The Nation December 23, 2014 by The Nation

Jonathan votes N400m for plane in Budget 2015

NEWS

Page 4

Newspaper of the Year

News APC’s game plan, by Osinbajo P4 Sports Iheanacho back in three weeks P24 Business New electricity tariff for companies P3

•Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

VOL. 9, NO. 3073 TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

•www.thenationonlineng.net

TR UTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM TRUTH

N150.00

•INSIDE: FASHOLA REUNITES WITH TEACHER AFTER 38YRS P5 P577 KWARA PDP CRISIS DEEPENS P18

20 killed as Boko Haram hits Gombe •Explosion in Bauchi

•ST ORIES •STORIES

PAGE 4

•Sect razes Govt Lodge, police station, council secretariat in Geidam

WILL THE CHIBOK GIRLS KIDNAPPED ON APRIL 15 EVER RETURN?

•THE FIRE THIS TIME: Bauchi Central Market on fire after an explosion...yesterday.

PHOTO: AUSTINE TSENZUGHUL

2015: PDP under pressure to name N21b cash donors Balarabe Musa, others allege monetisation of politics

HO are the moneybags who at the weekend donated N21.7billion to President Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign fund? The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was under pressure yesterday to unveil the identities of the donors. There were sectoral and individual donors. Besides, governors,

THE BIG QUESTION WHO ARE THE FACELESS FRIENDS WHO DONATED N21B TO JONATHAN’S CAMPAIGN?

By Emmanuel Oladesu, Political Editor, and Nwanosike Onu, Awka

whose states are yet to pay two months’ salaries, donated huge cash at the Presidential Villa. Some prominent citizens con-

demned the frund raising as “monetisation” of politics. The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prevail on the PDP to

name the faceless donors. The chairman of the occasion, Mr. Tunde Ayeni, donated N2 billion. He said N1bn was from him and his partner, and another N1bn from their friends. He did not name them. Players in the Oil and Gas sector announced a donation of N5bn; those in Real Estate and Building donated N4bn; Transport and Aviation, N1bn; Food and Agriculture, N500m; Power, N500m; Construction, N310m; Road Construction, N250m; National Automative Association, N450m; and Shelter Development Limited, N250m. The Chairman of the fundraiser committee, Prof. Jerry Gana, said his friends and associates in the power sector were donating N5bn. The PDP Governors Forum shelled

out N1.05billion. Bauchi State Governor Isa Yuguda, who spoke on behalf of the PDP governors, said each 21 of them would donate N50m. The SIFAX Group announced N100m. PDP stakeholders in Rivers State supported Jonathan’s bid with N50m. The 15 states on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission donated N15million. To Second Republic Kaduna State Governor Balarabe Musa, the fundraising reflected the monetisation of politics by PDP leaders. It smacked of irresponsibility, he said. He added: “It is money stolen from the government. The money could not have been donated by Continued on page 4

•POLITICS P17 •SPORTS P23 •ENERGY P49 •PROPERTY P50 •FOREIGN P61

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

Oil price slide:

•Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer , Diamond Bank, Mr. Uzoma Dozie, (left), MD/CEO, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Mr. Phillips Oduoza and Group Managing Director/CEO of First Bank Plc, Mr. Bisi Onasanya, at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU) on power sector with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other stakeholders, in Abuja...yesterday PHOTO ABAYOMI FAYESE

The effects of the fall in crude prices on Nigeria’s economy continue to draw reactions. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel, as what the nation needs to do is to look inwards to turn the tide, reports Group Business Editor, SIMEON EBULU

•From left: Executive Director, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Obinna Abajue; Country Head, Commercial Client, Standard Chartered Bank; Mrs. Yetunde Oni; Managing Director (MD), Bank of Industry (BoI), Mr Rasheed Olaoluwa; and Deputy Managing Director, Diamond Bank, Mrs. Caroline Anyanwu, after the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between BoI and some Small-Medium Enterprises (SME)-friendly banks at the BoI’s Head Office in Lagos. PHOTO BOLA OMILABU

HE effects of the oil price drop on the nation’s economy should neither be seen as unique to Nigeria, nor treated in isolation of the trend in global economies. Incidences of economic downturn and rebounds, as the case may be, are universal occurrences that impact on nations and economic blocks. In 2012, the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) witnessed harsh economic times, which resulted in job losses and triggered severe global unemployment crisis. It was not only a major issue in the US presidential election in 2012 but also a source of frustration in many EU countries. It was particularly severe in Greece, Spain,Italy and in the EU block. As a matter of fact, the streets of many European cities became protest grounds. Interestingly, the affected nations are very advanced economies that one would ordinarily assume, or rationalised, to be immuned to such untoward economic developments, as against the economies of developing and emerging markets.

How wrong.

• From left: Group Chief Finance Officer, UBA Capital Plc, Mr. Sunny Anene ; Managing Director, UBA Securities Limited,Mr. Jude Chiemeka; ex-President, Association of Corporate Trustees (ACT) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), UBA Capital Plc, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Sanni ; President, ACT and Managing Director, Skye Trustees Limited,Mrs. Funmi Ekundayo; CEO, Agusto & Co, Mrs. Vivien Shobo and CEO, Capital Assets Limited, Mr. Ariyo Olushekun, at the send-forth organised by the ACT for Mrs Sanni, in Lagos...at the weekend.

•Managing Director, Smile Communications Nigeria Limited, Mr. Michiel Buitelaar (second right) congratulating the company’s Third Best Indirect Channel Partner for 2014 , Mr. Jude Ogulala, at the presentation of prizes to reward the best 2014 Smile Communication Nigeria Limited Indirect Channel Partners at Zen Chinese Restaurant, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos. With them are: Chief Marketing Officer, Smile Communications Nigeria Limited, Mrs. Alero Ladipo (left) and General Manager, Sales and Distribution, Mr. Ken Esenwah.

It is against this background that the challenge thrust on Nigeria, following the continuous drop in the price of its major foreign exchange earner - crude oil, should arouse interest on both the public and private sectors. The drop in oil prices, the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, admitted, is a serious challenge which, according to her, calls for serious concern and which we must confront as a country. “We must be prepared to make sacrifices where necessary,” the minister noted. She said the country needs to brace for tougher times ahead by reviewing its expenditures and building economic buffers through budgets that would be based on modest oil prices. She pointed out that sound macroeconomic management is crucial to Nigeria at this time. She emphasised the need to plug all avenues of revenue leakages. Already, the continuous slide in the international price of crude oil is taking its toll on the econony. The government has reacted by announcing a set of austerity measures. These include: a ban on non-essential overseas travels, and readjusting the oil price benchmark for next year’s budget. It is now hovering around $65, after it was originally fixed at $73 from its 2014 high of $77. Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, who outlined the government’s response at the Africa Financial Summit, organised by the Institute of International Finance in Lagos, stated that the focus centre on how to drive the non-oil revenue base to be able to weather the storm. The minister pointed out the urgent need for Nigeria and, by extension, other African countries to explore oth-

•Okonjo-Iweala

er means of shoring up their revenues in the face of the falling prices of export commodities. She said: “I strongly urge other African countries to look into other directions. We need to build our economic buffers. Of course, there will be pressure to borrow in the face of falling commodity prices, but we cannot afford to borrow. There is a need to drive domestic resource mobilisation.” On the heels of the Minister’s presentation, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, also made a case for Nigeria to look inward, arguing that import substitution remains the solution to the economic challenges. He explained that for years, Nigeria has wasted too much foreign exchange in importing items that can be produced locally. According to him, a whopping N1.3 trillion has been spent on the importation of rice, sugar, wheat and fish since 2011, pointing out that this has put too much pressure on the naira and foreign exchange reserves. He said that part of the measures to redress the situation, will be for importers to replace costly imports with local goods by embracing import substitution. But market watchers and economists believe that the current situation in the oil market may not be transitory, but permanent and, as such, they are saying that the government should go beyond proposing cosmetic interventions and that the authority should think along the line of engaging longterm, real-time solutions. Against this background, an economist and finance analyst, Dr. Alaba Olusemore, has joined the fray in calling for the immediate diversification of the economy as a panacea to overcoming, or at least mitigating the economic downturn. Beyond the number of austerity measures announced by the Federal Government, he spoke of the rgent need to begin to diversify the economy. “Let’s go beyond sweet talk and truly begin to base our expenditure pattern and tastes on income from nonoil revenue,” he told The Nation in an interview. Dr. Olusemore, who is the Managing Consultant, Nesbet Consulting, a Lagos-based Management and Finance Consultancy firm, recalled that although the nation has been on the journey to diversify the economy since the 70s, every succeeding government has always paid lip services to the development of the non-oil sector. “We need sustainable income-base for this nation. Whether we like it or not, we must do it one day,” pointing out that the earlier we begin to act, “the better for the in-coming generation.” Besides diversification, there is the need to immediately fix the refineries, or give the people the opportunity to establish same. “Why should Nigeri-

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

e: Diversification to the rescue

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Although the capacity of the non-oil export sector is low at the moment. However, there is hope that if the government concentrate on the non-oil sector, there will be a boost to the government revenue and the economy •Emefiele

•Muda

ans go to other countries to establish refineries,” he queried, urging that tax incentives be given to those who choose to refine crude locally. “The more we export crude and import refined petroleum, the more there will always be gaps that need to be financed through subsidy,” he argued, saying there is no substitute for accountability and transparency in government finances to mitigate likely socio-economic and political consequences of the slide in the price of crude oil.

More attention on non-oil sector The Director-General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LBIC), Mr. Muda Yusuf, saw the sliding oil price as significant and scary. According to him, it is at its lowest in four years. He said that for an economy that is 95 per cent dependent on oil for its foreign exchange earnings; and 85 per cent dependent for revenue, this development should be a cause for concern. Yusuf pointed out that overwhelming dependence on oil remains the single most important vulnerability of the economy. He said: “Crude oil market condi-

tions have profound implications for the Nigerian economy. The current trend with oil price pose major downside risks to some key macro-economic variables and the general economic conditions. The main impacts include: government fiscal operations, naira exchange rate, capital flow reversals, stock market, foreign reserves, inflation and interest rate, among others.” He added that the declining oil price means reduction in revenue inflows, a development that has implications for the capacity of government at all levels to meet their statutory obligations. The LBIC chief said: “Most states are over 80 per cent dependent on statutory allocations which make the impact of the declining oil price very profound. This is even more so when the culture of big and profligate spending has been entrenched. Already, some states are having issues with the payment of salaries of their workers. Many have issues with the payment to contractors. The major adjustments in government spending (at all levels)are clearly inevitable. “The good news in all of these is the likely moderation of cost of fuel importation. This is well-known to be a major burden on the finances of the

•Jeffery

country. The share of the nation’s resources committed to fuel importation and fuel subsidy is horrendous and perhaps scandalous. It is hoped that declining oil price would moderate this cost.” However, the major way forward to tackle the scenario, according to Yusuf, is for the government to focus more on the non oil sector. “The non-oil export sector is likely to profit from current situation, especially where production processes have high local content. Although the capacity of the non-oil export sector is low at the moment. However, there is hope that if the government concentrate on the non-oil sector, there will be a boost to the government revenue and the economy,” Muda said. In the same vein, the United States (US) Consul-General, Jeffrey Hawkins called on the Federal Government to pay attention to the development of cocoa for exports in view of the dwindling fortunes of crude oil . Hawkins, while addressing the Cocoa Investment Summit, organised in Lagos by the United States Agency for International Development(USAID), said the clear fall in the price of oil was a clear signal that something needed to be done to diversify the

economy. The envoy urged the government to focus on the promotion of cocoa exports to save the economy from the falling international oil price. Hawkins noted that the global demand for cocoa is rising faster than production, describing as regrettable that Nigeria has not positioned itself to take advantage of the emerging opportunity. He told his audience at the summit: “When I travel through the regions of Nigeria, I am struck by the fact that cocoa is still raised by hand, not by machine, and remains a very labourintensive commodity to produce. Cocoa production is still very much a family enterprise, from planting to carrying the bags of cocoa beans to the buyers, who may be far away from their farms. “Despite the physical labour involved, farmers are realising very limited incomes from their efforts.” He warned adding that international buyers are predicting a potential cocoa shortage by the year 2020 with the rising demand. This has already contributed to cocoa prices rising to 25 per cent in the past year.” Hawkins, who described the development as cheery, said cocoa produc-

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tion has been on the decline in the country. While cocoa farmers and their trees are aging, the envoy observed that farmers get some of the lowest yields on the continent. With high interest rates and the cost of inputs exceeding farmers’ ability to pay, the sector is not seen as a viable way to make a living. He stressed that something needs to change if Nigeria will take advantage of rising global demand for quality cocoa. In line with this, he said the government and the private sector should collaborate to enable agribusinesses to thrive over the long term. Chief of Party for the USAID trade project, Mr. Alf Monaghan, said, big consumption of chocolate throughout Europe and the US has provided an opportunity for farmers to make gains from rising prices, pointing out that the global chocolate confectionery market is currently worth over $80 billion and around 3.5 million tonnes of cocoa is produced each year to meet this demand. This is the path the nation and industry players should tow to rev-up cocoa production to meet growing demand, and as well mitigate the untoward effect on the nation’s economy of the drop in global oil prices.

Nigerians to pay more for electricity •Govt unfolds new tariff today

NDUSTRIAL and commercial consumers are to pay more for every unit of electricity they use. The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) will unveil a new tariff regime today, it was learnt yesterday. The new regime will be extended to residential consumers in six months, the NERC said. According to its chairman, Dr. Sam Amadi, the new tariff, “is already well known to both the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the transaction advisers as well as the participants from the deposit money banks.” Amadi broke the news yesterday in Abuja at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the CBN and all the Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) for the N213 billion legacy debt funding for the power sector. He, however, assured Nigerians that the Commission will “ensure that the tariff is cost-reflective, it will not constitute a burden on consumers immediately and so for avoidance of doubt with this facility, there will be no increase in electricity tariff for residential consumers for six months until we begin to see improvement.” Essentially, the tariff, Amadi explained “is guaranteed to come into effect tomorrow (today) and it allows for

World Bank’s $1.75b lifeline for power sector coming

HE World Bank has pledged $1.75 billion to support the Power Sector Reform (PSR) in Nigeria over the next four years. World Bank’s Country Energy Task Team Leader for Nigeria, Mr. Eric Fernstrom, dropped the hint at a capacity building programme on Post Privatisation Monitoring for the sector. The programme was organised by the bank and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE). According to Fernstrom, the $1.75 billion was 25 per cent of the $7 billion earmarked for the country. BPE’s Head of Public Communications, Mr. Chigbo Anichebe also confirmed the development in a statement yesterday. Chigbo noted that the bank was greatly encouraged to offer the additional assistance fo the realisation of the reform’s objectives following the transparency displayed in the transaction process and the post reform measures put in place by the National Council of Privatisation (NCP) and the BPE. The two-day workshop held at Ibom Golf Resort, Uyo, From Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor) and Chioma Onyia Abuja

full recovery and ensures that there is no risk that is not fully covered in this transaction.” He said that NERC expected more gas inflow to the power stations with the injection of N213 billion. He said: “This facility and other interventions in the next two, three, four months will bring about increase in capacity, there will be more reliability

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

Akwa Ibom State, sought to expose participants to the techniques, methods and information sources for effective Post Privatisation Monitoring and Evaluation of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) successor companies. It was also meant to enable participants analyze performance targets, using relevant tools as well as expose them to strategies for effective engagement and collaboration with relevant stakeholders. Participants at the workshop were drawn from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC); Presidential Task Force on Power (PTFP); Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN); and the Office of the Vice President; among others. The Director General of the BPE, Mr. Benjamin Dikki, rated the workshop very high, saying it will raise participants’ capacity to effectively monitor power companies. He was represented by the Director of Post Privatisation Monitoring Department, Mr. Ibrahim Kashim.

and the metering plan that is ongoing will ensure that consumers will be much more comfortable as they will witness increase in power supply.” The objective of the N213 billion legacy debt facility was to make the power sector viable and reliable. Amadi restated the Commission’s commitment to cost recovery by both the CBN and the designated banks in providing the fund and for other investors, who may want to invest either in

upstream and downstream of the power sector. The funding facility, Amadi stated “is about viability and with just 4,000 megawatts worth over N500 billion market, we expect that this facility will deepen the market and ensure not just a good business for the banks but also provide reliable power supply to Nigerian homes.” CBN Governor Mr. Godwin Emefiele said they were “taking this

bold step at this stage to now help the banks, who are themselves going to act as channels through which these funds would be paid to the discos and the GENCOS and the gas suppliers to come in to also sign their Memorandum of Understanding at the Central Bank of Nigeria with the NERC and CBN.” Nigerian banks, he said, are predominantly the creditors in the books which further demonstrates the commitment of the banks to continue to support the growth of the power sector. Emefiele stated that the N213 billion power sector intervention fund will ensure that “the least legacy debts that we have are cleared so that the market can be seen to be viable, and electricity can be begin to be generated and distribution improved upon for the good of our people.” He said that gas tariff was subsequently reviewed to $2.50 whereas transportation was improved to 80 cents, increasing the gas tariff to about $2.80 cents. Emefiele said the International Oil Companies (IOCs) the gas suppliers, have been assured that the present gas price will be commercially viable. “Not only that, it will encourage them to improve on the gas production and supply but will indeed also encourage new investors to come into the market and then we can see a boost in the gas production industry in Nigeria,” the CBN chief said.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

•Scene of bomb blast at Dukku Motor Park Gombe…yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

•An ambulance conveying the injured to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Hospital in Bauchi after the PHOTO: AUSTINE TSENZUGHUL explosion...yesterday.

Boko Haram: Explosions in Gombe bus park kill 20

HERE were two explosions yesterday in two state capitals – Gombe and Bauchi. They were believed to have been carried out by the Boko Haram sect. Scores were killed in the bombings which happened the day after a large number of the sect’s fighters invaded Yobe State town, Geidam, the hometown of Governor Ibrahim Geidam. Many people were also feared killed in that attack and property estimated at millions of naira destroyed. The Gombe explosion occurred in the morning at the Dukku bus station, killing no fewer than 20. But the police put the death toll at 19, with 25 injured. Red Cross Secretary

Sect razes Govt Lodge, police station, Council secretariat in Geidam Many residents are feared killed in the Sunday night attack on Geidam. MTN and Airtel masts were burnt down. The local government secretariat and the Government Lodge were also torched by the invaders. The insurgents attacked, looted and burnt down many trailer-loads of goods at the Geidam market. The level of casualties among security men is said to be minimal but there are indications that many civilians By Vincent Ohonbamu, Gombe, Austine Tsenzughul, Bauchi

Abubakar Yakubu Gombe said: “There was an explosion at the Dukku motor park. The Red Cross mobilised with 20 body bags and they have all been exhaust-

From Duku Joel, Damaturu

were killed. The destruction of the telecommunications masts has made the availability of information very difficult. Geidam is located about 180 kilometres from Damaturu, the state capital. It is 18 kilometres to the Nigeria-Niger border. Witnesses in Geidam town said the attackers who came in large numbers

ed.” He told French News Agency (AFP): “We are still looking for more bodies among the carnage.” The bomb was planted near a bus that was parked and filling up with passengers, said Mato Yakubu of the Na-

launched a sustained attack on the community around 4:30pm on Sunday. “I can confirm to you that so far, five people that I know were killed by the attackers. Before running out of the town I heard of the five deaths but I am sure many more were killed,” a resident said. Another source said the Chief Imam of the town might have been killed. But this could not be confirmed. Continued on page 60

tional Orientation Agency (NOA). He said the blast occurred at 10:50 am at the station on the outskirts of the city. An eyewitness said: “It happened at about 11am while we were sitting in front of a boutique near where vehicles

were loading passengers. “Suddenly, we heard a loud noise of the blast from one of the vehicles. Then we saw human flesh flying in the air and blood on our bodies.” He said they immediately went into rescue job. According to him, the blast

SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS •Aircraft (deposit) – N400m •Feeding at Villa - N215,635m •National Assembly - N150b •Judiciary - N73b •Defence Ministry - N358.466b •NSA Office - N84.1b •Finance Ministry - N1.7b •Education - N492b •Health - N257b From Nduka Chiejina and Chioma Onyia, Abuja

the Army, the Navy and the Air Force voted N358,466,078,698. The Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), comprising National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Department of State Security (DSS/SSS), Presidential Air Fleet (which manages all the presidential aircraft) has a bud-

getary envelope of N84,128,320,723. Specifically to combat insurgency, N1,308,400,600 is proposed to be spent on NICEP II security elements phase II by the NSA, N2,093,861,553 for maritime border security solutions (Falcon Eye), N2,093,861,553 for North-East border security solutions and N850 million for the DSS to buy more firearms and ammu-

nition for all service formations. The Ministry of Finance is voted N1,727,288,461,558 with a large portion of it dedicated to the Service Wide Vote. The Service Wide Vote is a vote created to serve all Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for emergency purposes not captured in MDAs yearly budgets, but for which funding has been provided for. No money is disbursed from the Service Wide Vote without due process from two authorities - the National Assembly through appropriation, but to benefit from it, the Minister of Finance must approve the request from demanding MDAs to access such fund belonging to the MDAs from the Service Wide Vote. Education has a budgetary proposal of N492,034,986,591 and health N257,543,773,757.

Continued on page 60

APC campaign to focus on jobs, security, says Osinbajo

Fed Govt budgets N400m to replace presidential aircraft NEW aircraft is to join the presidential fleet next year. But it won’t be an outright purchase; it will be a trade-in of an old aircraft. Government has proposed N400 million as deposit to be paid to the manufacturer. This is contained in the details of the 2015 budget presented last week to the National Assembly in Abuja. The Presidency has budgeted N215,635,713 for food stuff and catering materials. It plans to spend N26,663,050,469; N12,917,727,634 on personnel, N11,165,322,836 on overhead, N24,083,050,470 on recurrent and N2,579,999,999 on capital projects. For the National Assembly, N150 billion is voted; N73 billion is budgeted for the judiciary. The ministry of Defence, comprising the main ministry,

went off in a Volkswagen vehicle. A woman was believed to have brought in the explosives concealed in a bag. They said: “She left the bag and disappeared into the crowd, saying she would return but never did. We were still inquiring about her and wondering where she could have gone to when the explosive went off.” There were no security checks at the entrance of Dukku Motor Park. Police spokesman DSP Fwaje Atajiri said 19 people died and 25 were injured. Irate youths attempted to take the law into their hands by pelting security agents at the scene with stones, chanting: “Where have they been?

By Precious Igbonwelundu

•Prof. Osinbajo

OBS and security. These are the two pillars on which the All Progressives Congress (APC) will build its campaign, according to Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate. According to him, 80 per cent of youths have no jobs. Besides, Nigeria is fighting an

insurgency that has taken thousands of lives. Osinbajo, who is the head Pastor, Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Olive Tree Parish, Banana Island, Lagos, spoke to our correspondent on Sunday night after the church’s carol service. He said: “We will focus on job creation and security. The most important thing today is how to create employment for the vast majority of people who do not have employment opportunities. Apart from that, security; but creating jobs is primary for me. “About 80 per cent of graduates that come out of school Continued on page 60

2015: PDP under pressure to name N21b cash donors

Continued from page 1

someone who earned it legitimately. They are monies stolen from the public fund. Can they say the money is from their pocket? My advice is that those who stole public funds should not go away with it.” Legal luminary Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN) lamented that political leaders had elevated next year’s elections over and above the collective survival of the country. In his view, it is disheartening that the ruling party could raise N21billion when many state governments cannot pay workers.

Compel PDP to publish list of campaign fund donors, APC tells INEC

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) has challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prevail on the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to make public the list of those who donated N21 billion to its campaign funds and the source of such money - in accordance with the Electoral Act. Deputy National Chairman Senator Lawal Shuaibu told reporters at his Abuja

Akintola stressed: “My own concern is the way we elevate politics over and above the economy and security. Nigerians are suffering in millions. People are not living well. The standard of living has fallen.

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

home that the law does not allow anybody to take government money on political campaign, pointing out that if a governor takes money from a state’s account and donates same to campaign funds, INEC has the responsibility to sanction the PDP for that and even prosecute such a person. He said the Electoral Act makes it man-

Twenty-four states cannot pay salaries. They are begging workers to be patient. Yet, some people contributed N21 b. This amount can pay the salaries of workers in many states.

datory for persons donating money to campaign funds to make public the source of such funds, adding that such funds will not come in sacks or bags, but will come in form of funds transfer, cheques or bank draft. He said: “If the Independent National Electoral Commission is serious about enforcing the provisions of the Electoral Act, the first thing they will do is to ensure

“They should have human face. We are preparing for elections. We are not concerned about the existence of Nigerians.” Second Republic Lagos State Governor Lateef Jakande

Continued on page 60

condemned what he called the PDP’s penchant for monetisation of electioneering, saying that it is a bad omen for democracy. Jakande added: “It is a dangerous sign for the future to

monetise our politics to that extent. It is very bad. My advice is that other political parties should not emulate the PDP. They should do better. The masses are the most important people during elections. My appeal to the APC and other political parties is to mobilise the masses in a rational way without financial inducement.” Former Lagos State Deputy Governor Rafiu Jafojo said it Continued on page 60

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THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS NYSC to stop doctors without certificates From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

RADUATES of medicine, who are yet to complete their Housemanship and have not registered with the Nigerian Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) with evidence of Certificates, will no longer be mobilised for national youth service. Also, receipt of payment for registration will no longer be accepted in lieu of certificate of registration. This was contained in a 14point resolution reached at the end of a pre-mobilisation workshop in Abuja with the theme: "Deepening the Credibility of NYSC Mobilisation Process through ICT." The NYSC Director-General, Brig.-Gen. Johnson Olawumi, said to ease the problem associated with exclusion of graduates of affiliated institutions from mobilisation for service, parent institutions must carry along the affiliated institutions. He also advised them to ensure that names of the graduates are not expunged from Senate/Academic Board approved result lists submitted to the NYSC. Brig.-Gen. Olawumi added: "All matriculation numbers that were assigned to graduates, but found to be invalid, should be brought to the attention of the Registrar, Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) for verification. "To guard against the bottlenecks associated with the delivery of exemption certificates to corps producing institutions, the old system of delivering simultaneously the call-up letters and exemption certificates to corps producing institutions has been restored.”

ASUU demands release of don's wife From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

HE Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has demanded the unconditional release of the abducted wife of the union's Chairman in Osun State University, Dr. Seye Abiola. Ibadan Zonal Coordinator of ASUU, Prof. Olusegun Ajiboye, stated the union's position while addressing reporters in Ibadan after a special congress. It was gathered that Mrs. Abiona was kidnapped last Friday night and taken to an undisclosed location. Her captors are demanding N50 million for her release. But Prof. Ajiboye has asked the Federal Government and Governor Rauf Aregbesola to justify their positions by securing the release of Mrs. Abiona. The ASUU chief, who said kidnapping was a major challenge to the union, urged the kidnappers "to release our wife, our daughter and our mother unconditionally and unharmed." Prof. Ajiboye, who was supported by the union's National Treasurer, Dr. Ademola Aremu, said the union had been in the forefront of fighting against injustice and therefore, should not be victim of kidnapping.

Christmas: Police tighten security nationwide

NSPECTOR General of Police Suleiman Abba has ordered that security should be tightened nationwide as people prepare for Christmas and New Year celebrations. This was contained in a statement yesterday in Abuja by the Force Spokesman, Emmanuel Ojukwu. According to the statement, this would not be limited to land, as the airways and waterways would also be under surveillance.

From Faith Yahaya, Abuja

The statement read: "The Inspector-General of Police has directed all Zonal Assistant Inspectors-General of Police and Commissioners of Police in charge of state commands to put in place extended police visibility and patrols, taking into consideration their peculiar security situation to protect the citizens as they celebrate the Christmas and new year season. "As part of efforts to ensure

adequate security, the following units have also been deployed: Police Mobile Force, Special Protection Unit, Counter Terrorism Unit, Explosive Ordinance Department, Dog Section and Mounted Troop. "The Police Airwing will carry out air surveillance patrols while the Marine Police will ensure a sustained patrol of all water ways." The IGP, while praising his officers for their tireless and

selfless service to the nation, urged Christians to practise the virtues of Jesus Christ by propagating peace, demonstrating love and forgiveness. Also, operators of public places have been advised to be vigilant and ensure that they screen all visitors and users of their facilities during the Yuletide celebration. The Nigeria Police Academy has begun the sale of forms into its Academy in Wudil, Kano State. The Force Spokesman, in

another statement, said the admission into the Academy is opened to male and female Nigerians of good character. The online application form is for admission into the 3rd Regular Course of degree programmes of the Nigeria Police Academy. The sale of form will end on March 31, 2015. Interested applicants have been asked to visit the institution's website: www.nigpoliceacademy.org for more details.

800,000 kids die from pneumonia From James Azania, Lokoja

• Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi (right) acknowledging cheers from some beneficiaries of the Ajumose Widowhood Initiative at the Government House, Agodi, Ibadan...yesterday.

We’re not perfect in governance approach, says PDP

HE leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said it is not perfect in its approach to governance Speaking to reporters at the party's Abuja national secretariat yesterday, PDP's National Publicity Secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo, insisted, however, that the party meant well for the country. He admitted that the next year's general elections would be different from previous ones. According to him, for the first time, opposition elements had joined forces to send the PDP packing. In an apparent reference to the presidential candidate of

From Gbade Ogunwale and Faith Yahaya, Abuja

the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, Oladipo said: "They have passed through a motion and endorsed their perennial candidate. We have beaten him three times; we are going to beat him once again. "In preparing for the next election, which will not be like previous elections because for the first time, the opposition has coupled together a contraption that is called the APC. "The only agenda they seem to have is to see our back, but I know that God loves this country so much. God has de-

cided that this country will remain indivisible and has decided that this country will continue to wax stronger. This country will not go back to 1983, where we will start doing trade by barter with Brazil." Apparently ruffled by the campaign publicity team assembled by the APC for the Buhari-Osinbajo presidential ticket, the Oladipo said the PDP would involve its various organs and chapters in the party's presidential campaign. Oladipo continued: "Our various organs and chapters at all levels will be called upon to enlighten Nigerians on the programmes of the PDP, wherever they reside in

the world. "They will also be called upon to counter negative propaganda that the APC is making against our party and our country in different countries of this world. "The next election is going to be between darkness and light, it is going to be between a cosmopolitan highly focused PhD holder and a semiliterate jackboot. Nigeria cannot afford to go back; we will continue to move forward. "God has decreed it that we continue to pilot the affairs of this country and continue to implement the transformation agenda. Our party does not belong to any religious organisation or ethnic group.”

HE World Health Organisation (WHO) has said over 800,000 children under five years die globally from pneumococcal diseases yearly. It added that those less than two years were mostly affected, especially in developing countries. WHO Country Representative Dr. Rui Vaz, who stated this yesterday in Lokoja at the launching of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PVC), said the death rate might be up to 20 per cent for pneumonia and as high as 50 per cent for meningitis. His words: "In Nigeria, pneumonia alone claims the lives of approximately 177,000 children under five years annually. The PCV prevents diseases caused by pneumococcal bacteria, while its introduction into the country's EPI (Expanded Programme on Immunisation) will improve the child health outcome and accelerate the progress of the country towards achieving the MDG4 of reduction of infant mortality rate by 2015." Vaz, who was represented by Dr. Tosho Musa, said WHO had concluded assessment of the Nigeria's PCV readiness, to be introduced in 11 states. He assured that the organisation would continue to provide the technical assistance in all the phases of PCV introduction in Nigeria. Also speaking, the Executive Director, National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NHCDA), Dr. Ado Muhammed, said by the time the nation achieves national coverage of the vaccine, Nigeria would avert 173,000 childhood deaths by year 2018.

Terrorism: Methodist Church conference blames politicians

ETHODIST Church men's fellowship has blamed the political class for fanning the embers of terrorism. It urged the military to ensure that such religious extremists were crushed for the country's unity. Its National President, Dr. Samuel Ebenezer Ogbodo Ejiofor, in his presidential address at the society's 18th Annual National Conference in Umuahia, described the state of the nation as deplorable. Ejiofor said the menace of the Boko Haram had become a disgrace to the nation and its citizens, adding that it was the military that could contain the terrorists. He said: "The issue of Boko Haram and other act of terrorism is at an alarming state, which is making us look like a failed state. However, we are happy that the security agencies are equal to the task of

'Your best not good enough'

HE Catholic Bishop of Awka Diocese in Anambra State, Most Rev. Paulinus Ezeokafor, believes the federal and state governments have done their best so far. The cleric, who spoke yesterday in Awka while briefing reporters on his Christmas message, however, said: "Their best is not good enough." Rev. Ezeokafor said he could not give the governments any pass mark based on what they had done, because Nigerians were not satisfied. According to him, "we are not comfortable with what is going on in the society. The govFrom Ugochukwu UgojiEke, Umuahia

containing the menace. "It is a known fact that the government is doing its best in containing the Boko Haram and militancy. The political class, instead of joining hands to save the nation, is rather fuelling the whole thing.

From Nwanosike Onu, Awka

ernments have not made enough progress. "Our government should look at what is happening in some of the developed countries and copy from them." However, he advocated love among the people, ethnic groups, adding that with prayers, the problems facing the country could be surmounted. His words: "Let us continue to pray to stop the killings in the society. The situation is unfortunate and painful. We are going all through these problems because of lack of love for one another.”

"People are talking about Jonathan; Jonathan did not do anything. A traditional ruler is the chief security officer of his community; a governor is the chief security of his state; and a local government chairman is the chief security of his council. "If all these people are alive

to their responsibilities, there will be adequate security within these areas. So, it is not a question of Jonathan, it is a responsibility for all of us and this means that everybody should be alive to the issue of security at all times. "The situation is a clear testimony as the politicians have

refused to play politics with the laid down norms. Rather, they are heating the polity, thereby increasing tension in an already tensed society and giving room for the terrorists to operate". Ejiofor lamented that activities of politicians and their parties were being trailed by controversy, fraud, militancy and complaints. "The trend is the same in all the parties, without exception," he added. He challenged religious groups to rise up and take a lead in promoting religious harmony, adding that they should embark on interfaith dialogue as antidote for peace. He said: "Our present state is so critical that Christians and our Muslim brothers cannot ignore their responsibilities and the task of bringing people to the truth, promoting peace and good works of the church and Islam."

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

CITYBEATS Tears as The Nation man Isiguzo is buried I

T was sober ceremony attended by family members and colleagues, the remains of the Senior Crime Correspondent of The Nation, Jude Uche Isiguzo, were yesterday interred. Friends and well-wishers wept uncontrollably when the brown coffin bearing the body was committed to earth in his father’s compound at Umuokegwu village in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area of Abia State. The late Isiguzo, fondly called Olopa, died on November 29 during an illness. At a holy mass in his honour at the Holy Cross Catholic Church, the Very Rev. Fr. Godfrey Chukwuma Oparaekwe of the Umuahia Catholic Diocese described death as a necessary end. He said what matters is where one would spend eternity, noting that people query God especially when the “good” ones die. The cleric urged the sympathisers to examine their lives, have more intimacy with God, live a holy life and be prayerful if they want to make heaven. Oparaekwe, who illustrated the

CITYBEATS LINE: 08023247888

•Isiguzo's wife, Ada, performing the dust-to-dust...yesterday. Inset: The late Isiguzo From Sunny Nwankwo, Isiala Ngwa

power of Christ over death, said: “Christ in the days of His ministry experienced death and overcame it. That is how we (Christians) are going to die and defeat death like Jesus did.” Though he said he did not have personal contact with the late Isiguzo, he described him as a simple, quiet and caring gentleman, urging the bereaved fami-

ly, friends and well-wishers not to cry like hopeless people, but to accept the fact that life is transient. The late Isiguzo, he said, departed to rest in God’s bosom. Mr Tunde Olasogba, the Area Manager, Port Harcourt Plant, who led the management and staff of Vintage Press Limited, publishers of The Nation, described Isiguzo’s death as shocking, stressing that death had snatched from the organisation, one of its finest reporters who was

committed to his work. Olasogba said: “Jude was loved by all. He is man of the people and there is no department in the establishment that doesn’t love him. He is a motivator; so caring and willing to work even at short notice. His death is a big blow and we pray that anything like this should not happen to us again.” He urged all to take heart and trust in the resurrection power of Jesus Christ. In a funeral oration, his only sur-

‘Radiation may have caused Synagogue building collapse’

HE September 12 Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) guest house collapse in Ikotun, a Lagos suburb, may have been caused by a highenergy infrasonic radiation, a witness said yesterday. Mr Biedomo Iguniewei, an independent witness and consultant with specific interest in explosives and weapon research, was testifying at the coroner inquest into the incident that claimed 115 lives. Iguniewei (37), a graduate of Chemistry at the University of Maiduguri, is currently a post-graduate student of Explosives and Material Science at the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in Kaduna. The witness told Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe that he was in a position to reach such a conclusion based on his experience with the Defence Industry Corporation of Nigeria, where he worked for six years. Iguniewei said he took personal interest in the collapse because of his background, adding that he had already visited the scene to conduct research for eventual publication of his findings. His interest in the incident, he said, was ignited by the controversy surrounding how it happened. The witness said: “I was worried when I heard them talking of controlled demolition. And from the video that I watched, I started asking myself: What could have led to the building crumbling in near vertical fall?” He said he travelled from Kaduna to the church to conduct the research as a thesis for his post-graduate programme.

‘

Having analysed all the video evidence and interviewing the survivors of the collapsed building and observing the site of the collapsed building, I came to the conclusion that the building collapsed as a result of infrasonic weapon probably fired from a flying object or a stationary location on the ground By Adebisi Onanuga

’

Testifying on his deposition filed before the court, the witness said he took samples and observed the crumbled building, other structures surrounding it and their pillars with rods. Iguniewei also claimed to have interviewed some survivors inside the building when it collapsed, adding that after eliminating all the other possible options, he concluded that the building could have been fired at with an infrasonic radiation. “Having analysed all the video evidence and interviewing the survivors of the collapsed building and observing the site of the collapsed building, I came to the conclusion that the building collapsed as a result of infrasonic weapon probably fired from a flying object or a stationary location on the ground”, he said. Under cross-examination by

counsel to the state government Akingbolahan Adeniran and counsel to the National Airspace Management Authority (NAMA) Fola Alade, the witness described infrasound as a type of sound measuring bellow 20Hz, which is below what the normal human ear could detect. According to him, an infrasonic weapon can be fired or deployed from any flying object or from a location within a distance of between 100 metres and 1000 metres away from the intended target. He said: “The striking thing about infrasound is that you cannot see it, but it causes remarkable vibrations when used as a weapon. Those of us who work with the security know that weapons are produced and they are always looking for where to test the weapons. “I am of the opinion that what happened that day, especially with the strange plane-like objects seen in the video, was that an infrasonic radiation was fired upon the building and if you observe, you will discover that it took about 30 minutes for the building to come down.” Iguniewei said the building was susceptible to being destroyed by infrasonic radiation since its construction did not envisage that it could be a target of such an attack. “It is important for this court to be aware of this option but why it could have been used here is another matter entirely. But since I have been pondering why a building would collapse the way this one did, this is the most plausible explanation for me.” The witness said it was important to consider the option of infrasonic radiation especially with the repeat-

ed movement of the aircraft said to have passed over the collapsed building. “That object flew close to the building, and that is all that is needed for the infrasonic radiation to reach the building. As far as I am concerned, the repeated over-passage of the plane-like object is to ensure that the building received enough dose of the radiation sufficient to bring it down,” Iguniewei said, adding: “Engineers generally believe that a structure would fail due to bad foundation and materials, but if you go there now, the foundation pillars are still very intact. My position is that the building weakened from the top.” Asked what would be seen as evidence after a building has been felled by infrasonic radiation, the witness said there would be no material evidence because the radiation does not generate heat and does not lead to charring or burning compared to when a bomb was used.

Ex-Rotary president dies

PAST President of the Rotary Club of Lagos, Alhaji Sikiru Olatunji Alatise is

dead. Until his death, Alatise was the Alagbala Adinni of Lagos and Otunba Ototubiosu of Ijebuland. Prayers will hold tomorrow in his 3, Lekuti Street, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State home. He is survived by two widows, Alhaja Yemisi and Alhaja Shakira; children and grand children.

viving brother, Chijioke, said Isiguzo was not only a prolific writer, but a trained investigative journalist who contributed immensely to the growth of journalism, especially in crime reporting. He added that the family would miss him dearly, just like his professional colleagues. At the funeral were former police spokesman Frank Mba and members of The Nation Correspondent Chapel, led by Yusuf Ibrahim.

Court remands suspected pipeline vandals

USTICE Mohammed Yunusa of a Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday remanded in Ikoyi Prisons four men charged with vandalism and unlawful dealing in petroleum products. The accused are: Andrew Ishola, 35; Sunkanmi Aro, 27; Utuedor Michael, 27, and Oladele Agbo, 35. The quartet, who are standing trial on a three-count charge, pleaded not guilty. Following an application by their counsel, Mr McAnthony Akhariale, Yunusa granted them N1 million bail each, with two sureties in the like sum. He ordered them remanded in prison pending the perfection of their bail conditions. He adjourned the case till January 19. Earlier, the prosecutor, Mr Raymond Akhane, told the court that the accused conspired to vandalise an oil pipeline and illegally deal in petroleum products. He said they were arrested by policemen in the Majidun area of Ikorodu, Lagos, following a tipoff. According to the prosecutor, the accused tampered with the free flow of the refined petroleum products through an oil pipeline in the locality and sold the products illegally. Ahkane said the offence contravened Sections 3(1), 5 and 7 of the Miscellaneous Offences Act, 2004. (NAN).

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS ‘Police won’t interfere in Ekiti Assembly crisis’ From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

HE police have promised to not to take sides in the crisis rocking the Ekiti State House of Assembly. The APC lawmakers on Sunday claimed that Governor Ayo Fayose had directed the Ministry of Justice to forward a memo to the commissioner of police to arrest them for conducting a sitting at an unknown location in the state capital. Speaking with reporters, police spokesman Victor Babayemi maintained that the Force was not a political organisation but a security agency empowered to maintain law and order and prevent security breach. He said: “This command has been handling the Assembly’s crisis in a more professional way since it started. We are not in any way interested because it is purely a political issue. “Nigeria Police Force is not a political organisation, so we are neither being instigated to arrest them nor harass them. It is a political matter and it has to be settled politically. “But as a law enforcement agency, we owe it a duty to protect the lives and property of the citizens and we won’t shy away from this responsibility. “I want to emphasise that the command will not hesitate to wade into the matter if any of the factions is comporting itself in a manner that could cause violence or threaten the relative peace in the state.”

Ekiti people aren’t beggars, APC tells Fayose •PDP: opposition full of hypocrites •Stomach infrastructure continues

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has berated Governor Ayodele Fayose for not fulfilling his electoral promises to the people, saying his “stomach infrastructure” slogan is meant to treat the electorate like beggars. The “stomach infrastructure” mantra has sparked a volley of verbal tirades between the opposition and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). As the two parties bicker, the distribution of rice, chicken and vegetable oil continued yesterday in some locations in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital, with residents turning out in droves to receive the “Christmas largesse”. Some of the locations include Governor’s Office, Government House, open field near a popular eatery at Okesa and the state poultry project site, Agric Olope, in Ado-Ekiti. Party leaders and members, civil servants, teachers and Okada riders were trooping to the designated collection points to collect the items. The ruling party said de-

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

spite the APC’s criticisms, “Fayose will continue to run a welfarist government and will continue to identify with the masses by putting food on their tables”. The APC, in a statement by its State Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatubosun, said: “Fayose has turned Ekiti people to beggars by giving them handouts in form of “chickens not bigger in size than ailing pigeons”. He said Ekiti people have seen “the deceit of a man who said he is a friend of the common man with his callous attitude to the people he claimed to love during the period the people are supposed to be happy”. “Governor Fayose gave two “congos” of rice and miserable palm oil not up to 1 litre, all totaling N700 to each worker that he had earlier deducted N2,000 from his salary for Christmas gift. “This is in contrast to exGovernor Kayode Fayemi, who empowered the people through agriculture, cooperative and employment and apprenticeship schemes involving over 2,000 youths, which

helped the people to earn a living and made them happy for four years as against Fayose’s tokenism as Christmas gifts.” The APC spokesman said instead of Fayose building on these schemes, he had cancelled all programmes, rendering the youth jobless. while he had also cancelled It said promotions in the civil service had also been cancelled while many were allegedly dismissed for offences they did not commit. He added: “Fayemi, last year, paid civil servants 30 per cent of their salary as Christmas bonus. He also paid their leave bonus while their December salary was paid on December 18. “In contrast, Fayose has refused to pay civil servants their September salary even though he had collected September allocation from the Federal Government. Civil servants are yet to be paid as at December 22.” Olatubosun urged the governor to pay workers their entitlements and stop treating them like beggars, stressing that even though APC was not in power, each of the 177 wards would re-

ceive 20 bags of rice from APC leaders. But the PDP urged the people not to listen to the APC, accusing the opposition of copying Fayose’s stomach infrastructure policy. A statement yesterday by the State PDP Secretary, Tope Aluko, said: “They abuse us for providing succour for our people. They described stomach infrastructure as an insult to Ekiti people. “They said it does not add value to the people; it diminishes their self-esteem, it diminishes their sense of self-worth and it denigrates what politics ought to be about. “Yet, they adopted the same concept of stomach infrastructure by personally sharing food items to the people. “After condemning the concept, isn’t it rather too late that the APC people are just realising that poverty should be addressed by providing immediate succour because poverty is poverty; it knows no religion and it has no tribal mark; and it affects everyone of us?”

Support mounts for Ambode

EADERS and delegates of ethnic groups, civil societies and other allied groups have visited the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, at his Gbagada campaign office. The groups were at the Gbagada office to congratulate Ambode on his emergence as the APC candidate. They pledged their support for him in next year’s election. The APC candidate said he understood the feelings of ethnic and different sectoral groups in Lagos. He said: “We must all work together to make Lagos safe, clean and economically livable for all. Lagos is the most cosmopolitan state in Nigeria and Africa. Lagos is Lagos because of all the races and tribes in it. We all make up Lagos, we all have a stake in Lagos and Lagos will work for us. “If I can make it in Lagos, you can too. If Akinwunmi Ambode can become the governorship candidate then your small businesses can grow to become big businesses. “I ask for your support to become the next governor of Lagos. I promise to work for the interest of the people and with the help of God deliver good governance to all.”

