The Nation Aug 20, 2013

Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

Police redeploy 14 commissioners NEWS Page 6

•Mbu retains post in Rivers

News Fed Govt, ASUU talks stalled Sports Moses back in Chelsea training Business 1000 MW coming from coal

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VOL. 8, NO. 2582 TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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•CHANGE: Supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) during the inauguration of the party in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital…yesterday. Story on page 8

PHOTO: DAYO ADEWUNMI

Lawmakers spent N1tr in eight years, says Ezekwesili

Leave me out of Rivers politics, says First Lady

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ORMER Minister of Education Mrs Oby Ezekwesili has again stirred a hornet’s nest. She expressed yesterday concern over the N1 trillion she alleged was spent by federal legislators in the

From Dele Anofi, Abuja

last eight years.

She said: “Since 2005, National Assembly members alone have been allocated N1trillion.

Besides, she stressed, a research conducted in Britain

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

identified Nigerian legislators as being the highest paid in the world.

“N699b went to banks as interest on borrowed loans in 2012 alone; also, 82 per cent of Nigeria’s budgetary cost Continued on page 2

IRST Lady Patience Jonathan yesterday said she is free to visit Rivers State.

She also accused the Rivers State government of failing to condole with her over the death of her mother, Madam Charity Oba Dame Patience arrived in her home state on Sunday for a three- day visit to prepare for the funeral of her mother.

Continued on page 2

•Mrs. Jonathan

Boko Haram: Uncertainty over Shekau’s fate JTF claims he may have been killed

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•Shekau

HERE was uncertainty yesterday over the fate of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau, following reports on his wellbeing.

The Joint Task Force (JTF) in Borno claimed in a statement that Shekau may have died in Amitchide (a border community in Cameroon) after an encounter with troops. But a highlyplaced source said the position of the

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

Defence Headquarters (DHQ) was that it was hasty to reach such a conclusion.

Besides, there was no independent confirmation of the claim, which Boko Haram neither confirmed nor denied.

It was learnt that the DHQ had been analysing all clues and documents the JTF presented to it as evidence that Shekau may have died.

We’re winning, says Army

The DHQ was said to have passed an interim verdict that the JTF’s factsheet was yet to “add up”.

According to sources, the DHQ asked the JTF to “exercise caution” in making any announcement until Shekau’s situation had been verified.

But the JTF, in a statement by its spokesman, Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, said intelligence report had shown that

Shekau, who was reportedly injured during a crossfire with troops in Sambisa Forest in Borno State on June 30, might have died in Amitchide between July 25 and August 3.

The statement said: “Intelligence report available to the Joint Task Force Operation RESTORE ORDER revealed that Abubakar Shekau, the most dread-

Continued on page 2

•TWO TEACHERS ABDUCTED IN EDO P56 •PHCN WORKERS GET N19B PAY P11

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

NEWS I won’t resign as PDP chair, says Tukur

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•President Goodluck Jonathan (second left), Vice President Namadi Sambo (left), Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Musa Mohammed Sada (second right)and Minister of Finance, Dr, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala during the Solid Minerals Sector workshop at the PHOTO AKIN OLADOKUN Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa in Abuja...yesterday

Lawmakers spent N1tr in eight years, says Ezekwesili Continued from page 1

goes for recurrent expenditure,” she said.

Mrs Ezekwesili spoke in Abuja while delivering a keynote address at a one-day dialogue session on the cost of governance in Nigeria jointly organised by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and the Federal Public Administration Reform Programme, United Kingdom (UK). She has been criticising the running of the economy, with Presidential aides challenging her to debate.

The former Minister said the long military rule might have had a negative impact on governance in the country.

She said one of the greatest mistakes of the Olusegun Obasanjo administration in which she served, was that Nigeria delved into democracy without necessarily doing away with the military mentality.

“There is a drawback to the military; one major mistake of the government under which I served was that we

simply got into democracy and did not spend reasonable time of removing the militaristic ethos and principles from the minds of every citizen, every leader and every institution,” she said.

Ezekwesili demanded proactive engagement of the government by Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and others and canvassed part-time legislation as a means of lowering the cost of governance.

She said part-time legislature would ensure that the right people got into governance, adding: “Things will improve through part-time legislations. It will also filter the number of people who will go into the National Assembly.

“You must have means of livelihood and you don’t need to depend on public funds. We need to learn more on the good and bad side of it. But we can’t rule out the possibility.

“There should be effective demand by civil societies for the Steve Oronsaye report.

You should demand for a

mini national transparent dialogue because it touches on the heart of good governance”, she said.

Mrs Ezekwesili, also advised the diversification of the economy, noting that over-dependence on oil is bound to drag the nation down in view of the alarming poverty level in the country despite its numerous natural and human resources.

She said: “While other countries are moving forward, Nigeria is entrapped in something called oil, where $1.6 billion is lost to theft annually.

“We must debate public policies as a nation because if we don’t debate public policies, we are going to make silly mistakes because we didn’t involve the stakeholders. So, policy debates must be encouraged.

The former minister went on: “The culture of personalising policy dialogues must stop. When you have a problem, you don’t leave the problem and begin to chase other matters. I feel sorry for

any person who is fairly okay in this nation and doesn’t care about the poor because there will be an implosion.

“Whatever treatment that is given to the poor and vulnerable in the society must matter to everybody because except we have social inclusion in the society, we stand the danger of implosion and it has happened in other countries which ignored the vulnerabilities.

“We have to arrest what will happen if we don’t address the level of poverty in Nigeria.”

Executive Director of CISLAC Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani criticised what he called “the 10-plane size of the presidential fleet which allegedly gulps N9.08billion annually for maintenance”.

He faulted what he called “the recent media report of our National Assembly members being the highest paid in the world and the size of the government cabinet at the executive level, including the retinue of superfluous aides and special assistants. “

EOPLES Democratic Party (PDP) chair Bamanga Tukur has said he is not under any pressure to resign his job.

In a statement he personally signed yesterday, the party chair said his relationship with President Goodluck Jonathan and other key party stakeholders remained cordial.

He attributed media reports indicating pressure on him to resign as the handiwork of those he described as “black legs” within and outside the ruling party.

Besides, he knocked the media for peddling inaccurate reports concerning him.

The chairman said: “I am aware of the antics of some black legs in and out of the PDP who have been funding negative media reports on activities of the party both at the state and national levels. Such antics will amount to naught because no sponsor of such reports would go far.”

According to him, national interest and cohesion are better promoted when the media report the truth at all times.

He expressed dismay that since he assumed office over a

From Gbade Ogunwale, Abuja

year ago, the media had made numerous failed predictions of his ouster, based on projections of those he referred to as enemies of the party.

Tukur is worried that a section of the media would persist in reporting falsehood about the situation in the ruling party.

This, he said, has exposed the inadequacies or lack of depth and professionalism of such media organisations.

The chairman said: “I had hardly settled down in office when some newspapers predicted that I would not last three months. Later, some newspapers wrote that I would resign in December.

“Another one said two days ago that I had been asked to resign. Well, I have spent more than one year in office and they still continue to write the same thing all over.

“I really do not understand whether Bamanga Tukur is really the media problem or the problem of faceless individuals who were manufacturing the miserable reports.

“It was more ludicrous that Continued on page 59

‘Leave me out of Rivers politics’ Continued from page 1

She reportedly snubbed River State Deputy Givernor Tele Ikuru, who was at the airport to receive her, opting to allow Wig=fe of Bayelsa State Governor Mrs Dickson to receive her.

She moved from the Port Harcourt Airport to her hometown Okrika, although there was a heavy presence of security at her home in old GRA, Port Harcourt.

But a statement by the Director of Information, Office of the First Lady, Mrs Ayo Adesugba yesterday said Dame Patience is always being portrayed as “an aggressor” the way her visits to Rivers State are reported.

She said: “It should be clear to all that for quite some time now, the First Lady has refrained from commenting on issues relating to the Rivers state crisis while these gladiators have continued to use every media at their

disposal to fan the embers of disharmony and hatred.”

She added: “By now, every right thinking person should know those genuinely interested in peace and those who claim to be democrat and committed to peace, but who have continued to heat up the polity.

“It is for this reason of the intrigue at play that the First Lady would want to be left out of Rivers state crisis, hence making her visit to the state as quiet as possible, so as not to give room for mischief makers to succeed in their plans.

“Ordinarily, the wife of the state governor receives the First Lady whenever she visits any state. That is why the wife of Bayelsa State governor travelled from Yenagoa to receive the First Lady.

“In addition, as a daughter of Rivers state, the First Lady is free to visit the state any time she desires. But we are forced to ask: why the presence of the Continued on page 59

Boko Haram: Uncertainty over Shekau’s fate Army‘ll win terrorism war, says Ihejirika

Continued from page 1

ed and wanted Boko Haram terrorists leader may have died.

“He died of gunshot wound received in an encounter with the JTF troops in one of their camps at Sambisa Forest on 30 June 2013.

“Shekau was mortally wounded in the encounter and was sneaked into Amitchide – a border community in Cameroon for treatment which he never recovered.

“It is greatly believed that Shekau might have died between 25 July to 3 August, 2013.

He was reported to have masterminded the kidnap of the seven French citizens and that of the elder statesman Alhaji (Dr) Shettima Ali Monguno, in addition to many murders of Islamic clerics in Northern Nigeria.

“He was also responsible for bombings of many places of worship and public buildings including Police and United Nations Headquarters in Abuja.

“The recent video released on 13 August, 2013 by the purported sect leader was dramatised by an imposter to hoodwink the sect members to continue with the terrorism and to deceive the undiscerning minds.

“The JTF wishes to appeal to the sect members to lay down their arms and embrace the Fed-

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HE army will win the war against insurgency, Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika assured Nigerians yesterday. He said the events of the last two weeks were enough lessons for security agents.

Gen. Ihejirika spoke at the Second Commanding Officers Workshop at the one Mechanised Division of the Army in Kaduna.

Gen. Ihejirika said: “Yes, you have had few cases of soldiers relating with the adversaries. But, as a unit commander worth its onions, you can turn such a soldier into an asset, a veritable asset, you can use such soldiers to track the enemy rather than the enemy having the advantage. This is why as a unit commander you must be alert always, because there are no excuses.”

Apparently referring to the recent attack on military formations in Borno State where some members of the Joint Task Force were killed, the Army chief said “now there is the challenge of counter terrorism and counter insurgency. eral Government’s offer for dialogue.”

But a top source, who spoke in confidence, said: “The DHQ has received documents or intelligence report from the JTF on the purported death of Shekau but all these are still being analysed.

“The circumstances presented

From Tony Akowe, Kaduna “If you go through the books, there are definitions of these two concepts; but one thing that is wrong with most definitions is that terrorism has to do with terror.

“When we are talking about insurgency, you are talking about aggression most likely with the use of fire arms. So, we are training you to fight terror and also insurgency. So, all the traditional methods of fighting aggression will still have to be brought to bear in fighting insurgency. It is only the environment that will modify your style.

“I have not seen much of tactics or even strategy in our actions so far. But I wish to recall what I said sometime when I gave out several principles. The first factor I identified as militating against our effort was lack of mode.

“So, as commanding officers, your first task is to get your officers and soldiers to realise that you are in an operational situation and once you get that right, things

have some gaps which we have to fill through further investigation.

“The DHQ believes the details made available have not added up. So, as far as we are concerned, it is still hasty to conclude that Shekau is dead.

“As a matter of fact, the JTF was advised to tarry a while in

will continue to fall in place. Otherwise, if you allow the situation to fall by in an operational area, and unit commanders, officers and others decided to stay in air conditioned houses, how safe will you feel?

“We do not have to learn the hard way, but if as a commanding officer you stroll out in the evening and in the night and look at your environment and look at how safe your troops are and put yourself in the position of the attacker, I am sure you will come up with several ideas of how to deal with the problems. So you must all get into the mode.

“What has happened in the past two weeks and months are enough lesson for everybody. We do not have to go back to the rudiments of knowing that what to do under fire situation is to craw and peel your heels.”

General Officer Commanding One Mechanised Division, Maj. Gen. Garba Wahab, said the workshop is one of the

making the announcement of Shekau’s death. But it was shocking to the DHQ.” Another source, who also pleaded not to be named because of what he called the sensitivity of the matter, said: “There are challenges in verifying the death of Shekau. For instance, if Shekau was shot

Continued on page 59

wounded on June 30 by troops, how come the DHQ was just being informed?

“How come none of the Boko Haram members in custody could account for Shekau’s death, unlike what they did on the death of Shekau’s deputy, Momodu Bama? Why is it impossible to send a decoy mission

•Ihejirika

to Amatchide in Cameroon to verify his death?

“The purported appearance of Shekau on August 13 made the claim of his death about 10 days Continued on page 59

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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‘How Fulani •From left: President, Dangote Group of Companies Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman, Forte Oil Femi Otedola and Chairman, Technical Committee on National Council on Privatisation Atedo Peterside at the Solid Minerals Sector Workshop at the Presidential Villa, Abuja...yesterday.

PHOTO: AKIN OLADOKUN.

The hearing in absentia of a memorandum by Pastor Joshua Daudu, District Head of Bassa in Nasarawa State, which accused the Fulani in Nasarawa State of using mercenaries to attack his people, leads to a drama at the sitting of the panel on Nasarawa killings, reports SANNI ONOGU, LAFIA

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•Executive Director, Technical, Lagos State Pension Commission Mrs. Folashade Onanuga (left), Chief Executive Officer, Stanbic (IBTC) Pension Managers Limited Mr. Demola Sogunle, Principal Insurance Officer, National Open University of Nigeria Mr. Paul Awoyomi Ebony and Executive Director Stanbic (IBTC) Pension Managers Limited Mr. Steve Elusope at the opening of the Stanbic (IBTC) Pension Mobile Office in Alausa, Lagos...yesterday.

PHOTO: BOLA OMILABU

•Commercial Operations and Marketing Leader, General Electric (Oil & Gas) Ms Tanya Spencer (left); Managing Director, General Electric( Health Care) Ms Pamela Hall (second right); and Executive Director, Women in Technology Empowerment Centre Ore Somolu (right) presenting laptop to a pupil, Ukachi Oluchi, at the GE Girls in Technology Day in Lagos...at the weekend.

•Director, Consumer Segment, Etisalat Nigeria Oluwole Rawa (left) and Head, Events & Sponsorship Ms Modupe Thani (right) presenting a trophy to the winner of the Etisalat/FC Barcelona U-17 Schools' Cup, Keke Senior High School, at the grand finale of Etisalat/FC Barcelona U-17 Schools' Cup at the Campos Square Stadium in Obalende, Lagos... at the weekend.

HERE was drama yesterday at the sitting of the panel probing the killing of some security operatives in Nasarawa State some months ago. The panel heard two of the memoranda submitted to it in the absence of the petitioners.

The memoranda were filed by the District Head of Bassa-Zarangi in Kokona Local Government Area, Mr. Joshua Daudu and the Eggon Cultural Development Association (ECDA).

ECDA and several other petitioners had withdrawn from the proceedings of the panel.

They had cited alleged procedural irregularities, bias and lack of confidence in the Commission for the withdrawal.

Other petitioners who withdrew from the panel include: John Allu (Ward Head of Eggon Ruttu) and Peter Galilee (Ezhim Eggon Elder), Burum- Burum of Eggon Communities in Doma Local Government Area, and Danladi Jatau, member representing Kokona West Constituency in the Nasarawa State House of Assembly.

Others include petitions from Alhaji Musa Darinya (Ubangarin Kwandare), Alhaji Aliyu Maigida (Makungijin Kwandare), Alhaji Iliyasu Galadima (Wanbai Kwandare), Mallam Abdullahi Maigida (Chairman), Mallam Jamilu Galadima and Mallam Aliyu Oboshi on behalf of Kwandare Community.

But the commission struck out the notices when their lawyers failed to move their notice of withdrawal.

The Chairman, Justice Joseph Gbadeyan, said the commission would take the memoranda with or without their presenters. Neither the authors nor the counsel of the two memoranda slated for yesterday were available when they were called.

Following this development, Justice Gbadeyan called on the Commission’s Secretary, Abubakar Sadiq Ishaq, who explained that all efforts to serve the lawyers with the hearing notice failed.

He said the commission decided to publish the notices in two national dailies and made public announcement through the Nasarawa Broadcasting Service (NBS) and Precious FM Radio.

He tendered copies of the newspaper publications and the radio and television scripts before the Commission as proofs.

Lawyers present did not object to copies of the publications being admitted in evidence by the Commission.

At this point, the Commission’s counsel, Funso Lawal, sought to know if it would take the memoranda as presented since their authors were not present.

Lawal said: “In the light of the ab-

•Secretary, Miyetti Allah Kautal Houre Social Cultural Association Mohammed Hussein testifying before the commission.

sence of the presenter and counsel for memorandum 8, I don’t know whether we should take the memo as having been read or ask the Secretary to read it?”

Two lawyers, Yakubu Hassan, representing the Hausa Community of Bassa District in Agwada Development Area of Kokona Local Government Area and Abubakar Dogara, who appeared for Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore Socio-Cultural Association, Nasarawa State chapter, objected to the presentation of the memoranda in absentia by the Commission.

Hassan said: “I have a contrary position. The memo that has been filed before the Commission is a different thing from presenting a memo. Even in the courts, if a process is filed, it is a limited time and when the parties fail to come it is abandoned. That is my observation.

Since they are not here to present it, it should be abandoned.

“You cannot present the memo because the people (presenters) are not here. Who do we cross-examine after it is taken?”

Responding to Hassan’s observations, Justice Gbadeyan said: “That will be a question for address?”

On his part, Dogara also objected to the reading of the memo saying: “What will happen if the presenter comes another day to say he wants to present the memo?”

But, Justice Gbadeyan replied: “We will finish with the memo today. It has to be read here because the whole world wants to know what is in that memo.”

He ordered the Commission’s secretary to read the memo, which blamed the crisis and the attendant killings and destruction of property on Fulani herdsmen in the area.

The memorandum reads: “The peace we used to enjoy in Bassa District ceased to exist from the 8th of December 2012 when some group of Fulani herdsmen attacked some Eggon farmers in the farm during rice harvest.

“The facts are that, while the Eggon farmers were harvesting their rice around Angwan Arume, some Fulani herdsmen visited the farm with their cattle for grazing. At that point, there was disagreement when the youths protested against the Fulanis for allowing their cattle to graze on their harvested rice.

“The disagreement led to the death of two Eggon youths who could not survive the deep machete cut from the hands of the herdsmen. When I heard the news of the attack, I immediately rushed to see for myself as I witnessed the body of one identified as Obgunri Emmanuel, who died at the spot of the attack and Philibus Avre, who died on his way to the hospital after my humble self and the officer in charge of the Police Force were rushing him to the hospital.

“The incident that led to the death of two Eggon farmers witnessed a serious reaction from the deceased relations and other Eggon youths who were bent on reprisal attack

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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NEWS

mercenaries attacked my people’

•Justice Gbadeyan (left) and members of the commission...yesterday.

•Some Fulani victims at the hearing in Lafia.

which took my intervention and that of the officer in charge of the Bassa Police Outpost, the Eggon elders on ground and the prompt response by Hon. Danladi Jatau, the Hon. Member representing my constituency to restore peace on that day.

“On the need to preach peace, I summoned a meeting of chiefs and ethnic leaders in my domain and pleaded for calm as the incident gave us restless moment.

“Within a week, I got another call reporting the attack on an Eggon woman also in her rice farm by Fulani herdsmen which I made effort to resolve.

“Sometimes around the 8th of January, 2013 at about 2am, I received a distress call and my house was opened to attend to complaint by some Eggon led by one Gideon Affiku (the Chief of Sakwato) within my district that four Eggon youths were shot to death in their neigbourhood by unknown gunmen suspected to be Fulanis.

“That at the time of the report, two of the youths were already dead while others bled seriously. I immediately called on Mr. D.S. Yamu (Jarmen Bassa) on phone to help speak with the youths and to also intervene which he did together with our Hon. Member in the House of Assembly, Hon. Danladi Jatau.

“As if that was not enough, after

PHOTOS: ABAYOMI FAYESE

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I know as a fact that the persons responsible for the unrest in my locality and the immediate cause were the Fulani herdsmen, and the escalation led to the invasion of my community by mercenaries who I find difficult to identify. Even eyewitnesses confirmed to me that the invaders spoke Fulani and Hausa languages and also that other faces were unfamiliar unlike the Fulani of Bassa the return of peace, what my domain started experiencing was mutual suspicion among the Hausa, Fulani and the Eggon people to the extent that, it became a daily rumour that there was a plot to invade Eggon communities.

“Following the death of another Eggon youth from an attack by the Fulani, I , immediately, on receiving the information called on Alhaji Buli who is the Ardo of my district who denied knowledge of what hap-

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pened. According to him, his men were not responsible.

“While the DPO of Garaku division in company of others and I were searching for the dead bodies of the two Eggon boys, attacked on the 9th of January, 2013, an Eggon boy ran to me and said ‘Zaki, please tell your people to go back because I saw some Fulani and other mercenaries carrying sophisticated weapons and ammunition’.

“He said he only managed to es-

cape from his farm on sighting them.

That the battle ready men were heading towards the town in an organised movement but I took the information with less seriousness.

“But within 30 minutes of the information, I heard sporadic gun shots and smoke gushing out of roofs of houses in the town. It was then, we had to run for our dear lives.”

The memo added that the invasion started around Ruwan Doma/Lawe settlement of the Eggon people and later extended to Bassa, Yelwa, Ruwan Doma Primary School, Ruwan Doma Wasku, Kurinin Kura, Gidon Dogo, Angwan Ajagena, Jigawa A&B, Uke, Angwan Waje, Angwan Awolo, Akure, Sakwato and Taba Usman.

Other villages affected by the crisis include Aforanmi, Alagani, Agbaruma, Katako, Angwan Anduwa, Angwan Yerima, Atteshini Tiv, Atteshini Mada, Angwan Dariya, Yelwa Wata, Angwan Ekon and Robo.

“The number of lives lost and properties destroyed are so much and worrisome as only years of divine intervention may heal the huge losses of the areas affected,” the memorandum said.

On those responsible/sponsors of the mayhem, Daudu blamed it on Fulani and their mercenaries.

He said: “I know as a fact that the

persons responsible for the unrest in my locality and the immediate cause were the Fulani herdsmen, and the escalation led to the invasion of my community by mercenaries who I find difficult to identify.

“Even eyewitnesses confirmed to me that the invaders spoke Fulani and Hausa languages and also that other faces were unfamiliar unlike the Fulani of Bassa.

“The attack left over a thousand houses razed down by fire, several motorcycles destroyed, foodstuffs burnt to ashes and a hundred lives lost due to the crisis.

“The situation also left many inhabitants of my village homeless as they have taken refuge outside my village with little or no hope of returning due to fear and lack of shelter and adequate security yet to be provided by the authorities.”

Hassan, who is representing the Hausa community of Bassa at the panel, said the district head violated the oath of office he took to lead the people of Bassa with fairness, irrespective of ethnicity, adding that his memo sounded like he was rather a tribal leader, than a community head of the people of Bassa comprising different ethnic groups.

He added that the pastor's decision to join other Eggon interests to withdraw from the commission gave him up as a tribal jingoist.

Why Nigeria isn’t winning the polio battle Last night, UK’s Channel 4 aired a documentary ‘Ade Adepitan: Journey of My Lifetime’. The documentary by the British Paralympic medallist and TV presenter is the story of why Nigeria has not won the battle against polio, write The Guardian of UK

A

DE Adepitan, the British Paralympic medallist and TV presenter whose Channel 4 documentary about polio in Nigeria airs on Monday night, says he is shocked it is still an issue after he contracted the disease there 37 years ago.

“It is the only country in Africa where it is still endemic,” he said. “Somalia, Sudan have been able to make progress despite all their problems.”

Nigeria is one of only three countries, alongside Afghanistan and Pakistan, that have failed to eradicate polio. Last year, 122 cases of the virus were reported, and there have been 40 confirmed cases this year.

Most polio cases in Nigeria are found in the predominantly Muslim north. In 2011, more than 95% of all cases occurred in Borno, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara, the eight northern states where the disease is endemic.

Nigeria poses a significant risk to surrounding countries: in 2011, polio viruses originating from Nigeria were detected in five countries in west and central Africa. Despite dozens of vaccination campaigns over the years, only 65% of children in Borno, Kano, Sokoto and Yobe states have received four or more oral polio vaccine doses.

Vaccination campaigns have been dogged by rumours and conspiracy

theories. In February, nine women who were vaccinating children against polio were shot dead in Kano, the biggest city in the north, apparently by Islamist militants, who claim the vaccines are part of a western plot to sterilise girls and wipe out the Muslim population.

For Adepitan and his team, who were scheduled to film in the area at the time, it was a close escape. “It was crazy and quite scary,” he said. “The plan was to film coinciding with a vaccination campaign, but that was postponed after an assassination attempt on the emir of Kano, so we came back pretty upset, and suddenly heard this news. We would have been there, possibly interviewing. It was horrific.”

Public sentiment against vaccination led to the suspension of campaigns in Kano in 2003, leading to a high number of children contracting the disease. Suspicions about vaccination programmes go back even further. In 1996, Pfizer, the US pharmaceuticals firm, used an experimental drug during a meningitis outbreak in Kano; 11 children died and dozens became disabled as a result.

For Adepitan, lack of knowledge makes the local population receptive to the rumour-mongers. “When you look at the situation in the north, there

‘

There is also a mistrust of ‘white medicine’ … people who are in remote communities rarely have any contact with outsiders. All of a sudden, people come with vaccines, sometimes whites. They’re going to be suspicious, thinking they’ve never come to help us before •Adepitan

are high numbers of people who are illiterate. That doesn’t help,” he said.

“If somebody tells them something, they can’t go on the internet to check whether it’s just hearsay.

“There is also a mistrust of ‘white medicine’ … people who are in re-

‘

mote communities rarely have any contact with outsiders. All of a sudden, people come with vaccines, sometimes whites. They’re going to be suspicious, thinking ‘They’ve never come to help us before’.”

Adepitan says the authorities have learned from their mistakes and now

enlist authority figures such as tribal leaders and imams to support vaccination campaigns. “Unless you get them on board, it’s not going to work,” said Adepitan. “That’s what (the authorities) are trying to do.

“The Sultan of Sokoto (another state struggling with non-compliance) got his grandchildren vaccinated in the public square. It is playing a big part in breaking down myths. They are trying to do more of this.”

Adepitan was three when his parents brought him to the UK from Nigeria. He contracted polio at 15 months, causing him to lose the use of his left leg, and his parents thought he would be better off in Britain. Returning to Nigeria to make the film reinforced his sense of how hard life can be there for people with disabilities.

“It’s not because people don’t care,” said Adepitan. “Life is hard if you’re able-bodied so, if you’re disabled, it’s another issue. Unfortunately, there is no access to transport, no national health system. In the North, if you have disabilities, opportunities are absolutely minimal. Your parents can’t afford to take you to school, (and) there are no wheelchairs – people are either crawling on the floor or on makeshift boards with wheels.”

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THE NATION TUESDAY AUGUST 20, 2013

NEWS Police redeploy 14 commissioners

Gowon: Nigeria will survive beyond 2015 with prayers

From Gbade Ogunwale, Assistant Editor, Abuja

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HE Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Mohammed Abubakar has ordered the redeployment of 14 Commissioners of Police (CPs) to various commands and formations across the nation.

The affected officers and their new postings are: Lawal Tanko (CP Borno); Ibrahim Ahmed (CP Zamfara); Hilary Okpara (CP Bayelsa); Maigari Dikko (CP Ebonyi); Adebayo Ajileye (‘E’ Dept. FHQ); Adeola Adeniji (Border Patrol); and Waheed Salau (CP Airport).

Also affected are: Marcus Danladi, Commandant, Police College, Maiduguri; Tonye Ebititibuwa, CP, Training, FHQ; Hyancinth Dadala, Deputy Commandant, POLAC, Kano; Lawal Shehu, Admin., Force Headquarters (FHQ); Ibrahim Adamu, Deputy Force Secretary; Abdul Danwawu, CP, Armament; and Salisu Abdullahi, CP, ‘X’ Squad.

Despite the National Assembly’s directive that Rivers State Police Commissioner Mbu Joseph Mbu be moved, his name was not on the list of the redeployed police chiefs.

A statement yesterday by the Deputy Force spokesman, Frank Mba, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), said the postings take immediate effect.

The statement urged the affected officers to step up the fight against criminality in their new commands and formations.

“They are enjoined to leverage on the cordial relationship among sister security agencies in their beats, to ensure that criminal activities are reduced.

“They have also been charged to ensure that officers and men under their supervision are mindful of the rights of the citizenry, while cultivating the trust and confidence of the public in the discharge of their statutory responsibilities,” the statement added.

Also, six Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs) and 13 Commissioners of Police (CPs) from various police commands and formations are to proceed on leadership and strategic management courses for senior officers.

They are to report at the Centre for Management Development, Shangisha, Lagos, for the course, which began on August 19 and ends on Friday.

ORMER Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, has faulted the prediction by the United States (U.S) that the country would break up by 2015.

He said a similar prediction by France was already failing.

The former military leader prayed that God would remove the leaders with evil intentions against the nation.

Gowon spoke yesterday during his official visit to Gethsemane Prayer Ministries Cathedral, Eleyele, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. The church was presided over by the National Coordinator, Nigeria Prays, Rev. Moses Aransiola.

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•Ex-Head of State accuses politicians of over-ambition From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

The former Head of State urged Nigerians to unite and intercede on the crises rocking this nation.

He said: “God will uproot all the leaders who have evil intentions against this country. Nigerians need to desist from creating problems which they cannot solve and stop blaming God for their shortcomings.

“We had a series of crises in the past and if Nigerians can pray well, sooner or later this country will be free from its challenges. God has heard our cries and will

surely answer.

“I don’t believe that the prediction by America, that Nigeria will break up before 2015, will happen. France said the same thing in the past that we would break up before 2014 but we still stand as one.

“Every Nigerian should stand against the claims. If everyone of us believes that it will not happen, then it will not. I believe God will not allow such to happen.

Nigeria Prays is really praying against such; that’s the reason this group came into existence.

“Nigerians at home and

abroad are very concerned about the crisis that is rocking this nation. We believe that only prayers can solve it. If you love Nigeria the way I love Nigeria, and if I love Nigeria the way you do and we have faith, then we shall overcome.”

On political activities towards the 2015 elections, Gowon said: “The politicians are over-ambitious.

They should be ignored.

They spell doom for the nation. Politicians should not be selfish but protect the interest of the people to ensure equitable development of the country.”

Pharmacists seek state of emergency in drug distribution From Oseheye Okwuofu, Ibadan

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EMBERS of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) yesterday urged on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in the drug distribution system.

The emergency declaration, the body said, would curb the proliferation of illegal pharmaceutical and healthcare premises, which are the conduits for the widespread circulation of sub-standard, fake, counterfeit and spurious medicines.

The Oyo State PSN Chairman, Mr. Olalekan Fashesin, addressed reporters spoke in Ibadan, the state capital, ahead of the activities for this year’s Pharmaceutical Week, which begins today in the city.

To ensure access to standard, quality and efficacious medicines, Fashesin said the government needs to provide the infrastructure which would aid economic and industrial growth to create jobs for the nation’s teeming youths.

He noted that relevant agencies should enforce laws, rules and regulations of good manufacturing practice, as well as sanitise the nation’s chaotic drug distribution system.

The PSN chairman listed some areas in Ibadan, which he described as merchants of death, with several illegal drug stores that have neither been registered nor authorised by the regulatory agencies to distribute drugs.

In Nigeria today, he stressed, the only body saddled with distribution of drugs and pharmacy practice is the PCN. Fashesin regretted that several people chosen to distribute drugs unregulated.

NUJ faults delisting of national minimum wage from Exclusive List

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HE B-Zone of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) yesterday said the proposed delisting of the National Minimum Wage from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent List is a step by the National Assembly to impoverish Nigerian workers.

The union noted that the proposal, being spearheaded by the Senate, would make negotiation of salary difficulty for industrial unions.

A statement by the union’s Zonal President, Dele Atunbi, said the listing of the minimum wage on the Exclusive Legislative List was to save the workers from shylocks who might want to take advantage of the free economy to enslave them.

The union urged the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) to protect the interest of the nation’s

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

workers in the private or public sector.

It reminded the leadership of the two trade unions of the dangers inherent in allowing the proposal to scale through.

The NUJ added that the development would make negotiation of salary and allowances hectic for workers.

The union wondered why the leadership of both trade centres was not invited to the public forum organised by the Senate, where the issue was discussed.

It stressed that the deliberate omission of the labour movement from important public hearings on the matter was to impoverish the workers.

The union urged the National Assembly to drop the anti-labour legislation in the interest of workers, who it called the catalysts of development.

•From Left: General Coordinator, Atlasjet Airlines, Mr Ercument Fitiz; Executive Director, Atlasjet Airlines, Mr Serken Yazicioglu; Primate of The Church Of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh and Executive Secretary, Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission, Mr John Kennedy Opara, during the signing of air charter agreement with Atlasjet Nigeria Limited for the 2013 pilgrimage

Ribadu urges Fed Govt to secure Nigerians’ life, property F ORMER Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has urged the Federal Government to ensure the safety of the life and property in Nigeria.

He also said peace in Plateau State is crucial to the survival of the country.

Ribadu said Plateau State could be described as a miniature Nigeria.

The former EFCC chairman spoke yesterday at an inter-communal dialogue and conflict mediation among various communities of Anaguta, Afizere, Berom, Hausa and Fulani.

The parley, which was held at Crest Hotel in Jos, the state capital, was organised by the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogues.

Ribadu said: “Plateau State is too important a place to be allowed to be consumed

From Yusufu Aminu Idegu, Jos

by ethnic violence and hatred. Its significance as a socio-cultural melting pot of Nigeria made it a place to be for all. We remember a Jos, which was a haven for all; a place in which ethnic and religious identities were only considered as individual destinies and choices, rather than reasons to hate.

“It was, therefore, with pain that the importance of the city, in which tolerance once held the people together, was shattered, often in avoidable circumstances.

The painful reminder from these years of distrust and ethnic tensions are broken fences of friendships and once cosy relationships. We see communities divided,

with friends turning against their friends in the orgy of blood-letting.

“No people can live all by themselves, and history has proved that no people can wipe another from the face of the earth. There is heavenly wisdom in our diversity.

“The solution, therefore, is for all well-meaning Nigerians to come together and rid this beautiful and accommodating state of that virus of hatred and return Plateau to that once-upon-a-time glory of a popular tourist attraction in Nigeria, a city renowned for its amiable weather, serenity, openmindedness and urban inhabitants.”

The former police officer, who was the chairman of the

occasion, said he dropped his political ambition and toured parts of the country in the search for lasting peace.

He hailed Governor Jonah Jang for his exemplary leadership and genuine commitment to peace in the state.

Jang, who was represent by the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Paul Wai, said: “The government has lived up to its responsibility in guaranteeing the security and welfare of residents of the state. This is on our 10-Point Agenda. We have achieved this through our regular Security Council meetings comprising all security chiefs in the state and the Special Task Force (STF) Commander as well as the establishment of Operation Rainbow, which is community-based.

Agency decries Asian firm’s introduction of ‘strange’ fish

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HE Federal Department of Fisheries (FDF) has decried the plan by an Asian firm to illegally introduce what it called “a strange fish specie” into the country.

Mrs Foluke Areola, a director of Fisheries at FDF, spoke in Lagos with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

She alleged that the firm

had been sending e-mails to fish farmers, informing them of its plan to distribute fingerlings of a specie called “Mekong giant catfish” to Nigerian fish farmers.

“The effect of allowing this specie of unknown origin will be detrimental to the ecosystem, in terms of bio-diversity of our waters and the commercially cultured species in the country.

“Obviously, this is not being planned to go through due process under an import licence and quarantine procedure of the movement of live fish among countries,” Mrs Areola said.

She added that the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) should be put on the alert to frustrate any attempt to import live fish

into the country.

Mrs Areola urged stakeholders not to buy the imported catfish and to look out for those who are trying to import the fish.

“We must all police the importation of this giant fish and report accordingly to ensure that they do not succeed.

“Farmers are also warned not to attempt to culture the catfish,” she said.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

7

NEWS

Shema, Kolade urge accountable leadership K

ATSINA State Governor Dr. Ibrahim Shema has said government must ensure transparent management of resources, to maintain peace and ensure economic growth.

Speaking yesterday through the Head of Service, Alhaji Aliyu Mohammed, at a lecture organised by the Nigeria Leadership Initiative (NLI) in Lagos, Governor Shema said his administration operates an open-door policy to clear doubts in people’s minds.

The governor, who spoke on the topic: “The Challenges of Political Leadership,” said government’s agencies, which complement, sustain and support the maintenance

By Musa Odoshimokhe

of peace in the state, have imbibed the culture of tolerance and accorded the indigenes their rights under the rule of law.

He went on: “This has created an atmosphere of ambience, giving a platform for religious leaders to meet government and its officials on issues of mutual concern.”

Governor Shema said his administration had struck a balance among the arms of government. “As the chief law officer of the state, government, as represented by the executive arm, has institutionalised the independence of these arms in the administration of their finance, among others,” he said.

The Chairman of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P), Dr. Christopher Kolade, said leadership was about sacrifice.

He said leaders should offer selfless service in whatever capacity they found themselves.

Dr. Kolade said Katsina today stands out among the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)controlled states because of its pro-people’s policies and accountability.

He said the plan by lawmakers in the National Assembly to put themselves on pension was self-serving, adding that it would have a negative effect in the long run.

“We have allowed politics

INEC opens citizens’ contact centre

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•Shema

to obscure governance. Members of the National Assembly, who want to put themselves on pension, should think of the cost and effect on the economy. If you accept it this way, not only will you suffer for it, but your children will also face the consequence. We must make sacrifices to return our country to the path of glory,” Dr. Kolade said.

HE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has opened its Citizens’ Contact Centre (CCC).

The centre is a facility that will allow the public access to the commission with enquiries and exchange of information.

The centre is designed to enhance transparency and public participation in the electoral process.

Mr. Kayode Idowu, the chief press secretary to the Chairman of the electoral body, Prof. Attahiru Jega, in a statement in Abuja yesterday, said: “The CCC is a Situation Room that operates daily.”

He, however, noted that “at this early stage, it will open between 9am and 5pm on weekdays. Later, the centre will scale up to round-theclock (i.e. a 24-hour) service

From Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

every day.”

As a daily Situation Room, the centre offers the public an opportunity for getting real time responses to enquiries, incident-reports, complaints and queries about any aspect of the electoral process. In the immediate instance, the centre is available for use by the public during the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) that began in Anambra State yesterday.

The centre can be accessed through telephone lines, Facebook, Twitter and INEC’s website.

Phone numbers are: 07098115257, 07098117563 and 07098110916 Website address: inecnigeria.org Facebook page: www.facebook.com/inecnigeria (INEC Nigeria) Twitter handle: @inecnigeria

Fayemi, Aregbesola to unveil Nigeria is Negotiable

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•From left: Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Prof. Modupe Adelabu; Minister of Land and Urban Development, Ama Pepple; and Minister of State, Defence, Erelu Olusola Obada, during a Solid Minerals Sector Workshop, at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

PHOTO: AKIN OLADOKUN

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Whereabouts of 42 Boko Haram suspects unknown

HREE weeks after the Nigerian Army paraded 42 suspected Boko Haram members in Lagos, their whereabouts has been shrouded in secrecy.

Although speculations are rife that the suspects have been moved out of Lagos, a top security personnel told The Nation that they are still in Lagos.

It was learnt that security agencies are not ready to reveal the whereabouts of the suspects.

Our source said the network of the sect is massive, adding that “in times like this, it is better to keep silent on

By Precious Igbonwelundu

where the suspected terrorists are.”

The suspects were arrested in Ogun and Lagos states by the 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, following intelligence reports that the state of emergency in three northern states had dislodged the sect’s members, who were relocating to regroup in other states.

It was learnt that those who had resettled in the Southwest had been strategically deployed to launch attacks on

infrastructure and public places to prove to Nigerians that they have not been defeated.

At the parade of the 42 young men, some of whom confessed to taking part in some attacks in Borno State, 81 Division’s General Officer Commanding (GOC), Gen. Obi Umahi, said they were arrested between July 12 and 23.

He said a joint raid by security agencies conducted at the Ibafo trailer and Ileke new trailer parks in Ogun State; Aviation quarters at Ma-

Afenifere decries govt’s neglect of education

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FENIFERE Renewal Group (ARG) has decried Federal Government’s neglect of public education.

The group, in a statement yesterday by its Media/Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kunle Famoriyo, said: “We of the Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG) note that although the education sector got the highest percentage of budgetary allocation in the 2013 Appropriation Act, we are yet to see this allocation translate into tangible results in our federal tertiary institutions. “Rather, the strike

embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has entered the second month, with no end in sight.

“The sector got N367.375 billion for recurrent expenditure and N60.207 billion for capital expenditure. This translates to N427.582 billion, representing 7.9 per cent of the total budget.

“In 2012, the sector got N397.378 billion, representing 8.5 per cent of the total budget.

“Despite these high allocations, the sector has seen no improvement, an evidence of government’s insensitivity to

the plight of the people and its ineptitude in managing the nation’s resources for the greater good.

“We are also witnessing misplaced priority in this sector. Between 2010 and now, the Federal Government has spent about N32.8 billion on printing primary school textbooks and procuring library resources, a project that has borne no commensurate impact, according to an investigative article, headlined: “Many Problems of Fed Govt’s Textbook Project,” published in The Nation recently.”

foluku, Oshodi; Ketu/Mile 2 Motor Park; Orile trailer park; Lekki new extension and Bar beach, led to the arrest of the suspects.

Police spokesperson Ngozi Braide said she had no idea where the suspects were.

Said she: “I don’t know if they are in our custody and I have no idea where they are.

I will confirm and get back to you.”

Army’s spokesman Col Kingsley Umoh also said he did not know the whereabouts of the suspects.

He added: “I cannot respond to you unless I get the appropriate information. The intelligence officer is on an assignment out of the office and is not picking his calls.”

The GOC was also contacted, but he said: “I will rather keep quiet on where the suspects are. They are safe and healthy and investigations are still ongoing to smash the Boko Haram network.

“We are not hiding information from the public. We believe it is in the best interest of the country for their whereabouts not to be known.”

The Director, State Security Service (SSS), Ben Olayi, confirmed that the suspects were not in their custody yet, noting that they could also be handed over to the police.

OVERNORS Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State and Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State are billed to unveil a new book, Nigeria is Negotiable, by journalist and author, Chido Onumah.

The public presentation of the book holds in Abuja today.

Nigeria is Negotiable, a collection of informed journalistic essays and commentaries, reminds readers of the political injustices and cruelties of an era.

“It calls for discussions on the way forward,” says Dr. Anthony Akinola.

Governor Fayemi said: “In Nigeria is Negotiable, Onumah re-maps the contours of the remarkable events and processes that have brought our country to this crucial juncture in its history, and particularly the crisis spawned by the June 12, 1993 election and its aftermath, which has – to a great extent – careerred the country to this vortex of possibilities in its transition towards a more wholesome cultural and political expression.

“With the keen eye of a journalist and the analytical prowess of a social anthropologist, Onumah shapes his subject through the informed insights of an observer-participantstakeholder.”

The 494-page book, published by the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL), is the author’s second book. The first, Time to Reclaim Nigeria, was published in December 2011.

Governor Aregbesola said: “Onumah’s collection strikes at the heart of the endemic crises bedevilling Nigeria. The refusal to design and accept the terms under which multicultural and multi-ethnic people in a country, such as ours, should co-habit, has held us down in a quagmire resulting in monumental and perennial chaos and political instability that inhibit development and good governance.

“The time to embrace these terms and conditions has come, so that we can bail ourselves and our country out of an unwarranted and an unpalatable situation.”

‘Aba has highest number of employment’ BA has the highest

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number of employment in Nigeria because of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) located in the area.

The President, Nigeria American Chamber of Commerce, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, spoke during an interview with our reporter.

Ohuabunwa, who is also the president, Abia ThinkTank Group, said Aba remains an economic and industrial hub in the Southeast and Nigeria with the potential yearning for exploitation.

Speaking on the forthcoming Aba Summit slated for November 20 and 21, he said Aba has a high concentration of SMEs, which is capable of creating more jobs for the youth.

He added that the area needs to be innovatively-reinvigorated to sustain, deepen and expand its competitive edge in economic and business dimensions.

Ohuabunwa said there is

need for the state and federal governments to work for the creation of a veritable investment window to attract investors to the state for its infrastructural, industrial and commercial transformation to a level that would set Abia State apart from others.

He said the Abia ThinkTank seeks to use the Aba Summit as a springboard to galvanise the energies and the resources of stakeholders to engage in brainstorming to articulate a marshall plan for the economic and industrial rejuvenation of Aba as a centre of entreprenuerial and indigenous technology.

“We will seek the participation of government and its agencies, multilateral agencies, donor institutions and development partners, such as the World Bank, UNIDO, UNDP, USAID, DFID, World Habitat and non-government organisations, such as Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Ford Foundation,’’ Ohunabunwa said.

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THE NATION TUESDAY AUGUST 20, 2013

NEWS

Man dies in Ibadan hotel

Funeral for Fajuyi’s wife From Sulaiman Salawudeen, Ado-Ekiti

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HE remains of Madam Eunice Ayodele Fajuyi, wife of the late Military Governor of the old Western Region, Col. Adekunle Fajuyi, will be buried on Saturday.

Madam Fajuyi died on July 12 at 84.

According to a programme of activities released by the Ekiti State Government, the funeral rites will start on Friday with a lying-in-state at her home on Fajuyi Lane in AdoEkiti, the state capital, by 10am.

This will be followed with a service of songs at 5pm on the same day at the Adekunle Fajuyi Memorial Park in AdoEkiti.

A funeral mass will hold on Saturday at St. Patrick’s Catholic Cathedral, Ado-Ekiti, by 10am.

Reception follows immediately at the Trade Fair Complex Grounds on Iyin Road, Ado-Ekiti.

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BUSINESSMAN, Lukman Olayiwola, yesterday died in a hotel in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, while spending the night with his mistress.

It was learnt that the late Olayiwola (45) checked into the hotel, situated at Alakia around 9pm, on Sunday with his mistress, simply identified as Bidemi (35).

They arrived at the hotel in a cab, which picked them

From Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

up from Iwo Road.

It was learnt that the late Olayiwola suddenly started vomiting around 2am.

Sources said Bidemi attended to him and they went back to bed when he became stable.

It was gathered that around 5am, Olayiwola began to gasp for breath and died later.

Bidemi was said to have

raised the alarm and the hotel workers reported the incident to the police.

Olayiwola’s body has been deposited at the morgue of the University College Hospital (UCH).

Police spokesperson Olabisi Ilobanafor confirmed the incident. She said the manager of the hotel reported the case around 10am.

Ilobanafor said Bidemi was arrested for interrogation.

She said: “The suspect explained that the deceased was based in Lagos and she is based in Ibadan. She said they agreed to meet at Iwo Road around 8pm, from where they were conveyed to the hotel.”

Ilobanafor, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said the deceased’s body has been taken to UCH for autopsy. She said Bidemi is still being grilled for useful information.

Fashola signs development centre bill

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AGOS State Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) yesterday signed a bill re-establishing the Lagos State Public Service Staff Development Centre (PSSDC).

Stating his administration’s commitment to manpower development, Fashola said a well-trained and motivated civil service was vital to the realisation of the government’s developmental goals.

He said the PSSDC law was to restructure the centre and strengthen its capacity to offer qualitative training to workers.

Fashola said: “This law reflects the value we place on human capital development. It reinforces our team work ethos that only a team wins and not individuals.

“It reinforces our belief in an action government and strong institutions managed by workers with the right training and attitude. So we expect that a restructured and reenergised staff development centre will take us nearer those goals. This is our own school of governance.”

Ondo PDP leaders join APC

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OME Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftains in Ondo State yesterday joined the All Progressives Party (APC).

They are former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Isaac Kekemeke; Mr. Tunde Alake; Mr. Yejide Ogundipe; Prof. Olu Aboluwoye; Mr. Ojajuni Philip; Mr. Olatunde Femi and Mr. Ifeanyi Odili.

In a statement jointly signed by them, they said there was need for progressive-minded politicians to join the APC to salvage the nation from the PDP. They said they dumped the party because of the “collapse of its social and political force”, adding that the PDP can no longer advance the country’s interest.

The statement reads: “We have consistently spoken the truth to the powers that be in the PDP with little or no success. We have a difficult but yet clear choice to make. It is that we prefer to pitch our tent with the protagonists of a better, safer and less corrupt Nigeria, with a more responsive leadership.

“APC may not be a perfect option, but it presents the only viable national option for any one daring not to be indifferent in these unusual times in our country’s politics.

“As progressive founding members of the PDP, we and our supporters have chosen to join other progressives in the APC. We have chosen to be on the positive side of history and play our little roles in the historic struggle to steer our country off the course of the stupor it is currently headed.”

The former PDP leaders urged their supporters across the 18 local government areas to dump the PDP and join the APC in their various wards.

They said: “Ours is a change to the party of hope for Nigerians. It is a struggle for life, honour and freedom. This is the time to break our silence and give credence to the voice of reason and the wind of change.

