The Nation December 24, 2014 by The Nation

Newspaper of the Year

Fear of insecurity grips Oyo State

NEWS

Page 8

•Soldiers withdrawn from outfit

News ‘ISIS plans to recruit Nigerians’ P3 Sports Keshi’s contract splits NFF chiefs P41 Business Govt’s income drops 10% to N743b P54

•Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

VOL. 9, NO. 3074 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

•www.thenationonlineng.net

TR UTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM TRUTH

N150.00

Dangote, Elumelu, Ovia lose billions •Naira devaluation, oil price crash take toll

IGERIA’s super rich have lost billions of naira in their networth following the devaluation of the naira and the crash in oil price. Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele, last month, announced a nearly 10 per cent devaluation of the Naira, after admitting that a plunge in world oil prices and dwindling dollar reserves were making it difficult to defend the value of the currency. The Naira is now trading at N187 to $1, compared to N165 last month. In dollar terms, the devaluation has knocked more than $40 billion off the value of Nigeria’s economy. According to a report in Forbes, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, is the biggest loser among Nigeria’s richest people as the Naira’s slump and falling stock prices have Continued on page 4

•THE D AY AFTER: Some residents and officials inspecting part of the burnt Bauchi Central Market...yesterday. DA

PHOTO: AUSTINE TSENZUGHUL

•INSIDE: LADOJA’S SUPPORTERS DUMP ACCORD P7 EKITI LAWMAKERS CRY OUT P7

N21b donation raises legal issues for PDP, Jonathan Ex-NBA chief: Nigerians should monitor spending Name donors, says Falana

EGAL issues were raised yesterday over the cash flood unleashed last Saturday by President Goodluck Jonathan’s fans. By raising N21billion campaign fund, the Peoples Democratic Party

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja, Adebisi Onanuga and Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

(PDP) and its presidential candidate may have violated the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended). The PDP seems to have also breached Section 38 (2) of the

Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA). The party’s presidential candidate is limited to only N1billion campaign cash; it has raised more than N21billion. The PDP may forfeit N20billion to the Indepen-

Moneybags won’t fund my campaign, says Buhari

LL Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari said yesterday that the masses remained the financial and moral strength of his quest to win next year’s election. Addressing reporters in Abuja, General Buhari said he was relying on the masses to fund his campaign and have no intention of allowing

WILL THE CHIBOK GIRLS KIDNAPPED ON APRIL 15 EVER RETURN?

•N54m raised From Tony Akowe, Abuja

himself to be held hostage by money bags. He disclosed that N54.4 million had been contributed by the masses to his Crowd Funding Project and re-emphasised his commitment to be responsible for the funds because, according to him, N100 is big money to many Nigerians. The former Head of State said: “My strength mainly are the ordinary people. N100 is plenty of money for them and I know that they are

dent National Electoral Commission (INEC) — going by Section 92(6) of the Electoral Act. According to a copy of INEC’s Political Finance Monitoring Manual obtained yesterday, the PDP is in breach of Section 221 of the 1999

Constitution, Sections 91, 92 and 93 of the Electoral Act and Section 38(2) of CAMA. But a lawyer stressed that the party will be breaching the law only if it is discovered that its spending is against the law. INEC officials declined

comments on the matter. One simply said: “It (the manual) is explicit enough for you to know if there was violation or not.” The source said: “We do not want to be distracted at all over campaign funds Continued on page 4

•LET’S GO DANCING: Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola takes to the dancing floor with children during the Children’s End of the Year Party at the Lagos House, Ikeja... yesterday. PHOTO: OMOSEHIN MOSES

Continued on page 4

•POLITICS P17 •SPORTS P23 •MONEY P26 •INVESTORS P28 •LIFE P43 •FOREIGN P59 Continued on

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS

‘It is a bad Christmas’ •From right: Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola, the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, Managing Director, Sevenup Bottling Company, Sunil Sawhney and Head, Marketing, Seven-up Bottling Company, Norden Thurston, at the inauguration of Lagos Countdown by the governor.

•From left: Managing Director, Nigerian Bottling Company Ltd, Mr. Ben Langat, President, Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Abdulwahid Omar, National Union of Food, Beverages and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE) Executive, Comrade Ali Ibrahim and Head, Public Affairs and Communications NBC Ltd, Mr. Uzo Odenigbo when Omar visited the company’s Head Office in Lagos.

•Parents of kidnapped Chibok schoolgirl tell CNN

NLIKE before when they awaited the Yuletide with excitement, Samuel Yaga, his wife, Rebecca and five children will celebrate the Christmas tomorrow without the usual fanfare. Their eldest daughter – Sarah will be sorely missed by the family that hitherto haken Christmas as a time of laughter and spending time together. The reality of celebrating the Christmas without “an ambitious” member of the family had dawned on them. A report on the Cable Network News (CNN) yesterday showed there nothing in the couple’s onebedroom apartment to portray the family in the festive mood. Sarah is one of the more than 200 pupils abducted on April 15, from their domitoary at the Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, by the out-of-control members of the Boko Haram sect. Inside their small one roomed house - there is nothing to indicate that the Christmas festive season has begun. They say Christmas used to be a time of laughter and spending time with family, the CNN reported. Explaining why it cannot be celebration as usual, the father re-

counted: “Every Christmas we used to be complete and happy but now one of us is not there, how can it be the same?” Sarah’s mother also said: “There is nothing I can say. It has happened. It is a bad Christmas. But there is nothing we can do.” In April, Samuel, a mechanic, was making a routine repair on a client’s car when his phone rang. It was a phone call that would change his life forever. He recalled: “I was called in the morning by my elder brother notifying me of an attack on the school where my daughter was schooling.” Samuel’s blood went cold as his brother continued, telling him that some of the girls had been abducted by Boko Haram. He knew only too well the vicious and brutal nature of the terrorist group: just a few months before this, Boko Haram had attacked his village in Borno, the epicenter of the Boko Haram insurgency. Gunmen had forced him out of his house with one of them pointing a gun to his head. By a sheer miracle, unexplainable even to Samuel, one of the militants intervened, and his life was spared.

How Bauchi Central T

• From left: Country Manager, Intel Semi Conductor West Africa Ltd, Olubunmi Ekundare, Director, Bitflux Communications Limited, Biodun Omoniyi and Business Development Manager, Intel Nigeria, Stanley Muoneke, after signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Intel and Bitflux in Lagos ...on Monday.

•Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Eugene Juwah, Communication Technology Minister Ms. Omobola Johnson, Director, Government & Regulatory Affairs, Etisalat Nigeria, Ibrahim Dikko and Principal Partner, KPMG, Mr. Joseph Tegbe at the Nigeria Investment Forum at the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom World 2014, in Doha-Qatar.

HERE were more facts yesterday on the bomb explosion that rocked the ever- crowded Bauchi Central Market, Bauchi, the state capital, on Monday The explosion, which rocked the market between 5:20pm and 6:pm claimed more than ten lives and left several others injured, the chairman of the Bauchi Central Market Traders’ Association, Alhaji Adamu Musa Noma, insisted even as the Bauch Police Command said “only seven people died.” In an interview, Noma told The Nation that “two men, dressed in mobile police uniform without their beret on and a lady also in incomplete uniform, came to the market on Monday evening through the entrance near a bank. They bought a box and some clothing materials which they deposited in one of the shops close to the entrance into the market. “One of the men went outside to make a telephone call and the lady who was with them stayed back. The other, suspected to have detonated the bomb, was about leaving when the bomb exploded, killing many and wounding others. Goods, estimated at over N1 billion were destroyed.” According to Noma, more than 78 shops were razed in the aftermath of the explosion. He narrated: “Before the bomb incident, our security committee was sitting to map out strategies for decongesting the market and rearranging the parking lot.” Besides decongesting the market, the committee was to ensure proper

From Austine Tsenzughul, Bauchi.

parking of vehicles around the market and bar suspicious vehicles from parking near the market as proactive security measures. He, however, thanked the Red Cross Society, police, army, Bauchi State Fire Service, members of Islamic Aid Group and other security operatives for their prompt response to his distress call. The police yesterday claimed that only seven people died in the explosion and that 25 others sustained various degrees of injures. In a statement, spokesman for the command Haruna Mohammed, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP said: “Three suspects have been arrested for looting while 25 others sustained various degrees of injuries, out of which three have been treated and discharged and 19 others are responding to treatment.” Mohammed, who said normalcy has since returned to the market, with intensified security patrols within and outside the market, informed that investigation into the explosion has begun to ascertain the cause the degree of damages. Meanwhile, authorities at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), has directed its personnel against granting press interview on the casualty figure. Governor Isa Yuguda, who visited the injured at the teaching hospital yesterday, assured the traders that his administration will renovate the affected market. He also commiserated with the families of the dead.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS

•Mr. and Mrs. Yaga....yesterday.

Their entire village was razed, a development that forced him to move his family to Chibok and enrolled Sarah into the Government Secondary School so that she could sit for her final high school exam. He chose Chibok because not only was the community his ancestral home and where he had his relatives but also because it had no history of Boko Haram attacks. He felt it was safe — until the raid by the insurgents on the school. Later on that fateful day, Samuel’s brother phoned him again. “Then before sunset he called again to inform me that my daughter was part of those that were taken by Boko Haram.” Sarah’s mother recounted how the news of her daughter’s abduction tore at her heart. She refused to believe it when her husband first informed her — until it was confirmed on the evening news. “Seriously, seriously, mum and her daughter. The pain is indescrib-

PHOTO: CNN

• Some of the abducted schoolgirls

Samuel remembers her as the caring eldest child who used to secretly collect his dirty clothes, washed them and pressed them for him. He also remembers her passion for knowledge able,” she reflected. According to her, there is not a day that goes by that she does not think of her daughter, who she described as an ambitious girl who saw education as a way out of poverty.

“She used to tell me one day she will finish school and become somebody. She used to assist the younger ones with their homework,” she said of the ‘missing’ girl. Rebecca went on: “She loved studies. She used to fall asleep with

her books in her arms,” she added. Samuel remembers her as the caring eldest child who used to secretly collect his dirty clothes, washed them and pressed them for him. He also remembers her passion for knowledge.

“She is brilliant. She liked reading. Always she loved going to school,” he said. Sadness enveloped the couple as they clutched to the only physical memory that they have of their daughter — a few photos and one bright green top, one of her favorites. Although they were at low spirits, they, however, say their hopes remain high that their daughter will come back someday. They passed on that encouragement to their other five children, who say they miss their sister. “Her siblings know that she is not here - they themselves know what is happening, having come out of war,” Samuel said. “They keep asking me, ‘When is she coming back?’ But I keep telling them to keep trusting God. Maybe He will hear us,” he concluded.

al Market was attacked, by association chief

Govevernor Yuguda ...yesterday .

PHOTOS: AUSTINE TZENZUGHUL

•A section of the burnt market...yesterday.

Fed Govt alerts of plans by ISIS to recruit youths as fighters

GENTS of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) are scouting to recruit youths as fighters, the Federal Government alerted yesterday. It urged members of the public to be at alert and shun any such recruitment into the terror group. The Director-General National Orientation Agency (NOA) and Coordinator, National Information Center (NIC), Mr. Mike Omeri, broke the news in a statement, citing intelligence reports. Omeri said recent intelligence reports indicated that three South Africans were among fighters recruited by ISIS agents operating in the guise of humanitarian support groups for

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

refugees and orphans. Noting that ISIS was scouting for fighters around the Islamic world and Africa, the NOA chief urged Nigerians to avoid being deceived into joining the terror group as doing so will negate the true nature and spirit of Nigerians. He said: “Nigerians are known the world over to be selfless, hospitable and humanitarian. We believe in the brotherhood of all mankind and no one should be allowed to take advantage of these virtues or turn them into vices. “Nigerians are therefore advised to report to security agencies without hesitation, any group

or non-governmental agency, whose overt or covert activities are suspicious, or have tendencies to jeopardize the innocence of our youth and the security of our people wherever they are in the world.” He said government was leaving no room to chance in the fight against terror and the protection of lives and properties. Omeri also urged Nigerians to increase their confidence in the security efforts being made by the government, show greater cooperation with security agencies and ensure stricter compliance with security tips which are currently running on print and electronic media platforms.

Noma...yesterday.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS Moneybags won’t fund my campaign, says Buhari Continued from page 1

going to make the sacrifice required for the change we are looking for, especially when I made them a promise to be transparent and personally be responsible for the money. “I depend on them and we are taking this idea mainly from what happened in the United States of America. When Obama came out to contest, he is a coloured person and the big companies are not for him, but he knew that he had ground foot soldiers. “When he came with this idea, he was able to finance his campaign without looking for money bags or anybody influential and so, he remained independent and was hostage to nobody. This is what I want to achieve.” He said having made a pledge to personally take responsibility for the money generated, he considered it necessary to disclose what had been generated to “disabuse the minds of those who think that we have already started breaking the law by getting the resources other than what the Electoral Act stipulates. “I have to go out of my way to tell those who organised this that I will be the only signatory to this account. This will give a lot of confidence to the masses who are our supporters because to them, N100 is

•Amaechi...yesterday

Don’t plunge Nigeria into constitutional crisis, Amaechi urges Jonathan

OVERNOR Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State has cautioned the Federal Government and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to plunge the country into a constitutional crisis next year by failing to conduct elections in the three states mainly affected by the Boko Haram insurgency. Amaechi, who is the Director-General of the Buhari Campaign Organisation, said Nigeria would face a constitutional crisis, if INEC does not conduct elections in the

very dear to them and they would not want anybody to misuse it,” Gen. Buhari said. Although he would not deny or confirm media reports that he collected a loan to buy his nomination form, he said speculations that he was using part of the money generated from the crowd funding project to

By Raymond Mordi, Deputy Political Editor

three states. He asked rhetorically: “What would happen to the state assemblies? What about the National Assembly? Would the presidential election be conclusive if elections are not held in the three states? I hope we don’t enter into a constitutional crisis in 2015.” To Amaechi, who spoke in Lagos, Jonathan has performed woefully on the insurgency. He noted that the attitude of the Federal Government, led by President

pay off the supposed bank loan was not correct. He explained that what he said when he collected the nomination form was that he needed support from other members of the National Working Committee to bring down the cost of the form or get some form of rebate since

Goodluck Jonathan, is that the insurgency is a northern problem that should be solved by northerners. “It may not be what they intend, but that is the way some people read it. But, the key thing is that the Federal Government has not done well in the area of insurgency and it is not because we have a bad military. Our military men are well trained, but not well funded. If they are well funded - the money disappears somehow before it is released. So, the problem has to do with Continued on page 58

women and the physicallychallenged were not paying anything, but did not get such support. Gen. Buhari said: “I said that when we were going through the modalities at the national caucus, we decided that women and the disabled should not pay anything. I was expecting

that there will be discount in the presidential nomination form and that of the governors. I looked for support and I didn’t get any and I told them that I cannot complain because I am a senior member of the party. “I said that I put a very quick call to my manager, that what-

ever the state of my account, he should honour the cheque and that was what he did. People developed their own story from there. Whatever happened is between me and my manager and it is always confidential and my cheque did not bounce.” He went on: “I seize this opportunity to welcome everyone present here today. I want to also thank all those who have contributed to our campaign through the crowd funding project, which I personally launched precisely on November 19 at the Aso Hall, international Conference Centre, Abuja. As I promised during the take-off that I will take responsibility of the account, we are here today to give you an update in the progress Continued on page 59

Dangote, Elumelu, Ovia lose billions to naira devaluation, oil price crash Continued from page 1

erased more than $7.8 billion of his fortune. In February, FORBES locked him in with a $25bilion worth in its annual ranking of the World’s Billionaires. But as of market close on Tuesday, he’s worth $17.2 billion. More than half of the drop in his fortune has happened since early November. As of Nov. 7, Dangote was worth $21.6 billion, $4.4 billion more than now. Here’s why: The last few weeks have been a bit of a disaster for many companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. Several blue-chip stocks such as Dangote Ce-

•Dangote

ment, Zenith Bank, Transcorp and United Bank of Africa among several others have hit one-year-lows as a result of the fall in oil prices, a general uncertainty regarding the 2015 general elections, Central Bank regulatory headwinds, and weak earnings from large cap companies. These have all contributed toward putting nairadenominated assets including equities at risk “This is whipping up negative market sentiments as foreign and institutional investors such as pension funds who hold equity stakes in companies (due to their large cap and liquidity status) have mostly

fled their positions,” says Ugodre Obi-Chukwu, a leading financial analyst and publisher of Nairametrics, a website that provides analysis and opinion about Nigerian stocks, investing, personal finance and the economy. Dangote Cement, Africa’s largest manufacturer of cement has shed close to 40% of its market value between the beginning of November and now. The company’s stock, which was trading at N215 ($1.15) at the beginning of November, is now valued at N165 (88 Cents) as at Monday. At the beginning of November, Dangote’s stake in the ce-

ment manufacturer was valued at more than $18 billion. It is now valued at $13.2 billion. Dangote has also lost more than $230 million in paper value within the same period on his stakes in publicly-traded Dangote Sugar, Dangote Flour, and National Salt Company of Nigeria. Between November (when FORBES published the list of Africa’s 50 Richest) and today, Dangote, has lost more than $4 billion in his net worth. After Dangote, the second biggest loser among Nigeria’s ultra-rich isTony Elumelu, the Chairman of Heirs Holdings, an investment company. Heirs

Holdings, which is whollyowned by Elumelu, is the controlling shareholder in Transcorp, a publicly-listed conglomerate with interests in power production, hotels and agriculture. Transcorp’s current market capitalization is now $700 million, down from $1.4 billion at the beginning of November. Heirs Holdings has lost an estimated $345 million in paper value on Transcorp, and its stake in the company as at Monday is now worth roughly $400 million, down from $700 million. Elumelu’s investments in other listed companies like Continued on page 58

N21b donation raises legal issues for PDP, Jonathan Continued from page 1

because all parties are in receipt of the Political Finance Monitoring Manual. If we join issues with any party or group, we will be accused of bias. “But, ideally, a presidential candidate is limited to N1billion campaign fund and if it is more than the ceiling, you can make your deductions on the legality or otherwise of such a venture. “If they have breached it, they know. Any concerned Nigerian or group can challenge such violation legally. It is not within our purview to do so. “There are even provisions for sanctions if any party or individual breaches the relevant provisions in the Electoral Act.” Responding to a question, the source said: “If you go through the manual, it has

Continued on

Ex-NBA chief urges Nigerians to monitor spending

ORMER Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Ikeja branch chairman, Mr. Monday Ubani, has appealed to Nigerians to monitor the expenditure of political parties to ensure they do not flout the provisions of the Electoral Act. He was reacting to the N21b campaign donation to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He said the party had not committed any offence until it exceeds the stipulated N1 billion spending limit for presidential campaigns. However, Ubani described the N1 billion

quoted Section 92(6) of the Electoral Act as saying that any party that incurs election expenses beyond the limit stipulated is guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a maximum fine of N1m and forfeiture to INEC the amount by which the expenses exceed the limit set by the commission.” The manual made referenc-

By Precious Igbonwelundu

stipulation as “active in the books”, noting that more than the said amount had been expended by the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN). He said: “They have not spent the money (N21b) yet. What we should do now is to monitor their expenses because an offence can only be said to have been committed if they spend beyond the N1 billion. “If they like, they can claim that the N21 billion will not be used to prosecute the presidential elections alone. They are at liberty to say they will use the money for all

es to Section 90(1) and Section 91(1-10) on campaign funds and accruable sanctions if there is any violation. The sections states: “The Commission shall have power to place limitation on the amount of money or other assets, which an individual or group of persons can contribute to a political party. “Election expenses shall not

other elections and even other party things. “But this is the time for Nigerians to be alive and alert. We must ensure proper accounting of electoral campaigns. “More than that amount was spent in 2011 general elections and nothing happened. No one was arrested. In fact, more than that has already been spent because if you look at the TAN billboards and other advertisement or programmes they have been doing, it has exceeded N1 billion. “The question we need to ask ourselves at this time is whether INEC has a book

exceed the sum stipulated in subsection (2-7) of this section. “The maximum election expenses to be incurred by a candidate at a Presidential election shall be N1billion. “The maximum election expenses to be incurred by a candidate at a Governorship election shall be N200, 000.000.

Continued on page 59

“The maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred of senatorial seat by a candidate at an election to the National Assembly shall be N40, 000.000 while the seat for House of Representative shall be N20, 000.000. “In the case of State Assembly election, the maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred shall be N10,

000.000. “In the case of chairmanship election to an Area Council, the maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred shall be N10, 000.000 “In the case of councillorship election to an Area Council, the maximum amount of election expenses to be incurred shall be N1, 000.000.” The INEC manual has also stipulated sanctions for candidates who breach the Electoral Act. Going by to the Act, President Jonathan risks a 12month imprisonment for exceeding the campaign fund limit. Continued on page 58

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS

Group dumps Jonathan for Buhari

NE of the support groups formed to propagate the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan, House-to-House Educational Initiative, has decided to throw its weight behind the All Progressives Congress’ (APC’s) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. Its National Coordinator, Mr. Kunle Ehinlanwo, said at a news conference in Abuja that its members have not found any reason to join the campaign for Jonathan’s reelection. Ehinlanwo explained that this was the time for collective action to change the fortunes of the country for good. His words: “House-toHouse Educational Initiative was formed to promote good governance and pro-poor policies through national dialogue and intervention on issues of national development and till date, we have done quite extensive work in this regard. “In achieving our set goal, we use sensitisation and awareness as drivers of development. In recent times, however, we are beaming the searchlight on political development, to see how we can

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

work with the Nigerian people and other partners to build the nation’s democracy and its processes. “Our initial idea was to support the re-election of President Jonathan, believing that continuity will better secure our democracy, considering the stage we are in the democratic ladder. “But after a deeper review and careful analysis of the situation in the country, we are not convinced with the performance of the administration. “We have consequently decided to throw our support in favour of Gen. Buhari, who, we are convinced, is a better man for the challenging job. “The House-to-House Educational Initiative will henceforth campaign vigorously to canvass massive votes for the election of Gen. Buhari and his running mate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, ahead of the next general election in the 36 states, the FCT and the 774 Local government areas in 2015. “For the record, our organisation is engineered and powered by concerned citizens and patriotic volunteers throughout Nigeria to achieve this

PHOTO:ABAYOMI FAYESE

common objective.” He added that the group had decided to do its honest bit in the quest for change. Ehinlanwo maintained that the group was not oblivious to the challenge posed by the incumbency factor in Nigerian politics, “but we are convinced that the APC will triumph at the end of the day, because the Nigerian people can see beyond the antics of the rudderless President Jonathan’s administration,

particularly the desperate quest for power as we can see from their actions and activities in recent times.” According to him, “Nigerians are earnestly yearning for change and it is becoming very clear that no amount of intimidation or corruption of the electoral process will change the tide. “The voices of the people will be heard, loud and clear, via their massive votes at the election.

“These are our convictions and in the days and weeks ahead, you will all see our actions and activities on all we have stated above and we have no doubt that Nigerians will appreciate our patriotic intervention as we collectively push for a new order where our people can live a better life. “This can only be possible when the national leadership is right and this is why we have decided to endorse the

candidature of Gen. Buhari and his running mate, whose integrity and leadership records are too convincing to elicit our support. It is the logical way to go and it is in our collective best interest.” The group’s Southwest Coordinator, Prince Olowofoyekun Temitope, said the group has begun a massive grassroots mobilisation of residents in the region to throw their weight behind Gen. Buhari.

Practise what you preach, APC tells PDP

Attack on convoy: Gombe blames Goje From Gbade Ogunwale, Assistant Editor, Abuja

OMBE State has blamed the state’s All Progressives Congress (APC) leader, Senator Danjuma Goje, for last Thursday’s mob attack on Governor Ibrahim Dankwabo’s convoy. The accusation came yesterday in the backdrop of outcry by the leadership of the APC that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government in Gombe was unleashing terror on opposition members. At a news conference yesterday at the Abuja national secretariat of the PDP, the state government accused the senator of instigating the attack during a visit to the Federal University, Kashare. Chief of Staff to the Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Yayari Mohammed, who spoke at the briefing in reaction to APC claims, accused Goje of orchestrating violence and causing confusion in Gombe. Mohammed said: “Since he left the PDP, the APC leader and former Gombe State Governor, Senator Danjuma Goje, has been orchestrating violence and causing confusion, all in an attempt to undermine and dislodge the PDP-led administration. “On Thursday, December 18, 2014, Senator Goje mobilised a team of political thugs, who ambushed and attacked the convoy of Governor Dankwambo with dangerous weapons while the governor was on his way from a Federal university located at Kashere, where he had gone for a visit on the invitation of the vice chancellor. “The thugs, under the directives of Senator Goje, unleashed terror on the governor’s entourage, injuring some persons and destroying some vehicles in the convoy.”

•From left: Deputy National Coordinator, House-to-House Political Education Initiative, Prince Henry Obok; Ehinlanwo; National Secretary, Alhaji Ibrahim Mohammed and Temitope, at the news conference in Abuja...yesterday.

•APC Chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been described as a Janusfaced bumbling party for allegedly mudslinging the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its leaders, especially in the aftermath of the national convention which produced Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as APC’s presidential candidate. APC National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who decried the attitude

of PDP in a statement in Abuja yesterday, said the PDP that had been preaching issues-based electioneering campaign has done nothing, but mudslinging against the person of Gen. Buhari. The statement also accused the PDP of disparaging Buhari’s running mate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo; party’s leader Bola Ahmed Tinubu and “the entire APC”. According to APC, the spokespersons for President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP have thrown caution and decency to the wind by their crude, rude and rambling statements, after they were “apparently stung into a stupor by the rancour-free emergence of the party’s candidates for the 2015 general elections and the overwhelmingly positive reactions from Nigerians.” The statement reads: ‘’What is issues-based in calling Gen. Buhari a ‘semi-literate jackboot’ as the PDP’s National

Secretary Wale Oladipo has incautiously said? Where are the issues in the pejorative reference to Prof. Osinbajo as an ‘acolyte’ of Tinubu, or in describing Tinubu himself as a puppeteer, as the PDP’s National Publicity Secretary Olisa Metuh has said in the most vitriolic and irresponsible statement that can ever be issued by the spokesman of a ruling party anywhere? ‘’Where are the issues contained in the statement by the serial bumbler and gormandiser called Doyin Okupe, who regards Gen. Buhari’s refusal to enrich himself from the public till as a vice rather than a virtue? Why would a ruling party go after the jugular of the opposition simply because it took its time in choosing its presidential running mate, especially since it did not run afoul of any electoral law in doing so? ‘’The truth is that the

Jonathan Presidency and the PDP have no issues to canvass during the electioneering campaign for the 2015 general elections because they have wasted the mandate given to them by Nigerians on the altar of unprecedented corruption, incomprehensible incompetence and cluelessness and perhaps the worst leadership ever inflicted on our country.” The party expressed delight that Nigerians have taken it upon themselves to respond to the PDP and its barbarians, especially in the social media. ‘’Had these philistines been monitoring the reactions of Nigerians to the capricious comments they have been making against the person of Gen. Buhari and his party, they would have desisted. But then, they need to impress their paymasters. It seems the more they pour invective on our leaders and our party, the bigger their

pay. We wish them luck in their ludicrous pursuit and shadow chasing,’’ it said. APC assured Nigerians that its campaign for next year’s elections would be based on how the party plans to restore hope to the forlorn citizens, who have been taken for a ride by the government they voted into power, and how Nigeria can be made great again and how the comatose economy can be resuscitated, for the benefit of all, rather than a few fat cats. The party added: ‘’We are delighted at the increasing level of political awareness among Nigerians and their engagement in the political scene. We believe Nigerians are more interested in what the candidates for next year’s elections can offer rather than on how much mudslinging they can dish out. In the end, Nigerians, who are the real masters, will spot the difference!”

Buhari cautions Mu’azu on campaigns of calumny

HE Director of Communication, Buhari Campaign Organisation, Mr. Dele Alake, has urged the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to engage in issues-based campaigns, instead of character assassination. He said the statement by the National Chairman of PDP, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu that the All Progressives Congress’ (APC’s) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari was combative and autocratic, was misleading. The statement called on Mu’azu and people of like minds in the PDP to be civilise in their utterances instead of name callings, stressing that the PDP should tell Nigerians why it deserves their support. He said: “The Buhari Campaign Organisation respect Mu’azu’s right to defend his party’s candidate, President Goodluck Jonathan and to

By Musa Odoshimokhe

project his qualification for second term in office, but must respect the rights of others. “We, however, believe that right must be exercise with all the circumspection and decorum befitting the position of a chairman of the ruling party such as the PDP. “He is expected to embody all the virtues Nigerians would like to associate with a party its members and leaders described as the biggest in Africa. “Unfortunately and interestingly, we know that the PDP officials, like Mu’azu, may find it easier to descend into personal abuse and character assassination of President Jonathan’s main opponent in the 2015 presidential election.” Alake added that it was deplorable that the PDP chairman tried to stigmatise and demonise the former head of

state for serving the country the 1980s, noting that his military background did not render him insensitive to the constitution of Nigeria under which he seeks to lead the country as a democratically elected president. “The Buhari Campaign Organisation has pledged to run a campaign based on issues, not on abuse. We intend to respect the pledge and strongly recommend the same to the PDP. “Nigerians have an obligation to compel the PDP to be decorous in their campaign and to stick to germane issues that bother Nigerians, issues that have made life short, nasty and brutish in Nigeria, and issues that have also pauperised the people.” He explained that Mu’azu remarks were designed to mislead the electorate by raising false alarm that Buhari was a warlord, who intends to witch-hunt perceived ene-

mies. “This is a most uncharitable and unbecoming falsehood to come from the PDP chairman. “The sweeping generalisation he made does not dignify both Mu’azu and the PDP presidential candidate, whose electoral fortune he tries to advance. “The only warlords Nigerians know are Boko Haram leaders whom the PDP government has been unable to fight. And the quasi dictatorship evident today is the ruling party, which has inspired the invasion of the National Assembly’s oversight function, undermined the judiciary and sacking highly placed judges under clever ruses, promoted discord in states where some PDP governors overthrow the Houses of Assembly and trampled on the constitution by encouraging law enforcement agencies to defy governors,” he said.

He further said: “The Buhari Campaign Organisation will work assiduously to get candidate Buhari elected, and his party will give him encouragement to be combative, in words of Mu’azu, against the evil that plague Nigeria such as Boko Haram, insurgency, unemployment, corruption, disrespect for the constitution and the general administrative and bureaucratic laxity. “Buhari patiently and passionately submitted himself to the party processes that led to his emergence as candidate. And he did it transparently and respectively, knowing full well he was not in a military regime. “Let President Jonathan run on his records, if they are worthy of citation. If he can, let him sell his candidature based on what programme he has enunciated and implemented for the youths in terms of education, healthcare, employment and security.”

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS SERAP asks UN rights experts to halt 54 soldiers’ execution

IVE United Nations (UN) human rights independent experts have been urged to request the Federal Government and the military authorities not to execute 54 soldiers sentenced to death by a court martial. Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) made the plea in a petition dated December 23, 2014 by its Executive Director Adetokunbo Mumuni. On Wednesday, December 17, 2014, the Nigerian Army’s 7 Division General Court Martial convicted the 54 soldiers for conspiracy to commit mutiny and sentenced them to death by firing squad. The five UN experts, who are also special rapporteurs, are: Christof Heyns, special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Juan Méndez, special rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; and Pablo de Greiff, special rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence. Others are: Mads Andenas, chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention; and Ben Emmerson, special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights while countering terrorism. The organisation said: “You have consistently and jointly taken similar actions in the

past, including with respect to Egypt, and we respectfully urge you to follow this path in the instance case to continue your record of working to end the death penalty in all countries. “It is not right or fair to try everyone in mass proceedings, and that such unfair trial should not send someone to the gallows. Imposition of mass death sentences is in breach of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Nigeria is a party. This covenant limits the circumstances in which a state can impose the death sentence.” The petition, which was copied to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mr. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, also stated: “Under international law, cases involving capital punishment such as the present one require the full and scrupulous respect of the guarantees of highest standards of fairness, due process and justice. “All human rights depend for their enjoyment the right to life, which is the most fundamental of all rights. The right to life symbolises everything that the United Nations (UN) works and stands for, be it in the area of peace and security, development or human rights. To reject the act of irreversibly taking someone’s life is to embrace belief in human progress and dignity.”

40 bills awaiting Jonathan’s assent

THE Chairman, House Committee on Information, Zakari Mohammed, said yesterday that 40 bills were awaiting President Goodluck Jonathan’s assent to become Acts of the National Assembly. Mohammed, representing Baruten/Kaiama Federal Constituency of Kwara, spoke at a forum organised by Correspondents’ Chapel of the Oyo State Council of NUJ in Ibadan. According to him, the House would have invoked the relevant portion of the constitution to deal with the situation, but “the political mood of the country had been

a sort of handicap.” Mohammed, according to a report by the News agency of Nigeria (NAN), had earlier delivered a paper titled: “The Nigerian Press and Democratic Governance: The Journey So Far,’’ at the chapel’s programme, “Guest Forum”. He argued that the media coverage of democracy in the last 16 years had not been impressive. According to him, there were vices going on within the polity, which the Nigerian media had not done enough about reporting. “Not only that our media practitioners are not doing enough of whistle-blowing,

the political actors run to the media for cover,’’ he said. Mohammed said Nigerians should be tired of politicians and the media in the last 16 years because of their unwritten collaboration to rob the country of robust democratic gains. “How much of corruption have the media been able to expose in the country?” he queried. The lawmaker charged the media practitioners to place the interest of the country above any other consideration. “To entrench democracy, we should not monetise the profession; we owe this coun-

try a lot. Other countries are only better than Nigeria because of organisation. “The dullest of lawyer is treated with decorum. There must be an entry point into the profession like the medical, law, accounting and other professions to enhance the dignity of the profession; the image of journalists should be worked upon. If you are shabbily treated, you will be shabbily rewarded,’’ he said. He said some of the practitioners in the National Assembly had been making efforts to ensure legislation against poor remuneration of journalists with a promise that he would not relent.

•President Jonathan (right) presenting a souvenir to the out-going Ambassador of Ethiopia to Nigeria at the Presidential Villa in Abuja... yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

Wake up to your responsibility, cleric tells youths By Sina Fadare

HE Bishop of the Lagos Diocese of Anglican Church, Most Rev. Adebola Ademowo, has urged Nigerian youths to wake up to their responsibility by contributing positively to the development of the nation. He warned the youth against engaging in social vices like terrorism and vandalism. Bishop Ademowo, who spoke in a Christmas message, said the period of Christmas should be a time for reflection and time to be at peace with their creator by thinking positively towards the nation’s development. According to him, Christmas celebration is a constant reminder of God’s inestimable love of mankind. Therefore, he admonished Nigerians to move closer to God for the fulfillment of their dreams and aspiration in life. He reminded those seeking political power on the importance of peace, adding: “We should allow the message of Christmas to have positive impacts on us. “Let us drop all vices of intolerance, political violence, indiscipline, fraud, kidnapping, terrorism and insurgency.” The cleric asked the Federal and state governments to provide adequate security for the citizens as people are travelling to visit their relatives and loved ones during the Christmas.

Coca-Cola partners others on HIV/AIDS Day

OCA-Cola Nigeria Limited, in partnership with Friends Africa (Friends of the Global Fund Africa), has organised a weeklong HIV/AIDS outreach in Lagos. The outreach, which enabled about 4,000 persons to take the HIV test, was in commemoration of the World AIDS Day. The programme was implemented in collaboration with Access Bank, First City Monument Bank, Lagos State Agency for the Control of AIDS (LASACA), Society for Family Health (SFH), Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, among other partners. It was aimed at creating more awareness about HIV/ AIDS; promoting acceptance and inclusion rather than stigmatisation and discrimination of people living with the virus; and providing opportunity for Lagosians to access free HIV counselling and testing (HCT). Nearly 4,000 persons, mostly women and youths, took

the test to ascertain their HIV status at the mobile HCT centres activated in four locations: Campos Square, Sangrose Market and Oluwole Market on Lagos Island and University of Lagos, Akoka. About 70% of those tested did so for the first time. A few persons who tested positive for the virus were counselled and referred to the Lagos General Hospital for enrolment on follow up counselling and treatment programme. Another highpoint was the celebrity-studded novelty match played at the Campos Square sports centre. Speaking at a dinner event also sponsored by Coca-Cola at The Wheatbaker Hotel to round up the week-long programme, Public Affairs and Communications Director of Coca-Cola Nigeria, Clem Ugorji, said: “The World AIDS Day is a reminder to every one of the grave threat that HIV/AIDS continues to pose to families and communities, particularly in Africa.”

Fed Govt to boost trade with other developing nations

RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has promised that his administration would continue to encourage and support the development of mutually-beneficial trade and economic relations between Nigeria and other developing nations. Jonathan, according to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, gave the assurance at separate audiences with the new ambassadors of Cuba and Zimbabwe at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. In keeping with its commitment to privatisation, trade liberalisation and diversification of the economy, he said the Federal Government would welcome greater economic ties with Cuba, Zimbabwe and other emerging

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

economies. He said: “Nigeria is a very vast economy. We are not just about oil. We have a very vibrant business community that has a global presence in both the service and non-service sectors. “We will encourage these businesses to expand their interests into your economies,’’ the president told Ambassador Carlos Eleterio Trejo Sosa of Cuba and Ambassador Lovemore Mazemo of Zimbabwe, who came to present their letters of credence to him. Jonathan also hailed the cordial bilateral relations between Nigeria and Ethiopia, which, he said, has encouraged leading Nigerian companies to establish branches

‘Nigeria is a very vast economy. We are not just about oil. We have a very vibrant business community that has a global presence in both the service and non-service sectors’ in the Horn of Africa nation. Speaking at an audience with the outgoing Ethiopian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Ali Abdo Suleiman, the pres-

ident noted that economic ties between both countries have improved significantly in the last three years. He also observed that the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between both countries has resulted in regular flights from Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, to four major cities in Nigeria Abuja, Lagos, Enugu and Kano. Ambassador Suleiman, who served in Abuja for three years, told the president he was leaving with very happy memories of Nigeria. He thanked Jonathan for the support and cooperation he received from the Federal Government, which, he said, helped to facilitate the expansion of trade and economic relations between Nigeria and Ethiopia.

Christmas: FRSC deploys 35,000 to control traffic

HE Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) said it has deployed no fewer than 35,000 officers to help control traffic during the Yuletide. Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi, revealed this yesterday while flagging-off a zero tolerance operation against breaking of traffic rules during the Christmas and New Year celebrations. The end of year special patrol operation, code named: “Operation Zero Tolerance”, has the theme: “Road Safety is a collective responsibility: It Depends on you”, was performed by Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero. Oyeyemi stressed that the

From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

corps would not tolerate any form of reckless driving on Nigeria roads any longer. During this period, he said drivers were in the habit of overloading their vehicles, violating speed limits, committing lane indiscipline and disregarding other traffic rules and regulations. He said: “These violations heighten the spate and fatalities of road traffic crashes within the period, thus tasking the capability of members of the corps and in fact, other stakeholders who are concerned with the pervasive obstruction, death and injuries as well as loss of man hour caused by delays.”

He added that the corps, in collaboration with the Nigeria Air Force, will be launching an aerial support programme today. “In this year’s exercise, we have mobilised about 20,000 of the regular marshals and 15,000 of the special marshals who would be assisted by volunteers from some civil organisations as well as members of other security agencies. “In view of our findings that speed-related road crashes account for almost 50 per cent among the causative factors of road traffic crashes, this effort led to introduction of speed limiting devices and its compulsory usage by drivers as approved by the Standards

Organisation of Nigeria (SON) will commence June 1, 2015.” He called on Nigerians to remain steadfast in the campaign for safer road environment, bearing in mind that road traffic crashes don’t just happen. According to him, crashes are caused either by omission or commission of drivers and can be averted. Yero, who was represented by his deputy, Ambassador Nuhu Audu Bajoga, praised the FRSC for its effort at saving lives, enjoining the corps to sustain the tempo. The governor assured of the government’s commitment to give necessary support to the FRSC in activities targeted at saving lives.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS Ambode solicits lawmakers’ support By Oziegbe Okoeki

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Lagos State, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, has called on members of the House of Assembly to support his election bid. The APC candidate said that he and Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji had been friends for 25 years. He said Ikuforiji, who was a governorship aspirant, had been a rallying point for the aspirants after the election. “Ikuforiji ensured that we were united after the primaries. We are all winners and we will work together for the progress of the state and we will move the state forward together. “I came here to seek the support of the 40 lawmakers in the Assembly. The state cannot move forward, unless the legislature and the executive work together. I believe in team spirit. “Once we win the election, we will work together to develop the state. Our functions are different, but our objectives are the same,” he said. Ambode, a former accountant-general of the state, said if he got the support of the 40 lawmakers, he has got the grassroots. The governorship candidate added that Lagos needs someone, who can continue with what is on ground. “We can all see that oil revenue is dwindling and it is about $60 per barrel. We need someone who can come up with additional sources of revenue without making life difficult for the people. “We will continue with our tradition of improving Lagos State without depending on oil,” he said. Ikuforiji said Ambode and the APC presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, represent the change the country needs. “Buhari would be declared winner of the presidential election after the February 15 election, while Ambode would be declared winner in Lagos State,” he said.

Speaker raises alarm over plan to attack Ekiti APC lawmakers •Govt: it’s all lies

HE Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr. Adewale Omirin, has raised the alarm on alleged plans to attack the 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) members for their stance in the crisis rocking the legislature. Omirin, in a statement yesterday by his Media Adviser, Wole Olujobi, alleged that hoodlums had been mobilised to attack the lawmakers over last Thursday’s plenary in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital. The Speaker claimed that hoodlums, allegedly backed by the government, had begun a manhunt for the APC lawmakers “for refusing to be cowed by those wielding transient powers”. But the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led administration described Omirin’s allegations as “tissue of lies”. It called on the lawmakers to return and apologise to Governor Ayo Fayose and the people. The Special Assistant to the Governor on Information, Lanre Ogunsuyi, said: “The lawmakers must swal-

PDP lawmakers vote against local govt autonomy

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the Ekiti State House of Assembly has voted against local government autonomy. The seven PDP lawmakers also voted against scrapping of the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) and the separation of the office of the attorney general from the office of the commissioner for justice. This came barely five days after their 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) colleagues voted in favour of local government autonomy, among other amendments to the 1999 Constitution, which they claimed had been forwarded to the National Assembly as Ekiti legislature’s contribution to the exercise. A member of the PDP caucus, Samuel Ajibola, who briefed reporters yesterday, said From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

low their pride and return to the state to perform their legislative functions.” Omirin claimed that a plot had been allegedly hatched to frame the APC lawmakers, if the first plan fails. He said: “Part of the gameplan is to smash the cars officially allocated to the members, which we are paying for from deductions in our salaries. “In cases where practicable, the cars are to be force-

they voted against local government autonomy to prevent abuse of power. Ajibola said: “It is not too advisable for local governments to have absolute autonomy in all ramifications without being check-mated by relevant authorities in their respective states. “If they are not check-mated by the governors or the assembly, it might lead to abuse of opportunity.” The minority lawmakers also voted for the change of the official name of police from “Nigeria Police Force” to “Nigeria Police”. They reasoned that the fact that “Force” had been added to their name may not make them liberal in the execution of their duties.

fully snatched from the lawmakers in a makeshift robbery scene.” Omirin added that the governor was creating conditions for criminals to thrive. His words: “The governor has reduced security vote to security agents, thereby making it almost impossible for security agents to perform their duties. “If we observe well, Ekiti people will note that all the check-points manned by the Army have been deserted

because the governor has refused to fund their activities. “That is why in the last one and half months, criminal activities, including jail break, have taken place in Ekiti State. “Ado-Ekiti streets no longer enjoy light at night because the governor has refused to release money for fuel.” Omirin said the governor should be held responsible if anything happened to the APC lawmakers.