•Ambode flanked by Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Politics and Legislative Matters, Musiliu Folami (left) and Convener, Coalition of Democrats for Electoral Reforms (CODER), Chief Ayo Opadokun, at the meeting.

PDP responds to Obanikoro’s allegations today

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will today respond to allegations by former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, that one of its chieftains in Lagos State, Chief Olabode George and the winner of the party’s governorship primary, Jimi Agbaje, manipulated the election. Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja, ordered the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (defendants in the case) to show cause why Obanikoro’s prayers should not be granted in the interim. Obanikoro’s lawyer Chris Uche had on December 17 argued an ex-parte motion in which he sought an interim order to restrain the PDP and its agents from sending any name to INEC as its aspirant who emerged from the December 8 primary. The court refrained from granting the motion, but elected to convert the motion

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

ex-parte to a motion-on-notice and directed Obanikoro to serve the motion and court’s enrolled order on defendants to enable them appear on the next adjourned date and show cause why the prayers contained in the ex-parte motion should not be granted. The Nation learnt yesterday

that the PDP has responded to the suit, but could not access copies of the processes said to have been filed by the party. Obanikoro, in an affidavit he filed with the substantive suit alleged that George and Agabje deliberately disrupted proceedings at the election venue, using thugs and state security officers to

achieve their aim. Obanikoro is by the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/ 994/2014 seeking among others, the nullification of election outcome on the ground that the election violated the party’s electoral guidelines in many areas, including the production of result in excess of accredited voters.

Oyo spends N5.3b on 62 roads From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

HE Oyo State government, in conjunction with local councils, is spending N5.3billion to repair 62 roads in the 33 local governments. A statement in Ibadan yesterday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Festus Adedayo, said the repair became necessary because of their bad state. Adedayo added that the roads were picked by the caretaker committee chairmen based on their levels of disrepair and the needs of the people. The governor’s spokesman said the funds for the projects were drawn from the excess crude account. About N1,667,535,398.75 is being expended on the roads under construction in Ibadan Zone. The Oyo Zone N908,774,905.50; Ogbomoso Zone N760,815,499.50; Saki Zone N1,470,368,382 and Ibarapa Zone N458,747,461.75, totalling N5,266,261,646.75.

‘Emulate Clark’s wife’

N Abeokuta group, Egba Descendants Union (EDU), has praised the senatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun Central, Dr. Abisola SodipoClark, for her insistence on running an issue-based campaign. In a statement in Abeokuta yesterday, the Chairman, Moshood Dosunmu, said the Central District required candidates who would stay away from mudslinging, campaign of calumny and violence. Dosunmu said: “We have come to the conclusion that our people are peace loving, therefore we advice the politicians to follow the line that Dr. Sodipo-Clark has espoused. We call on other candidates from other parties to follow the steps of this woman. “Our people are refined and even though we like politics we don’t like “do or die” kind of politics. What Egba people want is someone who can tell us what he or she can do. “We take this issue seriously. It is only a candidate with nothing to offer that will run away from telling the people what they can achieve. We don’t want people coming to lie to us that they will give us heaven on earth. The legislature is about policies.”

My next move, by Lagos Speaker Ikuforiji

HE Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, has said at the end of his tenure ends, he will complete his thesis. The Speaker spoke to correspondents covering the Assembly at his residence in Ikeja yesterday. Ikuforiji said: “I have so much in my hands that I can’t see any vacuum in my life. Many of you may have heard that I am a doctoral student in Liverpool, United Kingdom. In fact, it is my final year there now and since the beginning of this

By Oziegbe Okoeki

year, I have not been able to do much on my thesis. “I must find time to get that done because I am suppose to finish by May, but I’m lagging behind and really needs to do something. “For your information, I’m also in the Faculty of Law in the University of Lagos. I’m registered as a student there and I also want to join your world (journalism) where I can be free to comment on issues, I want to be a social commentator. More-

over, I told you I’m not tired of politics.” He said he relied on his close relationship with the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, thinking this would ease his emergence as the party’s governorship candidate. This, he said, prevented him from considering other issues to assist his campaign. “We need to be more realistic at times. You all know my relationship with Asiwaju and you know it is not something that can be hidden...maybe that also gave

me the over-confidence during the primaries. “But as I told my wife and my daughter, if someone, not even God now, had been with you for a month, gave you whatever you wanted, two months, nine months and if in the 10th month, you wanted something and he wanted something else, should you call for his head?” According to him, in any political party across the world, there must be elders who political officers must look up to for endorsements.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS ‘Lagos PDP will work for Jonathan’ By Sina Fadare

HE Peoples Democrat ic Party (PDP) in Lagos State has vowed to deliver the state to President Goodluck Jonathan next year. It said it would mobilise the people at the grassroots to re-elect the President for a second term, following his outstanding achievements. The spokesman of the Goodluck Lagos Grassroots Project (GLPG), Bolaji Onibudo, said the party was ready to exploit the grassroots and garner votes for the party’s candidates. Onibudo said Lagos was strategic to Southwest politics. “Lagos has the highest number of registered voters in the country and this gives us a special responsibility.”

•Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry Mrs Olusola Oworu (second left); Special Adviser to the Governor on Commerce and Industry, Seye Oladejo (third left); Mrs Bolanle Sagoo; Managing Director, Weru Adage Limited Koshoniola Akerele (second right); Abimbola Onafowokan (third right) and Consultant, Lagos State Rice Project, Rotimi Fashola at the allocation of industrial plots and mobilisation of allottees to site at Imota Agro-Industrial Park, Lagos. PHOTO: OMOSEHIN MOSES

Free Lagos-Osogbo train ride

HE Osun State government has announced its free train ride from Lagos to Osogbo. A statement by the Director, Bureau of Communications and Strategy in the Office of the Governor, Semiu Okanlawon, said the free train ride service underscores the responsiveness of the government to the needs of the people. He said: “The first batch of passengers will be brought in from Lagos tomorrow from the Iddo Terminus in Lagos by 11am. Passengers will also be taken back to Lagos from Osogbo train station on December 28. “The free train ride will also on December 31 convey passengers from Lagos to Osogbo and on January 4, it will bring passengers from Osogbo back to Lagos.” Since its inception in 2011, the free train service had boosted tourism in the state as it encouraged thousands who desire to travel but consider the prohibitive fares and the usually hectic traffic situation. The gesture has also rekindled the trust of Nigerians in the viability of the hitherto moribund railway system as a means of transportation.

Each panel gets blackout From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

KITI State Governor Ayo Fayose has set up a technical committee to tackle the incessant blackouts in the state. Members of the committee are the chief operating officer of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company, special adviser (Utility) to the Governor, general manager, State Water Corporation and general manager, State Electricity Board. In a statement yesterday by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, the governor said incessant power outage was killing small and medium scale businesses and had rendered dams moribund. The comatose condition of the dams, according to him, had affected the provision of potable water to the people. Fayose said: “One can imagine the hardship small business owners go through, people running businesses, such as salons, welding outfits, among others. A large chunk of what could have been their profit is spent on purchasing and fuelling generators. “The health hazard is also there. A number of people have died as a result of inhaling generator fume. We came to office to also learn that most of the water dams in the state are in bad shape.”

Support for aspirant

OUTHS under the aegis of Ogun East Youth Forum (OEYF) have promised to support the All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate, Prince Dapo Abiodun. In a statement yesterday by its Coordinator, Tunde Ojutawo, OEYF said it had followed the activities of politicians in Ogun State and found “Abiodun’s politics” to be “exemplary, commendable and recommendable”. “The APC Ogun East senatorial candidate has demonstrated practical politics of maturity, sincerity and compassion. Since his election, he has been reaching out to those who lost at the primaries. He has conducted a clean, non-violent, and all-involving campaign. “It is not surprising that he is seen as a reliable rallying point for this is the kind of politician that we need in our senatorial district and in Ogun State. That is why we have come out to openly declare our support for him, and we will ensure his success at the general elections.” The PDP Chairman in Surulere said some of the monumental structures put in place by the Jonathan administration were all over the country, adding that he should be re-elected to consolidate on these achievements. The PDP Vice-Chairman, Southwest, Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe, urged members of the project to propagate the philosophy of the project by campaigning for the party.

Oyo APC to Folarin: you’re bad news

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has described the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Teslim Folarin, as bad news in the politics of the state. In its reaction to an interview which Folarin granted yesterday, Oyo APC’s Director of Publicity and Strategy Olawale Sadare said the former Senate leader had further compounded his credibility problem in the polity by exposing himself as an unrepentant desperado and master of double speak. Sadare said: “In the said

interview, the PDP candidate revealed how Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s sense of justice and fairness saved him from imprisonment in a murder case. On the other hand, the same Folarin claimed that the governor was a non-performer. “By implication, the APC administration has been able to clean the Augean Stables brought into the state by PDP gladiators. As a matter of fact, a sincere mind would celebrate this feat alone even if nothing has been added to it,” the APC said. The APC said it was time for Folarin to reap his bar-

ren eight years in the Senate, which it said was unproductive and non-beneficial to the state. “This was the same Senate leadership position which Senator Olusola Saraki held in Kwara which catapulted him to the zenith of acclaim. Folarin occupied same and cannot point to any significant contribution he made in the lives of the people,” the APC said. “In view of the foregoing, we are taken aback by Folarin’s outbursts. We urge him to concentrate on repairing the damage that

his emergence as a governorship candidate of the PDP has caused his party and face the court process in that regard as it is still a subject of controversy. “We urge him to refrain from his usual refrain of misleading the public by making false claims in the media. The good thing about this current outburst is that, each attempt by Folarin and his ilk to denigrate the person of the governor falls flat on its face as the people remain resolute in their determination to settle for continuity and consolidation in 2015.”

Court rules expert witness can give evidence on EIA

USTICE Doris Okuwobi of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja declared yesterday that an environmental expert, Prof Olaniyi Okedele, could give evidence on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report he co-authored. The judge said this while ruling in a N10 billion suit brought against Standard Chartered Bank by elder statesman, Dr. Tunji Braithwaite. Dr. Braithwaite is challenging the construction of a 14-storey building with a multi-level car park opposite his home on Victoria Island, Lagos. The bank, through its counsel, Adetunji Adegbonmire, challenged the claimant’s decision for Prof Okedele to give evidence in the matter. Justice Okuwobi ruled that it was in the interest of justice to allow the witness to give evidence to assist the court in explaining the contents of the document, which was in evidence. She said: “The defence counsel opposed him not to give evidence on the reason that there was no evidence statement filed by plaintiff. Rules of court should be complied with for quick dispensation of justice. The witness is an expert. “He should be given a chance to explain what is contained in the document tendered. I find the objection untenable and I allow the witness to continue with his evi-

By Adebisi Onanuga

dence.” Consequently upon the ruling, Prof. Okedele entered the witness box to give testimony on the matter. The don told the court that the EIA report relied upon by the bank in constructing the building did not meet international standard. He added that EIA was an international instrument that regulates construction, to which Nigeria is a signatory. The witness said the airspace between the structure and the claimant’s home should be up to 10 metres but that what obtained at the

moment was less than the international stipulations. He told the court that this had resulted in wind obstruction to the house. Under cross-examination, Adegbonmire demanded to know if there was a physical measurement of the distance. Prof. Okedele explained that their findings emanated from an assessment which they performed through simulation, since it was unsafe to approach the structure for measurement then. He volunteered to conduct the measurement either physically or visually now

that the structure was on the 14th floor to confirm that the simulation was in order. But Adegbonmire insisted that the contents of the expert report was not correct since there was no direct physical measurement by the witness’ firm. The claimant, Dr. Braithwaite, after the cross-examination of the witness did not conduct any further examination. He, consequently, closed his case. The bank would open its defence at the next adjourned date. Justice Okuwobi adjourned further proceedings till January 27 and March 3.

NUC okays eight Osun varsity courses

HE Vice-Chancellor of the Osun State University, Prof. Bashir Okesina, has said eight postgraduate programmes have been approved by the National Universities Commission (NUC). Speaking at a briefing on the main campus, he said the postgraduate programmes would begin in the 2014/2015 session. The courses are Master of Arts (M.A.) History and International Studies; Master in International Studies (MIS); Master in Intelligence and Strategic Studies (MISS); Master of Science in Geography; Professional Master in Disaster Risk Management (MRM); Professional Master in Envi-

From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

ronmental Management (MEM); Ph.D Microbiology and M.Sc. Biochemistry. Okesina also said 32 undergraduate academic programmes had been accredited. Okesina ordered students on the Ikire Campus to pay N30,000 reparation fee before resumption. He announced the resumption of the students, following their protest. The VC appealed to the students to be of good conduct. The don said: "The NUC has approved eight post graduate programmes for

commencement in the 2014/ 2015 session and through Learned Conference Policy has sponsored over 250 academic and non-academic staff to attend local and international conferences, trainings and seminars. “Eight five academic staff have benefitted from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) on Academic Staff Training and Development (AST&D) to study within and outside Nigeria. "Academic and non-academic staff have also attended international and local conferences to broaden their horizon as the management is committed to continuous training and exposure.”

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

•National Leader, All Progressives Congress (APC) Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (middle); APC presidential candidate’s wife Hajiya Aishat Muhammadu Buhari (third left); Lagos State Deputy Governor Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire (second left); and members of Mrs. Buhari’s entourage during a visit to Tinubu’s home in Ikoyi, Lagos...yesterday.

Lamorde: EFCC ’ll not compromise excellence •Ribadu thanks Obasanjo, Fawehinmi, others

HE Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, has emphasised that the agency would not accept anything less than excellence from its operatives. He also said in spite of initial scepticism, EFCC had fulfilled its mandate in the last 11 years. But it was an emotional day when a former Chairman of EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, paid tributes to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, exInspector General of Police Tafa Balogun, who was tried and jailed by the anti-graft agency, the late Gani Fawehinmi (SAN) Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) and the media for the success of the commission. Lamorde, who made the submissions at “Rewards and Recognition” ceremony for 306 past and present workers at the EFCC Academy in Karu, Abuja, said the commission would not lower its high standards. Lamorde said: “Right from inception, the commission took a conscious decision to be different; thereby throwing a challenge to chart a totally new path in law enforcement in Nigeria. “Consequently, we have set a very high standard for our staff, not only at the point of entry, but also in the discharge of their duties and for them to continue to stay employed with the commission. “The EFCC that only a few were willing to give a fleeting chance of succeeding 11 years ago, is today an institution of reckoning in law enforcement, with operations, partnerships and influence stretching across and beyond

From Yusuf Alli, Managing Editor, Northern Operation

the African continent. “We are also here to remind ourselves that as far as the EFCC is concerned, anything less than excellent is unacceptable”. He said the reason for the gathering was to say “thank you” to former and present workers, friends and stakeholders, who had distinguished themselves in their contributions to EFCC collective aspirations. A former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Kanu Agabi (SAN), under whose tenure EFCC was established, asked the commission to be “resolute in its efforts to rid the country of economic and financial crimes.” He said: “Our country is ours to build, and you are in the remarkable position, having been appointed to investigate and prosecute all those who undermine that work through corruption. “Our laws are not self-enforcing. They require good men and women to enforce them; and you of the EFCC are the good men and women that the nation has appointed to see to the enforcement of our laws.” On his part, a former EFCC Chairman, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, who was also one of the awardees, said: “No institution in Nigeria has given hope and still gives hope to Nigerians than the EFCC. “The EFCC remains my family, and no matter how long, your good efforts will be rewarded. Don’t worry; continue to do your job no matter the circumstances, and you will surely be rewarded.”

MTN begins draws for cash promo

ELECOMMUNICATIONS and ICT Company, MTN, has launched another customers’ reward promo. Tagged: “MTN Cash Quest”, the promo is a platform through which a millionaire will emerge daily. It started on December 4 and will end on March 13, 2015. At the first draw held at the Ikoyi premises of the company last Friday, to select the first batch of winners, two winners - Sadiya Mohammed

from Bauchi State and Isa Mohammed from Kano State - emerged the first set of beneficiaries. The news was broken to them through phone calls af5ter they were selected. Briefing reporters before the draws were held, the General Manager, Consumer Marketing, MTN, Mr. Richard Iweanoge, said that MTN Cash Quest is a promo targetted at new and existing subscribers.

LP disowns Alao-Akala, Ogboru, Princewill

HE Labour Party (LP) has disowned former Oyo State Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala, Great Ogboru, and Tonye Princewill. It said the three politicians were not the party’s governorship candidates in Oyo, Delta and Rivers states. The party added that it has not fielded any candidate for next year’s general elections, warning those parading themselves as the party’s flagbearer to stop. The National Caretaker Committee put in place by the organised labour - the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) - said at a news conference at the NLC secretariat in Abuja that the three men were not known as the party’s members. The LP is factionalised with organised labour, which claimed to have registered the party, setting up a committee to conduct fresh elections after dissociating itself from the national convention held in Akure. The committee’s chairman, Salisu Muhammed, said the party’s former national chairman, Dan Nwanyanwu and

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

his ex-scribe were only using the three men to enrich themselves. Mohammed said those claiming to have purchased nomination forms did that fraudulently and therefore, could not represent the party. He said: “Of recent, the media has been awashed with purported entry of Alao-Akala into our party to contest for governorship election in Oyo State. “He is said to have been given ticket by Salam and Mr. Dan Nwanyanwu - former National Secretary and National Chairman. “This situation also goes to Chief Princewill Tonye of Rivers State, Chief Great Ogboru of Delta State, as well as some followers of Governor Elechi of Ebonyi State. They are now the latest victims of political buccaneers. In one word, we honestly counsel you all: don’t jump from frying pan to fire.” Mohammed said the party was taking legal action against Nwanyanwu to retrieve its Certificate of Registration and other party’s property that were still in his pos-

session. He said Nwanyanwu was earlier given a three-day demand notice on the issue, which had since elapsed, lamenting that he had chosen the path of dishonour. His words: “The NCC was saddled with the responsibility of repositioning the party towards achieving the objective for which it was set up by the working people through their apex organisations - the NLC and the TUC. “The mandate given to us, apart from repositioning the party, also includes retrieving the party’s Certificate of Registration and taking inventory of the party’s property and recovering same from our party’s erstwhile National Chairman, Dan Nwanyanwu. “In accordance with this understanding, we had caused to write again, a letter dated December 11, 2014, being final demand letter giving him (Nwanyanwu) - three-working-day notice - to return the certificate to the party’s registered office situated at the Labour House. “This letter, under reference, is a follow up to the earlier letter of demand written by Edo State Governor Adams

Aliyu Oshiomhole, erstwhile president of the NLC, in January 31, 2006, in which he (Oshiomhole) stated to Dan Nwanyanwu that: your private custody of the document is inexplicable and outside the bounds of practice of mass organisations. “The three-day demand notice, being the final, has since elapsed. And this suggested that Dan Nwanyanwu has chosen to follow the path of dishonour by betraying the trust reposed in him in seeking to appropriate our collective property, and engage the NLC and TUC and their affiliated industrial unions, and by extension, the working people of Nigeria in a duel and contention on the ownership of the Labour Party. “As a result of this unfortunate situation, we (will) like to assure him that we will take all legitimate actions to recover the certificate and other property of the party. “Labour Party is not registered by Nwanyanwu and Salam. Whatever it would take to pursue this mandate would be fully employed by the party. If it takes going to court, we will tender evidences and proofs.”

Jonathan urges monarchs to enlighten subjects going to deliberate on issues HE Federal Governon peaceful polls affecting the country, particment has appealed to ularly the preparations leadtraditional rulers to en-

lighten their subjects on peaceful conduct during and after next year’s general election. President Goodluck Jonathan made the appeal at the 7th General Assembly of the National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria (NCTRN), with the theme: “Sustaining the natural mandate of the traditional institutions in contemporary Nigeria.” Jonathan, who was represented by Vice President Namadi Sambo, acknowledged the unifying force and the contributions of the traditional institutions in maintaining the country’s peace and stability. A statement by Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President, Umar Sani, quoted him as saying: “As royal fathers and traditional rulers, such a time calls for your wise counsel and the enlightenment of your subjects as well as prayers to ensure hitch-free and successful elections across

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

the federation. “The role of the traditional institutions as the custodian of our rich cultural heritage has contributed to ensuring high moral standard among the citizenry and must be greatly appreciated.” He urged the royal fathers to join hands with governments at all levels to ensure the end of the nation’s security challenges. Jonathan informed the royal fathers that government was doing everything necessary to uplift the socio-economic status of Nigerians,

through job and wealth creation mechanisms. The Chairman of the Northern States Governors Forum and the Niger State Governor, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, while lauding the traditional rulers, urged them to come up with holistic mechanisms to address the nation’s security and socio-economic challenges. The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, reaffirmed the commitment of the royal fathers to the peace, unity, justice and stability of the nation, while also urging government to positively look into their recommendations. He said the assembly was

ing to the 2015 general election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the insecurity ravaging the Northeast, among others. In his keynote address, INEC Chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega assured the traditional rulers of the commission’s readiness and determination to deliver a free, fair and credible election next year, which would surpass that of 2011. He appealed to the traditional rulers to partner with the commission to ensure attitudinal change by the electorate and the political class to ensure success of the polls.

Buhari’s Twitter handle draws 14, 000 followers

HE All Progressives Congress’ (APC’s) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), has, in less than few hours after opening his official twitter handle @ThisIsBuhari, attracted over 14, 000 followers. Indications also emerged yesterday that he has promised to respond to tweets personally with GMB as a sign that the replies emanated from him.

Buhari, in a tweet, said: “I and my office will speak to you from here. Personal tweets will be signed GMB. This is a start of a conversation to change our country.” Many Nigerians were attracted yesterday after they discovered the tweets. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar urged his followers to follow the APC candidate on the social media.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 20114

BUSINESS THE NATION

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There is nothing wrong in having a robust renewable energy programme in the country. In fact, government has taken a step in that direction by introducing the: ‘Light Up Nigeria’ scheme. - Director-General, National Power Training Institute of Nigeria, Rueben Okeke

Oando supports Navy with fuel tank By Akinola Ajibade

HE Group Managing Director, Oando Ni geria Plc, Wale Tinubu yesterday in Lagos said the oil major has boosted operations of the Nigerian Navy by providing it with a one-million-litre fuel storage capacity tank. Speaking during the commissioning of the facility in Lagos, Tinubu said the would guarantees an uninterrupted supply of fuel and seamless operations of naval ships. Represented at the event by the Chief Executive officer, Oando Marketing Company, Yomi Awobokun, he said the project is in line with the Navy’s Transformation Agenda of providing effective monitoring services of the nation’s waterways. He said efforts are on-going to build the facility in all naval stations across the country as part of efforts to make the institution more formidable in Africa. Tinubu said: ‘’ Oando is replicating the facility in all the Naval stations. We have articulated our plans, and we are working with the Navy’s top brass to replicate the structure in Navy-owned facilities. The Navy conceived the idea of having a fuel gas storage facility in its formation, and we have keyed into it. We are happy that the Navy approached us on the issue. Oando is keen to help Navy deploy its fleets through the facility whenever the need arises. ‘’Oando is working with the Navy on how to provide and implement new initiatives and make its roles unparallel in the continent soon. We have since positioned ourselves as a partner with the Navy in order to help strengthening the force.’’ Tinubu said the company has tanks of fuel buried in Navy facilities at Victoria Island and Apapa in Lagos to help the Navy access the product for operations. The Chief of Naval of Staff, Vice Admiral UO Jibrin, said the Navy and Oando have evolved partnership arrangement in the last 18 months for growth. Represented by the Chief of Logistics, Naval Headquarters, Rear Admiral Ikot Ibao, he said the facility would change the process of delivering fuel to the Navy. ‘’Most of the supplies were through the trucks. Now that we have this kind of facility, it means cutting down the cost of stock-piling the product,’’ Jibrin added.

• Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele flanked on the left by the Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr. Sam Amadi, and Chief Executive Officer of FCMBN, Mr. Ladi Balogun, during the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on power sector with PHOTO ABAYOMI FAYESE the CBN and other stakeholders, in Abuja...yesterday.

‘Nigeria’s economy resilient’ M

OODY’S Investors Service said Niger ia’s economy remains resilient in the face of falling oil prices even as the currency slumped to a record low and growth in Africa’s largest crude producer is set to slow. Nigeria’s economy, the continent’s biggest, will probably expand five percent next year, Aurelien Mali, Moody’s senior analytical adviser, said yesterday in an e-mailed statement. That’s in line with forecasts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the government’s revised esti-

mate of 5.35 per cent. The West African nation’s government relies on crude exports for about 70 per cent of its income and 95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings, leaving it vulnerable to price and quantity shocks. Finance Minister Ngozi OkonjoIweala is seeking to cut spending in next year’s budget by eight per cent to 4.36 trillion naira ($23.9 billion) as revenue plunges. “Nigeria benefits from a resilient economy and robust fiscal position, although the recent drop in oil prices will likely put

pressure on public finances and could lead to the widening of fiscal deficits,” Moody’s said. Spending cuts and taxes on non-oil industries may help to close the gap, it added. Moody’s rates Nigeria’s debt at Ba3, three levels below investment grade, with a stable outlook. Oil prices have slumped 45 per cent in the past six months, eroding foreigncurrency reserves and forcing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to devalue the currency for the first time in three years. The naira fell 1.3 per cent to

182.35 per dollar on the interbank market as of 4:10 p.m. in Lagos, the commercial capital yesterday. Nigeria’s government debt, which is “very low” at 13.2 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), will probably increase to 14.6 per cent in 2015, Moody’s said. As a proportion of government revenue, debt is set to rise to 130 per cent from 121.8 per cent, it said. Both ratios are low compared to market peers rated Ba3, according to Moody’s.

UN agency applauds Ogun agric initiative

UNITED Nations’ agency, the Interna tional Fund For Agricultural Development (IFAD) has offered to provide incentives that will improve the state’s agricultural value chain. Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN agency in Rome and Chairman IFAD Board, Dr. Yaya Olaniran, said the organisation is fascinated by the industrialisation and urban renewal drive of the Governor Ibikunle Amosun administration towards provision of necessary road networks that has opened up the hinterland to commercial activities. This, according to him, has

in turn improved the standard of living the people of the state, particularly farmers. He spoke when he paid a courtesy call on the governor in Abeokuta yesterday. Olaniran a former commissioner of agriculture in the state, said: “Your giant strides in the area of industrialisation and infrastructural development that has improved the standard of living of the people is attractive and that is why we have come to see ways we can partner with you to aid your agricultural production and better the lives of our farmers too.” He said IFAD is ready to support the state in the area

of agricultural production, adding that the agency intends to make farmers become buoyant businessmen, particularly in the area of large scale cassava and rice production. Responding to the development, Amosun commended IFAD for its interest in the state. He restated his administration’s determination and commitment to use agricultural production to galvanise the growth of other sectors of the state’s economy. He said when agriculture is properly harnessed with the corresponding value chain, Ogun State will not only feed itself and the Southwest but

also the entire country. Amosun said the initiative of his government would also nose-dive into industrialisation as many of the unemployed youths in the state will be employed along the line and also become employers of labour. He said present realities at the State Agricultural Farms set up for youths show that the agric sector has the potential to keep the unemployed youths out of the street. Governor Amosun promised that the state would not fail to contribute its quota in form counterpart funding as soon as the organisation makes real its plans.

AEDC promises stable power during Yuletide

ANAGEMENT of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has assured electricity customers across the three states of Kogi, Niger, Nasarawa and the Federal Capital Territory of its preparedness to respond speedily to faults and ensure that load allocated to it is distributed to customers equitably during the yuletide season. Head Public Relations and Media, Ahmed Shekarau said part of its strategy to meet customers’

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

electricity need during the festive season is the setting up of a Special Taskforce fully equipped to speedily distribute the load allocated to it and also clear faults wherever they may occur within its franchise area. To this end, the regional managers in the company’s six regions of Kogi, Niger, Nasarawa, FCT Central, FCT South and FCT North have been directed to prepare, submit and monitor

their Special Taskforce group with similar groups set up in the Area Offices. The company assured further that notwithstanding the movement of customers to celebrate the Yuletide with their loved ones in their towns and villages, it will ensure that wherever the customers are in its franchise area, it will ensure equitable distribution of load allocated to it and speedy response to faults. While thanking all its customers for their understand-

ing this year, its management said it is optimistic that power supply and associated services such as the purchase of electricity token, metering, meter reading and billing will enjoy major improvement in the new year to the delight of the customers. The firm urged customers to be safety conscious and resist the temptation to engage in any act of theft of energy or vandalism. It advised customers to also take advantage of the existence of its Call Centres.

‘Insecurity poses threat to banking’ From Olugbenga Adanikin, Abuja

HE Deputy General Manager of Zenith Bank, Dr. Gabriel Okenwa, has raised the alarm over the spate of insecurity in the country, lamenting that it poses a threat to the financial sector. Okenwa stated that banks were currently contending with various degrees of security threats. He spoke yesterday during his book presentation in Abuja. The book is titled Risk Management and Security Awareness in Nigeria Banking Sector. Okenwa likened security of the sector to national security. He emphasised the need for sound regulatory system in the sector, adding that good regulation and supervision were necessary to ensure strict compliance to rules efficient for banking. The book reviewer, Fr. Dr. John Ifeanyi lamented the impacts of insecurity to the sustenance of banks in the country. The clergy, who is also an Associate Professor, Veritas University of Nigeria stated that the effects of insurgency is gradually distabilising the banking structures. He said: “National security is a major concern to everyone including the banking sector. As the rate of insecurity increases in Nigeria, it affects the sector. Banks and financial institutions are not He called for a safe and secure work environment for the workforce in the sector. The Chief of Staff to the President, Gen. Jones Arogbofa commended the author for contributing to knowledge through the book. He described it as a must read for everyone.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

THE NATION

BUSINESS MARITIME

e-mail: maritime@thenationonlineng.net

Hard times await smugglers at Seme, says Controller S

EME Border Customs Area Controller (CAC) Comptroller Mohammed Ndalati has swung into action, promising smugglers a hard time. Speaking when he took over from his predecessor, Comptroller Willy Egbudin, Ndalati said he would collaborate with his officers to flush out smugglers. With the support of his men, he said, he would harness all human and material resources to achieve the zero tolerance policy for smuggling. Ndalati said: ”We must imbibe change; we must exhibit it and show that we are change agents. Manning the border must include behavioural management of persons. The bottom line is that you have conquered the environment.’’ According to him, challenges will not deter him and his officers from delivering on the Customs core responsibilities of trade facilitation and revenue collection. He praised the Comptroller-General of Customs, Alhaji Dikko Abdullahi, for his human capacity building initiatives and the modernised and improved status of Customs. “Customs have come of age and we are in the modern day customs. It is no longer the branded, outdated and antiquated Customs and Excise Department we used to know. In other words, professionalism is enhanced and encouraged under the present regime,” he said. Seeking the cooperation of

Stories by Oluwakemi Dauda Maritime Correspondent

stakeholders, he advised importers and customs agents to keep abreast of import guidelines. Businessmen and companies that comply with the extant order have nothing to fear, he said. Ndalati praised Egbudin, describing him as a hardworking and dedicated officer. He assured that he would build on his good works.s said that the officers and men on the ground are very resourceful persons and I want to count on that. I solicit their maximum cooperation and optimal input in every endeavour,” he added. Ndalati urged his men not just to be concerned about goods passing the border, but also about the people. Born on March 15, 1959 in Zaria, Kaduna State, Ndalati had his early education in Zaria and Bida, Niger State. As a pioneer student of the Bayero University Kano (BUK), he participated in the Students Union Government. He graduated in 1980 with Bachelor of Science in Sociology. The new area controller enlisted into the Nigeria Customs Service in 1981 as Superintendent Collector II, he has been trained at home and abroad. Before his posting to Seme Area Command, Ndalati was Comptroller Headquarters, Office of the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs

•Egbudin (left) and Ndalati during the handing.

PHOTO: OLUWAKEMI DAUDA

NIMASA: Tompolo didn’t import gunboats

IGERIAN Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Director-General Patrick Akpobolokemi, has denied a report that a company owned by former Niger Delta militant leader Government Ekpemupolo (aka Tompolo) imported six decommissioned Norwegian warships. He described the reports as “unfounded rumours”and the handiwork of “people who are bent on blackmailing the agency because of its war against illegalities on the nation’s territorial waters”. Three of the boats, he said, were inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan during the groundbreaking of the Nigerian Maritime University in Okerenkoko, Delta State, in May. “Also, we have taken people round all those things. Senators have come to see them, some even said militants were the ones driving the boats; even today, if you want, we can go back there. So, what is the complaint? ‘’They are complaining because we are doing our job. We are not allowing illegalities. They will not come and tell you this truth, but we know,” he said. Akpobolokemi said no law stops private firms from doing business with the agency, advising NIMASA critics to be objective. He said: “Our laws permit that the agency can partner with anyone. In the section of our Act, it says NIMASA in furtherance of its func-

tion can partner with any person or group of person and any corporate organisation. So, people should not just stay somewhere to spread rumours. Also, rumours should give way for objectivity, facts that are verifiable and this should be benchmark against national laws and standard and possibly international conventions. “When we have private people who are only supplying boats for us and that is the sin that is being committed. I don’t think NIMASA owes anyone hiding under the verge of its vessels being seized for oil theft or organised piracy apology.” The NIMASA chief said shipowners were employing unnecessary litigations to stall the removal of abandoned vessels and wrecks on the coastal waters, thereby endangering navigation. He accused culprits of using the moribund vessels and the wrecks to harbour criminals. Akpobolokemi told The Nation that the Federal Government has awarded contract for the removal of wrecks and abandoned vessels on the territorial waters, saying work would begin soon. Many of those who have abandoned their old wrecked-ships, Akpobolokemi said, would surface to ask for compensation through the courts few days to the removal of their wrecks. He said: “NIMASA will issue over 20 marine notices for them to come and remove the wrecks, but you

will not see them, but the day you want to go and remove the wrecks, you will discover that a wreck that has been abandoned for five years, suddenly you will see crew, the next day; they are in court to get an injunction” Somebody, whose ship is old and abandoned on the waters, would go to court and say the wreck is good and will demand N10 billion compensation from NIMASA, he said, adding that wrecks can cause navigation problems and became a hiding space for criminals. According to him, some people didn’t want his agency to remove

the abandoned ships because they were using them for some nocturnal activities. The first phase of the job, he said, had been awarded, adding that the Lagos area and some other zones are included in the contract. Akpobolokemi spoke of the agency’s frustration whenever it embarks on removal of wrecks. He said the agency has tightened its noose against international oil companies to ensure that they comply with the Cabotage Act. NIMASA, he said, has mandated the International Oil Companies (IOCs) to ensure that right of first

refusal was given to indigenous ship owners in compliance with the Local Content Law and the Cabotage Act. Akpobolokemi urged the indigenous ship owners to be honest in their quest to participate in oil lifting and other coastal trade. “When any Nigerian buys a vessel, no matter my schedule, I personally do the commissioning, and I have also written to so many oil companies that they must provide jobs for such vessels and many of them have got jobs, but they will not come out and announce it,” he said.

Embark on e-transactions, Customs urged

HE National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has urged the Nigeria Customs Service to embark on paperless transactions at the ports to reduce human contact and corruption. The Chairman, Tin Can Island Chapter of the association, Chief Austin Ekweozor, said paperless transactions would facilitate trade, eliminate corruption and promote efficiency. The NAGAFF chief said his association was ready to support the Customs in becoming IT-compliant, adding that it would help them separate the professionals from the quacks at the ports. “I see the ongoing movement for

paperless transaction as a very good reform that can help this country. It will help our operations to improve, because carrying papers about does not help the system, but when you have your payment receipts and your print-outs, all the information you carry will be in the system and this will minimise the corrupt practices we are witnessing in this country. “The introduction of the scheme will help us to know who is the agent and who are the touts in the port, if you cannot access Customs server and key into their system to perfect your document by yourself as an agent, then, it will show the type of job you do at the port as a real agent or quack,” he said. Ekweozor listed the merits of e-

transaction, as elimination of alterations on bill of lading and other importation documents, among others. He said paperless transactions would make officials of Customs, shipping companies and terminal operators more professional. “The last meeting we had with the CAC Tin Can, he told us they are working towards expanding the server to reduce the problems they usually have with it. “He promised us that they will invite expatriates that will look into the system to make sure that the capacity of information loaded into the server will be accumulated without any server failure. We are therefore, looking up to Customs to introduce the paperless scheme to their efficiency,” Ekweozor said.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

BUSINESS Ajaokuta adds 25mega watts to national grill

JAOKUTA steel company is now able to generate 25 mega watt of electric to the national grid, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Musa Mohammed Sada has said. He explained that the generation level is just a fraction of the 110 mega watt installed capacity of plant that was dormant. He said unlike the popular belief, the Ajaokuta Steel Company is not idle, adding that the plant is an integrated plant that has so many areas that are currently working. Sada also said that the only part of the company that is currently not working is the blast furnace that will produce liquid steel. He said that in no distant future, the company will

From Grace Obike, Abuja

come back to life and all that is needed is the raw material because they will not want to begin production and then run out of material that will cause people to say that the steel company has folded again. He stated this yesterday in Abuja, at the 2014 Ministerial platform, where he said that it is only during this government that the mining sector in the country has been seen to contribute to the federation account. His words, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ajaokuta is not idle, they are not being paid salaries to do nothing, it is an integrated plant which has so much areas that it in-

corporates and a number of them are currently working, this is the jinx that this government broke down, people assume that people there are just sitting down idle and waiting for Ajaokuta as an integrated plant to start working. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Prior to now, their where activities their so what we tried to do was to invite those activities and act on them, as Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m talking to you for instance, with all the power problems in the country, Ajaokuta has a 110mega watts plant that was dormant, we started and within a couple of weeks, we were able to generate 25mega watts out of the out of that 110 and they are working towards brining it all to a reality.

TUESDAY DECEMBER 23, 2014

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

Of the 15 governorship aspirants of Ibadan origin, only four-Governor Abiola Ajimobi (All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Rashidi Ladoja (Accord Party (AP), Senator Teslim Folarin (Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Seyi Makinde (Social Democratic Party (SDP)won the tickets. The other candidate outside Ibadan is former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala, who is running on the platform of the Labour Party (LP). He is from Ogbomoso. BISI OLADELE examines their chances at the poll.

Oyo 2015: Four Ibadan indigenes for governor

OUR Ibadan indigenes are competing for the Agodi Government House, Ibadan, Oyo State in next year’s governorship election. Governor Abiola Ajimobi, who is seeking for a second term on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is the leading contender. He hails from Ibadan South West Local Government. The Accord Party (AP) candidate, former Governor Rashidi Ladoja, Rashidi Ladoja, hails from Ibadan North Local Government. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Senator Teslim Folarin, hails from Ona-Ara Local Government while the Social Democratic Party (SDP) flag bearer, Oluseyi Makinde, an engineer, hails from Ibadan North East Local Government. However, the candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, hails from Ogbomoso. The four are leaving no stone unturned to win the election.

Ajimobi

The governor polled over 330,000 votes to defeat his closest contenders - AlaoAkala and Ladoja - in the 2011 election. The highest number of votes came from his local government. The council is densely populated. It is made up of the hinterlands • Ajimobi • Ladoja and elitist areas of Ibadan. The population is more than the population of three councils in the metropolis. Many have described Ajimobi as the most performing governor, owing to his various developmental projects that are improving the standard of living of the people. He has succeeded in reviving the culture of setting the pace as pioneered by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the first Premier of the defunct Western Region. For instance, the governor embarked on the dualzation of major roads in Ibadan, Ogbomoso, Oyo and Iseyin simultaneously. He provided free transportation for civil servants and students and decent buses to replace common rickety commercial buses. The buses ply far-distance routes and charge commuters a token. Ajimobi also embarked on the beautification of cities, in consonance with his urban renewal programme, while also remodeling and transforming the abandoned Agodi Gardens to a world-class resort centre. In addition, his administration is building model schools in the three senatorial zones. He has employed 20,000 youths into the youth empowerment scheme and 5,300 teachers for schools. He reconstructed many bridges, which could withstand the flood, and built a flyover at Mokola. •Folarin • Makinde Ajimobi’s projects have changed the face of Ibadan, the state capital, from one of the dirtiest cities to a clean city. ‘However, in comparison, the APC and its candidate reBut, it is not rosy for the APC candidate. main the most organised and popular. With his sterling His party has lost some members to the PDP, the Accord and the LP in the last one performance, the power of incumbency and the soaring year. Thus, the governor has to gird his popularity of the party at the national level, Ajimobi will loins. The poll will not be an easy ride for him. be the candidate to beat in the election. But, no goverAjimobi is radiating a high confidence. nor has been elected twice in Oyo State. Can Ajimobi He told reporters in Ibadan that he would not lose sleep over the defection of some break ther jinx’ members. “There is no need for us to worry about defections from the party. When have joined the race, leaving room for fur- in Oyo State. Can Ajimobi break ther jinx? sports men such as boxers and wrestlers ther division of votes from the city. are called to the ring, each of them jumps Ladoja However, in comparison, the APC and up and dramatizses to show that he would its candidate remain the most organised The Third Republic senator was the surely win the match. But, the actual battle and popular. With his sterling perform- governor between 2003 and 2007. At 70, determines who the champion is. We shall ance, the power of incumbency and the Ladoja is contesting for the position for see the actual champion when the election soaring popularity of the party at the na- the third time. An astute leader with large is held,” he said. tional level, Ajimobi will be the candidate following, AP’s fortunes rose in the last Unlike in 2011, when only Ladoja and one year, following the defection of APC to beat in the election. Ajimobi were the major flag bearers from But, no governor has been elected twice and PDP members to the party. The deIbadan, two contenders of Ibadan origin

fectors include a serving senator, four members of the House of Representatives and five members of the House of Assembly. But, going by the result of the 2011 elections, Ladoja’s popularity is limited to Ibadan. in Ibadan. All the positions the party won in both the National Assembly and the House of Assembly elections are in Ibadanland. He has, however, worked hard to improve his acceptance, particularly in Oyo and other zones in recent times. Unless Ladoja penetrates into other zones, analysts believe that he may not be able to garner enough votes to defeat other candidates. Some people also think that Ladoja should present a younger candidate and offer guidance as an elderstatesman. The outcome of the AP primaries showed that the party only revolves around the party leader. Aggrieved chieftains who lost out in the selection process may dump the party, ahead of the poll.

Folarin

Former Senate Leader Folarin, who is flying the flag of the PDP, will also pull some weight in the election. He has the advantage of the federal might, assistance by security agencies and huge financial support by his party. The political scientist cannot be underrated. At 39, he became a senator. That was in 2003. He was re-elected in 2007. In 2011, he wanted to become governor. But, the government lied against him that he had hand in the death of Mr. Eleweomo, a transport workers leader. He could not participate in the primaries. But, he bounced back, emerging as the governorship candidate. Even, Alao-Akala had to leave the party because he could not stop his bid. But, the division in the Oyo PDP may be a big setback for him. Alao-Akala may have gone to the LP with some followers. So is Seyi Makinde, who is vying under the SDP. Besides, 51 year-old Folarin, many say, is not a grassroots politician. He is largely seen as an Abuja politician. But, when he won the ticket, the perception changed. His career has been devoid of scandal and controversy. He is a high chief of Ibadanland, who has an ambition to become the Olubadan, if God spares his life. His position in the traditional set up gives him an opportunity to interact with Ibadan leaders and he may convert this into a political capital.

Makinde

An oil magnate, he is the youngest candidate. Makinde is the face of the younger generation. He has established a structure in the PDP and he has warmed himself into the heart of a good number of residents. He also enjoys some sympathy for the alleged injustice meted to him in choosing the governorship candidate. But, many believe that, since age is on his side, he is a candidate of the future. But, the rich and impatient politician rejected the PDP senatorial ticket, saying that he either become the governor or nothing. To that extent, some people have berated him for lack of experience and foresight. Makinde’s popularity does not look strong enough to earn him a victory in the election. His popularity is low outside Ibadan while his party is not popular. As for Akala, he has a large following. He is popular in Ogbomoso. But, key PDP chieftaions have refused to defect to the LP. Therefore, his support base is polarised. His former party also picked the deputy governorship candidate from Ogbomoso. Therefore, there is no evidence that he will pull any weight at the poll.

THE NATION TUESDAY DECEMBER 23, 2014

RACE TO 2015

‘

The issue of recognising one candidate or the other does not arise as it is in the power of the NWC to do so. Those that are eager to know our candidates should wait a little while as the national secretariat will soon make available to the general public all winners of the primaries conducted in Kwara State

‘

Ogun State Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) governorship candidate Prince Gboyega Isiaka spoke with reporters in Abeokuta, the state capital, on his manifestoes, relationship with former Governor Gbenga Daniel and Prince Buruji Kashamu, and reconciliation efforts in the troubled party, ahead of next year’s elections. BOLA OLAJUWON was there.