“History has placed a responsibility on us to join the APC to save Nigeria in the next round of elections and we have declared for the APC.”

10 ‘vandals’ arrested in Arepo

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EN suspected pipeline vandals have been arrested in Arepo, Ogun State, by the Police Special Task force on Pipeline Vandalism, Lagos Command.

Zbatomini Isekpe, Isaac Abejae, Luke Itowu, Towei Terry, Precious Osuwo, Owei Ebiwei, Power Saikemefa, Samson John, Sunday Agbude and Owoduni Ezekiel were seized on their way to “steal” petrol from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pipeline on Elekpete in Ikorodu.

Eight hundred 50-litre gallons were recovered from them.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Friday Ibadin, who is in-charge of the task force, said: “On Sunday, there were reports that vandals had resumed their activities on the axis. Policemen, led by the Sector Commander, DSP Onaghise Osayande, were

By Jude Isiguzo

sent to the scene and the suspects were arrested with about 800 50-litre gallons.

“Also recovered were various equipment needed to perfect the nefarious act.

They also arrested four others at Abule Oba, who had successfully siphoned petrol in 60 50-litre gallons and were on their way to dispose them.”

Isekpe said: “I was introduced to the business by a friend, who advised me to relocate to Lagos. I am married with seven children and it is the duty of the government to assist me to give them a better life. I do not understand what my offence is and I know that with a good lawyer, I will be set free.”

Osuwa said: “I am a professional photographer. I joined them to raise money to buy a good camera.”

•Fashola (second right) signing the bill...yesterday. With him are Commissioner for Establishment, Training and Pensions Mrs. Florence Oguntuase; Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Adeola Ipaye (second left) and Chairman, House of Assembly Committee on Information and Public Service, Segun Olulade.

UCH workers begin indefinite strike

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EALTH workers at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, under the aegis of the National Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP), yesterday began an indefinite strike.

The health workers are demanding the abolition of the appointment of only full time staff of universities as chief executives of teaching hospitals and federal medical centres; the abolition of the offices of Deputy Chairman, Medical Advisory

From Oseheye Okwuofu, Ibadan

Committee; the release of the interview conducted for members of the union for the posts of directors; stoppage of the imposition of doctors as heads of department over other professionals and the removal of the Minister of Health.

Workers, whose services would be affected by the strike, are pharmacists, physiotherapists, medical laboratory scientists, radiographers, dental

technologists, occupational therapists, health information officers, dental therapists, dietitians and other related professionals.

Speaking with reporters yesterday, the NUAHP Chairman in UCH, Mr. Sotiloye Olusegun, told members of the union to withdraw their services following the directive of the national body.

Olusegun said the Federal Ministry of Health has failed to accede to the union’s demands.

He said: “The current prac-

tice in which the chief medical directors of teaching hospitals and medical directors of Federal Medical Centres are appointed from among only one group of professionals (i.e the physicians) should stop.

“The post should be open to all health professionals.

Physicians have been using this post to oppress and suppress other professionals in the health sector, a situation that has hindered the growth of other health professionals and kept them under tyrannical administrations.”

APC’ll rebuild Nigeria, says Amosun

By Jude Isiguzo

•Amosun

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GUN State Governor Ibikunle Amosun yesterday said the All

Progressives Congress (APC) will rebuild Nigeria.

He spoke at the Ake Palace Ground in Abeokuta during the inauguration of the Ogun APC chapter.

Amosun urged citizens to keep hope alive, adding that the APC marks a new dawn in Nigeria.

He said: “Today, APC is the only party with representation across the six

geopolitical zones in the country. It is a mass-oriented party.”

Assuring Nigerians that APC would restore sanity to all sectors of the economy, Amosun said: “Education will be revived. Agriculture will be returned as the mainstay of our economy, providing employment for our youths and become the industrial base of our country. Health care services will be restored and extended to all the nooks and

crannies of the country, among other mass-oriented programmes of the APC.” The governor said the ongoing development in Ogun is a sample of what to expect from the APC. “With APC in the saddle of leadership, our future is bright in Ogun and Nigeria,” he added.

The ceremony was attended by party stalwarts, community associations, trade unions, farmers, artisans and youths.

Policeman ‘kills’ electrician in Lagos

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N unidentified policeman has allegedly killed a man, Bello Adamson, in Aka, Iba Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos State.

Bello, a popular electrician in the area, was allegedly shot dead by a policeman attached to the South Bound Hotel.

The incident occurred around 9pm on Sunday at the hotel located at No 5, Elias Lane.

It was learnt that the late Adamson was sitting in front of a provision store located less than 10 metres from the hotel, when he

By Jude Isiguzo was hit by the bullet.

His body has been deposited at the Morgue at the General Hospital, Badagry.

The policeman escaped.

Youths and street urchins went on rampage after the shooting, vandalising the property of the hotel, which opened a month ago.

Some of them were arrested and are being detained at the Okokomaiko Police Station.

Residents are yet to come to terms with the fact that Adamson, who they popularly called Baba

Fasilat, is dead.

A resident, Mr. Adedayo Fatai, said: “Baba Fasilat was shot dead by apoliceman attached to the hotel. I was standing a few metres away him and when we heard the gun shot, everyone scampered for safety. When we returned to the scene, I saw him on the floor in a pool of blood.”

Another resident, Buchi Okechukwu, said: “Around 8:30pm, some youths tried to gain entrance into the hotel, but the policemen at the gate told them the dance hall was filled to capacity.

“The youths insisted on going in and an argument ensued. The policemen began to shoot into the air to scare the youths away, but one of their bullets hit Adamson, who was not involved in the argument.”

The deceased’s son, Afeez, said: “He baded us goodbye when he came to check on me where I had gone for my Disc Jockey business. A few minutes later, I received a call from my sister that policemen attached to the hotel had shot my father in the neck.”

All efforts to speak with police spokesperson Ngozi Braide failed.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

9

NEWS

Motorcyclist’s killing: Family rejects ‘out-of-court’ settlement

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HE family of a commercial motorcyclist, Michael Ogunrinde, who was allegedly killed by officials of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in AdoEkiti, the Ekiti State capital, has alleged that the corps is trying to force “the family to settle out-of-court”.

About three weeks ago, a commercial motorcycle conveying an NSCDC official was hit by a car and the official died.

•NSCDC: we didn’t make such move From Sulaiman Salawudeen, Ado-Ekiti

It was learnt that the motorcyclist and some colleagues went to the NSCDC headquarters to explain what happened. They were allegedly beaten up by NSCDC officials and Ogunrinde was killed.

Three NSCDC officials, Ajayi Adesanmi (39), Adeleye Odunayo (34) and Ayeni Oluwaseun (35), are

on trial for Ogunrinde’s murder.

Speaking with The Nation, the late Ogunrinde’s wife, Caroline, said: “They (NSCDC officials) approached us through a lawyer, who showed us some documents and said we should accept some money and let peace reign.

“The move is insulting to the spirit of my husband.

The family rejects every

Ajimobi pardons 1,000 sacked teachers

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HE Oyo State government has pardoned over 1,000 secondary school teachers, who were sacked some months ago for falsifying their ages.

Addressing teachers at the Secretariat in Ibadan, the state capital, Governor Abiola Ajimobi said his administration decided to review their case after persistent appeals from the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) and stakeholders in the education sector.

Ajimobi said a committee had been set up to review

their case.

He said those who falsified their ages would have their ages regularised and be reinstated. Those due for retirement would be retired and paid their entitlements.

Describing teaching as a noble profession, the governor said his administration would continue to emphasise on integrity in the civil service, especially among teachers who are responsible for training future leaders.

Ajimobi said although his administration has zero tol-

move to settle out-of-court.

The move is meant to ridicule us, but we cannot be ridiculed.

“The last time we were in court, their lawyer showed us a paper they prepared in respect of the move. But we told him that we would not have anything to do with such a move.

“They said they had agreed to pay us N50,000, the hospital/mortuary bills and all expenses incurred in the burial. We just smiled at them. They want us to accept

N50,000 for a whole life!

“Another lawyer has told us that an out-of-court settlement would not be possible, as it is a state matter, which any independent move cannot compromise.

Any move they make now cannot stop the court process, which is already on.”

One of the deceased’s daughter said: “We have told them there won’t be anything like that. If they could take a soul in a hurry, they cannot be in a hurry to attend to the case in court.

We have to finish the case they started.”

NSCDC spokesman Afolabi Tolulope denied the alleged moves, saying “such will be opposed to the ongoing court process”.

Afolabi said: “Out-ofcourt settlement is a constitutional right of the family.

If they want it, fine, but the corps is not aware of the rumoured steps. The commercial motorcyclists invaded our office and destroyed government property. These offences are punishable under the law. Outof-court settlement may not be ruled out but the command is yet to be notified.”

erance for fraud and corruption, there was need to review the cases to fulfil the legal maxim that “it is better to set 99 guilty men free than to allow one righteous man suffer injustice”.

He said: “I assure you that before the end of the month, we would have concluded the review of all the cases and pardon many of you.”

Some of the affected teachers admitted that they falsified their ages and pleaded for pardon. They pledged never to be involved in fraudulent acts again.

Aregbesola preaches against religious SUN State Governor sion to accept the message violence Rauf Aregbesola has of salvation is voluntary

O

preached against religious violence.

He urged religious leaders to reach out to the hopeless.

The governor spoke in Awe, Oyo State, at the 41st anniversary of the Gospel Conference of Nigeria and overseas.

In his speech, entitled: “Honour comes with responsibility, which was delivered by his aide on Legal Matters, Dr. Sunkanmi Anwo, Aregbesola said despite the faults people find in religion, “it remains one of the fortresses where one can draw succour”.

He said: “It is still the sanctuary where the hopeless receive the ministration of hope. The present global condition, in its acutely disturbing realities, reveals a world in need of dire divine intervention. “It is a world where human efforts in providing relief and peace are increasingly becoming inadequate. The challenge, therefore, for those who bear the light of salvation, is to reach out to the lost. This is one important duty that Islam and Christianity demand of adherents.

“For instance, the appeal for fund for evangelism is a good opportunity to ad-

‘

Nigerians have a duty to work for all that promotes peace and harmonious living. Religion need not be the leading cause of death within our borders. My administration in Osun is fully committed to promoting religious harmony...

’

From Bode Durojaiye, Oyo

vance and populate the kingdom of God. Where you physically cannot reach the lost, your money can get there. I encourage us to give generously to his work, believing strongly that your labour of love is not in vain.”

Aregbesola said the deci-

and personal, adding that people should not be coerced to accept any religion.

He said: “Neither the Quran nor the Bible encourages the deployment of coercion or violence as a means of evangelising.

Killing in the name of religion does not bring glory to God. It is against His command and will never receive His blessings. What God wants us to extend to unbelievers is love and the message of full and free salvation, not bodily harm or death.”

Aregbesola urged believers to continue to seek the face of God for lasting peace in Nigeria, especially in the North, “where life now appears, short, brutish and nasty”.

He said: “Nigerians have a duty to work for all that promotes peace and harmonious living. Religion need not be the leading cause of death within our borders.

My administration in Osun is fully committed to promoting religious harmony.

That is the way to enjoy the dividends of good governance. We thank God that peace subsists and all the antics of detractors to divide the people on religious grounds have failed.”

Southwest PDP warns against imposition

S

OUTHWEST leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have raised the alarm over alleged plans to impose a candidate as the National ViceChairman in the zonal congress slated for Saturday.

In a statement yesterday, the Deputy Zonal Publicity Secretary, Mr. Semiu Babatunde, said a minister from Ekiti State and a PDP leader in Lagos State were behind the move.

The statement reads: “Already, they have scheduled

a meeting for Tuesday night in Abuja where they intend to put perfect their plan.”

The party said it was mobilising delegates against “any form of imposition”.

It urged stakeholders to resist any attempt to manipulate the process.

It said: “We are also delighted to note that Chief Mike Oghiadomhe has distanced himself from any plot to drag his in-law, who is a private businessman, into the politics of the Southwest, using his name.

“We know that Chief Oghiadomhe is at one with the Presidency and the national leadership of the party that our people should freely choose their leaders without any coercion, imposition or manipulation.”

The party urged delegates from the six states in the zone to be united and speak with one voice, “so that we can liberate ourselves from the profiteers of our commonwealth - people without electoral value, who have held us down over the years”.

•Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola (right) presenting a gift to Adamawa State Head of Service Alhaji Musa Kaibo while Aregbesola’s deputy, Mrs. Titi Laoye-Tomori, watches them at the Government House in Osogbo... yesterday.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

10

CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 08023247888

Police arrest 10 suspected pipeline vandals

Vitafoam unveils new products

VITAFOAM Nigeria Plc has unveiled new products, which include music pillows, latex pillows, spring mattress and memory/visco elastic foam that regulates blood circulation.

The company's Managing Director, Mr Joel Ajiga, said the music pillow was made from high-quality user-friendly fibre and could be connected to phones, iPods and other musical gadgets, adding: "It lures you into sleep in a short time with high resolution music gadget; the memory/visco elastic foam regulates blood circulation.

"The music pillow gives you room to listen to your choice music without disturbing anybody else and it is also healthfriendly because the phone or Ipad is not directly on your head or ear."

Church holds special prayer

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HE game is up for 10 suspected pipeline vandals who have plied the illicit activity in Ikorodu on the outskirts of Lagos. They have been arrested by operatives of the Inspector-General of Police, Special Taskforce on Pipeline Vandalism, Lagos Sector Command.

They were caught with 800 gallons of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) at Arepo, Ogun State, where they were paraded yesterday.

The suspects - Zbatomini Isekpe, Isaac Abejae, Luke Itowu, Towei Terry, Precious Osuwo, Owei Ebiwei, Power Saikemefa, Samson John, Sunday Agbude and Owoduni Ezekiel - were said to be on their way to extracting the fuel from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) pipeline, along Elekpete axis, Ikorodu.

Assistant Commissioner (ACP), Friday Ibadin, who is in charge of the Taskforce, confirmed their arrest. He said that on August 18, there were reports that vandals had resumed their activities along the axis.

• The suspects with the products ... yesterday

By Jude Isiguzo, Police Affairs Correspondent

"As a result, policemen led by Sector Commander Onaghise Osayande, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), were hit the scene and arrested the suspects on their way to collecting about 800 gallons of 50 litres of the product. Also recovered included different equipment with which they planned to perfect the nefarious act. They also arrested four others at Abule Oba, who had successfully siphoned 60 gallons of 50 litres and were on their way to disposing them," said Ibadin.

Isekpe, who claimed he never knew that pipeline vandalism was a crime, said: "I was introduced to the business by a friend who advised me to relocate to Lagos because the heat on the Arepo axis had subsided.

Initially, I did not want to join them because of the number of

‘I’m a professional photographer without a camera. I tried various ways to raise money to buy a camera, but failed. So, I decided to try my luck in pipeline vandalism’ casualties in Lagos, but I was convinced that the coast was clear. I raised some money to pay the engineers whose duty was to open the valve.

"Normally, when we sailed to the point of extraction, we would pay the engineers before being allowed to fill our gallons. It is their duty to close the valve and spray detergents on the water to clear the oil. It was to avoid fire outbreak as

we sailed back to the land. We were shocked when policemen suddenly appeared and arrested us."

Saying that he is married with seven children, he said government's duty to assist him in giving them a better life, adding: "I do not understand what my offence is and I know that with a good lawyer, I will be set free."

Osuwa, said he joined his cosuspects to raise money to buy a camera. "I am a professional photographer without a camera. I tried various ways to raise money to buy a good camera, but failed. So, I decided to try my luck in pipeline vandalism when a friend told me I could make 500 per cent gain. I know it is a crime, but I was told the coast was clear because security operatives were busy chasing vandals in Sagamu and other areas," he said, pleading: "I am terribly sorry and hope Nigerians will forgive me."

THE Motailatu Church Cherubim and Seraphim, Restoration Parish, Akute, Ogun State, will on Wednesday hold a special 'Mercy Service' for members and residents of the area.

Tagged, "Mercy From Above," the power-packed service, according to a statement by Senior Superintendent Gabriel Akinadewo, will start from 7am and end at 7pm.

Special songs, he said, would be rendered by the choristers and there will be ministrations on how mercy works.

"Blind Bartimaeus was only shouting, "Jesus, the son of David, have mercy on me" and he received his healing. Mercy encompasses blessing, breakthrough, signs, wonders, victory, protection, long life and prosperity. Many clerics will minister during the four-service spiritual gathering that will hold at 7am, noon, 3pm and 6pm," he said.

Abandoned vehicles for auction THE Ogun State Police Command yesterday urged owners abandoned or recovered stolen vehicles and motorcycles at Ibafo/Ilese Divisions to claim them, warning that they would be auctioned if they failed to claim them within two weeks.

Spokesman Olumuyiwa Adejobi listed the vehicles to include: Two Toyota Previa marked LM 991 KJA and FGB 77 XA; Honda Concenrto (BR 577 LND), Mitsubushi Gallant (CW 173 LSR), Mazda car (CY 766 LSR), Volkswagen bus (XL 259 BDG), Honda (AL 848 KTU), Explorer Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) (MH 750 KJA); Peugeot (BK 865 LSR), Mazda bus (XA 896 KLE), Toyota Corolla (AU 970 AKD), Toyota Avensis (FE 369 LSR), two Toyota Camry cars (BL 316 APP, BL 781 BDG), Rover car (UA 399 LND), Datsun Saloon car (AH 454 KNH), Volkswagen bus (XR 497 EKY), Benz 190 (HJ 551 KJA), Mitsubushi car (DG 100 ABC), Peugeot 406 (GX 20 EKY), two Golf cars (ME 844 AA, XU 681 JJJ), Mercedes (NJ 607 KJA), Nissan car (EQ 949 LSR), Opel car (DS 509 LSR), Volkswagen Jetta (DW 343 LND), Toyota car (AV 811 APP), Nissan Sunny, Honda Civic, Ford Pedler truck, Mitsubishi, 12 Bajaj motorbikes; Honda bike (MK 820 QB), nine unmarked Bajaj, Hqojiu Suzuki, Suzuki, Mitssuba, Honda, two Suzuki 100, Jincheng (QF 769 MUS), Boxer and an unmarked Jincheng.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

11

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net

20,304 PHCN workers receive N119b severance benefits • As payments from 14 bidders hit $559m From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

N

O fewer than 20,304 of the 40,000 Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) workers have been paid N119,176,731,492.88, it was learnt yesterday.

The office of the Accountant General of the Federation facilitated the payment.

According to the BPE, Head of Public Communications, Mr. Chigbo Anichebe, in a statement yesterday, the payment began on August 1.

The statement said that the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) and its implementation arm, the BPE reassured Nigerians that the power sector reform was on course.

It recalled that all the preferred bidders for the 15 Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) successor companies have earlier met the deadline for the payment of the mandatory 25 percent of the offer value of their bids as at the deadline date of March 21, 2013. The Bureau received $559,445,573.96 from 14 bidders for 15 successor companies.

The deadline for payment of the remaining 75% remains Wednesday, 21 August 2013 as stipulated in the Request for Proposal (RFP).

In compliance with the tenets of transparency and accountability, the Bureau will continue to strictly abide by the terms and conditions in the RFP.

We want a SONCAP programme that would serve its purpose; a programme that would be dynamic, where all the identified loopholes would be effectively plugged thereby making it difficult for the plaque of substandard products to continue to dominate the Nigerian business space.

-Dr Joseph Odumodu, DG, SON

Nigeria, Chinese firm sign MoU on 1,000 MW from coal

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HE nation inched closer to actualising its drive towards increased power supply with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese firm to generate additional 1,000 megawatts from coal.

The MoU with the firm, HTG-Pacific Energy Consortium, is for the development of coal to power at Ezimo Coal Block in Enugu State.

The event which took place at the Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja, followed a workshop on the Solid Minerals Sector organised by the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.

The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Musa Mohammed Sada signed the MoU on behalf of the government.

President Goodluck Jonathan who presided at the workshop, said Nigeria will exploit its abundant coal reserves for quality power generation, adding

From Augustine Ehikioya and John Ofhekunia, Abuja

that coal resources could provide 30 per cent of Nigeria’s electricity generation through environmentally friendly clean technology He said: “For instance, the coal resources presents an excellent opportunity for us to diversify our energy sources, to the extent that 30 per cent of our electricity generation could come from coal, using environmentally friendly clean technology.

“Nigeria is endowed with abundant coal reserves of the required quality necessary for power generation. And so, there is no reason why we should not exploit that sector,” he added.

He stressed the need for collaborative effort between the Ministries of Mines and Steel Development, and Power towards attracting investors to coal-fired generation opportunity, urging them to continue in that direction untill Nigeria gets to

where it wants to be in terms of its power needs.

He harped on the importance of the solid minerals sector and the need to harness it in order to create jobs, wealth and increase the foreign direct investments in the economy.

Jonathan said although considerable progress has been made in terms of results and interest of the sector, the nation was yet to witness the kind of development it expects. He said the workshop was timely as it would help advance the sector and expose it to the public so that the nation attains the require.

However, The President warned operators against reoccurrence of the lead poisoning in Zamfara State which led to the death of many children who were engaged in illegal extraction of minerals.

He said: “The volatility of the solid mineral sector and the need for orderly development was clearly demonstrated in the lead poisoning

incident in Zamfara State recently. While we applaud the efforts of all those who were involved in the issue of management and the remediation of the lead poisoning in Zamfara State, we must ensure that it does not repeat itself in the country any longer.”

Jonathan was optimistic that the workshop would produce concrete ideas and recommendations that would unleash the economic and social potentials of the sector.

He urged the participants to identify the barriers to the development of the sector including environmental, institutional and regulatory challenges and the policies that government must develop and implement to address them, saying they should focus on the beneficial explorations and exploitation of industrial minerals, such as Limestone, Kaolin, silica, gypsum, gemstones and ceramic clays, among others.

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 -N12.1 trillion JSE -Z5.112trillion NYSE -$10.84 trillion LSE -£61.67 trillion RATES Inflation -8.4% 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 $46.9b FOREX CFA -0.2958 EUR -206.9 £ -242.1 $ -156 ¥ -1.9179 SDR -238 RIYAL -40.472

• From left: Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement, Emeka Ezeh, Secretary to the Government of the Federal, Anyim Chief Anyim Pius Anyim, Former Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Chief Chamberlain Oyibo and Vice President, Nigerian Mining and Geoscience Society, Prof. Cliford Teme, during the Solid Minierals Sector PHOTO: AKIN OLADOKUN. Workshop at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja...yesterday.

Fed Govt orders trucks off Apapa Ports roads

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HE Federal Govern ment has ordered the immediate evacuation of haulage trucks out of the port access roads in Lagos. This is in line with the ultimatum given to the country by the Apapa United States Coast Guard over the need to comply with the International Ships and Ports Security (ISPS) Facility Code, The order was handed down to the truck owners by the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Transport.

The Association of Maritime Truck Owners

By Oluwakemi Dauda

(AMATO) directed its members to ensure compliance with the directive.

Speaking with reporters in Lagos Lagos yesterday, the chairman of the group, Chief Remi Ogungbemi, directed that truck owners to take advantage of the newly acquired land at the Trade Fair Complex along Badagry expressway to relocate their trucks.

“There is a marching order that they want all the trucks evacuated from the roads, individual members having trucks that liter the roads both at Tincan and Apapa port

should go to the Trade Fair Complex to park.

“We don’t want a situation where they will bring black maria, or shooting on sight, we don’t want that to happen, we are human beings that can communicate and can be communicated to, we will on our own tell our members to start moving these trucks” General Secretary of AMATO, Mr. Chiaka Nwogu, warned that the marching order is not from the association but from the Federal Government.

According to him, the directive is a welcome idea because this will further portray Ni-

geria to the US Coast Guard and the entire world as a compliant nation.

Chiaka said the Minister of Transport, Idris Umar and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) were notified of a general inspection to take place by weekend and that the port access roads must be rid of hindrances.

“Nigeria is about to go into another round of test. By Saturday, when they come to inspect, we want to pass the test.

If we fail, it is going to affect everybody, if the ships don’t come into our ports, we will not have anything to carry” he said.

‘Single window’ll lead to 48hrs cargo clearance’ From John Ofikhenua and Chioma Onyia

T

HE nation’s Trade Sin gle Window will re duce delays associated with cross-boarder trade and enable Nigeria to attain its goal of 48-hours cargo clearance.

The Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who stated this yesterday at the official launch of the new Nigeria trade hub portal and the new import, export and transit process manual in Abuja, said the measure will improve trade facilitation. : “To facilitate trade, this administration has already successfully implemented reforms at Nigeria’s ports and substantially reduced the number of agencies operating in these ports,” she said, adding that Trade Single Window will further reduce delays associated with cross-broader trade and “enable us achieve our goal of 48 -hours clearance at our ports.”

According to her, for both importers and exporters, the Nigeria Trade Single Window provides an integrated environment where appropriate regulatory information may be obtained.

The minister said the system would greatly facilitate commerce across Nigeria’s borders, and reduce costs for businesses operating in the country.

Commending the Nigeria Customs Service that organized the event, the minister said “I am confident that the successful implementation of the Nigeria Trade Single Window framework will contribute to improving our nation’s investment climate and support our transformation as an emerging market economy in this decade.”

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olusegun Aganga, noted that the launch of the information phase of trade hub will facilitate the next phase, which allows for end-toend transaction in a Single Window Environment.

He said that international trade facilitation is all about simplifying import and export regulations and procedures to make trading more predictable and sustainable.

According to him, the single window is a useful tool needed to optimise the fulfillment of the objectives.

Continuing, Aganga said “it provides the platform for reliable data collection, collation, retrieval and dissemination. It will improve collaboration amongst the different operating entities which can now exchange data electronically; it will reduce trade-related costs through on-line processing of information and will shorten processing times”

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

BUSINESS NEWS Fashola seeks Nigeria-Russia cooperation in railways

ALSCON’s loses $1.4m monthly

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HE monthly loss of RUSAL ALSCON has reached $1.4million, it was learnt yesterday.

Speaking with reporters in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, the firm’s Director of Public Relations, Tatyana Smirnova, said the plant had suffered regular disruptions in gas supply since 2007.

He explained that a second gas pipeline would enable ALSCON to develop the plant and reduce its losses, adding that the plant has survived six gas outages, that required $60million to fix.

Smirnova noted that during its operations, the plant used only 11 per cent of its production capacity churning out 197,000 tons of aluminium yearly.

Her words: “The cost of production of aluminium

From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

in 2012 was $2,886 per ton, while average market price for aluminium in 2012, was about $2,000 per ton. The losses of ALSCON during production of one ton were $886, adding that the monthly losses of ALSCON for the review period stood at $1.4million.”

The Director stated that during the period of suspension of aluminium production, the main efforts of the management of the plant are aimed at solving the issue of provision of reliable gas supply at the plant.

She added that a speedy resolution by the Federal Government on the construction of gas pipeline from Esit Eket to Ikot Abasi is a condition for the sur-

vival and development of ALSCON. “Apart from this, RUSAL applies all its best efforts to settle legal uncertainty around the plant. However, the situation with legal uncertainty in regard ownership of the plant requires solution on the part of the part of judicial agencies of Nigeria,” Smirnova said.

Smirnova explained that despite the difficult economic situation, the plant continues to provide social support for its employees.

One of these is the electrification of the community.

She said since September 2007, the residents of Ikot Abasi have been enjoying 24- hour free electricity.

According to her, more than 30,000 indigenes are benefiting from the gesture.

L

AGOS State Governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN), yesterday canvassed mutual collaboration between Nigeria and Russia in the development of rail transportation, saying it was the only way to safeguard and guarantee long life span for roads and highways across the country.

Fashola, who spoke in Lagos House, Alausa, while hosting the Russian Ambassador to Nigeria, Nickolay Udovichenko, said Nigeria, needs to take a lot of cargo off her highways in order to extend their lifespan.

Noting that Russia has already developed such a technology, he said it was necessary that government, showed interest and begin talks with Russia to imbibe and adapt the

technology in order to take more goods and heavy duty cargo off her highways.

“One thing that has interested me is the success of the Russian Railway and the expanse of development it has achieved over the years and, if I am not mistaken, the trucking by rail of several millions of cargo over about 9, 000 kilometres yearly. These are areas where, even as a country, Nigeria urgently needs to develop”, the Governor.

He told the Ambassador, “We need to take a lot of cargo off the roads, and if that technology already exists in a place like Russia, I think that our Government, not only at the state level but also at the national level, should also be showing interest and talking to you because that is the only

way that I know that we can prolong the life of our roads and major highways across the country; if we can get more goods, more heavy duty cargo trucked by rail”.

“So these are some of the areas that I think in terms of economic cooperation between our two countries and the states that are consisting of those two federations and also that a lot can be done. I think your visit sets the ball in motion and I am anxious, to put it mildly, to explore possibilities”, he said.

Noting the desire of the Ambassador for collaboration in cultural and business exchanges between Lagos and Russia, Governor Fashola declared, “I am sure you will be hearing a lot more from our agencies in the next few weeks and in the next few months”, .

Experts urge diversification of economy

By Evelyn Osagie

F

INANCE experts have sued for the diversifica tion of the nation’s economy.

They made the submission at the National Conference of Finance and Economic Development (NACOFED) in Niger State.

With the theme: Restructuring Nigeria’s Economy,the two-day conference, whichwas attended by different erudite scholars, focused on the urgent need for the diversification of Nigeria’s economy from an oil dependent to an Agricultural based nation. Many, like the Deputy, Ahmed Ibeto, who represented Niger State Governor Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, were of the view that Agriculture has the potentials of turning the fortunes of the nation around for good but that this very critical sector of the economy has continuously been given lip service.

Ibeto, not only spoke in favour of the deregulation of the downstream sector, decrying the nation’s over dependency on oil, saying itis responsible for its stagnant growth. He urged the National Assembly to expedite actions on the petroleum bill before it, in order to fast track the full deregulation of the downstream oil sector to facilitate diversification of the economy for maximum growth to be obtained.

Amidst the clamour for a shift from oil to agriculture some participants held that there is hardly any developed nation of the world that relies solely on agriculture but on the expertise they can boost across key sectors of their economy like science and technology. They argued that scientific exploration has become the bane of modern development and that Nigeria must begin to reason toward restructuring its economic system into a more encompassing and functional one. With America’s declining interest in Nigeria’s oil, some participants feared that if measures were put in place to checkmate Nigeria’s dependency on oil, that there may not be much hope for the nation’s future development

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

15

MARITIME

Workers protest SAN’s claim of firm’s receivership

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ORKERS of Lonestar Drilling Nigeria Limited in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, yesterday protested the claim by a lawyer, Seye Opasanya (SAN), that the company is now under receivership.

Opasanya, in an advertorial in The Nation of August 17, said since the company was under receivership, nobody “should honour any banking or other instruction by any director of the company.”

Opasanya added: “All banks and other financial institutions having custody of deposits, cash and other assets of Lonestar are hereby directed to deal only with the receiver/manager.”

But the protesting workers, chanting: “We no gree o!, we no gree o!” yesterday in the company’s premises at Rumukrushi, Port Harcourt, said the indigenous company was not for sale.

Some of the inscriptions on their placards read: “AMCON, don’t kill local content companies”; Shell owes Lonestar $26million”; “Receivership not by ex-parte” “Voodoo banking must stop”; “A company owed $26 million by Shell cannot be in receivership”and “Banks, we must audit the account.”

Addressing the protesters, who were led by Mr Sebastine Omoijiade of the Operations Department, the

From Clarice Azuatalam, Port Harcourt

Chief Executive Officer, Mr Lovette Idisi, condemned Opasanya’s action.

Idisi told reporters that Stanbic IBTC guaranteed an international facility for the firm, adding: “But somewhere along the line some of the accounts officers got themselves involved in some actions and some activities. These matters are under investigations and the investigations have almost been concluded.

“And yet AMCON wants to seal me off. Shell owes me $26 million.

There is $8million tied up in the United States. There is money tied down in escrow account with Stanbic, about three to five million dollars all over the place. Total this money, it is over $40million. How many local indigenous companies have that kind of money, that you want to put under receivership? It

is not possible.”

On Shell, Idisi said: “Why would a staff of Shell sit down in his office and calculate and plot to destroy a local content service company. This matter has not been thoroughly dealt with in this country. It is a shame, it is a spit on our judicial system. It is a slap on our face. We cannot let it happen. These people, they picked on the wrong company to do this kind of thing because we will resist them.”

The Company Secretary and Legal Adviser, Mr Philip Orbih, described the protest as “a natural reaction to fraud, abuse of court process and oppression.”

Orbih said what has manifested is a situation where government agencies such as the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) is allegedly trying to cover up fraud.

‘Receivership is not got by ex-parte. Now it is very surprising that the lawyer who has been in court with us over a year in another suit where we are asking the court to compel the banks to bring our books for audit is the same lawyer that is now the receiver’

The fraud, he said, was still being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) in Lagos.

On the receivership obtained by Opasanya, he said: “Receivership is not got by ex parte. Now it is very surprising that the lawyer who has been in court with us over a year in another suit where we are asking the court to compel the banks to bring our books for audit is the same lawyer that is now the receiver.

“This is the same lawyer, who

moved a motion that the matter be struck out, that our jurisdiction lies in London. The court said no, the transaction took place in Nigeria, we must hear you. This is the same SAN that has now gone to Lagos within a court of competent jurisdiction to get a receivership under ex-parte.

Orbih appealed to the Federal Government and other agencies “to make sure that due process is followed as far as Lonestar is concerned because a company that is owed $26 million cannot be in receivership.

‘Nigeria loses N24b yearly to vessel delay’

N

IGERIA loses $150 million (about N24 billion) yearly to delay of vessels during clearance.

The Chief Executive Officer, Ships and Ports Bolaji Akinola said the loss was incurred when government agencies perform statutory checks on vessels.

The agencies that perform such checks, include the Nigeria Immigration Service, Quarantine Service, Port Health, Nigeria Customs Service and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency.

He said: “The inspection and rummaging performed by the agencies are essential for immigration control, port state control and enforcement of government’s fiscal policy but I think too much time is spent on doing that. Our findings revealed that a vessel can be delayed for as much as four hours at berth during such inspections. Standard time for such inspections should not be more than one hour.”

The four-hour delay, he said, could cost a shipping company as much as $30,000 (N4.8 million), an amount, which, he said, was passed on to the importer.

Stories by Emeka Ugwuanyi, Asst Editor

“With an average of 5,000 sea-going vessels calling at our ports in a year, this could sum up to $150 million yearly. The ship owner will not bear this cost but will, ultimately, pass it on to the importer who will in turn pass it on to the market,” he said.

Akinola explained that to save the economy this huge sum, vessel discharge should be allowed to begin immediately a ship berths while the inspection officers perform their duties.

“I think both stevedoring operations and inspection of the vessel can be done simultaneously rather than ask the stevedores to wait for about four hours while the government officials perform inspection.

I would recommend that the vessel discharge should be allowed to start immediately the vessel berths while inspection is ongoing. After all, the cargo remains in Customs controlled area so if there is anything untoward, the appropriate sanctions can still be applied without any collateral damage,” he added.

NIMASA urged to meet US Coastguard

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• The protesters ....yesterday.

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Maritime sector not neglected, says Shippers’ Council

HE Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has described as false the alleged neglect of the maritime sector by the Ministry of Transport.

Its Executive Secretary, Hassan Bello, said parastatals under the ministry were well-covered in terms of policies and direction, adding that the ministry has always adopted a holistic approach because of the multi-modal nature of transportation.

The ministry is not neglecting any sector in policies, policy implementation, project promotion, supervision and coordination, he said, adding that the ministry had always adopted such an approach because it is aware of the multimodal concept of transportation, that is: carriage of goods or passengers, or offering services through various modes. The ministry is focused on the integration of these modes.

The ministry, he said, was working towards achieving a seamless transportation system by the integration of various modes of transport, stressing that no area is given

preference.

He explained the nature of connectivity of the various modes of transportation, saying that what happens in one mode affects the others. Goods are transported largely by sea and pass many avenues before they reach the destination of shippers.

“Transportation by sea could be the principal mode, but you have other modes of transport like linkage (rail), road and inland waterways. That is why the ministry is emphasising, or giving attention to the rail because the rail carries bulk cargo and at very cheap or reasonable cost,” he added.

On the monitoring of terminal operators, he said their efficiency fell within the purview of the Council, stressing that they are operating in someone else’s house (their landlord is the Nigerian Ports Authority).

Meanwhile, the NSC has urged stakeholders to collaborate to create an environment that will enhance trade.

The council’s chair Gen. Salihu Ibrahim (rtd), who spoke in Lagos

at a dinner organised for stakeholders, said shipping thrives on cooperation, level playing field and a conducive atmosphere.

He said competition, uniformity and internationality of rules, procedures and standards as well as efficient and dynamic dispute resolution mechanisms, were necessary for the growth of the business, adding that would do all it can so that shipping and transport can thrive contribute maximally to the economy.

He promised that there would be further interactive sessions where ideas would be shared on how to deal with the emerging challenges of the next global stage as they affect international shipping and transport.

He said: “Your ideas and needs are quite critical in guiding our policy formulation and advise to the government. Our desire is to deliver maximum service to the industry and we can only do that effectively when we know exactly what the industry wants at a particular point in time.”

EMBERS of the Association of Marine Engineers and Surveyors (AMES) have called on the management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to appoint the United States’ Coastguard to work out means of beating the 90-day ultimatum in respect of the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code.

President, AMES, Charles Uwadia, while speaking to reporters in Lagos, said: “We strongly suggest that NIMASA should discuss without reservation with the International Port Security Liaison Officer Commander of the US coast guard, David Gates who has offered to assist Nigeria. The discussion should continue and include material input until a satisfactory level of compliance is achieved and roadmap developed to at least remove the determination of the American Government on the matter.”

He gave a breakdown of the actions that can be taken for sustainable compliance, noting that as a designated authority, NIMASA

should embark on accelerated national reform that would demonstrate its authority and provide foundation for a sustainable administration.

Uwadia said: “AMES believes that a well fashioned process from the evolving changes occasioned by the US Coast Guard intervention will assist in the reform,” adding that security has significantly improved in Lagos anchorage.

ISPS code was derived from the amendment to the International Convention on Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) by member states of the IMO in response to the 9/11 terrorist attack in United States.

The compliance verification of the code, which is the responsibility of NIMASA, in essence, requires that owners of port facilities and ships must ensure their facilities comply with the requirements of the code.

The non compliance means there is inadequate measures for anti-terrorist attack, which is considered a potential threat to international shipping. This is the basis of United States reaction, when it issued 90 days ultimatum on Nigeria to improve compliance to ISPS code.

Training for dredgers

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HE Dredging and Sand Dealers Association of Nigeria (DSDAN) will train 20 deckhands and 12 dredge masters before the end of the year.

In a statement by its Chairman, Mr Edmund Chilaka, the body said the training was part of preparations for the 7th Nigerian Dredging Summit and Exhibition scheduled for Badagry in Lagos next month.

Chilaka said another batch of 20

high school pupils would be sponsored by the association to the summit to attract young Nigerians into the subsector.

Other highlights of the dredging summit, he added, include seminars to be delivered by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Lagos Channel Management (LCM) and Nigerian Westminster Dredging and Marine (Boskalis).

16

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

17

PROPERTY

Tuesday, AUGUST 20, 2013

Website:- http://www.thenationonlineng.com

* The Environment * Mortgage * Apartments * Security * Homes * Real Estate

email:- property@thenationonlineng.net

•OUT OF THE COMMON MAN’S REACH: A building for sale in Lekki, Lagos.

All the houses stand out. Many of them are in the Lekki/Ajah axis of Lagos State, which has become the playground of the super rich. These houses are built by private developers, who sell them at cut throat prices. Will the common man ever get a roof over his head? SEYI ODEWALE reports.

Estates everywhere... none for the poor C

HRISTIAN Ezenwa (not real name) never knew that better life existed anywhere beyond his abode around Abule-Egba, a Lagos suburb until he visited a relative in Ajah, near Lekki, a few minutes’drive from the Victoria Island.

He was dumbfounded by what he saw.

The sheer beauty and serenity that characterised the landscape, gave him a different outlook about life. He concluded that living in an environment such as that could increase one’s life expectancy and give one life-changing contacts. But to live there, one must have a deep pocket, he reasoned.

“I never knew that another life existed elsewhere until I paid a visit to a rela-

tive of mine who lives in one of the estates built by Lekki Gardens. I have been so used to living on the mainland, I mean on the outskirts of Lagos, and coming to work every day. You would agree with me that the stress is not in any way small.

And quite unfortunately for some of us in the emerging middle class level that we seem to belong, I wonder how much one needs to have to own a home in that environment,” he said.

Samuel Babarinde, a pastor, could not believe what he saw when he visited Ajah a few days ago. In 1997, he was transferred to Ajah, which then was no place near what some nouveau riche considered liveable. “It was a ‘Siberia’ of some sort. I remember when I was transferred to that

place, my wife and I felt very bad, we thought it was not only far off, it was lonely and lifeless.

“Those living there were mostly people displaced from Maroko and its environs.

In fact, it was the lack of basic infrastructure, such as roads; water and electricity that made me work on my employers to redeploy me elsewhere. Coupled with this, was that we just had a new baby who could not stand the heat in that area, so I pleaded for a transfer then,” he said, adding: “What I now see makes me to conclude that I made an error of judgment when I declined to buy a piece of land offered me on Badore road, where I resided.”

The two communities, after 16 years of

Babarinde’s departure, smell of opulence. In fact, Lagosians, who go for them describe them as paradise on earth. The architectural masterpieces dotting their landscapes readily announce to a first time visitor that the areas are for the rich.

Lekki/Ajah axis ranks as the most sought after by prospective estate developers and home owners. The reasons are simple: More than 20 highbrow estates litter the place and more are springing up, with prices above the N200million range, while apartments in multi-floor buildings go for no less than N15million.

•Continued on page 18

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

PROPERTY/ENVIRONMENT •Continued from page 17

The area’s proximity to Victoria Island, Ikoyi and Lagos Island is another factor. The serene atmosphere devoid of the hustle and bustle associated with the metropolis, is probably another factor considered by those patronising the estates.

Starting from Lekki Phase II to Ibeju-Lekki, Ajah junction, Badore, Okun-Ajah, Abijo, down to Eleko, are over a score of upper-class estates with state-ofthe-art infrastructure, wellpaved roads and everything that makes living comfortable.

Among the estates, are Eleganza Gardens owned by the business mogul, Chief Razak Okoya; Royal Garden Estate, facilitated by Trojan Estates Limited; Cooperative Villa, managed

by Worthy Realtors and Homes Services; Crown Estate; Fara Park; Amen Estate by Redbricks Homes Limited; Lekki Gardens developed by GTRich Realty Limited; Cowrie Creek by Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG).

Others are Seagate Estate overseen by Harris Contractors; Femi Okunnu developed by Continental Reach Property Global Limited; Safe Court Apartment built

by PRIMEWATERVIEW Limited; Fountain Springville developed

by HFP; Victoria Garden built by HFP; Rich Park owned by Chevron Co-operative staff and Lakowe Lakes built by ARM in partnership with a South African group, to mention a few.

To Media and Communication

Estates everywhere... none for the poor for some of us in the emerg‘Unfortunately ing middle class level that we seem to belong, I wonder how much one needs to have to own a home in that environment Head of Lekki Gardens, Azuka Ugboh Ezenwa and Babarinde’s assessment of the areas are apt.

Lekki and Ajah, he said, is a serious business. “Everyone wants to be part of paradise that gives him pure breath of divine inspiration,” he said.

Houses and apartments are not the only ones affected by the touch of opulence in these areas.

Landed properties’ prices are reaching the roof tops. A glance at most offers by estate agents and land speculators showed that the least price for a plot of land is around N50million or more, depending on the location. “How can one live in this kind of area without ‘robbing’ a bank,” Ezenwa asked a friend he was narrating his experience to?

Ugboh, who perhaps envisaged this kind of question from anyone visiting his firm’s site said: “You don’t need to rob a bank to own a home in my company’s schemes. We have housing schemes that will give you value for your money. All we need is your commitment and serious-

ness. In fact, most of our schemes are over-subscribed,” he said.

But as over-subscribed as they may seem, they are not for the low income earners or the poor.

The realisation that the place is for the novae riche is taking a serious and dangerous toll on residents who are supposedly living under tight security provided by these different estates.

Low income earners, consisting of gardeners, drivers and other people with menial jobs, have resorted to erecting all manner of illegal shanties to serve as accommodation. That explains the rowdiness that usually characterise areas such as Ilaje and Ajah bus-stops, where petty traders, commercial motorcycle (Okada) operators and private cab (Kabu-kabu) drivers abound.

The presence of these elements and erection of makeshift structures to serve as accommodation for them have encouraged the presence of people of questionable character in the two communities, especially each time clashes occur between Omo-

’

Onile and some residents.

Ugboh, however, flipping through a pack of publications

by GTRich Reality Limited, builders of Lekki Gardens, said houses built by his firm stand out among their peers and their construction standards are unparalleled.

“We build in phases and people are already subscribing for the fourth phase of our houses. Phase I of our housing projects is fully habitable. This means that people are already living in those houses. We have also delivered Phase II as the last few houses were completed recently and are fully bought. While the Phase III is already sold out, I mean completely sold out. What we have left selling is the Horizon type of units, which is the second part of it as the first part is fully sold out,” Ugboh said.

Each mini-flat, he said, has a compact living area with adjoining kitchenette and en-suite bedroom. The studio apartments are open-plan en-suite bedroom with kitchenettes. The metro terrace sold for N16million.

The firm, like its competitors, build houses to sell apartments to prospective owners.

“For those who wish to let their apartment out, each mini-flat apartment attracts a yearly rent of N400,000, while the studio type goes for N300,000. This means about N1.5million could be earned by the owners per annum and with potentials for rent appreciation. The advantage here is that if one had to build a house

that would fetch him this amount yearly, he must have spent between N38million to N45million to build such a house in that environment. This, however, does not include the price paid to secure the land. But we took care of those hurdles and people paid only N16million then,” he said.

He continued: “The success witnessed by the response to the first Phase made people to subscribe to the 50-hectare second phase opposite Abraham Adesanya Estate, along Lekki/ Ajah-Epe road. This estate, like I said earlier, is completely bought and delivered. And we are already thinking of the third phase, which again has been sold out. The beauty of this plan is that second and third phases of the project are not far from each other unlike our first phase, which is after the LBS. Phase III, a fourteen-hectare estate behind LBS, has three-bedroom terrace duplex, metro terrace four-bedroom terrace and four-bedroom semi-detached with boys’ quarters. Their prices ranged from N14.5million to N24.5million.

And payment plan ranged from outright buy to initial payments of certain percentage to complete full payment by instalments in three to 24 months, depending on the payment plan chosen.”

Abraham Adesanya Estate, which people thought could have appeared a bit friendly, sadly in January, this year, went for N14.5million per three-bedroom bungalow. “The only one that I think can offer the low income earners a respite in that area, is perhaps, the First World Communities’ estate at Abijo, which is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement between the firm and the Lagos State government and it is still in progress,” said a Ministry of Housing official who preferred to be anonymous.

Builders hold AGM

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•A developing area in Ajah.

Erect warning signs, construction firms told T

O curb road crashes, the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) has urged construction firms working on the Lokoja-Abuja road to put warning signs at diversions and spots where repairs are ongoing.

The Zonal Commanding Officer of FRSC in Gwagwalada Mr Austen Aipoh, told reporters in Lokoja that the directive became imperative in view of the recent discovery that many of the accidents on the road were caused by lack of signs.

He said the order was given at a meeting between the commission and the contractors, adding it has

From Muhammad Bashir, Lokoja

taken effect.

The officer, who stopped over in Lokoja while monitoring the takeoff of the “Operation Shield”, which began at the Zuba end of the road, also said it was impossible for the organisation to carry out a 24-hour patrol of OkeneLokoja-Abuja because to lack of logistics and for security reasons.

He noted that the operation was meant to reduce carnage on five selected roads across the country,

stressing that 18 patrol vehicles, five motorbikes and 150 men and officials of the commission had been deployed in Okene-LokojaAbuja road for the seven days exercise.

Apoh said the commission intended to use the operation to check excessive speeding, overloading, wrongful overtaking, and tyre violation and for clearing of obstruction on the selected roads.

He urged motorists to restrict their movement to day time, obey traffic rules and have a change of attitude to reduce accidents on the highways.

HE Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB) has urged the National Assembly to expedite action in enacting a law for enforcing the National Building Code in order to check building collapses.

At a briefing on its forthcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Abuja, its President, Chucks OmeifEe said the non-implementation of the building code as a result of lack of a legal backing has given room for quacks to operate in the industry.

He said: “It has been established that there is a missing link and in the existing regulatory framework, it is anticipated that if the legislation is put in place and the provision of the National Building Code is fully implemented and enforced

at all levels, it would substantially reduce, if not eliminate, the menace of building collapse across the country.”

He said irrespective of the volume of regulation being put in place , except it promotes local content, not much would be achieved.

The 17 million housing deficit, he said, came about as a result of the absence of a virile mortgage system in the country, high cost of building materials, lack of political will and the Land Use Act. He said about 84 buldings had collapsed in the last 20 years, claming more than 400 lives.

Fifty per cent of the causes are attributed to design faults, 40 per cent to construction fault and 10 per cent to material failure, he added.

