt to quell domestic insurgency?

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has described the attacks as crimes against humanity, which it said deserves the attention of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The party said the intervention of the ICC became necessary because the Federal Government has not demonstrated enough willingness to bring the masterminds of the killings to book.

Presidential spokesman Reuben Abati said: “In no manner could President Jonathan be accused of having incited the security agencies or the insurgents against the people of Baga, during his visit to Yobe and Borno states. To make such an allegation is preposterous and insulting.”

Is it time to invite the ICC as the ACN suggested? Yes, say some lawyers. According to them, Part 2, Article 5 of the Rome Statute grants the court jurisdiction over four groups of crimes, which it refers to as the “most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole.” They are genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.

The statute defines each of the crimes except for aggression. The crime of genocide is unique because it is committed with ‘intent to destroy’.

Crimes against humanity are specifically listed as prohibited acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population.

The statute provides that the court will not exercise its jurisdiction over the crime of aggression until state parties agree on a definition of the crime and outline the conditions under which it may be prosecuted.

There are indications that the ICC may have started probe of previous attacks against civilians. Special Prosecutor, Mrs Fatou Bensouda, reportly said ICC has begun investigation into allegations of extra-judicial killings in Nigeria by security forces.

Bensouda confirmed this in an interview published in the August/September 2012 edition of the New African Magazine, where she was quoted as saying: “The OTP (office of the prosecutor) is currently conducting preliminary examinations in a number of situations, including Afghanistan, Georgia, Guinea, Columbia, Honduras, Korea and Nigeria” The Baga attack is not the first time soldiers will be accused of going beyond their mandate.

Amnesty International, in its 2012 report on Nigeria, alleged that the JTF cordoned off the Kaleri Ngomari Custain area in Maiduguri after a Boko Haram bombing.

Going from house to house, they reportedly shot dead at least 25 people. Many men and boys were reported missing. The JTF also burned down several houses, forcing occupants to flee. At least 45 people were reportedly injured. Women were allegedly also raped by the security forces.

In trying to solve the Boko Haram problem, the President has set up an amnesty committee, which he asked to “perform magic” in three months.

The United States, speaking through the Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, Johnnie Carson, had called for the creation of a Ministry of Northern Affairs, or a Development Commission for the North.

Analysts say Boko Haram capitalises on popular frustrations with the nation’s leaders, poor government service delivery, and the dismal living conditions of many northerners and then seeks to humiliate and undermine the government and exploit religious differences to create chaos and make Nigeria ungovernable.

Boko Haram has created widespread insecurity across northern Nigeria, increased tensions between various ethnic communities, interrupted development activities, frightened off investors, and generated concerns among Nigeria’s northern neighbors.

The sect, it appears, has grown stronger and increasingly more sophisticated over the years, and experts say eliminating the problem would require a comprehensive and broad based strategy that establishes a comprehensive development plan rather than the imposition of martial law.

• Fagbohungbe (SAN)

• Aturu

• Otteh

• Otayemi

How the Court works

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TATES, Parties or the United Nations Security Council may refer situations of crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court to the Prosecutor. The Prosecutor evaluates the available information and commences an investigation unless he determines there is no reasonable basis to proceed.

The Prosecutor may also begin an investigation on his own initiative. In doing so, he receives and analyzes information submitted by a variety of reliable sources. If the Prosecutor concludes there is a reasonable basis to proceed with an investigation, he asks a PreTrial Chamber to authorize an investigation.

The Prosecutor’s investigations cover all facts and evidence relevant to an assessment of criminal responsibility. The Prosecutor investigates incriminating and exonerating circumstance equally and fully respects the rights of the accused.

During the duration of an investigation, each situation is assigned to a Pre-Trial Chamber. The Pre-Trial Chamber is responsible for the judicial aspects of proceedings. Among its functions, the Pre-Trial Chamber, on the application of the Prosecutor, may issue a warrant of arrest or a summons to appear if there are reasonable grounds to believe a person has committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court. Once a wanted person has been surrendered to or voluntarily appears before the Court, the Pre-Trial Chamber holds a hearing to confirm the charges that will be the basis of the trial.

Following the confirmation of charges, a case is assigned to a Trial Chamber of three judges. The Trial Chamber is responsible for conducting fair and expeditious proceedings with full respect for the rights of the accused. The accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty by the Prosecutor beyond reasonable doubt. The accused has the right to conduct the defence in person or through counsel of his or her choosing. Victims may also participate in proceedings directly or through their legal representatives.

Upon conclusion of the proceedings, the Trial Chamber issues its decision, acquitting or convicting the accused. If the accused is convicted, the Trial Chamber issues a sentence for a specified term of up to thirty years or, when justified by the extreme gravity of the crime and the individual circumstances of the convicted person, life imprisonment. The Trial Chamber may also order reparations to victims.

Throughout the Pre-Trial and Trial phases, the accused, the Prosecutor or a concerned State may appeal decisions of the Chambers as specified by the Statute. Following the decision of the Trial Chamber, the Prosecutor or the accused may appeal the decision or sentence as provided in the Statute. Legal representatives of victims, the convicted person or bona fide owners of adversely-affected property may appeal reparations orders. All appeals are decided by the Appeals Chamber of five judges.

Experts say while more sophisticated and targeted security efforts are necessary to contain Boko Harm’s acts of violence and to capture and prosecute its leaders, the government must also win over the population by addressing the social and economic problems that have created the environment in which Boko Haram can effectively thrive.

The government, observers say, must improve its tactics, avoid excessive violence and human rights abuses, make better use of its police and intelligence services, de-emphasise the role of the military and use its courts to prosecute those who are found to be culpable.

Some lawyers are of the view that acts by security agents which endanger innocent lives must be avoided, but opinions were divided on whether the ICC should be invited at this time.

For the majority, the government should focus on the political environment that makes Boko Haram dangerous. By demonstrating the benefits a pluralistic society has to offer, the government can deny Boko Haram and other extremists the ability to exploit ethnic and religious differences.

By becoming more responsive to the people, analysts believe the government can put distance between itself and the accusations that it is blind to the needs of northern Nigerians. It should

develop a new social compact with northern citizens and an economic recovery strategy that complements its security strategy.

A social analyst, Okachikwu Dibia, said there was the eed to overhaul the Nigerian security system, and help them to develop the basic attitude to deal with sophisticated social problem A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Felix Fagbohungbe, said the government should be given the benefit of the doubt as it explores measures to solve the problem.

He said: “Luckily, government has set up a committee to look into the cause of the clash.

May be the findings of this committee will help us in finding lasting solution to the menace of the Boko Haram.

“Since the committee was set up, they have assured the government that amnesty is the best solution to the issue. I think the government should have confidence in the committee and the elders of the North who have already visited the President and gave undertakings, including the Sultan of Sokoto. I think we should wait for the report of the committee set up by the government.

“Government must look after them. Government must set up a relief fund for them and ameliorate their problems. I believe they should be compensated.”

Mallam Yusuf Ali (SAN) said ICC intervention may be not needed yet.

“The President had promised that the culprits will not go unpunished. You only resort to ICC if the country where such acts take place is either unwilling or does not possess the judicial capacity to deal with the issue.

“Nigeria possesses the judicial ability and the president had indicated the willingness to ensure justice, so there is no need for ICC intervention,” Ali said.

For Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN) the high level of insecurity is a function of unemployment. He said governments at all levels must devise more creative ways to tackle the unacceptable level of joblessness in the country.

Rights activist Femi Falana said with such summary executions and the brutal killing of hundreds of innocent people by the joint task forces operating in the Niger Delta and in some northern states, a strong case has been made for the immediate intervention of ICC to try the culprits who have committed such crimes against humanity with impunity.

Activist Bamidele Aturu agreed with Ngige, saying social injustices must be addressed.

“My position remains that the insurgency is a consequence of socio-economic inequities in our system and a reaction to the comprehensive conspicuous consumption and corruption of the ruling elite who do nothing but loot the treasury.

“The way to go is to cancel all existing oil blocks, declare free education and health services at all levels and create jobs for the several millions of unemployed youth. The government does not seem to get that. Resort to mass murder of innocent citizens is both reckless and irresponsible.”

Executive Director of a human rights group, the Access to Justice, Mr Joseph Otteh, is of the view that Jonathan government must go beyond setting up an enquiry.

“By his rather light-hearted, facetious reaction to acts possibly amounting to genocide committed by the military in the guise of fighting terror, President Jonathan’s government is implicitly aiding genocide, and emboldening those who perpetrate it.

“All that our President said, hearing of the brutal massacre of nearly two hundred people, is that the government would set up an inquiry!

“There was no outrage, no condemnation, no indignation, no declaration that this was unacceptable and that the rampaging soldiers had crossed the boundaries of what was a legitimate engagement with those who practice terror. Now the medicine seems to be worse than the disease!”

Otteh argues that if need be, nothing stops the ICC from intervening.

He said: “The ICC has jurisdiction over these cases, and in the absence of a clear willingness of the Nigerian government to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident, we would support the ICC’s intervention. I do not expect that a recurrence of this incident will be foreclosed either now or in the near future. Our government does not only fail to guarantee security of human life, it even treats human life with contempt!”

Executive Director, Social and Economic Rights Action Center (SERAC), Felix C. Morka, believes the killings were most worrisome because of reports that many of the dead were not related to or associated with violence.

He said: “The Federal Government and the Nigerian army need to be extremely careful.

There is serious need to streamline the mandate of the JTF. I have not seen any explanation by the government on why an international operation became necessary. I also think there is no justification whatsoever, for the deployment of international troops for this operation, because with this development, other radical elements in some of these northern neighbouring countries will begin to align more with Book Haram.”

A lawyer, Otunba Olusegun Otayemi described the killing as highly condemnable. He said those affected should seek legal redress against the government.

“Since neither war nor state of emergency has been declared in the affected area, every person affected not being the target of the military operation, has a cause of action against the Federal Government which deployed the officers for the operation and is therefore vicariously liable for their excesses.”

President, Coalition of Lawyers for Good Governance, Mr Joe Nwokedi, said the killing of innocent civilians was not justifiable in local and international law.

“What happened at Baga is purely genocide and therefore requires full international attention. Whatever excuse the soldiers might have given for such a dastardly act and massacre of innocent civilians should not be accepted. Justice must be done!”

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

31

LAW PERSONALITY Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN) is a consummate Bar man. He has been a member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) National Executive Committee since 1991. A former Secretary of NBA Lagos branch, he is also a former member of the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee Appeal Panel and, lately, the Body of Benchers. Ngige was a leading candidate in the last NBA elections. In this interview with JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU, he speaks on the Federal Government’s amnesty committee, how NJC can curb corruption on the Bench, NBA Constitution amendment, and why suspended President of Court of Appeal Justice Isa Ayo should be recalled.

‘Why NJC should recall Salami now’

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HE level of insecurity in the country is rising every day.

How do you think we can get out of this security challenge?

The high level of insecurity is a function of many causes, chief among which is unemployment. It is said that an idle hand is the devil’s workshop. Nigeria has the highest rate of employment in the world. I don’t think there is a comparison to the rate of unemployment we are experiencing in the country. Hundreds of thousands of graduates are churned out every year but the vacancies for employment are not there. Therefore, Governments at all levels, among others, must devise more creative ways to tackle the unacceptable level of unemployment in the country. In the South-Eastern part of the country, unemployment is the major cause of the spate of kidnappings we have been experiencing. In the North, the issue is beyond unemployment. It is more political and religious. Recall that some people had vowed sometime before 2011 elections, to make the country ungovernable if things did not go their way. Eventually, things went contrary to their wishes and the country is now virtually ungovernable. So the Government must devise political strategies to stem the security challenges we face.

Do you think the Boko Haram amnesty committee will find a solution to the problem?

The answer to that question is in the womb of time; only time will tell. What we can say for now is to wish the committee well and hope that their patriotic efforts will yield fruits. Remember that there was a similar committee in the past and they turned in their report. What happened thereafter is now history.

I believe that with sincerity on both sides, much could be achieved. What is not debatable is the fact that Nigeria needs peace to develop and achieve her great potentials as the leading nation for the Black race.

Boko Haram problem is highly complex and complicated. Finding solution will not be easy. I wish the Committee success particularly my brother silk, Kabiru Turaki, SAN who is the chairman. Their assignment is not easy one at all.

Corruption has been blamed as a major challenge retarding the developing of the country. Do you think that the Federal Government has done enough to combat this scourge, what is the way out?

There is a widespread perception that governments at all levels in Nigeria have not done enough to combat corruption. As Caesar’s wife, officials even at the highest levels of government and their associates must not only be above board but must be seen to be so. As the saying goes, there is no smoke without fire. Accordingly, if more people increasingly continue to perceive government as lukewarm towards corruption related issues, then it calls for serious concern. The way out is simple – it is for the Presidency to show the political will to combat corruption; every other thing and person will fall into place.

When Buhari/Idiagbon were in power in the 80s, Nigerians towed the path of honesty and truthfulness. Remember the War Against Indiscipline. You can drop money on the road, nobody would pick it.

Today things have changed from bad to worse. No thanks to Obasanjo regime. Peoples now steal billions of naira from the treasury and they are celebrated. That is the level of decadence the nation has

sunk into. So in effect, perception of corruption could be as simple as reading the body language of Mr. President and knowing that you will not be spared even as a corruption watchdog. That kind of commitment at the highest level is very critical to the fight against corruption not just in Nigeria but globally.

The incumbent Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) is trying to fight corruption in the judiciary. How do you appraise her efforts and how do you think we rid the sector of corruption?

I must commend the efforts of the CJN in this regard. With her ascension to the CJN throne, it is like a Daniel come to judgment. I predicted that her coming will bring to an end (albeit temporarily) the culture of impunity that had prevailed in the judiciary and indeed in the legal profession. The CJN is widely reputed as a model for judges, given her scandal free and stellar career. She is not known as a taker; she is believed to be fiercely against corruption and all that it connotes which goes back to my view on Caesar’s wife, because as the saying goes, corruption will always fight back if you have skeletons in your cupboard. So it is not surprising that she can frontally confront this monster. I can only wish My Lady well in this arduous task, even as I do not doubt her ability to curb corruption and make a mark yet again in this regard. To rid the sector of corruption, all hands must be on deck. All agencies involved in the fight must be seen to be carrying out their mandates in this regard. Further, all involved including judges and lawyers must operate ethically; that will definitely help. Otherwise, the sanctions must be swift and certain. Finally, I have made the suggestion elsewhere and I still repeat it; judges should now deposit copies of their completed assets declarations with the NJC and NBA before their appointment and at the retirement stage.

It is widely believed that the NJC has not done enough to curb corruption in the Judiciary, what is you view about this?

Again it is an issue of perception.

Consistency is crucial in the fight against corruption. The NJC of some years back; the NJC the current CJN inherited is not the same NJC of today. We now have a vibrant and proactive NJC. Today it does not take ages for misconduct cases to be disposed of. The fear of NJC is now the beginning of wisdom for many judges. It is no longer business as usual. I will say with all sense of responsibility that NJC of the recent past did do well enough. The NJC that suspended Justice Isa Salami and allowed the main culprit to go scot free did not do well. That is the NJC that people like you perceived as having not done enough to curb corruption in the judiciary. The situation has changed and the perception has equally changed. I still believe that the present NJC has an outstanding assignment it must do to regain the total confidence of the people and that is to recall Justice Salami without further delay. You cannot exonerate somebody of allegations and still keep him out of office. If the Government can boldly offer “am-

nesty” to all manner of persons why keep this innocent man out of office? I still believe that the injustice meted to this man may turn out to haunt the judiciary in the future.

The NJC must do the needful by reinstating him to his office without further delay.

Some people have called for the legalization of illegal refineries in the Niger Delta area of the country, what is your reaction to this?

I do not understand what they mean by that. If it is illegal, then it is so. But I acknowledge that certain jurisdictions have arrangements where almost every family has an oil well. However, the law permits the establishment of private refineries if some conditions precedent is met. I know that a private refinery has successfully taken off in Anambra State. Also the Petroleum Industry Bill now before the National Assembly proposes a fund specifically for oil bearing communities. It seems to me that these arrangements are appropriate for now in view of several dynamics of our society. However, one is not unmindful of the effect of oil theft in the Niger Delta region and the high seas. It is this oil theft that is responsible for proliferation of illegal refineries. I think the Federal Government is addressing this issue now with the arrests of some oil thieves and their collaborators in the shipping industry. It is a bold attempt which every concerned Nigerian should applaud. It remains for the prosecution of the offenders to serve as deterrence to others.

The progressives and opposition party leaders have come together to form the All Progressives Congress (APC) to wrestle power from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). What is your reaction to this, and what necessary precautions will you advise them to take to avoid situations that led to the collapse of previous progressive alliances?

There is no gainsaying that the coalition is imperative if the opposition ever hopes to wrestle power from the ruling PDP which is the self-acclaimed largest party in Africa. It was until the opposition got together in Kenya that Mai Kibaki won the election. In Nigeria, reason seems to have prevailed among the opposition leaders and the progressives. To avoid the pitfalls of previous mergers, the politicians must eschew selfishness and politics of bitterness and focus on how to improve the people’s wellbeing.

Their manifesto must be very clear on how to do things differently from the ruling party. A grab-grab mentality will make the merger a stillborn. They must focus more on how to bake a larger cake for the Nigerian people and not on the typical struggle to share the spoils of office. They must be very pragmatic on how their personal ambitions impact their collective goals. Most importantly they must be very careful on the moles the ruling party has planted in their midst. Some of the characters now masquerading as progressives are actually moles.

It happened in 2003 and 2007. The moles should be identified and quarantined in the activities of the merger party otherwise they will wreck havoc on the party.

The constitution of the Nigerian

• Ngige (SAN)

Bar Association (NBA) is currently undergoing review. Which sections would you like the NBA to amend so that we can have a vibrant and strong Bar that will meet the needs of the 21st century lawyer?

Your widely read newspaper (The Nation) and other dailies did an extensive report on my humble suggestions on how to reform the NBA through constitutional amendment. The legal profession is the last hope of the common man.

But that hope is being dashed every day by lack of internal democracy in the running of NBA arising from subversion of our constitution by the past and present NBA leadership.

For one thing, I believe that an amendment of certain provisions of the NBA Constitution has become urgent to restore the glory of the lawyers’ union, more so as the last NBA Elections have thrown up many issues that must be addressed holistically to avoid a recurrence which is capable of killing the association as we witnessed in 1992.

Are there issues from last election you would want addressed?

I have also suggested that the Election Committee should not later than 30 (thirty) days to the election publish the list of eligible voters on the NBA website and ensure that branches receive copies of the list within the same period. Recall that in the last election Mr. Akinboro refused to publish the list after he had leaked same to his favoured candidates. So it is my view that the list should be given to all candidates for the election not later than 30 (thirty) days to the elections. Given the unsatisfactory nature of the current electoral grievance settlement regime, an Election Appeals Committee (EAC) has become imperative. During the last election, the Committee disqualified some candidates and when the candidates protested, they were asked to write an “appeal” to the same Committee that made the disqualification. This is turning rule of law on its head! So, I suggested in my memo that the EAC should be mandated to handle preand post-election grievances as

‘The CJN is widely reputed as a model for judges, given her scandal free and stellar career. She is not known as a taker; she is believed to be fiercely against corruption and all that it connotes which goes back to my view on Caesar’s wife, because as the saying goes, corruption will always fight back if you have skeletons in your cupboard’

they relate to disqualification of aspirants and the conduct of the elections, as this will save the NBA from needless public odium. Members of the committee should be nominated by the NBA Trustees and approved by the NBA NEC. I also suggested adopting Universal suffrage in which all lawyers who have paid their practicing fees and branch dues for the 3 years preceding the elections will be eligible to vote, save for those called to the Bar less than 3 years before the election, in which case the receipts for one year will suffice. I must say that this view is not new having been canvassed earlier by the Chidi Odinkalu led Rule of Law Alliance.

What is your view about electronic voting?

I also canvassed the introduction of electronic voting in the NBA elections. It is noted that the efficacy of electronic voting has been eloquently demonstrated by the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) at its last general elections with the technical collaboration of NIGCOMSAT. Accordingly, the adoption of e-voting in future NBA Elections has become inescapable to engender transparency and widespread acceptance of the outcome of the elections and obviate needless controversies of the recent past, more so as such controversies tend to detract from the standing of the NBA as a leader in the fight against electoral malfeasance. It was out of maturity and for the interest of our profession that I allowed the transition from the last regime to the present one to take place. It is this maturity and sacrifice that is being misconstrued in some quarters as weakness. To obviate the needless risks our members are exposed to in these biennial junkets to perform their civic duty and the increasing monetisation of NBA Elections, I suggested that eligible voters within a state should vote at their state capitals, moreso since voting would be online real-time.

Is that all?

I also made suggestions on the vexed issue of nomination of NBA representatives to statutory bodies and appointment of committee members. As I said before, I recommended that save for extreme emergency, no committee requiring NBA NEC approval should be inaugurated or commence work without prior NEC approval.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

32

LAW & SOCIETY

Lagos judges, magistrates to get sentencing guidelines

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N fulfillment of the promise it made a year ago to always re view the criminal justice administration laws in the state to bring it to international standard, the Lagos State government has developed a comprehensive sentencing guideline bill.

The bill, developed by the Law Reform Commission set up last year by Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola(SAN), now awaiting the approval of the state House of Assembly will provide statutory framework for sentencing of offenders.

The commissioner, who was giving a report of the achievements recorded by his ministry within the last one year, explained that the new law, when approved will guide judges and magistrates in the way they impose sentences and make it more uniform. He said the new law conforms with international standard adding that the document that guides the process was adapted to suit the situation in Lagos.

He said: “I’m happy to say that the Law Reform Commission has been hard at work and has actually produced bills which are now being processed in the House of Assembly.

“For instance, the commission has developed sentencing guidelines. This will guide magistrates and judges in a way they impose sentences after convicting the defendants that come before them.

“This is to achieve fairly uniformity. The number of years in prison or number of hours of community an offender is sentence to should not depend on the judge that the case happens to be before.

“It shouldn’t depend on whether the judge was generous or not generous; kind or not kind”, he said.

The Justice Commissioner explained that the sentence guidelines was not intended to meddle in the powers of the judiciary but to ensure uniformity in sentences of convicts.

Other laws which the commission is working on include: Law Reform (Contract) Law – 1961; Law Reform (Tort) Law – 1961and Sale of Goods Law- 1958. The state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice , Mr Ade Ipaye, said the provisions of these laws have become somewhat inadequate to meet the challenges of modern day Lagos State. Ipaye was speaking at the press briefing to mark the second anniversary of the second term in office of the Lagos State governor.

Ipaye said in the past one year, the Ministry has continued to champion development of our state through the instrumentality of law reform and legislative initiatives. With the cooperation of the Lagos State House of Assembly, the government has continued to pass laws aimed at strengthening our institutions and enhancing the quality of lives of our citizens.

He said that prior to the enactment of the Road Traffic Law in 2012, the repealed law had been in existence since 1949. Despite the initial reservations, he said that the implementation of the Road Traffic Law has been a success story. “Available statistics from law enforcement agencies are indicative of the positive impact of the Law. In the month of August 2012, prior to the implementation of the Law, 10 cases of armed robbery involving the use of motorcycle were recorded. By October 2012, only four cases were recorded and in December, two cases were recorded. Between January and February 2013, only one case was recorded.

“Similarly, whereas in August 2012, 646 cases of accidents involving the use of motorcycles were reported, this has reduced drastically to 243 by December 2012. In Janu-

• From left: Ipaye, Commissioner for Information and Strategy Mr. Aderemi Ibirogba, the ministry’s Permanent Secretary Mrs. Ranti Odutola and Director, Public Relations Mrs. Ronke Osho Stories by Adebisi Onanuga

ary 2013, the number of motorcycle-induced accidents has reduced to 136. We have also witnessed a graphic decrease in number of convictions from the courts in relation to motorcycles operations between October 2012 and February 2013.

Whereas 45 convictions were secured in October 2012, four months into the implementation of the Law later, this number has reduced to 27 by February 2013.

On the Land Use Act (Title Documentation) Regulations, the commissioner remarked that the regulations issued by the present administration was a novel mechanism to curb the practice into which parties to land transactions entered into after the commencement date of Land Use Act by applying for Certificates of Occupancy using receipts or other documents which are backdated or forged to create the impressions that their transactions predated the Act. He said the new regulations will encourage landowners to perfect their title even where they did not have the legally required documentation.

As part of reform agenda in the criminal justice system, he disclosed that government created a Legal Advisory Unit in the Directorate of Public Prosecution that is responsible for analysing police case files for the purpose of issuing DPP’s Legal Advice.