Isiaka: no controversy about my victory in Ogun PDP primary

•Isiaka

OW would you react to the allegation that you have godfathers in the PDP, who forced you to pay N500 million for the governorship ticket? Some also alleged that you swore to an oath before you got their support? Some of the drawbacks of our democracy are that mischief, lies and deliberate falsehoods are the order of the day. And for those who engage in these vices, all is fair in war. However, let me state emphatically that there was no iota of truth in this and it was a wicked lie from those anti-democratic elements. You should know that, in a process of this nature, a keenly contested primary we just held, rumours are bound to fly around. I am not new to this type of falsehoods. I contested in 2011, and one of the things they said was that the whole assets of Gateway Holdings and the assets of the state were in my account. But, events thereafter, including several probes and audits, are yet to trace anything to me. The truth is that nobody collected a dime from me. They do not see how anybody can be loyal to a governor or to a leader as I am to Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who has never told me to take an oath of allegiance. I did not take any oath and he never asked me to do such a thing. I am someone who believes you must be loyal to your leader, especially when the process is going on as expected. But, immediately I felt otherwise during the process of crossing over to the PDP from the Labour Party, I had to do something else. And that put paid to lies that I took oath with OGD in the first instance. The same thing is happening now with Prince Buruji Kashamu and there is nothing like oathtaking. But, people cannot imagine how I moved back to the party within eight weeks and got this far. They tend to also forget the fact that we have been in this process and we know what it takes. I think they cannot imagine how it happened. I have contested this elec-

tion before and I have a peculiarity of being around the government, in terms of value to add and connection to the electorate. I have them above other aspirants and these are parts of what the leadership of the party considered before supporting me. There are a number of other people that got to the party almost at the same time like me and they won the primaries in their locations. Did they also take oaths to win? I also remember that in 2011 that former Speaker of House of Representatives Dimeji Bankole, I and several other aspirants worked together in the same faction of the party. But, when Prince Buruji Kashamu won the case against us, Bankole and a few others moved to Buruji’s side and got the ticket. I wonder if they all took oaths. The truth is that some people could still not understand how it happened. There is nothing like that, I did not give anybody any dime; and if anybody has evidence to support the allegation that I coughed any amount to get the ticket, I will be happy to see. May be I will claim the money back. I don’t have that kind of money to put into this process and that is the truth The fact is that I am the one that won this primary election and I am looking forward to the only oath I am going to take on May 29, 2015 as the governor of Ogun State. Why the controversy after the primaries and contradicting reports from your party’s national secretariat? The fact is that there is no controversy about the primaries of the PDP in Ogun State. But, we have to acknowledge the fact that the opposition party is trying to ignite controversy. Yes, in the contest of this nature, there are some people that will think it should go their way. That is the beauty of democracy. The minority will have their say, but the majority will have their way. I think in this particular case, we had the primary on the December 8. Of over 800 votes, I scored over 750 - about 82 per cent of the vote cast - to defeat my opponent, who scored 151 votes. And I was declared the winner. For me, after the primary, the other process has started, which is to look forward to the

election and how to organise ourselves to win it. Any other thing outside this, are normal postprimary election reactions that are expected in any democratic party like the PDP. But in this particular case, what we have is the opposition trying to play up none issues. You can observe that they deployed the social media and, if you see people talking there, they are opposition members that are afraid of the unity and the strength of the PDP now. They feel the best way to go is to generate controversy and internal rift where there is none. But for us, the primary is lost and won, but we expect people to express their feelings and the process to take care of that is in place. We have passed the stage of primaries, and we have reached the stage to start preparing for the election. I am the candidate and there is no controversy about that. How would you react to the claim that some members of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) were allegedly routing for Bankole? Bankole was one of the aspirants and he also passed through the process. He is not new to this process. Therefore, he knows that at any primary, somebody must win and somebody must lose. I am sure he knows this and that was what has happened in this case. I have not heard him saying anything in the public or read him in the newspapers challenging the primaries, but we have heard some people in the social media that claimed to be speaking for him; most of which are of unknown addresses that we cannot specifically say who they are. I cannot link any official position or comment to Bankole in this case. We believe he has accepted the decision of the members of our great party and he has moved on. But if he has any issue, the party is democratic and big enough to resolve it. But for us, the primary is a foregone conclusion and we are already looking forward to the next stage. But I also want to appeal to all coaspirants, including Honourable Bankole, to see reasons why we should all come together and let us give our best for our party to win all elections, including the presidential election for President Goodluck Jonathan in Ogun State. I have been trying to reach out to all of them and

‘Some of the drawbacks of our democracy are that mischief, lies and deliberate falsehoods are the order of the day. And for those who engage in these vices, all is fair in war’

Discordant tunes over Kwara PDP primaries

HE Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State, Chief Iyiola Oyedepo and his executive members have disagreed over the status of Senator Simeon Ajibola as its governorship. Oyedepo said only the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party can declare the results of the parliamentary and governorship primaries. But, other members of the state executive commitee have upheld Ajibola’s victory, saying that he is the flag bearer. Oyedepo told reporters in Ilorin, the state capital, that no official result has been released on the primaries. He maintained that the state chapter lacks the power to recog-

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

nise any candidate, except the the candidate duly announced as winners by the NWC. He said: “In recent times, the mass media and the general public have been worried on the outcome of the primaries of our party, which were held between the November 29 and December 11. “I have however, restrained myself from issuing out the result of the primaries because it is not my duty to do so. Usually, the people that came from Abuja to conduct the primaries are to report to the National Secretariat. “The result of the election can only be made public after the endorsement of the National Work-

ing Committee. The issue of recognising one candidate or the other does not arise as it is in the power of the NWC to do so. Those that are eager to know our candidates should wait a little while as the national secretariat will soon make available to the general public all winners of the primaries conducted in Kwara State.” Oyedepo added that “any other contrary message should be regarded as unauthorized.” But, in a statement, the PDP Assistant Publicity Secretary, Yusuf Femi, said that majority of the executive committee members are behind Ajibola. He said: “The Peoples Democratic Party State Executive Committee rose from our extra ordi-

I am optimistic that we will all work together in the bid to take over the Government House in Abeokuta, come February 2015. Are you not entertaining fears of a re-occurrence of the 2011 scenario when you lost the ticket as a result of a court judgment? I am not. The major difference between what happened in 2011 and now is that, in 2011, there were parallel primaries, which produced two candidates, until court pronounced someone. Besides, the party was factionalisd. But in this case, there was just a single primary and it produced me as the candidate for the party. So, no other person can claim that. Also, there is no faction of the PDP in Ogun State now. But some people may complain about the process and as I said, the party is big enough to deal with that. No process is perfect but there are processes of challenging any anomalies found in the process. The tenure of our national chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mua’zu has just been confirmed in the last convention at Abuja, where I was as a delegate and that shows our confidence in his ability to resolve this kind of crisis. Do you think the PDP can defeat the APC in Ogun State? I am convinced that if we hold election today, the PDP will record a resounding victory with unprecedented margin. I don’t have any iota of doubt in my mind about that. And we are still getting stronger because the worse is over. Until September, we were scattered to different political parties. We had a lot of our people in Labour Party, PDP and the rest. But we have all come back to the PDP and we had a very free and transparent primary. We are resolving all controversies that came after the primaries. I strongly believe that our trying time is over. I am the only candidate coming from Ogun West Senatorial District and the political awareness in that zone is very strong now. And if you consider the level of agitation in the zone, especially in the last one week, you will agree with me that we shall return the largest number of votes. We expect to do very well in other locations, so I do not have any doubt in my mind that PDP will have it in 2015. The other factor that will work for us is the inability of the present government to deliver dividends of democracy to the people. Besides, the platform Senator Ibikunle Amosun used to come to power has been divided into two. The Social Democratic Party (SDP) that came out of the APC is having a chunk of their membership. Therefore, whatever happened to the PDP in 2011 is what is happening to the APC now. So, it is clear to all discerning minds that Amosun has just six months to spend in office and he will certainly hand over to the PDP government and to me as the governor.

nary meeting with majority of the members in attendance. “The meeting ended up in making the executive committee stronger and more united. It was resolved in the meeting that the result of the governorship primaries held on the December 11, 2014 in which Senator Simeon Sule Ajibola was declared winner, is hereby upheld. “We want to reinstate that the State Executive Committee stands firmly behind this decision. The general public should please discard any rumour or speculation contrary to the stand of our party. “We praise other governorship aspirants who have openly declared and demonstrated their support for Senator Ajibola, who

• Senator Ajibola

is th people’s choice. We hereby appeal to our teaming supporters to remain calm and supportive of this our noble course.”

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

COMMENTARY EDITORIALS

LETTER

Audacious crime •Governor Fayose’s act, by presenting the state budget to a rogue legislature, is an audacious assault on the Constitution

N his novels, the late Chinua Achebe often referred to the extreme conceit, bordering on lunacy, that goads a man, no matter how prosperous or powerful, to challenge his chi (personal god). Such a man, he concluded, only courted self-destruction. From fiction to reality, that appears what is happening in Ekiti State, under Governor Ayo Fayose. Even if neither Mr. Fayose nor the Police engineered the “impeachment” of the legislature’s constituted order, under Speaker Adewale Omirin, it is strange the governor would present, before a rogue parliament of seven, out of a total of 26, members (not even up to a quorum of nine), the state’s 2014 Appropriation Bill. Not surprisingly, Fayose’s tag-team partners, in this high constitutional crime, the Police, zestfully aided this brazen illegality. Mr. Fayose’s rather infantile exhortation to the rogue “Speaker”, Dele Olugbemi, was even more instructive. “Mr. Speaker,” Fayose thundered, “you are the speaker, I say you are the speaker. I say it again you are the speaker. I’m saying it with the authority of the governor that the power of the people is greater than those in power.” To start with, in Soyinka-speak, does a tiger proclaim its “tigeritude”? If indeed, Mr. Odugbemi was Speaker, would it not be obvious? And if it were, would it need the executive to proclaim the obvious — an executive which, in presidential democracy and its strict separation of power doctrine, is nothing but a meddlesome interloper in parliamentary affairs?

Of course, the excitable and infantile Mr. Fayose wilfully misguided himself, giving himself, even as governor, a power he does not have under the Constitution, purporting to choose a Speaker for the legislature, when he knows a legal and legitimate speaker is in place. But even if one could put that down to political rascality, the occasion of Mr. Fayose’s ill-fated statement was political rascality taken too far: the purported presentation of the 2014 Appropriation Bill to the Ekiti Assembly. To banish any doubt, the Appropriation Act is about the most important piece of legislation in a democracy. This is because it focuses on public fund; which a president, a governor or even a local government chairman may not spend, unless and until it is vetted and approved by Parliament, the legal and legitimate representatives of the people. Now, if a governor knows this — as Mr. Fayose is supposed to know — and still goes ahead to present the Appropriation Bill to a parliament that he very well knows is fake, is the governor not digging his own constitutional grave? And IGP Suleiman Abba’s Police that gifted Fayose the security to commit this brazen constitutional crime, do they not know they aid and abet a serious crime, for which each and every one of them is answerable? And how about this for an irony: the same Police that tried in vain to scupper a legitimate sitting of the House of Representatives in Abuja by attempting to shut out Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, were a merry and zealot part of the Ekiti Decem-

ber 15 show of shame, that attempted to clothe brazen illegality with the mail of state security? Is somebody somewhere trying to scuttle this democratic dispensation; and will the people of goodwill just stay dumb at gawk at this wanton outlawry? But after all the heat and passion of politics, the law is cold and clinical: by this reprehensible act, Governor Fayose has committed a serious constitutional infraction. That alone, if the law were to be pressed, is an impeachable crime, to which the governor would have absolutely no defence. Meanwhile, it is laudable that the Omirin-led Assembly has met and declared the legislative tomfoolery of December 15 null, void and absolutely of no effect. If Mr. Fayose wants to challenge his constitutional chi, he is welcome to court his own disgrace — it is about time! But the legitimate Speaker and the lawful majority in the Ekiti legislature must, post-haste pursue all constitutional remedies to stop Fayose’s in-your-face gubernatorial outlawry. It is the least to do to preserve the sanctity of this democracy and the sanity of the people.

‘The legitimate Speaker and the lawful majority in the Ekiti legislature must, post-haste pursue all constitutional remedies to stop Fayose’s in-your-face gubernatorial outlawry’

Dame, the mandator • It is impolitic, to put it mildly, for the wife of the president to openly endorse a candidate

HE Presidency represents a pristine national institution; therefore its occupants, at any point in time, must put forth utmost good behavior; being standard bearers of national ethos and ethics. The Presidency must be an exemplar of the stellar qualities of nationhood; it must aggregate all that is noble, all that is just and all that is equitable. Indeed, nothing damages a nation’s moral fibre and concomitantly, its social and economic wellbeing more than the first family behaving in a reckless and licentious manner. Such was the situation recently when the First Lady and wife of the president, Dame Patience Jonathan openly declared that her preferred candidate in Rivers State in the up-coming election, is already the next governor. Mrs. Jonathan had visited her hometown, Okrika in Rivers State recently for a social event. She was reported to have addressed the Okrika Council of Chiefs, informing them matter-of-factly, whom their next governor would be. She was quoted to have said to them:

‘It is meddlesomeness bordering on impunity for the wife of the president to openly endorse a candidate in any political contest’

“Before you today, is the next governor of Rivers State. He is the former Minister of State for Education, Barrister Nyesom Wike.” This is not the first time she would publicly endorse Wike’s candidacy. The president’s wife’s overt and covert intrusion into the political process across the country has been widely reported most notably, in Kwara, Oyo, Bayelsa and Imo states. We defer to her right to belong to any political party of her choice and we also recognize that by virtue of her position, she commands some influence and can actually pull a few strings and make things happen if so minded. But there lies the catch: the need for utmost decorum and good sense. As they say, power without control and responsibility is bound to be perilous. It is meddlesomeness bordering on impunity for the wife of the president to openly endorse a candidate in any political contest. She is expected to be discerning enough to understand she represents a mother to all and that a popular election ought to represent the will of the people and never an individual’s. To insist and seek to foist her choice on the people is uncouth, indecorous and undemocratic. Further, throwing her weight around across the country and seeking to influence the outcome of primaries and even general elections in no small measure jeopardizes the process and does harm to party politics and by extension, the

polity. Her utter disregard for party rules and disrespect for officials could trigger a chain reaction that may reverberate down the line. If the wife of the president gets away with overtly deciding who wins an election, the wives of governors and wives of other party bigwigs could also act likewise thus setting vile precedents and distorting the entire democratic process. Also remarkable is the fact that Mrs. Jonathan’s crude and forward behavior in desperately trying to subvert the election process must redound most negatively on her husband, the president and cast him in such grim light as one who is not in control of his household and who is too weak to rein in his spouse. What manner of woman would make a public show of the fact that her husband is weak and incapable of getting results without her help? Well, maybe Lady Macbeth in the famous Shakespearian play, Macbeth, but their end in the epic, is calamitous. The nation has seen Mrs. Jonathan snatch the microphone from an elected governor; we have seen her corral a state governor into appointing her a permanent secretary. We have seen her throw her weight around so mindlessly in manners unbecoming of a First Lady and first mother of the land. What would posterity remember her for, how would history record her. We simply ask that she retraces her steps.

Jonathan’s new-found love for South-west

IR: As 2015 general elections draw near with some politicians desperately courting the Yoruba race for support, may I just use this medium to conscientize the Yoruba race to the need to be wise and tactical before supporting anybody, particularly President Goodluck Jonathan who is obviously frantically in need of the South-west votes to secure his second term in office. One is particularly upset by the President's insensitivity to the Yoruba in the power sharing during his out-going tenure. Is it not shocking to note that from number one most important position to number 22 in this country, President Jonathan did not deem it fit to appoint a single Yoruba person? Besides, nothing illustrates President Jonathan's hatred for Yoruba better than the way he removed some Yoruba people from key positions on allegation of being too close to the former President Olusegun Obasanjo. To buttress my point, I recalled how he removed Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola as People's Democratic Party (PDP) Secretary. Yomi Bolarinwa was removed as Director General of Nigeria Broadcasting Commission, Otunba Segun Runsewe was removed as Director General of Nigerian Tourism Development Commission (NTDC) and replaced with people from other ethnic nationalities. Now that 2015 is around the corner, President Jonathan who had been hitherto treating Yoruba with disdain suddenly woke up to the importance of the race in his re-election bid, using chiefs Bode George and Ebenezer Babatope as campaign managers for South-west. It cannot work. Yoruba are no fools. We cannot be deceived this time around. This is where Yoruba must be wise. We all know that Chief Bode George is in search of rehabilitation. More so, he must justify the appointment of his wife as Director General of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), hence his determination to do the master's bidding. But where was Chief George when President Jonathan was removing Yoruba people from key positions? Let it be said that this campaign will not achieve its intended result. President Jonathan should look elsewhere for support and leave Yoruba race alone. Yoruba are too politically sophisticated to be manipulated. We have seen Jonathan's performance in the last four years. We have seen the amount of fresh air he has brought to Nigeria. We have equally seen the transformation in terms of security of lives and property, in terms of electricity supply as well as sundry service deliveries. Nobody is deceived by the pro-Jonathan summit by some so-called leaders of South-west at Ife. We know where our votes are going to be. We are tired of ineptitude in governance. We are tired of corruption. There has not been significant improvement in our lives in the last four years. Our naira is now almost 200 to a dollar. The Yoruba want a change. We will vote for a change. From all indications, we need a change. We will vote for a change because change is inevitable. Yoruba, be wise, go for a change for the situation in the country is becoming unbearable . From insecurity to unemployment to corruption, let us go for a change. • Chief Kola Aderemi Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State

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THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

CARTOON & LETTERS

IR: As the wily survivor who knows where all the bodies are buried in the necropolis of perfidy, Obasanjo's historic task is to lay the ghost of old Nigeria Adebayo Williams Any value-free study on the character and life of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, must observe that he was a child of destiny when it comes to power and state rule. Becoming politically savvy on assumption of power, Obasanjo made many strenuous efforts to build a cult of personality around himself. His waxen wings did mount above his reach and melting, heavens conspired his overthrow hence his failure to join his African friends in the bandwagon of political sit-tightism! On being elected president after many years of military interregnum, Obasanjo's historic task was as Adebayo Williams put it - to lay the ghost of old Nigeria. But contrarily, Obasanjo who would have been the Atatürk or Mandela of

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Much ado about Obasanjo's My Watch modern Nigeria decided to sacrifice his historic mission on the altar of highhandedness, selfish interests, sit-tightism and cult of personality. Why is Obasanjo still talking? Why does he take delight in overheating the polity? I thought they said that people that lived in glass house do not throw stones? A consideration on Obasanjo's watch will suffice. Under Obasanjo's watch, the executive-legislature gridlock took a life of notoriety such that the House of Senate witnessed in space of four

They don't sell ice cream at Oke-Mosan

IR: Until recently in Ogun State, it was practically impossible for the opposition chieftains to sleep while travelling in their cars in the state. They and their chauffeurs were always on the edge, not knowing where and when the ubiquitous potholes and craters on the "face me I face you" roads they constructed while in power might cause some incident. But nowadays, we see these opposition chieftains cruising on international standard roads constructed by the Senator Ibikunle Amosun-led administration and within minutes falling into deep slumber, suddenly finding themselves at the Governor's Office, OkeMosan with a big bowl of ice cream and hundreds of courtiers shouting "Your Excellency" while they all dine and wine at the expense of the toiling masses. Then their chauffeurs jolt them to life with announcement of their destinations. Disappointment writ

large on their faces! They see neither ice cream nor court jesters around them. Worse, they are not even in any location around Abeokuta let alone Oke-Mosan! "Dreams can be very foolish/ inane/ silly)” – they exclaim. They don't sell ice cream in the Governor's Office, Oke Mosan. The seat of the governor is for seriousminded, hard working and publicspirited people with track record of honesty and integrity in their private and public endeavours. When next these "tried and failed" politicians (who are not even sure of their candidacy in the 2015 election) declare with puerile confidence that Amosun would hand over to them in 2015, tell them, "They don't sell ice cream at OkeMosan; Amosun will hand over in 2019." • Soyombo Opeyemi Abeokuta

years (1999-2003) emergence of three senate presidents and a total five senate presidents in his eight years rule. In the House of Representatives, Obasanjo gave no breathing space to then speaker Ghali Na' Abba who succeeded - Salisu Buhari. Na'Abba escaped Obasanjo's snare but paid the price in his loss of his gubernatorial ambition. Under Obasanjo's watch, judiciary was nothing other than a toothless bulldog. Every unpalatable judgement meted against him and/ or his allies were considered null and void. It was Obasanjo's awkward relationship with judiciary that aptly illustrate

that his administration was military in blood and agbada in cloth. Under Obasanjo's watch, judiciary was subjugated and forced into being the appendage of the executive arm. For Obasanjo and his allies, rejection of judgement is the best answer to any recalcitrant judge! The difference between federal and unitary system of government lies on the relationship between the centre and the component units. Whereas component units are coordinates (meaning that they are independent in certain spheres) in federal system, in unitary parlance, they are subordinates (meaning that they are appendage of the central

government). For Obasanjo, this is a grammar meant for political science students and definitely not for him. So he had to sponsor impeachment and/ or abduction of governors that he considered enemy. Chris Ngige of Anambra State and Rashidi Ladoja of Oyo State will be in better position to tell what federal interference in state matters denote. Under Obasanjo's watch, election was nothing to write home about. His watch conjures nebulous shades of corruption and political shenanigan. The regime ought not to be remembered, for its best place is the dustbin of history. Obasanjo should know that his book (My Watch) has done and will do nothing to rewrite his failures in government. It is so appalling that the most corrupt and failed politician Nigeria has ever produced is the one disturbing her peace. • Asikason Jonathan, Enugwu-Ukwu, Anambra State.

The war beyond Boko Haram

IR: A couple of days ago, a popular online news journal, published a letter purported to have been written by an un-named Nigerian military commander involved in combat operations against Boko Haram in the north-eastern part of the country. The letter which was addressed to President Goodluck Jonathan contained very weighty allegations against some serving senior military officers who are part of ‘Operation Zaman Lafiya.’ From the content and tone of the letter, it is quite apparent that the anonymous commander had written it as a last resort, out of sheer frustration with the modus operandi that now surrounds the war against terrorism in the ‘Axis of Evil’. The said commander alleged that there was no sincerity in the North-east operation as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) was there to make money and earn promotion to the detriment of the operation. He went on to say that Nigerian soldiers

fighting the war were being starved of food supplies, weapons, ammunition and communication equipment– a development indicated in the reported cases of desertion and mutiny among the military personnel. The embittered commander further told the President through that corruption was high in the Nigerian Army right from the headquarters down to the battalions. He alleged that the commanders now see the war against Boko Haram as a big opportunity to make money. He said the units were grossly understaffed, but on payroll their strength (number) was complete just to create more allowances than what each was supposed to get. Given that the Presidency itself had alleged on a number of occasions that the efforts of the Federal Government to achieve a comprehensive defeat of Boko Haram were being sabotaged, the fresh evidence provided by that letter is instructive.

There is, therefore, strong reason to accept that the issues raised in the commander’s letter should be given all the seriousness they deserve by the Federal Government. Government should not dilly-dally on setting the machinery in motion to thoroughly probe the North East operation. As a popular saying goes, you can’t make omelette without breaking eggs. President Jonathan should have to step on some ‘big’ toes if Nigeria is to ever win the war in the North-east. The military officers making huge capital at great cost of lives (of both military personnel and civilians) and economic resources must be punished; not minding whose ox is gored at the end of the day. This is what is needed; this is what Nigerians expect from their government at this critical epoch in the history of their nation. • Dennis Alemua, Bayelsa State.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

COMMENTS

HEN 4th Republic history is written, a good part of it will focus on Asiwaju Bola Tinubu versus a concert of fiends, united in spite. If not brilliant, this ensemble has been persistent and deadly. A scant three years ago, Tinubu was a media angel, seemingly fated to eternal good press; despite these implacable foes. But some three years down the line — in the media at least — it appears some Pauline re-conversion: Paul, the immaculate apostle just slid back to Saul the horrible anti-Christ! Is this the same Tinubu about everyone hailed for his sound contributions to the June 12 struggle, which paved the way

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Olakunle Abimbola

Asiwaju and fiends

for the present 4th Republic? His pivotal tenure as Lagos governor, that laid the foundation for much of the fundamental re-jigging Lagos has experienced? His gubernatorial and post-gubernatorial activism for fiscal federalism and political restructuring; and the imperative for sound opposition in a democracy, which has eventually crystallized in the mergers that birthed the All Progressives Congress (APC)? To be sure, Tinubu has his fair share of lionisers, perhaps as passionate as the huge column in the demonising camp. But both camps are bad for him. Lionisers destroy the hero because they always tell him what he wants to hear. If the difference between hero and anti-hero is no thicker than a spider’s web, uncritical adulations and ululations often prompt a fatal slip across the divide. The demonising camp, on the other hand, are eventually as much danger to themselves, as they are to their target. Not unlike a deranged visceral hater, they often end up falling upon their own swords of spite. Before they do, however, they muddy the waters; and confound the polity. That is the danger now, vis-a-vis the Asiwaju public persona, and its implacable column of bashers. Still, the man is not faultless. For a start, he would appear a tad too driven toward his goal. So, he is to Nigerian politics what Bill Gates is to global computing software. That plants resentment, if not outright hatred, in the heart of his competitors. Then, having highly charged himself to attain his goals, he insists on his fair share of the results. His opponents call this “over-bearing” and a penchant to dominate. But the Asiwaju and his camp counter it’s equitability — the chef that sweats the most must savour the sweetest part of the gravy! Fair enough? Maybe. Maybe not. But it breeds no less spite from the enemy camp; and idolisers from the friendly camp.

‘Tinubu has his fair share of lionisers, as passionate as the huge column in the demonising camp. But both camps are bad for him

And the rich bonus: Osinbajo’s rich integrity, coupled with Buhari’s Spartan probity, is a dire reproach to the JonathanSambo ticket: with the president still cooking his unfortunate theory of a dichotomy between stealing and corruption! But most importantly, the Osinbajo pick has underscored the futility of raw spite as effective political weapon, with the fond hope that hot hatred would melt cold facts. Tinubu is “rotten”, claim his traducers; yet only he could “warehouse” and present the polity with Osinbajo, a rare combination of sound learning and unimpeachable character; not to talk of the tiny needle that punctured the big PDP balloon of religious spite! This same Tinubu produced Fashola, no doubt the grand revelation of the 4th Republic, aside from inspiring, in the South West, a quad of gubernatorial performers, that give the region some hope, after the stagnation of the Obasanjo-inspired South West mainstream years. Yeah, Kayode Fayemi lost in the Ekiti electoral sweepstakes. But even that would appear more of an Ekiti loss, with Ayo Fayose, post-haste, rushing his people back to the Stone Age. By the way, faced with the same succession situation, what did Obasanjo deliver? Imagine: a Fashola after a Tinubu at the national level — would Nigeria today suffer this paralysis? In this age of seamless defection, Tinubu should perhaps have “ported” to PDP, after the 2003 South West electoral tsunami. But he didn’t. From the sole Alliance for Democracy (AD) surviving governor, he not only marshalled a South West progressive comeback, he was also pivotal to APC’s formation — APC that now strikes mortal fear in PDP, at the virtual eve of the 2015 election. Tough luck to those who think Tinubu’s life equates their own instant death: Afenifere grandees that, Rip Van Winkle-fashion, hawk Awo’s franchise, like Chaucer’s Pardoner hawking papal indulgences; their younger generation collaborators-in-spite; the Bode George camp with their me-too syndrome; Tinubu’s gubernatorial comrades turned adversaries, and other equal opportunity visceral haters. They have their democratic right to want to unhorse the man. But mere hatred just won’t do! Still, the Asiwaju himself must nuance his tactics, while not letting go of his strategies; and work very hard on his weak points. On that score, the Muiz Banires of this world are friendly fires to be treasured, not brainless rebels to be crushed, even if Mr. Banire himself could do with more tact.

UCH as everyone would claim to know the extent of the regression in our national lives, the truth is that you never know really how bad things have gone until you experience an avoidable tragedy. That is when one comes to appreciate how bad things have become. Sometime last month, I got this terrible call from a family member that a younger cousin of mine based in Abuja had been shot between Eruku and Obbo-Ile, two communities at the Kwara State end of the Ilorin-Kabba-Lokoja highway. A group of armed ‘Fulani herdsmen’ (!), I would find out later, had blocked his car at one of the many notorious failed portions on the highway. They ordered him and his young family out of the car after which they thoroughly ransacked it. Their mission partly accomplished, they turned on the occupants, dispossessing them of cash and other valuables. As the now distraught family was being herded back into their car, a bullet from one of the more trigger-happy members of the gang was said to have hit the young man. Of course, he did not die – at least not immediately. The wife who could have taken him to the nearest hospital, unfortunately, could not drive. And as has become increasingly familiar in such circumstances, help from fellow motorists who saw him in the pool of his blood would not be forthcoming. Knowing how dangerous the entire 255 kilometres stretch had become, the unwillingness by the hapless motorists to act the Good Samaritan was perhaps understandable. In the circumstance, the best they could do was to wish the traumatised wife and children luck after which they abandoned them to their fates! With time ticking on and with no signs of help coming their way, the poor chap reportedly took to the wheels obviously believing that he could make it to the nearest infirmary. Well, he never did. So, you can understand my reluctance to venture on that road and the anxiety of other family members when only days after the terrible experience, my father, as we say in Christendom, would join the saints triumphant. My still grieving mum of course insisted that the journey was needless at this point in time – more out of hyper-sensitivity to that particular tragedy than anything else. Few of my friends on the other hand would regale me with gory tales of near misses on the same road. In the end, much as I regarded some of the fears as overstated having driven on the road at least twice this year, I needed no convincing that I would require than the normal dose of prayers and fasting before venturing on that road with Yuletide approaching! Between the penultimate week, when I finally did, and now, I can now testify that the Ilorin-Kabba-Lokoja road is not just one of the most dangerous routes to ply at this time, the stretch from the Kwara State end of the road right up to Kabba, headquarters of Okunland would number among

Both sides played out at the emergence of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, as the APC vice-presidential pick. Olisa Metuh, PDP national spokesperson, weighed in with his usual janja-weed sentiments: Osinbajo was just any of the thousands of former state commissioners, aside being just another Tinubu crony! But that was sour grape. Any rigorous commentator would know that aside from the Lagos judicial reforms: improved judges’ welfare and work atmosphere, digitalisation of court proceedings and records, arbitration to curb litigation, the Office of the Public Defender (OPD), all of which bore Prof. Osinbajo’s imprint, the law professor was also central to the Tinubu government’s judicial mauling of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s imperial presidency, which put fascism at bay. The same Metuh, on the Osinbajo pick, dismissed Major-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as “weak” for meekly surrendering his presidential ticket to the Tinubu establishment, the same way he ceded governance to his late deputy, Major-Gen. Tunde Idiagbon, during his brief military rule stint. That surface comparison may resonate as an emotional weapon — with the gullible. But again, it was just bluff and bluster, covering blind panic. With Prof. Osinbajo, the PDP emotive grand theorem of pitching Christians against Muslims, in their janja-weed strategy, just collapsed! Cursed are those who approach a crucial election with nothing but emotive bomb! But what if Buhari conceded to Tinubu because, perhaps more than any individual, the Asiwaju worked hardest to realise the APC dream? The Tinubu camp has, of course, hailed the professor’s choice as a master-stroke. From neutralising the PDP appeal to base religious passion, it is. But not so from name recognition for — let’s face it — Prof. Osinbajo is no heavyweight politician, though he is a legal titan. Indeed, last week, Ripples pushed for Rivers Governor, Rotimi Amaechi (regional electoral stratagem), in the absence of Lagos Governor, Babatunde Fashola, SAN (political arithmetic). However, the professor would make a model vice-president: he would not compete for attention with the president; but add rare value in depth and competence. Indeed, federalists would be especially excited, with him on the ticket.

Policy Sanya Oni sanyaoni@yahoo.co.uk 08051101841

Nigeria’s most dangerous road! the most ungoverned swathes on the Nigerian territory! I do not exaggerate. And I say this with all sense of responsibility. Today, there is nothing that needs to be said about terrible state of the road that has not been said. I need to be clear: nothing – except of course the countless craters dotting the stretch – has been added to the road constructed in the early 70s when yours truly was barely entering secondary school. The result is that a journey of less than 300 kilometres currently takes a whole day to make – and that for those lucky to make it alive. Of course, I have not even talked of the palpable sense of general insecurity reinforced by the displacement of the regular police by an army of ill-clad vigilantes now spreading along the highways – a window into the state capacity in full retreat. Coincidentally, whereas the vigilantes I encountered tended to be polite, less obtrusive, and in fact more business-like in their approach, the men of the Nigeria Police appears far more interested in checking vehicle particulars most especially tinted glass permits! Now, give it to the Kwara State government, they are at least doing something at their end of the road. In the course of the trip, I saw FERMA, the federal road fixing agency at work. I saw heaps of bitumen on the Ilorin-Idofian stretch of the road, evidence of something being done to ameliorate the terrible situation on the road. Now, what about my home state of Kogi? The absentee government in Lokoja under Captain Idris Wada is apparently too far gone in its Rip Van Winkle sleep to bother about road and security matters! Although I haven’t visited of late, I am reliably told that the Lokoja- Obajana-Kabba road is worse than hell! Lokoja-Okene-Kabba is no better.

Merry Christmas to everyone. But as you enjoy Christmas turkey washed down with choice wine, just pray for the Chibok girls. Last year, they celebrated Christmas with their parents. Now, they are in Boko Haram dungeon, and the Jonathan Presidency appears too incompetent to spring them.

The spate of robberies on the two highways, I am told, is perhaps surpassed only by the daily orgy of blood-letting from the Boko Haram! All across the state, there is a sense of siege with neither acknowledgement nor help coming from any quarters – including an administration that claims to govern in their name. That is how bad things have become in my dear state of Kogi! Yes, I am aware that leading politicians from the area have done their very best to get federal government attention. I know for a fact that my very good friend, Senator Smart Adeyemi, has been on the neck of Works Minister Mike Onolememen pleading with him to do something. For his efforts, the federal government awarded the contract for the road – GEJ-style – without the needed cash backing! See why our nightmares will endure? Finally, let me comment on the siege on the two communities of Egbe and Odo-Ere by armed robbers last week. Of course, the attack on two old generation banks in the two separate communities which left three people dead was, to say the least, predictable given reports that the dare-devil robbers had long served notice! Many thanks to the power of the social media, particularly the Facebook, I actually monitored the siege as it took place. Odo-ere by the way is the capital of Yagba West Local Government where yours truly comes from; I say this lest anyone dares to accuse me of writing fiction. The question I couldn’t resist at the end of the siege was – where was the police? What did the absentee government, which had the experience of the last few years to guide, do while the siege lasted? No doubt, some Nigerians are truly endangered.

‘The absentee government in Lokoja under Captain Idris Wada is apparently too far gone in its Rip Van Winkle sleep to bother about road and security matters! Although I haven’t visited of late, I am reliably told that the Lokoja- ObajanaKabba road is worse than hell! Lokoja-Okene-Kabba is no better. The spate of robberies on the two highways, I am told, is perhaps surpassed only by the daily orgy of blood-letting from the Boko Haram!’

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

COMMENTS

Y virtue of her trade then as a newscaster in the nation’s main electronic media, Abike Dabiri – as she was then known – probably carved for herself an image that the Nigerian public was at liberty to interpret in so many ways. As a TV personality, the Nigerian public probably saw her with different lenses whenever she appeared in their living rooms to deliver her message. By plunging herself into the foul, if not nauseating waters of Nigerian politics, the member representing Ikorodu Federal constituency, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa has managed not only to mitigate the debris that Nigerian politicians characteristically throw into the country’s political pool, she has also made notable efforts, through her contributions to debates and legislations, in reducing the stench in the political waters as well. Nigeria’s lower chamber has 390-odd legislators, some of whom may have found the hallowed chamber so discomfiting, if not intimidating (or both), that their colleagues could have sworn never to have seen them before. Some of these legislators (after their (s)elections) may even be unknown in the constituencies from whence they came, let alone be familiar to that segment of the Nigerian public interested in the business of legislation, for they exist in relative obscurity. They could not say anything because they saw nothing. Dabiri-Erewa, in her 12-year stint as a member of the Second Estate of the Realm, has proven to Nigerians to be a legislator of distinction not only in terms of performance but in character and integrity. Her contributions to the deepening of our nation’s nascent democracy as a result of the many bills (some of them unprecedented in the nation’s history) that has become the laws of the land either authored by her or co-sponsored are bound to become points of reference for many years to come. Her contributions to issues of national importance at plenary can be so passionate that one is left with no doubt that she’s being driven by the values that shapes her being as well as her acute awareness of how a nation must be the protector of all her citizens wherever they may be. As a chairperson of the House Committee on Diaspora, Nigerians in the Diaspora have come to see her as the conscience of the nation because of the seriousness with which she takes and reacts swiftly to the unfortunate circumstances that befalls them either as individuals or as a group in their host coun-

Dabiri-Erewa: Lawmaker of example By Femi Odere tries. A very proactive legislator, one must not hesitate to mention here that one of the greatest disservice that a nation’s legislature must not do to a critical mass of her citizenry (Nigerians in the Diaspora) is the vacillation of this Seventh Assembly in signing DabiriErewa’s Diaspora Commission bill into law before she finally takes her leave in May 2015. But her place is nonetheless secured in the legislature of the Fourth Republic. While the news that the legislator from Ikorodu, on her own volition, would not be presenting herself for re-election took Nigerians by surprise, judging from their reactions in the social media, I only smiled. On learning about her decision, I spoke gently to myself, and said: “This woman is so true to herself,” mentally recalling a discussion I had with her almost two years ago at the Oriental Hotel about 2015. One who’s true to oneself has no other choice than to be true to the entity s/he is serving at any given period. That was the lesson that the universe drew for me to learn from with the news. Nigerians on the social media could not understand why such an effective legislator with very high approval ratings from her constituency in particular and Nigerians at-large was calling it quits. Others simply thanked her for her decision. While Dabiri-Erewa’s refusal to seek reelection in 2015 because she wanted to give someone else the chance to contribute and rise in the business of nation building fundamentally attests to her character (and character, as they say, is what you do when no one is looking), the decision, as ennobling as it is, can also be seen in a different light. Her willingness not to return to the National Assembly is also capable of having a detrimental effect on the strength and quality of the nation’s democratic experience, it can be argued. The stark truth is that Nigeria lacks capacity in just about all those infrastructures that guarantees development and the nation’s legislative Houses are not exempt. These

N Tuesday December 31, 2013, President Goodluck Jonathan re-appointed Dr Paul Orhii for another term as the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC). The good tiding, contained in a statement signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, was to take effect from January 13, 2014. The reappointment was an endorsement and recognition of the revolutionary strides of. Orhii in the affairs of NAFDAC. As the curtain is being drawn on 2014, Nigerians would consider a reinvented NAFDAC among positive indicators of the transformation that has taken place in Nigeria under President Goodluck Jonathan. The renowned Pakistani economist, the late Professor Mahbub ul-Haq who was behind the institution of the Human Development Reports of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in 1990 most profoundly, contextualized the centrality of the people in governance when he observed: "The real wealth of a nation is its people. And the purpose of development is to create an enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy, and creative lives”. President Jonathan has lived through the above words on the marble. No better evidence can be found than his obsession with ensuring qualitative healthcare delivery system in the country. The height to which NAFDAC has taken the regulation and control of the production and distribution of food and drugs in the country in the last six years underlines the resolve. The Benue-born NAFDAC’s CEO has not only been a change agent in the nation’s health sector in the past five years, the current year has seen him consolidate on the achievements of the agency and in going a step further in designing measures to spur his transformation drive. Today, NAFDAC under Orhii became the foremost regulatory agency in the West African subregion to deploy cutting edge technologies in combating counterfeit medicines. These include Truscan, Black Eye, Mobile Authentication Service (MAS), the world’s first anti-counterfeiting contraption which uses the SMS platform, Radio Frequency Identification service (RFID), and Minilabs. Following the resounding successes in the deployment of these cutting edge technologies in Nigeria, the food and drug administration agencies in the United States, Germany, Sweden, Canada and a host of many developed countries of the world, have also started using the hitech anti-counterfeiting initiative. The introduction of small business support units aimed at developing small businesses, the electronic registration, and evolvement of electronic clearance portal for the sole purpose of fast-tracking online electronic clearance of goods at the nation’s ports thereby preventing trade inhibitions, as well as deployment of the Automated Products Administration and Monitoring Solution (NAPAMS), including the strengthening of its regulatory capacity through up-grading of its surveillance systems and capacity building, have all combined to make NAFDAC

houses are a key segment of our national institutions in which capable and experienced hands are desperately needed to acquire capacity. After all, one is not talking about some deadwood legislators that dot both the upper and lower legislative chambers who doesn’t even know the questions let alone have answers, refusing to seek re-election. But someone so good and effective in her job that Nigeria is by a small notch better as a result. A politically enlightened constituency with the sophistication to know what politics should produce and a political party that knows a good legislator when it sees one would have insisted that Dabiri-Erewa seeks re-election. Did I hear someone say nobody is indispensable? True. But in a nation that is seriously hemorrhaging and suffering from all kinds of socio-economic and political ailments, her best hands should be seen as indispensable at this material juncture. DabiriErewa is one of these capable hands in the National Assembly. The high turn-over of good, effective and experienced legislators in the name of turn-by-turn politics during election cycles just doesn’t augur well for deepening democracy and good governance in the polity. As a former Liaison Officer (USA) to the House Committee on Diaspora, I needed to brief Hon. Dabiri-Erewa on the progress of a project I was assigned by her on behalf of her committee and our meeting place was the Oriental Hotel. After my briefing and having read her body language that she was satisfied with my answers to her usually tough questions, which I had anticipated, having worked with her for some time (as my own inventive strategy to further ‘detain’ her, thereby doing justice to more drinks), I redirected our conversation to the politics of Lagos, the nation and her own political future. “So, my chairwoman, what options for another office are you considering in 2015?” I asked. “I am not considering any options,” she said curtly. “That means you’ll just go back to the House,” I replied. “I will not be running for re-election,” she deadpanned.

NAFDAC‘s regulatory strides By Martins F.O Ikhilae a total drug and food regulatory agency. The agency has expanded its regulatory frontiers to the practice of veterinary medicine and the use of pesticides as part of efforts to reduce food poisoning in the country. For this purpose, a directorate of veterinary medicine and allied products was created to ensure effective control of food-borne hazards at every stage of the food chain, “from the stable to table and from farm to the fork”. On the safe and responsible use of agro-chemicals, NAFDAC has successfully evolved distinct and efficient guidelines cum standardized operating procedures for chemical regulation and control, while risk assessment and field trials for fertilizers were equally introduced. For NAFDAC, good and standardized production and hygienic practices are the watchword in fast food centres and operators of eateries, while bakers are under compulsion to refrain from the use of cancer- causing Potassium Bromate in baking. For promoting cassava bread and export of value-added agricultural products, fortification of food vehicles with Vitamin ‘A’ and other micro nutrients as well as entrenchments of the universal salt iodization aimed at eliminating iodine deficiency disorder in Nigeria, the agency has become a blessing to the country. For massive enlightenment and awareness creation, NAFDAC management has relied on television channels, radio, handbills and in-house magazine to do the bulk of the job. It has encouraged consumers’ safety clubs in institutions of learning, and the formation of National Youth Service Corps Community Development Service Programme. The entrenchment of desk offices in the nation’s 774 local government areas for effective grassroots liaison, introduction of consultative fora with stakeholders, regular hosting of town hall meetings as well as the infusion of Food and Drug Safety Education into the nation’s basic school curriculum, etc are part of the awareness sustenance drive. Also notable is the D.G’s intensive and persistent well coordinated advocacy visits to state governors, local government chairmen, royal fathers, community heads and chief executives of sister agencies, etc. Another dynamic innovation in its anti-counterfeiting crusade is the engagement of local celebrities in such campaigns. For instance, Tuface Idibia, a popular hip hop musician, was

Though I did not believe that she wouldn’t run again knowing full well she would trounce anyone from her constituency during elections anytime, I still asked her what she would be doing after her voluntary retirement from the House to which she said she would find something to do, including going back to the electronic media. Having arrived very early for the convention and sitting all alone, lazily leafing through the programme brochure, her caring and motherly instinct probably nudged her to former governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola to intimate him of the availability of foods and other refreshments to relax with in the meantime. Oyinlola nodded approvingly. Dabiri-Erewa led the former governor to the VIP Lounge and arranged for his food. “You actually meant what you said to me almost two years ago, my chairwoman”, I reminded her as we both talked some more at the APC’s third National Convention in Lagos. This congresswoman is most assuredly in the new league of truly selfless, brilliant, caring and highly effective political leaders that this country desperately needs. With her decision not to seek re-election even when the ticket is hers for the asking and her chances of winning in the general elections is as good as predicting that there will not be darkness at 12 noon, Dabiri-Erewa has shown that she’s a legislator of example. • Odere is a media practitioner. He can be reached at femiodere@gmail.com

‘As a chairperson of the House Committee on Diaspora, Nigerians in the Diaspora have come to see her as the conscience of the nation because of the seriousness with which she takes and reacts swiftly to the unfortunate circumstances that befalls them either as individuals or as a group in their host countries

recently adopted as NAFDAC Ambassador to strengthen the agency’s anti-counterfeiting drive. In the pharmaceutical products distribution chain, the drug markets - Regional Mega Drug Distribution Centres (MDDC) and States Drugs Distribution Centre (SDDC) – which it helped create across the country – have been most salutary in checking the hitherto chaotic distribution channels. Similarly, the Mobile Digital Water Testing Service System to effect an on-the-spot assessment and certification of sachet and bottled water to complement the physical factory-to-factory inspection it has in place, has helped to protect and secure the nation’s multi-billion naira water business. Enforcement activities of the agency have remained impressive, as its strategy of detection and destruction of fake and counterfeit drugs, as well as the arrest and prosecution of fakers have curbed a lot of unwholesome practices in the industry. The total overhaul of the agency’s legal framework to accord it befitting enforcement strength was equally achieved under Dr. Orhii. Under the incumbent DG, four Nigeria’s indigenous pharmaceutical companies - Swiss Pharmaceuticals, May and Baker Nigeria Ltd, Chi Pharmaceuticals and Evans Medical Plc, got the World Health Organization’s pre-qualification good manufacturing practice certification, and thus earning a global recognition for their products. The agency has performed creditably well in infrastructural development thereby raising the standards of local herbal medical practice to global level. So also are the construction, rehabilitation and re-equipping of sophisticated scientific laboratories across the country and acquisition, refurbishing and building of office accommodation for the agency’s staff in other states of the federation among others. One outstanding accomplishments of Dr. Orhii in the outgoing year is staff appreciation through the institution of annual honours and awards, and this has resulted in the exponential improvement on productivity. And for NAFDAC-DG, he will be remembered as one leader that put his all in the effort to eradicate drug counterfeiting and faking and in the global drive to ensure safe drugs for consumers. With success came local and international recognition. One such global honour is being named vice chairman of the International Medical Products AntiCounterfeiting Taskforce (IMPACT) based in Geneva, Switzerland. He is also the chairman of the West African Drug Regulatory Authorities Network (WADRAN); chairman WHO‘s Mechanism for the International Fight against Spurious, Substandard and Counterfeit Medicines. And finally, the international partnership for effective antidrug counterfeiting activities has led to the sustenance of Nigeria’s robust working relationships with numerous countries like United States of America, China, Argentina, Canada, India, the European Union, Brazil, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Russia, Libya, African countries, Romania, etc. • Ikhilae is a Lagos-based public affairs analyst.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 26, 2014

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The state of the facilities for young offenders is in a deplorable state. It is, therefore, advocated that non custodial remedies should be adopted in the treatment of children and young offenders.