Archibuilt holds August 26

A

RCHIBUILT, a yearly international forum, organised by the Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA), will hold in Abuja from August 26 to 29.

The event, an initiative of Archibuilt Development Services (ADSL), is the largest marketing opportunity for construction and building materials, and a single largest gathering of key players in the industry, to showcase the latest innovations, technologies and orientations in architecture and the construction sector.

It focuses on bringing stakeholders in the building and construc-

tion industry together to address the sector’s need.

Among the targeted audience and exhibitors are policy makers, which include: manufacturers and representatives; producers; exporters and importers; suppliers; installers of housing fittings like lifts, etc; remodelling contractors; fabricators; distributors; allied products; facility managers; home builders; building contractors; government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

The event will be opened by the Minister of Housing, Land and Urban Development, Ms Ama Pepple.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

19

COMMENTARY EDITORIALS

FROM OTHER LANDS

Pleading poverty •Government’s claim of scarce funds to meet ASUU’s demands is not tenable

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T is often said that true intentions can only be revealed in times of crisis.

Faced with the five week-old strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the Federal Government at last revealed itself after weeks of temporising.

Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister for Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, last week came up with the argument that government simply could not afford the estimated N92 billion that would be required to meet the union’s demands. The minister claimed that the amount was not compatible with the Jonathan administration’s desire to reduce the overwhelming proportion of recurrent expenditure in the national budget.

While the virtues of budget-adjustment are indubitable, it is disheartening that a person of Dr. Okonjo-Iweala’s calibre could resort to such disingenuous reasoning. A recurrent budget expenditure of N2.386 trillion in the N4.987 trillion 2013

‘A speedy resolution of the lingering ASUU strike is in the national interest. Federal and state universities account for the largest proportion of university students, and their closure amounts to a colossal waste of time, energy and resources. Thousands of students are loitering in the streets and at home when they should be in school; their idle hands and fertile minds have palpable implications for the already-precarious security situation in the country’

national budget has not stopped the Federal Government from meeting all the expenses of the Executive and the Legislature. The Presidential Fleet is the largest in Africa, and has continued to acquire topof-the line aircraft. Each member of the Nigerian Senate is better-paid than America’s President Barack Obama. In his extensive trips abroad, President Goodluck Jonathan has travelled with a full complement of aides and politicians, all of whom receive dollar-denominated per diem expenses.

The Jonathan administration did not plead poverty when it set up nine new federal universities. It did not claim penury when it entered into a host of dubious financial arrangements with well-connected individuals, such as the so-called pipeline security contracts which made several exmilitants enormously wealthy. Indeed, the Federal Government appears to have so much money that it did not even mind paying trillions of naira to fuel-importers without ascertaining whether they had actually imported petroleum products.

Given government’s unstinting generosity when it is spending money on itself and its cronies, it is surprising that the finance minister can now plead poverty when it comes to meeting its legitimate financial obligations to others. It must be remembered that ASUU’s demands are not arbitrary: they are the outcome of exhaustive negotiations with the Federal Government, concluded in 2009, and assented to by all parties. It is not a cash-and-carry arrangement, either: the agreement outlines a comprehensive spending plan aimed at the full rehabilitation of the nation’s dilapidated federal universities to enable them contrib-

ute effectively to the production of the skilled manpower the nation so badly needs.

Dr. Okonjo-Iweala appears to be utilising the tried-and-tested strategy of pleading fiscal constraints as an excuse for inaction. This was what she did during the oil subsidy “debate” when she quoted all sorts of statistics to buttress her belief that the subsidy should be ended. As it turned out, nobody in government could definitively state how much Nigeria paid in subsidies, or even how many tonnes of petroleum products the country imports annually. How can she expect anyone to take her seriously now?

A speedy resolution of the lingering ASUU strike is in the national interest. Federal and state universities account for the largest proportion of university students, and their closure amounts to a colossal waste of time, energy and resources. Thousands of students are loitering in the streets and at home when they should be in school; their idle hands and fertile minds have palpable implications for the alreadyprecarious security situation in the country. In any case, the resuscitation of Nigeria’s decrepit tertiary education sector is long overdue.

As the strike continues and the suffering deepens, government will find itself in a very difficult position, particularly given the fact that many of the offspring of government officials are known to attend universities abroad. Instead of proffering untenable excuses, the Jonathan administration should work to implement the agreement reached with ASUU. Or at least get the union to buy into whatever alternative it may want to proffer.

Restoring Egypt’s peace • While we condemn the killings, the Muslim Brotherhood should relax its rigid position

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GYPT needs to move forward but more imperative at the moment is how to curb the negative reverberations of violent protests cutting across that country. The changes in her government, broadly tagged a revolution, have come with consequences that are of serious concerns to the world. The global media have beamed searchlights on violent protests, killings and destruction that have become the aftermath of removal of President Mohammed Morsi from power.

There seems to be no end in sight.

Morsi’s supporters , especially the Muslim Brotherhood, and on the other hand, the liberals, left-wing and Christians have brutally engaged one another. The two groups have made that country a shadow of her old self. The nation has been put under a month-long state of emergency, with curfew imposed on Cairo, Alexandria and 13 other provinces by the army-backed interim government.

The uprisings have led to the death of more than 343 persons, most of them killed by security forces trying to break up protests supporting ousted Morsi.

Forty-three of these were security personnel. Not less than four churches were attacked in an act perceived as a direct reprisal by the pro-Morsi Muslim Brotherhood on Copts in Egypt. The ongoing turmoil was reported to be the worst violence since her 2011 uprising.

The crisis is avoidable but for Morsi’s crass impunity in governance. He proclaimed a constitutional declaration purporting to protect the Constituent Assembly of Egypt from judicial interference in his bid to foist Islamic rule on a country yearning for secularism. He planned to

govern with unlimited power and included a vindictive clause in his declaration that required a fresh trial of people acquitted of Mubarak-era killings of protesters. His draconian declaration ensured that all constitutional declarations, laws and decrees made during his reign were immune to appeal by any individual, political or governmental body.

Until the declaration’s annulment on December 8, 2012, Morsi’s highhandedness goaded most opposition groups, including the liberals, to embark on mass protests calling for his resignation. The Egyptian Armed Forces issued a 48-hour ultimatum which gave him till July 3 to meet the demands of the Egyptian people. The military also threatened to intervene if the dispute was not resolved. Morsi’s approach to the ultimatum was supercilious and niggling as he dared to “defend the legitimacy of his elected office with his life” since, in his words, “there is no substitute for legitimacy.” This is despite the fact that he ran a non-inclusive government to the chagrin of those that fought for his enthronement in power. On July 3, the defence minister, General Abdul Fatah al-Sisi, formally announced that Morsi had been deposed and the constitution suspended.

The rebellion and protests, especially by the Islamists, cannot solve the current quagmire. Morsi, in tandem with his Muslim Brotherhood, had the opportunity to build a secular country where gender discrimination will be prohibited and where freedom of speech ought to be allowed to flourish, but he frittered it away.

The sad scenario being witnessed in Egypt is the consequence of a sudden

change in societal guards without the ability by Morsi to carry the people along in their affairs. This is the challenge of a revolution that we think the interim government in place must address. Whatever our reservations regarding the undemocratic manner in which Morsi was removed, the fact remains that that condemnable military intervention has become a fait accompli. Morsi should play the statesman in the general interest of his country by calling on the Muslim Brotherhood to accept reality so that Egypt can move forward. Since Muslim Brotherhood does not corral an overwhelming majority, it should shift its position for the peace of all. After all, there are several Muslims, who voted for him, but are equally celebrating his demise from power today.

‘Morsi should play the statesman in the general interest of his country by calling on the Muslim Brotherhood to accept reality so that Egypt can move forward.

Since Muslim Brotherhood does not corral an overwhelming majority, it should shift its position for the peace of all. After all, there are several Muslims, who voted for him, but are equally celebrating his demise from power today’

Billionaires leap into the unknown

• Abundant riches may be the new mother of invention

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HOMAS Edison believed that to invent, all you needed was “a good imagination and a pile of junk”. That was sufficient for the prolific US inventor and entrepreneur, who built a fortune in the 19th century from his ability to transform “junk” into such essentials of modern life as the incandescent lightbulb. In these more straitened times, however, the boldest – some might say wackiest – innovators are likely to be possessed of a tidy fortune too.

It is hard to lump into a single category the ideas that are presently gestating in the gleaming private laboratories of Silicon Valley. They include a process for producing test-tube hamburger meat and a plan for mining metals from passing asteroids. Some have more than a whiff of Jonathan Swift’s satirical device for obtaining sunbeams from cucumbers. But what unites these ventures is that they are all the brainchildren of the Valley’s aristocracy, that select group who garnered fortunes from the last great technological leap forward when they pioneered consumer applications that lie at the heart of the modern internet.

Many would argue that there is a need for such animal spirits. Two years ago, in his pamphlet “The Great Stagnation”, the US economist Tyler Cowen argued that slowing growth in western economies was the result of declining rates of innovation. Past prosperity had been built on gobbling “lowhanging fruit”, such as the cultivation of unused land and the introduction of universal education. Future generations, Mr Cowen argued, had need of greater inspiration.

Innovation at the frontiers of knowledge has always struggled for capital. Yet this need for new ideas comes at a time when traditional sources of finance are shrinking.

If Silicon Valley billionaires such as Elon Musk and Sergey Brin can bridge the gap, it is all to the good. Quite how transformative their personal ventures may prove to be is of course hard to judge. Firing rockets to Mars or harvesting asteroids may open space to economic exploitation in ways to rival the post-1492 Columbian exchange. It could also be a costly shot into the void.

Individual inspiration is always admirable.

But mankind must also spread its bets. As the likes of Mr Brin and Mr Musk pursue personal odysseys, they should also spare a thought for those – like the young Edison – who are forced to work with junk and ideas alone. Innovation is ultimately a game of percentages. A wise world would let many ideas bloom.

Financial Times

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief Victor Ifijeh • Editor Gbenga Omotoso •Chairman, Editorial Board Sam Omatseye •General Editor Adekunle Ade-Adeleye •Editor, Online Lekan Otufodunrin •Managing Editor Northern Operation Yusuf Alli •Managing Editor Waheed Odusile

• Executive Director (Finance & Administration) Ade Odunewu

•Deputy Editor Lawal Ogienagbon

•Advert Manager Robinson Osirike

•Deputy Editor (News) Adeniyi Adesina

• Gen. Manager (Training and Development) Soji Omotunde •General Manager (Abuja Press) Kehinde Olowu •AGM (PH Press) Tunde Olasogba

•IT Manager Bolarinwa Meekness

•Deputy Editor (Nation’s Capital) •Press Manager Yomi Odunuga Udensi Chikaodi •Group Political Editor Emmanuel Oladesu •Legal Counsel John Unachukwu •Dep. Business Editor Simeon Ebulu • Manager (Admin) Folake Adeoye •Group Sports Editor Ade Ojeikere •Acting Manager (sales) •Editorial Page Editor Olaribigbe Bello Sanya Oni

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

20

CARTOON & LETTERS

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IR: Has governor Malam (Dr) Isa Yuguda heard about the tale of “The Emperor’s new clothes”. If he has not, I will tell him. The story is about a selfcentred emperor who was deceived by two weavers (like some of the people around Bauchi State governor today) into believing that they have made a new set of clothes for him that is invisible only to those who are unfit, stupid or are incompetent to occupy the office they hold.

While the clothes were being worked on, the emperor who can not see the clothes pretends he can for fear of being branded incompetent to occupy his office.

His cabinet also buys into the game of pretence acting as though they can indeed see the clothes and that it is the most beautiful thing they have ever seen.

After the two weavers reported to the emperor that they have finished working on the clothes, the vain emperor decided to hold a public procession to show his new clothes. The emperor parades in his new “clothes” while his cabinet and courtiers were careful not to point out to the emperor that he was actually walking naked lest they be called stupid and unfit for their positions! The townsfolk

EDITOR’S MAIL BAG

screamed that the ‘emperor has no clothes on at all’!

I have been a critic of Yuguda’s SEND TYPEWRITTEN, DOUBLE SPACED AND SIGNED CONTRIBUTIONS, LETTERS AND REJOINDERS OF government mainly for what I see NOT MORE THAN 800 WORDS TO THE EDITOR, THE NATION, 27B, FATAI ATERE ROAD, MATORI, LAGOS. as lack of focus, incompetence and insincerity with fervent hope that E-mail: views@thenationonlineng.net the naked governor will sit up.

I believe that constructive criticism is one of the pillars of any promising democracy. All over the world, critics are regarded as the also pretend that they can see the like the emepror in the story, governor to mention but few. third eye of the community, state “clothes” and praise the quality of paraded around naked with Despite the generosity of the or nation. work done until a little child put everyone applauding him. His monthly federal allocation to the They are the watchdog and paid to the charade by shouting that cabinet would tell anyone that state, the state is still marching guardian angels that constructively the emperor was actually naked! cares that the emperor-governor backward in terms of social put the government on the hot seat.

Though this story was written has the midas touch, that he was infrastructure and human What we have in Bauchi is an over a hundred years ago, it is so the best thing that ever happened development. emperor with no clothes but which true of the kind of government we to Bauchi State.

None of his political appointees no one dares to point out that he is have in Bauchi State today.

All the positive titles in the book has the courage to tell him that he stark naked.

Since his assumption of office as were exhausted on him: ‘Gwamna has tragically lost touch with • John Akevi, Governor of Bauchi State in 2007, Talakawas, Gwamna Gwamnoni, reality. Yuguda does not have the Bauchi.

Governor Yuguda has carried on the action governor, the peoples advantage of that little child who

Yuguda: Emperor without clothes

This government doesn’t just care!

S

IR: This is simply incredible!

That the federal government bluntly told striking university lecturers that it cannot afford to meet their financial demands? The same government that doled out millions of naira from public till to organise a stage-managed Women Peace Rally in Abuja, and brought top class artists like Iyanya, Onyeka Onwenu, Danja, Kcee and some notable

Nollywood stars as part of the ‘rented’, but heavily paid crowd at the event?

Are we really a serious nation at all? Our leaders are not bothered that the nation’s youths who should be in school are wasting away at home.

Instead, they are busy making plans and seriously strategising ahead of an election that is two solid years ahead of us. Do they really care about

the future of this country at all?

I sincerely doubt it!

Any sane mind, better still, anyone who truly wants the best for Nigeria cannot afford to pretend over these strange occurrences. I’m very sure that even among those conspiring to send this nation to early grave exist a few who are worried about the state of things. Like humans that they are, I don’t expect them to openly bite’

New face of teaching hospital Awka

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IR: Founded many years ago, Amaku General Hospital, (now Anambra State University Teaching Hospital, Awka), gained prominence due to the expertise of most of the doctors and nurses. Their selfless services contributed immensely to the successes achieved in the hospital. But that was in the past. At a point things began to turn upside town, perhaps, due to unfavourable government’s policies, or rather, politicization of human lives. The basic demands of the hospital were not met; dilapidated and decayed hospital equipment was never replaced; the quality and quantity of the drugs brought to the hospital became somehow questionable.

Some nurses and doctors, as their own reaction to government’s apparently callous actions, began

showing lackadaisical attitude towards the affairs of the patients.

Even when a medical doctor was the governor of Anambra State, the doctors went on strike after so many years of tears to draw the government’s attention which fell on deaf ears. Of course, death rate increased and some patients who cannot afford private hospital services were left to their fate. Those who knew the hospital before now can attest to this.

The hospital from 2007 or so downwards could not boast of at least one healthy structure or facility. Patients and indeed good Anambrarians let ‘wild’ their voices in plea to the government to no avail.

To be honest, the current government of Mr. Peter Obi deserves commendation, at least, counting on

what he has achieved at the Anambra State University Teaching Hospital, Awka. Igbo adage avers that when you commend someone for a job well done, he would be fortified with enough courage to do more! When I visited the hospital recently, I could not help but shrug in awe over what I saw. Yes! If one calls it one of the wonders of Anambra, it would certainly not be in error. Multibillion naira, gigantic buildings are on ground. There are over 15 of them that are completed and others springing up. The quality of drugs sent to the hospital is sound as captured in the words of some patients I interacted with.

It is not that there are no few things which need to be attended to; but whoever sees the truth should ‘vomit’ it. As at the time I visited the area, there were series

of work going on. The massive compound was being beautified and trees were being planted to check erosions and as windbreaks to preserve the new structures.

More importantly, the teaching hospital secured accreditation through the relentless efforts of the same man who made it a teaching hospital, or rather, paved way for that. The Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Ezeobi Ifeanyi has equally been praised. They said the man works hard as if it is his personal hospital. However, the patients and indeed, concerned Anambrarians are in tears, not of pain or anguish, but of joy. Honesty demands that he who did well should be commended.

• Odogwu Obinna Awka

the finger that provides them their share of the cake; no, not in this part of the world where people kill in their quest for power and relevance.

Check this out; a few years back, trillions of naira, from our collective patrimony was used as bailout funds for commercial banks ran aground by friends and associates of those in power. The entertainment industry, popularly called Nollywood equally enjoyed similar largesse when this same government released the sum of N3 billion as bailout funds for its smooth operations. Even after discovering that some governmentbacked oil contractors collected trillions of naira for not supplying a drop of fuel, this same government still kept its cool and shielded the big boys from paying for their crimes. Instead, it resorted to removing fuel subsidy as if to choke the lives of ordinary Nigerians.

The same government that has earned for itself the sobriquet of being the most generous administration has suddenly realised the need to be prudent now that it’s the turn of university lecturers? What is sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander. So, let the spending spree continue. After all, it is oil money.

Oil can never dry up in Nigeria. Our gods will never allow that to happen, not now that a son of the soil is in the saddle.

• Abdullahi Yunusa, Minna, Niger State,

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

21

COMMENTS

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HE title of this piece is a pun of tic and competitive setting, neChinua Achebe’s Beware, Soul cessitating federalism, which Brother, the late novelist’s collecNigeria claims to run. But they tion of poetry, written basically during could also have been made to Nigeria’s Civil War (1967-1970). push cultural irredentism, the The symbolism of the pun is clear: sense Mr. Fani-Kayode quotes victims of past tragedies should be less them. gung-ho about future ones.

Question is: which is which?

Yet from the emotions over the LagosNow, back to Things Fall Apart, Anambra 14 “deportation” or “resettlethe pristine Igbo society that Olakunle ment” saga (depending on which side of Achebe painted did not betray lordbeek1@gmail.com, 08054504169 (Sms only, please) Abimbola the divide you stand), that lesson does any streak of others’ dominanot appear to have sunk. tion. But is there something in As The Nation editorial on the unfortuthe psyche of the contemporary nate incident held, the Lagos governIgbo that craves domination of ment should have been more circumothers – but after embarking on spect. But those at the receiving end too such escapades, end up scaldYoruba swarm Enugu, for instance, claiming ownership of the ing themselves? ought to have been more sensitive to the burden Lagos carplace or bragging about their teeming numbers there, is courtries, without any extra help from Nigeria’s skewed federaAguiyi-Ironsi’s Unification Decree 34 of 1966 was the panic ing needless disaster. The same should be for Igbo in Lagos, tion. The matter can be amicably resolved with mutual sensibutton, after the 15 January 1966 coup, that triggered the pono matter what rights they figure they have as citizens; and tivity and understanding. grom. The fear? Igbo domination. Then, post-Civil War seiwhatever rationalisations about Lagos being a former federal Still, the intemperate reactions on the matter, for and against, zure of Igbo property in Port Harcourt, fraudulently dubbed capital. forebode some future but avoidable tragedy; without clear “abandoned property”. The fear again? Igbo domination!

That again leads to the Akubueze yak: “The Igbo are key ground rules guiding Nigeria’s so-called federalism, particuEven in Lagos, there are allegations of Igbo crushing nonstakeholders in the affairs of the state. We constitute over 46 larly on citizenship and native rights.

Igbo out of legitimate trade. The Nation columnist, Sanya Oni, per cent of the population of the state ... It is the Igbo that are Just check out the Babel of reactions: Anambra Governor, told a sad tale of how he was crushed out of business when he making Lagos tick; it is the Igbo that made Lagos what it is and Peter Obi’s canonisation of President Goodluck Jonathan as once traded in spare parts at Ladipo Market, Mushin, Lagos. without them, Lagos will go to sleep. In short, without Igbos, some overarching prefect that must impose a diktat on interUtuk Motors and Inyang Ette, transport companies in Eastern there will be no Lagos.” (as quoted by Daily Sun of August 6). state disputes; Orji Uzor Kalu’s rather incendiary goading; Femi routes, also have sad tales alleging Igbo sharp trade practices.

Akubueze claims to be an Igbo leader.

Fani-Kayode’s three-serial riposte, which started with fine Also, the Igbo must ask themselves: Nigerians of every stock This clearly is a voice from the lunatic fringe. But it betrays points of history but dipped into some ribaldry about past live all over the country. Why is it that it is mostly the Igbo a condition, which thanks to Prof. Achebe and his classic, Things trysts with Igbo girls just to prove he is a lover of truth but no that witness tension with their host communities?

Fall Apart, you could call the Okonkwo syndrome: that tragic selfhater of Igbo; C. Don Adinuba’s fine piece urging caution and Well, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, former Anambra govergoading to disaster, simply because action gallops, in false strategic thinking on the part of the Igbo in Lagos; Joe Igbokwe’s nor, claims it is Igbo envy. Even Achebe, in his There was a triumph, miles ahead of thinking. bad tempered response that opened him up to vicious charges Country, hinted as much. Other Igbo flatly claim wherever But if Okonkwo self-martyred to protect the integrity of his of a house Negro in the Lagos establishment; Senator Chris they settle is their home as Nigerian citizens, and they could land and culture, on what basis is Akubueze baiting disaster as Ngige’s intervention that could well set him up for political well do as they pleased. But how many Nigerians could claim virtual owner of Lagos? blackmail; Andy Uba’s urbane protest-advertorial to Goversuch brazen rights in Igboland – or are they less Nigerian? Or Indeed, Akubueze-speak is a worrisome streak, which the Igbo nor Fashola, and one Akubueze’s lunatic yak that Igbo are 46 is it just protecting yours but encroaching on others’? themselves must ponder and decry. Triumphalism-induced per cent of Lagos population!

The Igbo deserve to give themselves frank answers to these host community provocation preceded the northern pogroms.

But after all the excitement, something is clear: Nigeria is no questions. Otherwise, their past tragedies would be no learnSame provocation rebranded the Nzeogwu coup as “Ibo coup”, settler community, like the United States or Australia. It is an ing dam against future ones. with tragic consequences. indigenous corps of cultural entities, which had existed long Irredentism and the penchant to dominate is no monopoly That brings the discourse to the Orji Uzor Kalu -Femi Fanibefore colonialism and Frederick Lugard’s yoking of 1914. of any ethnic group. Indeed, that is the crux of Nigeria’s crisis Kayode face-off. Mr. Kalu disregarded his high position as So, those who do plastic legal analysis, without factoring in of nationhood. former governor with his incendiary comments. Mr Fanithe objective and peculiar condition on ground miss the point.

Still, the Yoruba are famous for their twin ethos of Afenifere Kayode too did his former position as minister no honour by It is nothing but legal grandstanding. (live and let live) and Omoluabi (good breeding). That cultural embarrassing Igbo ladies (now married) he had once dated.

Every part of Nigeria is indigenous to some people, no matliberality would explain why Igbo investment literally melted Both behaviours are to be decried. ter the fortune or misfortune of the place. No matter how the from Port Harcourt after the “abandoned property” swindle, Still, in Mr. Fani-Kayode’s intervention were some bitter but continues to thrive in post-Civil War Lagos. truths which the Ndigbo must ponder, in their relationship with The Yoruba have no cause to ogle Igbo property or envy “The Yoruba have no cause to ogle Igbo other ethnic groups: Charles Onyeama’s 1945 statement that Igbo success. But the Igbo in Lagos must not give the impresdomination of Nigeria is only a matter of time” and Dr. property or envy Igbo success. But the Igbo in “Igbo sion of ogling Lagos territory or any other part of Yoruba Nnamdi Azikiwe’s 1949 quip that the god of Africa had created Lagos must not give the impression of ogling the Igbo nation to lead all. land.

Of course, these statements, especially Zik’s, could have been Such crass and cavalier insensitivity is courting sure disasYoruba territory” made in the context of cultural pride, not unusual in a pluralister.

R

epublican ipples

Beware, Eastern Brother!

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HE federal government’s indignation at the African Development Bank AfDBs unflattering scorecard was perhaps expected. Having sunk so much energy into convincing Nigerians of its deft handling of the economy, its touchiness over comments remotely deemed to negate its exaggerated claims of performance should be understandable. Even at that, it seems that the Jonathan coterie of selfscorers barely read, not to talk of digest, what could in fact pass as a generous assessment by the continental finance institution.

The details of the AfDB report are of course already in the public domain. To start with, I do not think the so-called report contains anything new or different that Nigerians are not already familiar with on the economy and its vulnerabilities.

Let me however, attempt a summary of the main elements of the report. The report starts by acknowledging that the economy has been on a steady cruise hovering between 6.5 to 7 percent. That despite government’s best intentions to turn the tide in agriculture, the sector remains largely hobbled by lack of modernisation on one hand and poor linkage with manufacturing on the other. That unemployment, despite the impressive growth rates actually increased from 21% in 2010 to 24% in 2011; it attributes this to the fact that the sectors driving the economic growth are not high job-creating sectors. It gave the federal government credit for fiscal consolidation which has helped to contain the fiscal deficit below 3.0% of gross domestic product (GDP). So also is the tight monetary policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which kept inflation at around 12.0% in 2012. Over all, it projects a flattering picture of positive growth in the future.

Indeed, it seems to me that only the Federal Government considers the AfDB’s presentation on the “enclave” economy of crude oil, which powers an annual 8.0% growth, (the corresponding figure for non-oil sector is -0.35%) while leaving youth unemployment at a monstrous 37 percent as anything but objective. Or more still – its prescription of the need to broaden the base of the economy through diversification, harnessing its potentials in agriculture, manufacturing and services to broaden the growth and to create employment and reduce poverty.

It was therefore not sufficient that the lynch mob at the Presidency found the presentation disagreeable – it had to be passed off by Jonathan’s information minister Labaran Maku as containing “bogus claims and disingenuous innuendos” only because it dared to draw attention to the vulnerabilities of the economy. Coincidentally, the Minister of Finance Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala had only a week before in an interview with Thisday admitted the vulnerability to be real!

Policy Sanya Oni sanyaoni@yahoo.co.uk 08051101841

FG vs. AfDB Of course, the federal government counter-argument to the AfDB could only be revealing. First, it argues that the growth rate of the Nigerian economy projected at 6.7 percent this year would be the fastest on the continent. That, courtesy of the Jonathan administration’s transformation agenda, Nigeria remains the destination of choice for Foreign Direct Investment in Africa, over and above South Africa and Egypt.

It awards it awards itself high marks for the recovery of the capital market, celebrates its “successful” realignment of the Lugardian Lagos-Kano rail lines; sings the high praise for the still-in-the-womb standard gauge rail lines from LagosIbadan; Abuja-Kaduna; Warri-Ajaokuta-Itakpe; Abuja City Light Rail; etc.

It goes on to celebrate the creation of 12,000 YouWin jobs; looks forward to another 80,000 more jobs by 2015. As for the SURE-P funded Community Services Scheme, it claims that 178,000 youths are already employed out of the 370,000 expected while the Graduate Internship Scheme is expected to place about 50,000 graduates across the country. Now, all of the above merely represent a fraction of the achievement which the administration claims it has in its kitty.

Of course, you would be mistaken to imagine that the minister was not talking about a nation that spends an annual $11 billion – representing 35 percent of its entire budget- to import staple food for its population; an economy powered by generators and where basic manufactures are still sourced abroad. We are talking of an economy where more than 40 million are out work; where there are more factory closures than start-ups, and where the only ‘productive’ activity going on is politics!

While it seems that the poor grasp of the fundamentals of the economy by the likes of Maku is troubling enough, the greater danger is when officials choose to live in denial of the reality. Contrary to the picture often painted, the arithmetic of the economy is neither nor too complex to grasp.

Excess crude means nothing more than surplus of earnings over projected receipts. You do not need experts from the World Bank to understand that it does not require special intelligence! The same with foreign reserves; it is growing because the nation is earning more – not consuming less!

That the economy enjoys a semblance of macro-stability is simply a function of oil receipts.

By the way, no one needs to look far to understand why all manners of portfolio investors are swooning on Abuja: it is precisely because the nation has enough reserves to guarantee safe exit for the investors whenever the bubble burst.

What the like of Maku is yet to appreciate is that our present capacity to pay for imports remains dependent on oil prices holding steady. Even then, there are increasing signs that the economy is heading for troubling times as oil receipts dwindle due to theft and tumbling oil prices.

The second leg of the report is the aspect dealing with unemployment and poverty. The federal government, not surprisingly thinks it is doing enough on both counts. What have they done? It is unimaginable that the government thinks so much of the high-octane affairs in Abuja during which some 100 youths are presented with wheel barrows all in the name of job creation? Is that job creation?

Let me end by praying that this revelry last; it seems to me that the nation is due for a shocker. Contrary to the AfDB’s prognosis, I do not even think that the prognosis is good.

Soon enough, the reality would dawn on everyone.

‘You would be mistaken to imagine that the minister was not talking about a nation that spends an annual $11 billion – representing 35 percent of its entire budget- to import staple food for its population; an economy powered by generators and where basic manufactures are still sourced abroad. We are talking of an economy where more than 40 million are out work; where there are more factory closures than start-ups, and where the only ‘productive’ activity going on is politics!

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

22

COMMENTS

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NCE again the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has shut down academic activities in most of Nigeria’s public universities save in just a few where the local ASUU branches have broken ranks with the national body to assert their ‘autonomy’.

And expectedly, both the union and the federal government have gone on the charm offensive to get the public behind their different positions which paint the other as the devil in the battle to save our ‘crumbling’ university education.

While ASUU would want the rest of us to believe that it is fighting to restore the glory back to our universities, the government is convinced that the lecturers are only interested in their own wellbeing but using alleged infrastructural decay in the universities as a screen to push for better pay.

It is over a month now since the students were asked to go home indefinitely and both ASUU and the federal government are nowhere near an agreement even as they were locked in another round of negotiation yesterday. But things could change for the better as news emerged yesterday that the government had approved about N400 billion for infrastructure upgrade in the universities.

But if no agreement was reached on the N92 billion or so that the lecturers are asking for to augment their pay along with the approval for the infrastructure upgrade, the truth behind ASUU’s indefinite strike could soon be revealed. Should the government release the funds for the infrastructural development and stuck to its guns that it cannot afford the N92 billion ASUU wants for its members, Nigerians could be forced to ask whether the lecturers are truly interested in the health of the universities and the students or simply their pocket?

But should government do this, it would

‘We’ll suffer then for the stupid things we are doing today. Let’s come together now and address the problem of the education sector for the sake of our tomorrow’ What has consistently escaped most Nigerians in this entire travesty is the fact that mediocrity destroys the very fabric of a country…ushering in all sorts of banality, ineptitude, corruption and debauchery.

That…is precisely where Nigeria finds itself today! —Chinua Achebe

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INCE the beginning of yet another strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities ASUU last month, which not surprisingly has entered its second month, one wonders when we as a nation would remove ourselves form this wanton mortification of making the education a laughing stock among comity of nations. The question all stakeholders enmeshed in this opprobrium should be asking is whether something fundamental is not wrong with our collective consciousness, else, how come that in every two to three years, the news of ASUU demanding that its overlords in Abuja implement an agreement both entered into and which in turn leads to a painful strike, reverberates the whole nation?

Are we lacking in foresight as to understand that the Nigerian universities are dying gradually? Have we looked around to ask ourselves why the nation, whose youth outnumbers the old and very young, cannot remove itself from the shackles of societal malfeasance and hold forth the appellation: “we are the future leaders of tomorrow” by taking their destinies into their hands? For as long as the Nigerian youth accepts redundancy, fails to think for himself, cannot see where the rain began to beat him or take the bull by the horn, like many of their counterparts in developed nations, then it will be succinct to claim that the education sector which is supposed to train, build, inculcate, mould and educate vibrant youths against the morrow have failed in its entirety to bequeath such for a people who will take up the reigns of leadership from the old guards, a fault which is not theirs anyway.

If ASUU once again and for the umpteenth time has called for a strike, it is not because they do not see the peck in their own eyes, as it is evidently known that their own house is also not in order, but because from the very first day government whose responsibility is to pay very good attention to the education

Toying with our future only further damage its reputation as an unreliable partner in any agreement and further foul the already strained relationship the students and their parents are having with ASUU over the spate of strikes that have brought academics activities in our universities to their knees more often than not in the last decades or so.

The federal government had reneged several times on agreements reached with ASUU in recent times, the same way it has done with similar agreements with several other unions. Even in the economic sector, the government appears incapable or unwilling to act its own part of an agreement or perform as expected. Joint venture partners in the oil sector have cried out several times that the government through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) had been lagging behind in fulfilling its own side of the funding of the sector. Ditto with the health sector and virtually every other sectors where government counterpart funding was required. The Nigerian government it appears is good at entering into an agreement but unwilling or reluctant to fulfil it to the letter.

The unfulfilled agreement that led to the latest strike action by ASUU was signed with the government in 2009. The federal government went into it with its eyes wide open. If it wasn’t willing to fulfil it or knew it wouldn’t be able to fulfil it, why did the government sign? Agreed that ASUU has a way of bullying its way through every agreement with government, but the government shouldn’t allow itself to be bullied. When ASUU wants something from government all it does is send the students home to put pressure on their parents who would in turn put pressure on government to accede to the

lecturers demands. Nowhere in the world has the government or other employers met all the demands of workers. The best that had ever happened was reaching an agreement that satisfied both parties; an implementable agreement. Is the 2009 ASUU/FG agreement implementable? To the government, No, while ASUU says YES if the will is there.

The union and its sympathisers are quick to point at the astronomical pay of our politicians especially members of the National Assembly to buttress the point that government could pay if it is willing. They could have a point here. But government that says it cannot accommodate N92 billion or thereabout that the lecturers are asking for as this would shoot the recurrent expenditure to an unbearable level also has a point here. So what do we do?

Can or should we pay the lecturers all they ask for at the expense of other workers or we should pay all workers all they ask for at the expense of the health of the economy?

Should we say because our politicians are paying themselves ‘too much’ all government/public sector workers should also earn ‘too much’?

This is not a defence of irresponsibility on the part of government but a call for give and take on both sides for the sake of the students and our future. The health sector just like every other sector is not perfect, but if doctors shut down the hospitals (or mere consulting clinics as some would like to call them) as often as lecturers shut down the universities, half of Nigerians would be dead by now. There has to be a better way of resolving the problem of funding of our universities and other tertiary institutions other than strikes and ASUU’s arm twisting

FG Vs. ASUU: The game goes on

By Raheem Oluwafuminiyi sector keeps faltering and reneging on agreements she entered into. For many who are of the belief that ASUU has no reason or justification to embark on this strike which has become one too many in recent times, they must understand that though it may look more like Oliver Twist asking for more, in the situation our education sector finds itself, once and for all, drastic measures ought to be taken in ensuring we do not become a pointer to ridicule anywhere in the world anymore.

If we have to look well enough the reason ASUU had decided embark on this strike and we feel the shame our universities have put up with, especially if we have to balance it with the education the likes of our parents had in the 60s, 70s and 80s and the pitiable ones our children have today, we then must understand ASUU’s pain and anger. Nobody likes to strike, nobody wishes to allow it take so long, in fact, it is not a good story to tell in our nascent democracy. Yet when a country is bequeathed with leaders who have no foresight, lack understanding of the sociopolitical terrain, remain clueless in tackling simple political arithmetic, and is occupied with how to remain in power until 2090, then strike becomes an option and a weapon to bring such government to its senses.

Many Nigerians cannot understand how we practice democracy in the country.

Democracy and good governance go hand in hand and therefore, policies embarked upon by one government or the other must necessary be a continuum and should not shift unless necessary. One finds it very difficult to grasp well the story peddled by this government that the agreement it voluntarily entered into in 2009 with ASUU should be renegotiated. It is the worst of arguments this writer has heard in decades and one wonders if this government is truly committed to transforming the education sector, if the so

called campaign promise in 2011 is anything to go by. One would have thought the government of the day should have put forward the same argument during negotiations with the Nigerian Labour Congress NLC in the last subsidy protest.

Perhaps, the vast majority of Nigerians wouldn’t be where they are today looking weary, fatigued and hopeless in the midst of plenty.

Even if government in its usual volte-face had thought the agreement needed to be renegotiated, why didn’t it bring it to ASUU’s table long before the latter deemed it fit to embark on its ignoble strike? From this, there is no disputing the fact that there is so much insincerity among those in power and it is the reason the vast majority of Nigerians do not trust their leaders.

It is an irony that the education sector, more than ever, faces this type of humiliation, especially when the president of this country was once a university teacher and his minister of education, a professor in a vibrant field of academic study. No country in its right senses would have such individuals in power and watch as rot engulfs their education sector.

With leaders like that who cannot engineer viable transformations within the sector they once held sway, we cannot but feel sorry for the entire country.

Our universities are no more role models for other countries to follow. Even the so called first generation universities have lost it, while mediocrity reigns supreme in the new ones. Individuals who lack the capacity to teach or engage in ground-breaking discoveries now fill our faculties and departments. Students who lack the intellectual vigour to learn now fill our departments with little or no capacity to communicate, write or engage their lecturers in intellectual debates. Most worrisome is the fact that one cannot find viable tools to hold experiments in our respective laboratories,

tactics.

Think of the students and our future. On the average, students spend between five and seven years in our public universities for a four-year Bachelors programme, no thanks to ASUU strikes. Majority of these students either because of JAMB or WAEC disappointments or a combination of both don’t enter university until they are about age 20. They graduate at about age 26/27, if they are lucky.

They spend one year on NYSC. So, by the time they are ready for the employment market, they are already in their late 20s, already overage, as most employers go for graduate under 25 years of age. So, these graduates in order to fit in to the requirements of the employers including government would now begin to ‘doctor’ their ages.

So the system is forcing them to be dishonest. Imagine the multiplier effect of that on the society, no thanks to ASUU’s incessant strikes and our irresponsible governments that never kept to agreement.

So as we continue another round of ASUU strike let whoever is responsible both on the part of the lecturers, university administrators and government remember that our future as a people and a nation is at stake.

These children that are being half baked would be our leaders tomorrow and whatever we teach them now is what they would use to lead us when their time comes. We might be too weak to intervene then if they do the wrong thing. We’ll suffer then for the stupid things we are doing today. Let’s come together now and address the problem of the education sector for the sake of our tomorrow.

‘Can or should we pay the lecturers all they ask for at the expense of other workers or we should pay all workers all they ask for at the expense of the health of the economy? Should we say because our politicians are paying themselves ‘too much’ all government/public sector workers should also earn ‘too much’?’ reminding one of the total neglect in our secondary school laboratories. The structures which the Sardauna, Azikiwe and Awolowo had patriotically erected over 48 years ago still stand rickety today with nothing to show for a better one or even critical repair of the old.

One could count the number of ICT-driven universities in the country and if one is lucky to find any, the structure is not enough to train students who are supposed to have prerequisite knowledge of the ICT world like their counterparts elsewhere.

Our classrooms have become a national embarrassment where students now sit on windows and outside to receive lectures.

University libraries are littered with books the like of Isaac Newton had used during his time yet librarians are employed year in and out without any innovation coming from them to transform their departments into world class. It is most saddening that more than 80 Nigerian universities cannot boast of a state-of-the-art library where students can get up-to-date books to embark on their research. It is no wonder that even reference materials used for PhD thesis today are as old as the country itself, when new materials have been churned out by the same author over five times. Most PhD thesis today appears unconstructive, lack coherence and almost adds nothing to problem-solving. A don once pathetically noted that there are a lot of questionable PhD’s today in Nigeria.

We seem to forget that strikes in our ivory towers have lasting implications for the future direction of the country. A medical student who is supposed to spend seven uninterrupted years in medical school suddenly faces a three month strike in his quest to become a medical doctor. At the end, he spends about eight to nine years for a seven year medical programme and is in turn given license to practice thereafter. If we do not know, we have bred a murderer and with his shaky training as a medical doctor in the murky world of medical school as a result of incessant ASUU strikes, we are bound to find our loved ones at their mercy. God help us if they survive with the way things keep going in this country!

If we continue to pretend as if all is well, we will only find ourselves to blame if not now then tomorrow, as the future does not even hold anything to cheer about.

• Oluwafuminiyi, writes from Lagos.

INSIDE

TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

Website: http://www.thenationonlineng.com

Page 25

‘Protect yourselves with perimeter fencing’ - Page 26

APC stalwart sure of party victory

Recycling comes to town

- Page 27

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‘Land-swap will enhance development’

- Page 40

ECYCLING is here. And its first port of call is the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) headquarters in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

It is just as well.

Ridding the FCT of filth is an ongoing project. But how do you conserve funds or even make money simply by disposing of waste?

Recycling is the answer, and it has started in earnest at the nation’s capital, beginning right from the AEPB headquarters itself.

In a brief ceremony, the Acting Director, Mrs. Aishat Adebayo said it was important to start the process of sorting our waste at home before it gets to the landfill site, noting that what most people regard as waste is not actually waste but wealth.

According to the Acting Director, the process of sorting waste at source is being introduced so that wastes that could be recycled can be retrieved, because if we

From Gbenga Omokhunu

carry all our waste to the landfill site, it will get filled on time.

Mrs. Adebayo further said: “In line with the popular saying that charity begins at home, Abuja Environmental Protection Board has decided to commence the pilot project within its premises. The blue bins have been made available to all the offices for materials that could be recycled.

“Waste materials meant for the recycle bins, (blue bins) are plastic bottles, cans, newspapers, nylon bags and other materials that can still be put to use.”

Continuing, Mrs. Adebayo said: “The Federal Capital Territory Administration is building more waste transfer stations that will make recyclable materials to be easy to manage.”

She appealed to members of the

Abuja Environmental Protection Board has decided to commence the pilot project within its premises. The blue bins have been made available to all the offices for materials that could be recycled…Waste materials meant for the recycle bins are plastic bottles, cans, newspapers, nylon bags and other materials that can still be put to use

public to co-operate with the board so that the scheme will achieve its aim of ensuring a cleaner environment.

“For now, we plan to introduce it to our headquarters in Area 2 and other offices. This mini-launch is an awareness programme aimed at enlightening the public on how to sort their wastes at home.

Please, ensure that only dry waste goes into the blue bin,” she said.

Mrs. Adebayo further said the scheme was meant to serve the residents of the Federal Capital City better and it is expected that all hands will be on deck to ensure its success.

The Acting Director said she was optimistic that the introduction and use of the blue bins will be a success because it’s working in other cities.

“Abuja residents are intelligent and cultured; and I know that they will work with AEPB,” she added.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

26

ABUJA REVIEW

‘Protect

yourselves with perimeter fencing’

I

N order to reduce the crime rate in estates within the Federal Capital Territory, Commissioner of Police, Olufemi Ogunbayode has called on residents to address the issue of perimeter fencing.

Ogunbayode gave the advice during an interactive session with the Abuja chapter of Nigerian Union of Journalists.

“The issue of perimeter fence must not be taken lightly. Most of these estates do not have perimeter fences. In most of the estates, you can count the ones with perimeter fences.

“We have a common task to fight crime. There is no city in the world that is crime-free.

“Abuja is about the safest • Security fence place in the country. Everybody comes here. This increases the From Frank Ikpefan challenge because everybody has been displaced. But we have been able to sustain an ac- has helped in reducing the fears ceptable level of security in the of residence in the capital. capital,” the FCT police chief “When you see a policeman, said. there is the re-assurance that He noted that the presence of you are safe. Indeed, you are police officers in the capital city safe because a criminal will not

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan and the InspectorGeneral of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar came under fire over their refusal to redeploy Rivers State Police Commissioner, Joseph Mbu. A member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former National Chairman of Social Progressive Party (SPP), Dr. Ezekiel Izuogu said Jonathan should order the redeployment of Mbu to end the political crisis in Rivers State.

The IGP Abubakar had, at the State House Abuja, disclosed that Mr Mbu will remain in office, dashing the hopes of those expecting a change in the leadership of the police in Rivers State.

Reacting to the development at a news conference, Izuogu said that even the blind man knows that Jonathan has ordered the IGP not to remove Mbu following his involvement in the lingering crisis.

He also accused President Jonathan of being behind the unending crisis in the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and that of Rivers State.

T

operate where there is a police officer. If there is to be any incident, we believe that the presence of that police officer will prevent it,” he said.

Ogunbayode acknowledged the challenges experienced by the command because of influx of persons to the capital. This,

to about early hours of the day.

“This has placed additional burden on us because of the presence of additional persons in the capital. We are not relenting. We will continue to fight crimes in the FCT in order to maintain peace.”

Jonathan behind Rivers, NGF crises, says APC member From Gbenga Omokhunu

His words: “I can swear a million times that Jonathan has a hand in the crisis rocking the governors’ forum and that of Rivers State. Let us stop deceiving ourselves. If Jonathan did not have a hand in them, he would simply have ordered the Commissioner of Police out of Rivers State.

Rivers people elected only one governor and not two. It’s like we have two governors in Rivers State at present.

“The Commissioner of Police is repeating what Bishop Eyiteme did when Jim Nwobodo was the governor of Old Anambra State. The commissioner does not have the mandate to act from anybody except from those who appointed him.

“The powers that be may not want Mr. A but the masses want him. And if you want peace in the state, then you should allow the masses to have their way. In a democratic dispensa-

tion, I had expected President Jonathan and his party the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to have congratulated Amaechi as the Chairman of the Governors’ Forum just like the PDP had congratulated the APC.

From Grace Obike

many ways, due partly to the Pension Reform Acts in 2004 and also the fact that the Acts establishing it only takes into cognisance a negligible population of the working class in the public and private sectors as against the global best practices of accommodating all the citizens.

It therefore cited examples of countries where similar schemes have been successfully implemented to include South Africa, India, United Kingdom and United States of America, saying that everyone, as a member of the society, has the right

That is the only way we can survive as a people and keep our democracy alive. Let there be tolerance. If there is no beauty in Nigeria’s democracy then nobody is safe.

“It means that in 2015, somebody

Jonathan has a hand in the crisis rocking the governors’ forum and that of Rivers State. Let us stop deceiving ourselves. If Jonathan did not have a hand in them, he would simply have ordered the Commissioner of Police out of Rivers State.

Rivers people elected only one governor and not two. It’s like we have two governors in Rivers State at present

NSITF wants Social Security act amended

HE Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund is seeking an amendment to the enabling Act establishing the fund in order to reposition it to fully carry out its mandate for all Nigerians in line with global best practices.

This, it said, is in line with the recognition of social security as a basic human right as enshrined in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Social Security Convention Recommendation.

To this end, the fund is preparing a draft proposal that would give impetus to the new Bill which it plans to submit to the National Assembly.

According to the fund, the Act that established social security system in Nigeria is different in

he said, has over-stretched the resources of the force in fighting crime.

He said: “The resources that we have are being over-stretched to a limit. We have little problem with undercover operations in daytime. We experience most of the challenges from 6:00 p.m.

to social security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age and other lacks of livelihood in circumstances beyond the control of an individual.

Consequently, the proposed Bill has, as its focus, the need to give relevance to the mandate of the NSITF which states that “it shall provide social security insurance services other than pension to all Nigerians. It also seeks to respect the role of the fund in the administration of the employee compensation fund created by the Employee Compensation Act of 2010 and finally to give the requisite statutory backing to the adoption of the ILO Social Security Convention and Social Security Act of 1952.

I

N order to significantly reduce the daily traffic gridlock in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, the city sector commander, Mr. Joshua K. Fanola, of the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, has called on the entire residents to patronise public transport provided by the government.

Fanola said one of the factors causing traffic jam in the city was “everybody trying to be a big man or a big woman; people should keep their cars at home or park in a nearby park in the city”.

He added that all over the world, especially in the more civilized countries, people have learnt to keep their private cars at home while going to work during the week and make use of them at the weekends.

He commended the FCTA for what he described as “a good action taken” by placing a ban on the small buses popularly called Araba within the city.

else can win and they would want it to be announced. All these crises do not speak well of President Jonathan’s administration. The international community is watching all these.

“Tambuwal is doing well. He is a progressive and he has no place in the PDP. He cannot remain in the PDP. Many PDP members will move to APC soon for the 2015 election.

You just watch and see.

“The position is that let the masses decide who becomes their Presidential candidate in 2015. Let there be transparent congresses at the ward level. We are going to adopt option A4 system. Parties divide when there are manipulation and imposition of candidates. There should be no hand-picking of candidates in the APC. The big men who have oil blocs are the problems of this country. APC will learn from the mistakes of PDP.”

Go by public transport, FRSC urges residents From Gbenga Omokhunu

He said Araba constitutes 10 per cent of vehicles in the city but their activities account for more than 50m per cent on the road.

The FRSC boss therefore called on motorists to be patient while driving.

One of the factors causing traffic jam in the city was everybody trying to be a big man or a big woman

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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ABUJA REVIEW

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APC stalwart sure of party victory

ORMER All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) National Financial Secretary, Hajia Fatima Muhammed who is now a member of All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that Prof. Attahiru Jega-led Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has disappointed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as it registered the APC. But sh e a s s u r e d t h a t A P C will not disappoint Nigerians.