But Ogunsuyi absolved Fayose of all the allegations. He accused the APC and its lawmakers of encouraging crimes. He did not say how. The aide said Fayose was ready to work with the APC lawmakers as long as they are ready to work with the executive. He said making unfounded allegations would not help them, noting that since they had taken their case to the court, they should wait until it makes a pronouncement. “They are trying to make peace through the back door, let them apologise to the governor and the people. “They took their case to court, and when you take your case to court, you wait. If you can’t wait for your suit to be decided upon, then you are immature. “The governor is making a lot of sacrifices and that is why he is running the state with only three commissioners because there is no money to pay more commissioners. “They should call a truce, they should stop amplifying dissent. Nobody has any plan to attack them and all their allegations are lies.”

Ladoja’s supporters leave Accord From Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

UNDREDS of supporters of the Leader of Accord in Oyo State, Rashidi Ladoja, have left the party for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and other parties. Their defection followed the failure of the former governor to allow internal democracy in the party. The aggrieved supporters alleged that having invested huge resources and time in the party, Ladoja “betrayed” them by imposing candidates, instead of organising primaries. Their defection was preceded by a protest to the Ondo Street, Bodija, Ibadan, home of the former governor by aggrieved party members. When party primaries began last month, Accord in Oyo State did not announce its primaries into the State and the National Assembly. It held its primary for the governorship slot, which was contested by its leader and coordinator, Ladoja. He won unopposed to emerge the party’s governorship candidate.

•Amosun (third right); Obasanjo (right); Shonekan (second right); former Chief of General Staff Lt-Gen Oladipo Diya (second left); Adeboye and Amosun’s wife, Olufunso...at the event

Obasanjo, Shonekan, Adeboye, Kumuyi hail peace in Ogun

ORMER President Olusegun Obasanjo; General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye; General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry Pastor William Folorunsho Kumuyi and monarchs in Egbaland have said the peace in Ogun State is the handiwork of God. They spoke at the June 12 Cultural Centre, Kuto, Abeokuta, venue of the Christmas Carol and Nine Lessons. The event, which was organised by the Ibikunle Amosun administration, was also attended by former head of the Interim National Government (ING), Chief Ernest Shonekan. A popular gospel singer, Tope Alabi, ministered in songs. Pastor Adeboye, Pastor Kumuyi and Shonekan

From Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

thanked God for the “progress” recorded in the last 42 months as well as the “peace” being enjoyed by residents and visitors. They prayed that God would continue to do good things for the state and its people. Obasanjo waxed philosophical and sang that God would do something new for him and Nigerians in the new year. Shonekan said what was being experienced in the state is a “miracle.” “The governor has done exceedingly well. You only need to look around to see the massive infrastructure. “Please keep it up. May God continue to support you. Miracles are happening in our state. With what we have been able to see around, our state has made progress.

I want to congratulate you Mr. Governor.” In his message, taken from the book of John, Pastor Adeboye said Jesus is the way, the truth and life. The cleric added that He is also the way out of poverty and bondage. Citing himself as an example of how Christ can lift someone from obscurity to

prominence, the renowned preacher said he was born and raised in a remote village in Osun State, where even the poor called his parents “poor”. He said God elevated him to the level where he now gets audience from world leaders. According to him, no matter how lowly one’s life

is or hopeless a situation could be, Christ, the saviour of the world, would make a way where there seemed to be no way. Pastor Adeboye said: “I come from a remote village, not known and so obscure; it is only recently that it was placed on the map. My family was so poor that even poor people called us poor.”

Produce result of your primaries, says aspirant

But Omoworare, said he, rather than N All Progressives Congress (APC) aspirant for the Osun East National Lawal, won the polls. Lawal, in a statement, however stated that Assembly election, Sola Lawal, has he holds the popular mandate to contest the challenged another aspirant, Senator election, describing Omoworare's claim of Babajide Omoworare, to produce evidence victory as "patently fraudulent". of his victory in the party primaries. The aspirant urged Omoworare to state The primaries, which reportedly gave where, when and who voted in the primaries victory to Lawal with 17 votes as against that allegedly produced him as the candidate. Omoworare’s three, took place at the He said: "As for me, the modified Banquet Hall of the Government House, primaries sanctioned by Governor Rauf Osogbo, where ex-governor Isiaka Adeleke Aregbesola and the party, took place at the and Senator Sola Adeyeye also emerged Banquet Hall of the Government House on victorious for the Osun West and Central December 3.” seats.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS

PDP denies manipulating Lagos governorship primary

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has denied the allegation that its December 8 governorship primary in Lagos State was manipulated in favour of the winner, Jimi Agbaje. The PDP accused former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, of working to frustrate its plan to field a credible and lawful candidate. It accused Obanikoro of storming the election venue with “30 heavily armed mobile policemen”. It contended that, as against Obanikoro’s claim, it complied with its electoral guidelines in the conduct of the primary. The party also denied the former minister’s allegation of over voting during the primary. Its position was contained in three processes it filed in reaction to the suit filed be-

•Accuses Obanikoro of ‘sabotage’ From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja fore the Federal High Court, Abuja, by Obanikoro. The former minister sought to, among others, annul the outcome of the Lagos primary. The processes include a notice of preliminary objection, affidavit to show cause and counter affidavit. They were filed for the party by Paul Ananaba. The PDP, which urged the court to dismiss Obanikoro’s suit, argued that even if there was non-compliance with the electoral guideline, “it was not substantial to warrant the prayers sought by the plaintiff”. In its affidavit to show why Obanikoro’s prayers should not be granted, the party denied that there was

over voting. It argued that its electoral committee conducted a free exercise. “Voting was by the modified open ballot in accordance with Article 19k of the guidelines. “Before voting, 864 ballot papers were issued to the accredited delegates. In the electoral committee chairman’s opening remarks, he mentioned that 806 delegates were accredited. “But this initial remark was a tabulation error, which occurred, following the omission to tabulate the following list of delegates even though they had been duly accredited: Ikeja ad hoc delegates (30); Ikeja automatic delegates (seven); Ojo automatic delegates (six); Mushin auto-

matic delegates (eight) and Alimosho automatic delegates (seven), bringing the total omitted in tabulation to 58. “There was valid accreditation and 864 delegates were accredited. “One delegate, Tolani Animashaun, from the list of Ward M, Eti Osa Local Government, was removed based on a petition.” The PDP stated that the suit was intended to “improperly frustrate and deprive the party from fielding its lawful governorship candidate in Lagos State”. The party, in its preliminary objection, challenged the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case on the grounds that the suit was without the necessary parties; that it was frivolous and amounted to an abuse of court’s process. The PDP argued that despite his allegations that

Chief Bode George and Agbaje allegedly manipulated the election and disrupted proceedings during the primary, he (Obanikoro) failed to name them as parties in the case. Yesterday, Obanikoro’s lawyer James Odiba confirmed receipt of all the processes filed by the PDP. He said the second defendant, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had also filed a response. Odiba sought time to enable him respond. He said parties were talking to work out a possible amicable settlement. Although Ananaba did not confirm that parties were talking, he, however, did not object to Odiba’s request for adjournment. Justice Ahmed Mohammed adjourned till January 14.

Ajimobi: no new taxes‘ll be imposed •Presents N141.8b budget

YO State Governor Abiola Ajimobi has said no new taxes will be imposed on the people. He said this yesterday when he presented a N141.8 billion budget proposal to the House of Assembly. The governor said the “Budget of Repositioning’’ was guided by his administration’s desire to consolidate on its achievements and reposition the state. Ajimobi said rather than impose new taxes on the people; a strategy has been put in place to enhance the level of cost effectiveness of revenue collection, especially with respect to existing fees and levies. He said priority would be given to expanding the state’s taxable base through accelerated gainful employment generation by private investors. While N86.72 billion, representing 61.17 per cent, was allocated for recurrent expenditure, capital expenditure will gulp N55.05 billion, representing 38.83 per cent of the budget. The sectoral allocation consists of economy N29.798 billion; social services N58,492 billion; urban regional development N8.93 billion and general administration N44.559billion. With respect to education, the governor said efforts would be made to complete all on-going projects, such as building and furnishing of classrooms and the building of model schools across the state. The Speaker, Mrs. Monsurat Sunmonu, praised Ajimobi for improving the internally-generated revenue and encouraging private sector participation.

Police parade 40 suspects, four bodies

HE police in Ondo State paraded yesterday 40 suspects and four bodies of robbery suspects in Akure, the state capital. Commissioner of Police Isaac Eke said the four “robbers “ were killed after his men pursued them, which led to an accident at 4am yesterday. Eke said the “robbers” lost control of their vehicle and crashed it into a fence. The commissioner said the suspects shot at his men, who were on patrol on Idanre Road. A victim, Olumide Michael, said he and his brother were on their way to Port Harcourt, Rivers State, when they were kidnapped by the suspects, who were disguised as security operatives. He said: “These dead “criminals” pretended that they were security operatives. They said we were driving a tinted-glass car and we should follow them to the nearest police station. They took over my brother’s car and drove toward Ifon in Ose Local Government Area. “They had also apprehended five other people.They drove us to a forest. “When we got there, they asked my brother how much he had in his account . He told them the amount. “They changed the number

From Leke Akeredolu, Akure

plate of his car with others vehicles they had snatched to police and Federal Government number plates. “They drove through the forest to Owo and when we got to another place, they phoned one man saying ‘we will be going for an operation and would need police uniform’. “Before leaving for the operation, they tied five of us to a tree and took two others away. “We were rescued by farmers. We went to report at a nearby police station. The divisional police officer called us later that some suspected criminals had been arrested. “But getting to the police command, we discovered that they were dead and we could still identify them.” The police commissioner said two AK 47 police rifles stolen by the suspects were recovered. Also recovered were N160,000, 126 live ammunitions, three magazines, 21 phones, two numbers plates, substances suspected to be dynamite and charms. Six robbery suspects, 32 cultists, and two people with human skulls were paraded.

•Ajimobi presenting the budget proposal to Mrs. Sunmonu...yesterday.

Police rescue don’s wife From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

HE wife of the Chairman, Academic Staff Union of Universities, Osun State University chapter, Dr. Oluseye Abiona, kidnapped last Friday in Osogbo, has been rescued by the police. A source said Mrs. Funmilayo Abiona, regained her freedom at 4pm after the police engaged her abductors in a gun duel on the Akure-Ilesa highway. It was gathered that two of the suspects were arrested in the bush while trying to retrieve the ransom collected from the victim’s family. The victim was said to have been taken to an undisclosed hospital by her family. The source said: “The wife of ASUU Chairman in Uniosun has been released and we are grateful to God for the efforts of everybody, particularly the police, who assisted in ensuring her release. “She is hale and hearty and is receiving treatment in a private hospital. Thank you.” Last Friday, Mrs. Abiona was waylaid by the gun men on her way home at Oke-Baale area of Osogbo. She was taken away in her abductors' vehicle. Eyewitnesses said the gunmen smashed the rear wind screen of her vehicle and dragged her into their vehicle, leaving her two children in the car. Detectives from the State Police Command took the children away.

Fed Govt withdraws soldiers from Operation Burst

HE Federal Government has withdrawn soldiers from the Oyo State government’s security outfit, Operation Burst. The All Progressives Congress (APC) said it was a deliberate effort to allow the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to unleash thuggery on the state. The party, in a statement yesterday, said the soldiers’ withdrawal would sabotage the efforts of Governor Abiola Ajimobi in sustaining peace in the state. Signed by its Director of Publicity and Strategy, Olawale Sadare, the party’s statement alleged that some

•APC faults move From Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

influential PDP members in the state were behind the Federal Government’s order. It reads: “The decision of the PDP-controlled Federal Government to order the military authority to withdraw their men from Operation Burst is, to say the least, a grand plan to pave way for the nefarious activities of thugs and criminally-minded persons in Oyo State. “Without mincing words, we are worried that a government at the centre,

which has failed to curtail insurgency in some parts of the country can succumb to the pressure from its surrogates in one of the most peaceful states in the country to sabotage resultyielding security efforts by a government, which values the lives and property of its people. “But for reasons traceable to their inherent failure in the business of governance coupled with a bid to win the 2015 elections at all costs, the PDP elements would not be comfortable with the newly

found peace in the pacesetter state. “With this development, they have further confirmed their culpability in the pocket of politicallymotivated violence in some parts of Ibadan recently. “We call on well-meaning Nigerians to prevail on President Goodluck Jonathan to reverse the order and desist from further actions capable of exposing the people to insecurity, political violence and social unrest. “We call on residents to remain calm and go about their businesses without fear.”

Aregbesola presents N197.08b budget

SUN State Governor Rauf Aregbesola presented yesterday the 2015 budget of N197.08 billion to the House of Assembly. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the “Budget of renewed hope’’ was presented by the Permanent Secretary, Office of Budget and Economic Planning, Segun Olorunsogo, on behalf of the governor.

Aregbesola said the budget would ensure the completion of ongoing projects, and beginning of new ones that would bring about positive impact on socio- economic life of the people. The governor said N131. 8 billion was estimated for recurrent expenditure; capital expenditure will gulp N65. 3billion.

According to him, “the budget complied with the acceptable international standard and best practice.’’ A breakdown of the budget showed that the economic sector received the lion share of N41. 6 billion, while the social service sector received N21.6billon. Regional planning and environment got N15. 2

billion and general administration was N31. 7billion. Personnel cost was N27. 5 billion, overhead cost was N17.9 billion and the Consolidated Revenue Fund Charges N41. 2 billion. Receiving the budget, Speaker Najeem Salaam said he believed the budget would deliver dividends of democracy to the people.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS Abia gets chief judge

Naval chief seeks jetties’ renovation HE Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Usman Jibrin said yesterday the Nigerian Navy (NN) lacks adequate basic infrastructures like jetties and repair facilities. This is just as he disclosed that the NN made tremendous progress in its policing duties with the adoption of maritime domain awareness technologies, resulting to significant reduction in crude oil theft and other maritime crimes. Vice-Admiral Jibrin spoke at the NN ceremonial sunset and end-of-year ball, held at the headquarters, Naval Training Command (NAVTRAC), Apapa. He said despite the suc-

•Honours 58 retired officers

By Precious Igbonwelundu

cesses the navy recorded in the year, the force’ jetties and repair facilities need rehabilitation and augmenting. “Also, supply of material such as petroleum oil and lubricant as well as spares for the regular maintenance of the new platforms we are acquiring would need to be improved. Though these demands are heavy, the consequences of neglecting them are direr,” he said. The CNS at the occasion honoured 58 naval personnel who retired this year for their meritorious service to

‘

There is nothing that we can give that will adequately compensate for your sacrifices

’

the nation. Among the honoured officers were 17 Rear Admirals, 25 Commodores, nine Captains, three Commanders and four Lieutenant Commanders. Commending the officers for their dedication and selfless service to the nation, the

CNS said: “There is nothing that we can give that will adequately compensate for your sacrifices.” At the gathering were Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Aliyu Ismaila, who represented the Minister, Gen. Aliyu Gusau; former CNS’ Jubril Ayinla; J.S.A. Ombu and I.I. Ibrahim; Rear Admiral A.A. Samsele (rtd); wife of the CNS, Mrs. Lami Jibrin; General Officer Commanding (GOC), 81 Division, Gen. Tanmi Dibi; Flag Officers Commanding (FOC) Western, Eastern and Naval Training Commands, Rear Admirals, Sanmi Alade, Goddy Ayankpele and Obiora Medani.

•Orji swears in Justice Uzokwe From Ugochukwu Ugoji-Eke, Umuahia

BIA State Governor Theodore Orji has sworn in Justice Theresa Uzoamaka Uzokwe as the chief judge (CJ), after acting twice. She is the second female chief judge. Speaking at the event in Umuahia, the governor said the 1999 Constitution gave him, the House of Assembly, the Judicial Service Commission and the National Judicial Council (NJC) the power to appoint a CJ. He said the power of appointing an acting or a substantive chief judge and in keeping with Section 271(5) of the Constitution was the basis on which he appointed Justice Uzokwe. Orji said he hoped that the chief judge would surmount the challenges of her new office and enjoined her to ensure a synergy among the three arms of government. He advised Justice Uzokwe to make an impact, appealing to her colleagues to support her. The chief judge, who was full of emotions, thanked the governor for the opportunity and promised to justify the confidence reposed in her. She started her career 33 years ago and was made a high court judge 19 years ago. She is the first non-indigene to be appointed as a chief judge.

Chime gets kudos for senatorial choice By Joseph Jibueze

•From left: Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar; Vice President Namadi Sambo; Abia State Governor Theodore Orji and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi, at the launch of Enugu-Port Harcourt Intercity Train Service in Port Harcourt…yesterday PHOTO:NAN

500 APGA, LP members defect to PPA

IVE hundred members of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the Labour Party (LP) from Nnewi South and Aguata local government areas of Anambra State yesterday defected to the Progressive People’s Alliance (PPA). The defection took place at Ekwulobia Township Stadium in Aguata Local Government. PPA was led by its state leader, Chief Godwin Ezeemo. Flags were presented to the candidates, who won the primary elections. Ezeemo urged the people

come disenchanted with From Nwanosike Onu, what is happening in APGA, Awka to vote for the party, saying PDP and other parties. They it would improve their wel- want a reliable party. This is why they are defecting to fare. “The indigenes have be- the PPA,” he said.

Enjoining the people to vote for PPA candidates, Ezeemo noted: “We are here today to showcase our candidates by giving them flags.”

Abaribe: Jonathan asked me to return HE lawmaker representing Abia South on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Enyi Abaribe, has said he never wanted to return to the Senate, but for President Goodluck Jonathan, who urged him to return to strengthen the legislature. He said he had made up his mind to run for the governor,

From Ugochukwu Ugoji-Eke, Umuahia

as returning to the Senate would not give him the opportunity to serve the state, which was a larger constituency than the Senate. Addressing PDP stakeholders from Abia South in his country home at Ohuru in Obingwa Local Government,

Abaribe said he had bought the nomination and expression of interest forms for the governorship election. He said it was after buying the forms that the President’s directive came, which made him to change his mind, adding that of the 54 senators billed to return to the Senate, only 12, including himself, picked the tickets.

GROUP, the Nsukka Welfare Association, United Kingdom (UK), has praised Enugu State Governor Sullivan Chime on what it called his “consistency in delivering gains of democracy to the state.” Its President, David Anie Okoro, said the governor demonstrated it again by backing “a great and humble leader” Mr. Chukwuka Utazi, as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Enugu North Senatorial Zone. Okoro, in a statement, said: “Utazi will be used by God to lead our senatorial zone into greater developments in all areas. We wish him God’s grace and protection as he builds an Enugu North that will serve and last. “Utazi has achieved greatness. He did not stumble into greatness and the reason he has the mandate is because the party under the leadership of Chime has seen in Utazi, a leader, who loves his people and will do all that is required to ensure that Nsukka senatorial zone maximises its potential.”

CAN urges INEC to conduct free, fair elections

•Wishes Nigerians peaceful Yuletide

HE Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Lagos State chapter, has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct free and fair elections. It prayed for peace before, during and after the elections and wished Nigerians a peaceful Yuletide. The Chairman, Apostle Alexander Bamgbola, who spoke at the inauguration of the new executives at ECWA in Mushin, Lagos, said irrespective of the results of the elections, politicians and other Nigerians should keep the peace. He said the country was greater than any individual, adding that politicians should consider Nigeria’s interest before acting. Apostle Bamgbola said CAN would promote unity.

By Tokunbo Ogunsami

The cleric, who said he was happy at the emergence of Christians as the governorship candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, vowed that under his leadership, CAN would perform the roles expected of it. The other executives are the Vice Chairman, Rev. Emmanuel Oguntosin; Secretary, Elder Israel Akinadewo; and Assistant Secretary, Rev Fr. Mathew Ogunyase. The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola on Christian Religious Matter, Dr. Sam Ogedengbe, hailed the emergence of the Apostle Bamigbola-led executive. He implored Lagosians to obtain their voter cards so that they could vote.

Oshiomhole recalls Ihonvbere •Accepts commissioner’s resignation DO State Governor Adams Oshiomhole has reinstated Prof Julius Ihonvbere as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG). The reinstatement followed the review and resolution of the issues that led to his resignation on December 9. Prof Ihonvbere’s reinstatement is with immediate effect. Also, Commissioner for Youths, Sports and Social Mobilisation, Chris Okaeben, has resigned his appointment, in line with the electoral and constitutional requirements, which mandate political appointees to resign 45 days before an election. Okaeben is the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Oredo West Constituency in next February’s election into the House of Assembly. The commissioner thanked the governor for the opportunity given him to serve. The governor, who accepted Okaeben’s resignation, thanked him for contributing to the Edo project and wished him resounding success in the February election.

•Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed presenting hairdressing equipment to some women during the empowerment programme of his wife, Omolewa (right), in Ilorin...on Monday

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 08023247888

NDLEA arrests four suspected drug traffickers

HE National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested four suspected drug traffickers at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) in Ikeja, Lagos. The suspects are: Omidiya Taiwo (44), who works at a foreign automobile company; Anikwe Chukwudi Charles (25), a hotel attendant in Lagos; Igwe Nelson Chidi (24), a student, and Agomuo Ekwutosi Basil (44), an Imo State-based farmer. About 6.135 kilogrammes of narcotics were seized from them. NDLEA Lagos Airport Commander, Mr. Hamza Umar gave the breakdown of the drug as 4.290 kilogrammes of heroin; 570 grammes of methamphetamine and 1.275 kilogrammes of cocaine. “Omidiya Taiwo was found in possession of 525 grammes of cocaine and 1.540 kilogrammes of heroin. He ingested 87 wraps and concealed others in his pants on his way to Spain. Anikwe Chukwudi Charles was intercepted with 570 grammes of methamphetamine concealed in the handles of his luggage on his way to Malaysia. Igwe Nelson Chidi was found with 750 grammes of cocaine hidden under his luggage and Agomuo Ekwutosi Basil was caught with 2.750 kilogrammes of heroin hidden inside his luggage while returning from Pakistan. They are cooperating with our team of investigators and will be charged to court soon,” Umar

•Basil

•The exhibits By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

said. Taiwo, who works in Spain, said he was introduced into drug trafficking by a friend. “I have been living in Spain for the past 14 years where I work with an automobile company. My friend in Barcelona called me and requested that I should bring drugs to Spain. He even contacted somebody who gave me the drugs in Lagos. After swallowing 87 wraps, I hid the remaining in my pants because the wraps were many. I was sad when the drug was detected at the airport because I would have made a fortune from it,” Omidiya, who hails from Ogun State, said. Charles said he was on his way to Malaysia for studies when he was caught with the drugs. “I was working as a hotel attendant in Lagos when a customer asked me if I am a graduate. I told him that I have five credits but could not go further in

my education because of lack of finance. He promised to help me and he used to give me money any time he came around. He called me that he had completed my admission for further studies in Malaysia. That was how he paid my travel expenses and gave me a bag to take to Malaysia. He said his friend would collect the bag from me and assist me secure my admission. Unfortunately, drug was found inside the handle of the bag he gave me.” Chidi, who hails from Imo State, said: “I got admission two months ago to study Tourism and Hotel Management in Cyprus. While in Nigeria, a friend in Cyprus called me to bring narcotics for a fee of E5,000. That was how I got involved in drug trafficking. I wanted to use the money to settle my fees and buy books for my study. This is a big setback for my career.” Basil, a farmer, said he was suffering in the village when his friend asked him to go to Pakistan. “I am a farmer in Imo State. It was difficult

Synagogue: Rescue agencies not prevented, says witness

HE Lagos coroner heard yesterday that the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) were not barred from carrying out rescue work at the site of the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) collapsed guest house. SCOAN’s Chief Security Officer (CSO), Sunday Okogie, told the coroner, Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, that no member of the church prevented NEMA and LASEMA officials from rescuing people trapped under the collapsed building. The CSO, who tendered the unedited Close Circuit Television (CCTV) footages of the incident from September 12 to September 16, told the court that the recordings contradicted the claims of the agencies that members of the church were hostile and prevented them from accessing the scene of the incident. Okogie pointed out that both agencies arrived at the church about an hour after the building collapsed and gained access to the scene in less than a minute. “My Lord, on the first day of the incident, as you can see, nobody prevented them from entering into the compound. But as you can see from the video, LASEMA came with only one bus and no heavy-duty equipment as they claimed before this court. It was the same for NEMA. They came ill-equipped for the job of digging out those who were trapped under the rubble,” he said. The witness said NEMA and LASEMA officials left the church about 5.45 pm when several persons were still trapped.

By Adebisi Onanuga

“For the first three days, that was how they were operating. They would resume at about 8 am and leave in the evening as though they were on duty in the office,” he added. Also testifying, National Executive Coordinator of Life Savers Foundation (LSF) Mrs. Fola Shoetan said youths from SCOAN played a major role in the rescue work compared to the agencies’ officials. She said under the statute, responders were not supposed to move away from a disaster site. Shoetan said: “I don’t know when NEMA officials left the scene on the first day. But LASEMA officials left at 10.30 pm on the second day. As at the time LASEMA officials left on the second day, some persons were still trapped at the collapsed site. “The LASEMA General Manager (GM), Dr Femi Osanyintolu, did not

cooperate very well with other responders and I kept telling him that. Although he is very hard working and always around at the site, what he did most of the time he was around was to hold meetings with his team from the state.” She added: “The police, I can confirm were present all through the period of the rescue operation and no security agent ever stopped us from working and to the best of my knowledge nobody was assaulted.” She said from her observations, NEMA and LASEMA were not well equipped to manage disasters. The witness urged the Federal and Lagos State governments to ensure that adequate equipment are provided for the agencies to effectively contain emergencies. Testifying on the role played by her agency and others, she said more Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) should be allowed in rescue operations.

‘Day my husband nearly killed me’

MIDDLE-aged trader, Okochi Onakala, has sought the dissolution of her 12-yearold marriage to Nnamdi before the Customary Court in Agege, a Lagos suburb. She alleged that her husband occasionally maltreats her, adding that there was an occasion he nearly killed her. The petitioner said: “I have never known peace since we got married. He beats me and threatens to kill me in the presence of our children. Recently, he pushed me from a onestorey building. Yet, I have been responsible for the house rent and our children’s upkeep.

By Basirat Braimah

Nnamdi confirmed the allegation, saying: “All she said is true. I pushed her from the storey building, but she didn’t hit her head against the wall. I am just frustrated. It is also true that she is responsible for everything in the house. I want her back; I still love her.” The marriage, which was sealed under Native and Customary Law is blessed with four children. The court’s President, Pa Adekunle Williams, ordered Nnamdi to write an undertaking that he would not beat his wife again. The case was adjourned till February 5 for mediation.

for me to feed my wife with one child because of hardship. A friend invited me to Pakistan and promised to sponsor my trip and help me secure a good job. When I got to Pakistan, he told me there was no job but that I should take drugs to Nigeria. He promised to give me N500, 000 to start up my business if I succeeded in taking the drugs to Nigeria. Since life was becoming unbearable, I decided to take the risk. I was, however, not lucky as I was arrested at the airport in Lagos.” NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Ahmadu Giade warned drug trafficking syndicates that the agency would continue to intercept narcotics, arrest traffickers and prosecute them. “We have put in place measures to intercept narcotics this end-ofyear season. Drug traffickers planning to smuggle drugs through the country shall be apprehended and prosecuted. I am happy with the arrests, particularly that of 25-yearold Anikwe Chukwudi Charles, a

•Chidi

hotel attendant, who was taking drugs to Malaysia where drug trafficking attracts capital punishment, “he said.

‘Buhari ‘ll end crimes’

‘

VIOLENT crimes’ such as assassination, kidnapping and armed robbery will reduce, if the All Progressives Congress (APC), presidential candidate Gen Muhammadu Buhari is elected. A security consultant, Mr. Folorunsho Atta, said Buhari’s track record shows that he would curb crime. “Between December 31, 1983 and August 27, 1985, when he was head of state, violent crimes such as armed robbery, kidnapping, assassination and insurgency were nipped in the bud. Attempt

by a religious sect, the Matai-sine, to rear its ugly head in the northern part of the country in 1984 was suppressed by the police and military,” he said, asking: “Can anyone tell me any prominent Nigerian that was assassinated during this period?” Atta also asked that security be tightened around Buhari and other APC leaders ahead of next year’s elections. He mentioned Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and the APC National Chairman, Chief John OdigieOyegun, among others, that the security agents should protect.

Muslim professionals, Dubai scholar HE Guild of Muslim Profesfor convention sionals for Peace and Devel-

opment (GMP) will hold its 2014 Convention at the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON) Chalets in Badagry, Lagos tomorrow and on Sunday. Tagged Professionals Beyond Borders, the four-day leadership training and networking programme will have Director of Studies, School of the Built Environment, Heriot-Watt University in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Dr Assem Al-Hajj as key speaker. The event will feature keynote sessions, panel discussions, valuable networking and brainstorming hours. Mr. Faheed Olajide, one of the conveners, said Al-Hajj has 20 years of industry consultancy services and academic experience. Olajide, the General Project Manager, Alcatel-Lucent, said the convention is aimed at providing an ideal platform for networking and learning. “It will provide first-hand information on the corporate

By Tajudeen Adebanjo

world, finding new business contacts on all business opportunities and upgrading career strategies for the upcoming years,” he said. The GMP, Olajide explained, is dedicated to building professional leaders, creating opportunities for growth and enhancing peaceful coexistence in the workforce and in everyday life. He said the guild focuses on developing programs that improve the quality of life, expression of true professionalism in the ideal Islamic perspective and realisation of balance and integration of career, spirituality and family. Executive Director, StanbicIBTC Nominees, Mr Akeem Oyewale, said the event is different from any other Islamic camping programmes as it focuses only on how professionals can improve their game and re-strategise their career path, not just for personal improvement, but to also positively impact on nation building.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS

Akwa Ibom: Oron threaten militancy over governorship impasse

LDERS, youths and women from the five local government areas in Oro, Akwa Ibom State, protested yesterday at Oron, the headquarters of Oron Local Government Area, over the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship ticket. They were angry that the party did not give its ticket to an Oro indigene for next year’s election. The protesters threatened to take to militancy, if their request was not granted.

From Uyoatta Eshiet, Uyo

They accused Governor Godswill Akpabio and the state PDP of scheming out Oro from the governorship ticket, which they said was their turn to have. The Oro said the governor’s action and the state PDP’s collaboration had caused trouble for the party since the December 8 governorship primary. The protesters, it was learnt, planned to go on with

the action for one week. Markets and other commercial activities were closed while banks rendered skeletal services. The President-General of Oron Union, the highest policy-making body of the Oro, Chief Asuquo Iniukim, accused Akpabio of robbing the Oro of their right to produce a governor for the state through next year’s election, after waiting for 27 years. He said his people would not accept any other arrange-

ment from the governor and the PDP. The youth vowed to bomb oil platforms and gas plants in Oro land and waters, if the PDP failed to present an Oro indigene as its governorship candidate in next year’s election. Angry elders and youths said the Presidency and the state government had taken the Oro for granted for too long, adding that it was time to show that the Oro were not docile.

•Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole (right) and Chairman, Edo State All Progressives Congress (APC), Anselm Ojezua (left) presenting a broom, the symbol of APC, to Frank Okiye, former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Majority Leader in Edo State House of Assembly, after his defection to the APC in Benin ...on Monday.

HE Chairman of the Odi Community Compensation Trust Fund Management Committee, Prof. Kobina Imananagha, has alerted to alleged threats on the lives of members of the committee. It was learnt that they had pulled out, to avoid being killed by allegedly sponsored youths of the ancient community. Imananagha is a former Provost of the College of Medical Sciences of the Bayelsa State owned Niger Delta University (NDU) on Wilberforce Island. The panel chairman said N15 billion of the N37.6 billion released by the Federal Government to Odi as compensation was the final payment and not part payment, as being insinuated in some quarters. Imananagha spoke yesterday in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, at an interactive session with reporters. The leader of the Odi Destruction Case Prosecution Committee explained that he and two other Odi retirees

Odi: Compensation panel members pull out over threat to lives •‘Govt’s N15b of N37.6b compensation final, not part’ From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

sponsored the prosecution of the Odi case in Nigerian and London courts. He said many Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) were hired to prosecute the matter for 10 years without any contribution from other residents of the community. Imananagha agree to pay eminent lawyers 40 per cent of the compensation, if they

won, and 60 per cent to the community. The academic said it was difficult to get lawyers to agree on the percentage, as some from Lagos wanted 60 or 50 per cent of the compensation. Imananagha, a former chief medical director (CMD) of the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, noted that with the

release of N15 billion by the Federal Government, the lawyers took N6 billion while N9 billion was left to Odi for the development of the community and to rebuild homes destroyed by soldiers during the November 20, 1999 invasion. He recalled that Olusegun Obasanjo was the President then and Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha Bayelsa State governor.

Christmas: Oshiomhole calls for vigilance

DO State Governor Adams Oshiomhole has urged the people to remain vigilant and security-conscious as Nigerians join the rest of world to celebrate Christmas tomorrow. In his message to the residents, the governor noted that while many states under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were

•Pays December salary unable to pay salaries for up to three to four months, the Edo State Government had met its salary obligation till date. He said next year would afford Nigerians a unique opportunity to vote out PDP’s bad leadership, which had been a clog in the wheel of the nation’s progress.

Oshiomhole said: “Despite the economic hardship and lean resources accruing to the state from the Federation Account, the good news is that the state government has paid all workers in the civil service, including the teachers, their salaries for December 2014 to enable them enjoy the Yuletide with their loved ones.”

Police rescue three-year old from kidnappers in Rivers

HE Rivers State Police Command has rescued a three-year old boy, Emmanuel Obasi, from kidnappers. The youngster was reportedly abducted by gunmen at his Rumuekini home in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area on December 15. Police spokesman, Ahmad Mohammad, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the development in a statement yesterday in Port Harcourt, the state capital. He said the minor was rescued yesterday from the kid-

•Two suspects arrested From Rosemary Nwisi, Port Harcourt

nappers’ hideout at Rumuodogu II. Mohammad said three of the hoodlums, including the minor’s co-tenant who allegedly masterminded the abduction, were arrested. Police Commissioner Dan Bature reportedly handed over the boy to his father. Mohammed restated the command’s commitment to responding to emergency calls. The police spokesman

urged the public to always volunteer useful security information to the police. He said: “The Rivers State Police Command wishes to inform the public of another safe rescue of a three-year old male child kidnap victim. “On December 22, at 1500 hours (3pm), police operatives tracked and stormed the kidnappers’ hideout at Rumuodogu II, Port Harcourt, where the child, Emmanuel Obasi, who was kidnapped on December,

was kept. “Two suspected kidnappers, Ben Elenwo and Ogele Akiyo, were arrested at the hideout, which led to the arrest of their comrade in crime, Ibezin Isih, at another location. “The idea of kidnapping little Emmanuel was conceived and initiated by Ogele Akiyo, who is victim’s co-tenant, while Ben Elenwo, who posed as the child’s school teacher, executed the kidnapping. “Emmanuel Obasi has since been handed over to his father by Police Commisioner Dan Bature in his office...”

Akwa Ibom: 22 governorship aspirants deny meeting Buhari

HE 22 aggrieved Akwa Ibom State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirants have denied holding a meeting with the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari, or any of his representatives. They said the report on the purported meeting was contrived to discredit them as loyal party men by the people who denied them and Akwa Ibom a free and fair primary. The agitated aspirants, in a statement yesterday in Abuja, the nation’s capital, said their only request to the PDP leadership was for the party to redeem its credibility by nullifying the outcome of the December 8 primary. They described the primary as “fraudulent, not transparent and a violation of the

party’s rule on accreditation of delegates”. The aspirants vowed not to be blackmailed or intimidated into jettisoning their legitimate quest for fair play, equity and justice in a democratic setting that ought to be rooted in their fundamental human rights to fair hearing. They stressed “that while having meetings with any individual or interest group is within our legitimate rights, and something that would not be thrown away in a hurry, we, as faithful members of the PDP, remain hopeful that the party will show leadership and responsibility at ensuring that the grievances of its members are always expeditiously addressed and a policy of inclusiveness pursued in the overall interest of the party, essentially in an election period like this”.

ASUU protests assault on members in Benin

EMBERS of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) protested yesterday the alleged manhandling of its members by suspected hoodlums. The protesters were angry that the hoodlums unleashed mayhem on the members over disputed land allegedly belonging to the university. The union, in a statement yesterday in Benin, the Edo State capital, by its state Chairman Anthony MonyeEmina and Secretary Okeri Henry, urged law enforcement agencies to intervene in the matter to save the lives of

From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

its members. The statement reads: “We write to the attention of the public to the resort to lawlessness and gangsterism against some of our members on Friday, 19, December. “For the information of the public, the University of Benin was in court over landed property in the GRA, Benin City, and judgment was delivered on Tuesday, December 16, 2014. During the pendency of the matter, the res was tempered with and we strongly believe that this is against the rule of law.

Delta is tired of ethnic politics, says Ogboru

ELTA State Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate, Chief Great Ogboru, has said ethnic bitterness retarded the growth of the state. The LP candidate spoke yesterday in Warri when he visited the Akulagba of Warri Kingdom, Chief Ayiri Emami. He said people of different ethnic groups in the state were tired of such sentiment. Ogboru said the task of defeating the governorship candidate of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would be easier with the support of people like Chief Ayiri. The LP candidate said his programme for the people would eliminate ethnic big-

From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

otry from the state. He noted that the situation in the state largely took its root from the bitterness inflicted on the people by the feeling of long-term deprivation. Ogboru said he had prepared a programme to solve the problem of deprivation in the state. He said: “All Deltans are fed up of this ethnic issue. When I was talking to Ayiri just now, he was also lamenting about it. He tried to make me understand that contrary to what people think of him, he is not happy. He wants to see a Delta State where we are all united, where we can speak our languages and inter-marry.

Edo doesn’t tamper with council funds, says commissioner

DO State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Chief Lucky James, has said under his ministry’s supervision, the local governments have fared better than others in those states. The commissioner addressed reporters in Benin, the state capital, following the allegation that the monthly allocation to local governments did not fully get to them for their development. He berated the peddlers of the allegation, saying they were being malicious because they were uninformed.

From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

James said there had never been any case of unaccountability from the local government areas on the allocations they received. The commissioner stressed that even if such a practice was prevalent in other states, Edo, under Governor Adams Oshiomhole, especially his ministry, had never done so. He said the first line charge payment from the allocation was the payment of teachers’ salaries, followed by five per cent traditional rulers’ statutory allowances and pensions.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 24, 2014

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

OGUN POLITICS Controversy is trailing the Ogun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primaries. Two parallel primaries were held, which produced two candidates-former House of Representatives Speaker Dimeji Bankole and Mr. Gboyega Isiaka. Correspondent ERNEST NWOKOLO examines the war of attrition and its implications for the next election.

•Bankole

•Daniel

•Kashamu

•Isiaka

•Dayo

Ogun PDP: Torn apart by governorship primaries W

HEN the Ogun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held its re-union rally three months ago, the party secretariat on the Ibrahim Babangida Road, Abeokuta, the state capital, was aglow with festivities. Warring party leaders exchanged banters. They resolved to put the past behind them and work as members of one family. Former Governor Gbenga Daniel and his supporters attended the rally. Also at the event was Prince Gboyega Isiaka, who defected from the party in 2011. They embraced the Chairman, Chief Bayo Dayo, the Secretary, Alhaji Semiu Sodipo, and the Southwest Chairman of the Coordination and Mobilisation Committee, Prince Buruji Kashamu. Expectations were high that unity would return to the fold after the rally. Daniel, Kashamu and Dayo said the division was over. But, ahead of the governorship primaries, there was confusion in the party. Party leaders returned to their caucuses to spoil for war. The re-union paled into an artificial reconciliation and wishful thinking. Reminiscent of 2011 episode, Ogun PDP is up in arms against itself. It now suffers from self-inflicted wounds. The bone of contention is the governorship ticket. The preparation for the shadow poll sparked off crisis. It began with a controversy over conflicting delegate lists. While Kashamu and the party structure said they have the authentic delegates list, chieftains loyal to Bankole, a governorship aspirant, claimed that another list existed. The two camps were locked in argument. Bankole and his supporters, including former House of Representatives member, Dave Salako, are believed to be enjoying the support of the PDP national leadership. But, Kashamu and Dayo have a hold on the party structure in the state. When Dayo conducted the primaries, Isiaka emerged as the candidate. Bankole kicked against the process, saying that it was

flawed. The former Speaker abstained from the process. At the close of the poll, Isiaka polled 705 votes. Hon. Kayode Amusan scored 151 votes while 10 other contestants, including Prince Yanju Lipede, Tony Ojesina, Abiodun Akinlade scored zero votes. The exercise was witnessed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials, including Mr.David Asemo, Mr. Clement Idoko and the commission’s administrative Secretary in Ogun State, Dickson Atiba. Four years ago, Isiaka won the ticket at the primaries held at the MKO International Stadium, Abeokuta. But, the National Working Committee, was sensitive to former President President Olusegun Obasanjo’s body language. Isiaka was edged out and former Administrator of Ekiti State, General Tunji Olurin, became the flag bearer. The technocrat-turned politician defected to the Peoples Party of Nigeria(PPN)and became its candidate. But, he was defeated by the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) candidate, Senator Ibikunle Amosun. The post-primary crisis escalated last week when a group, Dimeji Bankole Movement, dismissed Isiaka as a “fake” produced at a flawed primary election. Its Publicity Secretary, Kayode Akintunde, said the chapter is yet to have a candidate. He recalled that the NWC had issued a directive postponing the governorship primary, adding that the disputed exercise was null and void and of no effect. He also said that Bankole and eight other aspirants stayed away from the exercise in compliance with the directive.