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See page 37

E-mail:- law@thenationonlineng.net

As the Attorney General of Lagos State, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, who many of his former students describe as ‘an intellectual giant’, exhibited his mastery of the Law and commitment to due process, rule of law and true federalism in the many constitutional and precedential cases he argued before the Supreme Court. ERIC IKHILAE reports.

Osinbajo: Legal giant on political turf Y

INSIDE:

EMI Osinbajo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and a professor of law, was the Attorney-General (AG) and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State during the tenure of the Governor, Bola Tinubu. The preponderance of opinion is that he is a man of great erudition and high intellectual standing; a rare soul imbued with integrity and yet humble, in spite of his many accomplishments, in a society that revels in vain glory. The former Law teacher at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) was not well known when he served between 1988 and 1992 as Special Adviser to then Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Prince Bola Ajibola (SAN). He became the face of law in Lagos where, during his tenure as the Attorney-General and Justice Commissioner (1999-2007), he introduced major reforms that catapulted the state’s Judiciary to its current enviable height that it now serves as a reference point in judicial efficiency in the country. His appointment as Attorney-General, it was learnt, was informed by his reform-minded contributions to the justice sector while he served in 1999, as member and Secretary of a Think-Tank and Transition Work Group, a body set up by then newly elected Governor Tinubu, to deliberate on strategies for transition from military to democratic government in Lagos State. In Prof Osinbajo’s years as Lagos AG, the state engaged in many legal battles with the Federal Government then headed by Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, generally seen as having no regard for due process and the rule of law. In being convinced that due process and rule of law cannot be divorced from governance, Osinbajo, with the backing of his governor, found his state always in court with the Federal Government. To his credit, the state won most of the cases. One of such was the suit marked: SC.353/2001 between the AG, Lagos and AG of the Federation. It was instituted in 2001 by the Lagos State Government to, among others, challenge the constitutionality or otherwise of the Urban and Regional Planning Act, 1992. The Federal Government had sought to rely on the law to sell off some of its property in Lagos without any recourse to the state government. Issues raised for determination in the suit included: *Whether Urban and Regional Planning (Town Planning) as well as the regulation of physical development in relation to any land in Lagos State were within the legislative and executive jurisdiction of the Federal Government. *Whether the Urban and Regional Planning Decree No.8 of 1992 is inconsistent with the provisions of Sections 4 of the 1999 Constitution, therefore unlawful, null and void. *Whether the ownership rights of the Federal Government over land in state territories include the power to control and regulate town planning and physical development in relation to such lands. *Whether all approvals, permits, and licenses granted by the Federal Government or any of its agencies for any construction, building or physical development or use of Land in Lagos State without the consent of the state government are illegal, null and void. In its judgment on May 13, 2003, the Supreme Court held that the state government possessed control over the physical planning and developmental control within their territory. It also held that all development permits issued by the Federal Government to the buyers of its properties in Lagos from 1999 to that date subsisted, but henceforth, owners of such properties must obtain relevant permits from the state government. The judgment gave the Lagos State government the authority to impose all compartments of levies on the Federal Government Lessees (those who bought Federal Government’s property). Prof Osinbajo also led the Lagos team in the celebrated case over control of natural resources located within the Continental Shelf of the country. The dispute was between the Federal Government and the eight littoral states of

Court resolves Ikoyi property dispute -Page 27

•Osinbajo

Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross-River, Delta, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo and Rivers States in relation to the southern (or seaward) boundary of each of these states. The Federal Government, in the suit marked: SC28/2001, which it initiated at the Supreme Court in 2001, argued that the southern (or seaward) boundary of each of the states is the low-water mark of the land surface of such state of the seaward limit of inland waters within the state, as the case so requires. It contended that natural resources located within the Continental Shelf of Nigeria are not derivable form any state of the Federation, a position countered by the eight littoral states.

The suit sought “a determination of the seaward boundary of a littoral states within the Federal Republic of Nigeria for the purpose of calculating the amount of revenue accruing to the Federation Account directly from any natural resources derived from that state pursuant to Section 162(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999.” Justice Michael Ogundare, who read the lead judgment on April 5, 2002, held that “the seaward boundary of a littoral state within the Federal Republic of Nigeria for the purpose of calculating the amount of revenue accruing to the Federation Account directly from any natural resources •Continued on page 26

Assault: Lawyer seeks order to review DPP’s advice -Page 28

Coalition urges INEC to enforce campaign laws -Page 37

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

LAW COVER CONT’D

Osinbajo: Legal giant on political turf •Continued from page 25

derived from that state pursuant to Section 162(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 is the low-water mark of the land surface thereof or (if the case so requires as in the Cross River State with an archipelago of islands) the seaward limits of inland waters within the state. And this shall be my judgment in respect of plaintiff’s case.” Prof. Osinbajo also led the Lagos team in the suit marked: S.C. 70/2004 between the AG, Lagos State and AG of the Federation instituted in 2004 by the state government to challenge the directive by then President Obasanjo to the effect that statutory allocation to states that created local governments, be withheld by the Finance Minister. President Obasanjo had, in a letter dated April 8, 2004 addressed to the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Nenadi Usman, faulted the decision of some states that conducted elections in newly created local government without waiting for the National Assembly to include such new local governments in the Constitution as required under Section 8(5) of the Constitution, and that of those that have refused to establish the “State Joint Local Government Account.” For those who conducted the election, President Obasanjo directed that “no allocation from the Federation Account should, henceforth, be released to the local councils of the above-mentioned states and any other state that may fall into that category, until they revert to their constituent Local Government Areas as specified in Part I of the First Schedule to the Constitution.” For those yet to create the joint account, the then President also directed that: “All states should be requested to submit evidence that they have established State Joint Local Government Account in compliance with Section 162-(6) of the Constitution and also determined the basis for sharing allocations from the Federation Account due to their constituent Local Government Areas. “In addition, they should also submit evidence of payment of state allocation into the State Joint Local Government Account, to enable payment of allocation to the Local Government Areas of each state from the Federation Account to the Joint Account.” Dissatisfied with these directives, the Lagos State Government sued the Federal Government at the Supreme Court. While Prof Osinbajo conducted the case on behalf of his state, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) led the Federal Government’s team. In its judgment on December 10, 2004, the

•Nwobike

•Shittu

Supreme Court ruled in favour of Lagos State. It held among others, that it was wrong for the Federal Governemnt to withhold statutory allocations due to the states under any guise. The court also faulted the Federal Government’s position that the Local Governments created in Lagos were illegal. It held that they were legitimately created, but remain inchoate until the National Assembly plays its part as stipulated under Section 8(5) of the Constitution. The then Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mohammed Uwais, who read the lead judgment granted the reliefs sought by the plaintiff. “To sum up the plaintiff’s action succeeds, all the reliefs sought are granted, but applicable only to the 20 Local Government Areas specified in Part 1 of the first Schedule to the Constitution.” The apex court held “the president has no power vested in him (by executive or administrative action) to suspend or withhold for any period whatsoever the statutory allocation due and payable to Lagos State Government pursuant to the provision of Section 162 (5) of the 1999 Constitution but in respect of the 20 Local Government Areas for the time being provided by Section 3 subsection (6) of the Constitution and not the new Local Government Areas created which are not yet operative.” It declared that “the intention or proposal of the Federal Government to suspend or withhold for any period whatsoever the statutory allocation due and payable to the Lagos State government pursuant to the provisions of Section 162 (5) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 will if carried out be unlawful and contrary to the provisions of the said Constitution” is granted subject to the statutory allocation relating to the 20 Local Government Areas for the time being recognised by Section 3 subsection (6) and Part I of the First Schedule to the Constitution.” The court made a consequential order com-

pelling the defendant (Fed Govt) to pay immediately all outstanding statutory allocation due and payable to the Lagos State government pursuant to the provisions of Section 165(5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, ”This is granted in so far as it relates to the 20 Local Government Councils for the time being recognised by Section 3 subsection (6) and Part I of the First Schedule to the Constitution. It further granted an “order of perpetual injunction restraining the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, or any functionaries or agencies of Executive Branch of the Federal Government from doing anything whatsoever to suspend, withhold, for any period whatsoever or calculated to suspend or withhold any monies due and payable to the Lagos State government pursuant to the provisions of Section 162 (5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.” This is granted in so far as it applies to the 20 Local Government councils for the time being recognised by Section 3 subsection (6) and Part I of the First Schedule to the Constitution.” Prof Osinbajo led the prosecuting team when the state decided to prosecute former Chief of Army Staff, General Ishaya Bamaiyi; former Chief Security Officer to the late General Sani Abacha, Major Hamza al-Mustapha; his son, Mohammed Abacha; Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Rabo Lawal among others for alleged criminal offences during the military era. He was instrumental in the prosecution of the suit brought against British -American Tobacco Nigeria Ltd (BAT), International Tobacco Limited and four others on the ground that they were allegedly targeting young and underage persons in their advertising and marketing in spite of the obvious knowledge of the adverse effect and severe health implications of their products. For eight years while he handled the prosecution, the defence did all they could to

frustrate the progress of the case. They preferred to remain in custody than stand trial. As the Lagos AG, it was not all about litigation for Prof Osinbajo, he established the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) in 2003 to provide free legal advice and representation to indigent or disadvantaged citizens of the state in criminal and civil cases. He also aided the establishment of the Citizens Mediation Centre (CMC) in Lagos to provide a non-adversarial forum for the mediation and settlement of a wide range of disputes between parties who, on invitation, voluntarily present themselves for mediation at the Centre. Many of his former students have vowed for his high intellectual standing, integrity and humility. Joseph Nwobike a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and private legal practitioner; Wahab Shittu, a law lecturer and Richard Okechukwu, an Abuja-based lawyer, are unanimous that the APC took the right decision in nominating their former teacher as its Vice Presidential candidate. Nwobike said: “Prof Osinbajo will bring clarity of thoughts laced with deepness and moderation of consideration into the decision making process of the campaign team and government, if his team forms government next year. “But whether the foregoing will be translated into any form of electoral capital will become clearer as we gravitate towards the general elections next year. As my former teacher, I cannot but wish him all the best.” According to Shittu, Osinbajo made tremendous impact on his students. “He was my lecturer in the Law of Evidence, who made tremendous impact on the entire class for his sheer brilliance and mastery of the subject. Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) would come to class armed with just a pen and take on the whole class for nearly three hours, making copious references to authorities and cases off hand, with uncommon exactitude that can only be associated with his rating as a genius. “I knew that a fresh insight was about being introduced to the political space- an element capable of changing the political equation in our country forever. I have always been excited at the prospects of our politics being dominated by the power of ideas, power of action, and ability of the power of ideas and power of action to be galvanised into concrete policies and laws for the transformation of our country. The entry of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) indeed, represents a positive beginning in the realisation of these ideals.” Okechukwu said he was elated when the APC settled for his former lecturer as its candidate. He said he is convinced that the time was now for every Nigerian, who desires change to stand up and support “this man, who is one of the best brains this country has. “We hope the electoral umpire will conduct a free and fair election so that the people could be exposed to good leadership. I have no doubt in my mind that Prof Osinbajo will do all of us proud if voted into office. He is, indeed, one of the few good ones who we can trust. You saw what he did in Lagos Judiciary, which is now a reference point to all,” he said

Court restraints Fed Govt, CBN SCUML from enforcing money laundering act on legal practitioners

FEDERAL high court, Abuja has restrained the federal government, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML) from enforcing the provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (MLA) against legal practitioners. The court presided by Justice Gabriel Kolawole, gave an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Federal Government, the CBN and the SCUML from seeking to enforce Section 5 of the MLA against legal practitioners. He made no order as to costs. In an originating summon dated March 15, 2013, the NBA had asked the court to declare that the provisions of Section 5 MLA, in so far as they purport to apply to legal practitioners, are invalid, null and void. The originating summon was filed on behalf of the Registered Trustees of the NBA by Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), Mrs. Funke Adekoya (SAN), Messrs Babajide Ogundipe, Emeka Nwadioke and Davison Oturu. The defendants in the suit were the

By Adebisi Onanuga

Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). They were represented by Mr. M. B. Wali for the first defendant while Chief Charles Uwensuyi-Edosomwan(SAN) was lead counsel for the second defendant. The plaintiffs had sought an order of the court deleting legal practitioners from the definition of “Designated Non-Financial Institutions (DNFIs)” as contained in Section 25 MLA, an order of perpetual injunction restraining the CBN from seeking to implement its circular reference FPR/CIR/ GEN/VOL.1/028 dated August 2, 2012 in relation to legal practitioners. They also sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Federal Government, acting through Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML), the National Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or otherwise howsoever from seeking to enforce the provisions of

Section 5 MLA in relation to lepractitioners. The plaintiffs had raised three issues for determination by the court. They prayed the court to determine whether Section 5 of the MLA is unconstitutional, whether SCUML is the body authorised to regulate the conduct of legal practitioners and whether it is a juristic body, and whether in view of the Legal Practitioners Act (LPA), Evidence Act and the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the legal profession is not already well regulated? In an 18-paragraph affidavit deposed to by Osita Okoro, NBA Executive Director, the plaintiffs had stated that the action was brought on behalf of members of the legal profession in Nigeria to challenge Nigeria’s anti-money laundering regime as set out under the MLA, and following complaints from legal practitioners all over the country regarding, among others, potential encroachment on the principle of lawyer/client privilege through the implementation of the anti-money laundering regime by the SCUML.

Arguing for the first defendant, Wali submitted that the objective of the MLA and the SCUML was not to monitor the legal practitioner but to monitor their clients who may have the potential to commit heinous crimes. Wali stated that the MLA 2011 “is a valid and deliberate exercise of legislative power to enact a law in derogation of the rights conferred by Section 37 of the Constitution for the purposes of preventing the financing of terrorism and other criminal activities inimical to public health and safety.” Responding to the plaintiffs’ argument that Section 192 of the Evidence Act “specifically forbids and prohibits legal practitioners from divulging to any party all the secrets or transactions or communications between them and their clients,” he contended that Section 5 MLA “which is the portion of the Act that requires reporting to SCUML apply only to legal practitioners who are engaged in cash transactions as defined by section 25 of the MLA,” adding that the section applies “to only certain classes of legal practitioners.”

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

LAW & SOCIETY The rights of the child are being abused daily despite laws at the Federal and state levels to check the trend. Lagos State has moved a step further to enforce the Child Rights Law of 2003 as it solicits parents and guardians’ support in creating awareness and enforcing the law, reports ADEBISI ONANUGA

Lagos seeks parents’ support on Child Rights Act

HE Lagos State government has begun an awareness cam paign on the rights of children, urging parents and caregivers to guard their children and wards against abuses and violence. The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Ade Ipaye, in an address delivered at the Human Rights “Essay and Debate Competition organised for Private and Public schools, re-affirmed the state’s readiness to continue upholding the rights of every Lagosian including those of the children. The competition was organised by the Directorate for Citizen’s Rights to form part of the activities marking the Human Rights day. Ipaye confirmed that as far back as 2003, the state had seen the need to address and protect the children, which culminated into the passage of the Child Rights Law of Lagos State in 2007. The law, he noted, was to safeguard the welfare of a child and eradicate various forms of abuse on the children. “Prior to the enactment of the law, the issue of abuse and domestic violence against children was perpetually on the back burner of public policy,” he noted According to him, the theme of this year’s celebration, which is “The Rights of the Child”, is a call for a development of an all-inclusive legal and socio-economic framework to cater for the welfare and wellbeing of our children. The attorney-general explained that the theme of this year’s human rights’ day was carefully picked in the light of the fact that in the last one year, more than 500 cases of defilement and rape cases have been reported in Lagos. He said children contend with several challenges on a daily basis and the onus is on the parents and guardians to ensure that each child is given necessary care and attention. Ipaye said the principles of human rights should be inculcated in the youth at their earliest formative stage, adding that it would ensure that they imbibe the principles of fairness, non-discrimination, inclusiveness and respect for fellow-beings, irrespective of their ages. The Attorney-General said efforts to ensure that every Child’s right is protected and given equal oppor-

By Adebisi Onanuga

tunity include the establishment of Home and Clinics for the physically challenged children, the setting up of a Domestic Violence Response Team to provide support to victims of abuse, and signing of an Executive Order that establishes a sex offender register and the compulsory reporting of suspected and actual child abuse cases. He, however, pointed out that the success of all the laws and policies protecting the rights of the children depends largely on the cooperation of the members of the society. “I will like to use the opportunity of this occasion to enjoin all Lagosians to partner with the government in ensuring that the rights of our children are safeguarded,” he pleaded. Lagos lawyer, Funmi Falana, who was a guest of honour and keynote speaker at the occasion, suggested a nine-point approach to enforcing the Child Rights Act 2003 in all the states of the federation. In a paper titled: ”The rights of the child”, Falana advocated for a proper electoral reform to be carried out to facilitate the evolution of responsible leaders needed for advancing the rights of the children. She said judges, on the other hand, should be made independent to be able to apply the provisions of all laws, including the Child Rights Act, without fear or favour. She advised that all international conventions and declarations on the rights of children, which Nigeria is a signatory, should be domesticated by the National Assembly to compliment provisions of the constitution and other laws for effective protection of children rights in the country. She urged the government and Nigerians to pay more and genuine attention to moral and religious virtues, which could make them appreciate the value of being their brother’s keeper and be considerate to the rights and interest of other persons, especially the children. Falana took a swipe at those states’ Assemblies yet to enact the Child Rights Act into law. She said because they failed in their legislative duties, the act is not binding on states that are yet to

•From left: Lawal (SAN), former Director of Prosecution(DPP), Mrs. Efun Gbadebo and Ipaye.

•Director, Directorate for Citizen’s right, Mrs. Omotilewa Ibirogba (left) and Mrs Falana.

•From left Special Adviser, Deputy Governor’s Office, Mrs Riskat Akinode, CSP Monday Agbonika and representative of the Commissioner for Education, Dr. Christie Sofolahan. PHOTOS: Solomon Adeola enact it while no court can prosecute violators of the act . Falana said out of the 36 states of the federation, only 24 have enacted the act. Earlier, the SolicitorGeneral,Lawal Pedro(SAN), explained that the partnership the state government has with schools would ensure that the children are provided with opportunity to learn about human right.

This year’s celebration included a debate by pupils from various public and private schools from primary to senior secondary schools. Topics for the debate included: “Children should be seen and heard, Best interest of the Child should be taken into consideration when decision affecting them are made and Child Rights Law of Lagos State does not adequately protect the right of the Child.”

At the end of the exercise, Amina Aziza of Mayor Primary School, Allen Avenue, Ikeja emerged the overall winner. She was very articulate and eloquent in her presentation. She also won the award for the primary school category with 92 points having defeated her opponent Victoria Fidelis of unity Primary School, Agege who scored 45 points.

Court resolves Ikoyi property dispute By Joseph Jibueze

•Lagos C.J, Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade

LAGOS State High Court in Ikeja has resolved a dispute over a property in Ikoyi be-

tween Dr. Osita Aduba and a Director of the Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company, Mr. Sonnie Ayere. Justice Olubunmi Femi-Adeniyi entered judgment in Aduba’s favour over the property on 4A Ojora (formerly Hawksworth) Road, Ikoyi, after a four-year legal tussle. Aduba, through his lawyer, Mr D.J. Fadesere, had sought a declaration that the tenancy agreement between him and Ayere expired on February 28, 2010. He sought a declaration that the defendant did not renew the tenancy agreement, therefore, he (Aduba)

should be empowered to take possession of the house. The claimant further urged the court to grant a mesne profit at the rate of N10, 000,000 per annum from March 1, 2010 until he retakes the house. In law, a mesne profit accrues while there is a dispute over property ownership. If it is determined that the party using the land did not have legal ownership, the true owner can sue for some or all of the profits made in the interim by the illegal tenant. Justice Femi-Adeniyi held: “I find and hold that the claimant is not entitled to a mesne profit in the sum of N10 million.

“However, having held that the tenancy was properly determined by the effluxion of time by the incidence Exhibit C1 (Tenancy agreement), I hold that the claimant is entitled to mesne profits in the amount of N3, 800,000 per annum from the defendant until the defendant gives up possession. “I assess the mesne profit as at today at N18, 050,000. The claim succeeds and judgment is entered in favour of the claimant against the defendant.” Fadesere had argued that by the provisions of Section 13 (5) of the Tenancy Law of Lagos State (2011), the defendant was entitled to a notice to

quit, which was duly served on him. However, Ayere’s counsel, O. O. Oniyire and C. E. Aforgwu, in a preliminary objection, argued that the Tenancy Law did not apply to the action because Section 1 (3)(III) exempts Ikoyi from its application. The defendant said the applicable law is the Recovery of Premises Law of Lagos State 1973 and the provisions of Order 5 rule 6 of the Magistrates Courts (Civil Procedure) Rules 2009. Ayere said the claimant allegedly frustrated him from exercising his right to renew the tenancy for no reasonable cause.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NATIONAL BAR

Lawyers urged to explore emerging areas of practice

FOREMOST commercial lawyer and pioneer Chair man, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Section on Business Law (SBL), Mr. George Etomi, has called on lawyers to explore emerging areas of law practice to mitigate the challenges of globalisation. He said this at the Aare Afe Babalola Bar Centre, Iyaganku Ibadan, venue of the week-long 63th anniversary of the NBA Ibadan Branch. Etomi, who spoke on the topic: “From Ibadan to the uttermost parts: developing expertise in emerging sectors”, said: “Globalisation is shrinking the world, the barriers to legal practice continues to crumble. So, your competitor is not that lawyer in Lagos or Abuja, no. Your competitor is that lawyer in China, Dubai, the USA and so on. “So, if you want to succeed, begin to sniff out what areas you would like to practise. From Ibadan to the uttermost part is an open field, so determine which areas you want to practise”. The NBA President, Augustine Alegeh (SAN), who spoke on the theme: “Nigeria at the Tipping or Turning Point”, took a cursory look at the socio-economic and political past of Nigeria, linking it with present challenges facing the country. He proffered solutions to the various challenges and concluded that that there is hope that Nigeria will attain greater heights and take its pride of place in the comity of nations. Nineteen eminent members of the Ibadan Bar, who have distinguished themselves in their service to the Bar, were honoured with Lifetime Achievement Awards. Some of the recipients included Chief Richard Akinjide (SAN); Chief Folake Solanke (SAN); Chief Bandele Aiku (SAN); Aare Afe Babalola (SAN) and Chief Akin Delano (SAN), among others. The first day event ended with turning of the sod of the NBA Ibadan Branch Library to be built by Chief Akinjide (SAN) at the High Court Complex, Ring Road, Ibadan. It was performed by Justice Sylvester Nwali-Ngwuta (JSC), who represented the Chief Justice of Nigeria. Speakers at the second day of the event examined how Ibadan can tap into other areas of law practice aside litigation. One of them was the Chairman of the Governing Council of the NBA Section on Business Law (SBL), Mr. Asue Ighodalo, who chaired the session. He examined the possible effects of the current dwindling global oil prices on Nigerian economy, the

By John Austin Unachukwu

possible sources of revenue for the governments and the negative economic consequences of that lie ahead. He stated that though everything looked gloomy, difficult and tough, there is always a silver lining at the end of the tunnel. Ighodalo said: “Ibadan was the centre of Nigeria, everybody who is who in the legal profession in Nigeria grew up and was exported from Ibadan, Ibadan has to get back its shine now. Lawyers have to lead by thinking outside the box and avoid the traditional practice areas. This is the time to develop expertise in the emerging areas” According to Etomi, Ibadan is the cradle of civilisation in Nigeria, adding that Ibadan was first in almost everything and the University of Ibadan was the seed that laid the foundation for modern Nigeria and that no matter how dim the economy looks, life must go on Dr. Wale Babalakin said: “Abandonment of merit is the first major problem in Nigeria. Once you have a criterion that is different from merit, you languish in what we are languishing now. Let us create a nation where thinking will be rewarded.” Others who spoke at this session included Ogun State AttorneyGeneral and Commissioner for Justice, Mrs. Abimbola Akeredolu and Ms Toyosi Akerele. They harped on the need for practice in Ibadan to conform with the emerging trends of legal practice with regards to commercial law, merging of law practice and focus on partnership amongst legal practitioners. Events of the third day began with “Health Walk Day”, which took off at the Parliament Building Car Park and terminated at the Agodi Prison where the Ibadan Bar projects were commissioned by the Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice M. L. Abimbola. The projects included: the newly built toilet and a renovated block of toilets at the Agodi Prisons for the inmates. A football match was later played in the evening between the Ibadan Ikeja branches of the NBA. The Ibadan warlords were defeated by the Ikeja tigers by a lone goal. The last day featured the Moot and Mock Trials among four invited universities with the theme: “The Failed Edifice”. It was chaired by Chief Bandele Aiku (SAN). The session was chaired by Chief (Mrs.) Folake Solanke SAN. The celebration ended with a

•Oyo State Chief Judge, Justice M.L Abimbola (left) and NBA President, Augustine Alegeh (SAN).

•From left; Former Chairman NBA Ibadan branch, Seun Abimbola, Mrs Folake Solanke (SAN), Vice-Chairman NBA Section on Business Law (SBL) Mr. Olu Apata and Chairman NBA Ibadan branch Mr. Kazeem Gbadmosi

•From left: Etomi, Ighodalo and Babalakin.

Dinner where past Chairmen/ Secretaries were honoured for their meritorious service to the Bar. Other eminent personalities, who have supported the Ibadan Bar, were also given the Pillars Award. They included Prince Lateef O. Fagbemi (SAN); Chief Akin Olujinmi (SAN); O l u w a r o t i m i Akeredolu (SAN); Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN) and N. O. O. Oke

(SAN) In a chat with The Nation, Ibadan NBA Branch Chairman, Mr. Kazeem Adekunle Gbadamosi said: “We really had a wonderful programme, Ibadan, Lagos, Ilorin and Oshogbo Branches participated in the in the debate on compulsory pupilage. “The Ibadan Bar won the debate. At the end of the day we realised

that even though pupilage is highly desirable, the factors responsible for its non-observance nowadays include: the get-richquick attitude of juniors, non-payment of adequate remuneration by seniors and the lack of mutual trust amongst seniors and the junior ones. However, the consensus was that compulsory pupilage is desirable and should be encouraged.”

Assault: Lawyer seeks order to review DPP’s advice

•Ipaye

LAGOS lawyer, Destiny Takon, has petitioned the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Ade Ipaye over a legal advice from the office of the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) in an assault case involving Keneth Agbaraku. He is asking for order to review the DPP’s advice. The DPP ordered an assault case instituted by his client, Mrs Gladys Ifeyinwa Caza, be struck out and discontinued. But Takon, a principal partner in the law firm of Destiny Obun Takon & Company, faulted the legal advice issued by the DPP’s office involving his client, Mrs

By Adebisi Onanuga

Gladys Ifeyinwa Caza, who is a complainant in an assault case filed against her landlord, Mr. Kenneth Agbaraku. He described the advice as improper and argued that the complainant’s statement to the police with photos of her injuries and a witness statement were enough for the prosecution to start the trial. The lawyer said the police had filed a criminal charge against Mr Agbaraku before the Igbosere Magistrates Court for allegedly assaulting Mrs Casa while attempting to illegally evict her from his resi-

dence in Lekki. He claimed that the criminal charge against Agbaraku was occasioned by an alleged head injuries he allegedly inflicted on Mrs Caza with a thick marble slate in a scuffle during the attempt to evict her. He explained that it was on the basis of the formal complaint lodged with the police that Agbaraku was charged to court for assault and subsequently granted bail. Takon said a new dimension was introduced into the matter recently when a lawyer from the DPP’s office informed the court that the case had been taken over by the DPP for advice.

The development, according to him, took place after the trial had suffered several adjournments as a result of defendant’s absence. He said he was further shocked when the DPP insisted that the case be struck out due to insufficient evidence to establish the offence of assault. He said this was contrary to the DPP’s advise which showed that the police failed to carry out further investigation on the matter as requested by the DPP’s office. “In absence of further investigation on the matter to establish a prima facie case, the DPP office advised that the matter be discontinue,” Takon said.

Newspaper of the Year

AN 8-PAGE PULLOUT ON NORTHERN STATES

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

PAGE 29

A case for nomads

•PAGE 30

Yuletide: Suswam upgrades infrastructure

•PAGE 31

•A street in Bagana community deserted by the people

Caught in tribal crossfire After playing the good host, providing settling places for both the Fulani and the Agatu, the Bagana people of Kogi State are fleeing from their homeland just to escape the violent clashes between the settlers, reports JAMES AZANIA

HE Bagana never bargained for this. When some Fulani and Agatu families from neighbouring Benue State stopped by, asking for a place to pitch their tents, the Bagana community in Omala Local Government Area of Kogi State did not hesitate to oblige. Now, a bitter conflict has broken out among the visitors and their hosts are fleeing because their community has become too hot for them. They have continued to count their losses since they took that decision to host the two tribes now engaged in a battle. They did not see this coming but their magnanimity appears to have boomeranged and they are gradually becoming part of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the country. Since accepting the Fulani and the Agatu in their midst, the Bagana people have been displaced as they are forced to flee their homes following unrelenting conflicts between Fulani herdsmen and Agatu mi-

‘We have handed everything over to God and we know He alone can resolve this. Our people have left because of attacks but we are optimistic that all will come to an end and our people can return to their places and in peace’ litias. The situation has resulted in a steady outward movement of the original inhabitants of Bagana to other areas they consider safe. The community has been mostly deserted as a result. Some residents said that the latest attack took everyone unawares, and that over 200 suspected Agatu militias from neighbouring communities, armed with sophisticated weapons, stormed the cattle market in

Bagana, shooting intermittently and sending people scampering for safety. Two people reportedly died in the attack, while several others were injured. Eighteen cows were said to be carted away in two pick-up vans. An eyewitness told The Nation that the attack was the latest in a series of assaults, forcing a great number of the locals to flee to other areas for fear of being hit in the crossfire.

A source in the community who pleaded not to be named, said despite playing host to the Fulani and Agatu, the Bagana community has at various occasions been at the receiving end of skirmishes between the two parties. The Fulani and the Agatu, he explained, have been estranged over some unresolved issues back in their original communities in Benue State, following which some of them relocated to Bagana and environs in Kogi. Speaking on the incident, the Seriki Hausawa of Bagana, Alhaji Audi Seriki said he has handed everything over to God and expressed optimism that the lingering crisis will soon be over and the people return to their homes. He said, “We have handed everything over to God and we know He alone can resolve this. Our people have left because of attacks but we are optimistic that all will come to an end and our people can return to their places •Continued on page 33

Exemplary care for Borno IDPs •PAGE 32

‘We have lost hope’ •PAGE 33

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

THE NORTH REPORT

HAT efforts are made to protect nomadic people in the country? Thieves raid their cattle. Insurgents attack them. Their children’s education is often disrupted. Any hope for them? These were some of the issues brainstormed at a conference in the University of Jos in the Plateau State capital. The National Commission for Nomadic Education played a crucial role in marshalling out the issues. The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Professor Rashid Aderinoye, who spoke at the conference, said the challenges of the nomads included “insurgency, cattle rustling, piracy, kidnapping and constant clashes [with] their sedentary communities among others…Presently, nomads have to abandon schools established for them and constantly migrate not only for pasture and fertile lands but also for safety of their lives and properties”. He said further: “The contributions of the nomadic groups to the nation’s economy as well as the individual’s well-being cannot be over-emphasised. They provide hides and skin, cheese, meat, fish as well as other agricultural products, which, apart from boosting national income, also help in meeting the protein and other nutrient supplements needs of the citizens. “As stakeholders, it is my belief that this conference will bring to the fore the challenges facing the pastoralists and the attendant consequences on the implementation of Nomadic Education programme. May I therefore urge the conveners of the conference to properly articulate and document the issues and resolutions of the conference with a view to guiding policy makers in taking informed decisions into developing a turn round strategies to uplift the socio-economic wellbeing of pastoralists. Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof Hayward Babale Mafuyayi, said, “The time has come to review the issue of the nomads. The present government of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will want all segments of the country to be part of the ongoing transformation agenda. The nomadic segments cannot be left behind; they are citizens of Nigeria, their rights should also be protected and defended by all stakeholders. That explains why this national conference is being put together, so as to draw attention to this very important issue. And there is no better place than university of Jos where the nomadic education programme first took off way back” Special Adviser to President

•Pupils of Almajiri School, Bauchi at the Jos conference

A case for nomads From Yusufu Aminu Idegu, Jos

Jonathan on Ethics and Values, Dr. Mrs Sarah Jibril noted: “Nomads are found all over the world existing functioning in varied perspectives. They are found in varied forms as pastoralists, farmers, hunters, fishermen and workers. As nomads, they go about in varying patterns and employ varied strategies of survival with different life styles pursuing livelihood. “The nomads portray varied cultures and patterns of life which are party normal to other sedentary cultures and party unique to their challenges and preferences. Some migrants are more sedentary than migratory while some are more or almost solely migratory and less or hardly sedentary; always moving from place to place” Mrs Jibril who delivered the keynote address, said, “Many migrants

‘The time has come to review the issue of the nomads. The present government of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will want all segments of the country to be part of the ongoing transformation agenda. The nomadic segments cannot be left behind; they are citizens of Nigeria, their rights should also be protected and defended by all stakeholders’ imbibe migration as a culture and also a means of livelihood, they tenaciously cling to and pass on from generation to generation

through indoctrination and apprenticeship as a norm. Every type and form of nomadism has its challenges and benefits to humanity and the society. The challenges and benefits range from social to economic to cultural political and educational perspectives. In Nigeria, seven forms of nomadism are exhibited as pastoralism (cattle rear-

ing), farming, fishing, hunting, almajirism, working and petty trading. Migrant pastoralists move with their cattle in varied forms, while migrant farmers move according to seasons for wet season and dry season agricultural pursuits and benefits. “Migrant hunters shift bases on temporary and varied patterns for the pursuit of games. Migrant workers move in varied patterns too as they engage in formal and informal jobs or employment. “Something seems to be common to all forms of nomadism which is the instability and temporality of existence in any abodes in time and duration. These have implications on their social, educational, economic and political life and that of their families. Thus, worldwide, nomads easily become a disadvantaged group that does not benefit maximally from any government arrangement for social amenities such as education, health-care and economic empowerment. Nomads are actually a disadvantaged group that suffer much deprivation even though they make invaluable contributions to the society in many respects”. Dr. Sarah Jibril said, “Happily, in •Continued on page 31

Caught in tribal crossfire •Continued from page 31

and in peace”. Investigations revealed that the recent clash started on a market day in the community when cattle dealers were allegedly attacked by the suspected Agatu militias. When The Nation visited the community, it was more like a ghost town. Most of the residents were nowhere in sight, except some youths who were seen keeping vigil around the town. It was gathered that the Agatu militias had warned members of the community to send away the Fulani from Bagana after attacking the community in May, killing four persons and 32 cows. Another source claimed that rumours of renewed hostility between the warring parties led to the exodus of the people to other villages. The source said: “We heard rumours that the Agatu people were preparing for another attack but nobody knew when it would come. People started to move out to safe areas. We did not know when this their attack will come and when they attacked it was surprise, and you know that not everybody can leave Bagana. In fact, we are tired of these people because it is like they don’t like peace. They are not ready for peaceful co-existence”. Although soldiers were drafted to some of the crisis areas, their presence has done little to completely check the attacks or douse tension in the area. •Christmas travellers at Wazobia Park in Gwagwalada, Abuja

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

THE NORTH REPORT HE Agricultural and Rural Management Training Institute (ARMTI), Ilorin, Kwara state is living up to its billing. Its commodity value chair development or CVCD is designed to make agriculture profitable and worthwhile to rural dwellers. Minister for Agriculture, Dr Akinwunmi Adesina hailed the ARMTI’s CVCD which started two years ago. Dr Adesina described the programme as the right drive towards making agriculture a profitable venture among Nigerian farmers. The institution had undertaken a nationwide baseline study on selected agricultural commodity value chains and organised a national seminar for relevant stakeholders to brainstorm on the subject. Having concluded the study, the ARMTI consequently embarked on a nationwide presentation of the findings across the nation’s six geo political zones. The development is believed would allow each of the blocks to avail itself by cashing into the commodity value chain domiciled within its boundaries. The pilot scheme of the project last year at the Federal Capital Territory (FTC) Abuja had proved a huge success of the programme. It was a national seminar where brain storming activities were done the kernel of which was the recommendation that the scheme be decentralized for more efficient results. The Abuja seminar gathered relevant stakeholders nationwide to brainstorm on the subject and make relevant contributions to direct the study. Adesina, had delivered a keynote address at the event. The people of South- South, South- West, North-Central and North-West had already had their own fair share of the programme. These zones were the areas identified by the federal government as staple crop processing zones. The participants were formed into syndicate groups based on their

•Mrs. Jolayemi making her opening remarks at the event

A plan to make agric attractive From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

respective states to brainstorm on identifying how to leverage on findings and designing a work plan in going forward for their states. But due to the security and for logistic reasons, the mobilisation for the Northeast zone was done via telephone, electronic and surface mails as well as through the office of the National Fadama Coordinator. ARMTI team under its Executive Director Mrs. Comfort Jolayemi took the CVCD baseline study to South East and North East late last months and the elated participants grabbed it with both hands. At both events, packaged as the grand finale of the sensitisation workshops, Jolayemi thanked the federal government through the Agricultural Minister, for the opportunity to show case one of the mandates of the institution, the only one of its kind in African subSahara. The South East programme held in Enugu, Enugu State capital, drew over 50 participants across the catchment zone. The story was similar in Abuja, as the participants described the success as the best thing “that has happened to the agric transformational agenda of Presi-

‘We know that focus should be concentrated on tackling the challenges confronting the agricultural sector that have largely impeded its development to its full potential. Some of these challenges include low productivity of agricultural produce as well as processed products, lack of competitiveness of agribusiness enterprises at both local and international markets, and the increasing high turn-out of young school leavers faced with no jobs in the society’ dent Goodluck Jonathan.” Those who attended the Enugu and Abuja events included: commissioners, permanent secretaries, officials of states’ ministries of agric, Project Managers of states Agric Development Projects (ADP), Fadama Project Coordinators in each state and Directors of Technical Departments and Training Officers in the states’ Ministry of Agriculture.

According to Jolayemi, “we all know that such an initiative as the agricultural commodity value chain programme is the way forward for our country in the pursuit of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda that we have set for ourselves. “We desire a new order of doing things. That is why we know that focus should be concentrated on tackling the challenges confronting the agricultural sector that has largely impeded its development to its full potential. Some of these challenges include, low productiv-

ity of agricultural produce as well as processed products, lack of competitiveness of agribusiness enterprises at both local and international markets, and the increasing high turn-out of young school leavers faced with no jobs in the society. The ARMTI boss added, “the value chain programme has the capacity to unlock this huge potential. Besides, through this study, ARMTI is poised to continue to brainstorm with each geo political zone towards exposing to us how each of us fits into this grand scheme. “Each geo-political zone is set apart with its areas of comparative advantage that can be exploited and leveraged upon. When this is done in each zone, as we engage in various agribusinesses, we would generate income and employment, make agricultural productivity profitable and thereby attractive, and therefore consequently, achieve competitiveness.” Adding to Jolayemi’s views, Director of Agric Development and Management Department of ARMTI, Anthony Njoku and his counterpart in the Director of Rural Development and Gender Issue of the institute, Dr Olufemi Oladunni said the ARMTI’s training programmes were couched in such a way that the Value Chain idea and many other events would prosper. According to Njoku, “ARMTI courses are designed to provide practical assistance to all grades of managers serving in the agricultural and rural sector in the three tiers of government viz local, state and federal, and managers in private agencies involved in agricultural and rural development activities. The training methods emphasise shared learning experiences, case studies, role plays and syndicate discussion to ensure that course subject matter is applied to real life situation.” For Oladunni, the broad objective of the study was to highlight the agro-based investment opportunities along a given commodity value chain in each of the six geo political zones.

A case for nomads •Continued from page 30

•New-look Iyorchia Ayu Road

Yuletide: Suswam upgrades infrastructure

PLEASANT surprise awaits those travelling to Benue State for the end-of-year holiday. Since November bulldozers and other machinery have been ploughing up and shaping up major roads and streets in the state, especially those in the capital Makurdi and its environs. Streetlights are also being fixed. The moribund solar-powered

From Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi

streetlights have come to life, illuminating Makurdi at night. Iorchia Ayu Road, Wurukum, one of the majority roads, which is an entry point into the capital, has been reconstructed by contractors Hajiag Nig. Limited. Another major street that is a de-

light to drive through is Osuman Ihyembe Street in Wurukum. Benue State Commissioner of Works, Chief John Ngbede told our correspondent that Governor Gabriel Suswam’s administration takes continuous infrastructural upgrade seriously. Motorists said they were happy that the pot-holes were being fixed.

Nigeria, Government has through the agencies of Nomadic Education and the Almajiri special intervention programme, some of the educational challenges of pastoralists, fisherfolks and farmers as well as the internal immigrant children in Nigeria, (the Almajiri). From inquiry of example of any progress being made in the nomadic education programme in Nigeria, it is heart warning to note that progress is being made in several inspite of daunting, challenges facing the programme for example, progress was reported in the nomadic education programme in 2013 in the areas of programme coverage, number of schools established, pupils enrolment and teachers recruitment to teach the program”. She said further that “Nomads in Nigeria by 1991 census, is a sizeable proportion of its population. Challenge for an economically advancing country is all-involving and all-inclusive all round education and skills development. Migrants in their various categories have contributed and are contributing in varied ways to Nigeria’s economy. Migrant pastoralists produce the beef and diary products like butter, cheese, milk, ‘nono’ etc. Migrant farmers produce numerous food crops and vegetables such as: Amarathus, Spinah, Cocoyam, Cowpea, Garden egg, Peas etc. Migrant fisherfolks make fishes full

of protein value available for us all to be nourished. Nomadic education programme viability bribancy and sustainability are crucial elements of programme that would stand the test of time and survive dauty challenges. The first and most mind bogging big question is: How can Nomadic education program and Vision 2020 be attained in this situation? Nomadic education programme is a laudable one and there is no way it can be attained without adequate finances and solution to the varied social and crisis situations so also the vision 2020 and its objectives to stimulates Nigeria’s economic growth and lunch the country on to a path of sustained and rapid socio-economic development”. Participants at the conference agreed that the nomadic segment of the country are worst hit in the wave of growing crimes and insurgencies. They expressed concern that the effect of insurgencies and cattle rustling has made nomads in the northern part of the country more unstable to benefit from the government nomadic education policies. It was also agreed by stakeholders that deliberate efforts should be made by relevant agencies make the nomads play vital role in the economy of the nation. And that there is the need for government to see how the group can benefit directly in the ongoing transformation agenda of the present administration.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

THE NORTH REPORT EADERS routinely leave out the youth in governance and that is why the country is facing all sorts of problems. That was the position of the Talban Lafiagi, Salihu Sulaiman, an architect and lecturer, in a paper presented at the 10th anniversary of Lafiagi Youth Movement (LAYOM) in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital. In the paper entitled “The Involvement of Youths in Governance,” Sulaiman, of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), urged governments at all levels to include the youths in their efforts to tackle governance problems. He also urged the youths to “be more pragmatic in our approach to being involved in governance. My call is that the existing youth unions and associations should tap into the provisions in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for the

‘Blame our problems on youth neglect’ From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

growth of our pauperised communities. That way, when the unions and associations are seen on the ground and the people see what they are doing and can assess their potentials for greater things that can be done, then more people will buy into their aspirations including their political objectives if any.” The Talban Lafiagi encouraged the Nigerian youths to dissipate energy on socio-economic grassroots mobilisation; enlightenment issues on electoral reform and the expectations of communitybased organisations (CBOs); par-

‘Youths should be more pragmatic in their approach to being involved in governance. Youth unions and associations should tap into the provisions in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for the growth of our pauperised communities’ ticipate in budget preparation and implementation; engage in project monitoring; ensure good governance at all levels and tracking the MDGs to ensure good governance. He said, “Specifically, the youths

must at all times gather to stimulate continuous dialogues on governance issues by emphasising the important role youth can play in addressing issues of corruption; encourage youths to demand for accountability and

concrete actions from their governments in addressing problems of corruption; motivate young people to be agents of transformation within the communities to address governance problems and encourage youths to participate in development which is key to breaking the cycle of poverty and ultimately changing entire societies.” The Deputy Provost, Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin, Dr Jida Idris hinged the country current travails on “the inability of government to provide adequate employment for teeming population of the Nigerian youth. “The youths are being used during political engineering and at the end they are dumped by the so-called political leaders.”