Reacting to the registration of the APC, Hajia Muhammed said: “We are very happy with the registration. INEC has demonstrated the true independence of the commission.

We now have confidence in INEC. PDP should start parking its luggage now that Nigerians have an alternative.

“I urge all other opposition political party members to unite irrespective of their religious and tribal leanings and

I

T was a mixture of fun and lecture for 20 pupils of Pacesetters College, Abuja as the school management took them on a three-week summer study tour of the United States of America (USA).

The trip led by the chairman of the School, Kenneth Imasuagbon alongside other four staff, exposed the students to different perspectives of American curricula.

The students who were received on arrival by the Nigerian Ambassador to United States, Ade Adefuye also visited the White House, the American Embassy in Washington DC, the Kings Dominion among other places.

Kenneth Imasuagbon while speaking with Abuja Review last week after returning from the trip said the aim of the summer study was to make the students have a comparison between what is obtained in the Nigerian Educational system and that of the United States.

“The School aims to make the children have a comparative educational and vocational knowledge,to see how the Ameri-

From Gbenga Omokhunu

join hands to push PDP out of power in 2015. By God’s grace, APC will win 2015 presidential election as well as states and local government council polls. A new dawn has come.

“I want to state ones again that we are happy with the distribution of positions in the new APC. We are not divided like the PDP are. Our hope now that APC is registered is to move Nigerians out of poverty; a situation that the ruling party has since put them.

“We are here for a change and so shall it be. APC has come to stay no matter the tribulations. Nobody, not even the powers that be can stop APC members from achieving their goals to salvage Nigeria.

“In APC, we understand ourselves and the next thing to do now is to mobilise our-

selves for the future and make sure that we do not disappoint Nigerians. INEC should be commended for this glorious step. I am confident that the 2015 elections will be hitchfree with the way INEC is going,” she said.

A member of the APC and former National Chairman of Social Progressive Party (SPP), Dr. Ezekiel Izuogu at a briefing in Abuja on the registration of APC, said with the development, Jega has established credibility towards the

I urge all other opposition political party members to unite irrespective of their religious and tribal leanings and join hands to push PDP out of power in 2015.

By God’s grace, APC will win 2015 presidential election

20 pupils off to US Stories by Bukola Amusan

can Educational system is, the setting there,to see what we can learn from the American educational system and how we can use it to restructure the Nigerian Educational system and most especially Pacesetters school” “They were taught the rudiments of Algebra, calculux among other things, it was a mixture of academics and fun”he added The students were also taught the basic English writing skills and word formations among others things” “Beyond the learning and academic aspect, they were also exposed to the various characters and traits of hardwork and discipline” “ They have also learnt things that they can do to take Nigeria to the next level as future leaders of the country” Imasuagbon while speaking on

2015 elections.

Izuogu said: “I congratulate all progressives across the length and breadth of the country for agreeing to work in one political party to save our nation from the tyranny of the PDP. “I call on all progressives to leave the conservative PDP so that the nation can have a clear ideological divide. This will augur well for democracy and the stability of the nation.

“I say kudos to PDP for hav-

the interest shown by the pupils throughout the tour said with all what they have been exposed to, he believes that they are well groomed to compete with their contemporaries anywhere they find themselves in the world.

“The student are now well prepared and with their various experience and interest while in the United states, they are set to do exploits in their studies here in Nigeria”he assured He commended the American Embassy for facilitating the visa of the students which he said was made possible within a very short period which he said was due to the great importance the US Government attaches to the education of the Nigerian Child.

“The Americans are wonderful people, when it comes to education, I can tell you the Americans are one of the best, they assisted the school to make the trip a successful one”he said The Vice Principal of the Wuye

Campus of the School, Roseline Olumobi was also part of the trip alongside the School Director and wife of the Chairman, Mrs Kate Imasuagbon, Segun Awogbade, the Principal of the Wuse Campus and Amaechi Osuji, the Head of English Department of the Gwarinpa Campus of the Pacesetters School.

Mrs Olumobi who also narrated her experience said it was really a great opportunity for the students to improve on their academics after been exposed to foreign studies and tutelage for a period of three weeks.

She commended the school management for the gesture that was

•Chief Akande, APC Chairman

ing the courage to congratulate the APC. This is the spirit of democracy that all mature politicians should imbibe.” extended to them as it was an opportunity that they never dreamt of.

“This opportunity is what we never dreamt of but by the grace of God and with the passion we have for the school , Pacesetters management have make it possible” “The Chairman and the wife sponsored the teachers’ trip,they paid for the visa, accommodation and the flight ticket,they made us have a wonderfull stay in the United States”she added “The students learnt a lot from the American system as well as modern technology in teaching ,interactive teaching and discipline as well”

Beyond the learning and academic aspect, they were also exposed to the various characters and traits of hardwork and discipline, and have also learnt things that they can do to take Nigeria to the next level as future leaders of the country

FCT School principals urged to be effective leaders

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HE Secretary for Education, FCTA, Mallam Kabir Usman has admonished principals in FCT schools to be effective leaders if they are to meet desired results of imparting knowledge and good moral character to their students.

The Secretary made this charge at the second International Best Practices Retreat for School Principals, Proprietors and Administrators organised by the Exam Ethics Marshals International in Accra, Ghana.

In his keynote address titled “Leadership Skills for Principals” for which he received a prolonged standing ovation from principals and education administrators from several African countries, Mallam Kabir Usman said that principals must always lead by example and not be afraid to “jump into the fray” if they are to win the respect and loyalty of their teachers.

He also said that the FCT Education Secretariat takes the process of appointment of school principals very seriously indeed and has always ensured that whoever is ap-

pointed as a principal has all the prerequisite academic qualifications and leadership qualities.

He emphasised that a principal must first of all be a teacher as the position of a principal is simply an elevation to an administrative capacity. No principal or school head should therefore not be able to handle himself well in the classroom He also listed some qualities which all effective school principals must imbibe. They include the ability to communicate, the ability to listen, to be easily accessible to staff and students, to be able to meet challenges effectively, to be able to propose and implement laudable initiatives, to be team player and be flexible and adaptable to change.

The consequences of leadership failures in the school he concluded will lead to students not reaching their full potentials and eventually become victims of social vices. Unleashed into the larger society he said, these students will bring “nothing but grief to all”

•Chicken snack on Nyanya, Abuja road

PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

ABUJA REVIEW

Group tackles Yerima on child-marriage

T

HE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) chapter o f the As s o cia t io n fo r Orphan and Vulnerable Children in Nigeria (AONN) has said they believe that Senator Sani Yerima and his group which supported a child-marriage law were not in their right frame of minds when they rose in support of the Bill at the red chamber recently.

A ddr essing a pr e s s conference tagged: “Slavery disguised”, in Abuja, FCT cocoordinator of the group Mrs. Priscilla Nwachukwu said “it is madness” for somebody to marry a child without considering health, social and economic challenges, adding that marrying off Nigerian

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HE Acting Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Dr AbdulRahman Sambo, said inadequate funding was needed to attain universal health coverage in the country.

Sambo told journalists in Abuja that there was the need for special funds to take care of the health needs of vulnerable persons in the country.

He said the scheme had developed key elements to achieving universal health insurance through compulsion for those who could afford health care and subsidy payment.

The subsidy payment, he explained, would ensure that the indigent were taken care of from some of the contributions of those who could afford to pay.

“The major challenge that we have is our law, which makes participation under the health insurance scheme optional, voluntary; number two, the non-logging in of the programmes of the NHIS by states and local governments; these are the two major that has been impeding the NHIS in attaining universal coverage.

“One other major thing that has been clearly defined by us and other stakeholders is the absence of a fund that will provide contribution or pay for the contribution of the vulnerable, the poor, the indigent and

From Grace Obike

girls in childhood will only deepen their trauma and further enslave them.

“Child-marriage has farreaching health, social, economic and political implications for the girl-child

a nd her commu ni t y . It truncates a girl’s childhood, creates grave physical and psychological health risks and robs her of internationally recognised human rights.”

While identifying poverty, social ties and protection as reasons why some parents

Child-marriage has far- reaching health, social, economic and political implications for the girl-child and her community. It truncates a girl’s childhood, creates grave physical and psychological health risks and robs her of internationally recognised human rights

indulge in child-marriage, Nwachukwu noted that research has shown marriage by the age of 20 years has a risk factor for HIV infection in the girls, adding that the girls’ virginal status and physical immaturity increase the risk of HIV transmission.

The group therefore called on governments at all levels to implement health outreach programmes for girls and boys and also incorporate preventive and treatment programs for the for reproductive health issues into their health services.

The coordinator enjoined all Nigerians to “say no to this form of slavery and join in educating the girl-child”

•Sen.Yerima

NHIS seeks more funds for universal health coverage those with some forms of disease vulnerability.

“We have identified two key elements that are required to ensure universal coverage, and those elements are compulsion - compelling individuals who have the means to pay for their contribution to do so.

“The second one is the touchy issue of subsidy, we believe that there have to be some subsidy payments for those who can’t afford to make their own contributions.”

Sambo said the NHIS currently covers only 7.5 million Nigerians, adding that the law establishing the scheme was being amended by the National Assembly.

He said it was also important for Nigerians to change their mentality on the notion of health insurance as the advantages outweighed the disadvantages.

“We currently have covered about 7.5 million persons; the NHIS law is going through amendment in the National Assembly and the amendment will strictly look at making it compulsory and identifying some form of financing mechanism or options to give cover to the poor and the indigent in the society.

“We are going round the coun-

try sensitising people, paying advocacy to states governors and local government chairmen, to political leaders, traditional leaders, religious leaders, across the country.

“We are partnering with the media because without the media we cannot be able to reach out to Nigerians; we need to educate Nigerians on the value of health insurance which is a cultural shift.

“Culturally, Nigerians wouldn’t want to pay in advance for their healthcare; this notion that doing so may connote one’s wish of being ill; this is common in quite a number of cultures across the country.

“People say it is not my portion to get sick. Some think health insurance or insurance in general is against their faith; those are some of the little challenges that we are facing.’’

The acting executive secretary said NHIS was also partnering with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to reposition the scheme, adding that continuous sensitisation would go a long way to improve the health status of Nigerians.

“The scheme is being redesigned to ensure that it is well structured

• Women selecting fairly used clothes (Tokunbo) for Purchase at Gosa Market, Airport Road, Abuja PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

to attain universal coverage.

“We are consulting with the International Finance Corporation (IFC); we are actually partnering with the IFC. “We have engaged the services of a company to look at the NHIS; examine the scheme in four broad areas, policy, regulation and legal

framework; that is one area.

“The second area is the business processes of the NHIS; the third area is finance and funding requirement needed to attain universal coverage, and fourthly the IT platform that will be required to move the process forward.

Sensitisation and advocacy of ordinary Nigerians is a big issue, and that is why we are going round sensitising our partners to assist the scheme in reaching out to Nigerians; let them know the value of health insurance as it’s being done in other countries of the world

A

1, 200 midwives get USAID scholarship

BOUT 1,200 midwives from the six geo-political zones of the country have benefitted from the USAID midwives scheme.

The scheme, organised in partnership with a non-governmental organisation, Capacity Plus, was aimed at improving the knowledge of midwives as well as addressing maternal and child-mortality in the country.

Speaking at an award ceremony in Abuja, the Chief of Party, Capacity Plus, Samuel Ngobua said the scholarship will also extend to prospective individuals who choose to pursue the career.

He disclosed plans to procure direct institutional support for 11 additional health training institutions drawn from the current six priority states.

The overall goal of ‘Capacity Plus’ work in Nigeria is to increase the availability of health workers to meet the priority health needs of underserved populations through sustainable Human Resources for Health (HRH) interventions.

This, he said, is in line with the US’ President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) reauthorization and US Government congressional mandate of adding 140,000 new health workers globally by 2014 to the existing pool of health workers in order to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The project activities are aligned with the nation’s 2010 – 2015 National Strategic Health Development Plan (NSHDP) and in strong

From Frances Ajewole

collaboration with the Nigerian Deputy Director, Health Systems Strengthening and Innovation, Capacity Plus; Washington, Mr. Malik Jaffer, representatives from WHO, USAID, and the scholarship recipients were in attendance.

Ngobua said: “This 2013/2014 aw ard is built on the success of the 2012/2013 exercise in which 1200 students of Midwifery from the 54 schools of Midwifery nationwide and from 30 states of the Federation and Abuja are expected to benefit from the exercise.”

He stated that the problem of training midwives up to professional level and then losing them to other countries has been one of the challenges faced.

Midwives in the country travel abroad to work once they have completed their training in this country and this is a waste, he says. ”We are also working in collaboration with the family health department of the federal ministry of Health recently concluded two Training of Trainers (TOTs) on Life Saving Skills (LSS for Midwives) and Modified Life Saving Skills in Makurdi and Ibadan in which 44 staff from the 11 health training institutions were trained,” Ngobua added.

According to him, the rationale behind this was to strengthen the teaching capacity of the benefitting staff to enhance performance of the students in their final examinations.

29

TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

In the face of maternal mortality due to underage pregnancy, Ni‘gerian girls cannot truly be said to enjoy right to life, the fulcrum

of other human rights. One of the positive steps necessary for the prevention of this unintentional loss of lives and protecting right to See page 35 life is criminalising girl-child marriage.

’

E-mail:- law@thenationonlineng.net

INSIDE: Experts canvass reform of legal profession

The list of unresolved high-profile murders is long. Some blame ineffective use of forensic technology for the problem, but the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Mohammed Abubakar, says it is due to lack of information from the public. He also blames detectives for doing poor jobs. Is the IG’s claim tenable? How can the public trust the police with information? Does Nigeria need a statute similar to the United States’Whistleblower Protection Act to protect information givers?

JOSEPH JIBUEZE writes.

-Page 31

‘Our tax laws are not payer friendly’ -Page 32

The Lagos deportation and the law

-Page 34

Does child marriage breach fundamental human right?

-Page 35

Democracy and socio-economic imbalance in Nigeria: The role of law

-Page 36

‘Courts can formulate issues for parties where justice demands’ -Page 37

• Anti-riot police officers

The police, public and crime W

HY have the police been unable to resolve a single high-profile murder in Nigeria and bring the perpetrators to book? This is a question that has remained on the lips of many for years. Experts said the police need to be well-equipped to solve violent crimes through scientific means.

But the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Mr Mohammed Abubakar, last Wednesday attributed the poor performance of his men to lack of information from the public. He also blamed detectives for not conducting in-depth investigations.

Abubakar spoke at a conference for heads of Criminal Investigation Departments (CIDs) of police formations in Abuja.

He said: “People will see somebody committing robbery, somebody planting bombs and will not report to the security agencies. In Nigeria, people withhold information to themselves.’’

Abubakar added that a bad investigator would produce bad report, urging the officers to be professional, adopt modern techniques of investigation, shun corruption and respect suspects’ rights.

“I want you to take the issue of corruption seriously. As police officers, we cannot be the breakers of the laws; we must be the people to respect the law,’’ he said.

Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) of Police (Investigation) Peter Gana added that continuous learning, attitudinal change, commitment and networking could assist in police officers handling investigation.

Some unresolved murders

There are several unresolved high-profile murders in Nigeria.

From 1985 to date, successive governments in Nigeria with its police and other security agencies have failed to bring to book killers of murder victims.

For instance, on October 19, 1986, Nigerians were greeted with the shock of Dele Giwa’s letter bomb attack. Till date, the question remains, Who killed Dele Giwa?.

On December 23, 2001, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige (SAN), was shot dead at his home in Ibadan, Oyo State.

In 1990, Brig-Gen. Lasun Odeleke, husband of famous evangelist Bishop Bola Odeleke died in a road accident in Abuja. According to official report, a hit-and-run driver knocked him down, but the family was not allowed to carry out a post mortem to ascertain the cause of his death.

Rear Admiral Babatunde Elegbede, a retired Naval Officer, was felled by assassins’ bullet right in the presence of his wife. Since 1994, when he was killed, his killers have not been found.

A senatorial candidate of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) in Imo State, Uche Orji, was killed in the wake of the 2003 elections, yet nobody has been arrested for the crime.

Killers of the Nigerian Bar Association Chairman in Anambra State,

Barnabas Igwe and his wife, Amaka in December 2005 are still unknown.

Chief Harry Marshal, a former chieftain of People’s Democratic Party and later coordinator of ANPP presidential campaign in Southsouth was murdered in his Abuja home in 2003. On July 27, 2006 Funsho Williams’ body was found at his home. He had been tied up stabbed and strangled. Their killers are yet to be found.

Tragedy struck in Amorji Nike, near the densely populated Abakpa Nike, Enugu, on March 2 this year when the Kwara State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Chinwike Asadu was shot dead by unknown gunmen. The Police Commissioner, who reportedly visited his home, was driving into his private residence when the assailants who may have laid an ambush around his home attacked him. His aides about 100 metres away from his house.

Rocked by militants and politically inspired aggression nationwide, Nigeria has become one of the worst nations in the world for deadly, unpunished violence.

Even journalists are not spared.

Several of them have been murdered and their killers still unknown. For instance, on April, 24, 2010, The Nation’s Judicial Correspondent Edo Sule Ugbagwu was murdered by unknown gunmen in his Lagos home.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a group which defends journalists worldwide, found in its newly

updated Impunity Index that there is a steady rise in anti-press violence in recent years.

Nigeria is said to have the second worst impunity rating in Africa, behind only Somalia.

Why there are unresolved murder cases

What could be responsible for the unresolved murders? Analysts say sometimes the police may know who the perpetrators or sponsors of a crime are, but may have been compromised politically or through financial inducement.

Again, the police are yet to fully master and apply forensic science in crime investigation.

“Investigations into these killings are usually carried out with sloppiness, and no real culprits are caught,” said Ayode Longe, a Senior Officer with the Media Rights Agenda, a press freedom group in Nigeria.

“That has emboldened others to assault journalists, believing nothing would be done to them,” Longe said.

A senior police officer, Yomi Onashile, noted that very few criminal investigation sections take fingerprints of arrested persons anymore, with the result that most crimes are not detected.

“In my opinion, the most reli-

• Continued on page 30

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LAW COVER CONT’D

• Abubakar

• Ali

The police, public and crime •Continued frompage 29

able means of identification of a suspect or individuals is through the evidence of fingerprints. The ability to detect a crime, to large extent, indirectly prevents the commission of the crime.

“People are still being assassinated or murdered because of our inability to detect those behind the ones that have already occurred. Nobody wants to go into a crime that could easily be detected,” Onashile said.

Observers say if the fingerprints, ballistic and biology (DNA profiling) sections of the police Forensic Laboratory could be developed to world-class standard, cases of violent crimes will be reduced because perpetrators of the crime would easily be identified and arrested.

Executive Secretary, Lagos Security Trust Fund Mr. Fola Authur-Worrey attributed the failure to solve high-profile murder cases to police reliance on confessional statements and eye-witness accounts in place of hard evidence that could be obtained through modern scientific methods.

He said the police are faced with dearth of modern equipment, skills and capability to solve high profile murder cases.

There is only one forensic laboratory in the whole country and it is poorly equipped, he said, adding that finger printing, a basic but highly important means of investigation is no longer in use in Nigeria.

The country is alleged to have only one ballistician which accounts for why the police cannot detect gunshot-related crime and that there is no data base for criminals in Nigeria.

Why the public withhold information Why are people with information that could lead to arrest of criminals afraid to volunteer it to the police?

Analysts said the police have not done much to inspire the public’s confidence in the force. Worryingly, there is less confidentiality, and anonymity is always not always guaranteed.

Besides, there is also no clear-cut means of anonymously passing information to the police. While the Rapid Response Squad, an arm of the Lagos State Police Command, can be reached through 767 and 112, most other commands in other states cannot be so easily reached, even as public enlightenment remains low.

Besides, there is always the fear by people with information of being arrested and asked to explain how they learned of what they know. The informant may even be accused of committing the crime. The police must do more to correct such impression and change such mentality, analysts said.

The police have placed bounties on the heads of criminals and those declared

wanted, but there have not been much widely reported cases of people claiming the monetary rewards after helping the police solve a crime.

Before his appointment as Police Service Commission Chairman, a former Inspector-General of Police, Mr Mike Okiro, said Nigerians have lost confidence in the Police. He spoke in the wake of the bombing of the Force Headquarters and several other police stations across the country, which he said proved that men of the Force were incapable of policing themselves.

Okiro had been quoted as saying: “There is a saying that you cannot give what you don’t have. If you cannot protect yourself, who then do you protect? If you cannot protect your offices, who are you going to protect? People have lost confidence (in the Police) and MD Abubakar has a lot to do.”

Law to protect information givers needed?

Nigeria’s Whisteblower Bill 2011, which has reportedly passed second reading, is said to have been enlarged to accommodate reports on other acts of criminality, especially under its Part I Section 1(f).

In the United States, whistleblowers (persons who expose misconduct, alleged dishonest or illegal activity occurring in an organisation), who work for the government and report agency misconduct are generally protected by Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989.

However, legal protections vary according to the subject matter of the whistleblowing, and sometimes the state in which the case arises.

External whistleblowers, however, report misconduct to outside persons or entities.

In these cases, depending on the information’s severity and nature, whistleblowers may report the misconduct to lawyers, the media, law enforcement or watchdog agencies, or other local, state, or federal agencies.

In some cases, external whistleblowing is encouraged by offering monetary reward.

Whistleblowers frequently face reprisal, sometimes at the hands of the organisation or group which they have accused, sometimes from related organisations, and sometimes under law.

Are such laws to protect information givers needed in Nigeria? Lawyers said while information from the public may help the

• Nwobike

• Nwadioke

police solve crimes, the force’s ultimate responsibility is to investigate crimes and solve them.

Enacting such laws, they said, may not change the public’s disposition towards the police because there are several other good laws that have not been well-enforced.

When the public’s confidence in the police is restored, and they are guaranteed of their anonymity, then people with such information can pass them on.

Two senior advocates of Nigeria (SAN), Malam Yusuf Ali and Dr Joseph Nwobike disagreed on whether such law is needed, while a Lagos lawyer Emeka Nwadioke believes until the police are able to regain the public’s full confidence, things may remain the same.

Ali said: “Apart from laws to protect informers, the standard police practice all over the world is to pay informers. I learnt the practice stopped years ago in Nigeria. No amount of cadets can replace human informants in security matters.

“So, we must not only have strong laws to protect informants, we must also set money aside to pay them if they want to be paid for their information!”

For Nwobike, such a law may be of no significance. “I agree to an extent that one of the challenges facing result-oriented investigative activities by the police and other security agencies is the lack of evidence arising from the public.

“It is also true that Nigerians do not come forward to volunteer eye-witness accounts of what they may have observed at crime scenes. This, no doubt, constraints arrest and eventual prosecution of criminals across the country.

“That said, it is also true that the police and other security agencies hardly investigate crimes these days. I am not too sure whether they are properly trained in the investigation of crimes.

“I believe that when the security personnel acquire the necessary investigative skills, they would be in a position to encourage Nigerians to volunteer information that may be of great assistant to them.

“Although there are no laws specifically protecting persons who provide information to the police, the existence of such specific law may be of no significance if the current disposition of the security agencies continues.”

Nwadioke said the ‘victims’ of crimes must not be blamed, adding that crude methods cannot be used to solve crimes effectively.

“I will consider the comments of the IGP as ‘obiter,’ to the extent that the theme of

the conference was ‘Keeping up with new trends in investigation and prosecution of cases.’

“But I commend the police chief for adverting his mind to the pressing need for capacity building and attitudinal change within the investigating teams. That is the crux of the matter. It is delusory to think that we can use techniques rooted in antiquity to combat criminals who are getting more sophisticated by the day.

“The IGP’s claim is tenable to the extent that, indeed, most Nigerians are reluctant to give information to security agencies, especially the police. I suspect they may even be more willing to give such information to the army or SSS than the police. And that speaks volumes, without saying more.

“It is a fact that policing in Nigeria has been gravely abused by those bestowed with that public trust. All manner of persons, including land grabbers procure the police to pursue their unwholesome ends.

“It was AIG Zone 6 Command Jonathan Johnson, who reportedly said: ‘The police officers are the ones selling ammunition to criminals, aiding and abetting, turning cases upside down, conniving with suspects, and engaging in conspiracy.’

“It is an open-secret that several police operatives were arrested for allegedly leaking operational information to the Ombatse cult, leading to the massacre of over 50 of their colleagues in Alakyo, Nassarawa State. If gold rusts, what will iron do? If police operatives cannot protect their own, need we say more?

“These few instances of abuse cannot give confidence to the average citizen in diligently discharging his civic duty of providing information to the police. We must therefore confront the issues frontally, otherwise we may delude the unwary by labeling the victim as the culprit! Instructively, this is a game many will tell you the police are adept at playing.

“It seems to me that the police should focus more on a preventive than curative policing model through intensive intelligence gathering. That way, crimes are nipped in the bud, leading to fewer crimes and less need for post-mortem information from the public. The public may also be more willing to give information at the intelligence gathering stage than otherwise, at all times mindful of their personal safety.

“Though Whistleblower laws are traditionally targeted at combating fraud and corruption by allowing government employees to report such malfeasance without any hardships to themselves, it seems that Nigeria’s Whisteblower Bill 2011 (which has now passed second reading) has been enlarged to accommodate reports on other acts of criminality, especially under Part I Section 1(f).

“It also affords better safeguards to the whisteblower, unlike the Freedom of Information Act 2011. However, until the police are able to regain the full confidence of the public, a change in the status quo is at best a mirage.”

‘We must not only have strong laws to protect informants, we must also set money aside to pay them if they want to be paid for their information’

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

LAW & SOCIETY

T

Experts canvass reform of legal profession

HERE is need for lawyers to meet the challenges of the 21st century Nigeria and the demands of a globalised world, participants at the state of the legal profession lecture organised by the Nigeria Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NAILS) have said.

Speaking on the theme: Modernising legal practice in Nigeria; challenges and prospects, the guest lecturer, Chief Joe- Kyari Gadzama (SAN) listed the problems plaguing the profession and called for an overhaul of the system from the Law School to the courtrooms Gadzama said: “I will be discussing legal practice in Nigeria, its origin, challenges and prospects. I also have a few humble suggestions which I think may prove useful in our quest to get back to the absolute basics, what makes a lawyer? Which characteristics would be frowned at in today’s world? these questions and more are what this paper seeks to answer.”

In his welcome address, DirectorGeneral of NIALS, Prof. Epiphany Azinge (SAN) said: “The lecture, which was first introduced in 2011, has grown to be an event that reviews the legal profession in Nigeria. Its lecture is to provide a platform for stakeholders to review our legal education system and the legal profession in Nigeria. The institute has continued to be at the forefront of bringing scholars and leading legal luminaries to this platform, which has grown to become very enthralling in recent times.

“The need to constantly appraise the profession has become a task we must achieve as the decline of professionalism is indeed apparent and if these lapses are permitted to continue unabated, this will in turn lead to the denial of justice. Since the inception of the Legal Profession in 1876 there has been a need to inquire how such a profession has adapted itself to the changing times. The essence of this forum is to suggest best practices for a new future era in the legal profession which has changed profoundly in the past generation “Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama (SAN) has primed a magnum opus, which certainly questions the State of the Legal Profession in Nigeria. The lecture titled: ‘Modernising the legal profession in Nigeria: Challenges and prospects’; is, indeed, apposite as it delivers a thorough depiction of the profession, considering the seemingly and relatively mediocre level the profession has fallen to in recent times.

Without doubt, the paper has some highly commendable recommendations as well as very interesting observations. The rather gloomy picture of the profession is por-

T

HE Director, Prisoners’ Rights Advocacy Initiative (PRAI) Mr Ahmad AdetolaKazeem has said not fewer than 45 underaged convicts are in Badagry prison in Lagos.

The group said the convicts were yet to be interviewed in order to have their ages verified.

In a statement, Adetola-Kazeem said the underaged convicts were among persons sentenced to 390 days imprisonment at Kirikiri Prisons on May 2, by the Special Offences Court in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

He urged the state government to be serious attention to issue of rights abuses and to rehabilitate these classes of persons rather than incarcerate them.

At a briefing, the state Attorney-General had then revealed the findings of the state govern-

By John Austin Unachukwu

trayed with extreme candour by the author, which no doubt, raises thought provoking questions in our minds.

“The author has identified in this paper major challenges faced by the profession, notably and amongst others in the lack of specialisation and the state legal education in Nigeria.”

In his goodwill message presented on the occasion by his representative, Prof. Peter Akper (SAN), the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) said: “The institute has a collective responsibility to re-evaluate and appraise to proffer recommendations that will restore the profession to its once enviable height as a noble and elite profession of integrity.

“The grim revelation of the rather appalling state of the profession in recent times has given the impetus for a clarion call for stakeholders in the legal profession to review and take stock of our journey as legal professionals so far.

The institute blazed this trail by hosting the maiden lecture in 2011 and the honour to deliver the lecture was given to Chief Akinlolu Olujinmi (SAN), former AttorneyGeneral of the Federation and Minister of Justice and an exceptional legal luminary.

“Since the inception of this lecture, I am proud to say that it has become internationally recognised and comparable only to Hamlyn lecture series of the Cambridge University, Current Legal Problems (CLP) lecture series of the University College London, among others.”

‘The grim revelation of the rather appalling state of the profession in recent times has given the impetus for a clarion call for stakeholders in the legal profession to review and take stock of our journey as legal professionals so far’

• From left: Former Chief Justice of Nigeria S. M. A. Belgore, Gadzama and Azinge.

• Chief E. K. Clark (left) and Minister for Special Duties Kabiru Turaki

• Prof. Yemi Akinseye-George, left and Akper.

• From left: Second Vice President, NBA Mr Steve Abba; Institute Secretary James Bathnna and NBA President Okey Wali

‘45 minors in Badagry prison’

By Adebisi Onanuga

ment in respect of the claims that some underaged persons were recently imprisoned after conviction by a Magistrate court.

“My report then was that charge sheets obtained from the court all showed the Defendants’ ages listed and presented by the Prosecutor were 18 and above. We had copies of the charge sheet here to proof the fact.

“In furtherance of the investigation, we have also paid another visit to the three prisons in Kirikiri, namely Kirikiri Medium Prison, Kirikiri Women Prison and Kirikiri Maximum Prison on August 6, 2013 in the company of the

organisation that filed the complaints, Prisoners’ Rights Advocacy Initiative (PRAI).

“In the course of that visit, we discovered that some of the inmates who claimed to be adults indeed appeared underaged, even though it was difficult to be very sure. Of the 13 of them, only two admitted to being 16 years and 19 years. The others either did not know their actual dates of birth or, due to their low level of education, could not tell and randomly chose dates that indicated that they were adults”, he said.

Ipaye said that based on these findings and in furtherance of our commitment to ensure that

the Child Rights Law is enforced in Lagos State and under-aged offenders are not placed in the same correctional facilities as adults, the state has put in place definitive mechanism to detect underaged defendants at every level of the criminal process.

The PRIA chief expressed appreciation for the the effort of the Attorney-General and his team aimed at ensuring that underaged are not put in the cells meant for adults.

He, however, insisted that contrary to the assertion that some of convicted persons randomly chose ages that indicated they were adult, about six of them stated clearly they were below

18.

“It is surprising to hear that their ages cannot be verified.

This we make bold to say can be verified medically (e.g by medical experts in LASUTH or LUTH through bone testing)”, he said.

The activist said over 70 per cent of the 64 persons convicted are below 21.

He explained that by the provision of section 238(8) of the Child’s Right Law of Lagos, youths before the attainment of the age of 21years shall be detained in the Youth Correctional Centre, not the prison as is the case presently.

“We expect that the Lagos State Government will take the issue of Rights abuses seriously, rehabilitate these classes of persons rather than incarcerate them,” he added.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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LAW PERSONALITY Mr Chukwuemeka Eze graduated from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1994 and was called to the Bar the following year. A former chairman, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN), he is a director of many professional bodies. In this interview, he speaks on the challenges of the implementation of the Anti-Money Laundering Act as it affects the legal profession, the face-off involving the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUMUL). Legal Editor JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU met him.

‘Our tax laws are not payer friendly’

W

HAT are the reasons for the emergence of the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUMUL)?

Before 2004, the business environment was adjudged by the international community to be awash with unethical business behaviours, thereby making it a safe haven for money laundering and other forms of illegal business dealings. The international community in 2001, through the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), assessed the situation and placed Nigeria on the list of Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories (NCCTs).

In response, the Federal Government constituted a Presidential Inter-Agency Committee in 2003 to address the issues raised by the FATF. The Committee opened dialogue with the FATF and initiated actions to address the identified deficiencies. One of the major achievements in the intervening period was the development of a national strategy and implementation plan to remove Nigeria from the FATF shame list. Following the implementation of the national strategy and the attendant dialogue with FATF, Nigeria was removed from the NCCT list in June 2006.

The Implementation Plan, among other things, culminated in the passage into law of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2004, which for the first time incorporated as well as defined Designated Non-Financial Institutions (DNFIs) and vested the regulatory responsibility of the same in the then Federal Ministry of Commerce and Industry (FMC and I).

How did the SCUMUL come into this?

The Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML) was established in 2005 as a special unit to fight money laundering as spelt out in the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act of 2004, which has been repealed by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act of 2011, as amended in 2012. Although legally domiciled in the Ministry of Trade and Investment, SCUML works with the EFCC. Consequently, SCUML has the mandate to monitor, supervise and regulate the activities of DNFIs in Nigeria in consonance with the country’s Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regime.

The regulation of DNFIs in Nigeria could be said to be very challenging, since the sector is informal and transactions are mainly cashbased. This makes the sector more vulnerable to money laundering and financing of terrorism (ML/ FT), thereby calling for a concerted effort to scrutinise the sector in the attendant challenges.

Its mission is to serve as a structure for the curtailment of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing in the DNFI sector, providing world class intelligence as regards AML/CFT issues to relevant stakeholders, and the sanitisation of the DNFI sector to create an enabling environment for the inflow of foreign direct investment.”

The aim was to contribute to the development of anti-money laundering efforts in Nigeria. It is not sufficient to control money laundering through financial institutions. It is also important to act upon the “Designated Non-Financial Institutions” such as hotels, casinos, jewellers, estate agencies, etc.

From all these, what is the status of SCUMUL? It is pertinent to state that, SCUML, is a joint project between the FMT and EFCC by virtue of its complementary role to that of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit located within EFCC. At the level of the Ministry, the Director of SCUML reports to the Minister through the Permanent Secretary. The Director prepares quarterly reports and forwards same to the Permanent Secretary to routinely update authorities in the Ministry on the activities of the Unit.

At the operational level, the Director of SCUML reports to and obtains approval and support from the Executive Chairman of the EFCC on joint operational matters.

SCUML provides the NFIU with Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) derived from evaluated Cash Transaction Reports (CTRs) in support of National Data Base on Financial Crimes. In addition, it has the potential to provide tactical and operational intelligence in support of the activities of the EFCC’s operations department.

SCUML has its Head Office in Abuja with operations in three zonal offices located in Lagos, Kano and PortHarcourt. The administrative structure at the head office is replicated in the zonal offices. SCUML proposes to, ultimately, open operational offices in the 36 states of the federation but in a staggered fashion for administrative convenience.

The Federal Minister of Trade and Investment is also empowered under the law (S. 25 of ML(P)A, 2011) to classify additional businesses as DNFIs as he or she deems fit for the purpose of regulation under the country’s anti-money laundering and combating of the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regime.

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has taken the Central Bank and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to court over this as it affects Nigerian lawyers. Do you think it will solve the problem?

I have been informed reliably that NBA is in court against CBN and EFCC, but I have not read the court processes so as to be acquainted with the reliefs sought.

In view of lack of adequate information on my part, my answer will be a mixed bag.

SCUML from my assessment, so far, has a triple identity. It claims to be operationally under EFCC and actually reports to EFCC. In theory, it is an agency under the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment.

On the other hand, it claims to be a member of the National Advisory Council on Designated Non-Financial Institutions against Money Laundering of which I was a member as a representative of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CITN) between 2009 and last year.

It should be noted that our money laundering legislation include the EFCC Act, Advance Fee Fraud Act, the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2004, which was repealed by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011, as amended by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act of 2012. SCUML is a special purpose vehicle created to fight money laundering and combating financing of terrorist among DNFIs. Some of their regulations, however, are driven mainly by administrative discretion. Examples include the penalty payable

by DNFIs for not submitting any of the statutory reports within the

period prescribed by SCUML; designating a staff by a DNFBP who must be trained on how to prepare and send Cash Transaction Reports, administration of Know-Your-Client (KYC) forms and carrying out Due Diligence Test (DDT).

Why are lawyers the target of the this law?

In complying with these directives, lawyers may easily be preyed upon by way of arrest and prosecution, which will go a long way in denting our career. Moreover, compliance may lead to revealing the secrets of our clients contrary to some provisions of the law for example Section 192 of the Evidence Act, which provides that communication between a lawyer and his client is privileged.

It might also lead to breach of Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which guarantees the right of citizens (including lawyers) to private and family life. This provision states that, The privacy of citizens, their homes, correspondence, telephone conversations and telegraphic communications is hereby guaranteed and protected.

This right is further protected by Article 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 (ICCPR), which came into force in 1976.

On the flipside however, NBA may be caught up by the maxim of volenti non fit injuria. On August 25, 2009, when the then Minister of Commerce and Industry, Chief Achike Udenwa, who is also a former Governor of Imo State, inaugurated Designated Non-Financial Institutions Advisory Council in Abuja, NBA was represented by Mr George Etomi and Mr. Babajide Ogundipe in the Council.

NBA continued to participate in the activities of this Council of which SCUML is a member. Prior to this inauguration, the National Executive Committee of the NBA hosted Dr. Abdullahi Shehu, the Director-General of Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (known by its French acronym as GIABA) on February 19, 2009 and he presented a paper titled: “The role of lawyers in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing”.

The same GIABA director-general presented a paper on the problems of cybercrime and the response of countries in West Africa to NBA during the Annual General Conference of the NBA in Ilorin in 2007. More seriously, lawyers constitute a segment of professional businesses listed in the definition of “Designated NonFinancial Institutions” in section 24 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act of 2004 and section 25 of its successor legislation, the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 as amended in 2012. Therefore, NBA can only fight the manner of implementation by SCUML and not the essence of the law on money laundering and combating of financing of terrorism.

The Financial Action Task Force will exit Nigeria finally from the Non-Cooperating Countries and Territories (NCCT) based on the way Nigeria implements the laws against Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing.

Nevertheless, this should not be an excuse to trample on the fundamental right to private and family life enshrined in our constitution.

How do you think we can resolve these issues?

What will resolve the issues is for the Federal Government to revitalise through funding and organisation, the Designated Non-Financial

• Eze

Institutions Advising Council, and allow its constituent membership to determine the methodology of the implementation of the relevant laws

by Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions. SCUML, being a member of the Council, should use such opportunity to coordinate with the representatives of these member bodies on the way forward through persuasion. Arrest, prosecution and payment of penalties should be long-term measures.

The sensitisation on compliance should continue. SCUML will only succeed when it gives compliance a human face. The reason is that there are more than five million persons who might not have complied and it will be difficult to charge all of them to court. SCUML’s “weapon of mass destruction” will, however, be unleashed in January 2014, when bank accounts of defaulters may be frozen going by the last circular issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria to commercial banks to freeze all accounts of Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions that fail to register their businesses and professions with SCUML on or before December 31, 2013.

Law has always been considered to be a vital element for economic development. Do you think that our laws have enhanced our economic development, how do we achieve this?

It was Karl Marx that defined law as a superstructure upon an economic base. Law apportions to every man his due, it propels the elements of production which, if properly managed, leads to prosperity.

For instance, the power sector in Nigeria was comatose. Initially, it was thought that the changing of the name of the octopus corporation that midwife power management from the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) to Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) will do the magic! But nothing changed until the enactment and implementation of the Power Sector Reforms Act of 2005, which permits private investment in the power sector. Today, there are many Independent Power Projects (IPPs)

in many parts of the country. We also have the electricity generation companies (Gencos) independent of the transmission company, among others. Thus, the Act has provided the impetus for increased economic investment in the power sector which will, in the long run, transform Nigeria’s economy.

Another example is the Petroleum Industry Bill, the passage of which will determine investment decisions of international oil companies in the upstream sector especially.

As a vital element for economic development, we need to be patriotic (and avoid selfish interests) when making laws. In the same vein, laws should be regularly re-examined for amendment, where necessary.

What is you view about our taxation laws, are they sufficient enough to assist the government to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people?

Taxation laws suffer the same fate like other laws made in this country.

It is not the number of tax laws that will deliver the dividends of democracy, but the quality of their contents. I am not comfortable with the harshness of some of the provisions of the tax laws. To be specific, I refer you to the new section 33 (1) of the Personal Income Tax Act (PITA), which provides for a Consolidated Relief Allowance of N200,000 plus 20% of gross income of a taxpayer as amounts deductible before applying the tax rate in the Sixth Schedule to the Personal Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2011. This calculation is without prejudice to deduction allowable under the Pension (Reform) Act of 2004; contributions for the National Housing Fund, National Health Insurance Scheme, Life Assurance Premium and Gratitutes.

It is well established that the sum of N200,000 deductible from the annual income is too meagre to cover a taxpayer’s housing allowance, transport allowance, children allowance and dependent relatives’ allowance.

•Continued on page 32

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LAW AND SOCIETY

‘Our tax laws should be payer friendly’ • Continued from page 31

This implies that some of the provisions are not in tune with the realities of life in Nigeria. You may be surprised to learn that this provision came into force by virtue of section 5 of the Personal Income Tax (Amendment) Act of 2011. You will agree with me that there is hardly any Lagosian, no matter how poor, who will not spend more than N200, 000 in a year on these elements. It, therefore, flies in the face why the National Assembly approved this sum in 2011 and if antecedents are anything to go by, it may take about a decade before another amendment may be made.

The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) has been described as capable of revolutionising the petroleum industry and, invariably, the economy. Unfortunately, it is facing serious challenges in the National Assembly being passed into law. What is your reaction to this. How do you think we can get out of the challenges?

The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) has its pluses and minuses. A big minus is the combination of legal, regulatory and fiscal framework in one legislation. The implication is that any request for amendment on the legal framework may effect reworking the regulatory and fiscal framework. I also think that the discretionary powers granted the Minister of Petroleum in the PIB should be reduced if we must attain the rank of PETROBRAS of Brazil and other notable national oil companies in other OPEC countries.

What are the pluses?

On the plus side, passage of the PIB will engender increased revenue from petroleum. You know that under the Petroleum Profit Tax Act (PPTA), companies are subject to Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) under a single legislation: PPT for oil and Companies Income Tax (CIT) for gas.

The PIB introduces a Nigeria Hydrocarbon Tax (NHT) and imposes Companies Income Tax on oil companies as well. Royalties will fluctuate as they are based on price of oil and cost of production. There will be limited incentives for capital investment. Only companies producing oil onshore or/and in a shallow water, which are not in a Joint Venture with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, would initially benefit from PIB because allowances are based on company production.

This will certainly discourage further capital investments and this may explain why the international oil companies have been shouting and restrategising, coupled with threats to leave Nigeria. On the other hand, the Host Community Fund enshrined in the Bill if well managed may result to reduced pipeline vandalisation and decrease in oil theft. The oil-bearing communities will see themselves as stakeholders in the oil production enterprise and with this sense of belonging; they would resist further economic sabotage of the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy.

F

What is your view on the concept of globalisation. How about the globalisation of legal services, how do you think it will affect local practice?

The concept of globalisation is the concept of regarding the world as a global village or as a nation without borders. This concept is a fantasy; it does not exist in pragmatic terms as the term is applied by the West when dealing with the Third World. In the North-South global equation, the developed nations will never give you unimpeded access to their jurisdictions. Nevertheless, I have a mixed approach towards globalisation of legal services. If there is globalisation in this regard, Nigeria with a population of about 100,000 lawyers will export legal professionals to many parts of Africa, especially the English-Speaking countries of West Africa and this will give our practice reasonable international content.

On the other side, most of the multinational companies in Nigeria will import foreign lawyers for most of their Solicitor’s work and this act will thin out the income of many Nigerian lawyers. In fact, it will be survival of the fittest. I think we should tarry a while and observe ECOWAS implement its Free Movement Protocol and Eco Currency project after which we can begin the experimentation of globalisation of services beginning from West Africa.

Can you tell us a little about your background and what motivated you to study law?

I was born at Mgbom, Okposi in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. I attended St. Brendan’s Primary School, Mgbom, Okposi between 1971 and 1976. After my primary education, I proceeded to Government Secondary School, Afikpo in 1976 and left the college in 1981.

I worked briefly in Chinese Oriento Restaurant at Bauchi G.R.A. and Yankari Games Reserve, both in Bauchi State in 1982. I also worked briefly as an insurance salesman before relocating to Borno State, where I commenced trading that took me to the Yobe, Adamawa, Taraba, Niger, Lagos and Ogun states.

Why did you leave the North?

My sojourn in the North ended in April 1983 when I came to Lagos, stayed briefly and proceeded to Abeokuta by May 1983. I sold books and stationery in Abeokuta on the platform of Intelligence Bookshop until 1986, when I gained admission to the Federal College of Education (FCE), Abeokuta. In 1988, while at FCE, I took UME and got admission to study International Relations at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife. I had planned to abandon my programme at the College of Education and enrol at OAU, but when I went for registration for the course in September 1988, I visited the Department of International Relations to acquaint myself with the environment. I met a group of noisy students in a notvery-clean environment chatting away and arguing boisterously. I decided to visit some other depart-

ments for sight seeing. I discovered that the Faulty of Law in the campus was serene and human activity around the place was orderly. The environment was neat. I then said to myself: This is where I belong.

And what happened thereafter?

On that note, I decided to return to Abeokuta to take UME for 1989 to pursue a programme in law. There were two other incidents that prompted me to study law. While I was running my bookshop, in 1985, some plain-cloth policemen from Ogun State Police Command Headquarters Eleweran, Abeokuta, arrested me on the allegation that I purchased some stolen books at Onitsha Main Market earlier supplied

by University Press Limited, Ibadan to the defunct Benue Educational Supply Company, Makurdi. I was detained for five days during which I was transported in handcuff to University Press Limited, Ibadan (UPL) to confirm from the management whether I actually purchased the books directly from the company as I indicated in my statement to the Police.

What happened there?

Fortunately, the Store Manager of the company confirmed that I was their customer and that they sold the books to me. After my eventual release on bail, Police saddled me with obtaining an official letter from UPL exculpating me from the allegation before they could close the case. During my ordeal, I was not shown any complainant and during my interrogation, I was assaulted many times by the senior police officer who, in his diatribe, accused my tribesmen as being criminals.

From my experience, I saw being a lawyer as a veritable means of knowing my rights. I reasoned that I would have sued the Police for illegal detention if I were a lawyer.

The other incident that prompted me to study law arose when one of my kinsmen from a nearby community, who is a lawyer mocked my community for not having even a law student. I felt like David in the Bible. I felt that I should break the jinx if for no other reason, but to prove that my community could do well in education like the nearby communities. These three pieces of experience compelled me to study law for better, for worse.

• Eze

Lawyers to honour judges, others

OUR judges and Cross River State First Lady, Mrs Obioma Liyel-Imoke, a lawyer, are among lawyers to be honoured next week at the yearly reunion of the Class of 1985 of the Nigerian Law School in Calabar.

Also to receive an award is the outgoing Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, Dr. Tahir Mamman.

The event will herald the launch of the Nigerian Law School endowment fund by the class ahead of the school’s 50th Anniversary celebrations.

Among the judges to be honoured are Justice John Olabisi Ige of the Court of Appeal; Justice

By Joseph Jibueze

Anwuri Chikere of the Federal High Court; Justice Kulu Aliyu, Chief Judge of Zamfara State, and Justice John Tsoho also of the Federal High Court.

Others are Ambassador Obed Wadzani, former Nigerian Ambassador to Spain with concurrent accreditation to the Vatican; third Vice President of NBA Francis Ekwere, and Director/Head, Nigerian Copyright Institute and consultant to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) John Asein.

The awardees are, except Mamman, members of the 1985 class at the Nigerian Law School, and were chosen

in line with the mandate of the body to identify and reward deserving class members who have distinguished themselves in their chosen careers.

The reunion, which is being hosted

by Obioma Liyel-Imoke, will also witness the presentation of a keynote address by Mr Asein on “The future of Copyright Law in Nigeria.”

Cross River State Governor, Senator (Barr.) Liyel Imoke is expected to be declared open the event as Special Guest of Honour.

Other attractions of the reunion include the yearly reports by the class leader Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) and Chairman Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN).

LAW AND PUBLIC POWER

with gabriel AMALU email:gabrielamalu1@yahoo.com

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Who will save Egypt?

HE Egyptian elite appear determined to saw that very important Arab country into pieces and that is most regrettable. Yes, the protagonists of the crisis like cursed hunting dogs seem to have gone so far on a wayward part to heed any word of caution, but the world must continue to appeal to the political leaders on both sides of the extreme divide, particularly the pro-military to excise caution. No doubt, there is no easy solution to save Egypt from the immediate brink, but that shouldn’t deter world diplomats from trying; if for no other reason, for the interest of the ordinary people of Egypt.

