February 08, 2015 by The Nation

Newspaper of the Year

Polls: Soyinka backs Buhari Says Jonathan tenure marked by near collapse of society –Page 68

Police seize truckload of arms in Kwara –Page 67

Inside Sanusi's 300-page dossier on 'missing' NNPC $20 billion –Page 62

Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

Vol.09, No. 3120

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

SUNDAY

FEBRUARY 8, 2015

N200.00

JONATHAN SHUNS SANUSI'S CORONATION AS EMIR

–Page 68

Jegasuccumbs to pressure, shiftspollsto March28,April11 –Pages 4-6 & 69

Military to INEC: We're not available from February 14 Civil society groups demand resignation of Service Chief Jega rejects calls for his resignation 21 RECs opposed postponement APC, PDP differ on action How parties split on polls shift Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, after he received his staff of office from the Kano State Governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, yesterday. ANALYSIS: JONATHAN HAS FAILED

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

PAGE 2

CAPTURED

Anti-apartheid writer Andre Brink dies

OUTH African writer Andre Brink, one of the most outspoken critics of the apartheid regime, has died. Brink, 79, died on Friday night on board a flight to Cape Town after visiting Belgium where he had received an honorary doctorate, local media say. Brink wrote both in Afrikaans as well as English. His novels have been translated in more than 30 languages. Some of his books, including A Dry White Season which was turned into a film, were banned in South Africa. Other novels include Looking on Darkness and Philida for which he was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2012. Andre Brink was a literature professor at the University of Cape Town at the time of his death.

HE Director of Media and Publicity for the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, Femi FaniKayode, is a feisty, talented and eloquent man. His brilliance, however, shows only when he misapplies his talents, or when he recants his vows and beliefs. Quoted profusely by the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in some political advertisements in the past few weeks, Mr Fani-Kayode, is recorded as having taken President Goodluck Jonathan to the cleaners. "The problem we have is the president himself," he said in one of his sustained political invectives. "A president who prides himself on his weakness and incompetence and whose love of false prophets and strange women knows no bounds. A president who has abdicated his responsibilities, destroyed his own political party, divided his own country...abandoned his own people, brought ridicule to his own faith, cowers before his own officials...scorns the international community and breaks his own solemn oath to protect and

War in Equatorial Guinea The Africa Cup of Nations semi-final between Ghana and hosts Equatorial Guinea was described as a "war zone." Players ducked bottles thrown from the stands, Ghana fans sought safety behind a goal and riot police used tear gas as a helicopter hovered over the stadium. When play resumed Ghana won 3-1, but her players had to be escorted out of the stadium under the cover of police riot shields.

BAROMETER sunday@thenationonlineng.net

Loose tongues, politics and political advertisements defend the Nigerian people." He ends his vituperation with unexampled flourish: "May God bring us a real leader that can save our nation and may He take away this one who feels no pain and has no empathy when Nigerian blood, nay even the blood of innocent children, is shed with impunity. Amen." Not too long after this delicate piece of insult, he was back serving the same master he impugned so viciously months earlier. Midway through his customary tirade, the multitalented acrobat also began composing paeans to APC leaders whom he gloriously described as men for the moment. Now he skewers them rampantly. Mr Fani-Kayode is in fact merely an exemplification of a prolific tribe of loose tongues and ethical gymnasts. Through political advertise-

ments, the APC now hoists Mr Fani-Kayode on its totem pole; and not to be outdone, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also hoists many top APC leaders and juggernauts on the ruling party's totem pole, men and

leaders like Nasir el-Rufai who at one time or the other spoke derogatorily of their new standard-bearer, Muhammadu Buhari, when the general was on the other side. Now el-Rufai venerates the general zealously. The ease with which Nigerian politicians swap loyalty, their general unease with ideologies, and their excessive ambition for high office should naturally instruct them in passions quite different from the ones they tend so aggressively and effortlessly to demonstrate. Instead, their weaknesses have tended to drive them in the opposite direction of politics and politicking best suited to their puny and unpredictable talents. More importantly, the nomadism of politicians like Mr Fani-Kayode is a reflection of the low calibre and abysmal morality of most of those who

offer themselves for public service. Except for politicians like President Jonathan and Gen Buhari, who are as united in their poor eloquence as they are dissimilar in their endowments, with the latter far superior in character than the former, most politicians in these parts climb to prominence on the backs of their brilliant eloquence and contradistinctive lack of moral fortitude. Perhaps it is a universal phenomenon; perhaps, as Adolf Hitler showed, fiery oratory and incandescent eloquence mask a brittle and confused inner core. Whatever the case may be, for a long time to come, the talents of powerful orators, though it is accompanied by little character, will be in great demand. It explains why the likes of Mr Fani-Kayode, like a bad coin, will simply not go away.

AIG Mbu reenacts his grandiloquence

ARELY two weeks into his new posting in Lagos, Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, has begun to demonstrate his usual law enforcement sorcery. His reputation in Rivers State and Federal Capital Territory is well known, places where his insubordination to the constitution was anchored on his fawning subordination to higher police authorities and the presidency. In Lagos, he quickly embroiled himself in an unseemly Lekki toll gate tiff, and seems

set to curry more provocations and affronts in the near future. There is in fact a distinct possibility that, like the late Raphael Ige, also an AIG, he sees these controversies, in which he demonstrates a proclivity to misuse power, as accomplishments worthy of emulation and pride. Addressing policemen at the Lagos Police Command last week, Mr Mbu shunned conciliation, as if that attribute presaged weakness and lack of firmness. Instead, using allegories of lambs leading lions, and lions lead-

ing lambs, he spoke uproariously of his readiness to face any provocation, warning those who might wish to dare his men or inflict violence on them of his preparedness to mete out retaliatory violence because he and his men were battle ready. There was nothing of the sober law enforcement officer in his speech, and nothing suggesting he knew what it takes to police a civilised and modern society in a democracy. He would shame critics, he summed up, for he deemed no one

above the law nor feared anyone, let alone politicians. Mr Mbu's courage, were that to be what he exemplified and rhapsodised in his allegories, is admirable. But does he not think it is misplaced, and the people he is now posted to police, misjudged? Would to God his superiors in Abuja had had the sound judgement to post this eloquent and brawny officer to police troublesome insurgents in far-away Yobe and Borno States

Squeamish Okonjo-Iweala, Soludo's gauntlet

F T E R c o m p r e h e nsively demolishing Ngozi OkonjoIweala's economic house of cards in two resounding disquisitions last week and the week before, Charles Soludo, a professor of economics and former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, threw a challenge to the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr Okonjo-Iweala, for a tripartite debate. The minister has sensibly declined the challenge, for the Soludo disquisitions are replete with facts and figures, and their premises weighty and incontrovertible. To be sure, Prof Soludo paints his own public service achievements in glorious colours and highfalutin phrases, a few of which seem outright exaggerations. But his arguments are largely incontestable and rigorous and are written with considerable technocratic aplomb. The first attempt by Dr Okonjo-Iweala to refute Prof Soludo's asseverations turned fatuous, badtempered imitation of erudition and logic. She did not make a second attempt, for it would be futile; nor could she really offer any plausible reproof. It is a relief at last to find someone deep and self-assured enough to prick Dr Okonjo-Iweala's bloated economic ideas and delusions. It does seem that Prof Soludo has had the last word, and the Finance Minister will henceforth proceed with unaccustomed moderation.

By ADEKUNLE ADE-ADELEYE

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

COLUMN

Elections as endgame T

HE odds lengthen dramatically against the Jonathan administration. With several critical pillars of political society demurring and many major stakeholders deserting the ramparts of the faithful, the end may well be near for the biggest political rally in Africa. It is usually the case that it is the person most important to a pressing matter that is also particularly deaf to the warning rumblings. Yet as the PDP unravels before our eyes, it is important to keep a sense of perspective about how we got to this perilous pass where Nigeria has become an international joke and a national scandal. Even the conservative but highly respected Londonbased The Economist magazine has now dismissed the Jonathan administration as belonging to a "discredited party" likely to be swept off by the irresistible momentum of the opposition. Such has been the scale of the looting of the national patrimony, the brazenness of state larceny and the bizarre nature of in your face impunity, that the canopy of economic reform along neoliberal lines which made the Jonathan administration and its much hyped hustler economists very attractive to their metropolitan patrons has now collapsed. Like devils on the cross, these Breton Wood attack traders have now started noisily quarrelling among themselves. When elite consensus breaks down this irretrievably and in so fundamental a manner that it questions the political, intellectual and spiritual competence of the ruling class all at once, it means that there is a fundamental disagreement about the sitting arrangement in the dining hall and about who gets what and at what time. Fortunately or unfortunately, the rupture of elite relations gives the rumbling multitude a window of opportunity to forcibly disrupt the entire proceedings. From that point on, the resolution of the crisis is no longer an entirely elite driven affair. Goodluck Jonathan may have a point. Allowing the Niger-Delta militants to dip their hands into the national trough is a crude but telling means of pressing for immediate relief and righting a historic wrong. But by so doing, he externalizes an internal elite conflict in such a way that the elite become structurally impotent to deal with the crisis. Wise rulers always weigh both the long term and short term consequences of their action. At three critical intersections in Nigeria's post-independence existence, the masses have risen in a way that has threatened the fundamental structure of the nation. Between 1962 and 1965, the Yoruba underlings rose with such violence and mayhem that the multiplier effects eventually overwhelmed the entire Republic. So was the case in the Second and Third Republics when perceived injustice snowballed into a national conflagration. But no two situations can be completely similar. In the First Republic, the absence of a potent civil society led to a direct collision of forces between an irate populace and the civil authori-

nooping around With

Tatalo Alamu

â&#x20AC;˘Jega

ties in what is memorably remembered as "operation weti e". In the Second Republic, the presence of a powerful military caste prevented a slide into anarchy and descent into ungovernable chaos. In The Third Republic, an emergent and virile civil society cadre acted as a powerful countervailing force which prevented an enraged populace from coming into direct collision with the military authorities. In the Fourth Republic, this modulating civil society has largely disappeared having been compromised into historical oblivion as a result of its own shenanigans. In a sense, then, the Third Republic can be regarded as the golden age of age of Nigerian generals, both serving as well as retired and the last snapshot of a military plutocracy just as it began its inevitable descent into decline and historic irrelevance. It acted with considerable professional concert in eventually arresting the political chicaneries of General Babangida. But by then it had already shot itself in the foot. With the Fourth Republic, we are witnessing the whirlwind with the rise of an irregular army which threatens and humiliates the regular army such as we have seen with the Boko Haram insurgents as well as the empowerment of an outlaw band of ruffians and riffraff from the fringes of the society who now cock a snook at the old general caste. Witness for example, General Theophilus Danjuma's recent fulminations and the swift countermand by a whole gaggle of Niger Delta "generals". If this was unthinkable in the eighties and nineties, then we must come to terms with the fact that we have arrived at an interesting conjuncture. A throne, as Napoleon once acidly noted, is only a bench covered with damask. As things stand in the Fourth Republic, we might as well be witnessing the passing of an elephant. In Africa, it is said that

the death of an elephant is an occasion to witness all manner of knives in action. By this time next week, or the next few weeks as may be contrived by the shifting of polling posts, the political landscape of the nation would have altered perhaps forever. Having received an electoral shellacking in the hands of an angry and bitter populace, Jonathan could have become a lame duck ruler critically hobbled by loss and lack of popular acceptance for the remaining part of his tenure. But if President Jonathan wins against the run of play, the upset victory is likely to upset the entire applecart, triggering off in the process a chain of reactions which is likely to end the Fourth Republic. In a polity dominated by the centrifugal forces of religion, region and tribe, no Head of state can survive for long without substantial elite approval. If on the other hand, the APC wins, the ascendancy of opposition elements may serve as an elixir prolonging the lifespan of the Fourth Republic. For the nation to survive, the PDP will have to die and be reinvented in a manner of speaking. The critical choice before Nigerians could not have been starker and more profoundly paradoxical. It is either regime change and the survival of the Fourth Republic or regime survival in a short run and the ultimate destruction of republic and the democratic process. Under the PDP, the shrine of Baal has exhausted its deadly propitiatory cocktail of bribery, blackmail, assassinations, electoral witchcraft, kleptocracy and other brazen crimes against humanity. Only a party that truly believes it would rule forever could have committed such heists without batting an eye. Now the chicks have come home to roost. Never in the history of Nigeria has a federal election occasioned such rancor, nastiness and bitterness as we are currently witnessing. The stakes must be very high

indeed. Yet there is not much difference in ideology and political outlook between the two major parties. The two are right of centre political machines poised and primed to capture power in civil contests which are wars by any other means. The hierarchy of both parties is brimming with political transvestites and other humongous hybrids who would be at home even in hell as long as opportunities abound. Asking for the ideology of such people is like asking for the driving license of an international smuggler. Although the APC is more creative and pro-people, both parties tend to build from the top down to the bottom in a startling reversal of the normal order of human association. If the Nigerian people eventually decide to cast their vote overwhelmingly for APC, it is not because they hold it in special affection or regard but because they have come to the conclusion that a vote for APC is the most rational and expeditious way of seeing off the much hated and much contemned PDP. But as if we have stated so often in this column, elite consensus cannot be built on election day or by some vainglorious pacts of friendship and fraternity publicly enacted as a pay as you go spectacle just before elections. Successful elections are products and outcomes of a priori elite consensus and pacted negotiations. Such consensus involves a play of social signifiers across rigid binary divisions; a political gamesmanship which does not recognize Maginot and Siegfried lines in politics. As we have seen so often in post-colonial politics, elections are won and lost before actual elections. More often than not, the electoral winner is not the political victor. In 1993, Abiola won a presidential election but was prevented from claiming his political laurel and done to death to the bargain. But 2015 is not 1993. In 1993, despite the heroic stirring of civil and political society, the balance of force remained with the military oligarchy. Despite being historically exhausted, they were still able to dictate the pace and the eventual pact. In 2015, 1993 looks so distant and remote. The power equation has changed. There are new kids in the coliseum. Having lost its old vitality and institutional charisma, the military has become a poor shadow of its former self. But something else has happened in the intervening sixteen years between the end of formal military rule and the reenactment of civil rule. It is the rise and decline of the PDP. The PDP is a victim of its own success and excesses. Conceived by its military and civilian progenitors as a pan-Nigerian megaparty, the PDP at the height of its power and grandeur was arguably the most formidable political cartel in the history of Africa,

with its machine greased and oiled by billions of petro-dollars. So successful and all-conquering was this post-amalgamation amalgam that the fear of many was that Nigeria has become a virtual one-party state. But in a moment of hubris and power disorientation, the PDP handed the reins of its ascendancy to a political and power neophyte who in turn swiftly surrendered himself to the political and power neophytes who have seized the reins of dominancy in his ethnic formation but are visually incapable of seeing the bigger picture in a multi-national nation roiling with momentous contradictions. The result is the catastrophe that faces the nation. How anybody could have made the elementary political miscalculation of handing over such vast powers to an untested and untutored Goodluck Jonathan remains one of the mysteries of collective political suicide in African history. But it speaks to the limits and limitations of power pragmatism, particularly the fact that organized conspiracies to capture power are also vulnerable to the power of other conspiracies. For now, the PDP is down and out for the full count. If Nigeria's legendary luck permits, it will disappear quietly in other to live and fight another day. If not things will turn nasty and scary. But if the APC does not want to be seen as just another more glamorous and attractive version of the PDP, it will have to look for ways of infusing its ethos with an emancipatory project meant for the amelioration of the terrible condition of Nigeria's toiling people, irrespective of religion, region and ethnic classification. Second, if it comes to power, the APC must profit from the tragedy of the PDP. Despite the razzmatazz of being a big umbrella for all Nigerians, the largest party in Africa had a very narrow social base for the recruitment of leadership cadre, hence its startling inability to appropriate the vast range of vibrant and visionary expertise available in Nigeria. Under Jonathan's insular provincialism, the base shrunk further until it began to look like a narrow ethnic or creek camarilla. To make a dent, the APC must move to broaden its leadership recruitment base. Luckily for the parties, there are some of its leaders who have demonstrated in the past a capacity to look for leadership materials beyond the narrow base of party affiliations. But such idiosyncratic hunches must now be structured and finessed into a Strategic Intervention Pool. Nigeria is on the cusp of momentous events and it is good to be a witness to a year when decades may happen. Over to you then, Attahiru Jega---and that is whenever.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

NEWS POLLS POSTPONEMENT

FTER several weeks of p o l i t i c a l maneuverings by the Presidency, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), associates of President Goodluck Jonathan and even the security agencies, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) last night capitulated and shifted the February 14 presidential/ national elections by six weeks. Also shifted were the governorship/house of assembly polls originally fixed for February 28. The presidential/national assembly elections will now come up on March 28, followed on April 11 by the governorship/state assembly polls, INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega told reporters in Abuja after separate meetings with Federal and Resident Electoral Commissioners, the political parties and civil society groups in Abuja. This development confirms yesterday's lead story of The Nation on Saturday, that President Goodluck Jonathan had tabled before the Council of State, at its meeting last week, a six week shift of the elections on account of the security challenge in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states. The PDP last night hailed the polls shift while the All Progressives Congress (APC) called it highly provocative and a major setback for the nation's democracy Jega said the elections postponement was necessitated by security concern. He denied that the commission was coerced nor forced to shift the polls.

Jega succumbs to pressure, shifts polls to March 28 From: Yusuf Alli and Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

He said the shift became inevitable because of advisory from security agencies and there was no way INEC could expose over 600,000 Ad hoc staff and others to danger. He denied acting any script on behalf of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) or holding any secret meeting with the Arewa Consultative Forum to make ensure victory for any candidate. He said: " It should be noted that this rescheduling falls within the constitutional framework for the conduct of the elections, notably, Sections 76(2), 116(2), 132(2) and 178(2). See also Section 25 of the Electoral Act 2010 (As Amended). "For the avoidance of doubt, we will under no circumstances approve an arrangement that is not in line with the provisions of our laws. "Our hope is that with this rescheduling, the security services will do their best to ensure that the security environment needed for safe and peaceful conduct of the 2015 elections is rapidly put in place." Shedding light on the circumstances that which led to the postponement of the elections, he said: "Last Wednesday, which was a day before the Council of State meeting, the office of the

National Security Adviser (NSA) wrote a letter to the Commission, drawing attention to recent developments in four Northeast states of Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Gombe currently experiencing the challenge of insurgency. The letter stated that security could not be guaranteed during the proposed period in February for the general elections. "This advisory was reinforced at the Council of State meeting on Thursday where the NSA and all the Armed Services and Intelligence Chiefs unanimously reiterated that the safety and security of our operations cannot be guaranteed, and that the Security Services needed at least six weeks within which to conclude a major military operation against the insurgency in the North-East; and that during this operation, the military will be concentrating its attention in the theatre of operations such that they may not be able to provide the traditional support they render to the Police and other agencies during elections. "We have done wide ranging consultation to enable us have as much input as is necessary before taking an informed decision. In the series of consultations that we held with stakeholders, the questions consistently posed to them for consideration are:

In view of the latest development, should INEC proceed with the conduct of the general elections as scheduled in spite of this strong advice; and if so, what alternative security arrangements are available to be put in place? Or, should INEC take the advice and adjust the schedules of the general elections within the framework of Constitutional provisions? "The Commission held a meeting after the consultations, and decided to take the advice of the Security Chiefs and adjust the dates of the elections. We have done this relying on Section 26(1) of the Electoral 2010 (As Amended), which states thus: "Where a date has been appointed for the holding of an election, and there is reason to believe that a serious breach of the peace is likely to occur if the election is proceeded with on that date or it is impossible to conduct the elections as a result of natural disasters or other emergencies, the Commission may postpone the election and shall in respect of the area, or areas concerned, appoint another date for the holding of the postponed election, provided that such reason for the postponement is cogent and verifiable". "INEC not being a security agency that could by itself guarantee protection for personnel and materials, as well

â&#x20AC;˘President Goodluck Jonathan in a handshake with the APC Vice-Presidential candidate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, during February Holy Ghost Service of the Redeemed Christian Church of God at the Redemption Camp Lagos - Ibadan Expressway on Friday night.

as voters during elections, the Commission cannot lightly wave off the advice by the nation's Security Chiefs. "The Commission is specifically concerned about the security of our ad hoc staff who constitute at least 600,000 young men and women, together with our regular staff, voters, election observers as well as election materials painstakingly acquired over the last one and half years. "This concern is limited not just to the areas in the Northeastern part of Nigeria experiencing insurgency; the risk of deploying young men and women and calling people to exercise their democratic rights in a situation where their security cannot be guaranteed is a most onerous responsibility. Under such circumstances, few EMBs across the world, if any, would contemplate proceeding with the elections as scheduled. "No matter the extent of INEC's preparedness, therefore, if the security of personnel, voters, election observers and election materials cannot be guaranteed, the life of innocent young men and women as well the prospects of free, fair, credible and peaceful elections would be greatly jeopardized. Jega reassured Nigerians and the international community that INEC would still conduct a free and fair poll. He begged Nigerians to accept the poll shift in good faith. He said the security agencies warned the commission that they would not be able to lend support if the February 14 and 28 elections were to go ahead as they plan to commence a six-week special operation against Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast aduring that period. National Chairman of the APC, Chief John OdigieOyegun, in a statement said: "The All Progressives Congress (APC) has just heard over the news media that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has decided to postpone the elections by six weeks on the strength of a letter by the security chiefs that they cannot provide security for the elections nationwide because of the commitment of its resources to fight insurgency in the north eastern part of the country. "This is clearly a major setback for Nigerian democracy, and our Party is meeting in emergency session

to study its implications and will inform Nigerians of its decisions in the next few days. "In the meantime though what has happened is highly provocative, I strongly appeal to all Nigerians to remain calm and desist from violence and any activity which will compound this unfortunate development. We must not fall into this obvious trap. Change we must. They can only delay it; no one can stop it. "I want to assure all Nigerians that the All Progressives Congress will not abandon its commitment to change and will sustain the struggle to establish a new Nigeria." The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation (PDPPCO) in welcoming the postponement of the elections said it was "in the best interest of deepening democracy and in the national interest." The Director of Media and Publicity of the PDPPCO, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, said INEC "must be commended for showing the courage to shift the elections after acknowledging the fact that its state of preparedness was not 100 per cent." "Since this decision has been taken in the interest of deepening democracy and in national interest, we accept it in good faith and we commend INEC's courage and obvious commitment to ensuring a free and fair election. "With this decision, INEC has allayed the fears of many of our citizens that they may not have had the opportunity to vote for the candidates and parties of their choice on Election Day." He took a swipe at the APC for "its paranoid delusions and its far-fetched and childish conspiracy theories when it comes to the issue of poll shift. "By insisting that the elections should be conducted on February 14th the opposition was not only dangerously flirting with chaos but was also putting our country firmly on the path of confrontation, division, injustice, disaster and destruction." "The shift of date is a welcome development. It is solely the decision of INEC. The decision is not ours but we commend them (INEC) for showing courage by owning up to the fact that they are not ready to go ahead on February 14th. The shift will help INEC to organize themselves properly, to put their house in order and to put in place all the necessary arrangements for the polls. The shift will also enable the nation's security agencies to do what they have to in order to secure the north-eastern zone and ensure that elections can hold there.

Resign, civil society groups tell service chiefs T

HE heat turned on the service chiefs yesterday for professing their inability to guarantee security during the elections originally scheduled for February 14 and 28. The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) announced last night that the presidential/National Assembly polls will now take place on March 28 and the Governorship/State

Assembly elections on April 11. Civil Society groups declared yesterday that the military officers and the Inspector General of Police are no longer deserving of their posts after writing to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that they would be unable to make their men available for any election until after at least six weeks from now. The action of the military/

police officers forced the postponement. The shift falls into Presidency's plans to delay the elections after failing to get the support of the Council of State for the plan. An earlier plot to use National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki to convince INEC to move the elections forward for security reasons had also failed, drawing severe criticism from home and abroad.

The presidency now blames the NSA for bungling his role in the plot and exposing it to ridicule. INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega, federal commissioners of the organisation and the Resident Electoral Commissioners were locked in marathon sessions all through yesterday to review the situation. They met separately with 25 civil society groups and 28

political parties of which 16 supported the postponement. Twenty one of the Resident Electoral Commissioners were said to have objected to the election postponement. A participant at Jega's meeting with the civil society groups, Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, said the INEC chairman told the meeting that security operatives from all the agencies warned the commission that they were

commencing a six week special operation against Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast soon and would not entertain any distraction, be it election or any other nonmilitary issue. Another group at the meeting, the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room) said of proceedings: "At the meeting, INEC Chairman Prof. Attahiru Continued on page 69

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

NEWS

POLLS POSTPONEMENT

Fragile nation at the mercy of failed President I

N this season of illusion, President Goodluck Jonathan has again jolted Nigerians with his admission of failure in the discharge of his constitutional duties. The Commander-in-Chief of Africa's most populous nation submitted two days ago that security of life and property of citizens cannot be guaranteed, if the general election holds on February 14 and 28, as planned by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). He requested for between three and six weeks to put in place security structures, which his administration has grossly failed to provide in six years, before Nigerians can go to poll. His aides impressed it on the INEC boss, Prof. Attahiru Jega, up to the point of blackmail, that he was on his own, if he decided to ignore security advice and put the lives of polling officers, especially the youth corps members and others, in jeopardy. Stranger than fiction It is incredible, but true. The evidence of insecurity is overwhelming. Over 240 abducted Chibok girls have not been liberated. Economic and social ac-

By Emmanuel Oladesu, Group Political Editor

tivities have been paralysed in the Northeast zone. Although the Federal Government has declared a state of emergency in the affected areas, it has been defiled by the Boko Haram sect. To underscore its gravity, soldiers from other West African countries are now assisting Nigeria to fight the local war. Many Nigerians have flayed the President for being clueless. He has been described by others as a kindergarten President in want of experience and skill. In the international community, Nigeria has become a laughing stock. A section of the foreign media has described Dr. Jonathan as a failed President. Now, the election time-table must also suffer because the President cannot restore order into a state of pandemonium. President Jonathan's aide Dr. Doyin Okupe, who shed light on why government is pushing for poll shift, said: "The security chiefs were unanimous in their advice to the Council of State that it will be impossible for now for them

NEWS ANALYSIS to guarantee the security of electoral materials, INEC staff and the voting population in areas currently engulfed by the war against insurgency." In a sane clime, the President's admission of failure to guarantee security would have provoked spontaneous protests. In advanced countries, the parliament would have perceived it as an impeachable offence. In some nations, the President or Prime Minister would have resigned, having passed a vote of no confidence on himself. But, according to observers, political culture is weak and civil society groups are in deep slumber in Nigeria. PVC as a decoy The initial complaint about the shoddy distribution of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) paled into insignificance in the face of threat to security, which has now become another weapon of propaganda. When the electoral agency, which has recorded 70 percent PVC distribution, insisted that the poll

can still take place this month, the Presidency and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which had intended to avoid the legal and legitimate periodic democratic assessment, amplified the security situation. Despite the advice by the Council of State that the exercise should proceed, the government objected out of self-inflicted fear. Of course, Jega, a political scientist, has no solution to the security headache. He has no alternative than to give it a sober consideration. For partisan reasons, security is being politicised to undermine the electoral time-table. The change of poll date means that political parties are back to square one, despite the heavy investment on mobilisation and campaigns in the last one month. The posture has grave implications for the polity. There are some puzzles. If the government cannot defend citizens against internal insurrection, it is doubtful, if it can defend the territorial integrity in the face of external aggression. Also, if

â&#x20AC;˘Coalition of civil society groups and concerned Nigerians protesting the plans to postpone elections in Abuja ... yesterday

REACTIONS

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, expects to win the election by a wide margin, despite talk of a close race. The election which was originally scheduled for February 14 but now shifted to next month has been seen in some quarters as too close to call, leading to a possible run-off if neither of the men secures a firstround majority. But Buhari dismissed the suggestion of a tight race, saying in an interview: "What's their reason for 'too close to call'? What is their speculation on? I'm expecting a landslide victory." Asked by the AFP if he would accept defeat the former LEADER of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State, Mr. Segun Ojo, has lauded Professor Attahiru Jega on his insistence on the February election date.

Buhari expects 'landslide victory' military ruler said: "I'm not going to lose. So, I won't answer that question." He is considered as having the best chance yet of ending the Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) unbroken run in power since the country returned to civilian rule in 1999. Speaking on his nationwide campaigns he said:"I have visited 34 states so far. In each of the states there are three things that are consistent, that are fundamental issues to this country -insecurity, the destruction of the economy and corruption. "Every Nigerian is feeling worried."

Buhari rejected claims from the ruling party that he would rule again with an iron fist, saying the circumstances under a military regime were different from a civilian administration. Multi-party democracy and the three tiers of government, enshrined in the constitution, has to be respected, with consequences for anyone acting outside the system, he said. Buhari said that if elected, his administration would "empower the law enforcement agencies to be much more efficient." "The first thing we will do is to make sure there is efficient

utilisation of resources. If money is voted for equipment and training, that money will go to equipment and training," he added. On corruption, he said:"I believe the most serious thing to do is to draw a line, that you intend to move forward," he said but added that investigating every allegation of corruption would be a hindrance to progress. "From the day we are sworn in as a government, anybody who abuses trust will be called to account," he added. The interview was conducted before yesterday's postponement of the election.