Exemplary care for Borno IDPs T

HEY have little to worry about except their homes. The camp food is good and a combined team of security agents looks after them while expectant and nursing mothers get special attention. Even school age children are taught at the camps, thanks to the Borno State government. The only thing missing is the comfort of their homes. There is also quality medical care for ailing ones. Such is the story of internally displaced persons or IDPs in the state. In several parts of the region and even the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the plight of people forced out of their homes in the Northeast by rampaging Boko Haram fighters is pitiable. Recently, Borno State First Lady Hajiya Nana Kashim Shettima visited various IDP camps in the metropolis where she donated assorted food items comprising of packets and cartons of bourn vita, Milo, Nido and spaghetti to nursing mothers at the IDPs NYSC Orientation Camp Maiduguri. Over 5000 IDPs from Damboa, Bama Konduga LGAs are sheltering in various camps in Maiduguri metropolis. The IDPs Camp Committee Chairman Alhaji Abba Yarema Bukar and Secretary of the Committee Alhaji Abba Kolomi said that the commitment of Governor Kashim Shettima to the welfare of the IDPs in the state is “unprecedented” through the continuous supply of relief materials to the camps. He also commended individuals, groups and associations that believe in the cause with the governor in the plight of the IDPs in the state, while commending the Borno

From Duku Joel, Maiduguri

State Emergency Agency (SEMA) for their efforts in coordinating the welfare of the displaced persons. “The State Emergency Management Agency SEMA under the directives of the state governor Alhaji Kashim Shettima has started delivering 1000 pieces of blankets, 1000 mattresses, foodstuff, rice and other food items to the 4000 IDPs from Damboa Local Government Area, 1000 IDPs from both Bama and Konduga councils at the camp. “Even the state Deputy Governor Alhaji Zanna Mustapha has just visited us today and inspected the food and stores where the committee kept sufficient food for daily cooking for the feeding of the IDPs. If you can visit our stores, you will see that we have enough food items. The food is in large quantity and we do cook standard meals for them. We slaughter a cow for them and buy dry fish in large quantities to cook for them also along with their meals every day. We have provided them with enough blankets because of the cold weather condition at the moment and mattresses as well as leather mats as earlier directed by the governor. “We have also provided adequate health care delivery services to the IDPs throughout the camp clinics which are manned by the Doctors Without Borders and a few medical and health staff of the state Ministry of Health. We also have ambulances at the various camps in the event of emergencies or referral cases,” Bukar said. Speaking on the security of the IDPs, the chairman said, “We have

•Governor Kashim Shettima (third left) inspecting feeding facilities at an IDPs camp in Maiduguri also ensured that proper and adequate security is provided at the camps. You can bear witness that we have soldiers, police, local hunters and BOYES, the Civilian JTF, providing enough security at the camp,” he added. Bukar also disclosed that four pregnant women have delivered at the camp in the past 30 days and five people passed away naturally, one of them from injuries in a car accident outside the camp. The Secretary of the committee, Alhaji Abba Kolomi added that the education of the children in the camp has not been compromised through the efforts of the state government and with the support of

•Suya sellers at Jama’are Road in Kiyawa Local Government Area, Jigawa State

the UNICEF and Voluntary Individuals at the camp do have lessons for primary pupils and JSS students. He informed that a playing ground for children is also provided in a much organised manner in the mornings and evenings for Physical Education lessons. The Chief Cook at the camp, Hajiya Niimatu Kabir Mohammed corroborated Kolomi’s information, saying, ”In fact, we have enough and we cook quality and balanced diet food for the IDPs three times a day. We cook breakfast for them, we cook lunch for them and we also cook separate dinner for them. “Most times, we even change the way we cook rice, beans, spaghetti, biski or semovita. We have red stew okro soup or taushe soup mixed with beef or fish. Very rich and nourishing food is being served the IDPs daily here at the camp. The IDPs can confirm that themselves”, Niimatu said. Bukar Aisami, chairman of

Konduga IDPs at the NYSC Orientation Camp, was full of praises for the state government, noting that the Shettima administration has done much to lessen their pain. Regardless of the care and comfort provided at the camps, Aisami still prays for the end of the insurgency so that his people can return home and pick up their their lives again. “We are adequately and properly being taken care of by the state government. We are indeed very grateful to the governor for feeding us and providing us with blankets, mattresses and mats. For providing us with health facility at the camp including van ambulance, doctors and drugs. We don’t have any problem except that we want to go back home. We are eager to go home although we are being catered for here properly even better than home but home is home no matter how sweet and comfortable this place is,” Aisami informed.

‘The State Emergency Management Agency SEMA under the directives of the state governor Alhaji Kashim Shettima has started delivering 1000 pieces of blankets, 1000 mattresses, foodstuff, rice and other food items to the 4000 IDPs from Damboa Local Government Area, 1000 IDPs from both Bama and Konduga councils at the camp’

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

Page 33

Website: http://www.thenationonlineng.com

•The displaced persons in an Abuja camp

ATIMAH Abdulahi, 20, is a mother of two beautiful girls. She is married to Yusuf Abdullahi, a farmer from Adamawa State. They are blessed with Fatima aged two and Zainab, who is just three weeks old. The couple lived peacefully until the enemy struck, forcing them from their home. Fatimah and her two children had a sordid experience before they escaped, sleeping in the bush for two days before evading the assailants. They have since joined the huge crowd of people who fled to the nation’s capital for safety. She and her daughters are not under any imminent threat from those who chased them out of their home, but something is missing. Where is her husband and father of her girls? Fatimah said she was not sure if her husband was alive or dead. Mr. Job Pitman, a 52-year-old father of nine, from Shendam Local Government Area, Plateau State, is another displaced person in Abuja. He recalled how his family initially sheltered under a cashew tree and lived under the worst circumstances during the rainy season. He shared the tree shade with about 200 people, he said. “They (their attackers) came to pursue us where we were staying. They demolished the bacha (a small makeshift wooden house). So we lived under a cashew tree. It was Madam Adaorah who came to our place to see how we were surviving and asked if it was human beings living under the tree and I answered yes. “We don’t have money but even if we had money, we cannot go back because of the crisis. Election is near but we cannot vote because our voter cards are in Jos. We want government to just come to our rescue and help us like this woman is helping because we have lost hope. They should help us with a place to live,” Pitman said. Another victim, Mrs. Hanatu Peter, 25, from Jos also lamented how she slept under the bridge with her

‘We have lost hope’ Even for survivors of the insurgency, some wounds may never heal. Some families do not know whether their breadwinners are alive or dead. At their camps, they are short of everything they need. OLUGBENGA ADANIKIN captures the agony of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Federal Capital Territory husband and a-three-year-old daughter before she went to Kuchingoro. “We relocated from Jos because of the crisis. My husband does not have any work, so we stayed at Kuchingoro in a small batcha (makeshift woodhouse). Before then, we were sleeping under the bridge with my three months old baby. So we have been managing before God sent this aunty to us. Every time she will bring food and cloth to us and check on us. “I want government to build a place for us and create jobs so that we will be able to feed ourselves.” It is clear these groups are vulnerable. The terror has thorn their families apart, leaving indelible marks in their history. The minds of their infants have been fouled with sordid experiences. The Northeast is the worst hit by the Boko Haram Islamist sect, which has crippled socio-economic activities of the region. Some residents who escaped to neighbouring nations are either subjected to modern slavery or recruited into terrorist camps. According to reports, not less than 5, 000 people have lost their lives between July 2009 and June 2014 while over 650, 000 persons were displaced with an increase of 200, 000 since May 2014. The terror left thousands in anguish and despicable situations. Clearly, the wound will take a while to heal. The United Nations annual global trends report revealed an increasing 51.2 million displaced persons across the world, compared with 45.2 million recorded in 2012. This incidentally became a worrying trend that calls for peace and resolution among areas

‘We are seeing here the immense cost of not ending wars, of failing to resolve or prevent conflict. Peace is today dangerously in deficit. Humanitarian gestures can help as palliatives, but political solutions are vitally needed. Without this, the alarming levels of conflict and mass suffering will continue’ of high conflicts. “We are seeing here the immense cost of not ending wars, of failing to resolve or prevent conflict. “Peace is today dangerously in deficit. Humanitarian gestures can help as palliatives, but political solutions are vitally needed. Without this, the alarming levels of conflict and mass suffering that is reflected in these figures will continue,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres. According to the Initiator of YellowJerrican Save a Child Foundation, Adaora Onyechere there was need for change of approach to address IDP needs. She emphasised how improper care of the vulnerable group could intensity insecurity in the territory. As for her, government ought to create a reliable database in that respect. Relevant NGOs and government agencies should harmonise their activities to properly address the

needs. “The urban procession of these displaced persons is not only a major template for an increase in violence and crimes but also a corrosive fabric for rebellion and anti-government, premeditated activities through these persons who are highly gullible and detrimental to the fabric of Nigeria’s politics and government’s transformation agenda.” At Waru district in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Abuja Review learnt that about 2, 000 refugees had stormed the community to live with their relatives or friends just for survival. A few months after, about 1, 856 persons also left the crisis-thorn region for the community. Since the town was becoming more dominated, it captured attention of philantropists and government agencies. Faith Based Organisations (FBOs) and Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs) paid visits to them to show them love.

Though, an official of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) discredited the figure. According to her, about 200 displaced persons were recorded in the community. Meanwhile, during the launch of the Presidential Committee on Victims Support Fund (VSF) for the IDPs on July, 2014, the committee, chaired by Danjuma was able to rake about N80 billion. Danjuma alone made a donation of about N1.6b. It was recorded the highest single donation to the fund. Perhaps, that was the rationale he was made Chairman and custodian of the Fund. The VSF was mandated to develop appropriate strategies for the fund raising, ascertain persons, communities and economic assets affected by Boko Haram terror activities. Other responsibilities include assess and determine the appropriate support required in each case, to manage disburse or administer support to the victims as appropriate. It also include addressing related challenges as may be appropriate and advise government on other matters necessary or incidental to support victims of boko haram terror activities. Ironically, as the committee began its implementation, things became twisted. The IDPs demanded a change of approach. They wanted to be empowered and provided with basic necessities, rather than just being fed with staple foods. The IDPs disclosed that the relief materials were commendable but ephemeral.

•Contin

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

ABUJA REVIEW

Jonathan flags off workers’ houses A S part of efforts to reduce housing deficits, President Goodluck Jonathan has flagged off about 10,000 units of apartments in Apo Tapyi District, Abuja. The plan is under the Nationwide Workers’ Housing Scheme. Jonathan, who inaugurated the scheme, said his administration’s target is to deliver about 100,000 housing units in the Federal Capital Territory and the 36 states of the federation. The President said the initiative was part of the Transformation Agenda to provide adequate and affordable houses to Nigerians particularly workers. He said, “The Federal Government will continue to partner with the private developers to provide affordable houses to bring down the cost houses in the country”. Jonathan lauded the efforts and the seriousness to the scheme by the developer, Good Homes Development Company Limited and urged other developers to emulate the entrepreneurial skills of Good Homes. While appreciating the kind gesture of the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress to partner with the Federal Government on this very important project of providing shelter to the workers, he urged all Nigerian workers to key into the scheme to enable the government make this houses available at the scheduled time. According to a statement issued by the Assistant Director/Chief Press Secretary to the FCT

Minister, Muhammad Sule, the president also used the occasion to call on the Labour Unions in the country to always exploit avenues of discussion and negotiations first before embarking on any strike; stressing that strikes cause hardship to the ordinary people. Welcoming guests to the occasion, the FCT Minister Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed remarked that the right to shelter is an economic, social and cultural right as recognized in many national constitutions and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; noting that it is in recognition of this right that President Goodluck Jonathan Administration placed high premium on provision of housing for all in the Transformation Agenda of the Federal Government. Senator Mohammed stated that over the period of time, FCT has been dynamic in providing initiatives such as Accelerated Development, Affordable Housing and District Development to address prevailing housing deficit. According to him, “the Land Swap initiative represents our strategy for leveraging private capital in the provision of infrastructure and housing with the expectation of development of 15 districts to provide houses for more than one million residents and creating 500,000 new jobs with capital inflow of about one trillion naira in the next five years”. On the Nationwide Workers’ Housing Scheme, the Minister revealed that the FCT Administration gave a waiver of about N28 billion

•From left: Minister of Water Resources, Sarah Ochekpe; President, Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Abdulwaheed Omar;. President Goodluck Jonathan and Minister of FCT Senator Bala Mohammed at the launch of the Nationwide Workers Housing Scheme at Apo-Tafyi in Abuja. PHOTO: AKIN OLADOKUN

‘The Land Swap initiative represents our strategy for leveraging private capital in the provision of infrastructure and housing with the expectation of development of 15 districts to provide houses for more than one million residents and creating 500,000 new jobs with capital inflow of about one trillion naira in the next five years’ on the land premium and about N550 million waiver on building plan approval. He emphasised that his Adminis-

tration gave these waivers to make the houses even more affordable to the workers who are the end beneficiaries.

Speaking at the occasion, the NLC President, Abdulwaheed Omar thanked the Federal Government for this wonderful partnership, which he restated, would go a long way in alleviating the sufferings of the workers. He appreciated the waivers by the FCT Minister and urged the developers to reflect the waivers in the prices of the houses to be delivered to the workers. The Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Mr. Danladi Kifasi at the occasion expressed the loyalty of the Civil Servants to the Federal Government. The Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development and Supervising Minister of Labour and productivity, Mrs. Akon Etim Eyakenyi and Alhaji Kabiru Tanimu Turaki SAN, respectively also spoke at the occasion.

Physically challenged persons urged to shun begging

HE Social Development Secretariat (SDS) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has called on physically challenged people to avoid street begging, stressing its hazardous effect on their lives. Executive Secretary, FCT Social Development Secretariat, Mrs. Blessing Onuh, in commemoration of the 2014 Day of Physically Challenged Persons, explained that the secretariat embarked on the gesture to discourage the physically challenged from engaging on street begging. Onuh, while noting that it is the obligation of the social develop-

Stories from Gbenga Omokhunu

ment secretariat to carter for the people with disabilities, explained that even if they engage in begging for a whole year, the proceeds from such begging business, cannot buy them a bag of rice or a good clothing material. “You can attest to the fact that some of your friends have lost their lives as a result of carelessness of drivers who are ran over by such drivers. So, I encourage you not to engage in street begging because it is not good for you and the FCT administration is totally against it,”

she advised. On the need to equip them with skills, Onuh encouraged them to always make good use of the opportunities provided by the Social Development Secretariat, to acquire necessary skills and knowledge that will make their lives meaningful. “The form to enroll in the skill acquisition center is free of charge. Just few months ago, some people were graduated from one of our skill acquisition center located in Bwari area council, and each of them was given N100, 000 to start life,” She said.

She, however, solicited the contribution and support of well meaning Nigerians, both government and private, who have the resources to join hands in a philanthropic outreach, to reach out to the needy with food items, clothing and other cash donations. On advisory note, Mrs. Grace Adogo warned them to desist from street begging, as the social development secretariat will not hesitate to arrest anyone found on the street begging. Adogo, urged the physically challenged persons to remain in their various homes and camps, thereby promising them that the officials of social development secretariat would be visiting them periodically with all that they need to make

life better for them. In his response, one of the leader of the association of the physically challenged in Abuja, Suleiman Ahmed, expressed his gratitude to the secretariat for remembering them with food and clothing materials, ahead of Christmas celebration. While promising the cooperation of the physically challenged persons to leave the streets, he stressed the need for the resuscitation of the facilities used by the blind. Some items, which include bags of rice, beans, salt, corn, millet, red and groundnut oil, as well as clothing materials were distributed to the physically challenged persons in the spirit of the Christmas celebration.

‘You can attest to the fact that some of your friends have lost their lives as a result of carelessness of drivers who are ran over by such drivers. So, I encourage you not to engage in street begging because it is not good for you and the FCT administration is totally against it’ •All they need is empowerment, not handouts

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

ABUJA REVIEW

•From left: Minister of State, Agriculture, Asabe Ahmed; Minister of Agriculture Akinwumi Adesina; Vice President Namadi Sambo, and President Goodluck Jonathan during the Youth Empowerment Programme in Agriculture and Fund for Agriculture Finance in Nigeria held in Abuja.

•From left: Minister of Finance, Dr.Ngozi Okonjo Iweala; Minister of State, FCT, Jumoke Akinjide; FCT Minister Senator Bala Mohammed, and Minister of State, Finance, Ambassador Bashir Yuguda during the Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House

•From left: Chairman Technical Committee on the National Council on Privitisation (NCP), •Initiator, YellowJerrycan,, Save a Child Foundatiion, Adaora Onyechere(middle) CoordiPeterside Atedo; Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Musa Sada, and Benson Upah nator, Amaka Ude(left) and one of the displaced person, Mrs Ramatu Peter at a press briefduring the NCP meeting at the Presidential Villa PHOTOS: AKIN OLADOKUN ing on the increase in the internally displaced persons in Abuja

•Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety corps, FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi(left) Permanent Secretary, Special duties, Office of Secretary to Federal Government, Dr Habiba Lawal Managing director, Aso Savings Hassan Usman , National President, Real Estate developer As- •National Commandant, Peace Corps of Nigeria, Amb. Dickson Akor (middle) his deputies, sociation of Nigeria, Bode Afolayan and project coordinator , Ebenezer Adebisi during Admin, Lola Amoo (left) and Dr Edet Ekpeyong at the corps end of the Award ceremony in Unveiling of FRSC Housing 20,000 project in Abuja Abuja PHOTOS: ABAYOMI FAYESE

HE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Education Secretariat has said it mounted one of the most successful anti-Ebola school campaigns in the country, spending N100m in the exercise. It said that the money, which was released to the secretariat prior to schools resumption, was used to purchase anti-Ebola kits and information materials to all the schools in the FCT, which enabled FCT schools, unlike some schools in some parts of the country, to resume early enough. The secretariat also said that in its bid to eradicate illiteracy from the FCT, the administration has provided adult literacy and vocational education for FCT residents which has so far enrolled 13,702 learners across the six Area Councils in 2014, with a payment plan of N10,000 monthly allowance to parttime facilitators. Secretary of Education FCT, Mallam Kabir Usman revealed this

N100m spent on anti-Ebola school campaign From Gbenga Omokhunu and Grace Obike

at the 2014 annual education secretariat media luncheon in Abuja where he said that the issue of perimeter fencing in the FCT schools is being given adequate attention especially in the face of security challenges being experienced in the country. He also said, “The outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) which was a public health emergency was also successfully tackled in the FCT. As a matter of fact, we were one of the handfuls of states in the country that was able to meet the resumption deadline of 22nd September 2014. This of course would not have been possible if we had not met all the health requirements of the Ebola respond team in the country which were closely monitored

by the Nigerian Union of Teachers NUT). “The Minister approved for immediate release the sum of N100 Million for the purchase and distribution of anti-ebola kits and information materials to all our schools. Prior to resumption therefore, all our schools were fully equipped with the temperature scanning machines, hand sanitizers, information handbills and posters on the disease and so on. “In conjunction with the Health and Human Services Secretariat, we trained our teachers on preventive measures in fighting the disease and how to properly use the equipment that were distributed. “Although the virus has been eradicated in Nigeria, we are not resting on our oars as the distribu-

tion of these materials will continue until the health authorities tell us it is safe to stop. “Closure of 459 sub-standard and illegal schools, 196 in January and 263 in September 2014, across the 6 area Councils and a proposal for the certification and accreditation of 78 schools has been forwarded to the FCT Minister for approval. “The FCT department of Mass Education (DME) has the mandate to provide adult literacy and vocational education for FCT residents; it recruited 500 part time facilitators to man 407 learning centres across the FCT and created awareness through mobilization and sensitization visits to Area Councils, Traditional and Community leaders and market women. “Enrolment of 13,702 learners across the six zones in 2014, expan-

sion of literacy services to six Nomadic communities with an enrolment figure of 189, 48 males and 141 females. The integration of formal education curriculum into Qur’anic schools (IQE) with 56 centres and total enrolment of 2,081 learners across the zones and the FCT DME offers one of the highest pay of N10,000.00 monthly allowance to part-time facilitators. “For the 2014 fiscal year, the sum of N255,445,900 was approved for disbursement as scholarship to deserving students by the Minister. In the meantime, all bureaucratic conditions have been met pending the release of the funds. These include the collation and collection of completed application forms for short listing and screening of applicants for the 2013/2014 award session.”

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

ABUJA REVIEW

EVIVAL of agriculture in Nigeria has not only been described as the new money-making sector, but has been tipped to replace the oil and gas sector. Over the years, petroleum has been the mainstay of the Nigerian economy with agriculture relegated to the background. While the administration aims to diversify the economy through its many agricultural programmes and the establishment of commercial farmers and agribusiness leaders known as Nagropreneurs, the government is certain that the effort will take Nigeria to lift the country to higher heights. In the new effort, Nigeria also plans to collect all the hoes, cutlasses and obsolete equipment in every part of the country and place them in a museum. The tools would be immediately replaced with tractors and other modern agricultural equipment. Seven young farmers were on parade during the Official Launch of the Youth Employment in Agriculture Programme (YEAP) and Fund for Agricultural Finance in Nigeria (FAFIN) at the Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja last Tuesday to give their testimonies on how their businesses have been boosted in the last three years. At the occasion, President Goodluck Jonathan was not only described as the ‘Koko Master’ by Nigerian top musician, D’Banj, but he was also given award and referred to as Nigeria’s number one farmer. Recalling the past three years in the sector, Jonathan said that the implementation of the agricultural transformation agenda has created many jobs and led to the production of 21 million metric tons of food in the period, above its earlier target to add 20 million metric tons of food by 2015. Looking ahead, he said: “The Youth Employment in Agriculture Program (YEAP), which I am flagging off today, will further change the face of Nigeria’s agriculture. YEAP has been designed to create a new generation of 750,000 young commercial farmers and agribusiness leaders (Nagropreneurs) that will make Nigeria’s agriculture more efficient, profitable and competitive.” “They will become the CEOs of their own farms and agribusinesses, create jobs in the rural areas and reverse the trend of high rural to urban migration. They will help to change the mindset of the younger generation on agriculture.” “These Nagropreneurs will become models and champions for our newly launched National Agriculture Schools Initiative, as they project to younger school children, the image of agriculture as an attractive and wealth creating sector.” he said

Replacing oil with agriculture The Minister of State for Finance, Isa Yuguda, at the occasion, maintained that all statistics reeled out in the sector are verifiable and showed that the transformation agenda is working. But the only evidence the masses on the street want to see is for the increasing food production in the country to force down the prices of foodstuffs in the country in line with the forces of supply and demand.

From the Villa

Paying last respect to Ashiru

By Augustine Ehikioya

Members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) might not have dressed in black or white cloths last Wedesday to mourn the former Minister of Foreign Affiairs, Amb. Olugbenga Ashiru, but it was a gloomy session when tributes was paid to him. Many good things were said about the deceased with no one in the Chamber recalling any negative thing or encounter with Ashiru who died in South Africa on the 29th of last month from brain tumor complications. Ashiru, who was said to have impacted positively on the Nigeria foreign policy during his tenure was relieved of the appointment on the 11th September, 2013 along with other 8 ministers. The former Minister of Informa-

tion, Labaran Maku had told journalists then that the changes in the cabinet were due to the President Goodluck Jonathan’s commitment to delivering dividends of democracy to Nigerians by bringing in new hands and ideas and that it had nothing to do with the crisis in the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) then. While 15 cabinet members inluding President Jonathan paid tributes to Ashiru during the sesson last week, only the Minister of Agriculture, Adesina Akinwunmi, who hails from the same state with the deceased, Ogun State, could not hold back his tears. Adesina, who referred to the deceased as his ‘Egbon’ (senior brother), was given the role to second the moton for one-minute si-

lent in honour of the deceased. Struggling to hold back the tears, Adesina said: “His passing is a huge loss to the nation, Nigeria has lost an outstanding diplomat, one of its very finest, the one I amiably called the ambassador of ambassadors. As minister of foreign affairs, he represented Nigeria extremely well on the global stage, he is a giant in diplomacy, under him Nigeria got so many of international recognitions. “He was a senior brother, we shared the same name, Ayodeji. He was therefore my mentor, a friend, a wiseman I went to always for counsel. His doors were always open, his heart always open, warm at all times. I always enjoyed his presence in readiness always to help others. I called him Egbon (senior brother), he will in turn to my

surprise call me Honourable minister. And the world of diplomacy is empty today because of his death. Sun re o, Egbon, sun re o! May your gentle soul rest in perfect peace. President Jonathan said; “So he worked very hard. He assisted me in terms of the foreign policies and so on and streamlined most of our relationship to most countries within and outside Africa. In terms of international values, I will say he worked very hard if you listen to others who have made comments. The UN is a typical example, Nigeria was voted back as a member of the Security Council within four years, it is a feat most countries has never attained.” “We would have had some problems with the World when the President of Sudan Omar Albashir came visiting during our centenary celebrations. He came in and the world was alerted, and they were looking at Nigeria. Although he left, still we had issues with the world but he had to move immediately with the Attorney General of the Federation and was able to calm the situation because of the personal relationship he had with the global players. We thank him for that.” “Today we have lost ambassador Ashiru God knows best why he took him at this time that his services are still needed by this great nation,” he said.

Politicians urged to avoid violence

HE Chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Alhaji Jibrin Giri has called on politicians in the area to be patient and shun violence. Giri said that violence has caused a lot of damages in various areas in the country and called on them to preach peace to their followers, which will help in the development of the council. He stated that various actions by politicians have brought about chaos in the council and called on them to always be conscious of what they do and make sure their actions benefit the people.

From Gbenga Omokhunu

Giri also called on the residents to continue to be law abiding citizens, in order to ensure a peaceful conduct of the 2015 general elections in the area. He further appealed on residents of the council to support his administration, as he has a lot of projects on hand that would benefit the people. “I am calling on all politicians to remember that they should always act peacefully and shun corruption. They should remember that the council is their home and work towards making it a peaceful place to live in,” he said.

•From left: Rose Ode, Amina Yusuf, both Hilton Kitchen Apprentices finalists, Executive Chef Rodolphe Medard and Alheri Chindo the Overall Best Graduate of the Hilton Kitchen Apprentice Program at the graduation ceremony of the 2012-2014 class held at Transcorp Hilton Abuja PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

LAW & SOCIETY

Overhaul child justice system, experts urge

FORMER Dean of the Fac ulty Law, University of Ibadan, Prof. Oluyemisi Bamgbose, has called for a reevaluation of the juvenile child Justice system in the country. She said it will ensure effective and comprehensive justice for the Nigerian child. She made the call at the Lagos Campus of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), while delivering this year’s edition of the Prof. Jadesola Akande memorial lecture. Prof. Bamgbose took a look at the traditional Juvenile justice paradigm and highlighted the modern juvenile justice system in Nigeria.She did a comparative discourse of the juvenile justice system in selected jurisdictions before calling for the re-evaluation of the system in the country to make it efficient and effective. She came up with the following recommendation: “There is a duty on everyone to ensure the proper development, promotion and protection and welfare of the child. This function should not and must not be left to a group of people or section of the society, but is the collective responsibility of all.” She called for parental involvement in the juvenile system. “Parenting process includes protecting, nourishing and guiding the child. It involves a series of interaction between the parent and the child through the life span. In particular, the law should encourage greater parental responsibility as the family unit is critical to much social behaviour. Prof. Bamgbose also called for the use of Alternative/Diversionary Approaches in juvenile system “The diversionary principles are being advocated in the Child’s Right Law. Child offenders should as much as possible be diverted from the formal and harsh criminal justice system. The judicial officers in the family court should avoid the errors of their counterpart in the adult courts that have contributed to the congestion of the prisons by leaning too much on custodial methods of punishment.” She called for the juxtaposition of traditional and modern methods. “There is the need for a rediscovery of a distinctive indigenous system of justice that can be juxtaposed with the modern justice system. The question may be asked if the informal control of juvenile offenders is a solution to this concept used under the traditional juvenile system taking into cognisance contemporary trends in addressing youth matters.

By John Austin Unachukwu

The traditional concept of controlling children with all its advantages, according to Bamgbose, should be considered in developing the juvenile justice programme. Countries such as the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US), she said, have discovered this and used it in the treatment of young offenders with the introduction of family group conferences in the juvenile justice system. Talking about the use of non custodial methods, Bamgbose said: “The state of the facilities for young offenders is in a deplorable state. It is, therefore, advocated that non custodial remedies should be adopted in the treatment of children and young offenders. “As a matter of urgency, it is recommended that the institutions that are to be established under the Act in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) by the Minister and in the states by the commissioners charged with the responsibility for matters relating to children in the state should be established as a matter of urgency.” One of the instances where a child can be deprived of his or her personal liberty, according to Prof Bamgbose, is where the case is serious in nature. “It is important that what constitutes serious offences be properly defined in terms of offences. It is also said that children under the age of 14 years can only be given a custodial sentences if he or she is a persistent offender. It is also recommended that the definition of persistent offender must be outlined.,” she said. A child of about 10 but less than 12 years, Prof. Bamgbose argued, can only be given custody sentence if it is in interest of the public, adding that the detention period should also be clearly stated. On reparation as treatment method, Prof Bamgbose said: “Reparation as a sentence or treatment method was introduced in the English 1998 Act and of powers of Criminal Court sentencing Act 2000. Reparation is a non custodial treatment for a young offender, either to the victim or society at large. “It is recommended as one of the treatment methods in addition to the numerous ones in Section 223. It is said to be a valuable way of making young offenders face the consequences of their actions and see the harm they have caused. It can be a catalyst for reform and reforms and rehabilitations can also benefit victims.” She called for the co-ordination of overlapping agencies in the ad-

•From left; Representative of the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Gbola Odugbesan, D-G NILAS, Prof. Deji Adekunle and Justice Kudirat Kekerekun (JSC)

•From let: Keynote speaker former Dean Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan, Prof. Oluyemisi Bamgbose, Chief Esan and Justice Adenike Coker

•Second Vice-President NBA Taiwo Taiwo and Mrs Vivian Madu.

ministration of juvenile justice system. “The administration of the juvenile system involves a number of overlapping systems and agencies. This makes implementation not very easy. There is need for coordination amongst the different systems to take a holistic approach in tackling matters relating to the young persons,” she said.

Prof. Bamgbose asked whether the juvenile justice is wanted in the United Nations’ (UN) system. “Is juvenile Justice really the unwanted child in the United Nations system?, she asked. She added: “Regardless of the bottlenecks in the juvenile justice system in Nigeria, a lot of improvement has occurred in the juvenile

justice system in Nigeria in the 21 Century. There is, however, need for a periodic review of the law relating to children and young persons in Nigeria and in adoption of a holistic approach in addressing issues of these category of persons in Nigeria in order to fully achieve the aims of or philosophy behind the legislation protecting them.”

Coalition urges INEC to enforce campaign laws By Joseph Jibueze

•INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega

IVIL society groups under the One Voice Coalition for Sus tainable Development in Nigeria (OneVOICE) have urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enforce the laws regulating campaign expenses to reduce vote-buying. It said INEC has allegedly failed to monitor and penalise candidates and political parties who violated the Electoral Act on voter-inducement. “Some politicians use money to buy essential goods like sugar, salt, detergent, soap, rice which they distributed to people in the villages. “During voting, some of them load the boots of their cars with

plenty of money and go around to directly pay people to vote for their candidate. “They also bribe electoral officers and the police who will then help them to cheat,” OneVOICE said. INEC’s alleged failure to effectively check such electoral abuses in line with its powers under the Electoral Act has emboldened others, the coalition said. OneVOICE urged voters to challenge cheating, saying: “It is not enough to be watchful or vigilant. Nigerians must plan to ensure that the procedures at elections are adhered to.” It said while the Armed Forces, the police, the intelligence community and the INEC must insist on

the inviolability of the rule of law, it is the people who must defend their votes. “We, as non-state actors, must watch effectively that we forestall malpractices,” OneVoice said. It said the civil society must collaborate against any bid to alter the people’s will, while mobile phones should be used to record counting and recording of election results. “Different media channels can be used in calling members in other polling stations to monitor goingson. There must be recording of the voting and counting process so that it can be used as evidence if there is any fraud happening,” OneVOICE said. The group said the penalty for rigging and other forms of criminality is not exorbitant enough,

hence many are willing to dare and break the law. OneVOICE warned voters against accepting gratifications from candidates, saying: “When we accept money or gifts from politicians, we have sold our rights. We have allowed them to give us N100 and take millions from us, and take from us electricity, good roads, water, good schools, good and efficient hospitals etc,” it said. OneVOICE also wants and end to the perception of politics as warfare. This, it said, can be achieved through a “reduction of the perquisites of political office.” “This will likely assuage the relentless struggle for state power and its accompanying financial convolution of the political space,” the coalition added.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

LAW & SOCIETY Mrs. Dupe Catherine Atoki is the Director-General, Consumer Protection Council (CPC). In this interview with Legal Editor, JOHN UNACHUKWU, she speaks on CPC’s functions, its challenges and the suit between it and Nigerian Bottling company among others.

‘Cousumer rights abuse is huge’

OU have been in the saddle as Director – General of the Con sumer Protection Council(CPC). What has your experience been like? For me, it’s been an exciting experience because I thrive in challenges and it’s an assignment that is full of challenges. The mandate of the council is to ensure that consumers’ rights and interest are protected. We have over 150 million active consumers in Nigeria, marked against the diversity of products in local, international and also services that are rendered. So, you can imagine the stakeholders that we are actually looking at. What are your challenges? However, interesting as this should have been, the first challenge I have is consumer apathy, which has resulted from the fact that over the years, Nigerians have not been able to gain the confidence of the agency to provide sufficient protection for them. I also see that the consumer illiteracy is also one very big challenge, because you cannot protect people who don’t even know their rights at all. It’s when you know your right that you assert it, but if you don’t, you remain docile, you remain trampled upon and you continue to be abused. So that is what I found on resumption of office. Cousumer rights abuse in Nigeria is huge, we’ll overcome it. So, what did you do to start with? I carried out a survey across the nation and the consumer awareness was very low which gave me a great concern, I had to find a way to address that challenge and increase, improve the consumer awareness in Nigeria. So also I found out that the agencies who are related in terms of products and services have not developed a system prior to now, where they engage each other to the maximum benefit of such collaborations. And so, every agency has carved out its own tough and is protecting it very viciously and this is detrimental to consumer’s interests. How do you feel about this? Well, if the agencies of government who, in my opinion, are building blocks to achieve the governance goal of government is not intertwined, then we will continue to remain very inefficient, because even in building a house, you must over lay the blocks, and that’s where you get a good and solid structure. You can imagine if you keep laying a block horizontally or vertically, that’s what governance is about and I think that agencies of

government are instruments of governance for us to work together. I found that as an existing challenge and which has resulted in some of the agencies actually challenging the activities of the Consumer Protection Council, saying out of ignorance that the council does not have the powers to carry out its activities. Of course, funding will remain a challenge. What about funding, are you well and fully funded? Government can never fully fund any organisation. It’s an utopia that we should not even attempt to have. But for us, it’s compounded by the fact that we do not generate income like some other agencies. We cannot charge complainants for complaints that they have brought, we are a propoor agency. So it’s there, but I really do not want to flag that out too heavily, but it is a very important issue that needs to be addressed. Because if we have to actualise one of the mandates of the council which is to educate consumers, then we must be appropriately funded to be able to use all the various media, all the various public media to engage consumers to understand what their rights are. But I think that the government, when it is sufficiently sensitised about the role and the activities of CPC and its relevance to the economic development, should be able to give a second thought to the issue of adequate funding. So, briefly, those are the full challenges that I have. What is the structure of the council, how many branch offices do you have? In terms of the structure of the council, there are just seven offices one in each of the geo-political zones and an extra one for Lagos because of the commercial activities in Lagos and our headquarters. In a country where we have over 170 million people, I think that is grossly inadequate. And with a staff strength of barely 250, that again is a challenge, a great one which I believe that we need to address urgently. What steps have you taken to address all these challenges? Well, government is is a continuous thing, You do your best at your time and others will do their own best at their own time. It will continue like that till it gets to perfection On consumer education, you cannot do much if you don’t have money, but then, we have improved our website. We have improved our social media outreach which is zero

cost. And we have been engaging a lot of people on social media. I’m in contact with some international donors who can independently support the council without any compromise and I think very shortly, we will receive good response from some of them who are willing to support our consumer education programmes. Like I said, government cannot fully fund you, in the year coming, as we finalise the process, we’ll be able to get support for consumer education while at the same time making our point to government for the need to improve the funding of the council. Again, in terms of staff, that’s also a very tricky one because it’s also tied to some financial incentives which at the end of the day government has to approve, we have also made our request for staff. But in the interim, we will make do with what we have. Have you considered collaboration with other organisations as a possible alternative to funding? In terms of collaboration, I think that in the year coming, we have agreed with some of the agencies that we will have an overlap with, for instance, the standards organisation of Nigeria (SON), both of us are actually in the same ministry. We have had a chat and we have come to conclusion that we need to work with each other because they develop standards but they don’t have the powers to enforce the standards in favour of consumers. The powers that they have is to sanitise the industry by either removing those products from the market, destroying them or sealing the premises. It doesn’t translate to consumer education so, at the end of the day, the consumer education, in ensuring remedy for the victims of violation of those standards are indirectly enforcing the standards that the SON has set. So, we have come to the conclusion that because we do have powers of enforcements, which they do not have. And so, I think that we will be taking each of these organisations one by one, those of them who are amenable to such collaborations, we’ll work together. Back to collaboration, why can’t you collaborate with some multinational companies and such NGOs that are operating within or share similar vision with your organization? With NGOS, I don’t have any problem. They are Non- Governmental organisations. If they are registered to protect consumers. With NGOs, we are good to go on those of them who are ready and are

•Mrs. Atoki

on the ground and actually working for the protection of consumers, but with the multinationals, I think it’s a no-go area for us. They are the organisations or businesses for which we would have to enforce the Act against in the event where they have not complied with the Consumer Protection Act. And for me, I think that I would rather stay clear of any area of compromise and deal with whatever challenge I have in another way. If there are opportunities to collaborate on the technical level which will not arm twist us, that’s fine. But at the moment, I’m working with other international funders who are actually ready to support the work of the consumers. Those funders are impartial, in fact, they are in business to fund and so, I don’t have any problem relating with them and I’m quite happy that I’m not going to be blackmailed at some point in time into submission when I call upon such organisations to comply with the Act. We read in the media recently, of a matter involving the agency and Coca-Cola, that you took Nigerian Bottling Company bottlers of cocacola to court, what actually happened? Ahead of my statement, let me say they went to court first, so they started this legal tango. And to say

World Academy calls for presentation

•Jimoh Olawale, Marketing, KIA Motors/DANA Group; Vivienne Edozie, Project Manager, ICF; Babajide Ogundipe, Pioneer President (2010-2014), LCA; Megha Joshi, Executive Secretary/CEO, LCA; Charles Adeyemi CandideJohnson SAN, Director, LCA; Jigar Panchal, Senior Marketing Manager, KIA Motors/DANA Group.

when we know this is already in court, so its subjudice, but what I would let the public know is what they already know via the media, that there was a complaint on a product of Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), licensed under the authority of Coca- cola product of sprite which was half filled and was purchased and the person complained. Surprisingly, because Nigerians don’t care, and would say ‘well, this is Nigeria. But because we believe the time has come for every infraction, no matter how minor it is, as long as it doesn’t give value for money for consumers, we must look into it. It’s easy to say ‘what’s the big deal’, which is what everybody, most people have responded, “what’s the big deal about half can of sprite when there are cockroaches and there are flies and whatever, but there is a starting point. And so the council took it up to invite the parties and conducted an investigation which lasted about three months when documents were received, onsite visits to the factories were carried out and we came to the conclusion that there were much more infractions beyond the two half cans of sprite and we addressed those infractions via recommendation we made known to the public as well as the company to improve.

HE World Academy for the Future of Women has called for keynote speakers presentations during the 9th Annual Women’s Symposium at the Sias Campus (Sias International University Zhengzhou, Henan, China. A statement by the National Information Officer, United Nations Information Centre (UNIC), Lagos, Oluseyi Soremekun, said the deadline for submission of presentations is January 5. He said all presentations must focus on leadership related to promoting the purpose and mission of the United Nations; the United Nations Millennium Development Goals; or local actions for global impact. He said that the format for presentation time is 90 minutes, 30 minutes of which would be used to deliver content, 60 minutes for discussion and interaction with audience while such . presentations

will be interpreted for the benefit of participants. He said the presentations would have a title, a one-page bio of presenter, a 250 word presentation abstract, a jpg headshot of the presenter, and the three major points of the presentation. It would also detail the presenter’s name, position, address, employer or institution, e-mail address, and phone number. Soremekun explained that the 9th Annual Women’s Symposium, Millennium Milestone Makers, is a major event which purpose is to promote and accelerate the advancement of women worldwide will take place May 15-17, 2015. According to him, the International Women’s Symposium is held every year at the SIAS campus, bringing together thousands of women from across the globe in a powerful exchange of ideas and wisdom.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

LEGAL OPINION

Lagos gets new DPP By Adebisi Onanuga

•Alakija

THE Lagos State governmenthas appointed Mrs. Idowu Alakija as Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). Her appointment followed the elevation of the erstwhile DPP, Mrs.

Olabisi Ogungbesan as a Judge. Mrs. Alakija was born into the renowned Akerele family of Lagos State on February 24, 1959. She attended St. Mary Private School, Ajele, Lagos State, Queens College, Onike Yaba, and Lansdowne Tutors London. She completed her Degree in Law, L.L.B. at University of Lagos, Akoka and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1984. She also obtained an L.L.M. degree in Commercial and Corporate Law at Queens Mary & Westfield College University of London in 2000. She has since attended numerous law-related courses at several institutions which include International Law Institute, Washington D.C. and Harvard University, Boston amongst others.

She was a consultant to the U.N.D.P, Ghana on Alternative Dispute Resolution. She is presently a focal person for Lagos State on the UNODC Judicial Reform Project. She is a member of International Association of Prosecutors and the International Bar Association. She is also an Associate Member of both the Institute of Taxation and the Chartered Institute of Mediators & Conciliators. She was an Awardee of Lagos State Award of Excellence in 2003. Mrs. Alakija has served Lagos State in several capacities. She was the pioneer HEAD/ DIRECTOR Citizens Mediator Centre Lagos State, a position she held before assuming her present position as a Director in the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.

•Lagos State Deputy Governor Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire and Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, Lawal Pedrol (SAN) at a meeting of Lagos Public Interest Law Partnership.

Public complaints commission to start prosecutions soon

HE law establishing the Pub lic Complaints Commission is now being reviewed to give it powers to prosecute cases. The Federal Commissioner in Lagos State , Mr. Funso Olukoga, made this known during the annual press conference of the commission held yesterday at the former National Assembly Complex, Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS), Lagos. Olukoga disclosed that proposals for the review of the act is presently undergoing the different stages, including inputs from the different states of the federation so that the commission “would not just bark but also be able to bite”. He explained that the review which would entail constitutional amendment would empower the commission to sanction recalcitrant respondents and prosecute certain offences in the courts. He said the issue of recalcitrant respondents has been a challenge to the activities of the commission. The commissioner disclosed that the number of complaints received this year rose to 754 from 338 received last year. He said the achievement was made possible with the adoption of new methods introduced into its investigation strategies and the application of modern information technology. “The rise in the number of complaints is clear evidence that the commission is becoming known better in Lagos and the residents

By Adebisi Onanuga

are becoming aware of their rights to challenge what they considered as administrative injustice on the part of the public and private institutions”. Olukoga also gave a sectoral account of the activities of the commission called on Nigerian Communication Commission to rescue mobile phone users from undue advertisement drive. He said his commission received several complaints about unsolicited calls from network service providers advertising their products. He said: “Some question the propriety of preceding a caller tune with an advertisement when calling a number, others find the frequency of unsolicited calls distractive and oppressive”. He urged the NCC to intervene by investigating and sanctioning erring network service providers to reduce unacceptable and unfair trade practices. He reported that investigation lamented that bank customers are still subjected to poor services in spite of new service charges imposed on them while cases of malfunctioning ATM were very common. Despite the fact that customers are now charged for using ATMs other than those where their accounts are domiciled, the situation has not improved over what it was last year, adding “one would

•Olukoga

have expected a higher quality of service commensurate with the new charges”. The Public Complaints Commissioner urged the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to beam its searchlight on the quality of services rendered by airline operators especially domestic flight operators. “We are concerned with how the airline handles their operation from purchase of air tickets to cabin services. Flight delays and cancellations appear to be the rule rather than exceptions”, he lamented.