In seeking a solution to the crisis, the Muslim Brotherhood whose Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) was ousted from power by the military regime must appreciate that they contributed in no small measure to the debacle. As was warned by this column and several other commentators, the road the then victorious party choose after coming to power incrementally lead to the crisis that eventually engulfed the political process. If the FJP had paused to assess the impact of their self-serving amendments of the country’s constitution and their other unnecessary political maneuvers, they would have realised that they were playing into the hands of the entrenched interests left behind by the ousted Hosni Mubarak’s dictatorship.

On their own part, the liberal democrats and the secularists while working hard to ensure that FJP was not allowed to mould the new democratic Egypt in its own image, failed to realise that in forcing a crises as the country now witnesses, only the anti-democratic forces are well equipped to benefit from it. Now from hindsight they would realie that while the military was seemingly acting according to their desire to oust President Morsi, some among the military also represented the entrenched interests in the military and the anti-democratic forces who have a score to settle with the pro-democratic groups for ignominiously kicking out one of their own, the disgraced former President Hosni Mubarak.

If the two groups, the pro-Morsi group and the liberal democratic campaigners, can sensibly assess the ongoing carnage, they will appreciate that they have jointly lost out under the current circumstances. So they need to agree on a common process to snatch the country from the impending doom. One way to do that is for their leaders to agree on a new constitution that will expunge all the offending provisions put into the last constitution by FJP, denying a democratic Egypt press freedom, and all other laws that tried to entrench fundamentalism. The political leaders must also forswear against amending such liberal provisions for at least the next ten years, regardless of who wins the next election. With such agreement in place they can jointly pressure the military to conduct a fresh election, which the brotherhood should participate in.

Once the two groups agree on a road map, the military should be guaranteed that a new democratic government would not humiliate and decimate its rank and file. Such assurances are important and inevitable considering that the liberal democrats were also involved in scuttling the bumbling Morsi’s democratic government. Going forward, former President Morsi and his lieutenants must be willing to make personal sacrifices for Egypt, by agreeing to stay away from the next electoral process. The removed President Morsi should then be granted the opportunity to retire from the presidency, while the Egyptian elite will agree on other steps necessary to heal the nation.

As for General al-Sisi and other top security commanders, they must realize that whatever may have motivated their interference in the Egyptian polity; their actions have put the country in a binge.

Whether they acted for the good of Egypt and for self-serving interest in removing Morsi from power, the ongoing crack down of the pro-morsi supporters and the carnage across the cities of Egypt will have to be answered for. But it is necessary to separate the two events - the sacking of the democratically elected but fascist acting President Morsi and his FJP; and the pre-meditated killings of the unarmed protesters across Egypt. While the former can be examined inline with the demand by a sizeable number of Egyptians to sack Morsi, the on-going massacre is an offence against humanity, and those responsible will have to answer. So General al-Sisi and the military hierarchy must be willing to step aside once they get the necessary guarantees against any persecution over the coup against Morsi, so as to allow a third party to start the process of reconstruction.

Interestingly, Egypt is very important for a stable middle east, and is key to the continued safety of Israel. So the Europe Union and the United States of America must weigh in to help Egypt, to avoid a descent into the kind of anarchy that has engulfed other countries in that unfortunate region. The African Union and the Arab League must also rise up to the challenge, even though their past efforts have shown that they have limited capacity to influence events amongst their members. The USA which has always funded the Egyptian military over the years should accept responsibility for some of the excess of the military and their supporters; and so owes responsibility to help tamper those excesses.

It is also important to appeal to the ordinary people of Egypt who feel shortchanged by the present crises to sheath their sword. The resort to extremism will never serve their country’s interest. Fortuitously the crisis that has rendered their neighbours comatose should be a lesson for all of them. So, the call for martyrdom should be replaced by a call for an honourable resolution of the crisis.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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LAW & SOCIETY Lagos lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) examines the “deportation” of indigent indigenes and warns that legal action may be taken against states that continue with the practice

The Lagos deportation and the law Deportation of dissidents N 1885, the British colonial re gime deported King Jaja of Opobo to a remote island in West Indies where he died in 1889.

His offence was that he had challenged the imperialist control of the coastal trade. In 1941 Comrade Michael Imoudu, President of the Nigerian Union of Railwaymen was deported from Lagos and banished to his hometown, Auchi in the Benin Province as he was considered “a potential threat to public safety” .

He only returned to Lagos in 1945 following the revocation of sections 57-63 of the General Defence Regulation, 1941 under which he had been detained. There were other nationalist agitators and labour leaders who were deported and banished to prevent them from taking part in the struggle against colonialism. The barbaric practice of deporting Nigerians was resuscitated by the defunct military dictatorship. In particular, the reactionary regimes of Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Sani Abacha resorted to the crude harrassment of political opponents by deportation.

In 1992 the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), Dr Beko Ransome -Kuti and I were deported from Lagos and detained at Kuje prison for challenging the unending military rule of the Babangida junta. The retired General Zamani Lekwot was deported from Kaduna and detained with us in the prison.

The following year, we were also repatriated from Lagos and banished to the same prison for leading peaceful rallies in Lagos against the criminal annulment of the June 12 presidential election.

In June 1994, the winner of the presidential election, Chief MKO Abiola, was deported from Lagos and detained in military custody in Kano, Borno and Abuja.

In 1995, the Chairman of the Campaign for Democracy (CD), Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti alerted the world that the secret trial of General Olusegun Obasanjo and others by a Special Military Tribunal had been concluded and that the convicts were being prepared for execution. For leaking such information to the media the human rights leader was tried in Lagos, jailed for life and deported to Katsina Prison. The CD vice chairman, Shehu Sanni, was arrested in Kaduna, jailed for life in Lagos and banished to Kirikiri maximum prison in Apapa. Four journalists viz: Chris Anyanwu, Kunle Ajibade, Charles Mbah and Charles Obi who were convicted for being accessories after the fact of treason i.e the 1995 phantom coup, were deported from Lagos and kept in separate prisons in the northern states.

In 1996, Chief Fawehinmi (SAN) was once again deported from Lagos and detained at the Bauchi prison while Femi Aborishade and I were deported from Lagos and held at the Gumel and Mawadashi prisons (in Jigawa State) respectively. Comrade Frank Kokori who was arrested in Lagos was banished to Bama prisons in Borno state for 4 years. General Obasanjo who was convicted in Lagos was deported to Yola prison. His exdeputy, General Shehu Yaradua was deported from Kaduna, convicted in Lagos and held at various times in Kirikiri, Port Harcourt and Abakaliki prisons .

Like King Jaja both Chief Abiola and General Yaradua died in suspicious circumstances while they were in custody. But as deportation of colonial subject subjects could not be justified even under colonial rule it was carried out pursuant to special regulations. In the

I

same vein, the military dictators engaged in deportation of citizens under the preventive detention decrees and the Prison Act. Deportation of Poor People It is common knowledge that the beautification project of the Babatunde Fashola Administration has led to the deportation of hundreds of the jetsam and the flotsam from Lagos state to their states of origin. The elite and the media have been celebrating the ban on “Okada” from the major roads and the removal of traders and area boys from the streets. For understandable reasons, most of the hundreds of thousands of poor people who have been displaced and dislodged in the operation “keep Lagos clean” are of the Yoruba extraction.

In fact, on April 9,2009, when the Lagos State government deported 129 beggars of Oyo State origin and dumped them at Molete in Ibadan, the Alao Akala regime alleged that the action was aimed at sabotaging his government. Just last week, some beggars of Osun state origin were also deported by the Lagos State government and dumped at Osogbo.

It is sad to note that most Nigerians never took cognisance of the war being waged by state governments against the poor and disadvantaged citizens in the urban renewal policy until the much publicised case of the 14 beggars of Anambra state origin who were deported in Lagos and dumped in Onitsha about three weeks ago. In fact, it was the condemnation of the deportation by the Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi that drew the attention of the elite to the unfortunate development.

However, in defence of its action the Lagos State Government stated that it entered into an agreement with the Anambra State Government through its liaison office in Lagos on the controversial deportation.

Although the Anambra State government has not denied the allegation that it was privy to the deportation of the 14 beggars it is on record that in Decmber 2011 the Peter Obi Administration had deported 29 beggars to their states of origin i.e Akwa Ibom and Ebonyi states . Apart from such official hypocrisy the Peter Obi regime did not deem it fit to protest when the Abia state government purged its civil service of “non-indigenes” in 2012. Many of the victims of the unjust policy who hail from Anambra state were left in the lurch.

In June 2011, the Federal Capital Territory government deported 129 beggars to their respective states of origin. In May 2013, hundreds of beggars were also removed from the streets and expelled from Abuja. Of course, it is common knowledge that the FCT authorities has continued to demolish residential houses without following due process in order to “restore the masterplan of Abuja” which was distorted through corruption and abuse of office. The majority of the victims of such illegal demolitions who are poor have been dislocated and forced out of FCT. Last week, the Rivers State Government removed 113 Nigerians from the streets of Port Harcourt and deported them to their states of origin. The Akwa Ibom state government has just contacted its Lagos counterpart of the planned deportation of two “mad” Lagosians roaming the streets of Uyo. Many other state governments are busy deporting beggars, mad men and other destitute in the on-going beautification of state capitals. Those who are defending the Igbo beggars out of sheer ethnic irredentism should be advised to examine the socio-economic implications of the anti-people’s urbanisation policy

being implemented by the federal and state governments in the overall interests of the masses.

The Illegality of Internal Deportation Since deportation has been resuscitated under the current political dispensation it has become pertinent to examine the legal implications of the forceful deportation of a group of citizens on account of their impecunious status. Although street trading and begging have been banned in some states It is submitted, without any fear of contradiction, that there is no existing law in Nigeria which has empowered the federal and state governments to deport any group of Nigerian citizens to their states of origin.

Accordingly, the forceful removal of beggars from their chosen abode and repatriation to their states of origin are illegal and unconstitutional as they violate the fundamental rights of such citizens enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended. In particular, deportation is an afront to the human rights of the beggars to dignity of their persons (Section 34), personal liberty (Section 35), freedom of movement (Section 41), and right of residence in any part of Nigeria (Section 43).

Furthermore, the deportation of beggars and other poor people by the Federal and State Governments is a repudiation of section 15 of the Constitution which has imposed a duty on the State to promote national integration. Since the polical objective of the State imposes a duty on the governments to ”secure full residence rights for every citizen in all parts of the Federation” it is illegal to remove poor people from the streets of state capitals without providing them with alternative accommodation. By targetting beggars and the destitute and deporting them to their states of origin the state governments involved are violating Section 42 of the Constitution which has outlawed discrimination on the basis of place of birth or state of origin.

In so far as Article 2 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (Cap A9) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 has specifically banned discriminatory treatment on the ground of “social origin, fortune, birth or other status” it is indefensible to subject any group of citizens to harrassment on account of their economic status. An urban renewal policy that has provision for only the rich cannot be justified under Article 13 of the African Charter which provides that every citizen shall have equal access to the public services of the country.

In the celebrated case of the Minister of Internal Affairs v. Alhaji Shugaba Abdulraham Darma (1982) 3 N.C.L.R. 915 the Court of Appeal upheld the verdict of the Borno State High Court which had held that the deportation of the Respondent (Alhaji Shugaba) from Nigeria to Chad by the Federal Government constituted “a violation of his fundamental rights to person liberty, privacy and freedom to move freely throughout Nigeria.” In the Director, State Security Service v. Olisa Agbakoba (1999) 3 NWLR (PT 595) 314 at 356 the Supreme Court reiterated that “It is not in dispute that the Constitution gives to the Nigerian citizen the right to move freely throughout Nigeria and to reside in any part thereof.”

Since deportation has denied the vicctims the fundamental right to move freely and reside in any state of their choice it is illegal and unconstitutional. It is indubitably clear that the fundamental human rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the African Charter Act are not for the exclusive preserve of the

• Falana

bourgeoisie but for the enjoyment of all Nigerian citizens including beggars and other economically marginalised people. To that extent no state governments has the power to deport or enter into agreements to repatriate any group of citizens to their states of origin.

The Socio-economic challenge of deportation It ought to be made clear to the managers of the neo-colonial state that there is no country which promotes social inequality that has successfully outlawed the poor from existence. This explains why beggars are found in large numbers on the streets of major cities and in the ghettos of the United States of America – the bastion of capitalism.

The situation is bound to be worse in the periphery of capitalism like Nigeria where the poverty rate has reached an alarming proportion due to the failure of the State to provide for the welfare and security of the people which is the primary purpose of government.

The Federal and State governments should also be made to realize at all times that beggars are Nigerian citizens who lack money, food and other basic facilities to live decent lives. The authorities should stop stigmatizing and harassing them and other citizens who have been pushed to a state of penury by the gross mismanagement of the economy by a selfish and short sighted ruling class.

A nation that complaints of inadequate funds to establish a social security scheme for the majority of the people allowed a cartel of fuel importers to corner $16 billion while oil thieves stole crude oil worth $7 billion on the high seas in 2011 alone.

Yet the influential oil thieves and pirates are walking free on the streets of our state capitals without any official harassment. Others who engage in unprecedented corruption, fraud and other financial and economic crimes have never been deported to their states of origin. It is high time the government was restrained from holding the poor vicariously liable for the crisis of underdevelopment of the country. Therefore, part of the billions of naira being earmarked to build mega cities should be set aside for the rehabilitation of beggars and the destitute.

There is no doubt that Lagos state is put under severe pressure, from time to time, by millions of Nigerians who have been economically

displaced in their own states of origin. But unlike its counterparts the Lagos State government has devised effective strategies to compel the rich to pay taxes through their noses. In addition the monthly statutory allocation of the state from the federation account is partly based on its population. In the circumstance, the Lagos state government should take from the rich to service the poor. As in the case of most of the “area boys” who have been productively engaged by the Fashola Administration the Lagos state government should formulate programmes for the rehabilitation and resettlement of beggars and other destitute to make them contribute to the economy of the state.

Conclusion In his inaugural address on January 20, 1961, the United States President, Mr. J.F. Kennedy warned that “if a free society cannot help the many who are poor it cannot save the few who are rich”. About 40 years later, those cautionary words resonated in the case of Hoffman v.

South African Airways (2001) CHR 329 at 354 where Justice Ngcobo of the Constitutional Court of South Africa stated that “Our Constitution protects the weak, the marginalised, the socially outcast and the victims of prejudice and stereotyping. It is only when these groups are protected that we can be secure that our own rights are protected.”

With respect to the implementation of neo-liberal policies that have continued to pauperise our people i am compelled to remind the ruling class in Nigeria of the plea made by the Late Dr. Akinola Aguda in 1985 that “our new perspective in law and justice must be such as to guarantee to each of our people food, drink, lodging, clothing, education and employment in addition to the rights guaranteed to him so far by our Constitution and our laws, so that justice may mean the same thing to everyone.”

Finally, since the deporting state governments have no immigration officials to police their borders there is no assurance that the deportees will not find their way back to where they were deported. However in view of the illegality of the deportation of poor people the governments of the federal capital territory and the respective states are advised to stop it without any further delay. If the practice is not discontinued the deporting state governments should be prepared to defend their action in Court. Sooner than later.

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

NATIONAL BAR

Does child marriage breach fundamental human right?

The ongoing constitution amendment, particularly Section 29 (4) (b), highlights a significant issue that has been begging for attention: girl-child marriage. A lawyer and human rights activist working with the Centre for Mmadu (C4M), a non-governmental, human rights organisation, Uju Peace Okeke, writes that there is a need to answer some questions raised by the section, such as who is a child, should children engage in marriage and what is the constitutional consequence of child marriage?

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HE Child’s Rights Act defines a child as a human being who is less than 18 years of age. This is line with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (African Children’s Charter) which Nigeria has not only ratified but domesticated. That 18 years is the age of majority in Nigeria is favoured, albeit implicitly, by some constitutional provisions. These include Section 29 (4) (a) which provides that ‘full age” means 18 years and above, though dealing with citizenship; Section 35 (1) (d) permits denial of right to personal liberty to a person less than 18 years for education or welfare; Section 36 (4) (a) authorises the exclusion of the public from courts/tribunals hearings for the welfare of persons who have not attained the age of 18; and Section 77 (2)/ 112 (2) providing that to be eligible for registration as a voter for either national or state legislative house, a Nigerian must have attained 18.

Children are generally excluded from activities like voting, driving, entering into a contract, because such activities demand physical, psychological and mental maturity. Children are held to lack the capacity to enter into contracts. Marriage is a contract requiring the consensus ad idem of the parties involved. Marriage is widely believed to be of adult concern as a child lacks mens rea to comprehend fully what marriage is about. This is understandable because there is a time for everything, a time to be a child and a time to be an adult.

Experts’ have noted grave effects of girlchild marriage. These include susceptibility to the health risks associated with early sexual initiation like obstetric fistula. Their partially developed reproductive organs could predispose them to complications during childbirth, Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF), secondary infertility, maternal and infant mortality. Their Inability to negotiate safe sex increases their vulnerability to Sexually Transmitted Diseases and infections including HIV. They are victims of sexual and other forms of domestic abuse, social isolation and are deprived the opportunity to maximize their potentials in order to make meaningful contributions to their worlds, perpetuating gender inequality and female poverty.

It is little wonder that besides the Child’s Rights Act, a plethora of international and regional ratified and domesticated treaties like the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Protocol to the African Charter on Rights of women in Africa (Women’s Protocol) and the African Children’s Charter, specifically prohibit Child marriage.

The Nigerian Constitution, the grundnorm guarantees fundamental human rights to Nigerians. These rights are divided into Civil /Political and socio-economic, with the distinction lying in the justiciability of Civil/Political rights. This writing will not overstress the indivisibility of rights, the pertinence of making socio-economic rights

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enforceable or even Nigeria’s duty of upholding obligations voluntarily imposed on itself by ratification as was held by the African Commission in the case of CLO V. Nigeria. It focuses on the guaranteed fundamental rights provisions of Constitution and domesticated treaties in relation to child marriage.

Section 33(1), in guaranteeing right to life, provides that ‘every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court ...’ When girls are forced into marriages, they begin procreation before the full development of their reproductive organs, predisposing them to complications of labor which could result in maternal mortality, a common occurrence in Nigeria. This death, not flowing from execution of court sentence is a violation of right to life. In the face of maternal mortality due to underage pregnancy, Nigerian girls cannot truly be said to enjoy right to life, the fulcrum of other human rights. One of the positive steps necessary for the prevention of this unintentional loss of lives and protecting right to life is criminalising girl-child marriage.

Section 34, in guaranteeing dignity as a human right provides that ‘ ... no person shall be subjected to torture or inhuman or degrading treatment, ... no person shall be held in slavery or servitude…’ Dignity entails that women should have a say in the choice of their life partners. Compelling young girls into marriages without consent is degrading. It is indeed painful to force a girl into marriage with a man, old enough to be her grandfather. In the case of Uzoukwu and 5 Ors, V Ezeonu II and 8 Ors, (1991) 6 NWLR (Pt. 200) 708, ‘torture was held to include …a mental torture in the sense of mental agony or mental worry ... degrading treatment has the element of lowering the societal status, character, value or position of a person’.

Many child-brides are withdrawn from schools for this purpose evidencing that girls’ aspirations are not as important as those of boys who are allowed to continue their education. This act, flies in the face of Articles 17(1) and 24 of the domesticated, African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Charter) which provide for rights to education and satisfactory environment favorable to development. The interpretation of which will prohibit child marriage, a retrogressive practice creating unfavorable environments for women’s development. This is particularly so because education is one of the best strategies for promoting women emancipation, demystifying retrogressive customs and transforming attitude towards women. The act resonates lines in Agnes Dewenis poem ‘Tell me why as a woman, I have all these burden When God, the Constitution and the United Nations all tell me You and I are equal in all respects?’

Child marriage is a form of modern day slavery. News of maltreatments meted out on these children by their husbands and inlaws in the name of wife chastisement constantly inundate our media. These child-

• Senate President, David Mark

wives are compelled to engage in domestic tasks too tedious for their tender ages. Adult concerns like sex, is foisted on them with all its problems earlier noted. What other degrading treatment could be suffered by a girl whose underage pregnancy leads to VVF or secondary infertility? They are forced to raise children while they are themselves children, thereby making a lot of uninformed decisions. How can a mere child succeed in these tasks which many adults cannot cope with? Of course their children and the larger society will be the worse for it. Since women are their children’s first teachers, what will be the fate of students of an ignorant teacher?

Section 35 permits the violation of right to personal liberty of a minor only for the purpose of education or welfare. Forced marriage violates this right as is neither for education nor for the welfare of the girls.

One of the grounds for non discrimination as provided in Section 42(1) is sex. Discrimination could either be express or implicit, by the practical application of any law or practice. Child marriage is discriminatory as it applies only to girls, denying them right to be children and opportunity to grow to be better adults. If the customs applaud it, why are boys not compelled to marry women, old enough to be their grand-mothers who will also have the privilege of chastising them with minor assaults? This reveals the insincerity of the equality gospel, bringing to mind, Eleanor Roosevelt’s remarks Where after all do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any map of the world. Yet, they are the world of individual person: the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such

are the places where every man, woman and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.

In consonance with the above quotation, the Nigerian society ought to preserve the human rights of its girls, if it must move forward. In agreement, the United Nations World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna cleared every misconception, by specifically stating that ‘the human rights of women and of the girl-child are an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of human rights’. Indeed, article 18 of African Charter, provides for the protection of the rights of women and children as stipulated in international conventions and declarations while articles 60 and 61, empowers the African Commission to draw inspiration from international and regional human rights treaties and instruments. By the implication of domestication, Nigerian courts can rely on all ratified-but-yet-to-be-domesticated treaties. Inspiration drawn from CEDAW, the African Women’s Protocol and the African Children’s Charter will prohibit child marriage. The court as the last hope of common girls, must uphold this if the protection offered to Nigerian girls must go beyond paper/shelf protection.

It is observed that child marriage is many times shrouded in cultural, structural and religious systems. Undeniably, the African charter recognizes freedom of culture and religion in articles 8, 17 (2, 3) and 22. However, article 29 (7) qualified this by providing for the preservation of ‘positive cultural values’. The African Women’s Protocol, in confirmation, expressly provides for right to positive cultural contexts while calling for the elimination of harmful practices. Concurring, section 21 of the Constitution ‘protects, preserves and promotes only cultures which enhance human dignity’. Proper balancing of these interests will mean promoting positive culture that dignify women as women’s rights cannot be sacrificed at the altar of religious cum cultural practices.

The preamble to the constitution says ‘we the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria…’ Nigerian girls, as part of the ‘we’ should be beneficiaries of the fundamental rights enshrined in the constitution. Little wonder section 17 (3) (f) provides that ‘the State shall direct its policy towards ensuring that…children, young persons and the aged are protected against any exploitation whatsoever, and against moral and material neglect...’

Seeing that child marriage violates guaranteed fundamental human rights and that progressive nations are judged by the way they treat women and children, it behooves our lawmakers to exhibit the necessary political will to protect our girls by removing the befuddling section 29 (4) (b) and similar discriminatory provisions from our Constitution.

NBA Presidency: Yoruba lawyers meet on candidate

HEAD of the July 2014 election of new officers to run the affairs of the Nige rian Bar Association (NBA), members of Egbe Amofin (lawyers in Southwest) have met to strategise on who will be the next president.

They gathered in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital at the weekend.

On the agenda is the selection and possibly, endorsement of the candidate who will fly the banner of the Egbe at the elections.

By the calculation of the NBA politics, 2014 is the time for the Southwest to produce the President of the association. Whoever is elected will be expected to play a very significant role in the history of the country, 2015 being a general election year.

Egbe candidates in the last NBA in Abuja did not perform too well and members are still very angry at the result that produced the incumbent President, Okey Wali (SAN).

Members blamed their leaders for the poor performance in the last outing.

The meeting, which held at the home of the Chairman of the NBA, Abeokuta branch

By John Austin Unachukwu

Mr Adebayo Ayodele was well attended.

A committee to screen the contestants was appointed, with Duro Adeyele (SAN) as chairman; Muyiwa Akinboro (Secretary), Alhaji Lekan Yusuf (SAN), Abiodun Owonikoko (SAN), Banke Olagbegi, Segun Onakoya and Owoseni Ajayi as members.

A lawyer, Olasupo Ojo, said the committee’s main job will be to come up with the most suitable and popular candidate, particularly for the presidency of the Bar. He, particularly, insisted that the candidates should get endorsement from different branches across the southwest to determine their popularity as done in the past to determine the most acceptable candidate.

At the meeting, three candidates signified their interest to contest for the presidency of the Bar. In attendance were members from the 25 branches of the association in the Southwest. Also present were Chief Wole

Olanipekun (SAN), Mr Ifedayo Adedipe (SAN), MrTaiwo Taiwo, Monday Ubani, Niyi Idowu, former Asst. Publicity Secre-

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tary of the NBA, Gbolahan Gbadamosi, Bisi Ade Ademuwagun, Chief Obafemi Adewale, among others.

NBA chair seeks assistance for journalists’families

HE Chairman of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Ikeja branch, Mr Monday Ubani, has urged the Federal and state governments to ensure that the families of the three journalists who died in a road accident in Osun State are not neglected.

In a condolence message, he said their families should not be allowed to suffer in terms of maintenance and provision of education for their children, adding: “That is the least we can do to make them rest peacefully.”

The victims include the National Financial Secretary of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kafayat Odunsi; Tunde Oluwanike of

By Adebisi Onanuga

Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Ibadan and Adolphus Okonkwo of the Lagos Chapter of the NUJ. Ubani expressed sympathy with the families and the union over the death of its members.

He described the incident as a sad and painful.

He also described the death as an loss to the media community, their states and the country, adding that the association is saddened by what the “unnecessary termination of lives on Nigerian roads”.

The NBA prayed God to grant the deceased eternal rest.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

36

BAR DISCOURSE

Democracyandsocio-economicimbalanceinNigeria:Theroleoflaw Text of a keynote address by Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama (SAN) delivered at the Law Week of the Benin branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) at Fourteen Eighty Five Marquee in Benin City, Edo State.

• Continued from last week

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HE socio-economic imbalance is prevalent when a few Nige rians flaunt their wealth recklessly abroad while others struggle to survive (working in bakeries, working as night soil men and joining neighbourhood gangs) just to survive. Recently, two British citizens of Nigerian origin allegedly murdered a British soldier in Woolwich, Southern London. One of them, Michael Adebolajo had been a member of a Somali-dominated gang (Southern London is rumoured to be full of such gangs, their ranks filled with misguided, intoxicated Nigerians). While one may argue that the boys were British citizens, born and bred in Britain, their Nigerian connection cannot be severed. Their parents migrated from Nigeria in the 80s, quite possibly as part of the “brain drain” earlier mentioned. Some years back, a Nigerian was also hanged in Singapore for drug trafficking while Nigerians are deported on a regular basis from Europe and the USA. In international circles, Nigeria regularly makes the news for the wrong reasons. Corruption, fraud “419”, and drug-dealing are fast becoming a Nigerian forte abroad with tighter immigration checks on those with green passports. With the socio-economic imbalance showing no signs of improving, and with Nigerians emigrating on a regular basis, we may have to brace ourselves for such embarrassing occurrences in future. g) Weak democracy Socio-economic imbalance invariably leads to a weak democracy. The reason for this is not far-fetched. The reason individuals submit to democracy is because they believe their rights will be guaranteed. Democracy is also expected to protect socio-economic rights. When this does not happen, the people lose confidence in the democratic government and may resort to other means to remove that government. This may include violent change of government. It is important to note that socio-economic imbalance is also responsible for the ‘politics of money’ that operates in Nigeria as against ‘politics of issues’.

This is because Politics is the allocation of resources and if a country cannot operate a system that satisfactorily (to the satisfaction of the vast majority) allocates resources without rancour, then the plan is faulty from its substratum. There is a belief by some that the country is unable to organize elections acceptable by everyone as free and fair. Free and fair elections constitute the bedrock of democracy, the accepted form of government in most countries. When the majority of the populace believe that a country’s democracy cannot guarantee their rights, the basis for that democracy can be said to have been destroyed 4. Attaining socio-economic balance in Nigeria through d emocracy; the role of law It will be recalled that at the commencement of democratic practice in May 1999, two of the laws that challenged the level of corruption and economic crimes were the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) Act and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act. Despite the protests by some states that ‘corruption’ was not in the exclusive legislative list, the provisions in Chapter Two of the Constitution proscribing the abolition of corruption and the powers of the National Assembly to enforce these provisions were the authority for the passage of the ICPC Act. The body that sprang from this Act, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) has been very active since its establishment. It is therefore baffling that the government utilises the provisions of Chapter II of the Constitution only when those provisions suit it. If the said Chapter can serve as the platform for the establishment of the ICPC, then there is no reason that Nigerians cannot benefit from all the

provisions under the said chapter.

In Nigeria, several legal instruments and policies have been used to address socio-economic imbalance.

For example, although some people may argue that the Federal Character Commission Act appears unconstitutional as it discriminates, this law has been used to address imbalance at the Federal level in terms of access to opportunities and positions. This is because Nigeria is a multi-cultural country with over 300 ethnic groups and languages. The moment there is socio-economic imbalance in the sense that one or more ethnic groups feel left out or marginalized, the embers of discontent and insurgency are fanned.

The establishment of the Niger Delta Development Commission and the Hydro Power Development Commission in the year 2000 and 2010 respectively through their enabling laws, Niger Delta Development Commission Act13 and the Hydro Power Development Commission Act14 is part of the efforts of government to correct the socio-economic imbalance in Nigeria using the law as a catalyst. Section 1(3) of the NDDC Act 2000 clearly states that the head office of the Niger-Delta Development Commission shall be in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. The provision states thus; 13 2000. 14 2010.

“The Commission shall have its head office in Port Harcourt, Rivers State and shall establish an office in each member state of the Commission” Its functions are as contained in section 7 of the Act which states thus: (1) (a) formulate policies and guidelines for the development of the NigerDelta, area; (b) conceive, plan and implement, in accordance with the set rules and regulations, projects and programmes for the sustainable development of the NigerDelta area in the filed of transportation including roads, jetties and waterways, health, education, employment, industrialisation, agriculture and fisheries, housing land urban development, water supply, electricity and telecommunications; (c) cause the Niger-Delta area to be surveyed in order to ascertain measures which are necessary to promote in physical and socio-economic development; (d) prepare master plans and schemes designed to promote the physical development of the NigerDelta area and the estimates of the costs of implementing such master plans and schemes. (e) implement all the measures approved for the development of the Niger-Delta area by the Federal Government and the member States of the Commission. (f) identify factors inhibiting the development of the Niger-Delta area and assist the member States in the formulation and implementation of pollicies to ensure sound and efficient management of the resources of the Niger-Delta area; (g) assess and report on any project being funded or carried out in the Niger-Delta area by oil and gas producing companies and any other company including non-governmental organisations land ensure that funds released for such projects are properly utilised; (h) tackle ecological and environmental problems that arise from the exploration of oil mineral in the Niger Delta area and advise the Federal Government and the member States on the prevention and control of oil spillages, gas flaring and environmental pollution; (i) liaise with the various oil mineral and gas prospecting and producing companies on all matters of pollution prevention and control; (j) executive such other works and perform such other functions which, in the opinion of the Commission, are required for the sustainable development of the Niger-Delta area and its peoples; and ...

(2) In exercising its functions and powers under this section, the Commission shall have regard to the varied and specific contributions of each Member State of the Commission to

• Chief Gadzama

the total national production of oil and gas.

(3) The Commission shall be subject to the direction, control or supervision in the performance of its functions under this Act by the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The location of the Commission in an oil producing state from the Southsouth region was ostensibly in recognition of the region’s production of the oil relied upon by all Nigerians. Due to the oil exploration and mining that goes on in the oil producing states of Nigeria, a lot of environmental degradation, at the hands of explorers and miners has occurred on their lands although they receive a percentage of the proceeds of crude oil sales. Their natural resources have been hard hit as their lands, natural source of water and wildlife have been steadily destroyed while the other regions benefit from the proceeds of crude oil sales without having to contend with the environmental degradation suffered by the oil producing states. The law of balance therefore necessitated that the region be adequately compensated in that regard.

Like the NDDC Act, the HYYPADEC ACT seeks to achieve some semblance of socio-economic balance by situating the head office of the Commission in one of the Hydro- power producing states of the Federation (in the Northern part of Nigeria). Its membership comprises hydro-power producing states just like the Niger Delta Development Commission comprises oil producing states of the Federation. The Bill was sponsored to address the following issues raised by the communities in the hydro-power producing states; •Access to electricity for the communities; •Environmental degradation – loss of biodiversity etc.; •Flooding of the communities; •Poverty due to loss of livelihoods by the communities •Resettlement of communities •Provision of access to strategic commercial centres in order to revive the economy of these communities.

Both Commissions seek to achieve socio-economic balance by ensuring that a larger part of the revenue derived from resources they produce for the country, is given back to them.

One has its head office in the South, the other in the North. While this may further glorify the much maligned quota system, it is necessary if socio-economic balance is to be achieved. This is one of the ways through which the concept of law can aid in a country’s socio-economic balance.

The role of law in attaining socio-

economic balance in Nigeria therefore, cannot be overemphasised. As earlier stated, it is law that legitimizses a government. Law protects democracy. It is the presence of, and respect for law that preserves a country’s democracy. Similarly, it is only through the social engineering provided by Law that the socio-economic imbalance in the country can be addressed and corrected. It is Law that states how the state is to be governed and it is in this light that we seek to examine the role of law in respect of Nigeria’s nascent democracy, vis-à-vis the socio-economic imbalance experienced in the country.

In discussing the role of law, I must refer again to the non-justiciability of Chapter II of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (As Amended) where most of the socio-economic rights are found. It goes without saying that most of the socio-economic rights enjoyed by Nigerians are “hand-outs” by the government and not what we would term “entitlements” legally speaking. The National Assembly might want to take another look at that particular conundrum. Nigerians would do wonders if they were afforded free water, free education etc, and the country would attain the levels of the likes of America where although education is not free, there is a high level of literacy and citizens are entitled to social security if they have no means of livelihood. If America is too far gone, then we might want to pattern our social-security program after Ghana or SouthAfrica (Nigerians have emigrated to these countries so they must be doing something right).There is the need for Nigeria’s legal system to pick up the gauntlet and address the country’s socio-economic problems. Law would play several roles in this instance and ensure the following: •The Rule of Law. This is self-explanatory. The Law reigns supreme.

•Periodic Popular Elections. Elections are held as at when due.

•A Legal Framework for the attainment of Socio-Economic Balance. This could also include some form of social security. We could take a look at the American Social Security system for guidance. In America, social security compasses several social welfare and social insurance programs15.

•Tougher immigration laws.

While this may present a bit of a problem due to our ECOWAS commitments which render it unnecessary for citizens of ECOWAS member states to obtain visas before visiting other member states, certain checks can still be made at the point of entry to ensure that aspiring visitors do not intend to rely on public funds. This ensures that the security system ben-

efits Nigerians only and not Chadians and Nigeriens.

•Constitutionalism. This simply connotes that the Constitution is followed to the last letter.

•Separation of Powers. There must be explicit constitutional limits, or checks, on concentrated power and those checks will only remain effective where there is some countervailing power to enforce them. Thus every concentrated power should be balanced by some other concentrated power in order to prevent any particular part of the government system from grasping excessive power and nullifying the constitutional checks.

•The amendment of section 6 (6) (c) of the 1999 Constitution (As amended) to ensure that matters under Chapter II of the Constitution are made justiciable.

15. (42 USC 7) “US Code—Title 42—The Public Health and Welfare”.

Archived from the original on October 12, 2006. Retrieved November 8, 2006 16. Democracy: A Social Power Analysis By Dr. John S. Atlee, with Tom Atlee.

Law has been described as a means of social engineering by Dean Roscoe Pound and in no other instance is this definition more apt. By preparing a legal framework for the attainment of socio-economic balance, the Government would have nipped the growing insecurity in the country in the bud. Socio-economic rights would become justiciable and the government would feel obligated to address issues like poverty, unemployment and illiteracy as it could be sued for its part in creating them. Issues like resource control would be better addressed and no individual or group of individuals would feel deprived. No expenses should be spared here. A poor country may not be able to afford a good legal system, but without a good legal system, it may never become rich enough to afford such a system. Law is the glue that holds society together and the responsibility therefore falls on this much vaunted concept to somehow restore some balance to the Nigerian Socio-economic landscape.

5. Conclusion Domestic challenges, continue to undermine Nigeria’s constitutional democracy and its potential as a major economic and diplomatic power.

Such challenges—insecurity, poverty, unemployment and low quality education —must be addressed if Nigeria’s democracy is to survive the test of time. In the meantime, Nigeria trudges along, socio-economically, like a drunken giant on the legs of a mosquito and is in need of a massive re-engineering.

I have no doubt that our country is destined for great things as long as there is strict adherence to the rule of law and contradictory provisions in our laws are amended so as to eradicate illiteracy, poverty and criminality. The eradication of illiteracy, discrimination, poverty and criminality is what determines if a country is socio-economically balanced but this does not imply that these vices are totally absent in a fully developed society (after all, some misguided individuals in Woolwich, London, recently killed a serving soldier despite the existence of some semblance of socio-economic balance in the United Kingdom and there have been recent riots in Sweden and Turkey), it simply means they have been substantially curtailed. That way, insurgency, which is a consequence of socio-economic imbalance becomes a rare exception and not the norm. This is the aim of the law; to act as a catalyst for socio-economic balance. It is hoped that when all is said and done, we would be able to say that we have attained socio-economic balance in Nigeria using the Constitution and legal instruments as catalysts.

Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama is a honorary Life Bencher • Concluded

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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LAW REPORT

‘Courts can formulate issues for parties where justice demands’

In the Supreme Court of Nigeria Date: April 19, 2013 SC. 135/2004, 2013(4) LEDLR-16 Before their Lordships

CHRISTOPHER MITCHELL CHUKWUMA ENEH IBRAHIM TANKO MUHAMMAD SULEIMAN GALADIMA NWALI SYLVESTER NGWUTA STANLEY SHENKO ALAGOA BETWEEN ALHAJI RASAKI ABIOLA EKUNOLA

APPELLANT

AND CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA

RESPONDENTS

ALHAJI SAIDU MOHAMMED (Director of Personnel, CBN) SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA

•Continued from last week

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HE court is urged to uphold the appellant’s contention and nullify the trial.

The respondents have relied on Ebo v. NTA (1996) 4 NWLR (Pt.442) 314 to urge that any court can formulate issues suo motu where the issue formulated by the parties would not advance the interest of justice and that it must be consistent with the grounds of appeal filed since the essence of formulating issue is to bring out the substance of the complaint in a ground of appeal. See: Otuo v. Nteoguilo (1996) 4 NWLR (Pt.440) 56, lncar (Nigeria) Plc. v. Bolex Enterprises Ltd. (1996) 6 NWLR (Pt.454) 318.

Further, the respondents have submitted that there is no breach of fair hearing in not calling on the appellant to address it on the two issues so formulated as in that regard the trial court has simply condensed/summarised the issues formulated by both parties to two substantive issues which to all appearances are consistent with the grounds of appeal raised by the appellant. And that as no new is-

sue has been raised the circumstances have made it unnecessary to invite the parties to address the court on the process and it is contended that the exercise does not amount to a denial of fair hearing as what the trial court has done amounts if I may repeat to simply summarising the issues raised by the parties based on the pleadings and the evidence before it. The court is urged to discountenance the complaint as per ground 7 as frivolous. There can be no doubt from the foregoing resume that “fair hearing” has become the whipping principle for counsel trying to catch at a straw to sustain a modicum of standing in a hopeless case where the case is already dead as a dodo. This approach of counsel in general is deprecated. Fair hearing should for what it is and represents in our adjudicative process before the courts be invoked with every sense of seriousness and in appropriate settings. It is not the case in the instant appeal.

It is noteworthy that this issue as encapsulated herein has been satisfactorily exhausted by the lower court in its decision on the

same question, which I uphold in toto. To raise the same issue predicated on a much weaker and stale arguments in this court is highly deprecated particularly as the finding in this respect by the court below is not perverse but founded on accepted and admitted facts and evidence on the record..

The judgment cannot be faulted.

Judicial opinions on the question of formulation of issues for determination by courts have been revealed in a plethora of decisions of this court wherefore some have approved the practice as against a group that has disproved the practice, which include such cases as Nwokoro & Ors. v. Onuma & Anor. (1990) 3 NWLR (Pt.136) 22; Adeniran & Anor. v. Interland Transport Ltd. (1991) 9 NWLR (Pt.214); Anie & Ors. v. Chlef Uzorka & Ors. (1993) 8 NWLR (pt.309) 1; Onwo v. Oko & Ors. (1996) 6 NWLR (pt.456) 584; Ogundayin v. Adeyemi (2001) 13 NWLR (pt.730) 403 and Agbaje v.

Ajibola (2002) 2 NWLR (Pt.750) 127.

On the other side of the cleavage of judicial opinions in approval of the practice are such cases as Labiyi v. Anretiola (1992) 8 NWLR (Pt.258) 139, Ogunbiyi v. lshola (1996) 6 NWLR (pt.452) 12, Erhahon v.

Erhahon (1997) 6 NWLR (pt.510) 667 and NEPA v. Isieveore (1997) 7 NWLR (pt-511) 135.

It is my view that the power of courts to formulate issues for determination at whatever level in the hierarchy of the courts although particularly so in appellate courts (where brief writing is a matter of the Rules of the court) inheres in the court in the interest of justice to enable courts to perform their adjudicative functions in our jurisprudence hence there are no rules of court prohibiting courts from doing so. I think that this discretion imbued with the interest of justice as its focus and premise has to be guided by the facts of each case and this has been the case with regard to the cases cited above.

Courts should not make it a point of practice to formulate issues for the parties suo motu and deciding them without calling on both parties to address it in the process as it negates one of the cardinal principles of hearing the parties and providing a level playing ground in a trial of their matter before condemning either of them.

Formulating issues by courts

Obi to lawyers: join politics

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NAMBRA State Governor Peter Obi has decried the “quality” of political activism in the Southeast, saying it is low.

He said one way to reverse the trend is for the elite, such as lawyers, to play more active roles in governance.

“The quality of political representation in the Southeast is very low. You cannot afford to abandon politics to the least qualified among us.

“You must all get involved and be the change that you want to see, otherwise that change will not happen.

“You cannot expect a political actor who does not know better to reform the political process,” he said.

The governor was a special guest at the meeting of the group, Otu Oka-Iwu, an association of Igbo lawyers, in Lagos.

Obi, who spoke on Electoral reforms and the descent of values, said the state’s inability to conduct local

• President, Otu Oka-Iwu Mr. Zik Obi II presenting an award to Gov. Obi. With them is Mr Emeka Okoli, a lawyer.

By Joseph Jibueze

government elections was due to pending court cases.

He said while the state has imposed death penalty as punishment for kidnapping, this has not been carried through as virtually all the cases of kidnapping involved the victims’ relatives.

Speaking on the deportation of some Ibo from Lagos to Onitsha in

Anambra State, Obi said his administration had to intervene to protect the fundamental rights of the affected persons, adding, however, that the matter would be resolved amicably.

President, Otu Oka-Iwu, Zik Obi II, urged lawyers to consider Obi’s call in the quest for good governance. Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN) noted that the lecture would galvanise lawyers towards political activism.

should be subjected to the rider of calling upon the parties to address it in such instances before judgment. By this process a modicum of opportunity as it were, is afforded the parties on the question; this accords with a reasonable man’s sense of having justice seen to be done. This is because courts should not be seen to jump pre-emptorily into the arena of contest however tempting the cause as courts have to avoid being muddied in the process of adjudication of cases before them and thus lose their centrality of impartiality as neutral umpires in our adjudicative system. To hold otherwise will undoubtedly unduly shackle the discretion of courts in the adjudicative process as this will not be grounded on any relevant rules of court or substantive law as such. I can find nothing offensive in such exercises. I uphold the intervention in this instant case upon its peculiar facts in the interest of justice. And it is my view that no denial of fair hearing amounting to a miscarriage of justice has thus been occasioned to the appellant.

In the instant case the trial court as rightly found by the court below has merely condensed/ summarised the issues as formulated by the parties to the two issues raised suo motu and has proceeded to decide them one notable point as regards the said issues so formulated is that they are consistent with the grounds of appeal filed by the appellant in the appeal. These issues have unquestionably arisen from the said grounds and have clearly crystallised the substance of the complaint as contemplated in the grounds, the pleadings and evidence before the trial court and on the record before the lower court and have been necessitated in the

interest of justice. In short, the trial court has simply condensed/summarized the issues raised by the parties in their cases. Therefore, I do not see any leg on which to stand to upturn the lower court’s decision on this point particularly so, if I may repeat when it has not occasioned a miscarriage of justice. I have made these points to support the opinion that courts have the power to formulate issues for the parties in appropriate cases when the justice of the cases as in this case so demands. It is a power to be sparingly exercised with extreme caution. In Labiyi v. Anretiola (supra) this court has held per Karibi-Whyte JSC that: “The court below was free either to adopt the issues so formulated by learned counsel or to formulate such issues that are consistent with the grounds of appeal filed by the Appellant- It is in the observance of this principle in pursuit of the proper administration of justice that the court below considered an appropriate formulation of the issues consistent with the grounds of appeal filed when it was observed that although the grounds of appeal were inelegantly drafted, the complaints therein were clear and not misleading”.

I am in unison with the reasoning in the above abstract in the judgment of my noble Lord and rely on it to hold in support of my reasoning herein that the appellant on the whole in the instant appeal has failed to nail the denial of fair hearing on the head in regard to his contention of the negation of his rights to a fair hearing in this matter leading to denying him justice in the matter and thus render the trial a nullity.

•To be continued next week

LEGAL JOKES

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N engineer, a physicist, and a lawyer were being inter viewed for a position as chief executive officer of a large corporation. The engineer was interviewed first, and was asked a long list of questions, ending with “How much is two plus two?” The engineer excused himself, and made a series of measurements and calculations before returning to the board room and announcing, “Four.” The physicist was next interviewed, and was asked the same questions. Before answering the last question, he excused himself, made for the library, and did a great deal of research. After a consultation with the United States Bureau of Standards and many calculations, he also announced “Four.” The lawyer was interviewed last, and was asked the same questions. At the end of his interview, before answering the last question, he drew all the shades in the room, looked outside the door to see if anyone was there, checked the telephone for listening devices, and asked “How much do you want it to be? ”Q: What’s the one thing that never works when it’s fixed?

A: A jury.

Q: What’ the difference between a lawyer and a boxing referee?

A: A boxing referee doesn’t get paid more for a longer fight.

Q: What’s the difference between a good lawyer and a bad lawyer?

A: A bad lawyer makes your case

drag on for years. A good lawyer makes it last even longer.

As Mr. Smith was on his death bed, he attempted to formulate a plan that would allow him to take at least some of his considerable wealth with him. He called for the three men he trusted most - his lawyer, his doctor, and his clergyman. He told them, “I’m going to give you each $30,000 in cash before I die. At my funeral, I want you to place the money in my coffin so that I can try to take it with me.” All three agreed to do this and were given the money. At the funeral, each approached the coffin in turn and placed an envelope inside. While riding in the limousine to the cemetery, the clergyman said “I have to confess something to you fellows. Brother Smith was a good churchman all his life, and I know he would have wanted me to do this. The church needed a new baptistery very badly, and I took $10,000 of the money he gave me and bought one. I only put $20,000 in the coffin.” The physician then said, “Well, since we’re confiding in one another, I might as well tell you that I didn’t put the full $30,000 in the coffin either. Smith had a disease that could have been diagnosed sooner if I had this very new machine, but the machine cost $20,000 and I couldn’t afford it then.

I used $20,000 of the money to buy the machine so that I might be able to save another patient. I know that Smith would have wanted me to do that.” The lawyer then said, “I’m ashamed of both of you. When I put my envelope into that coffin, it held my personal check for the full $30,000.”

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THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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ABUJA REVIEW

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HE Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Mohammed has reiterated that the Abuja Land Swap Model is a practical innovation of his administration to fasttrack the development of the FCT. Mohammed stated this while hosting Abuja stakeholders in Gwarinpa I District of the city after the FCT Muslim Community paid a courtesy call on President Goodluck Jonathan.

According to him, we have brought innovation to leave landmark and fast-track development of the entire 8,000 square kilometers of the Federal Capital Territory.

I urge peaceful co-existence among all residents of the Territory irrespective of religious or political inclinations. We will respect the sensibility of all.

The minister expressed gratitude to the residents for their support his administration has been enjoying from them, even as he assured that all actions taken by the government are for public good.

He pleaded for forgiveness if anyone was wronged by any step taken in repositioning the wheel of governance in the Territory. He also said that whoever has offended the administration has also been forgiven in the spirit of the season.

The minister thanked the Christian brothers; especially the FCT chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), for always being together with the Muslims during their festivities. He urged Muslims to reciprocate the same gesture during Christian festivities in order to foster unity in the overall interest of the country.

The Senator representing the FCT, Senator Philip Tanimu Aduda congratulated the Muslim Ummah on Eid-el-Fitr, commending the robust and brotherly relationship between the FCT Minister, Senator Bala

•Land

‘Land-swap will enhance development’ Stories by Gbenga Omokhunu

Mohammed and the FCT Minister of State, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide.