In the period under review, 918

police investigation files were sent to the DPP’s office for legal advice and the Unit has been able to complete work on 699 (76%) while the rest are still being processed. With the Legal Advisory Unit now in place, monthly returns now show that output exceeds input and we are confident that soon, backlog will be a thing of the past.

At present, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions is prosecuting a total of 762 cases in various courts. Of this number, 612 are in the State High Court. In the Federal High Court, the Directorate is engaged in the prosecution of 19 cases. The department also has 36 and four cases at the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court respectively.

This is in addition to its 101 cases at different stages of prosecution at magistrate courts.

Among the cases concluded by the DPP, 12 judgments have been delivered in both the High Court and the Court of Appeal.

Ipaye said the Directorate of Civil Litigation which is responsible for instituting and defending civil actions involving the state government, its ministries, departments and agencies is handling 1001 in various courts from Magistrate Court through the High Courts, Appellate Court and the Supreme Court. According to him, judgments were delivered in 24 of the matters being handled by the Directorate and 29 matters

were struck out for various reasons.

The Directorate is also involved in the coroner’s inquest into the Dana Air crash which occurred on June 3, 2012. The Directorate obtained a judgment at the Federal High Court on December 10 which allowed the State Government to continue inquest proceedings into the circumstances surrounding the death of all the passengers aboard the aircraft as well as victims on the ground.

The Office of the Public Defender (OPD) which is charged with the responsibility for providing legal aid services to indigent citizens, on the other hand, handled over 1,517 matters in various Courts on behalf of indigent Lagosians at no cost.

The matters, he said, cut across labour cases, civil matters, criminal cases, coroners’ inquest and fundamental rights application. He further said that the office also received 255 petitions from the public out of which 180 have been concluded, leaving 75 which are undergoing processing.

Giving instances of cases handled by the OPD, he said the office was instrumental in securing the release of one Sule Mustapha who had been incarcerated for over 11 years adding, “the second one is the case of a 15-year old boy who was locked up by his mother and step-father for allegedly being

a witch. OPD intervened and the boy has since been taken to Boys Special Correctional Centre, Oregun for protective custody.

The parents have since been arraigned before the Family Court”.

Ipaye gave reasons on why the state the tenancy law could not be easily enforced by prosecuting those who violated the tenancy laws.

He said: “In Lagos for instance, with the scarcity of accomodation, you know the landlord can always dictate the terms. So it (the tenancy law) is to redress this imbalance for the benefit of both.

“What we have done is to set the standard of behaviour and a lot of people are conscious of that standard and are trying to conform with it and that is the role of the state government.

“Unless we have people reporting and bringing proof that we enable us to make us deem it fit to institute criminal prosecution against this or that person, we cannot do so on our own.”

On the issue of Certificates of Occupancy, the commissioner said: “We recognise the fact that real estate sector is one of the most vibrant in terms of its economic potentials. We, therefore, strive to ensure that files screening and submitted for signature on behalf of the Governor are treated with utmost dispatch. In 2012, a total of 2340 files were treated by the HAG/CJ. In the first quarter of this year, we have treated 925 C of O and consent files. As of today, I am pleased to inform you that the Office of Attorney-General has no pending file in respect of CofO or Governor’s Consent”.

Ipaye assured the people of Lagos State that the government will continue to ensure that their security is paramount and anyone who is alleged to have committed an offence against the law will be prosecuted.

Ipaye said the intention of the government is to sustain its working partnership with stakeholders in the justice sector to ensure that the state remains a haven of safety and security for every resident.

Court adjourns suit against MTN over land

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USTICE Olaide Olayinka of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has adjourned till June 20, 2013, further hearing of a suit brought against network provider, MTN Communications Limited over a plot of land on which the company is alleged to have illegally and unlawfully built its mast.

The claimants, Mr Olubunmi Idowu Aina and Mr Adeyemi Adeboye Adefarakan had sued MTN Communications Limited for alleged trespass and the right of occupancy in respect of two plots of land situated in OkeAwori, Ibeshe town in Ikorodu upon which it was alleged to have illegally erected its mast.

At the resumed hearing of the matter, counsel to the plaintiffs, Chief Edwards Ayo-Odugbesan had moved an application before the court, asking for a court order to restrain MTN from further trespassing on the land.

He also applied for a court permission to join Olusegun Oyedokun, the man who allegedly sold the land to MTN and who had been running from being served court processes, to be joined as a defendant in the suit.

In addition, he asked for an order of court for a substituted service to paste court summon on the wall of his house .

Chief Ayo-Odugbesan also in his submission disclaimed a lawyer, Kamiyomi Olumide who appeared at the last hearing of the matter and claimed to be representing the claimant in the matter, Mr. Olubunmi Idowu Aina. He told the court that the said lawyer does not work in his chamber and that neither does he have his permission to stand in for him.

The court granted the prayer after being convinced that he is on the run and MTN cannot provide any address for him, ruling that he be served before the next adjourned date of June 20.

In the originating summon filed before the court, by Chief AyoOdugbesan, the claimants are seeking the court’s declaration that they “ are entitled to the grant of the statutory right of occupancy in respect of all that two plots of land within Oduntan family land, Ibeshe, Ikorodu, measuring approximately 1226.938 square metres, situated along Alhaji Adigun Owolabi Street, Oke_Awori, Ibeshe town in Igbogbo/Bayeiku Local Council Development Area, Ikorodu.

The land is described and contained in survey plan LAL/2256/ 97 dated May 13, 2007 and drawn

by L.A. Animashaun (survey registration 327 of New Garage, Gbagada, Lagos”.

Joined as defendants in the suit are Mr Alade Oduntan, Mr Yemi Oduntan, for himself and on behalf of the Oduntan descendant family of Ibeshe, Ikorodu, Commissioner of Police, Lagos State and person unknown.

The claimants sought the order of the court for a perpetual injunction restraining the defendants, their agents, family members, servants, attorneys, privies and or workers, from further trespass to the land They also asked for an order of the court to set aside any purported sale or lease or agreement executed by or between any of the defendants and or person unknown or any purported purchaser or allottee and N1 million for what they described as unlawful, willful and malicious damage done to the fence on the land in dispute and for cost of the court action.

In their statement of claim, the first claimant, Aina, averred that he purchased the two plots of land from the second claimant, Adefarakan, who was the original owner of the land, having purchased same from the Oduntan family, also known as Aminatu Tinuola Balogunfamily of Erelu street, Ibeshe Balogun, Ikorodu.

Adefarakan explained that the

land was later sold to Aina who was issued with a receipt for the purchase of the land dated January 27, 1997 after which the first claimant further obtained a family purchase receipt dated June 25, 2003 and a family letter of acknowledgement dated June 25, 2003 from the family.

According to Chief AyoOdugbesan, the first claimant further obtained a deed of assignment dated January 22, 2008 in his favour which was executed by accredited representative of the Balogun family of Ibeshe, Mr Alade Oduntan, after which he erected a short fence at N1million over the land before travelling overseas.

He said the first claimant , Aina, returned to the country early this year only to find out that his short fence had been destroyed and found some MTN contractors digging foundation for MTN mast on the land in dispute.

The claimant said he subsequently petitioned the Area Commander, Ijede police Station and reported the matter to the Onibeshe of Ibesha land and that the claimants and defendants appeared before the monarch in council and presented their claims and documents after which the matter was decided in favour of the first claimant.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

33

FROM THE COURT

Court restrains Lagos, market leaders over Akanimodo

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LAGOS High Court, Ikeja has ordered the displaced market men and women of Akanimodo market in Agboyi/ Ketu Local Council Development Authority(LCDA) and officials of the Lagos State government to maintain status quo pending the hearing of the Motion of Interlocutory Injunction brought by the applicants.

Justice Opeyemi Oke issued the order while ruling in an application brought by the market men and women against the LASG sequel to the demolition of their stalls at Akanimodo market, Mile 12.

“I have carefully considered the applications of both parties. Both parties should maintain the status quo pending the hearing of the Motion of Interlocutory Injunction,” the court ruled.

Counsel to the paintiffs, Tunji Ayanlaja (SAN) had filed an application of Interlocutory Injunction before the court and prayed the court for an interim injunction restraining the government from constructing any structure on the land.

The state counsel, Akinjide Bakare, had also filed for an extension of time to enable him study the application before filing his

Stories by Adebisi Onanuga

response.

Ayanlaja did not opposed by the application.

The Akanimodo market men and women, represented by their leaders, Alhaji Adekunle Agbalajobi and Mr Ademola Oyekanmi had sued the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola for the “forceful, unlawful and unconstitutional demolition and destruction of their market”.

They had claimed N3.8 billion as damages for alleged poverty inflicted on them by the government.

They claimed that the state governor, without prior notice, had unlawfully destroyed their shops, stalls and goods at the market in order to build various houses and structures on the land.

They are claiming N3, 853,064,361 (Three billion, eight hundred and fifty three million, sixty four thousand, three hundred and sixty one) for the value of the physical structures and identifiable wares said to be damaged in the market during the demolition.

According to the statement of claim by the market leaders, the traders said “On the 7th of March 2010 at about 5: 45 am, the defendant through its agent and without

any prior statutory notice demolished the Akannimodo market during which operation the claimants’ properties and goods” were destroyed.

The traders said the market was destroyed leaving them without a means of livelihood.

Through their lawyer Ayanlaja (SAN), the traders in 2011 wrote to the state governor requesting for compensation for the demolition.

They said that despite several meetings with representatives of the government, they have not been given any compensation.

The traders said that to their surprise, what they saw was on the land was a signboard, showing intention of the government to construct various houses and structures on the land “belonging to them without any compensation as required by law”.

The traders who carried their protest to the court premises also renewed their appeal to Governor Fashola asking him to rescind the demolition of their shops.

According to them, scores of the traders had died as a result of the loss incurred due to the demolition of the market which they said is their means of livelihood.

Justice Oke adjourned the matter to May 6 for further hearing.

Leadership photojournalist recounts ordeal

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L E A D E R S H I P photojournalist, Mr Benedict Uwalaka, who was brutalised by a Director of TOS Funeral homes, Bayo Ogunsola and his accomplice during the release of corpse of victims of the Dana Airline crash has recounted his ordeal to a Lagos High court.

At the resumed trial of the matter before Magistrate B.O. Osunsanmi , the plaintiff, Uwalaka while testifying at the resumed hearing of the trial of the Funeral Director, Bayo Ogunsola, who is the first prosecution witness narrated his experience in an emotion laden voice while being led in his Examination-In-Chief by the Police Prosecutor, Inspector Benson Emuerhi.

According to him, “On August 9, 2012, I went to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), for the release of the dead bodies of the ill-fated Dana Airline crash. I saw a lot of reporters and photojournalists from different media houses both from within and outside Nigeria.

“We were there for many hours when some one shouted that they have started to release the bodies.

We all rushed to the scene and discovered that they used two vehicles to block the ambulance that carried the dead bodies,” Uwalaka said

Further in his testimony, he explained that he started looking for an angle where he could get a good shot since he could not go back to the office and tell his editor that he did not get a shot of what happened at the scene. From a distance of about 30 metres, I took pictures of the ambulance twice. The next thing I heard was, “What did you snap? Show me your camera. Give me your camera.”

“I held onto my camera tightly but this man in black shirt, who I later identified as Ogunsola just came and dragged my camera. He started reigning blows on me.

While he was beating me, I still held on to my camera tightly.

Someone wearing a white shirt came from behind, pulled my leg, hit my head with something and so collected the camera.”

“I was soaked with blood as a result of the beating. It was later when I watched the TV that I saw that he hit me with a bottle.”

According to him, in his statement at the Police station, he wrote the man in black shirt and white shirt since he didn’t know their name.

“I was later told by my colleagues that the man in black shirt was Ogunsola, who has been arrested by the Police and the one in white shirt was “Idowu”. “I was treated at LASUTH and asked to stay for

24 hours for medical examination,” Uwalaka stated.

When asked for the evidence of his injury by the prosecutor, Uwalaka burst into tears.

“My photojournalist colleagues showed me pictures, I equally watched it on Tv and downloaded a picture on Internet. I saw myself soaked in blood,” Uwalaka said in tears.

The prosecutor tendered the statement Uwalaka made at the police station, medical report from LASUTH and the downloaded picture from the internet as exhibits in the case.

Though the Defence Counsel, Tunji Ayanlaja (SAN), objected to the downloaded internet picture as exhibit based on admissibility issue, the court admitted it.

“I object to the admissibility,it is not a direct evidence. He did not take the photograph himself, I urge my lordship to reject it.” He argued.

However, Magistrate, Osunsanmi admitted the picture saying, “The witness identified the camera shown in picture as his own so picture admitted as exhibit.”

The prosecutor at this point applied for a short adjournment to enable him tender the witness’ blood soaked clothes as exhibit.The magistrate adjourned the case till May 10, 2013 for further hearing.

LEGAL DIARY

Falana, Oke for annual lecture

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UMAN right activist Mr Femi Falana (SAN) and Dr. Yemi Oke of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) Post Graduate School, have been scheduled to deliver this year’s annual lecture of the human rights group, the Crusade for Justice .

The lecture will hold on May 7 at Sheraton Hotels and Towers, Ikeja.

A statement signed by the President/Founder of the group, Mr Richard Nwankwo, said this year’s lecture has as its theme, Oil and gas, Human rights and the Nigerian State, an Overview.

The statement listed the discussants at the lecture to include professors Itse Sagay and Taiwo Osipitan, both Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SANs), Chief Mike Ozekhome(SAN), Pastor Dele Adesina(SAN), Dr. Paul Obianaso and a host of other contributors drawn from the oil sector, the bar and the bench.

NBA Ilesa branch inaugurates new officers

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HE Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Ilesa, branch will on May 2, inaugurate the newly elected officers of the branch who were elected to run the affairs of the branch for the next two years.

In a keenly contested election which was adjudged the hottest election in the history of the branch, the following people were elected to run the branch: Oluwaseun Ajoba chairman; Femi Fafowora Vice-Chairman; Olayinka Sokoya Secretary; Nath Dare Ojo Treasurer; Akoladi M. Efe Publicity Secretary; Lawrence Ogunkeye Welfare Secretary and J. Idowu Daramola Asst. Secretary.

The new officers will be inaugurated by the chairman of Egbe Amofin Bar Forum, Chief Bandele Aiku (SAN) at the High Court, Ilesa by 11 am

LAW AND PUBLIC POWER

with gabriel AMALU email:gabrielamalu1@yahoo.com

Council elections and constitutional amendment

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HE local government system in Nigeria had a jerk under the Muritala/Obasanjo’s regime, from 1976 to 1979. Before the military intervention in 1966 the nature and type of administration was the choice of the regions. It was however under the Muritala/Obasanjo’s military government that a unified system of local council administration was created. General Obasanjo who as General Muritala’s deputy took over as head of state when he was violently killed in a putsch in 1976, finally entrenched this uniformity in the 1979 constitution.

For many a unified council administration was a surreptitious attempt, albeit a half measure, to resurrect the 1966 unification decree for which General Aguiyi-Ironsi paid the supreme price. Since decreeing a common council system into existence, its administration has suffered intemperate measures whether under the military or civilian regimes up till the present. While the 1999 constitution, which came into existence twenty years after that of 1979, provides for a similar council administration across the country, it clearly manifested the prevailing confusion whether local councils have been elevated to a third-tier of government, or remains an administrative system under the states of the federation.

The ongoing attempt to further amend the 1999 Constitution is providing another opportunity to tinker with the council administration. Notably most political interests operating at the federal level seem to prefer institutionalizing council administration as a third-tier of government.

Of course I am referring to the presidency and the federal legislators.

Conversely the governors and the state legislators seem to prefer the local councils to be under their control. Indeed up till now, many state governors in defiance of the constitution refuse to conduct the council elections, because of the potential that adverse parties may win enough ground to torpedo the state administration’s game plan. Where elections are allowed to go on, the political parties of the state governors usually ensure they win all the available places.

These incongruous political results have resulted now in the clamour for a further alienation of the councils from the governors/states’ control. One of the recommended measures is for the abolition of state electoral commissions, so that the national electoral commission takes over the conduct of the council elections. According to press reports, one of the recommendations of the constitutional review conferences conducted by the House of Representatives across the federal constituencies was the abolition of the state electoral commissions. No doubt, the results of the patently manipulated council elections across the states are untenable for the sustenance of democracy; but I strongly doubt whether the answer lies with handing over the electoral opportunities to the national electoral commission.

I use the word electoral opportunities advisedly, because the condemnable manipulation that happens at the local council elections is not different from the manipulation that takes place at the national level. What will merely happen if the amendment becomes law is that the election manipulation opportunities will be handed over to the federal institutions and their beneficiaries. While I abhor totally state governors’ monarchical tendencies in clear breach of the constitution in dealing with local councils, I guess it will be unbearable for many and discomforting for a total stranger to be gifted the opportunity and the dubious privilege to determine local council elections.

Should the national electoral commission take over the ace in determining the candidates of local council elections, I have no doubt that it will precipitate a crisis that will further weaken our tenuous democracy.

This is because our electoral experience has shown that primary elections to determine the party’s candidates are in several cases more keen that the general elections where as some pundits have argued, the electorate have been abolished. So in such cases the choice of who will become the local government chairman or councilor could on the basis of the authority of the electoral body to determine who is the authentic candidate of a political party be made in Abuja, by strangers and partisan for pecuniary interests.

As I have humbly argued on his page with regards to local government administration, it is untenable, politically, socially and economically to run our local governments as a third-tier of government based on the current principles of governance in Nigeria. This is primarily because other exigencies of a federal system of government are not allowed by the constitution. So we have quasi-federal states, and if the plans materialize, we will in addition have quasi-local councils tied inexorably and inextricably on the apron strings of a centralized political economy; and made worse by a command structure manned by dubious and criminal political elites bent on gang raping the country to death.

With a strong context for power between the federal and state governments sometimes over heating the system as they prefer to call it; I am worried that several war fronts will be created across the nooks and crannies of the country as the local councils will provide the federal authorities satellite war fronts as they contend with the states. The chances are that the Presidents and his apparatchik may for instance seek to manipulate the national electoral commission to have their candidates put on the ballot and declared winners of the elections; in search of influence in opposition areas and even to teach a recalcitrant Governor from the same party some form of political lessons.

The way out in my humble view is to federalize the political and economic structure of the country; rather than over-centralizing it. That way the council will be encouraged and strengthened to grow its own economy and political influence. In the meantime, state governors can definitely do better than the wholesale shooing of election results in favour of their parties in the name of local government elections.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

LAW & SOCIETY 18TH COMMONWEALTH LAWYERS CONFERENCE HELD IN CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA

• From left: Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Obong Godswill Akpabio, Lord Judge, England and Wales and former CLA President, Boma Ozobia.

• From left: NBA President, Okey Wali (SAN), former President, NBA, JB. Daudu (SAN) and Chief Judge, Kogi State, Justice Nasir Ajana

From left: Mr Marc Enamhe, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Aloma Miraim Mukhtar, Dr Dorncklaimz Enamhe and S.A. to Delta State Governor on Legal Matters, Andrew Odum

• From left: Chairman, NBA Ibadan branch, Seun Abimbola, Council Member, CLA, Yusuf Ali (SAN) and Funke Adekoya (SAN)

• From left: Secretary, NBA Abuja branch, Afam Okeke, Chairman, Young Lawyer Forum, Paul Tunde Daudu, Chairman, NBA, Section on Public Interest and Development Law (SPIDEL), S.I. Ameh and General Secretary, NBA, Emeka Obegolu.

• From left: Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Akwa Ibom State, Ntekim Ntekim, Aniedi Akpabio and Dan Abia-Bassey.

•Dele Oye • From left: Dr Nechi Nzakor, Mia Esein (SAN) and Funke Aboyade

• Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN) (left) and former • Chief Judge, • Prof Olanrewaju Attorney-General and Commissioner for Jus- Anambra State, Jus- Fagbohun tice, Lagos State, Supo Sasore (SAN) tice Peter C. Umeadi

•Executive Director NBA, Osita Okoro and Director, Bar Services and Membership, NBA, Mrs Adaeze Ibekie

• From left: Chief Mark • M.A. Abubakar Ozekhome (SAN)

• Former General Secretary NBA, Ibrahim Eddy Mark

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

35

LAW & SOCIETY

Eastern Bar sets up electoral committee • NBA organises election for Umuahia

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HE Eastern Bar Forum (EBF) rose from a crucial general meeting in Port Harcourt at the weekend, with a resolve to elect new governing council members to pilot the affairs of the Forum for the next two years.

The meeting which was hosted by Isiokpo branch of the NBA, held at Tiffany Hotels in Port Harcourt and chaired by the chairman of the governing council of EBF, Mr. Kemasuode Wodu. At the meeting, the president of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Okey Wali (SAN) directed the 3rd Vice-President of the NBA, Mr. Francis Ekwere to go to Umuahia, Abia State this week and make sure that they organise election for Umuahia branch the NBA immediately to save the branch from further crises.

The NBA president condemned the high level of indiscipline in the association and noted that almost every branch election in the NBA ends up in petitions, disputes and as at now, about five branches in the Eastern Bar are enmeshed in crises and just the other day, a branch chairman was impeached. He noted that the NBA will surely draft a uniform electoral guidelines for all its branches across the country in the ongoing amendment of the NBA constitution. The president noted that every NBA committee at national level works under the direction of the president and at branch levels, they do so under the direction of branch chairmen.

Wali (SAN) warned that the NBA will no longer tolerate any act of indiscipline from its members. He called on Nigerian lawyers to be careful and conduct themselves properly in line with the rules of their professional calling, assured that the NBA will instil discipline the legal profession.

The Forum also set up an electoral committee with the former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Imo State, Mr. Donald C.

Stories by John Austin Unachukwu

Denwigwe (SAN) as chairman, former chairman of NBA Calabar branch, Mr. Mba Ukwenyi as Secretary and former national Legal Adviser of the NBA, Mr. Victor Nwaugo as a member. The committee was mandated to formulate rules, regulations and guidelines for the election of new governing council members of the Forum to take over from the Wodu led Council whose tenure expires in June 4, 2013.

Such rules, regulations and guidelines will subject to the approval of the house and the new council members will take over on June 4.

The meeting called for the report of its committee on Awka crises. It was reported that the NBA committee headed by Donald C. Denwigwe SAN visited Awka to resolve the matter and after their deliberations, meetings and interactions with members of the branch including chief S. U. S. Mbanaso, the committee directed that the Vice chairman, Mrs. Amaka Ezeno, should serve out the remaining tenure of their administration which will end in June this year.

Immediately the committee left, chief Mbanaso dragged the branch to the State High Court where he subsequently obtained an Exparte Order against the branch. That while the branch was holding its usual meeting on April 13, chief Mbanaso came into the meeting and ordered them to disperse, when he noticed that they ignored and did not obey his dispersal order, he went out, mobilised and brought a team of policemen to harass, embarrass and throw tear gas canisters at members of the branch during the meeting The Forum seriously frowned at the idea of a lawyer disrupting lawyers meeting with a team of policemen when he has already filed a suit in a court of law. It noted that taking policemen to go and teargas

Get money to heaven A stingy old lawyer who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness was determined to prove wrong the saying, “You can’t take it with you.”

After much thought and consideration, the old ambulancechaser finally figured out how to take at least some of his money with him when he died.

He instructed his wife to go to the bank and withdraw enough money to fill two pillow cases.

He then directed her to take the bags of money to the attic and leave them directly above his bed. His plan: When he passed away, he would reach out and grab the bags on his way to heaven.

Several weeks after the funeral, the deceased lawyer’s wife, up in the attic cleaning, came upon the two forgotten pillow cases stuffed with cash.

“Oh, that darned old fool,” she exclaimed. “I knew he should have had me put the money in the basement.”

Brain transplant “How can I ever thank you?” gushed a woman to Clarence Darrow, after he had solved her legal troubles.

“My dear woman,” Darrow replied, “ever since the Phoenicians invented money there has been only one answer to that question.”

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LEGAL JOKES Want to go into space?

NASA was interviewing professionals to be sent to Mars. Only one could go and couldn’t return to Earth.

The first applicant, an engineer, was asked how much he wanted to be paid for going. “A million dollars,” he answered, “because I want to donate it to M.I.T.” The next applicant, a doctor, was asked the same question. He asked for $2 million. “I want to give a million to my family,” he explained, “and leave the other million for the advancement of medical research.”

The last applicant was a lawyer.

When asked how much money he wanted, he whispered in the interviewer’s ear, “Three million dollars.”