LAW AND PUBLIC POWER

with gabriel AMALU email:gabrielamalu1@yahoo.com For comments: 08033054939 (sms only)

As APC seeks to outflank PDP

HE emerging political behemoth, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has every cause to celebrate the successful poaching of five governors, and their electoral worth, from the troubled behemoth, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Many have argued that the country is approaching a state of balance of political terror, with two strong political parties as contenders. That may even prove more correct as far as our country’s political fortunes are concerned, unless the new APC is able to engage in Pauline conversion of the strange bed fellows that it has welcomed to its fold. Of course, the wish of this column that the APC will engage in bottom up expansion of membership based on defined ideology has suffered another major set back, with last week’s development. But building ideology based political parties is not completely a lost cause. After all who could have contemplated the possibility that through deft political maneuver, the leadership of three completely diverse political parties, at least as far as public perception is concerned, namely the All Nigeria Peoples Party, Congress of Progressive Change and the Action Congress of Nigeria, with a stump of All Progress Grand Alliance, could agree to collapse their structures to form a single political party, the APC. While commentators were still relishing that unprecedented political feat in our country, the APC leadership has again boldly struck a severe blow on the over confident PDP by appropriating a sizeable chunk of its sagging bulk, to add to its own already bulging weight. So I join other Nigerians to invest hope that the leadership of the two major political parties, particularly the new APC would sit down, to draw programs that is in accordance with the provisions of chapter II of the 1999 constitution – fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy. With the tantalizing possibility of gaining power by the APC and the sobering possibility of losing power facing the PDP, there is a huge chance, that the two major political parties, the APC and PDP may begin to context for power based on ideas instead of manipulation as in the present. The new APC or even the PDP can boldly tantalize the electorate by promising to make chapter II of our constitution justiciable, that is, enforceable against the Nigerian state in the same manner as the provisions of chapter IV of the constitution, dealing with the fundamental rights of any person living in Nigeria. As Nigerians celebrate the reduction in the potency of the PDP to abuse its privileges, with the emergence of an expanded APC, let me yet again, rehash my prayers, in my piece on this page on August 6, titled: congratulations to APC, “as we relish the possibilities with the new party, it is of paramount importance, in my humble view, for APC to immediately define its position on those national issues that has held our country down. For instance what is the position of the party on access to quality education, employment and housing? What will the party do with our lopsided federation, with regards to the ownership of natural resources, national infrastructure, federation account and cost of governance, police and the so called indigenship?” The new APC will need courage and plenty sagacity to deal with the challenges of helping to remake Nigeria, particularly with the nature of its present make-up. My prayer is that it will not be bogged down by internal challenges and contradictions, which have been the bane of the PDP. As things are, our politicians have scant regard for the welfare of the ordinary Nigerians, and as I have severally argued on this page, the cankerworm of corruption cuts across the political parties, and not much national progress can be made without first dealing with that. Unfortunately with the near abolition of political divides, corrupt political practices are as much a problem in PDP as it will be in APC. The challenge is even more worrisome as it is presently near impossible to determine with certainty, who sincerely belongs to which party, in spirit and in body. As things are, there is a substantial obfuscation of the dividing line between the two political parties in Nigeria, the APC and the PDP, and what they stand for. Former Osun state Governor, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, capture this comic tragedy. On Tuesday last week, the Osun Prince, was joyously embracing his former political foe, Chief Bisi Akande, the chairman of APC, as he joined other defectors to celebrate their new membership of APC. In the photo shot, with the leadership of the APC, he was standing shoulder to shoulder with Governors Rotimi Amaechi, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Murtalo Nyako, and several other former PDP top shots, while the spirit of Wammako Aliyu, and Abdulfatah Ahmed hovered around. Surprisingly while partisans where yet to recover from the reverie of downed champagnes, to celebrate the new births and the attendant hangover (that word again; apologies to Dr. Reuben Abati, the presidential spokesperson, who has quarreled over such allusion to his principal, who recently allegedly celebrated his birthday in far away London, and became indisposed the next day); Prince Oyinlola was on air, claiming that he was still a member of the PDP and its National Secretary to boot. That means that while he has joined APC, he still retains his position in PDP. With what a senior friend appropriately called a poker face, he made those claims. In the days ahead, it is going to be a handful to determine those who are moles and those who are members of either party, whether the APC or the PDP. In the meantime, may I congratulate the leadership of APC, particularly Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for the unparalleled successes; while praying that their tectonic maneuvers should profit Nigeria. This piece published last December is republished to underscore Ribadu’s adventure in PDP. •This article was previously published on this page

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

LAW REPORT

A procedure where an accuser is shielded from the accused during inquiry is not in compliance with natural justice IN THE COURT OF APPEAL ABUJA JUDICIAL DIVISION HOLDEN AT ABUJA ON WEDNESDAY THE 10H DAY OF DECEMBER, 2014 BEFORE THEIR LORDSHIPS ABUBAKAR J. ABDULKADIR, J.C.A. TANI Y. HASSAN, J.C.A. JOSEPH E. EKANEM, J.C.A. CA/A/523B/2011 (2014) LPELR-24131(CA) BETWEEN: THE GOVERNOR OF OYO STATE …..………..…………….………..….… APPELLANT AND 1. HON. JUSTICE IYABO YERIMA 2. NATIONAL JUDICIAL COUNCIL ……….………..………….... RESPONDENTS LEAD JUDGMENT DELIVERED BY JOSEPH E. EKANEM, J.C.A.

HE facts giving rise to the appeal are that two petition were written against the 1st Respondent concerning her conduct in the discharge of her functions as a judge of the High Court of Justice, Oyo State. One petition was written by Mr. Adebayo Shittu as the Attorney-General of Oyo State and second was written by an Organization known as the Committee for Defence of Rule of Law. On the direction of the 2nd Respondent, the 1st Respondent responded to the petitions and a panel of investigation was constituted to inquire into the matter. At the panel, the former Attorney-General who authored one of the petitions was called upon to present the petition which had been withdrawn by the then incumbent AttorneyGeneral before then. The former AttorneyGeneral was cross-examined. At the end of the sitting, the panel submitted its report to the 2nd Respondent which relied on it and suspended the 1st Respondent, and recommended her compulsory retirement. Aggrieved by the turn of events, the 1st Respondent as Plaintiff sued for the following reliefs at the Federal High Court, Abuja Division. “i. A declaration that the recommendation of the 1st defendant based on its investigation committee report relating to the plaintiff in all its ramification is illegal, unconstitutional as it violates the plaintiff’s right to fair hearing which include the right of natural justice guaranteed under Section 36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. ii. A declaration that the Attorney-General of Oyo State, Adebayo Shittu, Esq., not being the writer of the petition dated 12th May, 2007 to which the 1st Defendant panel adjudicated upon and allowing the said Attorney-General to be a substituted complaint is null and void, unconstitutional and against natural justice. iii. A declaration that the recommendation of the 1st defendant to the 2nd Defendant against the plaintiff based on a petition that has been withdrawn by an Attorney-General of the State is null, void, unconstitutional and of no effect. iv. A declaration that the letter of Barr. Michael Lana dated 5th November, 2007 having withdrawn the petition written by Adebayo Shittu, the then Attorney-General of Oyo State, there was no longer complaint

by the 1st Respondent’s Committee to investigate and adjudicate on how much more to make recommendation thereto. v. An order setting aside the report/recommendation of the 1st Defendant to the 2nd Defendant for gross infringement of the plaintiff’s Fundamental Human Right to fair hearing. vi. An order of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants, their agents, servants or privies from carrying into effect or executing or enforcing the said recommendation or anything connected whatsoever with the said report or recommendation relating to the plaintiff.” The Federal High Court entered judgment in favour of the 1st Respondent as Plaintiff and granted all the reliefs sought by her. Dissatisfied, the Appellant appealed to the Court of Appeal by way of a notice of appeal containing four grounds of appeal. In his brief of argument, Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Oyo State on behalf of the Appellant, formulated four issues for the Court’s determination of the appeal. The issues are; “1. Whether having regard to the circumstances of the purported withdrawal of the petition filed by Mr. Adebayo Shittu, the said petition could be said to have been validly withdrawn by Mr. Michael Lana. 2. Whether the learned trial judge did not approbate and reprobate when he gave regard to authorship in respect of one petition and disregard authorship in respect of the other. 3. Whether the trial Judge did not misconceive the case and misdirected himself when he held that the Committee for Defence of the Rule of Law is a faceless society. 4. Whether having regard to the fact and evidence as well as the entire proceedings of the investigation panel, the Plaintiff/Respondent could be said to have been denied fair hearing.” Arguing issue 1, the learned Attorney-General of Oyo State, submitted that the withdrawal of the petition against the 1st Respondent was not done in good faith and was done without power to do so. The same, he added, was an abuse of public office and legal process. He was of the view that the posture of the 1st Respondent indicated that they did

not want proceedings to go on during investigation. He then referred to Section 55 of the Interpretation Law of Oyo State 2000 and Section 8(1) of the Interpretation Act Cap. 123 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria and submitted that upon removal of Mr. Shittu from office (as Attorney-General) Mr. Lana (his successor) did not have the power to discontinue or abate civil proceedings already initiated. These provisions, he argued, do not conflict with Section 211 (1) of the Constitution of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) as the latter relates to criminal proceedings. As regards his issue 3, it was his submission that the Federal High Court misconceived the facts about the address of the organization and this led to the misdirection that the organization did not exist. On issue 4, the learned Attorney-General referred to the case of MMS LTD v. OTEJU (2005) 14 NWLR (945) 517 and submitted that the proceedings of the panel conformed to the requirement of audi alterem partem. He noted that the proceedings of the panel demonstrated that the 1st Respondent was given opportunity to present her case, the panel was impartial, she cross-examined her accusers, called her witnesses etc. He finally urged the court to uphold the appeal and set aside the judgment of the lower court. Learned senior counsel for the 1st Respondent in respect of issue one stated that the averments of the 1st Respondent in her statement of claim that the petition was written against her by the Attorney-General Oyo State and had been withdrawn by the Attorney-General Oyo state were not specifically denied by the Appellant. It was his submission that the petition signed by Barr. Adebayo Shittu for the Oyo State Government was not signed in a private capacity and that by virtue of Section 8 (1) of the Interpretation Act, it was properly withdrawn by the then Attorney-General of Oyo State (Mr. Michael Lana) in his official capacity not as a suit but as a petition. In regard to issue three, he adopted his arguments on issues one submitted that it was wrong for the investigation panel to allow Mr. Adebayo Shittu to transform from being counsel to being the petitioner. Senior counsel finally urged the Court to dismiss the appeal. In determining issue 1, the Court noted that the petition which in part kick-started the process of investigation against the 1st Respondent was written on the Letter - headed paper of the “Attorney-General’s Chambers Ministry of Justice, Ibadan, Oyo State of Nigeria”. It was signed by Alhaji Abdul-Raheem Adebayo Shittu in his capacity as “the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice.” The Court held that it is thus clear that the petition was not a personal letter written by Mr. Adebayo Shittu but an official letter written by him in his capacity as the AttorneyGeneral of Oyo State and Chief Law officer of that state. The Court further held that it follows therefore that the Attorney-General of a State is a corporation sole recognized by the Constitution and the law of the land as having a personality which is distinct from the separate personality of the individual holder for the time being of that office. See CARLEN (NIG) LTD v. UNIVERSITY OF JOS (1994) 1 NWLR (323) 631, 656; (1994) LPELR-832(SC) and ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION v. ALL NIGERIA PEOPLES PARTY (2004) 114 LRCN 2671, 2687-2688; (2003) LPELR-630(SC). The office

acts through the natural person who holds that office for the time being or a person delegated by him in respect of a particular function that can be delegated. See ATTORNEYGENERAL OF KADUNA STATE v. HASSAN (1985) 2 NWLR (8) 483; (1985) LPELR-617(SC). The Court noted that there is uncontroverted evidence on both sides that before the panel of investigation began its sitting, the holder of the office of the Attorney-General, Oyo State, at the time in his official capacity withdrew the petition earlier written by that office. The Court held that it was within his powers to do so and his motive even if considered less than noble cannot be questioned except by the Governor of the State who can sanction him, or he may be forced to resign by adverse public opinion. The Court stated the position of the law that Constitution does not admit of any limitation to the exercise of the powers of the Attorney-General. See IBRAHIM v. STATE (1986) NWLR (18) AND ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF ONDO STATE v. ATTORNEY-GENARAL OF THE FEDERATION (2002) 9 NWLR (772) 222, 419. The Court held that this applies even in respect of withdrawal of petitions before the 2nd Respondent and is in keeping with the position of the Attorney-General under the common law which considers him a law to himself and subject to direction and control from none in the discharge of his office. The Court resolved this issue against the Appellant. On issue 4, the Court noted that Section 36 (1) of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) gives constitutional flavour to the twin pillars of natural justice, viz; (a) audi alterem parlem and (b) Nemo judex in causa sua. The Court held that it applies not only to courts of law or tribunals but also to administrative bodies, such as the 2nd Respondent’s investigation committee. The Court noted that the former Attorney-General (who had then become a private citizen) was called upon by the investigation committee to present the petition. Again Mr. Adebayo Shittu (the former Attorney-General) was allowed by the committee to mutate from being counsel for the committee for the Defence of the Rule of Law, Oyo State, to testify for it even though he is not a member thereof and no reason was given for the absence of the Committee and its members. The Court held that the 1st Respondent was not afforded the opportunity of confronting her accusers and cross-examining them on their allegations against her. The Court stated that fair hearing requires that a person must be given not only an opportunity but a fair opportunity to cross-examine her accusers. The Court cited the recent case of ADEWUNMI v. NIGERIA EAGLE FLOUR MILLS (2014) 14 NWLR (1428) 443 at 458; (2014) LPELR-22557(CA), where DONGBANMENSEM, JCA, stated that: “A procedure where an accuser is shielded from the accused all through the inquiry is certainly not one in compliance with natural justice. Presence and confrontation has a lot of impact.....” Issue 4 was therefore resolved against the Appellant. On the whole, the Court held that the appeal lacks merit and it was dismissed. •Edited by LawPavilion LawPavilion Citation: (2014) LPELR-24131(C

ADDRESS by Chief‘Folake Solanke (SAN) at the Special Valedictory Court Session for immediate past Chief Justice of Nigeria Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar held at the Supreme Court on November 20.

‘Dissenting judgments should be encouraged’

•Solanke

Y take-off point is to thank my learned friends of the Silk for asking me to speak on their behalf at this historic event. I believe that it is unique in the professional legal history of Nigeria that the first female Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) is being celebrated by the first female Senior Advocate of Nigeria. I thank God for this extraordinary opportunity and privilege. Only last month, the CJN was also celebrated at the Women Judges, Nigeria Annual National Conference. It is opportune for me to congratulate the CJN upon her retirement after a professional life career dedicated to the service of the nation and justice. I also offer copious felicitations

upon Your Lordship’s 70th birthday today and wish you a very happy birthday. “Ad annos multos”. Please enjoy the day and savour all the joyful celebrations. I wish we could sing Your Lordship the Happy Birthday song! Our gathering here today reminds me of that profound judicial statement in R. vs O. Connel1 to wit:“This court in which we sit is a Temple of Justice and the advocates of the Bar as well as the Bench are equally ministers in that temple. The object of all equally should be the attainment of justice”. Let me analyse that universally acclaimed pronouncement thus:’”the court is referred to as a temple – a sa-

cred place. ’”The lawyers – both on the Bench and at the Bar are equal ministers in that temple – “id est”: we perform together in that temple; and ’”The equality of the Bar and the Bench in the pursuit of justice is acknowledged. The powerful judicial conviction of the learned judex was such that, the law and the courts are placed on the highest pedestal because of the lofty ideals of justice which are the hallmarks of the law. Such an exalted position ought to remind us of the sacred role we, as ministers in the temple of justice, are called upon to perform in our professional life. •To be continued nextweek

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

•From left: Supervising Minister of Information, Dr Nurudeen Muhammad; Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr Mohammed Sada and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Alhaji Baba Faruk at the Ministerial Platform by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

•Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Boboye Oyeyemi (left) decorating Deputy Corps Commander Haviz Muhammed, the Head of Unit, Protocol with his new rank...yesterday. Assisting the Corps Marshal is Deputy Corps Marshal, Motor Vehicle Administration, Charles Theophilus.

•Senate President David Mark (left), assisted by Mrs Damaris Miri decorating his Aide-DeCamp (ADC), Mr Abel Miri with the rank of ACP in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

•Pupils and students of Great Light Scholars Academy Masaka, Nasarawa State celebrating PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE 2014 school Christmas carol...yesterday.

•Ekiti State Deputy Governor Dr. Kolapo Olusola (second right) inspecting some locally fabricated machinery at the on-going 1st Ekiti Christmas Bonanza Fair organized by the Ekiti State Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (EKCCIMA) at the Trade Fair Complex in Ado-Ekiti. With him are EKCCIMA President, Chief Kola Akosile (right), Mr. Tola Johson and others.

•Oyo State Governor’s wife Mrs. Florence Ajimobi (middle) with children cutting the cake to celebrate End of the Year Party for children held at Governors House, Agodi, Ibadan. PHOTO: FEMI ILESANMI

•From left: Representative of the Chairman, Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) Governing Board, Prof. Duro Ajeyalemi; Guest Speaker, Prof. Uche Azikiwe; representative of the Minister of Education, Mr Jonathan Mbaakaa and Chairman, House Commiittee on Education, Aminu Suleiman, at the presentation of the Teachers Professional Qualifying Examination Benchmarks in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

•Delta State Deputy Governnor Prof Amos Utuama (right); Chief Judge Justice Abiodun Smith (middle) and Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Charles Ajuyah at the inauguration of members of the Governing Council of Delta State Multi-Door Court House in Asaba.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

SHOWBIZ

Fuji House of Commotion star joins politics

S the 2015 elections inch close, another entertainer, Sola Onayiga, aka Ireti in the popular Fuji House of Commotion sitcom, has joined other entertainers who are aspiring for political offices. A source told The Nation that the actress, who is seeking to represent Ikorodu 1 Constituence in the Lagos State House of Assembly, submitted her INEC nomination last Friday, and will be running under the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Onayiga was said to have submitted the form personally to the chairman of SDP,

Stories by Vitctor Akande

Lagos State chapter, Engineer Rufus Osula. Popular for her character as ‘show off cook’ in the now rested drama, the thespian is also noted for Checkmate, another rested soap by the producer of Fuji House of Commotion, the late Amaka Igwe and as Madam Philo in BBC’s Story, Story - Voices From The Market Place. Speaking to The Nation on telephone, Onayiga said, “I can’t say because I am not a politician, then things should be left undone. We need people to come out. If

you are interested in correcting wrongs, you just have to come out. I want to contribute my little quota.” According to the thespian, there is need for government to take entertainers more seriously by putting enough funds in the sector. “They see entertainers as unserious set of people. Government is not putting money into the arts in this country, all they do is invite us for their programmes to come and dance,” she said. She noted that although it will be her first time in politics, she has affected her society positively, and will do

better as a public office holder. “I have done alot for the youths in Ikorodu. I have also been resourceful to the women folks; I encourage women, especially widows on how best to move on with their lives. On why it took her long to seek an elective post, she said, “I had to take my time to study the grounds very well.” Onayiga said she chose the SDP platform because it is the late M.K.O Abiola’s party, and that she considered it the best way to launch her political ambition.

Comedy meets music at Pepsi Rhythm Unplugged

•Onayiga

Igbo films rebound with Onye Ozi

HE 10 th anniversary edition of Pepsi’s pot pourri show, Rhythm Unplugged took place at the Eko Hotel and Suites last Friday, living to its billing as a comic show laced with great musical performances. Anchored by popular standup comedian, Basketmouth and notable pan African shows emcee, I k p o n m w o s a Osakioduwa, aka IK, both hosts ensured there was no dull moment, as they ushered one artiste after another for performances. At intervals, musical tunes from DJ Humility filled the space, bringing fun seekers to their feet for occasional dance. The acts that raised the curtain did a good job, paving the way for the Arated entertainers to build on. They includee Mr. 2K, El-Prince and Ruby Gyang among others. When talented twin singers, P-Square

• Presh performing at Rythm Unplugged

mounted the stage, the crowd went ecstatic. The song and dance duo did not disappoint, as they held their audience captive with hit songs such as E No Easy, Shekini and Collabo. Other top-rated performers at the show were MI, Presh, Waje, Davido, Sound Sultan, Kaffy, Rugged Man and Don Jazzy who led the Marvin’s All Stars group. The audience, tired from dancing all night, sat for a while. But when

Olamide and Phyno climbed the stage to deliver their stuffs, they took over the singing of familiar hits like Awon Goons Mi and Man of the Year. Before they could recover from dancing and singing along with Phyno and Olamide, fans jumped up again, at the mention of Wizkid. With a clearly different tune, Wizkid, it could be said, melted hearts, as his performance had many female fans standing on their chairs in a bid to catch a glimpse of

the talented artiste. Commenting on the event, Head of Marketing, Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc, Norden Thurston said, “The array of stars at Pepsi Rhythm Unplugged goes to show the huge talent base in this country. This creative gifts lie with the youths, and who could better project and support the youth more than a youth brand like Pepsi that has over the years been involved with youth and talent.”

Cake star Jennifer Aniston wins first film-acting prize

• Aniston

HE inaugural People Magazine Awards, which took place last Thursday evening at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles, was a blatant “pseudoevent,” in the sense that it only existed as an excuse to generate attention for those associated with it: People, the 40year-old weekly fan magazine; Entertainment Weekly, its sister publication; and whatever celebrities they could get to show up and accept prizes and/or perform in person. Hollywood Reporter reports that those who were chosen and did show up and happened to also be in the hunt for Oscar nominations, were offered a nice opportunity to get a little free publicity that evening, as voting is billed to begin on December 29. The most prominent Oscar hopeful in the room was fan favorite Jennifer Aniston, the former Friendsstar-turned-serious dramatic actress, whose performance as a woman suffering from chronic pain in the indie Cake — for which she has already been recognised with best actress SAG, Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice nominamtions

— was celebrated with the Movie Performance of the Year Award (Actress). After accepting the prize from her friend, actor John Krasinski, to a standing ovation, Aniston, who had never previously won anything for her acting in a film, addressed the crowd. She opened by quoting the kid in the YouTube video “David After the Dentist”: “Is this real life?!” Then, she continued more seriously, “I have really now experienced what a labor of love truly means. This movie was nothing short of that, and being a part of it was just extraordinary.” She further credited Cake’s director, Daniel Barnz, “for taking a chance, for trusting me when not all people would, and going the sort of unusual, unexpected route.” The evening also featured a rousing performance by two other Oscar hopefuls, best original song contenders Gwen Stefani (who also collected the Style Icon of the Year Award) and Pharrell Williams. The duo are actively promoting the song “Shine” from the movie Paddington, but performed Stefani’s new single “Spark the Fire,” which Williams produced and also features.

ITH the release of Onye Ozi, there appears to be a remarkable return of films in Igbo language, long after the popular Nollywood starters such as Living in Bondage and Nneka the Pretty Serpent. A comedy film, Onye Ozi, which has just been released on DVD, is according to pundits, a welcome development, and one which might reverse the long lost culture of indigenous language movie by filmmakers of Igbo extraction. Already, the movie, whose English subtitle is The Messenger, has won 12 awards at local and international events, since its cinema debut last year. Produced and directed by Obi Emelonye, the man behind Last Flight to Abuja and Mirror Boy, the film is expected to “set a pace and ignite the passion in fellow producers, who erroneously think that it is only in English language that filmmakers can make lasting statements,” said Emelonye. “From now on, I will make sure I shoot one film in Igbo language every now and then. And I will put in as much technical expertise as I would put into any other film. Honestly, the time has come for us to lift our language because nobody would do it for us. I have many friends who are re-

• Scene in Onye Ozi

ally passionate scholars of the Igbo language in London and they have been reminding me, with regards to Igbo language, of the small power we have as international filmmakers to influence trends and set public agenda. I am also one of those parents who are both Igbo but whose children cannot speak the language well. I am passionately Nigerian and proudly Igbo. So I decided to make a script that I had written in English into an Igbo film to make my native language the centre-piece of an international film. The roots of Nollywood can be traced to ‘Living in Bondage’ which is an Igbo film subtitled in English. Onye Ozi is an attempt to revive the telling of African stories in Igbo language,” he explained. The film, which explores the issue of economic tourism, features Okey Bakassi, Ngozi Igwebike, Stephen Moriaty, Anthony Aclet, D’Kachy Obi-Emelonye and Adesua Atuanya. Speaking on the challenges he faced during the production, Emelonye said: “First, I needed a lead who was a proper leading man: funny, intelligent and with an army of followers. Okey Bakasi ticked all the boxes. But teaching white people Igbo language and getting them to speak it in the film with the right accent was also tough.”

THE NATION TUESDAY DECEMBER 23, 2014

RACE TO 2015 Yuguda not sponsoring me, says Bauchi APC candidate

HE former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Bauchi State and the All Progressive Congress governorship candidate (APC), Mohammed Abubakar has rejected the claim that Governor Isa Yuguda introduced him to politics. He told reporters in Bauchi, the state capital, that the governor has insulted him and his followers. The APC chieftain said: ”I have never had any nonsense more than that. I became the Commissioner for Justice and the Attorney-General in 1990. Then, Yuguda was a staff of the Federal Mortgage Bank and he was not the governor of Bauchi State . “There was no way I could have been his Attorney-General and he did not introduce me to politics as alleged in the media. There is no blatant lie more than that”. Abubakar added: “I contested for the Senate and everybody thought he was supporting me in PDP. But, you saw what happened. If Yuguda was my friend and sponsor, he would have sponsored me to go to the Senate. He started by playing a trick when we were supposed to go for the completion of the term to fill the vacant seat of Bauchi South after Senator Bala Mohammed was appointed as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT)Minister.” The flag bearer, who represented Bauchi State at the Constituent Assembly, recalled that a three-man Appeal Committee was set up by the party visited Bauchi to resolve the crisis generated by the outcome of the APC pri-

tory at the primaries as anexpression of peopl’e confidence in his ability to offer quality representation. He thanked the delegates for giving him the opportunity, promising not to let the district down. Adewale said the Federal Government owed it a duty to develop the district because of its contributions to the socio-economic development of the country. He said: “Apart from Ikeja Local Government, other local governments like Badagry, AmuwoOdofin, IfakoIjaiye, Oshodi, and Mushin are backward, in terms of Infrastructural development.” Adewale said he looked forward to the time when the West District will enjoy adequate dividends of democracy like the Central and East districts.

‘

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

•Abubakar

national leadership has recognised me as the governorship candidate. “I’m the sole governorship candidate of the APC in Bauchi. There can’t be two candidates and I’m the only candidate of the party, which the national headquarters of the party has confirmed. I have done this to prove to the world that the people of Bauchi State are with me and the APC. “Three aspirants congratulated me. Others pledged their support to me and I am making efforts to reach out to other aspirants so that we can have a united and formidable party to defeat the PDP.” Abubakar said the allegation that he is being sponsored by Yuguda is false, advising his supporters to ignore rumours. He said: “Since I lost an election under the PDP, which Yuguda pretended to be supporting me, but suddenly left me midway, I have had nothing to do with him , apart from greeting, which is part of my religious duties. Yuguda has nothing to do with me, alhough I respect him a lot as my governor.”

My plan for Lagos West, by PDP senatorial candidate AGOS West Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senatorial candidate Mr. Segun Adewale has promised to attract federal projects to the district, if elected as a senator in next year’s election. The flag bearer defeeated Mr. Dapo Sarumi, Hon. Adegoke Salvador and Hon. OlakunleAmunikoro at the primaries. He will face the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Hon. Solomon Olamilekan, a House of Representatives member, at the poll. Adewale lamented that the district has been abandoned by the Federal Government in the distribution of social infrastructure. He promised to articulate the yearnings of the district in the Senate. The PDP chieftain described his vic-

Given the outlook of the APC and the PDP, there couldn’t have been any way by which the PDP can make any headway in Kwara State. You have to look at how the parties came together. What are the antecedents of those that make up the party and where can they get to

Olawepo: Federal might useless in Kwara

From Austine Tsenzughul, Bauchi

maries. He said people were jubilating on the streets when he emerged as the flag bearer. He refuted the allegation that the shadow poll was rigged, stressing that, when it was investigated by the Appeal Committee, the panel affirmed the result. Abubakar said: “The election was the freest; it was transparent. The election was conducted in an enclosed Lawn Tennis Court on the premises of Zaranda Hotel. There was only one entrance into the venue, manned by the police, soldiers and other security operatives to ensure a smooth process.” The flag bearer also denied that there was over-voting, adding that no aspirant raised the issue before the panel. He stressed: “There was no over voting. The process was conducted in the presence of everybody. But, when agents of other aspirants raised the issue of excess votes, the electoral committee, before it announced the result, recounted the votes and discovered what went wrong. They unanimously agreed and corrected the figures on the result sheet.” Sources close to the party chairman, Alhaji Nana, said that Appeal Committee has written its report saying “ it found anything wrong with the election.” Abubakar said: “Already, the APC

‘

Acknowledging that the election is challenging, he said he is prepared for the task. However, he flayed the elite for their apathy to politics and elections, adding that arm chair critics can never make positive impacts. Adewale said: “They should hold themselves responsible for the leadership problems Nigeria is facing at the moment. It is strange that the leadership of the country is beingproduced by a few party delegates, who are mostly illiterates. Due to their lack of education and proper values, they choose candidates with little or no integrity. These people get to leadership positions and begin to misbehave and misappropriate resources. Then, the elite would wake up and cry to the media, complaining about acute leadership problems.”

•From left: Are Ademola Taiwo, All Progressives Congress (APC) National Publicity, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and his wife, Kutiat Mohammed, at the Fund Raising for the Lagos State House of Assembly aspirant, Olajimi Lai PHOTO: JOHN EBHOTA Mohammed held in Ikeja, Lagos.

HE Kwara State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is an amalgam of strange bedfellows blinded by unbridled ambition, the former chairman of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Kayode Olawepo, has said. The All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain attributed the botched PDP primaries and other crises rocking the chapter to the vaunting ambition of the governorship aspirants. He urged the PDP leadership not to breach the harmonious relationship existing in the state. Olawepo said: “I hope they will not use their own unbridled ambition to destroy the peace of the state. We plead with them to allow Kwara State to be at peace.” The APC chieftain, who spoke with reporters in Ilorin, the state capital, said it is wishful and illusory for the PDP to wrest power from the APC because PDP leaders rely on the federal might. He added: “You cannot rig where you are not popular. All the insinuations of the federal might by the PDP is now an illusion because that might would have been destroyed before the election. There is no federal might that can be relied upon during the election. “So, I will just advise them to face the reality. The federal might they are banking on does not exist again, because everything about bad governance is at the federal level; which the Nigerians have decided to reject; which means that when the head is rotten definitely the whole body is dead and to our people in the APC we must work as if that federal might still exists or will still be existing. “We should cast our votes, stay with our votes, protect our votes and follow the results peacefully. Even, if the federal agencies are deployed, they cannot fight any peaceful environment. I don’t see anything in federal might that can take anybody to anywhere in Kwara state. On the botched PDP primaries, the politician said: “Given the outlook of the APC and the PDP, there couldn’t have been any way by which the PDP can make any headway in Kwara State. You have to look at how the parties came together. What are the antecedents of those that make up the party and where can they get to? “Given all those things, there is every likelihood they will not get its bearing even before and the period of the elections. To me as a chieftain of the APC, I do not see them as a threat to the success of the APC in all the elections in the state in 2015. All things being equal, what binds them together cannot make PDP a successful party. “One of the things that give me assurance that the PDP will not make any head way is because of the chemical composition of everybody in the PDP cannot produce a good solution; because the ingredients that make up the soup determine the quality of the soup. The PDP, given my experience and knowing very well, is made up of people that are disloyal, ungrateful to their mentors and with a record of failure. Olawepo predicted doom for the PDP at the polls, saying that “a house built on quicksand can never stand.” He stressed: “The PDP is peopled by selfish individuals based on the fact that there is a federal might that will give them power and that is the reason why they believe if they get the ticket somebody will come from somewhere and give them the election. “But, what is aggravating the crisis is that they have no relationship. They have no basis to work together. Some said the senior Saraki has been enslaving them but in the real sense they are the ones enslaving the late politician. If they say they seeking freedom, it is Senator Bukola Saraki has given freedom to from those that left.”

‘Why crisis persists in Lagos PDP’

GROUP, the Visioners for New Lagos (VNL), has berated two Lagos State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders, Chief Bode George and Senator Adesegun Ogunlewe, for fuelling the crisis in the chap-

ter. The group said that it is lamentable that the leaders could not prevent a flawed governorship primary, despite their wealth of political experience. According to the group, George and Ogunlewe created the confusion in the party by taking sides in a clearly divisive issue, adding that their lack of neutrality led to tension and confusion. The group’s leader, Mr. Bambo Akin-Johnson, said in a statement that the shadow poll fell below expectation, owing to the manipulation of the exercise to the advantage of a preferred aspirant. He said the PDP failed to conduct a free and fair primaries, unlike the All Progressives Congress (APC), which held a transparent primary election. Akin-Johnson said: “The question many people have been asking, which we also found very curious, is: What offence has Senator Musiliu Obanikoro committed against these people? The man who has committed more into the party than anyone of them and benefitted even less than these people. It shows the character of those that make up the party leadership. “Apart from the time that Ogunlewe was minister, he should come out with a record of his contribution to the development of the party. His ministerial stint was dogged by the fight between him and George. So, what is his pride? “Chief George, on his part, as the greatest beneficiary in the party, has never delivered to the party. He never won his ward at any election. But, he has benefitted, in terms of position than any member of the party. His wife is the head of the NDLEA board. What does he want? He has particularly shown much hatred and disdain while Ogunlewe has been going about running Obanikoro down for doing nothing to them.” Akin-Johnson called on President Goodluck Jonathan not to allow the illegality and injustice to prevail in Lagos PDP. He said: “Lagos PDP held a tainted governorship primary with 806 accredited delegates and 863 votes. That is a mystery that must be unraveled.” • George

THE NATION TUESDAY DECEMBER 23, 2014

RACE TO 2015

‘

Frustrations bothering on defections also led to collaborations by politicians who initiated military interventions. When defection to civilian alliances fails, they cross over to military alliances. Hence, we must be very meticulous in enacting strict regulatory laws on defections

‘

Lawyer and pro-democracy activist Mike Igini is the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Cross River State. He spoke with reporters in Lagos on preparations for next year’s elections, Permanent Voter’s Card distribution, and how the insurgency by the Boko Haram sect may affect the polls.

‘Elections will hold in Bakassi’ H

OW prepared is the INEC for the 2015 general elections? We are preparing and it is work in progress. Let me take this opportunity to say that between 2011 and now we have organized one General election and several gubernatorial and legislative elections and by-elections, with better outcomes than in many other instances in the electoral history of Nigeria as acknowledged by the people of this country and international observers. This is not just my claim; it is based on the assessment of the decline in the number of petitions and litigations following such elections, 1,291 cases in 2007 and 729 in 2011 . This is not accidental. It is mainly because the evidence trail for the electoral process has improved tremendously and people know that frivolous claims requires more rigor, while genuine concerns can be addressed by examining the evidence which will be available. I say this to bring to the fore what I mean when I say that we are preparing, because preparing for elections have specific generic approaches, namely pre-election, election day and post-election preparations. But, because of our electoral history we need to put in more to ensure that pre-election and election day processes have high fidelity which will reduce any untoward outcomes that may emanate at the post-election phase. Pre-election preparations involves developing a credible voters register, which should be available for stakeholder scrutiny, prior to election, things like voter education, a balance of media coverage for all parties and candidates as much as is feasible within the law, the possibility of debates to enhance voter information, the procurement and distribution of materials and personnel for elections and the planning cum organization of election day and post-election activities What are your expectations from the ruling party and opposition parties? Political parties are a very important part of a democracy. In Nigeria the current parties are still evolving. In developed democracies, some parties have been around for years like the Democratic Party in the USA, formed in 1828 and now 186 years old, the Republican Party formed in 1854 now 160 years as a party just like the SDP in Germany that is 150 years. Still with that long historical evolution they have their problems. How old are the parties here and what are the values of those who promote and manage these parties ? We should, therefore, not always regard some of our formative errors as grave . This is not to say that the parties should be reinventing the wheel for things that are mute conventions, such as how party candidates emerge. These are fairly well established democratic practices and the only reason the parties have much challenges from that practice is because they have failed or refused to be regulated by their own regulatory processes and continued to disappoint their members. Is there any legal framework that regulates defections from one

‘When I say that we are preparing, because preparing for elections have specific generic approaches, namely preelection, election day and post-election preparations. But, because of our electoral history we need to put in more to ensure that pre-election and election day processes have high fidelity which will reduce any untoward outcomes that may emanate at the post-election phase’ • Igini

party to another? Hold the judiciary responsible for its inability to deal with this situation having regards to the early defection cases since last year that appeared warehoused and lying-in-state in the courts. How do one explain a situation where matters that commenced by way of originating summons, just for the interpretation of section 68 of the constitution, which does not require the calling of any a single witness since last year and subsequent cases cannot be determined because lawyers are allowed to filibuster by filing all manners of frivolous applications upon applications just to ensure that these matters are not determined. Why? Have we all forgotten how the intervention of the court particularly the Supreme Court brought about sanity to the gale of unconstitutional impeachments of either deputy governors or governors as well as arbitrary substitution of candidates that emerged from duly conducted primaries without giving cogent and verifiable reasons? Regrettably, some of our very seniors in the legal profession are the ones doing all this. If these matters have been allowed to go on, by now the interpretation of this troubling section 68 would have been pronouced upon by the apex court and there would have been sanity by now. Until the Supreme Court pronouces on this there is no end in uncertainty. This is very unfortunate. Defections have been a bane of our democratic learning and the consolidation of democracy in Nigeria. Unregulated defections and a combination of other actions led to the fall of the First Republic. And I am willing to hazard a guess that frustrations bothering on defections also led to collaborations by politicians who initiated military interventions. When defection to civilian alliances fails, they cross over to military alliances. Hence, we must be very meticulous in enacting strict regulatory laws on defections. Now we cannot telescope the freedom of association which allows people to belong to any party they chose, and we cannot question their motivations whether noble or

dishonorable because as Shakespeare averred there is nothing in the face to read the intentions of the mind but when people defect the provisos controlling self-dealing and prebendal motivations should be effective deterrents for unguarded defections because of the impact it has on democratic practices. Externally, there are sections within the Electoral Act which prescribes what it takes to belong to a party and how to represent its mandates, the constitutional legislation on defection has not been authoritatively tested in terms of legal hermeneutics, this is why the judiciary must act as the bastion of justice by making the law clear and unequivocal. Internally, the parties have rules which guide against such defections, I am aware for instance that some parties have a time barring any new entrant from contesting under the party banner for a period, but how well they allow such laws to regulate behavior is another matter. At any rate, once again the defection issue remind us of the need for a constitutional court to separate the usual legal adjudications from the regular courts. Most of the problems we have near elections have to do with inadequate regulation of political behavior as politicians seek to retain their access to political power through elections. Elections are inherently designed to make such retention of access to power uncertain to make politicians more responsive to the public they serve, but politicians want and are in fact zealous to reduce that uncertainty. Our regulatory laws should be strengthened to ensure that politicians do not dilute that check of uncertainty. Do you think the judiciary has lived up to expectations in adjudicating on litigations arising from elections? The judiciary in my view has not met the public expectations adequately in this regard. Although the judiciary also has its limitations. The outgoing CJN Mrs. Aloma Mukhtar did quite well to create a new vision for the judiciary, but as you know reforms are often not very easy to execute when the reward of deviation is huge. But we hope her successor will remain on the path of reform to ensure that our justice sys-

tem is not a system that only protects the rich and influential. Election litigations are worse with party nominations or internal or intra-party elections than external or inter-party elections proper, and this will endure as long as we have laws like section 31 of the Electoral Act. We have often advocated that Section 31 should not be so omnibus, allowing parties to do whatever they like and present whomsoever they wish and may all end up in interminable disputes in courts. When I first came to Cross-Rivers state, I stood quite firm on this issue and some accused me of interference, but I was only protecting the general interests because I knew that they need a firm and impartial umpire to make sure that both the weak and the strong will subscribe to and abide by the same rules. Things improved afterwards, but from what I am sensing currently, I can say that they may have lowered their benchmark again and they themselves can see that the outcome of Hobbesian laws is bad for everyone. Some governors complained bitterly about the Permanent Voter’s Card distribution. What do you think are the challenges? On the furore regarding the PVCs and CVR, we acknowledged some operational challenges in terms of the number of LGAs for the take-off of the exercise of the PVC distribution as there was a re-scheduling for the remaining nine LGAs that were conducted subsequently. I can tell for a fact that nothing sinister was done to any state, and certainly Lagos in terms of the issue of zero polling units that was recorded in all states without exception. There are those who though registered in 2011 with temporary voters card, during the exercise of preparing their individual biometric data for use, some did not have their full biometrics and even when the threshold for acceptance of incomplete biometric data was reduced to two fingers in each hand, that is a minimum of four fingers, some still could not meet up. Hence these were the category of people that have been asked to participate in the continous registration exercise. So nothing like de-listing of names occurred because they are still there with the observed shortcomings. There was also an unfortunate and regrettable situation, that occurred when some of the Corpers engaged in 2011 as registration officers in the process of backup of the daily registration data then, during the back-up process some data of registered voters were lost in trying to secure them, resulting in what is now called zero registrants in some of the polling units, that will require fresh registration at the level of the polling units as we did in Cross River, while others will be done at the ward registration centres. The electorates are the ultimate beneficiaries or victims of a warped electoral process. What role should the electorates play in determining their fate in the forthcoming election... I think we should reframe your question because l don’t see how electorates could be beneficiaries of warped elections rather they will always be victims if the electoral proess is broken and opaque. My advice is participate and vigilantly ask questions where things are unclear. Democracy is for the people and if they do not participate the system will control you instead of you taking control of the system.

Group says Murtala’s son will be good deputy governor From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

GROUP, Kano Good Governance Project (KGGP), has described the choice of Alhaji Abba Risqua Mohammed as the Kano State People Democratic Party (PDP) governorship running mate as a master stroke that would ensure victory for the party. Adressing reporters in Kano, the group’s scribe, Alhaji Abulkadir Salihu, said Abba Risqua has the qualities to attract significant votes for the PDP. He added: ”Abba Risqua came from Kano Central Zone, an area with the biggest chunk of our population which has always tipped the balance of electoral victory for this kind of election.” According to Salihu, the son of late Gen. Murtal Mohammed, who came second at the shadow poll, has the charisma to galvanize the support of his constituency for the PDP. He said: “The fact that he came second despite the odds of not controlling the party’s machinery not in his favour, is a testimony to not only his charisma but the tremendous respect that his family is enjoying in the state.” Salihu noted that the political rating of Abba Risqua has received a great boost, not only because of his remarkable showing at the primaries, but the way he magnanimously accepted the defeat. He stressed: “It’s a rare show of sportsmanship. When many chose to chicken out,he soldiered on. And when he lost, he became an example for other politicians to emulate. “These and many more reasons strengthen our belief that with Abba as the running mate of Malam Sagir Salihu Takai, the coast is clear for PDP to retake Kano again.”

‘Power shift imminent’

MEMBER of the Board of Trustees of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Sam Nkire, has said that power shift is imminent, urging Nigerians to vote for the party in next year’s general elections. Reflecting on the APC presidential primaries, he sdaid there was no victor and no vanquished. Nkire said the party would remain a united family pursuing a common goal. According to him, the primaries gave the presidential aspirants the opportunity to campaign for the APC and expose the incompetence of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Nkire said General Buhari will defeat President Goodluck Jonathan at the poll. He said the flag bearer will prove enemies of the party wrong by running an all-inclusive campaign. Urging Buhari to effectively manage his success at the shadow poll, he said Nigerians look forward to the election with eagerness and hope for a better Nigeria.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

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Renewable energy: Govt ends survey of solar power sites

HERE may soon be stable power supply through the use of solar energy. The Federal Government has conducted a survey using a Global Positioning System(GPS) to determine the sites where solar equipment will be installed to improve the off-grid transmission of electrcity. The government used a spacebased satellite navigation system to determine the topography of the country’s land mass of 923,678 square kilometres, its weather conditions, areas where solar facilities, such as poles and panels, can be erected to maximally make use of the sun for power generation, among other benefits. The study revealed that the government and private firms want to explore the opportunities in solar power, which experts say, is a better source of renewable energy. The reason is that Nigeria has a huge sun density, and it is yet to tap into the opportunities avail-

Stories by Akinola Ajibade

able in coal, bio-mass, wind and other renewable energy sources. The Special Adviser to the Minister of Power on Investments, Finance and Donor Relations, Olajuwon Olaleye, said the government had contracted two foreign companies to provide a detailed description of the country’s topography. He did not name the firms. Olaleye said: “We are working with two companies that did the whole solar map or Global Positioning System (GPS) of Nigeria.The map shows areas that are corrosive and those that are not.They are at the dimension where all the sub-stations and transformers are.The companies are working to situate the map well.They have done all these for companies that want to invest in solar to use. “When you want to provide a solar form of electricity, you need to know the corrosive nature of the land. Facilities would be deployed

in the 774 councils, as part of efforts to provide energy. Nigeria is endowed with natural soruces of generating energy, and it’s working towards achieving success in that area. That is why the government wants to provide a Renewable Energy and Efficiency Policy.’’ He said the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Power, was working with the states on how to acquire land and deploy facilities in solar projects. Olaleye said getting the land approval from the state governments was crucial to the implementation of solar energy initiatives in Nigeria. ‘’Regarding the renewable energy system, Nigeria is endowed. The country has a lot of natural resources that can be used to generate eletricity.Efforts are being geared toward achieving that objective. The government believes in maximising the potential in the on-grid and off-grid transmission

•Minister of Power Chinedu Nebo

•Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) CEO Dr Sam Amadi

of electrcity to achieve results. While on-grid has to do with the electricity generated from hydro and turbines means and subsequently pass through the national grid, the off-grid relates to power generated through the sun,wind and other natural sources.’’ Olaleye added. Officials of the German Development Bank, during a visit to Nigeria, said the bank earmarked $200

milion for the development of renewable energy in the country. The leader of the delegation, Renate Von Bodden, said the German government would continue to support the various energy-related initiatives in Nigeria. The development is line with the Federal Government’s decision to introduce and implement energy mix programmes and further improve power supply.

Ikeja DISCO to tackle payment problems

HE Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) is addressing problems which customers are facing on its new payment channels, its Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Mr Abiodun Ajifowobaje, has said. In a statement, he said the company’s technical experts were working to ensure that the channels offer seamless payment services for its customers. He said the company regretS any inconvience the issue might

have caused to its customers, stressing that the problem would soon be over. He said: “While wishing everybody a merry Christman and New Year ahead, the company will ensure that customers access good services. With the new payment channels, on-going infrastructure upgrade and investment in new technology, Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company will continue to work towards providing sustainable and equitable power supply to all its customers.”

Govt urged to set up fund for operators

T • A solar equipment.