Akintunde said: “We believe that Dimeji Bankole and his colleagues should be hailed for their obedience and discipline, instead of crucifying and punishing them through the acceptance of an unauthorized primary. Isiaka is no more than an adulterated article tricked by the organisers into believing that the governorship primary of November 8 was a genuine primary. “The electoral committee from the national secretariat of the party that was supposed to conduct the primary was not present; neither were observers from the Independent National Electoral Commission.” But, Isiaka’s kinsmen from Egbado Division have objected to the group’s claims. His supporters, including Chief Iyabo Apampa, former Deputy Governor Salmot Badru and Chief Ebun Oyagbola staged a protest at the party secretariat, demanding the confirmation of his candidature. The Ogun West PDP leaders also alleged plans by the party to impose bankole as the candidate. They said that the district has been marginalised, maintaining that any attempt to deny Isiaka the ticket will be resisted. Also, the PDP Senatorial Chairman for Ogun West, Boye Adesina, alleged that some powerful and undemocratic elements and their collaborators are bent on throwing the chapter into confusion. He said: “It is not in the tradition of the PDP to impose or select candidates for elections, but to go through democratic process of open, transparent election as was conducted on December 8. We passionately appeal to the

‘Ogun West people are seriously agitated for the long years of marginalisation in the state and any undue interference to upturn or alter the result of the primary election will not only seriously alienate our people, it will certainly have undesirable consequences on the fortunes of the party in the district’

national leadership of our party not to be hoodwinked by these elements to short-circuit the transparent process that has produced Prince Gboyega Nasir Isiaka as the Ogun State PDP governorship standard bearer for the 2015 election. “Ogun West people are seriously agitated for the long years of marginalisation in the state and any undue interference to upturn or alter the result of the primary election will not only seriously alienate our people, it will certainly have undesirable consequences on the fortunes of the party in the district. Prince Gboyega Nasir Isiaka has emerged as the governorship candidate of the PDP in Ogun State through the process as defined by the party and we are irrevocably committed to his candidature.” The protesters handed a protest letter to the PDP Secretary, Alhaji Semiu Sodipo, who assured them that the party would stand by the mandate freely given to Isiaka. He said the state executive committee would send the protest letter to the PDP national secretariat in Abuja. But, Gboyega Nasiru Isiaka Campaign Organisation (GNICO) fired back at Bankole, dismissing him as an “alien” in the Ogun PDP. Its Director of Media and Publicity, Comrade Ifekayode Akinbode, said it was an affront on the sensibilities of the YewaAwori people for the ex-Speaker and his group to insult them, warning that they would not tolerate another insult in the future. Akinbode added: “Let it be stated that Dimeji Bankole is an alien in Ogun PDP today as he has never participated nor identified with the party in all its processes between 2011 and now. “Nevertheless, any attempt to denigrate the Yewa-Aworis will be met with equal and more brute reaction.” As the battle for who gets the ticket rages between Isiaka and Bankole, there are fears that the crisis will further polarise the chapter and weaken it, ahead of the elections.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 24, 2014

‘

I wrote a petition to the NWC to explain to them. The NWC exercised its powers to count the votes and I got feelers that I was leading by a wide margin

RACE TO 2015

‘Aliero has not dumped APC’

Oluseyi Makinde, an engineer, is the Oyo State Social Democratic Party (SDP)governorship. The 47 years old politician shed light on why he defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and his preparations for next year’s election. EMMANUEL OLADESU met him.

From Khadijat Saidu, Birnin Kebbi

HE All Progressive Congress(APC) in Kebbi State has clarified that former Governor Adamu Aliero is still achieftain of the party. The Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Sani Dododo, said the media report that the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has left the party is in bad faith. He attributed the rumour to mischief makers, who are bent on discrediting the eminent politician. The party official said the image of Aliero cannot be dented by political foes. Dododo said: “The rumor is not true. It is a mear speculations coming from the opposition to draw attention to their side because they know that the APC is a party to beat in Kebbi State.” He urged party members to shun rumors emanating from the social media, saying that they are subjective.

‘There’s need for generational shift in Oyo’ W

HY did you defect from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the Social Democratic Party (SDP)? It is an open secret how the primaries in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), went. The party would not obey its own guideline and it wouldn’t also a court order regarding the delegates to elect the party’s flagbearer. So, when they wouldn’t do that and our people insisted that they were waiting for us. they want us to have a platform for them where the hope of the generality of the people of Oyo would be realized. We then decided to move down to the SDP to give that hope to our people. What is fascinating about the SDP? There is the concept of Omoluabi in Yorubaland. And that is who we are and that is how we were brought up. We look at the parties and all the available platforms and coming from this part of the country, and being Omoluabi ourselves, we looked at the promoters of the SDP in persons of Chief Olu Falae and Chief Segun Osoba. These are the men that have contributed immensely to the progress of Yoruba race. And they are Omoluabi personified. And we discussed with them. They have vision for Yoruba. We just kind of share the vision. What impact can your party make on voters, six weeks to elections? Well, democracy is not about the positions you have occupied in the past. It is about the people. It is about the majority of the people and that is where we are going. We have listened to our people. We have heard them. We have given to them, our programs, our manifestos, and there is an alignment that, give us a new platform and we will vote for you. Really, politics is all about people. If the majority of the people say this is where we are going, then that is it and that is democracy. So, I believe that politics of Oyo State is just to be turned around. And all these so called heavyweights, I think they are going to be shocked at the end of the day. This is because the decision of the people is going to be final. Actually the vote is going to count. How would you popularise the relatively unknown SDP? It is not all that easy. It is about educating our people. They know already what we stood for. I am not just coming into the political arena. I have contested in the past and we have been engaged with our people all these years. We are doing a lot to introduce the party. And of course the SDP was used as a political party in 1993. So, it is not something totally new. And people also recognize the fact that freest and fairest election ever conducted in this country was won by the SDP. I will probably say, we have turned

a full circle. But Oyo being a Pace Setter State, I will not be surprised that we are the one projecting this. Watc it, this what is going to catch on the entire country. The reality is that the youth at these days are not realy concerned about the party but about the candidate. So, once we have a large following from Omititun as a structure and they follow Seyi Makinde as a person, then all is well. That is what they care. And remember most of our youth are not illiterate. They are even better at identifying symbols. I thought where we need to do a lot of work is actually with the elderly people. Is SDP also fielding candidates for parliamentary elections? We had hectic time sieving candidates. There is no constituency where SDP is not fielding candidate in the state for the election. What are your chances of winning? That is actually our strength because the people that have done it before, people have seen their limitation. And for us, we haven’t done it before, but we have done a certain things that people have been able to see. And you can fool our people some of the time, you cannot fool them all the time. They are convinced where we are coming from. They know what we have done privately. They know precisely our engagement with them. They know precisely that over the years, we listened to some of the issues within our communities. So, our is that we have been able to do some things privately and they know if we have the resources of government, we would even do a lot better. Could you shed light on your manifestoes? Well, we have our manifesto and our campaign theme which we term ‘Operation HEAP. We are talking about Health care delivery. We are talking of making agriculture positive business in Oyo State and also weaning the state from over depend-

‘We have listened to our people. We have heard them. We have given to them, our programs, our manifestos, and there is an alignment that, give us a new platform and we will vote for you. Really, politics is all about people. If the majority of the people say this is where we are going, then that is it and that is democracy’

‘

Collins is APC candidate for Mabano Constituency • Makinde

ent on oil by projecting agriculture. We have education. We all see the level of decay the infrastructure in Oyo State. We see students and pupils learning under a very difficult and unsafe condition. Dilapidated buildings here and there. non provision of material for the teachers. And, if you look at the WAEC result, Oyo State came last behind all the states in the south-west. We have a good shot at physical infrastructure. I am an engineer by training, and if I look at the current government, you will sympathize with us. If you go to Total Garden they made a fountain there which never works. So, to me, that is halfhearted way of doing things. We will get all we have into doing all those things. We have security in our manifesto. We intend to deepen the current security situation in our state and make it better and more responsive. What are the factors that will shape the general elections in Oyo State? I think the major factor is the personalities that are involved. I can characterize it for you. You have three of the candidates who are over 65 years old. You have two who are around 50 years old. I am 47 years old. And one of those two has been tested as Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. And people have seen what he has done and what he didn’t do. And you have a personality that kind of stood out. I believe people would gravitate towards me. What is your view on generational shift? That is what happens now all over the world. If Oyo State, being a Pace Setter State, decides to actually go for generational shift, not just for the sake of it, but going to somebody with substance, and going there with a marking script. We will give to them what we intend them to do and the time frame within what to do them. Within those time frames, if we are not achieving and hitting our targets, then, people are going to know and hold us responsible for things we said we would be able to do. What is your advice to the people of Oyo State? My advice to the people of Oyo State is, don’t be deceived by people saying, oh, this is a new party. And on how are we going to comb all the nook and cranny of the state, over the next six weeks, I intend to cover almost everywhere within the state taking our messages to the homes of our people. They should listen to and listen to them as well and ask them questions on those promises made to them four years ago and even indeed they have not satisfied the yearning of our people, then they should cast their votes for me, their son and humble servant-Seyi Makinde.

LL Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain Dr. Chiji Chimezie has emerged as the House of Assembly candidate in Isiala Mbano Constituency, Imo State. The Returning Office at the primaries, Mr. Victor Nwaugo, a lawyer, said Collins polled 114 votes to beat his closest opponent, Prince I.B. Ohanwe, who got 88 votes. Other results are as follows: Lemchi Ahamefule Benneth (12 votes), Eric Akano (42), Iwuagwu M.T. (44) and Lawson Chukwu (15 votes). Nwaugo advised the winner to embrace other aspirants and ensure victory for the party in next year’s election. The Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, Hon. Benjamin Uwajimogu, and the Mayor of Okigwe Zone, Chief Tony Black ,have congratulated Collins for his victory. Also, Dr. Uche Ejiogu, the former Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) Commissioner defeated two opponents to secure the ticket for Ihitte/Uboma Constituency. Ejiogu polled 161 votes to beat Ossy Ogueri, who got 119 votes and Okafor Bournaventure, who got no vote.

Ekiti South holds primaries By Emmanuel Oladesu

KITI South All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial primaries will hold today in 64 wards. The main aspirants are Senator Tony Adeniyi and Mr. Ayoleke Adu, a financial expert. The third aspirant is Elder Remi Olorunleke. The shadow poll could not be completed when it was held nationwide, owing to hitches. Adu claimed that he was leading before the process was stalled. But, Adeniyi camp said a clear winner has not emerged. Ahead of the new exercise, Adu has alleged plans by some party leaders to frustrate his bid for the Senate, adding that the move could jeopadise the chance of the party at the poll. The inconclusive primary election was held on December 8 at the Olumilua Hotel, Ikere-Ekiti. There are 64 wards, but delegates from 47 wards, which constituted over 73 per cent, voted while 17 wards were yet to vote before the committee allegedly ran out of ballot papers. The Electoral Officer, Regent Adelabu, informed the Chairman of the Ekiti State Primary Election Committee, Mrs. Mary Ekpere, who directed that the process should continue with improvised ballot papers, using signed and serialised sheets. The electoral officer was said to have suggested that the votes already cast should be counted while supplementary election should hold in the remaining 17 wards. The supplementary exercise was scheduled for the party secretariat in Ado-Ekiti, but it was never held. “I wrote a petition to the NWC to explain to them. The NWC exercised its powers to count the votes and I got feelers that I was leading by a wide margin. The NWC verified the ballot papers and their serial numbers to be sure that they were the actual ballot papers that were sent to Ekiti-South Senatorial District. They directed that elections be concluded in the remaining 17 wards,” said Adu. The aspirant alleged that, while he supported the completion of the exercise, other aspirants were not enthusiastic. Adu said the people were ready to endorse him because they were sensitive to the entrenched rotational principle. He added: “senator Gbenga Aluko from Gbonyin was in the Senate between 1999 and 2003; Senator Bode Olowoporoku (2003-2007) came from Ilawe. In 2007. Senator Akinyede from Gbonyin was elected. In 2011, Adeniyi was elected. He is from Ikere. The PDP has already picked Mrs. Olujimi from Ekiti East as its candidate. I am from Ekiti East, which has the prospects of returning the highest votes for our party. By my popularity, I’m the only one that can defeat the PDP candidate in the general election.” • Adu

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

COMMENTARY EDITORIALS

LETTER

Akpabio, keeping governorship in the family?

To the rescue

•New national health law guarantees victims of auto crashes and violent crimes prompt medical attention

HE heartening news could not have been more opportune than

now --when patients with medical emergencies, in road crashes or victims of armed robberies, in dire need of medical attention, are callously rejected by public and private health institutions, on the basis of a so-called Police report. The signal of hope, regarding their care, is the National Health Act which President Goodluck Jonathan just signed. One of the new law's finest implications is its worthy acknowledgement of human life as something to be accorded utmost care and attention. The law provides that there will be no excuse for failure of health services for Nigerians. It also stipulates severe punishment and imprisonment terms for removal of human organs and also the reproductive and therapeutic cloning of human kind. Dr. Muhammed Lecky, Executive Secretary, Health Sector Reform Coalition (HSRC), a watchdog group on the national health system, declared: “Now that we have the Healthcare Act, we expect that health services for Nigerians would be transformed’’; -- and we add: especially under an administration in which healthcare is witnessing incredible retrogression. We hail the coming into being of the law but regret that it is belated; coming over 54 years after Nigeria’s sovereign existence as a nation. We bemoan a situation where successive administrations in the land took the lives of accident/emergency patients

with levity under various guises. The most common and reprehensible guise is the insistence that Police report must be produced before accident victims or anyone with gunshot wounds could be treated. The genesis of this trend, peculiar only to Nigeria, emanated from the up surge in armed robbery and violent crimes. If the intent of the authorities was to deny criminals medical attention, therefore prompting medical personnel to avoid subsequent query from the police authorities, they are completely off the mark in global medical best practices. The truth is that even armed robbers, wounded during criminal operations, have right to good medical treatment, prior to their eventual arraignment, trial and conviction, if found guilty. Sadly, this country lost precious lives to this rather shoddy, if not outright callous, approach to medical emergencies, in these particular cases. Who knows? Perhaps the late Dimgba Igwe, top media figure and former deputy editor-in-chief of The Sun newspaper, and a victim of a hit-and-run driver, would have been alive today, had he received prompt and prompter first aid treatment. But alas! He lost his life to the slapdash response the new law just outlawed. That makes the Act a right step in the right direction. But we hope it will fulfil the expectations of ensuring a truly universal health coverage that would assure and guarantee Nigerians’ fundamental human rights to life and good healthcare. Under this law, it is good to note that

children below the age of five, pregnant women, the elderly and people with disabilities would receive free health care. The Federal Government is also statutorily expected to provide sufficient complimentary funding, in tandem with states and Local Government Councils across the country, so as to guarantee basic minimum healthcare for all. If what is currently lacking in terms of proper health focus and needless bureaucratic bottlenecks are guided against, there is no doubt that this Act has created a legal framework for a new healthcare policy regime; and could only be supported by appropriate policy guidance and mechanisms that are different from the inhuman official attitude of the past. The new health law has to do with sanctity of human life; and we are hopeful that henceforth, there will be undeniable compelling national acceptance of accident and emergency cases by health institutions whether public or private. This should, however, be complemented with adequate publicity and awareness campaigns, to make the public know, understand and buy into the programme. If well implemented, the fruits of a sound health sector reform may well be on the way.

‘The Act is a right step in the right direction. But we hope it will fulfil the expectations of a truly universal health coverage’

Obsolete Audit Act

•National Assembly should pass the new bill to boost the anti-corruption war

HAT Nigeria is merely paying lip service to anti-corruption is evident in the fact that it still relies on its Audit Ordinance Act of 1956. Without doubt, the Act, 58 years down the line, has outlived its usefulness. It is sad that effort to repeal the law through the proposed Audit Act, 2014 is still stalled at the National Assembly. Indeed, the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGOF), Mr. Samuel Ukura, is so worried that he had to make a passionate appeal for the quick passage of the bill into law. Ukura, who spoke through Mrs. Florence Dibiaezue, Head of the AGOF’s Press and Public Relations Unit, observed that the existing audit law in Nigeria was defective and so cannot effectively support the fight against corruption. He therefore called on Nigerians to support the passage of the new audit bill. As he noted, the bill, when passed unto law, “will strengthen the powers of the auditor-general’s office, de-

‘We specially commend the AGF for pushing forward an amendment that would detach the office of the AGF from that of the Presidency’

tach it from the Presidency and establish the Audit Service Commission … The passage of the Audit Bill 2014 will boost the fight against corruption”. He noted rightly that the growth and sustenance of the country’s economy are tied to the effectiveness and autonomy of the nation’s audit office, and that the current Audit Act is not only defective but also unsuitable at this time. If anything, we ought to have amended the Audit Act to suit the expenditure pattern of government, especially with the discovery of oil and “the global advancement in the use of technology”. We also align with Ukura’s position that when passed into law, the bill would place Nigeria in the comity of nations that are genuinely fighting corruption; enhance the country’s image by ensuring accountability and transparency in the conduct of government business; align the office of the Auditor-General of the Federation with international best practices and empower the National Assembly to appoint independent auditors to audit the financial statement of the OAGF as well as give the AGF the power to audit public monies in private organisations and bodies. Of particular importance is the fact that the audit law, when passed, would enhance the already bad im-

age of the country by ensuring accountability and transparency in the conduct of government business, as well as bring the office of the Auditor-General for the Federation with international best practices as already highlighted by the AGF. It goes without saying that the audit system, as we have it today, is not immune to corrupt and sharp practices. There are cases of auditors colluding with companies, corporations, banks and other public or private establishments in writing their audit reports where cases of misappropriation of funds by management and officials are overlooked and passed as “bad debts”. This is where the innovation of the bill empowering the AGF to also audit public monies in private organisations or bodies is praiseworthy. A country like ours battling corruption sure needs an effective audit system. We specially commend the AGF for his courage in pushing forward an amendment that would detach the office of the AGF from that of the Presidency. For its importance and advantages, the National Assembly would be doing the nation a good service by quickly passing the bill to enable the country deal with the notorious problems of corruption, lack of accountability and transparency in the audit system.

IR: But for the memo to Governor Godswill Akpabio by the Forum of Akwa Ibom State PDP Governorship Aspirants signed by the 22 aggrieved governorship aspirants, Akwa Ibom people would never have known that Emmanuel Udom, the man who is bearing the PDP flag for the 2015 governorship elections, is the incumbent governor’s maternal cousin. The memo in question that revealed Akpabio-Udom relationship, appeared as an advertorial on page 71 of the The Nation On Sunday of December 21. If Udom succeeds Governor Akpabio it would be the second instance that such a dynasty would occur in the South-south of Nigera: namely when Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan succeeded his cousin, former Governor James Ibori in Delta State. Barrister Godswill Akpabio was the same person, at the heat of the primaries, that produced him as PDP’s flag bearer for the governorship election in 2007, accused then Governor Victor Attah, his mentor and benefactor, as scheming to install his (Attah’s) son-in-law, Dr. Bob Ekarika, as governor of Akwa Ibom State. In the words of Akpabio, ‘that would amount to creating a dynasty in Akwa Ibom State’. By imposing his cousin, Emmanuel Udom, on the party and on the state, Akpabio is promoting the very ‘sin’ that he roundly accused his predecessor of in 2007 and he is trying to achieve this forcefully through a gubernatorial primary that was everything but democratic. With this attitude of Akpabio, he can be described as “pot calling kettle (Attah) black”. Akapbio had, after forcing the former SSG Umana Okon Umana to resign, invited and appointed his cousin, Emmanuel Udom, in his place. I recall that former Governor Victor Attah, in 2002, appointed Akpabio his commissioner in the Ministry of Petroleum. Few months later, when the PDP asked Attah to replace his deputy, Chris Ekpenyong, Akpabio having come from the same senatorial district as Ekpenyong, was handy, but for the refusal of the elders of Akwa Ibom PDP. Attah then moved Akpabio to a grass-root ministry – Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs – with the intension of grooming him to succeed him. But Attah shifted his support the last minute. Governor Akpabio may be feeling that he has succeeded in making his maternal cousin, Emmanuel Udom, the PDP’s flag bearer, while former SSG, Umana Okon Umana, is the APC’s flag bearer for the 2015 governorship elections. Worthy of note is that Akpabio ignored all other aspirants, including some that have been with the PDP since 1998 and preferred his maternal cousin. All other aspirants are shouting foul. The people of Akwa Ibom state have vowed not to allow the impunity to stand hence their rooting for the APC candidate. • Obong Akpan Koko Uyo, Akwa Ibom State

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

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY,DECEMBER 24, 2014

CARTOON & LETTERS

IR: Great men like John F. Kennedy battled with infidelity as president, Richard Nixon lied his way out of the presidency, Bill Clinton almost got impeached because of acts of impropriety but they were, and are, people, that history cannot do without: they made, are part of, and are history. So much has been written about General Muhammadu Buhari, warts and all. Buhari like many other statesmen is fortunate; he is popular with the teeming population of the underprivileged in society, those that really matter in the electorate process despite elitist blackmail. Goodluck Jonathan is also a lucky man; first, he rode to the presidency on pure happenstance and later got his first mandate through goodwill of Nigerians in 2011. Whose way will victory go between the incumbent president (PDP) and General Muhammadu Buhari (APC) in the forth-coming presidential elections in February 2015? It is clearly a tough call. But some analysts have submitted that barring all untoward circumstances and if we are to have a free and fair con-

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Between Jonathan and Buhari test now, the odds will be against the incumbent. He has been equated with Lyndon Johnson who rode to the presidency on the benevolence of the American people after the death of the much loved Kennedy but was too overwhelmed to seek re-election on principle in the end, due to his poor handling of foreign policy (Vietnam). Can Buhari provide Nigerians with an experience to take us to seventh heaven? Aren’t Nigerians expecting too much from Buhari? Is there a chance that his muchvaunted, probable victory might be likened to that of Jimmy Carter who defeated Gerald Ford to become president due to his high belief in himself, with only a couple of thousands of votes out of millions less in Ohio, Hawaii and Delaware be-

cause the electorate wanted someone with more experience? What hope does the incumbent have in western Nigeria with nononsense leaders who have been able to strike strategic alliances with the north? What hope does President Jonathan have in the north west and north east? The elites from those regions say he has a chance, but they should know better. He would have had a major chance had zoning been allowed to stay in that party. Most elites do not vote, the browbeaten masses do, and these will follow the principle of “group think” to vote for Buhari. Certainly President Jonathan will carry the day in the eastern part of Nigeria. Regrettably unlike the West, the East has not totally accepted national politics and are still

Omens of Ekiti politics

IR: That governance in Ekiti State today is like the proverbial bird which perches on an unsteady rope is a fact indisputable. Prominent among the problems of the new government in Ekiti State is the irreconcilable differences between the executive and the legislature, if the judiciary has maintained its calm and, hopefully, its independence. While the seven PDP minority members of the State House of Assembly have irregularly impeached the speaker and his deputy, the 19 APC majority members have stuck together in absentia, and they are now reported to be back in Ekiti, sitting and performing legislative functions that, understandably, overturn the legislations of the minority ‘House’. Whereas this drama sets the true

lovers of Ekiti State worrying, the politicians in Ekiti State seem to derive some sadistic joy from it all, as in a murderous game of wrestling or a tug-of-war. One question that the spectators in the Ekiti drama must have been asking rhetorically is: why can’t the executive and the legislature forge ahead in governance if, basically, they are all Ekitis who are perhaps the most homogenous group of people in Nigeria? The answer to this question is easily traceable to the nature of man. Man can be recalcitrant if fooled and cheated, just as he would do everything possible to cover his tracks if he has successfully, willingly wronged a fellowman. Invariably, what follows an unresolved foolery, the type that was suspected in the Ekiti governorship election of June 21, is a quag-

mire, if anarchy is cleverly avoided like the Ekitis are patiently doing. The amount of ominous emotion that both the PDP and the APC have displayed about winning the presidency in 2015 should caution us that election rigging may devastate our nation in 2015; and that we must find a way of preventing election rigging. The omens can obviously be worse than just having an executive versus legislature kind of drama in Abuja and, besides, the time has come for Nigeria to embrace true democracy as a way of life; for democracy is, by itself, an arbiter or peacemaker, if allowed to prevail. Side-tracking it can always be catastrophic. Let’s be warned. • Jide Oguntoye, Oye Ekiti, Ekiti State

seething from the plagues of the Biafra war which they accuse the north of directing. He is likely to carry the north-central region that, like the east, are yet to carve a political identity for itself. Without a doubt we need a leader who can help define Nigeria for Nigeria. A leader that can stand toeto-toe with world leaders without a subservient complex, who will be a big brother in Africa, who will go to war if need be to prevent factions from using their territory to plan insurrection against our coun-

try. He must be ready to submit himself to microscopic inspection and shirt-front daring religious leaders who pronounce dangerous diktats. Someone who understands the power of reason must be ready to enforce the secular make-up of our nation to respect people of all faiths. Someone who knows what politics is all about: solving problems. I have long ago made up my mind (even as a non-card carrying member of any political party) to vote Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 if he becomes the presidential flagbearer of a major party for this simple fact: that it will be detrimental to our democracy if Nigeria becomes a one-party state and if we do not change our leaders from party to party and from time to time.

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• Simon Abah, Port Harcourt, Rivers State

Thank you Gov. Fashola but…

IR: I like to express my gratitude to Gov. Babatunde Fashola’s administrations in Lagos State for constructing the two kilometers Amikanle Road starting from Bunker petrol station through Aiyetobi area. I am commending the governor because this is the first time in 15 years of democracy that the Lagos government is giving consideration to our rural community. I am however piqued that the road constructed leads to nowhere and appears not to be useful to the six communities making up Amikanle. We, the residents of the area thought the road would have passed through Yetkem Road and terminate at White House. That is the road motorist and commuters ply while going and coming from their place of work. The construction road, as it is, ends at a gully going to command Secondary School. The anomaly in the road provides justification for participation paradigm in development study. The participation paradigm is based on the assumption that the common people are intelligent and can be active agents of change. Development efforts should then be

based on people’s capacity to articipate and contribute actively in the task of transforming their society. It emphasizes that development should evolve from the people as opposed to trickle down belief in which ideas aboult development emanates from government circle and the pass down the ladder to the rural people. If this approach has been exploited by Lagos State Government before the construction, the government would have benn told of what to do. The most worrisome Is that even the less that one quarter kilometer road that passes through Baale Amikanle’s palace to link Alaso community was not captured in the project. Whereas the people of Alaso had submitted application to that effect to the infrastructural unit of the state Ministry of Works in 2006. Whole the road project is a sign of government presence, it is however, a mark of government non-recognition or lack for the people it governs. And this is why the road is already peeling off three months after completion • Dayo Willaims Alaso Community, Amikanle, Alagbado, Lagos .

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

COMMENTS

Our Girls, Gumsuri; GE Marinho; 29% WAEC pass, 71% Nigerian education failure; MEXAHNYIA

UR Girls missing since April 15 joined by Gumsuri Dec 12 victims kidnapped by Boko Haram who murdered 33. Christmas Day will be empty for many. Let Tony us all buy a present and Marinho a meal for an Internally Displaced Person, IDP and send them through your pastor or imam. Nigeria survives because of the sacrifice of millions. Permit me to pay tribute to Mrs Grace Ebun Marinho who joined the saints triumphant at 78 years. She had six children: Bisi, Nike and Tunji Osuntokun whose father Major Osuntokun, senior brother of late distinguished Professor BO Osuntokun, died when they were infants and Yinka, Funmilayo and Laolu Marinho with my father Dr Abayomi Marinho whom she married and supported through the rest of his life. She had a successful nursing career with Lagos State. I was sort of number one child as I was 17 or so years old when we met and all the children still have nightmares about me making them finish their food ‘because many children have no food to eat’. Sorry O, aburos! Now they have children they are singing the same song. I wonder why? I also used to take them to the cinema as compensation. Aunty Ebun was a uniquely warm hearted person, welcoming, smiling and offering all a meal and an invitation to stay, sometimes for years. She ran one of the last truly open houses in Nigeria. She had memory for family history and an excellence in the kitchen. Her Saturday moin moin was original ‘leaf wrapped and ready by 9am’ to be dispatched from her home where she presided as Mama Gbagada especially at Christmas, New Year and Easter-. My visits from Ibadan were completed by at least two moin moin, gari ice block water and no sugar pls. Any moin moin affectionado knows that good moin moin always leaves the best tasting morsels hidden between the leaves. Her moin moin melted in the mouth. The lessons from Aunty’s life include patience,

HE 2015 elections are here. About a fortnight ago, the political parties concluded their primaries for the election or ‘selection’ of candidates to run for different political offices. While some of the primaries were held on a level-playing field, others came under an atmosphere full of rancour and acrimony. The result is that while majority of the candidates have accepted their fate, many others are currently up in arms in protest against the outcome of the primaries. A few of the candidates have taken solace in the courts which they approached as the final arbiter. Many others and their supporters have resorted to massive protest marches to lodge complaints with their party hierarchy. All these are taking place amidst the prevailing season when Christians around the world are celebrating Christmas, which marks the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. I am quite sure that politicians will naturally take advantage of this Christmas season to carry their messages to the people especially with the intent of influencing voters. So, this year’s Christmas celebration in Nigeria might just be a double barrel affair. As the Christians will be doing their own thing, so also will the politicians too be ubiquitous all over the place, wooing and cajoling voters, as the case may be, with mouth-watering offers including food, money and other exquisite and irresistible offers now popularly referred to as “stomach infrastructure”. We all know that a lot of excitement is packed into Christmas festivities. From the homes to street corners, there must be something to remind you that Christmas is

perseverance in the face of death and adversity and peaceful coexistence. Another lesson is that people, especially elderly relations, must be taken for regular complete medical check-ups. She will be missed particularly tomorrow, the first Christmas without her in Gbagada. May her gentle soul RIPP- Rest In Perfect Peace. Amen. We have cause to worry and not only about the absence of electric power growth since 1999 when it was 3000Mw and still is 3,000Mw 15+years and $?billions later. And the worry is not even at Fulani and Boko Haram Wars or the coming election violence war. We must worry that even in non-war torn parts there is routine disgraceful mass exam failure. The pass rate at the recent WAEC examination in key subjects is 29% pass or 71% failure. The failures will enter the ‘market’ as cannon fodder for politicians who ‘mistakenly sent their own children abroad to study’ and some will join Boko Haram as examples that western education fails. The mass failure for young citizens is horrendous. It is a disgrace to government institutions where the vast majority of these failures occur in spite of N100 billion+ in the accounts of oversight bodies. Most schools lack basic education facilities, like good books and good teachers. The good student will study in a pigsty and still succeed. However, the majority of students worldwide are plodders needing prodding by good books and good teachers. American books tend to simplify complex problems better than traditional British books. The art and science of mental arithmetic has been lost to the calculator leaving the brain unchallenged, feeble and unable to add, let alone remember a telephone number. When I did the school run with eight or nine children we did mental arithmetic while I drove. Mental arithmetic is not WAEC mathematics but it helps. As soon as you want to add 1+1 those around you immediately produce some IT device like an I-Pad. We require ‘Annual LGA, State and National Mental Arithmetic Prizes’ to revitalise our youth brains. Even our health officials were mathematically challenged as to whether there were 10 or 11 Ebola Victims. Note that 29% of anything is failure and each government level has responsibility. Education is a conveyor belt, so far

with poor products. This failure requires a strategic ‘Education War’ to counter Boko Haram. Our abysmal education fuels their propaganda. Government should learn from and not destroy private education. We should embrace and visit what is good. Visit Afe Babalola University AdoEkiti, ABUAD to get an honest education yardstick and work backwards to primary school. Every town has good private primary and secondary schools to measure against. God bless these great Nigerians proprietors, organisations and religious bodies which provide alternatives to failure, at a cost, yes. Government must provide better fast, for the current students on the education conveyor belt. Cutting class sizes, increased quality and dedication of teachers, more and better books and facilities are not nuclear physics, but the essential ingredients of education success and rights of the youths. Remember that in 2015 politicians will spend billions on millions of posters towards ‘election success’ but will never approve 10million educational posters for one million empty bare-walled classrooms in Nigeria for ‘exam success. Shame. A picture is worth 1000 words except in Nigeria. Ps: It is not too late to buy a present and a meal for an Internally Displaced Person and send them through pastors or imams. MEXAHNYIA.

‘We must worry that even in non-war torn parts there is routine disgraceful mass exam failure. The pass rate at the recent WAEC examination in key subjects is 29% pass or 71% failure. The failures will enter the ‘market’ as cannon fodder for politicians who ‘mistakenly sent their own children abroad to study’ and some will join Boko Haram as examples that western education fails’

Christmas in electioneering season here again. If you happen not to have noticed anything in your neighbourhood, at least, you will notice the traffic snarl everywhere as people shop for their needs. Besides, the fireworks that are exploded now and again around you, in spite of the warnings against its use by the Police, can only occur during the Yuletide. Christmas has always presented both a magical and spiritual season. It is magical with all of its window dressings of toys, decorations, lights, parties, food and music. It is spiritual because it is a time for reflection. Looking up at the starry, cold night sky, one feels a communion with God, his creator, in a reflection upon his wonderful gift at Christmas, when Jesus Christ was born more than 2,000 years ago. But honestly, many people also believe that Christmas is a time of some illusions and fantasy. For instance, you open a Christmas card and written therein is the phrase: “Peace on Earth, and Goodwill to All Men.” As a matter of fact, when you think about a world that is now seriously hemorrhaging with killings and maiming everywhere, these are almost empty words. Tune to any of the major television stations across the globe, you will be suffused with the horrible, heart rending, chilling and gory spectre of how many people die daily from car bombings, teenage suicide bombings, drone killings, beheadings, murders, air strikes and martial offensives. In those days, some of these heinous crimes

‘As the Christians will be doing their own thing, so also will the politicians too be ubiquitous all over the place, wooing and cajoling voters, as the case may be, with mouth-watering offers including food, money and other exquisite and irresistible offers now popularly referred to as “stomach infrastructure”’

were confined to some distant places until more than five years ago when the theatre of the absurd arrived at our shores in Nigeria, no thanks to the satanic Boko Haram hoodlums now on the rampage in the northern parts of the country. We cannot forget in a hurry, a series of bomb blasts and shootings that occurred during Christmas Day church services in Madalla, Jos, Gadaka, and Damaturu, all in northern Nigeria on December 25, 2011, which claimed the lives of no fewer than 41 people. Also as it happened quite recently, there is nothing more Australian than dropping in at the local cafe for a morning coffee, and it is tragic beyond words that people going about their everyday business should be caught up in a horrific incident in such a place as a cafe. That describes what happened barely a week ago, when a gunman, Man Haron Monis, who allegedly embraced radical Sunni theology, hurriedly dispatched two innocent Australians to their early graves after he held some people hostage in a local café in Sydney. This was closely followed last Tuesday by the horror which shocked the world to its foundation when 145 people, mostly children, were killed by Taliban gunmen at an Army Public School and Degree College in Peshawar, Pakistan. With these scenarios, the question is: Will there ever be real peace on earth? Economic disparity in the nation and in the world - in far too many places exacerbated by political and terrorists activities - now pose a major threat not only to the health of men, women, children and infants, but the lives of whole populations, the plight of many of them, unfortunately, more easily ignored or more readily accepted than others. The world will continue to anguish over such conditions without anyone, any nation, willing to make suggestions on how to achieve global peace. Though, it is heart-warming to note

the approach or thinking about a new rapprochement or détente between the United States of America and Cuba, sworn-enemies of more than 50 years, yet it is difficult to believe that peace could be achieved so easily with just a voice affirmation. Genuine peace will only come when those profiting, as it were, from all these confusion and crises all over the place, have a change of heart. We live in a world that is constantly evolving. We are constantly evolving. Now back to the festivity. Christmas in Nigeria, as with the rest of the world, is a family event, a time when family members come together to celebrate as one and have fun. That is why most families that live in cities all year round, take the pain and discomfort to travel to their villages where their grandparents and older relatives live to celebrate with them. Many families will throw Christmas parties that will last all night long on Christmas Eve. Then in the morning of Christmas Day, they will go to church to give thanks to God for sparing their lives in the past year and still seek for God’s guidance and protection for the coming year. While this is done, homes and streets are adorned with beautiful flowers to herald the season of love. Most homes wear new looks complete with artificial Christmas trees and lightings. In the light of this season and mounting security challenges in some parts of Nigeria, it is expedient for everybody to be vigilant. With increasing terrorist activities in the country, the Police should take all necessary precautions to ensure adequate security for travellers, worshippers, picnickers and all citizens across the country before, during, and after the season. This can only be achieved if all key and vulnerable points, including places of worship, recreation centres, motor parks, highways, and all places of public resort are adequately and effectively protected

Dele Agekameh by officers and men of the Police Force and other security agencies, who will be out on duty during this period. As we celebrate tomorrow, we should inevitably think of our families and loved ones. There is also the need to reflect on the misery confronting the growing numbers of Nigerians who have suddenly become refugees in neighbouring countries as well as those now classified as Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, within the country as a result of genocidal attacks in some parts of the country by terrorists. To this set of people, Christmas is as meaningless as their future is bleak at this point. So, if you are asking me what this time of the year really means, I’d say it’s about community. It’s a time to appreciate those around us, not just our family. We need to appreciate our friends, our neighbours, our colleagues at work, our staff, the ordinary man in the street, our country and indeed, everyone. Sentiments may vary, but one thing that won’t change is the sense of humanity and community. And whether we celebrate through prayerful worship or feasting and drinking, the most important thing is that we are doing it together. Here is wishing you all a Merry Christmas! Send reactions to: 08058354382 (SMS only)

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

COMMENTS For Segun Gbadegesin I agree with you that we need some fundamental and structural changes to reduce the powers of the central government for the better. But, beyond that, Nigerians need attitudinal change more than anything else, especially among our leaders. For any kind of structural change or adjustment in our political system to be of effect, there must be attitudinal change in the managers of our common patrimony, failure of which things would ever remain business as usual. The PDP is not as terrible as it is today because of the name, but because of the horrible attitude of those in the party. That is why, inspite of the seemingly patriotic tendencies of the APC, many Nigerians still want to maintain a wait-and-see attitude to what will eventually come out from the party’s lofty policies and blueprints. Hence, its members were also drawn from the same Nigerian leaders, after all. From Emmanuel Egwu. Sir, your write up on “APC: Championing the change we need”, is fantastic! Let’s all pray that our thoughts on achieving greatness for this our Great Nation (Nigeria) come to realities. From Adebayo Oladosu. The people’s general, please send Nasir elRufai to FCT for your campaign for just one day because FCT indigenes trust him. From Yeriman Talakawa, Abuja. What a write up ! Godbless you, Segun. Anonymous Most Nigerians can’t wait to laugh at you Yoruba, after 2015 elections. Keep wasting your time. Anonymous May Almighty God, in His infinite mercies, lead you to great happiness and blessings without measure in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen. Very best wishes and high regards. Jesus is Lord, sincerely. From Efuntade Alani Olusegun. Thank you, sir, for your article. From O Samuel Re: “APC: Championing the change we need.” Naturally, when we don’t like something, it is assumed that we have a feeling of hatred and that particular thing we hate and dislike becomes a burden in our life. The only solution is to look for a change that will shape our lives and make us comfortable and this is what has

AM a bloody civilian. But I know what mutiny is not. Mutiny is not the caricature the Nigerian Army is passing it off to be. Mutiny is not hesitating to charge into battle empty handed. Mutiny is not bringing your superiors into cognizance that you need proper weapons to have a fair chance of putting the enemy to rout. Mutiny is not pleading to be equipped before being deployed to the front line. The Nigerian Army has bastardized the spirit of the word. And the new definition is made to serve our unique malady – like a Peugeot 504 built for Nigerian roads. Mutiny is now the manifestation of reluctance to dash off in the right direction, like some suicidal robot, when you are gifted an opportunity to self-destruct. Last week the Nigerian court martial found a new batch of soldiers guilty of mutiny. The Nigerian Army had to find them guilty of mutiny. The court martial set out to discover mutiny and they wound up landing a treasure trove. They found 54 cases. Their find confirms the validity of the scriptural guarantee: Seek, and you shall find. The mutiny sentence represents an abuse of the power of life and death. This is the revenge of army chiefs for the embarrassment of being asked to produce what they didn’t have. I learnt on a couple of Christmas shopping that asking anyone for a thing he cannot provide had consequences. The child in me wanted to rid the whole market of all colorful items I liked and pointed at. Needless to say, such requests fluster the nicest parents and can force a feeling of inadequacy. But the soldiers did not make a frivolous demand. They didn’t ask for toys or cigarettes. They asked for working tools. They asked for instruments that they could not function without. And that’s not indiscipline. Isaac asked Abraham, his father, midway into their mountain climb, where the lamb they were going to use for sacrifice was. The lamb was what would give meaning to their exertions. Abraham didn’t produce any sensible answer. Instead, he tried to make a sacrificial lamb out of the boy. Today, the Nigerian Army is playing Abraham on 54 Isaacs. The soldiers are no cowards like the accusers say. They didn’t shrink from the call of duty. They had signed up to defend their fa-

‘Indeed, Nigerians have suffered in the hands of this democratic gangsters, who cannot proffer solutions to the problems Nigeria is faced with politically, economically and security wise. The emergence of Gen.Buhari and his running mate, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, obviously, is a clear sign for the PDP and the occupants of the State House to pack their bags and baggages out and surrender before the election, to write his name in Gold. From Barr.Stanley Orlu, Port Harcourt’ •Jonathan

been happening since 1999 that the PDP had been in power and a lot of bad things have occurred. Reluctantly, the people keep enduring in the hope that, one day, the necessary change that we need will come. Thank God, since the advent of the APC in the political arena, there is going to be light at the end of the tunnel, come 2015, when hunger, poverty, economic degradation and insecurity in the land will be totally eliminated from our society. What we need is an independent electoral commission that will not connive with the incumbent to subvert the will of the people by using government machinery to rig and manipulate the election. We should learn a lesson from Ghana about what happened during their last general election when the opposition party came to power for the first time in Africa through an election devoid of rigging. From Prince Adewumi Oyeromade Agunloye Thanks for your article. All Nigerians and not only the APC owes Asiwaju a deep sense of gratitude. In fact, the Jagaba has turned out to be the hero of our democratic experience in the past 15 years. From Aliyu Abubakar Gwandu - Abuja Please, we need more of this article in the daily news to give major support to Buhari to win 2015 election. We don’t need a puppet

leader controlled by a woman. I’m not a politician, but ever since Buhari won the primaries, I have gone out to speak to people to come out and vote for him. We don’t need goodluck, but God’s luck . Kudos to Tinubu. From Pastor (Engr) Wole Ogundare Indeed, Nigerians have suffered in the hands of this democratic gangsters, who cannot proffer solutions to the problems Nigeria is faced with politically, economically and security wise. The emergence of Gen.Buhari and his running mate, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, obviously, is a clear sign for the PDP and the occupants of the State House to pack their bags and baggages out and surrender before the election, to write his name in Gold. From Barr.Stanley Orlu, Port Harcourt. Sir, please help educate the younger Nigerians about Gen. Buhari . That, those who do not want Buhari ‘s presidency are the most corrupt citizens in our midst. From Ayeke Ayeke, Port Harcourt. Your article: “APC: Championing the change we need”, deserves some comendations. First, it points to the fact that Nigerians need a change and the change can only come from the APC. Secondly, Nigerians need a true democracy and the rule of law. APC deserves our votes come February 2015 Presidential election. From Andy Oghene Alele.