“Why so much more than the others?” asked the interviewer.

The lawyer replied, “If you give me $3 million, I’ll give you $1 million, I’ll keep $1 million, and we’ll send the engineer to Mars.”

Lawyer’s personal injury A golfer hooked his tee shot over a hill and onto the next fairway.

Walking toward his ball, he saw a man lying on the ground, groaning with pain.

“I’m an attorney,” the wincing man said, “and this is going to cost you $5000.”

“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry,” the concerned golfer replied. “But I did yell ‘fore’.”

“I’ll take it,” the attorney said.

• Wodu (second right), Secretary EBF, Igwenyi Ogbonaya O. (middle) and some members of the forum after the meeting.

members in their branch meeting is not the best thing for a lawyer to do in the circumstance. The EBF stated that this conduct is unbecoming of a member of the association and suspended chief S. U. S. Mbanaso from the group pending further investigations into his activities.

The Forum also constituted a committee to look into and resolve the face-off between Aba branch of the NBA and Abia State government.

The committee has chief Joe Agi

(SAN) as chairman, Arthur Chukwu Elvis, Secretary and Arthur Obi Okafor member. This committee is expected to submit its report within one month.

A committee to look into the conduct of EBF members in the last NBA elections was set up at the meeting.

The committee has the immediate past chairman, NBA Calabar branch, Mr. E. O. E. Ekong as chairman, former chairman NBA Abakaliki branch, Mr. Kenneth Ogbodo Secre-

tary and chairman, NBA Aba branch, Mr. G.C. Eduzor as member.

This committee was mandated to look into the unwholesome attitude of some EBF members who disobeyed and denigrated the Forum in the last NBA elections and recommend appropriate sanctions if necessary. This, the forum noted is necessary in order to ensure discipline in the Forum, maintain unity and keep the EBF together, It has 21 days to submit its report.

Supreme Court quashes conviction of four

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HE Supreme Court has quashed the conviction and sentence of four people by Senior Magistrate B. O. Quadri of the Magistrate’s Court 4 Ibadan, Oyo State, because the proceedings were wrongly conducted.

Monsurat Lawal, Kazeem Alimi, Saidi Bello and Akeem Lawal were in 1998 arraigned before Magistrate Quadri, charged with conspiracy, malicious damages and causing grievous bodily harm.

Trial was conducted and on June 14, 1999 when parties were to adopt their final written addresses, the first accused person, Monsurat was absent in court. Despite her absence, parties’ addresses were adopted. A similar occurrence was recorded on April 18, 2000 when the court’s judgment was delivered.

Even when it was about 10 months after parties’ final addresses were adopted and the third accused person, Saidi was absent in court, the magistrate proceeded to deliver his judgment.

He refused to indicate the third accused person’s absence in the court’s record, but recorded him as pleading with the court to be lenient with him. The magistrate found the accused persons guilty, convicted and sentenced them.

Dissatisfied, the four appealed to the state High Court. They faulted the proceedings leading to their conviction and applied for an order of certiorari to quash the sentence and conviction.

Their lawyer, Seni Adio of the firm of Copley Partners, particularly faulted the proceedings leading to their conviction and sentence on the grounds that the trial magistrate conducted trial on two occasions when two of them were absent in court; that he delivered judgment 10 months after parties adopted their final addresses and that he misrepresented proceedings when he did not only failed to record the third accused person’s absence on April 18, 2000 but instead recorded that he pleaded for leniency (even when he was absent).

In a ruling, the High Court refused the application by the convicted four, faulting the procedure they adopted.

The court held that they ought to have appealed the judgment of the Magistrate Court and applied that the judgment be set aside rather than applying for a judicial review of the proceedings and an order of certiorari to quash the decision.

Not satisfied, the four ap-

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

pealed to the Court of Appeal, Ibadan with the same argument and similar application. In its judgment on July 1 2003, the Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the High Court.

This development prompted their appeal to the Supreme Court in the appeal marked: SC.80/2004. The appellants maintained their arguments and sought similar reliefs.

Adio particularly submitted that his clients’ resort to seeking an order of certiorari was informed by their belief that the trial Magistrate breached their right of natural justice with the way he conducted their trial, and that the errors he committed on the face of the court’s record showed denial of fair hearing and likelihood of bias under Section 36 and 294 of the Constitution.

In its judgment on February 15 this year (a copy of which was obtained by The Nation last week) the apex court upheld the appeal by the convicted four and resolved all issues in their favour. The court upturned the decision by the Oyo State High Court, which the Court of Appeal, Ibadan upheld.

Justice Mahmud Mohammed, in the lead judgment, held that the Magistrate Quadri was in error to have proceeded to conduct proceedings on June 14 when the first accused person was absent, the case being a joint trial.

“The law is trite that addresses by parties or thier counsel are integral part of the hearing or trial of the accused person.

“Proceeding with the trial of the accused persons in the absence of one of them therefore, had constituted a serious breach of the Criminal Procedure Law of Oyo State, which requires the presence of an accused person in court throughout his trial in the absence of any necessary allowable reasons in law to keep him out of the court for public safety,” Justice Mohammed held.

He also faulted Magistrate Quadri’s decision to deliver judgment on April 18 in the absence of the third accused person, without reflecting his absence in the court’s record, but recorded him as pleading for leniency.

“Certainly, for the first respondent (Magistrate Quadri) to

attribute a plea of leniency to the third accused person, who was absent in court on the day the judgment ws delivered, may call to question the status of the proceedings of a court of law.

“In other words, by refusing to record the absence of the third accused person, but recording what the absent third accused person did not say in court that day had, in my view, constituted a serious error of law on the face of the record of that inferior court to justify the removal of the entire proceedings of that court to the High Court by certiorari order to be quashed as sought by the appellants,” Justice Mohammed also held.

He further held that it was part of the essential principle of the nation’s Criminal Law and Practice, that the trial of an accused person (including judgment and sentence) for an offence has to be conducted in the presence of the accused person, except when he/ she constitutes danger to public safety.

Justice Mohammed upheld Adio’s submission in relation to the errors contained on the trial Magistrate Court’s record and held that the appellants had made sufficient case for the granting of the order of certiorari quashing the proceedings leading to their conviction and sentence.

He held that in granting an aplication for an order of certiorari, what is relevant is the existence of “lack of or excess of jurisdiction or, breach of the rule of natural justice and errors of law on the face of the record,” as aptly pointed out in this case by the appellants. He consequently allowed the appeal and granted the appellants’ prayers.

“The ruling of the High Court of Oyo State dismissing appellants’ application, which was affirmed on appeal by the Court of Appeal, Ibadan in its judgment of July1, 2003 is hereby set aside and replaced with an order granting the order of certiorari and quashing the proceedings of the trial of the appellants, including the judgment of the first respondent (Senior Magistrate Magistrate Quadri) in suit No. MI/944C/98,” Justice Mohammed held.

Other members of the five-man panel that heard the appeal - Justices Muhammed MuntakaCoomassie, Suleiman Galadima, Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta and Stanley Shenko Alagoa- agreed with the lead judgment.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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LAW & SOCIETY The risk of sudden death makes the need for succession planning mandatory to prevent acrimony and legal tussles. This, corruption and best practices in wealth management, were the focus at the 2013 Punuka Annual Lecture in Lagos. JOSEPH JIBUEZE reports.

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HE topic was multifaceted, but the speakers dealt well with them.

The 2013 Punuka Annual Lecture, organised by Punuka Attorneys and Solicitors, had the theme: Wealth Management and Succession Planning: Best Practices, Anti-Corruption and Compliance, and Red Flags.

Former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Alfa Belgore, who chaired the occasion, was more concerned with how to curb graft in Nigeria, which he believes is at the root of underdevelopment and social crisis.

To him, a return to the parliamentary system of government will help bring an end to the country’s endemic corruption.

According to Belgore, the Presidential system is not only wasteful, breeds corruption and encourages abuse of power, it also does not accord with Nigeria’s history and culture He said official sleaze does not only manifest in looting of public funds; it is evident in the appointment of unqualified persons into important political posts – appointees who do the bidding of the President of Governor because they can be removed at a whim.

The solution, therefore, is a parliamentary system where Ministers and Commissioners will be elected – a process which he said could guarantee the credibility of those in government.

Belgore called for constitutional roles to be given to traditional institutions.

“Yes it is very good. It’s cheaper for us,” Belgore said of the parliamentary system, adding: “Corruption in the past can be regarded as child play compared to what is going on today because you have people who are not elected who are taking very strategic offices - that is like the United States of America.

“Culturally, we are different from them. We have a very established society. We call Nigeria the Federal Republic of Nigeria, but it is a different republic from other republics.

“We still have Obas; we still have the Emirs and they are still very useful but they are not involved in our Constitution making. That has led to the tragedy. The respect for these traditional institutions is dying gradually.

“But if people who are going to decide matters in this country are elected - your Ministers are not elected, your Commissioners are not elected – it is creating problems for us because they can be removed at any time, whereas in parliamentary system, a minister or commissioner is a legislator.

“They could be there for the constitutional terms of office; it could be five years or six. I believe sincerely that to kill corruption, we must go back to the system that we understand best. We must involve the village heads to the top.

“Corruption doesn’t necessarily make you rich, it could begin from a messenger. ‘I want to see the oga (boss) inside the office’ and he will say ‘no’. Corruption may be in your favouring somebody over another. There are five people to be appointed; the most qualified is there but you don’t want him because he is not your loyalist. That is corruption.

“And, its better to just call Nigeria the Federation of Nigeria; don’t call it the Federal Republic of Nigeria, else you are going to lose your tradition. You have your tradition, but you are losing your tradition by borrowing the one that doesn’t belong to you.

“That is a disaster. We need to go back to basic. It doesn’t cost you much. The village head, the Obis, the Obas, Emirs. We are still paying them, but we are not using them,” Belogore said.

Lagos Deputy Governor Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, who was a spe-

• Justice Belgore, Mrs Orelope-Adefulire, Mrs Patricia Otuedor, Idigbe and wife Elizabeth

• Former Hallmark Bank Chairman Marc Wabara, Presiding Justice, Court of Appeal, Lagos Division Amina Augie and Cross.

‘Parliamentary system best solution to corruption’ • Belgore, Orelope-Adefulire, Idigbe speak at lecture cial guest, said although the President system may be expensive, Nigeria would be better through effective leadership.

She said it took America years to get its Presidential system right; therefore, with time, Nigeria would be great again.

“Some say the Presidential system is expensive, and that parliamentary system will afford us the opportunity of knowing the rules and playing by the rules, but we have to go from one step to another,” she said.

The guest lecturer, First VicePresident, Mirabaud Private Bank of Geneva and Director-in-Charge of Africa, Mr John Cross, said corruption cannot be effectively tackled without the corporation of financial institutions.

He spoke on the topic: Wealth Management and Succession Planning: Best Practices, Anti-Corruption Compliance and Red Flags.

According to him, banks could help prevent money laundering by raising questions about ownership of funds, investigating whether they have been legally earned, whether the funds transfer was done through legal means, and whether the funds are being utilised for legitimate purposes.

On wealth management, Cross said the function of the wealth manger involves preserving wealth rather than creating wealth.

In other words - deploying capital and not creating capital.

In creating wealth, one is pushed into a position where risk needs to be taken to survive; but in managing wealth, one can choose the kinds of risk to be involved in, he said.

The goal of managing wealth, he said, is to help others and yourself enjoy what you have achieved.

Going about it, Cross said, involves diversification, which, ac-

cording to him is key to long term success. There should be diversification in asset managers as limited losses are better than excessive gains, he added.

“Always check the legality of your structures with a legal expert.

The international nature of wealth management means that one can make mistakes more easily and this should be avoided.

“Have a good, honest and open relationship with your bankers.

They will be able to help you avoid mistakes and can also help you correct errors or mistakes if they know about them. If you have any questions, ask before transacting, not after.

“Do not break the law. Certain jurisdictions have more rules than others, try to find the ones that suit your needs the most (transactional vs. storage of wealth). Also, some jurisdictions have better reputations than others, it may be easy to get money into a bank in Iran, but will be almost impossible to get it out of Iran into Switzerland.”

Managing Director, Meristem

Wealth Management Limited, Sulaiman Adedokun said many business owners spend years trying to build their business; however, they never actually plan for what will happen should they decide to sell the business, turn it over to someone else, or simply cease operations.

“Succession planning is significant for any business and the process should be commenced immediately after setting up the business such that the focus is not lost in the course of doing business.

“It is important however for the business owners/founders to be sincere with themselves and align their goals with a good exit option that create value for them and give them peace of mind,” Adedokun said.

Group Head, Private Banking at Fidelity Bank Plc, Chioma Nwankwo, said between a fast decreasing life expectancy and a notorious lack of succession planning, Nigeria has become a hotbed of trust, probate and disputes amongst families who have previ-

ously used informal relationships to govern the handover of assets Wealth management, she said, examines many aspects of one’s financial life, vision and goal.

“There’s a boom of litigations surrounding generational wealth transfer. Increasing disputes arise upon death, divorce or mental incapacity. There’s no typical wealth plan that fits every individual.

“Increasingly, financial scandals can be entertaining and frightening at the same time, especially when they involve the fall and stumble of highly visible establishments.

“Increasing ‘traders gone wild’ culture in the market place has made some investment analysts focus primarily on personal benefits at the expense of investors “Extreme industry competition breeds unethical and illegal activities which are perceived to be acceptable. Anyone standing in the way of profit is trampled on!

“There’s an increasing need for high level of service standards from all parties involved in wealth management and succession planning,” she said.

Managing Partner, Punuka Attorneys and Solicitors, Chief Anthony Idigbe (SAN) said everyone needs adequate planning in life to deal with succession issues.

“The society is awash with stories of great men and women whose sudden exit have created wealth management and succession planning impasse for their families, with resultant bitter acrimony and legal tussle that have torn their families apart.

“In few circumstances where people have purportedly sought to manage their wealth and plan for their exit, the strategies adopted in many cases fall short of international best practices and consequently infringe on the laws and policy directions in this regard.

“In a similar vein, companies are not spared the consequences of lack of purposeful wealth management and succession planning strategies.

Many companies have gone under as a result of inadequate succession planning.

“In addition, regulation and compliance across the world in the areas of taxation and prevention of terrorism, money laundering and corruption have greater emphasis in good estate planning and wealth management.

“The risks of lack of planning are now beyond more loss of inheritance but include criminal liability. Understanding the red flags can help exposed persons and corporations navigate this difficult terrain,” Idigbe said. mong guests are Acting President of the Court of Appeal, Zainab Bulkachuwa, represented

by Presiding Justice, Lagos Division, Justice Amina Augie; pioneer chairman, Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law, George Etomi; representative of Chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission, among others.

Auta excited over court’s ‘milestones’

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HE Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta is excited with what he describes as the ‘great milistones’ recorded by the courts since its creation in 1973.

Justice Auta spoke while unveiling a collection of photographs of the court’s judges, mounted on the foyer of the Federal High Court headquarters in Abuja. The collection includes those of serving, dead and retired judges. Besides, Justice Auta launched the court’s electronic cause lists installed on all the court’s five floors.

The Chief Judge said the

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

gallery and other beautiful decorations now adorning the court’s foyer, are in place preparatory to the grand celebration of the court’s 40th year anniversary scheduled for between December 9 and13 this year.

Justice Auta particularly noted that the court, that began operation with just five judges sitting in a small apartment in Lagos Island, Lagos State, as grown both in the number of serving and retired judges, as well as in infrastructure development.

“We have also made our mark in stabilizing the polity and given hope to the proverbial ordinary man,” he said.

The judge explained that, while the photo gallery will tell visitors a brief history of the court, the electronic cause list will display the courts, number of cases for each day and the current cases being heard in each court at a particular time.

The court was created as the Federal Revenue Court in 1973 by virtue of the Federal Revenue Act 13 of that year. It was renamed by virtue of Sections 228(1) and 230(2) of the 1979 Constitution.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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LAW REPORT

‘Documents are not admitted as a matter of course at appeal stage’ IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA Date: 1st February 2013 SC. 185/2003, 2013(2) LEDLR-3 IBRAHIM TANKO MUHAMMAD ….JUSTICE, SUPREME COURT JOHN AFOLABI FABIYI ….JUSTICE, SUPREME COURT MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI ….JUSTICE, SUPREME COURT OLUKAYODE ARIWOOLA ….JUSTICE, SUPREME COURT KUMAI BAYANG AKA’AHS ….JUSTICE, SUPREME COURT BETWEEN S. O. ADEYEFA J. A. BALOGUN………………………… APPELLANTS JOSHUA AWOREFA [On behalf of themselves and Representing Ojaja Community) AND BELLO BAMGBOYE…………………… RESPONDENT

• Continued from last week

V

IEWED from any angle, the applica tion for leave to tender the three docu ments as further evidence is doomed to end at a brick wall. The prayer fails and it is refused.

Since the documents have been rejected the 2nd prayer to reflect them in the appellants’ brief of argument has no foundation to support it. The prayer was made to no avail. It is refused.

I. T. MUHAMMAD, JSC:- I have had the

privilege of reading before now, the Ruling just delivered by my learned brother, Fabiyi, JSC. I am in agreement with him in his reasoning and conclusion. I adopt same as I have nothing more to add.

MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI, JSC:-I agree with the Ruling just delivered by my learned brother, J. A. Fabiyi, JSC refusing the application of the Appellants/Applicants and the reasoning from which the decision was made. In support I shall make a few comments.

The Appellants/Applicants by a Motion on

Notice filed on 7/6/2010 sought the following reliefs:1. For leave to tender the attached three documents marked Exhibits P10, P11 and P12 as further evidence and form part of the records of appeal pending in the above named suit.

2.That the Appellants brief of argument filed on 20/7/05 be amended accordingly.

3. That the amended brief of argument with the attached Exhibits P10, P11 and P12 is dated 21st day of May, 2010 be deemed properly filed and served personally on Bamgboye Bello the new party to be substituted and Chief B. O. Omirefa the Respondent’s solicitor.

The two grounds upon which this application is predicated are thus:i.That the three documents sought to be tendered and formed part of the records of Appeal are the Government Decision over the Access-Road-in-dispute between the Appellant’s community and Ganiyu Elusoji Respondent’s father. This made the documents very relevant and may assist the Supreme Court to reach a just decision.

The application is supported by a 12 paragraph affidavit deposed to by J. A. Balogun, the 4th Appellant on record. There is a further Affidavit deposed to by counsel on 9/ 11/12.

On the 5/6/12 the Respondent had deposed on his behalf a counter affidavit by lnyene Dorcas Ntuk (Miss) of counsel.

On the 12th of November, 2012 of hearing, Mr.’ Alayinde, learned counsel for the Appellants/applicants in moving the motion adopted their written Brief of argument and a Reply Brief filed along with the supporting affidavit and further affidavit respectively. In the Brief of argument the Applicant distilled two issues for determination, viz:1. Whether or not at this stage of the proceedings the three newly discovered documents which are very relevant for the just determination of the appeal pending before the Supreme Court can be tendered and ad-

mitted to form part of the Supreme Court Records of Appeal as additional further evidence for the consideration and just determination of the appeal.

2.Whether or not it is necessary to amend the brief of argument in view of the death of the 1st and 2nd appellants and the Respondents and in the light of the newly discovered documents.

Arguing those two issues aforesaid, learned counsel for the Applicant contended that the three documents are admissible in law and it is the law that once a document is admissible even if it is not pleaded but support the facts already pleaded and having regards to the nature of the claim such documents will be admitted not minding the facts that they are not pleaded. That there were sufficient facts in both pleadings and evidence of the documents. That the three letters dealt with the access road-in-dispute and were settlements effected by the Local Government Council between the Appellants and the Respondent’s father Ganiyu Elusoji.

Mr. Alayinde counsel stated further that if the three documents were available during the trial or before the Court of Appeal, the judgments in the two courts would have been different and so in the interest of justice this application should be granted. He cited Abual v Bensu (2003) 16 NWLR (Pt.845)59.

Learned counsel for the Applicant stated on that the Appellants’ Brief of Argument need be amended in the light of the deletion and substitution of deceased parties in this suit.

Learned counsel further cited the case of Benson Esangbedo v The State (1989) 4 NWLR (Pt. 113) 59 at 66-67 on the evidence to be introduced at the appeal.

The Respondent’s learned counsel stated in opposition that admission of fresh documents at this stage must be done with extreme caution.

• Continued next week

Experts seek review of laws on air safety With the clamour for aviation reforms to insure safety in the air, experts have called for an overhaul of aviation laws. JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU reports.

A

RE specific laws regulating the aviation and space industry in Nigeria adequate? Do they address new threats to safety?

These are some of the questions experts sought to answer at a roundtable organised by the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) in Abuja. It had the theme: Aviation and Space Law: New Trends.

The aviation industry, speakers said, remains one of the fastest growing in the world and its employment potentials and importance to a nation’s development and cannot be ignored.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Senator Goodhope Odidika Uzodinma, said Nigerians have been very active stakeholders in ensuring that a safer air space is achieved.

He said the National Assembly would do its part to ensure that a strong legal framework is main-

tained to enable the aviation sector in Nigeria function efficiently.

The roundtable examined how environmental activities as it Affects the sector. The environmental factors as outlined by the presenters include: pollution, land use planning and noise.

These factors, they said, have serious damaging effects on the environment such as climate change which affects the health of individuals.

Some of the new developments aimed at addressing the damaging effects caused by the Aviation industry are redesigning of aircrafts that will use less fuel and make less noise, use of sustainable alternative fuel, restructuring of aircraft that will enhance aircraft management, regular maintenance of aircraft that will improve an aircraft’s combustion and the introduction of new laws in the sector.

Also discussed were aviation se-

curity and the challenges of terrorism in Nigeria. Aviation security legislation, speakers said, is very dynamic, and it is difficult to anticipate or cover by legislation all threats to the safety of security of civil aviation.

The trend has been for the event to happen before appropriate measures are put in place to prevent and discourage recurrence or punish perpetrators of those acts, they said.

There is, however, a move by International Civil Aviation organisation (ICAO) to identify and if possible propose legislations that will counter what the organisation has identified as new and emerging threats to civil Aviation.

These new threats as identified by ICAO, experts said, include: misuse of aircraft as a weapon for example; suicide attacks in the air, suicide attacks on the ground, electronic attacks using radio transmitters or other means to jam or alter the state

• Azinge (left) and Uzodinma

of the ground or airborne navigation thereby endangering the safety of persons or aircraft, chemical and biological attacks against the air travelling public, computer based attacks and attacks by making use of air cargos.

The challenge for aviation security, the roundtable observed, is to see how existing legislation cover the threats and to make appropriate rules where there are gaps. ICAO has taken up this challenge, speakers said.

Also considered was the proposed

Fly Nigeria Bill (2012), promoted by former Nigerian Bar Association President Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), who had said the proposed law would enable Nigerian airlines get a fair share of the huge market in the air travel business.

Entitled: “Fly Nigeria Act”, the bill is similar to the United States (U.S.) Fly America Act, which requires federal employees, dependents, consultants, contractors, grantees and others performing the American government’s financed air trips to fly the country’s carriers.

Court to hear lawyer’s, bank’s applications on May 7

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N Igbosere High Court, La gos, has fixed May 7, for hearing of two applications brought by a lawyer, Chief Ajibola Aribisala. The bank is challenging the court’s jurisdiction.

In his motion, Aribisala whose Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) title was suspended is praying for an order restraining the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) of stripping him of the honour.

In his suit against LPPC and the bank, Aribisala is praying the court to reverse the committee’s decision.

He accused the LPPC of taking the action despite a pending appli-

By Precious Igbonwelundu

cation dated October 19, 2012, which sought a restraining order of interlocutory injunction against the body to suspend his SAN rank, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

The lawyer prayed the court for an order directing immediate restoration of parties in this suit to the status quo ante bellum as at October 22, 2012, when Fidelity Bank and LPPC, the first and second defendants respectively, were served with the originating processes including the Motion on Notice dated October 19, 2012, seeking a restraining order

against LPPC pending the determination of the case; just as he denied overcharging the bank saying his bill was in accordance with the provisions of the Legal Practitioners (Remuneration for Legal Practitioner Documentation and other Land Matters) Order.

He said he made several demands on the bank to pay up his legal fees after helping the bank to perfect its documents in respect of different properties acquired by the bank.

While the LPPC did not file any response to the suit, Fidelity Bank in its preliminary objection, challenged the jurisdiction of the

court to hear the suit.