Firms seek loans restructuring to cushion oil price slump

IL exploration and production companies are trimming their loans’portfolios and projects to survive following the slump oil price from N120 to N61 per barrel. The firms are approaching their banks to reduce their loans’ portfolios, among other cost-cutting measures. Speaking at a sensitisation programme by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) in Lagos, the Head, Oil and Gas, Fidelity Bank Plc, Abolore Solebo, said firms were making frantic moves to reduce their credit lines, to save costs and manage their investments. He said an operator of a marginal oil field had asked the bank to cut the amount of loans needed for the operation. He said: “A customer who operates one of the marginal oil fields has asked the bank for a reduction of the loan needed from the bank, due to falling oil price. He put in a call and I discussed the issue with the Board.‘’

He said the declining price of crude oil was having ripple effects on stakeholders in the industry, adding that operators were trying to avert further losses by taking proactive measures. “The fall in price of crude oil is taking its toll on the industry’s operators. An operator, who got a credit for his business when the price was, for instance, $116 per barrel, never envisaged that the price could drop to $62 per barrel. The business was good then. Mind you, he needs to service the loan. But the question is at what cost, giving the fact that there is a glut in the crude oil market? ‘’As the prices of crude oil fall to abysmal level, the oil producing firms are finding it difficult to mitigate the cost of production. Their profit base is shrinking, and there is the need to for ways of reducing their cost.’’ Also, an official of a first generation bank, who spoke on condition of annoymity, said banks were making efforts to reduce their debts overhang. He said financial institutions set up

oil and gas departments, and appoint competent people to manage it to make money from the sector. “The global oil market is experiencing one of its moments, and the lenders are at the receiving end. Some financial institutions gave out big loans to oil firms,with the belief that they would continue to manke money from the transactions. But things are going awry. The market is no longer bouyant. Banks are conerned with two things. First is recouping the loans given oil and gas firms. Secondly, they are reducing the loan advances to operators in the petroleum industry,’’ he said. Nigeria had scaled down the crude oil benchmark for the 2015 budget from $78 to $73 per barrel, earmarked $2billion for the three-tiers of the government, among other measures taken in the wake of the falling crude oil price. Its Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said the measures would insulate sthe economy from the falling crude oil prices.

HE Federal Government has been urged to set up a special fund for indigenous oil and gas operators. The Managing Director, DelSigma Petroleum, Soky Amachree, gave the advice duirng an interview wth The Nation. He said the development became imperative to enable domestic operators to improve their operations and compete with their counterparts in other countries. He said the International Oil Companies (IOCs) in Nigeria and

By Ambrose Nnaji

the local banks needed to evolve a partnership through which they would support their marginal field operators. Amachree said many of the marginal field operators were in need of technical and financial assistance, adding that their problems would be reduced once the fund is set up. He said such operators go about sourcing funds after their licence had been approved by the government.

How to improve power supply

HE drop in power generation will continue unless the Gas Master Plan and other initiatives introduced by the Federal Government are fast-tracked, stakeholders have said. Speaking against the backdrop of the inability of the government to supply enough gas to power generation companies, the President, International Association of Energy Economics(IAEC), Prof Adeola Akinnisiju, said the government should implement policies to improve supply. He said the Escravos Gas Project could not be relied upon to provide enough gas for the power sector. Akinnisiju said: “There is a frequent drop in power generation, occassioned by low supply of gas to the thermal plants. Escravos does not have the ca-

pacity to provide enough gas to the power firms. Now that the government has privatised the sector and handed over the assets of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to the new investors, the government must fast-tracked the implementation of gas policies for growth of the power sector. Besides, the capacity of Escravos must be improved. Bigger volumes of gas must come from the plant.’’ He said Escravos’inability to provide gas sufficient gas to Afam IV, Rivers Independent Power Plant, Olorunsogo Power Plant, among others, had affected electricity generation. He said the occassional low water level at the hydro power plants had also contributed to the problems in the sector.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

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Lagos High Court sitting on Igbosere has stopped the demolition of a five-storey building in the Central Business District in Lagos. The court restrained the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) and others from further demolishing and dismantling the property at 49, Martins, Street, Lagos. Jusstice Hakeem Oshodi granted the injunction pending the determination of the substantive suit. The defendants are the AttorneyGeneral of Lagos State, Lagos State Urban Renewal Agency(LASURA) and the LASBCA. In the motion on notice filed by theclaimants/applicants,they sought an order restraining the defendants “either by themselves, agents, privies or whosoever from erecting any structure, or alienating to the 3rd party (LASBCA) or further interfering in any manner on any part of the property at 49, Martins Street/30, Shitta Street, Lagos Island pending the determination of the substantive suit in this case”. Granting the prayers in the suit with number LD/ 7688/2014, Justice Oshodi ordered the respondents to maintain the status quo; he adjourned the matter till January 15, for the hearing of the Motion on Notice. Justice Oshodi ordered: “Due to the peculiar nature of the facts of this case, it will be prudent for the court to maintain status quo of the respondents. In this respect, the Court hereby orders that parties, especially the second and third defendants do maintain status quo as at today.” The claimant Alhaji Fasasi Adesigbin Oluwole, Afeez Oladimeji Shitta, Alhaja Mutiat Olasumbo Hassan (for the family of late Alhaja Taibat Shitta) and Alhaja Hadikat Talabi had in their suit laying claim to the disputed property at No 49 Martins Street, Lagos which has been a subject of litigation. The claimants in their affidavit had alleged that in spite of the court orders restraining the defendants from further tampering with the disputed property, they “at a break neck speed fully demolished the property in dispute in my pres-

•The demolished five-storey building.

Court stops demolition of five-storey building Stories by Muyiwa Lucas

ence”. The problem surrounding the ownership of the land, which had been occupied by the claimants for over 30 years, got out of hands until October 24, this year when it was alleged the agents of the state government aided by security operatives, “invaded the property in dispute started removing the burglaries, doors and windows affixed to the property and sending away our tenants out of their shops”. According to their 47 paragraphs in support of the motion deposed to by Afeez Shitta, the claimants averred

•Family accuses agency of violating court order that sequel to this, several efforts were made, including filing of an action challenging the activities of the agents of the government but all to no avails. He stated: “The Claimants/ Applicants as a law-abiding citizen instituted this case to prevent and challenge the atrocities of the defendants by their Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim dated and filed on October 28, 2014 and October 29, 2014.” According to them, in spite of the service of the processes on the respondents and the order exparte restraining the defendants the demolition continues unabated. “As at 26th of November, 2014

N486m Trinity Mall opens in Lagos

HE N485 million Trinity Mall has opened at lkeja, Lagos, to provide convenience for busy shoppers. The Chairman/Chief Executive of Omais Investments Nigeria Limited, owners of the mall, Chief Omochiere Aisagbonhi, said: “Because so much shopping falls into the “must -do “ category, busy consumers seeking to simplify their lives favour retailers that save time and energy and that is what our mall stands for at the heart of Ikeja.’’ With the shop s g o i n g f o r N15,000 per square metre, Trinity Mall boasts of several worldclass facilities that make for exquisite, breath-taking ambience. The design is a mix of rugged Nigerian and fine-honed international structural details, he added. This is in addition to ample parking space, an elevator, 24-hour power and water supply, security coverage including CCTV camera surveillance round-the-clock, to ensure

By Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie

peace of mind for shoppers and shop owners. For him, the level of investment in the property sector and other sectors of the economy would have been more than what it is if not for the heavy burden placed on investors. For instance, he said identified and blamed multiple taxation as a major challenge for investment in the country. He said that businesses are challenged everyday in the face of harsh tax laws and tax regimes as well as poor infrastructure. A tiny percentage of the incentives being used to attract foreign investors, he reasoned, will perform magic if offered to genuine local investors and boost the economy in a faster way than what many foreign investors are offering especially those who bring in incompatible tech-

nology and foreign employees. Although he said he is not against foreign investment, he is, however, not comfortable with but the manner in which they breach employment regulations and deprive Nigerians of their jobs. He regreted the inability of local governments to contribute to the provision of infrastructure, saying it is unacceptable, as the burden is on investors in addition to the tax burdens. “They are always repeating the over-emphasised ’ low financial allocation’ from state and Federal government. For us in the property business, we know that houses for citizens in many countries are provided and run by councils. I am yet to hear of any council in Nigeria that has built or is building and allocating houses to its citizens from whom they collect all manner of taxes, rates and bills,” Aisagbonhi added.

when this Honourable Court granted an order exparte, retraining the Defendants from further demolishing the property in dispute, the said property was yet to be fully demolished by the defendants.” The deponent stated further that there was no letter or application demanding for the demolition of the property in dispute, but leaders of the agencies want to use their offices to take usurp and seize their ownership of the land to

take it over and erect a new building. The family had earlier taken steps to address the situation by sending petitions to the governor and other state government officials, including the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 2 Command, in the hope that the situation will be addressed. According to the spokespersons of the family, Mrs. Modinat Onimole and Mrs. Mutiat Hassan, Governor Babatunde Fashola promised to set up a committee to investigate the case. She said up till now, nothing had been heard about the committee and its report.

Ecuador to host UN Conference

HE United Nations General Assembly has praised the Government of Ecuador for accepting to host the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) in Quito, Ecuador on July 17, 2016. A statement from Habitat III Secretariat said the objective of Habitat III, which is the third conference in line with the bi-decennial cycle (1976, 1996 and 2016), “would be to secure renewed political commitment for sustainable urban development, assess accomplishments to date, address poverty and identify and address new and emerging urban challenges for the establishment of the ‘New Urban Agenda”. According to the statement, since 2009, the majority of the world’s population lives in cities. “Today, urban areas are a living combination of history, civilisation, diversity and culture. Urbanisation has been a force that has changed almost everything: ways of thinking and acting, ways of using space, lifestyles, social and economic relations, and consumption and production patterns. Cities, as economic and productive innovation spaces, provide opportu-

By Seyi Odewale

nities for improving access to resources and services, as well as options in the social, legal, economic, cultural and environmental fields. Urbanisation has ushered in economic growth, development and prosperity for many,” the statement said. It added: “However, cities are also spaces where multidimensional poverty, environmental degradation, and vulnerability to disasters and the impact of climate change are present. Today, more than two thirds of the global population lives in cities with greater levels of inequality than 20 years ago.” The statement, quoting Habitat III Secretary-General, Dr. Joan Clos, said: “The conference is a unique opportunity for rethinking the urban agenda in which governments can respond by promoting a new model of urban development able to integrate all facets of sustainable development to promote equity, welfare and shared prosperity.” As a sequel to the conference, the second session of the preparatory committee would hold in Nairobi, Kenya, from April 14 to 16, 2015; and the third session would be in Indonesia in July 2016.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

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Port Harcourt-Enugu rail line opens

HE first phase of the Eastern Line of the ambitious Port Harcourt-Maiduguri rail project will open today. Minister of Transport Idris Umar will lead top government officials, the board and management of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) to kick off the event. The Port Harcourt-Enugu line is the first in the line of lanes on the project. The second major arterial line running concurrently with the Lagos-Kano Western Line, it was inaugurated in the 1960s, but abandoned over two decades ago. While inaugurating five new coaches and two DMU units on June 9, the minister spoke on government’s determination to get the Eastern Line back on track by December. He said the coming of the Port Harcourt-Enugu line showed the government’s commitment in making railways the preferred means of transportation. Umar said railway remains the only safe, reliable and affordable means of transportation, adding that the government would continue to strengthen it to retain its capacity. An official of the Nigeria Union

•The new train By Adeyinka Aderibigbe

of Railwaymen (NUR), who preferred anonymity, described the Port Harcourt-Enugu line as the most volatile in the history of railway. The official said the line recorded the highest number of derailments,

with an average of four accidents a month. He said it was wrong to roll out passenger services on the line without addressing the rail architecture responsible for incessant derailings. “The roll out of passenger services on the PortHarcourt-Enugu

line is wrong. It is like handing over a beautifully packaged suicide note to Nigerians. “The rate at which accidents and derailments happen on that route is alarming and it is sad that government did not think it wise to address that before beginning passenger service on that line,” the

source said. The corporation’s workers, he said, would not rest until the right things are done. “We are determined to make the railway one of the safest in the world and we would not engage in conspiratorial silence on any matter impinging that resolution.”

‘Individual’s attitude is the blood sucking juju on highways’

HE Ota, Ogun State Special Marshals Unit, has urged motorists to comply with traffic regulations to reduce road carnage. Its Coordinator, Mrs Faith Abodunde, gave the advice at a public enlightenment rally to commemorate the ember months organised by the unit for motorcyclists and cab operators at Canaanland Motor Park on Idiroko Road in Ogun State. She said the first rule to achieving a safe ember months is to obey traffic rules, adding: “If drivers obey traffic rules and shun overloading and over speeding, it is evident there would be a great reduction in road accidents.’’ The coordinator urged drivers not to be in haste, noting that they cannot save time by over speeding because the outcome could be devastating. Mrs Abodunde also advised passengers to always plan their journey because of the roads, saying they should try and avoid

Stories by Olalekan Ayeni

night journeys. The unit’s Command Assistant Corps Commander (ACM) Sunday Omafu said human errors were the leading causes of road crashes, noting that accidents don’t just happen. He implored road users to change their attitude, saying this would reduce crashes. Omafu, urged drivers not to drink and drive, avoid overloading, over speeding, aggressions, phoning, driving without seat belt, dangerous/wrong overtaking, distractions and hazardous parking. “Do not overtake at bends and crest of hills and always ensure good conditions of vehicles and regular checking of your state of health”, he advised. Lagos State Secretary (RS2.1) Mr Sola Olojede advised drivers to always consider the safety of children by placing them on a safer side while loading and avoid speeding.

•Omafu (third left) addressing motorists. With him are Olojede (left) Abodunde and other regular marshals

He said 35 per cent of fatal crashes involved children, urging drivers to desist from carrying two passengers in front. They should

also not allow underage children or women with a babies to sit in front. Olajide urged parents and ve-

hicle owners not to allow children below 18 to drive, saying FRSC would deal with those who flout the directive.

FRSC, Indomie maker, others donate helmets to motorcyclists

HE Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ota Unit Command, in conjunction with De-United Foods Nigeria Limited and Skiddo Foods have organised a safety enlightenment campaign for commercial drivers and motorcyclists within the state at the former tollgate on the Lagos/Abeokuta Expressway, Ota in Ogun State. Speaking at the ceremony, Assistant Corps Marshal Sunday Omafu urged road users to always be patient and maintain discipline on the road to guarantee safety of life and property. He said the best way to achieve safety on the road was to change attitudes and mindsets on the use of roads, noting that safety was every individual’s responsibility. Omafu urged motorists and pedestrians to imbibe good culture by obeying traffic rules and regulations. At the event, helmets and other safety materials were given to motorcyclists. Managing Director, Skiddo Foods Mrs Julia Shinaba appealed to drivers to be safety•Miss Kafilat with some of the items

conscious. She said maintaining discipline and being safetyconscious could bring back safety on the roads, noting that human errors cause accidents, not the myth called ember months. To eradicate these problems, she said road users must obey traffic rules and regulations by shunning overloading, over speeding and distractions on the wheels. She appealed to FRSC to organise more public enlightenment campaigns for commercial drivers. On their part, transport unions, vehicle owners and companies should monitor activities of their drivers and ensure they obey traffic rules. Receiving the materials on behalf of the union, the Secretary, Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycles Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria (ACCOMORAN), Miss Kafilat Kehinde, hailed the FRSC for its relentless efforts to sanitise the roads against crashes. She thanked the associated companies that donated the materials and urged the commercial motorcyclists and other road users to heed safety warnings.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

THE NATION

BUSINESS AVIATION Huge crowd at the international terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport ,Lagos is generating intense concerns for the Federal Government, no thanks to poor access control at the nation’s premier gateway. As part of measures to stem any vulnerability, aviation authorities are designing new measures to re- jig the security architecture , KELVIN OSA OKUNBOR, reports.

New security measures at airports nationwide T

HE Federal Government is set to re- jig the security architecture at airports nationwide. The new move, it was learnt, is coming on the heels of vulnerabilities observed at some airports. Government, it was learnt, is getting worried over some unauthorised operations around the airport, which could pose serious threat to airport safety and security.Chief among such operations is touting. . The Minister of Aviation , Chief Osita Chidoka last week, described it as a sore point at the nation’s gateways. He said it is disappointing to find people milling around the arrival halls of the Lagos International , for activities that are unauthorised . Such practice , he said, is alien to aviation in other parts of the world. He has, therefore, directed relevant aviation authorities to rid the airports of persons who engage in unauthorised operations . Some industry watchers have complained about the porous security situation at the Lagos International Airport, adducing access control at major airports as a sore point. Some aviation stakeholders are clamouring for unified measures that would raise the stakes for airport security. Some experts have canvassed a review of the security system at the airports. Part of the new measures , experts suggested, is the overhaul of access control points into major international airport terminals to reduce overcrowding of unauthorised persons around arrival and departure halls. Relevant aviation agencies including the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria ( FAAN), it was learnt, have designed a blueprint to reduce the number of persons that mill around arrival halls particularly at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos. Worried over the ugly trend, aviation minister , Chief Osita Chidoka last week directed FAAN and other security agencies at the Lagos International Airport to rid the arrival halls of touts, who he said, have no business at the terminal. Chidoka said the presence of such people is giving the nation a bad reputation, even as they remain big security risks around the airport. Besides,the minister directed FAAN to design a security blueprint that will ensure that fewer persons are around the operational areas of the airport. He spoke of plans by government to put in place new measures to improve security, part of which he said

will include the installation of new close circuit television cameras. The minister spoke of the need to boost security surveillance at airport terminals with the use of technology as it is the practice in other parts of the world . Chidoka said more aviation security personnel will be trained on latest technology to protect the airports in line with regulations and standard practices of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). He also spoke of plans to reroute the movement of vehicles around the airport terminal to facilitate free flow of traffic , which could threaten security around the airports. He said : ‘’If you have issue with the crowd at the airport and you don’t want the military to remove those people who are touts from the airport, then we have a problem in our hands . “Do you want our airport to be an all comers’affairs or do we want some controls to ensure that those who use the airport are legitimate and people who have business to do at the airport?.” The minister identified vehicular movement around the airport as part of the problems posing threat to airport security. He said there is an urgent need to reroute the movement of vehicles to reduce the crowd around the airport road. Chidoka said: ”The traffic control situation at the international airport is a little complex but we are going to resolve it. Since I came from a traffic control organisation, we are going to figure out how to make that traffic work. The challenges are clear, it is overcrowding, it is a lot of people going at the same time to the same destination.” He also spoke of plans to rework the schedule of airlines to reduce pressure on airport facilities. He said :” So many airlines coming about the same time and the departure is about the same time, so we are looking at how to optimise the spaces we have at the airport and see whether there are other points from the airport that passengers can check-in through and be taken by bus to the international terminal. ‘’ I have set up a committee on airport optimisation, to look at all the spaces we have in GAT, in MMA2 and see whether a check-in process can be done without everybody having to come to international terminal. So, we are looking at that and we are hoping that, that will help in solving that traffic problem.” He said a master plan would be put

•An overcrowded departure hall at the Lagos International Airport .

in place to address airport security and other challenges . In his contribution, an aviation security expert, Group Captain John Ojikutu (rtd), has canvassed a review of the security programme for the nation’s airports and airlines as one of the steps to boost security at the gateways . The review of the airport and airlines security programme, Ojikutu said, has become imperative in the face of the current security challenges facing the country , for which the airports are not insulated. Ojikutu ,who is the chief executive officer of Centurion Securities, said government must quickly review the security programme . The former military commandant of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos said the challenge of access control at the airport has become worrisome because of the presence of many security and para military personnel at the terminal building. He said the presence of so many security personnel at the airport terminal building has become worrisome because it is difficult to know which agency or outfit should take responsibility if there is any infraction on safety and security. Ojikutu said : ‘’I do not think we are really doing enough in airport

security . Government needs to raise the bar on issues affecting security at the airport. “First, it is important for government to review the aviation security programme for the airports and the entire system. “The content of the security programme is derived from the manual developed for the airport systems and airlines. All airports and airlines are supposed to have a security programme. Speaking in an interview, security expert and chief executive officer of Avscon Securities Limited, Mr Bayo Babatunde, recommended urgent and continuous training of aviation personnel, provision of high tech equipment and pre-emptive intelligence reports and investigation as proactive measures to ensure continued protection of Nigeria’s airports. But , Bayo Babatunde said that aviation security personnel should deemphasise physical security to intelligence gathering and use of technology. “The security protocols implemented at any airport are not only those things you can see with your eyes or hear; a lot evolve from a wellarticulated and approved national security programme which is a resultant document based on a painstakingly documented security risk as-

sessment and safety management system.” Meanwhile , FAAN said it has designed a detailed plan for the review of security architecture for airports nationwide. But, investigations revealed that the authority does not have the funds to cater for the security at the airports, which requires installation of gadgets and perimeter fencing The new security plan includes the procurement of sophisticated counter terrorism gadgets and effective collaboration among security agencies. Earlier in the year, FAAN deployed next generation security system at the international terminal of the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos. FAAN said the security system, known as ‘Advance Threat Identification X-Ray’, is located at nine different passenger checkpoints in the newly-expanded ‘D’ and ‘E’ departures halls of the terminal. Yakubu Dati, spokesman for FAAN, said that the system consisted of an explosives trace detector and high performance walk-through metal detectors to check passengers and their hand luggage for explosives, illegal weapons, contraband, narcotics and related items.

seeks new opportunities in Nigerian market Arik increases flight frequency Emirates EGIONAL Manager of Emir-

RIK Air has announced plans to provide extra flights to key domestic destinations . The extra flights, the airline said, is response to yearnings of passengers wishing to travel to various destinations across the country to celebrate Christmas and New Year . According to the spokesman of the airline, Mr Banji Ola, the additional flights will extend from this week to next . He said: “ Instead of the average 120 daily flights normally operated by Arik Air, the airline will during the festive period, increase its daily flights to an average of 140. The key domestic routes that will be affected during the festive season are Enugu, Owerri, Calabar, Lagos, Abuja and Asaba. On the mentioned days, Arik Air will increase the fre-

quency on the Lagos-Owerri route from twice to thrice daily while Abuja-Owerri will increase from one to twice daily. Similarly, the frequency on the Abuja-Enugu route will increase to twice daily, Abuja-Calabar to twice daily and Lagos-Asaba to twice daily.” Arik Air had earlier last month increased the frequencies on some other key domestic routes like LagosCalabar, Lagos-Enugu, Lagos-Benin, Abuja-Benin, Lagos-Kano, AbujaKano, Abuja-Asaba and AbujaIbadan. Also speaking, the Air Managing Director/Executive Vice President, Mr. Chris Ndulue, said the additional flights were necessitated by the need to ensure that many Nigerians have the opportunity of sharing the joy of the season with those closest to them.

ates Airline, West Africa Mr. Manoj Nair has said that the airline is seeking new opportunities in the Nigerian market, which he described as huge for the carrier. He said the airline is working hard to expand its operations in Nigeria, which would be carried out if serious market studies have been carried out. Speaking in an interview, he said Emirates would not extend further flights beyond Lagos and Abuja to Dubai for now until market demands require that it increases capacity to other cities. He debunked rumours that Emirates is seeking traffic rights into Kano, Enugu and Port Harcourt . Such information, he said, has been making the rounds for some years. He spoke of plans by the airline to

offer competitive fares for Nigerian passengers, even as he said Emirates is not worried over the entrance of competitors on the route. He affirmed that more airlines on the route is a better deal for Nigerian passengers in terms of air travel services . The Emirates manager said the airline will continue to deploy big aircraft on the Nigerian route to cater for the comfort of passengers. He said Emirates airline has a lot of packages for its teeming consumers which is classified into various leisure and business trips. He added that to facilitate the seamless travel experience of Emirates passengers across the world, the airline has decided to use it’s best aircraft like the Airbus A380’s and Boeing 777 with adequate facilities

onboard to ease and bring comfort to the passengers. Meanwhile, over 200,000 passengers have used Emirates’ free onboard Wi-Fi since October this year, taking advantage of the airline’s service to connect with family, friends or colleagues when they fly. On most Emirates A380s, passengers can access 10MBs of free data, and send emails, blog, tweet, post on Facebook, or browse the Internet. Emirates currently offers Wi-Fi connectivity on 86 aircraft – on board all of its 56 Airbus A380s, as well as on 30 of its Boeing 777s. A comprehensive retrofit programme is also underway to install Wi-Fi capability across the rest of its fleet.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 22-12-14

25-07-14 DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 22-12-14

Investors scramble for Transcorp amidst bullish run T RANSNATIONAL Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) was at the centre of the bullish rally yesterday at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as investors flooded the market with open orders for shares of the newly ranked conglomerate. Transcorp accounted for 49.3 per cent of total turnover yesterday and its share price rose by the maximum daily allowable percentage change of 10 per cent. Transcorp’s share price closed at N3.39 per share. The scramble for Transcorp’s shares came on the heels of the weekend announcement of the conglomerate as the most compliant quoted company by the NSE. The most complaint listed firm award is given by the NSE to the company that demonstrates the highest degree of compliance with the

•NSE names conglomerate most compliant quoted company

Stories by Taofik Salako Capital Market Editor

rules and regulations regarding disclosure obligations of listed companies to the Exchange in a particular year. Such a company is also expected to have demonstrated its recognition for the importance of corporate governance. Transcorp won the coveted award at the weekend, beating Nigerian Breweries Plc and others. Investors staked a total of N1.33 billion on 412.99 million shares of Transcorp in 169 deals. It was the most active stock. FBN Holdings occupied a distant second position on the activity chart with a turnover of 62.21 million

shares worth N528.19 million in 886 deals. Aggregate turnover yesterday stood at 837.13 million shares valued at N5.45 billion in 5,062 deals. The stock market remained on the bullish note yesterday with more than two advancers for every decliner. Aggregate market value of all quoted companies added N351 billion to close at N10.357 trillion as against its opening value of N10.006 trillion. The All Share Index (ASI), the composite index at the NSE, rallied by 3.52 per cent to close at 31,371.93 points compared with its opening index of 30,306.51 points. However, average year-to-date return stood at 24.09 per cent.

DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 22-12-14

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

MONEYLINK

Unity Bank disburses N26.1b agric fund

NITY Bank Plc has disbursed N26.1 billion on 65 projects under the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS), the Managing Director, James Semenitari, has said. He said the lender is at an advanced stage in accessing the Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs) special intervention fund from the CBN. Semenitari, who spoke in Lagos, said the bank’s aggressive loan recovery drive, resulted in the reduction of non-performing loans (NPL) from over 50 per cent to 20.43 per cent, adding that the level is expected to drop to about 10 per cent by December 2015, and five per cent a year later. He said the bank recorded a growth trajectory from a loss position of N33.64 billion, as at December 2013, to a profit position of N12.02 billion profit before tax as at

Access Bank supports police, others

Stories by Collins Nweze

September, this year. It equally recorded improvement of 37.2 per cent in operational efficiency with a cost-to-income ratio reduction from 95.7 per cent as at December 2013 to 60 per cent currently. Semenetari said the lender is focusing on emerging middle-market businesses, including SMEs, adding that its growth strategy is based on operational efficiency derived from business models and strategic intent. He also said the lender which has a N51 billion capital base, would raise additional capital in 2015 to strengthen its balance sheet. “We had to embark on an inevitable capital raising exercise. It was important to gain confidence before the Nigerian public and shareholders. We were able to raise N40 billion successfully, with the offer oversub-

•Semenitari scribed to the tune of N950m which we returned to investors,” he said. The bank chief said the SMEs subsector remains a key driver of the economy, an area, he said the bank will be playing a significant role in going forward. He said the bank has 250 alternative channels of transaction adding that SMEs, agriculture remain its business drivers.

Fidelity Bank CEO reiterates gains of savings

ANAGING Director and Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc, Nnamdi Okonwo has called on bank customers to imbibe the culture of savings as such would promote economic growth and development. The bank chief who spoke in Lagos at the fourth edition of presentation of prizes to winners of various categories of the lender’s ongoing Save 4 Scholarship promo said saving more would help the youths attain their goals. Okonwo, who was represented by the Executive Director, Lagos and South West, Fidelity Bank, Mr. Ik Mbagwu said: “The whole concept of the promo is to encourage people

on the things that will make people progress and develop. “We are happy to see people win because that is the idea behind it. The more people win, the more it encourages savings. And the more they save, the more it encourages growth in the economy, incidentally.” According to him, 131 persons, out of the targeted 200 persons have benefited so far from the scheme which he said, is meant to empower the winners intellectually rather than giving out cars. “This year, we decided to run a unique promo where we are focusing on education because we felt that it’s an important part of what we should be doing rather than just giving out cars and the rest of

it.” A representative of the National Lottery Regulatory Agency, Mr. Afam Ojeh, commended the bank for its transparency and effort in promoting education, adding that the Commission was set up to ensure that things are done transparently and without cheat. “Fidelity Bank has done wonderfully well in their promo. We have been going out to observe, regulate and to monitor promos. And several times, when we get there, it’s not what we were told that is in place. But I want to say we have not come to this draw or prize presentation to adjust anything,” he said.

CCESS Bank Plc is focusing on its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on improving the lives and wellbeing of law enforcement agents in the country. Speaking at the meeting with law enforcement agents and beneficiaries of its CRS initiatives held in Lagos, the Access Bank’s Chief Compliance Officer, Pattison Boleigha said the law enforcement agents, especially the Police have sacrificed so much to ensure that the society is safe and needs to be rewarded. He said that many security officials have been killed in the course of their duty, and the bank has decided to recognize them by supporting the families they left behind including providing educational grant to support their children’s education. Boleigha, who was represented by Head Branch Control, Access Bank Plc, Abiodun Aponbiede said the bank has also refurbished the conference room of the Police Special Fraud Unit, Ikoyi to ensure that law enforcement agents

do their work in a conducive environment. “Its about showcasing our CSR initiatives for 2014. As a bank, we know that we have benefitted from the society. I believe that we need to give back to the society. That process of giving back is what we are championing and the bank at the corporate level has its own overall CSR initiatives. We are also encouraged at the individual level as a bank to champion different CSR initiatives in the overall interest of the society. For this year, we are looking at law enforcement agents,” Boleigha said. Other CSR initiatives of the bank he said are empowerment/ skill acquisition programme like beads making , baking of cake, preparing chapman among others for wives of deceased police officers and female officers at Bar Beach police station. The bank also promotes empowerment lecture series on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on Education/literacy and on Health among other initiatives.

FirstBank backs Calabar Carnival

IRST Bank of Nigeria Limited has reiterated its support for the Calabar Carnival 2014. The month-long carnival is a platform for showcasing rich Nigerian heritage and the bank is proud of its longstanding association with the annual festivities. FirstBank has partnered with the Cross River State Government in the execution of the carnival for the past seven years, during which the lender showcases its love and appreciation for the arts and culture, whilst bringing happiness and excitement to Nigerians. The 2014 edition of the festival themed “Celebration Time” marks the 10th anniversary of the carnival and FirstBank is proud to have played a lead role in bolstering commercial activities and economic development at the events. The bank is also a proud

sponsor of several activities during event as part of its corporate responsibility towards the development of tourism, arts and culture in Nigeria. FirstBank’s spokesperson, Folake AniMumuney said the lender is delighted to support the carnival as it resonates with its desire to see the nation enhance its tourism potentials and its cultural heritage whilst promoting the diversification of the economy. “FirstBank as a heritage brand is always keen to align with activities and causes that project the values of the nation in positive light across the globe. We are proud of the achievements of the Calabar Carnival over the years and remain committed to supporting the festival as well as partnering with similar events that have the potential of enhancing the country’s status on global ratings.

DATA BANK AFRINVEST W. A. EQUITY FUND ARM AGGRESSIVE GROWTH BGL NUBIAN FUND BGL SAPPHIRE FUND CANARY GROWTH FUND CONTINENTAL UNIT TRUST CORAL INCOME FUND FBN FIXED INCOME FUND FBN HERITAGE FUND FBN MONEY MARKET FUND • UBA BALANCED FUND • UBA BOND FUND • UBA EQUITY FUND • UBA MONEY MARKET FUND

152.19 9.17 1.12 1.19 2,237.65 1.39 1,710.65 1,092.63 115.26 121.16 1,117.51 1.2232 1.2897 0.7759 1.0986

RETAIL DUTCH AUCTION SYSTEM (RDAS) Transaction Dates 10/12/2014 3/12/2014 1/12/2014 1,116.70 1.2158 1.2897 0.7625 1.0986

GAINERS AS AT 22-12-14

SYMBOL O/PRICE ZENITHBANK 16.32 OANDO 15.75 ACCESS 6.05 TRANSCORP 3.08 UBA 3.78 FLOURMILL 35.50 DIAMONDBNK 4.99 GUARANTY 22.05 VITAFOAM 3.50 AFRIPRUD 2.74 TOTAL 143.31

C/PRICE 17.98 17.35 6.66 3.39 4.15 38.01 5.29 23.36 3.68 2.88 150.47

CHANGE 1.66 1.60 0.61 0.31 0.37 2.51 0.30 1.31 0.18 0.14 7.16

LOSERS AS AT 22-12-14

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

ASHAKACEM INTBREW PHARMDEKO REDSTAREX CWG COSTAIN CAVERTON MAYBAKER VONO FIDELITYBK 7UP WEMABANK ROYALEX

24.60 26.00 2.25 3.92 4.34 0.84 3.17 1.54 0.90 1.55 158.40 0.98 0.52

C/PRICE 22.21 24.70 2.14 3.73 4.13 0.80 3.02 1.47 0.86 1.50 154.00 0.96 0.51

CHANGE -2.39 -1.30 -0.11 -0.19 -0.21 -0.04 -0.15 -0.07 -0.04 -0.05 -4.40 -0.02 -0.01

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Inflation: November

7.9%

Monetary Policy Rate

13.0%

Foreign Reserves Oil Price (Bonny Light/b) Money Supply (M2)

Currency

Buying (N)

Selling (N)

$36.8b

US Dollar

167

168

$61.12

Pounds Sterling

261.9395

263.508

Euro

206.2617

207.4968

171.546

172.5732

Yen

1.3838

1.3921

CFA

0.2944

0.3144

242.3484

243.7996

Yuan/Renminbi

27.1505

27.314

N17.2 trillion

Primary Lending Rate (PLR)

Amount Sold in ($) 499.93m 399.97m 349.96m

CBN EXCHANGE RATES December 18, 2014

N16.42 trillion.

Credit to private Sector (CPS)

Amount Offered in ($) 500m 400m 350m

Swiss Franc

16.5%

NIGERIAN INTER-BANK OFFERED RATES (NIBOR)

WAUA Tenor

17-12-14 Rate (%) Rate (%) 18-12-14

Overnight (O/N)

10.54

11.17

Riyal

44.4906

44.757

11.94

12.18

SDR

243.2856

244.7424

13.08

13.33

14.03

14.17

GOVT. SECURITIES YIELD – SECONDARY MARKET

Tenor

FOREX RATES

R-DAS ($/N)

165.29

Interbank ($/N)

162.75

Parallel ($/N)

185.50

Dec. 18, 2014

Rates

T-bills - 91

13.65

T-bills - 182

13.88

T-bills - 364

13.65

Bond - 3yrs

13.81

Bond - 5yrs

13.85

Bond - 7yrs

13.83

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

THE NATION TUESDAY DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS Okorocha advocates redefined separation of powers

Southsouth youths for Buhari

IGER Delta youths have resolved to mobilise support and vote for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. The youths, under the auspices of the Forum of Past Youth Leaders of Ethnic Nationalities in the Southsouth, said their resolve was caused by the backwardness of the oil-rich region, especially under President Goodluck Jonathan, lamenting the gradual collapse of governance. The youths, in a communiqué at the end of their meeting in Warri yesterday, signed by the Chairman, Alhaji MumakaiUnagha and Secretary, Com-

‘

From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

rade Uboh Ekpo, decried President Jonathan’s role in the crisis, which stalled the take-off of the $16 billion Export Processing Zone (EPZ) project at Ogidigben in Warri Southwest Local Government. They condemned the failure of security agents to arrest and prosecute the masterminds of the kidnap of 14 journalists at Oporoza, while returning from an assignment in Ogidigben. The youth leaders said they wanted a change in government because of the latitude given militant elements by the Jonathan administration, which threatened the lives of the people of other ethnic groups in the region.

Youths in the Southsouth should mobilise and vote for Gen. Buhari

’

They said: “We also discussed the overbearing posture of militants from the Ijaw extraction, who are being glorified and rewarded by the Federal Government. “Examined is the action of Mr. President on the proposed EPZ Gas Company at Ogidigben in Warri Southwest. We frown at the security agencies that up till this moment, those who masterminded the kidnap of journalists at Ogidigben are walking freely in the streets without

being prosecuted. “The meeting observed that no developmental projects in the Niger-Delta have been put in place by the President since he assumed office, as his administration has brought hardship to Nigerians, especially those from the NigerDelta. “Youths in the Southsouth should mobilise and vote for Gen. Buhari. Machinery should be put in place to mobilise youths for him. “If President Jonathan is reelected, other ethnic nationalities will go into extinction in the Southsouth. We urge Nigerians, particularly youths, to support Gen. Buhari, as the re-election of Jonathan will worsen security and cause more economic hardship.”

Fashola, teacher in emotional reunion 38 years after

T was a reunion, which drew nostalgic feelings when Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN), yesterday met his former Bible Knowledge teacher at Birch Freeman High School, Surulere, Lagos, Mrs. Felicia Iyabode Adefunke Akinola, at the Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja. Mrs. Akinola, who joined the school’s teaching staff in 1973 and went on transfer in 1989, taught Bible Knowledge in junior and senior classes and English language and English literature in junior classes. It was indeed a fulfilling moment of joy, emotions and pride, which engendered nostalgic reflections on the past, as the obviously elated governor and his former teacher recalled their days as teacher and pupil at the school under Mr. T.A. Ojo as the headteacher.

high cost of governance. He urged civil society groups to reverse the trend. Receiving an award for good governance from the coalition of civil societies in Anambra State, Obi said there was enough money to take care of every Nigerian, attributing the present suffering to misplaced priorities by those in power. His words: “There is enough money to govern every state, local government and the country in a way that there will be improvement. All that is required is to cut down on the cost of governance. “Your work as civil societies is to question the waste in the society. If you change Nigeria, you change Africa.” Revealing how he left a healthy balance in the government coffers, despite fasttracking Anambra’s development, without borrowing a kobo, Obi said: “We didn’t

MO State Governor Rochas Okorocha has urged the executive, legislature and judiciary to redefine separation of powers by discharging their functions separately, but with the spirit of oneness, rather than isolation and discrimination. He spoke yesterday at the swearing-in of the Chief Judge, Justice Paschal Obinna Nnadi, at the Government House, Owerri. The governor enjoined the judiciary to advocate a national conference of the three arms, discuss the challenges of the coming general elections and work out modalities to save the nation from doing anything unconstitutional or reaching ‘a point of no return’. He said Nigerians should love one another. Congratulating the new chief judge, Okorocha reminded him of the need to maintain his relationship with God, “who does not only hold the destinies of all, but will also judge everyone accordingly.” He advised him to discharge his duties without fear or favour, adding: “To whom much is given, much is expected.” The governor urged women, whom he described as ‘silent achievers’, not to relent in their prayers for the successes of their husbands in positions of authority and for peace at home. He advised politicians to shun violence and thuggery. Okorocha thanked the Judiciary Service Commission for the selection of their leaders and hailed the former chief judge, Justice Benjamin Njemanze, for ensuring the hosting of the Nigeria Bar Association conference, building the Judicial Service Commission secretariat and renovating the customary court buildings. Justice Nnadi described his uplifting as a divine will and thanked the Judicial Service Commission for using character, administrative skills and respect for constituted authorities as criteria for the position. He promised to deliver. Justice Nnadi thanked Governor Okorocha for good governance, pledging to support his administration. Deputy Governor Eze Madumere, Speaker of the House of Assembly Benjamin Uwajimogu, members of the Executive Council and other lawmakers attended the event.

Obiano’s wife leads walk to end cancer

NICE TO SEE YOU MA MA: Fashola and Mrs Akinola...yesterday

Obi cries out over high cost of governance ORMER Anambra State Governor Peter Obi last night cried out over the

•Swears in chief judge

•‘Nigeria has enough money to take care of everyone’ From Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

print money; all that we did was to cut down on the cost of governance.” Giving as an instance, costsaving during his tenure as governor from 2006 to last March, he said his administration did not maintain a Government Lodge in Abuja, but he stayed in hotels anytime he visited Abuja. The ex-governor said he refused to build a Presidential Lodge, which would have cost Anambra about half a billion naira. He said to solve the problem of where to accommodate former President Olusegun Obasanjo during a visit to the state, he vacated the Governor’s Lodge for him, checking into a hotel with his wife and spending just over N100,000. “I never travelled with more than four persons and never travelled outside this

country with an uninvited person,” Obi said. The Coordinator of the group and Intersociety Board Chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi, said the body did not usually give awards but had to give one to Obi for setting a record in governance. He noted that in the last 40 years, no governor had fin-

ished his term without borrowing and still left cash and assets (over N80 billion) in the state treasury. The award was presented to Obi by the chairman of the occasion, Comrade Uche Wisdom Durueke, the national president of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), who described it as well deserved.

BID to create awareness on the need to check the rising cases of cancer in the country, received a boost at the weekend, when the wife of Anambra State Governor, Mrs. Ebelechukwu Obiano, led a road campaign march, tagged: “Walk for Hope to End Cancer Now”. It was meant to create awareness on cancer and raise fund for the establishment of an ultra-modern cancer treatment centre in Awka, the Anambra State capital. The march, organised by the Anambra State Association (ASA) Women USA, in collaboration with the Office of the wife of the Governor, Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), Anambra State Women Association, Lagos, Breast Without Spot and St. Charles Borromeo Hospital, Onitsha, has as its theme: “Every Life Deserves World Class Care.” The event, which preceded a seminar at the field of the ABS, Awka, was attended by campaigners comprising young and old men and women, who trekked more than two and a half kilometres from the ABS complex, through Aroma junction, en route Enugu-Onitsha Expressway, to the Governor’s Office, before stopping at the Office of the Wife of the Governor.

Governor Willie Obiano, who spoke through the Commissioner for Information, Chief Tony Onyima, hailed the visit and hoped that the walk would draw more attention to the proposed cancer treatment centre being embarked on by the ASA Women USA with the support of the government. Mrs. Obiano, represented by the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Primary Health, Dr. Chioma Ezenyimulu, identified with the mission of the organisers to promote the noble and selfless initiative of Walk for Hope to End Cancer, stressing: “It is interesting that you chose this avenue of physical exercise of walk to draw attention and create awareness about the threat of cancer and the need for its early detection and prevention, especially among our women.” Praising the association’s focus and think-home philosophy, which informed the idea of hosting the event, Mrs. Obiano thanked the organisers for their choice and decoration as the Grand Marshal of the Day, which she said was an acknowledgement of “her interest in ensuring that anything that will advance the well-being of the family and the woman must be tackled with a sense of duty and commitment.”

Community seeks govt’s help over crisis

RADITIONAL rulers in Adadama, Abi Local Government Area of Cross River State have urged President Goodluck Jonathan to save their community from “mercenary” attacks. The monarchs said no fewer than16 people have been killed and five women kidnapped in attacks believed to be connected to a dispute with neighbouring Ikwo Local Government Area in Ebonyi State. They said Governor Liyel

By Joseph Jibueze

Imoke visited Adadama Community, on September 18 last year following one of such attacks. “This is exactly 14 months after his visit and nothing has happened up till this very moment. “What we hear rather is that the Federal Government is bringing a Police Academy to be sited at the disputed area,” they said.

In a petition signed by Chief Eval Fidelis Ikor Addu and others, the monarchs urged the government to resolve the boundary dispute. “Losses have been incurred by the warring communities, and after one year the Federal Government still has not stepped into the matter... ”Mr President, we crave your special indulgence to have you intervene expeditiously because innocent people are often the victims.

“We count on your swift and compassionate attention because it involves human lives and the affected communities are now refugees faced with foods and material challenges... “We crave your speedy intervention to ensure that lasting peace and security returns to the two communities, whilst justice is being done by the Nigeria Boundary Commission and the appropriate agencies,” the community added.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

Pirates kill three soldiers in Bayelsa

UNMEN, suspected to be pirates, have killed three soldiers attached to the Joint Task Force (JTF), code-named: Operation Pulo Shield, on Bayelsa State waterways. It was gathered that the pirates hijacked a military gunboat after killing their victims at 4pm on Sunday. The gunmen reportedly ambushed the soldiers at Santa Barbara, a river in Nembe, Nembe Local Government Area, known for regular banditry. The incident occurred barely two months after gunmen, in separate attacks, killed four policemen and abducted six other persons on the waterway. The slain policemen, who were escorting a barge belonging to the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC), also lost their gunboat to the hoodlums. In the new attack, the victims were also said to be escorting some items to Brass Terminal, belonging to

Police kill pirate in Rivers gun battle

HE Rivers State Police Command has said it killed at the weekend a member of a sea pirate gang that engaged the police in a gun battle on the Opobo waterways of Rivers State and recovered arms from the bandits. In a statement yesterday in Port Harcourt, the state capital, the command’s spokesman, Ahmad Mohammad, a deputy superintendent of Police (DSP), said the incident occurred on the Opobo waterways in Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area. The police spokesman said other members of the gang escaped, abandoning their belongings. He said items recovered from the hoodlums include three speed boats, general pump machine gun (GPMG), a G3 rifle, ammunition, assorted phones and cash. Mohammed said a policemen patrol team found the hoodlums robbing a passenger boat on the water channel and accosted them, resulting in the gun battle. The police spokesman said the command From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

NAOC, when the gunmen opened fire on them. A security source said the

From Rosemary Nwisi, Port Harcourt

was determined to ensure tight security for life and property in the state, especially during this festive period. He urged the public to support police efforts to protect law-abiding residents and their property. Mohammad said: “On December 19, at 1.30pm on the Opobo Queen Town Sea, policemen on patrol engaged sea pirates while they were robbing innocent Nigerians. “At the end of the gun duel, one of the robbers was fatally wounded while others abandoned the operation and managed to escape. “Items recovered from the operation include one general purpose machine gun (GPMG), one G3 rifle, 85 rounds of live ammunition, five assorted phones and N22,450. Three speed boats belonging to the robbers were also recovered. “This singular feat has demonstrated the capability of the command to provide security across the State including the waterways.”

soldiers were sailing from Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, to Brass, Bayelsa State, when they came under attack.