'There'll be anarchy if election is postponed' By Taiwo Abiodun

He told an The Nation in an interview yesterday that "Nigerians should not relent

on their effort to fight for their right. We are preparing vigorously for the presidential election. There shouldn't be any abracadabra. Those who

are clamouring for change of date have hidden agenda and want to truncate our cherished democracy and this could lead to anarchy."

the President cannot guarantee security, which is his primary duty to the nation, does he deserve a second term? Nationhood, as a concept, is sustained by some non-negotiable factors. These include land or geographical area, people, boundary, government and a standing army. In reality, the presence of an equipped and patriotic military, with a high morale, is a sign of maturity of a nation. It should not be a luxury, but a necessity. Its absence underscores the slide into state fragility. In the last six years, there is no evidence the military has been prepared for any emergency. Thus, when the challenging moment came, it was futile to levy a war against terror with obsolete equipment by the demoralised Armed Forces. But, should government hide under this to abort the electoral process? For many stakeholders, poll avoidance underscores the PDP's perception about the election, which the nation has anxiously waited for. Many Nigerians see February 14 as the day of judgment. They are full of eagerness. But, according to analysts, it seems that ego is involved. If defeat cannot be avoided, would it not make sense to postpone the doomsday till a month's time? The thinking is that, if the President is defeated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, he becomes a lame duck leader, ahead of May 29. The implication is that Aso Rock will be deserted. The outcome of the poll may herald a sort of partisan mourning. The bandwagon effect on other layers of elections may become unbearable for a ruling party that has proposed to rule for the next 60 years. Yet, the argument of complete, instead of limited postponement, is indefensible. There are 774 local governments in Nigeria. Only 14 councils are affected by terrorism in four states. In Borno, nine states are affected. In Adamawa and Yobe, three and two states are affected respectively. Although security chiefs in-

cluded Gombe in the list, the governor has rejected the label, saying that the state is safe for the polls. Also, 32 states not affected by the Boko Haram onslaught are ready for the elections. The insistence on poll shift has led analysts to raise new posers: Why can't INEC conduct elections in the 32 states, and parts of the four states not affected by Boko Haram activities? Why can't the commission limit postponement to the 14 local governments and conduct supplementary elections there later, in accordance with the Electoral Act? Is there a hidden agenda behind the election shift? If the President cannot guarantee security now, what miracle will happen in six weeks? If he cannot resolve the challenge in five and half months, can he now accomplish it in six weeks? Is it likely that service chiefs will come with a contrary report in few weeks? Will this be the last postponement in this electoral season? The implications will continue to stare the beleaguered nation in the face. By admitting that he cannot guarantee security, the President has sent a wrong signal to the international community. Foreign investors have now been told in clear terms that Nigeria is not safe for business. If the President cannot protect his subjects, it is doubtful, if he can protect foreign investment and investors. Governors have to now gird their loins. Since the President cannot guarantee security of life and property, governors may have to look inward and think about how to salvage their states, in accordance with the law. INEC officers and other ad hoc polling agents may turn down the national assignment, owing to the perception that they cannot be protected. Also, when election dates are shifted without justification, the electoral process can run into a credibility crisis. Prospective voters may be weary because of the dampening of hope and pre-election assault in the ballot box.

It's a bad sign, prelude to more sinister plots - Okorie

RESIDENTIAL candidate of Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, has described yesterday's postponement of the February 14 presidential election as "a very bad sign, a terrifying omen for the country's democracy." Expressing disappointment over the development, Okorie said, "I will be surprised if the electorate and Nigerians will take kindly to this manipulation," adding, "but as a patriot, I will appeal to fellow Nigerians to be calm but vigilant because I suspect that this six weeks' shift for an election whose timetable was published 13 months ago, is a prelude to other sinister motives." Okorie told The Nation last night that the development has compromised INEC's integrity. "For the Independent National

By Sam Egburonu

Electoral Commission (INEC) to shift the goal post towards the end of the game is not the best way to show integrity and resistance to external manipulation. It only shows that the independence of INEC has been compromised and eroded," he said. Going down memory lane, Okorie said, "Before this time, what those clamouring for postponement used as an excuse was inadequate distribution of the Permanent Voter Card (PVC). But now it appears the argument has been defeated as many Nigerians have collected their PVCs. They have now shifted to security. But in Nigeria, we have 774 local government areas. So, security challenge in five states of the NorthEast cannot be sufficient and justifiable reason to shift election."

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

NEWS xxx

EVERAL Yoruba Obas have rebuffed attempt by allies of President Goodluck Jonathan to get them to support the call for the postponement of the February general elections and to also endorse his reelection. They are insisting that it is not proper for them to get involved in partisan politics. With elections due to hold later this week, barring any last minute change, a prominent Oba in the riverine area of Ondo State who is a well-known supporter of President Jonathan, had, last week, at a meeting of traditional rulers from across the region, which he convened, attempted to lobby his colleagues to support the reelection bid of the president and, at the same time, support the call for an extension in the date of scheduled elections. According to very reliable sources at the meeting, the businessmanturned-Oba had spoken

POLLS POSTPONEMENT

Yoruba Obas reject poll shift, endorsement for Jonathan By Dare Odufowokan, Assistant Editor passionately about President Jonathan to the gathering of selected prominent monarchs, urging them to eschew sentiments and consider the many developmental efforts of the PDP candidate. Delivering what looked

like a message from the president, according to our source who was at the meeting, the Ondo Oba told his fellow monarchs that Jonathan had promised to pay more attention to the Southwest if reelected. However, sources said a majority of the traditional rulers present at the meeting

refused to be lured into the plot, preferring instead to stay neutral. Apart from another Oba from neighbouring Ekiti State who tried to rationalise the presentations of the host Oba, all others present reportedly told the proJonathan traditional ruler that they would not be

drawn into politics. Our source revealed, "the Oba has told his colleagues that Jonathan has promised to be fairer to the western region if re-elected. He pleaded that as traditional rulers from across the region, they should endorse the president for another term in the interest of their

A sad day for democracy, says Keyamo

AGOS-based lawyer, Festus Keyamo, described the postponement as a "sad day for democracy." According to him, "It clearly shows that the ruling class can clearly impose its will on the election umpire. It also shows that the election umpire is one department that is dependent on the pocket of the ruling party. It is high time that the

funding of INEC should not come from the government of the ruling party but from a consolidated fund that should come from a first line charge from the federation account. This clearly shows how easy it is to control INEC and it is quite unfortunate." On his part, Chief Ralph Uwazurike, leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign

State of Biafra (MASSOB), dismissed the postponement as inconsequential to him. He said, "I don't believe in Nigerian election. I believe in Biafra. There will be no credible election until Nigeria is divided into six geo-political zones. And each zone should have the mandate of their people to conduct its own election. That is what I believe in."

The Dean of Students Affairs, University of Lagos, Professor Tunde Babawale, said "The postponement is the proper thing to do because we do not have to disenfranchise the people. Let it be their right or choice to vote or not to vote. If we disenfranchise the people it is the sort of thing that has never happened before in this country."

Postponement favours PDP against INEC, others –Sagay

Clark backs postponement From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

HE choice of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to postpone this month's general elections has started eliciting reactions from various quarters in Delta State. While some are dissatisfied and berated the INEC for bowing to the Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) ploy to manipulate the elections, those supporting President Goodluck Jonathan for re-election hailed the development. Reacting to the development, an Ijaw elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, described the postponement as a welcome development, but maintained his call for the removal of the chairman of INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega, alleging that he had been compromised. "If the news is true, it means we have been vindicated that INEC is not ready to conduct the elections. Shift in the poll, no doubt, will enable INEC to fix several abnormalities that are currently facing the commission. In the first place, why should INEC conduct election this month when it is obvious that they are not ready? "We are obviously not happy with the way the permanent voter cards are being distributed especially in the south-south region. Less than 60 percent of our people in the south-south have gotten PVCs. There is disparity in the distribution. Also more worrisome is the fact that the card readers are not ready. " He, however, added that "The postponement will not deter from calling on Jega to resign. He knows that Nigerians have lost faith in him; he should do the honourable thing. He is an intelligent man, and he knows that he has done wrong."

people.” According to him, the president is set to win reelection and it will not be good for the people of the southwest to be seen as opposed to him. “He wanted us to save the day by announcing an endorsement of the president before the election on behalf of our people. “But he was rebuffed by the majority of the Obas who reminded him repeatedly that it is not in the place of self-respecting monarchs to meddle in partisan politics. Apart from one other Oba from Ekiti State who wanted the traditional rulers to consider the idea, all others simply said no," our source said. The meeting, which had prominent Obas from Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun, Lagos, Ondo, Kogi and Kwara states in attendance, ended with a decision by the monarchs to continue to silently observe the ongoing political uncertainties while praying that the will of God will prevail.

By Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf N the view of Professor Itse Sagay, a professor of Constitutional Law, the postponement is the height of blackmail from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Specifically, he said: "The way I see it is that the postponement has created a major lack of confidence in INEC. This is not the first time we will be faced with postponement. Unlike in 2011 when the postponement was at the instance of INEC, which caught everybody, especially all the parties, by surprise, this time around, the electoral umpire succumbed to tremendous pressure from agents working for the ruling Peoples Democratic Party. "So the postponement is a case of pure political pressure and blackmail against INEC. Although I don't foresee any constitutional crisis because the postponement still leaves more than 30 days to the handing over date, as such, we are not quarrelling about the law. The postponement shows lack of moral rectitude and consensusbuilding necessary in a democracy." On what steps the disaffected parties can take in view of the postponement, Sagay said all they can do is to simply comply. But he was quick to admit that the postponement does not bode well for the electoral body as well as others. "Unlike the PDP which has access to the federal government purse, it can still muster more funding to carry on with its campaign plans, but not so for other parties like INEC, which will have to pay more people and stretch its logistics. Other parties too are going to suffer some form of financial distress or the other. So, it is not a decision in good taste at all."

•Dosumu Market Lagos, shut down by Lagos State government yesterday in order to get their permanent voters cards (PVCs) at their various local government PHOTO: MUYIWA HASSAN

Poll shift, invitation to chaos -ACF

HE northern sociocultural group and mouthpiece of the region, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has warned that, the planned postponement of the next week general election may lead Nigeria into chaos. It said, "Presently, the nation is engulfed with many security challenges such as Boko Haram insurgency, suicide bombings, rampant killings of innocent people by unknown gunmen in villages and towns. It will therefore be unwise to deliberately provoke a situation of discontent which may ultimately result in chaos and

From Abdulgafar Alabele, Kaduna disorder. ? "ACF therefore urges INEC to seriously remain resolute and go ahead with the conduct of the scheduled elections. Anything short of this will not only discredit the commission but may put the country into social unrest and even make us a laughingstock within the comity of nations." In a statement personally signed ?by its Chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Ahmadu Coomassie, a former Inspector General of Police, ACF said, the outcome of last Thursday's Council of State meeting held

at the Presidential Villa, Abuja advising the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to go ahead with the scheduled elections for February 14th and 28th was most commendable and a clear manifestation of the council's respect to the feelings of Nigerians. Coomassie said, "ACF applauds the magnanimity of the Council of State's position on the elections as planned by INEC. The assurances given by the chairman of INEC and the security chiefs on their preparedness to go ahead with the scheduled elections

is a welcome development. "However, ACF and indeed most Nigerians are very much disturbed and apprehensive of the povernment's alleged position in favour of shifting the election which might influence the final decision of INEC billed to meet on Saturday 7th February to take a final decision." The ACF called on INEC to "stick to its schedule and the security agencies must therefore provide security cover to INEC staff, the electorate and preserve and maintain the peace during and after the elections."

People with disabilities back postponement

EOPLE with Disabilities (PWD) have said the shift in the February 14 election would only be worthwhile if the plight of over 22 million PWDs would be accommodated. While backing the call for the postponement, a group under the aegis of Goodluck Vision for Persons with Unique

From Dele Anofi, Abuja Abilities said the shift would enable the electoral body to accommodate PWDs in the voting process. According to the group, yesterday, at a press conference in Abuja, PWDs nationwide have found it impossible to access polling centres for their Permanent Voter Cards (PVC),

which might lead to their disenfranchisement on February 14. Paul Ihekwoaba, a member of the group, described as unfortunate a comment by an unnamed Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the southeast geo-political zone concerning the plight of the PWDs in the election.

He quoted the unnamed REC as saying that INEC had no time for disabled people in the election. Ihekwoaba, said though the group was not in a position to take decision for INEC and the political parties, but that the tension in the country as a result of the forthcoming polls should be of concern.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

NLC against calls for poll shift From: Grace Obike, Abuja HE Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has rejected calls for shift of the general elections slated to begin next week. NLC said that its members and Nigerians are ready for the polls. Its vice president, Comrade Isa Aremu, said: "February 14 is sacrosanct and Nigerians are ready for elections." He said there is no excuse for postponement of the polls, stating that even if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were to wait for years, many Nigerians will still not be ready. Aremu, who is also the general secretary of Textile Workers Union spoke yesterday in Abuja at the presentation and lunching of his books. He said that since INEC has confirmed that about 66% of registered voters have received their Permanent Voters Cards (PVC's), the election should go on as planned. According to him: "Elections are all about development. Are we going to postpone the development that Nigeria needs so desperately? "I think there is no excuse at all for a postponement because even is 100% of Nigerians register, a lot of people will still not vote or will want to find a reason to shift it to fit their time, which will still not be satisfactory for others."

Ortom weeps for Benue From John Austin Unachukwu and Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi

URDENED by the hardship of residents, Benue State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Dr. Samuel Ortom, at the weekend broke down in Otukpo. He lamented that many of Benue indigenes and residents have been turned to paupers and indigents. Ortom was addressing officials of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) at St Jude's Catholic Parish, Otukpo when he suddenly stopped and wept uncontrollably. Everyone at the meeting became silent. His running mate, Engr Benson Abounu and CAN coordinator, Rev Fr Emmanuel Udufu, made frantic efforts to calm Ortom. He lamented the collapse of all government institutions in the state and the attendant hardship on the people including nonpayment of salaries and pensions. He noted that God had heard the prayers of the church against corruption and sent the APC to rescue the nation. He appealed to the people to seize the opportunity and vote massively for candidates of the party. Dr Ortom promised to partner with the church to propel development and entrench core values such as transparency, justice, honesty, accountability, forgiveness, reconciliation, which he said would enhance unity, peace and progress.

NEWS

Polls: Nigeria must remain intact, says IGP

HE Police yesterday vowed to bring down anyone or stronghold that wants to use the forthcoming elections to tear the country apart. The force also maintained that the country must remain intact after the elections. The Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba, stated these in Minna, Niger State when conducting the signing of peace accord agreement by governorship candidates and party leaders. The police boss who spoke

From: Jide Orintunsin Minna

through Assistant Inspector General in charge of Zone 7, Patrick Dukumor, said security agencies are working towards ensuring peace and unity of the country after the elections. He assured the force was set to curtail violence in every part of the country. Warning political actors in the country, Abba said: "The security agencies will not fold their hands to see this country

destroyed. "We will pull down every stronghold; pull down anyone who wants to pull down this country. "Nigeria must remain united before, during and after the elections. We will pull down any trouble maker to make sure the country remains as one. It is part of our duty to maintain peace." The police chief expressed concern over the increased wave of violence at electioneering campaigns.

He noted that mass movement of people around the country was responsible for most campaigns characterised by hate and violence. Abba called for attitudinal change. All the nine governorship candidates and their party chairmen in Niger State signed the peace pact. They promised to work towards ensuring that there would be no violence before, during and after the elections.

â&#x20AC;˘ A section of Air Asia flight QZ8501's tail loaded to a boat for transportation to Jakarta from Kumai Port, where it had been stored since it was recovered last month near Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan â&#x20AC;Ś yesterday. PHOTO: REUTERS

Jonathan's support for Dickson causes confusion performance. ONFUSION has hit in First Lady's camp "We know the speech the camp of the First was a political speech

Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, in Bayelsa State following the public endorsement Governor Seriake Dickson by President Goodluck Jonathan. Jonathan, at the presidential rally of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Yenagoa at the weekend, snubbed his wife's camp and identified with Dickson, declaring total support for his administration. Dickson and the First Lady have been at daggers' drawn over the latter's alleged plot to undermine the former and unseat him using the T r a n s f o r m a t i o n Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) as a platform. But the President said: "Those who don't like the governor (Dickson) don't like me because I am working with the governor. I have read

From: Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

stories. Some people are coming to spoil your minds. "If you don't like the leadership that we put in place then you don't like me. So, don't allow people to spoil your minds. I have noticed that you young people 0.4 per cent of you who are here have been instigated by people who don't like us. "But I am telling you that you must work with the governor of this state for you to benefit from us. "We are together, we work together to bring dividends of democracy to this state." He added: "Don't allow anybody to deceive you. I am telling you as your brother. "I am telling you as your uncle. You must work with the government to make sure that we develop this state. You have

to work with us." Jonathan's remarks were said to have jolted antiDickson's elements who had earlier thought that the President would join a section of the alleged sponsored crowd to humiliate the governor. It was gathered that the state leadership of the T r a n s f o r m a t i o n Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN), which allegedly hired the booing crowd was disappointed after Jonathan gave a clean bill of health to Dickson. A member of the camp, who pleaded anonymity, described the President's statement as a big disappointment. He said: "We recall that Jonathan told Dickson that we would join to stone him when Bayelsans decide to stone him for non-

because the First Lady didn't mention Dickson while delivering his lengthy speech. But we know he made the statement because he wanted his votes intact." It was gathered that following the body language of the President, some members of TAN were pushing to have private audience with the governor to pledge their loyalty. Investigations revealed that residents in Yenagoa are of the opinion that the President has endorsed Dickson for a second term and there is nothing anybody can do about it. It was also gathered that a delegation of Bayelsa elders is planning a visit to thank the President for backing the governor and saving the state from "needless anarchy and chaos".

Aggrieved PDP aspirants demand refund

GGRIEVED aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) across the country have demanded refund of their nomination fees and money spent on mobilisation during primaries. They threatened not to work for the PDP and its candidates until their demands were met. The aspirants, who met in Abuja yesterday under the aegis of PDP Aspirants Forum (PAF), claimed that the party played a fast one on them

From Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

during the primaries. They wondered why PDP allowed them to pay nomination fees and mobilise supporters when it knew they were preferred candidates. It was learnt that President Goodluck Jonathan, sensing disastrous outings in the forthcoming elections for the party, has commenced moves to pacify the aggrieved aspirants. They insisted that they would not allow the party to

use them again. The defeated aspirants maintained they will not work for persons who robbed them of their rights. But Prof. Tunde Adeniran and a traditional ruler from Bayelsa State, Asara Asara, pleaded with the aspirants to bury the hatchets and ensure the PDP does not suffer further slide as elections approach. The duo appealed to them to hear out the President first while commending the aggrieved aspirants for not defecting despite the

perceived injustices against them. The aspirants, who took turns to speak out their minds, said the first step for reconciliation should be refund of the money for obtaining forms and writing off other expenses incurred. The interim Head of Secretariat of PAF, Chief Richard Lamai, said "the leadership of the party had carried on as if nothing happened and without due regard to aspirants who invested resources and time in building our party."

89 per cent will vote, says report From Olugbenga Adanikin, Abuja

new survey report conducted by CLEEN Foundation in partnership with the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) has shown that about 89 percent of voters are willing to exercise their civic obligation in forthcoming polls. The election viability report revealed that Ekiti State with 97 per cent top the list of states that would actively participate in the elections followed by Katsina, Bauchi and Niger States respectively. In the report made public at the weekend in Abuja, Ondo, Yobe, Sokoto and Benue were perceived prone to violence during the elections. However, the foundation volunteered to partner security operatives to enhance voters' safety. It recommended adequate public enlightenment to encourage participation at the polls. The foundation said security measures should be enhanced around the polling units and collation centres.

NOSCEF to Amaechi: name alleged induced pastors By Sunday Oguntola

HE Northern State Christian Elders Forum (NOSCEF) has appealed to Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, to name the church leaders who he alleged collected N6billion to support an unnamed presidential candidate. The elders promised to avoid and octracise such leaders should Amaechi mention them. NOSCEF's chair, Elder Olaiya Phillips, in a statement at the weekend, also condemned any agenda to induce voters based on religious sentiments. Phillips said: "The debasement alleged is of the gravest kind. What he alleges, if true, would be a serious indictment of our brethren and he has a duty to reveal what he From Kolade knows. "We believe that the choice Nigeria's elections present must be about the best person for the job in every case, rather than about a candidate's religion." He added that it would be "unconscionable" for pastors to receive such alleged inducement "at a time in which the needs of our brethren, especially the many displaced and dispossessed in the north, requires every kobo that can be deployed in amelioration." Urging Amaechi to name the alleged pastors, Phillips argued: "He must conclude what he has begun and advise which individuals parading as men of God have fallen in this manner. "We are anxious to know who these offenders are "so that we may avoid them. It would then be incumbent on the umbrella bodies under whose auspices these "Pastors collected N6bn" to proceed to investigate any such acts of which prima facie evidence is provided."

Osun APC, Adeleke, Oyeyemi congratulate Aregbesola From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

HE All Progressives Congress in Osun State and two party chieftains, Senator Isiaka Adeleke and Dr. Kunle Oyeyemi, have congratulated Governor Rauf Aregbesola for being affirmed the winner of the August 9 governorship poll by the state Election Petition Tribunal. The APC in a statement by its spokesperson, Kunle Oyatomi, said "it is all over for the Peoples Democratic Party in the state." According to the party, the PDP and its governorship candidate, Iyiola Omisore, have so disgraced and diminished itself in the eyes of Osun people today. The PDP has become the least credible and the most ridiculous party that any sane person would want to touch with the longest of poles." The APC further stated that "anybody who listened to the Tribunal's judgment on the value of the PDP and Omisore's case will not only ostracise the PDP, he or she will find it difficult to place any significant worth on the party's current leadership capacity to run government.â&#x20AC;? Meanwhile, the first civilian governor of the state and the APC candidate in Osun West senatorial district, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, who congratulated Governor Rauf Aregbesola and the people of Osun State on the resounding victory at the election petition tribunal last Friday said the judgment in favour of the APC and Aregbesola was also a reward for the rule of law and the triumph of the unrelenting support of the good people of Osun State for good governance. He urged the APC supporters to prepare very well for the forthcoming election so that all candidates of the party could come out victorious.

2015: Ekiti police command in show of force By Remi Adelowo

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

NEWS

HE Ekiti State Police Command has assured of its preparedness to ensure peace during the 2015 general elections. Speaking exclusively to The Nation in his office in Ado Ekiti after a show of force by officers and men around major areas in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, the Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Taiwo Lakanu, said the state command is ready to provide a peaceful atmosphere for the conduct of the elections next month. He said: "The Ekiti State police command is ready for the election. Members of the public should be rest assured that the police are ready to protect lives and property before, during and after the elections in the state." Lakanu further disclosed that series of workshops and seminars have been organised for officers and men of the command as part of measures to bring them up to speed with arrangements to ensure that peace reigns during the election period. "We have held joint workshops with the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) to expose our men to the nitty-gritty of Section 129 of the Electoral Act (as amended) on the role of the police during the election," he added.

Proponents of poll shift are nation's enemies, says Osun Speaker

peaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Najeem Sallam, has described those calling for postponement of the next week general elections as enemies of the nation. Featuring on the "Newspoint Programme" of the Correspondents' Chapel of Nigeria Union of Journalists in Osun State, the Speaker explained that the proponents of poll shift are afraid of the increasing support the All Progressives Congress is enjoining across the federation, adding that they are only looking for ways of truncating the current democracy. He noted that the excuses being advanced by the

From: Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo proponents of poll shift on the number of people yet to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVC) is so weak to waste the huge resources so far spent on the exercise on. He said that there is no way the nation can attain 100 percent of PVC collection adding that INEC and Nigerians are well prepared for the poll. He also said that the international community is watching the development in the country and warned that it is dangerous to shift the poll at the middle of the game. According to him, the huge fund expended on the polls would be a waste if the nation should opt for a postponement

of the exercise. The Speaker disclosed that a whopping N70 billion had been spent on the preparation for the forthcoming general elections, adding that the exercise had been budgeted for and substantial part of the budget earmarked had been released to the Independent National Electoral Commission for the elections. He said further that the proposed poll shift negates the constitutional provisions of at least between 30 days and 150 days to the handover date. He said: "Almost N70 billion have been released for the election and its preparation had started a long time, so what is the fear of

those that are calling for the postponement of elections?" Speaking on the peace pact signed by President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples' Democratic Party and General Muhammadu Buhari of All Progressives Congress, Hon. Sallam described it as ruse, saying that the PDP and its supporters have broken the accord, thus making it unrealisable. Sallam, who cited the explosion that rocked the APC's secretariat in Rivers State, the war threat by the exmilitants as some of the ways the accord was being thwarted noted that "does it mean Nigeria will cease to exist if Jonathan does not win the election?"

Adeleke to parents: 'Don't allow your children to be used for violence,' From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

EW days to the 2015 presidential election, the first civilian governor of Osun State, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, has enjoined the parents not to allow their children or wards to be used as tools for political violence. In a statement by his Media Adviser, Olumide Lawal, he urged them to make the educational pursuits of their children a priority, saying doing so will make the society self-reliant and self-sufficient. He pledged to establish cottage industries to process agricultural produce that are peculiar to each of the local government areas comprising Osun West Senatorial District, where he is contesting a seat in February 14 national assembly elections into finished products. He said, he will continue to identify with those living below the poverty line and give them succour, through meaningful and pragmatic poverty eradication programmes in its totality. Adeleke, who is the Asiwaju of Ede, advised political office holders to ensure that the public interest should be paramount in their hearts instead of denying them the dividends of democracy. He commended the leadership style of Governor Rauf Aregbesola, which he said has gone a long way to stabilise the polity in the state.

Buhari's victory in Ekiti sure, says campaign group â&#x20AC;˘L-R;- Vice Consul, British High Commission Nigeria, Mrs Sue Hewer, All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Candidate, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, British High Commission Nigeria, Dr Andrew Pocock and Communication Manager, British Commission, Mr Wale Adebajo during the British High Commission visitation to the (APC) Governorship Candidate Akin Ambode in his Office at Victoria Island Lagos over the weekend. Photo AAMCO

Let election be violence free, UK group tells Jonathan

RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has been urged to control his campaign coordinators and loyalists against election violence. This advice was given by Diaspora Coordinator for Grassroots Mobilisation for Muhammadu Buhari (GMMB) United Kingdom chapter, Prof Ali Alao. The don said election violence will only draw the country back in a way that is negative in the international sphere. "I want him to remember the case of a leader in Cote

From Tayo Johnson and Bisola Oloyede, Ibadan

d'Ivoire, who after losing at the polls took to violence; he dragged the name of the country in the mud. He was eventually exiled. The inciting statement being made will only deteriorate things." Advising the candidates, he said:"If you do not win through the ballot box, it is no crime. Accept defeat and join the train of change swinging in the country." Alao further revealed that the corruption in the country is endemic and General Buhari

is the only one capable of turning the tides. He said:" His candidature has a track record, when he was a military leader; he came in to clean corruption and all the mess in the country. His track record is far beyond the country." "This gentleman is a man of action and very pragmatic. Remember the insurgency of the 1980s in the country, the Maitasine group that ravaged the north? Buhari dealt with them. Let him do it again with Boko Haram." He also assured Nigerians that General Buhari will not Islamise

Nigeria. Alao explained that it is quite impossible for someone who has people from other religious affliations in his workforce to Islamise the country. Alao denied the propaganda that Buhari is too old to rule the country. "I do not know why they say Buhari is old, it is not just about him, but also the people around him that will help him move the country forward. A former president of the United State of America, Donald Reagan was about 83 years when he ruled. Buhari is younger."