Reflections on the army mutiny By Emmanuel Uchenna Ugwu therland voluntarily. And they knew before time that they would be required to plunge into life-costing scenarios. But they did not sign up for martyrdom. They didn’t pledge to submit themselves to be killed for their belief in the territorial integrity of Nigeria. This mutiny bazaar is a shame. It reflects the slump from the sublime to the ridiculous of an army that used to be the toast of the peacekeeping world. In those days, our troops acquitted themselves creditably in trouble spots of the West African sub-region and beyond. Our soldiers did not mutiny. The ECOWAS and UN missions tended them. Now they are learning mutiny on home soil. The other day in Maiduguri barracks, wives of soldiers formed themselves into a roadblock. They stopped trucks that was packed full of troops from reporting to the war scene. Their husbands had not been furnished with deployment materials. They had nothing to fight with. The soldiers were being shipped off to go and die. In September, the Army sentenced a dozen soldiers to death on the same charge. The newsbreak generated outrage. The Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, was flabbergasted. Nigerians did not give him compliments. These civilians are not grateful for the extraordinary favour of being informed about the sentencing. Why are they raising hell and making noise about the military trivializing human lives? Did we want him to regret not using the other option? Did we know he could have had those soldiers tried and dispatched in the evil forest and we would have been blissfully unaware? The Nigerian Army has made an exhibition of the sentencing. This is to pass the message that some truths consume the men who tell

them. Weapon or no weapon, you must run towards the adversary, like a Usain Bolt eager to breast the tape. Our arms deficiency is proverbial. Everybody knows we are trying to snatch victory from the jaws of a near empty armoury. The damage we manage to inflict on the Boko Haram camp once or twice a week often results from very desperate situations. Our deprived soldiers produce those flashes of brilliance when they are cornered and have no choice other than to fight for self-preservation. The US no longer sells us arms. And we can’t fetch arms from South Africa without making ourselves the butt of a joke. But our soldiers cannot complain. The fact that Nigeria is missing arms in this war is accentuated by the rising profile of poisoned arrows and cutlasses in dispatches from the combat zone. The locals are throwing their crude weapons in the fray because the dearth of arms on the Nigerian side leaves their villages vulnerable to attack. They are defending their own homesteads. Governor Kahim Shettima of Borno State once called for the boosting of our military capabilities. He said that he had observed that Boko Haram insurgents were gaining momentum because they were more motivated and better armed than our troops. The Federal Government dismissed his concerns. He was of the opposition. He did not contribute any beneficial insight. He was just slandering the Presidency. President Goodluck Jonathan tried to make Shettima apologize. Jonathan threatened to prove that the governor was wrong by ordering the withdrawal the soldiers that guard Borno Government House. The governor would know that the Nigerian Army was still of use if he found himself stripped of all protection. The President made his point. There is an inviolable ban on expression of certain kinds of opinion. Don’t say the troops are in

For Olatunji Dare Buhari is the best candidate Nigerians should not miss to fight corruption, insecurity and social vices ravaging the nation. We should try to get it right by electing credible people to elective positions, irrespective of party affiliations, to move the nation forward. From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, Abia Your article captioned:“Dear General Muhammadu Buhari” is timely and eloquent in delivery. It is more like a lesson that all true Nigerians must learn. It is a good advice to the addressee. God bless. From Udobong. Truth will ever remain and maintain itself. Coming generations in the next 200years that read your words of wisdom will use them as reference points. Article written in 2007 has remained constant as the Northern Star at the tail end of 2014. Congratulations. From Y K Ojo I read your article at the back of NNP 16/ 12/2014 on Gen. Buhari and all you raised in the article. You can organise a media chat to tell the whole world how he will deal with the issue because it is still relevant. From Prophet. Ajayi Akure I love your write-up; it is still relevant just to remind our General when he moves to Aso-Rock. More grease to your elbow. From Jolaoso Afolabi need of anything. Don’t say it even if it is obvious. Interestingly, only small soldiers stand trial for mutiny. Only little men deserve to die. The big chiefs who squirrel monies away from Nigeria’s multi-billion naira defence budget deserve to live forever. It would be too awkward to knock them off their pedestal and try them for sabotage. Everywhere the mode of defence spending is a delicate matter. It is a top state secret. The problem is that secrecy is more likely to breed criminality. And our experience is that security vote and other defence related allocations are stolen and spent like pocket money. It’s the money our defence chiefs and politicians binge on. The Nigerian Army can find among its top brass a dozen Judas Iscariots who kiss well in the public and steal from the purse in secret. They can make mutineers out of those who have been minting money out of the blood of our soldiers. They can make mutineers out of the generals whose greed perpetuates the conditions that make the eagerness to deploy tantamount to suicide attempt. The healing of the bitter waters must start at the spring. The Nigerian Army cannot shy away from addressing the fundamental issues of lack of battle equipment and appalling troop welfare. These issues will not vanish into the thin air. And the Nigerian Army cannot solve them by criminalizing legitimate complaints and creating a batch of scapegoats every three months. If it persists in “sharing” mutiny to just about anybody, we will arrive at a point when youths be unwilling to enlist in the Nigerian Army. • Emmanuel Uchenna Ugwu

‘The Nigerian Army can find among its top brass a dozen Judas Iscariots who kiss well in the public and steal from the purse in secret. They can make mutineers out of those who have been minting money out of the blood of our soldiers’

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

SPORT EXTRA Balotelli’s remorse saved Wenger identifies culprit in him from longer ban - FA Liverpool’s 97th minute equaliser T A

RSENAL manager Arsene Wenger has claimed that Per Mertesacker is not to blame for the late equaliser conceded against Liverpool and that his defenders’ lack of communication is what caused problems, reports the London Evening Standard. The Gunners conceded a late equaliser against the Merseyside club on Sunday that leaves them four points off the top four going in to the

festive period. Jamie Carragher and various other pundits have come out to criticise Mertesacker’s performance in the 2-2 draw. However, Wenger does not believes that the 2014 World Cup winner should be blamed for the draw. The Frenchman believe that the whole defence should take responsibility for their lack of communication. “I don’t want to go into any individual assessment,” the 65-year-old told reporters.

“I believe Mertesacker gives his best and that on the corner we conceded it was more organisational, more collective a problem because no one talks and we were more caught on that.” The North London club next play against QPR at the Emirates Stadium on Boxing day. They will be hoping for a win to get their season back on track after an inconsistent first few months of the campaign.

Edo women footballers protest non-payment of two years salaries

DO State female footballers playing for the state owned female club known as the Edo Queens in the Nigeria Premier League (NPL) on Tuesday protested the non-payment of over two years salaries and allowances. The footballers said they were stranded as they could not raise transportation fares to their respective states to celebrate Christmas. The Edo Queens who stormed the premises of the Edo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists in protest said they had been neglected by the authorities of Edo State Sports Council. The players said their plight was compounded by the slashing of their away match bonus from N3,

000 to N2, 500. The footballers’ spokesperson and Nigeria’s goal keeper at the 2014 Under-17 tournament, Okeke Oyinye, said they would be having a bleak Christmas celebration after all efforts to get the authorities to pay part of the salary failed. “We went to the ministry, we were told that the government was already processing our payment and that we should proceed on holiday and resume on January 6. “And we are saying they should pay us because we don’t even have transport to travel to our respective states and celebrate with our families,” she stated. Reacting to the development on telephone, the state’s commis-

Moyes: La Liga more technical than Premier League

ORMER Everton and Manchester United manager David Moyes believes that Spanish football is more technical than English football. Moyes, now Real Sociedad manager, has struggled somewhat with life in Spain so far, winning just one of his opening five games in La Liga. The Scot, who spent 11 years at Everton before being sacked during his only season with the Red Devils, believes that football is more technical in Spain than it is in England. La Real sits 14th in La Liga, just five points from the bottom of the table, and the exEverton boss insisted there were already differences between the two styles of play just six weeks into his tenure. At Man United, Moyes tended to struggle with the demands of playing good, attacking football while having to win almost every match. It was different at Everton as he was more free to use his preferred style and had time to implement it, with less pressure on getting big results straight away. “Spanish football can be more technical and perhaps English football can be more physical and with stronger teams,” he said. “But we must recognise that this Spanish national team has won a World Cup and two European Championships and that means that in Spain, in La Liga, they are doing things very well. “I have always stressed that English football is very competitive but, since I have been

•Moyes

here, I think that La Liga is too. I love the diversity that is being achieved in La Liga and in the Premier League, and that is a good thing for the sport.” You can say he has the same freedom at Sociedad but the Spanish prefer their sides •Moyes to play more intricate, passing football, something Moyes must get used to quickly.

By Osagie Otabor, Benin sioner for youths and sports, Mr. Chris Okaeben, said the protest was not necessary because the government has put machinery in place to clear the arrears.

•Wenger

He said, “So you mean those girls are protesting? How many are they? They should consider themselves sacked because we are already in the process of paying them.”

HE Football Association (FA) has revealed that Mario Balotelli's remorse over posting a controversial image spared him a longer ban. The Liverpool striker was deemed to have committed an aggravated breach of FA Rule E3 [2] after posting a picture on Instagram and Twitter containing potentially offensive language referring to "ethnic origin and/or colour and/or race and/or nationality and/or religion or belief". Balotelli was handed a onematch suspension, fined £25,000 (•31,800) and ordered to attend an education programme. The Italian received criticism for the picture that contained video game character 'Super Mario' and a series of racial stereotypes. The image was later taken down and Balotelli issued an apology for his actions, stating that the post was intended to be "anti-racist" and in good humour. On Tuesday, the FA published a statement outlining the written reasons behind the striker's

sanction, citing his naivety and his apology as mitigating factors. "Mr Balotelli had accepted the charge but had submitted requests for leniency as part of his plea in mitigation," the statement read. "Mr Balotelli added that he deeply regretted posting the image and that he had removed it as soon as it was brought to his attention by other users that the image could cause offence. "He said that he was shocked to find the image was offensive because, out of sheer naivety, he had not understood the implication of the comments which appeared on the image. "The Regulatory Commission had the following evidence before them: A memo to Mr Ives [of the FA Judicial Services Department] from Amina Graham of the FA's Governance and Regulation Division, in which she said that, ordinarily, a sporting sanction of 2-3 matches would be appropriate for this type of offence but that the FA accepted the forceful mitigation presented by Mr Balotelli and that this could enable us to exercise our discretion more favourably."

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net Stories by Taofik Salako

Why we launched Autoreg versions, by Courteville chief By Lucas Ajanaku

ITH its corporate vi sion to touch the lives of every citizen of the world, Courteville Business Solution Plc., patent owners of the AutoReg business solution, has upgraded its AutoReg Motor Vehicle Administration Documentation (MVAD) software to the latest AutoReg Version 3 (V3). AutoReg V3 not only brings new collaboration tools and streamlined workflows to processing centers, it also comes with new features that addresses state of the art nonlinear vehicle registration processes including an online customer portal which could be accessed from Ipads, smartphones, desktops etc., giving vehicle owners the convenience of requesting for vehicle documentation renewals in the comfort of their homes and offices, thereby increasing self-help efforts for busy vehicle owners. Taking the giant step towards making the total user/ customer experience faster and easier than ever, the V3 has a 24/7 fanatical customer service call center which is available to respond to inquiries and complaints from customers. The platform also serves as an e-payment platform for invoicing, subscriptions payment and airtime vending, can also be processed. Its Group Managing Director, Adebola Akindele said: “Technology is a tool that should make life easier for people. Through the AutoReg, Courteville has now made it easier for vehicle owners to gain total access to their automobiles registration as this product is simple and accessible to all customers on several platforms.” The V3 also provides a platform for vehicle owners to search, book and pay for available license registration plates using the “AutoReg License Plate Availability Search and Book” feature. Furthermore, State Officials can easily access the remote identification verification inspection system, AutoReg ™Inspector V3 by using their smartphones to authenticate the genuineness of any type of documentation and information provided by motorist anywhere in the world. Courteville Business Solutions Plc, listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) is an ISO 9001:2008 certified ebusiness solutions development company focused on process re-engineering in both the private and public sectors by providing cutting edge solutions to complex operational challenges, through the development and delivery of unique business solution models, revenue stream improvement and cost management processes.

NLNG is one of the biggest success stories in our country. From what I am told, the company has invested $13 billion so far since inception, and has become a pacesetter in terms of revenue generation for the government. -Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr Olusegun Aganga

Disquiet at capital market as Oteh’s tenure ends

HERE is disquiet at the capital market as the ten ure of the Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms Arunma Oteh, ends in January next year. Oteh resumed as director general in January 2010. The Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2007, the main body of laws regulating the capital market, provides for five-year tenure for director general of SEC in the first instance, renewable for similar term of five years only. Section 5, subsection 1 stipulates that the Director-General and the three full time Commissioners shall be appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the Minister and confirmation by the Senate. Section 5, subsection 2 states that “the Director-General shall hold office for a period of five years in the first instance and may be reappointed for a further period of five years and no more”. (3) The three full time Commissioners shall hold office in the first instance for a period of four years and may be reappointed for a further term of four years and no more. However, subsection 5 states that “Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the President may extend the tenure of office of the Director-General and any of the Commissioners whose term of office has expired until a successor to

•Operators divided over second term By Taofik Salako

such Director-General or Commissioner is appointed”. In the alternative, the director general may be requested to appoint one of the commissioners to supervise activities in her absence. Subsection 7 stipulates that “the Director General or, in his absence, one of the Commissioners nominated by the Director-General shall be responsible for the day to day management and administration of the Commission and shall be answerable to the Board of the Commission”. Discussions were in hushed tones at the Abuja headquarters of SEC and within the major financial centres of Customs Street and Victoria Island. The chances of another term for the director-general was dicey, opinions were divided on Oteh’s continuity and otherwise. The tenure issue has also been coloured by the sustained depreciation at the stock market this year, which has exacerbated in recent weeks, and the grim recapitalisation that threatens to swim away most small market operators. Market operators, who preferred anonymity, said the downtrend has undermined one of the strongest points of the incumbent director general, who came on the heels of the grueling 2007-2009 reces-

sion and saw a rebound that took the market back to a new high. Now, the stock market has lost more than N3 trillion so far this year. Some operators said the claim to a reform-driven recovery has been vitiated by the sustained downtrend, arguing that the recovery was natural as the market had bottomed out after the panicky recession and Nigerian stocks were becoming most attractive given the fundamentals of the quoted companies. They claimed that external factors, rather than internal reforms, played the major roles in the uptrend citing the fact that the current decline has also strong link with the global crude oil crisis, activities by foreign investors and monetary management. Oteh also has major obstacles in the National Assembly, which has subsisting orders against her and had blocked subvention to SEC. The executive arm had ignored the legislative resolutions but it will have to return to the National Assembly to get approval for any appointment into the office of SEC’s director general. Oteh had a public spat with the lawmakers over inquiry into her propriety as director general, arguing that the public inquiry was driven by greed. In the midst of all these, she was suspended briefly, had a

running battle with protesting staff of the Commission, before she was recalled by President Jonathan. But many stakeholders said the director general’s performance stands her in good chance for a renewal. Oteh led several reforms in rules, regulations, institutional capacity, market structure, products, disclosures, compliance and enforcements among others. Under her watch, SEC reviewed and published a new corporate governance code, which became mandatory rather than the voluntary as was the case before the review. The apex capital market regulator has also demonstrated strong determinations toward stringent enforcement regime. It has not only taken various enforcement actions against operators and issuers with respect to inadequate filing of periodic returns and other market infractions, it has taken the clean-up fights to the operational base of illegal fund managers which hide under amorphous names to dupe unsuspecting investors. In a landmark regulatory action, Oteh’s SEC stood her ground to enforce corporate governance changes in a multinational, Africa-originated bank-holding group, which had sacked a whistleblowing director. The director was reinstated and the group made far-reaching changes to its board and governance structure. SEC also broadened the market space with the introduction

of Sukuk (Islamic bonds) in the Nigerian capital market to provide issuance variety. SEC also championed the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by quoted companies, with effect from December 31, 2012. With the support of the supervising Federal Ministry of Finance, the Federal Government also removed Value Added Tax (VAT) from capital market transactions. She actively supported the reforms at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), where she had wielded the big stick and sacked the former director general, Dr (Mrs) Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, and instituted new management and council. She has been a strong advocate of women financial inclusion. Under Oteh, SEC has also in the last few years modified and introduced several rules and regulations to enhance corporate disclosures, market depth and governance. These also included new rules and regulations by the NSE, which must be approved by SEC. These included initiatives like marketmaking and whistleblowing among others. She has however been unable to realise key targets like the full dematerialization of the market, demutualisation of the NSE, new complaint management framework and important legislative reviews including amendment of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) among others.

Etisalat slashes devices’ prices

•From left: Minister of Communications, Ms Omobola Johnson; CEO Phase3 Telecomm, Mr Stanley Jegede and his wife Mosunmola, at Phase3 Telecommunications Christmas Carol in Abuja at the weekend.

‘Weak laws, others responsible for illegal movement of $50b from Africa’ W EAK legislation, lack of good policy frameworks and cohesion among African leaders, among others, have been identified as reasons for inability to rid the continent of illicit financial flow estimated at $50billion yearly, Action Aid, a international non –government organisation committed to the fight against poverty, has said.

NERFUND managers stay put as tenure lapses - P 26

By Akinola Ajibade

Illicit Financial Flow (IFF) in Africa is the fulcrum of a report which the former President of South African’s President, Thambo Mbeki submitted to the African Union (AU) few years ago, but yet to get the nod of the c6nt5nenbtal body. Part

of the report posted on the website of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) said 60 per cent of the illicit financial flows coming out of Africa are aided by the multinational companies. Speaking on the sideline of a conference with the theme: High Level Meeting on illicit

‘Eight days to deadline: Recapitalisation threatens 200 stockbroking firms, others - P28

Financial Flows out of Africa in Lagos, its Manager Policy Advocacy and Campaign, Tunde Aremu, said there is no way illegal movement of funds out of Africa can be stopped in the absence of effective legislations. Aremu said there are flaws in the laws made by the member countries, arguing that the development has prevented the stoppage of the criminal activity from one country to another.

TISALAT Nigeria is poised to make this season a memorable one for its customers with a special offerthat would see top range devices sold at a massive 50 per cent discount at all Etisalat Experience Centres. According the Director, Consumer Segment, at Etisalat Nigeria, Wole Rawa, the discount offer is the network’s way of not just saying “thank you” to its numerous customers but also empowering them to do more and achieve more during and beyond the Yuletide. “At Etisalat, we believe that empowering our customers will yield benefits for them and the society; we are making this massive price slash this season in the spirit of giving and to say ‘Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!’ to our customers,” he said. Rawa disclosed that throughout the Yuletide, customers can walk into any Etisalat Experience Centre and pick up top-ofthe-line Smartphones from leading brands such as Samsung, Nokia, Huawei and Tecno at very affordable prices.

NASD OTC’s capitalisation drops by N60b to N593b - P37

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE NATION

BUSINESS MONEY

e-mail: money@thenationonlineng.net

NERFUND managers stay put as tenure lapses H AS the one-year tenure of National Economic Reconstruction Fund (NERFUND) interim managers, which expired last October, been extended? This is the questions being asked by industry watchers as the managers are still in office over two months after their tenure expired. NERFUND workers are wondering what the managers are still doing when there is no indication of their tenures extension. NERFUND, which is under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance (MoF), is managed by a team from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC). The team was seconded to overhaul NERFUND following a N5.7 billion loss. The team, which assumed duty last October 9, is headed by Muhammad Gidado Kollere of NDIC’s as Managing Director/ CEO, CBN’s Ihua Elenwor is the Executive Director, Operations. The managers are expected to recover outstanding loans and reconcile all accounts with correspondent banks. They are also expected

Stories by Collins Nweze

to render quarterly reports to NERFUND’s board, headed by the Permanent Secretary, MoF. A source at NERFUND said the managers should be concerned with how the firm should be wound down now, following the National Assembly’s plan to repeal the law establishing it. They said the managers should also be concerned about the workers’ terminal benefits. The source advised the MoF to pay attention to what is happening in NERFUND to protect it from further losses. The source said the agency’s receivership is for one year, after which a substantive Managing Director would be appointed. The source said there is intense lobbying for the job. “You see, these managers from the CBN and NDIC may not want to quit as their tenure expired in October. They are more professional than the past managers of the Fund. They are also likely to seek extension of their tenure,” the source said. It said the CBN/NDIC team has been able to restructure some of

the ‘political loans’ that led the Fund into incurring losses. “Majority of the political loans that dented NERFUND’s balance sheet has been restructured, and secured with requisite collateral,” the source said. The source also faulted the N5.7 billion loss claim by the government, saying the total amount NERFUND has obtained from government since inception is not up to that amount. The Fund received about N2.8 billion in 2010, and $141 million from the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) at an exchange rate of N9.9 to a dollar in 1991. NERFUND also got another N350 million loan from the government. The source said the cumulative funds, made available to NERFUND till date, are below N4 billion. The source said there are also plans to restructure the operations of the Fund. This may necessitate the merger of NERFUND with the Bank of Industry (BoI) to deepen credit access to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). NERFUND was established by Decree No. 2 of 1989 to provide medium to long-term loans to par-

ticipating banks (PBs) for on-lending to SMEs for the promotion and acceleration of productive activities in such enterprises. The government took over the Fund following President Goodluck Jonathan’s approval of the recommendations of the CBN and NDIC Joint Special Examination report on its books. It claimed the capital invested in the institution by the MoF had been eroded with the gross losses. The Fund, it was learnt, has not been able to service loans taken for on-lending from the AfDB, the MoF and other sources. The source said the agency’s last governing board was dissolved in 1993, adding that it was being run by an Interim Management Committee headed by Permanent Secretary, MoF before the CBN/NDIC team came on board. The source said the firm has over time canvassed for reconstitution of its corporate governance board, recapitalisation and total restructuring. There were also previous plans to merge it with other Development Finance Institutions

(DFIDs), which also failed. Conditions set for accessing NERFUND’s Micro Enterprises Credit Scheme entail that prospecting businesses must be engaged in manufacturing, mining, quarrying, agro-allied, industrial support services, equipment leasing and other ancillary services. Besides, the enterprise should be wholly Nigerian owned and must source its raw materials for the project locally but could source plant and machinery either locally or from abroad. The projects to be financed must be financially and economically viable, and should have positive impact especially in employment creation in the operating environment. According to NERFUND statutes, the expected project could be a startup, expansion, rehabilitation or diversification of existing business while the beneficiaries are expected to own 10 per cent equity of the proposed business. The prospective beneficiary must have a limited liability company or registered enterprise and can only access between N100,000 and N5 million.

CIBN chief backs N220b MSMEs’ fund

HE President, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Mrs. Debola Osibogun, has said the Federal Government’s decision in launching the N220 billion Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Development Fund, power sector reforms and establishment of the Nigerian Mortgage Refinancing Company, are steps in the right direction. Speaking during a dialogue with President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja, Mrs. Osibogun said government has also created specialised funding for key sectors of the economy, such as Agriculture, Education, Maritime, Information Communication Technology and Textiles, among others. “We are happy to note that the banking industry remains a very dependable ally in promoting

these transformations across all sectors of the economy and is also working assiduously towards achieving the nation’s goal to be one of the top 20 economies in year 2020,” she said. The CIBN chief described the institute as 51-year-old self regulatory, professional banking institute, chartered by an Act of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with the statutory responsibilities of human capacity development for the banking industry; professional certification and maintenance of ethical standards among practitioners. “The Institute is overtly poised to coordinate and harmonise the strength of all its constitutent corporate and individual members; and other relevant stakeholders (local and International) for value addition to the Nigeria project,” she said.

UBA customers get Twitter alerts • From right: Executive Director, North & Corporate Banking, Sterling Bank Plc. Kayode Lawal; Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Yemi Adeola and Executive Director, Finance and Strategy, Abubakar Suleiman at the end-of-year media chat with the bank’s management in Lagos.

Agent banking: Banks, agents get 72 hours to resolve complaints

ANKS and agents have 72 hours to resolve customerrelated issues in agent banking, according to a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) guidelines. CBN said financial institutions will be responsible for setting up dispute resolution mechanisms for their agents to facilitate resolution of customers’ complaints. It pegged the minimum shareholder fund for Super Agents in Agent Banking at N50 million. In a circular to Deposit Money Banks, Mobile Money Operators (MMOs) and switches, signed by its Director of Banking & Payments Department, ‘Dipo Fatokun, CBN insisted that to be licensed, a Super Agent must be a company with an existing business operational for at least 12 months and registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).

It said the agent must also have a minimum shareholders’ fund unimpaired by losses of N50 million and obtain a reference letter from a financial institution as part of its documentation for licence request. The Super Agent must also have a minimum of 50 agents, while applications for such position shall be accompanied with board approval, certificate of incorporation, shareholding structure of the consortium and feasibility study for the agent network, among other conditions. “The Nigeria Interbank Settlement Scheme (NIBSS) shall provide the switching infrastructure at all agent locations. The super-agents’ platform shall be for the management and monitoring of the activities of their agents only and shall not hold electronic money value,

whereas, the financial institutions shall provide and operate the Mobile Money platform and hold electronic money value,” the circular said. It said all MMOs operators platforms must be up to date (inclusive of mandatory integration to NIBSS), tested and active to ensure interoperability between MMOs. Also, all licensed MMOs shall ensure that their platforms are upgraded as needed, tested and active within 30 days from the release of this document. For over-the-counter (OTC) transactions, it said the period for holding funds not withdrawn by a receiving customer shall be 30 days. Thereafter, the fund shall be reversed to the sender even as notifications sent to the receiving customer shall indicate the expiry date for the transaction.

USTOMERS of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc can now receive transaction alerts on their twitter handle as direct messages. It is an innovative first from the pan-African bank and currently the only bank in Africa to offer this service. “What we have done is take social media banking to a new level. Twitter is increasingly becoming a popular means of communication especially among the young adults. As a highly innovative bank, we are giving the Millennials, who are increasingly banking with us an option to get transaction alerts on their preferred platform” said Rasheed Adegoke, UBA’s Director, Information Technology. Before now customers can only receive transaction alerts as text messages on their mobile phones and as e-mails. The UBA Twitter Notification Service will not however, replace the current SMS alerts system in place for all of the bank’s customers, but will complement it for added convenience for all those who subscribe to the service. UBA customers seeking to receive twitter powered transaction alerts through their twitter account should visit the UBA Group website or the UBA twitter page to register.

On the UBA Group website, customers will be requested to click on the Twitter notification service page, and enter their account number then click on submit. Follow the displayed instructions to log into their personal account and enable access. Once this process is completed, the customer will start receiving transaction alerts securely. The alerts will only be seen by the receiver, since it goes into his or her direct message box, just like an SMS message going to a phone. The introduction of this service reinforces UBA’s growing presence and engagement with its numerous customers on social media. UBA has been acknowledged as one of Nigeria’s leading banks in the social media space. In February 2014, a social media report by Alder Consulting ranked the bank among the top three, in effective use of social media in Nigeria. UBA is active on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, Instagram and Google plus and runs a corporate blog. With a customer base in excess of seven million, UBA has invested heavily in building a robust and secure e-Banking platform that supports its e-banking operations globally through strategic partnerships with various local and international organisations.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

MONEY The controversy over who controls the mobile money market seems to be stalling the project. If not resolved, it could hamper stakeholders’ target of raising the value of mobile money transactions by 2015, COLLINS NWEZE writes.

Mobile money target: The banks’, telcos’ connection

HE success recorded in mobile money business so far is below expectation. The platform which allows mobile phones to be used to send and receive money, buy recharge cards, pay subscription fees for DStv, pay electricity bills, use of Point of Sale (PoS) terminals to pay for goods and services, among others, is under threat. For the Head, Payments & Oversight at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Musa Jimoh, the mobile money framework identifies the roles of every participant in the mobile money operation in the country. He said the apex bank excluded telcos from leading any of the mobile money schemes due to certain reasons. Firstly, he said the telcos are not regulated by the CBN, and that the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) and the telcos are not banks that enage in settlement schemes. These hiccups, not withstanding, stakeholders in the mobile money business expect transactions to hit N1.1 trillion by 2015. Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed a rise in mobile money transactions to N93 billion in January-October 2013, from N31.5 billion in 2012. It said that sustained growth at this pace would meet analysts’ aggressive forecast of N1.10 trillion in 2015. Head Equities Markets at FBN Capital, Olubunmi Ashaolu, said the rapid expansion of e-payments, have resulted in major fiscal and developmental benefits as well as new revenue streams for Information Technology providers, mobile operators and banks. He agreed that there is a momentum, but nonetheless explained that the expansion is at a low base, saying an estimated 46 per cent of the adult population has no access to financial services. CBN data showed total epayments of N2.1 trillion in 2012, of which Automated Teller Machine (ATM) transactions accounted for N1.98 trillion, or 94.7 per cent of the total.

Role of stakeholders Jimoh explained that Mobile Money Operators (MMOs) are to issue, store and process the e-money which is kept in subscribers’ wallets. They also recruit and manage agents; deploy, operate and manage risks associated with the technology for providing the mobile money services. He added that settlement banks manage the pool of funds for the subscribers, provide settlement on behalf of mobile money operators and provide monthly statement of pool account transactions to the MMOs. Also, the telcos provide the telecommunications infrastructure, and agent network services. Analysts insist that the Telcos and banks which are expected to jointly drive the process are working at cross roads. In other countries, the process could be: operator-led model, bank-led model, collaboration model and peer-to-peer model. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) chose the bank-led model in which case a bank deploys mobile payment applications or devices to customers and ensures merchants have the required point-of-sale (PoS) acceptance capability to carry out the transaction. Mobile network operators’ network merely serves as vehicle through which transactions take place. This is based on the regulatory framework for mobile payment services issued by the apex bank in 2009, which disenfranchised telcos from operating mobile money, except through strategic partnerships with licensed operators. The Telcos, have consistently advised the CBN to allow them participate in the regulation of the subsector, but nothing has come out of the demand. The apex bank, which solely regulates the business, has given the Telcos little or no opportunity for control. This model has deprived the business the needed technological and infrastructural backing critical to its success. The disagreement has adversely impacted on implementation process of the mobile money platform in the country. General Manager, IBM Africa, Taiwo Otiti, said strategy being adopted by the key stakeholders is stifling the success of mobile money operation in the country. Speaking during an interview with The Na-

• CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele

• Executive Vice Chairman, NCC Eugene Juwah

tion, he said: “The approach we have taken in mobile money is the challenge. We have over 30 million unbanked, compared with over 100 million mobile phone users. The guys who are unbanked, they may have mobile phones, but how would you get them into the financial system. You must be able to get into his lifestyle for you to be able to get him subscribe to mobile money scheme. Many of the stakeholders are doing that.” Otiti said that getting the mobile money scheme running requires both the payment and supply chain properly defined and implemented by the stakeholders. He said there is need for a paradigm shift that sees all the stakeholders working together. “The telcos can’t also do without the banks, so also are the banks. It is only by collaboration, will the mobile money project begin to deliver the needed results,” he said. He said the stakeholders should not think of who owns the customer, but focus on products and services that can attract more customers into the scheme because nobody owns the customer. “Nobody owns the customer. What is important is collaboration that ensures that end-user gets what he wants. We need to see mobile money in terms of what the customer can get and use in improving his lifestyles,” he said. The CBN said regulation of the telecom sector is not within its control, making it difficult for it to guide mobile money operations under the telco-led model being advocated by telecom operators. It said the risk involved in mobile money operations are so high, that regulation has to be closely implemented. It added that it does not control what the telcos are doing, unlike in the existing bank-led model where it provides the operating guidelines. He said mobile money operators are being encouraged to increase access to financial services through mobile phones that are either directly linked to a bank account or use of mobile wallets as intermediary virtual money accounts.

Experts insist that the current regime of mobile money regulation, which is being bank-driven, is not friendly to telecoms companies who provide the mobile payment platform. They said that though there was a lot that telecoms companies could contribute in a cashless economy, their current mandate was limiting. The thinking is that since the mobile payments business is 90 per cent dependent on the mobile industry, it was unfair that the mobile networks are prevented from advertising their various mobile payment products which are the foundation on which the bank products operate. From the customer’s mobile phone, to the mobile payments system and feedback to the mobile phone, the mobile payment transaction utilises mostly mobile resources, makes use of mobile time and is supported largely by mobile engineers, but unfortunately the CBN has restricted telecom companies from advertising in the mobile payments space. Analysts also think that telecom companies should be allowed to speak about the capabilities of their networks, the quality of user experience and the choice of mobile payment services available on their networks. It is now roughly two years since the first mobile money went live and approaching a year since cashless economy came into operation. Meanwhile, none of the individual players can boast of having more than 10,000 active subscribers. The CBN said over the next few years, the focus of the regulator will be to strengthen the institutional and regulatory frameworks to achieve improved financial inclusion. The application of mobile technology for financial services especially in rural areas will ensure that a large percentage of the population outside the formal banking system would have access to financial services using one of the three models of card-based, account-based and virtual account. CBN statistics showed that only 26 mil-

‘Getting the mobile money scheme running requires both the payment and supply chain properly defined and implemented by the stakeholders. There is need for a paradigm shift that sees all the stakeholders working together. The telcos can’t also do without the banks, so also are the banks. It is only by collaboration, will the mobile money project begin to deliver the needed results’

lion Nigerians own a bank account out of a population of 167 million populations. With telecoms subscriber base put at about 120 million by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), there are indeed limitless opportunities for the country to achieve financial inclusion by bringing the large numbers of the unbanked to the banking sector through mobile money,” he said. The NCC said critical success factors for mobile payment in the country are the integrity and security of the end-to-end transition during a payment transaction process. He said the chain of transaction must be secured from initiation to authentication. Therefore, confidentiality and integrity of the data transition are critical factors in mobile payment. The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has called on stakeholders in the mobile money business to seek ways of extending the service to a larger proportion of the population. NDIC’s chief, Umaru Ibrahim who made this known during a roundtable discussion on mobile money services held in Lagos, said that there are over 100 million mobile phone lines in the country. He said: “According to Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFiNA) survey, the rural population is 71 per cent, while 76.2 per cent of the population remains unbanked. Mobile phone ownership is 55.6 per cent in the rural areas.” He explained that effective rendering of mobile banking financial services can be a key mechanism in achieving the objective of National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) based on the huge success recorded by Kenya, Uganda and South Africa in enhancing financial inclusion through mobile financial services. Ibrahim said mobile banking subscribers will soon get deposit insurance coverage, with each subscriber guaranteed up to N200,000, or N500,000 as applicable to Microfinance Banks/Primary Mortgage Banks and Deposit Money Banks(DMBs) respectively, in the event of bank failure. He explained that if a bank fails, the insured mobile account can be transferred to another sound bank, to further engender public confidence in the system and promote financial stability. According to him, the framework for extending deposit insurance to individual customers of mobile payment services is being finalised. Razak Olaleye, a mobile money analyst said Telcos are licensed to offer telecoms services and not banking services. According to him, the decision was made because the CBN does not regulate telcos and if the telcos are allowed to lead mobile money, it will mean putting two critical segments of Nigeria’s economy in the hands of a few companies. This, they believe, portends great risk for the country. World Bank said the global remittance market has grown rapidly over the past decade. In 2010, remittances through official channels amounted to $440 billion, of which, developing countries received an estimated $325 billion. The majority of these transactions are still cash-to-cash transactions, but the share of digital transactions is steadily increasing. Driven by the development of mobile money systems in emerging markets, experts estimate that $16 billion worth of international money transfers will be received with mobile phones in 2015. In Nigeria, the scheme is however, confronted with many problems but the CBN said the draft National Payments System Bill, which is undergoing legislative passage, is expected to address the legal barriers to electronic payments such as the admissibility of electronic evidence in the law courts. Managing Director, Mobile Money Africa, Mr Emmanuel Okogwale, agrees that there are still challenges. According to him, most of the companies licensed to do mobile payment are yet to have accredited agents who will reside in urban, semi-urban and rural areas. He argued that without well trained mobile money agents, the implementation would not be seamless as agents with the requisite tools and handsets are the infrastructure needed to deliver the money to the customers.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE NATION INVESTORS

Eight days to deadline: Recapitalisation threatens 200 stockbroking firms, others T

HE Nigerian capital market is holding its breath amidst wrinkled faces created by steep depreciation in shares’ values and raised brows on the impending deadline for recapitalisation of capital market operators. With eight days, four working days, to the December 31, 2014 deadline for the recapitalisation of capital market operators, The Nation’s check has indicated that not less than 200 stockbroking firms might be affected by the recapitalisation deadline. Stockbrokers are the largest and primary trade group in the capital market and are regarded as the face and core of the market’s operations. They are also the hardest hit in the increase in capital base. Reliable industry sources and available data indicated that some 100 stockbroking firms have already met or in tow to meet the recapitalisation deadline, out of some 320 stockbroking firms listed as members of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). While it has faced a groundswell of opposition from trade groups and largely small capital market operators, SEC has so far insisted on the implementation of the new capital requirements arguing that the new capital structure was arrived at after extensive consultation with all stakeholders. A reliable source at SEC con-

• Affected operators hope for extension Stories by Taofik Salako

firmed that no decision has been taken on either a review of the capital requirements or extension of the deadline as at press time. SEC ostensibly has the backing of the large and medium capital market operators, which view the consolidation as a right step to deepen the market. SEC had also argued that small and poorly capitalised operators are mostly responsible for infractions in the market, which the apex capital market regulator blamed on lack of adequate material and governance structures. The NSE has also cited similar data and argument. Besides, the trading data at the stock market show that a handful of stockbroking firms contribute the largest chunk of activities at the market. Latest weekly trading summary by the NSE for the week ended December 19, 2014 showed that 10 stockbroking firms accounted for 84.09 per cent and 89.50 per cent of the total volume and value for the week. Total turnover at the NSE last week stood at 5.41 billion shares worth N46.47 billion in 22,986 deals. The Nation had recently reported that the NSE had already determined 81 out of the 322 stockbroking firms on its dealing members’ list as inactive, a classification that represents

state of poor capitalisation and complete shutdown of operations. Investigation by The Nation yesterday showed that 77 stockbroking firms still remained on the list of inactive/deactivated stockbroking firms. Number of listed stockbroking firms now stands at 320. However, opposing view on the recapitalisation had argued that stockbrokers, as investors’ trade agent, require no huge capital to perform their roles. Beyond the fidelity assurance, stockbrokers typically carry no risk in the stock market transaction as their role is to match investors on both buying and selling sides. Many operators have also argued that removing a large chunk of small but active market operators will have a retrogressive effect on the capital market inclusion programme. Less than five per cent of Nigerian population participate in the capital market. They argued that small and active stockbroking firms are the foot soldiers of the market engaging the retail investors. However, a new rule by the NSE will allow stockbrokers to act as sub-brokers and agents to other large stockbroking firms. A market operator in the know told The Nation that the downturn

in the capital market is adversely affecting mergers and acquisitions by operators. According to the source, with the depreciation in portfolio value, the underlining assets of several operators have been significantly undervalued, which make them to be hesitating on consummation of mergers and acquisitions. The nation had earlier reported that an emergency meeting by stockbrokers, under the auspices of Association of Stockbroking Firms of Nigeria (ASHON), had concluded that stockbrokers should devise alternative plan in the event that SEC stick to the increase in capital base. The alternative plan, according to the sources at the meeting, will include mergers, acquisitions and raising of new funds through any of debt and equity means. SEC had announced major increases in minimum capital requirements for capital market functions under a new minimum capital structure that is expected to take off by January 1, 2015. Minimum capital base for broker/dealer was increased by 329 per cent from the existing N70 million to N300 million. Broker, which currently operates with capital base of N40 million, will now be required to have N200 million, representing an increase of 400 per cent. Minimum

capital base for dealer increased by 233 per cent from N30 million to N100 million. Also, issuing houses, which facilitate new issues in the primary market, will now be required to have minimum capital base of N200 million as against the current capital base of N150 million. The capital requirement for underwriter also doubled from N100 million to N200 million. Trustees, rating agencies and portfolio and fund managers had their minimum capital base increased by 650 per cent each from N40 million, N20 million and N20 million to N300 million, N150 million and N150 million respectively. A Registrar will now have a minimum capital base of N150 million as against the current requirement of N50 million. While the minimum capital base for corporate investment adviser remained unchanged at N5 million, individual investment advisers will have to increase their capital base by 300 per cent from N500,000 to N2 million. Stockbrokers earn barely 4.0 per cent as total brokerage on complete buy and sale stockbroking transaction. Although several stockbrokers are registered for other functions such as corporate finance and investment advisory, they face strong competition from banks, insurance and other financial services companies who provide similar functions.

GTI reassures investing public on excellent services

• From Left: Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Oscar Onyema; CEO, Teragro Commodities Limited, the agri-business subsidiary of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) Plc, Dupe Olusola; and Executive Director, Business Development, NSE, Haruna Jalo-Waziri when NSE presented the Most Compliant Listed Firm Award to Transcorp in Lagos.

Financial regulators mull capital, credit risk changes for banks T HE Basel Committee on Banking Supervision on Monday published a consultative paper on the design of a capital floor framework based on standardised, noninternal modelled approaches. The Committee also simultaneously released a consultative document on revisions to the standardised approach for credit risk. According to the report, the Committee’s proposed floor would ensure that the level of capital across the banking system does not fall below a certain level. The floor is also meant to mitigate model risk and measurement error stemming from internally-modelled approaches. It would also enhance the comparability of capital outcomes across banks. “As noted in the Committee’s November 2014 report to the G20 Leaders, the Committee is taking steps to reduce variation in capital ratios between banks. Today’s consultative paper is part of a range of policy and supervisory measures from the Committee that aim to enhance the reliability and comparability of riskweighted capital ratios,” the Com-

mittee stated. The Committee is simultaneously revising the Basel framework’s standardised approaches for regulatory capital and the proposed capital floor framework will be based on the finalised versions of these standardised approaches, and would replace the existing transitional capital floor based on the Basel I framework. However, the floor’s calibration is outside the scope of the current consultation. The Committee will consider the calibration of the floor alongside its work on finalising the revised standardised approaches to credit risk, market risk and operational risk, taking into account its ongoing review of the capital framework and its balance of simplicity, comparability and risk sensitivity. The consultation is expected to continue through the first quarter of 2015. Under the revisions to the standardised approach for credit risk, proposed revisions seek to strengthen the existing regulatory

capital standard in several ways. These included reduced reliance on external credit ratings; enhanced granularity and risk sensitivity; updated risk weight calibrations, which for purposes of this consultation are indicative risk weights and will be further informed based on the results of a quantitative impact study; more comparability with the internal ratings-based (IRB) approach with respect to the definition and treatment of similar exposures; and better clarity on the application of the standards. According to the Committee, it is considering replacing references to external ratings, as used in the current standardised approach, with a limited number of risk drivers that provide a meaningful differentiation for risk. These alternative risk drivers vary based on the particular type of exposure and have been selected on the basis that they are simple, intuitive, readily available and capable of explaining risk across jurisdictions.