Although counsel to Aribisala, Tunji Ayanlaja (SAN), at the resumed hearing yesterday, urged the court to take the application for a mandatory injunction against the LPPC and the preliminary objection challenging the jurisdiction of the court together; counsel to Fidelity Bank, Seyi Sowemimo (SAN), prayed that the bank’s application be heard first.

Ayanlaja argued that taking the two applications would save time and speed-up hearing and determination of the suit.

He said: “In line with a judgment of the Supreme Court, delivered in

2009, the court is expected to take the two contending applications together and deliver just a ruling adding that any of the parties who is not satisfy could then appeal against it.”

Sowemimo while objecting the applicant’s prayer, argued that the preliminary objection challenging the jurisdiction of the court is the only application that is ripe for hearing.

Delivering a bench ruling, Adefope-Okojie held that the two applications would be heard together and a joint ruling delivered on them. She adjourned the case to May 7 for hearing on both applications.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

39

ABUJA REVIEW NEWS

•President Goodluck Jonathan greeting Ambassador Enaruna Imohe, member of the Presidential Committee on Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons. With them is VicePresident, Mohammed Namadi Sambo at the Presidential Villa in Abuja

•From left: Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan; Minister of State for Power, Hajia Zainab Kuchi; Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and Abia State Governor Theodore Orji at the National Economic Council meeting at the Presidential Villa

•From left: Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal; Vice-President, Namadi Sambo and Senate President, Senator David Mark at the Conference on Executive and Legislature at the International Conference CentRe in Abuja

•Inspector-General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar, congratulating Officer-in-Charge of the Veterinary Medical Centre, Assistant Police Commissioner, Dr Ishatu Abubakar. With them are Special Guest of Honour, Gordon Obua and Dr Julius Ishola at the commissioning of Police Veterinary Medical Centre at State House, Abuja PHOTOS: AKIN OLADOKUN

•Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide (right), presenting a cheque to loan beneficiary, Jackson Ohiaku at the commissioning of Kwali Micro-finance Bank in Kwali Area Council, Abuja. With them are Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, John Obinna Chukwu (second right); Acting Managing-Director, Abuja Enterprise Agency, Aisha Abubakar PHOTO ABAYOMI FAYESE

•Brazil Ambassador to Nigeria, Joao Andre Lina (left), Cameroon Ambassador to Nigeria, Salaudeen Abbas and Iraq Ambassador, Ali Bauder during the Nigerian-Turkish Friendship and Cultural Festival in Abuja PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

•Minister of Heath, Onyebuchi Chukwu (right), with chairman, Governing Board, Federal Medical Centre, Katsina, Hon Bade Falade during the inauguration of the Governing Boards of Federal Tertiary Hospitals and Agencies in Abuja PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

•Chairman, House of Representatives, Ad-hoc Committee on Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), Hon Ishaka Bawa (left); members of the committee, Hassan Saleh; Musa Adar and Hon Asita Honourable at the public hearing on PIB for Southsouth Zone in Port Harcourt

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

40

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

With ekpoita :funtreatsvilla@yahoo.com / 08077706130

Looking Through A Child’s Eyes When I look at a patch of dandelions, I see a bunch of weeds that are going to take over my yard. My kids see flowers for Mom and blowing white fluff you can wish on.

When I look at an old drunk and he smiles at me, I see a smelly, dirty person who probably wants money and I look away. My kids see someone smiling at them and they smile back.

When I hear music I love, I know I can’t carry a tune and don’t have much rhythm so I sit self-consciously and listen.

My kids feel the beat and move to it. They sing out the words.

If they don’t know them, they make up their own.

When I feel wind on my face, I brace myself against it. I feel it messing up my hair and pulling me back when I walk. My kids close their eyes, spread their arms and fly with it, until they fall to the ground laughing.

When I pray I say thee and thou and grant me this, give me that. My kids say, “Hi God!!! Please keep the bad dreams away tonight. I would miss my Mommy and Daddy.”

When I see a mud puddle I step around it. I see muddy shoes and clothes, and dirty carpets. My kids sit in it. They see dams to build, rivers to cross and worms to play with.

I wonder if we are given kids to teach, or to learn

QUICK CROSSWORD 1

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sHoWbliTz Smith, Jay-Z Back Obama’s gay stance

On May 9, President Barack Obama became the first sitting president to announce support for same-sex marriage. Now two of the country’s celebrity Black stars actor Will Smith and rapper/businessman Jay-Z, are backing President Obama on his controversial stance on gay marriage. While promoting his upcoming blockbuster film “Men in Black III” in Berlin, Smith told the Associated Press that Obama’s support of gay marriage is a “brave” move particularly in an election year.Meanwhile, Jay-Z, whose actual name is Shawn Carter, also made his pro-gay stance public, backing our president in his support of legalizing same-sex marriages.

In Philadelphia, when announcing a two-day music festival in early September, Jay-Z sat with CNN’s Poppy Harlow to discuss some issues and one of them was Obama’s startling comment about his support of gay marriage. JayZ, who has rallied round Obama since his 2008 campaign days, told news reporters “I’ve always thought of it as something that was still, um, holding the country back,” In the not-too-distant-past, Smith was at the center of a gay controversy himself. There were reports that he was involved with actor and running buddy Duane Martin.

Star Magazine reported that Smith and Martin had maintained a gay relationship for years. It was implied that their union was responsible for the downfall of Smith’s marriage to Jada. The rumors of Smith’s possible sexual preference began to pick up steam after he completed the 1993 film “Six Degrees of Separation,” where he portrayed a gay college student

POETRY Mind Behind Bars As the days progress From the rising of the sun My heart won’t cease its twists Of anguish.

This cold hospitality under locks Is poison for any mind.

Yet I see faults erased On the crunch guilt’s kolanuts.

I admit, I’m lost.

The rain has departed Now the sun wears his shoes, I rust on this spot still.

There have been no wages Of all my days in this cage.

The tears keep streaming, Fuelling the heart’s drive And now a stench I wear.

My flesh swells in fear And strange sickness.

Please ring the bell of justice, I tell the angels Hovering this rusty cell.

- Habib Akewusola

Good Friend

ACROSS

DOWN

1.Complete (5) 2. Massive(5) 6. Have courage to (4) 7. One who trades (6) 10. Bow (3) 11. Uncooked (3) 13. Specialist (5) 14. Perch (3) 15. Quarrel (5) 17. Liabilities (6) 20. Lobby (5) 21. Epoch (3) 22. Pitcher (4) 23. Expands (5)

1. Mammary Glands (5) 2. Pull Forcibly (5) 3. Mix (5) 5. Thread (6) 8. Recess (4) 9. Bemoan (4) 12. Afloat (5) 14. Influence (4) 16. Stay Upright (5) 17. Sketch (4) 18. Wager (3) 19. Anger (3)

WORDWHEEL

Form as many words as you can with the letters in the wheel.

Every word must make use of the letter at the center, i.e. the letter T. A 9-letter word with the meaning “ UNPLEASANTLY NOTICEABLE” is hidden in the grid. This is the star word. 2letter words and proper nouns are not allowed. Words up to forty score excellent.

I R

Partner sounds too western, Confidante just doesn’t fit, We could try to use acquaintance, (I don’t like that name one bit).

We’ve tried out quite a lot here, But they all feel like dead ends, So I’ll just stick with what has worked, And call you my good friend.

- Jennifer Wilson

T

O

E

V

B

S JUMBLEWORD

Unscramble the word jumbled in the grid below and place the deciphered word in the blank grid.

S So many names to call a friend, The list is far from short, Like buddy, pal and good old chum, And some might say cohort.

U

C

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Humour A Nigerian Naval officer was addressing the rank and file of the force and told them of new uniforms, boots, increased remuneration the force has approved for them. As he mentioned the approved items, the crowd kept shouting “hurray!”such that the officer could not hear even his own voice again. He got angry, brought out his gun and fired in the air. Everyone became quiet and the officer, quite enraged warned “ if you hurray againnnnnnnna, you shall hurray yourself”.

Got wind of a criminal act, plan?

Alert your friend,The Police.

To conquer oneself is the best and noblest victory; to be vanquished by one’s own Pep Talk nature is the worst and most ignoble defeat. - Plato

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

43

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

HEALTH THE NATION

E-mail:- health@thenationonlineng.net

According to Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (NOI) Polls, almost seven in 10 Nigerians had malaria, at least once, in the past year.

How can Nigeria combat this worrisome health issue? OYEYEMI GBENGA-MUSTAPHA and WALE ADEPOJU report.

Malaria still a ‘disturbing’ health issue D

ESPITE efforts to stop the disease, malaria is still ravaging the land.

The three tiers of government appear unable to tame the monster, which has since been caged in some other parts of the world.

The World Malaria Day was marked on April 16, but the event virtually went unsung in Nigeria. Under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the disease is expected to be eradicated by 2015.

Can Nigeria attain the goal? It is in a bid to do so that the Federal Government adopted programmes such as Roll Back Malaria, free distribution of Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs) and Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets (LLINs), Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) with insecticides.

Promotion of clean environment and introduction of affordable malaria medicine are a few of the other interventions the three tiers of government have deployed to end the disease.

Most of these interventions have either been wishy washy in implementation or the governed sabotaged through sheer ignorance.

For instance, the Federal Goverment provided for the availability of artemisinin combination therapy (ACT), which is the World Health Organisation’s (WHO’s) recommended anti-malaria first line drug, but to get same is a major task because it is not readily available on the counters, despite being classified as over the counter medicines (OTC). And where they are available, they do not go for the official price. In principle, the drugs have been fixed for N270 but in implementation they are sold for N600 and above.

Mr Seyi Oluwasegun, a businessman, took his two year-old son to a primary health care centre at Ipaja, a Lagos suburb, for treatment. He was asked by the health personnel to take the child to a laboratory for a diagnostic test. He obliged.

When he returned he was given a prescription to purchase a malaria drug. He protested and stated that the state government did provide free drugs for children under five years and adults above 65 years, but he was told there was no longer stock of anti-malaria drugs.

Frustrated, he went to a nearby pharmacy outside the hospital, where he bought the drug for N650.

He is not alone. Another patient, Pa Joseph Oshaye, a 72-year old retiree, said he had to pay through his nose to treat the ailment when he was diagnosed for the same disease at another government hospital. He too obtained his drugs in a private pharmacy.

He lamented that in the past, N20 worth of Chloroquine would have been sufficient to treat the disease but it is no longer the drug of choice. So he had to spend N1, 400 to treat himself after the disease had been diagnosed. The first time he took the drug he didn’t feel any relief and he was advised by a community nurse to treat it with another drug. He said he suspected that the first drug, which he bought, might be a fake. This time around he left his environment to look for another pharmacy where he paid N700 for the drug. After about two hours he felt better. He said: “Treating malaria is no longer cheap as the Federal and state governments promised.”

Investigations revealed that a patient would need about N650 to treat the disease. Some patients said they were asked to go for a test as a form of diagnosis before they can commence treatment. They said the cost of test alone is high let alone

‘Treating malaria is no longer cheap as the Federal and state governments promised’ •Onyebuchi

that of the drug.

Yet, Health Minister Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu, said the Federal Government has subsidised the cost of malaria drug because of the peculiarity of the disease.

Chukwu, who spoke in Lagos, said people should not patronise health facilities who charge above the required amount of N300 for an artemisinin combination therapy (ACT) anti-malaria drug. He said such cases should also be reported to the Federal Ministry of Health for the appropriate action. But who will bell the cat. And if done, would the authority take appropriate sanctions against offenders. The ostrich game is it.

The reality is that malaria drugs are sold at exorbitant prices because of the disease burden. Malaria is about the most common of all the fevers. According to the opinion poll by a leading opinion polling and research organisation, NOI Polls Limited, 44 per cent of Nigerians visit hospitals when they have malaria, 38 per cent simply buy medicine from pharmacies or ‘chemists’, 13 per cent simply make use of native herbs like neem leaves (dongoyaro), lemon grass leaves or other form of herbal concoctions.

According to the poll, respondents were asked how many times they had malaria in the last 12 months, to which majority of respondents (66 per cent: 26 per cent +19 per cent + 10 per cent +five per cent +sic per cent) said they have been infected with at least once over the past one year, while 34 per cent of respondents said they have not had malaria in the past 12 months.

Further analysis by geo-political zones showed that malaria is more prevalent in South than in the North. results showed that majority of the residents in the Northern regions: North-Central (43 per cent), North-East (38 per cent), and North-West 38 per cent have not had malaria pver the past twelve months. While the Sothern Regions:South-south (77 per cent0, southEast (75 per cent) and South-west (64 per cent) have the largest per centage of the respondents who had malaria more than once over the last twelve months.

This disparity between geo-political zones is perhaps due to the greater presence of rivers, seas, and lakes in the south

where mosquitoes are prevalent; while the North is mostly land locked.

To how people treat malaria when infected, nationwide results showed that majority (44 per cent) of the respondents visit the hospital to see a doctor when they have malaria. This is followed by 38 per cent who simply buy medicine from the pharmacy or chemist. Furthermore, 13 per cent said they make use of native herbs, such as Neems (dogonyaro), lemon grass leaves or other form of herbal concoctions.

The Poll concluded that majority of the residents in the Southern regions selfmedicate, unlike the Northern regions that go to the hospital.

Yet the Health Minister, Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu said the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has encouraged member countries to ensure vector control through Integrated Vector Management in addition to implementing large scale larviciding.

Chukwu, who spoke at the African Union Conference of Health Ministers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, said a ground breaking ceremony for Larviciding Factory was done in Nigeria a couple of months ago in the presence of the President and Vice-President of ECOWAS Commission and the Deputy Prime Minister of Venezuela.

“The region is also focusing on vector resistance and drug surveillance. Africa must employ Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) with DDT. There is also a need for scale up of the use of rapid Diagnostic Test Kits (RTDs),” he stated.

Commissioner of Health, Lagos State, Dr Jide Idris said the government has the political will and commitment to ensure wholly free health care delivery for under five and adult from 65 but funding is the problem.

He said this was why the government is placing emphasis on payment of taxes so that it can serve the people better, especially in the area of health care for the two categories of people in the society.

He said in Lagos State, only 17 per cent of the 88 per cent of the people it gave the Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLINs) were using them. This, he said, was according to a recent survey it conducted.

Dr Idris urged residents not to keep the nets but rather should use them to prevent malaria. Idris, who spoke to reporters on the occasion of World Malaria Day (WMD), said some households have converted the nets to fishing nets, to catch fish while others have been using them for other unacceptable reasons.

The theme, which was adopted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the next three years, is-Invest in the future: defeat malaria. Its slogan: Time is now. He said the disease, which is responsible for 60 per cent of out-patients attendance to health facilities was still prevalent in the state because of its coastal nature.

Idris called for effective diagnosis before treatment, stressing that it is not all fevers that could be regarded as malaria.

“Lagos has collaborated with its partners to ensure that microscopes and Rapid Diagnostic Test (RTD) kits are provided while Artemisinin Combination Therapy (ACT) anti-malaria drugs are given free for treatment in its facilities,” he said.

Private organisations are not left out in the fight to end the disease. For instance, Ogun State government and Reckitt Benckiser’s Mortein insecticide brand has called for an all-inclusive strategy to bring down the current malaria prevalence in Nigeria and African at large.

They lamented that although malaria was preventable; there was need for concerned stakeholders to take proactive steps to stop the current trend of avoidable deaths resulting from the disease, especially among expectant mothers and under five children.

The Commissioner of Health, Dr Olaokun Soyinka, said because of the strategic placement of Africa as the new hub for the world’s economy, it was imperative to accord malaria eradication priority and every support needed to overcome the alarming prevalence rate.

Soyinka described the initiative as a demonstration of responsible corporate citizenship which he said underpinned the company’s love and commitment not only to the people of the state, but to Nigeria as a whole.

He said: ‘‘Complementary efforts of this nature are not only needed but deeply appreciated by the government of Ogun State. This will certainly go a long way in ensuring that our children and mothers are free from the scourge of malaria.’’

East) Africa, Reckitt Benckiser, Mr Ashok Bashin, said the need to fill the ‘‘deadly gaps’’ in the various malaria eradication programmes informed the intervention initiative being provided by the company.

“There are lots of activities and momentum to combat malaria in Nigeria, but deadly gaps still exist. More needs to be done to prevent children from being infected and ensure access to quality malaria treatment”, he declared.

Ashok said: ‘‘empowering families and communities through participation – while improving their knowledge about how to prevent, recognize and treat malaria – is an important part of Reckitt Benckiser’s malaria prevention work. ‘’Community workers should try to sensitize the local population about preventing malaria through the use of insecticidetreated nets (ITNs), cleaning their environment on regular basis, avoidance of stagnant water in their surroundings and use of insecticides like Mortein which is safe on both the mother and child.’’

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

TUESDAY APRIL 30, 2013

45

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

Despite its acclaimed winning streak, the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been assailed by protracted leadership crises in its chequered history, EMMANUEL OLADESU and AUGUSTINE AVWODE examine the multiple crises, which drew the curtains on the turbulent tenures of the PDP chairmen in the last 14 years.

Lar

P

DP was built on a solid foundation under theleadership of the renowned Middle-Belt politician, Chief Solomon Lar. The founding fathers were elder statesmen who, under the auspices of G-34, recommended a terminal date for the military rule. As the Provost of that college of elders, the lot fell on Lar to deliver the message to the late military Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha. Curiously, he went to the lion’s den and returned alive. His vast experience as a First Republic federal legislator, Second Republic governor and former minister adequately prepared him for the task of leading a big party.

PDP’s beginning was beautiful because the fold was a mixed grill of conservatives, progressives and repentant military apologists.

The former Plateau State governor wielded the fold together. He had taken the baton of leadership from the interim chairman, the late Senator Sunday Awoniyi, the Aro of Mopa. In 1999, the acclaimed largest party in Africa won federal and state elections without rigging. The two parties that competed with it, the All Peoples Party (APP) and Alliance for Democracy (AD) originated, in part, from the PDP. The AD arrowhead, the late Chief Bola Ige, was among the eminent politicians who wrote the PDP constitution. It was after he left the group that MajorGeneral David Jemibewon (rtd)became the chairman of the party’s Constitution Committee.

Lar’s calculation was that, since the public opinion favoured power shift to the Southwest geopolitical zone, either Chief Olu Falae or Ige, was well positioned to fly the PDP presidential flag.

It was distressing to him that the two of them hurriedly left for the APP, and later, AD. Following their departure from the group that was about to metamorphose into the PDP, the conservative forces in the group, especially the members of the polarised PDM, backed by rich and influential retired Generals, raised a search team to discuss with the former military Head of State, Gen. Olussegun Obasanjo (rtd). Although presidential hopefuls, including former Vice President Alex Ekweme and the late Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, still slugged it out with the Ota farmer at the inaugural party primaries, he emerged as the candidate and later won the 1999 presidential election.

Lar, a disciple of the Great Zik of Africa, is a celebrated democrat for President Obasanjo, a retired soldier battling with adjustment difficulties, the transition from soldering to politics was hard; hard for a man who relished the hierarchical military dictatorial order and command.

His first move was to get the title of the “National Leader’ of the PDP.” Few months after he assumed office, he agitated for the change of baton at the party’s national secretariat. That was necessary to limit the party’s influence and moderation on presidential activities. It was clear that Lar, the former Police Affairs minister, had to bow out honourably for the relatively younger elements. He spent barely a year in office.

During his tenure, crises were minimal and the party was supreme. Reflecting on Lar’s

•From right: Former President Obasanjo, Chief Gemade, Dr Ekweme and the late Alhaji Rimi at the party’s convention in Abuja.

From Lar to Tukur: A floodgate of crises Crisis of leadership and legitimacy

By Emmanuel Oladesu, Group Political Editor

I

T is a big party with a huge power base. It is an oak tree offering shades to antagonistic gladiators. Many of them are often rebellious. The protracted crises ravaging the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its endless, yet unfruitful reconciliation, make the ruling party to wobble on in self-delusion and decay.

The battered state chapters have no rallying point to look up to for inspiration. Since the crises are overwhelming at the centre more than the distraught state branches, the renewed push for cohesion at that level has no prospect of altering the rigid character of the divided house.

There are three characteristics of a political party. These are ideology, organisation and leadership. The three features are highly connected. But the PDP, the acclaimed largest party in Africa, lacks ideological outlook. Its lingering leadership crisis has no ideological connotation. Therefore, the party cannot generate ideas for the government it midwifes. Thus, the PDP’s manifestoes shallow. The uniting factors are power retention and power consolidation for personal gains.

Although the party has structures created by its constitution, they are severely weakened by the power-loaded PDP President, who as the national party leader, has assumed the status of the alpha and omega.

Except the pioneer chairman, Chief Solomon Lar, other chairmen emerged, following the endorsement of their candidature by the President. In the party, the word of the National Leader is law. He brooks no opposition. In the Second Republic, the ruling National Party of Nigeria (NPN) fully subscribed to the idea of the party caucus, of which the President was a member. Its members met under the national chairman. I this dispensation, it is an outdated idea. The party secretariat, literarily, is the President’s bedroom.

The root of the rot is the weak political culture, which has made democratisation of the political parties a herculean task. Party discipline in the First and Second Republics aptly mirrored the “leadership discipline”. But the regional or ethnically-based political parties were built around personalities who were perceived as ethnic champions.

Thus, as recalled by the former PDP chairman, Chief Barnabas Gemade, “ the whole idea of political leadership in Nigeria has been based on

ouster, one of his aides, Dr Solomon Dalung, who teaches Law at the University of Jos, said that “immediately Obasanjo was inaugurated as the President, he disbanded Lar’s cabinet and the disbandment of that cabinet remains PDP’s waterloo today.”

Gemade Lar had a second term ambition. But former President Obasanjo had a different agenda. The old politician was not indifferent to the tendency of the soldier-turned politician. he understood the body language. He therefore, decided to show interest in his successor.

The position was zoned to the Northcentral geo-political zone. The contestants were the former interim chairman, Awoniyi, and Gemade,

regional politics, zonal politics and tribal politics, up to 1999 when we began to float national political parties”.

“The stability of political leadership in administering those parties in the past was because parties were formed and owned by a group of people that were homogenous. But today, we have started seeing parties constructed around people from different backgrounds, different callings in life, different political ideologies, coming together to form one political party,” he stressed.

Gemade stressed that a national party, which is a product of political dynamism, creates opportunities for the scramble for political control.

“You begin to see sectoral conspiracies and, since it has been said that politics itself is a series on the concentric circles of conspiracies and when those things are no longer circles, then, there are compartments of conspiracies, then you also begin to see a lot of agitation internally about ascendancy and descendancy and here, PDP has suffered this more than other political parties because it is much more difficult to forge homogeneity, especially in a political party like the PDP,” he added.

With the emergence of PDP, which has a national outlook, came the challenge of democratic party leadership evolution. The party would have naturally tried the path of surmounting the challenge, if its first national leader was not retired soldier, who could not adjust to the requirement of democratic civilian life.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s meddlesomeness in the party management had becone an integral part of party culture inherited by one of his successors, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. Just as the former President virtually stamped the candidature of Gemade, Ogbeh, and Ali, President Jonathan also insisted on the current chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.

Thus, in the PDP, the national chairman is like the President’s appointee.

The implications are not farfetched. Whenever the succession battle of the President is factored into the considerations for the national chairmanship, internal democracy is the first casualty. Also, when the majority of the party chieftains are forced to embrace and relate with the party leadership that did not evolve democratically from majority consent, the chairman will always swim in the pool of legitimacy crisis.

There is the thinking that Tukur has given the office some mileage.

Should he be pushed out, as being suggested in some circles, the party will continue to swim in crises.

former member of the Interim National Government (ING) led by Chief Ernest Shonekan.

Awoniyi, a Yoruba, was from Kogi State.

Gemade hails from Benue State. Other contestants were Senator Ahmadu Ali, Yahaya Kwande, and Sule Usman from Kogi State.

Awoniyi, who had often described himself as a Yoruba-Northerner, got the shock of his life when Obasanjo from Ogun State declared that, in the PDP, Yoruba could not produce the President and National Chairman as the same time.

He fought back, saying that, by geographical factor, he was a northerner. But there was logic in Obasanjo’s thinking. That reality jolted the minority Yoruba in Kwara and Kogi from the illusion that they were northerners and fuelled the subsequent agitation s for the a new geographical design that would make them re-unite with their kit and kin in the Southwest.

Many believed that the former federal Permanent Secretary, who was a former Private Secretary to the late Sardauna of Sokoto and Premier of the defunct Northern Region, was a tough politician who could challenge Obasanjo, if he undermined the party leadership. Awoniyi insisted on his candidature for the national chairmanship, but the Obasanjo forces overwhelmed him. He was harassed out of the party he cofounded. On his way out, he lamented the collapse of the party’s due process and derailment of the vision of its founding fathers. Awoniyi said that he was leaving the party of sinners.