Aregbesola's victory, best news of season, says Ikuforiji

HE victory of Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola, governor of the state of Osun, on Friday at the Osun State Elections Petitions Tribunal has been described as the best news of this season. Reacting to the victory in a press release signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Rotimi Adebayo, the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji said, "This historic victory handed to our dear symbol of purposeful and sustainable socio-economic and human development, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is the very best of such news items

By Oziegbe Okoeki this season. "As we all know, the Osun State gubernatorial election, which took place August 9, 2014 was more or less a battle between good and evil. At that time, you will equally recall that the entire serene terrain of the State of Osun was suddenly turned into a war zone by the agents of the federal government, who flooded the state with all manners of heavily armed security officials, among whom were hooded and masked men in security outfits. "When the landslide victory was first delivered to

Ogbeni Aregbesola shortly after that election last year, the enemies of our democracy went about town, boasting that they would soon use their federal might to overturn the people's vote of confidence in the people's governor. It is however gratifying that those who erroneously believed that their guns were more powerful than the will of the people of the State of Osun have now been proved wrong once and for all, " IKuforiji stated. The Speaker said with the latest "brilliant and huge victory" delivered to Ogbeni Aregbesola once again by the 3-member Gubernatorial

Election Petition Tribunal on Friday "it has become very clear to all that, the will of our people shall always prevail against whatever odd that may be mounted against it by the enemies of progress. "On this auspicious occasion I, on behalf of my family, all my fellow legislators, the entire management and staff of the Lagos State House of Assembly, heartily rejoice with Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, his government, and good and forward-looking people of Osun State for standing their ground and casting their ballot for the symbol of progress and development

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

HE Ekiti State Chapter of the Buhari Campaign Organization (BCO) has predicted victory for the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari at the February 14 poll. The State Coordinator of BCO, Gbenga Agbeyo, who spoke with reporters in AdoEkiti, the state capital on Friday said the popularity and support base of APC presidential flag bearer keep growing everyday. The BCO chief hailed the efforts of three former governors who are also APC chieftains-Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, Chief Segun Oni and Dr. Kayode Fayemi-whom he described as undisputed leaders of the party in the state. Agbeyo said the campaign group is encouraged by the massive support of the people of Ekiti State for Buhari's candidature which was brought to the fore by the unprecedented crowd that received the APC presidential standard bearer when his campaign train hit Ado-Ekiti on January 24. He praised the people of the state for defying what he called "misuse of paraphernalia of power" by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led administration in the state in a bus to prevent the APC presidential campaign rally from holding in the state. Agbeyo stressed that Ekiti people have joined the generality of Nigerians in demanding for change at the centre, saying the PDP has failed to provide the leadership they desire.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

Ropo Sekoni

Page 14

Femi Orebe Page 16

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

Jonathan's many sins tunjade@yahoo.co.uk 08054503906 (sms only)

T baffles me that some people still cannot see that voting out President Goodluck Jonathan is soft-landing, sort of, for the country's ruling elite. Just as it baffles me that the government and its acolytes have not been able to see the general resentment against them for the way they have monumentally mismanaged the country's resources. But it gladdens the heart that the Council of State members that met on Thursday realised, even if in their enlightened self- interest, that the best thing was to dissociate themselves from the government's pet agenda to postpone this month's election, by making it clear that the responsibility of conducting elections in the country is that of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). So, the hope of the Jonathan presidency to use that forum to legitimise its much-sought-after postponement of the election has been dashed again. Suffice it to say that this is what desperation can do. The government has now become like a drowning man that would not mind clinging to a serpent for help. Its latest excuse now is that it cannot guarantee security in a few places where insurgents are fighting with our soldiers in the northeast. May be it does not know that by admitting this, it has shot itself in the foot because that is the essence of any government properly so-called! Here is a government that has been unable to provide security in the last five years now seeking postponement of election by six weeks to do same. Definitely, this government has something up its sleeves but whatever it is, it should be better guided by the country’s political history. The election postponement agenda can be likened to a student who whiled away his time at school, attending 'owanbe' parties, drinking cognac (pronounced 'koinyan' here), sleeping with all manner of girls and not giving a damn about his purpose in school until two weeks to the examinations when he now begins to look for a way to make the school authorities postpone scheduled examinations just to enable him cover lost ground. It is important to point out that a major sin of the Jonathan government is that the thieves in government have stolen too much for the owner to notice. And as Sonola Olumhense pointed out in one of his write-ups in 1983, that the Shagari government had to change its style or itself be changed, so it is with the country's ruling elite: it must ensure that President Jonathan is not reelected or itself be changed. Louis XV1might not have been the worst of all the kings France had before the 1789 Revolution, but it was apparent that the ancien regime that the country had known for years must give way at some point because it was not sustainable forever; it only happened that it collapsed in Louis XV1's time. In the same vein, Nigeria might have been badly and corruptly run for decades; that is not to say it would be like that forever. Certain things must give at some point. It has nothing to do with where the president comes from; after all, it was the same people who welcomed him with hosanna in 2011 that are not too receptive of him now. It is left for President Jonathan to find the missing link; find the disconnect between him and Nigerians that he is supposed to be leading, if it is

His government now wants to provide security within six weeks, where it had failed in five years!

things I see in President Jonathan's reelection. If General Buhari's popularity is soaring today, these are some of the reasons. If the president must hop from church to church for prayers when he had the opportunity of having reelection on a platter of gold but frittered it away, these are some of the reasons. Unfortunately, President Jonathan is only rending his garments when what he needs to rend is his heart. It would appear that the president has forgotten the legal maxim: those who seek equity must do so with clean hands. If man could demand this much, how much more God? God does not see all the things that the presi• President Jonathan: rending his garment or his heart? dent and his party regard as not too late. 'politics' in that light. To Him, Under the Obasanjo administration, we it is sin and sin is sin. If it is true that some had instances where governors were im- pastors had been given N6billion by the govpeached illegally. The Jonathan regime seemed ernment, I do not see how that can translate to have 'perfected' that as we can see in Ayo to vote for the president because none of Fayose's Ekiti State where seven members of those pastors can stand before their memthe state house of assembly and two unknown bers and ask them to vote for President quantities 'imported' into the house (making Jonathan. Even if they do, will they follow nine in a 26-member house), 'impeached' the their members to the polling booths on Eleclegitimate speaker, as well as passed the 2015 tion Day to confirm whether they voted for budget. It is only in Nigeria where values have the president or not? Now, the people in sunk that much that such a thing can stand. government are afraid of losing power. As I Months after, President Jonathan obviously have always said, it is only those who know has not heard of this illegality. As a matter of what saliva is used for that quickly rubs fact, under his watch, the police took the im- theirs with their foot whenever they spit. punity many steps further by attempting to They know the illegalities and impunities block Aminu Tambuwal, Speaker of the they have used power to commit and are House of Representatives and other National afraid of their shadows. Assembly members from entering the Obviously too, those in power and their assembly complex simply because they do not cronies had been enjoying these illegalities agree with the president. Seeing our National because there was no one to sanction them, Assembly members jump over the assembly and they had hoped the honey moon would complex gate to gain entrance into their offices last forever. This is natural because, like the to beat the barricade put in place by the In- child that abuses the Iroko tree and looks spector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Suleiman back expecting immediate consequences, Abba, immediately reminded one of political without any, the president and his supevents in some backwater African countries. If porters too must have been living under those lawmakers had not jumped the fence, a the illusion that they would always get tiny minority of the lawmakers loyal to the away with their iniquities since there has president would have gone in to 'impeach' been no consequence all this while, without the speaker. As far as the president is con- knowing that all Nigerians were waiting cerned, it is all politics provided it is done in for was the day of reckoning, which those his interest or that of the ruling Peoples Demo- in power are desperately trying to postpone. cratic Party (PDP). Thus, the IGP would have The point is, President Jonathan has helped the president to deepen impunity and not governed as one looking for second illegality and today, we all would be asking, term. Otherwise, public officials would not 'when did we descend this low', just as we are be stealing the way they are in his time as if now asking where we were when things were stealing is going out of fashion. A president going this bad in the country. that had so much money and could do so These are some of the sins of President little in more than five years, now promisJonathan, apart from the incompetent manner ing to do better if reelected? He himself the economy is being run and the large-scale should know he is deceiving Nigerians corruption (that the president sees as mere steal- even if the people being deceived do not ing) in the system. Now, we have been reminded know. Where is he going to get the money that the government has not been able to add a now that the price of crude oil has been kobo to the foreign reserve despite raking in the plummeting, and without anyone doing highest revenue from the sale of crude oil in any strategic thinking concerning recent years. Where has all the money gone to, government’s finances? Ordinarily, there considering that nothing seems to be working should be no controversy over whether in the country? If Nigerians have improved President Jonathan deserves reelection or power supply now, the likelihood is that what not. For incumbent governments, their they are having is 'election light'. In other words, achievements during their tenure are the they are breaking their fast now; to resume fast- parameters to decide whether they merit ing when the election is over. That is one of the reelection or not. All said, President Jonathan might “A president that had so much money and could do so have tried his best, but his best has not been enough for the country. It is late in the little in more than five years, now promising to do better if good day for him to be promising heaven on reelected? He himself should know he is deceiving Nigeri- earth, if reelected; how much faith has he with his earlier promise to give the ans even if the people being deceived do not know. Where kept country good leadership? Four more years is he going to get the money now that the price of crude oil under this government, Nigeria would go to the dogs. has been plummeting, and without anyone doing any stra- completely Show me a government more prodigal. tegic thinking concerning government’s finances?” Show me a government more corrupt.

Oyedepo: Facts are sacred, comments are free (2)

am compelled to write a second part of my last week's piece following the observation of most respondents that I should have included what Bishop David Oyedepo of Winners Chapel said during the recent visit of President Goodluck Jonathan to the church. In the article, I had insisted that contrary to the widespread claim that the Bishop threatened to open the gate of hell on those opposed to President Jonathan's second term ambition, he never said anything of such. I took it for granted that one week after the controversial visit, there were enough counter claims online to leave no one in doubt that the statement attributed to Bishop Oyedepo was false. I gathered that before last Sunday, video and transcripts of what transpired during the visit were available for those willing to hear the other side of the story as required in a circumstance like this. Even after my column in which I indicated that I witnessed the event, sent out tweets, wrote a report published in The Nation, many readers were not convinced that I was not, as one put it, not defending a defenseless case because I am a member of the church. Coincidentally, Winners Chapel last Sunday officially responded to the controversy with a press statement and advertorials on what the Bishop said and did not say during the visit. Full video of the third service attended by Bishop Oyedepo has been uploaded on the church website and social media accounts. For the benefit of those who are yet to see the refutal, here are Bishop Oyedepo's exact words: "I only had an idea of the president's visit just yesterday morning. The information was not there last Friday when we had the One Night with the King. So, we are going to be praying for our president. Let prayers and supplications and intercessions be made for all men; first of all, for kings, and for them that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. "I like us to be on our feet and lift the president up to God. Whatever you desire to see God bring about in his life; bring about in our nation; begin to pray that prayer right now. Father, release your grace upon the president to match the demands of his office. Release unusual grace in increasing dimensions, to match the demands of his office. Cause your face to shine upon him. Lord, grant the desires of his heart. Grant Nigeria peace! Under him, grant Nigeria greater advancement. Thank you, Father; in Jesus' Name we pray"!! "This entire church proclaims the president blessed today; blessed with divine wisdom to match the demands of his office; blessed with peace to see the miraculous in his life; blessed with grace that will advance His (God's) cause on our nation. Every time we pray here, God hears. The Bible says wherever two or three are gathered, I'm there in their midst, and if we agree concerning anything, it is done for us. Therefore, in the name of Jesus, our president is declared blessed. His going out is blessed; his coming in is blessed. The will of God is blessed in his life. Thank you Father; blessed be your name; in Jesus' precious name!" For the originators of the false report, Jesus' prayer for those who crucified him is very appropriate; "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

COMMENT

Towards our date with destiny 1 Citizens just do n ot want the 2015 to be better than the 2011 election; they want the 2015 election to be free, fair, and credible by world standards

HE thing on the tongue of the average Nigerian these days is that the country is poised for a rendezvous with destiny on the fourteenth day of February. When asked to comment on the 2015 election, many citizens across the social spectrum tend to rephrase in various indigenous languages Victor Hugo's famous quotation: "There is something stronger than all the armies in the world, and that is an idea whose time has come." This is how citizens perceive the palpable enthusiasm of citizens about the ongoing political campaign for the 2015 national elections. Many even say that the electrifying political energy in the atmosphere is more of a movement than just about any political party, suggesting that it is the new awakening of Nigerians to put in place a government that reflects their wishes that is in evidence more than the sophistication of any political party in particular. In short, citizens are saying in every corner of the country that it is about time for the country to have a date with destiny after more than six decades of wandering in the wilderness. The growing enthusiasm about the election, despite growing lack of interest in some political quarters about holding the election as scheduled, appears to be about the resolve of Nigerians to rid the country of decades of conspiracy at the level of government against genuine unity of purpose and sustainable nation-wide development. To a first-time visitor to the country, the first impression is that Nigeria is a country that is about to experience electoral democracy for the first time. Never in the history of the country has election been perceived as the panacea to myriads of problems facing the country for over half a century. Not even when Alhaji Abiola and Alhaji Tofa contested for a government to replace Babangida's eight-year military dictatorship did citizens show so much monastic faith in going to the poll. What is at stake is not so much the victory of any

particular candidate (despite the obvious crowd that follows Buhari in different parts of the country) as it is the desire of the average Nigerian for a free, fair, and credible election that can change the traditionally cold or lukewarm relationship between government and the citizenry over the years. Informal chats with first-time and experienced voters suggest that the average Nigerian is inspired by the promise of a free and fair election, interpreted as an unfettered opportunity for citizens to exercise their right to vote in an atmosphere that is devoid of intimidation and with certainty of getting reliable results of their votes, to ensure that their ruler as from 2015 is the person that majority of citizens have voted for. When probed further, citizens who had voted in previous elections respond that they have hardly experienced any free and fair election in the country, apart from the presidential election of 1993. The general feeling is that Nigeria has been captured since 1959 by rulers who had not been freely and fairly chosen to lead the country. In the decades of military rule, the country was literally hijacked by coup makers who used their ownership of the power of coercion to rule the country. With respect to the so-called democratic elections in 1959, 1979, 1983, 1999, 2003, 2007, and even 2011, many citizens perceive these elections as manipulated by political authorities in charge of the elections, adding that the free and fair election of 1993 was annulled because it did not go the way preferred by the government in power and then in charge of the election. If there is any promise by President Goodluck Jonathan that citizens want to hold him down to, it is the pledge to make the elections of 2015 noticeably better than that of 2011, just as the 2011 election was seen to be better than the 2007 poll, known all over the world as the country's worst election. Citizens just do not want the 2015 to be better than the 2011 election; they want the 2015 election to be free,

fair, and credible by world standards. In short, the crowds in evidence at election rallies are about the desire and resolve of Nigerians to use the 2015 election to liberate the country from the grip of manipulators that have ruled the country via military power or rigged elections since 1959. It is not the possibility of the forthcoming election to unseat the incumbent government or retain it that many citizens are concerned about as much as it is the effect of a free, fair, and credible election on the psyche of the nation. Nigerians, particularly those at the grassroots, feel that they have been imprisoned by various governments in the past and show the desire for a government that is of their choice and that will thus be answerable to them, and not to vested interests of former military or civilian rulers. Nigeria's date with destiny may not be tied to the emergence of any particular candidate (despite the growing visible support for General Buhari). It seems to be tied to the fact of free, fair, and credible electoral process. Those who are sold on 'electoral business as usual' may alter the nature of the engagement of citizens with the nation's destiny by thinking that they can take voters for granted this time. Voters show in what they say, more than ever before in my participation in elections in the country since 1959, that they are ready to move the country into a full democratic culture by ensuring a free, fair, and believable election. To the average voter, conducting a free and fair election will put the country in a good stead to move the country to full democratic governance that 'electoral panel beating' over the years had ruled out, as elections have been turned into a primitive warfare in which every method is acceptable once it leads to desired results for the warriors. Election is not a war between contestants for power; it is a contest between the political class and the class of voters, citizens that want to freely choose those they want to govern

them. This view of election appears to be what the electrifying energy among potential voters is about, much more than the victory of any particular candidate. Those who misread the handwriting on the wall are likely to make an egregious mistake that can incense citizens if they continue to press for cancellation or postponement of the elections, for whatever reason. Nigerians want a smooth transition between one government tenure and the next. They also want to ensure a smooth transition with their votes. They do not want to be made politically impotent on account of any of the two leading candidates asking for their votes. They want to have the freedom to choose the candidate they prefer, because they feel that the ability of the country to move towards development and unity of purpose depends solely on free, fair, and credible elections on February 14 and 28. As the country inches towards these dates, there needs to be a separation between the voice of the media and the voices of public relations officers for political candidates. Citizens want and deserve to see and hear themselves in the media, not any less than they see and hear public relations men and women functioning as campaign staff for candidates. This moment calls for more interpretive reporting than mere presentation of what candidates and their image makers say or do. Nothing else is capable of accelerating the country's rendezvous with destiny more than a free, fair, and credible election conducted as and when due. This is what citizens are yearning for, not just the victory of Buhari or Jonathan. The incumbent government and whichever government succeeds it are both going to gain from free, fair, and credible elections, believed by many citizens as the only safe gateway to democracy, development, and unity of purpose in the country. Any attempt to toy with people's choice is dangerous for everybody and the country's destiny.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

COMMENT

CJN's timely warning Election judges should learn from history and not kill this democracy

HE warning by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mahmud Mohammed, to the judiciary, while swearing in the 242 judges appointed as members of the election petition tribunals, is not only timely but ominous. The learned justice without equivocation said, "Let me use this opportunity to serve a note of warning to all judicial officers. Do not allow any political party or politician to compromise your integrity or your future. We must never again be used as tools to truncate our nation's democracy". We commend Justice Mohammed's sense of history, for remembering the ignominious role played by some judicial officials to truncate the June 12 election, in 1993. We consider his warning as timely because there are already clear indications that some politicians who are jittery over the likelihood of losing at the general elections, have resorted to concocting every trick in the books to arrest the elections slated for February 14 and 28, by instituting some dubious cases before the court. So, just as they did in 1993, some lackeys of people in government, are already shopping for pliant judges in the mould of late Justice Bassey Ikpeme, to procure similar ignominious judgments as hers, to truncate the general elections. The warning is ominous because really there is the possibility that such dangerous judges, as envisaged by Justice Mohammed, actually sit in the sanctum of our national courts. Such possibility is a present danger to our national cohesion, considering the enormous damage that a dubious judge could do, with his or her powers, particularly when applied for a devious end. We hope that the chief justice's warning to deal with such judges is not mere rhetoric. To protect the upcoming elections, we urge the CJN and the National Judicial Coun-

S Nigerians are preparing for the 2015 general elections, the recurring problem of the inability of many voters to register and/ or obtain the necessary voter card for the elections should be addressed. The distribution of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) has left many voters bewildered as many are yet to obtain theirs owing to a myriad of bottlenecks. According to the electoral body, of the over 68 million registered for the elections, only a little more than half (38 million) have so far collected their PVC, less than a week to the elections! Troubled by this reality, many Nigerians have called on INEC to allow the use of Temporary Voter Cards (TVCs) for the coming elections. The House of Representatives on January 13, 2015 passed a resolution requesting INEC to "include in its election guidelines for the 2015 general elections a provision(s) allowing registered voters with the temporary voters card whose names are on record to vote during the 20l5 general elections." INEC, however, maintained its position that possession of PVCs is a "strict condition for anyone intending to vote in the 2015 elections." The prospect of millions of eligible voters being disenfranchised therefore remains. The right to vote and be voted for is a constitutional one. The Electoral Act further makes elaborate provisions on the modalities for registration and the issuance of voter cards to eligible voters. Since it will be unlawful for INEC to deprive any registered voter the right to vote

cil (NJC) to be on the lookout for such duplicitous cases, aimed at truncating our hard-earned democracy. The CJN and the NJC must do all that is legitimately in their power to frustrate any dangerous invasion of the political process, in order to avoid the incalculable harm that a dubious court order could do to the wellbeing of the nation. So, without descending into a court's arena, it is important that no court is allowed to arrest the upcoming election or the participation of the candidates on spurious claims, by duplicitous litigants. As Nigeria rolls into the final week before the presidential election, the Nigerian judiciary should be wary of issuing ex-parte applications, black market or latenight judgments on the eve of the general election, aimed at frustrating our national aspirations. We also congratulate the judges who have been sworn in as members of the various tribunals to handle the election petitions that may arise from the national election. Their responsibility, as the CJN noted, will be very demanding and they should note that Nigerians have invested enormous hope in this election, and as such, they must gird their robes, to do justice to the litigants without fear or favour, should any of them feel cheated and TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

•Editor Festus Eriye •Deputy Editor Olayinka Oyegbile •Associate Editors Taiwo Ogundipe Sam Egburonu

•Managing Director/ Editor-in-Chief Victor Ifijeh •Chairman, Editorial Board Sam Omatseye •General Editor Adekunle Ade-Adeleye

approach the tribunals for redress. Again, we commend the chief justice when he avowed, "any judge found wanting would only have himself or herself to blame as the National Judicial Council will definitely not spare the rod in ensuring that the honour, respect and independence of the judiciary is protected". Thankfully, the election is slated three months before the handover date to a new government. So, where the tribunals are diligent, all the disputes should be settled well in advance, including any appeals, before the May 29, 2015 handover date. Here again the admonition of the CJN was timely, when he said, "Since you all do not have the luxury of time in the discharge of your duties, I urge you all to be pedantic in your deliberation, but do not allow 'red-herring' technicalities to distract you from the part of justice". In this regard, the CJN should ensure that the tribunals follow dutifully, the practice directions that should preclude meaningless interlocutory applications. There is no doubt that the courts would play an important role towards a successful transition programme, after the next elections. Such role may be as important as that of the electoral umpire, and any duplicity by any of the tribunals could spell doom for our fragile democracy. The election petition tribunals must therefore be ready to act as honest, diligent and impartial arbiters, for the inevitable disputes that would arise from the general elections. Considering the poor reputation of the judiciary, this election may provide it an opportunity to redeem her image. So, we agree with the CJN, when he told the judges, "it is crucial that you consider all the evidence before you carefully, deliberate conscientiously, and adjudicate swiftly and justly as not only you but the entire judiciary will be on trial".

LETTER

A case for the use of temporary voter card simply by its own inability to make available the PVC as replacements for the TVC, certain practical points deserve consideration. Firstly, half of registered voters have not been able to collect their PVCs due mainly to INEC's unpreparedness, making the Nigerian electorate bear the brunt of its incompetence cannot be justified under any guise. That we are faced with this kind of conundrum with years of preparation speaks to INEC's level of

N Nigeria, it's a mixed grill of events unfolding in thousands by the day. While some make you smile, some actually make you sad; and many others could best be described as totally insane. Currently in circulation are eight different denominations of the Nigeria's national currency of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 naira respectively. However, since the federal government announced reduction in the official pump price of petrol in the land in 2012, one of the national legal tenders has been crying the wide river of 'WHY ME'!!! "Why me, Ten naira, of all the denominations? If not a five naira reduction, why not

readiness, a matter that is totally out of the control of any voter. Secondly, although the argument has been made that the use of PVCs is to eliminate fraud in the system, one must quickly point out that TVCs were used in 2011 elections, adjudged largely credible, and in many recent gubernatorial elections with little or no concerns about their credibility. Additionally, INEC claimed to have eliminated all incidents of multiple registration and

similar frauds from the register of voters, it should therefore have no problem allowing TVC holders whose names are in this register to vote. Most importantly, elimination of fraud in the electoral process cannot and should not follow a single path; INEC should exercise the flexibility afforded it by its own guidelines to use another method in voting, in this case, TVCs. While legislative resolutions are generally deemed advisory and therefore not

binding on the executive or agencies of government, it will be callous for INEC to ignore it on a matter as weighty as this. A safer way of viewing it is to consider the resolution an aggregated request of Nigerians through their elected representatives in the National Assembly. Lastly, in the run-up to these elections, so much gloom and doom have been predicted; removing the complaints of disenfranchisement by the supposedly unbiased

The scapegoat ten naira N20 or N50 naira from the old pump price? WHY ME TEN NAIRA? "Could the pump price reduction by any chance be Political? Or a mere ethnic sentiment based on the tribe of the picture I carry? Why the poor me as victim of the 2015 electioneering circumstance? In the name of justice and equity, the unimpressed general consumers of petroleum products in Nigeria hereby advocate against the choice of making me, Ten Naira, the scape goat. We also offer the following recommendations: •Already, the reduction is

perceived as tribal. But based on the tribal affiliation of the picture on the green currency, the same sentiment shall be expressed if 20 naira is taken off. •The public advocates recommend that government shall pronounce a 50 naira reduction from the old 97 naira pump price of petrol and other petroleum products like kerosene and cooking gas for Nigerian women. •Afterall, the 50 naira denomination carries the pictures of major tribes in the land and therefore no tribal sentiment can be read to it.

Clamouring for change, only to get 10 naira PMS price reduction was such a smart response. At least it tallies with words of the good book in Mathew 7-7. Ask for national change to get 10 naira! And though the Nigerian electorate did welcome the 10 naira reduction as a good gesture, do they consider it a good enough political move worth celebrating on day number 300, since Nigerians and the world began clamouring? Bring Back Our Girls… Bring Back Our Girls… Bring Back Our Girls? Indeed, the 10 naira pump price reduction was a 'Smart'

umpire gives us one less thing to worry about. After all, the credibility of results is largely founded on the participatory nature of elections. The current situation where about half of eligible voters will be unable to vote can hardly be considered reflective of popular will thus undermining the legitimacy of resultant victories. It is quite unfortunate that after years of preparation, a basic yet fundamental process like the issuance is threatening the smooth conduct of this year's polls. While it may have reasons for its failings so far, this is no time for self-pity, INEC must therefore brace itself and accept the challenges to midwife credible and acceptable elections. On this point, the use of TVC will in no small measure free the electoral body from self-imposed constraints. •Ekundayo AdedejiAlebiosu, Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Treaties and Protocols. response to the public call for National Change. However, further effort at Bringing BackOurGirls without further delay would be better appreciated as a 'smarter' response by the federal government, amongst other national issues. The precious lives of the abducted Chibok girls do matter for the National Change being advocated, and more especially the lives of the non-abducted Nigerian masses. BringBackOurGirls! God Bless Nigeria. •Sulaimon Salam B a m i d e l e (thegreatssb@gmail.com) (Bamidele, a visually impaired journalist wrote in from the USA)

SEND TYPEWRITTEN, DOUBLE SPACED AND SIGNED CONTRIBUTIONS, LETTERS AND REJOINDERS OF NOT MORE THAN 500 WORDS TO THE EDITOR, THE NATION, 27B, FATAI ATERE ROAD, MATORI, LAGOS: sundaynation@yahoo.com

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

COMMENT

2015: Buhari, Yoruba and the burden of history To many Yoruba, given my interactions at a recent Pan-Yoruba meeting held in Ibadan which I chaired, the Hausa-Fulani is still seen as millstone

I sincerely apologise for the absence of this column last Sunday. It was due to an unfortunate mix up which is deeply regretted. The column, the last before the presidential election, is today being turned over to Adewale Adeoye, a CNN African journalist award winner and alumnus of the United Nations (UN) Institute of Training and Research (UNITAR). nation becomes a dungeon, when the people's history no longer matters. But history is not static. The South West, (SW), with 14 million voters, is a sexy bride in the coming elections. What determines electoral victory varies in each region. Yoruba land is unique. Politicians have failed to bring into sharp focus, critical issues that matter most. They deploy bitter campaigns, insults and abuses. President Goodluck Jonathan fired salvos during his visit to Lagos. He did not promise any single project for Yoruba nation in all his campaigns in the SW so far. He spoke as if jittery. He was fidgety, wobbly, edgy and squirmy. In war, as in politics, those are signs of weakness, a pointer to camp disarray and retreat. Gen Mohammadu Buhari hinges his campaign on three planks: Jobs, Security and Anti-corruption. But there is the need to take the edge off primordial fears which, to a large extent, will determine the attitude of many voters, at least in the South West. Politicians often bask in the rapture of illusion, expressed mostly in the media, in rallies and walk-outs. Often, they confuse public enthusiasm

with deep-rooted blood-bound alliances. It is a big farce to think that the February 14 elections will not be determined by history and ethnicity, that will be dealing with appearances, leaving behind the timeless reality of a country acutely divided, and which history is dotted by deadly clashes of civilisations. Buhari is Fulani. Two centuries ago, architects of the thriving Yoruba Empire would not have contemplated Yoruba would be asked to vote for a Fulani candidate in an election, no matter how dignified. The Fulani and the Yoruba, in truth, have been arch rivals in the contest for land, values, power and state resources. We neglect this to our own peril. The rivalry is agelong. In the spring of 1804, Uthman Dan Fodio had led a revolution that cut across today's Northern hemisphere. The revolt led to millions of deaths, including women and children. The Yoruba nation painfully lost some ancestral territories. The last scuffle being the 1842 combat to reclaim most of the lost grounds, until Britain came, leaving bitter memories in the sub consciousness of generations that followed. In the elections of 1950s and 1960s, the echoes of the acrimony did not abate. These reflect in all Yoruba voting patterns. To many Yoruba, given my interactions at a recent Pan-Yoruba meeting held in Ibadan which I chaired, the Hausa-Fulani is still seen as millstone. Many recollect that the late Premier of Northern Region, the late Ahmadu Bello, taunted the region that he would dip the Holy Quaran into the sea, the euphemism for

atrocious conquest. In the 60s, about 29 Yoruba leaders, including Chief Obafemi Awolowo, were hauled into detention at the instance of the HausaFulani-dominated political class. In subsequent years, the rivalry of times past defined the political momentum. In 1993, a different pattern was etched only because Afenifere, the Yoruba traditional political institution, was prevented by the military from leading the Yoruba political processes, leaving Yoruba with restricted two-party choice. However, the annulment of the 1993 election, the assassinations of Yoruba icons, deliberate plots that scuttled the economic mainstay of the Yoruba people only rekindled the primordial sentiments against the Hausa-Fulani. The June 12 1993 annulment led to the birth of several self determination groups, which, today, and I am in a vantage position to know, remain the most potent political force in Yorubaland. These groups, like most Yoruba people, are anxious to know the content and form of the negotiation with Buhari by the APC leadership, which they think, hold them in contempt. Contrary to assumptions, the fact is that many Yoruba, especially at the lower ranks, are conscious of the history of rivalry with the Hausa-Fulani. The emergence of Boko Haram, irrespective of its vagaries, has further deepened the Yoruba suspicion against the Hausa-Fulani. It is even more dangerous for anyone to hinge on 'power must return to the north,' as a campaign grundnorm. For the average Yoruba person, true federalism and self determination are key issues. The Hausa-Fulani stood against these pillars, until now that Buhari has brought some rays of hope. It is important that the Hausa-Fulani should see this new alliance as a rare spirit of reconciliation on the part of

the Yoruba people. It shows Yoruba liberal sense of fairness and adherence to the tradition of decent politics. It is also important to dissuade the assumption in the South East and among ethnic minorities that it represents a realignment of the same forces that prosecuted the civil war, a gang-up of the big nationalities against ethnic minorities. An inroad into the South-South will be difficult, unless campaigns build confidence among a people that have suffered marginalisation and misery for too long especially as it regards what happens to their oil resources. It is reasonable for APC to enter into constructive assurance of fear-driven Ijaw and oil-producing communities. Certainly, President Jonathan offers no succour to the Yoruba demand. He has failed in all ramifications. He, in fact, has no solutions to the pile of harms, meaning that for many Yoruba, the choice still remains tough. But the average Yoruba is not lost to the ruinous policies of the PDP and its impact on the emasculation of the Yoruba heritage, and the fact that the APC has brought hope to a despairing population. Yet, for reasons of grief memories gone by, it is easier for the APC state governors to win the South West than to ensure the overwhelming victory of Buhari. But as it is, Buhari's victory has become a necessary uplift from the squelching mud. The new equation has proven the maxim that solutions to a people's aspirations could come from unlikely quarters. It has asserted the dialectics in Yoruba philosophy that "ninu ikoko dudu l'eko funfun ti n jade - The snow-white maize porridge is, nevertheless, a product of the burnt, gritty black pot. Will Buhari save the Yoruba nation? For one, PDP has proved that it cannot allay the fears neither can it

meet the aspiration of the Yoruba. For six years, Yoruba have been so kind to a president that has paid back with vicious neglect. So, for me, hacking down the PDP remains an historical task for every Yoruba person. The party has brought disgrace and shame to the values and traditions held dear. The PDP has created a crestfallen nation in its own image. The party has ruined the potential of the SW. The party is led by an uninspiring president, who has neither produced a book nor an epic statesmanship on his understanding of how to build a great country. The PDP candidate lacks the capacity, the will and the knowledge to uplift Nigeria from her current state of trance, depression and hopelessness. The Yoruba believes in federalism, it is inspiring that the APC has brought this up as a critical campaign element. The content and form must be broadly defined and popularized in the South West. It is on this note that one would expect a shift in the paradigm of the APC campaign in the SW. Campaigns should have national appeal, but must also be subjective, being regionspecific. The major challenge facing Nigeria is how to create a new foundation; it is whether we want to stay together as one and on what terms. It is whether Lagos will take control of revenue from her sea port and if Ijaw nation will control her oil or not. It is obvious that President Jonathan will not address these issues, having used the national conference he ordered as a mere electoral gimmick. The APC seems likely to be trusted with the will to take the lid off a boiling saucepan. Before February 14, APC needs to deconstruct the mindset of the Yoruba people, assuage old fears with a new tonic that offers to put an end to affliction, mourning and gnashing of teeth.