TI Securities Limited, a member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and owner of Sub-Sahara Africa’s first private trading floor, has reassured the investing public that it would continue to improve on its bespoke services to cater for the needs of the investing public. In a statement, the management of the securities firm said the company is poised to serve the investing public better with more customer-centred products and services and efficient communication system. It noted that GTI Securities, a member of the GTI Capital Group, is focused on its core competence of trade execution and advisory and it has been positioned for greater market penetration and enhance strategic focus in stockbroking business. “The new and transformed GTI is now poised to serve you better, as it is founded on the principles of financial possibilities for all your investment requirements and we are committed to ensuring that you fully maximize the rewarding investment opportunities present in the capital market through our formidable research team,” the investors’ note stated. According to the company, part of its value-added investment services included improved research reports, which provide daily market insights and regular business and economic news, stock analysis and recommendations and sectoral reports which give clients insights into the various sectors of the economy and assist them in making informed investment decisions. “We also offer free investment advisory. As a valued client, we will be willing to meet with you, at any point in time, to plan your investment portfolio across various assets classes based on your needs and in line with your investment objectives. We will also from time to time, be contacting you on your investment portfolio, to ensure proper re-alignment for improved profitability,” the firm stated. The statement pointed out that GTI Securities’ online trading platform gives investors direct access to the market for online trading and real

time monitoring of the market and their portfolios. It added that it has provided dedicated mandate and customer service lines that provide direct access to customers to promptly place their orders, make enquiries and get feedback on their portfolios. GTI Securities noted that all members of GTI Capital Group are well capitalised above regulatory benchmarks. Located on Tinubu Street, in the Marina axis of Lagos’s main Central Business District, the GTI Securities’ private trading floor is a multi-purpose trading floor designed to interface with the most modern trading engines around the world, providing stockbrokers on both sides direct trading opportunity. Already linked and trading online, real time, on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and NASD OTC Plc, the private trading floor is concluding arrangements that will open up similar trading opportunities on the LSEG, New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and other major exchanges. As a broker-dealer member of the NSE, GTI is also part of the West African Capital Market Integration (WACMI) programme, which is designed to integrate the region’s stock exchanges. The WACMI programme, at full implementation, will enable stockbrokers from any West African country to trade on any of the region’s exchanges and also allow companies to raise capital across the borders. GTI Securities’ private trading engine is designed to trade on all instruments including equities, bonds and derivatives. A team from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) recently visited the GTI Securities’ trading floor with a promise to work together with the Nigerian firm to further integrate the Nigerian capital market and the global financial markets. Chief of staff and head of international development, London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), Mr. Nikhil Rathi, had commended GTI’s vision of seamless facilitation of capital flow and investments between Nigerian and global financial markets.

Newspaper of the Year

AN EIGHT-PAGE PULLOUT ON THE SOUTHWEST STATES

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

PAGE 29

Lagos campaigns against gender violence By Miriam Ekene-Okoro

ROM November 25 (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to December 10 (International Human Rights Day), civil societies organisations and some state governments in Nigeria, joined the international community to increase awareness of the devastating impact of gender-based violence. The 16-Day campaign themed: “From Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Let’s Challenge Militarism and End Violence against Women” was the same used in 2012 and 2013. Lagos State was not left out. The government, through the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA), recently collaborated with the United Nations to round off this year’s edition of 16 days of activism against gender violence with a sensitisation forum for people at the grassroots and other stakeholders. Speaking at the forum held in Alausa, a legal practitioner and President of the Centre of the Rule of Law, Olasupo Ojo said it was not enough for government to enact laws. He maintained that adequate steps must be taken to ensure that people for whom the law is enacted to protect as well as offenders are aware of such legislation. “But most importantly, it’s to make people have a change of mind, attitude and behaviour. The primary purpose of that law is not really to punish but to ensure that we try to change and remodel the way people behave so that they can refrain from domestic violence against anybody, whether from man to woman or woman to man,” he said. Ojo, however, admitted that the law cannot perform its function by itself, but needs the government, civil societies and the communities to take up the responsibility of ensuring that cases of violence are reported. “Those saddled with the responsibility of administering or managing the law, like the Office of the Deputy Governor in Lagos is trying to sensitise people and also the police officers as well have a role to play, as well as the courts and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and everybody in the community must rise up and ensure that where there is any incident of domestic violence, we should be our brother’s keeper.

INSIDE

•Continued on page 30

Wanted: Help before death comes for these babies PAGE 30

•Fun seekers at the zoo

The Zoological Garden of the University of Ibadan has found its spark again after about two decades of inactivity, reports BISI OLADELE

New vista for Ibadan zoological garden T

HE fire is back to the zoo. So is the fun and happiness experienced by tourists to the Zoological Garden of the University of Ibadan. It was the first zoological garden in the city of Ibadan. Tucked within the enclave of the University College, which later transformed to the Uni-

versity of Ibadan (UI), The UI Zoo, as it is fondly called, was popular among, not only members of the university community, but also among residents of the city and visitors. Established as a unit in the Department of Zoology of the university in 1948, the garden became a fullyfledged zoological garden in 1974.

Council warns against indiscriminate refuse dumping PAGE 32

In the 80s, anyone on a long visit to Ibadan dreamt of the UI Zoo as a notto-miss tourist centre. With wide range of animals kept in their near natural habitats, good maintenance of the animals and other facilities in the garden, trained tour guides and interesting animals, visits to the UI Zoo left fond memories for tourists.

240 benefit from empowerment programme PAGES 36

It was a zoological garden per excellence in all ramifications, at least, going by the standards of that period. It was then managed by an expert, Mr Bob Golden, a Briton. From the mid-70s to the late 80s, the UI Zoo held ace as the foremost garden in Ibadan and, perhaps, the entire Southwest region. The interesting lifestyle of two gorillas–Haruna and Imade–was a major attraction for crowds of tourists at the time. The animals provided enough fun for visitors with the way they related. The two animals were viewed as a thrilling

•Continued on page 30

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT Lagos campaigns against gender violence •Continued from page 29 “We should not just allow it go by and say it’s between a husband and wife, or a family matter which does not concern you. But it really does concern you because your child is taking note of what is going on in your neighbour’s house and he may imbibe the attitude if care is not taken. “But when your child realises that you speak against such evil by ordinary phone call to the relevant government agencies, he or she will have regard for fellow mankind. If you don’t want your neighbour to know that you reported, you can call the authorities on phone to let them know the house in question. It’s a collective effort; it should not be left for the government only,” he said. Chief Executive Officer of Yemi Royal Foundation, a non-governmental organisation that promotes the interest of single mothers and widows as well as speaking against violence against women, Chief Mrs. Yemi Osoba, praised the Lagos State Government for taking the sensitisation campaign to the people. “I noticed that a lot of women were being violated. Initially, we thought it was just adult women, but it got to the level where children were being raped. That’s one of the reasons I took up the challenge to come to Lagos. “I am happy that the Lagos State Government is organising different seminars to create the awareness in people that there is succour for those who are victims of domestic violence,” she said. Though she admitted that it would be taxing to have a society free from domestic violence, Mrs. Osoba, however, said concerted efforts by all and sundry can contribute to a large extent to reduce the rate. “Right now, on the pages of newspapers, you read of children being raped and women being violated. You see a situation where a responsible man, on appearance, will beat up his wife and where a 40-year-old man raping a two-year- old girl. Before they give the excuse of how the girl dressed, what does a two-yearold child know? “So, it would be hard to eradicate, but we can reduce the rate at which it occurs. The only way through which we can reduce it is through awareness campaigns,” Mrs Osoba said. Participants at the forum were unanimous in their call on the government to ensure that religious organisations, traditional rulers and community heads are carried along in the campaign as most cases are reported to them which they do not treat as serious offences.

•Baby Prince Adedoyin

•Baby Latoya Adedoyin

Wanted: Help before death comes f

T the Hearts of Gold Hospice, Surulere, Lagos Mainland, two babies lay in abject pain waiting for mercy. Corporate bodies or individuals can heal their pains. They need corrective surgeries that can make living somewhat bearable for them. Unless help comes quickly, the angel of death may visit at any time and end the perpetual pain in which these babies alive. One of the babies, christened Baby Latoya who was brought to the hospice by officials of the Lagos State government after she was picked up from the point where she was abandoned by her parents, suffers from two devastating defects-Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus. While the first is a condition in which a baby is in the womb and the spinal column does not close all of the way causing a variety of mental and so-

By Olukorede Yishau

cial problems which would make the life of any child with the defect incomplete. Hydrocephalus on the other hand is derived from the Greek words “hydro” meaning water and “cephalus” meaning head. It is a condition in which the primary characteristic is excessive accumulation of fluid in the brain. Although hydrocephalus was once known as “water on the brain,” the “water” is actually cerebrospinalfluid (CSF) — a clear fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The excessive accumulation of CSF results in an abnormal widening of spaces in the brain called ventricles. This widening creates potentially harmful pressure on the tissues of the brain. The most common indication of hydrocephalus in infants is often a rapid in-

crease in head circumferenceor an unusually large head size. And children with the condition suffer a variety of conditions including vomiting, sleepiness, irritability, downward deviation of the eyes, and seizures.A visit to the Hospice would leave even the stone hearted sober for a number of hours. During our visit to the home last week, a lady cried without control until she was escorted out of the home by one of her colleagues. It is a place where you are reminded of the everyday privileges that we take for granted. Like the duo, children at the Hearts of Gold Hospice generally suffer from a wide range of congenital defects, some of which may be correctable through surgical interventions while others are terminal. Some other conditions which children in the home suffer from in-

clude congenital heart deformities. These defects leave most of these children in conditions which make them bed ridden for life and incapable of participating in mixing with members of the society, a reason for which a lot of parents terminate the lives of these children or abandon them in places where they are either picked up or left to die over a period of time. The Hearts of Gold Hospice was, in response to the pathetic way in which children with these physical and mental deformities are treated in October 2013. According to the Founder and Proprietor of the facility, which has 63 severely physically and mentally challenged children, Mrs Laja Adedoyin: “We opened our house on October 2, 2003 in response to the steadily increasing number of abandoned, orphaned and sick children suffer-

Nigerians urged to support less-privileged

ORRIED by the level of lack among people, the second Vice-District Governor of Lagos Central Lions Club, Mr Taiwo Adewumi, has urged Nigerians to render helping hands to the downtrodden, even as he advised them to be their brother’s keepers. This, he said, is in line with the spirit of African brotherhood which extends hands of fellowship and unconditional love to everyone. Mr Adewumi spoke at the installation of the new President of Ikeja Platinum Lion Club, Mr Ola Oluwa Adebiyi. The event was also used to raise funds for charity work and to induct new members. He said due to insecurity, political crisis violence and economic down turn, there is the need for all Nigerians to affect

By Bode Monogbe

positively on the lives of others. The Vice-Governor urged fellow Nigerians to be passionate in touching people’s lives. Earlier, the immediate past President of the club, Mr Abiola Ismail Iyanda enumerated his achievements during his tenure to include renovation and equipping of the school library of Mende Junior High School, donation of food stuffs to Correctional Homes for boys at Oregun, Ikeja; cash donations to Nigerian Society for the Blind Oshodi; sponsorship of Mende Junior High School students to the final of Peace Poster Contest; Integrated Measles Campaign and donation of gifts to the public at the palace of Olu of Mushin. Others, he said, included spon-

•Adebiyi (third right) with other members of the club

soring a cataract surgery in Ibadan during the World Sight Day, organising party and donation of gifts to the physicallychallenged pupils at Modupe Cole Yaba and donation towards Bolarinwa Football Competition. He thanked members of the club for their support during his

tenure. In his acceptance speech, Lion Adebiyi Ola Oluwa promised to key into the core dream of the club, which entails alleviating the suffering of the people through feeding the less-privileged persons, fund-raising, donation of exercise books to pub-

lic schools, visitation to orphanage and the inmates in the prisons; donating drugs to health centres, empowerment of youths, championing diabetes awareness campaigns and many others. He solicited the support of members of the club in order to make the dreams come true.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT When gas explosion jolted Ondo residents ENULTIMATE Saturday, which ordinarily should be a happy weekend for residents and traders in Arakale area of Akure, the Ondo State capital, witnessed an unpleasant incidence of gas explosion. The incident, which occurred around 7: 00 p.m. was said to have been caused by a leakage at a gas retail outlet where 11 houses were burnt and eight people injured. Eye witnesses confirmed that it took almost two hours before rescue operation could come; thereby causing a lot of damage as countless valuables was razed. Many of the victims were rushed to the trauma centre in Ondo town for quick medical attention. Governor Olusegun Mimiko, who visited the scene of the explosion at Arakale the following day, said the state government would investigate the cause of the explosion. He condemned the act, stressing that it was not a bomb blast as was speculated in some quarters, adding that there was no life lost. Governor Mimiko said the gas outlet responsible for the fire outbreak was not approved for business. He warned that all illegal filling stations in residential areas and other hazardous locations would be pulled down. Our correspondent gathered that there was no immediate rescue operation from the fire service, even as it took a long time for many victims to be rushed to the hospital for quick medical attention. The delay was attributed to lack of operational vehicles and equipment. The state’s Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Wole Ogodo, said there was no record of death at the scene of the explosion. He said while some of the injured have been discharged, others were receiving treatment at various hospitals. Ogodo said: “It was very sad that this incident happened, but I want to tell you that no life was lost, only few got injured in the incident.” Aggrieved residents and traders lamented that all efforts to get government’s attention to move the gas plant from the area to a safe place were unsuccessful. Narrating her ordeal, one of the traders, Miss Ikechi Anyanwu said: ”We were standing outside the house which is close to the shop when we heard a loud noise which turned out to be gas explosion. Initially, we thought it was a bomb

‘It was very sad that this incident happened, but I want to tell you that no life was lost, only few got injured in the incident...We were standing outside the house which is close to the shop when we heard a loud noise which turned out to be gas explosion. Initially, we thought it was a bomb because of the bang...The gas tank was refilled this evening but they did not know it was leaking and it just exploded after it has been exposed to air for a long time’

she said. Mrs Oluwafemi Adeleke, a resident of Aluprom Avenue said: “The road was bad so much so that one could break one’s legs while walking on the road. We want them to help us to reconstruct other adjoining roads such as Olaiya Street,” she said.

Steven, a tailor who resides on Abolaji Street thanked the council chief for coming to their aid. “The street was constructed about four years ago but the link was not constructed. The road got spoilt due to

•Mrs Adedoyin and baby Esther

for these babies ing from a vast range of congenital abnormalities. The hospice offers free 24 hours, 7 days a week and 365 days a year, service for children with terminal or life threatening illnesses, offering a comfortable, caring and loving environment for them to live for the short period that they may have with us in the world. We provide respite support, palliative care, comfort and pain management even as we seek for assistance towards securing corrective surgeries for those children whose conditions give them a chance to live” Explaining that the hospice has children from every part of the country, Mrs Adedoyin noted that a lot of parents abandon their children with birth defect because there is no support system. In her words: “Parents of some of my children are usually not economically

strong and have no idea where to go for help. These children are kept in obscure places, away from the society because of the stigma attached to having these class of children. They are often abused and rejected by their blood families. Some fathers would give the mothers ultimatum, chased out of her matrimonial home and faces rejection by in-laws.” Further showing concern for the plight of parents who have children with congenital defect, Mrs Adedoyin noted that: “ for majority of my children, surgical intervention is required to give them a new and near normal life and so when parents cannot afford this, they resort to all sorts of methods which is mostly not in the interest of the children. She therefore counselled parents to parents, especially mothers is to hold on and seek help

through the respective government institution insisting that there is always a measure of help that this governmental organisation can provide even if it is just to link them up with the right home to go to. Mrs Adedoyin who said that she is very fulfilled with what she is doing explained that the major challenge that her home has is getting the needed assistance and sponsorship for timely surgeries for the children. She noted that the lack of help sometimes jeopardises the lives of the children and expresses the hope that more Nigerians would come forward and lend a helping hand to secure the survival of more of the children in the home. She thanked the Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fasola for the unquantifiable assistance that the home has received from him as well as corporate bodies and individuals who have continued to take care of my children, my prayer is that God almighty will take care of them too.”

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

because of the bang. “The gas tank was refilled this evening but they did not know it was leaking and it just exploded after it has been exposed to air for a long time.” It was alleged that men of the state fire service failed to show up at the scene at the appropriate time. They blamed it on malfunctioned vehicles and strike embarked upon by the workers in the state. But their counterpart from the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) later came about two hours after the explosion. It took the combined effort of policemen and soldiers who came to the scene later to return normalcy and to prevent hoodlums from hijacking the situation. Doctors at the state specialist hospital said several injured persons were rushed there and have been receiving treatment. They, however, said the treatment was not total because of strike action embarked upon by medical workers union. According to them, the victims whose conditions were critical have been rushed to the trauma Centre in Ondo for comprehensive treatment.

Facelift for council roads

N LINE with the directive by the Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) to all Council Managers to focus attention on constructing better roads in the rural communities, establishing healthcare facilities, ensuring environmental sanitation and primary education in their respective councils, the Council Manager, Oshodi-Isolo Local Government Area, Mr Kolawole Hundeyin, has successfully constructed three roads within 45 days when he assumed office. Aside roads construction, the council manager is building a garbage disposal centre within the council premises to forestall outbreak of communicable diseases which could arise from indiscriminate dumping of waste. Hundeyin has also procured 150 chairs and 50 computer tables for the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) Vocational Skill Acquisition Centre at the council premises. According to him, the major problem of Oshodi-Isolo Local Govern-

Safiyyah Abdur-Razaq

ment Area is bad roads. “Most of them (roads) are not in good condition. Because of this, I have to focus more attention on rehabilitating the roads. I have worked on three roads now and hope to start another next week,” he said. The roads rehabilitated included Abolaji Street, Alimi-Oke Street and Aluprom Avenue. Hundeyin pledged to construct two roads in each of the seven wards in the council. He also urged residents to be law-abiding. “Most of them are not in good condition. From the statistics available to me, we have four federal roads, 19 state roads and 288 local roads. Since the major problem of this local government is roads, I have to focus more on them,” he said. Mojisola Ayibiowu and Mrs Omolayo Lawal, who are traders on Alimi-Oke Street, praised the Council Manager for constructing the roads. According to them, they now have easy access to their homes unlike before when the roads were impass-

•Aluprom street after construction

able, even as they noted that the smoothness of the roads has improved their businesses. Mrs Lawal pleaded with Hundeyin to erect bumps on the roads for the safety of children in the area. “Sometimes, the drivers just zoom past as if they are on the expressway,”

•Continued on page 36

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT ‘The transformation was a product of the determination of the university to do things right and restore the glory of the garden in line with the institution’s position as a premier university in Nigeria...Our patronage has increased three times in the last three to four years. That is because of the tremendous transformation of the zoo...Structurally, we have three times the number of animal enclosures. All the enclosures are enriched. We make them simulate (make it look like the natural habitat)’

•The embalmed Haruna

these bring more students and researchers to us from all over the country and other parts of the world. “We have also upgraded our bird line and aviary. We have more exotic birds such as the white peacocks, budgerigar birds, several parrots, including vulture. Some of the birds are now laying eggs and hatching because of the natural habitat. The conservation of animals is being enhanced by the transformation. “We also have the carnivorous animals, including spotted and striped hyena, jackals and lions. We have herbivorous animals that include giraffes and antelopes. We are proud of about 100 species of animals even though we are not yet where we aim to be.”

•Embalmed Imade

New vista for Ibadan zoological garden •Continued from page 29 couple by regular visitors. The Director of the zoo, Dr Morenikeji Olajumoke, said of the two gorillas: “Haruna was our very lovely gorilla. So also was Imade. They were brought into the zoo by Mr Bob Golden, the first director of UI Zoo. He has since returned to the United Kingdom (UK). “He was here in the 60s and 70s. The gorillas were cute but they grew old and died. Haruna died in 1995 while Imade died in 2006. The two animals had a great impact on the zoo because Bob Golden had trained them. They swam and did many things together. They were so lively. These made them attract so much attention. They were very interesting animals to watch. So, many people came to watch them. “The two have undergone taxidermy (embalming) and are displayed at the Educational Unit of the zoo.” But the tide changed for the garden in the 1990s as poor maintenance and failure to upgrade the animals and facilities made it slide into oblivion.

Haruna and Imade had died, the elephant was no more and facilities became outmoded, overused and dilapidated. However, the garden’s fortunes have, again been turned around for good. Things are better now than even the starting period. With over 100 species of animals, double the number of staff, partnership with agencies, individuals and increasing investments, UI Zoological Garden has succeeded in restoring its glory. It is currently charting the way forward in the industry. On the journey to the present stage, Dr Olajumoke explained that the transformation was a product of the determination of the university to do things right and restore the glory of the garden in line with the institution’s position as a premier university in Nigeria. According to her, Golden did his very best and left a good legacy. The onus to sustain his team’s achievements and build on the successes was taken by the current management, a development that has been buoyed by philanthropists, corporate organisations and employment of

•The clinic more experts to manage the garden. Her words: “Our patronage has increased three times in the last three to four years. That is because of the tremendous transformation of the zoo. Considering its state five years ago, you will be surprised at what the zoo looks like now. It has now

•Dr Morenikeji and her predecessor, Bob Golden

been blown open, totally changed. Since inception, we have never had it this good. “Structurally, we have three times the number of animal enclosures. All the enclosures are enriched. We make them simulate (make it look like the natural habitat).

“We have enriched the cages; make them look like educational units that are providing a lot of information about the animals. Children can stay in the reptile house now and spend hours. “We have also the audio programme where everything about

each reptile is explained in audible voice in four native languages and English. You are educated about the reptiles and other species all over the world. “We now have a children zoo where we keep little animals like rabbits, pocines and civet cats. We were

not able to keep the cats before this transformation. But they can now survive. The habitat is suitable for them now. They are doing so well. “Apart from that, we have upgraded our ape enclosure. It is enriched. Chimpanzees now have swings, toys and food plates, among

•Part of Lagos/Abeokuta Expressway turned to dumpsite By Olalekan Ayeni

forts. Rahmon said: “Dumping of refuse on the highways does not only hinder the free-flow of human and vehicular movements but also pollutes water sources and could easily cause skin damage, respiratory

infection, diarrhoea, digestive disorder, ear, lungs and liver diseases, among others. He urged everyone living within the state to desist from the undisciplined act, adding that full enforcement against perpetrators will soon begin. He advised the residents to always

Plan for the future “The zoo is already expanding. We are bringing in more animals and we are also working on more collaboration with other zoos abroad. We are also looking forward to a very robust conservation programme which we have already started. Patronage is increasing and I believe that the zoo will be able to sustain itself.

‘Nigeria will not break after elections’

Council warns against indiscriminate refuse dumping HE Chairman, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area, Ogun State, Comrade Rotimi Rahmon, has warned residents of the area to desist from the unhealthy practice of dumping garbage on the highways and market places. Comrade Rahmon gave the warning while addressing traders along the Lagos/Abeokuta Expressway, former tollgate, Ota, Ogun State. He said illegal dumping of refuse has become a serious problem in the state. Not only does it constitute a drawback on the state’s beautification efforts, but has also become an issue that has many adverse effects on the environment and the residents. The situation, he added, had become worrisome, even as he described it as sabotage to state government’s efforts towards ensuring healthy environment for the citizens. He said Governor Ibikunle Amosun has been trying his best by transforming the state just for the benefits of the residents, noting it has been a great concern as some people still sabotage the administration’s development ef-

other things. They are for the education of the animals. “We also have a new administrative block. It houses the education unit and the library. So many researchers have been visiting the zoo and the library. We have all information and the animals on the computer. All

How it happened “I am the most excited person about what is going on. When I assumed duty, my vision was to upgrade it to international standards. It was like the driving force for me. I met people, contacted companies, preaching the need for this upgrading. Fortunately, everyone I spoke to responded. We conceived painting. I spoke with Seven Up Bottling Company which did painting for us. “Coca-Cola and Seven Up Bottling Company helped in the setting up of the buttery to cater for refreshment of people. “Nigerian Breweries PLC has been donating feed for our animals monthly. One of my major donors is Pastor Enoch Adeboye. He sent N5 million and we started the education aspect and the transformation. “When he came again, I told him about a new architectural design for

the zoo. He, again, gave N20 million for the architecture. The third time he came, he gave another N20 million. He is not just a man of God, he loves animals and children. We need to leave something for the children unborn. “People also donated animals. Some of our animals in Africa are endangered. I’m so grateful to God for the positive ways people are responding. We did fencing, created ramp walkways, especially for disabled people to make it workable. We also made another gate to bring in big animals. I’m very happy with the project now. “We have programmes for Children’s Day celebration, have Valentine’s Day, games; quiz competition, drawing competition and so on among schools. It is a lot of hard work. “Staff number has doubled, including graduates. We now have four graduate curators looking after the zoo. The last four years have been transformational. “Apart from those, we now have a wildlife clinic/laboratory where the animals are treated.”

•Epedemic looms at Sango Expressway becomes garbage site

dump their garbage at the appropriate sites that could not constitute hindrance to the free-flow of vehicles. The council chief also urged them to put their garbage in sacks before dumping them at the council’s approved dumpsites to make their evacuation by refuse trucks easier.

He urged the traders/hawkers to vacate the expressway for the safety of their lives, even as he urged them to look for safer environment. He noted that it will be difficult for heavy duty vehicles to manoeuvre if they develop faulty brake. Rahmon also warned both council officials and impostors against

•Rahmon

illegal extortion from traders and commercial transporters. He said it has been discovered that some people paraded themselves as those on the employ of the council and printed fake tax receipts and commercial tickets to give to people to extort them. “Henceforth, anyone caught in

such acts will be prosecuted,” the council chief said. Rahmon urged parents, traditional rulers and politicians within the state to warn their children/ ward to desist from such act, saying he will no longer heed to anyone’s pleas in the cause of arrest of any offender.

ONTRARY to held views that Nigeria will disintegrate in 2015, which coincides with the country’s general elections, a cleric Pastor Akin Aina Oluwabukola has said Nigeria will remain an indivisible entity as it has been. Pastor Oluwabukola, a Senior Pastor with the Continental Grace Christian Centre Otto/Ijankin Lagos, spoke during the ministry’s maiden convention which had the theme “Overwhelming Joy”. He urged Nigerians not to despair but to pray fervently ahead of next year’s general elections for peace and unity of the country. He said some people who are anti-establishment are planning to effect a power change within the third week of January in order to distabilise the country. He, however, said “such plans are already headed for the rocks, except God is interested in it.” Pastor Oluwabukola said the eight-day convention was held to draw Nigerians towards seeking the face of God so that plans of the enemies against the election will not prevail. He said: “God told me some elements are plotting some power changing tactics with the aim of

By Adegunle Olugbamila

destabilising this country. But their plans will not succeed except God ordained it, and that will be good for the country. Nigeria will not break despite divergent opinions about the probability of our living together after the general elections. I will only enjoin Nigerians to pray ahead of the time so as to avert a possible danger.” He likened Nigeria to the Biblical Samaria which “though were in Israel, yet considered as impure because they allowed the Jews to inter-marry with them. It was Phillip that went to Samaria and preached to them. The Samarian example will be Nigeria’s lot. Continuing, he said: “Samaria is like Nigeria where we have people with diverse ethnic and religious leanings, with some trying to impose their views on others. The good thing, however, is that our strength lies in our diversity. This is what makes us great as a nation.” Giving the rationale behind the ‘operation feed the elderly’ where the church on Saturday carried out social services of providing food and clothing items to the aged, Akin Aina said the church carried out the exercise in the spirit of Christmas

•Pastor Oluwabukola

which, to him, is anchored on love. “The whole essence of Christmas is that Chris showed love to mankind by sending his only son to redeem us from our sins. If Jesus had not died, there wouldn’t have been any hope of resurrection in the hereafter. “Besides, we feel these people are old and therefore deserve special attention and care. We should make them feel a lot happier even in their old age,” Akin Aina said.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT Knights condemn Boko Haram killings From Damisi Ojo, Akure

NIGHTS of Saint Lumumba of the Catholic Church in Nigeria have condemned the spate of killing of innocent citizens by Boko Haram insurgents in some parts of the country. They said the action which is against the will of God should be curtailed. The Supreme Knight of St. Lumumba, Brother Anthony Onu, who led a delegation of member to visit Governor Olusegun Mimiko in Akure, condemned the act. He noted that the killing of people, burning of churches and mosques by the insurgents is drawing the country backward. Onu pointed out that if the menace was not checked, it would have serious negative effects on the socio-economic well-being of the country. According to him, people from the South who had spent their entire lives in the North are already leaving the area in large number in spite of their huge investments in the crisis-ridden areas. The Supreme Knight urged Nigerians to rise against Boko Haram insurgents, particularly in the Northeastern part of the country. Onu, who explained that his team was in the state to hold their supreme convention, said the Knighthood is a body in the Catholic Church which gives moral and financial support. This, according to him, is through financing of church projects, training of priests and assisting in charity works across the country. He revealed that the organisation which was formed in 1953 with only 23 members, saying that the membership of the organisation has grown to 23,000; even as he revealed that all the founding members are dead. The Supreme Knight, said his members had spent a whopping of N3 billion this year on charity. He praised Mimiko’s administration for its various achievements. Governor Mimiko, who was represented by his Chief of Staff (CoS) Dr Kola Ademujimi, commended the delegation for choosing the state for their convention. The Governor, who praised members of the Knight of Saint Lumumba for using their God-given resources for supporting the needy and the work of God, appreciated the Catholic Church for its moral support to the state government. Mimiko said the theme of their convention, “Politics, good governance and terrorism and how it is affecting Nigeria”, is relevant to the current situation in the country. He added that the country’s democracy could only be sustained if those in government could provide the necessary benefits of democracy to the people. The Governor, who also condemned the recent killing and bombing of innocent citizens in the north, expressed the hope that the Federal Government would be on top of the situation soon.

•Baby Onwusoro

Ten-month-old needs N2.5m for heart surgery

HE was born like every other normal baby and her parents were full of expectations that every stage of her growth would be without any problem. Few months after, the unexpected happened. She is afflicted with is a life-threatening ailment. Baby Gracious Chiamaka Onwusoro was diagnosed with heart problem, a whole in the heart which she has been fighting to stay alive. She needs N2.5 million to undergo heart surgery if she must live. Her condition has brought emotional pain and psychological trauma to her parents as the possibility of staying alive depends, to a large extent, on the benevolence of well-meaning Nigerians. Physicians say the baby needs an urgent surgical operation to save her from dying at infancy. She is the daughter of Mr. And Mrs Emmanuel Onwusoro. Mr Onwusoro is a reporter on the employ of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), Channel 5, AdoEkiti, Ekiti State. He had spent virtually all his earnings on the baby since the problem began few months after she was born on February 21 this year.

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

Onwusoro and his wife have been in and out of many hospitals in search of solution to Gracious’ health problem. The baby is currently admitted at the Intensive Care Unit of the University College Hospital, Oritamefa Ibadan Oyo State. According to a clinical report signed by one Dr. Tosin Majekodunmi of Tristate Cardiovascular Institute to where she was referred for comprehensive medical examination, Baby Gracious is suffering from Antrio-Ventricular Septal defect, a heart-related disease. Though gracious, the second child of her parents, who was born through Caesarean section did not give any sign of complication at birth, her condition later turned worse. Symptoms of excessive sweating, inability to breathe and serious weight loss were the initial manifestation of her illness. Her parents had to seek medical help where the damning revelation about her health status was revealed. To confirm how worse the situation has been, Gracious was 4.2 kg at six months old, which forced the parents to go for echocardiogram

treatment at Biket Hospital Osogbo Osun State. Narrating his ordeal about his child’s heart ailment to reporters, Mr Onwusoro said he initially declined to call for assistance from public-spirited Nigerians but had no option than to do so because all his lean resources as he had expended much already through huge medical bills from various hospitals they had taken the child to. This, according to him, has reduced the family’s financial capacity. They still believe that the baby would survive despite the present prevails they are going through. Mr Onwusoro further said the N2.5 million for the surgical operation is too difficult for him to raise based on his income and what the family had already spent so far. He said: “I want to plead with public-spirited Nigerians to help my family to overcome the serious challenge. We are not only passing through trauma at present, but we are down with heavy heart because no parents would be happy to lose any of their children. “I have spent so much and sold some of the family’s valuables to take her this far and it will be a colossal and devastating blow for us

FRSC holds ‘Don’t drink and drive’ campaign

HE Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Lagos has organised a sensitisation programme for road users in Surulere and its environs. The theme for this year’s campaign was “Drink and Drive: An impediment to safe trip” and aimed at discouraging road users from indulging in alcohol and hard drugs which it said could affect visibility and sense of judgment while driving. In her opening remark, the Unit Commander, Olawumi Oyeniyi said “when you drink and drive, it will affect your brain and your sense of judgment will not be accurate.” She stressed that crashes could be avoided if drivers avoid drinking before driving.

•From left: Col. Ukandu, Oyeniyi, Beyioku and Mr. Edekobi at the event in Lagos. By Adejo David

Oyeniyi urged vehicles owner to fit in speed limit devices in their vehicles to avoid over-speeding by

drivers. The Officer Commanding 25 Engineer Regiment, Abati Barracks, Surulere, Col. Kelvin Ukandu urged participants at this year’s “ember”

PHOTO: ADEJO DAVID

month campaign to always obey traffic rules and road signs. “We must obey traffic and road signs, only then can we live to enjoy with our families,” Col.

to lose her at this stage.” In her report, Dr Majekodunmi said: “I have had a lengthy conversation with Mrs Onwusoro and explained the diagnosis to her in some detail and she now appreciates the complexity of Gracious’ cardiac pathology. “I have explained that the closure ASV and heart coarctation repair are all fairly straightforward procedures which can be done at minimal risk and with a very high probability of total success. “Repair of such complex atrioventricular septal defect has not been performed in Nigeria to date and it would be a significant undertaking to attempt full repair in a nine-month-old that is failing to thrive. “If we were to contemplate surgical repair in Nigeria, the estimated cost of such procedure is N2.5m.” Those willing to assist the Onwusoro family in raising the N2.5 million required to save the precious life of Baby Gracious Chiamaka Onwusoro should send their financial contributions to this account details: Emmanuel Onwusoro, UBA Account Number: 2004071558 or contact on 08067207073 Ukandu, who was also the special guest at the event, said. He maintained that drivers should obey rules whether traffic officers are there or not. The Coordinator of the Special Marshal of the unit, Mr. Chinedu Edekobi, reiterated that having seat belt, rear lights, brakes, good tires, fire extinguisher and other sensitive and important parts of a vehicle could go a long way in preventing road accidents. Responding, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers’ Associations of Nigeria (RTEAN), Surulere zone, Imosura Beyioku, promised to pass the information to other drivers who could not be at the event. The “ember” month is a yearly programme organised by the Public Education Department of the FRSC to educate, enlighten and sensitise road users on the need to prevent road crashes which have claimed many innocent lives.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT Violence erupted in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, during which a policeman was killed. Scores were wounded, houses burnt and vehicles vandalised. In this interview with BISI OLADELE, government’s spokesman Festus Adedayo blamed the civil disturbance on gangsters and the opposition. Excerpts:

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

‘Why the opposition celebrated Ibadan violence’

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has been accusing other parties of sponsoring the pockets of violence in Ibadan. Though they have washed their hands of the various incidents of violence, as government’s spokesman, what is your position on the blame game? One fundamental issue that members of the opposition party have come to acknowledge about this administration is that, in the past threeand-a-half years that we have been in government, there has been a substantial difference between what used to be and what obtains now. One lived here in the eight years of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s reign. I am referring to the tenure of Governor Rashidi Ladoja and Adebayo Alao-Akala. We remember what this state used to be, and what this state used to be was violence, blood-letting and a lot of unforgettable activities that happened. Do not forget that was the time the former Chairman of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Alhaji Lateef Salako (aka Elewe omo) and his band of thugs invaded the State House of Assembly. This was the House of Assembly where the revered Chief Obafemi Awolowo presented his policies to the lawmakers then. That was the same Parliament Elewe Omo and his thugs invaded. We all know what happened. Gunshots boomed here and there-some legislators were shoved off the roof. One of them, until he died, had a dislocated leg. He nursed that injury till his death. The state was then regarded as a state of violence. Do not also forget that when AlaoAkala was governor, the same Elewe Omo was shot dead in cold blood. There was no state of harmony which we have now in Oyo State until May 29, 2011 and Gover-

nor Abiola Ajimobi said he was coming in with a pedigree of peace. What he did was to distance himself from the people of violence in Oyo State. He told the leaders of NURTW that he was not interested in their business, even as he urged them to elect who was going to lead them because the government had no business in that. His government was not interested in listening to anybody as a political thug. That period, we had people smoking Indian hemp and harassing people that came to do their legitimate business at the Governor’s Office and state secretariat. The last three-and-a-half years have been that of a government that believes it has no business with violence and everywhere, the governor has been preaching peace. Governor Ajimobi drew a pyramid of what he had come to do in Oyo State and placed security of lives and property on top of the pyramid. This is because it is like the super structure upon which he will develop the economy of the state and what he is saying in essence is that nobody will want to come and invest in a volatile economy, a state where security is not guaranteed, where there will be violence today and tomorrow. It has worked like magic in the last three-and-a-half years. We have had investors trooping in to the state almost on a daily basis as a result of the peaceful atmosphere we have in Oyo State. For example, the governor recently inaugurated the largest vegetable oil factory in Africa in a location in Ibadan. The Minister of Agriculture was there. The largest agriculture conserve is also in Oyo State. We also have a foremost bread-making factory, sited in Oyo state. A visit to Ring Road area also shows a large number of night clubs. We can call it intangible but it shows the state of peace we are enjoying in Oyo

•Adedayo

State. Nobody will risk his or her life to go out of his house at night to a club in the eight years of the PDP reign. So, you now have a government that sees peace as its greatest achievement, its flagship. I can give you a background to this chaos that happened recently. Of course, we know the governor established the crime fighting outfit, Operation Burst, and significantly there have been praises everywhere as the crime-fighting outfit has successfully curtailed crime. At a time, a former governor of the state wrote a petition to the then President, claiming that Operation Burst was being used to deal with political opponents. He copied the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2 Division, Ibadan. They sent their investigators and they discovered that Senator Ladoja was allegedly playing politics with the security of the state. Indeed, there is peace in Oyo State. Forget the infrastructure we did that the world is celebrating; a potent reason to celebrate in Oyo State is

the peace we have enjoyed overtime. We were going to Ibadan South West Local Government, which is the governor’s local government, when words came that a policeman had been killed in Oke-Ado. The governor became destabilised and that led to the abrupt end of the tour to South West Local Government. What I am saying is that it could not have been a happenstance; it could not have happened on its own. It was orchestrated. How would you establish that? First, I am a student of logic. It is illogical for a government that sees peace as its own flagship to wish to soil that same flagship. Second, if you see the sense of victory, the way that Senator Rashidi Ladoja and some PDP allegedly celebrated the puncturing of peace in Oyo State, you will know that there is more to it than meets the eye. Each statement that Senator Ladoja makes since that violence has a refrain that this is happening in a government which claims to be a peaceful one.

Politicians advised on 2015 polls

S the 2015 general elections draw near, politicians have been advised to play the game according to the rules, even as they have been urged to bear in mind that power is transient. The General Overseer, Breakthrough Believers Church International, Rev Joshua Benardson gave the advice during the third year anniversary and thanksgiving of the church in Surulere Lagos. Rev. Benardson noted that “righteousness exalts a nation”. His words: “Nation entails the lives of men, women and youths. For us to succeed and have a good election in 2015; we need God to intervene in the affairs of our lives. “My advice to politicians is to keep trusting in the Lord. Election is not a do-or-die affair. It’s just who God loves, who God chooses that must win. All the aspirants can’t emerge as winners. Whosoever God has anointed will surely win.” The cleric warned officials of Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct the election with the fear of God, do justice to all and do what is right in the sight of God and men before, during and after the elections.” On Boko Haram insurgency, he

•From left: Pastor Emeka Nwodika; Rev. Benardson and wife, Pastor Tina; Rev. Nwigwe and wife, Ngozi; Pastor Ezekiel Obasi and Inspector Sanctus Emenyonu at the event.

explained that God was aware of what the nation and Nigerians were passing through, adding that the insurgents would not escape the consequences of their actions. “The Bible says there is time for everything. Now that Boko Haram is terrorising, doing what they know best, my advice to Nigerians is to fix our eyes on Christ, because He is the author and finisher of our faith. Boko Haram must surrender to the authority of God Almighty because no one

Boko Haram: ‘Military shouldn’t divulge strategies’

can make it by shedding blood. “When you shed blood, you are putting your generation at risk of what they are to reap. Whatever a man sows, he shall reap. The Boko Haram insurgents live to kill and definitely they can’t escape the consequences.” He prayed that God, who has chosen the soldiers fighting the insurgents “will protect them and help them to scale through in anything they are doing to defend the nation.

“Safety is of the Lord and God that is on the throne cannot fail them. Any of them that put their trust in God must scale through in this time of trial,” he said. The cleric advised Nigerians to remember that “tough times do not last, but tough people do.” “Any man that fixes his eyes on God can never be disappointed. Forget about what you are going through, for God will intervene in the affairs of Nigeria.”

LEGAL practitioner in Okitipupa in Ondo State, Segun Lemo, has urged President Goodluck Jonathan to report any neighbouring country harbouring the Boko Haram insurgents to the United Nations for sanction. The former Vice-Chairman, Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) Okitipupa branch, who is also a House of Assembly candidate for Okitipupa Constituency II on the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC), said the war against the Boko Haram insurgency might be difficult to win due to the support the group enjoys from neighbouring countries. He alleged that many countries were aiding and abetting the insurgents and therefore making the battle difficult for the military to win. He urged President Jonathan to declare war in the areas taken over by insurgents, cautioning against playing politics with peoples’ lives. The former NBA boss said the Chief of Army Staff should strive to return sanity back to the Army to restore its glory. He also advised the media to stop excessive reporting of the activities of the sect, if the Federal Government must succeed in its war against the sect. He noted that the media had been over reporting the activities of the insurgents so much so that they and their sponsors feel so important. The APC House of Assembly candidate advised the military to keep their strategies in combating the scourge intact and away from public consumption. He said: “It is quite unfortunate that despite the billions of Naira the Federal Government claimed to have expended in combating the activities of the Boko Haram sect, the war still persists. “This is giving Nigerians a lot of concern. Nigerian military should look beyond the area taken over by the insurgents. “They should keep their eyes on neighbouring countries to ascertain where they actually belong. To me, the Nigeria military are trying their best in this regard.” He said he was in the military service when he had the call to serve in God’s vineyard. “The call made me leave Nigerian Navy to join God’s army as a preacher, and since I joined them, there have been no regrets. I am a trained Nigerian navigator. On his ministry, he said: “This is my 28th year in the ministry and the Lord has been seeing us through. Just three years ago, He instructed us to start up this new work and this new work has given birth to what men cannot comprehend. “By the grace of God, we believe God for more divine manifestations that will shoot across Breakthrough Believers Church. I am looking ahead that by 2015, things will be much better for every member of this ministry. “He that dwelt in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty, and then we shall say of the Lord, He is our refuge, He is our fortress, in God we trust, we can’t trust in other gods. “God alone is worthy to be praised and I believe with Him impossibility with men will become possible.” His wife, Pastor Tina Benardson, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Coker-Aguda, Surulere Lagos and chairman of the event, Rev. (Dr.) Ethelbert Nwigwe, said members of the church decided to thank God for His abundant blessings in their lives during the year.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT

240 benefit from n empowerment programme

Group organises leadership summit for youths By Sampson Unamka

NE of the reasons for the establishment of local government administration is to ensure that members of rural communities enjoy the benefits of democracy. In most situations, the reverse is the case as some communities at the grassroots experience horrifying hardship if their leaders are insensitive to their plight. In the circumstances, members of communities that make up Oriade Local Council Development Area of Lagos State have cause to thank God for having a Council Manager that cares for their well-being. Last week, the Council Manager, Mrs. Florence Omotunde Peters organised empowerment programme for residents of the council as part of the council’s efforts to alleviate the suffering of the citizens, create employment and ensure that citizens are economically self-reliant. The future looks bright for 240 youths and women of the council as they complete a five-day professional training programme on skills acquisition. They were trained on cake making, headgear (gele) tying, make up/make over, soap making as well as tie and dye. Speaking during the opening ceremony, Mrs. Peters said: “The LCDA embarked on the programme in order to help those who do not have tangible means of livelihood or gainful employment to be self-reliant and contribute their quota to the economic growth and development of the council. “The empowerment programme was in line with the vision of the state government to provide sustainable sources of income to the unemployed while also reducing poverty.” The five-day training programme, Mrs Peters said, would empower youths and women with the practical skills needful to establish their own small-scale businesses. ‘’The training programme aims at reducing the level of unemployment in the society. It is going to help you to support your families, especially your children. About 240 people would participate in the training programme. The instructors will expose you to the use of modern equipment, current expertise and professional developments,’’ she said. Continuing, she said: “The increasing number of unemployed youths roaming the streets in search of jobs and some parents not having tangible means of livelihood

•Mrs Peter (second right) presenting an empowerment certificate to one of the beneficiaries

•Some of the goods produced by the participants at the end of the training programme By Emmanuel Udodinma

has made them become frustrated and, most times, engage in anti-social activities that are inimical to the well-being of our society. It is therefore our responsibility as government to do something concrete to address this situation by intervening with various measures that will alleviate poverty and create employment opportunities.