There was a determined attempt by him to float a new party, along with some aggrieved foes, but without success. In subsequent years, he became a moral voice in the North as the Chair •Continued on page 46

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THE NATION FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

POLITICS

From Lar to Tukur: A floodgate of crises

•Continued from page 45

man of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF).

Since Lar knew that the so-called restructuring of the party mooted by Obasanjo was targeted against him, he supported Gemade against Awoniyi. That led to friction between the two politicians and founding chieftains. Obasanjo made Lar “adviser emeritus”, without any role. But when pressure was mounted on him, he made him the Chairman of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) Board. For the former chairman, the journey to irrelevance begun.

The chairmanship election was not a walk-over for Gemade. A committee of elders from the Northcentral, led

by PDP vice chairman from the zone, Alhaji Kolo from Niger State interviewed him and other aspirants at the Agura Hotels. Other members of the committee included Isaac Shaanu, Shaaba Lafiagi. Lar was chairman between December 1999 and November 1991.

Gemade inherited a party ruptured by post-presidential primaries. His first move was to pacify the aggrieved presidential aspirants. But crisis had started brewing at the state chapters in many states because of the presidential directive that the pioneer chairmen should hand over to other chieftains in the party. The national chairman went on tour of the troubled chapter. Many of them were polarised.

Party men and women looked to Obasanjo, and not the party chairman, for solutions to the intra-party crisis.

It was evident that the idea of the national party caucus could not be sustained by the PDP. Suddenly, there was a push for the extension of the tenure of the members of the National Executive Council (NEC) from two to four years.

The national chairman wanted to run the affairs of the party as a democrat. That meant mustering the effort to assert himself. But he was handicapped. Following disagreement with the National Party Leader on party issues, his days in the office were numbered. He complained that certain powerful forces in the party were making unreasonable and unethical demands from his office, adding that it was suicidal to grant the requests.

Gemade predicted that the fate that would befall his successors would be worse. Reflecting on his tenure, he said: “ It was clear to me that the mindset of the people who had the party and the government in their control was such that the meddlesomeness that we were experiencing as the leadership of the party would not change”.

At a special convention organised by a committee chaired by Senator David Mark, Gemade was replaced the chairman.

Ogbeh Ogbeh rose to prominence in the Second Republic when he served as the Minister of Communications under the Shagari Administration. He is a man of impeccable character. When he was made the national chairman, he was a nominal member of the party. The former minister did not nurse a chairmanship ambition. But when the responsibility was entrusted upon him, he embraced the call to service. All those who wanted to succeed Gemade were edged out for him to emerge.

It was very hard for the chairman to blend with Obasanjo. He felt that the President was elected to run the country and the chairman, in consultation with him, was meant to run the party.

Ogbeh became the chairman as the party was preparing for the 2003 elections. The party was in turmoil. The state chapters were crisis-ridden and the divisions had weakened the fold.

The crisis in Anambra State chapter drew a wedge between him and the President . Both canvassed opposing solutions.

In Lagos State, there were three camps. Efforts to promote harmony

ure which remained the one single most troubled chairmanship tenure for the PDP. In all, four people served during the tenure.

Tukur

• Ali

• Ogbulafor

failed. The feeling was that the former President was behind the dominant camp, which was bent on rusticating the members of other factions.

In Osun State, the party was engulfed in a crisis of nomination. Ige, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, had been murdered. The former deputy governor, Otunba Iyiola Omisore, a defector from the AD to PDP, was standing trial for an alleged involvement. Therefore, Ogbeh counselled that he should not be fielded as the senatorial candidate for Ife/Ijesa District to preserve the image of the party. The President allegedly disagreed. Some party leaders supported him, explaining that, since Omisore had not been found guilty, he can contest while still in the custody.

However, the parting of ways became imminent between Obasanjo and Ogbeh when he publicly advised the President to pay more attention to the sliding economy and the cries of the populace for improved welfare. As the Special Adviser to Obasanjo on Agriculture, he addressed some cogent issues related to governance, based on public outcry. The former President took exception to washing the administration’s linen in the public. The party chairman told the President that he was not his boy. “I told Obasanjo that I was not his cook”, he later reminisced. Ogbeh was advised to resign. He dragged his foot. But when he was harassed by security agents, he saw the danger coming. He resigned in 2005 in controversial circumstances and later joined the Action Congress (AC).

Ali Perhaps, the only chairman who had a smooth relationship with the former President was Dr. Ahmadu Ali, a retired colonel, former Federal Commissioner for Education and Third Republic senator. He hails from Kogi State.

The two soldiers understood themselves perfectly. Of course, Ali had been described as a chairman-on-waiting, since he contested against Gemade.

When he was inaugurated as the chairman, Obasanjo said: “Now, Ali has come. Ali must stay”, a vague reference to the call for his removal as minister by students who insisted that “Ali must go”. Ogbeh was absent at the ceremony which held at the party’s national secretariat, Abuja. Unlike his predecessors, he spent his full term.

Initially, former Governors Fidelis Tapgun (Plateau) and Lafiagi (Kogi); Senators A.T. Ahmed, Alex Kadiri and Abdulazeez Farouk were interested in the job. But they stepped down for him.

• Nwodo

Ogbulafor The emergence of Prince Vincent Ogbulafor as the fifth national chairman of the PDP followed the usual high wire politics in the party. He was the dark horse. He emerged, following the refusal of two implacable power blocs at play in the party to step down for each other.

He did not bother to print many posters, neither did he campaign.Even though he was a former national secretary of the party, former Senate President Anyim Pius Anyim and former Ebonyi State Governor Dr Sam Egwu were clearly the front runners.

The politics of the ruling party is often mercurial and generally unpredictable. While Obasanjo supported Egwu, the anti-Obasanjo forces queued behind Anyim with an unbending resolve to thwart whatever agenda Obasanjo had up his sleeves.

In the end, Ogbulafor emerged as a consensus candidate. Other aspirants stepped down for him at the party’s national convention in Abuja.

Forty days after he assumed office, Ogbulafor declared that the PDP would rule Nigeria for 60 years under a one-party arrangement. Besides, he enunciated the plan by the party to monitor the performance of the 27 state governors on the platform of the party then.

“I expect that every Nigerian will join the PDP. I don’t care, if Nigeria becomes a one-party state… We want to rule this country for the next 60 years and we meant it”, he had declared.

But typically, Ogbulafor’s tenure at Wadata Plaza, Wuse, was not devoid of the intrigues that often consume its occupants. It is what analysts love to call the ‘banana peel’ of Wadata Plaza. He was forced to resign barely two years after taking office on May 10, 2010.

As the stormy debate over zoning of the 2011 presidential ticket in the party took off, Ogbulafor made no pretence about his stance that the Presidency was zoned to the North.

Soon, things began to fall apart for him. The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission (ICPC) took on him, alleging that he had perpetrated a fraud while he was a minister. He was dragged before an Abuja High Court to face 16-count criminal charge. His Southeast governors soon abandoned him.

They mounted pressure on him to vacate office. He was also alleged to have handled, in a shabby manner, the crises in some states, particularly, Plateau, Anambra, Imo and Bauchi.

A pressuere group within the party, the PDP Reform Forum with former Senate President Ken Nnamani, exSpeaker, Federal House of Represen-

• Tukur

tatives, Aminu Bello Masari along side other stakeholders was also calling for a better and more operational National Working Committee that would drive the PDP in line with the ideals of the founding fathers.

He resigned on May 13, 2010.

Nwodo Former Governor of Enugu State and former National Secretary of the party Dr Okwesileze Nwodo took over form Ogbulafor on June 10, 2010.

He emerged based on consensus arrangement and tacit blessing of the Presidency.

Nwodo’s first major job as the National Chairman was to oppose zoning. Nwodo, at an interaction with the media, declared that the formula was ldead. However, he said that if party members wanted the issue revisited, he was ready to do so.

Six months after, an Enugu State High Court presided over by Justice R N Onuorah ruled that he should vacate office immediately and stop parading himself as chairman, pending the determination of the substantive suit, which queried his eligibility for the post. Besides, he had gotten himself involved in the politics of the state and fell out with Governor Sullivan Chime. Southeast Governors rallied round their colleague and passed a vote of no confidence on Nwodo.

Nwodo was forced to resigned and his deputy, Dr Haliru Bello Mohammed, took over as acting national chairman.

Bello Bello was first elected PDP National Vice Chairman (North West Zone). By March 2008, he won the election into the position of the Deputy National Chairman of the party.

Bello took over the rein of the party at a very crucial time. The 2011 general election was just at the corner. He successfully led the party to victory in the April 2011 general elections. But it must be said that Bello played an outstanding balancing game as he stood in the middle of the party that was torn in two between the pro-zoning elements and the no-more-zoning adherents. It was particularly interesting as he happened to be from the North where the majority were in support of zoning. Having helped President Jonathan to power, he was rewarded with the portfolio of the Minister of Defence . He was, however, dropped a year later in June 2012 folowing the crisis of the Boko Haram sect.

Following that appointment, former National Secretary, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, took over as acting National Chairman to complete the ten-

‘The chairman complained that certain powerful forces in the party were making unreasonable and unethical demands from his office, adding that it was suicidal to grant the requests. Gemade predicted that the fate that would befall his successors would be worse.

Reflecting on his tenure, he said: “ It was clear to me that the mindset of the people who had the party and the government in their control was such that the meddlesomeness that we were experiencing as the leadership of the party would not change”’

On March 23, 2012, former governor of old Gongola State Alhaji Bamanga Tukur emerged as the next national chairman of the PDP. But in the last one year and one month that he has been in office, it has not been smooth sailing for the consummate businessman turned politician. It has been one crisis after another.

He has been having a running battle with the party’s governors who are said to be bent on removing him. For the record, Tukur could not be said to be the most popular aspirant from his Northeast Zone to which the party had conceded the chairmanship. In a test of strength three days before the national convention which produced him, Dr Musa Babayo had beaten Tukur to the ticket at a Northeast Zonal Convention in Bauchi. But the national body reversed it, saying it was unknown to the party tradition and constitution. And, apparently supported by the Presidency, Tukur emerged, again, via consensus arrangement.

At the convention ground, Alhaji Shettima Mustapha announced the withdrawal of all the other 10 aspirants, leaving only Tukur in the race.

And with only a voice vote by the delegates in the Eagles Square, they affirmed the choice of the Presidency for the top job.

Tukur started off with steps that came as new, but controversial. On assumption of office as chairman, he appointed aides numbering about 15.

Last week, however, he sacked all of them in one fell swoop. Tukur, before he sacked them, had a Chief of Staff, Special Adviser on Security Matters, Special Adviser on Independent National Electoral Commission and Electoral Matters, Special Adviser on National Assembly Matters. Besides, his salary, alleged to be N2million monthly, became the talk of town. Insiders say no chairman before him earned salaries other than sitting allowances.

Tukur made reconciliation of all aggrieved old members of the party his campaign slogan and he has pursued that with much zest. As part of the plan to realise his vision, he selected some chieftains of the party and constituted them into an “advisory committee”.

The committee, he claimed, would assist him in running the party.

But when he inaugurated the committee on May 30, it was obvious that the chairman never had the support of members of the NWC. They stayed away on the ground that it was an illegal body, unknown to the constitution of the party.

The committee has former Vice-President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme as chairman.

Even two members of the NWC were listed on the committee, Deputy National Chairman Sam Jaja and former National Secretary Olagunsoye Oyinlola did not honour the inauguration too.

Tukur also got involved in Adamawa State PDP internal affairs.

He is from the state.

Today, the Southwest PDP has been dealt a major blow. Now, the Rivers chapter of the party is enmeshed in crisis. His reconciliation tour was regarded even by party stalwarts as a flop, hence, the drafting of the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih to kickstart another reconciliation.

But, despite the fact that Tukur rode on Jonathan’s back to the office, some party chieftain said that he meant well for the party. He has embarked on reforms. He has also shown example by embracing the rule of law. As shown by the steps he had taken so far, he has demonstrated that PDP can be repositioned. And the first step, in Tukur’s view, is respect for the party’s constitution and enthronment of fairness, equity and justice.

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TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

ENERGY THE NATION

E-mail:- energy@thenationonlineng.net

Globally, national oil companies are getting more integrated for increased economies of scale with their exploration and production (E&P) subsidiaries playing in different countries, such as the multinational firms. The Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), the E&P arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), shouldn’t be an exception, writes EMEKA UGWUANYI Assistant Editor (Energy).

Wanted! A competent national oil firm

•Mrs Alison-Madueke Background NY oil producing country strives to optimise the benefits of the hydrocarbon resources for the extant and future generations.

Nigeria shouldn’t be the exception.

In the over 50 years of crude oil production, the country has nothing to show for it, a development condemned locally and internationally.

Qatar, a small Middle East country, has an integrated national oil company and all the subsidiaries are doing well- creating value for the citizens and operators. Nigeria can make NNPC and its subsidiaries profitable.

For instance, Brazilian national oil firm, Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras), which is an equivalent of NPDC, divested its interests in all the oil and gas assets in Nigeria to create more value for Brazilians. The company expects to earn over $5 billion from the deal.

According to Reuters, the decision to sell the Nigeria assets marked a retreat away from foreign markets to enable the company concentrate on oil assets development in Brazil to realise the government’s goal for Brazil to become self-sufficient in

A

energy.

With the divestment, Petrobras, the report said, can focus more on exploring for oil in a vast deep sea region off the coast of Brazil known as the subsalt, believed to hold billions of barrels of high-quality oil. The report noted that despite cash flow being crimped by falling output, the government refused on anti-inflation grounds, to let Brazilian gasoline and diesel prices rise in line with world prices. This has forced Petrobras to subsidise consumers even as its debt rises above its internal limits.

An industry operator noted that the essence of maintaining national assets, such as NNPC and NPDC is that unlike the privately owned firms that are often interested in maximising profits for the owners, the country falls back on these national firms in times of difficulty and challenges for the benefits of the citizenry.

The operator said those against the development of the NPDC into a big company that can compete with other multinationals locally and internationally, don’t mean well for the country. He said as the government creates environment and policies that promote the development of private sector oil firms, it will also ensure that companies such as NPDC are robustly developed because it is the company owned by Nigerians.

Establishment, growth of NPDC The Nigerian Petroleum Develop-

ment Company (NPDC) is the exploration and production arm of the NNPC, established in 1988 to enable the NNPC to meet its objective of being a major player in the upstream sector of the oil and gas industry.

However, over the years, the company could not realise its objective as a result of lack of cooperation from past administrations, which actually stripped the company of some of its very prolific acreages.

But with the encouragement from the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani AlisonMadueke, and the support of the Presidency, NPDC has gradually begun to grow to realise its objectives. Asset stripping, which almost compelled the company to close shop has stopped.

In 2010, the Minister gave the NPDC a target to produce 250,000 barrels per day by 2015 when its production was just 65,000 barrels per day. It produces 130,000 barrels per day representing a 100 per cent growth. Bulk of this growth in production came from assets divested

by Shell, which it held in joint venture with the NNPC on behalf of the Federal Government. While Shell sold the stakes it had in these

•From left: Chief Executive Officer, Shoreline Natural Resources, Dr. Ladi Bada; Chief Executive Officer, Legal Blitz Publications, Lere Fashola; and Chief Executive Officer, Sahara Group, Tonye Cole, at the summit.

assets with other international oil companies, the petroleum minister handed NNPC’s stakes in these assets to NPDC. They include Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 4, 26, 30, 34, 38, 41 and 42.

The Managing Director of Shell Petroleum Development Company and Chairman, Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mutiu Sunmonu, during the divestment said the sales were competitively and transparently carried out in line with international best practices. Besides, he stated that companies were given preference as part of contribution to developing indigenous E&P companies.

Alison-Madueke noted that efforts to make NPDC attain the 250,000 barrels per day production were on course. She explained that with such production level, the company can exist on its own, be able to seek loan from any financial institution in the world, bid for acreages and produce oil from any part of the world just like the multinational oil firms.

NPDC is embarking on aggressive drilling programme. For instance, it has successfully drilled two new wells in its OML 119. The wells, Okono 6 and 7 are producing 12,000 barrels per day. They are situated in an area where most of the wells produce an average of between 2,000 and 3,000 barrels per day.

The minister had also told reporters that NPDC’s plans is to drill more wells this year, adding that additional two rigs would be deployed for operation in addition to the two the company currently has on site.

She said the target is to drill 40 wells in the next five years as part of NNPC’s growth projection.

As part of the growth efforts, NPDC is carrying out well repair and maintenance activities aimed at boosting reserves. For instance, the company carried out repairs on some of its wells in OML 26 in June last year.

This helped to double production from those wells contributing to the company’s current 130,000 barrels per day production.

Gas production NPDC is putting measures in place to boost gas production especially for supply to power plants. The Phase 1 of the Oredo Gas Handling Facility situated near Ologbo in Oredo oil field was completed this year and supplies 65 million standard cubic feet per day of gas to the Nigerian Gas Company for transmission to power plants. During the inauguration, the minister assured that the second phase of the project would

be completed before end of this year.

It is expected to produce additional 100 million standard cubic feet per day.

The second phase will also come along with the completion of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) processing component, which will deliver about 4,000 metric tons of LPG to enhance the campaign to get every home to adopt LPG as its domestic cooking fuel and stop the trend of deforestation arising from the use of firewood.

NPDC Managing Director, Victor Briggs, said: “The only way we can increase our production is really by going out there and do the work. It is either you are repairing a well that has gone down because there are technical issues or you are drilling a well. I consider Okono 6 and 7 a success because the two wells combined are delivering over 12,000 barrels per day and that by any standard is significant especially in an area where most of the wells around are producing an average of 2,000bpd to 3000bpd.

“Under the leadership of the former Managing Director, who is now Group Executive Director Exploration and Production, Abiye Membere, our production grew from between 60,000bpd and 65,000bpd to about 130,000bpd. That is about 100 per cent growth. For us to meet the 250,000bpd target by 2015 we will have to do another 100 per cent growth from our current production. And that is what we are trying to do. First, we tried to repair some of the wells to restore their production capacities. For instance, in OML 26, between when that asset was handed over to NPDC in June and now the production of that field was doubled. All of these have added up to the 130,000bpd production that we are talking about today. To meet the 250,000bpd target by 2015 means doubling our production as I said earlier, but I am confident that we will meet the target because we have the resources and the reserves are there, and we have the people. Everything is therefore set for us to meet the target.

“While we are drilling to increase our production, we are also working hard to boost our reserve because this is what ensures sustainability.

For instance, in one of our wells in Okono, we are drilling deeper to assess its greater potential. That drilling is going on very well as at today; if we find what I think we will find, and I think we will find it, that will give us more reserves in that field.”

‘IOC’s divestments will create prospects for local firms’

O

IL and gas experts have called for fair and effective legal and regulatory framework in the medium and long term to enhance investments and growth in the sector.

They frowned at the prolonged reforms of the government through the non-passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).

Speaking at the ESQ Energy and Oil and Gas Summit in Lagos, the Managing Partner, Caxton-Martins (a service commercial law firm), Sola Adepetun, said: “The legal and regulatory atmosphere of uncertainties and legal risks is unsustainable and the PIB must be enacted expeditiously to provide the needed legal solutions.”

Adepetun, who spoke on The evolving legal and regulatory framework governing the Nigerian petroleum industry: Examining the challenges, risks and opportunities, explained that if the PIB cannot be enacted expeditiously enough, a review of relevant existing laws and regulations should be carried out in the short to mid-term to effect required amend-

ments, new regulations and guidelines.

The Executive General Manager, Public Affairs and Communications, Total Upstream Companies, Chidi Momah, said the IOCs support the PIB and believe there is need for reforms as the Act is over 40 years. He, however, noted that there were concerns if the PIB will achieve

the stated aim that will enable IOCs in Nigeria to move forward.

The Legal Adviser, Mart Resources Inc., an independent Canadian oil and gas firm, Mrs. Asiyah Alao-Mutallab, advised that with the increasing divestments from IOCs, Nigeria needs to look at how to attract foreign investors and keep them.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

52

MARITIME

Removal of ship wrecks in Lagos Agents petition Jonathan T to cost N20b I T will cost the Federal Government over N20 billion to remove the 200 ship wrecks on the Lagos coastline, it has been learnt.

Besides, the removal, sources told The Nation last weekend, will last between 30 and 36 months when the exercise begins.

Lagos State Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development Adesegun Oniru complained last week about the eye sore the ship wrecks have become, saying they pose a threat to life and property.

The commissioner said abandoned vessels were partly responsible for the problem of ocean surge, adding that the environmental problem had devastated lives and communities in the state.

“The problem of ship wrecks is a major issue in the state as it is in other states of the federation.

“No fewer than 200 of these vessels have been uncovered on the state’s coastline, including the lagoon.

“The situation poses great

• Exercise may take three years

Stories by Oluwakemi Dauda, Maritime Correspondent

danger to the state as well as the citizens.

“Unfortunately, the NPA and Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), who are responsible for maritime safety, are not doing anything about this problem.

“We have written to the Federal Government on a number of occasions on the problem, but we are yet to get replies let alone assistance.

“We are appealing to NIMASA and other relevant authorities to assist the state by removing these vessels for the safety of residents and the environment,“ he said.

Sources at the Federal Ministry of Transport said the wrecks may not be removed this year, because of the huge financial cost, adding that increasing vessel

sizes and growing cargo volumes are driving up the cost.

The source said a vessel, MT Ray, that was washed ashore the Lekki coastline sometime in 2011, has sunk.

NIMASA, it was learnt, has sent in a tender for the job, but the contract is yet to be awarded.

It was gathered that the NIMASA Board cannot award without going through the Ministry of Transport - the Bureau of Public Enterprises and the Federal Executive Council.

In layers of authorities, sources said, are politicians and civil servants with vested interest in the contract.

Explaining the reasons responsible for the delay in the removal of the wrecks, the Secretary, Association of Indigenous Ship Owners (ISAN), Captain Niyi Labinjo, said the country

does not have the required capacity to put broken down vessels back into shape. This, he said, accounts for the increasing number of wrecks and abandoned vessels on the Lagos waters.

Lack of capacity to remove the wrecks by indigenous companies, he said, is why they have not been removed despite President Goodluck Jonathan’s directive when he visited Lekki Beach in Lagos last year.

The ISAN scribe also painted a grim picture of the maritime industry, saying that the Federal Government is only interested in collecting revenue accruing from it but not willing to develop the sector based on its bad and inconsistent policies.

Labinjo said the dearth of adequate infrastructure to repair broken down vessels on the nation’s coastline, necessitated the decision of the NPA to take its 6,000 tonnes floating dock, which sank in Lagos in 2011 to Ghana for repair, after it had been refloated.

• A wrecked ship

C

Customs, operators disagree over destination inspection

AN the Customs han dle destination inspec tion (DI) after the exit of the three operators in June?

The Customs says it can handle the scheme; but one of the operators, Global Scansystem, claims that the agency cannot.

According to the Managing Director of Global Scansystem, Mr Fred Udechukwu, there is a risk of cancer outbreak if the cargo scanners installed at the seaports, airports and border posts are left in the hands of untrained and inexperienced Customs officers.

Udechukwu told reporters in Lagos that Customs has no engineer to take over the job.

But Customs Area Comptroller, Tin Can Island command, Mr Tajudeen Olanrewaju, denied the claim, describing the allegation as uncharitable The Customs, he says, has competent hands to handle Destination Inspection.

The DI contract was extended by six months in January 1, under the term of the contract,

the operators are to provide, operate, and maintain the hitec scanners at the port. They also to train customs in operating and maintain the machines.

Udechukwu alleged that efforts by the service providers to train Customs officers on this critical aspect of the contract were thwarted by some officers. ‘’For Global Scan, the contract stipulates that we should train 350 officers, but I insisted that

that number is too negligible to make an impact, we have so far trained 1600 officers and we are still training. However, the officers are not trainable in the operations and maintenance of scanner because of the dearth of officers with the requisite knowledge in engineering courses. Customs has no engineer,’’ Udechukwu said.

He said the few officers that were trained by them were not allowed to stay for the mandatory period for supervision before they were redeployed by their superiors.

HE National Associa tion of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has petitioned President Goodluck Jonathan over what it calls unlawful arrest and detention of freight forwarders at Tin Can port, Lagos by the Customs.

In a five-page letter signed by its president Mr Eugene Nweke, NAGAFF members were forcefully arrested.

But Customs Public Relation Officer of the command, Mr Chris Osunkwo told The Nation that those that were arrested by Customs were people of questionable appearance at the port.