This tension should not be postponed With the fears being expressed by everyone, one would think the third world war was imminent

NE of the most memorable passages I have read comes from a little story about a local football referee who had been rough-handled once too often by the losing side. His beautiful body was either beaten black and blue or his bicycle was mangled by the losing side. After having to walk away with pain from the pleasurable activity of football too often, he decided to be smart about the next match. One, he parked his bicycle close by the field. Two, he blew the last whistle as he jumped on his bicycle and sprinted off. So he was off before any player or fan could get their wits together. I do not envy Professor Attahiru Jega right now. I think he is perched on a hillside that is overlooking some jagged rocks ending on some more jagged rocks below on one side, and a deep, deep sea on the other. I bet you he has more white hairs than the polar bear to show for his efforts. Right now, all eyes are focused on him as the ultimate referee, umpire, middleman or whatever in this all-time race. Poor man, what he needs now is to have his wits sharpened some more. He also needs to have his bicycle close by, mainly because everything that goes wrong in this election week is going to be heaped on him. Right now, PVC distribution is somewhat awry, and we are all asking questions of INEC but everyone knows

that means Jega; never mind that the distribution fault may lie somewhere between the blessed things not arriving on time or at all, and the local distributors being somewhat sluggish about the matter. When I went to collect mine, it took my steely resolve to get it that day to enable me endure the long standing outside the offices of the distribution centre, inhaling dust, car fumes and hisses from fellow voting hopefuls. The reason was that the offices did not open early enough. I also had to endure being pushed and pulled and pummelled on all sides by people desperate to be the first to collect theirs too. I assure you I did not do any pushing, pulling or pummelling: I was intent on using and keeping my head because I knew something the others did not: this is the jungle of Africa where everything is done by fire, by force, even praying. Were all things to be equal, you and I know that something like my voter's card should have been sent to my home by post. There should not be any need for me to spend my precious man hours standing in long queues just to collect my driver's licence, voter's card or housekeeping allowance. My voter's card should arrive at my doorstep by the concerted efforts of the INEC chairman, the Postmaster-General and anyone kind enough to find my mail lying around. But, like I said, we live in a jungle where everyone prefers to do

things the hard way. Jungle or not, however, if election materials do not arrive on time, the country will want answers from Jega. That's another reason I pity the man. I bet you that there are many Nigerians from all kinds of nameable and unnameable parties who have even now concluded plans to hijack, steal, beg for or borrow some truckloads of voting materials and guess who will be blamed. Right now, we are prepared to blame Jega for anything: not finding our names on the voters' register; not being able to find the polling booth or the voters' register; not being registered; being too busy to register; not finding the address of the polling booth; not being able to decide between the many candidates, not being able to press our thumbs hard on the sheet because of hunger; etc. That's right; I hear we are even now preparing to use him as an excuse to postpone the elections! See what I mean?! Yep, the rumours are strong; and by the time you are reading this, the matter of postponement should have been decided one way or the other. It is surely another situation where we can decisively use that famous quotation of indecision: to be or not to be. Should INEC declare that it is ready (which I hear it has done) and things do not pan out for the candidates, the parties or the country, there will be a sea of troubles for the oga on top. In short, whoever loses is ready to blame someone for lack of readiness. Anyway, a postponement at this

stage will not do for many reasons. First, Nigerians have become so worked up over the mid-February elections they are looking forward to the third week when they hope the tension should have died down. Secondly, that same tension has led many to practically put their lives on hold until after the elections. They are practically holding their breath. Thirdly, many have therefore postponed their midFebruary programmes to after-midFebruary. To postpone the elections would mean postponing people's emotions, breathing, living, and other programmes! I beg you; this tension can no longer be postponed. Forgive me, but it's a little like watching two equally matched medieval armies pitched on opposite sides of a hill ready for battle, waiting, just waiting for someone's horse to spark off the battle. In these elections, we have an umpire to blame. The side that loses will query: why did INEC not do more to ensure that the fight was fair? The side that wins will also ask: why did INEC allow someone to tamper with their winning numbers? I don't know whether we are taking some national examinations or someone is attempting to start a war of the worlds on our beautiful soil. With the fears being expressed by everyone, one would think the third world war was imminent. As we explained before, this is a voting exercise to elect a leader, not an exercise to partition Nigeria all over again. Whoever wins will only get the chance to govern the country for a while only before it passes

on to someone else. The world will not or should not end for the loser. He is expected to go on and do something else to contribute to the development of this country. There is more than one way of doing this. The rest of us citizens also have our responsibilities. We are expected to retrieve our voter card from the recesses of our box, dust the blessed thing, give it some food if it wants it (no, don't pour libation on it), find your way to the ballot box, and cast your votes. It will not do to inflame the tense atmosphere with careless utterances, cutlasses or guns. Remember, no election is worth dying for. Here, I would like to make an appeal to INEC. It would be a beautiful thing for INEC to allow those among us who do not have PVC to be able to vote if we can be confirmed to have registered. In other words, if our names can be located on the register (which is the most important thing), I think such a one should be able to vote. This should ease the PVC tension and reduce the load of blame that Jega may find himself carrying at the end of the exercise so he does not fall on the jagged rocks or the deep sea, or need his bicycle! Here's wishing every one of us the best of luck. May we emerge from all these national examinations stronger and wiser! May your PVC remain strong in your hands (if you have one, PVC that is, not hands), your name be true on the register (if it's there), and may you live to see the Nigeria you have prayed for (if you have prayed)!

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

COMMENT

(102) Jonathan's Supporters' Predicament: Capitulation, Desperation or Armageddon? Ojo gbogbo ni t'ole; ojo kan ni t'olohun [On one single fateful day, the thief who thinks that all days and nights belong to him in perpetuity will be caught by the owner] A Yoruba anti-barawo, anti-looting adage

N almost any other country in the world, or perhaps in almost all the other democracies on the planet - bourgeois, social-democratic or popularrevolutionary - the predicament of Jonathan's diehard supporters would very simply be the fact that in the President, they have a hopelessly uninspired and uninspiring candidate, a candidate so handicapped that Dr. Mimiko, one of his staunchest supporters, called him the "most abused and negatively profiled President in the history of Nigeria". But not in Nigeria at the present time where to our politicians, nothing evil or shameful is an embarrassment or a disadvantage to a candidate, no matter how high the political office being contested. In other words, for those who might think that Mimiko's declaration that the masses of Nigerians across space and time have no love or respect for Jonathan constitutes a dilemma or a predicament for the PDP, they are mistaken. Except for token gestures and acts that do very little to alleviate the great suffering, the acute insecurity of life for the majority of our peoples, doing things that could truly make life better for Nigerians, things that could genuinely win the hearts and minds of the people has never been a priority of the PDP in particular and, more generally, virtually all the other ruling class parties in our country. No, compatriots, Jonathan and the PDP are not losing sleep, they do not feel any predicament at all because their man is not liked or respected. What then is the source of their predicament? The answer to this question is simple, but only deceptively so: in the innermost core, in the deepest recesses of their minds and imaginations, Jonathan and the PDP feel that APC and Buhari are no different from themselves and therefore are not morally and ideologically more deserving of electoral victory than themselves. That is their predicament: the thought that they might lose to people who are no different from them, people who deserve the same treatment as themselves. This is of course a delusion, a psy-

•Femi Fani-Kayode •Ayodele Fayose •”Armageddon, Armageddon, Armageddon!”

•Abduljelili Adesiyan

chological displacement of the PDP's obsession with power. After all, the campaign slogan of the party is "PDP? Power! Power? PDP! But it is not an entirely fanciful or unfounded delusion. At one time or another, virtually all the mainstream politicians now in PDP, APC, ANPP or APGA have belonged to the same party. This is because, with few exceptions, political prostitution is one of the hallmarks, one of the defining aspects of our present political order. For this reason, all our political elites know one another inside out and body and soul, with an intimacy born of mutual predatoriness and cynicism. There is also the fact that there are no decisive issues of policy and vision that separate the two main contending parties and between them and the other ruling class parties. Indeed, to the contrary, there are big and important areas of collaboration in the shameless and relentless looting and despoliation of our country's oil wealth by all the political parties and mainstream politicians. One of the most telling examples of this extensive cooperation among all the main parties in looting our resources dry is the cult of secrecy and silence that all members of the National Assembly rigorously maintain over the exact figure of the combined salaries, allowances and emoluments that they are paid. The Nigerian masses have been crying out; activists have been crying out; and foreign correspondents have been wondering why Nigerian parliamentarians are the highest paid on the planet in a country where 7 out of every 10 Nigerians live in dire poverty. But not one party, not one politician has broken ranks from the cult to reveal the figure and/or refuse it. Well, let me correct myself here: Hon Dino Melaye broke ranks with the rest and attempted to spill the beans but look what they did to him:

tionary movement existed in the country, all the ruling class parties would have been swept away - and good riddance! But that is not the case, alas. Regular elections to sustain a quasibourgeois democracy will be held and for the first time since 1999, the appearance, if not the robust reality, of a choice is being presented to the Nigerian people. So it matters little whether or not APC/Buhari is more morally and politically deserving of electoral victory than PDP/Jonathan; what matters is that the people perceive a choice. As a matter of fact, the possibility of the PDP's capitulating to the force of historical necessity rather than resorting to Armageddon rests precisely on a recognition and acceptance by them of how this principle of choice has emerged this time around and not before, from 1999 to 2014. What does this mean? I will try to respond to this question as simply and as concretely as possible. To put it mildly, the PDP that contested the 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 general elections is not the PDP that is contesting the 2015 elections. In number, size and electoral plurality, it has been vastly and fatally downsized. And internally, it has imploded. There are the mass defections from the party. There is the loss of status as the majority party in the House of Representatives. But for the neo-fascist tactics of the Senate President, David Mark, the same thing would have happened in that upper house of the National Assembly. There is also the fact that the PDP no longer nominally controls the largest number of states in the federation. Perhaps most significant of all in terms of electoral politics, the loss of nationwide advantage in plurality over the other parties took place because the North, or the most populous and

they threw him out from their ranks and the secrecy, the silence was restored. All the same, it is delusional of the PDP to think that the coming elections will be won or lost solely or mainly on the claim that no party, no candidate has a moral and ideological advantage over the other. This whole subject of the delusionary brinksmanship of the PDP/Jonathan ticket interests me because I believe that as the day of reckoning approaches, we must try to get into the collective mind, into the roiling psychosis of a very desperate ruling party which feels, not without some justification, that its opponent is not more deserving of electoral victory than itself. I cannot tell about Jonathan himself, but with the likes of some of the most militant chieftains of the PDP - in their actions and utterances - we see nothing but psychotic desperation. This includes Femi Fani-Kayode, Ayodele Fayose, Bode George, Segun Mimiko and the Minister of Police Affairs, Abduljelili Adesiyan. And of course, there is the collective group of some of the ex-militants of the Niger Delta that have been "settled" by Jonathan and Yar' Adua before him; they are threatening Armageddon if Jonathan loses. In such circumstances, why do I indicate the possibility of capitulation by the PDP in the title of this piece? Capitulation is possible, perhaps even probable if somehow it finally percolates to the collective mind of Jonathan and the PDP that the forthcoming elections do not, in the first instance, rest on whether or not the APC and Buhari are more worthy than themselves. Jonathan and the PDP happen to be the incumbents, the hegemons of a rotten, wasteful and oppressive system and they must pay the price. If a mature, developed, legitimate and nationwide popular revolu-

ideologically driven parts of it, departed en masse from the PDP, leaving a gaping hole where that pivot of the party's hegemony rested. Thus, on the eve of the 2015 elections, we are looking at a greatly hobbled, some would even say permanently crippled party. Most Nigerians know these facts; and all well-informed and interested foreign commentators, governments and organizations are also conversant with these facts. But not the PDP. Or at least, the party pretends not to recognize this fundamental fact that everyone else recognizes: it is no longer, as it used to brag and still brags, "the largest ruling party in Africa". Perhaps if the saner and more realistic minds within the PDP come to the sober realization that the centre of its once real nationwide plurality has vanished for now and perhaps forever, the party will bow to the inevitable and not resort to the lure of Armageddon. On one single fateful day, the thief who thinks that all days and nights belong to him in perpetuity will be caught by the owner, so goes the anti-barawo, anti-looting adage that serves as the epigraph to this essay. Permit the sardonic bent with which I will try to apply this adage to my observations and reflections in this essay. On the one fateful day of reckoning when owners finally catch thieves who have been plaguing them, not all the thieves are caught; indeed, the owners are pleased to catch the biggest thieves and leave the capture of other members of the gang to another day. Days of reckoning are not singular, they are multiple; they may occur in cycles that are few and far between one another, but they surely always come. This electoral cycle, things have come full circle for the PDP. I wish to end on the hopeful note that thieves and brigands that escape on one particular day of reckoning will thank their stars and mend their ways. But this "miracle" must not be left to the voluntary exercise of the will of the escaped thieves; only the popular will of a mobilized people can instigate such a change of heart, mind and practice in our endlessly predatory ruling class. For believe me, this predatoriness will not end, will not simply go away on its own after February 14, 2015. Biodun Jeyifo bjeyifo@fas.harvard.edu

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

COMMENT

sms only: 08116759748

VEN as I write this there are indications that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was still facing intense pressure to shift the polls earlier scheduled for February 14 and 28. But if the commission sticks to its consistent position of being ready, then six days from now Nigerians would be voting in the most momentous polls since the return of democracy in 1999. All portents are indicative of a seismic shift in the country's power calculus. It is a measure of the heightened stakes that political tension has reached boiling point. Most foreign analysts have been projecting a very close and competitive race - with the winner and loser being separated by hundreds of thousands of votes and not millions as was the case in 2011. Other local estimates suggest that the gap might be much wider. One year ago if anyone had told stalwarts of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that they would be fighting for their political lives, they would have laughed him to scorn. The reality is that they are staring at the abyss. The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) has reasons to be optimistic. This was the party that the cynics never gave a chance. Some prophesied that it would be history in 12 months. Others expected an implosion as the different strands competed for party positions, and ultimately for the presidential ticket. Instead of the expected infighting a miraculous cohesion has taken hold of the party - imbuing it with a momentum that may very well propel it into Aso Villa. So how did the PDP blow an electoral contest that it could have won comfortably had it handled its internal contradictions differently? How did President Goodwill Jonathan succeed in tossing away the cross-party goodwill that elevated him to Acting President courtesy of the Doctrine of Necessity contrivance? How did he dismantle the 2011 coalition that neutralised the northern lobby for the presidency which was then using the agency of the PDP's internal zoning arrangements? How come some of those who fought hardest to enthrone him have become his fiercest critics? Today, a party that once believed it could re-enact in Nigeria the sort of dominance that the African National Congress (ANC) enjoys in South Africa; a party that once boasted it was the largest on the continent and would reign for 60 years, now faces the real prospect of ending up a shrivelled behemoth. It all happened on

E-mail: festus.eriye@gmail.com Twitter: @EriyeFestus

Saint Valentine's Day massacre or miracle?

â&#x20AC;˘Jonathan

â&#x20AC;˘Buhari

Jonathan's watch and he must take responsibility. Unlike under the more malleable parliamentary model, the election cycles under the presidential system are fixed. Everyone knows that the United States elects a new president every four years on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The Nigerian constitution which is fashioned after the American document also specifies a fixed time frame for holding the polls. That timetable is inviolable except under very extreme conditions which are equally spelt out in the constitution. So if a president is battling with a depressed economy and low approval ratings, he has no choice but to face the electorate. It is different with the parliamentary system where the Prime Minister could choose to call elections at a time when he or she enjoys relatively good polls and all other conditions favour victory. They would call such elections even when their tenure has not expired. Compared to 2011, Jonathan and the PDP are returning to voters in terrible shape. Four years ago, the ruling party quickly rallied its ranks after the heated primaries. Northern governors moved to mollify sections of the region which felt they should have been given another bite of cherry on account of Umaru Yar'Adua's demise. The party's southern flank was

intact and energised. Such was its goodwill that it even entered into unofficial electoral arrangements in the South that delivered millions of votes to Jonathan. Back then Muhammadu Buhari's Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) was monstrous up north but a virtually non-existent minnow down south. The APC didn't even exist in the imagination of its prime movers. Today, it provides Buhari with what he lacked in 2011 without losing ground to Jonathan and the ruling party. Aside its internal divisions, the ruling party's greatest albatross is the Boko Haram insurgency that has claimed between 20,000 and 30,000 lives in five years and led to the displacement of 1.5 million people internally. The terrorists control at least 14 local government areas across three states in the North East, and their activities have devastated the economy of the region. But the most graphic symbol of the failings of the administration regarding the insurgency remains the over 200 Chibok schoolgirls abducted by terrorists from their dormitories in the dead of night almost 10 months ago. Hopes of them ever returning are fading fast just as repeated pledges by the president to free them now ring hollow. In any election an underperforming economy can kill an incumbent. It is just Jonathan's luck that despite the nice sounding claims of Nigeria's economy being the largest on the continent, conditions are deteriorating. The collapse of crude oil prices and the crash of the naira against the dollar have grave implications. States and some federal government agencies have been experiencing difficulties paying salaries as their share of what normally flows from the Federation Account takes a hit. Already, government has introduced austerity measures that could see it unable to deliver critical

This Saturday, if it goes ahead, Nigerians are likely to witness a St. Valentine's Day electoral massacre if Buhari wins, or the political equivalent of Lazarus rising from the dead if Jonathan prevails against the odds. But then miracles can happen given that the president keeps the company of some of the biggest pastors in the land!

new infrastructure or finish those that are already ongoing. The outlook is truly bleak and it is a nightmarish condition under which any politician would approach the electorate. For the APC and its candidate, Buhari, the prospects could not be better. Not being the incumbent he doesn't face Jonathan's peculiar challenges. But he too has to defend the record of what he did in office 30 years ago. He has to defend his character as well as every niggling thing the PDP can find to throw at him - including the entertaining claim that he's a stark illiterate who didn't go to secondary school. Ordinarily, Buhari's record as a former military dictator contains enough to make any political strategist salivate. However, such are the dire conditions in the country today that people are more willing to forgive him his ancient sins than to contemplate that the Jonathan we've known in the last five and a half years would be radically transformed in the next four. Another thing working in favour of the former military ruler is time and that peculiar Nigerian tendency to move on quickly. A generation of voters has entered the register since the general ran the country. Most of them don't even remember the 'atrocities' that the PDP would want them to be outraged about. But even those who are old enough to recollect the days of queuing don't mind that he tried to do something about the problem of indiscipline - even if his methods were draconian. Thirty years on it remains a problem and it is appealing to have an alternative candidate with a reputation for confronting the issue.

What should tell the PDP which way the wind is blowing is that despite the slew of advertorial bombs hurled in his direction, Buhari sails on unscathed. He appears to be cut from the same cloth as another septuagenarian politician - former United States President Ronald Reagan - who was also the target of such savage attacks from his opponents but always emerged undamaged. That led to commentators dubbing him the "Teflon President" after a synthetic material of the same name on which nothing ever sticks. He is equally helped by the relative unity in the ranks of the APC. The party surprisingly has managed the fallout from its primaries better than the PDP. Another important factor that many are not recognising is what can best be described as 'ruling party-fatigue'. It is that affliction that comes upon the electorate in different countries from time to time and causes them to turn upon their long time rulers. They just get fed up with the same set of characters and want a change. How interesting that the APC's rallying cry is 'change!' Sixteen years after Nigerians may just have come down with a bad case of 'PDPfatigue'. I return to where we started and predict that if the elections were to hold today, the PDP and Jonathan would need a miracle to win. Any postponement within the window anticipated by the constitution might not help the ruling party much. If anything, it could even anger voters and make them more determined to kick out the party. So this Saturday, if it goes ahead, Nigerians are likely to witness a St. Valentine's Day electoral massacre if Buhari wins, or the political equivalent of Lazarus rising from the dead if Jonathan prevails against the odds. But then miracles can happen given that the president keeps the company of some of the biggest pastors in the land!

A Nigeria without oil

like most people, have condemned the recent threat by a group of ex-Niger Delta militant leaders - among them Chief Government Ekpemupolo, aka Tompolo, Asari Dokubo, Boyloaf and others - to go to war if President Jonathan is defeated at the polls. They equally vowed to cut off Nigeria oil supplies as reprisal for the looming 'insult to the Ijaw nation.' Having gotten over my outrage, I have thought about their comments, some more and now think we should be thanking them rather than chastising them endlessly. The way oil price is nosediving, who knows how low it would fall? The Central Bank Governor has already warned that the days of the $100 per barrel crude are gone for good. So when the price breaks the $10 barrier and it is possible one day - what would we do? When sales can barely cover production costs what would we do? Tompolo and his pals may

actually be doing us all a favour by cutting off the oil. While it has funded some development over the years, oil has been more of a pain in the neck for Nigeria. Not too long ago I attended a seminar organised by an NGO FIND - where speaker after speaker bemoaned the lack of discussion of serious policy issues by politicians. One speaker pointed out that some of the landmark achievements of this country were attained without oil revenue. Nigeria established the first television station in Africa without oil; the NECOM Building in Lagos was erected without petro-dollars - the list is endless. I can think of scores of countries that are better off than us economically and don't have oil in their territory. So rather than being some tragic occasion for bloodletting, the ex and future militants might just be doing everyone a favour by carrying out their threat. Surely there can be life in a Nigeria without oil if we start envisaging such a future now.

LIFE Two Nigerian soldiers tell first-hand stories of their encounters fighting Boko Haram. Sunday Oguntola reports.

â&#x20AC;˘Continued on Page 20

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

20 SUNDAY LIFE •Continued from Page 19

•Nigeria Army recapture Chibok from Boko Haram

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

SUNDAY LIFE 21

Burdened by the bloodletting in the North-East by radical Islamic sect, Boko Haram, some youths gathered in Lagos to ask Abubakar Shekau, the group's leader, some pertinent questions, reports Sunday Oguntola

•Shotobi is Oba-elect, Kingmakers insist By Olabisi Kehinde

•Shotobi

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

22 SUNDAY LIFE

•Ojuwoye market

•Solanke

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

SUNDAY LIFE

•Raji

•Madu

•Lawanson

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

24 SUNDAY LIFE Relatives of a final year LASU student Stanislus Ipogah, who was allegedly killed by a DHL truck are calling out for government's intervention, following a conspiracy of silence on the part of the courier company. Medinat Kanabe reports.

is dream to join the Nigerian Army as a commissioned officer and serve his country was what made Stanislus Ipogah relocate from Kaduna to Lagos, after trying without success for three years to join the military. As an alternative, he embraced the option to study Computer Science, another of his passion, at the Lagos State University, LASU, with the intention of going back to try again after graduation. But alas, all that dream and ambition have been aborted, as 29-year old Ipogah, in his final year and preparing for his final exams was recently knocked down and carelessly left to die, allegedly by a truck belonging to DHL Global Forwarding Symbol, as he waited to cross the road along LASU-Isheri Road, Iba Bus stop. The truck, with registration number KJA 998XA driven by Adegboyejo Festus, a staff of the courier company was said to be driving one-way on the occasion of the accident. What's however piercing the hearts of the grieving family at the moment is the conspiracy of silence and denial currently playing out, as the courier company has refused to send a condolence letter and officially accept responsibility. It has also purportedly denied ownership of the truck, even after the apprehended driver had professed to be working for the said company. Interestingly, Ipogah's family has also suddenly found out that the deceased has a 6month old child born to him by his girlfriend. Friends say he deliberately kept it secret for fear of disappointing his brother and guardian, Mr. John Ipogah. Mr. John Ipogha, who spoke with The Nation, expressed grief over the way the company (DHL) is taking the issue, lamenting how they will take care of the little boy (Emmanuel). According to Mr. Ipogah, a management consultant, he got a call on January 28 at about 3pm from his late brother's friends, Theodore that he had had an accident and was unconscious. “He said somebody just used Stani's phone to call him that the owner (of the phone) had been involved in an accident. “On my way I started receiving calls from his friend, Pius who told me to come hurriedly. When I got there I saw the police from the Ojo Police Station carrying his corpse away. I met the corpse in their ambulance. They told me that they wanted to take the body to Badagry Hospital, I pleaded that they take him to a nearby hospital but they said since it is an accident case; they must take it to Badagry. In the end, we deposited the body at Military Hospital, Ojo. “The next day, I went to the police station to go and make my statement; there I saw some people who said they were from DHL. They gave their names as Deji Ebo and Harold Maurice but they didn't have anything with which to identify themselves as DHL staff.” He said they apologised and told him the company will see what it can do about the issue. They also told him they will assist and see how they can help in the burial cost and other things. “I told them the burial cost is not the issue, that we have to meet with the company and discuss and that the company must also send condolence letter. They express their desire to give me N350, 000 for the burial even before we opened discussion on compensation,” he added. However in a swift u-turn, Mr. John Ipogah said the same people suddenly called to deny ownership of the vehicle that knocked down the deceased. Asked how Stanislus' aged parents based in Iviegbupui area in Etsako East, Edo State are taking the news, John said his aged father and mother have begun to mourn the traditional way. “My father is about 80 years-old and he

Controversy trails death of final year LASU student –killed by DHL truck

•Ipogah

•DHL truck that killed Stanislus Ipogah has 10 children. Stanislus is his eighth child, so you can imagine the pain they are going through right now. My mother cannot go out until he is buried traditionally. So we have to take his corpse home as soon as possible.” Expressing dissatisfaction with the way the police report was written, Mr. Ipogah said the police report didn't state that the truck belongs to DHL or that the vehicle was plying one-way. “It was when I got to the site of the incident that I discovered it was a DHL truck plying one-way that killed my brother and that he was killed right at the edge of the road, where he was standing, waiting to cross the road. He described his brother as an amiable, intelligent, respectful, very hardworking and useful young man. He called on the government to call the company to order. A visit to the scene of the accident An eyewitness, Femi, who spoke to The Nation revealed that they had to run after the truck to apprehend the driver,

who was already trying to escape after knocking down Stanislus. Said Femi: “He was then taken to a nearby clinic, where the doctor told the driver to get a vehicle to convey Stanislus, who was still alive to a teaching hospital, because his hospital could not handle the case. But instead of getting the vehicle or ambulance, the driver called his office and they instructed him to go and report himself to the police station, where he was detained. Femi also said that the Police came after about an hour, when the victim had died. “They said someone called that he had killed someone and that they had come to take the body away.” Another eye witness, Ebuka Daniel, who owns a shop opposite the scene of the accident and assisted in taking the victim to the hospital said he could have survived if the driver had responded on time. “Following the doctor's instruction, I followed the driver outside; but every time we stopped a vehicle, he said it was too expensive for him. He continued in that manner, until he ran away to report himself

at the police station where he was detained.” The doctor He doctor at Richville Hospital at 5, Olokun Close, Iba bus-stop, Dr Anthony Nwankwo who first attended to the deceased confirmed the eye witnesses' stories. “He was deeply unconscious when he was brought in and bleeding from the head, mouth, and nose. I told them he had a head injury and fracture base on his skull as I could feel the softness. I requested that he be taken to a teaching or general hospital, but they didn't come back until he died,” he said. Dr Nwankwo revealed that his team tried to resuscitate Stanislus, but lamented that one and half hours after, the driver did not come back. “It was after he died that we found out the driver instead of getting a vehicle, went to the police station.” Asked if there was a chance of survival, the doctor said there was but that it depended on prompt expert medical attention. His secret child You could call it relief for the family, but they suddenly discovered after his death that Stanislus had impregnated a lady he was dating, who had bore him a son, six months earlier. “Suddenly we discovered that he has a child. We were not aware that he has a 6 month-old child. He only told some of his close friends. His friends said he was very excited when the child was born,” his brother revealed. His lover's response She gave her name as Blessing Thomas from Ogoja in Cross-Rivers State. She told The Nation that she had dropped out of school after writing her Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and started to live with her uncle in the same building as Stanislus in Lagos. They met there and fell in love. Blessing said she was born 21 years ago and hopes to go back to school saying that was one of the promises Stanislus made to her while they were dating. “He also promised to marry me and take care of our child when I told him I was pregnant. I also heard that he had told my cousin that he would give her some money for me the day before he died.” Blessing who has been living in Ogoja since she got pregnant and put to bed, only came back to Lagos after learning of Stanislus' death. Speaking through her sister, Mrs. Mercy Eroh, she also noted that traditionally, it is mandatory for her to know the burial site, so that she could in the future be able to be show it to their son. His friends His friends, Jeffery Odiase, a graduate of the University of Benin and Bankola Olalekan of Lagos State Polytechnic, also added their voices. They said there was a diversion made by CCECC, a construction company because of a road construction going on. “They (CCECC) didn't put anything on the road to show that they were diverting vehicles. Stanislus was standing at the edge of the road waiting to cross the other side after successfully crossing the first lane. He didn't see the driver coming at first and when he saw him he couldn't move because he was confused. The driver tried to swerve, hitting him with the passenger side of the truck. He fell and hit his head on an iron used to keep flowers intact.” The Nation also discovered that the truck is still at the entrance of the street Stanislus lived, with the youths vowing to hold onto it until the company owned up to its responsibility. Okechukwu Moses, a student of University of Abuja who spoke on behalf of the youths in the community said the vehicle has been there ever since and that they take turns to guard it. He also said they were planning a candle light procession for him, adding that the Late Stanislus was like a brother to them. DHL response When The Nation called Mr. Maurice Harold of DHL, he confirmed knowledge of the incident but declined to comment, saying “I think the company is in discussion with the family of the deceased but I no longer handle the case.” However, Mr. John Ipogha's lawyer who had written to DHL said he got an anonymous call from telephone number 014625200, threatening him and denying that DHL owned the said vehicle.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

28 GLAMOUR

ADETUTU AUDU

crownkool@yahoo.com

08023849036, 08112662587

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

GLAMOUR 29

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

ETCETERA

SUNNY SIDE

Cartoons

By Olubanwo Fagbemi

POLITICKLE

deewalebf@yahoo.com 08060343214 (SMS only)

Significant terms •The cynic’s guide to Nigeria The writer considers the following to be fundamental issues in the season of choice.