Not only did the council organise empowerment training programme for the citizens, it also provided the participants with work tools at the end of the programme. This, according to Mrs Peters, was to enable the beneficiaries to establish small-scale businesses for themselves in a bid to become self-reliant. Two of the beneficiaries, Miss Grace Joe and Alimi Bukola expressed their appreciation to the

Council Manager for coming to their aids. They said: “It is a privilege for us to participate in the empowerment training programme which has emboldened us with the hope to establish our own businesses someday,’’ even as they promised to maximise the opportunity that the training programme had offered them.

Facelift for council roads •Continued from page 31 the condition of the road. I believe the construction work would ease traffic congestion on other roads in this area because this road is a link to the airport and Mafoluku. The construction would engender business expansion and patronage. I feel very happy,” he said. Mr Shina Adewusi, Secretary, Abolaji Council Development Committee (CDC), Mafoluku branch, warned residents not to dump garbage on the roads or inside the drainage. This, he said, would ensure longevity of the road. “This road has been under serious damage for over three years. In order to make the road durable, we will ensure vehicles are not parked on the roads ,” he said. Former Chairman, Oshodi-Isolo

Local Government, Mr Samual Aina thanked Hundeyin for a job well done. “I am one of the happiest persons today. For some time, we have been very unhappy about the situation of roads in our area. But since he assumed office as the Council Manager, I have had every cause to thank God that he took over effectively,” Aina stated. The Special Assistant to the Governor on Religious Duties (Christianity) who is also a resident of Oshodi community, Rev Sam Ogedengbe said: “Since the inception of the Council Manager as head of the council, there has been a lot of developments. We really appreciate him for the wonderful job he is doing. We urge members of the community to protect the road.” Mr Maruf Adesanya, Head of Department, Education and Library Services at the UNDP Centre said the cen-

•Aina, Hundeyin and Ogedengbe during the inspection tour.

tre has bridged unemployment gap in the area. “Those who have completed their secondary school education and are yet to get admission come here for a sixmonth programme on Home Management, Catering and Hotel Management, Computer Studies, fashion designing, Hair Dressing and Bead making in-

stead of staying at home. After graduation, they were given tools to help them be self-employed. “250 students are graduating on a yearly basis. Currently, we have 200 students. They go on industrial attachment most of the time in Eko Hotel after which they are employed,” Adesanya said.

N a bid to curb the unemployment situation among young people in Nigeria, Anabel Group has held its 3rd Nigerian Leadership Summit 2014, tagged “Entrepreneurial Nation”. The event, which held at Oriental Hotel Lekki Lagos aimed at tasking youths to develop interest in the acquisition of entrepreneurial, vocational and business skills that will make them better citizens and contributors to the nation’s economic growth and development. According to the President/ Chief Executive Officer, Anabel Group, Nicholas Okoye, the programme has motivated, encouraged and inspired over 10,000 young people who had set up their own businesses in the past three years. He said: “We know that the unemployment situation in Nigeria can be solved by young people creating jobs for themselves. As youths, we all wish to become business people in big, small or micro scales. We are all aware that some renowned Nigerian entrepreneurs have developed big businesses with as little as N5, 000. “So, the whole idea of this summit is to tell you that there are solutions to our problems. We do not agree with those who sit on the fence and complain that the government should do everything for them. “We believe we can take our destiny into our hands with the efforts we have decided to make for ourselves. I have a mantra that says if you are not part of the solution, then, you are part of the problem. Those of us who complain consistently about the problems and don’t do anything about it are part of the problems.” Okoye further said that “the entire leadership summit is not just a talk shop anymore; it’s about educating people and also giving them the best way to be successful as businessmen and women. The group is working with financial industries to provide finance for young people. So that is the major positive element that has come out from this service.” However, he urged the youth that the group (Anabel) on annual basis through ‘Nigerian leadership summit’ is committed to realising a new Nigeria. Okoye also announced the launch of a new platform by the group, known as ‘Women entrepreneurship network’ which will focus directly on women-owned business, so they too can compete favourably just like the men in the society. “We need to support all the initiatives and all the efforts that will get young people into the workplace” Okoye said. Other Keynote speakers at the event were former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku; Chairman Chikason Group, Chief Chika Okafor; Chief Executive Officer, South-South Economic Council, Ambassador Joe Keshi and Managing Director, Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON), Mustapha Obi; Chairman, MRS Group of Companies, Sayyu Dantata; Principal/Chief International Development Officer, Weeks International Enterprises, Charles Weeks and Managing Director, MDG Consulting, Benny Mistry.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE NATION INVESTORS

NASD OTC’s capitalisation drops by N60b to N593b

HE total market value of companies quoted on the NASD Plc, an over-the-counter (OTC) market, declined by N60 billion to open this week at N593 billion. It had opened last week with a market value of N653 billion. The NASD OTC was formally launched on July 1 and opened for trading on July 2. Formerly known as the National Association of Securities Dealers, NASD OTC is registered with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as an over-the-counter (OTC) trading platform for unquoted securities; including equities and bonds. The primary aim of NASD OTC Market is to create liquidity for all publicly held securities in a transparent manner, thereby ensuring a standardised price discovery mechanism for the securities being traded According to the opening values for the OTC market this week, the total value of the 19 companies on the market currently stands at about N593 billion as against N653 billion recorded in the previous week. Major companies on the NASD included Dufil Prima Foods Plc, the manufacturer of Indomie Noodles; Friesland Campina Wamco Nigeria Plc, manufacturer of Peak Milk brand; Industrial & General Insurance Plc, Central Securities Clearing System Plc, the clearing and depository arm of the Nigerian Stock Exchange and Jaiz Bank Plc, the Islamic bank.

Stories by Taofik Salako

Other stocks included Acorn Petroleum Plc, Arm Life Plc, Afriland Properties Plc, BGL Plc, Consolidated Breweries Plc, Food Concepts Plc, Geo-Fluids Plc, Golden Capital Plc, Niger Delta Exploration & Production Plc, Partnership Investment Company Plc, Resourcery Plc, Riggs Ventures West Africa Plc, Swap Technologies & Telecomms Plc and Trustbond Mortgage Bank Plc. According to the latest summary on the NASD, the total share capital of the companies on NASD stands at N83 billion. As an OTC, NASD applies two models of admission. In the first instance-admission of company, the issuer or company applies to NASD for listing. The company is under NASD regulation. All the shares of the company are accepted into the market. The issuer undertakes that these shares cannot trade outside NASD OTC. This model is well suited for companies which will eventually raise more funding. In the second instance-admission to trade, an individual shareholder presents her certificate in an unlisted company to an OTC participating institution. The participants will open the security to trade on the OTC. More individuals will follow suit and eventually create a healthy dynamic market. NASD is not a direct regulator of the company in this circumstance. This model is popular with shareholders of unlisted shares who want ac-

cess to an open transparent and fair public market. Currently, 18 out of the 19 securities trading on the NASD are admissions to trade while one is admission of company. Also, 13 new traders representing various stockbroking firms were inducted into NASD OTC market last week, bringing the total number of registered traders of participating institutions to 137. The 13 traders are from African Alliance Limited, Apel Asset Limited, Crown Capital Limited, Dominion Trust Limited, Fortress Capital Limited, Integrated Trust and Investment Limited, Nigerian Stockbrokers Limited, Perfecta Investment and Trust Limited and TRW Stockbrokers Limited. The traders had completed their membership requirements with the NASD OTC and were inducted to trade in the market. Latest summary showed that NASD opened this week with total year-to-date turnover of 120 million shares valued at N2.37 billion in 444 deals. Three months after it hit the N1

billion mark total values of trades in September 2014, NASD had two weeks ago announced that it had recorded more than N2 billion trades value. According to NASD, the mark is a cumulative effect of and increasing preference investors have for transparency and Participating Institutions recognition of the liquidity the market affords. “This number is significant because it represents deals that hitherto would not have been captured by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), tax authorities, economic planners and analysts. The NASD OTC market is therefore creating an opportunity for both institutional and individual investors to accept and use the same data and get a clearer perspective of our investment terrain,” the NASD stated. NASD said it recognised the indispensable contributions of participating institutions, registrars, custodians and all other operators who have started the development of this market noting that while

some operators contributed directly by trading through the system, others have been invaluable in testing, fine tuning and advertising the market. “We appreciate all players in the OTC market and look forward to more liquidity and transparency in the OTC market in Nigeria,” NASD stated Earlier, NASD Plc and CSCS had devised an alternative dematerialisation system that allows investors to deposit their physical share certificates with the CSCS in exchange for a tradable, digital account. Dematerialisation is the process of converting a physical certificate into a digital account balance at the CSCS, much like the conversion of a physical cash note to a bank account balance. The NASD- the over-the-counter (OTC) trading platform for unquoted securities only trade on fully-dematerialised and freely transferable securities that must have been registered by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

NSE woos small, medium companies with affordable listing

HE Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has outlined benefits of listing on its Alternative Securities Market (ASeM), a specialised board for the listing of emerging companies operating in Nigeria. The ASeM was developed to accommodate small to mid-sized companies, with high growth potential, seeking to access the capital market by raising long term capital. The NSE organised a road show in two commercial cities of Agbara and Abeokuta, Ogun State to showcase the ASeM to small and medium companies. At the road show, with the theme “Accessing Long Term Capital for Growth; The ASEM Platform”, the benefits of listing were discussed and participants were exposed to the opportunities available in the capital market. The need for small to mid-sized companies to formalise their businesses to becoming sustainable institutions was also demonstrated, seeking businesses that are ready to take the required next steps towards accessing the capital market. The NSE explained that there were three major pillars supporting ASeM including designated advisers-accredited capital market operators to prepare small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for listing and provide continuous finan-

cial advisory support throughout the listing life of the company; institutional services-a value adds of the NSE to help SMEs formalise their businesses, ahead of listing; and growth ambassadors-influential individuals to project the board to relevant stakeholders. Head, listings sales and retention, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mrs. Taba Peterside who clearly defined the brand identity and value proposition of the board, noted that the introduction of designated advisers will assist ASeM companies meet post-listing obligations and support them as financial advisers. She explained that the Exchange has provided ASeM as a platform for sustainable growth and development of these companies. “Since the launch of ASeM, the NSE has proven that this is a major focus area. SMEs remain the drivers of growth in the Nigerian economy and the NSE is a staunch believer in the critical role of emerging enterprises in a developing economy. Recently in 2014 we witnessed a successful listing of Omoluabi Savings & Loans Plc, on ASeM on the Daily Official List of The NSE. There is a strong pipeline of companies that have commenced the process of listing, with more IPOs and listings expected on the board,” Peterside said.

• From right: The Deputy Governor of Kogi State, Architect Yomi Awoniyi; Executive Director/CEO, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Ado Muhammad and Managing Director,GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Mr lekan Asuni at the National Launch for Pneumonia Vaccine introduction in Nigeria by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency held in Lokoja Kogi State.

Nigeria International Debt Fund gets “A” rating

HE Nigeria International Debt Fund (NIDF), a mutual fund listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has been rated “A-” by Global Credit Rating Company (GCR). NIDF invests in fixed income securities of Federal and State Governments. A report by GCR outlined that in rating the NIDF, cognizance was taken of the management quality of the Asset Manager, Afrinvest Asset Management Limited, as well as the consistency of the team of individuals managing the fund. According to the report, the fund’s three year performance track

Africa’s first digital lifestyle store debuts in Nigeria

IGERIA’s growing online retail market has received a boost with the launch of Kumoodi.com, Africa’s first digital lifestyle online store. Founder and Chief Client Officer, Kumoodi.com, Mr. Oye Onwuka, said as part of delivering real time solutions, kumoodi.com is in partnership with eTranzact International, one of Nigeria’s payment solutions providers. According to him, idea behind kumoodi.com is to offer an entertainment platform, where one can download music, movies, eBooks, eMagazines and digital art or

stream over the internet on mobile devices while on the go. The platform, he added, also offers convenience and simplicity to meet such needs as airtime topup, payment for essential lifestyle services as cable TV subscription, energy tokens to recharge prepaid meters and funds transfer to most of the banks in Nigeria. According to him, “Kumoodi.com also offers Live Video Streaming services, which redefines how we watch videos on the go. With this service, our esteemed users can watch any event from anywhere in the world. The

link to the platform is www.kumoodi.com. “kumoodi.com will redefine how we do the simple everyday things in this digital world we now live in. As part of delivering real time solutions, kumoodi.com is in partnership with eTranzact International, one of Nigeria’s payment solutions provider, “Onwuka said. He added that the platform will only promote and distribute African contents, from music, movies to books and magazines, as there is a huge demand which it plans to dominate as the only one in the market with such focus.

record in terms of return on investment up till December 31, 2013 is considered satisfactory, averaging 12 per cent annualised, which compared favourably with the minimum return expectation of 10 per cent. The report also noted that the accorded rating reflects the credit quality of the fund’s assets, comprising mainly high investment grade rated sovereign and municipal bonds. Managing Director, Afrinvest Asset Management Limited, Ola Belgore, said that the high rating of the NIDF by GCR is testament to the firm’s professionalism and adherence to global best practices, as well as its commitment to providing value for clients’ investments. According to him, this rating by one of the leading global rating agencies is among the best for mutual funds in the market today. “NIDF offers investors safety, capital preservation, steady returns, diversification and value, and has a consistent dividend history making it quite attractive for both individual and institutional investors such as Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), insurance companies, asset managers and gratuity funds,” Belgore said. NIDF recently paid an interim dividend of N60.71 per note to investors. The N60.71 coupon per note

was well above the initial estimated dividend payment of N36.00 per note. Based on the number of qualified notes on the register of the NIDF as at the closure date of July 29, 2014, a total of N44.17 million was distributed to all note holders at N60.71 per note. “Dividends have become an important factor for investors to consider and, at Afrinvest, we are committed to providing value for our clients, helping them achieve their investment objectives”, said Ike Chioke, Managing Director of Afrinvest West Africa Limited, the parent company of the Fund Manager. Chioke said the NIDF offers investors safety, capital preservation, steady returns, diversification and value, and has a consistent dividend history making it quite attractive for both individual and institutional investors such as Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), insurance companies, asset managers and gratuity funds. Afrinvest Asset Management Limited (AAML) is licensed by the Securities & Exchange Commission as a Fund/Portfolio Manager. It is a subsidiary of Afrinvest (West Africa) Limited, a wealth advisory firm involved in investment banking, securities trading, asset management and investment research with a focus on West Africa.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE NATION

BUSINESS P ENSION

Errant employers pays N628.3m fine to PenCom •Recovery Agents’ retrieve N3.4b pension contributions E

RRANT employers have been made to pay a fine of N628.36 million to the National Pension Commission (PenCom) as at end of second quarter, of this year for failing to remit their employees’ pension contribution. They are required by the Pension Reform Act (PRA) 2004, repealed by the PRA of 2014, to remit their employers’ contributions. Also, Recovery Agents (RAs) appointed by the Commission were able to recover N3.47 billion from defaulting employers. This was made known by PenCom in its 2014 second quarterly reports of its regulatory and supervisory activities in the pension industry. The Commission disclosed that the regulation and supervision of the industry focused on riskbased examination of licensed pension operators with a view to promote transparency, provide early warning signals and encourage pension operators to regularly self-evaluate their positions. The report showed that in an-

Stories by Omobola Tolu-Kusimo

other development, letters of warning were issued to 316 employers that failed to remit outstanding pension contributions and penalties that were established by the RAs. Meanwhile, 27 out of the 316 employers have been referred to the Legal Department of the Commission for prosecution, bringing the number of employers scheduled for prosecution to 101. “During the quarter, the Commission re-appointed 123 RAs in order to conclude the recovery of outstanding pension contributions and penalty from employers. “As a consequence of the demand notices issued to defaulting employers whose liabilities had been determined by the RAs, some employers had remitted their outstanding pension contributions and penalties. Subsequently,

the sum of N367.436 million, representing principal contributions and penalties, were recovered by the RAs. This brought the total recoveries made so far by the RAs to N4.099 billion comprising of principal contributions of N3.47 billion and penalties of N628.36 million,” the report said. Besides, the Commission said it conducted routine examinations on 11 pension fund operators. The examination, which was risk-based according to the Commission, covered 11 broad areas of the Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) operations, which included company; board and management operations; information and communication technology; pension administration; benefits administration and payment arrangements; and fund management. Other areas, according to the report, included risk management and compliance, service delivery

and internal control systems. The routine examination draft report had since been communicated to the Boards of some of the operators. “The examination report had since been discussed with concerned PFA’s management and commitments were obtained for remedial actions to be carried out by the operators examined. “A review of the compliance reports forwarded by PFAs to the Commission during the quarter revealed some issues of noncompliance, which included: noncompliance with investment limits by some PFAs; delay in the payment of retirement benefits; receipt of pension contributions without appropriate schedules; unresolved customer complaints; failure to fill certain vacant management positions; and nonimplementation of disaster recovery plans.

Greece spends more on pensions than UK

•From left: Vice Chairman, Capital Express Assurance Limited, Anthony Aletor, Managing Director, Mrs. Bola Odukale and Chairman, Otunba Babatunde Adenuga, at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company in Lagos.

“Subsequently, the Commission forwarded letters to concerned operators over the identified issues as well as collaborated with various stakeholders to enhance compliance,” the report stated. Concerning compliance by the private sector with the Pension Act in the quarter under review, the report stated that the Commission received 952 applications for the issuance of compliance certificates to employers, out of which 683 were issued and 269 applications turned down due to various inadequacies inherent in their applications. The inadequacies, according to the report, included non-remittance of pension contributions and non-provision of Group Life Insurance Policy for their employees. Apart from publishing the names of the 683 employers issued certificates of compliance, the employers remitted the sum of N10.18 billion into 35,057 employees’ Retirement Saving Accounts during the quarter under review.

TATE pensions are one of the biggest expenses for the Brit ish government. However, new figures from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) have shown that the UK spends less on pensions than most other developed countries. In 2011 Britain spent less than 12pc of its total government budget on state pensions, putting it below the 18pc average across OECD countries. The countries spending the highest proportion of their public money on pensions are Italy with 31.9pc, Greece (28pc) and Portugal (26.4pc). This is due to their ageing populations and the economic meltdown they have suffered since the financial crisis, which has caused other state spending to shrink. Iceland spent the lowest propor-

tion of its funds on pensions in 2011, at 4.5pc. Tim Reay of an accountancy firm, PwC, said countries in northern Europe tended to have smaller, “welfare-style” state pensions that benefited the poorest most. Across southern Europe, however, state pensions were more generous and provided a percentage of people’s salary, much like a final salary private pension. According to the OECD, pension systems “differ substantially” across its member countries, but face the same main difficulty: remaining financially sustainable while delivering adequate pension income. In a report it said: “The economic crisis in 2008 developed into a fiscal crisis in many countries. These difficulties have led to substantial changes and reform of pensions.

Pension funds begin circling wounded Canadian oil patch

EATEN down energy stocks are beginning to pique the interest of deep-pocketed investors with a long-term view, Canadian pension funds. Bloomberg reported that Canada Pension Plan Investment Board considered a bid for Talisman Energy Inc. (TLM). According to people with knowledge of the matter, Spain’s Repsol SA, has agreed to buy the Canadian producer for $8.3 billion. The 22 per cent slump in Canadian energy stocks since late November, according to Ron Mock, head of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, is just the kind of event that can create opportunity for investors such as pension funds. “Sometimes that happens when everybody is heading out the door and we actually use our long-term advantage to go in,” Mock, Chief Executive Officer of Ontario Teachers, the country’s third-biggest pension fund, said during an interview at Bloomberg’s office in Toronto. The energy market doesn’t appear to have quite bottomed for Teachers yet, he said. Lower energy prices will reduce

companies’ cash flows and eventually put pressure on them to weigh their capital plans for next year, Mock said. “That will have some producers looking for investors, or outright takeovers,” he said. Talisman tumbled 52 per cent this year as oil dropped to five year lows after the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said last month it would stick to its output target in the face of a supply glut and a global battle for market share. Opportunistic Timing This included an 18 per cent rise in Toronto as Calgary-based Talisman said in a statement that it was in talks with Repsol and had “also been approached by a number of other parties regarding various transactions.” Representatives for Talisman and Repsol have declined to comment. Linda Sims, a spokeswoman for Canada Pension, declined to comment on whether the fund was considering a bid for Talisman. Repsol, which has been searching for acquisitions to help boost crude reserves and production, agreed to

pay Talisman shareholders $8, or C$9.33, in cash for each share they own, according to statements from both companies. That’s a 60 per cent premium to Talisman’s 30-day weighted average price, the Canadian company said. “What I think a lot of these potential suitors are saying is, look,

if there was ever a time to be opportunistic to acquire Talisman, now is probably it,” Chris Cox, a Calgary-based analyst at Raymond James Ltd., said. “Here is an opportunity to acquire the company at the bottom of the market when they may be in a position to be forced to sell.”

‘Lean In’ Without a takeover, Talisman would have to boost its target to sell $2 billion in assets by mid-2015 to as much as $4-billion, Cox said. Ontario Teachers isn’t consciously counter-cyclical in its investment strategy, Mock said.

•Gbenga Adebiji, Head, Capital Projects, (2nd left) and Funke Opeke, Chief Executive Officer, both of MainOne, flanked by Lanre Oyetunji, Executive Director, ITECO Nigeria (subsidiary of Telnet) and Ayo Adegboye, Vice President, IT, Schneider Electric, Nigeria, during a Partner’s Tour of MainOne’s Tier III Data Center, Lagos… yesterday. Photo: Adeola Solomon

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

Taxation Computing Tax Returns Using the FIRS Tax Calculator

OMPUTING taxes can be so cumbersome, especially for the tax types that do not consider any deduction or relief; such tax types include the Value Added Tax (VAT) which is currently 5% of the total sum and the Withholding Tax (WHT) whose rate depends on the particular transaction in question and is also applied to the total sum. Other tax types which consider certain deductions and reliefs for the benefit of the taxpayers usually require some measure of technical expertise in their computation, especially in the identification of the deductions and reliefs allowed. Conscious of this fact, the Federal Inland Revenue Service(FIRS) incorporated a tax calculator application in its redesigned website to help users compute their taxes and at least have an idea of the amount of taxes they should pay, based on their income. The tax calculatoris one of the best features on the redesigned FIRS website. This will help taxpayers have an estimated idea of their tax assessment before they file their returns at the nearest FIRS office or via the e-filing platforms.It is designed to take care of computations for both individual (PAYE and Personal Income Tax) and corporate (Company Income Tax) taxpayers. The corporate section takes cognisance of the type of industry the company operates in, the statutory

By Olumide Solate

deductions allowed by the Company Income Tax Act, the applicable capital allowance and unrelieved losses as well as the number of years the company has been in operation. If all the required fields have been correctly filled, a hit on the ‘CALCULATE TAX’ generates the Company Income Tax, corresponding Education Tax and the Information Technology Development Levy (where applicable). The individual/enterprise section caters for persons in paid employment, partnership businesses and those that are self-employed. This section makes provisions for both earned (from paid employment) and unearned (other income such as rents, royalties etc.) income. It also considers the statutory deductions allowed in the Personal Income Tax Act (PITA) such as the National Housing Fund contribution and the pension contribution as well as the statutory consolidated relief allowance. After filling all the required fields, a hit on the ‘CALCULATE TAX’ button gives the tax payable broken into monthly instalments. The Tax Calculator is specifically designed to make life easier for all classes of taxpayers. If you ever experience any page loading issue while using the platform, please refresh your page.

• Acting Executive Chairman, FIRS, Alhaji Kabir Mohammed

Mashi

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

BUSINESS NEWS Nigeria’s growth to India’s growth to have impact Oil drop: slow to 5% in 2015 on Africa next year N

ITH just days to go for the year to end, a new study has projected a steady growth in India, which from every indication is likely to have some impact on its dealings with Africa which is also being seen as a growth zone next year. The Standard Chartered Bank’s Global Research team has projected India to be “a positive surprise” compared to the situation in other parts of the globe. “More importantly, sentiment is also rising sharply due to changes made by the new government to reduce red tape and promote investment,” the team said. Former Federation of India Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) president R.V. Kanoria said earlier this year that the Indian government has been proactive in its commitment to encourage invest-

ment in Africa. “Indian investments in Africa have increased 14-fold in the past year and we are hoping that by next year it will rise to $100 billion,” he said. In addition to investment, India has also been active in capacity building and knowledge sharing, particularly in the area of private public participation (PPP) across the continent. Indian officials say, the public sector in India has partnered with the private sector to bridge the infrastructure gap resulting in 50 percent private investment. With more than a 1,000 PPP projects, India is said to have perfected the PPP model, which could arguably provide a solution to Africa’s infrastructural deficit. Emmanuel Mbi Ahas, African Development Bank’s (AfDB) first vicepresident and chief operating of-

ficer, expressed Africa’s desire to learn from India and the AfDB’s will to support such efforts. India’s success story in the implementation of the PPP model makes it an important partner in facilitating its adoption in Africa. Analysts at the AfDB say India is one of the developing countries to have successfully received a large-scale investment to the tune of $300 billion in infrastructure under the PPP model. According to them, the Indian government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the African Development Bank Group to share the model agreements and legal documents associated with PPPs to facilitate implementation of this model in African countries. This gives some hope for the continent in the coming year.

IGERIA’S growth rate will slow to about five percent next year as a drop in oil’s price and a depreciating currency put pressure on the economy of Africa’s biggest crude producer, according to the International Monetary Fund(IMF). The drop in crude prices will exert pressure on Nigeria’s fiscal revenue and spending, with a depreciation of the local currency expected to boost inflation, the Washington-based lender said in an emailed statement today. The economy will expand 6.9 percent this year, according to the IMF’s most recent outlook published in October. Nigerian policy makers devalued the naira last month and are proposing spending cuts for next year as the country heads toward elections in February. The country’s fiscal and external “buffers” are low and need to be rebuilt, with the West African nation’s oil savings, the Excess Crude Account, depleted to $3 billion from $21 billion in 2008, the IMF said. Oil has dropped 45 percent since June. “Nigeria remains vulnerable to oil price volatility and global financial developments,” Gene Leon, the IMF’s Nigeria representative, said in the statement. There are domestic risks including uncertainty

ahead of February elections and security, he said. Africa’s largest economy is drifting toward political violence that may result in disputed elections and authorities need to take action to stop it, Brussels-based International Crisis Group said in a report last month. President Goodluck Jonathan’s ruling People’s Democratic Party will face a united opposition led by former military dictator Muhammadu Buhari, the stiffest challenge since the PDP came to power at the end of army rule in 1999. “Capital outflows have continued and, with lower oil receipts, have led to sustained pressure on the naira,” said Leon. “Despite the outlook, Nigeria could surmount its challenges, especially if a national spirit of burden sharing and rebuilding together is actively embraced.” New report identifies growth potential in the Nordic offshore industry More offshore wind farms, extended lifetime of oil and gas fields as well as decommissioning create growth potentials for the maritime industries in the Nordic offshore industry. This is evident from a new report drawn up by COWI.

TUI plans German shipping unit stake sale

•From left: Director, Airport Operations, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Captain Henry Omeogu; Managing Director, Saleh Dunoma and Director, Human Resources, Hajia Salamatu Umar-Eluwa during the presentation of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) corporate citizen award certificate to FAAN.

China to build seven million low-cost homes in 2015 C HINA will begin the construction of seven million homes under the affordable housing program in 2015. China will increase the supply of land for homes and spend more on affordable housing projects, President Xi Jinping said last year. China’s Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development announced that the government will target completion of building 4.8 million of these low-cost homes next year. Housing Minister Chen Zhenggao revealed the target at a national conference on housing and urban-rural development in Beijing.

The affordable housing program is aimed at providing cheap homes for eligible low-income earners. China began the construction of over seven million homes and completed 4.8 million in 2014. Chen said China will also continue to push forward the shanty town renovation program extensively as “it can not only improve people’s livelihood but also spur economic growth”. The issue of inadequate housing is particularly grim in emerging countries like China and India, which are poverty-ridden in pock-

ets. India needs about 19 million low-cost homes – roughly defined as costing a million rupees ($16,700) and below – to shelter an urban population expected to nearly double to 600 million by 2030 from 2011. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also vowed to adopt a low-cost housing policy that would ensure every family in Asia’s third-largest economy has a home by 2022. A new McKinsey report says the affordable-housing gap now stands at about $650 billion a year, or 1 per cent of global gross domestic product.

Oando supports Navy with one-million litre fuel tank

ANDO Nigeria Plc has boosted Naval operations by providing it with a million litres fuel gas storage capacity, the company’s Group Managing Director, Wale Tinubu, has said. Speaking during the inauguration in Lagos, Tinubu said the facility would guarantee an uninterrupted supply of fuel gas and seamless operations of the Naval ships. Tinubu, who was represented at the event by the Chief Executive Officer, Oando Marketing Company, Yomi Awobokun, said the project was in line with the Navy’s transformation agenda of providing effective monitoring services of the nation’s waterways. He said efforts were on-going to

By Akinola Ajibade build the facility in 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-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 Navy approached us on the issue. Oando is keen to help Navy deploys its fleets through the facility, whenever the need arises. He added: “Oando is working with the Navy on how to provide and

implement new initiatives and make it 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 gas fuel buried in Navy facilities at Victoria Island and Apapa in Lagos to help the Navy access the product. Also, the Chief of Naval of Staff, Vice Admiral U. O. Jibrin, said Navy and Oando had evolved partnership arrangement in the last 18 months for growth. Jibrin, represented by the Chief of Logistics, Naval Headquarters, Rear Admiral Ikot Ibao, Jibrin said the Navy the facility would change the process of delivering gas fuel to the Navy.

UROPE’S leading travel group TUI is in talks with investors interested in buying its stake in Hapag-Lloyd as an option in its long-planned exit from the German shipping company, TUI’s chairman told a newspaper. “We are working on a sensible, profitable solution for the exit,” Klaus Mangold told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung in an interview released ahead of publication. A sale of the stake to investors is one possibility and an exit via Hapag-Lloyd’s planned initial public offering “possibly in the second half of 2015? was another, Mangold said. “There are interested parties with whom we are talking at the moment but we are in no rush because there is no financial need for a quick exit

from Hapag-Lloyd,” Mangold said. TUI owns a 22 per cent stake in Hapag-Lloyd, which is classed as ‘held for sale’ and valued in TUI’s books at 467 million euros ($582 million). However, the stake is set to shrink to 13.9 per cent by the end of this year as Hapag-Lloyd carries out a •370 million capital increase following the completion of its merger with Chilean peer Vapores earlier this month, a move that has created the world’s fourth largest shipping group. TUI’s chief financial officer in August said TUI could opt for either a sale or a flotation of the stake, “whichever comes first at a decent price”. TUI has long been looking to exit container shipping in order to focus fully on tourism.

African Sun Airport Hotel opens in Lagos

HE African Sun Airport has opened on the busy Murtala Muhammed Road in Lagos with a promise by its owners to provide quality services. Speaking at the inauguration of the hotel last weekend, its Chairman, Air Marshal Jonah Wuyep, said the hotel had come to stay. The chairman, who was represented by his wife Dr Wuyep said beside fulfilling its core objectives, the hotel has provided employment to many Nigerians – directly and indirectly. Also, he said the hotel is being managed by a worldclass hotel group. “I know that Nigerians deserve the best and we will ensure you get the best,’’ he said. The hotel’s Managing Director Ifeanyi Onwubiko, said he invested in the subsector because of his love for the business. He said: “This is our second branch in Nigeria. The third one is coming up in Abuja, adding that the facility was situated on the busy airport road because “there is no big hotel’’ in the area. He said the hotel employed 80 Nigerians and about four foreigners. On competition, Onwubiko said: “We are not competing with anyone. Other hotels are not up to our stuff.’’ Though he did not disclose the cost of the hotel, he said hotel’s main objective is to provide fun, adding that costs would determine where the hotel would be sited next. The hotel’s General Manager Sindiso Sibanda, who has over 25

By Joseph Eshanokpe

years’experience in the industry, said the organisation is strict on standards, which he said, are built on three Ps – people, products and processes. The South African said: “We have put everything in place. We have invested time and checked the products to reach standards. We did two months’ training for staff at our hospitality training academy. Our brand is unique. We have been around for some time and we have been running an hotel for 100 years. And we have been improving over the years. We are in Zimbabwe, Ghana and now in Nigeria and will go to other countries from here.’’ How much does it cost to build the hotel? He would not give details. “Time is money and we put a lot of time here,’’ Sibanda said. He promised that the hotel’s services would not be expensive. “We can’t say we are expensive. We give value for money as long as people pay, ‘’ he said. He said the hospitality industry was improving, despite the insecurity in the country. He said it was a matter for joy that night life had not died despite the insecurity. To tackle the problem of Nigeria’s image, he called for rebranding. “We need to rebrand Nigeria. People can’t be behaving that security is not okay,’’ he added.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

Life

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Soul stirring songs at ‘God’s party’

– SEE STORY ON PAGE 44

‘Jagua Nana’s Daughter on my mind’ – Page 45

‘With Arts Journalism, we created value’

Ondo lifts Mare for tourists

– Page 46

– Page 47

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

OURS before the start of this year’s Akwa Ibom State organised 9,999 Carol Night, long queue of guests formed at the entrance of Akwa Ibom Stadium, Uyo. Vendors arranged their wares at strategic locations on the road leading to stadium. Security officials were busy directing the crowd and maintaining order. For the 9,999-strong choir that occupied the first floor of the stadium (all dressed in white Tshirt and black trousers or skirt) last Saturday night was memorable, as their performance was watched live in 59 countries. As the kick off time got closer, the atmosphere around the stadium became rowdy as motorists battled for space with pedestrians who struggled to remain on the queue. By 9pm, the 30,000 capacity stadium was almost filled. Thirty minutes later, the Akwa Ibom Voices set the tone for the Carol Night immediately after Governor Godswill Akpabio and family took their seats. The group’s performance drew almost everyone to his feet. And for the next six hours, it was rain of songs of praise and dancing. The 9,999 choir backed by many renowned gospel artistes from across the globe, rendered soul stirring hymns into the wee hours of Sunday. Among gospel groups that performed were Don Moen, Buchi, Panam Percy Paul, Bongos Ikwe, Angela Christie, the Voices of Jamaica Choir, the Harmonious Chorale from Ghana, national choir of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis; Ibom Orchestra and Unity Brass Band. Like a contest, each performing group attempted to outclass one another with the rendition of special songs from their repertoire. Angela Christie offered Midnight Crew’s Igwe, though not with same dexterity as the original singer, to the admiration of the crowd. For Otukpo-born highlife musician, Bongos Ikwe, Amen, was the toast for all. He also rendered a different version of Amen, co-produced by Archbishop John Cardinal Onaiyekan. Ikwe dedicated the song to the Archbishop who was the lead minister at the Carol Night. Panam Percy Paul did not disappoint the audience when he presented some of his old tunes such as Come lets Praise the Lord. Accompanied by his wife, Governor Akpabio flagged off the night, saying: “Tonight, I have come to kick off the 2014 Christmas Carol done in a spectacular way in a spectacular state. You might not hear your voices as you did in the past six years, but you will get uncommon blessing home. Every singing and dancing will bring blessing to you. I therefore kick off God’s party in the name of God, son and Holy Ghost.” Akpabio later led the ministration with a reading from Matthew 1: 18-23 which focuses on the birth of Jesus Christ-the reason for the Carol Night. Akpabio described this year’s the carol night as a celebration of love, noting that “whether you are a Muslim or a Christian because we need a peaceful world for mankind to develop”. “God is love, and out of love God gave his only son for us to redeem man of his sins. This is the 7th edition but holding for the first time in the new stadium. Our journey has been easy. We have fought ethnicity. God gave us the string to string them down. As the walls of Jericho came down, every barrier to our success will come down. As we join our voices together, the insurgence shall cease to be. Through our voices, the Ebola shall cease to be, scourges of poverty in Africa will be erased in the continent through our voices,” Akpabio said. Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Olorunfemi Onaiyekan has allayed fears of crises during the forthcoming general elections, saying there is no need for such fears. He, however, tasked President Goodluck Jonathan not to fail to stop the Boko Haram insurgencies that have claimed thousands of lives in some parts of northern states because Nigerians would not accept any excuses. He said Boko Haram is a matter that concerns all and as such Christians ‘we must pray and work for peace.’ Archbishop Onaiyekan who ministered at the Carol said Nigerian politicians must not forget that though God expects human beings to organise his life, which is why there are governors and president, that God is the owner of all things. He charged politicians to seek power for the good of the majority of the people. People according to him, is the reason for gov-

•Moen on stage at the Carol Night

•A group on stage

Soul stirring songs at ‘God’s party’ Renowned gospel singers Don Moen and Agatha Christie led thousands of singers in an all-night praise and worship at this year’s 9,999 Carol Night held at Akwa Ibom Stadium, Uyo last Saturday. Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME was there. CELEBRATION ernance. “It is not enough to feat God. We must rule according to His will and for the good of the people. People are the reason for governance. Politicians are supposed to do whatever they do for the good of the majority. We are looking forward to the chance of

making the choice of who will rule us,” he said. The Archbishop whose message was titled Religious peace in our land, said in this period of Christmas Nigerians should not forget to cast their minds to the birth of Jesus in the manger noting that one important lesson of the season is that ‘we are challenged to have care for children.’

“As we sit here, my heart goes out to the babies who are being born in distressful situations especially in northeast states where Boko Haram have driven people away from. Also, we should remember babies in the terrible theatres of wars such as Pakistan and Syria. Every child is precious. The lesson of Xmas is that the will of God will always be done,” he added.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

‘I have overcome that fear of writing and sharing’

The United Kingdom (UK) believes it has eradicated racism in the workplace. But, Africans know too well that it is still there. Your accent, the colour of your skin stand you out, and in certain cases, make it hard for you to fit in. Laws cannot prevent workplace cynicism and the silent slurs targeted at you for being the colour you are. A Fly Girl is Amanda Epe’s debut book, an inspirational memoir of her days working with British Airways; travel tales through the lens of a black African woman. Epe’s well-documented and interesting book is the first narrative of its kind as she is the first seminal story-teller on the narrative of being a black cabin crew member with the British Airways. Epe writes articles, essays, poetry, fiction and her work has featured in publications and anthologies in the UK, the United States (U.S.), and Nigeria. She speaks to TUNDUN ADEYEMO. Excerpts:

HY did you write this book? I was obliged to write this for my spirit and I didn’t want to take this story unpublished to the grave. What is your favourite part in the story? If I had to put a bookmark in one place, it would be the active, funny, bright and sunny story in Miami. At what time or point did you feel the need to write the story? It was strongly felt in 2013, a time of writing in my serene state and being fully inspired. It was the starting point anyway. At least, I put a pen to paper and wrote the first paragraph; most of the work continued the following year. Racism occurs in different ways to different people, and many talk about this every day. What more are you adding to the conversation? My angle has some insights into the in-depth thoughts of being black and wearing the Union Jack. Is there a place for the woman in the business community? During my life in the air, I worked with business savvy women and I reflect on one in particular that en-

LITERATURE deavoured to become a grand entrepreneur through trade and travel, she was an inspiration. Women are not just in business, but are on top. I admired a recent report of a black British woman, Karen Blackett, who is the first businesswoman to top the Powerlist 100, and also Folorunsho Alakija on the billionaire list, the latter an example of how times have advanced with women working and trading in oil. When you talk to women across the world, what is the one thing they tell you? We are all singing the same song, but with various tunes, in the western world equality is still sought, and across the globe we are coming out, stepping up or striving to make our mark. Is it a question really that black people are not well integrated into the community? In comparison to other western nations I feel that black communities are somewhat integrated, until we are fully empowered economically there will always be marginalisation You have a very British accent, is this book personal then? How can

you suffer racism when you are British? My being British has a prefix; readers can learn more about this concept in reading some chapters in the book. Returning home to Nigeria… is that an option? To run from racism is just running, if I had run away as a new recruit, I wouldn’t be telling this story. How long must one fight is another story. In the play Pandora’s Box by playwright, Ade Solanke, this issue of returning to Nigeria was discussed, one of the characters the uncle was telling the Diaspora his niece and her friend to “stay there” (UK) and fight. The friend, who had decided to make a new life in Nigeria (the character Bev whose parents migrated to Britain from the Caribbean), argued against him speaking about England saying: “ Uncle, I’d love to contribute to my country. I’ve tried to. But do they want my contribution? Well, I refuse to be wasted!” She goes on to say that we are more than English and wanting to discover another part of her. I agree with the character, and Nigeria is certainly an op•Continued on Page 50

•Epe

‘Jagua Nana’s Daughter on my mind’

S a writer who also organises an award for African writers, which is your greatest African novel you ever read? I have a very soft spot for Butterfly Burning by Yvonne Vera. She was a Zimbawean writer who died of AIDS related complications but she was in my opionion a great novelist . The novel is set in the 1940’s. The novel is a sort of musical.The novel had profound impact on me. Also in London I was introduced to several African writers such as Cyprian Ekwesi who wrote Jagua Nana’s Daughter. I hope to one day turn Butterfly Burnning to a film because of the imagery I see when I am reading it. Why did you write a book Blood on the page? I wrote the book, Blood on the page while I was doing a Phd but it was published after the completion of the programme. The research I was doing got me in contact to many authors. Some of them were new writers and they were the first to write about HIV in South-Africa and Zimbabwe. I spent probably a year (2003 /2004) looking for text and when I found them, I discovered nobody has really critique them. In general, such work hasn’t been done. So, I did it. I educated myself and got to the source. I knew that in the West, gay people were accused of spreading the HIV virus. So, to a large extent each chapter is an academic text and what I did, was to summarise all they said. What is your impression of Ake Arts and Book festival and the rocky city of Abeokuta? I am certainly a big fan of the festival, I have met many interesting people and I listened to what all of them said. I think it is quite a great opportunity to engage with literary people as well as the local people. I have met several people here including writers from all over the world. Mukoma Wa Ngugi and many of my old friends who I have known from several parts of Africa I am re-connecting here. The festival featured a high caliber of talents and I am enjoying it. You rarely see this array of talents in one spot. In London as a mother I don’t go out much to see things like this. For me, to watch Nigerian films is not just an opportunity, but an honour because you don’t find such every day. It will take a lot of time for me to digest it. You watched October 1, what lesson did you take from it?