He said majority of them are responsible for illegal activities going on at the port.

Customs, the image maker said, took the drastic step to prevent the breakdown of law and order.

NAGAFF, however, said that the Customs and other

port agencies should be blamed for failing to carry out proper identification of those coming to transact business at the port.

“These agencies of the government instead of accepting their negligence on duty have turned to the use of force on Nigerian freight forwarders as a tool to cover their inadequacies.”

NAGAFF said the crowds in the port are the practitioners engaged in “the associated formalities of cargo clearance”.

The group alleged that innocent freight forwarders are languishing in prisons because of the stringent bail conditions that are being set for them.

“We wish to plead that Mr President should direct the agencies of the government connected to these arrests to fashion out the best way of allowing people into and exiting from the seaports other than this excessive use of force” the letter stated.

NPA to relocate Rivers dockyard

T

HE 100-year-oldRivers ports Dockyard in Port Harcourt will be relocated because of environmental natural challenges, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director Mallam Habib Abdullahi has said.

Abdullahi said the tide was low, adding that the dockyard challenges were caused by environmental impact.

He said most of the facilities in the Port had deteriorated due to old age, adding that the yard would be relocated to a more peaceful and feasible place.

Abdullahi said the Ports Railway rehabilitation had reached 75 per cent completion, adding that the most important and tedious parts had been completed.

He said the target date for the completion was August and expressed optimism that it would be met as the contractors were working hard.

Abdullahi said the rehabilitation would enhance the port’s transportation and increase its facilities.

He said the ports clinic was also in a deplorable state. ‘’You find that some of the vessels there, that is, the pilots’ catcher and tug, have gone aground and we have to address the issue. ‘’The problem facing the dockyard is both environmental and natural which needs to be addressed,’’ he said.

Abdullahi said the clinic was facing water shortage, adding the ambulance had also broken down. ‘’These are the specific challenges facing the port that need to be addressed,’’ he said.

In his speech, the General Manager, Eastern Ports Mr Sonny Nwobi, said it was not easy for a system to last for 100 years.

US, Customs sign MoU

T

HE Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the United States (US) Customs and Border Protection have signed a Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement.

The deal was signed in the US by visiting ComptrollerGeneral of Customs Dikko Inde Abdullahi on behalf of Nigeria, while the US Customs and Border Protection’s Acting Commissioner Thomas S. Winkowski initialed the agreement for his country.

The pact is intended to ensure the accurate assessment of cross-border customs du-

ties and taxes, as well as combat illegal cross-border activities, including smuggling of contraband, international terrorism and financial crimes, such as customs fraud and money laundering.

“This agreement will enable our customs authorities to expand efforts to protect our borders through the timely and secure exchange of information,” Acting Assistant Director of the Office of International Affairs for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Peter Vincent, said in a statement.

CBN to bar erring importers from forex market

I

• CBN Governor Lamido Sanusi

MPORTERS without the Risk Assessment Re ports (RARs) will be barred from the foreign exchange (forex) market from today, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned.

The importers would also face other sanctions, the CBN said.

RAR is issued following inspection of goods under the prevailing destination inspection regime run by scanning service providers.

The CBN’s warning is in a

circular entitled: Uncollected Risk Assessment Report (RAR), posted on its website last weekend.

The circular signed by CBN’s Director, Trade and Exchange Department, Batari Musa, said some RARs issued by the operators not been collected by importers from their processing banks.

The implication, CBN said, is import duties may not have been paid for by importers, thereby denying the government of revenue.

CBN said: “In view of this development, the owners of all uncollected RARs issued on or before 31 December, 2012, and which remain uncollected till date are hereby requested to collect RARs from their banks and pay all necessary duties, taxes and penalties. This should be done not later than 30th April, 2013.

“For the avoidance of doubt, failure to collect the outstanding RARs and pay the duty, taxes and other

charges associated with the underlying import transactions, will result in the imposition of appropriate sanctions which include suspension from the forex market by the CBN until all outstanding RARS are accounted for.

“Where duties, taxes and penalties had been paid, owners of the uncollected RARs should provide evidence of utilisation of the RARs, which should include single goods declaration

(SGD), registration number and date, as well as amount paid.

“Authorised dealers are hereby required to render returns (in both hard and soft copies) in excel format on all Uncollected RARs issued on or before December 31, 2012 on a month by month basis.

“The returns, which should be on such RARs that remain uncollected after the expiration of the deadline, should be forwarded to the CBN not later than May 7, 2013.”

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THE NATION TUESDAY APRIL 30, 2013

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NEWS

Troops take over Delta communities

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HE Joint Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta at the weekend began a partial lockdown of some communities in Delta State in continuation of the manhunt for the state’s most notorious criminal, identified as Kelvin.

Security sources said Kelvin, who was accused of some high-profile crimes, is holed up somewhere around Isiokolo, Oviore, Kokori and Eku axis of Ethiope East Local Government.

Over 20 checkpoints manned by armed soldiers have been erected around the communities. Military patrol teams are combing communities on the WarriOsubi-Eku axis of the Effurun-Agbor highway.

Troops from Sector 1 of the

From Shola O’Neil, Warri

JTF have taken up positions at strategic locations in the area. Vehicles plying the areas are subjected to thorough security checks.

Kelvin and his associate, simply identified as Rufus, are accused of taking part in no less than 30 crimes, including kidnap, robbery and rape, and the killing of dozens of security operatives, including five prison wardens in Warri last month.

The police suspected Kelvin as being the brain behind the prison convoy attack, which freed Rufus, who was being taken to court from the Warri Prison, where he was awaiting trial for kidnap and robbery.

The Sector 1 spokesperson, Capt Mohammed Abdulahi,

‘You will agree that the rate of kidnap and robbery has reduced since this operation started and I can assure you that we will get him (Kelvin)’ said the Task Force would apprehend the suspect and bring him to justice.

He said the weekend’s operation followed reports that the suspects were planning a fresh onslaught.

“Yes, there is an ongoing military operation and the

target is a criminal, who is responsible for various crimes and we are determined to bring him to justice.

He launched an unprovoked attack on our men, killing one and injuring two.

“In a confrontation with the gang in Agbarekpa area, we killed two of the criminals and we are intensifying patrols in the area. You will agree that the rate of kidnap and robbery has reduced since this operation started and I can assure you that we will get him (Kelvin),” he added.

However, the operation is taking its toll on users of the Eku-Amukpe/Sapele highway, Warri-Agbor and other link roads, with traffic stretching for miles.

Rivers generates 180mw, says Amaechi

From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

•Amaechi

R

IVERS State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has said the state is safe, adding that he inspected projects with his wife, Judith, in Port Harcourt at midnight on Sunday.

He said he asked his wife to accompany him so that she would not complain he returned home late.

The governor said Rivers is the only state that is transmitting power. It generates 545 megawatts and is working on generating 180 megawatts before December.

Amaechi spoke yesterday at the Government House,

Port Harcourt, during the maiden quarterly Business Roundtable with the Government of Rivers State, with the theme: “Charting a New Pathway: Strengthening Partnerships between the Public and Private Sector.”

The governor, who is also the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), said: “We are working to provide a conducive business environment for investors. Come and invest in Rivers State.

“At the Greater Port Harcourt City, a plot of land is N10 million. I wanted it to be N20 million, because of the infrastructure we are putting in place there, including 24 hours’ power supply, good road network, underground gas, water and power. Everything is underground. I was advised we should start from N10 million and subsequently increase it.

“A 1,000-bed hospital will also be built at the new city.

No investor yet. We need investors to manage the structures, after my tenure. A conference centre is also under construction.

“We are opening Port Harcourt and other parts of the state with roads. Between now and the end of the year, you will be able to move freely in Port Harcourt by roads.

“We are the only state in Nigeria with transmission lines. We challenge you (investors) to come to Rivers State.”

The NGF chairman also assured of safety of life and property in the state.

The Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Chuma Chinye, said the roundtable was to highlight existing business opportunities, expand emerging economic prospects and strengthen government efforts to make the state the most business-friendly in Nigeria.

He noted that the forum

PDP supporters protest in Estako West

S

UPPORTERS of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Estako-West Local Government of Edo State yesterday marched on the streets of Auchi to protest the April 20 local government elections.

The protesters walked through Auchi Polytechnic Road, Igbe Road, Warrake Road, Igarra Road and the Benin-Auchi-Okene Highway but were stopped from entering the council secretariat by soldiers.

They called for a cancellation of the elections.

The PDP chairman in the area, Sheriff Idenebomhe, said those sworn in as chairman and councillors were not the representatives of the people.

Sheriff alleged that the electoral body brought incomplete materials to the locality and that the process was manipulated.

He called on Nigerians to prevail on Governor Adams Oshiomhole to conduct a free and fair election.

But the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) leader in the area, Abubakar Akokhia, said the elections were free and fair.

Edo lawmakers shun arrested colleague From Osagie Otabor, Benin

AWMAKERS in the Edo State House of Assembly have shunned their colleague, Abdulrasaq Momoh, who was allegedly arrested with a pump action gun during the April 20 local government elections.

Momoh is being detained at the State Police Command headquarters in Benin.

He was said to have supported a candidate of an opposition party against a candidate fielded by his party, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).

Details of how he was arrested are still sketchy but it was gathered that the lawmaker protested against alleged thumbprinting at a hotel in Estako West Local Government.

A photograph of Momoh’s arrest, which went viral on the Internet, showed him sitting on the ground, holding a gun.

The lawmakers did not mention their colleague throughout their sittings last week.

But some lawmakers decried the manner the Speaker, Uyi Igbe, was handling the matter.

Igbe could not be reached for comments.

L

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

“I don’t call them protesters; they are robbers. What are they talking about, that there was no election? If you watched the news, you saw the governor and the ACN chairmanship candidate, Hassan Kadiri, casting their votes. That tells you that there was an election in Estako West, apart from the

two wards that were cancelled, which is obvious.”

Kadiri said the PDP was responsible for the cancellation of elections in the wards.

“We conducted elections before and we defeated them, this time around they are calling for the cancellation of the elections, it simply means that they are not on ground,” he said.

was designed to accelerate the development of publicprivate sector partnerships in business, enhance institutional capacity, towards attracting local and international investment into the state’s economic sector.

The keynote speaker, Oscar Onyema, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), spoke on “Rivers State Infrastructure and Project Finance: Creating a 21st Century State Economy, Converting Inspirational Ideas to Reality.”

Pirates kidnap five

P

IRATES have kidnapped five crew members from a cargo ship in Bayelsa State.

The Antigua and Barbuda-flagged MV City of Xiamen container ship was attacked on April 25, a security source said.

The crew members were mostly Sri Lankans but included a Russian and a Burmese, the source said.

The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said 14 armed pirates attacked the container ship, breached its citadel - a strong room designed to protect the crew from attack.

The pirates took five crew members captive before escaping with cash taken from the ship and the crew, the IMB said in a piracy report.

‘Governors’ forum, more than politics’

D

ELTA State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan has said members of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) are involved in more activities beneficial to the people than politics.

Speaking against the backdrop of public criticisms that governors use the NGF platform to play politics, he said the NGF was quietly fashioning out socio-economic policies and programmes that are impacting positively on the states and the people.

The governor spoke yesterday at the inaugural meeting of the State Peer Review Mechanism (SPRM) of the NGF in Asaba.

“The Nigeria Governors’ Forum is more than just politics. It may be constituted by political individuals but the duties being executed go beyond political matters as the forum carries out other activities beyond politics such as this SPRM issue. “ “There is the need to ensure that these other activities of the forum are properly reported by the media,” he said.

Dickson identifies bane of justice AYELSA State Governor Seriake Dickson has identified the absence of non-functional prison services as one of the factors militating against the quick dispensation of justice in the country.

He spoke yesterday when the Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, visited him.

The governor blamed the delay in dispensation of justice and congestion of the prisons on inadequate facilities.

Assuring the minister of

B

his administration’s support, Dickson said the presence of a functional prisons service in the state would ensure the speedy administration of justice and reduce the cost of litigation.

“The delay in the dispensation of justice to inmates in the state was occasioned by the absence of a federal prison as inmates had to be transferred to the Ahoada Prisons in Rivers State, which posed challenges for litigation and transportation.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

54

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 26-04-13

U

Union Bank bounces back to profit

NION Bank of Nige ria (UBN) Plc made a remarkable return to profitability in 2012, turning round a whooping loss of about N108 billion in 2011 to modest profit of about N9 billion in 2012.

Group managing director, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mr Emeka Emuwa, said that the 2012 results showed the full recovery of the bank as the earnings report has fully incorporated all costs relating to the recently concluded recapitalisation and clean up of the bank’s loan portfolio.

Key extracts of the audited report and accounts for the year ended December 31, 2012 showed that gross earnings rose by 33 per cent to N112.8 billion while the bank broke away from the losing streak that piled up N107.7 billion in pre-tax loss in 2011 with modest profit of N8.8 billion in 2012. Profit after tax stood at N7.4 billion in 2012 compared with a loss of N82.6 billion in 2011.

Further analysis showed earnings per share of 61 kobo in 2012 as against loss per share of N12.26 kobo in 2011.

The balance sheet structure of the bank emerged more robust. Customers’ deposits with the bank stood at N482 billion, a 21 per cent increase.

Shareholders’ funds closed 2012 at N171.671 billion

•Equities remain on downtrend

By Taofik Salako

while total assets stood at N1.033 trillion.

The bank’s capital adequacy of 20 per cent was five percentage points above the 15 per cent regulatory requirement for international banks, while liquidity ratio was 96 per cent, indicating some 46 percentage points above the 30 per cent regulatory requirement.

“Our transformation roadmap is well under execution as we upgrade and strengthen our operating platform so that we can serve our customers better.

We are pleased to enter the new financial year on an encouraging note,” Emuwa said.

In her remarks, executive director and chief financial officer, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mrs Oyinkan Adewale noted that the bank recorded improvements in most performance measures.

According to her, the bank recorded an increase in its earnings while it worked to keep costs down and at the same time made efforts to increase productivity.

“While the full benefits of these efforts may not be immediately obvious, we are happy with the indicators

that we are moving in the right direction,” Adewale said.

Meanwhile, Nigerian equities continued on the downtrend yesterday as the stock market opened with overwhelming profit-taking activities on some highly capitalised stocks.

Although there were more advancers than decliners at 24 to 21, losses by large-cap stocks such as Dangote Cement, Total Nigeria and Lafarge Wapco Cement Nigeria overshadowed the overall market position.

Aggregate market value of all equities dropped to N10.561 trillion as against its opening value of N10.602 trillion. The All Share Index (ASI), the main index at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), shrank by 0.39 per cent from 33,159.08 points to 33,030.83 points. The decline yesterday reduced the average year-to-date return at the stock market to 17.64 per cent.

Total Nigeria topped the losers’ list with a drop of N15 to close at N142. Lafarge Wapco followed with a loss of N5.01 to close at N71.99 while Dangote Cement lost N2.73 to close at N156.13.

On the upside, Guinness Nigeria led the advancers with a gain of N11.56 to close at N264.60. UAC of Nigeria placed second with addition of N1 to close at N57 while Access Bank added 37 kobo to close at N9.49 per share.

Total turnover stood at 197.17 million shares worth N2.76 billion in 4,818 deals.

NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 29- 04-13

55

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

MONEY LINK National MfB devt strategy to be released in Q2 T HE National Microfinance De velopment Strategy will be re leased by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) within the second quarter, The Nation has learnt.

The document is expected to outline modalities for developing the subsector and rules for operators to achieve improved performance as well s as the sector’s stability.

Findings showed that the banking watchdog is also working on consolidating on the achievements recorded so far by the country in the development of MfBs by strengthening the regulatory frameworks and other guidelines. These includes formation of National Microfinance development Strategy with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the recent signing of a major agreement with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).

Besides, the CBN is considering the establishment of a Microfinance Development Fund (MDF) as a further step to deepen the financial market.

The MDF when established, would assist in addressing teething challenges of underfunding for microfinance institutions in the country.

World Bank advocates access to finance for women

T

HE World Bank, in partnership with the Federal Government of Nigeria, is organizing a Technical Dialogue on Gender and Agriculture.

The programme will hold on May 2nd following innovative data and research on women’s participation in the agriculture sector in Nigeria that has been developed in the past year.

In a statement, World Bank said as the main economic activity in the country, 57 per cent of households in Nigeria are categorised as agriculture households. “Women are often responsible for the majority of the farming tasks of processing, transportation and harvesting of crops, while clearing and planting are dominated by men. Men and women are in different and complementary levels of the agricultural value chains,” it said.

The World Bank said the research was carried out in collaboration with

Stories by Collins Nweze

It will further complement past and current efforts aimed at strengthening the microfinance subsector of the financial system, improve financial inclusion and by implication, raise the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rate significantly, the statement indicated.

Many of the MfBs liquidated by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) ran into trouble when their debtors refused to pay back their loans, over 80 per cent of which were unsecured. Besides, some of the MfBs were taking excessive risks, and branching out too quickly without considering resources at their disposal and whether utilised funds were short or long term obligations.

A unit MfB bank is authorised to operate in one location without branches/cash centres and is required to have a minimum paid up capital of N20 million while that of a state requires a minimum paid up capital of N100 million.

It is equally allowed to open

•CBN Governor, Lamido Sanusi

branches within the same state or the Federal Capital Territory. But the national MfB is authorised to operate in more than one state, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). It is required to have a minimum paid up capital of N2 billion and is allowed to open branches in all states of the federation and the FCT, although subject to prior written approval by the CBN.

Kenya seeks funds to exit debt

K

ENYA’S Nairobi county will tap commercial lend ers and the World Bank for loans and may sell municipal bonds to finance plans for urban renewal and repay “monster” debt, Governor Evans Kidero said.

Bloomberg said the country, formed on March 4 under Kenya’s new devolved system of government, needs funds to build lowcost houses and schools, upgrade hospitals and provide more clean water, he said. It also plans to repay about a fifth of its $405 million debt, some of it owed to domestic lenders including Equity Bank Ltd., in the fiscal year that

ICAN partners London counterpart on exams, HE Institute of Chartered Ac with Babcock University is certification stitute countants of Nigeria (ICAN) has meant to find a lasting solution to the

T

signed an agreement with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales on ways of comprehensively transforming of ICAN exams, certification and audit control process.

Speaking at the Institute’s 20i3 annual dinner and awards night held in Lagos, ICAN President, Adedoyin Idowu Owolabi said the partnership has the backing of the World Bank. He said there will be further collaboration between the institute and the Char-

By Adedeji Fakorede

tered Institute of Managements Accountants, UK, which will commence at the end of the first partnership.

Owolabi also said that the institute has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Babcock University which entails the adoption of the ICAN syllabus by the school in addition to courses from other disciplines needed for a normal degree programme.

He stated that the signed by the in-

dwindling performance of candidates and ultimately the quality of accountants being produced by the institute.

He said the institute will sponsor the whistle blower’s protection bill at the National Assembly. When passed into law, such bill, he said, will promote best practices in corporate and public governance. In pursuant of this bill, the institute has launched a whistle blower’s protection fund while the draft bill is almost ready for submission at the National Assembly, he explained.

FGN BONDS Amount N

Rate %

M/Date

3-Year 5-Year 5-Year

35m 35m 35m

11.039 12.23 13.19

19-05-2014 18-05-2016 19-05-2016

WHOLESALE DUTCH AUCTION SYSTEM Amount Amount Offered ($) Demanded ($) 350m 150m 350m 138m 350m 113m

MANAGED FUNDS

NIDF NESF

Price Loss 2754.67 447.80

INTERBANK RATES 7.9-10% 10-11%

PRIMARY MARKET AUCTION (T-BILLS) Tenor 91-Day 182-Day 1-Year

Amount 30m 46.7m 50m

Rate % 10.96 9.62 12.34

Date 28-04-2012 “ 14-04-2012

GAINERS AS AT 29-04-13

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

C/PRICE

CHANGE

WAPIC IKEJAHOTEL ROYALEX UBCAP HONYFLOUR GUINNESS ACCESS STERLNBANK UNITYBNK FIDELITYBK

0.93 0.77 0.57 1.11 2.81 253.04 9.12 2.42 0.66 2.82

1.02 0.84 0.62 1.19 2.96 264.60 9.49 2.50 0.68 2.90

0.09 0.07 0.05 0.08 0.15 11.56 0.37 0.08 0.02 0.08

O/PRICE

CUTIX 1.62 TOTAL 157.00 JOHNHOLT 1.54 AIRSERVICE 3.29 FCMB 4.70 CUSTODYINS 1.69 WAPCO 77.00 UBN 9.00 WEMABANK 1.36 DIAMONDBNK 5.99

C/PRICE 1.46 142.00 1.40 3.00 4.30 1.57 71.99 8.60 1.31 5.80

NGN USD NGN GBP NGN EUR NIGERIA INTER BANK (S/N) (S/N) Bureau de Change (S/N) Parallel Market

Current Before

C u r r e n t CUV Start After %

147.6000 239.4810 212.4997

149.7100 244.0123 207.9023

150.7100 245.6422 209.2910

-2.11 -2.57 -1.51

149.7450

154.0000

154.3000

-3.04

152.0000

153.0000

155.5000

-2.30

153.0000

154.0000

156.0000

-1.96

DISCOUNT WINDOW Feb. ’11

July ’11

MPR

6.50%

6.50%

12%

Standing Lending Rate ,, Deposit Rate ,, Liquidity Ratio Cash Return Rate Inflation Rate

8.50% 4.50% 25.00% 1.00% 12.10%

8.50% 4.50% 25.00% 2.00% 12.10%

9.50% 5.50% 30.00% 2.00% 11.8%

July ’12

NIBOR Tenor 7 Days 30 Days 60 Days 150 Days

NSE CAP Index

27-10-11 N6.5236tr 20,607.37

Date 2-7-12 27-6-12 22-6-12

Rate (Previous) 4 Mar, 2012 9.0417 9.6667 11.2917 12.1250

Rate (Currency) 6, Mar, 2012 10.17% 11.46% 11.96% 12.54%

Movement

28-10-11 N6.617tr 20,903.16

% Change -1.44% -1.44%

MEMORANDUM QUOTATIONS Name

CHANGE 0.16 15.00 0.14 0.29 0.40 0.12 5.01 0.40 0.05 0.19

Exchange Rate (N) 155.2 155.8 155.7

CAPITAL MARKET INDEX Year Start Offer

LOSERS AS AT 29-04-13

SYMBOL

Amount Sold ($) 150m 138m 113m

EXHANGE RATE 6-03-12 Currency

OBB Rate Call Rate

starts July 1, he said.

“We are in a huge hole,” Kidero said at his office in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, on April 23. “The first thing is to strive to provide services but also get out of that hole.”

Nairobi, which accounts for almost two-thirds of economic output in East Africa’s biggest economy, serves as a regional base for companies including Google Inc, Toyota Motor Corp, and Standard Chartered Plc. The city mushroomed from its start in 1899 as a rail-supply depot connecting the port of Mombasa to Uganda, with little consideration for city planning.

DATA BANK

Tenor

Initial Current Quotation Price Market N8250.00 5495.33 N1000.00 N552.20

the Federal Government. “Although 35 per cent of women are employed in the agriculture sector and 44 per cent of the country’s female headed households are involved in agriculture activities, only 18 per cent of rural plots are managed by female farmers” said Marie Francoise Marie-Nelly, World Bank Country Director to Nigeria.

She said boosting women’s agricultural productivity in Nigeria will require not only giving them access to land, but more critically improved access to finance as well as valuable information.

“Despite clear challenges, Nigerian women are making progress in the agriculture sector. For example, women produce 16 per cent less in value terms than men per hectare of cultivated land.

Yet, this overall figure masks regional differences. Though the gap in productivity between male and female plot managers remains marked at the national level, it has been successfully closed in some parts of the country,” she added.