CHEEK BY JOWL

OH, LIFE!

THE GReggs

AUSTERITY. Ushered in by corruption and waste, lean years are about to succeed an era of ‘plenty’. And it is a scenario always likely considering government officials’ penchant to fritter the Excess Crude Account (ECA) and Foreign Exchange Reserves on a diet of five-star hotels, caviar and champagne while ‘serving’ the country. Last year’s devaluation of the naira was the predictable reaction to plummeting crude oil prices. To rally a weary and wary nation, Ngozi OkonjoIweala – the madam minister from abroad – decreed austerity measures. Henceforth, the government would cut down on ‘avoidable’ spending sans, of course, usual expenditure on the presidential fleet and kitchen as well as the vice-president’s conveniences. Critically, citizens would be taxed more – notably through Value Added Tax (VAT) – to mop up the mess spilled by wayward guardians of the federal till. Still, it’s a bitter pill to swallow, one better tested on the fat cats in the executive and legislative arms of government first. VAT. How inspiring it would be to see the presidency ingest a dose of its own medicine for starters. Election. 2015 seemed so far away in 2011. As occurred with gubernatorial and House of Assembly elections in states with the progressives in power, the last presidential poll missed some of the usual election rancour. With loads of promise, the incumbent and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) frontrunner, Goodluck Jonathan, rode back to the Villa on extensive goodwill. Four years after, with faith in his leadership abilities trampled, the lust for power poorly masks an alleged single-term agreement from the transitory period of leadership following predecessor Umar Musa Yar’Adua’s demise. Now, the man who would not pretend to be ‘Lion’, ‘Pharaoh’, Nebuchadnezzar’ or ‘General’ rides roughshod over all opposition. Clearly goaded by sustained criticism following a trail of mishaps from extreme economics to the Boko Haram war and drab, grating speeches at every turn, Jonathan exploded at his party’s opening 2015 presidential election campaign in the ‘enemy territory’ of Lagos. Taken as omen, mudslinging by his spokespersons and desperate acolytes, especially on All Progressives Party (APC) candidate, Muhammadu Buhari’s school certificate, portend elections unlikely to be certified ‘free, fair and credible’. And the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC)’s posturing is of scant comfort. Hamstrung from the beginning by the mode of Attahiru Jega’s appointment as chairman, the umpire seemed more in tune with the piper at the Villa than credible polls. It made no sound when the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) jumped the gun with pseudo-campaign moves termed ‘rallies’ in support of the PDP candidate. And its Permanent Voter Card (PVC) issuance and distribution are just as discordant. Deregulation. The favoured Okonjo-Iweala word for economics fabricated abroad, specifically the World Bank. With Yuletide festivities over and speculation around fuel price deregulation fuelled by a token 10% slash in fuel pump price compared to other major oil-producing countries, household micro-economics experts emanate by the day. Beyond balancing personal income with deficit caused by infectious end-of-year spending, there is the clear and present danger of an indifferent administration to consider. Once oil prices rise and stabilise, count on the government of the day to plead fuel subsidy withdrawal so to free funds for development, but looting inevitably ensues. In the hands of party cronies, for instance, the government’s contrived agency for redistribution of saved funds tagged Sure-P operates more like ‘Sure-F’ – Sure Fraud. However optimistic the national economic outlook remains in the face of a N13 devaluation of the naira, no one can shake off the spectre of imminent deregulation and a further markdown of the currency. With diesel pricing long past acceptable levels and kerosene retail rate fairly indeterminable, the fuel price war is all but lost – unless, of course, a new government emerges with a humane and pragmatic approach to governance. •Continues next week

QUOTE

Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber. —Plato

Jokes Humour The Lawyer’s Promise A DYING man gives each of his best friends – an accountant, a doctor and a motivational speaker – an envelope containing N200,000 in cash to be placed in his coffin. A week later the man dies and the friends each place an envelope in the coffin. Several months later, the speaker confesses that he only put N50,000 in the envelope and sent the rest to a mission in East Africa. The doctor confesses that his envelope had only N30,000 because he donated to a medical charity. The accountant is outraged. “I am the only one who kept my promise to our dying friend. I want you both to know that the envelope I placed in the coffin contained my personal check for the entire N200,000.” Duck Talk A DUCK walks into a bar and asks, “Got any grapes?” The confused barman tells the duck ‘no’. The duck thanks him and leaves. The next day, the duck returns and asks, “Got any grapes?”

Again, the barman says, “No, the bar does not serve grapes, has never served grapes and, furthermore, will never serve grapes.” The duck thanks him and leaves. The next day, the duck returns, but before he can say anything, the barman yells. “Listen, duck! This is a bar! We do not serve grapes! If you ask for grapes again, I will nail your stupid duck beak to the bar!” The duck is silent for a moment. He looks around and asks, “Got any nails?” Confused, the barman says ‘no’. “Good!” says the duck. “Got any grapes?” Disarming the Guard LEMMY: “I got fired from my job as a bank guard.” Clemmy: “That’s awful. What happened?” Lemmy: “Well, a thief came in, and I drew my gun. I told him that if he took one more step, I’d let him have it.” Clemmy: “What did the thief do then?” Lemmy: “He took one more step, so I let him have it. I didn’t want that stupid gun anyway.” •Adapted from the Internet

Writer ’s Fountain ROFESSIONAL writing tips: A universal writing advice is to write on topics convincing manner. Non-fiction writers often have to acquire knowledge beyond known you are most familiar with. But that is true to boundaries. Being able to write what you don’t an extent. You may conveniently write about know is essential to building a career. your town or have your character do the same To achieve success in writing, you, the job that you do, but you’ll ultimately have to budding ace, will find the following tips useful. look beyond your comfort zone. Focus on experience Fiction writers, especially specialised You may never have been in a gunfight, writers, usually write what they don’t know. but you can still write about it. While you may They need not have walked on the planet Mars not know what it is like to be in battle, you can or saved a prisoner from the hangman’s noose, follow instructions on how to fire a gun, besides yet they manage to depict proceedings in a knowing what it is like to fear for your safety and that of your family or friends. Counter-acting facts: Readers are not really after the plot, they •An ant lion is neither an ant nor a lion. are after the emotions that the plot gives them. •Giraffes and rats can last longer without Everyone knows what it is like to strive for water than camels. something, to be disappointed, or to be enraged. •Alligators cannot move backwards. These emotions will carry the scenes in a story. •A giraffe can run faster then a horse. •A giraffe is one of the few animals that uses When you start looking at the scenes in those terms, you will discover more about your mostly its front legs when it runs. characters’ situations. •An albatross can sleep while flying. This works for non-fiction. You should focus •A horse can look forward with one eye and on things that affect everyone. You may not be back with the other. a refugee or a fugitive even, but you can •A shrimp’s heart is located in its head. •A snail, which can sleep (hibernate) for three imagine what is like to miss home and be worried about your family’s future when you years, only mates once. are not with them.

POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

POLITICS 33

POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

POLITICS 35

POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

POLITICS 37

POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

POLITICS 39

POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

POLITICS 41

POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

IN VOGUE By Kehinde Oluleye

Tel: 08023689894 (sms) E-mail: kehinde.oluleye@thenationonlineng.net

Raising a voice for the Nigerian girl With Temilolu Okeowo temilolu@girlsclub.org.ng 07086620576 (sms only) Please visit my blog www.temiloluokeowo.wordpress.com for more inspiring articles. Twitter@temiloluokeowo

THEATRE

With VICTOR AKANDE

BIGSCREEN

SOUND TRACK

Tel: 08051101822

GISTS

plus

E-mail: victor_akande@yahoo.com

By Ovwe Medeme

ARAMIDE DROPS NEW SINGLES D'banj recounts early days

ENTERTAINMENT

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

Continued on Page 57

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015 Continued from Page 56

ENTERTAINMENT

Startimes,

COSON reconcile By Joe Agbro Jr

And retired General Buhari has trampled on the rights of my family when he jailed my father, illegally for that matter. And Fela was innocent. This is why it would be difficult for me to say I want to vote for Buhari...

â&#x20AC;˘ Mr. Chinedu Chukwuji

ENTERTAINMENT

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

Adekunle Adejuyigbe is a Nigerian filmmaker whose love for the arts saw him sacrificing his degree as an Electrical Engineer. Simply known as Nodash, the video director says that he is starting 2015 on a sound footing. He speaks with OVWE MEDEME on the need for Nigerians to be politically conscious, amidst other issues.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

'Jazz music defines my art' T

HE peculiarity of her works distinguish her from the rest. This is perhaps why she describes her works as the norrd phenomenon. For young Nissi Ogulu, painting and experimenting with deep colours to give a unique surreal feeling is part of what she has come to learn differently as an artist. During her just concluded art exhibition at the Terra Kulture, Lagos, Ogulu, a second year engineering student of Warwick University, England, told The Nation that painting is a passion she cultivated and imbibed at a very tender age. A granddaughter of the famous music icon and columnist, Benson Idonije, Ogulu who also plays some musical instruments and often indulges herself in jazz at her spare time, says arts runs in her family. The norrd phenomenon was adopted by her "just to be different from what others have been doing. It is an experiment that is totally unique and not common in the Nigerian society" she says. The intriguing aspects of her works dwell in her ability to use profound colours in loose and dropping forms to juxtapose her subject. While the exhibition was going on and as guests and art patrons hovered around within the premises to view her array of works, a jazz instrumentalist was busy playing a saxophone in the background. "Yes, Ogulu intones, "parts of what I did in most of these paintings, the times when I conceptualised them, music was indeed playing in the background. I am mostly inspired to draw unique woks when the music is on and I am transported to a higher realm. For me, music and painting go hand-in-hand. My family has deep love for music, for art generally and this is what I often bring to bear in my works", she says. The deep etchings of droppings of lines, the endless use of loose colours that define oriental form of painting, all depict strings of musical instruments. These lines are like the jazz instruments, like a huge musical band pelting out series of sounds to sooth the people. Some of the lines drop like tears. But to Ogulu, they are tears of joy, tears of artistic expressions imbued with love; mixed with the inner feelings of someone in a deep nostalgic feeling of ideas. Ideas, like it is usually said, define the line of thought of a committed artist. Basically, Ogulu brings emotions into her works. "Emotions, real deep inner emotions, reflect in the art of painting. It shows how reflective or otherwise you were when you were doing a particular work. "This is why I often experiment in such a way that my works look unfinished. This is deliberate; but you can see those array of colours of surrealism dropping down the lines on the canvass. What do they say to you? That art is often an unfinished matter. It is just like music that does not end and will never end. It goes on and on and on, seeping into your soul And who can stop the flow of good music? She asks, stooping a bit for emphasis. In most of her works, the introduction of black and white colours in the background helps to bring out the total epitome of the beauty of the subject-matter. In one of her most outstanding works depicting Massai warriors from East Africa, she shows a complete abstract piece which serves as a reflection of the current times. The theme is instructive of the nature of one of the tribes that make up Kenya as a country. She goes on to situate the Massai warriors in their beauty and as one of the most dreadful in terms of costuming in Africa. Yet, today, the warriors have been integrated into the East African larger society. "If I had used the same colours here, I may not have got the desired contrast," she explains. In who am I, one of her most outstanding works on exhibit, she demonstrates life in a global context. "At times, someone doesn't know who he or she really is. You often look everywhere to discover who you are. It is always for some people to also discover and define what plans God has for them. It is a problem common to people from across the globe. For some people therefore, it can take them a whole length of time to discover the direction they are headed while for others it is not so. In that case, I try to find myself; I try to discover myself from within. It is a total realism of the

Nissi Ogulu whose norrd art is making waves right now has just concluded an exhibition in Lagos. A second year Mechanical Engineering student of Warwick University, England, her paintings dwell more on what she describes as phenomenal art, something different from the rest. She spoke to Edozie Udeze on her form of art, why music has come to form the basic component of her form and more. mind during the process of this creative journey. Once I come up with an idea, I put it down and then I make a piece. I am constantly thinking of reinventing myself. That is indeed my motivation." In her art also, she tries to take Nigeria abroad and bring back other people to reflect a total global village. This is what I want to expand; that horizon of art that is all encompassing, all inclusive. A native of Ahoada in Rivers state, Ogulu says she is now set to overcome the world with her form of art.

Harnessing the jewel Title: Author: Publishers: No of pages: Reviewer:

â&#x20AC;˘Ogulu and her paintings state of man on earth', she reflects, smiling. So in trying to bring something different into the Nigerian art scenes, Ogulu took her time to understudy the situation properly. "I saw that everybody is doing basically the same thing. So, based on this, I asked myself, how can I be different, how can I move away from the routine and give the Nigerian society the sort of art that is unique. It was like artists here are scared of playing with colours. But for me, deep application of colours, give the art its profound meaning and appreciation". And so the norrd art as defined by Ogulu has come to make issues clearer to appeal to human conscience. Today, her phenomenal art can be turned into contemporary, yet it brings nostalgic feelings into the minds of those who tend to show interest in and appreciate her works. Initially, when the experiment began to blossom, Ogulu thought the better of it was to forget the usage

of black colours completely. But with time, it began to down on her that she could equally use black to make bold artistic statements. "Yet other colours say more about the norrd art, about the uniqueness I have been talking about", she says. Over time, she has come to have very vivid and imaginative art form that gives her distinctive signature. "I am realistic and imaginative. Just me, making reality interesting. That is what I really want to do. Be wild and colourful, so that it can be contemporary in its own way, and at the same time remain vibrant. That my works look the way they are is deliberate because I'd like to do things I've never seen before. I usually think outside the box. It took me about two years to arrive at this, to be able to say okay even though I am still learning, I am still in the process of experimenting my own form. Let me be who I want to be. For me there is never a defined demographic scene in

The Betrothal Esther Adekoya Nile Ventures, Lagos 225 Edozie Udeze

Only a few people on earth really understand what God has in stock for those who chose to dedicate their lives to him. For Jewel and Jezreel in this book, The Betrothal, the story is quite clear. When you have given your life to God, He equally has a place for you in His plans. When soon after birth, Jewel was betrothed to Jezreel due to the circumstances her parents could not control, it became obvious that eventually the arrangement may not work. The Jezreel's family had plenty of money while that of Jewel actually struggled to make ends meet. That indeed was the crux of matter. While Jewel grew, this strange arrangement continued to haunt and hunt her. Who on earth was this strange fellow or lover always sending her love notes and text messages? This was one puzzle she was bound to unravel, to be able to know what was in stock for her. After her 21st birthday bash, she eventually got to know the true identity of Jezreel who was then in London. When at the end of it all, the cat was let out of the bag, the two began to see if the strange arrangement could work. Jewel who finally gave her life to Christ was also desperate for her man to do so. But Jezreel was too much into the world to be able to listen to the good news of salvation. So on and on, the two could not find true meeting point between them. The love simply refused to flower or blossom, that they finally went their separate ways. Jewel was able to find her true love later and together the two made an enviable pair. The author of the novel, Esther Adekoya, known for her wonderful books to inspire teenagers, spent enough time to do a book to help young boys and girls understand the rules of love life. It is a book full of moral lessons for the young. The language is simple and flawless, done in such a way that the instructions espoused in it are so easy to assimilate. It is a book of counseling. It can also encourage young couples to grasp the ideals of love life. This book is deeper in the area of the right conducts and can be used to restore confidence in the minds of the young. In 225 pages, it is important for readers to grasp the depth of knowledge espoused in the book. It is a book for all times.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY,

ARTS

FEBRUARY 8, 2015

Creating arts with tiles

S the world goes artistic in every aspect of life, Agbi said: "we are thinking along that line by giving arts a new shape. We do this by encouraging everyone to use a simulation of designs, made within a few days, to create a world of their own. It is strange the initiative seems not to be known. But we have been in business since 2004. For someone like me who had worked as a banker for over ten years with the then WEMA Bank that transformed to OMEGA Bank and now to Spring Bank; I imbibed that culture of creativity from there. Through that period, I observed the role that IT played in renovating banks from manual to IT-wired digital operations. "This innovation made things better than what it used to be. That singular ingenuity aroused my interest in digital technology which I then decided to transfer into the way we live. So, by the time my United Kingdom (UK) partner, Graphix Tiles, intimated me with the idea of how we can transfer and engrave images into tiles and other products, it blended easily with what has always been on my mind. So, we began this new phase of our transformational artistic venture on that note. "What we do is that we bring an edge of artistic imaging into tiling of offices, homes and church,. In which case, whilst your regular tiles are just plain or with some lines drawn on them, ours enables you, as a lover of arts, to redesign your tiles to suit your dreams for your home or offices. So, rather than just make do with what is available, you re-create the same tiles you just bought in the markets to exactly what you want. "The difference here is that where a regular artist invites you to his or her arts exhibition, you daily live or work in an artistic environment to exhibit. You bring your own ideas to whatever you want on your tiles and customise your tiles. This has never happened before. Through a process called 'digital transfer', everyone can now have their dream design in their Biblenomics: Before Adam Smith, there was... AUTHOR: Bayo Sodade PUBLISHER: The Book Company Limited NO. OF PAGES: 138 YEAR OF PUBLICATION: 2014 TITLE:

AVING an insightful, wellresearched book on economic concepts,ethical values and management principles which stem from biblical precepts, depicts ingenuity as exhibited by Bayo Sodade in "Biblenomics: Before Adam Smith, there was..." The book's publication is a novel idea meticulously conceived through the indepth knowledge of economics and the Bible, as Sodade deftly underscores modern thoughts in economics, finance and management, in comparison with biblical precepts, flawlessly referencing wisdom nuggets that drive home his points. It is noteworthy that the Nigerian civil service is characterized by intellectuallygifted elements as the latest book obviously brings to fore the ingenuity of some of its practitioners, most especially, in economic planning, as personified by Sodade. Having worked at the Lagos State Civil Service, where he garnered his wealth of experience in the area of budget, planning, finance and procurement for 31 years, Sodade has proven his mettle as a versatile economist with this unique presentation. The author maximises his exploration of the Bible, showcasing a clear understanding of its concepts, and establishing the fact that economic and management thoughts have their roots in the age-long spiritual book. Divided into three chapters which explicitly define productivity, division of labour, conflict management, delegation of duties, integrity, nepotism, among others, the book corroborates each economic concept with references from the Bible, with the author copiously quoting the scriptures for clearer understanding. Chapter one's analysis is based on contemporary economic and management concepts in comparison with wisdom nuggets from the Bible; Chapter two seeks to identify the scriptural compass to financial

From over a decade in the banking sector to the world of arts, Mr. Samuel Kunle Agbi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Safeway Information Technologies Nig Ltd, an ICT-based company with speciality in IT training, digital imaging on tiles, glasses and many others, believes that no one should remain backward in an age where technology provides the platform to diversify. He speaks with Joke Kujenya on how to make your offices, churches, homes, and indeed, every place of human existence an arts exhibition

â&#x20AC;˘ Agbi

own castles. It gives you an alternative to painting your structure for a low maintenance, long lasting finish to the

walls and enables you to create what we call bespoke, that is, custom-built, designs. "You know when you 'bake images' into tiles, they are not ordinary drawings or sketches, but 'impregnated' into your tiles for durability. A couple can even engrave their picture on the tile of their wedding reception to make it a customised wedding event, or for floor or wall, they make your kitchen, bed, living or bathroom personally theirs, as an individual artist of your own world by customising the dimension or portion you want done. "Sadly in Nigeria, the first thing you want to look at is expense, but everyone can actually do what his or her money can cope with. For instance, if The Nation wants to do this, the company will just have the floor of its reception hall engraved with its name. So, that will be the company's artistic message, like its copyright. Again as expected, the cost would be high because you're turning the conventional tiles into an artist's expression. You will only realise at the end that, the cost is worth the image you're creating. And for now, it is so because we are currently on a franchise

Making meaning out of nothing success, while Chapter three deals with biblical stumbling blocks to financial success which must be avoided by individuals desirous of economic growth. Sodade's submission is that for every value system humanity places premium importance on, the ancient book provides the source. He infers that Adam Smith, whom the world believes to be the father of economics and the most influential thinker in the field, could have drawn his inspiration from the Bible. "What is the connection between the Bible and Economics? Economics studies human behaviour as it relates to meeting unlimited needs from resources that are not only scarce, but also have alternative uses. The Bible was inspired by a benevolent God who understands human needs and provided divine guidance to prosperity. Our God cannot co-reign with poverty because He is the El-Shaddai-the All Sufficient God....," he writes. The author awakens reader's conciousness as he convincingly establishes the nexus between economics, finance, management and the Bible, giving a roadmap into living a successful and God-fearing life. The book would be of tremendous value to Christians who strive for success in a corrupt-ridden world, and guide them towards its attainment. "The Bible is a sword, arming the Christian for all earthly battles, including those of poverty and want," the author stresses. Having carved a niche as a reputable former facilitator in the Lagos State Treasure Training School, and the incumbent Permanent Secretary in the Lagos State Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Sodade seeks to impact positively on the readers in this book. Citing gossip, anxiety, pride, procrastination, greed, discrimination,

corruption, dishonesty, hypocrisy and envy as some of the avoidable hindrances to success, he makes it crystal clear that the road to economic breakthrough is paved with a myriad of challenges which could deflate ambition and sentence the unwary to a perpetual state of misfortune.

with the UK company and trying to sensitise the Nigerian public to what this offers them. However, depending on acceptability, we would have our own home-based factory where people can demand their individualistic tiles for their personal use. But basically, we use all tiles, Italian or Chinese, to create an interior that would withstand the demands of your environment and at the same time match with your design style. Also for now, the start-up is hard to be determined because when you get orders from home-based clients, we only send their image requirements to the parent company in UK, who builds in their image concepts, and then, return it to Nigeria for delivery to customers. "Above business, for us, this is for your personal interest and living satisfaction. You can have the versatility you want with our unique bespoke on a fresh perspective. Every life is individual, as such we appreciate that every home is different and requires a stylish mural to create a stunning feature for their interior space. That is why I believe that from single tiles to larger scale projects, we work with each client directly to create for you an artistic wall painting to compliment your dream home style and personality. "Like artists, we help everyone interpret and turn their vision into reality. Again, due to the current fluctuation in the forex markets, the project could experience some constraints just like any other business, but we are hoping that government will do more of start-ups. In fact, for the austere period our government just introduced, an average Nigerian, no matter the social status, need to have tiled murals in their home because they are hard-wearing and fade-resistant and retains the colours vivid for the life of the project. Also, the tiles are slip-resistance to ensure health and safety with pendulum testing method for an average user. All Nigerians are artists in the making if they can just put their creative minds into carving out their own homes", concluded Agbi.

Poetry Me or mammon Tell me today Who you will love Me or Mammon Mammon like me Comes with an expiration date But prior To that destiny of dust I advertise the boisterous bliss Of flesh Volunteer nutrients Of muscular belief Faithful like earth To stand on To fall on To fill I will love The love of vows To bow To scour the earth To loaf To loath To wither for you Mammon prospers By remote authority His basket basks In renewing harvests By: Sam Omatseye

AGOS based artist, Morgan Nwanguma got recognition for his winning poem 'Oh Sweet Berlin' recently. He also got an award at the Goethe Institute (the organizers of a Poetry Competition commemorating the fall of the Berlin Wall) and was awarded his prize and certificate as one of the three winners of the contest. The theme of the contest was 'Freedom & the Word'. In the photo Morgan is receiving his price from the director - Mr MarcAndre Schmachtel. â&#x20AC;˘ Schmachel and Morgan

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

Rising cost of doing business Page 58, 59

•Printing machine

2015 polls: Postponement bad for economy-Lagos Chamber

NXIETY over the planned postponement of the 2015 February general elections has not abated as the council of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has expressed concern over the calls in some quarters for the postponement of the elections, warning that the postponement may have adverse effect on the economy. In a statement made available to The Nation, which reads in part, the council noted that such a move would have significant negative

consequences for investors' confidence, the economy, and the stability of the polity. The credibility of the electoral process could also be put at risk. The LCCI council urged all Nigerians and in particular the political class to respect the outcome of the elections; and candidates with reservations should seek redress in accordance with the law. All forms of violence should be avoided. Without peace, nothing else will happen in an economy "Political and social stability are critical factors that drive investors'

confidence. Therefore, the quality of the electoral process and the conduct of the major players in the political space are most critical at this time. The LCCI Council reiterates its call on the key institutions in the transition process to be above board - INEC, security agencies and the judiciary. They should be non-partisan, and should be seen to be so. This is necessary to earn the confidence of the citizens and the stakeholders in the electoral process." The LCCI council also reiterated its call for the federal government to

Pension assets hit N4.6trillion

HE NATIONAL Pension Commission, PenCom, at the weekend said the nation's total pension assets had risen above N4.6 trillion. Director-General of PenCom, Mrs. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu, who disclosed this at a one-day dialogue on 'The capital market and 2015 federal budget', organised by the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers in collaboration with Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria and the Association of Issuing Houses of Nigeria, said it was heart-

Stories by Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf

ening to note that things are really looking up for the pension scheme thus far. She said with more than 21 pension fund administrators and over 6.3 million contributors nationwide, the pension scheme holds a lot of promise as a major source of socio-economic development. "Payment of pension under the contributing pension scheme is now prompt and consistent since 2007. So far, over 6.3

million contributors have been registered into the scheme since its inception." While noting that the Pension Reform Act 2004 was not perfect, she, however, said the re-enacted Pension Reform Act, 2014 has been designed in such a way to cover those in the public and private subsectors. The PenCom boss, who was represented by Mr. Olulana Olayemi, also hinted of plans by the Commission to partner with investors in the capital market with a view to developing the sector.