In his opening remarks, the FCT Permanent Secretary, John Obinna Chukwu, on behalf of the bureaucrats, expressed unflinching loyalty to the FCT Administration.

Chukwu described Eid-el-Fitr as very significant because it has af-

forded the residents an opportunity and platform to always meet and rub minds; adding that frank discussions during iftar (breaking of fast during Ramadan) and Sallah celebration with stakeholders has further cemented the existing cordial relationship among residents of the Federal Capital Territory.

The chairman of the FCT chap-

‘Blame politicians for disunity among FCT Yoruba’

H

IS Royal Highness, Oba Olusegun Salau has said that some politicians who feed fat on crisis were responsible for the current controversy in the Federal Capital Territory chapter of the Yoruba community council.

The traditional ruler disclosed this in an interview with journalists in Abuja, saying the Yoruba community has witnessed unprecedented peace and unity in the territory under his leadership until politicians started making use

From Gbenga Omokhunu

of some ‘unscrupulous element’ to cause crisis among the Yoruba race in the city.

Oba Salau, who clocked 60 years this month, debunked a report making around that there was no Oba in FCT. He said; “it is not true but I don’t want to talk much about it because

the father of Abuja, the owner of Abaji, Adamu Baba Yunisa is handling the matter. It is not the Oba Yoruba they want to disgrace but him because he was the one who turbaned the Oba, the indigenous chiefs are the one who turban Obas, even we Yoruba can not take somebody to them and whoever they turban we Yoruba must accept the person whether you like it or not, or else you have to live their place and go to another place”

•From left: Wife of the Vice President, Hajia Amina Sambo; Vice President Namadi Sambo and First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, during the celebration of Nigeria Women for Peace and Empowerment at the Eagle Square in Abuja.

ter of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) who is also the Chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council, Mr. Micah Jiba thanked the FCT Minister for the wonderful innovations he has brought to bear in the governance of the FCT. Mr. Jiba promised that they would continue to support the FCT Administration under Senator Bala Mohammed because he

has been carrying them along.

The FCT Minister of State, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, the Chief Iman of Abuja National Mosque, Ustaz Musa Mohammed, Chairman of the FCT chapter of CAN, Rev. Israel Akanji, chairmen of the FCT area councils and some Associations of the FCT Original Inhabitants were among prominent residents that attended the get-together.

The monarch who said the problem has been going on for decades therefore reminded the people being used to remember that politicians will come and go but traditional rulers will remain.

He also advised politicians in FCT and the country in general to

be mindful of comments they make as the 2015 general election is approach.

“I advise is simple, we all see what is going on in Egypt not, we have to give peace a chance so that our country will not turn to that, so we all have to be law abiding citizens” he stated.

Foundation urges media to promote community awareness

A

N Abuja-based nongovernmental organisation, Faridah Wada Foundation (FWF) has called on the Nigerian media practitioners to rise up to the challenge for development by supporting non-profit institutions and publicising their activities in order to stimulate awareness on their numerous programmes and projects in different locations in the the country.

Chief Executive Officer of the foundation Mrs. Faridah Wada, represented by the Programme Manager Terkula Arems, said this in a communiqué to mark the oneyear anniversary of the foundation in Abuja.

She decried the slow pace of development in Nigeria’s rural communities, blaming the absence of proper communication channels

and the free flow of information as a serious challenge facing development efforts in the country.

The organisation said that so much work was going on in several communities in the country but little or nothing is done to promote such efforts. The group said it was the social responsibility of the mass media to ensure that such efforts do not go un-noticed.

The NGO therefore noted that it has donateed goods worth millions of naira to three orphanage homes in Abuja as part of activities to mark its one-year anniversary. The homes that benefited from the foundations donations according to the statement included , Talitha koum orphanage home in Nyanya, Alpha and Omega orphanage and Hope for survival orphanage home.

FWF decried the slow pace of development in Nigeria’s rural communities, blaming the absence of proper communication channels and the free flow of information as a serious challenge facing development efforts in the country

40

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

With ekpoita :funtreatsvilla@yahoo.com / 08177298749

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

ACROSS

Prince

Covers

V

Magazine

1.Resort (3) 4.Repair (5) 7. Examine (4) 9. Buttocks (4) 10. Peruse (4) 12. Entreat (4) 14. Trunk (5) 16. Perform (2) 17. Insect (3) 18. Ominous (4) 20. Musical Note (2) 21. Full of Mint (5) 22. Yes (3) 23. Single (2) 24. Nipples (5)

DOWN 1.Begin (5) 2.For Each (3) 3.Convince (6) 5.Mud (4) 6. Fellow (4) 8. Brief (5) 11. End Prematurely (5) 13. Proceed (2) 15. Carry out order (4) 16. Noise (3) 18. Have Dinner (4) 19. Seeing Organs (4) 20. Beam (3) 21. Rug (3)

MISSING LETTERS All the words in the columns below have lost their first letters as indicated by the blank spaces above them. You are required to find and affix them. When done, all the first letters will form a 9-letter, sexually offensive word or action. Happy Puzzling!‘

SANDS OF TIME Covers

V

Magazine

Prince will always be better than the rest of us. The flawless 55-year-old icon rocks a tight fro and some shinny threads for V magazine’s issue 84 and chats about a number of topics including his aversion to technology.“Are you serious?” Hell, no,” he says mimicking a woman when asked if he owns an iPhone.

“Where is my phone? Can you call my phone? Oh, I can’t find it.”Okay. Prince is not a fan of the iPhone or any other kind for that matterHe also chatted about his fans and says they come to his concerts because they know they’ll get their money’s worth.

“People come to see us fifty times. Well, that’s not just going to see a concert—that’s some other mess going on.

This music changes you. These people are not being satisfied elsewhere by musicians, you feel what I’m saying? It’s no disrespect to anyone else, because we’re not checking for them. But we don’t lip synch. We ain’t got time for it. Ain’t no tape up there.”

Pep Talk

Once upon a time, there was a large mountainside, where an eagle’s nest rested. The eagle’s nest contained four large eagle eggs. One day an earthquake rocked the mountain causing one of the eggs to roll down the mountain, to a chicken farm, located in the valley below. The chickens knew that they must protect and care for the eagle’s egg, so an old hen volunteered to nurture and raise the large egg.

One day, the egg hatched and a beautiful eagle was born. Sadly, however, the eagle was raised to be a chicken. Soon, the eagle believed he was nothing more than a chicken. The eagle loved his home and family, but his spirit cried out for more. While playing a game on the farm one day, the eagle looked to the skies above and noticed a group of mighty eagles soaring in the skies. “Oh,” the Eagle cried, “I wish I could soar like those birds.”

The chickens roared with laughter, “You cannot soar with those birds. You are a chicken and chickens do not soar.” The eagle continued staring, at his real family up above, dreaming that he could be with them. Each time the eagle would let his dreams be known, he was told it couldn’t be done.

That is what the eagle learned to believe. The eagle, after time, stopped dreaming and continued to live his life like a chicken.

Finally, after a long life as a chicken, the eagle passed away.

The moral of the story: You become what you believe you are; so if you ever dream to become an eagle follow your dreams, not the words of a chicken.

Brain Teaser A man in a restaurant asked a waiter for a juice glass, a dinner plate, water, a match, and a lemon wedge. The man poured enough water onto the plate to cover it.

“If you can get the water on the plate into this glass without touching or moving this plate, I will give you $100,” the man said. “You can use the match andA lemon to do this.”

A few minutes later, the waiter walked away with $100 in his a n pocket. How did the waiter get the water into the glass?

HUMOUR True Believers

The two thousand member Baptist church was filled to overflowing capacity one Sunday morning. The preacher was ready to start the sermon when two men, dressed in long black coats and black hats entered thru the rear of the church.

One of the two men walked to the middle of the church while the other stayed at the back of the church. They both then reached under their coats and withdrew automatic weapons. The one in the middle announced, “Everyone willing to take a bullet for Jesus stay in your seats!”

Naturally, the pews emptied, followed by the choir. The deacons ran out the door, followed by the choir director and the assistant pastor.

After a few moments, there were about twenty people left sitting in the church. The preacher was holding steady in the pulpit. The men put their weapons away and said, gently, to the preacher, “All right, pastor, the hypocrites are gone now. You may begin the service.”

Getting Into Fights A young couple drove several miles down a country road, not saying a word.

An earlier discussion had led to an argument, and neither wanted to concede their position.

ANSWER

First, the waiter stuck the match into the lemon wedge, so that it would stand straight. Then he lit the match, and put it in the middle of the plate with the lemon. Then, he placed the glass upside-down over the match. As the flame used up the oxygen in the glass, it created a small vacuum, which sucked in the water through the space between the glass and the plate. Thus, the waiter got the water into the glass without touching or moving the plate.

You can try this experiment at home with appropriate supervision.

Prince

FOOD FOR THOUGHT The Chicken

As they passed a barnyard of mules and pigs, the husband sarcastically asked, “Are they relatives of yours?”

“Yes,” his wife replied. “I married into the family.”

Touch a life today with a smile, a word of encouragement or any kind gesture.

Our ideas like orange plants, spread out in proportion to the size of the box which imprisons the roots.

– Edward Bulwer Lytton

42

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

43

HEALTH THE NATION

E-mail:- health@thenationonlineng.net

Akinkugbe, others seek solution to non-communicable diseases More Nigerians are being infected by Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), including hypertension, in Nigeria. But experts say there is a solution, writes OYEYEMI GBENGA-MUSTAPHA.

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HE figures are scary.

Over four million Nigerians are hypertensive. And the figure is likely to increase, Professor Emeritus of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, Prof. Olujimi.

O. Akinkugbe has said.

He spoke at the Pfizer Cardiovascular summit in Lagos.

He said the number of NonCommunicable Diseases (NCDs) would increase.

A non-communicable disease is a medical condition or disease which is non-infectious and non-transmissible. Hypertension is one.

The summit is the sixth. It has as theme: ‘Preventive strategies for cardiovascular disease.”

According to the octogenarian, “A wise country is going to be proactive. It is already knocking at the door. It is going to be a health tsunami if we don’t take steps to prevent it because the wherewithal to prosecute medical remedy is often not there.

“The situation will certainly be worse because the lifestyle of the average Nigerian has changed. We are living more sedentary lifestyles and eating Western diets. Our future must be in our hands and the preventive measures are quite cheap. ‘’The after-events like kidney failure is often beyond the reach of developing countries even the developed ones are struggling. Therefore, if we can put measures to prevent these diseases, then we will be saving hundreds of millions.”

On how best to manage the development of cases of NCDs among Nigerians, he said: “Adequate detection is extremely important. It is not just going to the teaching hospital and checking blood pressure, but you have to go round the country to the rural areas. That was what we tried to do 20 years ago. As experts, we went

What is a non-communicable disease?

A

NON-COMMUNICABLE disease, or NCD, is a medical condition or disease, which by definition is noninfectious and non-transmissible among people.

NCDs may be chronic diseases of long duration and slow progression, or they may result in more rapid death such as some types of sudden stroke. They include autoimmune diseases, heart disease, stroke, many cancers, asthma, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s disease, cataracts, and more. While sometimes (incorrectly) referred to as synonymous with “chronic diseases”, NCDs are distinguished only by their non-infectious cause, not necessarily by their duration. Some chronic diseases of long duration, such as HIV/AIDS, are caused by transmissible infections. Chronic diseases require chronic care management as do all diseases that are slow to develop and of long duration.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports NCDs to be by far the leading cause of mortality in the world, representing over 60% of all deaths.. Risk factors such as a person’s background, lifestyle and environment are known to increase the likelihood of certain NCDs. Referred to as a “lifestyle” disease, because the majority of these diseases are preventable illnesses, the most common causes for non-communicable diseases (NCD) include tobacco use (smoking), alcohol abuse, poor diets (high consumption of sugar, salt, saturated fats, and trans fatty acids) and physical inactivity. Currently, NCD kills 36 million people a year, a number that by some estimates is expected to rise by 17–24 per cent within the next decade.Non-Communicable Diseases Deemed Development Challenge of ‘Epidemic Proportions’ in Political Declaration Adopted During Landmark General Assembly Summit.

•Source: Wikipedia round the country to see 20,000 persons selected from rural, semi-urban areas and we had a map of hypertension, diabetes. But the parameters have changed. We use 160/ 95mmHg for hypertension mapping and we found that four million Nigerians were hypertensive. Healthcare problem is a national emergency and it should be considered as such.

The sustainability and viability of a country’s economic and social growth depend largely on vibrant health care sector of that nation. No country can maintain a steady economic growth in the absence of an adequate healthcare system.”

He said more Nigerians are being affected because “Most people live very sedentary lifestyle and diets high in fats and carbohydrates. I play golf three times a week by 6.30am.

It is my secret. Exercise is vital and I watch my sodium (salt) intake. The type of food we eat has also changed. People prefer Western diets that are low in fibre but high in sugar and salt. Many people sit for over five hours watching television, African Magic. I don’t have the luxury; that is sedentary lifestyle. These are what are called risk factors.

On how came about the figure he said: “Now the need to

‘Five million adults take tobacco’

N

O fewer than 5.6 million Nigerians use tobacco products, the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) report for last year has shown.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) in its last year’s Facts on tobacco use in the African Region, also said tobacco kills half of its users.

This, activists said, underscores the need for the National Tobacco Control Bill (NTCB) to regulate tobacco use in Nigeria.

But the bill has been rejected twice by the president.

It, however, has been returned to the legislature.

But, would it end in the waste basket?

By Wale Adepoju

This and more questions took the front burner at a community/media forum organised by Environmental Right Action (ERA) and Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC).

ERA Executive Director, Mr Akinbode Oluwafemi said the number of people who have scancer-related diseases was overwhelming.

He added: “Tobacco use has compounded the health of the people. There are no benefits whatsoever for the government and people for allowing tobacco use to thrive in the country.”

Oluwafemi said the world

was awaiting the executive bill on tobacco at the National Assembly.

Quoting the survey, he said: “Three million 100,000 adults smoke tobacco while 1.6 million use tobacco but without smoking it.”

He said the country should fulfill its obligation like the United States and Canada to achieve the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

Oluwafemi said strengthening the implementation of the framework was a big challenge in Africa, especially Nigeria, adding that it was crucial to develop comprehensive tobacco control legislation and build capacity for its effective enforcement.

focus on a target I think is becoming increasingly important.

However, rough and ready that percentage might be, we must stick our necks out and say by 2020 or thereabout, we should be able to have reduced the burden. To do that you got to update the epidemiological study that was done 20 years ago because at that time there was a different cut-off point. We really don’t know at this point in time what the precise burden or the problem is. We got to define it and do it through a proper epidemiological study.

It is not just checking blood pressures in teaching hospitals or going to the rural areas. We must select them properly. We only did 20,000 persons for us to draw a map of cardiovascular diseases. But we did the study in a purely reliable epidemiological way so that no one could fault this.”

He added: “Now, once you do that then you begin to put in place measures. I think the problem we had was that after our study we went round and we said, well, you know about four million people were hypertensive and divided this into severe, moderate and mild. You know when you are dealing with mild hypertension, there are millions and the first question was how do we deal with this kind of mammoth problem? You know there are so many other conditions. I said we had better just pretend that it doesn’t exist because it was a time-bomb. If you say this to the world and they say what are you going to do about it. Unfortunately, although I know the Nigerian Hypertension Society (NHS) put together certain measures in terms of prevention but really that has not achieved a lot.”

The guest speaker, Prof Sam Dagogo –Jack , a renowned Endocrinologist at the University of Tennessee Health Centre, Memphis TN, said finding a solution to health problems requires an aggressive approach by the federal, state, and local governments.

Briefs Skye Bank donates scanning machines to NGO

E

ARLY detection and lifestyle changes can prevent breast cancer, the Group Managing Director, Skye Bank, Mr Kehinde DurosinmiEtti, has said.

He spoke when the bank donated two ultra-sound scanning machines to a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Care, Organisation, Public Enlightenment (COPE).

The machines will screen women free for breast cancer, he said.

The disease disturbing, adding that women should embrace good lifestyles, such as exercising and eating a balanced diet.

He called for more awareness to ensure that women stay healthy.

“We have been supporting breast cancer initiatives for many years.

COPE needed to move to another stage, which is why we are supporting it,” he added.

COPE Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mrs Ebunola Anozie, said the equipment would enable women to get screening for breast cancer.

She said 10 out of 50 women screened had lumps, stressing that further checks were usually advised to know if the lumps were cancerous.

She said the disease prevalence was on the rise because many women under 40 were coming down with the disease.

This, she said, was unlike in the past when it was limited to women above 50.

Mrs Anozie enjoined women to take make use of the equipment.

She said they can access the facility every fortnight, adding: “The screening is free. We only ask them to register.”

Mrs Alozie said the bank would maintain the equipment.

Firm to showcase equipment at expo

A

FIRM is introducing affordable equip-

ment at the West African countries at the West African Health Expo (WAH 2013) scheduled for September at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island Lagos.

The Medtronic’s West Africa Consultant, Mr Jude Nnadi, said: “Medtronic is coming to Nigeria with a portfolio of therapies, including open heart surgeries and similar interventions that would help reduce the cost of cardiac treatment in the country and the region as a whole.

“Most people spend as much as $20,000 each time they travel abroad for cardiac or similar specialty treatment. Medtronic has a set of therapies that could be built into the Nigerian health system that could bring down the cost to as low as $3,000.”

This, he said, would also help promote medical tourism to Nigeria.

“If we are able to built quality into specialty care, we would attract more people to Nigeria and that would reduce capital flight,” he said.

Chief Executive Officer of Global Resources & Project, organisers of the WAH expo, Dr. Wale Alabi, said: “Quality is up for grabs here. It is for Nigeria’s medical and health practitioners to come and make the best of what the world would be showcasing in Lagos by September.”

The expo is an international wvent, which focuses on medical equipment, scientific and laboratory instruments, hospital furniture, pharmaceutical products and services.

It will be hosted by Global Resources & Projects Nig. Ltd.

44

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

HEALTH

S

Chinese, African leaders unveil plan to support health

OME African health ministers and Chinese officials have mapped out new programmes to support Africa’s long-term health progress and shape the future.

The news was broken at the Ministerial Forum on ChinaAfrica Health Development in China It was the first-ever meeting of health ministers under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) since it was established in 2000, demonstrating the highest level of political commitment to tackling Africa’s most pressing health challenges.

The health ministers and officials launched the Beijing Declaration of the Ministerial Forum on China-Africa Health Development, which sets a roadmap for jointly addressing key health challenges across Africa, including malaria, schistosomiasis, HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, immunisation and vaccine preventable diseases.

Under the Declaration, China and African countries will embark on new efforts to achieve sustainable, longterm health solutions, such as increasing partnerships on joint research and addressing the shortage of healthcare workers. China and African countries will engage further with private enterprise to encourage technology transfer

By Oyeyemi GbengaMustapha

and increase access to lowcost health technologies that meet high quality standards.

The Declaration emphasises that such health cooperation efforts will align with African countries’ priorities as well as national and regional development plans.

Minister of Health, Senegal, Awa Coll-Seck, said: “China and African countries have enjoyed strong and effective partnerships on health for half a century, based on our common experiences and our shared vision for a brighter and healthier future for all our citizens.The Beijing Declaration solidifies our governments’ commitments to developing and implementing Africa-led strategies that drive sustainable health progress and improve the lives of people across the continent.”

This year marks the 50th anniversary of China sending medical teams to Africa, with the first team sent to Algeria in 1963. Since then, thousands of medical personnel have served in 43 African countries. China has also worked with African partners

and international organisations to build hospitals and malaria centers, train health workers and increase access to antimalarial treatments and other health technologies. Academic institutions and private companies have also supported these efforts.

Now, China and African countries are exploring opportunities to build on this progress and contribute new resources, innovation and leadership to drive health progress across Africa. “Chinese and African citizens live on the same planet, under the same sky. China’s partnership with Africa is rooted in humanitarianism. As President Xi described it, this love has no borders,” said Hon. Dr. Li Bin, Minister of China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission.

“I believe the Chinese Medical Teams will strive to make a greater contribution in the future,” he said.

In this new era of collaboration, Chinese and African government officials and other stakeholders will work to identify sustainable solutions to health challenges.

This will include bolstering

•From left: Directror, Initiative for Peacebuilding and Social Change,Mrs Otinu Gbarada; MD/CEO, Optimal Cancer Foundation, Dr Femi Olaleye; Executive Director, Initiative for Peacebuilding and Social Change, Mr ‘Gbenga Gbarada and CEO, AIDS Free Community Project, Nigeria Dr Ugah Olayinka Nkem at the HIV/AIDS sensitisation and Cancer awareness seminar, in Ikeja, Lagos.

MTN marks two years of ‘success’ in haemodialysis

T

HE MTN Foundation, through its Medical Support Project, has assisted about 1, 430 patients diagnosed with kidney diseases to access haemodialysis free.

This was possible through facilities donated by the Foundation to 12 public health institutions across the country in the last two years.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Executive Secretary of the Foundation, Ms. Nonny Ugboma, spoke at a stakeholders meeting.

She said: “These worrying statistics on renal failure coupled with the fact that we were inundated with several requests for financial assistance prompted us to act by supporting the health sector with 12 state-of-the-art haemodialysis centres for the management of kidney related diseases across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.”

By Oyeyemi GbengaMustapha

The haemodialysis centres are located in General Hospital, Onitsha; Anambra State, Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, Imo State; Benue State University Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, Benue State; Federal Medical Centre,Yola, Adamawa State; and Federal Medical Centre, Nguru, Kebbi State.

Others are General Hospital, Alimosho, Lagos State; University of Ado-Ekiti Teaching Hospital, Ekiti State; Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital, Port Harcourt in Rivers State; General Hospital, Calabar, Cross River State; General Hospital, Yauri, Kebbi State; State Specialist Hospital, Sokoto and National Hospital, Abuja.

The project, which has adopted the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, has MTN Nigeria Foundation pro-

viding funding for the centres while the Federal and state ministries of Health, who own these selected public hospitals, provide the space, medical personnel, and a conducive environment to carry out the intervention.

Adcem Pharmaceuticals Limited and Rodot Limited, the sole Nigerian representative of the Fresenius and B.Braun brands, two of the world’s leading manufacturer of renal replacement therapy equipment, are the implementation partners for the MTN MSP Dialysis centres with the participation of the Nigerian Association of Nephrologists.

Ugbona said: “In the last two years, the foundation through its intervention the treatment of kidney related diseases is happy to serve as a catalyst. We have seen 4,732 dialysis sessions successfully done to care for 1,430 patients in just a little above two years of operations.”

human resources capacity in African countries, supporting domestic manufacturing capacity, and increasing access to low-cost, high-quality health products.

These efforts will draw on and leverage China’s own experiences with improving public health in a resourcelimited setting. It will also share the tools and expertise it has acquired through its investments in health research and development, the production of health technologies, and its current health reform effort to expand healthcare to all citizens.

China and African countries will also work with key global health stakeholders to support China-Africa health cooperation, including multilateral

organisations, international NGOs and civil society organisations. Representatives from the World Health Organisation (WHO), UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF, African Union, World Bank, GAVI Alliance and Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria were observers of the Forum. These international partners have been critical to the health progress already made in both China and African countries, and their expertise and experiences can support deepened and more effective China-Africa health cooperation.

“The decades of collaboration between China and Africa has long been characterised by friendship and goodwill,” said Dr. Mar-

garet Chan, Director-General, WHO. “China is a significant force in Africa’s development, with substantially increased commitments and engagements.

This is a south-to-south model of development cooperation based on mutual interests and respect,” she added.

The forum built on important discussions in Botswana at the fourth International China-Africa Health Cooperation Roundtable, which held for the first time in Africa last May under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), and hosted by the National Health and Family Planning Commission of China, formerly the Ministry of Health.

Together, these meetings have laid the groundwork for continued Southsouth collaboration between China and African countries on pressing health challenges.

UN, others want PHCs developed

T

HE United Nations (UN) and the World Family Physicians (WONCA) have urged African governments to develop the Primary HealthCare system (PHC).

They said less than five per cent of their countries’ budgets go to health care.

Experts say in Nigeria, this means the government has failed to produce the results envisioned by PHC’s founder, the late Prof Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, the former health minister.

The main goal of a PHC is to serve as the closest health facility at the grassroots. But this has not been fully realised.

According to WONCA, the establishment of the National PHC Development Agency (NPHCDA) has not transformed the PHC system, noting that most of the centres are either lacking in manpower or drugs.

NPHCDA, which formulates policies and perform oversight functions on PHCs implementation, has failed. This made health care delivery at that level challenging.

President, Association of General Medical Practitio-

By Wale Adepoju

ners of Nigeria (AGMPN), Dr Anthony Omolola, said doctors in the community could be encouraged to do more if they get funds from the government.

The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) said allowance should be paid to motivate doctors to work in remote villages.

It also said health care funding should be increased based on the agreement by African’s Head of States and Government in Abuja.

The body said the allocation to health care was small, stressing that health is wealth.

Chairman, Amuwo Odofin, Local Government Area Mr Ayodele Adewale, said the high maternal and infant mortality and morbidity rate was because of a poor PHC system.

He said it was for this that his council prioritises PHC, stressing that this was no serious government would take the health of its people for granted.

He said there was only one medical doctor at the council, adding that four others have engaged, in-

cluding five National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) doctors and other medical workers.

He pleaded with leaders, especially at the grassroots, to allocate more funds to to the PHC. ”A strong PHC system is central to improving the health of all and reduces health inequalities among various groups,” he added.

The council, he said, refurbished FESTAC PHC and that the Mile Two to carry out 24- hour service as flagship centres.

He said the council had supported the National Immunisation Plus Day (NIPD), procured and distributed freely essential drugs and other basic medical needs to residents of the area in the upland and riverine areas.

“We purchased medical equipment such as oxygen concentrator, ultra sound scan machine, sterilising units, among others to aid adequate health care,” he said.

The local government, he added free screening for hypertension, diabetes and distributes hundreds free eye glasses

‘Skin lighteners dangerous to health’

B

LEACHING agents are are not friendly to the skin, dermatologists have said.

Over 80 dermatologits from the United States, France, and 22 from Africa were at the the Fourth African Ethnic Skin and Hair Workshop in Nairobi, Kenya to deliberate on how to save Africans from skin bleaching.

Issues affecting community dermatology, such as the burden of skin diseases, skin cancer in skin of colour, oculocutaneous albinism in Africa, use of sunscreens, needs and expectations of skin of color in African women, impact of soap pH on skin conditions, role of traditional plants, and probable genetic factors in central cen-

By Oyeyemi GbengaMustapha

trifugal cicatricial alopecia were discussed.

The experts said ministries of health in Africa should embark on advocacy programmes to educate their citizens on the dangers of using bleaching cosmetics.

They said the major areas of consideration for addressing the epidemic on skin bleaching, a major challenge to dermatologists in Africa is that it deserved urgent political action because of the devastating consequences of skin cancer, ochronosis, fungal infections, acne, and striae. Even though the conditions are preventable, they pose a heavy, serious

burden on dermatological services throughout Africa.

In a statement by a Senior Lecturer and Consultant Physician Dermatologist, Lagos State University College of Medicine/Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, Dr Frances O. Ajose, the experts said they want African governments to take steps to restrict access to bleaching products that contain hydroquinone, mercury, phenol, resorcinol, and all forms of corticosteroids. That governments should implement strict measures to remove all known skin-bleaching cosmetics from over- thecounter shelves; educate the youth about the dangers of skin lighteners.

45

TUESIDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has jettisoned e-voting for the 2015 general elections. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines its implications for the nation’s electoral process.

Is Nigeria not ripe for electronic voting?

W

HEN the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, disclosed that e-voting would not be feasible in 2015, many Nigerians expressed surprise. In March, last year, he had raised their hope about the proposed voting system. They felt that the electronic method would bring relief in the next general elections.

Since 1964, elections have been problematic.

Ballot boxes have often developed wings and losers declared winners by the electoral commission. When those boxes resurface at the counting centres, they are stuffed with multiple thumb-printed ballot papers.

Nigeria’s quest for electronic voting started in the Second Republic when the Chairman of the defunct Federal Electoral Commission (FEDECO), the late Justice Victor Ovie-Whiskey, mooted the idea for the 1983 elections.

The move was opposed by the leader of the defuct Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who threatened to mobilise his supporters to smash the machines.

In 2006, when former INEC Chairman Prof.

Maurice Iwu proposed the method for the 2007 elections, it was greeted with criticism. The pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, rejected the method, saying that the country was not ripe for it. The organisation cited low literacy level and lack of time to ascertain its worth and workability. Besides, it alleged that Iwu had a hidden agenda. Afenifere described e-voting under him as another electronic rigging mechanism.

Constitutional hurdle on e-voting Jega had cited constitutional hurdle against e-voting in 2015. He said that the National Assembly is yet to amend the aspect of the electoral law that prohibits electronic voting system. But why did the National Assembly fail to review Section 52 (2) of the Electoral Law, as demanded by INEC? Senator Aloy Etuk from Akwa Ibom State said the National Assembly is not afraid of electronic voting. “INEC has to convince the National Assembly of its readiness to go electronic. You can’t just wake up one a day and say you want to introduce e-voting. For instance, INEC must have acquired machines it wants to use up to date and put in place all necessary infrastructure that would make it work”, he said.

A political scientist, Professor Abubakar Momoh, is not disturbed by the National Assembly’s failure to amend the law. He said the permanent voter’s register, which the INEC is working on, would be embedded in the electronic chips on cards to curb electoral malpractices.

Momoh explained that each card would carry the information about the voter, his or her biometric data, finger prints and photograph.

The system, he added, would have authentic verification of voters at the polling unit. “There will be card readers that will automatically verify whether you are the genuine owner of the card or not”, he said.

The political scientist pointed out that the upgraded the voter register would prevent multiple voting or impersonation. Since the buying of voter’s card is not possible, multiple voting will be easily detected, Momoh said.

“What the INEC has put in place is enough to apprehend those who want to breach electoral rules at the polling centres. The sophistication of the new system is unknown to politicians who may want to cheat to win election. Whoever that makes any attempt to cheat at the polling centres would be caught, prosecuted and jailed, if found guilty by the court.”

Etuk, who agreed with Momoh, said that the National Assembly will support any system that will guarantee fairness, transparency and ensure that every vote counts.

“All we need is the assurance of its effectiveness. One has taken cognisance of what happened in the United States, where the adoption of e-voting generated controversy at a

• Voters on the queue to cast their votes in 2011 elections

time in California. Consequently, it was put on hold for a season. The government had harsh words for the voting machine makers.

“If America is scared and cautious, it is advisable that we should do our homework very well, so that we don’t end up importing abandoned and outdated technology and flood the polling boots with them. We must understand the working processes of the machines”, Etuk advised.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Interim Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Muhammed, said the manual voting is oldfashioned. He said the method would significantly reduce the huge cost of elections, improve stability and end the atmosphere of war associated with elections.

Another advantage identified by the APC chieftain is that the involvement of security agencies in elections would be de-emphasised.

He called on the National Assembly to amend Section 52 (2) of the Electoral Act, which outlaws e-voting.

Prospects of electronic voting A software engineer, Adenrele Adebowale, said that electronic voting, if properly administered, is likely to improve the credibility of the elections, de-emphasise the militarisation of polls and increase transparency. He said that, since e-voting gives little or no room for manipulation during the voting, its adoption would reform and clean up the process.

Adebowale said the voting system saves cost, increases participation by citizens and eliminates human error in vote-count, adding that recounting is eliminated.

However, the challenge is the infrastructure.

The country lacks the machines and software required for the functioning of the e-voting. A social critic, Bernard Briggs, said that this challenge should be resolved.

“We do not have sufficient IT infrastructure as everything is being run by paper and file sys-

tem. In Nigeria, we are not particularly known for our skills in technology and as a result, the electoral commission employees will have to learn how to operate the machines. With the intractable challenge in electricity supply and the poor Information Technology skills of the majority of our population, the 2015 elections may end up being badly muddled up. “ The electronic data capturing machines frequently ran out of power and those who wanted to register had to make repeated visits to the registration centres before they could get registered. This would not be tenable in an election situation”, he added.

But the President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Alhaji Mustafa Shehu, said it is possible for the INEC use electronic voting in two year’s time. He said that the engineers should take up the challenge.

The NSE boss recalled how the organisation successfully used e-voting for the election of its officers last year. He said the soft word used was developed by local engineers.

Shehu said the system would produce credible result that would confer legitimacy on the government and make the elected leaders to be more accountable to the people.

How it works Electronic voting is any voting process where an electronic means is used for vote casting and result counting. For example, the NIGCOMSAT RFID biometric e-voting system is a contact-less card system, which presents a novel methodology for an off-line and always-available system that is suitable for developing countries.

Its peculiar features include an inherent voter authentication and on-the-spot check of multiple voting without reliance on external communication link or backend database queries as the process are localised ,using the voter card as a local and mobile database.

According to enginers, the system allows for quick and accurate voting electronically. It uses

‘With the e-voting system, results are available promptly on the internet. Observers and voters can also view the ‘real-time’ of the election results from their homes, offices or anywhere in the world, using the web-enabled devices, including the PC, laptops, phones or iPAD, by simply logging into the designated website’

a client or server architecture which allows voters to cast ballots on the client terminal.

Each client interfaces with the server, which keeps track of the entire system. The process involves registration, verification, authentication, voting and tallying’ The intended voter has a registered smartcard with his orher bio-data, fingerprint and photograph printed on it. A database is also accessible to an electoral official, local and internal observer, and the public by visiting the domain site of the electoral body. The smartcard automatically becomes invalid, once a vote is cast and the voter is given a receipt or counterfoil of whom he voted for, time of vote and where the vote was cast.

With the e-voting system, results are available promptly on the internet. Observers and voters can also view the ‘real-time’ of the election results from their homes, offices or anywhere in the world, using the web-enabled devices, including the PC, laptops, phones or iPAD, by simply logging into the designated website.

Another benefit of the e-voting system is the speed in which results can be obtained because results are accurately tabulated instantaneously. It reduces the risk of human and mechanical error and movement restriction. It brings electoral fraud to the barest minimum as it will eliminate multiple registrations and upholds “one man one vote” paradigm.

Countries where it works Electronic voting was introduced in Brazil in 1996. The primary goal of the Brazilian voting machine is extreme simplicity, the model being a public phone booth. The voting system was widely accepted, due to the fact that it sped up the vote-count. For example, in the 1989 presidential elections between Fernado Collor de Mello and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the vote count lasted nine days. But in the 2002 general elections, the count required less than 12 hours. In rural areas, the election results were known minutes after the closing of the ballots.

It was introduced in Belgium in 1991. Two locations were chosen to experiment on different electronic voting systems. One of the systems tested was based on a touch panel similar to those used in the Netherlands. The other system still in use is based on a magnetic card and a voting machine with a light pen.

46

THE NATION TUESIDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

POLITICS Former Plateau State Military Governor Major-General Lawrence Onoja is the Chairman, Strategic Mobilisation Committee of the Arewa Consultative Forum(ACF) and chieftain the Congress for Equality and Change. He told reporters in Lagos that the Middle Belt will not support the agitation for power shift to the North in 2015. EMMANUEL OLADESU reports.

‘Middle Belt ‘ll not support power shift to North’ W

HAT is your reaction to the crises rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)?

I am one of the original founders of the PDP. I started with the activities in the G34. I was sympathetic to their cause that time, even when I was in uniform and later, it became the PDP. So, I can comfortably say I am an original member of the party. What is happening in the PDP today is not new. It has happened to many political parties. But I believe that the party has got very eminent personalities and respected Nigerians that are willing to ensure that the mechanism provided in the party is effective to settle all the crises in the party. I am particularly glad to hear that somebody like our former respected President Olusegun Obasanjo, who was my General Officer Commanding in 1969 in Port-Harcourt, when I was a Second Lieutenant, is now trying to reconcile the governors. That approach is what I have been waiting for, that such an eminent person would come into the PDP crisis for the benefit of ensuring that there is peace in Nigeria and also for the benefit of assisting the President to ensure that we get what we have always wanted, which is good governance in the country. So, the reconciliatory efforts by the former President are really appreciated by me. And I believe that is what other elders like Obasanjo should do. We all should ensure peace and tranquility. A situation where the President can function effectively and give us the required good governance that we deserve is what is important.

Do you think the APC, ahead of 2015, can give PDP a run for its money?

I think that a couple of Nigerians were happy that we are having what is looking like an opposition because, in democracy, you cannot enjoy it without a true opposition. There has to be an opposition for the game to be interesting. What the APC now represents in the eyes of many Nigerians is that, at least, an opposition that may likely be formidable is being formed in Nigeria to compete with the PDP. Whether it would match the might of the PDP as a viable political opposition, that is too early to predict. And I think it probably could in the future, if it does certain things right. The party should present itself as a viable opposition to Nigerians, by saying that it can do better in education, economy. That is what Nigerians want to hear. So, I believe what they should do is let Nigerians know their manifesto; what they would do in Nigeria, in terms of poverty alleviation, what they intend to do with the security situation. Do they intend to do better than what Mr. President has done, the amnesty program, the emergency rule declared to combat the menace of Boko Haram in some parts of the country? Do they have better suggestions? That is what Nigerians want to hear. Even if you are going to criticise the President, let it not be like a personal insult.

One other issue in the PDP is power shift to the North. Don’t you think it is ripe time to return power to that zone?

Every group has a right to ask for power, but I believe power is not given that way. You work for it. I want to let you know categorically here that it is not yet time for power to shift to the North. Mr. President has not done his second term. All the other Presidents were given opportunity to do their second term and Mr. President, by virtue of the fact that he is a minority like me, it would be unfair and injustice to stop him from doing his second term. If he finishes his second term in 2019, then, other areas or blocks can now begin to agitate for power shift. I think it is only fair to allow Mr. President do his second term.

But we understand that the power shift is a Northern agenda and you are from the North There is a misconception. The North of the sixties when Sarduana was alive is no long the same North today. Let me correct that misconception. I am from the Middle Belt, which is a geographical reality today. I am an active member of the Congress for Equality and Change, which is a non-political association. I am also a member of the Middle Belt Forum. So, if you say I am from the North, and you are referring to the old North yes, I am from the North. But now, the Middle Belt is a geographical reality and I am a member of the Biddle Belt. I am not from the core North.

When did the demarcation start?

The demarcation has been there all along. It is just that the leaders that we had before, had the responsibility of making sure that we work together as the same North. But yesterday is not the same as today. People have been educated, exposed. So, if yesterday some group of persons were dictating to us, today, people will not accept the dictation of anybody again. We, in the Middle Belt are strong enough to go on our own in any situation.

You said the President should be allowed to go for second term, but people will ask whether it is a question of second term or performance?

I believe Mr. President is doing well. This is my own opinion.

Anybody has right to express his or her own opinion. I believe Mr. President is doing well. Look at the situation, those who have been there before what is extra ordinary in their performance that Mr. President has not done. The President is rehabilitating the railway system which everybody is yearning for and they are very grateful. If he can complete it in a couple of months.

The power situation has improved. Look at the steps he took to restore security in some parts of the North. Those steps are welcomed by me and they are very adequate now. While the mili-

•Gen. Onoja (rtd)

‘There is a misconception. The North of the sixties when Sarduana was alive is no long the same North today. Let me correct that misconception. I am from the Middle Belt, which is a geographical reality today. I am an active member of the Congress for Equality and Change, which is a non-political association. I am also a member of the Middle Belt Forum. So, if you say I am from the North, and you are referring to the old North yes, I am from the North. But now, the Middle Belt is a geographical reality and I am a member of the Biddle Belt. I am not from the core North’ tary are doing what they are trained for, there is a committee on amnesty trying to appeal to those who are belligerent in the North. With time I am sure these things will yield peace and peace is already coming back to the North. We will still have pockets of these militants who will be resisting but after some time with the appeals being made by many Nigerians, and the amnesty committee working, day and night to ensure they attract them. The governor of Borno is already rehabilitating the children of the militants. The military there in Borno are even trying to embark on winning of hearts and minds of the people through pamphlets, through propaganda. So with time what Mr. President has put in place will yield results.

The agitators for power shift to the North are insisting that there is an agreement that the President would do one term and that the President also confirmed it in Ethiopia.

I am not privy to any agreement. I do not know, if any agreement was signed. And I don’t think Mr. President signed any agreement with anybody. This is politics. Why there is unpredictability in political events always is because you have the mind as an individual to change your mind, if you do anything depending on the situation. All I am saying is that he should be allowed to do his second term before any group can lay claims to power. I am not privy to any agreement he had with anybody.

What are your thoughts on the five Northern governors who are not yielding to calls by the party to seek reconciliation using party mechanisms?

It is unfortunate, if it is true that the five governors are insisting on having their way. I am not in the Governors Forum, but

from what we read in the papers, the five northern governors went to Alhaji Bamanga Tukur’s house, which is a show of the fact that peace is returning, maybe because of the efforts being made by our leader, Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo, to bring peace among the governors. The visit they made to Rivers State is unfortunate. I would not endorse that kind of visit. We believe that, with time, the mechanisms provided by the PDP will solve these issues. Everybody is supporting Mr. President. So, he must be allowed to do his second term. Those governors with time will come back to the fold. It is like a few people who are getting lost in the bush. They will come back to the town.

Still on the North, will there ever be one North again?

You cannot precisely give an answer to a political situation. It is difficult to say there will be one North again because in the sixties, due to the leadership provided by Sarduana of Sokoto, from what I was told, because I was in primary school then, I woke up one day to see light and water in my home, Otukpo.

Then, we had ministers from our place, but our people say these things were provided by Sarduana. And most of the people working around Sarduana, the Sunday Awoniyi’s and a number of people, were Christians. So, the picture I had as a young man then, was this man is a detribalised leader. This is the kind of leaders we are looking for. Then, the North had the concept of the North. But the times have changed and the, elders we have in the North today are not the same with Sarduana.

So, I have my doubts, if the North will be one North again because of events that have occurred between 1960 and now.

Are you saying that Prof. Ango Abdullahi and northern elders are not speaking for the generality of the people in that zone, in view of perceived anger against President Jonathan in the area?

There could be anger in certain parts of the North. But there is no anger against Jonathan in my own Middle Belt part of the North. We support Jonathan for his second term. Every group has the fundamental right to agitate for power. The groups that are talking, the Northern Elders, Arewa, they are not political parties. They are socio-political cum cultural associations. So they probably cannot install a President. At best they are talking of supporting a candidate from the North. You don’t blame me for saying that my own people support Jonathan. This is because assuming the power comes to the North today would you tell them to concede power to the Idoma people where I come from because I am a minority in the North and Jonathan is a minority form South South. Why don’t you allow him finish his second term then after that any other group can now begin to agitate for power.

The argument of some other groups in the North is that the North Central is not marginaliSed as alleged. They say Gowon ruled for nine years and Babangida ruled for eight years and they are from Middle Belt, whereas Yar’ Adua did two years and Shagari did four years plus three months. As such, they believe that the core North still has deficit in the power ratio.

What about the people that were politically elected from the Northeast in the sixties?Add their own. You mentioned Gowon and Babangida, those were military Presidents. I am talking of democratically elected situation. That is what I am talking about.

Gowon was there to serve the country, there was war. I fought the war as a young officer. The Idea was that we wanted the country to be united. So, if he stayed for nine years, it was because of the exigency of the situation that made him to stay there. And in Babangida’s case, it was a military time. I am talking about democratically elected President. Jonathan, having served four years, should be allowed to serve another four years. It is a very simple thing. In 2019, any group in the North can now try towards capturing power. Like you said, if it would come to the Middle Belt, by that time it would be decided by Nigerians and the political parties that are working for the good of this country. It cannot be decided by me and you. But everybody has a right to agitate, even the Northern elders, but we from the Middle Belt support Jonathan and we are saying he must do his second term. I am from the minority. With strict elections in this country, Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo, they keep winning because of numbers. God has brought us somebody from the minority who is now our President.

After four years, you are asking him to go and that power should return to another place. I am saying I don’t support it as an individual. I support him doing a second term. And then, after that the power can now go to any where. Then, if we in the Middle Belt want power, we fight for it, campaign for it by telling Nigerians why power must come to us. And, if the core Northern elders want it, they have to convince Nigerians with all the available statistics as to why they want it.

‘Igbo Presidency feasible in 2015’

A

GROUP, ‘Lagos Njiko Igbo’ has urged the Igbo to keep faith with 2015, stressing that an Igbo Presidency is feasible.

The group’s co-ordinator, Hon. Chibuike Jonas, has the race has many indigenes who can provide better leadership to the country.

He was reacting to the statement credited to Prof. Ango Abdullahi that the North must produce the President in 2015.

Jonas observed that the injustice and marginalisation

suffered by the Igbo has reached its climax, maintaining that Igbo Presidency is the answer.

He called the other five geopolitical zones to support a candidate from the Southeast for the highest position.

Jonas said: “After all, Nigeria has six geopolitical zones, with each having occupied the number one position except for the South East.

“Ndigbo has continued to be at the receiving end in the polity, despite the sacrifice and contributions of the Igbos to the nation.”

Jonas said that there are competent men and women of integrity, who can turn around the fortune of the nation in Igboland.

He berated some selfish Southeast politicians who are urging President Goodluck Jonathan to run in 2015, describing their action as antiIgbo.

He said: “This people are speaking for themselves and not Igbos.

“They are only interested in mortgaging the future of their people for their selfish interests and unwarranted ambi-

tions.”

Jonas called on the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) to remember that the North cannot continue to pose as the only geo-political zone that can do and undo in the country.

He advised the North and other zones to conceed the slot to the Southeast in the interest of unity, fairness and justice.

Jonas also urged Ndigbo, both at home and abroad, to support Njiko Igbo, a non-partisan movement, for the collective goal of the Southeast.

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

47

ENERGY PENGASSAN blames kerosene scarcity on refineries

Govt urged to deepen gas T market as US builds reserves

HE Petroleum and Natural Gas Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has blamed the scarcity of kerosene on the poor state of refineries.

Its General Secretary, Bayo Olomoshule, said the refineries inability to function optimally was responsible for the products.

He told The Nation that the conflict between the government and importers over subsidy, and alleged substitution of kerosene for aviation fuel, were also responsible for the scarcity, arguing that if you have a product that serves multiple uses, it could experience such fluctuation.

Until these areas are addressed kerosene shortage may not be over, he said, adding that there is need to ensure and encourage more use of cooking gas as a substitute for kerosene.

He said the association has reached out to the government including the ministry of petroleum resources, the petroleum product pricing regulatory agency (PPPRA), the NNPC who according to him are also looking for collaborators/partnership to ensure that the product is made available to Nigerians.

Meanwhile, the secretary has reemphasized the need for speedy passage of the petroleum industry bill which he said would encourage more people to participate in the gas business adding until that is done we may not really be able to overcome the challenges of gas utilization in the country.

On oil theft and bunkering, the general secretary said the union would ensure collective action with government, the oil majors and security agencies to make sure the country overcomes the challenges of the menace of oil theft.

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IGERIA’S gas market appears threatened as it faces potential competition from the United States(US).

US’s decision to open up its gas resources for exploration will increase its reserves from 229 trillion cubit feet to 312 trillion cubic feet by 2035, and the new resource is likely to compete with Nigeria’s liquefied natural gas in the international market.

To overcome this potential threat, operators have called on the Federal Government to review its strategies to withstand the competition in the gas market and further generate more revenue for the country.

The President, International Association of Energy Economics (IAEC), Prof Adeola Akinisiju, said Nigeria must rethink its strategies to be ahead of the competition in the global gas’ market, adding that the country must try and give discounts to get new buyers, and retain the old ones for sustained growth.

He listed two types of exports namely; the Nigerian Liquifield and Natural Gas (NLNG) based exports and non-NLNG based exports.

The former, he said, had to do with long-term contracts that NLNG has with Italy, Spain, France, and other countries in Europe, while the latter relates to shorttern exports to countries in Asia Pacific.

“The gas we export are based on NLNG long-term agreements with some countries. As for non-NLNG based exports, they are excess production that Nigeria has. This has some implications because it requires that we compete with countries that are in the Middle-East before we can sell our gas well. To achieve this goal, we may have to offer disocunts to buyers,” he said.

He said Nigeria has some expectations about trajectory of prices, arguing that the country may not achieve it unless it looks for other markets. He said the price of gas in the US will have a long-term effects on the international prices of gas, advising Nigeria to prepare for the shocks that may arise from the development.

Akinsiju said: “Because of the huge discovery in US, more volumes of gas would be release into

I

‘Deregulation’ll ensure safety in downstream’

•Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Allison Madueke Stories by Akinola Ajibade

•MD, NLNG, Babs Omotowa

the market. When the supply is high, the price would come down.

That shows that market forces will come into play. There would likely be a fall in the long-term price of gas. When this happens, it would affect many exporters of natural gas.”

The General Manager, External Affairs, NLNG, Dr Kudo ErestaEke, said the US’s growing gas reserves may have long-term effect on Nigeria, unless urgent steps were taken to address the problem.

He said the US, which has been an importer of gas, is about reversing that status as a result of new discovery of Shale oil and gas, explaining that the discovery which was brought about by advancement in technology, has made the US an exporter of gas.

He said once the US resolves the legal issues surrounding the exploration of its gas, Nigeria would have more volumes to compete with in the international market.