Offer Price

Bid Price

ARM AGGRESSIVE GROWTH 9.17 9.08 KAKAWA GUARANTEED 1.00 1.00 STANBIC IBTC GUARANTE INVE 138.34 137.92 AFRINVEST W.A. EQUITY FUND 143.59 144.38 LOTUS CAPITAL HALAL 0.80 0.78 BGL SAPPHIRE FUND 1.15 1.15 BGL NUBIAN FUND 1.07 1.05 FBN MONEY MARKET FUND 100.00 100.00 FBN FIXED INCOME FUND 1,000.00 1,000.00 NIGERIA INTERNATIONAL DEB. 1,805.48 1,799.18 PARAMOUNT EQUITY FUND 15.86 15.09 CONTINENTAL UNIT TRUST 1.39 1.33 CENTRE-POINT UNIT TRUST 1.87 1.80 STANBIC IBTC NIG EQUITY 10,855.53 10,528.92 • ARM AGGRESSIVE • KAKAWA GUARANTEED • STANBIC IBTC GUARANTE • AFRINVEST W.A. EQUITY FUNDARM AGGRESSIVE • OPEN BUY BACK

Bank P/Court

Previous 04 July, 2012

Current 07, Aug, 2012

8.5000 8.0833

8.5000 8.0833

Movement

56

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

57

CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 07059022999

Man 'tortured' by police in battle for life

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OR five days, Ganiyu Lawal (59), a property agent, has been in coma. He became unconscious on April 25, following an encounter with operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), who stormed his Oko-Oba, Agege, Lagos home.

The policemen arrived at his 15, Odekeye Street, Poposola, New Oko Oba home around 1.50am.

Lawal, who is lying critically ill at the intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), was reportedly “manhandled” at the police “torture chamber”.

The police were said to have gone for him over an alleged fraud.

Lawal’s family is worried over his condition, while the police are trying to save his life.

Lawal has undergone a surgery to remove the blood clot in his brain, reportedly caused by the head injury he sustained when he was hit by gun butt.

On Sunday evening, when The Nation visited LUTH, he was still unconscious.

His family members were all over the ICU praying and crying for his survival.

When the operatives arrived at Lawal’s home last Wednesday, his family thought that the unexpected visitors were armed robbers.

The police allegedly hit hard on Lawal’s door, threatening to shoot if it was not opened. The family had only N200 at home, hence Lawal was asked to hide under a bed for fear of being killed by those the family thought were “robbers.” With Lawal under the bed, his wife opened the door and found that those knocking were armed policemen. According to family sources, she ran inside and asked her husband to come out as they were not robbers, but policemen.

When Lawal’s wife ran back into the house, she was followed by two policemen. Her son,

By Jude Isiguzo and Ebele Boniface

Saheed, said: “When they got inside, they told my father that he was under arrest and as such, he must follow them to their station. My father agreed but demanded that he be allowed to dress up since he was not putting on anything owing to the power failure that night. As he was trying to wear his trousers, one of the policemen hit his head hard with the butt of his rifle; my father staggered and fell down.

“He managed to stand up, picked up a Tshirt and wore it. They took him away without telling my mother which police station they were taking him to, or what his offence was.”

It was gathered that when Lawal got to SARS office in Ikeja, at the Command Headquaters, he was taken to the “torture chamber,” where he was tortured by operatives to confess to an alleged N4million frand. A woman was said to have reported to the police that he defreuded her. During the torture, it was learnt, he passed out and has since remained comatose.

Lawal, was rushed to the LUTH around 4.am last Friday with the hope that he could be revived and taken back to SARS for further questioning. However, when by 3:30pm on Friday, there was no inprovement, the police called his wife and informed her that her husband had been hospitalised.

Saheed said: “My mother received a call from a policeman that her husband was at the LUTH. She called to inform me and I rushed there. When I got there, I saw my father lying lifeless. I also saw four policemen from SARS. “One of them, who said he was the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), said though he was not part of those that arrested my father, but that a woman reported that she was duped of N4million over a property. He said while

• Lawal on the hospital bed. Inset: The victim before his ordeal

questioning my father, he told them that the money was N2.5million and not N4million as alleged by the woman, and that after that, he was taken back to the cell.

“The IPO said after he had reported back to his superior officers on how far he had gone with the interrogation, he was asked to go and bring my father from the cell and that when he got there, he discovered that my father had passed out. That was when his journey to the hospital began.”

Saheed said his father had been in the property business for over three years, adding: “Since he started the business, he has not had any business problem with anybody. He is a gentleman who runs away from trouble. He was selling electronics in Lagos before he ventured into property business. We were living

in Ibadan then, while he lived here in Lagos and he visited us every weekend.”

The Nation learnt yesterday that the police were doing everything to ensure that Lawal survives.

It was gathered that before Lawal was admitted, LUTH asked the police to sign an undertaking to take responsibility for medical expenses.

By Sunday, the police had reportedly spent over N300,000 on Lawal’s medical bills. A policeman is stationed at the hospital to report back if there was any need for more money.

Contacted yesterday, police spokesperson, Ngozi Braide, a deputy suprintendent (DSP) said: “I need to get details of what happened through the officer in charge at SARS. I need to verify what happened.”

Exhibits in Funsho Williams’ case destroyed, court told

A

LAGOS High Court was yesterday told why the trial of those accused of killing a former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant Funsho Williams seven years ago is being delayed.

A prosecution witness told court that the delay was caused by the destruction of some exhibits brought by an expert pathologist, who conducted a post-mortem on the deceased.

The exhibits, he said, went bad because of epileptic power supply.

Ovie Oyokomino, a Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Forensics at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, told Justice Adeniyi Adebajo that “the perishable evidence such as blood samples as well as the vitrous humour of the eye went bad due to interrupted power supply in the course of refrigerating.”

Six defendants, Bulama Kolo, Musa Maina, David Cassidy, Tuna Sonani, Mustapha Kay-

By Precious Igbonwelundu

ode and Okponwasa Imariabie, are standing trial on a two-count charge of conspiracy and murder.

They were alleged to have, on or about July 27, 2006, at 34A, Corporation Drive, Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi, conspired to murder Williams, an engineer.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to the offence, which contravenes Sections 316 and 324 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Lagos State, 2003.

Oyokomino said he and his men visited the crime scene about 12:30pm following a call from the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, AIG, Zone II. He told the court that a mattress and cushion containing shoe prints were collected from the deceased’s home, adding that a blood-stained pink shirt was found in a Samsonite suitcase in

NUPENG tackles Silverbird Galleria over ‘debt’ • ‘The claim is surprising’ O fewer than 50 members of the Nation-

N

al Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) task force led by their captain, Mr. Peter Olugbeni, yesterday stormed the premises of Silverbird Galleria, Victoria Island, Lagos. They threatened to shut down the Galleria, if its management failed to pay an alleged N18.5 million debt.

The money is said to be for the oil and gas supplied the company over six months ago.

The protesters also displayed the dud cheque allegedly issued by the Galleria the last time they came to demand payment.

• The protesters ... yesterday

By Ebele Boniface

They carried placards with inscriptions like: “Silverbird Galleria, pay your debt; you are running our business down,” “Silverbird Galleria, without money, no business.”

A senior accounts officer with Silverbird, who hid his identity card, was seen pleading with the protesters for more time to contact management.

He even made several calls to senior officers of the Galleria who were not around at the time of the demonstration. He assured that the debt would be paid on or before Friday.

On the dud cheque, the officer said the matter was taken to the Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Ikoyi, adding that the matter had since been resolved.

He pleaded to the demonstrators to exercise patience, saying: “At least, I have pleaded to you and I have fulfilled my promise. Trust me. I will do what I said.”

Another senior accountant, simply identified as Edochiene, said: “It is surprising that we owe since six months now. The chairman is not aware of this.

If he hears it, heads will roll. I thought we were having zero debt with these people who supply us oil and gas. Everything looks strange to me. How can you owe an oil company for one year?

the third bedroom.

The witness said a green rope that was notched in various places was used by the killers to gain access into Williams’ house, adding: “The assailants gained entry into his apartment (his wing of a twin duplex) from the unoccupied second wing of the twin duplex.”

He said: “I got there at about 12:30pm with my men. There were so many people; we could hardly get into the scene with our vehicle. The deceased was in a lying position on the floor; his arms were tied behind him. His head region was under the bed and we observed blood around the head on the floor.

“He was wearing a multi-coloured Ankara ‘Buba and Sokoto’. The ‘Sokoto’ had shifted, thereby revealing his white under-pant. There was evidence of ransacking the whole upstairs including the family’s living room and master bedroom. We processed for finger prints, shoe prints and noted the position of things considered to be relevant for our forensic work, which included one empty scabbard without the dagger. We did not move the body from the position we found it. The pathologist who subsequently moved the body discovered the dagger under it.”

The witness said there was a manhole in the concrete ceiling for ease of maintenance, adding: “An opening of 2 by 2 covered with a plywood board was made on the ceiling. The manhole was just two feet from the dividing wall of the duplexes and it was similar with the other side. The building has a common roof.

“They used a green colour nylon rope notched in a number of places for easy usage to descend into the deceased’s apartment. We collected the rope, mattress, containing shoe print, cushion in the living room with shoe print. We also found a blood-stained long-sleeve shirt, pink in colour, in a Samsonite suitcase in the third room.”

According to Oyokomino, the police at that time, relied on the mode of entry into the apartment to effect arrest, adding that two suspects who had previously broken into apartments in similar pattern, were nabbed.

He said DNA materials were collected from the suspects and tested in a forensic laboratory in Britain, adding that the suspects were released after the DNA report exonerated them.

Oyokomino added: “The Investigating Police Officer, IPO, investigating the case later came back with suspects apprehended with the cell phone of the deceased, which was removed the day the incident occurred.

“We got an order from the Magistrate’s Court to obtain blood samples of the new suspects

• The late Williams

along with those of the policemen who were attached to the deceased and his private security guard. Three of the suspects are police officers. We obtained the blood samples from the suspects while in detention. Samples were sent for DNA profile, which were reported inconclusive. This was reported to the prosecuting counsel who immediately set in motion to obtain fresh samples through a court order at the High Court.”

“I was later informed that the judge at the time gave an order, but I never saw the certified true copy till now. It was only recently that I learnt that the order could not be carried out because the presiding judge at that time died without signing the order she made,” he said.

Asked by the court where the exhibits were, the witness said they were at the forensic department, including “body tissues and blood samples brought by the pathologist who conducted autopsy on the late Williams.”

Prosecuting counsel Mrs. O.A. Akin-Adesomojo prayed the court for an order to collect fresh DNA samples from all the suspects in order to match same with the blood stains found on the shirt at Williams’ residence.

She said it was necessary to obtain further samples from all the suspects so that those who may not be involved in the crime would be freed, but counsel to the defendants, Okezie Agbara, objected. He the prosecution had ample time since July 27, 2006 that the deceased died, to make its requests, adding: “It will be unfair to come through the back door to make another request.”

Justice Adebajo adjourned the case till June 3.

THE NATION TUESDAY APRIL 30, 2013

58

NEWS

Abia council workers protest delayed salary •Call for transfer of officials

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ORKERS in Obingwa Local Government of Abia State yesterday protested the alleged delay of their February and part of January salaries as well as arrears of promotion and leave allowances.

The workers, who converged on the premises of the Nigerian Television Authority, Ogbor Hill, Aba, called for the transfer of their Head of Administration, Ben Nwogu and the Acting Treasurer, Nwaogute Joy. They accused them of withholding their salaries, which they said have been released by the government.

The workers said the situation has made life difficult for them.

But Nwogu said he was unaware of the protest. He described the protesters as

From Sunny Nwankwo, Aba

“miscreants”, who have decided to embarrass the council and the state.

He added that the council has been unable to pay February salaries because of a court order obtained by a lawyer, who worked for the council.

“We owe our legal adviser and he went to court and obtained a judgment against us. The order has affected the payment of salaries.

“The problem is not a management matter, it is in court.

“The Ministry of Justice has appointed a lawyer, who is defending the council; it is a court issue.

“We are talking with the lawyer and the ministry, until it is settled, we can’t do anything,” he said.

He accused union officials

•The workers...yesterday of causing disaffection in the council and called on the workers to be patient as there are other councils such

as Ikwuano, Osisoma Ngwa, Arochukwu, Ukwa West, which were also affected by the problem.

On the issue of promotion arrears and leave allowances, Nwogu assured that the Ministry of Local Government

Imo pays stipend to pupils

Two kidnapped in Anambra

•Secondary school pupils to earn N500

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HE Imo State Government yesterday began the payment of N300 and N500 stipends to primary and secondary school pupils.

It also distributed materials to public schools.

Opening the programme at Owerri City School, Governor Rochas Okorocha, represented by his wife, Nneoma, said the exercise was aimed at encouraging pupils to excel in their studies and create a conducive environment for learning.

Okorocha said secondary schools pupils will receive N500 while their counterparts in primary schools will receive N300 every term.

“I am here to open the payment of your stipend. Of course, you know that the governor loves you so much.

He has much interest in your

From Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, Nnewi

From Okodili Ndidi, Owerri

education and future. His watchword to students is hard work,” he said.

Describing education as a vital instrument to a child’s development, the governor assured that the present administration would remain committed to transforming the education sector.

He enjoined the pupils to be hard-working and respect their elders to enable them become good ambassadors of the country.

“I see in you a fulfillment of great things to come, therefore you must not fail.

“To succeed, you must be guided by the following values –hard work, honesty, respect for elders, service to your fatherland, upholding the tenets of your culture and being prayerful.”

and Chieftaincy Affairs would soon settle the issue as agreed with the workers’ union.

•Ozoekwe on his bed

Ore tanker fire survivor seeks help

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NE of the survivors of the Benin-Ore Expressway tanker fire accident , Chinenye Ozoekwe, from Amudo Awka, Anambra State, yesterday appealed to Governors Peter Obi (Anambra), Adams Oshiomhole (Edo) and Babatunde Fashola (Lagos) to come to his aid.

On his bed at the Anambra State University Teaching Hospital, Awka, also known as Amaku General Hospital, Ozoekwe appealed to the management of the luxury

From Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, Nnewi

bus, Young Shall Grow, to assist him.

He said: “I request assistance fromNigerians. I am in great pains and need to be properly treated.

“Kindly let these three governors assist me. The trio are strategic to my accident.

“I left Lagos and the accident happened in Edo State and I am from Anambra State.

“There are companies and

private individuals that can assist me but I just singled these people out specifically.”

A luxury bus on April 5 collided with a petrol tanker on the Benin-Ore Expressway, leaving over 100 people burnt to death.

Ozoekwe smashed the window of the bus and jumped out followed by a second survivor.

He was admitted at the Divine Grace Hospital, Benin, before he was transferred to the General Hospital, Awka.

How N500m was spent, by SSG

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HE Anambra State Government yesterday explained how it spent the N500 million flood fund from the Federal Government.

The Secretary to the State Government, Oseloka Obaze, said the state disbursed N400million and spent another N132million on the victims.

Obaze said: “It has become necessary to set the records straight in light of recent reports about measures taken by Anambra State in connection with the funds for last year’s flood.

“Anambra State got N500 million from the Federal Government. We have disbursed N400 million and spent an additional N132million of our own funds.

“There is a formal interim report on the flood and a comprehensive list of how much each community got.

“The next tranche of relief funds will be targeted at industries, manufacturing and micro-

From Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, Nnewi

finance institutions that gave out loans to farmers in the affected areas.

“We’ve started our early warning flood advisory campaign. We are consulting with relief agencies on contingency plans for this year’s flood.

“We are looking at quick-yielding seedlings that could be harvested before the rains begin.

“State and federal provided funds and relief materials were given out to those communities affected by the floods that had been identified previously. We have received very few complaints.

“There may be one or two genuine cases of omission. We are aware of three communities, which claimed they were omitted namely: Ifite-Aguleri, Uli, Ifite-Enugwu. We are reviewing their claims.”

TWO workers of a construction firm, including an expatriate, have been kidnapped on the Enugu – Awka Expressway.

An eyewitness said the gunmen drove their victims towards Ugwuoba.

He said: “I am thankful to God because I would have been dead by now.

Our vehicle ran into the gunmen, just after we left a filling station on the highway. The kidnappers were veiled and carried AK 47 rifles.

“They operated in two vehicles, known as Sullivan. They grabbed the white man first before taking the Nigerian.

“They were shooting at all of us but we were lucky to escape.

“Later, the police came and were shooting sporadically. Soldiers have started a stop-and-search in the area.”

Police spokesman Emeka Chukwuemeka could not confirm the incident. He said he was in a meeting.

Abducted Rivers’ monarch released From Precious Dikewoha, Port Harcourt

THE Eze Ochialiri II of Rumuji, Rivers State, Emmanuel Obisike Eche, who was kidnapped last weekend, has been released at Abual River front.

One of his sons, Eche Kenneth, said: “My father has been released, for now, we don’t want to say anything but we’re thanking God for everything.”

A source from the family alleged that the monarch paid N6million ransom.

“I will tell you that our chief paid N6million to regain his freedom, though nobody in his position will tell you he paid something,” the source said.

THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

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NEWS PIB: North’s senators give fresh condition to pass bill Continued from page 4

Community Fund “We have resolved that if this new condition is acceptable to the Federal Government and oil producing states in the Niger Delta, we will pass the PIB. “The argument of the senators is that all parts of Nigeria are exposed to oil exploration, refinery and distribution hazards.”

Another source added: “The PIB is structured in such a way that oil producing states will be earning between 35 and 40 per cent derivation to the disadvantage of other parts of the country.

“This is why we are insisting that the clause on Host Community Fund be an all-inclusive thing. Every state with oil installations or facilities must benefit from the 10 per cent fund.

“This is the only condition for the passage of the bill.”

A third source said: “We are also opposed to the discretionary powers given to the Minister of Petroleum Resources.

Those powers are unnecessary because they will make a sitting oil minister more powerful than the President. The ball is in the Federal Government’ court to accept these conditions or not.”

The Senate might hold public hearing on the PIB in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Makurdi.

Although some senators from the North prefer Kaduna, but others settled for Makurdi because of the security challenges in the former capital of the defunct Northern Region.

A senator said: “Lobbyists from government have been desperately trying to woo North’s senators to ensure the passage of the bill.

“They are saying that the Host Community Fund is harmless but North’s senators see it as a booby trap to get additional 10 per cent derivation for oil producing states, especially those from the Southsouth.

“It is left to the government to allay the fears of the North

in the bill in order to move forward.”

The Northern States Governors Forum (NSGF) last week rejected 10 per cent vote of the nation’s petroleum income to host communities.

The Forum said the creation of Host Community Fund is a ploy to give more revenue to oil producing states.

The governors made their position known in a memoranda to the House of Representatives ad-Hoc Committee on PIB. The memo, signed by the Chairman of the Forum, Governor Babangida Aliyu, reads: “The most controversial provision of PIB 2012 is the introduction of the Host Community Fund which is creating a fourth tier of Government in the sharing of the revenue of the Federation.

“Whereas the constitution of Nigeria recognises only three tiers of government in directly accessing the Federal Reserve and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) is meant to take care

of the special needs of the host oil-producing communities.

“The PIB does not state exactly what constitutes a Host community or how funds will be conveyed to the community. The provisions of the PIB 2012 relating to the Host Community Fund touches on the question of the revenue allocation and utilisation in a federation such as Nigeria.

“The constitution already allocated 13 per cent of the Petroleum income as derivation precisely to cater for the special needs of petroleum producing communities; the 10 per cent Host Community Funds in PIB 2012 is merely an attempt to extend this through an act of the National Assembly without the required constitutional amendment.

“In other words, the issue of derivation has already been exhausted in the constitution.

What is rather needed to be done is improvement on the present derivation factors and formulas to correct disparity and open other opportunities for other part of the country.”

NCAA insists on sanction for owners of grounded aircraft Continued from page 4

said that if an Embassy issues a tourist or student visa to a person, when the visa expires, the person holding the visa is staying in the country illegally.

On who owns the aircraft, Dati said: “The owner of this aircraft, according to the certificate of registration, is Bank of Utah Trustees of Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America (USA). The clearance for the aircraft was sought by Caverton Helicopters on March 27, 2013.”

He wondered why people continued to name the Rivers State Government as its owner.

“It is very sad that when we try to do our job people bring

in politics into it. It is very sad.

We have the facts, we have the records. We don’t even have Rivers State in all our documentation,”he said.

But, in a swift reaction, the Rivers State Commissioner for Information, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, said the government followed the due processes.

She said all agencies knew the aircraft belongs to the government of Rivers State.

On whether the airplane was operating illegally in Nigeria, Mrs. Semenitari, said the claim may not be correct.

She, however, said the state was “not interested in joining issues with aviation authorities, but only state the facts as they are, insisting that the government complied with all the directives as outlined by the ministry of aviation and other agencies.”

On whether the pilot submitted a flight plan when the plane landed in Akure, the commissioner said: “He did file a manifest. We cannot be irresponsible, as I continue to maintain.

“This is not the first time we are flying. There is no way we are going to fly without doing the right thing. Filing the manifest is procedural and every pilot knows that.”

Terrorism a global threat to democracy, says Jonathan Continued from page 4

through good governance, creation of opportunities and economic growth, lauded member countries for electing Nigeria as the next president of the community for the 2015-2017 period.

Nobel Laureate Aung Suu

Kyi, who was the guest of honour at the event and chairperson of the National League for Democracy of Myammar, cautioned against conflict in overcoming difficulties, even as he admonished a peaceful approach in the quest to attain de-

mocracy and development.

The Community of Democracies is a global intergovernmental coalition of democratic countries with the sole objective of promoting democratic rules and strengthening democratic norms and institutions around the world.

‘Don’t debase Judiciary’ Continued from page 4

lic funds are hopelessly mismanaged. As a result, these questions must be answered by the Rivers State government: “Where is the aircraft purportedly bought with Rivers State fund and tax payers’ money? Where have the billions of naira taken from the coffers of the Rivers State government gone and for what purpose was it appropriated and where is it diverted?

“The government of Rivers State, led by Rt. Hon Rotimi Amaechi, owes a public explanation to the entire people of Rivers State and the PDP in particular, as to the true owners of the Bombardier BD 700.

They should also explain the identity and the role played by the Bank of Utah of the USA in the purchase of the aircraft and the identity of the owners of the said company to be unveiled.

“On Monday, April 22, 2013, the party issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Rivers State House of Assembly to rescind the order on the dissolution of Obio/Akpor council, which was flagrantly disobeyed.

“The party hereby suspends all 27 members of the House of Assembly that carried out such action while their matter is referred to disciplinary committee for further action.”

The five lawmakers loyal to Wike, who are not affected by the suspension, are: Michael Chinda (Obio/Akpor II constituency), Kelechi Godspower Nwogu (Omuma), Evans Bipi (Ogu/Bolo), Martins Amaewhule (Obio/Akpor I) and Victor Ihunwo (Port Harcourt III).

Those suspended are Otelemaba Dan Amachree (Speaker, Asari Toru I), Augustine Paul (Abua/Odua), Ewor Nname (Ahoada East I), Nwuche Ibiso (Ahoada East II), Dr. Chigbo Sam Eligwe (Ahoada West). Onari Brown

(Akuku Toru I), Anabaraba Benibo (Akuku-Toru II), Ikuinyi Owaji Ibani (Andoni), Horsfall Godstimes (AsariToru II), Aye People Atamah (Bonny).

Others are: Tonye Harry Ezekiel (Degema), Chidi Lyold (Leader of the House, Emohua), Amadi Victor (Etche 1), Golden Ngozi Ben Chioma (Etche II), Barikor Innocent (Gokana), Wanjoku Chikere Azubike (Ikwerre), Legborsi Nwidadah (Khana 1), Leyii Kwanee (Deputy Speaker, Khana II), Gift Nwokocha (Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni I), Lucky Odili (Ogba/Egbema/ Ndoni II), Belema Okpokiri (Okrika), Miller Andrew Anderson (Opobo/Nkoro), Victoria Wobo Nyeche (Port Harcourt 1), Irene Martins Inimgba (Port Harcourt 11) and Felicia Taneh (Tai).

On April 15, Justice Ishaq Bello of an Abuja High Court confirmed the election of Obuah and members of his executive, which led to the sack of Chief Godspower Ake, a former National Vice Chairman (Southsouth) of the PDP, and members of his executive.

Ake and members of his executive emerged from the state congress of the PDP at the Alfred Diete-Spiff Civic Centre, Port Harcourt on March 17, 2012.

Amaechi, addressing his supporters at the main gate of the Government House, Port Harcourt, described the judgment as the desecration of the temple of justice, calling on the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Maryam Mukhtar, to quickly intervene.

Wike, who wants to be governor in 2015, is a former Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt and doubled as the Director-General of the Amaechi Campaign Organisation in 2011. Amaechi and Wike are Ikwerre. The governor felt somebody from another ethnic group should succeed him.

Your Sexual Health & You: Novelty Tips, Questions & Answers

H

ello again everybody and welcome. When it comes to sexual matters, nothing dominates our weekly discussions and enquiries like male performance issues and penis enlargement. This is of course due to the fact that men are the ones who are expected to perform while women are applauded for just showing up. So today, we have a new penis enlarger and erection enhancer for men called the Penis Enlargement Pump. The Penis Enlargement Pump gives men longer and thicker penises with consistent use and also enables men suffering from erectile dysfunction to get an erection by pumping for a few minutes. The Penis Enlargement Pump gives both instant and longer lasting results.