-- Page 53

‘Nigeria’s printing industry competes globally’ Page 59

discontinue its subsidy scheme on PMS and kerosene in the light of the drop in global oil price. Government should take the opportunity presented by the current realities to exit the subsidy scheme in view of the fiscal leakages and other transparency issues associated with the scheme. This would liberate the downstream oil sector from the shackles of inefficiency and corruption. The council maintained that this is the time to allow the private sector to take full charge of the downstream sector and unleash the huge potential that exists in the sector. According to her, pension fund is very important in view of the fact that it produces long-term funds for the capital market. PenCom, she said, would come out with useful regulations to support investment windows within the market. The capital market operators, she maintained, should be able to come up with new products that will make use of pension assets. "On our part, we will come with risk acceptance criteria to guide the process. We would be very flexible. This is just to show the extent we are willing to go to support capital market," she stressed.

‘Nigeria is biggest importer of tomato in Africa’

Page 60

Gaius- Obaseki, others for Aret Adams Memorial Lecture

HE Aret Adams Foundation is set to host the 12th annual Aret Adams Memorial Lecture series in Lagos on Thursday 26th February, 2015 at the Muson Centre. In a statement made available to The Nation by the Programmes Coordinator of Aret Adams Foundation, Mr. Akin Jokojeje, he said this year's lecture tagged "Gas: An Engine of Growth For Nigeria" will have in attendance major players and stakeholders in the oil and gas industry, financial institutions as well as captains of industries. Among those expected at the event is the Group Executive Director (Power and Gas) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mr. David Ige, as well as the Managing Director/ CEO of Frontier Oil Limited, Engr. Thomas Dada, who will be the guest speakers, while Dr. Dr. Jackson Gaius-Obaseki (Chairman of Brass LNG Company Limited) will chair the occasion. Jokojeje recalled that the foundation was established in honour of the late Chief Godwin Aret Adams, the first Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (1988 to 1990), who later became the Special Adviser on Petroleum Resources to former military president, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, adding that Aret Adams made outstanding contributions toward the growth of Nigeria's oil and gas industry and the nation's economy in general. The foundation, Mr. Jokojeje said, is aimed at promoting and building educational capacity and policy formulations. He disclosed that the national energy policy delivered to the federal government in April 1980 was formulated by the late Aret Adams and that it was him that re-energised negotiations that led to the successful execution of shareholders' agreements for the execution of the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) project in 1989 and many others. He went further to reveal that the foundation has institutionalised the Aret Adams Professorial Chairs at the University of Port Harcourt in collaboration with Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC). In addition, the late Chief Aret Adams, being a Geologist par excellence during his life time and an alumnus of the University of Ibadan, has propelled the foundation to be given scholarship awards to the few selected best Post Graduate students in Geology of the University of Ibadan on yearly basis to assist them in the pursuit of their M.Sc degree programmes. Also giving an insight into the forthcoming annual lecture, the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Foundation, Mr. Egbert Imomoh, (Chairman, Afren Energy Resources Limited), noted that Chief Aret Adams left behind a legacy of professionalism and humanitarianism as epitomised in many lives he touched, irrespective of tribe or religious affiliations while he was alive. "It was those virtues of his that motivated few colleagues and associates to establish the foundation, to propagate and sustain the life-long dreams of the late Godwin Aret Adams."

Winners emerge in Cussons Baby Moments Competition

•From left: Chairman/Guest Speaker, Jerry Weller, Founder/CEO, Centre for Values In Leadership (CVL) Prof. Pat Utomi, Lagos State gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Jimi Agbaje and former Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, during the CVL 12th Annual Lecture Symposium at Muson Centre Onikan, in Lagos at the weekend. PHOTO: MUYIWA HASSAN

INNERS of the second edition of Cussons Baby Moments Competition have emerged, with Morireoluwa Modesire Davids besting other contestants, Caleb Adedeji and Olajide Alufa, who took second and third places respectively. Morireoluwa alongside three members of her family will enjoy an all-expenses paid trip while second place winner, Caleb Adedeji, and Olajide Alufa got a cash prize of N200,000 and N100,000 respectively. Speaking after the award ceremony, Mrs. Funmi Davids expressed her delight for the recognition given to her daughter and the family. She noted that the victory recorded in the competition remained a significant milestone that cannot be forgotten in a long time to come. According to her, winning the grand prize was the surest way to celebrate her birthday since she just clocked one a few days ago. On her part, the Marketing Director of PZ Cussons, Mrs Sandy Griffiths, commended the parents for identifying with the brand, promising that the company will not relent in meeting the needs of its loyal consumers. She said: "We love the kids and have seen the excitement around the competition. It is a very honourable platform and delighted about it because it is engaging for both mums and dads. What it will give us as a company is that it would help us build loyalty with our consumers and we ask parents to continue to use Cussons baby product on the kids not only when they are babies but also when they become toddlers and growing up as well."

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

BUSINESS

Rising cost of doing business T

HE drive for foreign direct investment notwithstanding, for many prospective businesses nursing the idea of coming to Nigeria to set up shop, their greatest worry remains how to cope with the sometimes unfriendly business environment fuelled in part by limited infrastructure, defective policies, to mention just a few.

The ease of doing business in Nigeria is becoming increasingly difficult as most businesses continue to suffer a lot of privations than they are willing to admit, reports Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf

Crux of the matter To the uninitiated, the muchhyped promises of growth, high returns on investment are good enough reason to want to invest in an emerging market economy but not so for those who have had a taste of the bitter pill, especially the high cost associated with running businesses in Nigeria. Whether physical infrastructure, poor regulatory framework, inadequate institutional funding from the banks or the lack of support from quasi-governmental agencies, among others, the list is by no means endless. Reality bite Despite assurances by government at all levels to the promises of better operating business environment, manufacturers continue to lament high cost of doing business in the country, a development, they said, that has led many industries to either close down their operations or relocate to neighbouring countries. Giving his perspective, the Director-General of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ACCIMA), Joseph Wenegieme, said the business climate in Nigeria has been a challenging one despite the fact that there is growth and development as evidenced by the number of companies springing up to start business in Nigeria, but regretted that the business environment has remained harsh, as the cost of doing business in the country is on a high scale. He said power supply has been erratic, adding that members of the chamber have had to rely on diesel-powered generators for production, submitting that other members needed encouragement. He said non-access to finance makes doing business in Nigeria difficult. "Some companies are already divesting from the Nigerian market, and going to neighbouring countries like Ghana, Benin Republic and so on because of growing insecurity on investments and harsh economic climate," he said. Apart from the manufacturing sector, there is seemingly no other sector of the economy that is not bemoaning the high cost of doing business in the country. President of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN), Tomi Akingbogu, said the complaint from members of the association from most commercial states has been that the cost of doing business is so high up to the extent that some local businesses are folding up. "So, how do you encourage foreign investors into tourism or other sectors with such challenging factors? The issue of multiple taxes is also another problem, which needs to be resolved. "How do you expect business to survive when one has to pay per minute to park his car before he goes to the market or the bank to do business? Yes, parking needs to be controlled, but there is a way to do it. Like they can make it free for a certain period, say two hours, then after that, you pay. With that, everyone with business interest can come and do business with that con-

â&#x20AC;˘Skyline of Lagos business district

sciousness. But with the way things are going, businesses are finding it tough to cope, while unemployment is increasing. It cannot continue like this. People will rise up as unemployment increases in any society. That is why we have so many social problems. Presently in the country, if everybody has food to eat and there is a future to look up to, then no one will want to kill himself," he said. Also, the Institute of Directors (IoD), Nigeria, condemned the high cost of doing business in Nigeria, saying it is the bane of economic growth and development in the country. The institute said access to and high cost of finance, lack of infrastructure and good operating environment, smuggling and substandard goods, lack of local patronage, dearth of industrial skills, and absence of investment in innovations are some of the problematic factors affecting cost of doing business in the country. Experts have also said that infrastructure deficit in Nigeria valued at trillions of naira places about 15 per cent additional burden on the cost of doing business by manufacturing firms and service providers in the country, leading to high cost of products and services. The deficit, according to the experts, is so huge that Nigeria needs to spend about $14.2 billion per year for the next 10 years to be able to bridge the gap. African Finance Corporation, an international finance body that supports most businesses in Africa, Nigeria inclusive, is terribly worried

over the high cost of doing business in Nigeria. President/CEO, African Finance Corporation (AFC), Mr. Andrew Ali, who expressed these concerns lately, cited several factors, especially poor electricity supply, as responsible for the skyrocketing cost of doing business in Nigeria. He expressed regret that most companies operating in Nigeria run on generators because of inadequacy in public power supply, pointing out that this adds to the cost of doing business in the country. Ali said if the problem of electricity supply is addressed, the cost of doing business will be reduced. He called on government to ensure more active participation of industry operators in the country's technology development. The federal government, he said, needs to build investors' confidence and assure them of high level security of their data and businesses. "Government must create a fair business ground that will enable operators roll out services outside urban cities. Although it is very expensive rolling out broadband services in urban areas not to talk of rural areas, and it becomes even more expensive with the multiple taxes imposed on operators by various governments for infrastructure rollout," he said. Citing the example of the nation's telecoms sector wrongly perceived as a money-spinning business and want to share from the supposed money at all cost, he said this was a very misinformed view, which has led to the cost of doing business in

the country. Echoing similar sentiments, Chief Executive Officer of VDT Communications, Biodun Omoniyi, which led the three companies that formed Bitflux Consortium, which won the 2.3GHz spectrum licence in Nigeria, he blamed the harsh operating business environment in the country for the slow pace of growth in the telecoms sub-sector. Omoniyi called on the government always to strive to provide the right business environment, and commended the NCC for what he described as highly transparent auction of the 2.3 GHz spectrum last year. Points to ponder Adebari Akudo, an economist, while attempting a prognosis of the many challenges besetting businesses, said these include high operating costs from a dependence on generators and alternative water supply, difficult transportation access and considerably high accommodation prices. Besides, the dearth of talents, he stressed, also makes the cost of attracting and retaining top-performers significant and often times costly. "The financial cost of doing business squeezes both the producer and the consumer and over the long term leaves both parties ravaged and in many cases, extinct." Apart from monetary cost is the problem of biting social cost. Expatiating, Akudo said: "Social costs are usually responsible for the inactivity and slow pace of growth of many firms that may have effectively

weathered the storm of financial cost." World Bank verdict In the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Report of June 2013, Nigeria ranked 147th of 189 countries globally, compared to South Africa which ranked 41st and Ghana which ranked 67th over the same period. According to the global body, the report of this year's study on Doing Business indicated that almost all nations on the continent took deliberate steps to implement reforms which made doing business easier for private sector operators. "The report, Sub-Saharan Africa has had a great year of reform, with 35 of 47 economies recording at least one reform that makes it easier to do business - 75 reforms in total." Nigeria alone undertook 10 regulatory reforms in its push towards making private sector operators take charge of the economy. Majority focused on improving business incorporation, trade, and credit reporting systems, allowing Nigeria to gradually narrow the gap with the best regulatory practices in the region. The report finds that Nigeria ranks among the top five economies in Sub-Saharan Africa in two areas the ease of getting credit and the strength of minority investor protections. Between 2013 and 2014, Nigeria saw an increase of 3.6 points in its distance to frontier score, greater than the global average increase of 0.8. This, the World Bank report said "is due in large part to an increase in

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

BUSINESS

'Nigeria's printing industry competes globally' Academy Press Plc, one of the foremost printing firms in Nigeria, is set to raise the bar in the printing sub-sector with its latest innovative technology, reports Toba Agboola â&#x20AC;˘ Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

the coverage rate of Nigeria's credit reporting system and a reduction in the company registration fee that made it less costly to start a business." Nigeria is one of the 11 economies with a population of more than 100 million where the report now covers two cities, providing new insights into the variability of business regulation within economies. Lagos and Kano were covered in the report. "This year, for the first time, the DB team analyses business regulations in Kano as well as Lagos making Nigeria one of few countries where the report covers two cities," the bank said. It added, "Francophone Africa had an excellent year, with Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal and Togo counted among the top ten reformers globally. Senegal is the global top reformer, with six reforms, closely followed by Cote d'Ivoire and the DRC with five reforms each." It was as a result of this that the World Bank in its recent assessment placed Nigeria at 131st position out of 183 countries in the world assessed on the basis of 'ease of doing business' in 2013. The assessment ranked Ghana at 64th position, 67 places ahead of Nigeria. Wakeup call Miffed by World Bank's poor assessment, the federal government inaugurated two Standing Inter-Ministerial Committees to address the high cost of doing business, and the poor rating of Nigeria's investment climate. According to the Executive Secretary, Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Mustafa Bello, "Doing Business and Competitiveness Committee is charged with the responsibility to regularly monitor, review and recommend improvement on existing policies and legislation that govern the act of doing business in the country, while Investor Aftercare Committee is charged with the responsibility to consider the complaints from investors on account of apparent irregularity and inconsistency in the implementation of government policies. He said the Committee on Doing Business and Competitiveness has identified 10 doing business indicators such as: starting business, registering property, getting credit, protecting investors, enforcing contracts and dealing with construction permits. Others are: paying taxes, trading across borders, getting electricity, and resolving insolvency. The committee, according to Bello, prioritised the indicators based on their impact on the competitiveness of the Nigerian business environment. On what the government could do to assist manufacturers and other sectors bedevilled by the high cost of doing business, Wenegieme said

â&#x20AC;˘ Olusegun Aganga

government should promote conducive business climate, such as ensuring the provision of steady energy supply, as well as mount pressure on the banks to reduce their lending rates, saying that with the cost of finance with a high interest rates and frightening COT charges on accessed funds, there is no way manufacturers can survive. The IoD said there should be political will and determination by the government and people of Nigeria to pursue existing blue-prints and initiatives; development of basic economic infrastructure that will aid productivity, intensify the rehabilitation work on the existing transportation network and fast track the building of new rail lines; enforcement of corporate governance and best practices in all facets of the economy in order to combat corruption in the system; and that there should be easy access to credit without discrimination. The executive secretary of NIPC said the committee has also recommended that government should "encourage the use of on-line system for reservation of company names; delegate to Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) the authority to collect the stamp duty on behalf of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at the time of company registration; make involvement of accredited professional intermediaries optional in the process of company registration; eliminate the requirement to notarise the declaration of compliance (CAC 4); eliminate the signage fee currently imposed on all businesses by Lagos State Signage and Advertising Agency; conduct an intensive communication campaign to educate users about the option of on-line name reservation and payment," among others. To further reduce the cost of doing business in the country, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olusegun Aganga, recently approved the downward review of the cost of business registration at the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) from N50,000 to N15,000 ($100). This reduction is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by Joel Attah, the Head of Media and Publicity Unit of the NIPC. The new rate, according to a statement from NIPC, is designed to make Nigeria highly competitive in line with international best practices. It stated that the downward review was at the instance of NIPC and also in line with the desire of the federal government to improve the country's competitiveness in doing business rating. "It is also a very bold attempt at lowering the cost of doing business in Nigeria. "This is expected to substantially enhance the country's National Competitiveness as a Foreign Direct Investment Destination (FDI),'' the minister stated.

ROM the face value, one is tempted to come along with the argument that the Nigeria printers do not have the capacity and capability to meet the demands of the book publishers in terms of print price, quality and delivery schedules. This argument cannot be totally true because it's like one that's trying to cover the entire sky with one's palm. This is because the Nigerian printing firm is facing up to its responsibilities. For instance, Academy Press Plc, which will celebrate 50 years of its existence this year, is set to expand and improve its capacity. The company which recently acquired and installed for operations, new equipment worth over N1.5 billion has over the years followed the trend of retooling and modernising their facilities. It is on record that book publishers still print at least 90 per cent of their books in Malaysia, Dubai and India and pay almost 100 per cent of the contract value in advance, but when they decide to give the leftovers to Nigerian printers at publishers' price, they pay when they are able after months of delivery. According to the Managing Director, Academy Press Plc, Mr. Gbenga Ladipo, the company has not deviated from the original objective of setting up the company, which is to fill the vacuum of a large printing establishment in the country. Speaking at the Customer's Forum, held at the company's premises, Ilupeju Lagos, Ladipo said both the printers and the publishers are discussing with the government on the way forward.

His words: "For us at Academy Press, we are concerned about the challenges and difficulties that are being experienced by partners and print buyers alike in the industry which are creating economic, financial and social instability for us and tend to threaten the survival of the business of members of this country. "A key material such as paper completely depends on importation. So is ink, plates, chemicals, spare and so on. In the era of huge naira devaluation, this has become a big challenge on our cost of production and invariably the cost of our customers." Pressed further, he said: "The only thing that has changed is the size because we have expanded over the years and, of course, we have also improved on the technology. The objectives have not changed because we set out to actually fill the vacuum of a large scale printing establishment in the country and bridge the importation of printed materials. That was the main objective which we still stick to because the printed materials are still being imported largely. The industry is also expanding, so we continue to expand to catch up with that and it involves change in technology because customers are ever demanding the best in terms of modern day production. "AP is a combination of foreign and Nigeria entrepreneurs. Up till now, foreign investors are still being asked to come and invest in Nigeria. Fifty years ago, Nigeria was looking for foreign investors to come to Nigeria and it took one American coming to Nigeria to look for opportunities and he was the one that brought others, including the Nigeria partners and other foreign partners from the United Kingdom and Canada to establish Academic Press. "They studied the situation and they noted that there were no standard printing press in Nigeria and that formed their area of interest. They saw a vacuum that needed to be filled because the major book publishers; Longman, University Press, Oxford, Macmillan were not producing in Nigeria. None of the books that are

being used in the school system are being produced here, they are done abroad. These gentlemen, being aware of the way things were done overseas, took the burden of importation from the book publishers but regrettably the book publishers are still doing a large portion of their jobs outside. I said regrettably because it is not on the account of inadequate capacity but other fundamental factors." He said Nigerian printers have the capacity to do what their foreign printers are doing, adding that is because they use the same equipment and materials. "We also have trained hands that are as efficient as they are. When you have the facilities to produce the same kind and the customers or relevant bodies, for one reason or the other, are not just willing to give you the opportunity, how will you improve or show your capacity? That is why most printing outfits find it difficult to pay their staff, even if you are able to pay them you are not able to pay them well. They begin to take people on part-time basis, so the job is not guaranteed. When I have a job, I will call you and when I don't have, you stay at home and manage because that is the only way we can survive. If you don't do that, how are you going to pay people when you are not having jobs? So it is a very difficult situation," he said. He is also optimistic that when Nigerian printing industry is developed, the paper industry, printing raw materials like ink, films, plates and other inputs shall receive adequate attractions from both foreign and local investors that would be very much eager to invest in this living and fertile industry thus bringing down book production cost . With these, many unpublished authors of wellresearched and deserved books could now be encouraged due to low production cost of books to go to the press. This will also facilitate the availability of good books in the hands of teachers, students and various libraries through various books distribution channels like the bookshops.

Honeywell boosts entrepreneurs

ONEYWELL Flour Mills Plc has reiterated its readiness to continue supporting the discovery and development of creative talents in Nigerian children and youth. Describing children as a bundle of budding talents, the company said the society must continuously create conducive environment and platforms to help them freely express and grow these gifts even while having fun. Speaking in Lagos last during the 2015 edition of "Vision of the Child" (VoTC) co-sponsored by Honeywell,

Managing Director, Lanre Jaiyeola said being the leaders of tomorrow, it is essential for parents to help bring out the unique talents in their children with a view to equipping them to be able to take advantage of future opportunities. "The modern day economy is driven largely by hand-works exemplified in small and medium enterprises. Unemployment will reduce considerably if our youths shun the quest for non-existing white collar jobs and rediscover themselves by tapping into their creative talents and innate abilities," he said.

A total of 250 students participated in this year's event drawn from 60 schools (primary and secondary) within Lagos State. Their entries were assessed by a panel of eminent jury comprising teachers, artists, child carers, and social workers. The 60 finalists who were drawn from 35 schools within Lagos State emerged from a three-day intensive interview held January 2628 at the Freedom Park, Lagos, while finalists shall be invited on the 7th of March 2015 to the National Conservation Foundation Park, Lekki.

â&#x20AC;˘From left: Festival Secretary and Programme Manager for the Vision of the Child, Foluke George, Head Corporate Communication Division, Diamond Bank Plc, Mrs. Ayona Trimnell and Executive Director, Marketing, Honeywell Flour Mills Plc, Mr. Benson Evbuomwan, during the Lagos Black Heritage Festival 2015 co-sponsored by Honeywell, in Lagos...recently

BUSINESS

HAT is the idea behind the construction of this tomato-processing

factory? We are here today just to demonstrate that this tomato company has been built and it is ready for production and we have invited the farmers to come and witness the texting. We are waiting for the farmers to start harvesting within the next two weeks. We are assuring the farmers that the factory is ready to start processing tomatoes. As you are all aware that, for many decades, farmers engaged in farming tomatoes have been suffering huge losses due to lack of processing capacity of any size. So, I came up with a project known as Dangote Farms, to set it up to be able to process, each day, 1200 tons of fresh tomatoes and this is the first phase. Our plan is to double the size by next year if everything goes well as planned. We have been working together with farmers for the past two and half years since we started building the project to ensure that they part of the project. As you know, there are over 39 cooperatives with over 42, 000 families that are within this farming community; and they are fully engaged in farming tomatoes and other crops. So, the Sarkin Manuma, that is the king of the farmers' community, is here on my right and the secretary of the association is also here on my left side and Alhaji Kaita who is at the forefront of ensuring the success of this project is here with me. I have been working together with an international, reputable company to provide high-breed seedling for them. We have been working in conjunction with the state Ministry of Agriculture, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and other non-governmental organisations to make sure that the farmers are put together in different cooperatives and given the necessary awareness and understanding of the importance of this project. We are also able to work with them hand-in-hand to ensure the success of the project and improve their farming practices so that they can get the maximum yield. This factory works throughout the year to ensure that farmers also plant throughout the year and also are able to provide tomatoes paste that will serve the need of Nigerians throughout the year. We also ensure that we have the capacity not only to meet the local demand but also to export. By God's grace, in few years from now, Nigeria will be proud to become a net exporter of tomatoes paste. And our delight is that this factory will enrich over 100, 000 different people, most especially the farmers who now can see their tears wiped away. We had challenges to ensure that the factory is here; but thank God today, we have overcome these challenges. Today, we are proud to say that the factory is ready. You have gone round and you have seen how the machines are all running. We are test-running it with water because the tomatoes are not yet ready. In about two weeks or so, the tomatoes will be ready. This is not the formal opening of the factory; we will invite important dignitaries and the general public to come and witness the actual processing of tomatoes in two weeks' time and that will be the official inauguration of the plant. We want to assure you that everything is being done to make sure that this is a successful industry because the life of thousands of farmers will be

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

'Nigeria is biggest importer of tomato in Africa' Alhaji Sani Dangote is the Vice President, Dangote Group, Chairman, DANSA Holdings Limited as well as Chairman of the newly established Dangote Farms in Kadawa in Kano, which focuses on tomato pastry, among others. In this interview with KoladeAdeyemi, he speaks on the prospects of the only tomato- processing plant in Nigeria which is expected to commence production in the next two weeks. Excerpts:

â&#x20AC;˘ Dangote

touched by the success of the plant. What about the size of the workforce? Like I said, already, directly there are about 40, 000 families farming in this community and they are all planting tomatoes that will be processed in the factory. There will be the logistics side in the employment; there will be people who will be supplying things like basket, fertilizer and other needs of the farmers. There are other industries that will need the paste. What we are doing here is to package 240 kilos which many industries that need tomatoes paste are importing from China, Italy and the USA. They no longer need to import because we are producing 100 per cent of what they import and this made by Nigeria and for Nigerians. So, I cannot count the number of people that are going to be directly employed. I know directly, there are over 40, 000 families that are farmers. Secondly, the industry will employ over 200 workers-if we

double our capacity, that will be more. Then, there are other services that are going to be around. I can assure you that in two month's time, the value of land around this area will be different because of the factory. What we have done is to work with the farmers to agree with them on the cost of their inputs and what is the cost net of their delivery to the farm and the factory and we guarantee them a fixed price within the season that will ensure the farmer is no longer suspicious of the price. The only call we are making to the government is to ensure that they should not allow importation of tomatoes paste because it will kill the ambition of the farmers and our own ambition. So we call on all the stakeholders, from the farmers, the factory, the states and federal government to work together and make it a success. We pray that we Nigerians will wake up and ensure that it is a success because there is nothing better than empowering your farmers, your own people rather than

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;

empowering other countries and become dependent on their products while we can produce it 100 per cent and even export to other countries. So, I believe that the number of employment is enormous and poverty can only be eradicated by providing jobs and a meaningful life to the society. How would you describe the quality of the product? Quality is hundred percent fresh. There is nothing fresher than what we will be producing here. As you can see, the factory is situated right in the middle of the farm. So, it takes few minutes or less than an hour for the tomatoes to reach the factory from any area; and once it is processed, we keep it for two days for quarantine to ensure that there is no bacterial infection. Then in the next two days, it is going to the market and Nigerians are buying tomatoes that are just produced and not the ones that were produced more than a year even before they were imported. You can go to the farm

Nigerians consume over 300, 000 tons of tomato paste which if you convert it, it is over 1.5 million tons of fresh tomatoes, which is crazy. So, the market is here because Nigeria is the biggest importer of tomato paste in Africa! So, whatever we are producing is just certain percentage of the demand. We are sure that if the right policies are put in place, by next three years, this factory can come to the size that it can meet the demands of the country

â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

and you will see the trucks bringing in fresh tomatoes every day. This factory can consume 40 trucks of fresh tomatoes every day. How do you intend to distribute the products to the market? We are talking to the importers to stop importation. We sensitise them that they no longer need to go and start looking for foreign exchange, take our money and go there for importation. They should come to us. They don't even need to be here, they can send their orders and we guarantee them delivery within six days, unlike when it took them 40 days to 60 days from where they are importing and these are fresh tomatoes. They will directly pay in naira; they don't have to pay in dollars. So, the country's foreign reserve will not be depleted by importation of tomato paste. What about the market? The market is there. Nigerians consume over 300, 000 tons of tomato paste which if you convert it, it is over 1.5 million tons of fresh tomatoes, which is crazy. So, the market is here because Nigeria is the biggest importer of tomato paste in Africa! So, whatever we are producing is just certain percentage of the demand. We are sure that if the right policies are put in place, by next three years, this factory can come to the size that it can meet the demands of the country. How much money was committed to building the factory? So far, we invested over N2.5 billion; and it is ready as you can see. There is more money to be spent because we want to make sure that we build certain collection centres so that farmers can weigh their products at the collection centres. There, they already know the weight and when they reach our factory, they also weigh again and we are engaging a reputable superintendent company that will work with them and monitor them on a daily basis to make sure that they are putting the right agricultural practices, to ensure that they get the maximum yield. We will continue to spend more money as long as all the stakeholders are making necessary efforts to ensure the success of the factory. You see, one of the most important things we need to look at is that, currently, all the tomato pastes we eat come from China and the Chinese too are now becoming jittery because of this factory coming into operation, which means we are going to stop their market. The natural thing the Chinese will do is to reduce their price of paste so as to under-cut whatever we are going to supply to the local market. So, that is one area the government will have to come in with policies to put tariff in place so that all these paste, most of which are substandard, coming into Nigeria can be stopped. That is one of the things that will ensure the survival of this country and the economic viability we are trying to build up here that has to do with the farmers because if this factory stops running, the investment of the farmers will go for nothing. Currently, from the survey we have, the farmers yield is about 10 tons per hectare. From the trial of the high breed, we have seen 60 tons per hectare. This is a seed that can grow up to 100 tons per hectare. It has been tried in other countries in Africa that have similar climatic conditions with Nigeria. So you can imagine in the same piece of land that you get 10 tons, now you are getting 50 to 60, so, you can imagine how it can boost the economic conditions of farmers in this area.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

NEWS

BUJA, Nigeria (Reuters) - In late 2013, Nigeria’s then central bank governor Lamido Sanusi wrote to President Goodluck Jonathan claiming that the state oil company had failed to remit tens of billions of oil revenues it owed the state. After the letter was leaked to Reuters and a local news site, Jonathan publicly dismissed the claim and replaced Sanusi, saying the banker had mismanaged the central bank’s budget. A Senate committee later found Sanusi’s account lacked substance. Sanusi has since become Emir of Kano, the country’s second highest Islamic authority, and has smoothed over relations with the president. He declined to discuss his earlier assertions. Before he was sacked, though, the central banker submitted to Nigeria’s parliament more than 300 pages of documentation in support of his claim. Reuters has reviewed that dossier, which offers one of the most comprehensive studies of waste, mismanagement and what Sanusi called “leakages” of cash in Nigeria’s oil industry. Detailed here, the dossier includes oil contracts, confidential government letters, private presidential correspondence and legal opinions. Sanusi’s letter and documents do not state whether he thinks the money was stolen or lost through mismanagement. Nor did he make allegations of illegal acts against any specific individuals or entities. Both corruption and bad governance are perennial problems in Africa’s most populous nation, and central issues in elections due on Feb. 14. Nigeria’s oil industry accounts for around 95 percent of the country’s foreign exchange earnings. If Nigeria continued to leak cash at the rate described in his letter to the president, Sanusi said at the time, the consequences for the economy would be disastrous. Specifically, the failure of state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation

Anatomyof Nigeria’s $20billion“leak” By Tim Cocks and Joe Brock “to remit foreign exchange to the Federation Account in a period of rising oil prices has made our management of exchange rates and price stability ... extremely difficult,” he wrote. ”The central bank of Nigeria is always blamed for high rates of interest,” but “given these leakages, the alternative is a devalued currency ... and financial instability.” That is exactly what has happened. As oil prices have plummeted to around $55 a barrel, half their level at the beginning of 2014, Sanusi’s successor Godwin Emefiele has devalued the naira, Nigeria’s currency, by 8 percent, and raised interest rates for the first time in more than two years. Nigerian foreign exchange reserves are down around 20 percent on a year ago, while the balance in the country’s oil savings account has fallen from $9 billion in December 2012 to $2.5 billion at the start of this year, even though oil prices were buoyant over much of that period. Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told reporters at a press conference in November that a significant portion of that money was distributed to the powerful governors of Nigeria’s 36 states instead of being saved for a rainy day. Nigerians are rarely shocked by stories of billions going unaccounted for, or ending up with politically powerful individuals. Africa’s largest oil producer has for years consistently ranked towards the bottom of Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index. Sanusi handed his documents to a parliamentary inquiry set up last February to investigate the assertion in his letter that billions of dollars in oil revenue had not reached the central bank. He told the inquiry that state oil group NNPC had made $67 billion worth of oil

•Sanusi

sales in the previous 19 months. Of that, he said, between $10.8 billion and $20 billion was unaccounted for. A spokesman for the president declined to comment on the specific contents of Sanusi’s dossier. He referred to a statement made at the time the banker was pushed out. It said the government “remains committed to ensuring integrity and accountability and discipline in every sector of the economy ... And indeed we look forward to a situation whereby Mr. Sanusi will continue to assist the legislature in their investigations.” Those investigations include a “forensic audit” of the oil industry set up by OkonjoIweala. The audit was given to Jonathan on Feb. 2 and he said he would hand it on to Nigeria’s auditor general. NNPC said on Feb. 5 it had received a copy of the audit, before it was made public. The firm said the audit cleared it of wrongdoing, although it found NNPC owed the government $1.48 billion for a separate shortfall. A spokesman for NNPC rejected Sanusi’s allegations and referred Reuters to last August’s Senate inquiry. The inquiry expressed satisfaction that most of the money not remitted was

withheld for legitimate reasons. But it urged the NNPC to remit $700 million that the committee said it could not account for. Diezani Alison-Madueke, the oil minister who oversees NNPC, did not respond to a request for comment. She told the inquiry at the time that the correct sum for money not remitted was $10.8 billion, which was to pay for subsidies. The NNPC has consistently said it did nothing wrong. The oil company said last year that Sanusi’s allegations came from his “misunderstanding” of how the oil industry works. The central bank is “a banking outfit ... how will they understand petroleum engineering issues?” then managing director Andrew Yakubu asked journalists. “They are not auditors.” Sanusi’s claims were seen by some Nigerians as part of the historic tensions between the country’s wealthy, Christian south and poorer Muslim north. Jonathan and oil minister Alison-Madueke are Christians from the oil-producing Niger Delta in the south. Sanusi is a Muslim from the country’s north, as is Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler of Nigeria who is the main presidential candidate running

against Jonathan. The two regions have historically taken it in turns to hold the presidency. Since 2009, though, Jonathan has broken with this tradition. Sanusi has said any notion there were religious or ethnic politics behind his allegations is absurd. He has declined to be interviewed since becoming the Emir of Kano. But last April, two months after he was sacked but before he took on his new role, Sanusi told Reuters he worried that the sheer quantities of cash going missing were “unsustainable.” “You are taking what doesn’t belong to you and transferring it to private hands,” he told Reuters. “The state is captive to vested interests.” NO-BID CONTRACTS Sanusi’s documents identify three key mechanisms through which Nigeria has allegedly allowed middlemen to channel oil funds away from the central bank. Among the recipients, Sanusi alleges, are government officials and high-flying society figures. The three mechanisms are: contracts awarded noncompetitively to two companies that did not supply services but sub-contracted the work; a kerosene subsidy that doesn’t help the people it is meant to; and a series of complex, opaque “swap deals” that might be short-changing the state. Sanusi’s concerns around the first of these mechanisms centre on the 2011 sale by Royal Dutch Shell of its interests in five oil fields. The blocks were majorityowned by NNPC. The government, keen to end the domination of the oil industry by foreign oil majors, had been encouraging Shell and others to sell to local firms. Shell sold its interest in the fields to companies in Poland and Britain. But the new owners did not get the same rights Shell had. To promote local control, the NNPC gave the right to operate the fields to its own

subsidiary, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC). Without soliciting bids, the NPDC signed “strategic partnership agreements” worth around $6.6 billion with two other local firms to manage them. One firm, Seven Energy, signed for three fields; another, Atlantic Energy, for two. Seven Energy was cofounded in 2004 by Kola Aluko, an oil trader and Christian southerner. Aluko also coowned Atlantic with another southerner, former oil trader Jide Omokore. Atlantic was incorporated the day before it signed the deals. Geneva-based Aluko is a high-profile member of Nigeria’s elite. He owns a fleet of supercars, including a Ferrari 458 GT2 that he races with Swiss team Kessel Racing. He also owns a $50 million yacht, according to Forbes magazine, and divides his time between a $40 million home in Los Angeles, an $8.6 million duplex on Fifth Avenue in New York, and homes in Abuja and Geneva. A colleague describes him as a “work hard, play harder kind of guy. He’s extravagant. That’s just his style.” Aluko, whose stake in Seven is now minimal, did not respond to emailed questions. Omokore has also become rich from oil and gas. Forbes has estimated annual revenue at another of his companies, Energy Resources Group, at $400 million. His jet-setting lifestyle is a regular feature in the local press. Omokore could not be reached for comment. Reuters has reviewed the contracts the firms signed with NPDC. They give Seven Energy 10 percent of profits in the three oil blocks it operates, while Atlantic gets 30 percent of profits in its two blocks. The contracts also show that, unlike Shell, neither firm pays royalties, profit tax or duties to the state. • Continued on Page 70

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

THE NATION ON SUNDAY,

FEBRUARY 8, 2015

CHANGE OF NAME MENEGAN

CHANGE CHANGE OF OF NAME NAME AKUKWE

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Menegan Bukonla Orowole, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Iwayemi Bukonla Orowole.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Akukwe, Chidimma, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ayoko Chidimma. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

UWUJALEN

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Abiola Olubunmi Bolakale, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Adeosun, Bolakale Olubunmi. All former documents remain valid. Ekiti State government College, Efon Alaaye Ekiti and general public should please take note.

I,formerly known and addressed as Ohiwele Sarah Uwujalen, now wish to be known and addressed as Aliyu Sarah Uwujalen.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

BALOGUN

I,formerly known and addressed as Solomon Onimisi Balogun, now wish to be known and addressed as Marcus Onimisi Balogun.All former documents remain valid. Kaduna Polytechnic, Kaduna, Kogi State government and general public should take note.

OHANAKA

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss OHANAKA GENEVIVE CHINENYE, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. CHUKWUDI GENEVIVE CHINENYE.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

SULIMAN

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Sulaiman Mojisola Jarinat, now wish to be known and addressed as Miss Nosiru Mojisola Jarinat.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

BADMUS

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Badejo, Oluwabunmi Abosede, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Badmus, Oluwabunmi Abosede.All former documents remain valid. Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBDC) and general public should take note.

AREGBESOLA

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Aregbesola, Adesola Bosede Racheal, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Adeleye, Adesola Bosede Racheal.All former documents remain valid. Lagos State Television and general public should take note.

NELSON

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Nelson Alice Prosper, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Alice Onosioagbe Prosper Osalobo Itua.All former documents remain valid. Lagos State Television and general public should take note.

OYELAKIN I formerly known and addressed as Miss Oyelakin Motunrayo Dele, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Afolabi Motunrayo Dele. All former documents remain valid. Osun State TEPO/ SUBEB and general public should please take note.

ADEBOJE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adeboje Adeola Oluwatosin, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ope-Lawal Adeola Oluwatosin. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

OLUYIDE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Oluyide Olutara Moronkeji, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Kudojo Olutara Dare. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADESIYAN

I formerly known and addressed as MISS ADESIYAN OLUBUNMI ADEDAYO, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS ADENIRAN OLUBUNMI ADEDAYO. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

OLUWAFEMI

ABIOLA

NWODO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Nwodo, Ebere Gloria, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Joseph, Ebere Gloria. All former documents remain valid. Ebonyi State University, NYSC and general public should please take note.

IBRAHIM

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ibrahim, Bilkisu Becky, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Naibi, Bilkisu Becky. All former documents remain valid. AkintolaDeloitte, ACCA and general public should please take note.

ONYEONORO

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Onyeonoro, Angela Chidinma, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Onyekachi Angela Chidinma. All former documents remain valid. Federal Mrdical Centre, Umuahia, Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria and general public should please take note.

KALU I formerly known and addressed as Miss Awa Monday Kalu, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Emea Veronica Oji. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADARAMOLA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adaramola, Titilayo Elizabeth, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Afolabi, Titilayo Elizabeth. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ALOYSIUS I formerly known and addressed as Miss Aloysius Osuagwu, now wish to be known and addressed as Aloysius Uchendu. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

DARAMOLA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Daramola, Florence, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Gbuyiro, Florence. All former documents remain valid. Oye Local government and general public should please take note.

OLUBUNMI

I formerly known and addressed as Mrs. Olubunmi Adebola Olutoyinbo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Adunoluwa Olubunmi Adebola Olutoyinbo. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

TOLUFASE

I formerly known and addressed as Tolufase, Mubo Mosunmola, now wish to be known and addressed as Tolufase-Oladunni, Mubo Mosunmola. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

FASHOLA

I formerly known and addressed as Fashola Mary Njurieb, now wish to be known and addressed as Gayle Fashola Onatafe. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

OMOSEHIN

I formerly known and addressed as Miss OLUWAFEMI BOLANLE BIODUN, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. GIWA BOLANLE BIODUN. All former documents remain valid. Nigeria Immigration Service and general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Omosehin, Bolanle Olufunke, now wish to be known and addressed as Aroleye Bolanle Olufunke. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Ikemenanwa Chizoba, now wish to be known and addressed as Ikemenanwa Juliet Chizoba. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Uligwe, Chioma Doris, now wish to be known and addressed as Doris C. Jeremiah Okeke. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Abdullahi, Sakirat Amoke, now wish to be known and addressed as Ojo, Sakirat Amoke. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ABDULLAHI

I formerly known and addressed as Mrs. Evelyn Civetta, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Evelyn Agbolahor Civetta. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

JIMOH

OSAZE

IKEMENANWA

ULIGWE

CIVETTA

I formerly known and addressed as Mr. Oriyomi Owolabi Jimoh, now wish to be known and addressed as Mr. Olasubomi Olamiposi Anifowoshe. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Asenoguan Osaze, now wish to be known and addressed as MusaAsenoguan Osaze. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ORERE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Abdulsalam Idiat Omoseye Adeola, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Olanrewaju Idiat Omoseye Adeola. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Orere Elo Elohor, now wish to be known and addressed as Onosode Elo Elohor. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ABDULSALAM

CHANGE OF NAME

IKPAK

OKOH

OBI

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Udeme Jacob Ikpak, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Udeme Mumini Eneh. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

NNEBE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Okoh, Esene, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Aladetuyi, Jane Ebiredelu. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss CHISOM NGOZI OBI, now wish to be known as Mrs. CHISOM NGOZI NWORGU. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

BAOKU

I formerly known and addressed as ISIODU LETICIA .N. , now wish to be known as ORDU-WALI LETICIA NATHATIA. All former documents remain valid general public please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Nnebe, Amaka Roselyn now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Ezekwem, Amaka Roselyn. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Baoku Winniefred Olushola, now wish to be known and addressed as Kale Winniefred Olushola. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ONWUMERE

AIPOH

I formerly known and addressed as Onwumere Peter Charity Okwuchi, now wish to be known and addressed as Peter Charity Okwuchi. All former documents remain valid. First Bank of Nigeria , U.B.A and general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Florence Aipoh, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Florence Ogbikor Amanogho. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADEYANJU

I formerly known and addressed as Adetayo Dupe Gray, now wish to be known and addressed as Adetayo Dupe Abijah. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adeyanju, Bamitale Ruth, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Michael, Bamitale Ruth. All former documents remain valid. NYSC and general public should please take note.

DANSU I formerly known and addressed as Dansu Oluwaseun Peter, now wish to be known and addressed as Oniyide Oluwaseun Emmanuel. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

DANSU

I formerly known and addressed as Dansu Oluwatobi Samuel, now wish to be known and addressed as Oniyide Oluwatobi Samuel. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

NWAJEI

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Rachael Nneka Nwajei, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Rachael Nneka Nwajei-Ogbe. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ERINMWINGBOVO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Abieyuwa Jennifer Erinmwingbovo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Abieyuwa JenniferOtobo. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADETAYO

AYANNUBI

I formerly known and addressed as Ayannubi Oluwakemi Amudat, now wish to be known and addressed as Ogunniyi Oluwakemi Amudat. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ANIBABA

I formerly known and addressed as Oluwakemi Anibaba, now wish to be known and addressed as Oluwakemi Falemora. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

KALU

ADEKOYA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adekoya, Abimbola Olamide, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Uwisike, Abimbola Olamide. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

OLORUNFEMI I formerly known and addressed as Miss Olorunfemi, Taiwo Janet, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Abdulsalam, Taiwo Janet. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

AJALA

I formerly known and addressed as Ajala, Damilola Victoria, now wish to be known and addressed as Halia Damilola Balogun. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADEWOYE

I formerly known and addressed as Adewoye, Kolawole Isaiah, now wish to be known and addressed as Adewoye Kolawole Damilare Isaiah Marvelous. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADEBAYO I formerly known and addressed as Adebayo, Olugbemiga Lasisi, now wish to be known and addressed as Adebayo Olugbemiga Azeez. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ONOVO

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS ONOVO EBERE LOVETH, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. ODOH EBERE LOVETH. All former documents remain valid. Federal Co-operative College, Oji-River; NYSC and general public should please take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, MR. EZIKEUKE BEDE UCHECHUKWU and MR. UCHE EZIKE BEDE refers to one and the same person. Now wish to be known and addressed as MR. EZIKEUKE BEDE UCHECHUKWU. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note. CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, EJO ROYAL DARLINGTON and EJOKUOYE MIWORI refers to one and the same person. Now wish to be known and addressed as EJO ROYAL DARLINGTON. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

OLIMINI

I formerly known and addressed as Miss VIVIAN OLIMINI .P. now wish to be known as Mrs. VIVIAN UKEAME AJIE. All former documents remain valid general public please take note.

AJAYI

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ajayi Ebunoluwa Bamidele, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Aremo Ebunoluwa Bamidele. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

BIOKO

I, formerly known and addressed as BIOKO RUTH BULUNBELE, now wish to be known and addressed as ODIBE CHUKWUDI RUTH BULUNBELE. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

JOHN

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS IFONI CHRISTIANA JOHN, now wish to be known and addressed as DR. (MRS) CHRISTIANA UZOARU OKORIE. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ILONUBA

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS ILONUBA ESTHER CHINENYENWA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. OPUTA ESTHER CHINENYENWA. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

NWACHUKWU

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Nwachukwu Onyegbule Chidozie Grace, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Nnamdi Grace Chidozie. All former documents remain valid. Michael Okpara University of Agriculture and the general public should please take note.

NWOJO

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ucha Angel Nwojo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ucha Angel Chibuike Akobundu. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

ONWUSONYE

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Onwusonye Modesta Onyinyechi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Nwodu Modesta Onyinyechi. all former documents remain valid. NYSC and the general public should please take note.

OKORO

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Okoro Chidinma Nwankwo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Chidinma Christian Okechukwu. all former documents remain valid. Social Development Dept, Arochukwu Local government and the general public should please take note.

IMO

NWAMUMA

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Imo, Cynthia Onyinyechi. now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ndumele Ufomadu Obinna Cynthia. All former documents remain valid. NYSC , Abia State Polytechnic and the general public should please take note.

IZIREN

I, formerly known and addressed as MAXWELL CHINEDU OZOEMENA, now wish to be known and addressed as BARON CHUKWUEBUKA OZOEMENA. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS NWAMUMA TINA UGONMA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. THANKGOD TINA UGONMA. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

CHIMSON

CHIJIOKE

OSUNSAMI

OKONKWO

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS CHIOMA OKONKWO, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. CHIOMA JANE DARLINGTON. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I Olapade Christie Aderonke is the same person as Mrs. Oladeinde Christie Aderonke. All documents bearing the above names remain valid. General public should please take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, NZEAKO, NELSON NNANNA and NZEAKO, NNANNA NIEL refers to one and the same person. Now wish to be known and addressed as NZEAKO, NELSON NNANNA. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Osunsami, Adebiyi Oluwaseun, now wish to be known and addressed as Osunsami Stephen Adebiyi. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

UMENWOBI

I formerly known and addressed as MISS UMENWOBI ADAOBI MARTHA, now wish to be known as MRS. MBONU ADAOBI MARTHA. All former documents remain valid general public please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS BLESSING OMOLEGHO IZIREN, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. BLESSING CHIBUIKE EKPO-DIKE. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

AYENI

I formerly known and addressed as Chijioke Tobenna Newton, now wish to be known and addressed as Okolo, Tobenna Newton. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

MICHAEL

I formerly known and addressed as Miss RUTH MICHAEL now wish to be known as Mrs. RUTH NWACHUKU. All former documents remain valid general public please take note.

MACGODIVA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Maccarthy Macgodiva, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Baker Macgodiva. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as MRS COMFORT ANYA OLUGU KALU (Chibuzo) now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. COMFORT ANYA NNE. All documents bearing my former name remain valid. The General Public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Ayeni Motunrayo Oluwatoyin, now wish to be known and addressed as Oderinde, Motunrayo Oluwatoyin. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ISIODU

CHANGE OF NAME

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS CHIMSOM MARYANNE CHUKWUMA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. CHIMSOM MARYANNE DURUGO-NWAOHIRI. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

NWAKAEGO I, formerly known and addressed as MISS ALOZIE PEACE NWAKAEGO, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. ABULU PEACE MARVIS NWAKAEGO. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

MAXWELL

AGU

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS AGU CHINENYE LOVINA now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. OZOEMENA CHINENYE LOVINA. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ENOGWE

I, formerly known and addressed as MR. ENOGWE JULIUS UGOCHUKWU, now wish to be known and addressed as MR. CHIMAOBI JULIUS UGOCHUKWU. All former documents remain valid. Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) Awka and general public should please take note.

KALU

UGO

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS KALU MONDAY AWA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. EMEA VERONICA OJI. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

OKORO

I formerly known and addressed as Mr. Nelson Victor Olasunkanmi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mr. Ilesanmi, Victor Olasunkanmi. All former documents remain valid general public take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ugo, Chinonyerem Ogenna, now wish to be known and addressed as Miss Ogbuja , Chinonyerem Ogenna. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note. I, formerly known and addressed as MISS NNENNA PATRICIA OKORO, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. NNENNA PATRICIA CHUKWUEMEKA. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADENIYI I, formerly known and addressed as MISS TEMILOLUWA TOLULOPE ADENIYI, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. TEMILOLUWA TOLULOPE ADELOYE. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

OZOR

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS YONNEM NDUDI OZOR , now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. YONNEM NDUDI UDUEZUE All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

ABDULGANIYU

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS ABDULGANIYU LATIFAT now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. LATIFAT HASSAN TAUHID. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

UJUNWA

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS IMMACULATE A. UJUNWA now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. IMMACULATE A. S MADAKI HARUNA. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

KESINRO I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Kesinro, Deborah Folasade, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ade , Deborah Folasade. All former documents remain Valid general public take note.

AMAICHIKE

I formerly known and addressed as MR. AMAICHIKE NDUKA CHUKWUYENUM, now wish to be known and addressed as MR. GEORGE NDUKA CHUKWUYENUM. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

NELSON

ODEYEMI

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Odeyemi, Busayo Grace, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Michael, Busayo Grace. All former documents remain valid general public take note.

LAWAL

I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Lawal, Tawakalitu Adetokunbo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Adeyemi, Tawakalt Adetokunbo. All former documents remain valid general public take note.

IKWUYUM I formerly known and addressed as MISS VERONICA OLONYA IKWUYUM, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. VERONICA IGRI. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

OKEKE I, formerly known and addressed as AJIERE CHRISTOPHER OKEKE, now wish to be known and addressed as CALEB CHRIS OKEKEINWA All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note. CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, formerly known and addressed as Owen Junior Harry, now wish to be known and addressed as Tamuno-Okeipirim Joshua Asime Harry. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

ESTHER

I formerly known and addressed as Ms Akinyemi Oluwaseun Esther now wish to be addressed as Mrs Andrew Mabel Itohan. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note ADVERT: Simply produce your marriage certificate or sworn affidavit for a change of name publication, with just N4,500. The payment can be made through - FIRST BANK of Nigeria Plc. Account number - 2017220392 Account Name VINTAGE PRESS LIMITED Scan the details of your advert and teller to - gbengaodejide @yahoo.com or thenation_advert @yahoo.com. For enquiry please contact: Gbenga on 08052720421, 08161675390, Email- gbengaodejide@ yahoo.com or our offices nationwide. Note this! Change of name is now published every Sundays, all materials should reach us two days before publication.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

EBERE WABARA

WORDSWORTH 08055001948

ewabara@yahoo.com

'In the circumstance'

“M

END in a statement signed by its spokesman…said it will (would) begin…." "The targets are nonMuslims groups." Existential humanism: non-Muslim groups. THE GUARDIAN of February 2 contributed four inaccuracies to this week's pool of blunders: "Then between 2007 and 2015, Ikot Ekpene senatorial district is on (in) the saddle." "…disclaimed insinuation (an insinuation or insinuations) in some quarters that…." "Today, he does not only represent the rare specie (species) of lawyers…." THISDAY of February 3 goofed on the late Chinua Achebe twice: "Achebe was accused of being privy to the coup on the ground (grounds) that…." "Achebe's no hold barred (sic) reprimand on the Nigerian nation…." The Achebe story: noholds-barred reprimand." "The sad story of some communities in Nkanu East Local Government of Enugu State that are literarily (literally) trapped…." "I noticed that I stir up this awe whenever I speak in the company of my guys and others." People: in company with (not of) my guys and others. "Be your brother's keepers…." Fixed expression irrespective of number of people involved: brother's keeper. "Yes, a lot of people like these kind of prophetic books." This way: this kind/these kinds of people "…God was merciful to have kept him for 23 years after the motor accident that confided (confined) him to the wheelchair." "Let your wrist watch speak volume (volumes)" "To build capacity through trainings." 'Training' is non-count. "This should have been our interactive platform and an income generating (income-generating) website." Please note this: 'under the circumstance' is American English while 'in the circumstance' is British English. This particular intervention is critical because in their book entitled Correct English, J. E. Metcalfe and C. Astle declared that 'under the circumstance' is wrong. But, Longman Dictionary of

Contemporary English (New Edition) published in 2012 confirms the two expressions as correct entries. We should exercise circumspection in our use of the English language and its registers. I prefer 'in the circumstance', however. National Mirror of January 28 goofed on many occasions right from the two columns on its Views Page to the back page: "…has been as selfish, self serving (self-serving) and attempt (an attempt) by the House to place its members above the electorates they should be accountable to." The making of invincible legislators: electorates/ electors or the electorate (not the electorates). More on this next week…. "…and absorbs (absolves) them from civil or criminal proceedings…." "The same house has (had) attempted in the past to compromise the…." Existential humanism: 'in the past' is redundant here. "But what is really important is the number of people who turns (turn) new leaves…." Fixed/stock expression: turn a new leaf (irrespective of the number of people). "Jonathan, who summoned the service chiefs to Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, was said to have intimated them of (to) the Presidency's plan…." "If traditional media is (are) not able to deliver quality journalism, then who will?" "Egypt (Egyptian) court revokes Morsi's firing of prosecutor" "The President then presents the recommendation to the National Council of States (State) for deliberation." "Jonathan, who summoned the service chiefs to the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, was said to have intimated them of (to) the Presidency's plan. The Views Page of National Mirror of January 21 bungled some lines: "…it might afford the country the opportunity to a round table (sic) to regurgitate what grouse each bears against (about) the other (one another)." "It was their battle (Niger Delta militants) that awaken (awoke) the consciousness…." "I believe in total and comprehensive assessment of a person to determine his/her (their) suitability and overall credibility." "UI students' union leaders sworn-in (sworn in), seek cooperation" "The minister goes on to paint a very laudable

picture of the purpose of the First Ladies Peace Mission, rounding up (rounding off) with the battle-cry…." THISDAY of January 22 disappointed its numerous readers: "He said the village have (had) never been attacked in the past…." "…majority (again, a majority) of them failed woefully (abysmally)." "Kagame promises to handover (hand over) Bosco to ICC" THISDAY of January 20 underdeveloped the English language: "…who briefed journalists on the company's field development programme yesterday, in company of (in company with) the vicechairman…." "The victims comprised of four…." Delete 'of' in pursuit of reason and truth. Still on the editorial: "…stakeholders to put heads together in order to help find lasting solution (a lasting solution) to the security challenges presently facing the nation." Why not 'the insecurity facing the nation'? "Shareholders of GSK Plc (PLC) has (have) enjoyed a huge…." "But GSK need (needs) a more robust fourth quarter to sustain the record-setting bullish run." The final entry from THISDAY: "…where majority (a majority) of the population live (lives)…." "Eight Egba chiefs arrested over (for) murder of prince in Ondo" "Survivors of suicide bomb attacks recount tales of woes" Kano blasts: tale of woe (fixed/stock expression-plurality notwithstanding) "Okopoly rector allays fears over masquerades (masqueraders)" "Anambra 2015: PDP supporters on strategic take over (takeover) campaign" "Both countries to sign drug control (drug-control) pact" 'With due respect and humility, the above association (Tiddo Yo Daddo Alumni Association) is hereby inviting its esteem (esteemed) and valuable members to the forthcoming general meeting." Are there invaluable members? And this: 'With due respect and humility'-what is the essence of this phrase? ROBUST AND P R O F O U N D INTERVENTIONS BY DR. STANLEY NDUAGU, SUNNY AGBONTAEN, KOLA DANISA AND BABA BAYO OGUNTUASE NEXT WEEK, PLEASE! Vote for Gen. Buhari this Saturday.

•Solomon Adeola, APC Senatorial candidate for Lagos West and Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts with Executive Members of the Theatre Arts and Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria, TAMPPAN when they paid a solidarity visit to him.

FRSC officials give thanks

HE Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ojota Unit Command recently treated its men and officers to a colourful party to mark its end of the year. The unit commander, Kehinde Hamzat, an Assistant Corps Commander (ASC), said his officers and men deserved

By Adekunle Yusuf, Assistant Editor

to be encouraged with the merriment “because the command achieved so much in 2014.” Thanking everybody in the command for working together as a family, which, he said, made the achievements of last

year possible, Hamzat craved the indulgence of officers and men in the command to work harder in 2015 so that the unit can reach higher heights. Among other guests, transport workers in nearby parks also joined the FRSC in the revelry, saying the command was adding value to its immediate environment.

Collect PVCs, Pwajok appeals

EOPLES Democratic P a r t y ( P D P ) gubernatorial candidate in Plateau State, Senator Gyang Pwajok, has asked people of the

state to get their Permanent Voters Cards(PVCs). He told them to “get out of that fear of being disenfranchised and begin to

CHANGE OF NAME

ENEMUOR

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ifeyinwa Jane Enemuor now wish to be addressed as Mrs Ifeyinwa Jane Ezeugwa. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note.

OSAEBU FAMILY

I formerly known and addressed as Osaebu Family now wish to be known and addressed as Osanebu Family. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note.

NWANDU

I formerly known and addressed as MISS NWANDU CHIDIMMA CYNTHIA. Now wishes to be known and addressed as MRS. EZEOBATA CHIDIMMA CYNTHIA. All former documents remained valid. The general public should please take note.

BONWA

I formerly known and addressed as MISS BLESSING BURABARI BONWA. Now wishes to be known and addressed as MRS. BLESSING TAMUNOFIRI POLLYN. All former documents remained valid. The general public should please take note.

AKHABUE

I, formerly known as Nelson Obehi Akhabue, now wish to be known, called and addressed as Nelson Obehi PaulAkhabue. All documents remain valid. General public take note.

AMISU

I formerly known and addressed as Amisu Abimbola John now wish to be known and addressed as Olatunji Abimbola John. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note.