“When there is plenty of supply, the price will be affected. The more the supply of gas, the less the price.

When the price of gas is lower, the economies of countries with projected greenfield projects will suffer. Any greenfield project that has not established itself would have problems. Such projects would be

difficult to sustain. The projects that are likely to be sustained are projects that are not only on ground, but are recording profits, Eresia-Eke, said, adding that once the price of gas becomes lower, new entrants would find it difficult to enter the market.

The President of the Nigerian Liquifield Petroleum Gas Association (NLPGA), Dayo Adesina, said the country must adopt measures to absorb shocks in the international gas market.

He said market volatilities are not new, arguing that the Nigeria needs to prepare for them in view of the increase in the number of gas exporters.

Adeshina urged the government to step up efforts to create new markets as competition hots up globally, stressing that gas exporting countries, including Nigeria must be wary of competition from their counterparts with bigger reserves if they want to survive.

He said over $400million investments were recorded by operators in the Liquifield Petroleum Gas (LPG) segment in the past five years, adding that the investments cover areas such as construction of terminals,depots and bottling plants, among others.

sector is long-term, adding that the near incompletion of many power plants could be attributed to the problems in the industry.

He also said the government’s efforts to provide stable electricity could only be achieved when the supply and distribution chains are well- taken care of.

He added the firm has rendered services to local and international institutions in recent times.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has pledged to support investments in Nigeria that will add 1,500 megawatts to the national grid between now and 2016.

The firm said such investment would go a long way in providing electricity for no fewer than 8.0million people in Nigeria.

Speaking with reporters in Lagos, the IFC’s Vice President for Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Jean Phillipe Prosper, said the corporation had signed a mandate to provide financing for one or more power generation companies.

He said the corporation aims to provide similar support for two or more generation companies, adding that it would also support close to three power distribution companies in Nigeria.

He said the project is built into IFC’s

Energy Business Plan, while it is also considering participation in the country’s gas-to-power project.

According to him, under the Energy Business Plan, each World Bank institution will leverage its competencies and products to provide solutions to projects that encourage their viability and contribute to the sustainability of the sector.

Prosper further said the World Bank Group has put together an Energy Business Plan that will allow IFC,the World Bank and MIGA to help address key project structuring issues and boost power supply in the country.

He said IFC and other institutions of the World Bank Group are committed to supporting Nigeria with targeted interventions in the power sector that will facilitate demonstration projects and boost investor confidence to contribute to better living standards.

Prosper said the corporation’s expenditure in Nigeria between July 1, 2012 and June 30, this year grew to $1.5 billion.

He said the IFC plans to issue $1billion bond in the capital market before the end of the year, adding that the bond represents an evidence of great confidence IFC has in the nation’s economy.

Power: ‘Nigeria needs sight years to meet 10,000mw target’

T will take Nigeria at least eight years to move from its current 4000 to 10000 megawath (MWs) of electricity, the General Manager, Shoreline Group, Mr Gabriel Okoebor, has said.

The country will also need the same member of years to become selfsufficient in power distribution and generation.

Speaking during the re-launch of the Shoreline Panel firm as Shoreline Panel Services in Lagos, Okoebor said it was not possible for the country to provide thousands of mega watts within a short-term period, in view of the cost and technicalities involved.

Shoreline Panel Services is one of the entities within the group acquired from ADD Energy in 2005.

He said: “Many thousands of megawatts are required in Nigeria and it could take eight years to be available. Focus and emphasis should be placed on industries as well. The banking sector is taking a positive step in the right direction as the Central Bank governor has issued a directive that all banks located in a specified areas should pull their resources together and use a single power plant instead of using big generators.”

He added: “It takes a minimum of seven years to complete a power plant, while two years is needed to import install turbines.”

He said investment in the energy

O

PERATIONS in the downstream petroleum sector will be safer if it is deregulated, the Managing Director, NIPCO Plc Mr Venkataraman Venkatapathy, has said.

Speaking during a two-day training with the theme: ‘Safety and security challenges in the downstream sector,’ Venkatapathy said it has become necessary to train the workers in line with the oil and gas industry local content development Act, 2010, which harps on effective harnessing of indigenous capacity.

Represented by the firm’s Assistant General Manager, Human Resources/ Administration, Mr Magaji Mohammed, Venkataramad said the development became necessary to enable the staff to operate effectively in a truly competitive business environment, adding that Nipco will continue to develop its workforce in line with the Nigeria Content Development Management Board (NCDMB) guidelines.

He said the programme is designed to create awareness for participants on contemporary issues in safety and security management in downstream operations.

According to him, the company has put in place a robust performance framework to ensure that the staff are supported to deliver higher levels of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) “The loss in the downstream sector could take different forms with an all encompassing effect on every facet of operations anytime it happens, thus making it imperative for an enduring loss control strategies. We are convinced that our investment in training and human capital development will translate into greater productivity higher performance and impact positively on the overall operations of the company,” he added.

Conoil checks lubricant adulteration

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ONOIL Plc has re-packaged its premium lubricant brand, Quatro Ultra to protect it from unwholesome adulteration and safeguard the interest of unsuspecting car owners.

The company, in a statement, said the initiative was borne out of the need to safeguard its N1.5billion investments in lubricant production.

It said the development is in line with the Standards Organisation of Nigeria(SON) directive to reduce the number of adulterated products in the country.

It said its engine oil are certified by SON to have been produced under global-best practices.

According to the firm, the Quatro Ultra lubricant comes in a transparent tamper proof, weather-proof cellophane sheen, which reinforces other security features currently on its pack.

It added: “Quatro Ultra is Conoil’s most advanced multi-grade gasoline engine lubricant, specially formulated to give automobiles allyear-round engine protection and performance plus superior fuel economy. Its features include adequate viscosity and low friction-reduction in fuel consumption with very high oxidation stability and longer operational oil life.”

The company said it was taking the lead to check the alarming rate at which processed engine oils are being adulterated and reduce the untoward hardship vehicle owners are currently going through.

It added that the initiative was aimed at safeguarding its over N1.5 billion investment in lubricant production.

It would be recalled that SON, along with the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), had begun last year, campaigns against the procurement, distribution and retailing of adulterated or improperly packaged lubricants, which cost the nation N200 billion in revenue with the attendant hazards like health implications and environmental pollution.

Alison-Madueke, Nebo, others for PIB confab Thursday

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HE Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, lawmakers, top officials and regulators in the oil and gas industry will converge on Lagos on Thursday to chart course for the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) and other issues.

The event, which is the yearly August conference of the National Association of Energy Correspondents (NAEC), has as theme: “PIB: Harmonisation and implementation for economy growth,” will hold on Thursday, August 22 at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos by 9am.

In a in a statement, the Secretary of the association, Yunus Yusuf, said Alison-Madueke will be the special guest of honour while the Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) will deliver the keynote address.

The Minster of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo will speak on “Driving capacity growth in liberalised power sector,” while the PIB Team lead, Ministry of Petroleum, Abiye Membere, will deliver the lead paper.

The Director, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), George Osahon, will speak on “Expectations and challenges of effective regulation in deregulated regime,” and the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Ernest Nwapa, will talk on “Three years of NCDMB: Achievements and challenges.”

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FOREIGN NEWS

Oscar Pistorius charged, weeps in court

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OUTH African Olympic and Paralympic star Oscar Pistorius, who is accused of murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, prayed and wiped away tears at a court hearing on Monday which set a March 3, 2014 start date for his trial.

The trial was moved to a high court and is scheduled to run until March 23. If convicted of murder, he could face up to life in prison.

Double-amputee Pistorius, 26, known as “Blade Runner” for the prostheses he wears in competition, bowed his head and held his hands in prayer with his brother Carl and sister Aimee before the brief hearing in a Pretoria court.

Detailed charges were presented in an indictment outlining the prosecution’s case of premeditated murder against Pistorius, who has admitted to shooting Steenkamp through a bathroom door at his Pretoria home on February 14, Valentine’s Day. Pistorius, who was released on bail in February, claims he was acting in self-defense against what he thought was an intruder.

In the South African legal system, an indictment is used to move existing charges from a lower court to a high court.

Pistorius was also handed a lesser charge of violating provisions of the firearms control act for having 38 rounds of unlicensed ammunition at his home.

In South Africa, his triumph over adversity made him a hero for both blacks and whites, transcending the racial divides that persist 19 years after the end of apartheid.

His arrest and upcoming trial has riveted the nation and made headlines around the world.

•Pistorius

Endorsement deals for the likes of sports giant Nike have been either suspended or canceled.

Steenkamp, a fashion model and aspiring TV star, was shot in the head, arm and hip and died at the residence.

“Some of the state witnesses heard a woman scream, followed by moments of silence, then heard gunshots and then more screaming,” the prosecution’s charges summary reads.

“The deceased had locked herself into the toilet cubicle, situated adjacent to the main bedroom. The accused armed himself with his 9mm pistol and through the locked door, fired four shots at the deceased,” it said.

Yesterday’s court hearing was held on the day that Steenkamp would have turned 30.

Prosecutors had portrayed Pistorius as a cold-blooded killer and said they were confident that their case, which will have to rely heavily on forensics and witnesses who said they heard shouting before the shots, would stand up to scrutiny.

The state plans to call more than 100 witnesses who include local sports stars and fashion models who knew the couple, as well as forensics investigators.

In an affidavit previously presented at court, Pistorius said he was “deeply in love” with Steenkamp and had no reason to kill her.

Egypt: UN group calls for independent HE Special Advisers on investigation the Prevention of Geno-

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cide, Mr Adama Dieng and on the Responsibility to Protect, Ms Jennifer Welsh, have expressed serious concern on the wave of violence in Egypt.

They are especially concerned about last Thursday morning’s violence allegedly involving the use of excessive force by Egyptian security forces against demonstrators in the city of Cairo.

While the final number of casualties and injured is yetl to be confirmed, the Special Advisers regret the large loss of life and express their concern at the continuous escalation of violence in the country.

In particular, they noted with alarm that a number of churches and institutions have been targeted, including in the provinces of Assiut, Fayoum, Minya and Sohag, reportedly in retaliation to the incidents in Cairo. “We urge all Egyptians to act responsibly during these difficult moments and refrain from using violence to express their grievances, in particular by targeting religious minorities and institutions, or by using language and inciting behaviours that may escalate tensions.”

The Special Advisers noted that Christian communities have been subjected to violence in the past, most recently on July

•UNDPA bulletin is out

By Evelyn Osagie

5 in Luxor, and alert of the risk of increased violence against these communities if no measures are taken to ensure their protection. “We call all political and social actors to abandon strategies of confrontation, engage constructively to ensure respect for diversity, and take all possible steps to facilitate peaceful resolution of disputes in the country.”

The Special Advisers also called on the Egyptian authorities to conduct prompt, independent and effective investigation into the circumstances of the tragic events in Cairo and the attacks on religious minorities and institutions, and reiterate that all those responsible for perpetrating violence must be held to account.

“Egypt is at a critical juncture. In order to prevent any further escalation of violence, it is paramount to ensure the respect for human rights and equal protection of all persons, regardless of their political and religious affiliation.”

Meanwhile, the new issue of the bi-annual bulletin Politically Speaking of the United Nations’ Department of Political Affairs’ (DPA) is out and is now availa-

ble on the DPA’s website. In this issue, it is profiling the work of UN political missions and “good offices” initiatives.

In the Summer/Fall 2013 issue, Under-Secretary-General Jeffrey Feltman surveys UN diplomacy in “tough places”, in a published version of a recent think tank address. The issue also features articles on the new UN-backed push for peace in the Great Lakes, contains an interview with Joint Special Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi, and includes country features on the new political mission in Somalia, Yemen’s negotiated transition, Iraq-Kuwait relations, the UN strategy for the Sahel, as well as on the Central African Republic, Burundi and Guinea-Bissau.

This edition also updates readers on: new DPA training initiatives on gender and mediation; a recent high-level conference on counter-terrorism; cooperation with regional organisations such as ASEAN and OSCE; DPA donor relations developments, its emerging focus on constitution-making and the latest activities related to Decolonisation and Palestinian Rights.

EU privacy watchdogs seek details on US spying

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UROPE’s privacy watchdogs are demanding details on the extent of U.S. surveillance efforts in the wake of National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden’s revelations about the PRISM spying program.

The National Security Agency’s PRISM operation compels major Internet firms to hand over detailed contents of communications such as emails, video chats and more.

The G29, an umbrella organization that includes data protection agencies across Europe, said yesterday it wrote EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding last week to demand “specifics regarding the exact nature of the data collected” by PRISM, and details on how U.S. authorities access Europeans’ data and the recourse EU citizens have.

Germany’s independent privacy watchdogs say the sur-

veillance programs breach an EU-U.S. pact meant to ensure cross-border data protection.

In its statement, the G29 says it wants the information on PRISM from Reding so that it can “evaluate in an independent manner the potential violations of European law and data protections, as well as the consequences of PRISM for the protection of European citizens’ private lives and data.”

THE NATION TUEDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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FOREIGN NEWS ‘Snowden reporter won’t be silenced by detention’

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HE American journalist who has written stories based on leaked documents from former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden said Monday he would not be silenced by what he described as police harassment of his partner, who was detained for nine hours as he passed through Heathrow Airport.

London police detained David Miranda, the partner of reporter Glenn Greenwald, under anti-terror legislation at the London airport on Sunday.

Miranda arrived Monday in Rio de Janeiro, where he lives with Greenwald.

A defiant Greenwald promised that he was going “to write much more aggressively than before” about government snooping.

“I’m going to publish many more things about England, as well,” he said. “I have many documents about the system of espionage of England, and now my focus will be there, too. I think they’ll regret what they’ve done.”

Miranda told reporters in Rio that he was not threatened while he was detained at Heathrow, but confirmed that personal objects were taken from him.

“I stayed in a room, there were six different agents, entering and leaving, who spoke with me,” he said after being greeted by Greenwald with a hug. “They asked questions about my whole life, about everything. They took my computer, video game, cellphone, memory thumb drives, everything.”

In London, a British lawmaker called for police to explain why Miranda had been detained — and why it took nearly nine hours to question him. Miranda was held for nearly the maximum time that British authorities are allowed to detain individuals under the Terrorism Act’s Schedule 7, which authorizes security agencies to stop and question people at borders.

“What needs to happen pretty rapidly is we need to establish the full facts,” Keith Vaz, chairman of Parliament’s Home Affairs Select Committee, told the BBC. “Now you have a complaint from Mr. Greenwald and the Brazilian government — they indeed have said they are concerned at the use of terrorism legislation for something that does not appear to relate to terrorism. So it needs to be clarified, and clarified quickly.”

Greenwald has written about NSA surveillance programs based on files disclosed

by Snowden, who now has temporary asylum in Russia.

The Obama administration wants Snowden sent back to the United States to be tried for the leaks.

Miranda, 28, was stopped while traveling home to Brazil after visiting Germany, where he met with Laura Poitras, a U.S. filmmaker who has worked with Greenwald on the NSA story.

British police acknowledged that they had detained a 28year-old man at 8:05 a.m. He was released at 5 p.m. without being arrested, the Metropolitan Police Service said.

They have not commented further.

The Guardian newspaper reported it paid for Miranda’s flights but said that he was not an employee of the newspaper.

Ex-leader Mubarak may be released ORMER Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who is on retrial for the killings of hundreds of protesters during the 2011 uprising that led to his ouster, could be released from custody later this week, judicial officials said Monday.

The officials said there were no longer any grounds to hold the 85-year-old former autocrat because of the expiration of a two-year legal limit for holding an individual in custody pending a final verdict.

Mubarak has been in detention since April 2011. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison in June last year for his failure to stop the killing of some 900 protesters in the 18-day uprising against his rule. His sentence was overturned on appeal and he is now being retried, along with his security chief and six top police commanders.

Yesterday’s stunning announcement came as security forces said suspected Islamic militants ambushed two minibuses carrying off-duty police-

F

•25 police men killed in Egypt men in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, forcing the men out onto the pavement and shooting 25 of them dead.

The brazen daylight attack deepened the turmoil roiling the country and underscored the volatility of the strategic region.

The fresh killings, which took place near the border town of Rafah in northern Sinai, came a day after security forces killed 36 detainees during a riot on a prisonbound truck convoy north of Cairo. In all, nearly 1,000 people have been killed in violence between security forces and supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi since last Wednesday. The government has ordered an investigation into their deaths.

A few hours after the attack near Rafah, suspected militants shot to death a police major as he stood guard outside a bank in the city of

el-Arish, also in northern Sinai, security officials said.

The killings on the prison convoy Sunday came as police fired tear gas to free a prison guard from rioting detainees. The detainees, who were rounded up during clashes over the past couple of days in Cairo, had managed to capture a police officer inside the truck, security officials said. The truck was part of a prison truck convoy of some 600 prisoners heading to Abu Zaabal prison in northern Egypt.

However, the officials’ version of events contradicted reports about the incident carried by state media. The official website of state television reported that the deaths took place after security forces clashed with militants near the prison and detainees came under fire while trying to escape. The official MENA state news agency also said the trucks came under attack from gunmen.

The government has ordered an inquiry into the deaths, which it blamed on armed men allegedly trying to help the 600 Brotherhood detainees escape. It gave no details.

The Brotherhood said in a statement that it blamed the military chief, el-Sissi, and Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim who is in charge of the police, for Sunday’s killings. The group also called for an international inquiry into the deaths. Amnesty International demanded a “full, impartial and effective” probe into the events, the Londonbased group said in a statement.

The judiciary officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media, said a court yesterday ordered Mubarak’s release in a corruption case that alleged he and his two sons embezzled funds for presidential palaces.

His sons will remain in custody because they face other cases against them.

The order, along with the

•Mubarak

fact that Mubarak had previously been ordered released in two other cases against him — the killing of the protesters and a case related to illegal earnings — opened the possibility of freedom for the former president.

Mubarak is also facing trial for alleged acceptance of presents from state newspapers but has already repaid their value. His defense team has submitted a petition for his release in connection with the presents and a ruling is expected later this week.

Captives freed as German police arrest kidnapper

A

•The train... yesterday

PHOTO: AP

India express train kills 37

A

T least 37 people have died after being hit by an express train while crossing the tracks at a remote train station in the Indian state of Bihar, local officials say.

The passengers, mostly Hindu pilgrims, had just alighted from a local train at Dhamara Ghat station and were on their way to a temple in Saharsa district.

An angry crowd is said to have beaten the driver and set two coaches on fire.

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Rescue operations are under way and police reinforcements have been sent.

Senior state police officer SK Bhardwaj said it was difficult to say how many people had died as many bodies had been dismembered.

The incident took place at 08:40 India time [03:10GMT]. The pilgrims were hit by the Rajya Rani Express travelling on the opposite track.

Railway officials said the express train was travelling at high speed as it was not expected to stop at Dhamara Ghat station.

But after the accident, it stopped a few hundred metres away. An angry mob then pulled out the driver and severely assaulted him.

More police have been sent to the area but the region is extremely remote and inaccessible by road.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish

Kumar has expressed grief over the incident and ordered district officials to the scene.

India’s state-owned railway network is vast - it operates 9,000 passenger trains and carries some 18 million passengers every day.

A government-appointed safety panel in its report last year said about 15,000 people were killed each year crossing train tracks in what officials describe as “unlawful trespassing”.

Prince William describes joy at parenthood

IS newborn son is “a little bit of a rascal” and car seats can daunt any dad, Britain’s Prince William says.

The second in line to the British throne has described his joy at introducing his son to the world on the steps of a London hospital last month — and about his nerves over fitting the car seat securely into the Land Rover before driving off.

William told CNN in his first interview since Prince George’s birth on July 22 that both he and the Duchess of Cambridge couldn’t wait to show off their son when they emerged from St. Mary’s Hos-

PUBLIC NOTICE CONFIRMATION OF NAME This is to notify the general public that Ogundairo Sakirat Olaitan is the same and one person as Ogundairo Sakirat.

Now wish to be known and addressed as Ogundairo Sakirat Olaitan. All documents bearing the above names remain valid. Osun State polytechnic, Iree take note.

pital to meet the world’s media a day later.

“I’m just glad he wasn’t screaming his head off the whole way through,” he said in an interview broadcast Monday.

William was quizzed on a range of child-rearing topics — from baby toys to diapers and sleep deprivation — and acknowledged that his expert performance sliding his child’s car seat into the back of the royal fourwheel drive was a welldrilled exercise.

“Believe me, it wasn’t my first time. And I know there’s been speculation about that.

I had to practice, I really did,” he said.

William and his wife’s assured, do-it-yourself performance in front of the hospital helped cement the couple’s image as the modern face of Britain’s monarchy. But William said the decision to take his own baby in hand and drive home in the glare of the international press was a way of establishing his independence.

“I very much feel if I can do it myself, I want to do it myself,” he said. “And there are times where you can’t do it yourself and the system takes over or it’s appropriate to do

things differently. But, I think driving your son and your wife away from hospital was really important to me.”

As for the nearly 1-monthold baby, William referred to him as “a little bit of a rascal” who he said reminded him of his younger brother, Prince Harry.

Striking a slightly exasperated tone familiar to many new fathers, he said he wished Prince George would settle down a little.

“At the moment, the only legacy I want to pass on to him is to sleep more and maybe not have to change his nappy so many times.”

SPECIAL police unit arrested a hostagetaker and freed his captives at the city hall in the Bavarian city of Ingolstadt yesterday evening.

The standoff, which began early in the day, prompted Chancellor Angela Merkel to cancel an election rally there.

The 24-year-old captor was injured during a police raid on the city hall building, and his two remaining captives were freed unharmed, police spokesman Guenther Beck told The Associated Press. It wasn’t immediately clear how the hostage-taker was injured, Beck said.

Earlier in the day, the captor freed two other people he had kidnapped at the building. They also were not hurt, police said.

More than 200 police officers surrounded city hall for nearly nine hours before the special unit raided the building.

The hostage-taker, whose identity was not released, was a known stalker and had been banned from entering Ingolstadt city hall because he had harassed a female employee there, said Bavaria’s interior minister.

•Prince William

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 19-08-13

Investors dump FMCGs, Oil stocks

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AST moving consumer goods and downstream oil companies, which were the highpoints of the previous bullish rallies, turned around to be the major decliners yesterday in what reflected major portfolio rebalancing by anxious investors, who were seeking to lock in previous capital gains.

Losses by fast moving consumer goods stocks and downstream oil stocks signposted a nervous bearish start for the equities market, which lost 2.77 per cent of its market capitalisation last week.

Aggregate market value of all equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) declined by N59 billion to close at N11.654 trillion as against its opening index of N11.713 trillion. The All Share Index (ASI), the common index at the stock market, declined by 0.50 per cent from 36,986.94

By Taofik Salako

points to 36,800.68 points.

Most capitalised stocks in breweries, conglomerates, and downstream oil sectors dominated the top losers’ list with Guinness Nigeria leading the decliners with a loss of N7 to close at N258. Conoil followed with a drop of N3.20 to close at N29.80. UAC of Nigeria (UACN) trailed with a loss of N2.89 to close at N59.

Presco dropped by N1.29 to close at N35 while Forte Oil and Lafarge Cement Wapco Nigeria lost N1 each to close at N39 and N95 respectively.

Other top losers included Berger Paints, which lost 91 kobo to close at N8.70; Oando dropped by 80 kobo to close at N11.40; Union Bank of Nigeria dwindled by 68 kobo to N10.22 while Nigerian Breweries lost 50 kobo to close at N169 per share.

Notwithstanding the substantial losses, several stocks rallied against the downtrend. Okomu Oil Palm led the 22-stock gainers’ list with addition of 75 kobo to close at N44.50. Academy Press added 17 kobo to close at N1.93. Zenith Bank rose by 15 kobo to close at N20.99. Jos International Breweries added 11 kobo to close at N1.27 while Cadbury Nigeria and Trans Nationwide Express chalked up 10 kobo each to close at N51 and N1.15 respectively.

Investors staked a total of N2.49 billion on 173.96 million shares in 4,381 deals. FBN Holdings was the most active stock with a turnover of 19.28 million shares valued at N312.95 million in 491 deals. Continental Reinsurance followed with 17.59 million shares worth N21.01 million in 27 deals. Guaranty Trust Bank trailed with a turnover of 16.49 million shares valued at N412.37 million in 317 deals.

Oando restructures balance sheet

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ANDO Plc reduced its total indebtedness by 18 per cent as the energy company harnessed new capital raisings to reduce financial leverage and interest expenses.

Latest review of the company’s operational fundamentals showed that total debt reduced by N53 billion in the past 12 months from N289 billion to N236 billion,.

Oando had sought to raise N55 billion through a rights issue of 4.5 million ordinary shares at N12 per share between December 2012 and February 2013. Total subscription to the rights issue was however N62 billion, indicating an oversubscription of N8 billion or 14 percent.

The net proceeds from the rights issue were earmarked for part-repayment of a N60 billion syndicated loan used to fund the acquisition of up-

stream assets and swamp drilling rigs, part-financing of acquisition of upstream and midstream assets by Oando’s upstream subsidiary, Oando Energy Resources (OER), and investment in working capital to support the increased level of business.

Group managing director, Oando, Mr. Wale Tinubu, said the success of the rights Issue has positioned Oando to further refined its threepronged strategy to reduce debt, improve diversification in upstream, and focus on higher margins.

He said the company would increase growth margin value for shareholders in the upstream through focused portfolio growth in production, cash margins, and improved returns on capital deployed.

According to him, the ongoing acquisition of ConocoPhillips’

entire Nigerian asset base for $1.79 billion will transform OER from a small size oil company with 4,500 barrels per day of production and 9.0 million barrels of oil equivalent to a midsize oil producer with close to 50,000 barrels per day production.

He noted that once completed, the purchase will substantially increase crude oil market share and strengthen white products market position by leveraging new import infrastructure.

“We remain steadfast in our commitment to developing the higher margin mid-upstream operations, which have performed creditably as opposed to our downstream where we have had to reduce our imports by over 30 per cent as a result of delays in the payment of our Federal Government guaranteed subsidy payments due, thus directly affecting our revenue and net profit. We, however, continue to explore efficiency plays to increase our margins and add value to the sector,” Tinubu said.

Oando had distributed N5.1 billion to shareholders for the 2012 business year.

NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 19-08-13

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

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MONEY LINK

Inflation rate rises to 8.7%

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IGERIA’S inflation rate rose to 8.7 per cent in July, climbing for the first time in three months, reports from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown. The inflation rate rose from 8.4 per cent in June.

Afrinvest West Africa Plc said the rate still remains below the 12.2 per cent benchmark projected by NBS for year 2013. It attributed the rise to a slack fiscal policy and the thinning out of the base effect.

It said the capital market continues to be attractive with 29.4 per cent returns Year to Date (YTD), 20.7 per cent higher than the rate of inflation.

The liquidity tightening policies of the CBN is also gradually eroding the obvious base effect. However, it said the headwinds of “political funds” making its way into the system in coming months is poised to threaten this achievement.

Afrinvest attributed the marginal increase in inflation to rise in prices

•Rise linked to slack in fiscal policy Stories by Collins Nweze

of all the 12 Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose (COICOP). On Month-onMonth basis, prices rose at a decreasing rate for the third consecutive month with a 0.54 per cent increase compared to 0.59 per cent in the preceding month.

“The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is not likely to be swayed by this headwind and is expected to offset these pending challenges with necessary policy instruments. Consequently, we expect inflation in the coming months to remain in single digit and attain a 2013 average annual neighborhood of nine per cent,” it said.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) kept its policy rate at a record high of 12 per cent for the 11th consecutive meeting in July to bolster the

naira and control inflation, which has met the bank’s target of less than 10 per cent all year.

CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi forecast that the annual rate of price growth will stay within target through January because of Nigeria’s monetary stance.

The core inflation rate, which excludes agricultural products, rose 6.6 per cent in July from a year earlier, up from 5.5 per cent in June, the statistics office said. Food inflation, which accounts for about half of the consumer price index, rose to 10 per cent from 9.6 per cent in June.

“While market began to observe a trickle in of newly harvested crops, their quantities have not been substantial enough to impact prices” of food, the NBS said in the statement.

The naira has declined 3.4 per cent against the dollar this year.

Wema Bank seeks $200m fresh capital

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EMA Bank Plc, which recently raised N40 billion ($247.4 million) for expansion across the country, said it is seeking an additional $200 million over the next two years to fund its loan book.

“The sum of $100 million is planned to be raised in the first quarter of next year and the balance by 2015, when we would have improved on our return on equity.

“We’re looking at several options including bond, loan and debenture for funds,” Chief Financial Officer Tunde Mabawonku told Bloomberg.

Wema Bank, which operates mainly in western Nigeria and the capital, Abuja, plans to seek regula-

tory approval for a national banking licence this year allowing it to operate in Nigeria’s six regions, he said.

The lender plans to open an additional 20 branches in Africa’s second biggest economy to increase the number to 149, Mabawonku said.

‘Our loan book is planned to increase by 20 per cent this year and 60 per cent in 2014,’’ he said.

Meanwhile, shareholders of the bank rose from its 2012 Annual General Meeting held at the weekend in Lagos, and gave the board approval to raise additional capital for the bank’s operations.

The lender’s shareholders voted unanimously in support of the bank intentions to raise the additional

capital.

The Chairman of Wema Bank, Mr Adeyinka Asekun said the amount will be used wholly to service the customer base of the bank.

He said the bank’s gross earnings increased by 20 per cent to N30.7 billion in 2012 which was largely driven by income from money market investments.

He said the lender expects a significant portion of its growth in earnings to be driven by improved yields from risk asset creation in the commercial and retail banking space. He promised improvements in all areas of the banks business, which will result in better earnings and viable returns on investment to all stakeholders.

FGN BONDS

•Onasanya

FirstBank CEO advocates youth empowerment

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ROUP Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Bisi Onasanya has reiterated the lender’s commitment to promoting youth empowerment and building capacity for Nigeria Leadership Initiative (NLI) Fellows and emerging leaders.

Speaking yesterday at the NLI

NDIC calls for gender parity in workplace

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HE Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has called ffor improved roles for women in the workplace.

NDIC Chief Executive Officer, Umaru Ibrahim disclosed this at the corporation’s first management parley with its female staff with the theme: “It is Possible”. The meeting was held at the National Centre for Women Development, Abuja.

Ibrahim said that contemporary organisations and governments across the world are beginning to situate the importance of women in the achievement of their set objectives. He said that the era of seeing women as homemakers was fast giving way globally

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 Offered ($) 350m 350m

MANAGED FUNDS

NIDF NESF

Current Market 5495.33 N552.20

Price Loss 2754.67 447.80

350m

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 19-08-13

SYMBOL ACADEMY TRANSEXPR JOSBREW COURTVILLE CONTINSURE TRANSCORP FIDSON AIICO UNITYBNK OKOMUOIL

O/PRICE 1.76 1.05 1.16 0.69 1.16 1.30 2.06 0.94 0.55 43.75

C/PRICE 1.93 1.15 1.27 0.75 1.22 1.34 2.12 0.96 0.56 44.50

CHANGE 0.17 0.10 0.11 0.06 0.06 0.04 0.06 0.02 0.01 0.75

INTENEGINS CONOIL IPWA BERGER MULTITREX AGLEVENT COSTAIN OANDO WAPIC UBN

O/PRICE 2.03 33.00 0.95 9.61 0.66 1.54 1.20 12.20 0.80 10.90

C/PRICE 1.83 29.80 0.86 8.70 0.60 1.41 1.12 11.40 0.75 10.22

NGN USD NGN GBP NGN EUR NIGERIA INTER BANK (S/N) (S/N) Bureau de Change (S/N) Parallel Market

Current Before

Current After

Exchange Rate (N) 155.2 155.8

2-7-12 27-6-12

113m

113m

155.7

22-6-12

CUV Start %

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

July ’12

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%

NIBOR Tenor 7 Days 30 Days 60 Days 150 Days

NSE CAP Index

27-10-11 N6.5236tr 20,607.37

Date

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 0.20 3.20 0.09 0.91 0.06 0.13 0.08 0.80 0.05 0.68

Amount Sold ($) 150m 138m

CAPITAL MARKET INDEX Year Start Offer

LOSERS AS AT 19-08-13

SYMBOL

Amount Demanded ($) 150m 138m

EXHANGE RATE 6-03-12 Currency

OBB Rate Call Rate

to the appreciation of their contributions and top positions being occupied by them in critical sectors of the economy both locally and internationally.

He acknowledged the critical roles of its female staff in the achievement of NDIC’s objective as a risk minimizer with broad mandate of deposit guarantee, bank supervision distress resolution and bank liquidation.

He stressed the role of women in the development of the society, involvement of women in community service, poverty alleviation and understanding the importance of work-life balance by female staff.

DATA BANK

Tenor

Initial Quotation Price N8250.00 N1000.00

Guest Speakers Forum held in Lagos, he said the initiative was meant to bridge the knowledge gap between NLI Fellows and the young associates of the Future Leaders programme. He said the forum is also meant to buttress a core focus area of FirstBank’s corporate responsibility programme, namely, youth empowerment.

“We have partnered with the Nigerian Leadership Initiative since 2008 and are proud of our association with patriotic Nigerians who are committed to drive positive changes in Nigeria as well as promote the development and sustenance of value based leadership among Nigerians,” Onasanya said.

He said the bank’s partnership with NLI is meant to promote leadership development and support emerging young leaders in Nigeria as well as Nigerians in the Diaspora.

The bank CEO said he is confident that the forum will enable NLI Associates who have exhibited outstanding leadership skills in their various professions to be better prepared to lead in every capacity.

“We particularly commend members of the Nigerian Leadership Initiative for their efforts in providing mentorship and value based leadership through various programmes and projects,” he said.

Offer Price

Bid Price

ARM AGGRESSIVE GROWTH 9.17 9.08 KAKAWA GUARANTEED 1.00 1.00 STANBIC IBTC GUARANTE INVE 140.65 140.16 AFRINVEST W.A. EQUITY FUND 161.03 159.36 LOTUS CAPITAL HALAL 0.80 0.78 BGL SAPPHIRE FUND 1.16 1.16 BGL NUBIAN FUND 1.18 1.16 FBN MONEY MARKET FUND 100.00 100.00 FBN FIXED INCOME FUND 1,000.00 1,000.00 NIGERIA INTERNATIONAL DEB. 1,799.14 1,797.09 PARAMOUNT EQUITY FUND 14.73 14.01 CONTINENTAL UNIT TRUST 1.39 1.33 CENTRE-POINT UNIT TRUST 1.87 1.80 STANBIC IBTC NIG EQUITY 11.386.29 11,045.54 • 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

THE NATION TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013

56

NEWS Oshiomhole employs 14 doctors

E

DO State Government has employed 14 traditional doctors to contribute to primary health care delivery system.

They are attached to the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development with a mandate to treat roaming lunatics and the destitute.

President of the National

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

Association of Nigerian Traditional Medicine Practitioners (NANTMP), Prof. Omon Oleabhiele, who spoke at a retreat of herbal practitioners in Benin City, said Governor Adams Oshiomhole would be given an award for placing values on traditional doctors.

Niger Delta governors accused of wasting N8trn

L

EADERS of oil producing communities in the nine Niger Delta states have accused their governors of wasting over N8 trillion since the 13 per cent derivation payment in 2000.

The allegation was contained in a petition by indigenes of Akwa Ibom, Cross Rivers, Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Ondo, Abia and Imo states to the Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency

From Shola O’Neil, Port Harcourt

Initiative (NEITI).

The petition, which called for a probe of past and present governors of the states, said over N8.1 trillion has been either looted or wasted by the governors.

It urged the NEITI to visit the oil producing communities for a firsthand information on the level of poverty and underdevelopment in the oil bearing communities.

PFN chief lauds Edo governor

P

RESIDENT of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Rev. Felix Omobude, said Governor Adams Oshiomhole has repositioned Edo State after years of neglect by past ad-

ministrations.

Speaking during a visit to the governor in Benin City yesterday, Omobude said from the outset, it was clear that Oshiomhole had a positive vision for the state.

PDP USA chapter honours Akpabio

T

HE United States of America (USA) chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has honoured Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State.

He received the accolade from the group because of his excellent leadership and transformation of the state.

Presenting the award to the governor in Washington DC, USA, the chapter’s Chairman, Dr. Molokwu, said the party was impressed by the dedication, exemplary leadership and excellent performance of Governor Akpabio in the last six and a half years.

He said the Governor has made the PDP proud

through the transformation he has made in Akwa Ibom.

Akpabio described the gesture as a great honour to him and a challenge to do more for the people.

He told the US- based politicians that the PDP government in Nigeria under President Goodluck Jonathan was delivering the dividends of democracy to the citizens.

Akpabio, who is also the chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, said the party was embarking on a reconciliation of the factions to make it stronger.

He urged the USA chapter to key into the reconciliation process and put its house in order to face the opposition.

SCHOOL CHAPLAIN & SCHOOL NURSE NEEDED St. Bridget’s College is one of Nigeria’s leading secondary schools. Located in Aba, we provide world-class education to students in a well-managed boarding setting. Our award winning institution provides Christian-centered education with a strong focus on science and technical education.

As we enter our third decade, we are looking for outstanding leaders to shepherd the next generation of St. Bridget’s students into adulthood. We have the following open positions: 1.

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School Chaplain (must be a devoted practicing reverend) School Nurse (must be a registered nurse) Teachers (various positions)

Our salaries are very competitive and benefits are generous, including housing & relocation assistance for residential staff. To apply, visit our web site and follow the link for employment opportunities.

Applications are due by August the 30th, 2013.

Navy kills 12 suspected pirates N

AVY has killed sea pirates, who specialised in hijacking oil vessels off the coast of Nigerian waters.

Twelve of them were killed on Saturday night in a gun battle with the Navy on the waterways of the region, close to Excravos in Warri, Delta State.

Sixteen bandits were said to have hijacked an oil vessel, MT NORTE, loaded with 17,000 metric tonnes of Petrol Motor Spirit (PMS), off Nigerian waters in the Gulf of Guinea.

Four of them were captured in a coordinated operation involving the three naval commands and the air force.

The leader of the gang, identified as Ben, was reportedly killed in the gun duel, which lasted over 30 minutes.

The naval officers were said to be trailing the pirates and the hijacked ship four days before the operation.

It was learnt that signals were sent to the Presidency, which alerted the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice-Admiral Dele Ezeoba, immediately the ship was stolen.

He was said to have ordered the commands to rescue the vessel and arrest the suspects.

The ship, with imported fuel, was reported to be heading for the Lagos harbour.

The Flag Officer Commanding Western Naval Command, Rear-Admiral I.E. Ibas, despatched two vessels, NNS ANDONI and NNS IKOT ABAS, to pursue the pirates.

To ensure a coordinated response, the Flag Officer Commanding, Central Naval Command, Rear-Admiral Sidi-Ali Usman, ordered NNS Delta in Warri, Delta State and the Forward Operation Base FORMOSO at Egweama Brass to despatch more vessels.

Usman confirmed the incident, saying one of the gunboats involved in the rescue was riddled with bullets.

•Four of the suspects.

From Shola O’Neil, Port Harcourt and Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

He said FOB FORMOSO despatched two newly- acquired boats, NNS BADAGRY and NNS BOMADI, and NNS Delta ordered NNS OBULA to join the rescue.

He said eight naval vessels encircled the hijacked ship and the pirates.

Said he: “The shadowing of the vessel, MT NORTE, continued throughout the night of August 16 till Saturday evening.

Rear-Admiral Usman said about 7pm on Saturday, the pirates disembarked, having observed the presence of naval boats.

He said: “On arrival at the drop off point, the militants refused to disembark from

the vessel as earlier agreed.

They were obviously praying for darkness to set in.

“They finally agreed to disembark from the vessel about 2045hrs on the condition that only one NNS vessel would remain in the vicinity of MT NORTE. “This request was ignored as the NN vessels were asked to darken ship. Thereafter, 16 pirates disembarked from the vessel instead of the 20 that were earlier claimed to be on board.

“The captain also confirmed that no militant was left onboard and no crew member of the MT NORTE was taken hostage. After disembarking, the hijackers moved towards the coastline.

“NNS BADAGRY en-

Two teachers abducted in Edo

K

IDNAPPERS on Sunday abducted two primary school teachers in Edo State.

The latest victims are also women.

It was learnt that one was abducted on her way to church and the second when returning from church.

The name of one of the

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

victims was simply given as Mrs. Agbaka, the head teacher of Edion Primary School on Sapele Road.

The state Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Patrick Ikosimi, who confirmed the kidnapping, said the victims were

teachers at Oredo and Ikpoba-Okha local governments.

He said the kidnappers have opened negotiations with the victims’ families, but were silent on the ransom.

Police spokesman Moses Eguavoen said he was yet to get details of the kidnapping.

gaged the boat in a hot pursuit. Efforts to engage the hijackers to stop and surrender proved abortive as they engaged NNS BADAGRY in a gun battle.”

Usman said the pirates were later overpowered and four of them surrendered.

“It was discovered that most of the pirates were killed in the cross-fire. The four survivors, their belongings and three AK47 rifles, with about six magazines of 120 rounds of ammunition were recovered.

“However, the NN gunboats were unable to recover the bodies of the pirates, as the speedboats sank following the damage caused during the gun battle,” he said.

According to him, the operatives only took the photographs of the dead.

He attributed the success of the operation to the coordinated nature of the response by the participating units and commands.

“The success of the operation can be attributed to NN’s efforts towards the achievements of the Chief of Naval Staff’s strategic guidance in line with the transformation agenda of the Federal Government within the context of Vision 2020.”

Doctors beg police to secure release of colleague

D

OCTORS at the Irrua Specialist and Teaching Hospital (ISTH), Edo State, have appealed to the police to secure the release of their colleague, Dr. Edeawe Osahogie, from kidnappers.

He was abducted by gunmen last weekend when returning home from work and the abductors are yet to demand any ransom.

The Chairman of the Board of Management of the

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

hospital, Chief Boyelayefa Debekeme, at a news briefing, described the kidnapping of the doctor as unfortunate and urged resident doctors at the hospital not to protest.

He said he would ensure that security is provided to ensure that doctors work in a safe environment.

Debekeme appealed to se-

curity agencies to arrest the culprits.

The President, Association of Residents Doctors (ARD) of the hospital, Dr. Charles Gigi, who spoke on behalf of other doctors, decried the kidnapping and described it as ignoble.

He said: “The unimaginable anguish associated with this inhumane action is not one that any individual, let alone one whose duty is the preservation of lives, should

experience.

“The ARD at ISTH appeals to all concerned with security matters to do the needful to ensure the prompt release of our member. We can only continue to function and ensure the good health of the populace if our security is guaranteed.”

The doctors last Friday took to the streets of Ekpoma and Irrua to protest the kidnapping of their colleague.

THE NATION TUESDAY AUGUST 20, 2013

57

NEWS

Baby factory: Two arrested in Ebonyi

T

HE police in Ebonyi State have arrested two suspects who were allegedly involved in the operation of a baby factory in Imo State.

Police spokesman Sylvester Igbo said one of the suspects, Ifeanyichukwu Agwu, allegedly specialises in bringing expectant girls to Amaraku, Amaigbo in Nwangele Local Government Area, where the factory is located.

Agwu was said to have

From Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

taken a teenager, Uchechi Sunday, from Amasiri in Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State to the “baby factory”, telling her he was taking her to a provision store to be employed as a sales girl.

At the factory, Uchechi was shocked to discover that expectant girls were in the building.

She remained there till

June when she was delivered of her baby.

Uchechi was taken to Okigwe, separated from her baby, and given N10,000 to go back to Amasiri.

Angered by the development, her parents reported the incident to the police.

Igbo said police investigation led to the arrest of the suspect and a nurse, Gloria Ezenwa, in Feziechi Hospital at Orlu, which served as a referral centre to the “baby factory”.

The police spokesman said they would intensify efforts to ensure the arrest of the proprietor of the “baby factory”, Madam Favour, now at large.

But Agwu said he was contacted by the proprietor to recruit three sales girls for her.

He denied receiving money from the proprietor, whom he claimed ran a chemist’s shop in Orlu.

ALGON criticises Okorocha From Okodili Ndidi, Owerri

T

HE Secretary of the All Local Governments Organisation of Nigeria (ALGON) in Imo State, Enyinnaya Onuegbu, has criticised Governor Rochas Okorocha’s travels.

Onuegbu, a former Chairman of Ngor Okpala Local Government Area, said the governor’s continued absence has grounded activities in the state.

“How can a governor leave his state and embark on a frivolous tour that does not in anyway impact positively on the state?

“Civil servants have not been paid and these frequent trips do not benefit the state in any way, rather it has become an avenue for wasting the state resources and this must stop.”

NSE inducts new members in Imo

T •Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio (right) receiving a special recognition award for Transformational Leadership from the President of Akwa Ibom Association, United States, Obong Emmanuel Isong, in Washington DC... at the weekend

Police rescue NTA worker in Aba

A

COMBINED team of Counter-Terrorism Unit (CTU) and the Anti-Robbery Squad on Sunday rescued a kidnapped worker of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) Channel 6, Aba in Abia State.

Ms Linda Osuala was abducted last Friday on her way home at Nwaobasi Estate, Ogbor Hill, Aba. It was gathered that she had earlier presented a security report on the return of kidnapping to Aba, which was aired during the 7pm news.

Ms Osuala, an indigene of Aro Ndi Izuogu, Ideato South Local Government Area of Imo State, was planning her father’s funeral, which is to hold tomorrow.

In an early morning raid

•15 suspects arrested From Sunny Nwankwo, Aba

that lasted from 4am till about mid-day, the police stormed the forest between Umuezi Mgboko and Okpuala communities in Obingwa Local Government Area of Abia State, where she was being held.

The team arrested 15 suspects, including Ngozi Nwaogwugwu, a native doctor who allegedly prepares charms for the group and his elder brother, Emmanuel, the group’s kingpin.

Sources said the police trailed the abductors to their den and cordoned off the forest.

The kidnappers engaged

the police in a gun duel but were overpowered.

Umuezi and Okpuala communities in Obingwa, according to a security report, are noted for notorious activities.

Most kidnap victims at the peak of the crime in the state were rescued in the communities by the Joint Military Task Force (JTF).

Police Commissioner Usman Tilli Abubakar confirmed that 15 persons were arrested in connection with the kidnap of the NTA worker.

Abubakar said: “On Saturday, I summoned everybody (Divisional Police Officers) to my office. At the security

meeting, I told the DPOs that they had to do something to ensure that the woman is rescued.

“I told them she is our colleague and a partner in progress and there was no reason why she should be kidnapped and we will keep quiet.

“We got some information about the kidnappers and I sent my men to the bush.

“We were able to locate their camp. There was an exchange of fire. We burnt their camp and 15 of them were arrested.

“It was in the heat of the operation that they ran and released her.

“Everything was an act of God. There was no casualty and no ransom was paid for her release.”

‘Obi, Umeh didn’t interfere in APGA’s decision’ A

MEMBER of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Screening Committee for the November 16 governorship election in Anambra State has said Governor Peter Obi and National Chairman Victor Umeh did not influence the committee’s decision.

The committee disqualified former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Chukwuma Soludo and exAnambra Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Osaeloka Obaze.

Onwuka Ukwa said yesterday that the committee was not guided by Obi and Umeh.

He said: “APGA decided that a political process devoid

From Chris Oji, Enugu

of the usual rancour and violence should be created.

“It’s not a do-or-die process.

The intention is to ensure selfless service to the people.

“Anyone enquiring about the disqualification of certain aspirants should make their enquiry broad-based or allencompassing, rather than hinging it on any disqualified individual.

“We wanted to prove that things can be done without the usual violence and rancour. In fact, the screening was done in a free and fair atmosphere where every person was

given equal opportunity.

“This process was conducted to make certain reasonable level of integrity, transparency and credibility in it.

“We didn’t create a situation in which an individual would be viewed differently from other aspirants.”

Ukwa said APGA was adopting a new attitude to politics and advised all the aspirants who were not favoured by the outcome of the screening to accept the result, remain focused and supportive to the party.

The APGA chieftain said critics of the process were free

•Mr Obi

to express their views since they had the liberty to do so but he insisted that an assignment of that nature could never be praised by everyone. “People are bound to disagree with us. We don’t expect everyone to hail what we’ve done,” he said.

HE Owerri branch of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) at the weekend inducted new members.

The inductees were urged to be part of policy and decision making organ of the government.

Also at the ceremony, which held at the Umez Eronini Hall, Owerri, the Imo State capital, deserving

From Okodili Ndidi, Owerri

engineers were conferred with the NSE Diamond Award.

The Owerri branch Chairman, Emma Ossai, said Nigerian engineers are not inferior to their counterparts from other parts of the world, stating that the difference is in the attitude of the engineers.

Orji nominates new commissioners

A

BIA State Government said yesterday that Governor Theodore Orji had submitted a list of 23 commissioner-nominees, including four women, to the House of Assembly for screening.

A statement in Umuahia by the Secretary to the government, Prof. Agu Mkpa, said the nominees would be invited for screening by the house.

Dr Kenneth Nwosu, former Executive Director, National Root Crop Research Institute, Umudike, near Umuahia, is among the nominees.

Nine former commissioners, including Chief Eze Chikamnayo, the immediate past Commissioner for Information and Strategy, also made the list.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor dissolved the State Executive Council on May 15.