For female arousal and enjoyment, we have two new products. They are Nipple Nibblers Nipple and Clit Gel and Spot on G Spot Arousal Gel. These are two great products for women that help alleviate common complaints of vaginal dryness, sexual pain and low sexual arousal and they start working within minutes. The third new gel for women does not arouse, instead it contracts the vaginal walls for tighter and more pleasurable intercourse. It is called Like a Virgin Tightening gel. Just like the other two gels, Like a Virgin Tightening Gel can also be used as a regular lubricant for intercourse or for use with sex toys.

And finally for this week, we have five new movies for couples who want to better their love lives. For sex instruction and improvement of your sex skills, there is the How to Boost Your Libido DVD and the Ultimate Sex Party DVD. For adult viewing entertainment, we have Reckless, Pirates and Cheater. All three DVDs are feature films with the unique ability to appeal to women as well.

Let us now answer a few questions from our readers.

I lost my penile sensation from the head of my penis due to some injuries in the past. Can it be recovered? If yes, how and what will I do? I need your assistance – George

Dear George, I am sorry to hear this. In cases where there is such injury that ultimately leads to the loss of feeling in the penis, it is usually as a result of damage to the veins and nerve tissues of the penis as well. This is a tough one.

Depending on the extent of this damage, it may or may not be repairable. I did a bit of research regarding vein and tissue damage and I found that in some cases, simply avoiding sex for a period of time allows the body to heal these damaged tissues. I don’t know how long you have had this problem but you can try avoiding sex for a month or two. Secondly, the other solution I found is that increasing blood flow to the penis may help. Of course when you talk about increasing blood flow, it means the use of aphrodisiacs like the ones we talk about regularly, examples of which are Xzen 1200 and Sex Voltz. So you can try those too. Remember that in this unique case of yours, there are no guarantees. If the nerve and venal damage you suffered is severe, these solutions may not work. But you have to try first. I really wish you luck.

Sorry once again. You can also consult your doctor about this – Uche My husband suffers from premature ejaculation. But he is too embarrassed to get help. Please what can I get to help him? Thanks – Joke Premature ejaculation is quite common and so are the solutions.

You can use a desensitising lubricant or wipe to control it.

Lubricants like Max Control Spray will help him or he can use Sex on the Go Desensitizing Wipes to stop it each time you are about to have intercourse. You can see more premature ejaculation solutions on www.zeevirtualmedia.com – Uche Adults in need of these treatments and novelties can call us on 08027901621 or 08051924159 or any other number here to order or they can order online at www.zeevirtualmedia.com.

We deliver to you wherever you are in Nigeria. For enquiries email us at custserv@zeevirtualmedia.com - Uche Edochie, MD, Zee Virtual Media.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013

FOREIGN NEWS ANC leaders visit Mandela

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ELSON Mandela has been visited at home

by ANC leaders who said later he was “in good shape and in good spirits”.

The first pictures of the former South African president since he left hospital show him surrounded by well-wishers at his home in Johannesburg.

The 94-year-old was discharged on 6 April after more than a week of treatment for pneumonia.

It was the third time in the past four months that the Nobel Peace Prize laureate had stayed in hospital.

President Jacob Zuma and ANC Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa were among senior ANC officials who called in on Mandela at his home in Houghton and were given an update by his medical team.

“After receiving a briefing from the medical team, the na-

R

tional officials are satisfied that President Mandela is in good health and is receiving the very best medical care,” the ANC said in a statement.

President Zuma said Mandela “shook hands and even smiled”.

The rare video footage from his home was broadcast by South African state broadcaster SABC. The veteran leader’s lung problems date from his 27 years as a political prisoner.

Eighteen years were spent on the windswept Robben Island where he contracted tuberculosis.

Mandela’s health has been a continuing cause for concern recently.

In December, he spent more than two weeks in hospital undergoing treatment for his lung ailment and gallstones.

‘Our father’s son’

ENOWNED journalist MrGbolaboOgunsanwo has condoled with the Awolowo family, over the death of the Tribune Publisher, Chief Oluwole Awolowo.

In his tribute titled: Our father’s son, he described the deceased as a remarkable personality and reliable Awoist Ogunsanwo said: “The great and exceptional Awolowo family, our Fathers and Mothers, Brothers & Sisters, and all who are gathered here to bid ’Wole Awolowo farewell, I join you in celebrating the passage of a man many only knew as “the son of Chief Awolowo”.

But unknown to many people, ’Wole was not just “a son of Chief Awolowo”. ’Wole was a remarkable personality in his own right.

In him, the Awolowo family has lost a member and a son, the Awoist movement, a nationwide movement of Chief Awolowo’s political devotees, has lost a doughty, faithful and reliable colleague and I have lost a great friend. Unfortunately not very many people fully understood ’Wole in his life-

time.

“Throughout his life, he struggled to bear the weight that the name Awolowo imposed on him. Very many people without giving thought to this were unduly and unfairly critical of him.

With the impossibility of shedding this great and remarkable weight, he bore it with courage, with dignity, sometimes staggering, sometimes almost failing, but ultimately with equanimity. “ You see as every child that came out biologically out of Chief Obafemi Awolowos loins would admit – Obafemi Awolowo was not just a tough act to follow, he was almost an impossible act to follow. A man who through grit, through spartan self-discipline, through total dedication to a cause, was able to catapult himself from a village letter-writer to almost a “god” in his own lifetime, is almost an unfair challenge to anybody in any country in any culture to emulate let alone equal.

It was Atlas who was said in Greek mythology to bear the world on his shoulders, ’Wole Awolowo’s challenge was not too dissimilar to this.”

•The father (front left) and aunt (right) of Bangladeshi garment worker Shahana react after her remains were returned to the family. INSET Fire-fighters try to control a blaze after a fire broke out during a rescue attempt of a woman as Bangladeshi Army PHOTO: AFP personel begin the second phase of the rescue operation using heavy equipment.

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Bangladesh factory owner in court

HE owner of a building that collapsed in Bangladesh killing hundreds faced an angry crowd when he appeared in court.

Mohammed Sohel Rana, wearing a police helmet and bullet-proof jacket for the hearing, was remanded in custody for 15 days to face questioning by police.

Officials say there is little hope any more survivors will be found in the rubble of the devastated building.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh

has defended its decision not to accept foreign help with the disaster.

Home Minister Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir told the BBC his government was confident it could handle the situation and said the local authorities had done a good job.

Both the UK government and the United Nations have said they had teams of experts ready to head out to Bangladesh, but their offer of help was turned down.

Rescue work at the site of the Rana Plaza garment fac-

tory continued for a sixth day on Monday, but army spokesman Shahinul Islam said “there is little hope of finding anyone alive”.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the site and some of the victims in hospital, assuring them they would receive help from the government.

However, some relatives of those missing complained that she did not speak to them during her visit.

Mohammed Sohel Rana was arrested on Sunday near

the Indian border, having been on the run since the collapse of his eight-storey building on 24 April.

A local leader of the youth wing of the prime minister’s Awami League party, he was filmed in handcuffs after being flown back to Dhaka by helicopter on Sunday.

Surrounded by police, and shouted at by the crowd, Rana was led into court wearing protective clothing, to hear a magistrate grant a police request to hold him for 15 days for questioning.

Syrian PM escapes bomb blast

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YRIAN Prime Minister Wael al-Halqi has survived a car bomb attack in the capital, Damascus, state media say.

The blast in the capital’s western Mazzeh district targeted Halqi’s convoy, state TV said, causing a number of

casualties.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UKbased activist group, said one of Mr Halqi’s bodyguards was among several others killed.

It is unclear whether the blast was a suicide bombing or a planted device.

State television carried a brief interview with Halqi, saying that it was filmed after the attack.

He appears assured but somewhat shaken in the interview, in which he talks about a meeting he has just attended on the economy.

State TV said the blast happened at a busy intersection, near a public garden and a school. The upmarket neighbourhood is home to government buildings, the

residences of several political figures and a military airport vital to the regime’s defences.

“I was walking in the street when suddenly there was a very powerful explosion and I saw a car burning and people running,” a witness told AFP. An unnamed Syrian official said the explosion was caused by a bomb placed underneath a parked car in the area, the Associated Press news agency reported.

An earlier report said it had been a suicide attack.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights quoted medical sources as saying five civilians in the area were also killed.

The activist group quoted medical sources as saying Mr Halqi’s driver and another

bodyguard were seriously injured.

Footage from the scene showed the charred remains of several vehicles, and a badly damaged bus. Debris and glass were strewn around a wide area, where onlookers had gathered.

A picture that activists said was of the site just after the attack showed a large plume of black smoke rising into the air near a road and a high-rise building.

Syrian forces and rebels have been fighting around Damascus for months but with neither side gaining the upper hand.

The attack is the latest bombing inside governmentcontrolled areas of the capital.

ECOWAS defends role in Mali

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COWAS Commissioner for Human Development and Gender, Dr. Adrienne has debunked suggestions that ECOWAS did not show sufficient interest in the Malian crisis.

The commissioner insisted that ECOWAS was fully involved in the crisis in Mali and attributed the current global interest in the country to the untiring efforts of West African leaders.

She also noted that from the onset, the organisation had declared zero tolerance over the March coup d’état that toppled former President Amadou Toumani Toure and attempts by insur-

From Vincent Ikuomola and Nike Adebowale, Abuja

gents to split the country.

The Commissioner according to a statement issued by the regional body, made the declaration when she addressed the opening of a two-day workshop and annual general assembly of the Network of National Human Rights Institutions in West Africa in Abuja.

The Commissioner debunked suggestions that ECOWAS did not show sufficient interest in the Malian crisis, insisting that from the onset, the organisation declared zero tolerance over the March 2012 coup d’état

that toppled former President Amadou Toumani Toure and attempts by insurgents to split the country.

She said that never in the history of the organisation have regional leaders – both at the ministerial and heads of state level – held over 10 extra-ordinary meetings within such a short space of time, trying to resolve the crisis in any Member State.

“We have been at the fore-front and at the centre of the crisis in Mali, even to the deployment of AFISMA. We will be there even after the United Nations has fully taken over, because we want to see the return of normality to that country”, she stated.

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SPORT EXTRA

Michael Jordan marries former model Yvette Prieto

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ICHAEL Jordan got married over the weekend in front of a few hundred of his family and closest friends.

The Charlotte Bobcats owner exchanged vows with 35-yearold former model Yvette Prieto on Saturday in Palm Beach, Fla., Jordan’s manager Estee Portnoy told The

Associated Press on Sunday.

The wedding took place at the Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea with nearly 300 guests in attendance, including Tiger Woods, Patrick Ewing, Spike Lee and Ahmad Rashad.

The ceremony was followed by a reception at the Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Fla., a luxurious

•Michael Jordan with Yvette Prieto

private golf club designed by Jack Nicklaus. Jordan, 50, owns a home near the course.

There were fireworks at night as part of the celebration.

In lieu of wedding gifts, donations were made to the James R. Jordan Foundation.

The wedding flowers were donated to the Jupiter Medical Center.

The six-time NBA champion and Prieto met five years ago and were engaged last December.

Prieto wore a French silk voile corseted sheer sheath gown by J’Aton Couture, in an ecru palette with accents of flesh tones, with handmade silk lace created especially for her, and enhanced with Swarovski crystals. The gown featured French seamed crinoline borders, which cascaded into a dramatic cathedral train finished in the lace, with accents of a peacock-feathered design.

The couple and their guests were entertained by DJ MC Lyte, singers K’Jon, Robin Thicke and Grammy Awardwinner Usher and The Source, an 18-piece band.

NIGERIA AMATEUR BOXING FEDERATION

Adeniji-Adele eyes board membership

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ORMER Commissioner for Sports in Lagos State, Ademola Adeniji- Adele has indicated interest in becoming a member of the Nigeria Amateur Boxing Federation board.

In a release made available to the media, the astute sports administrator cum politician said the forthcoming zonal and national elections will provide the needed platform for him to serve on the board of the Federation, and pursue an agenda

of returning Nigerian amateur boxing to the path to glory.

He said: "In doing this, I draw from the experiences I have garnered serving as Commissioner of Sports and Youth Development in Lagos State, from my days as a national athlete, from other public responsibilities I have been privileged to execute and from the contacts and networks I have made through the years.

"The development model which I hereby propose has

worked for us in Lagos State in both boxing and in football and I am confident that it will also work for our nation. A couple of examples from our development strategies in Lagos State will help to buttress the plausibility of this development plan," he said.

Adeniji-Adele also informed that part of his intentions will be to design and implement a programmed, workable and sustainable agenda for the development of boxing in Nigeria.

•L-R: Chairman, Lagos State Boxing Association, Hon. Monsuru Liasu, winner of the 75kg boxing competition, Richard Ebowa of Star Boxing Club, Chairman, Board of Lagos Boxing Hall of Fame, Wale Edu and President Swimming Federation, Fatai Williams, during the 41st Monthly Saturday Boxing competition held in Lagos at the weekend.

Photo: Adeola Solomon

WORLD MALARIA DAY NOVELTY MATCH

AY scores brace against on-air personalities

A

novelty match was played at the Campos Mini Stadium, Lagos between comedians and on-air personalities (OAPS) to celebrate World Malaria Day on Saturday, 27th of April.

The event - the first of its kind - featured The King of comedy; Ali Baba GCFR, AY, Bovi, Okey Bakassi, Shakara, Akpororo among others, who defeated OAPS led by sports analyst Charles Anazodo, Silverbird presenter; Jide Alabi, Yaw, Tony Ibitoye, among others.

The match ended 5-4 in favour

By Abolaji Aluko-Olokun and Jeremiah Babatunde of the comedians. The event tagged “Join the cast” aimed to kick out malaria from Nigeria, and was organised by 3rafique Integrated Marketing Communication Company.

Speaking with NationSports, AY, a renowned comedian, who scored a brace, said: “We should fight against malaria and that’s what we are doing as comedians.

“Malaria has killed a lot of people, so we have come together as comedians to kick it out of this country. I scored two

goals as part of my contribution to kick out malaria in this country.”

Irabor Okosun, the CEO and Co-founder 3rafique Integrated Marketing Communications Company, implored Nigerians to work together in this regard.

“Let’s join hands to make positive change; we can’t wait for the government to make change in this country,” he said. Okosun also gave hints about future programmes to aid the masses.

“It’s not all about malaria,” he said. “We’ll go into cooking, helping the poor and the needy.”

TODAY IN THE NATION

TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL. 8

NO.2,474

‘I do not want to delve into the argument as to whether or not the military by its well known record of brutality against unarmed civilians is not wholly responsible for the way the ordinary citizen perceives them.’

SANYA ONI

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

N

INETEEN years ago, in February 1994, The Atlantic magazine published an article with the apocalyptic title “The coming anarchy,” in which its national correspondent, Robert Kaplan, advanced the thesis that poverty, overpopulation, disease and crime would conflate in urban areas of West Africa – and ultimately in other parts of the Third World — to set the stage for the meltdown of civil society.

Nigeria, Guinea (Conakry) and Sierra Leone had furnished the raw material for Kaplan’s prognostication. Liberia was already being convulsed by a barbarous civil war.

Fast forward to 2013; add to Kaplan’s toxic brew corruption on a scale almost beyond belief, massive and growing youth unemployment, free flow of firearms of every description, syndicated kidnapping, serial sectarian violence of which last week’s carnage in Baga, in Borno State, is only the latest installment, as well as degradation of the environment in oilproducing areas.

Exacerbated and unaddressed, any of these factors could drive Nigeria to the edge. Together, they constitute a potent potion for disaster. Anarchy, it now seems clear, is not merely coming; it may well have arrived at the gate already.

But the authorities seem all too distracted to notice it, or they notice it all right but do not give a damn, persuaded that they can ride the storm and live happily ever after Sometimes they even appear to be wringing their hands out of sheer helplessness, if not abject surrender.

When they think at all about ameliorative measures, it is all in the future. By baking bread from cassava flour instead of wheat flour, the public was assured about a year ago that some three million jobs would be created. Some N4 billion that would have been spent importing wheat flour would be pressed into more productive use that would generate still more jobs.

But well before a steady stream of the cassava crop has been assured, contracts had been awarded for purchasing and installing cassavaprocessing plants all over the country. The muchadvertised bread has thus far been reserved for the breakfast table at Aso Rock. The jobs are yet to materialise.

The same strategy has been applied to rice.

Growing and processing the stuff locally will save billions of naira in foreign exchange and create thousands of jobs. Ahead of an assured and sustainable harvest stream, industrial-scale rice mills are being purchased to process rice for the local market and perhaps even for export, to earn foreign exchange. Meanwhile, the projected jobs remain just that.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of young men and women armed with degrees and diplomas for the universities and other institutions of further learning are released to the job market to swell the ranks of those who had graduated three, perhaps or even five years earlier but are still pounding the streets looking for jobs that are just not there.

Yet every year, the Federal Government and the states routinely establish more universities and institutions of further learning, most of them ill-provisioned, to produce yet more graduates destined to suffer the fate of those

OLATUNJI DARE

AT HOME ABROAD olatunji.dare@thenationonlineng.net

Anarchy at the gate

•Bamigbetan

who had graduated much earlier.

Not too long ago, a university degree was the passport to a career that was rewarding and full of promise. In Nigeria today, a strict cost-benefit analysis will lead the hard-headed to regard it as a disinvestment.

The business mogul Aliko Dangote placed an advertisement to recruit university graduates as truck drivers the other day and could not cope with the deluge of responses, a good many of them from persons with higher degrees, including doctorates. Since I commented on the natter, hardly a week passes without my getting an inquiry from a graduate about the method of application, and whether I could provide a recommendation.

Entertaining no illusions about what awaits them at the end of their service year, many youth corps members, now assure themselves a second term in the schemed and its anaemic pay by deliberately under-performing.

The Minister of Finance and Co-ordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr Ngozi OkonjoIweala, pivoted her ill-fated campaign for president of the World Bank on a promise to create jobs for the world’s youths. Why can’t she devote her abundant energies to doing just that on a national scale? Rarely does she mention the subject these days, though it once ranked high on the “Transformation” agenda of the Jonathan administration.

Epileptic power supply has ruined smallscale businesses that served as a cushion against poverty for millions of Nigerians. Poverty is as visible as never before, just as hunger stalks the land as never before. Crime is just around the corner, and insecurity is a constant companion.

This conjuncture ought to concentrate the minds of our policy-makers as never before and move them, if only out of a healthy instinct for self-preservation, to devise measures to stem what is clearly shaping up as a slide into ungovernability.

Instead, they are focusing all their energies and resources on the general elections scheduled for 2015, frantically instituting measures to cripple potential or wholly imagined challengers, and scheming to impose a new Constitution on the country through the back door, in the process eviscerating yet another opportunity – some say it may well be the last one – to design a healthier union.

The kidnapping saga of Kehinde Bamigbetan, the dutiful and unassuming chair of the Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, in Lagos, ought to serve as a wake-up call to all of them.

The syndicate that abducted him was on routine reconnaissance, looking out to seize anyone for whose freedom they could obtain a hefty ransom. Bamigbetan seemed that kind of person. He was being chauffeured in an SUV, not in itself a sure sign of affluence in most Nigerian cities, but some indication that the fellow in the “owner’s corner” is not exactly a pauper.

As the stalkers overtook his vehicle, a shot rang out from their Kalashnikov assault rifle.

His driver jerked the SUV into reverse gear and tried to change course but hit an electric

For Funmilayo Olayinka: A Postscript

•The late Mrs. Olayinka

F

UNMILAYO Olayinka, the deputy governor of Ekiti, whose remains were buried in the state capital last week, was an uncommon public figure. Abjuring the pomp and circumstance that went with the office, she was unpretentious through and through.

HARDBALL

S

ENATOR Jibril Aminu, a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, is a man of unlimited candour. That candour has served him well over the years. Not minding his age, he is certain to go on speaking his mind candidly until his last breath. Last Saturday, according to the Vanguard newspaper, he took on the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, describing them as malevolent busybodies who were undermining Nigeria’s young democracy and attempting to extend their budding suzerainty to the presidency.

Said he: “The governors are against all of us and the president. They have organised to stop the government from doing what is right for this country. You can see that they have organised to stop anything functioning in Nigeria without them…Governors are the ones imposing things on the rest of us. The problem with the governors is that they meet regularly and have their way by

pole and stopped. More shots rang out from the AK-47, narrowly missing the driver who somehow opened the door and fled.

Bamigbetan was now effectively in the hands of his abductors. They bundled him into their car, blindfolded him, and drove furiously toward Badagry. But not before they had kicked out of the car a captive who, they told Bamigbetan chillingly, had just been ransomed with hard cash.

The kidnappers, numbering seven, split up into two groups. One group comprised “hardened” individuals, according to Bamgbetan.

This was the group that administered the beatings and the blood-curdling threats. The other was more “humane.”

It says something of the sophistication of the syndicate that they sent “spies” to mingle with the staff of Bamigbetan’s office and monitor what they were saying about their abducted boss. Their report apparently moved their principals to settle for a reduced ransom, and to release him after one traumatic week in their custody.

Bamigbetan was lucky. Several weeks earlier, a former deputy governor of Anambra State, Dr Chudi Nwike and a chieftain of the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) was killed by his kidnappers after they had collected a negotiated ransom.

Now, here is the point that should set our policy-makers thinking: The kidnappers, Bamgbetan said, “seemed to have been forced into criminality” by the prevailing circumstances. Many of them are graduates but had been unemployed for years. They could not understand “why we budget billions of Naira and graduates cannot get jobs.”

So, they took to kidnapping as a way of registering their anger against “the system.”

Continuing on the present trajectory and hoping to muddle through somehow is not a public policy option. If policy makers could summon just one tenth of the creativity they employ in enriching themselves and their cronies and apply it to devising sustainable employment schemes for the burgeoning army of restive young persons, they may yet stave off the looming prospects of anarchy in those parts of the country that have not been overrun by Boko Haram.

Gracefulness – suavity, to employ a more evocative term — perfused every step she walked, every word she spoke, and every gesture she made. She battled the ravages of the cancer that ultimately claimed her life with great dignity and continued until the end to complement Governor Kayode Fayemi in devoted service to the people. She gave public service and politics a human and humane face.

We are all the poorer for her passing. May her soul find peace. Her family will take pride and consolation in the outpouring of grief and affection that attended her passing.

Her example inspires and ennobles us still.

•For comments, send SMS to 08111813080

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above

Governors should respond to Jibril Aminu’s diatribe threatening the president that they would not support him for second term…Number one, they have stopped the local government from functioning. They decide what amount to give to the local governments under their control. They decide what the LGA chairmen should spend, up to the last kobo...”

Even though in their campaign against the President Goodluck Jonathan government, the governors have received the support of a great majority of Nigerians, it is hard to ignore the senator’s salient views. But let us ignore his sweeping generalisation that the governors are against the president and the rest of us; and let us also dismiss his contention that the governors are imposing themselves on us and preventing the country from functioning. However, there is little

doubt that his observation that the governors have virtually emasculated the local governments is unimpeachable, and the governors will be tongue-tied to gainsay him.

But Aminu was not done. Hear him: “Unfortunately, there is nobody to call the governors to order because they have already swallowed the Houses of Assembly that would have served as a check on them. Today, nobody gets any job or appointment at the state level without the approval of the governors. Even election into the National Assembly is controlled by governors. So they have super powers and nothing gets to anybody except the governor approves same. Not satisfied with the powers they have already usurped, the governors now

want to extend their power to the president.” Brilliantly put, but is the president, his great idol, not even more powerful and rapacious? Did Chief Olusgeun Obasanjo, for instance, not attempt to play more than God in enthroning and dethroning public officials, including governors? It would not be a bad idea if the governors were restrained, for they have sometimes acted so impetuously and imperiously that you begin to wonder whether we are in a democracy. After all, the Nigerian president has also nearly always acted like a monarch. If governors must be restrained for democracy to survive, it is even more necessary for the president to be bound with new and strong fetters if we are not to be ruined.

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Telephone: Switch Board: 01-8168361. Editor Daily:01-8962807, Marketing: 01-8155547 . Abuja Office: Plot 5, Nanka Close AMAC Commercial Complex, Wuse Zone 3, Abuja. Tel: 07028105302. Port Harcourt Office: 12/14 Njemanze Street, Mile 1, Diobu, PH. 08023595790 WEBSITE: www.thenationonlineng.net E-mail: info@thenationonlineng.net ISSN: 115-5302 Editor: GBENGA OMOTOSO