In this interview, the Director of Caine Prize and author of Blood on the page, Lizzy Attery, speaks on her works, Mabati Cornell Kiswahili prize and the Caine Prize. Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME reports. LITERATURE One of the lessons I took from October 1 film is from that perspective of an oyinbo, (a white person) through which the story is being told. There are dangerous things, also about the priest who gave more opportunities to people in the place where the story is set and the way he treated the young boy, the damage he did in the process while bettering people’s live. It is still entertaining but it makes one to think deeply why we put trust on some certain people. Why do we send children away for education? It was a surprise to me because my appreciation of Nigerian film is limited to Nollywood. Why did you partner Mukoma Wa Ngugi for a Kiswahili prize and not a Yoruba or an Igbo prize? Mukowa Wa Ngugi is a crime writer in his own right. He is also a professor of literature based in the United States. We have really being able to secure funding in South of Africa by Mabati Rolling Mills who are producers of iron roofing sheets for over 50 years and they have an interest in the language spoken by over three hundred million people in that region. We may not have found a Yoruba prize or an Igbo prize. But, it is an avenue to say companies that make roofing sheets in Yoruba to encourage Yoruba literature for instance. Because it is important that African language should be taken seriously for literature and there should be prizes for it. We the founders of Mabati Cornell Kiswahili prize are still learning ourselves, it is an interesting thing to set up for anyone who has that energy for it. What next are you working on? After the announcement of the Caine prize judges at Ake Art and Book Festival, the next thing is the funding of the Caine Prize workshop holding in Ghana in March next year because we don’t know if we are going to get enough funds for the workshop and flights from one African country to another as it is

•Lizzy

quite expensive. And of course, the Mabati Cornell Kiswahili prize. I am current receiving entries for the Caine Prize and looking through if those stories are eligible. I have to read those that are too short, too long and the self–published whether they are eligible. I am also preparing to teach two African courses at Kings College, London. How do you know the stories sent to you are between 3,000 words to ten thousand10,000 words?

I sometimes count the number of words if I am not sure but when the number of words published in the short story is written when sent to me, it helps because I wouldn’t have to count. So, I have interesting things to do as the Caine Prize Director and also boring things to do like counting the pages and number of words from one end to the other. The judges of this year’s Caine Prize for African Writing were announced at the recently concluded Ake Arts and Book Festival in Abeokuta. The panel will be chaired by awardwinning South African author Zoë Wicomb. She will be joined by the distinguished television and radio journalist Zeinab Badawi, Indian author and Man Booker Prize shortlistee Neel Mukherjee, Assistant Prof of English at the University of Georgetown, Cóilín Parsons, and Brian Chikwava, the winner of the Caine Prize in 2003. During the announcement Attree stated, “We are proud to announce the 2015 judges early this year and hope the calibre of this outstanding panel will encourage publishers to enter stories before the deadline of 31 January 2015.” Kenya’s Okwiri Oduor won this year’s prize of 10,000 pounds with her short story, My Father’s Head which explores the narrator’s difficulty in dealing with the loss of her father and looks at the themes of memory, loss and loneliness. The narrator works in an old people’s home and comes into contact with a priest, giving her the courage to recall her buried memories of her father. Chair of the judges, Jackie Kay, praised the story, saying, “Okwiri Oduor is a writer we are all really excited to have discovered. ‘My Father’s Head’ is an uplifting story about mourning - Joycean in its reach. She exercises an extraordinary amount of control and yet the story is subtle, tender and moving. It is a story you want to return to the minute you finish it.” Oduor directed the inaugural Writivism Literary Festival in Kampala, Uganda in August 2013. Her novella, The Dream Chasers was highly commended in the Commonwealth Book Prize, 2012. She is a 2014 MacDowell Colony fellow and is currently at work on her debut novel. Nigerian writers that have won the Caine Prize in the past included Helon Habila (2001), Segun Afolabi (2005), E C Osondu (2009) and Tope Folarin (2013).

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

‘With Arts Journalism, we created value’ Former Deputy Editor of The Guardian Mr. Ben Tomoloju is a man of many parts. He is a theatre artist, writer, musician and cultural activist, who has dedicated his life to the promotion of arts and culture. He was with The Guardian between 1985 and 1993. Askari, Aminatu, Jankariwo and Flowers’ Introspect are some of his published plays and books. Last Thursday, he turned 60. In this interview with Arts reporters, Tomoloju reflects on his career, activism, politics and art journalism. Arts Editor OZOLUA UHAKHEME was there.

OU pioneered art journalism in the country, how did it start? I had the facility to add value to journalism through my literary enterprise. And I didn’t fail. If I had, people would have complained about the Punch editorial from April 1982 to late 1983. As the lay reader (the title then for Chairman, Editorial Board), I was in charge of the editorial in addition to my work as English Language Teacher at Agege Grammar School. When I was in the Punch, I also observed that people were writing about what was supposed to be the arts, but what they were writing was pedestal things which didn’t go to the nitty-gritty of art appreciation – theatre, performing, visual or literary arts. It was all about musicians and other things that were outside the realms of arts. I then asked for a page that was when my name came into the limelight as an art writer. I asked for a page or at least a column every Saturday called Portrait of an Artist and I started showcasing talents and when the opportunity came for me to be invited to join another paper – The Democrat in Kaduna- I was invited to be a member of the editorial board based on my antecedents in the Punch, but I refused, I said I would prefer to be the Arts Editor, which is my passion in journalism. So, in the last quarter of 1983 before the BuhariIdiagbon coup, I was given a letter of appointment as Review Editor of the Democrat weekly. Being the Review Editor, my job included aspects of features writing and so I combined them with arts writing. I also did a few things, which I suppose posterity should evaluate, one of which was to identify that the couples of literature written on the Nigerian civil war should be a subject of study. I wrote a whole broadsheet (full page) on that, proposing that it should be a subject of study. I believe that by now it has been very well articulated in scholarship. That was what journalism did in terms of giving direction and perception of the proper development of literature. We also talked about some potential like Barbra Soki… We interviewed her and went to town with her story. The following week, we got a call from some media organisations, they wanted her to model for them, and so we were creating values. The literary aspects of what we were writing in The Democrat, our big bosses – Stanley Macebuh, Lade Bonuola, Femi Osofisan, Yemi Ogunbiyi, Odia Ofeimun felt I should come and join The Guardian, and there was no dispute about it, so, in 1985, I joined The Guardian as the pioneer Arts Editor and another journey began from there. I really flourished in The Guardian, I did a lot. I want to say that the arts journalists should be leaders! In recent times, I was reading through the literatures of June 12, I don’t know if there is any scholar in this country that has identified June 12 literatures! It is a whole, big collection on June 12 or pro-democracy literature. That is literature inter-relating with politics and the democratisation process. Beautiful prose work, fantastic narratives, thorough and in-depth analysis. It is for the journalist to point it out. This is the kind of thing we should be pointing out. That is the kind of thing I felt I ought to be doing in those active days in journalism. Thereafter, we went to put arts journalism on the Television, but the mercantilism choked us up. This is a little bit of the excursion, there is much to say about arts journalism. At what point did the advocacy start? Almost immediately! The very fact that we felt that arts was not being given a good deal in journalism was the beginning of the advocacy. I read about a very fantastic reggae artist,

CELEBRATION producer and multi-instrumentalist being written about, but what the journalist felt was the best to write about him was that he had no car, and that he was… around the town! For God sake! That is a reflection of mercantile society. The society that is abraded by materialism! The beginning of the advocacy was that we should face another dimension to journalistic reportage, review and analysis of the arts, instead of the mundane things that come in form of entertainment. The advocacy went on from there. We projected very powerful productions to national reckoning. We (with my colleagues) also reported every development in policy and implementation in the country’s cultural sector. We recall that Prof. Bayo Oduneye was the chairman of the review committee of film and theatre in the 80s and thereafter, we had the stakeholders’ meeting on the cultural sector when Col. Tunde Akogun came in. In fact, it was a very serious thing, because, we, on the Arts Desk of The Guardian, had given Col. Tunde Akogun an elaborate interview and we had transcribed to publish in two parts: we published part one in 1986, before we could publish the second part, there was the Babangida’s coup, nobody knew which typhoon would sweep any officer away, but our page was there empty and so what do we do? We had a meeting to decide that whether Akogun remains as the sole administrator of culture or not, we would run the interview. We have not received any information that he has been thrown out of the army and so we went on with the interview and so we were also independent as journalists to run the ideas embedded in the interview and so we carried part 2. Behold Akogun had a bigger promotion and that was part of the advocacy. Thereafter, we went into copyright. We were following Tony Okoroji, Onyeka Onwenu, Charly Boy and Sunny Ade, and before you know it, we were also part of the advocacy. We were in the committees representing the media without apology to anybody, because I could as well go there as an artist. And some people branded us – my humble self and Jahman…, they called us ‘Journartist’. But we were opening doors and creating professionals for the futurethose people skilled in arts; mass communication, and they applied their skills to the development of Arts Journalism. We followed it up to the National Troupe of Nigeria, to a point that we almost camped at Ososa. The first thing was, they didn’t know that arts could make great news. So, when we first had a tour with the Federal Sole Administrator for Culture, Col. Akogun, I didn’t leave it to my reporters alone. We wrote the stuff together, slammed my byline with reports from… and hit the front page. Then, the Permanent Secretary, Asumbole, saw it and read it in The Guardian. He liked it. Col Akogun also went to visit Baba Ogunde and Asumbole came back and found out the following morning that it was on the front page of The Guardian again! Then Anthony Ukpo, Minister for Information and Culture found it very interesting and exciting. We conferred status, but with sound judgment. Babangida, then, had been reading, he sent a message. He wanted a command performance of the Ososa experiment and Baba Ogunde brought a classic, the main bowl was fully airconditioned and we were all part of the advocacy. This guy in Galaxy now – Steve Ojo was a young engineer then, he promised that he was going to turn around the airconditioning system of the main bowl; that they didn’t need to go to Belgium, and they did the chiller and it was wonderful.

• Tomoloju

• A scene from Flowers Introspect during a performance at Freedom Park Lagos.

Col. Akogun gave the contract to Ojo’s company. So, we had the command performance of the National Troupe. Babangida sent Abacha to represent him and sent a statement that from that moment on, the performance should be the nucleus of the National Troupe of Nigeria. It was followed by a decree and the National Troupe was formed. Babangida noted the progression of the reports in The Guardian. We keep saying this not because we are boastful, it is a collaboration, sometimes our journalists would sleep at locations or carry the arts desk to places where events were happening. Then when there were no internet or phones, we would do a relay race with the reports to the newsroom, where somebody was waiting to do the re-write. So also the National Gallery of Arts; the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO); National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC); NAFEST and so on. I sent people all over the country to cover events and culturerelated issues. Sometime in 1988 a government official loosely said that NAFEST would host in Lagos and we caught on it and I sent a reporter to go and meet the Commissioner of Information and Culture in Lagos State, Modupe Adeogun I think… I said, ‘go to her, but don’t ask her are you going to host NAFEST, ask her, how are you preparing to host NAFEST? Because the man, who is in charge of culture nationwide, had said NAFEST would be in Lagos. Are you satisfied with the sustenance of the art model you pioneered? I am not happy by the spasmodic approach to pagination created mostly by commercial needs of the newspaper. I would have celebrated the fact that the tradition is maintained and sustained. That is, there is always an arts page to read in a day in the newspapers, but people

must have faith in the industry to be able to excel, especially when there are models. If you want to commercialise, I keep telling media people at different forums that the arts desk is the biggest place to generate adverts. The only thing is that the credit is not given to them. All these telecommunications adverts are all arts informed. We own the media pages – service providers are ours. I think the adverts people have to be educated on the cultures of adverts regarding arts. You have to encourage the publishing industries — how do you sensitise them to advertise and so there is a problem, which is a disconnect between the marketing side of news magazine and the editorial side. I think our editors of today need to be firm; a reporter who reports arts is now pulled away to cover Maritime, I think the newspaper employers need some re-orientation. Quality of art reporting now compared to then. There are some disappointing moments; you find people lifting press statements, it is wrong, you don’t report one-sided things, there are some things that need to be well detailed before it is reported. There are some fantastic culture journalists who are heartwarming, and they are critics who do well because they are in it. Arts community’s response to arts and culture reporting If the person written about does not care then it is because the subject of the article is not penchant enough to indict, appraise and appreciate on a fundamental basis. If for instance, they have been ripping off their workers and it goes to the press with facts and figures, they will care. When Barbra Soki released an album, somebody told her that she confined herself to her acting and she shouldn’t try music, and I don’t think she has tried music ever since. •Continued next week

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

• From left: Dr Ademujimi, Mrs Mbanefo, Akinboboye and Kayode Akinmade

• One of the tree-houses at the Idanre Mountain Resort.

Ondo lifts Mare for tourists Ondo State government raised the bar at this year’s Mare Festival, with the construction of more facilities for tourists and fun seekers, reports Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME.

NLIKE past editions, this year’s Mare Festival offered tourists and enthusiast bountiful menu as they converged on the hilly town of Idanre in Ondo State for 3 days of sport tourism. From the newly built serene shelter at Habit 1 Tourism Zone, to Idanre Hills Resort that boasts of tree-houses, recreation halls, Ampitheatre and relaxation spots, tourists and athletes and artistes had exciting experiences. For Governor Olusegun Mimiko, this year’s Mare Festival was more than exciting. He said the introduction of golf tournament added more colour and glamour to the festival. “Next year, there will be two golf tournaments- one in Smoky Hills and the other at the Atosin Golf Course, which is in completion stage. The golf course is unique in terms of its topography. He disclosed that the amphitheatre at the resort will host artistic events every month as a way to make Ondo State number one tourists destination. He assured that the state is doing all within its capability to bring Idanre to global tour-

FTER three days of intensive workshop on filmmaking, Group Three led five other groups comprising budding filmmakers to emerge win the Unilever and MOFILM organised clinic. Leader of the group, Mr.Samson Oklobia described the clinic as a rare privilege to showcase his talent and skill in film production. He said Unilever through the platform exposed him and other participants to a lot of training during which they met vibrant and intelligent young Nigerians. “I really achieve a lot and my advice for young and upcoming artists is to be focus and hardworking,” he added. Oklobia spoke on behalf of selected filmmakers at the close of the workshop held at the Protea Hotel, Ikeja Lagos. Vice President (Marketing) Unilever Nigeria Plc, Mr. Robert De Vreede said the first edition of the workshop was organized to catch them young. “This is the first edition and what are trying to do is

ism map. “This Idanre will no doubt next year be a preferred destination for tourists and fun seekers. In fact, more of the tree houses will be built while the Mare festival will be bigger,” he added. Governor Mimiko who was honoured by Guild of Tourism Journalists of Nigeria, with the Best Domestic Tourism Brand award, commended the organisers of the festival for their performance. The Director General, Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), Mrs Sally Mbanefo who was special guest lauded the efforts of Governor Mimiko for his commitment towards uplifting the status of the state into a major tourist destination in Nigeria. She said Ondo State is one of the states in the country that has demonstrated serious commitment to developing the state as a tourism hub. According to her “as a result of the level of development in the state’s tourism sector, I have continued to promote the various tourism potentials to the global community. Ondo State people are great in hospitality, each time I visit the state, there is always something beautiful that makes me feel at home. As an advocate of

domestic tourism, the changes in the state and particularly Idanre hills since the last time I visited it are so dramatic. Ondo State is today the shining light in the Medical Tourism in the country. I commend the level of work carried out at the Idanre Resort, which has employed more than two hundred workers.” Mbanefo described Ondo State as a major tourism destination because of the large deposit of tourism potentials. The government, according to her, has worked so hard to improve the status of the state economically. “Within my short stay in the office as the Director-General of the NTDC, I have tour more than 20 states and participated in many festivals but south West particularly Ondo state is the best, the development of tourism particularly the resort is an awesome and amazing experience which will be fascinating. The resort is another testimony of the transformational work of the state governor and his team” She hinted that Overland Airline has indicated interest to commence commercial flight from Akure-Abuja and Lagos in order to facilitate the movement of tourists

and fun seekers to various tourism destinations in the state. She noted that NTDC would ensure that domestic tourism remains the best approach to promote Nigeria tourism and create wealth for the nation and people. “Hence, the corporation is investing on promoting domestic tourism to empower local government at the grass root level and create jobs at the local government level,” she said. The Mare Festival featured motorised floats, cultural performances, mountain climbing, fast walking, musical concert and golf. Akinbolade Praise emerged first prize winner in the mountain climbing competition while Adekunle Adedoyoin and Sunday Akinwumi won the second and third position respectively. In the female category, Ayodeji Folashade won the first position and a cash prize of 30,000 naira while Oyebade Oluwaseun and Olawoye Damilola won second and third prizes respectively. For fast walking competition, Oluwafemi Dele got the first prize. Olowoniyi Abiodun got second prize while Isaac Ayokunle emerged third.

Unilever trains filmmakers By Ozolua Uhakheme Assistant Editor (Arts)

WORKSHOP to catch young African talent and improve their skill to standard. This initiative is an opportunity for young Nigerians to work in the industry up to higher level and also preparing them for future in case if anyone has the opportunity to work with Nollywood stars. It is open to everybody and we don’t charge any amount of money for participant to take part in the event,” he said. He noted that at the Unilever, the better they can develop the film industry, the better they can create environment for the brands. “Hope you will improve your skill

and move forward,” he told the participants who were presented with certificates of participation. One of the judges, Mr. Femi Odugbemi identified the followings as criteria for selecting the winners; presentation and interpretation of the brief, target audience, theme/message of the story-line, genre, story and structure and director’s treatment. In September, UNILEVER Nigeria launched the “Academy for African Filmmakers’ a new initiative which seeks to empower, equip and celebrate African Filmmakers. The academy will develop filmmaking expertise and give students the opportunity to work on live Unilever briefs as well as potential further funding for

their work and the opportunity of seeing their finished film broadcast. Unilever is running the academy in partnership with MOFILM. Through this partnership with MOFILM Unilever will enable, develop and promote African filmmaking talent. Unilever Nigeria Plc was established in1923 and is presently a leading player manufacturing and marketing of fast moving consumer Goods in Nigeria. The company is a socially responsible and responsive organisation as evidenced in its strategic commitments to consumer and customer satisfaction, human capacity development and various social responsibility interventions in the areas of nutrition/oral care, child welfare/education, water /Hygiene and health/HIV.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

The Midweek Magazine Place of the supernatural in African Cinema E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

S oil price continues to dwindle, scholars have urged African governments to look into other sectors for the continent’s advancement. One sector that has remained untapped is the Film Industry, which, the scholars described as “untapped goldmine”. While calling for better frameworks and support, they urged governments at all levels to tap the wealth in the Film Industry, which holds the key to unemployment and economic empowerment. They made the submission at a three-day conference on African Cinema industry organised by the Kwara State University (KWASU). With the theme: African Cinema and the Supernatural, the conference, which had as keynote speaker United States’ scholar, Prof Ken Harrow of the Michigan State University, US, brought scholars and filmmakers from across the world. It also featured Prof Jonathan Haynes of the Long Island University, US; Anouk Batard, Research Center of Social & Political Sciences, University of Toulouse, France; Prof Kole Omotosho; Prof Frank N. Ukadike from Tulane University; Tunde Kelani; Zeb Ejiro; Lancelot Imasuen, among others. Aside the deliberations, some epic films and documentaries were screened, such as Kelani’s Dazzling Mirror. KWASU Vice Chancellor, Prof AbdulRasheed Na-Allah, is an ardent believer in the rich potential of the industry. In fact, according to him, his university is resolute on becoming a major centre for the study of film and culture. And so, the conference, which is in its second edition, is part of its moves to achieving its vision. Through the conference, he said, the university seeks to explore the cultural and social dimension of the film industry so as to help in its development, adding that the university has also established “the KWASU Film Village which would work closely with its School Performing and Visual Arts to enhance its objective”. Prof Na-Allah said: “We realise that our cinema, popular Nollywood, does not and cannot exist in a vacuum, but as a part of the global cultural practice. This is why in 2010, when we held the first edition, we have brought fine body of international scholars to KWASU; and another body of film and culture experts to KWASU today for the second edition. Our aim is to make the KWASU Conference on African Cinema global and yearly affair. “We seek to bring theory and praxis under one roof and to inculcate in our students a holistic creative and scholar impulse. As part of the drive to make KWASU the centre for the study of culture in the Nigerian University school system, we will move our ambition a step further. With your help, we plan to establish the Centre for Nollywood Studies, which will be one of the finest places to study the Nollywood phenomenon.” In their presentations, the scholars and filmmakers highlighted the role of the supernatural in the development of African cinema. According to Prof Onookome Okome, compelled to account for it social relevance and authority, Nollywood has been subjected to moral and social scrutiny by cultural mediators of African art from different quarters, especially from the intellectual class in Nigeria. “Before the screeching voices of these mediators made their presence known in the popular public, the State has promulgated a number of offi-

WITH the theme: ‘African Cinema and the Supernatural’, scholars and filmmakers from across the world gathered in Kwara State to chart new ways of advancing the African Film Industry. EVELYN OSAGIE reports. MOVIE cial policies to regulate the audio-visual industry. The earliest was of course the Cinematic Ordinance of 1914, which was revised by in 1997 by Nigerian Film Corporation Act. Since the formation of this Act, which is actually a revision of the Ordinance of 1914, a number of Government agencies were inaugurated to help policy the cultural sector and the projects they give to the public. These include the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC); the National Film and Video and Censor Board (NFVCB) and the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC),” according to Prof Okome. On the backdrop of Okome’s observation that a session, tagged: Policing Nollywood: What is to Be Done, was held. It provided a forum for these governmental institutions to lay bare to the public their activities and methods of policing cultural productions in contemporary Nigeria. It featured the top executives of the National Film and Videos Censors Board and the Nigerian Film Corporation, including Prof Hyginus Ekwaazi; Ejiro and Kelani. While observing that the Motion Picture Industry is “a combination of art, amusement and business, Prof Omotosho urge Nigerian filmmakers to bring these three aspect to bare in the movies, saying it would help to further develop the industry. According to him, lack of attention to the art and business aspect of the industry has led to the lack of modernization of the themes of Nollywood. He criticised the preoccupation on moneymaking, human sacrifice, rituals, saying it reflects the “refusal of rulers in all the aspects of modern Nigerian life to modernize and move forward into the 21st century”, while calling for the involvement of academics in the film production. He said: “We limit ourselves and our possibilities when we limit ourselves to the products of Nollywood as the totality of the Nigerian filmmaking effort. If we add the journey of the Nigerian film Industry from stage script to film or by way of television production to the picture painted from the quotation of Jonathan Haynes, one of the first academics to critique the film industry in Nigeria in an article “Structural Adjustments in Nigeria Comedy: Baba Sala”, published in 1994, the quotation above, the present linkage of film criticism to literary criticism would be clear. “Academic critics are not particularly involved in the production process of the Nigerian film, but are at home in their area of literary criticisms. Our film studies must look at the work of artists such as Olaiya Adejumo (Baba Sala), the two shorties: Chinedu Ikedieze (alias Aki) and his playmate, Osita Iheme (alias Pawpaw). It should be of interest to Nigerian filmmakers that Pawpaw has teamed up with the greatest maker of funny films in South Africa, the Afrikaaner filmmaker, Leon Schuster, to make some incredible movies for the South African market.”

‘I have overcome that fear of writing and sharing’

•Continued from Page 47 tion. Look at the statistics of Black British actors and entertainers who cross the pond heading to USA. You are campaigning for women and their issues. Is this another empowering tool? It is simply my writing journey although it is part of empowering. If a woman reader feels inspired in her journey by relating to my writing/storytelling, then that is a success for me. What is next to for you to conquer? The mission continues. I must follow the call to write and to work, to do the things that give me joy, the works that are creative and that can be shared. Why should I buy your book? Two words, I guarantee you’ll engage and enjoy it. What will our readers hear about your book that they haven’t heard elsewhere? This author shares her experiences and thoughts from her travels, and discusses taboo topics and issues not easily for conversation in our and the wider community. If you were me right now, what sort of ques-

tions should you be asking? O.K I would like to tell you about the euphoric feeling of delivering my debut, and that it was created for people like me, but also beyond that target group. If you ask about my readership I feel that outside of Black women in the Diaspora and at home, this book relates and can be read by an international audience of men and women. How long did it take you to write this book? About nine months flat. Is there a part two coming soon? My journey and travels continue, a travel series perhaps. Can you share two thoughts with our readers? Many people are afraid to fly, my thoughts on this analogy is to feel the fear and still take off. I have overcome that fear of writing and sharing, so please do share your stuff! Where can we find more about your book? A Fly Girl, the kindle version is now available on Amazon. A Fly Girl will be available in print from Amazon, Waterstones and all good retailers by January 2015.

‘We limit ourselves and our possibilities when we limit ourselves to the products of Nollywood as the totality of the Nigerian filmmaking effort. If we add the journey of the Nigerian film industry from stage script to film or by way of television production to the picture painted from the quotation of Jonathan Haynes, one of the first academics to critique the film industry in Nigeria in an article “Structural Adjustments in Nigeria Comedy: Baba Sala”, •Prof Na-Allah,

Prof Harrow’s paper entitled: Witchcraft, Movies, and the City: the Old and the New, touched on the relationship between the notion of witchcraft, African cinema, and the African city. According to him, the cinema, witchcraft, and city are linked, saying each changed in conjunction with the other as the city changes, the urban notions of witchcraft do too, along with the cinema, while criticising the notion of witchcraft in African films. He compared the two different generations of cinema, focusing more on the earlier period prior to 1990. “To answer the question of the relationship between magic and cinema, I turn to the city where both took up their residence, where notions of witchcraft and the movies were defined and thus were born.” In his paper entitled: The Supernatural in Nollywood Films: Multiple Logics, Prof Haynes said that from the moment when the first Nollywood films were condemned as full of “rituals” and “juju,” the prevalence of the supernatural has been taken as a hallmark of Nollywood. According to him, the supernatural appears in many different forms and tends to function differently in various film genres. “What is most characteristic of Nollywood is to deploy multiple logics at once in the service of its moralism, overlaying mutually reinforcing systems of religious belief, culture, psychology, plot structure, and generic form. This keeps the supernatural closely tethered to issues of individual, social, and political morality. Unlike in, say, the Indian “mythological,” the focus is on life in this world, in a human community. In general, Nollywood stages debates on pressing issues rather than taking a particular side. “Nollywood’s elastic spirit of non-contradic-

tion should not be dismissed as commerciallydriven pandering to the widest possible audience. It parallels the founding contradictory ideology of the Nigerian state, the alliance between a modernising central government and traditional rulers deriving power and legitimacy from indigenous spiritual forces. And it carries forward some of the most profound traditional African values: tolerance, ecumenicalism, negotiation, compromise, and consensus.” While noting that a famous peculiar and even typical feature of Nollywood movies is their ending with the mention “To God be the Glory”, Batard’s paper, Variations on Nigerian movies’ ending “To God be the glory”, focuses on the significations, the functions and the uses of such an appreciation which may also be read as an invocation. “My survey based on quite a number of movies’ endings shows that “To God be the glory” may not occur as systematically as popularly claimed by the publics of Nollywood’s “imagined community” – the ones who not only make, watch or reject, hail or criticise, but first and foremost discuss the Nigerian movies. As a matter of fact, I have noticed that as the Nigerian film industry has been going through a (de)legitimation process, the producers who try to distinguish themselves from the bad reputation of an industry based on quantity rather than quality and who want to be seen as professionals – who are also the better educated and more transnationalised ones aiming at theatrical and worldwide releases – deliberately omit the credit “To God be the glory”; “Not because I am not a Christian or I am not religious, but because it has some kind of bad connotation (…), it commemorates the end of a bad movie, or a bad script”.

Art Gallery unveils Abuja biennial logo

HE Minister of Tourism, Culture & National Orientataion, Chief Edem Duke was in his elements speaking in a broadcaster’s voice. “The National Gallery of Art, (NGA) has set the ball rolling by charting a course to embrace the global art market,” he began. There was pin drop silence that Wednesday evening at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, in Abuja. On stage with him were the Director - General, NGA, Abdullahi Muku and the Chairman, Governing Board, NGA, Mr Hipo Onwuegbuke, who smiled in acknowledgement of the compliment. Duke continued: ”The unveiling of the Abuja Biennial is just a route; a modest ceremony ladened with expectations of the eventual creative enterprise. Beyond the unveiling lies the actual Abuja Biennial, a global event that will assemble the best creative minds from all over the world on the soil of Abuja. The Biennial opens the double window of opportunities to international artists, tourists and patrons whose presence and patronage are capable of energizing our economy.” Then with the smoke machine emitting a cloud of smoke enveloping the stage and pyrotechnics, the Minister unveiled the Abuja Biennial Logo to a thunderous applause from

From Oji Onoko

PROGRAMME the audience. “I implore you to regard this official logo unveiling as the beginning of a bigger global event that has the capacity to contribute immensely to the larger pool of economic diversification,” the Minister added. In concept, the Abuja Biennial logo captures the free spirit, the unrestrained energy and the eloquent vibrancy of the art event. The array of colours shown in the arc and semi arcs explores and captures the different colours of international flags of different countries and people of the world. These colours are classified “World Colours” to create a general sense of belonging in all participants even though in different sizes to reflect the truth that artistically the International Community is in constant motion of creative progress in a relentless quest for excellence. The free hand text of the logo means beauty of a free mind while the red vivid brush stroke symbolises the burning desire for change-a positive change within us-that will impact meaningfully and positively on our various cultures and peoples as a whole.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

BUSINESS EXTRA Why constituency projects are abandoned, by Reps

OME members of the House of Representa tives yesterday gave reasons constituency projects are abandoned across the country. Among them is Hon. Ken Chijere, representing Port Harcourt 1 Federal Constituency. He said delay in the release of fund, is part responsible for the spate of uncompletion projects. He disagreed with those who argue that the blame should be laid at the door steps of contractors. His words: “Now, because of releases, most of those projects have remained uncompleted. If you look at my page on the Facebook, you will see the school building in Abuloma. It is only if I am lucky to return to the National Assembly that I will have that project completed by making further allocation to it in the coming years. That one is in the Federal Ministry of Education. They have their contractors, I don’t know them, they don’t know me.” Speaking at the computer skill acquisition scheme that he jointly organised with Hon Maurice Pronen for some youths from his constituency at the Nigerian Atomic Energy Commission Centre in Sheda, Abuja, he explained that “at times, we use our money to complete some constituency projects.” Hon Pronen, who concurred with his colleague’s position on issue, said that “there is a misconception about what happens in the National Assembly and the

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

State Houses of Assembly. They are quite different in terms of constituency projects.” Chikere said that the National Assembly’s budget for constituency project is N60billion, and that it is spread between the two chambers of the parliament. He noted that since the lawmakers are not part of the executive, they only nominate projects for the relevant ministry, or agency to implement. “No lawmaker in the National Assembly -Senators or House of Representatives members, is given one kobo out of that money. What you do is to nominate a project. “Now take the South South House of Representatives for instance, whatever is due for the members coming from that allocation, it is shared into 13 places . In 2013, I said I wanted to do a youth development centre. Whatever is my share of that money, they send my project to the appropriate ministry or department of the federal government. The Director-General Osaisai Eperamo, urged the beneficiaries to be grateful to their benefactors who chose computer skill acquisition instead of projects. He told the beneficiaries that “you are not just coming to learn and go home. You are going back with tools -the computer. “

Kaduna Disco assesses its installations • To deploy transformers in due course

HE Kaduna Electric ity Distribution Com pany (KEDC) yesterday began an assessment of its installations in Kaduna. It is all to ascertain what is required to bridge the gap in terms of technical and commercial needs. Speaking during the facility tour in Kaduna, its Chairman, Yusuf Hamisu Abubakar noted that KEDC “shall leave no stone unturned to ensure quality services to its teaming customers across its franchise areas.” He said the essence of the visit was to enable the core investor have a firsthand information of what is on ground and what is needed. In a statement, the chairman was quoted as saying: “This is a need assessment visit to determine the gap in terms technical and commercial needs of the company so that strategic business decisions could be taken to bridge the gap.” Abubakar noted that the new management of the firm was determined to provide steady and qualitative power supply to its customers. He however urged all electricity users in the four states within the firm’s operational base to brace up to their responsibility. He said: “Our esteemed

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

customers in Kaduna, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara states must support the effort of the company by paying their bills promptly. This is the only way the company will generate the needed resources for network expansion and development.“ Earlier, its Managing Director/CEO, Garba Haruna said the power firm was at the Central Store to inspect some distribution transformers and other accessories which shall be deployed in due course. He said the company would carry out a comprehensive study of the network to ensure reliability of supply and necessary improvement in accordance with distribution code and other best practices. He appealed to electricity users in its franchise areas to reciprocate the gesture of the company by paying their bills promptly. According to him, the company is poised at providing qualitative service to the customers. Areas visited include the Central Stores, Abakwa, Kawo, PAN, Kakuri and Dawaki Road injection sub stations as well as Mando Business Unit and Kaduna Town One 132/33kv Transmission sub station.

• From right: Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, Mr. John Ugbe presenting DStv Explora decoder to Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN). With them is Managing Director, LASAA, Mr George Kayode Noah, during the opening ceremony of 2014 Lagos State Countdown, at Bar Beach in Lagos...on Monday.

‘Oil price slump gives Nigeria chance to end $7b fuel subsidy’

UMBLING oil prices that have slashed Ni geria’s revenue and roiled currency and stock markets in the economy, may have a silver lining: an excuse for the government to scrap fuel subsidies that cost as much as $7 billion (about N1.3trillion) a year. It’s an opportunity President Goodluck Jonathan, concerned that such a move would provoke protests before his bid for re-election in February, 2015 may not seize, analysts have said.. “Politics often trumps prudence and there’s an entrenched social expectation for fuel to be subsidised,” Gareth Brickman an analyst at Johannesburg-based ETM Analytic said, in an emailed response to questions. “The last time subsidies were reduced, there were widespread protests, and given how contentious the political environment is in Nigeria with the elections and on-going ethnic divisions, it is likely this will be the case again.” Nigeria relies on refined fuel imports to meet more than 70 per cent of domes-

tic needs and refunded importers as much as a third of the cost of supply in the past year ending in October, according to the Ministry of Petroleum Resources. This ensured the price of gasoline was capped at N97 ($0.54) per liter. Jonathan’s attempt to end the subsidies in January 2012, sparked a week of strikes and protests, paralyzing the economy and forcing the government to partially restore them. A 2012 parliamentary probe recommended that 70 gasoline importers, including the state oil company Nigerian National Petroleum Corp., refund N1.1 trillion ($6 billion) in illegal fuel-subsidy payments, alleging “endemic corruption.” While Nigeria is Africa’s biggest crude oil producer, which pumped 2.1 million barrels per day in November, its four ill-maintained state-owned refineries refine only 16 per cent of their capacity for 445,000 barrels per day. The subsidies discouraged private investors who

obtained refining licenses from building plants because of concern that costs may not be recovered without market-determined fuel prices, according to Oni of Ecobank Research. With the 45 per cent decline in oil prices this year, Nigeria’s oil unions, which ended a four-day strike on December 19 to press for industry reforms, are asking for lower fuel prices to reflect the decline in crude prices, adding to public expectation of cheaper gasoline. They also want stateowned refineries fixed and an end to corruption associated with fuel imports. Spokesman for the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), Emmanuel Ojugbana, said: “The unions want lower fuel prices because past increases were based on the rise in oil prices. So now that the price has fallen, we expect the government to also reciprocate.” The “fuel subsidy is completely wiped out if prices fall below $70 a barrel,” Dolapo Oni, energy analyst at Lagos-based Ecobank

Research. “We’re there now.” In the spending proposals sent to lawmakers last week, Jonathan plans to increase fuel subsidies nine per cent next year to 1.2 trillion naira. While announcing 2015 budget proposals Dec. 17, Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. (Mrs) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said government estimates indicate “that the break-even crude oil price” that equals Nigeria’s pump price without a “subsidy hovers around $60 per barrel. “It’s only when our crude oil price for Bonny Light falls below this level that we can now talk about the issue of bringing down any pump price.” While ending the subsidies now may be painless because of the low oil prices, there are risks for the government if they rebound and the costs are passed on to the consumer, according to analysts including Philippe de Pontet, Africa director at New York-based Eurasia Group.

SEC, NBA to partner on market development

HE Securities and Ex change Commission (SEC) is to collaborate with the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) to set up a standing committee for the development of Nigeria’s capital market. Announcing this when the President of the NBA, Augustine Alegeh (SAN) and some members of his executive paid a courtesy call on her in Abuja, Director-General of the SEC, Ms. Arunma Oteh said the partnership is essential for the two organisations and the country in general to drive the present administration’s Transformation Agenda. Oteh said the capital market has had big issues that

From Nduka Chiejina (Asst. Editor) and Chioma Onyia, Abuja

have affected the integrity of the market, saying the timing is perfect for the SEC and the NBA to look at ways of collaborating in the interest of investors and the country’s economic development. Oteh said: “The timing is right for us to look at how we can strengthen the relationship due to the value of the legal profession in fostering the rule of law in the society and the markets and the value of the capital market in transforming our economy. “We can’t have a country that has such great potentials,

has men and women that are entrepreneurs and still have a market this small. “Nigerians by nature are business men; the capital market, in collaboration with the legal profession, should help to promote such businesses so that there is integrity and these businesses can grow to their full potentials by leveraging on the capital market. “One area that people are beginning to talk about is the value of wealth distribution and addressing income inequality. If a mechanism can be instituted forcreating wealth for anyone irrespective of his status or position in the society, then we would have democratized wealth

creation and that is what the capital market does.” Speaking earlier, Alegeh had indicated interest in the NBA working with SEC in several areas to improve the country’s economic development. Already, he said the group has set up a committee on legislative advocacy which offers services free of charge, to ensure that proper laws are in place no matter whose ox is gored. He said the NBA was willing to partner with Commission resolve some of its compliance issues, petitions in respect of what happens in the equity market and other legal assistance that may be required.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

MONEYLINK

Govt’s revenue drops 10% to N743b in October, says CBN T HE Federal Government’s gross revenue stood at N743.57 billion in October, a decline of 10.6 per cent below the receipts in the preceding month, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Economic Report released yesterday. According to the report, gross oil receipts which stood at N470.04 billion, declined below the level in the preceding month. The decline in oil receipts relative to the preceding month was attributed, mainly, to the fall in receipts from domestic crude oil and gas sales, petroleum profit tax and royalties. During the period under review, crude oil export was estimated at 1.55 million barrels per day (mbd) or 48.05 million barrels during the

Stories by Collins Nweze

month. It puts the average price of Nigeria’s reference crude, the Bonny Light (370 API), at $88.78 per barrel, indicating a decline of 9.9 per cent below the level it was in the preceding month. The CBN said non-oil receipts was at N273.54 billion, constituting 36.8 per cent of the federally collected revenues. The receipts were also 3.9 per cent lower than figures in the preceding month. “The decline in non-oil receipts (gross) relative to the level in the preceding month reflected, largely, the fall in receipts from corporate tax. “Federal Government estimated

CBN’s policy crushes forex trading

HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) efforts to shore up naira are crushing foreignexchange (forex) trading. There were 10 trades in the naira during the 5 1/2 hours trading compared with 418 trades on December 16, according to data compiled by Bloomberg from at least 42 local and international banks. The CBN last week said lenders must clear positions daily after previously being allowed a net-open position of one per cent of shareholder funds. It also ordered dollars bought from banks be used within 48 hours or sold back to the regulator. “The perception has undoubtedly been left by the CBN that these are capital controls,” Ayodele Salami, who oversees about $200 million of Nigerian equities as chief investment officer of Duet Asset Management Ltd., said told Bloomberg. The slump in trading shows how

Nigeria is struggling to curb currency declines as crude oil’s 50 per cent slide from this year’s high hurts producers from Saudi Arabia to Venezuela. The CBN’s steps stand in contrast to Russia’s, where the world’s largest energy producer resisted capital controls, last week raising interest rates by the most in 16 years to stem a slide in the ruble. The naira strengthened 0.9 per cent to 184.05 per dollar, paring losses this quarter to 13 per cent, the most in Africa after Malawi’s kwacha. “Liquidity has collapsed,” Samir Gadio, head of African strategy at Standard Chartered Plc in London, said in an e-mail yesterday. “There is still no activity in the foreign-exchange market following last week’s regulatory measures. The risk with the current situation is that the black-market rate may soon diverge significantly from the interbank foreign-exchange rate.”

‘Financial Control in Public Service bridges knowledge gaps’

retained revenue in October was N278.79 billion, while total estimated expenditure was N320.73 billion. The fiscal operations of the Federal Government resulted in an estimated deficit of N41.94 billion, compared with the monthly budget deficit of N80.35 billion,” the report said. It said the headline inflation rate (year-on-year) was 8.1 per cent, 0.2 percentage point below its level in the preceding month. Inflation rate on a twelve-month moving average basis stood at 8.0 per cent same as in the preceding five months. “Provisional data indicated that foreign exchange inflow and outflow through the CBN was $3.23 billion and $5.30 billion, respectively, and resulted in a net outflow of $2.07 billion. Foreign exchange sales by the CBN to the authorised

P •CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele dealers amounted to $4.91 billion, showing an increase of 38.1 per cent over the level it was in the preceding month,” it said. Also, at the Retail Dutch Auction System (RDAS) segment of the foreign exchange market, the average naira exchange rate against the dollar was N157.31 compared with N157.30 in the preceding month.

Ecobank bags award

COBANK has emerged Investment Bank of the YearNigeria in the Wealth & Finance International magazine Finance Awards 2014. The awards were developed to recognise and reward excellence, best practice and innovation in finance, open to individuals and firms operating and working in a wide range of industries, including personal finance, corporate finance, accountancy and financial management. Wealth & Finance accepted nominations from firms throughout the globe, from very small niche practices to large corporations and has ensured that those who do go on to win one of these highly sought-

after awards have been selected on merit and are based upon the votes received. The Ecobank Group is a full-service bank providing wholesale, retail, investment and transactional banking services to governments, financial institutions, multinationals, local companies, SMEs and individuals. In naming the bank Investment Bank of the Year - Nigeria, Wealth & Finance was impressed with the bank’s customer-focused approach. It is also committed to driving economic transformation in Africa while protecting the environment by being a socially responsible financial institution with a world class professional.

ERMANENT secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Bayo Sodade has said he was motivated to write his latest books, Financial Control in the Nigerian Public Service and Biblenomics, in order to bridge the knowledge gap in public budgeting and financial management. The author, who spoke at the book launch in Lagos, disclosed that while serving as a junior officer in the public service, and preparing for various examinations, he had cause to read books which contents he discovered were lacking in quality. According to him, as he climbed the ladder in his career, he felt the compelling need to broaden knowledge by writing books that draw from long practical experience in public finance management and budgeting. “In those years, I discovered that some of the books I came across were substandard, so I started thinking of doing something of quality that would add value to the readers,” Sodade said. Lagos State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Ben Akabueze said the book would be of immense value to readers especially coming from an author, who has the practical experience of public finance and budget management. Managing Director, Book Company Limited, publishers of the books, Dayo Alabi said the firm accepted to publish the books to fulfill the author’s desire to bridge the knowledge gap particularly of those who manage public resources in Nigeria. He said: “We discovered that he wants those who manage our resources and commonwealth to apply economic and management principles which are consistent with the teachings of the Bible. In fact, he wants those who also work in the private sector and all of us in our individual lives to apply these principles.”