Crisis trails PDP primaries

T

HERE is trouble in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), following the chairmanship primaries in Onitsha, Anambra State.

The local PDP chairman , Goddy Ejeamike, said there was no winner as the primaries were inconclusive.

“This is preempting the result because the party has not officially announced any result.”

A delegate, Anthony Ekpundu, said: “If there was an election and the party decided to announce a candidate as its flag

From Odogwu Emeka Odogwu,Onitsha

bearer based on electoral law, it is a different thing.

“But in this case there was no winner because after accreditation, crisis erupted and many people were injured.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) staff took cover at the police station.

“It has caused confusion here because this is just like the governorship primaries. The 30 delegates have signed before things changed. We were disappointed.”

Remove shanties , says Uduaghan

D

ELTA State Governor Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has restated the government’s commitment to removing illegal structures defacing the environment.

He promised to build befitting hostels for the College of Education, Warri.

Uduaghan, who spoke during the 19th convocation of the college, hailed the Commissioner for Environment, Frank Omare, for the removal of caravans and other illegal structures at Edjeba where the institution is located.

He said: “Recently, when I passed through Edjeba, I was not pleased with what I saw and I told the commissioner to rid the area of the caravans and other illegal structures. But I’m very happy with what I’ve seen today.”

Uduaghan, who urged owners of caravans and other illegal structures to remove them, said: “Government will not spare anybody defacing the environment.

“We will prosecute you if you fail to remove these illegal structures and if we have to remove them, you will be fined.

So, don’t allow the government to remove them for you.”

The governor promised that the government would build befitting hostels for the students before the end of his tenure.

He, however, urged the private sector to cooperate with the government to achieve this.

“Government alone cannot do it. I feel sad that students are living in shanties. Human beings should not live in such places because they are breeding grounds for armed robbery and prostitution. This is not what we want for our students.”

58

THE NATION TUESDAY AUGUST 20, 2013

NEWS Bauchi’s, telecoms firm’s counsel to address tax tribunal Sept 11

T

HE Northeast Zone of the Tax Appeal Tribunal has fixed September 11 for counsel to the Bauchi State Government and LM Ericsson, Lagos, a telecommunications service provider, to address it in a case filed by the state government.

The Bauchi State Government, through its Internal Revenue Board, is asking for N427,627,849:61, being the tax it said accrued to the state from the service provider.

The Tax Appeal Tribunal, presided over by Justice Suleman Audu and assisted

by Halima Saa’diya Mohammed, Sunday Idam Isu, Chief Ngozi I. Amaliri, and Aliyu Abbas Bello, heard that LM Ericsson refused to pay N427.6 million to the state.

The money was said to be the tax owed by the company from 1998 to 2008.

During cross-examination, LM Ericsson’s Human Resources Manager, Miss Omoniyi Adejoro, led by a

From Austine Tsenzughul, Bauchi

lawyer, Olumide Bidemi Daniel, told the tribunal that the company had no workers, representative or office in Bauchi State during the period.

Miss Adejoro also said the firm could not have incurred any personal income tax within the period.

She, however, agreed that “though I am not in charge of the company’s financial transactions, (but) as a Human Resources Manager, I am in a position to know where the firm’s workers reside and what they do officially”.

The manager denied that LM Ericsson or its representative was in Bauchi for official duties on behalf of the company. The company also presented documentary evidence to support its claims of not being indebted or evading tax to Bauchi State Government.

Dakingari urges security-consciousness From Khadijat Saidu, Birnin Kebbi

K

EBBI State Governor Saidu Dakingari has decried recent security challenges across the state.

The governor spoke after swearing in two new Khadis in Birnin Kebbi, the state capital.

He urged the residents to be vigilant because security is paramount to his administration.

Dakingari said: “We have been facing some challenges but I pray we would overcome them. Kebbi State has been a peaceful state in the North and Nigeria at large.”

The governor hailed the Judiciary for working harmoniously with his administration.

He said: “I thank the Judiciary for its harmony with this administration. I also enjoy the support and a good working relationship with the present and the past Chief Judges (CJs).”

Dakingari promised to improve the Judiary to carry out its duties to the people.

The governor urged the newly appointed Khadis to be honest and transparent in discharging their responsibilities.

The new Khadis are: Bawa Dakingari and Bello M. Ladan Raha.

Yuguda to media: fight for justice

B

AUCHI State Governor Isa Yuguda yesterday urged journalists to promote fairness, equity and justice in the country in the discharge of their duties.

The governor made the plea when he inaugurated the state Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) secretariat in Bauchi, the state capital.

Journalists from neighbouring Plateau, Jigawa, Gombe and Yobe states attended the

PUBLIC NOTICE SALAMI

I formerly known and addressed as Salami Shakirat Omotoke now wish to be known and addressed as Azeez Shakirah Omotoke. All former documents remain valid. Federal University of Technology, Minna and general public should please note.

PUBLIC NOTICE ADARAMOLA I formerly known and addressed as Adaramola Oluwatosin Babatunde Ayodeji, now wish to be known and addressed as Adaramola-Ajibola Oluwatosin Babatunde Ayodeji. All other documents remain valid. The general public take note.

PUBLIC NOTICE HASSAN I formerly known and addressed as Miss Hassan Folashade shadiat, now wish to be known and addressed as Asogba Folashade Shadiat. All other documents remain valid. The general public take note.

LOSS OF DOCUMENT This is to notify the general public that the certificate of occupancy comprising the following originals. Deed of Assignment, Survey Plan, Land Receipt, Deed of assent and other documents belonging to Mr. Philip Akinlolu Ola of No.11 Babs Ogunwole Street, Oko-Oba, Agege, Lagos State got lost in transit. All efforts to trace it proved abortive.

Signed: Philip Akinlolu Ola

Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (second right), Deputy Provost, College of Education, Warri I. C. Iyama (right), Commissioner for Higher Education Prof.

Hope Eghagha (second left) and Acting Provost Sylvester Ebisine at the 19th convocation ceremony of the college... at the weekend.

From Austine Tsenzughul, Bauchi

ceremony.

NUJ National President Mohammed Garba as well as Shuaibu Usman Leman, Sen. Babayo Gamawa; the Information Commissioner Mohammed Damina; the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Yusuf Musa Gumli and Alhaji Ibrahim YaroYaro, the state Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman, were among the dignitaries at the ceremony.

Yuguda said the first contractor for the project abandoned it, adding that the completion of the NUJ secretariat was awarded between 2007 and 2008 during his first.

According to him, the project suffered a setback “because the contractor handling it embezzled the funds and did not execute it”.

He added: “The contract was revoked. After due process, it was completed through direct labour by the Ministry for Special Duties.”

The governor also said his administration allocates 80 per cent of the government’s revenue to servicing recurrent expenditures, such as the payment of workers’ salaries while 20 per cent is allocated to other sectors for the development of the state.

Yuguda said: “Since the inception of my administration, in May 2007, there was never a time when the state government refused to pay the salary of any worker that is legitimately employed.”

Adamawa accuses Fed Govt of cheating states T HE Adamawa State Government has accused the Federal Government of diverting money that should have been paid into the Federation Accounts into enriching itself, despite its lion’s share in the present sharing formula.

The Adamawa State Government made the accusation in Gombe, the Gombe State capital, during the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) advocacy workshop on Economic Diversification and Enhanced Revenue Generation for the Northeast.

Geofrey Garba, the Permanent Secretary in the Minis-

T

From Vincent Ohonbamu, Gombe

try of Finance, presented the position of the state at the workshop.

He said: “Examples of Federal Government’s shortchanging fiscal practices are the NLNG dividends, excess crude oil account, Federal Government’s independent revenue, Education Tax Fund and privatisation proceeds.

“These add a lot of money to the Federation Account, if paid in. But it ends in adding to the Federal Govern-

ment’s income only.

“In view of the above, the Adamawa State Government recommends that the sharing formula should be reviewed thus: Federal Government’s share from the Federation Account be stepped down to 42 per cent.”

The spokesman noted that state and local government shares should be stepped up to 33.56 per cent and 24.44 per cent.

According to him, the present arrangement in

which the allocation is 52.68 per cent, 26.72 per cent and 20.60 per cent to the Federal Government, state and local governments, is not only a rip-off of the other two tiers but is also obsolete and should be reviewed “to ensure conformity with changing realities”.

Garba argued that the state’s position was anchored on the fact that “the states are in need of more funds than ever before to counter security and ecological problems”.

He added: “Other serious issues for consideration are floods in many parts of Nigeria, which make life difficult for millions of people.”

al-Mustapha: Kwara OPC hails Lagos for challenging ruling

HE Kwara State Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) has hailed the decision of the Lagos State Government to challenge the discharge and acquittal of Major Hamza alMustapha, the former Chief Security Officer (CSO) to late Head of State, General Sani Abacha, at the Supreme Court. al-Mustapha had been on trial for about 15 years for the murder of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, the wife of the acclaimed winner of June 12, 1993 presidential elections, Bashorun Moshood Abiola.

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

A Court of Appeal, sitting in Lagos, last month discharged and acquitted the former CSO of the murder.

The OPC described alMustapha’s freedom as politically-motivated.

It noted that the case portends grave danger to the country.

The State OPC Coordinator Salam M. Olanrewaju said the steps taken by the Lagos State Government were in the right direction.

Olanrewaju said: “In any country where rope is used tie an elephant is unsafe for human habitation. If a court, which has been referred to as the last hope of the common man, has now become an instrument for the manipulation of politicians, then that country is heading towards a disaster.

“If a personality like Alhaja Kudirat Abiola could be murdered in cold blood and the perpetrators are not brought to justice, then something is wrong with our ju-

dicial system. It further shows that the entire country needs to be restructured.

“The decision of the Lagos State Government to challenge the Appellate Court’s ruling renews the hope of the common man and good citizens of Nigeria to believe in equity and justice.”

The OPC leader alleged that al-Mustapha’s release was aimed at enabling the Goodluck Jonathan administration to curry the support of the northerners for the 2015 general elections.

Over 5,000 Kwara pupils for Belgore’s extramural classes

O

VER 5,000 Kwara State secondary school pupils are to benefit from this year’s Mohammed Dele Belgore (MDB) Solidarity Team’s programme.

This year, the MDB Solidarity Team is spicing up the programme, which began in 2011, with computer tablets.

Each tablet contains past questions running for 20 years.

The pupils can use the questions to revise and rebuild what they have learnt in various subjects.

The State Coordinator of the MDB Solidarity Team, Aliyu Ajanaku, addressed reporters yesterday in Ilorin, the state capital, at the beginning of the programme.

He explained that the computer tablets are “complementary to what the pupils have learnt in class”.

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

Ajanaku added: “A good use of the tablets will affect the beneficiaries’ performance in a very big way. This is the third year that we are running an extramural programme for secondary school pupils. We did in 2011, 2012 and now this year.

“To spice it this year, we are bringing in computer tablets, which represent the future of education in the world. There is a tremendous opportunity coming to us as we are the first set of people to utilise this computer tablets.

“We are starting with the pupils who are running the MDB extramural this year.

The programme involves the selection of pupils from various centres. As a matter of fact, we have 17 centres running across the state: in

Kwara North, South and Central. Twenty pupils from the three centres will come to this special centre here to learn the rudiments of the computer tablets and their use. We have a software engineer who will run the programme.

“Today, we are doing the opening ceremony. Totally, over 5,000 pupils across the state are benefiting from the extramural lesson this year and it has minimum teachers per centre.

“On the whole, we have 187 teachers in the three centres.

Among them are professionals, university graduates, job seekers and others who are participating in the programme. The centres are in Kaiama, Patigi, Shao, Lafiagi (Kwara North), Ilorin West, South, East and Asa local government areas (Kwara Central). In Kwara South, we have

•Belgore

in Offa, Oro and Oke-Onigbin.

“The ultimate objective is to make sure that each of the pupils has a computer tablet of his own. But for now, they are going through the training.

“My advice to the beneficiaries is that they keep their fate with what we are doing as we see them as the future leaders.

We are helping to build them for tomorrow. Their peers are all over the place watching television and whiling away their time. These ones are spending valuable time here learning what we are offering them free.”

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NEWS Retiring Rivers CJ slams politicians’ abuse of power

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HE retiring Chief Judge of Rivers State Dr. Iche Ndu, has advised judges to be wary of the antics of politicians in the discharge of their duties.

Justice Ndu gave the admonition in his farewell address in Port Harcourt, the state capital, yesterday.

He accused government of gross abuse of power and urged the judiciary especially the judges to be cautious in dispensing justice.

The former CJ equally condemned indiscriminate seeking of exparte motion order of injunction by politicians saying it amounts to abuse of the judiciary.

He lauded the State High Court judges for their steadfastness in upholding the ethics of their jobs and urged them to maintain same as his successor takes over from today.

“Each of you remained honest and focused in your job; the result is that none of you ever faced the disciplinary trials of the National Judicial Council.

From Shola O’Neil, Rosemary Nwisi, Port Harcourt

“Continue to remain upright, fearless but fair and objective in your dispensation of justice, no matter whose ox is gored.

“That is more so now that though 2015 is still far away, the High court are inundated with many political matters.

“The time is therefore perilous and at such a time, remembers the admonition of St. Paul to the Christians in Ephesus: see then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the times for the days are evil.

“At this time you should pay attention to what they have always do; and that is the granting of ridiculous ex-perte order of injunction.

“The jurisdiction of the court to grant an order ex-Parte is an extraordinary one , while it takes care of any urgent situation which if not made before a respondent, has been served leads to an irreparable damage. “ If granted, it is meant to last not more than seven days to hear the motion on notice on the same

relieve. It is not the time to aid the applicant spring a surprise to respondent(s); such will amount to intolerable, if not illegal order.

“And for goodness sake if on the day fixed to take a contentious ex-parte application the respondent or his counsel appears in court, there is no need hiding the motion away from him, this is because the essence of making application ex-parte is because there will be no time to serve the adverse party if an alleged irreparable damage is done “Again, a judge should not by a temporary order of injunction create a new status quo or destroy the existing one. Make sure you don’t put your career on the line no matter the pressure.”

President of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Okey Wali accused the judiciary of corruption in the discharge of its duties.

According to him, “ Corruption is a major cause of poverty around the world. It

occurs at all levels of the society, both local and national government, civil society, judiciary, large and small businesses, military and service chiefs among others.

“The worse kind of corruption is judicial corruption. It is the specie that signal final decay, it is the venus that suggests societal suicide. Only the judiciary occupies a priestly office. The judiciary is entrusted with near divine office of deciding life and death, of adjudicating finally controversies and disputes among facet of the society including the other estates of the realm,” he said.

The retiring CJ is the sixth CJ since Rivers State was created 46 years ago(1967).

He served in the office for 12 years. The NJC has already named a serving female High court Judge, Ms. Diasy W. Okocha, elder sister to the past president of NBA, OCJ Okocha, as the next CJ. She is expected to assume office today.

Strike continues as Federal Govt, ASUU talks stalled

T

HE strike by university teachers will continue.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the federal government again failed to reach an agreement yesterday.

The two sides continued to hold on to their different positions on the crucial issue of funding.

Even as the grey areas are yet to be cleared, the Federal Government agreed to release N130 billion to tackle the issues of infrastructural decay and pending allowances in the universities.

Chairman of the Presidential Universities Needs Implementation Committee and Governor of Benue State, Gabriel Suswam, at the end of about four-hour meeting between the two sides in Abuja told reporters that the negotiation would continue.

According to him, progress was made in the area of tackling

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

the infrastructural deficit in the Nigerian universities with the release of N100 billion, which will be distributed next month.

He said: “The Federal Government has been able to harness about N100 billion, which Mr. President has agreed. that will flag of the project and starting from the first week of September in virtually all the universities. The process of achieving that is ongoing at the Centre and due process for it at various universities” “The infrastructure deficit will be addressed like hostels, labs and libraries. Some will be renovated while others will be brand new. Every university will be affected and each of the hostel will accommodate 1,200 students.”

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim

maintained that all issues have been resolved except the unpaid allowances.

He said the Federal Government had agreed to release N30 billion for that purpose which must be paid according to the verifiable claims by each University Council.

He reiterated the position of Finance Minister Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, that the N92 billion being demanded by ASUU as wages could not be met.

He said the responsibility of settling the pending arrears now rests with the University Councils, who will be supported with N30 billion.

ASUU President Nasir Isa Fagge said the team will report back to their National Executive Council (NEC) to decide appropriate response to the Federal Government’s offer.

He maintained that ASUU’s position has not shifted from the

2009 agreement.

He said: “The union is talking about the implementation of 2009 agreement and not renegotiation. If you remember the objective of going on strike is to get government to implement the 2009 ASUU and FG particularly to implement the provisions of the memorandum of understanding we reached with the government in 2012.”

Uncertainty over Shekau’s fate Continued from page 4

earlier suspicious by the DHQ. “Although it is common for members of such a sect to sustain the struggle after the death of their leader, we might have to do voice screening or analysis to determine whether Shekau actually spoke on August 13 or not.

“Certainly, we have some gaps to fill, including liaising with Cameroonian authorities, to verify Shekau’s death in Amatchide.”

The defunct JTF in Borno State and the Borno Vigilance Youths Group, (BVYG) on Sunday arrested a top Boko Haram informant (name withheld) in Maiduguri, the state capital.

The suspect, who claimed to

be a close associate of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau had some documents on the activities of the sect on him, when he was arrested.

He was picked up at Baban Layi, a commercial area of Maiduguri metropolis, mostly dominated by Igbo traders, before they relocated in the heat of the Boko Haram crisis.

According to JTF sources in Maiduguri, five other Boko Haram suspects were arrested in Gwange and Kulolori/Shuwari wards.

Two of the suspects were arrested in Kulolori ward the remaining three were rounded up in Gwange area.

Chairman of BVYG, Abubakar Mallum, said the arrested informant, claimed to be a merchant.

‘Army‘ll win terrorism war’ Continued from page 4

series of strategies by the army headquarters to ensure capacity building of officers and men.

According to him, the challenges facing the country “are

real and for the Nigerian Army to raise its level of performance, it requires up grading of its personnel’s knowledge, identify the problems and adopt appropriate policies that will affect the changes required.”

‘Leave me out of Rivers politics’ Continued from page 4

First Lady in Rivers state always generate rumpus?”

“It should be noted that while several groups and individuals from across the country came to condole with the First Lady and Mr. President on the death of her mother, no official of Rivers

state government deemed it fit to pay the first family condolence visit, yet they claimed the First Lady is a daughter of Rivers state.

“He who must go to equity must go with clean hands.

They should learn to give respect to those who deserve respect so that they too can earn respect.” She said.

I won’t resign as PDP chair, says Tukur Continued from page 4

some people funded a report that I had resigned when, indeed, I was on my way to Canada for an official engagement, and yet our so called media bought the untruth without shuddering. Then I ask myself, where is the sense of fairness and professionalism by our media in this regard?

“The problem is so bad that

when members of our party meet and discuss behind closed doors, the media would say Bamanga Tukur is the issue. The media do not seem to know that we have better things to discuss in our party than issue of crises.

“Let me reiterate that I am not resigning and I have no intention of doing so as an elected national chairman of PDP. I accepted to become chairman based on

my conviction that I can use my wealth of experience to help my party and my country.

“I am not looking for anything at my age other than putting it on record that God has helped me, and then, I am using the opportunities he gave me to serve the rest of Nigeria to the best of my abilities.

But Tukur agreed that the PDP has challenges.

Your Sexual Health & You: Novelty Tips, Questions & Answers Hello Mr Edochie. My wife regularly refers to me as a sex addict just because I initiate sex more often and she hardly asks for it. The first time she said this, it was a bit of a joke. Now she has made an issue out of it to justify denying me of sex. How is it addiction if you are deeply attracted to your wife? Is that not the definition of commitment and love? – Chuma Dear Chuma, men generally obsess about sex because we are naturally attuned to all things sexual. If we weren’t as interested in sex as we are, the human race would be under the threat of extinction just like many animal species have become extinct. So the love of sex or sports is not necessarily a bad thing. We are all addicted to one thing or another. An obsession becomes a problem when it affects our health or our ability to function properly. Some people are addicted to sports and certain TV programmes while others are addicted to certain types of food or alcohol. So there is good addiction and bad addiction. There are people who drink to the point where they are unable to hold a job or maintain a family as a result. When such people are deprived of alcohol, they begin to twitch and go crazy with erratic behaviour.

That is a bad type of addiction. But if you love to listen to lots of music or read lots of books, that is not a bad addiction.

Like I said, an obsession becomes a problem when it has negative consequences.

Loving your wife and desiring her on a regular basis is normal, provided you don’t get violent or crazy when she is unavailable for sex – Uche My friend told me about this new Spanish Fly arousal supplement that is in form of tablets and that it is very good. Is it true? I know the liquid one - Samson Yes Samson, Spanish Fly comes in different brands manufactured by different companies. We have the Spanish Fly Mints by Doc Johnson that come in three flavours of

chocolate, pepper mint and cherry and yes they are very good for instant arousal that will keep you horny for hours – Uche When I ejaculate during intercourse, the semen is small. I want it to be plenty. I also suffer from premature ejaculation and I have no energy to perform after one round – Alhaji Hello Alhaji. These are common sexual problems with a variety of solutions. If you want to solve these problems one by one, here is what you need. To increase your semen quantity, take Explosion or Max load supplement. Any of them will increase the quantity and thickness of your semen. For your premature ejaculation, you can use an ejaculation delay cream such as Shane Diesel’s Prolong Cream. It will make you last for up to twenty minutes or more. And for the energy to perform over and over again, take Sex Shots performance drink. So that is three products to solve these three problems. However, there are single products that can solve all three of your problems and give you harder erections too. One of them is Power Zen Gold and the other is MaXtremeZen 2000. Any of these two products will stop your premature ejaculation, increase your semen quantity and thickness, give you harder erections, enlarge your penis and enable you perform many times too. They are not cheap but they are still cheaper than buying three or four different products to give you the same results. One capsule of MaXtremeZen 2000 will work for up to one week while a capsule of Power Zen Gold will work for up to five days. So these are not small supplements at all. They give big results and handle everything for you – Uche That’s it for today. Adults in need of these treatments/novelties can call 07086754515 or 08051924159 or any other number here to order or they can order online at www.zeevirtualmedia.com. Zee Virtual Media delivers to you wherever you are in Nigeria. For enquiries, send your emails to custserv@zeevirtualmedia.com - Uche Edochie, MD, Zee Virtual Media.

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NATION SPORT

S

WANSEA City's Michu hailed Robin van Persie as the best striker in the world after the Dutchman put two past the Welsh side on Saturday.

Van Persie, who claimed the golden boot in the Premier League last season, struck twice in the 4-1 away win over Swansea, with Danny Welbeck matching his contribution.

And Spaniard Michu was impressed with what he saw.

"He had two chances and he scored two goals, but that is why Manchester United are fighting for the championship," he said.

"For me, to be honest, he is the best striker in the world.

He had no clear chances in this

Michu hails van Persie as ´best in the world´ E

T

VERTON have rejected a £28 million joint bid from Manchester United for Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines as "derisory and insulting".

United offered £16 million for 25-year-old Fellaini just over a fortnight after a £23.5 million buyout clause expired; sources told ESPN FC on Monday morning.

The Premier League champions also attempted to include Baines, 28, in their bid for a further £12 million -- having had an identical offer for the England left-back rejected in late June.

A statement from Everton director of communications Alan Myers, published on the club's official website later on Monday, read: "Everton can confirm that it has received bids from Manchester United for two players. Those bids were immediately rejected out of hand as derisory and insulting.

"The club did not make public these details as it was vital Roberto Martinez's preparations for the opening game of the Premier League season were not disrupted in anyway."

game and it is just incredible how he ended up with two goals. It stops with him, he is the best.

"I don't know how many goals he will score this season. A hundred, maybe a thousand! One thing is for sure, he is going to score a lot."

Swansea will now look to bounce back from the loss when they host Petrolul Ploiesti in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League playoffs on Thursday.

Gareth Bale to miss further Spurs games OTTENHAM Hotspur boss Andre Villas-Boas has refused to discuss the future of Gareth Bale but did reveal he expects the forward to miss the forthcoming games against Dinamo Tbilisi and Swansea City.

Bale, who has been strongly linked with a •100 million move to Real Madrid, missed Sunday's 1-0 win over Crystal Palace with a foot injury.

Villas-Boas refused to be drawn on the future of the Wales international, preferring to discuss the performance of his team against Palace, as Roberto Soldado scored the winner.

Reflecting on the victory at Selhurst Park, he said in The Sun: "I’m extremely happy with the performance. We had good chances to put the game to bed during the 90 minutes.

"I can only be pleased we remained strong at the end to take it through to the final whistle.

"The other question that you

PREMIERSHIP Fellaini and Baines to stay at Everton

•Robin van Persie

and everybody else wants to know I’m not going to comment on.

"The player is injured. He’s not available for selection and is not likely to start against Tbilisi or Swansea."

Of his new signing Soldado, Villas-Boas hailed the Spain international's impact after he slotted home from the penalty spot.

He added: "You have to bear in mind that Robbie hasn’t been involved a lot because of the Confederations Cup. He was with us for only three weeks.

"So as soon as he gets fitter and sharper things will be even better for him. Of course I think he can get 20 league goals for us. His career speaks for itself.”

Spurs defender Jan Vertonghen, meanwhile, is keen for the arrival of September 2, when the transfer window closes, as the squad look to draw a line under the Bale saga.

O •Arsene Wenger

A

transfer window to strengthen the team significantly."

Arsenal last won a trophy in 2005 and were expected to spend big in the off-season, but are yet to pay for a player.

They have had several bids for Luis Suarez rejected after failing to meet Liverpool's valuation of the Uruguayan striker.

"Ambitious football clubs invest the money they receive from their fans, and sometimes their owners, to make themselves stronger," the AST statement read.

"Arsenal supporters pay some of the highest ticket prices in world football, providing the club with considerable financial resources, but the ambition and ability to use them appear to be

missing.

"The fact that there is money available for squad-strengthening is not disputed. The AST's independent analysis suggests that the amount is somewhere between £70million and £100million."

The supporters also called on Arsenal's American owner Stan Kroenke to appoint 'an independent expert to conduct a review of all football functions' at the club.

"A decision on whether to offer an extension to the manager's contract, which ends in May 2014, should only be taken following the closing of the transfer window and assessment of the team's performances," the AST said.

Ferdinand hits back at Mourinho swipe

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AN United defender Rio Ferdinand has hit back at Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho as the teams look ahead to their early-season clash.

Mourinho said neither United nor Manchester City had been 'terrific' champions in the past two seasons.

Having made a winning start to their season with a 4-1 win over Swansea on Saturday, United are confident they can add to that victory when they meet Chelsea at Old Trafford on August 26.

"That was his first sound bite of the season, wasn't it? I think we expected it," Ferdinand said of

Mourinho's comments.

"A lot of teams vying for the championship are going to be struggling for points at Swansea, so it was a good result.

"I'm looking forward to Chelsea.

We are really looking forward to it. Now we can start playing for something."

United's title credentials were questioned early in the season as they struggled through preseason under new manager David Moyes.

Ferdinand said his side deserved more credit after cruising to the English Premier League title last season.

"We are professional people and

Everton manager Roberto Martinez confirmed last Thursday that Fellaini’s buy-out clause expired on July 31.

He said then: “Marouane had a buy-out clause where it was very straightforward. If someone met that valuation, the club had no say. That finished on July 31 so you can imagine during that period everyone was a bit expectant about what would happen. Once that date went, you just focus on working for the next season.”

Villas-Boas coy on transfer plans

Arsenal fans oppose new Wenger deal FFERING Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger a new contract would be 'inappropriate', according to the club's fans.

A disappointing transfer window and 3-1 loss to Aston Villa in their opening game of the Premier League season on Saturday has Arsenal fans fearing their side may struggle this season.

In a statement, the Arsenal Supporters' Trust (AST) said there was no need to offer Wenger a new deal just yet.

"Chief executive Ivan Gazidis has spoken of the intent to offer Wenger a new contract. We believe this is inappropriate," the statement read.

"The entire focus must be on using the remaining days of the

•Marouane Fellaini

want to win. You don't appreciate it when people don't put you in the position you should be," he said.

"Being champions you warrant maybe a little bit more but every next person is tipping someone else to win the league and putting us in third or fourth place.

"It seemed people thought we should have come away with zero points and there would have been a lot of noise if we'd lost.

"The vibe all week was people wanted it.

"So it was nice to go there – especially in the gaffer's first real competitive game – and to win convincingly – as we did."

•Rio Ferdinand

NDRE Villas-Boas is unsure whether Tottenham will make any more signings before the end of the transfer window.

The Portuguese manager was busy in the close-season, bringing in Brazil international midfielder Paulinho, Frenchman Etienne Capoue and Belgian winger Nacer Chadli, as well as striker Roberto Soldado for a clubrecord fee.

Villas-Boas is reportedly interested in bolstering his squad further with another defender ahead of the September 2 deadline, especially after Danny Rose had to be replaced in their 1-0 win at Crystal Palace on Sunday due to a thigh problem.

However, the 35-year-old kept his cards close to his chest when asked about his plans after the match at Selhurst Park.

"We have options in defence, we still have (Kyle) Naughton, we have (Younes) Kaboul coming back, we have Zeki Fryers who did very well in pre-season," he said.

"I think we are covered, we might (buy) we haven’t decided yet bearing in mind Fryers' progression."

•Villas-Boas

Soldado set about repaying some of his reported £26million price tag by scoring the winner from the penalty spot in Tottenham's Premier League opener.

And Villas-Boas was effusive in his praise for the Spain international.

"His career speaks for himself," he added, "To see him so confident to step up and put it to the same side that he scored against Espanyol was important for us. He created some chances, and it was good to see the hungriness for goal he has."

Lampard loving Mourinho return

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HELSEA midfielder Frank Lampard believes Jose Mourinho’s return to the club has created a feel-good factor that can carry the Blues to success this season.

Lampard scored in Mourinho’s first game back at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea manager as the West London side beat Hull 2-0 in their Premier League season opener on Sunday.

And the England international hopes the positive vibes around the club will bode well for the campaign ahead.

“There is a lovely buzz around the place,” Lampard told the club’s official website.

“I am happy myself to be here and I was very excited in the morning to get going again

and the whole stadium was buzzing with the manager returning.

“It was brilliant [against Hull]. The crowd loved it and Jose loved it, I would have thought. He was obviously very professional and concentrated on the game but it was a great atmosphere.

“We know what the club means to him and what he means to the fans. You can also see what it means to him. All it needs now is for us to go and perform consistently and keep getting results.”

Lampard conceded there was room for improvement after Chelsea’s win against newly promoted Hull, as they prepare for a second home game of the season against Aston Villa on Wednesday night.

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SPORT EXTRA

Minister favours LMC’s tenure extension •Lauds Maigari on performance From Segun Ogunjimi, Abuja

•Bolaji Abdullahi

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AVING watched the Honourable Nduka Irabor-led League Management Committee (LMC) worked assiduously to broker a record $34 million television rights deal for the Nigeria Professional Football League, the Minister of Sports Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi had no choice than to shower

encomiums on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President, Alhaji Aminu Maigari for supporting him when he mooted the idea of re-organising the Nigerian league for better performances which led to the NFF setting up the LMC. The Minister disclosed this when the LMC led by Irabor visited him in his office yesterday to present the documents of the Supersport cable television rights deal in the company of the Supersport Manager, Felix Awogu. The elated Minister openly commended the NFF President and LMC boss for doing a good job so far.

He then answered the question of extending the tenure of the LMC by saying “who will not do that when

the LMC is performing (laughing).

The sports journalists, NFF eggheads and the LMC members then agreed in support of Abdullahi’s gesture to extend the League Board’s tenure for doing a great job since they took over the running of the Nigerian Professional Football League.

The Minister also disclosed, “I am very excited and the reason is that today we are celebrating what is possible in Nigeria.

Honourable Nduka Irabor said the past is not important ands we should focus on where we are going. I disagree with him because the past is very important. If you don’t understand what you were coming from you will probably not appreciate where you are.

“Today I can say this loud and clear that this is the same league that less than a year ago was asking clubs to pay the indemnities of referees. This is

U-17 WORLD CUP

NFF banks on Chelsea to release Makanjuola

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HE Nigeria Football Federation is confident that London club, Chelsea will in no way pose any stumbling block for the country having formally applied for the club’s youngster Habib Makanjuola be allowed to join the Golden Eaglets ahead of the 2013 Under-17 World Cup to be hosted in the UAE between October 17 and November 8.

Speaking on the development, Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme, NFF’s Director Technical, said it was imperative that the Osun Stateborn youngster be given the chance to join the camp as soon as possible in order to blend with the squad.

“Of course, we expect Chelsea to release Makanjuola on time since the coaches said he could be useful to the team, noted Dr. Ikpeme.

He continued -Makanjuola has already done the mandatory Magnetic

Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan at the Abuja National Hospital, so the only thing left is for him to come and compete against the rest of the players for a place in the squad

for the World Cup. On his part Makanjuola has pledged his allegiance to his father stating his willingness to don the country’s colours once called to do same.

•Makanjuola

the same league that less than one year ago, a company in this country said it is completely worthless. But this same league today we are talking of a deal of $34 million. So the past is very important.

“I would like to thank Nigeria Football Federation President Aminu Maigari for making this happen. The NFF President can now confidently anywhere, blow his trumpet because he has a trumpet to blow.

The reason is that when we were struggling with what to do with the league he supported genuine course and argument.

“My argument as the Minister of Sports is that no matter how much you want to argue that football has made progress in this country if we don’t improve the quality of Nigerian league, as long as Nigerian youths (footballers) continue to run to Azerbaijan, Malta, Haiti and Sudan to play professional football then we have not achieved anything. It is my responsibility to visualise what is possible. It is my responsibility to communicate that vision and it is your (Maigari) responsibility to make sure it happens.

“If you (Maigari) had come then and tell me that Minister I don’t think this thing you are talking about is possible, it will probably be dead on arrival. But you said say the Minister is this what you think we should do I am with you in this and every step of the way you have ensure it happened.

So I thank you very much.

“Our own generation of the National Sports Commission and Nigerian Football Federation are not fighting, we are making money for Nigerian football”, Abdullahi said happily.

Man City hits 10-man Newcastle 4-0

M

ANUEL Pellegrini marked his first ever Premier League game with a comfortable win as Sergio Aguero’s excellent performance helped Manchester City beat Newcastle 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium.

Having seen title rivals Manchester United and Chelsea both claim convincing wins during the Premier League opening weekend, all eyes were on the Etihad Stadium to see whether the former champions could deliver in a similar manner.

The fans didn’t have to wait long, however, and nor did Pellegrini, who replaced Roberto Martinez as City manager this summer, as David Silva was fortuitously placed to nod home Edin Dzeko’s deflected cross on six minutes.

Newcastle looked like a side disjointed at times - and possibly were thanks to news of Arsenal’s reported £10m bid for midfield superstar Yohan Cabaye, who was left out of the squad.

City capitalised on Newcastle’s laborious

manner, and when Vincent Kompany broke forward from defence and played the ball into Edin Dzeko, the Bosnian’s cute backheel flick gave Sergio Aguero a chance to run at goal. With Steven Taylor standing between the Argentine and keeper Tim Krul, a sudden turn of pace left the defender struggling and Aguero’s stunning finish doubled City’s lead.

A poor first-half showing

Newcastle had little to show for their outing, and were further ridiculed when Dzeko’s dummy left the ball lying in the middle of their half. Samir Nasri beat Mathieu Debuchy to it and the Frenchman applied an expert finish past the unfortunate Tim Krul.

Krul, who kept the scoreline down to a respectable number, was on hand to save Dzeko’s header from a corner on 86 minutes. The rebound fell to

debutant and substitute Alvaro Negredo however, and the Spaniard swept home to seemingly make it 5-0. Unfortunately for the former Sevilla man, the strike was incorrectly ruled out for offside.

Dzeko had the final of his numerous chances to open his account for this season late on, but hit straight at Krul when he had more time.

was compounded further when Taylor, who had endured a torrid night courtesy of Aguero and strikepartner Dzeko, inexplicably delivered a forearm to the back of Aguero’s head, resulting in the Englishman receiving his marching orders.

The second-half bore little more luck for Newcastle, and Yaya Toure’s beautiful free-kick made it 3-0 after 50 minutes.

•Sergio Aguero shot neatly across goal to score

Belgrade targets Mba, Ogude

A

CCORDING to influential Serbian sports website, sportal.rs, Red Star Belgrade is in the market for reinforcement in midfield and has beamed its searchlight on two Nigerian internationals - Enugu Rangers’ Sunday Mba and Fegor Ogude of Vålerenga.

Sports Director of the 1991 European champions, Zoran Stojadinovic hopes to conclude the signing of one of the two players before the end of August.

After February’s African Cup of Nations, Sunday Mba, 24 , was linked with FC Karpaty (Ukraine) and Romania big spenders CFR Cluj but the ownership tussle between Enugu Rangers and Warri Wolves threw the spanner in the works.

On the other hand, this summer, Fegor Ogude has been courted by Real Betis and Sporting Lisbon.

However, according to the player’s agent Atta Aneke, none of the clubs have backed

up their interest with an official bid to Vålerenga.

Last month, Red Star launched a bid of 200,000 euros for another Nigeria international Azubuike Egwuekwe.

But it was well short of the center back’s valuation of around 350,000 euros, so Warri Wolves turned down their proposal.

•Mba

Eneramo in winning start with IFE at Besiktas started Besiktas on a fine note for Super

L

Eagles striker, Michael Eneramo as his new team breezed to a 2-0 win in the season opener against Trabzonspor on Sunday August 18 2013.

Eneramo was not only handed a starting shirt, he was

•Eneramo

in action from start to finish and would have only wished to cap the night’s performance perhaps with a goal to his name.

While maximum points are in the kitty for Besiktas, it must be said that it wasn’t a stroll in the park as they had to wait till the 75th minute before they could break the deadlock and the goal scorer was Olcay ªahan.

Beskitas knew they needed at least one more goal to be sure of victory and that they did quickly enough as substitute Gokhan Töre sealed victory with his 82nd minute strike.

The presence of former Chelsea star Florent Malouda in the Trabzonspor line-up counted for little as the visitors returned home empty-handed.

LAGOS INTER-CLUBS COMPETITIONS

Bioku wins in Badminton •Quadri shines in Tennis

F

EMI BIOKU was the cynosure of all eyes in the final of the Second Quarter Badminton Inter-Clubs Championship held at the Mobolaji Bank Anthony Sports Centre, Rowe Park, Yaba at the weekend when he beat his opponent, Seye Popoola 21-16, 21-15 to win the Men’s Singles of the tournament.

Popoola, who was tipped to win the game, could not equal his opponent as Bioku was at his best throughout the game.

“It was a good outing for me.I thank God that I won the men’s singles final. I will not rest on my oars and will ensure that I keep fit for future tournaments,” Bioku said after the match. In Women’s Single final, Tosin Solademi humbled her opponent, Shade Akinyemi 2118, 21-17.

Meanwhile, Oyinlomo Quadri lived up to family tradition, as she defied all odds to win the Lagos State Tennis Association’s U-14 Championship.

Quadri was a delight to watch just like her siblings who are forces to reckon with in Nigerian junior tennis. She beat her opponent in the U-14 girls’ singles final, Marylove Edwards 6-1, 6-1 to win the Laptop gift of the competition.

Quadri told journalists at the venue of the competition, Rowe Park, Yaba that the inter-clubs tourney has been a good platform for her to prepare herself for a junior competition which she would be attending in Morocco later this year. The boys’ singles of the competition was won by David Amusu who defeated Henant Vaswani in straight sets of 6-0, 6-0.

Honorary Secretary of the Lagos State Tennis Association, Adewunmi Adisa said more of the inter-clubs competitions are needed to keep the athletes busy and discover new budding talents.

In Karate’s inter-clubs competition, Emma Martial Art Club won the tourney with 5 gold, 3 silver and 10 bronze medals. I Do Karate Club was second with 3 gold, 3 silver and 3 bronze medals, while Golden Academy Karate Club was third with 2 gold medals.

The ongoing inter-clubs competitions are being organised by various sports associations in Lagos State with funding facilitated by the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Social Development as well as the Office of the Grassroots Sports Development in the Governor’s Office.

TODAY IN THE NATION

TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL. 8

NO.2,576

‘Can or should we pay the lecturers all they ask for at the expense of other workers or we should pay all workers all they ask for at the expense of the health of the economy?’

WAHEED ODUSILE

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

I

T had been a long day.

The Lady of the Rock had just emerged from the Situation Room where officials had been summoned to brief her on the latest intelligence from Rivers State and the struggle for survival of its beleaguered governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.

Earlier, senior representatives from the security and intelligence services had given her a detailed briefing, a battle plan actually, on her latest project: a national rally in Abuja to “sensitise” Nigerian women to the Federal Government’s epochal achievements in the areas of peace and women empowerment.

She was about to settle down to a late afternoon snack of fresh-baked cassava bread and steaming fish pepper soup fortified with orisirisi when the AfDB’s searing report on the Nigerian economy bobbed up on the large television screen in the room that serves as her private study.

“A-f-D-B.” She called out the letters slowly and deliberately, with more than a hint of disdain. “Wetin’ be dat one again?”

“African Dèvèlopement Bank,” Your Excellency, one of six personal assistants waiting on her volunteered with a deep curtsey.

“Dis world don spoil o, I swear. Yeye people. Wetin’ dem know about dèvèlopement?”

Her Excellency had every right to be miffed.

A month had scarcely passed since she was presented with the International Telecommunication Union’s Online Child Protection Award, in Geneva, Switzerland. Now, the ITU is one of world’s oldest international organisations, going back to 1869.

That award recognising Nigeria’s leadership role in protecting children – the leaders of tomorrow — from the snares of cyberspace where anything goes was fundamentally an award honouring Nigeria’s commitment to development in the finest sense of the term.

And yet, the so-called AfDB, an ordinary regional body funded in large part by Nigeria, has the temerity to issue an adverse report on the Nigerian economy and even contradict facts and figures that the responsible officials have painstakingly complied and dutifully checked?

What, indeed, is the world coming to?

Does the official who signed that contumacious report not know that Her Excellency could by a mere clearing of the throat get him deported, regardless of his diplomatic status? Or get the AfDB expelled from these shores? Or, for that matter, cause Nigeria to end its membership in the organisation and the financial support that constitutes such a large chunk of its operating funds?

But on this day, she was exceedingly agreeable.

The briefing on preparations for the National Rally for Peace and Women Empowerment, conducted by top officials from the National Security Agency and the armed services, had gone very well. The logistics had been worked out to the minutest detail. Nothing was being left to chance. All those who had been ranting that there were no clues at the top and no vision would be put to shame big-time.

The rally, it has to be said at the outset, was a

RIPPLES PDP: WE’LL WIN LAGOS

...and that’ll be the 8th WONDER of the world

OLATUNJI DARE

AT HOME ABROAD olatunji.dare@thenationonlineng.net

Only in Nigeria

•Some actresses at the event

triumph of planning, organisation, and execution. Abuja is like a basket; it leaks at every point. Yet, the rally took even long-time residents of the town by surprise. They had no idea it was coming. Neither did Boko Haram.

Withal, it must be accounted an astonishing feat that tens of thousands f women from all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory were outfitted, flown or bused to Abuja and housed in suitable lodgings without disruption to air travel and inter-state road transportation, without straining the city’s resources, and without attracting undue attention from the usual interlopers.

And when it was staged last Thursday, the rally was quite a spectacle. Abuja had never seen anything like that. As a matter of fact, no city in Nigeria has ever seen anything like it.

The recent week-long siege on Port Harcourt

did not even come close. Someone who follows such matters closely tells me that we would have to go back to Romania, in the time of Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, to find a modern precedent.

Thisday’s terse, summative headline captured it best: “Residents Groan as First Lady’s Rally Shuts down Abuja.” The city finally got a taste of what the Lady of the Rock had worked up in Lagos, Makurdi, Lokoja and Port Harcourt, to name just some of the cities she has favoured with a visitation.

All approaches to the venue, Eagle Square, were blocked to vehicular traffic. Hundreds of residents heading to the adjacent Federal Secretariat to resume work were reduced to sulking in impotent rage in their cars, immobilised, according to one account, by “stern-looking and gun-toting” men who had descended on the

HARDBALL

T

HE United States Acting Assistant Director of Diplomatic Security Threat Investigations and Analysis Directorate, Ambassador Kurt Rice, has said that wanted Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, could be tried for terrorism in the United States or in Nigeria where he hails from if caught. To this end, the U.S. on Monday placed $23m bounties on five leaders of terrorist groups in West Africa, including Shekau. The Boko Haram leader alone attracted a highly tempting seven million dollars bounty. News reports pointed out that the U.S. action coincided with the Nigerian government finally determining, after endless waffling and prevarication, that Boko Haram is indeed a terrorist organisation, and its leaders and members liable to be tried for terrorism.

Nigeria, which is increasingly finding it difficult to define and guard its independence and national pride, has not protested against any suggestion that its homegrown terrorists cannot be dealt with at home and under home rules. Boko Haram has not just attacked home targets; indeed foreigners have also been among its victims. However, except for a brief foray into Cameroun, and perhaps a base and launch pad in Mali, the sect’s attacks have been limited to Nigeria. As Britain showed in the case of Michael Adebolajo, the British terror suspect who was coaxed from feeble Kenyan hands in 2010 in order to be investigated under British rules, nations recognise that their

When Boko Haram’s Shekau is found sovereignty is infinitely much more nuanced than first view and ordinary definitions suggest. Nigeria needs all the help it can get to curb terrorism and bring Nigerian terrorists, or any other terrorist who commits crime on Nigerian soil, to trial. But it must be understood very clearly that Shekau is our problem, and except he goes to another country to carry out terror-related activities, he remains strictly our problem, no matter how far-reaching the consequences of his actions.

Nigeria has never presumptuously attempted to intercept foreign terrorists on foreign soils.

Therefore, this generation of Nigerians must never be seen as condoning foreign governments extending their laws creatively or collaterally for the purpose of apprehending and prosecuting Nigerian criminals. It is of course evident that Nigerian governments have been slothful in dealing with their criminals, either because of plain juristic inefficiency or because certain individuals in government connive at crime and criminals. This is, however, not enough reason for other countries to invade our sovereignty under any guise. In fact, it must be emphasized that even if Shekau were to be apprehended in, say, Mali by U.S. forces, it is

venue before dawn.

Hundreds upon hundreds upon hundreds of empowered women clad in dresses bearing a portrait of President Goodluck Jonathan in black on a yellow background marched in close military formation to express gratitude to the man who had changed their fortunes, not forgetting the woman – I take that back: the Lady — behind him.

Women in the armed services were not left out. Decked out in their official uniforms, women soldiers and police officers imparted to the march past the military precision their civilian sisters could not muster. You could see gratitude for their empowerment and a deep yearning for peace written not only on their faces but across their well-starched uniforms.

So as not to be left out of the great occasion, women security operatives shed, at least in part, their accustomed anonymity. They wore tight black masks that covered just about the entire face except their eyes, nostrils, and mouths. In itself, that spectacle bespoke awesome power. It is frightening to think of what it would convey when the operatives are empowered all over again.

Easily the most awesome demonstration of power on that day of power, however, was taking place in the skies above the parade ground, where a squadron of fighter jets streaked overhead, with orders to interdict, neutralise, or destroy any would-be saboteurs.

Boko Haram finally got the message. It could pre-empt the National Day parade, but it cannot mess with the First Lady’s Rally for Peace and Empowerment.

Meanwhile, on the ground, The First Lady looked on serenely from a covered stand and beamed with benevolent satisfaction as the empowered women in their tens of thousands marched past. First ladies from several African countries invited to the rally watched in awe and envy.

I am told that a debate is now raging in the usual circles as to whether the terms “First Lady” and “Firstladyism” adequately depict the current Nigerian reality, and whether it would not be much more helpful to replace them, respectively, with “Maximum First Lady” and “Extreme Firstladyism.”

The debate makes sense, especially after it was made clear the other day that the Office of the President is inseparable from the Office of the First Lady. Or do I have it backwards, with the Office of First Lady being inseparable from the Office of the President?

In whatever case, the word from that corner is: You ain’t seen nothing yet.

•For comments, send SMS to 08111813080

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above important that he should be handed over to us for prosecution. Thankfully, Ambassador Rice has herself left a window open for the wanted terrorists to be tried in their home countries.

Nigeria must emphasise its unequivocal preference for this option.

But if Ambassador Rice contemplates the option of subjecting Shekau to the U.S. justice system, it is simply because Nigeria has consistently and enduringly projected a weakness of national character that has made it possible, for example, for Diepreye Alamieyeseigha to be ‘handed’ over remorselessly to British authorities for prosecution, and for our country to quite puzzlingly rejoice that a James Ibori foolishly preferred to wash his dirty linen abroad. If our laws are weak, by all means let us strengthen them. If our courts are inefficient, let us make them more efficient. And if our justice system is too convoluted to competently dispense justice speedily, let us remedy the problem. Let us do anything but display a weakness of national character that makes Nigerians prey to foreigners. Surely we are smart enough to know that prosecuting Shekau abroad, if he is apprehended, would define the country as a people of weak resolve and slow thinking. But if, failing everything, our courts let us down, then let us at least have the common sense and essential practicality to live with our faults.

•This article first appeared on June 6

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