The source, who spoke in confidence, added: “They (soldiers) were ambushed by deadly pirates. It is suspected that the gunmen, who hi-

jacked the gunboat, later killed the soldiers and threw their bodies into the water or they shot and pushed them into the water before stealing the gunboat. “The gunboat appears to be the target of the hoodlums, especially as arms are being stockpiled by militants.” Santa Barbara, where the incident occurred, is in Nembe and is notorious for piracy.” But an Operation Pulo Shield official, who did not wish to be named, said the soldiers were not dead but missing. JTF’s outgoing Media Coordinator Col. Mustapha Anka confirmed the attack. But he said it was premature to conclude that the soldiers were killed by the pirates. Anka said the task force had activated its search-andrescue team, adding that efforts were being made to locate the whereabouts of the soldiers.

Buhari meets 22 angry Akwa Ibom PDP aspirants

ARELY four days to the closing date for the submission of candidates’ names to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the 22 aggrieved Akwa Ibom State governorship aspirants on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have been under pressure to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC). APC’s Presidential aspirant Gen. Muhammadu Buhari is to meet with the aggrieved governorship aspirants, it was learnt yesterday. The aspirants, who had rebuffed several entreaties

From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

from the APC governorship candidate in the state, Umana Umana, are said to be considering the defection option. This followed the manner PDP’s national leadership handled the controversies arising from the party’s governorship primary, which produced the former Secretary to State Government (SSG), Udom Emmanuel. A close aide to one of the aggrieved aspirants, who spoke in confidence, said the planned defection to APC, which was the initiative of an

APC governor in the Southsouth, would accommodate other politicians in the state, who opposed the imposition of his favourite candidate by Governor Godswill Akpabio on the people. A special reception is said to be in the offing for some PDP stalwarts. It is expected to be followed by a formal adoption of Gen. Buhari by the Akwa Ibom electorate as their sole presidential candidate in next year’s election. The aggrieved aspirants, who are likely to join APC, are: Obong Nsima Ekere,

Patrick Ekpotu, Senator Helen Esuene, Assam Assam, Ekpenyong Ntekim, Effiong Abia, Asukwo Okpo, Larry Esin, Prof. Richard King and Chris Abasi Eyo. Others are: Okpolump Ette, Aniedi Johnny Ufot, David Okpon, Dr Samuel Udonsak, Jerome Isangedighi, Dr Peter Esu, Pastor Ita Udoh, Ime Ekanem, Micheal Sabastine Etuk, Benjamin Okoko, Ime Albert Akpanebe and Effiong Usin. Akpabio, last week, hinted of his willingness to resolve his differences with the aggrieved aspirants and other key stakeholders.

In a letter on December 19 in Abuja by the 22 members of the aggrieved aspirants after their meeting at the instance of the governor, the group expressed its appreciation to the governor but rejected Emmanuel as the party’s candidature. The letter reads: “We unequivocally reject the purported candidature of Mr Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, your maternal cousin, as the PDP flag bearer in Akwa Ibom State, because the process of his alleged emergence was fundamentally flawed and totally unacceptable.”

Ogboru, LP not in Urhobo interest, says Emerhor From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

ELTA State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, has said the struggle of the Urhobo to produce the next governor is being jeopardised by the Labour Party (LP) and its governorship candidate, Chief Great Ogboru. Emerhor spoke in Warri at an interactive session with the youth wing of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU), Ogboru was also present. Emerhor noted that Ogboru’s approach to actualising the Uvwiamughe Declaration of the Urhobo would not give him victory. According to him, Ogboru had used the same approach, which had been responsible for his failure in all three attempts. The APC candidate described LP as an appendage of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which would only weaken the Urhobo block vote. He urged Ogboru, his kinsman, to show selflessness in the quest to actualise the Urhobo political ambition and support him to deliver Urhobo as next governor. Emerhor said: “Ogboru has done it three times and he failed because of his small parties. We cannot afford to support him again. The rumour that the PDP will give the ticket through LP is wayo.” Also, the youth vowed to go to war, if need be, to have an Urhobo governor in 2015.

APC reaffirms Umana as Akwa Ibom governorship candidate

•Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola SAN (middle) with the widow of the late Mr. Sesan Ogunro, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Eminent Communications, Mrs. Modupe Ogunro (second right); children of the deceased - Mr. Sesan Ogunro Jnr. (right), Timayo Ogunro (second left) and Fade Ogunro, during the first year remembrance service of the deceased at the Protea Hotel, Maryland , Lagos...yesterday.

Tension as gunmen kill OPC man, driver in Benin

LEADER of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), identified as Victor Omoruyi, has been killed in Benin, the Edo State capital. A commercial bus driver was also killed yesterday in the city by gunmen who were said to be walking in two groups of five and two men. Their deaths have heightened tension in the ancient city, where over 10 persons had been killed in various parts of the city since

From Osagie Otabor and Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

the clash began last Saturday. Both men were shot at close range by the armed men at Uselu in Egor Local Government Area and New Benin, the commercial nerve centre of the capital city. A source said Victor was killed at 8pm on Saturday at Uselu Quarters when he was returning home after attending

an end-of-the-year function organised by the OPC. But an OPC member, Yomi Adeleye, said he was killed when youths with pump action guns stormed the meeting and shot him. The meeting was said to have appraised the anticrime efforts of the group in the outgoing year. OPC members displayed Victor’s body on the street with a vow to avenge his death.

The unidentified bus driver was killed yesterday. He was said to have been traced to the busy New Benin Motor Park, where he was shot in the head repeatedly in the presence of passengers in his bus. Police spokesman Noble Uwoh, a deputy superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the incidents. He said investigations into the killings had begun.

HE Akwa Ibom State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said it is satisfied with the outcome of the governorship primary that produced the former Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Umana Okon Umana, as its candidate. APC’s State Publicity Secretary Samuel Udobong spoke with our correspondent on phone in Uyo, the state capital. Udobong, who was reacting to some reports that the Akwa Ibom APC did not hold a primary, said the reports were attempts by detractors to destroy the party’s progress and good image. The APC chieftain urged the people and the party’s national leadership to ignore such reports. According to him, the reports did not come from the state leadership of the party and the other governorship aspirants have accepted the outcome of the primary with a resolve to ensure its victory in next year’s elections. Udobong said: “The party wishes to point out that those spreading the falsehood are not actually leaders of the APC, as they claimed in the reports. We have

From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

Godwin Akwawo Warri as the APC chapter’s Chairman in Eket and not Mkpombuk Tommy. “The party has, therefore, warned those involved in the misconduct to stop forthwith as it will not take it kindly with any of its members working against its success and unity. “Akwa Ibom APC is seen as a big, united family working towards a common interest. This is not the time for infighting. It is not the time to start working against each other. Rather, it is a time for us to stay together and ensure the change we have been clamouring for. “Our collective effort to Akwa Ibom people from untold hardship and poverty must remain our major concern now that the election dates is just around the corner. “As members of the APC, we must always remain focused and positive so that we do not fall prey to the plots by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which claims to be the predominant party in Akwa Ibom, to destabilise and sow the seed of discord in the APC to stop us from realising our goal to take over the Hilltop Mansion in 2015.”

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS

Two killed as robbers raid banks in Kogi

OBBERS, who allegedly wrote to two communities in Kogi State - Egbe and Odo-Ere – of their plan to attack banks, last Thursday made good their threat. Egbe and OdoEre are neighbouring towns in Yagba West Local Government of Kogi State. The two banks attacked by the robbers are located in the two communities. Two persons were killed during the robbers’ raqids on the banks in both towns. Until last Thursday’s attack, the two banks had operated smoothly for many years without an incident. The 25-man gang was said to have been heavily armed. The hoodlums were said to have arrived at Egbe at 5.14pm in two Highlander Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs), dressed in hoods, took positions in two groups

•Pupil hit by bullet at the two banks. Simultaneously, the robbers attacked the two banks and the other facilities in the towns. Egbe, the commercial nerve centre of the local government and with a branch of a first generation bank, was literally sacked by the robbers. The hoodlums took over the police station as the policemen had run away before the robbers arrived. The policemen returned hours after the robbers had accomplished their mission. Their victims were left groaning in pains and losses. For 35 minutes, sounds of gunshots rented the air, leaving the highway in thick smoke as the trigger-happy hoodlums sprayed every-

where with bullets. Brave youths, who could not stomach the arrogance of the hoodlums, attempted to fight but had no means to confront the heavily armed gang. The youth blocked the highway with burning tyres and electricity poles to retard an easy escape for the robbers and make it easy for the police to arrest them. But the police were nowhere to be found. A Port Harcourt-based businessman, Mr Femi Bolaji, said he was on the premises of the first generation bank to use its ATM when the robbers arrived. He said he jumped through the fence of the bank, leaving his car behind. At Odo-Ere, the hoodlums

also raided another first generation bank unchallenged. A police officer detailed to the bank was said to have opened fire on the gang from his hideout but that singular action of his bravery soon turned bloody. The gang sprayed bullets directly to his direction. A senior worker of Yagba West Local Government Area, Kayode Simoyan, was killed during the attack. He was found lying in the pool of his blood with bullets wounds on his head and chest. Another person, simply identified as Chichi and said to be an Igbo trader in Egbe, was also killed near the bank. A pupil returning from school was also hit by the robbers’ bullet. But he survived.

2015: Kaduna Muslims, Christians to resist violence M

USLIMS and Christians in Kaduna State yesterday said they will resist any attempt to introduce violence in the 2015 general elections. The two groups, under the aegis of Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) and the Christians Association of Nigeria (CAN), said anyone or group planning violence during and after the elections would be fished out and handed over to appropriate authori-

UNILORIN matriculates 12,650 From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

HE University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) yesterday matriculated 12,650 for its 2014/2015 academic session. One hundred and fourteen thousand, seven hundred students applied to the university for the session. Eighty of the matriculating students were international students, according to the university’s Vice Chancellor, Prof AbdulGaniyu Ambali. The vice chancellor gave the figures in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, at the matriculation ceremony. He said there was an 11 per cent increase in the number of admitted students from the last academic session of 8,591. He told the matriculating students to thank their stars and the university for considering worthy of being admitted. Ambali said: “Therefore, the first important thing is that you should be grateful to God, who makes everything possible; grateful to your parents and guardians, who have seen you to this stage. “I know some of you would wonder why you should be grateful to the university since you are qualified and your effort brought you here. The truth is that the university is creating more space for those who are qualified. “For example, only 8,591 students could be admitted last academic session but we have increased the space so that additional thousands were added above the number we admitted last session. As the saying goes, many are called but few are chosen.”

From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

ties. JNI and CAN, which were brought together by the Global Peace Foundation (Nigeria), agreed that the 2011 political violence, which caused the death of scores of people and destruction of billions of Naira in property, would be the last. The gathering had representatives from the three senatorial zones in the state. The governor’s wife, Hajiya Fatima Ramalan Yero said: “All mothers must ensure that they teach their

children the virtues of love, tolerance and respect for the dignity of the other person. “With the vows that you have all taken today to resist violence in the coming elections, I believe we shall have a peaceful Christmas. We shall also build on it for an enduring peace in Kaduna State.” The Special Adviser to the Governor on Christians Matters, Rev. Joseph Hayab, said the rich and the poor suffer during conflicts. He said: “Even the rich and powerful are denied sleep during a crisis. The poor also

suffer, all for reasons that can be avoided. In the end, no one benefits.” Also, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Islamic Affairs, Sheik Haliru Maraya said: “Anytime there was violence and government property was destroyed, the money that would have been used for other developmental projects was used in repairing them. And we keep wondering why we are not progressing. Islam teaches peace and tolerance to all religions as shown in the exemplary live of the Holy Prophet of Islam. We must stand together during these elections and say, ‘No’ to violence.”

Ahmed’s wife empowers 200,000 •Establishes 29 cancer screening centres

BOUT 200,000 widows and the less privileged have received materials from the wife of Kwara State Governor, Deaconess Omolewa Ahmed, through her nongovernmental organisation (NGO), LEAH Foundation. Besides, 200 other women from the Southsouth and Southeast, who reside in Kwara State, yesterday received a start-up capital of N250,000 each. The special empowerment programme for women in the state was held yesterday in Ilorin, the state capital. Mrs Ahmed said: “Today, 400 women, who were selected from different walks of life, are benefiting from items that will soon be distributed. Every beneficiary of the

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

equipment got the exact thing that they need in accordance with a NEEDS assessment, which has been conducted all over the state by our field workers. “Our sisters from the Southsouth and Southeast, who have found a home in Kwara, will also get financial support for their businesses.” The items distributed include 250 grinding machines, 80 sewing machines, 73 deep freezers with 73 generating plants. Others are: hair dryers and coolers. Mrs Ahmed explained that LEAH Foundation had established 29 basic breast and cervical cancer screening centres in government hospitals across the state.

Kashimbila Dam 95 per cent completed, says Fed Govt

HE Federal Government has said the Kashimbila Dam in Taraba State is 95 per cent completed. The dam, which the government said had gulped N110 billion since 2010, is expected to be inaugurated next February by President Goodluck Jonathan. Water Resources Minister, Mrs Sarah Ochekpe, spoke at the weekend during an inspection of the dam. Mrs. Ochekpe, who was accompanied by Power Minister Prof Chinedu Nebo and his Culture and Tourism counterpart, Edem Duke, said the Kashimbila project would protect Taraba, Benue, Cross River, Akwa Ibom states and some parts of Adamawa State from

From Frank Ikpefan, Abuja

the possible break of Lake Nyos. She said: “As at 2010, when the President assumed duty, this project was at 10 per cent completion. But today as we speak to you, it is at 95 per cent completion. You have been following activities around this project. You can see that there is a personal commitment by Mr. President to see that this project is completed, especially because of the environmental issues surrounding this area and the project. “It is going to help a great deal to protect Nigerians in more than five states when it is completed.”

Senator Zagi returns to APC From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

•Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola (left) and Project Manager, Oladini Awoyemi (right) at the inspection tour of Kajola Water Dam in the state. of Osun

‘Bauchi APC governorship candidate is an indigene’

HE village head of Jahun in Bauchi metropolis, Alhaji Aminu Yakubu, has debunked claims that the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar, is not an indigene of the state. The village head described the claims as “non-issue based on political and useless campaign talks designed to divide the candidate’s attention and deny Bauchi people good governance that Abubakar is set to give”. Alhaji Aliyu Saidu, the Bauchi State Coordinator of Muhammadu Buhari Cam-

From Austine Tsenzighul, Bauchi

paign Organisation gave credence to Yakubu’s statement. He said: “The allegations are needless. Abubakar, we all know, has worked in Bauchi Stateas a junior state counsel and rose to the position of the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice. Why was he not told to leave then because he was not a Bauchi son? “He represented the state as a member of the Constitution Review Committee, Constituent Assembly member and was appointed as Independent National Electoral Com-

missioner (INEC) commissioner representing Bauchi State. Why was he given that position without opposition, as it was meant for Bauchi State son of the soil? “I have known him for about 35 years. He worked for the Bauchi State Government and later represented the state at various times and positions during the civilian and military regimes. Why was he not stopped? “Abubakar also contested for Bauchi South Senatorial slot when Senator Bala Mohammed was appointed the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister. Yet, nobody

raised any objection. “Whether he is from Bauchi State or not, he was born here in Bauchi State and grew up in Bauchi and his relatives, who attended his naming ceremony, are still alive here in Bauchi. “We must forget about such non-progressive talks. Bauchi people will elect him willingly and I think such an allegation is not from APC member but from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members, who will want to create confusion in APC so that they can drag us backwards in our determination to beat them at the polls.”

HE Kaduna State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday said Senator Caleb Zagi, who represented Southern Kaduna Senatorial District from 2007 to 2011, has defected to the party, from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Zagi dumped the PDP in 2011 for the opposition but returned to the PDP few months ago before dumping the party for the second time this week. Kaduna State Publicity Secretary Dr Bege Katuka told reporters in Kaduna that the party’s leadership had accepted the senator defection. He said: “We have formally received Senator Caleb Zagi back to our party. It is a good development. We are pleased with his return to where things are working. “Zagi explained deeply that it was a second chance he gave the PDP. But on going back to the PDP, the internal democracy mechanism he thought would be addressed was a mirage. The imposition of candidates and outright bending of the party’s rules is still the order of the day. “There is nothing empirical that shows that the development and welfare of Nigerians is their focus. Instead, it is just power for selfish interests and causing havoc for Nigerians. It was for these reasons we are in the same direction and on the same page (with Zagi).”

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

NEWS Explosions in Gombe bus park kill 20 Continued from page 4

We don’t want PDP; we don’t want Goodluck; we don’t even want the governor,” among other uncomplimentary remarks. Asked why there are no security checks at the entrance of the park, Atajiri said there were but that “the perpetrator(s) beat the the security check”. He urged the public to partner with the police, saying the “police cannot do this alone”. “We need the general public to furnish us with information where they notice the unusual movement of persons and goods. “Commissioner of Police Kudu Abdullahi Nma has been building a people friendly police in Gombe State which has been collaborating with every segment of the society and, of course, that has given us enormous results. “As you can see, just last week, a vehicle loaded with 10 cylinders of improvised explosive device (IED) was intercepted by a joint team of the

Police and Army in Bajoga and the explosives were removed to safety without any problem,” he added. Gombe shares a boundary with Borno and Yobe states two of the areas hit hardest by the Boko Haram insurgency. At least three people were killed in a bomb attack at another bus station in Gombe on October 31. The explosion in Bauchi took place at the Central market. The number of the dead and injured could not be ascertained last night. But many people were feared killed. The blast occurred between 5:30pm and 6 pm. The dead and the injured were taken to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Teaching Hospital in Bauchi. Goods worth millions of naira in 30 shops were burnt down in the inferno that ensued. Governor Isa Yuguda in a statement according to his Chief Press Secretary, Ishola Michael Adeyemi, condemned the perpetrators. He reassured the people that his administration would not relent in its efforts to ensure that lives and properties of law abiding citizens were protected. He promised to collaborate with security agents to maintain the peace among the diverse people of the state.

•Rivers State Governor Chibuike Amaechi (second left), his deputy, Tele Ikuru ( second right), Rivers All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Mr Dakuku Peterside (right) and Senator Magnus Abe at the start of APC campaign in Port Harcourt…yesterday.

APC campaign to focus on jobs, security, says Osinbajo Continued from page 4

today do not have work. None graduates are even worse off. As far as I am concerned, the most important challenge any government has today is to ensure there are enough jobs for those who do not have work to do. “There is no question about my party winning next year’s election. Definitely, we will beat the ruling PDP. I think the people of Nigeria have come to a point where they realise that after 15 years of the PDP, things have got much worse than in 1999. “Except the people just love suffering for the sake of suffering, there is nowhere else in the world where the PDP will be allowed to stay for one more day. I trust that most Nigerians will vote out this PDP government come February 2015 - by the grace of God. The hope is for change and that is the APC.” Reflecting on why he opted for politics, Osinbajo, a former university teacher and fore-

most lawyer, said it was because of his desire to effect positive change in the lives of the people. He said policies that will affect the lives of the people can only be implemented if people with integrity occupy top positions in government. On the disposition of the General Overseer of the RCCG, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, to his foray into politics, the senior advocate of Nigeria and one-time Attorney General and Commisioner for Justice in Lagos State, said: “Pastor Adeboye is in support of the legitimate and good aspirations of all his children. I am one of his children, and so, clearly, he is in support. So long as you are not doing something illegal. Once you are doing something that is legal and legitimate, he is fully in support “Just as he supports my activities as a lawyer, he supports my activities as a politician. So long as what one is doing is not wrong, he actively supports it.”

In Osinbajo’s view, every cleric should be an active member of a political party because that is the only way he or she can effect changes in policies that will better the lot of the over 110 million poor Nigerians. Said he: “Every pastor ought to be a card-carrying member of a political party. You must take a position because it is important in our society. Jesus Christ came purposely to address the concerns of the poor. Jesus, according to the scriptures, says, ‘I have been anointed to preach the good news to the poor and heal the broken hearted.’ “You cannot be in the Third World today, in a country like Nigeria where 110 million people are poor and you are a Christian, a purveyor of the gospel of Jesus Christ and you are not in a position to influence the most effective way of eradicating poverty, which is governance. “How can I say I am a Christian, a pastor and leader in the Christian faith and I am not

interested in the process by which the poor can be empowered? Osinbajo debunked insinuations that Gen. Buhari is a religious extremist. He was optimistic that the Buhari/Osinbajo presidency will emplace religious harmony, integrity in public service, discipline as well as security of lives and property. “All that description of him as Islamist is poor propaganda. There is no question of it at all. I have had long conversations with him on so many issues, including this and I believe very strongly that he is a man who believes every man should practices his faith the way he wishes. “What is going on at the moment is disgraceful. It is not a matter of religion as being painted. The key issues today are of poverty and deprivation of the vast majority of Nigerians of means of livelihood. Government is responsible for providing for people, but they are not doing so.

2015: PDP under pressure to name N21b cash donors Continued from page 4

was wrong for the PDP to intimidate other parties with its capacity to raise huge money for elections, instead of resolving the crisis confronting the country. He said: “The power of money will crumble in 2015. If they have the capacity to raise money, why don’t they have the capacity to also turn the economy around and end the Boko Haram insurgency? What do they need the money for? Where is the money coming from? Who are the donors? Nigerians need the full list of donors.” Afenifere Deputy Leader Senator Ayo Fasanmi, frowned at the fund-raising, saying that the N21 b is scandalous. He queried: “N21 billion for what? Do you want to purchase the

votes of the people? The naira is in shambles. Boko Haram is on the rampage. What is the money for?” Fasanmi chided the PDP for wasting public funds on trivialities, adding that no amount of financial power can stop power shift in 2015. The elder statesman added: “It is scandalous in a nation that cannot pay monthly salaries to workers. They have monetised the process. It is not good for democracy. It is undesirable. People are taking note. N21 billion for one person in a country where people can’t have three square meals? They are overstretching people’s patience. “In 2015, their money cannot prevent progressives from taking power. Buhari and Osinbajo will rule this country. The next election is about the strug-

gle for redemption, not about raining billions. No amount of billions can save the PDP from electoral catastrophe. People are ready. It will be one man, one vote.” Comrade Osita Obi, Anambra State Coordinator of Igbo Patriots and Chairman, Environment Watch said: “The money donated by the PDP members and contractors is a waste of resources. This is unacceptable to Nigerians. This is the reason why people will vote out Goodluck Jonathan and vote in Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to correct the anomalies in the system. According to him, the donors are contractors donating money meant for Nigerian roads. They are diverting people’s resources to mere campaign for Jonathan’s return in 2015. He

said: “Jonathan must vacate the seat and people are going to vote him out to make way for somebody, who has the interest of the people at heart.” Comrade Obi Ochije, Anambra State Co-ordinator of Transform Nigeria Movement said: “The donation is a bad thing for democracy in the country. If people in power and their contractor friends could donate such amount for a sitting president, what example are they showing to the so-called leaders of tomorrow? These are people who are looking for contracts to execute and are wasting resources meant for you and I, and they want us to be clapping for them. We cannot clap for them. They say a good turn deserves another but Jonathan do not deserve the votes of the masses.

Compel PDP to publish list of campaign fund donors, APC tells INEC Continued from page 4

that every member of the PDP who pledged a donation at the find raising, the receipt is produced by the party and the individual or organisation must show INEC the source of the money. “This is the law and the Electoral Act is very clear about this. When a governor says he has donated N1 billion, it must not be from government coffers. INEC knows that the governor has no right to take the people’s

money and donate. “The National Chairman of the party Muazu said part of that money will be used to complete the national secretariat and the rest will be used for campaign at all levels. There is provision in the laws that says you can use government money meant for developmental projects for political campaign. “So, the party should show us the receipt issued to each donor by the party and let us see the accounts of the PDP because such money cannot come in

bags and sacks, but through some instruments. “We must know the source of that money. If comes from government account, government has responsibility to sanction the PDP or prosecute the person who stole government money for political campaigns. In our own case, we intend to do fund raising, which is going to be very transparent. Whoever donates money, we will publish it so that the whole world will see.” Shuaibu said many Nigerians

were donating to the campaign funds of Gen. Muhammadu Bihari. “People are making donations through that website and through the account number provided. Like I said,we are going to publish everything because we want to make our source of funding as transparent as Nigerians may not even have expected because we are talking about change. We want to change systems and the practices and what has been the norm,” Shuaibu said.

THE NATION TUESDAY DECEMBER 23, 2014

FOREIGN NEWS China deploys 700 troops to join S. Sudan

HINA has said 700 troops are ready to be deployed to South Sudan to bolster a UN force in the country, China’s official Xinhua news agency reports. It will be the first peacekeeping battalion to be deployed, it says. On Sunday, a Chinese firm said it had signed a deal with South Sudan to increase its oil production. It fell by about a third after conflict broke out a year ago, raising concern in China as it is heavily dependent on oil from the East African state. Xinhua reported that 180 troops would fly to South Sudan next month followed by the rest of the battalion in March. A rally was held on Monday in the city of Laiyang in Shandong Province for the battalion, which would be equipped with drones, armoured infantry carriers, anti-tank missiles, mortars and other weapons for selfdefence purposes, it said. Meanwhile, the stateowned China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) said, in a statement, that it would use heavy oil recovery technologies in “stabilising and increasing crude output” following the deal signed with South Sudan’s government. Oil accounts for more than 90% of South Sudan’s foreign revenues. Its oil-producing regions have seen some of the worst fighting since President Salva Kiiir accused his sacked deputy, Riek Machar, of plotting a coup last December. Mr Machar denied the allegation but then marshalled a rebel force to fight Mr Kiir’s government. International mediation efforts to end the conflict have failed. The UN has more than 11,000 peacekeepers in South Sudan, which became independent in 2011 after breaking away from Sudan.

Sony hack: North Korea threatens U.S.

ORTH Korea has threatened unspecified attacks on the US in an escalation of a war of words following the Sony Pictures cyber-attacks. In a fiery statement, the North warned of strikes against the White House, Pentagon and “the whole US mainland”. North Korea denies US claims it is behind cyber-attacks linked to a film that features the fictional killing of its leader Kim Jong-un. North Korea has a long history of issuing threats against the US. The latest statement comes days after the US formally accused the North of orchestrating a massive cyber attack on Sony Pictures. “The army and people of the DPRK [North Korea] are

fully ready to stand in confrontation with the US in all war spaces including cyber warfare space,” a long statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency said. “Our toughest counteraction will be boldly taken against the White House, the Pentagon and the whole US mainland, the cesspool of terrorism, by far surpassing the ‘symmetric counteraction’ declared by Obama.” It accused President Obama of “recklessly making the rumour” that North Korea was behind the Sony attack. It also said it “estimates highly the righteous action” taken by the hackers of Sony, although it is “not aware of where they are”. North Korea frequently uses fierce rhetoric against

both South Korea and the United States so there’s no great step-up in fierceness. And it is for domestic consumption as well as for outsiders. The statement has weight because it comes from the most powerful body in North Korea, the National Defence Commission, which is chaired by Kim Jong-un. It has two arguments - essentially “we didn’t do it” and “whoever did do it was right”. The statement goes into some detail about the FBI argument that there were signs in the computer code that North Korea was behind the Sony attack. it said such lines of code are commonplace and do not prove any North Korean involvement. The hack resulted in unre-

Tunisia election: Essebsi wins presidential run-off

•Beji Caid Essebsi has urged all Tunisians to “work together” for stability

Earlier yesterday, police fired tear gas in the southern city of Hamma to disperse hundreds of demonstrators who burned tyres in protest at Mr Essebsi’s victory. The results of the run-off vote were announced by the head of the electoral commission, Chafik Sarsar, who was visibly emotional. It is the first time Tunisians have been able to vote freely for their president since independence from France in 1956. Chafik Sarsar - the head of

the electoral authority - was visibly emotional and his voice broke several times as he announced the winner of Tunisia’s first freely elected president. The former law professor has been under intense pressure to ensure the voting period runs smoothly. The man who will move into the presidential palace overlooking the bay of Tunis is 88-year-old Beji Caid Essebsi. The leader of the Nidaa

Tounes, which has largest share of seats in the new parliament, has served under two autocratic presidents. Tunisians joke that he and his party represent the old regime, but with an injection of Botox. Mr Essebsi is politically savvy and pragmatic and has to be credited for agreeing to enter a dialogue last year with his arch-enemies, the moderate Islamist Ennahda party, to resolve a political crisis at the time.

AT least 11 people have been killed in clashes between rival vigilante groups in Michoacan state, western Mexico. The two groups confronted each other in the town of La Ruana. The vigilante groups were created almost two years ago by locals who said the security forces had not done enough to protect them from drug cartels. Earlier this year, the government tried to gain control of the vigilantes by integrating them into a rural police force and registering their weapons. Michoacan Security Commissioner Alfredo Castillo said the clashes were triggered by a “historic rivalry” between their leaders.

Pope Francis deplores OPE Francis has sharply criticised the Vatican Vatican ‘ills’

•The princess’s husband, Inaki Urdangarin, Duke of Palma, is already being prosecuted in the case

charge of it. Princess Cristina, 49, is under suspicion over •2.6m of that money. She is the sister of King Felipe VI, and youngest daughter of the former king, Juan Carlos. The allegations relate to business affairs in 2007-

PAKISTAN’S decision to reinstitute executions was slammed by human rights groups, with the United Nations also calling for it to reconsider the move Pakistan on Sunday executed four more militants after ending a six-year moratorium on the death penalty following a Taliban school attack that killed 149 people, officials said. The hangings follow those of two convicted militants on Friday after death warrants for the six men were signed the day before. “Ghulam Sarwar, Rashid Tipu, Zubair Ahmed and Akhlaq Ahmed have been hanged for an assassination attempt on General Pervez Musharraf”, Pakistan’s former leader, a prison official in the eastern city of Faisalabad told AFP. Pakistan’s decision to reinstitute executions was slammed by human rights groups, with the United Nations also calling for it to reconsider the move.

Mexico vigilantes in deadly shoot-out

ETERAN politician Beji Caid Essebsi has been confirmed as winner of Tunisia’s first free presidential poll. He secured 55.68% of the vote in Sunday’s run-off, defeating caretaker president Moncef Marzouki (44.32%), the head of the electoral commission said. Mr Marzouki, a 67-yearold former exile, earlier refused to admit defeat. Mr Essebsi, 88, has urged all Tunisians to “work together” for stability but critics say his win marks the return of a discredited establishment. They point out that he served under President Zine el-Abedine Ben Ali, who was ousted in 2011 after the Arab Spring revolution triggered uprisings across the region. Mr Essebsi was also in the cabinet of Tunisia’s first postindependence leader, Habib Bourguiba.

Spanish Princess Cristina to face fraud trial HE Spanish king’s sister, Princess Cristina, is to face a tax fraud trial over alleged links to her husband’s business dealings. It is the first time for modern Spain to put a royal in the dock to face trial. Her husband Inaki Urdangarin is accused of embezzling millions in public funds with a former business partner. The couple deny wrongdoing. Prosecutors in Palma, Majorca, say Mr Urdangarin’s sports foundation misused public money. It is alleged that •5.6m (£4.6m; $7.5m) of public money went missing from the Noos Institute, a charitable sports foundation, when Mr Urdangarin was in

leased films and the script for the next James Bond film being leaked online. Details of corporate finances and private emails between producers and Hollywood figures were also released. Sensitive emails and personal details about stars were revealed after the attack on Sony The eventual fallout from the attack saw Sony cancel the Christmas release of a comedy called The Interview, a film depicting the assassination of the North Korean leader. That decision followed threats made by a group that hacked into Sony’s servers and leaked sensitive information and emails. The North has denied being behind the attacks, and offered to hold a joint inquiry with the US.

Pakistan hangs four more militants after school attack

2008. The affair has cast a long shadow over the Spanish royal family since the investigation was launched in 2010. Mr Urdangarin and his then business partner, Diego Torres, allegedly used the Noos Institute to organise

events for the regional governments of Valencia and the Balearic Islands at hugely inflated prices. The princess is expected to sit in the dock with 16 other suspects. With her husband she co-owned a company called Aizoon.

bureaucracy in a preChristmas address to cardinals, complaining of “spiritual Alzheimer’s” and “the terrorism of gossip”. He said the Curia - the administrative pinnacle of the Roman Catholic Church - was suffering from 15 “ailments”, which he wanted cured in the New Year. Pope Francis - the first Latin American pontiff - also criticised “those who look obsessively at their own image”. He has demanded reform of the Curia. Pope Francis said some power-hungry clerics were guilty of “cold-bloodedly killing the reputation of their own colleagues and brothers”. He compared the performance of the church’s civil servants to that of an orchestra playing out of tune because they fail to collaborate and have no team spirit, the BBC’s David Willey reports from Rome.

Before his election in March 2013, the pontiff had never worked in Rome, and he is clearly upset at the internal opposition he has encountered to some of the reforms he wants to carry out, our correspondent adds. The Pope says the Church elite must reach out to poor and vulnerable worshippers Since his election last year, Pope Francis has launched a clean-up of the Vatican Bank, officially known as the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR). The IOR has long had a poor reputation, after a succession of scandals. He has appointed a team of advisers to tackle corruption and poor administration in the Vatican. He has also suggested that the Curia’s power - concentrated in Rome for centuries - could be diluted to some extent by giving Catholic bishops around the world a bigger say in Church doctrine.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

SPORT EXTRA

Ideye: My wife vets my performance W

EST Bromwich record signing, Brown Ideye is still searching for his first Premier League goal after six games, but the Nigerian who won the Africa Cup of Nations with the Super Eagles in 2013 has stated that his wife always rates his performance

Dolphins in the dark over Vegetarianos

OLPHINS manager Stanley Eguma has confessed that he knows nothing about his side’s preliminary round opponents in the 2015 CAF Confederation Cup, Leones Vegetarianos Fútbol Club. Leones Vegetarianos Fútbol Club is an Equatorial Guinean football club based in the city of Malabo. Founded by Spaniard, Juan Manuel Rojas, a vegetarian from Granada who arrived in Equatorial Guinea in 2001, Vegetarianos currently play in the Equatorial Guinean first division. Eguma says officials of the club have already “started doing our homework” on their opponents. “I heard that name (Leones Vegetarianos Fútbol Club) for the first time today (Monday). However, we have already started doing our homework on them,” Eguma told supersport.com. He then added that the task of becoming the first Nigerian club to win the CAF Confederation Cup will not be plain sailing. “As I speak to you right now, I am not sure of how many of my players will stay with us for the next football season. It is not a secret that we (Dolphins) faced severe financial problems last season. “Most of the players have threatened to leave the club because they fear a repeat. “If we lose the core of this team, it will be almost impossible to do well in the competition because continuity and bonding are important,” he said.

Oboabona undergoes successful knee surgery

IGERIA international Godfrey Oboabona has undergone a successful knee surgery at Acibadem Fulya Hospital in Turkey. The Rizespor defender had a right knee meniscus tear and cartilage injury and was operated on at the weekend. The former Sunshine Stars captain, who is versatile in the defence, has played eight games with a goal this season for Rizespor. Last season, the 24-year-old Oboabona scored three goals in 19 games. He won AFCON 2013 with Nigeria and featured at Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup.

after every game. The former Ocean Boys forward, Ideye who missed the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil is under intense pressure to reflect the huge price the Baggies spent on him in the field. Ideye made his first start against Aston villa and followed up with another start against QPR, but he didn't find the back of the net. However, the striker who moved from Ukrainian team Dynamo Kiev to the West Brom said his wife, who is a keen football fan, rate his performance after every match.

“My wife is like one of my managers. She is a really keen football fan, and she knew lots about the game before we met and got married,” said Ideye. “She is always telling me how I performed and stuff like that after a match,” His son, who he promised a goal after the Baggies win over Aston Villa, always ask his father after we very game ‘did you score?' “My son also asks if I have scored after every game. My family want me to do well every time I play,” added Ideye.

• Ideye

‘Adopt-A-Talent has added value to Lagos Sports’

HE Coordinating Consultant of the Adopt-ATalent Sports Programme, Dr. Niran Adeniji has stated that the initiative has added value to sports development in Lagos State with its products winning laurels for the country. Adeniji added that the programme was organised for the athletes not just to train, but to bring them together under one roof with a view to instill discipline in them as this is one of the things needed for them to succeed in life. “The camping is not to prepare them for any competition, but the emphasis is on discipline and to inculcate a good eating habit in the athletes. We also want to encourage friendliness and mutual bonding among the athletes and their coaches. In the camp, we arrange specialise talks on health

issues, nutrition’s and they were exposed to indoor games as well,” said Dr. Adeniji, a board member of Lagos State Sports Council. One of the athletes, Blessing Dada, a female boxer was glad to be at the camp as it afforded her the opportunity to rub minds with her colleagues. To Fausat Yusuf, a female athlete, there are a lot of things athletes should know off field which she said are ingredients of molding a complete athlete. Coach Joe Mensah, a veteran boxing coach, who is the Camp Commandant, said the camping objectives to give the athletes purposeful training and discipline, have been achieved with the responses and reactions of the athletes in camp. “We are planning to develop these budding athletes to become great in the future,” he said.

THE NATION TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014

TODAY IN THE NATION

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL.9

NO. 3073

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

ENERAL Olusegun Obasanjo never does anything by half. For him, it is the full Monty or nothing. Consider, first, the sartorial transformation he has undergone. Time was when he went about his business in clothes that seemed to have been made by a journeyman carpenter. Back then, he would not have won a competition for fine grooming even if he was the only contestant. Today, the finest fabrics and the most exquisite tailoring combine to make his wardrobe probably the most elegant among members of his generation and indeed any generation. If President Goodluck Jonathan is minded to look into how his estranged patron’s wardrobe has evolved quietly and almost imperceptibly over the past three years, he will find it a rewarding study in real transformation. Consider, next, the three volume blockbuster Obasanjo released two weeks ago by way of his autobiography. Even without the controversy that has dogged My Watch since its release, and the rebuttals that have been issued by those chafing at its content, it is a landmark publication. Another memoirist would have released the first volume and spent some two years or longer working on the second, finally proceeding to work on the third and final volume, which would not go to the press for at least another two years. Not Obasanjo, and not for him that kind of leisurely pace. He could not, to do a riff on the author’s style, tarry to stamp the era sharply and indelibly with his wit, wisdom, peeves, prejudices, insights, revelations, revisions, disclosures, afterthoughts, rationalisations and evasions, all spiced with rumour, gossip, putdowns and plain abuse. That, after all, is the quintessence of the political memoir. I have not read the memoir. I have not even set my eyes upon it. Everything I know about it has been gleaned from the newspapers and online publications. And what I have gleaned from those sources suggests powerfully that, like its author, it is as blunt as a punch to the nose, and as subtle as a sledgehammer. I would not have said many of the things Obasanjo is reported to have said, or I would have said them differently. But then, I am not Obasanjo. In matters of this kind, he operates by his own rules, untroubled by consequences. If anything, he actually revels in the consequences, seeing them as conclusive evidence that he was dead on target And see how reactions to the memoir have poured forth. Even before it rolled off the press, President Jonathan, who must have been informed that Obasanjo gave him a thorough scalping in the

RIPPLES Obanikoro to Bode George: You NEED SOCIAL REHABILITATION

Ladies and gentlemen, at the end of ROUND ONE, ‘KORO’, ONE, BABA GEORGE, ZERO

OLATUNJI DARE

AT HOME ABROAD olatunji.dare@thenationonlineng.net

The memoir and the magistrate

book, reportedly appealed to the author to delay publication until after the presidential election scheduled for February 2015. Obasanjo refused. As everyone who has worked with or for him knows, and as Dr Jonathan ought to know, Obasanjo is not the most obliging of persons. To his credit, Jonathan took Obasanjo’s refusal for an answer and moved on. Police Inspector General, Suleiman Abba, must have been attending to more important issues while all this was going on. Otherwise, drawing on his acclaimed expertise in constitutional law, he would have deployed his men to block publication by all means necessary, even without instructions “from above.” In the end, it took a fugitive from the American criminal justice system with the improbable name of Kashamu Buruji to do what Jonathan could not do Buruji, a dual citizen of

COLUMNIST with The Nation hit on the coinage, Okupe-istic cant, describing presidential public affairs spokesperson, Dr. Doyin Okupe, and his great deeds. Had that columnist tarried awhile, he would even have been gifted with a bigger catch: Okupe-istic apostasy! That is the latest from the stable of the stout and doughty Dr. Okupe who, somewhat reminds you, not of the graceful foot works or even the defence rope-a-dope of Muhammad Ali (The Greatest), but the brawl-and-let’sbrawl boxing philosophy of Smoking Joe Frazier (of blessed memory). Hear The Greatest, pay a pre-fight tribute, to his gamesome opponent: “It would be a thriller, when I square up with the gorrilla, in Manilla.” That match-up, which ended in a 14th round TKO victory for Ali, was more than a thriller. It was the closest to death, Ali conceded of the victory over the man that handed him his first professional defeat! So, when Okupe does his chores, in the defence of his principal, President Goodluck Jonathan, he takes no prisoners. He could be blown out, as a typhoon blows out everything in its way, as George Foreman twice blew out Frazier; or be savagely competitive, in a loss or win, as Frazier fared with Ali in their three fights. But never is Okupe,

Nigeria and Benin Republic, had sought an injunction to block publication of My Watch, claiming that it contained libellous material that was the subject of ongoing litigation. Buruji had not read the book. Neither had the presiding judge, Mr Justice Valentine Ashi, of the Abuja High Court. Yet, amazingly, Justice Ashi granted the petition. This is a classic instance of prior restraint, or pre-publication censorship, and it is inimical to the freedom of speech and press consecrated in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Its application had been derogated back in 18th Century by the great English jurist, Sir William Blackstone, in his monumental Commentaries on the Laws of England – the laws from which our judicial system derives. “The liberty of the press is indeed essential to the nature of a free state but this,” Blackstone wrote, “consists in laying no previous restraints upon publications, and not in freedom from censure for criminal matter when published. Every freeman has an undoubted right to lay what sentiments he pleases before the public: to forbid this, is to destroy the freedom of the press: but if he publishes what is improper, mischievous, or illegal, he must take the consequence of his temerity.” More than three centuries later, in the famous 1972 case of the Pentagon Papers centring on publication of classified documents detailing the origins of America’s involvement in the Vietnam, the Supreme Court of the United

States held that recourse to prior restraint carries a “heavy presumption” of unconstitutionality. It is in truth shocking, therefore, that in 2014, a High Court in Nigeria would grant a petition to block publication of a book that the petitioner – and the judge - had not read, on the speculation that it might contain material prejudicial to a defamation lawsuit the petitioner had filed in respect of the same matter. But Justice Ashi was not yet done. The book had been published before the injunction, and arrangements for its public presentation completed. Obasanjo, being Obasanjo, went ahead with the presentation anyway, quipping that public presentation and distribution were not enjoined, only publication, which had been completed. Whereupon Justice Ashi, citing Obasanjo for contempt, ordered law enforcement officials to impound unsold copies in circulation and block further distribution until Obasanjo will have purged himself of contempt. In a narrow, technical sense, the contempt citation may well be warranted. But the seizure ordered by the court is clearly an overreach. The material at the heart of Buruji’s petition has been discussed widely in national newspapers and newsmagazines and on the Internet for months. Just Google “Buruji,” and everything Obasanjo has been saying about him and everything he has said about Obasanjo in return literally leaps at you from the computer screen, as well as the narrative of Buruji’s entanglement with the American criminal justice system. Mr Justice Ashi therefore acted in vain, and arguably in error, when he granted Buruji’s petition to block publication of My Watch. If the memoir did further harm to the reputation Buruji is claiming than the publication that is the subject of his ongoing defamation lawsuit against Obasanjo, he was free to demand aggravated or punitive damages. Justice Ashi also overreached when he ordered confiscation of unsold copies of the controversial memoir. The book raised no national security issues, and the matter before the court involved only civil law. On both counts, his ruling was an assault on the freedom of the press as expounded by Blackstone.

Re: Mainstreamers at Work

HIEF Ebenezer (Ebino Topsy) Babatope was grieved that I characterised him as a “mainstreamer “and as an authority on “mainstreaming” in my December 2, 2014, column, “Mainstreamers at work, again.” He says he has never belonged in that group and does not subscribe to its ideology. I sincerely apologise for attributing to him views he does not hold and opinions he has never expressed. Babatope has paid a fearsome price for his political activism spanning five decades. There was no imputation in my article that his current political affiliation stemmed from pecuniary calculations. •For comments, send SMS to 08111813080

HARDBALL

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above

Okupe-istic apostasy

what reminds Hardball of another literary parallel, in Wole Soyinka’s play, The Strong Breed, in which the tragic hero, is a traditional Jesus of a kind, bearing the burden of his community, after a yearly ritual. To the community, his sacrifice is a boon, on which consummation of the life and wellness of the community depended. But for the poor human mule, it was sheer pain! Okupe, by his choice of metaphor, and the flak he got, gives the impression of the strong breed, put to an impossible chore. Were Jonathan a popular and winsome figure, the reckless Okupe-istic (that coinage again!) metaphor would still have been condemnable, because of its insensitivity to the Christian faith. Still, perhaps not a few would have rationalised, excused and generally spoken out in veiled defence of the mistake. But for Jonathan, with his eternal bumbling, whom earlier Okupe had nevertheless blabbed was the best president Nigeria had ever had? Doyin Okupe certainly had it coming! Perhaps the doyen of reckless comparisons and irrational allusions will now learn to keep his peace — if he has nothing worthwhile to say. That sure would be better than earning Okupe-istic scorn!

a bit thickset not unlike Frazier, known to be a quitter. No matter the punishment, he always bobs up for more — in the defence of his principal! Even then, Okupe’s latest misadventure, of comparing his embattled principal to Jesus Christ, has earned the gamesome presidential spokesman perhaps the greatest shellacking of his presidential spin career. Hardly any section has not heavily descended on Okupe on his rather impolitic, not to talk of careless, reckless and religiously irreverent comparison. Yet, what Okupe meant to say was that his boss was longsuffering and patient, a line which an angry editorial of The Nation even took to the cleaners. Jonathan, it contended, was not elected because he was the meekest or the gentlest. He was elected to do a job, for which he zealously presented himself — and he may as well get on with that job! Phew, what comeuppance! But the Okupe unfortunate allusion some-

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