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 1.1841 1.2569 0.7009 1.1047

RETAIL DUTCH AUCTION SYSTEM (RDAS) Transaction Dates 10/12/2014 3/12/2014 1/12/2014 1,116.70 1.7777 1.2569 0.6899 1.1047

GAINERS AS AT 23-12-14

SYMBOL O/PRICE CHAMPION 4.87 SKYEBANK 2.40 UBA 4.15 TRANSCORP 3.39 DIAMONDBNK 5.29 DAGSUGAR 5.51 OANDO 17.35 ZENITHBAN K 17.98 DANGCEM 165.00 FIDELITYBK 1.50 GUINNESS 131.20

C/PRICE 5.36 2.64 4.56 3.72 5.79 6.01 18.90 19.50 178.46 1.58 137.76

CHANGE 0.49 0.24 0.41 0.33 0.50 0.50 1.55 1.52 13.46 0.08 6.56

LOSERS AS AT 23-12-14

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

RTBRISCOE FO NPFMCRFBK LEARNAFRCA MAYBAKER GLAXOSMITH IKEJAHOTEL INTBREW PZ NB FCMB CAVERTON ASHAKACEM

0.72 219.90 0.82 1.47 1.47 52.00 3.95 24.70 25.06 152.99 2.73 3.02 22.21

C/PRICE 0.66 209.00 0.78 1.40 1.40 50.00 3.82 24.23 24.70 151.75 2.72 3.01 22.15

CHANGE -0.06 -10.90 -0.04 -0.07 -0.07 -2.00 -0.13 -0.47 -0.36 -1.24 -0.01 -0.01 -0.06

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 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

THE NATION WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS Taraba acting governor presents N97.3b budget From Fanen Ihyongo, Jalingo

EINSTATED Taraba State Acting Governor Abubakar Sani Danladi yesterday presented a budget estimate of N97.3 billion to the House of Assembly for the 2015 fiscal year. The budget has a recurrent expenditure of N42.6 billion, comprising personnel cost of N19.6 billion; overhead cost of N13.3 billion and consolidated revenue fund charges of N9.8 billion. The estimated capital expenditure outlay is N53.3 billion, which the acting governor said is allocated to capital projects under the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of the government. A breakdown of the budget shows a Federal Allocation of N52.97 billion; internally generated revenue (IGR) estimate of N4.5 billion; refund of N25.68 billion from the Federal Government for the federal road projects executed by the state government; N7.2 billion from aids and grants and N6.97 billion from loans. The Ministry of Works has the highest allocation of N22 billion. “This is because there is the need to provide more communities with access roads,” Danladi said. The acting governor also proposed N566.3 million as “contingencies funds”. Danladi explained that because of the “dismal global economic scenario facing the state,” certain “distinct policy thrusts and initiatives” were required to be put in place, if the 2015 budget is to have the “desired impact” on the society. The acting governor urged all stakeholders to harness the projected resources to enable the state meet its revenue target proposed in the bill.

Xmas: Borno, Yobe ban movements over insurgency S ECURITY authorities in Borno and Yobe states have imposed restrictions on movements into and outside the two states during Christmas. The restriction, according to the two state governments, would begin today from 6pm till 7am on Sunday, December 28. In a statement yesterday in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, Army Public Relations Officer (PRO) Col. Sani Usman said people on essential services, such as medical personnel, fire services and the media, would be excluded from the restriction. Also, in a statement by the Special Adviser to Yobe State Governor on Information, Abdullahi Bego, the gov-

From Duku JOEL, Maiduguri

ernment explained that the ban would not affect movements within towns until the normal curfew time. He said: “Following a routine meeting with heads of law enforcement agencies in which the security situation in the state was reviewed, Governor Ibrahim Gaidam has okayed the placement of special restriction on movements across the state as follows: “From 6pm on Wednesday, December 24, till 7am on Sunday, December 28, all vehicular movements into and out of Yobe State are banned. “No vehicle coming into or leaving

the state will be allowed within this period. “However, people in respective towns across the state can move with their vehicles freely within their towns only except during the curfew hours that were imposed and announced earlier. “Hospital ambulance services on emergency assignments will be exempted from these restrictions.” The statement added: “The State Government and security agencies took these decisions in view of the need to ensure the safety and security of citizens throughout the state, especially

Adamawa Assembly okays 19 commissioners

HE Adamawa House of Assembly approved yesterday 19 of the 21 commissioner nominees sent to it by Governor Bala Ngilari. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ngilari had been operating without commissioners since October when he assumed office as the substantive governor. The governor sent a list of 21 commissioner-nominees to the Assembly for approval last week. Ngilari picked one nominee from each of the 21 local government areas of the state. The Assembly, at its plenary yesterday after concluding the screening of the nominees, which started on Monday, approved 19. But it rejected two. Those rejected are: Alhaji Ahmed Alhassan, a former commissioner, who hails from Maiha Local Government Area, and Mr Timothy Audu, a retired civil servant from Mubi North. Speaker Ahmadu Fintiri presided over the deliberations. No reason was given for rejecting the two nominees. NAN reports that the house at the plenary also conducted the second reading of the state N100 billion Appropriation bill for 2015.

•Traffic gridlock on Dugbe-Mokola Road in Ibadan, Oyo State capital...yesterday

Saraki dedicates pension to Kwara students’ scholarship

‘Leave highways for motorists’

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

By Olalekan Ayeni

ORMER Kwara State Governor Bukola Saraki has promised to use his pension entitlement as a scholarship scheme for indigent students in tertiary institutions in the state. The scholarship scheme is tagged: “ABS Education Support Foundation”. Saraki said over 100 students would benefit, yearly, from the scheme. The senator representing Kwara Central said the gesture was his 52nd birthday gift to the people of the state. He told reporters in Ilorin, the state capital, that since he finished his tenure as governor, he had never drawn a penny from his pension. Saraki said he decided to channel the pension to a scholarship scheme that would assist indigent but brilliant students in higher institutions in the state. The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology said a committee would be set up in conjunction with the institutions to effectively manage the fund. He said: “Since I left as a governor, I have been entitled to a pension but since then I have not drawn a penny from it. So, I have decided, effective from now, all the fund in that pension, plus new one coming in, should be dedicated to this fund for individuals that don’t have the resources in any of the institutions. “As part of my 52nd birthday, I have also decided to launch an education foundation as a scholarship for people in all the tertiary institutions here in Kwara State.”

in the festive, Yuletide season. “The governor urges people to show understanding and patience as these measures are taken in the best interest of the state and the people. “The governor also appreciates people’s support to the security agents and asks that they continue with their support and cooperation for the full restoration of peace and security. “The governor also urges people not to relent in offering prayers for Almighty Allah (SWT) to intervene and bring all the security challenges we face to an end.”

•Yero (right) presenting the budget proposal to the House of Assembly in Kaduna...yesterday.

PHOTO:NAN

Yero presents N203.7b budget

ADUNA State Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero yesterday presented a budget proposal of N203,700,855,271 for the 2015 fiscal year to the State House of Assembly. The governor said the recurrent expenditure was pegged at N72,788,841,776, representing 35.72 per cent of the total budget. Capital expenditure estimate was put at N130,912,013,495, representing 64.28 per cent of the budget. A breakdown of the budget shows that Works and Transport got the highest allocation of N29.4 billion, followed by Education, with N20.5 billion. Allocations to other key sectors are: Water supply, N16.8 billion; Health, N12.2 billion and Agriculture, N7.17 billion. Yero said his administration would give to completing ongoing projects in the state. He said: “The completion of on-

From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

going road projects in 2015 is our number one priority in this sector. Doing so will facilitate the movement of goods and people for the economic growth of our state.” Yero said ongoing projects earmarked for completion include: Garu Kurama-Kurandai-LereBaudu-Kasuwa – 21.7km (Lere Local Government Area) – 60 per cent completion; Hayin Jirgi–Bomo Road - 3.7 kilometres (Sabon Gari), 52 per cent completion; IgabiTurunku road-8.5 kilometres (Igabi) – 75 per cent completion; Farar Gada– Yakawada-Iyawata – 28 kilometres (Giwa), 48 per cent completion; construction of road from Zonal police headquarters at Kafanchan to Kaduna State University campus at Kafanchan Phase I (Jema’a) – 96 per cent completion; Kwasam-Kushere-Geshere – 45 kilometres (Kauru) – 24 per cent;

Kwoi–Dura-Ankung -13 kilometres (Jaba) – 52 per cent completion. Yero added: “Others include: Kwagiri-Kussom-Was, 24 kilometres (Jema’a) – 35 per cent completion; Gantang-Bahago - 3.7 kilometres (Kachia) – 52 per cent completion; Sakaru-Bagaldi, nine kilometres (Soba) – 17 per cent completion; Kagoma Township roads - 8.7 kilometres (Jema’a) – 37 per cent completion; Ung. Idi–Kusheka – five kilometres (Kauru) – 60 per cent completion; Kagoro–Manchok– Mabushi road – 34 kilometres (Kaura/Zango Kataf) – 75 per cent completion; Jere–K/Jibrin–Kwoi– Kafanchan road - 63/44 kilometres (Kagarko/Jaba/Jema’a) – 75 per cent completion.” He said the proposal, tagged: Budget of Consolidation and Continuity, was based on the government’s determination to complete ongoing projects across the state.

UTO-MECHANICS and traders have been warned to desist from operating on the roads to lessen the rate of traffic accidents in this Yuletide and beyond. The Itori Unit Commander of Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Ogun State, Mr Fatai Adesina Bakare, who issued the warning on Saturday while speaking with The Nation at the Toll Gate, Ota, also urged motorists, especially commercial drivers, to maintain utmost discipline while driving. Bakare’s appeal came on the heels of a multiple crash previous Sunday at Ilaro, Ogun State axis, in which two persons died, 18 critically injured and valuable property got destroyed. The accident, according to him, occurred due to the hazardous parking of a damaged cement-laden trailer on the expressway. Other vehicles coming behind it, he said, rammed into it because of lack of adequate danger signals. About seven other vehicles were involved, he said. He urged commercial motorists and other road users to shun recklessness and over-speeding, noting that only the living celebrates. Companies and vehicle owners, he urged, must put their vehicles in good shape before putting them on the road. “Any damaged vehicle must be towed out of the highways to avoid endangering other vehicles,” he said. The FRSC chief urged road users to “shun highway trading and hawking and not use the roadsides as mechanic workshops.” Let live by the rules in our own interest,” he pleaded. He also urged corporate organisations to initiate frequent and proper road safety trainings for their drivers to ensure that safety of lives and property are always guaranteed.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

NEWS N21b donation raises legal issues for PDP, Jonathan Continued from page 4

Section 91 of the Electoral Act says: “A candidate who knowingly acts in contravention of this section commits an offence and on conviction is liable: “In the case of presidential election to a maximum fine of N1, 000,000.00 or imprisonment of 12 months or both. “In the case of a governorship election to a fine of N800, 000.00 or imprisonment for nine months or both. “In the case of Senatorial seat in the National assembly election to the fine of N600, 000.00 or imprisonment for 6 months or both. “In the case of House of Representative seat in the National Assembly election to a fine of N500, 000.00 or imprisonment for 5 months or both. “In the case of State House of Assembly election to a fine of N300,000.00 or 3 months imprisonment or both. “In the case of chairmanship election to a fine of N300, 000.00 or three months imprisonment or both. “In the case of the councillorship election to a fine of N100, 000.00 or one month imprisonment or both.” On donations by companies, the INEC manual also indicated that such firms will be violating Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 38 (2) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) which has prohibit-

ed corporate bodies from making contributions to political parties. Section 221 reads: “No association, other than a political party, shall canvass for votes for any candidate at any election or contribute to the funds of any political party or to the election expenses of any candidate at an election. Section 38(2) of CAMA says: “A company shall not have or exercise power either directly or indirectly to make a donation or gift of any of its property or funds to a political party or political association or for any political purpose; and if any company, in breach of this subsection makes any donation or gift of its property to a political party or political association, or for any political purpose, the officers in default and any member who voted for the breach shall be jointly and severally liable to refund to the company the sum or value of the donation or gift and in addition, the company and every such officer or member shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine equal to the amount or value of the donation or gift.” The manual said even if a company is not prohibited by the Constitution or CAMA from making donations, it will be subject to the limits in the Electoral Act or regulations made. The manual reads in part: “Section 38(1) of CAMA vests

every company with the powers of a natural person of full capacity, except if it is restrained by limitations imposed by the company’s memorandum or any other enactment. “On the basis of this subsection, even if a company is not prohibited by the Constitution or CAMA from making donations to political parties, it will still be subject to the limits of individual donations in the Electoral Act or regulations made by INEC.” Lagos lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) yesterday asked INEC to be courageous enough to prosecute all those who breached the Electoral Act on election expenses. The lawyer decried the monetisation of the political process anf urged INEC to rise up to the occasion by compelling political parties to name all faceless donors and prosecute all those that have breached the Electoral Act on election expenses. Also yesterday, a former Minister of Petroleum, Prof. Tam David-West, described the N21 billion described President Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign as the “mother of all corruption”. David-West said the development was another evidence that Jonathan cannot fight corruption. Expressing shock at the fund raising, the former minContinued on page 59

‘Don’t plunge Nigeria into crisis’ Continued from page 4

corruption,” he added. Amaechi said if the APC had the power to stop the insurgency, it would have done so, to secure the states, which are mainly APC states. His word: “We don’t have the power; the governors can’t do anything, other than assist the army with funds occasionally. The control of the military lies in the hands of the President and he is the only one that can issue orders or directives as commander-in-chief. Most importantly, only the President can fund the military in such a manner that they can fight Boko Haram.” He said the logistics of moving the over 200 girls kidnapped from Chibok would have made it easier to trace the insurgents. The problem, he added, was that Jonathan did not initially believe that over 200 girls were abducted from Chibok and that the First Lady’s cry of “there is God o” was meant to signify that opponents of the government were telling lies against him. The Director-General said what most people did not realise is that the oath of office is not an oath that says the President must construct roads, provide water and light. “The oath of office makes it categorical that he must secure lives and property. If he is not doing that, it becomes an impeachable office. I can assure you that when you elect President Buhari into office, he will deal with that squarely because he has done it before,” he said. Amaechi denied allegations that APC presidential candidates spent money during the campaign for the primaries. Besides, he did not fund the Buhari campaign, he said. “Anybody who says they spent money should come forward and bring evidence. We have maintained consistently that Nigerians would fund us and that’s why we launched a fundraiser and we’re hoping that people would respond. We

expect people to go to the website and contribute. We’ve convinced Buhari to be the only signatory to that account. That’s the way we’re going to raise our money; we’ll not depend on rich men.” The governor said the party does not intend to fight the President with funds, considering how much he has raised from “questionable” sources. He added that the APC would fight the President by telling people in the village why they need to vote for change and that the symbol for change is the APC and General Buhari. He said some of the people who donated towards the President’s campaign were among those also benefited from the N2.3 billion oil subsidy fund. They did so, he said, as a way of paying back. “If he did not prosecute them, why shouldn’t they pay for his election,” he argued. Amaechi said detractors tried to tarnish his image by saying that he used Rivers State funds to campaign for Buhari while he had not paid eight months salary. He said it was only December salary that was outstanding. “But, we have paid that today (yesterday),” he noted. Amaechi said the APC campaign would be issue-based and that age has nothing to do with it, since Buhari is not expected to do hard labour at the Villa. The Director-General said the next president would be determined by performance. “Nigerians would have to choose between a man who has brought more tears and poverty to Nigerians and one who chased away Maitatsine and Chadian rebels,” he said. Amaechi said his team would begin campaigns early next year and that they would go round the 36 states. He added: “We hope that Nigerians would hear the message, which is very simple: Buhari chased away Maitasine. How many Nigerians know that? Maitasine was like Boko Haram and they were

killing people in Borno and Kano. Buhari as an officer of the Nigerian army, chased away Chadian rebels and the Maitasine sect. He had crossed the lake and was heading for Ndjamena, the capital of chad, before President Shehu Shagari called him back. If he didn’t do that, Borno would have been overran by Chadian rebels. “That’s because Buhari is a strong leader. You need a strong leader now to chase away Boko Haram or Boko Haram would chase us away. There are reports that 32 persons have been killed in Bauchi and Gombe. So, you need a Buhari to be able to fight insurgency. We’ll deal with the issue of insurgency. The country may be broke now because of the diversion of funds in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).” He said a Buhari presidency would fight corruption and thereby save money, which will be ploughed back into the economy. “That would be another way to create employment. We’ll also deal with power, otherwise you cannot tackle unemployment. The essential factor for industrialisation, from elementary Economics, is power,” he noted. He said Buhari as a President would promote agriculture, power and unemployment.

Dangote, Elumelu, Ovia lose billions Continued from page 4

UBA, Africa Prudential PLC and UBA Capital have shed a little over $27 million in value. Other big losers include Nigerian multi-millionaire banker Jim Ovia, a co-founder of Zenith Bank. The value of his stake in the financial services provider is $240 million as of late Monday, down from more than $350 million last month. He owns a 9% stake in the bank.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

FOREIGN NEWS Algerian army ‘kills jihadist behind Herve Gourdel beheading’

LGERIA’S defence ministry says troops have killed the leader of a jihadist militant group which kidnapped and beheaded French tourist Herve Gourdel. Abdelmalek Gouri and two associates were shot dead late on Monday in the town of Isser, a statement said. His group, Jund alKhilafa (Soldiers of the Caliphate), pledged allegiance to Islamic State (IS) in mid-September. Days later, it seized Mr Gourdel in the Djurdjura mountains and killed him in response to French air strikes on IS. The Algerian army subsequently launched a major operation to track down members of Jund alKhilafa, which has seen several of them killed. The defence ministry statement said the operation in Isser began at 22:30 (21:30 GMT) on Monday after intelligence was received and a vehicle carrying militants was seen entering the town, 60km (37 miles) east of Algiers. After Gouri and the two other members of Jund alKhilafa were killed, troops recovered two automatic rifles, explosive belts, a large quantity of ammunition and mobile phones, it added. No other people were reported injured in the clashes. On Saturday, the army announced that it had killed three other militants in a mountainous area near the village Sidi Daoud, 25km (15) miles to the north-west of Isser. It said one of them was a “dangerous criminal”. And on 11 December, the justice ministry said soldiers had killed two members of Jund alKhilafa implicated in the murder of Mr Gourdel.

Ukraine votes to drop neutral status

KRAINE’S parliament has voted to drop the country’s non-aligned status and work towards Nato membership. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the move “counterproductive” and said it would boost tensions. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko pledged to seek Nato membership over Russian support for rebels in the east. Russia, which annexed the Crimean peninsula in March, denies supplying the rebels with weapons. However, it is subject to EU and US sanctions over the crisis. In a vote in Ukraine’s par-

•University goes Russian liamentyesterday, MPs overwhelmingly backed the move by 303 to eight. Speaking before the vote, Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said Ukraine was determined to pivot towards Europe and the West. “This will lead to integration in the European and the Euro-Atlantic space,” he said. The non-aligned status, which Ukraine adopted in 2010 under Russian pressure, prevents states from joining military alliances. For the Kremlin, the idea that Ukraine might one day

join the European Union is like a bad dream. But the thought of Ukraine joining Nato is a nightmare. Russia has long complained about Nato “expanding” east, up to Russia’s borders. The Kremlin would view Ukraine’s membership of the alliance as a direct threat to its national security. That’s unlikely to happen any time soon, especially with the conflict continuing in eastern Ukraine. But Moscow has been quick to denounce the Ukrainian parliament for re-

Congo’s independence-era hero Lumumba’s widow dies

ONGO’S government spokesman says the widow of Patrice Lumumba, the country’s first prime minister whose assassination more than 50 years ago made him a liberation symbol worldwide, has died. Lambert Mende said

Pauline Opango Lumumba, 78, died in her sleep in Kinshasa on Tuesday.He said the government offered “sincere condolences to their children and members of the family. ”Patrice Lumumba was elected prime minister when Belgium granted Congo independence in

1960 after almost a century of colonial rule. Belgium years ago accepted “moral responsibility” for Lumumba’s 1961 assassination. His killing is generally seen as a Western plot to take power from a socialist-minded African leader. He was replaced by dicta-

where the expenses of political parties are recorded? Does INEC have forensic auditors to audit these campaigns and expenditures? “I can tell you that billions will be spent and nobody will be arrested. We must begin to insist that the right things are done. If we have a law that has

HE Qatari-owned alJazeera network has suspended its Egyptian channel, whose coverage angered Egypt’s government. Mubasher Misr (Live Egypt) would stop broadcasting until it had obtained “the necessary permits”, it said. Cairo accused Mubasher Misr of serving as the mouthpiece of the Islamist supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi something the channel denied. It was a major source of tension between Egypt and Qatar, which backed Mr Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood. The two countries have sought to repair relations in recent months, and on Sat-

urday Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi held talks with a special envoy sent by the emir of Qatar. ‘Mix actions with words’ On Monday evening, a presenter on Mubasher Misr announced that it was stopping broadcasts “temporarily until the preparation of suitable circumstances in Cairo, that is, after obtaining the necessary permits in co-ordination with the Egyptian authorities”. Al-Jazeera said it would incorporate Mubasher Misr into a new regional offering. Mubasher Misr’s offices in Cairo were closed shortly after the military - then led by Mr Sisi - overthrew Mr Morsi in July 2013, but the channel continued to

Continued from page 4

tor Mobutu Sese Seko, who ruled for 30 years with the support of the United States and other Western governments.

•Mubasher Misr was the last remaining Egyptian channel to cover protests by the Islamist opposition. PHOTO: REUTERS

broadcast from Doha. The next month, after launching a crackdown on the Brotherhood that left hundreds of people dead,

expressly provided for guides in prosecuting an election, we must begin to follow those laws. “It is only then that this nation can make progress. Now that this issue has been brought to limelight, INEC should take a cue from there to ensure accountability.” On the non-disclosure of the

names of the donors and the likelihood of corporate bodies being culpable, Ubani said it shows the lack of transparency in the system. “All political parties must disclose the names of their donors. The PDP should publish the names of all those who donated money for its campaigns. The names of the people in the

power sector and those in the oil sector must be made public. “Anything done in secrecy will not help our democracy. The PDP should publish the names of all those who donated money towards its campaign in order to forestall a situation whereby a few corporate bodies will be dictating to and armtwisting the government on national issues, should they win

Moneybags won’t fund my campaign, says Buhari made so far. “Currently, 82 support groups have been registered under the Buhari Support Organisation (BSO) with over 475,796 coordinators and total membership in region of 8,492,226 across the length and breadth of this country. “We intend to use the registration and donation cards to enlist the members of the groups as volunteers change agents and also capture the spatial distribution of our donors.

•Lumumba

HE leaders of Russia and four other ex-Soviet nations have completed the creation of a new ambitious alliance intended to bolster their economic integration. The Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, comes to existence on Jan. 1. In addition to free trade, it’s to coordinate the members’ financial systems and regulate their industrial and agricultural policies along with labor markets and transportation networks. Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday that the new union will have a combined economic output of $4.5 trillion and bring together 170 million people. Russia had tried to encourage Ukraine to join, but its former pro-Moscow president was ousted in February following months of protests.

Al-Jazeera suspends Egyptian channel Mubasher Misr

Ex-NBA chief urges Nigerians to monitor spending Continued from page 4

nouncing the country’s nonaligned status. Today’s vote in the Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, certainly drives another wedge between Kiev and Moscow. And it may complicate efforts to resolve the current crisis. But critics of the Kremlin argue that it is Russia’s direct involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine which is pushing Kiev closer to Nato. Russia has made clear that it opposes Ukraine’s move towards Nato. In a Facebook post on Monday, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warned that Ukraine’s rejection of neutrality would have “negative consequences”..

Russia, four-ex-Soviet nations finalise new alliance

“So far so good, we have received donations of N54,415,386.70 through direct deposit and sales of card to the First Bank account 202624405. “Let me reiterate that the only authorised account designated for the crowd funding, which I am the sole signatory to, is the BSO account with First Bank. “I know we live in a difficult times in Nigeria; there is insecurity, corruption, poverty and, above all, the uncertainty of life and if has become unbearable. I want to appeal to all our supporters to continue

making sacrifice till we get the needed change. It is a real demonstration that when people come together and put their minds to it, change is possible. “I wish to thank everyone here and outside this venue who has accepted to join us in securing Nigeria and efficiently manage our country. Through you donations and support, we shall continue to foster the bond of friendship and goodwill of our country. “Thank you for supporting, encouraging and praying for the ticket of Muhammadu Buhari/Yemi Osinbajo. You con-

tribution so far has humbled and inspired us.” Gen. Buhari met yesterday in Lagos with volunteers for his campaign. On his twitter handle yesterday, he said: ”I am in Lagos at the moment to meet a group of passionate young volunteers and get their input – GMB”. The National leader of APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Kaduna State Governorship candidate Nasir El-Rufai, Governor Amaechi and other leaders were in attendance.

the Egyptian authorities banned Mubasher Misr, accusing it of spreading lies and rumours that were damaging national security

and unity. Mubasher Misr was the last remaining Egyptian channel to cover protests by the Islamist opposition.

N21b donation raises legal issues for PDP, Jonathan Continued from page 58

ister urged the President to either return the money to the donors or to the Federation Account to help millions of unemployed Nigerians. He said: “The donation and President Jonathan’s failure to distance himself from his comparison to Jesus Christ disqualify him from running as president. “His media aide, Dr Doyin Okupe, compared him with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour and Jonathan, who claims to be a Christian, did not dissociate himself from that blasphemy. In fact, he failed in the election the day Okupe compared him with Christ. “President Jonathan should be reminded that when the Beatles at the height of their fame compared themselves to Jesus Christ, the band completely collapsed. The same

•Dr. Jonathan

will happen to Jonathan. “Corruption is the greatest problem that sets Nigeria backward. So a president that can accept N21 billion disqualifies himself from being president of Nigeria. “For avoidance of confusion, Prof. Clapham defined corruption as the use of public office for private goals.”

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

SHOWBIZ

• Gov Imoke (second left) at the ceremony

Calabar Festival kicks off with cultural parade

HERE was a boisterous start of the muchanticipated Calabar Festival yesterday, as over 40 troupes; consisting 22 states, 18 local government areas of the state and more than eight cultural groups stormed the streets of Calacar for a preliminary parade. The four kilometre parade which took off at the Millennium Park, through Mary Slessor Avenue, Marian and IBB roads, terminated at the U. J. Esuene Stadium, featuring an array of cultures, expressed in costumes, dances, traditional instruments and kaleidoscope of colours that depicting the Nigerian heritage. The parade was part of the 32-day annual revelry that has branded Calabar as a revered tourism destination in the country. During the festival, which usually ends few days to the New Year, several free shows and entertainment activities are held every evening and late into the nights at a number of venues

By Vitctor Akande

– the Millennium Park, The U J Esuene Stadium, the Cultural Centre Complex, Marina Beach and Resort, Tinapa and the Botanical Garden. Speaking during the flagoff ceremony, Cross River State Governor, Senator Liyel Imoke who was accompanied by top government officials and representatives of the various participating groups, raised the hope that the festival which is growing in lips and bounds will always introduce innovations that will make it more attractive to tourists each year. According to him, “This cultural parade has come to stay and it is very important as we grow the festival year after year. For us, it is an opportunity to celebrate our culture, our heritage and our wealth as a people and it is critical for us as we celebrate our nationhood.” Assuring all of an exciting

time during the festiva, Imoke said, “It’s exciting, it’s brilliant, it’s colourful and it has a lot of talents on display as people who have tremendous cultural resources are all being displayed here in Calabar as we celebrate.” He added: “It’s always exciting to see everyone come from every part of the country to celebrate with us. We have the entire Nigerian nation represented here today. This speaks volumes about our love, our unity, our strength and our future which remains united as one people celebrating one another, appreciate one another and acknowledging the fact that every one of us has something to offer this great nation.” Chairman, Carnival Calabar Commission, Mr. Gabe Onah, said over 25 states indicated interest to participate in the parade while foreign troupes were unable to meet up traveling modalities this year.”

Utako Day: Taye Turaya storms Ondo

HE Utako Day celebration which holds at Igbotako, Okitupupa LG, Ondo state will witness the performance of Taye Turaya and I zee Tee, a popular DJ based in PortHarcourt, Rivers state, as the event commences on Christmas day. In a statement signed by Ak Media Entertainment, among

By Adetorera Idowu

the events lined up for this year’s Utako Day a performance by Taye Turaya and I zee Tee, taking place at Big Soul Hotel and Garden, Igbotako. Turaya would perform on the night of Boxing Day to the admiration of sons and daughters of the town who will be home for yuletide.

It will be recalled that musicians of high reputes usually perform annually during the festivities in Okitupupa Local Government Area of the state. Other musicians that have at one time or the other performed during the celebrations include Alabi Pasuma, Abass Obesere, Saint Janet, Esther Igbekele, Kunle Orlando Owo and Taye Currency.

2face leads Banky W, Gordons to home state for Xmas

AKURDI, the capital of Benue State will come alive today with an early Christmas bash, as son-of-the-soil artiste, 2face Idibia will be staging a home-coming show, accompanied by other top artistes such as D’banj, Banky W and comedian Gordons. Sponsored by Rt. Hon Terhemen Tarzoor, a governorship aspirant in the state, the show which is tagged Live in Benue, is expected to serenade thousands of youths at the popular IBB Square, Makurdi. The show will be organised by foremost event company, Dream Pointers International Ltd. It is one of the several home visits for 2face and Gordons who have quite a huge following in the state. Banky W too, who recently

By Vitctor Akande

returned from a film school abroad, has done quite a number of shows in the state; but for Dbanj, going to Benue has been far-in-between. “This is going to be a visit that is unique at this time of the year. I have not been to Benue that often, as a matter of fact, it’s been a while that I have been there, My Benue fans should expect a different kind of Christmas,” D’banj said. For 2face, fans should just expect a classic outing. “Benue is home, I will make the people feel at home. We are going to be live at IBB center to make the Christmas a unique one,” he said. According to the convener, “This is an opportunity to spend Christmas with the youths like I always do, al-

ways finding myself among the youths. I am offering myself to serve the people of Benue, it’s not a do-ordie affair, but I know the people will give me this opportunity and I will never fail them.”

• 2face

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

SPORT EXTRA

Udoh eager to score for Eagles T • Udoh

OP scorer in the history of the Nigeria Professional Football League, Mfon Udoh says he is hoping to open his goals account for the Super Eagles when they play Mali and Ivory Coast in two international friendly matches in January. The home based Eagles player will prosecute the games against the Malians and the Ivoirians in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and Udo, who usurped Jude Aneke’s previous record of 20

goals in a single season in the Nigerian league, says having scored 23 goals in the league last season, he would like to start scoring for the Super Eagles. “It is my dream to score for the Super Eagles and also help to win games,” Udoh said. “As a striker, it is always my dream to put the ball in the back of the net and playing for the Super Eagles will be no different.” The 22-year-old almost got on the score sheet in No-

vember when the home based Eagles defeated Ghana’s Black Meteors 1-0 in Uyo and he says he would like to register his first goal for Nigeria, but admits that the most important thing is for the team to win. “I will always want to score goals and it will give me great joy to score for my country. But I know the most important thing is for us to win whether I score or not and I hope we win the games,” Udoh concluded.

Coaches scramble for Obuh's job

FRICANFOOTBALL.COM can reveal that at least half a dozen coaches have applied to replace John Obuh as coach of Enugu Rangers. An inside source at the ‘Antelopes House’ said that some top-notch coaches in the domestic league are among those who have indicated interest to take over from Obuh, who was recently informed by the management of Rangers that his contract has expired. “I think at the last count by the end of last week, over six coaches’ letters of interest have been received. Though I am not too sure about their names as they are being kept a closely guarded secret, I am sure that before the end of the year, it will be clearer who is the front runner to get the job.” Rangers placed eighth last

season. It would be recalled that since the emergence of the Paul Chibuzor-led manage-

ment, it has hired and fired over five head coaches - Christian Chukwu, Alphonsus Dike, Okey Emordi (twice)

and John Obuh - with the ‘Flying Antelopes’ yet to win a major trophy in over three decades.

I’m not a selfish striker — Ujah

• Ujah

UT of favour Eagles’ striker and FC Köln of Germany player, Anthony Ujah has revealed that he has not set a goals target for himself this season, with 6 goals in as many appearances in the German Bundesliga this season, so far. Speaking with www.footballlive.ng Ujah said the team’s clean bill of health and getting good results remains his top priority. ” I never have a target

for goals. I go into every game to give my best, so when I’m not scoring goals I’m helping the team achieve victory.” ” I know as a striker it’s expected of me to score and so far we’ve not started badly. I wouldn’t want to be selfish about opportunities because that could hurt the team. ” In other words the team comes first, so survival in the Bundesliga is key, the number of goals I score becomes an after thought.”

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ANYANWU

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PUBLIC NOTICE

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TODAY IN THE NATION

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL.9 NO.3074

‘We must worry that even in non-war torn parts there is routine disgraceful mass exam failure. The pass rate at the recent WAEC examination in key subjects is 29% pass or 71% failure...’

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

OR two days, beginning Monday, December 15, the Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan played host to a gathering of reporters, media scholars and senior journalists for a training workshop on fair and balanced reporting of elections. The workshop was organised by an association of media scholars, the Media Scholars Network, in conjunction with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). This reporter was one of a team of nine media scholars and senior journalists, one of them from Ghana, who served as resource persons. As far as workshops go, this was as stimulating and educating as any. It opened, as is usual, with occasions like this, with a welcome address by the convener, Prof. Ayo Olukotun, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Lead City University, Ibadan, and himself a prize winning columnist with The Punch. Mr Chukwuemeka Ugboaja, the Chief Publicity Officer of INEC, spoke on behalf of the Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega. The first paper was delivered by the Ghanaian senior journalist and President of the Ghana Association of Writers, and also a member of the country’s Media Commission, Mr Kwasi GyanApeteng. His paper gave an international perspective on the theme of the workshop. His was followed by a very thought-provoking paper from Prof. Lai Oso, Dean of the School of Communication, Lagos State University (LASU). Oso spoke on the subject of objectivity in reporting. The day’s session ended with my paper, which was about a columnist’s perspective on fair and balanced reporting. There was to have been a fourth paper on the malignant and widepread influence of the almighty “brown envelop” (the Nigerian euphemism for cash for news) syndrome on journalism by Prof. Wale Olaitan, a former Vice Chancellor of the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, Ogun State and a member of the Editorial Board of Nigerian Tribune, but he was unavoidably absent. Instead, his paper was moved to the following day. Tuesday started with Olaitan’s paper delivered on his behalf by Dr. Remi Aiyede, a senior lecturer in Political Science, University of Ibadan. This was followed by another paper from Lanre Idowu, Editor-in-Chief and Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Publications, publishers of Media Review, a media watchdog, and organisers of the Diamond Awards for Excellence in Journalism. The third, fourth and fifth papers were delivered in that order by Mr Dapo Olorunyomi, a veteran of The News magazine and now boss of Premium Times, probably the country’s premier online newspaper, Mr Yomi Olayinka, the boss of the Broadcasting Organisation of Oyo State (BCOS), and Mrs Tayo Agunbiade, the former chairman of the Editorial Board of the rested Nigerian Compass and now a media consultant. Idowu spoke on the legal and ethical dimension of fair and balanced reporting, Olorunyomi on the case of online media reporting, Olayinka on broadcast media and Agunbiade on the role of editorial gatekeepers in election reporting. The radical scholar and human rights activist,

People and Politics By MOHAMMED H ARUNA ndajika@yahoo.com

For fair and balanced election reporting

•Jega

Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, was to have spoken on the proprietorial influence on reporting, but he did not turn up, probably due to circumstances beyond his control. However, the gap his absence left was filled by a robust discussion on the widespread concern over what seems to be the ascendancy in the ownership of the media by frontline politicians. This ascendency, everyone seemed agreed, poses a serious challenge to the integrity and credibility of the media. All told, the workshop, as I said, was highly stimulating and educating. The tone was set by LASU’s Oso. Objectivity in reporting, he argued plausibly, may be desirable, but it is impossible to achieve because we all have our biases and prejudices. However, because it is desirable, it motivates us to be fair and balanced in our judgments. This, in turn, means we must strive to be factual and accurate and consider all sides to an issue in our reporting. This much all participants seemed agreed upon. Problem was that this, invariably, is easier said than practised. Many journalists may not be as knowledgeable as they should about, say, the laws of libel or copyright or invasion of privacy. They may also not be as knowledgeable as they should be about the ethics of journalism as codified by the Nigerian Press Organisation, the umbrella body of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, the Nigeria Guild of Editors, the Nigeria Union of Journalists and the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria. But no journalist can say he does not know

RIPPLES

COMMERCIAL MOTORCYCLISTS LAMENT POLICE HARASSMENT–News

Yes, COMMERCIAL MOTORCYCLISTS are now POLICE ATM MACHINES

ERBAL missiles are flying in the aftermath of the intensely divisive December 8 governorship primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State. Although casualties are yet to be counted, it is likely that the raging battle will consume giant egos. Reports said “guns boomed” during the intra-party poll held at Yard 158 Event Centre, Kudirat Abiola Road, Oregun, Ikeja, which may be considered as the forerunner of the war of words. It is interesting to note that the cause of the bitterness has become a court matter. Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, a former Minister of State for Defence, who was apparently worsted in the primary, has challenged the outcome in the temple of justice. Obanikoro, who is pursuing the cancellation of the election, alleged that some prominent personalities in the party were biased against him and created an enabling environment for electoral fraud, which was to his disadvantage. He named Chief Olabode George and Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, and accused them of unfairly promoting the aspiration of Mr. Jimi Agbaje, who was declared winner of the primary. George’s reaction to the allegation of elec-

that he must check out the accuracy of a story and talk to all sides of the story before he publishes it as news. Yet all too often, journalists pass off their biases and prejudices or those of their benefactors as news. Of course, journalists, like everyone else, are entitled to their views. That is why columns exist for them to pontificate on those views. But no one has any right to pass on his views as news. And even in pontificating on his views, the columnist owes himself and the profession a duty to base them on facts rather than on his fancy. Facts, of course, can also be problematic, if only because almost always they are meaningless outside the context in which they occur. Take, for example, the controversy stirred by INEC’s now abandoned plan to increase the country’s polling units ahead of next year’s elections to make voting as easy as possible for everyone. The source of the controversy was the highly skewed ratio of the increase for the North, where the commission’s Chairman, Jega, comes from, against the increase for the South – a ratio of roughly three to one. Politicians from the South seized on this fact to accuse the chairman of conspiring to rig the election for the presumed presidential candidate from his region. Yet the proportion of the increase between the two regions was meaningless outside the context of the ratio of the existing number of polling units, the ratio of the registered voters and the ratio of the land size between the two regions, where, for example, Niger State with 74,108.58 square kilometres of land, the second largest after Borno (75,480.91), and a population of nearly four million, is more than two and a half times the size of the five Southeastern states combined and has a population about one quarter that of those states. In spite of these figures, Niger State has only 3,185 polling units spread over its huge land, compared to 15,549 for the Southeast. Borno has only 3,933. Clearly the media reporting of the story of INEC’s aborted plan to increase the polling units in the country was anything but fair and balanced. On the contrary, it was simply orchestrated to blackmail the commission into drop-

HARDBALL Shameless pugilism toral manipulation sounded like a volcanic eruption. He described Obanikoro as “a desperate and obsessed man, who is apparently incapable of absorbing the reality of his defeat by a well-bred and better man.” He continued: “Surely, Obanikoro is possessed and obsessed. He needs psychiatric treatment. He is a desperate sinking man, grasping and thrashing in self-inflicted chasm.” In conclusion, George said: “Enough of his desperate tantrums and lunacy. Lagos has moved on, far beyond the primitive wretchedness of little, ill-bred hooligans.” Obanikoro’s counter-statement was spiced with innuendos about George’s experience with the law over corruption-related charges connected with his time as Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), despite the voiding of his prison sentence and imprisonment by the Supreme Court. “For whatever it is worth,” Obanikoro said, “it is to Chief George’s credit that his family name is tainted and now constitutes a generational blemish as Nigeria’s leading metaphor for

TONY MARINHO

ping its plan and amply succeeded in doing so. Again, just like facts can be problematic, so also can ethics, if only because not all ethics are universal. Besides, they can sometimes clash and one is then faced with deciding which is higher. Then again, there is the challenge posed to journalism ethics by the emergence of the so-called New Media, aka, Social Media, as a result of the invention of the Internet at the turn of this century. “The medium”, as Herbert Marshall McLuhan, the late Canadian philosopher of communication theory and public intellectual, once said, “is the message.” In other words, the medium, whether print, radio or broadcast, determines the shape and character of the message it carries. An implication of this is that there should be different ethics for different medium. Olorunyomi, the Premium Times boss, disagrees with this relativism in journalism’s ethics in his paper and I completely agree with him. Speed may be of essence for the Social or New Media, but it cannot be an excuse for not checking out a story for its accuracy, balance and fairness before publishing it. The centrality of election as a measure of the quality of a democracy makes these values even more crucial in reporting elections whatever the medium. At least four things can get in the way of balanced and fair reporting not just of elections, but of everything else. These are a reporter’s conscience, the ownership of his medium, the statutory regulatory organs of his profession, like the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC), and, of course, government itself through its use or abuse of its security organs. A reporter with a conscience is not easily swayed by any consideration to write a jaundiced story, but when, as is widely the case in this country, he is relatively poorly paid by his employers, if at all, and when, as Olayinka, the boss of BCOS, points out in his presentation, a regulatory organ like the NBC is blatantly selective in the application of its regulations between, on the one hand, Federal Government owned media and those in its support, and on the other hand, those owned privately or by opposition states, and when the Federal Government itself uses its security organs all too often to intimidate reporters, then the reporter’s job becomes very difficult, if not impossible. The stakes are obviously high in the next election. This makes it imperative for the media, print, broadcast and New, to report it with fairness and balance. The key to doing so is journalism with a conscience. The test of this is a positive answer to each and everyone of Idowu’s simple five questions about a news item, namely, is it factual, is it in the public interest, is it fair to all sides, is the language civil rather than abusive, and has it rejected being compromised by money or any other consideration? Since it is naive to think politicians, especially those in power, will allow journalists to do their jobs with conscience, the question is, how far can journalists resist outside pressures to compromise their consciences? The answer will determine how fair and balanced their reporting of next year’s election is.

•For comments, send SMS to 08059100107

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above gross moral deficit, lack of integrity and public dishonour.” He added: “As Chief Bode George embarks on his feeble attempts at painting a picture of me that exists only in his imagination, let someone remind him that the post-traumatic stress disorder that comes with a time in jail would take more than just an unholy alliance with a pharmacist to heal.” The reference to a pharmacist represented an unmistakable inclusion of Agbaje. “In all my life and public service career,” Obanikoro boasted, “I have never been accused, arrested or convicted for fraud whether at home or abroad and I have been happily and responsibly married for 34 years.” Again, the domestic dimension was clearly a dark hint about George’s married life. By the look of things, this bout may yet feature even more image-damaging blows, given the ferocity of the fighters. It has all the promising ingredients of a fight to the finish; but it remains to be seen whether the warriors are shameless enough to carry on the battle at the expense of what is left of their dignity.

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