ODUNTAN

I formerly known and addressed as Mrs Oluwatosin Damilola Oduntan now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oluwatosin Damilola Adebimpe. All former documents remained valid. General public should take note. ADVERT: Simply produce your marriage certificate or sworn affidavit for a change of name publication, with just N4,500. The payment can be made through - FIRST BANK of Nigeria Plc. Account number - 2017220392 Account Name - VINTAGE PRESS LIMITED Scan the details of your advert and teller to - gbengaodejide @yahoo.com or thenation_advert @yahoo.com. For enquiry please contact: Gbenga on 08052720421, 08161675390, Email- gbengaodejide@ yahoo.com or our offices nationwide. Note this! Change of name is now published every Sundays, all materials should reach us two days before publication.

OJO

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ojo Foluke Rebecca now wish to be addressed as Mrs Omoleye Foluke Rebecca. Ekiti State Local Government Commission. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note.

AMISU

I formerly known and addressed as Amisu Isaac Adeleke now wish to be known and addressed as Olatunji Isaac Adeleke. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note.

wake up to their civic responsibility.” Pwajok asked INEC to ensure the distribution of PVCS are not done on the pages of newspapers, radio or television. He decried the situation where about 800,000 people are yet to collect their PVCs in the state.

CHANGE OF NAME TOKEDE

I formerly known and addressed as TOKEDE TOMISIN OLUWAREMILEKUN now wish to be known and addressed as AGUNBIADE TOMISIN OLUWAREMILEKUN. All former documents remain valid general public should please take note.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

'Meeting with ex-militants for national peace'

HAIRMAN of G r a s s r o o t s Democratic Initiatives (GDI), Chief Peretimi Akari, has explained the recent meeting between Governor Seriake Dickson and exmilitants was to foster national unity. He dispelled the notion that the meeting was to map how ex-militants in the region will take up arms should President Goodluck Jonathan lose the forthcoming election. Akari told reporters that Dickson instead prevailed on the ex-warlords not to be provoked by the recent stoning of Jonathan in some northern states. According to him: "We want to put it on record that the Bayelsa meeting was based on the strength of peace for a united country. "It was to bring everybody together and calm frayed nerves because we are not violent people." Akari further explained that the governor also seized the opportunity to tell them of the need for them to get on the train and participate in the campaign without rancor.

NEWS

Boko Haram: FG to criminalise religious

O stop personnel supply to radical Islamic sect, Boko Haram, the federal government would soon criminalise incitement and recruitment of persons in places of worship through legislations. This is contained in the National Counter-Terrorism Strategy (NACTEST) launched by President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. NACTEST was one of the three security documents prepared to counter terrorism in the north east. The other two documents presented by the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki, to guide security agencies in handling threats are National

incitement, recruitment From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

Security Strategy and Cyber Security Plan and Strategy. Stressing that the Boko Haram onslaught has been on the increase with sophisticated weapons since 2009, the NSA noted that 15,000 people died in 2011 alone globally from terrorist-related attacks. To forestall such attacks in Nigeria, the CounterTerrorism document said that efforts were on to tackle disadvantages boosting terrorism and support necessary reforms. It reads: "To stem the number of available persons who may be easily recruited

by terrorists, government will address matters relating to incitement and recruitment in places of religious training or worship by introducing legislations which criminalize such behaviour. "To prevent terrorism lies in addressing structural problems in the country that may contribute to providing willing hands for recruitment by terrorist groups. "Governments (Federal, State and Local) will aggressively tackle structures which give vent to social systems that exploit and impoverish individuals in their formative years. "Of particular concern are

social systems that promote issues like the 'Area boys' and the 'Almajiri' systems." It continued: "These systems, which thrive in areas of extreme poverty and deprivation, produce youths who are easily radicalised through inappropriate teachings." The document also said that the government will work with local authorities to identify areas where radicalisation may be taking place and help them protect themselves against the efforts of extremists. The government, the document said, will also support and encourage capacity-building initiatives in all key areas of the criminal justice system.

HE Executive Secretary of Mushin local government in Lagos, Hon Babajide Bello, has called on residents to partner with government to actualise the dream of making the state clean. He spoke last week during the monthly environmental sanitation exercise held at Idi -Oro, Mushin. Bello said residents must be committed to a clean culture, which include constant clearing of the drains, avoid dropping of refuse inside the canals and cutting of roads without necessary approval. He appealed to residents to embrace the sanitation exercise as a norm such that even when it is cancelled, they would still clean the streets and clean their environment.

HE hope-inspiring narrative of Nigeria's Farida Bedwei, who overcame cerebral palsy, to emerge one of Africa's respected engineers will be featured in this weekend's edition of CNN African Voices. A statement from programme sponsor and telecommunications operator, Globacom, said the Ghanabased software engineer, will be the star guest on the 30-minute magazine programme which will run on CNN International at 7.30 pm today. Globacom said Bedwei is coming on African Voices in line with the programme's philosophy of showcasing successful and high-profile personalities shaping the African continent and to encourage those undergoing similar predicaments to keep hope alive. The engineer, whose full name is Farida Nana Efua Bedwei, was born in Lagos Nigeria in 1979 and spent most of her childhood in Dominica, Grenada and the United Kingdom before her family moved to Ghana when she was nine.

Council boss seeks partnership for clean environment

Cerebral palsy conqueror, Farida Bedwei, on African Voices

Mrs. Alabi for burial

APC Houston raises fund for Buhari HE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Houston, United States of America (USA) has raised a huge amount of campaign fund to be donated to the party's presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, this week. The fund-raising event in Houston Texas last week was well-attended by supporters and well-wishers of the APC. APC's Houston chairman, Ade Steven and the women leader, Rashidat Musa, stated that Buhari was the only candidate in the forthcoming election that would deliver Nigeria from Boko Haram insurgency. "It is unthinkable that in a nation of freedom-loving people, a group like the lunatic Boko Haram will reign, rule and claim a part of Nigeria's territory at will," Steven lamented. He said the officials will be in Nigeria this week to meet Buhari with the campaign fund.

â&#x20AC;˘ L-R:The Managing Director/CEO Bank of Industry Limited, Rasheed Olaoluwa; Business Development Officer, Global Business Development Division - Africa, Export-Import Bank of the United State, Mr. Benjamin Todd & the Group Head, Treasury Division, Bank of Industry Limited, Taye Emagha during a courtesy visit to the bank head office in Lagos... yesterday

Police intercept truckload of arms in Kwara

HE Kwara state police command has intercepted a truckload of arms and ammunitions in Kosubosu, a border town in Baruten local government area. This came as the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state urged security agents to act on attacks of its members by suspected Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) thugs. Last Wednesday, suspected PDP hoodlums attacked the campaign train of Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed and Senator Bukola Saraki in Isapa, Ekiti local government area of the state. The Ibadan, Oyo state bound vehicle with registration number Lagos XU 110 BDG was said to be coming from BurkinaFaso. Officers and men of the Kosubosu Divisional Police Headquarters nabbed the driver alongside another accomplice. A police source said that the

*APC wants security agents to act on attacks of members From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin arms, which comprised scores of cartons of cartridges, were securely concealed in the truck. Occupants of the vehicle were given as Abdulazeez Isiaka and Amusa Amodu. The state police Commissioner, Salihu Garba, confirmed the arrest. He added that another vehicle was with arms and ammunition was impounded around that axis yesterday. Garba added that the command had dispatched some officers and men of the state Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to the border community for further investigations. Reacting to the development, the council chair, Mallam Mohammed Omar-Bio, described the incident as saddening especially at the

general elections are around the corner. The chairman, who also was at the police station to inspect the bullets, applauded the men of the Nigeria police in the area for their gallantry and doggedness, calling for an immediate promotion of the officers. He said: "This has confirmed that those people that are threatening the existence of Nigeria about the election mean the business." The council boss however warned people against any act inimical to the peaceful existence of the country and that of free and fair election. Specifically, APC urged the police to call the PDP governorship candidate in the state to order to stem the tide of political violence. Addressing reporters yesterday in Ilorin, the state capital, Chairman of APC,

Alhaji Ishola Balogun-Fulani, alleged: "A candidate of the PDP has camped suspected hired assassins in different hotels ahead of the forthcoming general elections. "We do not believe that police and other security agencies in the state should be urged or begged to do their jobs before they take actions on the unlawful and criminal activities of the PDP. "Disturbingly, the fact that the police have handled the violent PDP and its rampaging thugs with kid-gloves signals to, perhaps, a collaboration between the police and the PDP in the state. "If indeed there is no collaboration between the police and the PDP, the police command should show and assure the people of the state that that the police command is in charge of the security of the state."

I was not sacked from Lagos civil service, says Ambode

HE All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, has denied the rumour that he was fired or forced to resign from the Lagos State Civil Service. The former Accountant General made this clarification at the weekend at a reception

in his honour by Eko Club, one of the earliest and frontline membership clubs in Lagos State. In a statement by his Director of Media and Communications, Steve Ayorinde, the APC candidate said he voluntarily retired at 49 from the Lagos state civil service in 2012. Ambode stated that he

served the state meritoriously for 27 years and decided to move on to pursue other dreams. He pointed out he was specially commended by Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) when he expressed his intention to voluntarily retire. He added that as an acknowledgement of his selfless service to the state, he

was also issued a Certificate of Service by the Lagos State Civil Service "in recognition of the service I rendered to the state". According to him, the rumours being peddled are the handiworks of the opposition party "which has run out of lies to tell and ideas that can swing voters in their favour."

RS. Lydia Adebisi Alabi, wife of the pioneer Assistant General Secretary of the Nigerian Baptist Convention [now vice president}, the late Rev J.O Alabi is to be laid to rest on February 21at Ola, Ejigbo LGA of Osun State. She was aged 86. After her retirement she and her husband settled in Ola, Ejigbo in Osun State where she was involved in community services. She is survived by five children; Adeolu, Adeola, Adeoye, Adeagbo and Adesola. Mrs. Alabi was a woman of prayers and a life member of the Bible Society of Nigeria. She will be buried in Ola, Ejigbo after a funeral service at the Ebenezer Baptist Church, Ola.

Former Anambra Commissioner dies

HE Ojiabu Ogala of Onitsha, Chief Afam Onuora, is dead. He was 66. The deceased was the pioneer Manager of Lagos and Enugu main branches of the defunct Orient Bank of Nigeria Plc. He later rose to become Assistant General Manager Banking Operations. He was also a former Commissioner for Finance in Anambra State as well as Chairman of Onitsha North Local Government. A statement signed by Barrister Ejiofor Onuora for the family said his remains will be laid to rest in his residence at Onitsha on February 20.

NEWS Missing NNPC $20 billion: Reps to summon Price Water Coopers

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8, 2015

•NNPC report cooked - APC

IGERIAN National P e t r o l e u m Corporation’s firm of external auditors, Price Water Coopers, is to be invited by the House of Representatives to shed light on its report recently submitted to President Goodluck Jonathan. The chairman of the House of Representative Committee on Public Accounts, Solomon Adeola, who announced this said the firm has some explanations to make on its report which indicted the NNPC for ‘only $1.48billion’ as against the $20billion alleged to be missing from the account of the corporation. The National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Alhaji Lai Mohammed has also dismissed the auditors’ report as “cooked up.” Speaking at a town hall meeting in Ikeja as part of his campaign for election as senator representing Lagos West Mr. Adeola said the Auditor General of the federation Mr. Ukura Samuel who commented on the report has no locus standi to do so as he was not the one that appointed Price Water House Coopers in the first place and would not have been privy to the terms of reference and rules of engagement given to the auditing firm. “The Auditor General did not appoint the auditing firm that submitted the report. What he gave the public in his press conference is a summarised version of the report and not the full report. We in the House Committee will be requesting for the full report. The firm was appointed by the Ministry of Finance and not the Auditor General,” he stated adding that as far as the House is concerned the report raised more questions than answers to the missing Nigerian money. The Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee said the House needs to know the details of how out of $20billion, NNPC was only indicted for $1.48billion adding that Nigerians would want to know the details of what happened to the balance of $18.52billion in clear terms. “One is not surprised that the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Deiziani Alison-Madueke has quickly ordered payment of the acknowledged missing $1.48billion as this looks an easy way to bury the issue but Nigerians demand full accountability on this vexed issue” he said. And speaking to reporters in Abuja on the auditors’ report, the APC spokesman insisted that whether the missing money from the treasury is $1.48bn or more, the NNPC is corrupt. He said: “You see, the

From: Olugbenga Adanikin/ Frank Ikpefan, Abuja

thing we have always been saying about NNPC accounting is that it is not transparent. There is nobody that can probe NNPC account because they receive, they spend, they keep. “And one of the things we have been advocating is that NNPC should restrict itself solely to one thing: operation. We should have another body for regulation. “But a situation whereby the same person takes receipt, issues licenses and spends, what do you want to audit? You audit the book that I gave you so the book has been cooked from the beginning. “But even if it has been cooked and they couldn’t uncook it and they are saying now it is $4b or $1.6b or $1.6b,it is more than what the Osun state government receives in a year. It is more than that because $1.6b is almost N300bn. Osun doesn’t receive that in two years.” He said that Nigeria needs public sector reform to fight corruption. Alhaji Mohammed also called for the introduction of a new code of conduct ,saying: “What you need to do to fight corruption is political will. Once the head is corrupt, it goes down. “You reward discipline, and punish indiscipline. You reward honesty, and punish dishonesty. You reward hard work and punish idleness. You institute merit base system of reward and will be harsh on anybody who is corrupt.”

Jonathan boycotts Sanusi’s coronation

RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan was a conspicuous absentee at yesterday’s coronation of Sarki Muhammad Sanusi as the 57th Emir of Kano. There was also no official delegation from the Presidency either. No reason was given for their absence although relationship between the President and the Emir has been patchy since the former Central Bank governor was suspended from office in February last year after publicly alleging that some money was missing from government purse. The Sultan of Sokoto had broached a peace deal in which he led the Emir on a visit to the Presidential villa to meet with President Jonathan. However, yesterday’s coronation attracted the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC),General Muhammadu Buhari, former military head

From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

of State, General Yakubu Gowon, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Speaker Aminu Tambuwal of the House of Representatives and Governors Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano),Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Ahmed Abdulfatah (Kwara), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe), Abdullaziz Yari (Zamfara), Chibuike Amaechi (Rivers), Ramalan Yero (Kaduna), Babangida Aliyu (Niger) and Kashim Shetima (Borno). Also in attendance were the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Kano businessman, Alhaji Aminu Dantata, traditional rulers from across the country, politicians, captains of industry and members of the diplomatic corps. The coronation which was a blend of class and tradition

got underway at 10.10am when the Emir was ushered into the Coronation Hall by chiefs of the emirate and the royal guards. Thereafter, the Chief Imam of Kano, Professor Sani Zaharadeen administered the oath of office on the Emir. The Emir was then decorated with the traditional regalia by the Madakin Kano, Alhaji Yusuf Nabahani Ibrahim who was supported by the Makaman Kano, Sarkin Bai Kano and Sarkin Dawaki Mai Tuta Kano. They presented him with a sword, spear, knife, bow and arrow. With the presentation over, Gov.Kwankwaso handed the staff of office to the Emir amidst a 21-gun salute to herald the authority of his royal office. Sarki Sanusi II in a speech said his ascension to the throne has strengthened his resolve to fulfill his obligations to

God, Islam and the people of Kano. He also prayed that Allah might give him the wisdom to lead the people of Kano in peace and harmony. Gov. Kwankwaso described the appointment of the Emir as a collective judgment of the people and that his approval of the nomination was borne out of the conviction that Sarkin Sanusi was equal to the task given his national and international connections.He recalled that when the Sarkin served as CBN governor, he facilitated the establishment of micro-finance banks in the 44 Local Government Areas of the state. He paid tribute to him for firmly standing against all forms of injustice and persecution. Alhaji Sanusi was named Emir of Kano last June following the death of Alhaji Ado Bayero who ruled for 51 years.

•Kano State Governor, Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso (left) with the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu at the coronation of the Emir of Kano, Sarki Muhammad Sanusi.

Polls: Change it is, says Soyinka

OBEL Laureate Wole Soyinka yesterday reviewed the polity ahead of the coming elections and adjudged the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, a better choice than President Goodluck Jonathan. Prof. Soyinka in a statement entitled ‘The challenge of change – A burden of choice’ said that while the contest is not one between blacks and whites, saints and demons, salvation and damnation, Buhari seems to have gone through “a plausible transformation that comes close to that of another ex-military dictator, Mathew Kerekou of the Benin Republic.” Conversely, he said that Nigeria under President Jonathan has been subjected to “acts of outright fascism in a dispensation that is supposedly democratic. We have endured a season of stagnation in development and a drastic deterioration in the quality of existence. We are force-fed the burgeoning culture of impunity, blatantly

•Buhari shows signs of plausible transformation’ •Jonathan’s six years characterised by near total collapse of society manifested in massive corruption. We feel insulted by the courtship and indulgence of common criminals by the machinery of power.” On the choice before the electorate, Prof. Soyinka said: “Someone in the media has called it a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea, another between Apocalypse and Salvation. The reasons are not far-fetched. They are firmly lodged in the trauma of memory and the rawness of current realities. “Well, at least one can dialogue with the devil, even dine with that creature with the proverbial long spoon. With the deep blue sea however, deceptively placid, even the best swimmers drown. The problem for some is deciding which is the devil, which is the deep blue sea. For most, instructively, the difference is clear. There are no ambiguities, no qualifications, no pause for reflection - they are simply raring to go! I envy them.

“Through participation, direct or vicarious, we find ourselves landed within a system that has thrown up two choices – realistically speaking, that is. Formally, we dare not ignore the claims of other contestants. Of the two however, one is representative of the immediate past, still present with us, and with an accumulation of negative baggage. “The other is a remote past, justly resented, centrally implicated in grievous assaults against Nigerian humanity, with a landscape of broken lives that continues to lacerate collective memory.” It is largely around this question that a choice will probably be made. It is pointlessly, and dangerously provocative to present General Buhari as something that he probably was not. It is however just as purblind to insist that he has not demonstrably striven to become what he most

glaringly was not, to insist that he has not been chastened by intervening experience and – most critically - by a vastly transformed environment – both the localised and the global. “Of course we have been deceived before. A former ruler whom, one presumed, had been purged and transformed by a close encounter with death, and imprisonment, has turned out to be an embodiment of incorrigibility on several fronts, including a contempt for law and constitution. Would it be different this time round? Has subjection to police tear-gas and other forms of violence, like the rest of us mortals, and a spell in close detention, truly ‘civilianized’ this contender? I have studied him from a distance, questioned those who have closely interacted with him, including his former running-mate, Pastor Bakare, and dissected his key utterances past and current. “And my findings? A

plausible transformation that comes close to that of another ex-military dictator, Mathew Kerekou of the Benin Republic. He expressed disgust at some of the tactics deployed in the process of this political campaign which, according to him, “remain some of the most vulgar and sickening that the nation has experienced on its democratic journey.” “Has the campaign in itself thrown up any portents for the future? Let all beware. The predator walks stealthily on padded feet, but we all know now with what lightning speed the claws flash into action. We have learnt to expect, deplore and confront certain acts in military dictatorship, but to find them manifested under a supposedly democratic governance? Of course the tendency did not begin with this regime, but how eagerly the seeming meek have aspired to surpass their mentors!”

THE NATION ON SUNDAY FEBRUARY 8 , 2015

POLLS POSTPONEMENT

R GOODLUCK Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan is the President of Nigeria. In addition to the big title of President, he is also the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Undoubtedly a very big position, Jonathan is the supreme commander and boss of the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Navy, the Nigerian Air Force as well as the Nigeria Police, the Nigeria Civil Defence Corps, the Nigerian Security and Intelligence Services, and of such forces not listed on paper. With the awesome powers at the disposal of Mr President, Jonathan is armed to the teeth to do and undo with the fate of Nigerians. And this exactly was what he chose to do after meeting with the respected Members of the highest advisory council in the land: the country’s Council of State. After allowing the grey-haired former Heads of state and governments of Nigeria to warm their seats at the hallowed chambers of the Presidential Villa, and gracefully allowing them to air their views on the much anticipated national Elections slated for February 14 and 28 2015, Jonathan went to his armoury and calculatedly announced the bloodless take-over of the nation’s sovereignty and vested it

•Continued from page 4 Jega, confirmed that he had received a letter from the security services advising that he postpones the general elections on the grounds that the security agencies were engaged in a renewed battle against insurgency in the North-East that would require their full concentration. In the letter the Military was demanding a rescheduling of elections by at least six weeks in the first instance. “Situation Room conveyed to INEC its disappointment with the letter from the security agencies pointing out that this amounted to the Military’s abdication of its constitutional duties to provide security to citizens and to the Commission to enable it conduct elections and appeared contrived to truncate the democratic process in Nigeria. “Situation Room is further worried that the Military’s position also aims to blackmail and arm-twist the Election Management Body away from its constitutional guaranteed function of conducting elections. Situation Room also condemns this advisory by security agents that they cannot guarantee the security of citizens, election officials and materials during the election.” The Situation Room called for the resignation of the military chiefs and security heads including the Police “on account of their inability to exercise their constitutional responsibility to secure lives and property at all times including during the elections.” It asked Nigerians to be vigilant and be ready to protect this hard won democracy! The Situation Room comprises Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) working in support of credible and transparent elections in Nigeria and includes such groups as Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), CLEEN Foundation, Action Aid Nigeria, Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), Enough is Enough Nigeria, Wangonet, Partners for Electoral Reform and Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth & Advancement (YIAGA). Others are Development Dynamics, Human Rights Monitor, Election Monitor, Reclaim Naija, Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, CITAD, CISLAC and several other CSOs. The withdrawal of the military/ police from the February polls automatically renders INEC’s hitherto insistence to go ahead with the elections a risky venture because to even collect ballot papers from their storage in the Central Bank of Nigeria for the elections will require security escort, which apparently is now unavailable in the light of the move by the security forces.

Jonathan’s coup against Nigeria

•Jonathan By Tola Adeniyi on himself. Nigeria had battled insurgency, albeit half-heartedly for nine years. And under Commander-In-Chief Jonathan’s lack-lustre watch the

insurgency grew in bounds and leaps. The ravaging insurgents even captured over 300 school girls from their hostel and to date the fate of the unfortunate girls is unknown. On top of that the insurgents had successfully captured and occupied a number of territories in the North East of Nigeria and declared the captured lands their own. Nigeria’s Commander-In-Chief appeared totally powerless and at the height of his frustration announced to the whole world that some members of his Cabinet were members of the terrorising BokoHaram sect. And at another time when bombs went up at the Eagle Square Commander-In-Chief Jonathan declared that the perpetrators were ‘my brothers’ meaning the terror groups from the creeks of the Delta region where Jonathan hailed from. Commander-In-Chief took a good look at his very unimpressive performance as the President of Nigeria and he was worried stiff that any elections in Nigeria would sweep him off his exalted feet. Billions of dollars had been declared stolen under his watch and many horrible

things that were hitherto unknown in Nigeria were parading themselves under his presidency: unceasing armed robbery, kidnapping, assassinations, unprecedented level of insecurity and arrant impunity and unaccountability in government. All these anomalies weighted heavily against the country’s march to development and modernity. It became very clear that Jonathan, the President lacked the ability and capability to run the affairs of Nigeria. It was even clear that he lacked the wherewithal to run the affairs of a Bakery! Elections to national office were usually, as defined by the Nigerian Constitution which Jonathan swore to uphold and protect, held three months to handing over power to the successors. That period had been fixed for February of every Election year. President Jonathan the CommanderIn-Chief was/is very well aware of this Constitutional provision and he, in fact had been canvassing for votes in readiness for the Elections. The Electoral body which is constitutionally bound to be

Resign, civil society groups tell service chiefs On the INEC meeting with the political parties, it was gathered that the commission decided to have them vote for or against shifting the polls. The outcome of the voting was 16 in favour of poll shift, nine against while two abstained. Those for were AA, PPN, ADC, PPA, CPP, DPP, LP, MP, NCP, NNPP, UDP, UPN, PPA, PDP, ACPN, PDC Those against included Accord, APA, APC, Hope, ID, KOWA, SDP, PDM, and UPP. APGA and another party abstained from voting. Sources said Jega briefed them on his appearance at the Council of State meeting and the challenge at hand. He said that 96% of the Permanent Voter Cards have been produced and 34% yet to be collected. He also explained how he got a February 4, 2015 letter from NSA Dasuki in which he claimed that some parts of the country were unsafe for the conduct of the elections. After the short address, Jega made available to each party a copy of his presentation to the Council of State. It was the presentation that set the tone for input from all the political parties. A source at the session said: “For about 15 minutes, leaders of the political parties went through the presentation after which the floor was thrown open for contribution. “Jega raised two questions to be addressed by the parties: (1) In view of this development, should INEC proceed with the general election? If we should, what alternative do we have? (2) Do we take the NSA advice and shift the poll?” It was gathered that unsuspectingly, INEC management had covertly designed a poll taking or voting device on the contribution from parties. “As we were making input, the electoral body turned it into a voting for or against session. “A desk officer was immediately assigned the job of taking note of the voting process.” Another source said: “First to take the floor was the Deputy National Chairman of Accord Party, Barrister Sikiru Oke, who said the production and distribution of 96% of PVCs were above pass mark. Oke said: “On the issue of insurgency in some local government areas in the Adamawa, Borno, Yobe and Gombe, this should not be used as an excuse to hold the nation into ransom. “PDP and APC have campaigned in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe and there had never been attack on them. I think the security situation is not as bad as

they are parading. All they need to do is to send more troops and security agents to areas under threats.” The APGA representative said as a lowly-placed officer, he cannot take a decision on behalf of the party. He decided to abstain. In what appeared a pre-determined agenda, leaders of PDP(represented by the Deputy National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus), Labour Party, NCP and 13 others hammered on poor distribution of PVCs and security challenges to defend the NSA’s demand for the poll shift. Another source, however, said: “Expectedly, the National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun was in his best element when he spoke for about 20 minutes instead of the allotted five minutes per speaker. “He was combative and warned that it will “not be in the interest of this country. I hope INEC will not allow itself to be used.” Responding to a question, the source said: “At the end of the session, Jega announced that he would consult with other stakeholders and Resident Electoral Commissioners(RECs) and make a formal announcement. “We were all surprised that he decided to skip the appropriate days or weeks for the poll shift.” The postponement has provoked criticism of the military. A concerned Nigerian, reacting to the development last night, said: “a former Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Salihu Ibrahim, once said we had a military of anything goes. What do we call our security of today? A security of anything goes? “Imagine what they told Jega: that they are unavailable from February14; that they will be busy in the Northeast fighting Boko Haram. It is really sad the level our security has sunk.” Already, the blame game has commenced at the presidency over what officials term mishandling of the plot to shift this month’s crucial elections. The scapegoat is National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki who is accused of bungling his role in the plot. The NSA, according to Presidency sources, had been assigned the responsibility of getting the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to defer the elections ,using insecurity in the Northeast as an excuse. This was to be done with tack and in such a way that it would be difficult for the public to link the presidency to the plan.

Dasuki soon swung into action, meeting INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega in Abuja.He told Jega of security challenges in parts of the country and asked for the postponement of the polls accordingly. A shocked Jega was said to have replied that he could not tell Nigerians that the polls would be shifted and that since he does not run a one-man show at the commission he would like the NSA to personally talk to his colleagues—the Federal Electoral Commissioners. Dasuki, it was gathered, bought into this suggestion and a date was fixed for a meeting with Jega and the Electoral Commissioners. “At the meeting the NSA repeated what he had told the INEC boss about security challenges,” one of the presidency sources told The Nation yesterday. “After Jega’s briefing, the commissioners mandated Jega to speak on their behalf whereupon he told the NSA that their job in INEC was to conduct elections and that he (Jega) could not speak on security or tell Nigerians that the polls would be shifted because of security. “He said Nigerians would ask if he was now in charge of security. He advised the NSA to tell Nigerians himself why the elections must be shifted for security reason.” No consensus was reached by the two sides at the meeting. Sources said that immediately after the meeting, Dasuki left the country for London where he addressed the UK think-tank Chatham House on January 22. It was from his lecture entitled, “Nigeria’s Insecurity: Insurgency, Corruption, Elections and the Management of Multiple Threats,” that Nigerians and the international community began to sniff the plot to tamper with the election time table. Agency reports quoted Dasuki as saying during the question and answer session that he (Dasuki) had suggested to Jega, that a postponement by three months is allowed by the law and that it would be a good idea if the elections could be delayed to give INEC more time to distribute millions of biometric voters’ cards to voters. Dasuki added that Jega had assured him that “It would achieve this in time for the February date, but he thought it will make more sense to take more time and there was a 90-day window during which the election could legally take place. It costs you (INEC) nothing; it’s still within the law.” He said: “Anxiety over the peaceful conduct of the 2015 general elections

independent had also for the past four years been preparing for the Elections. On numerous occasions, the boss of that body a most respected intellectual by the name Attahiru Jega had announced their readiness and preparedness to hold a fair and free election. While the whole world was eagerly looking forward to the Elections slated for February 14, the Commander-In-Chief through remote control sent his National Security adviser, his own appointee, to test the waters by suggesting that elections could not hold as scheduled. A number of megaphones took the queue from the National Security Adviser and they too started mouthing the desirability of postponing the Elections. And a most respected elders’ council suspected to have been heavily bribed at the Jonathan stage-managed National Confab also came up, inaudibly though due to the advanced stage of their ages, that it might be a good idea if the Elections were suspended in the last hour. •To be concluded tomorrow has continued to grow both at home and abroad, fuelled by the memories of the post-election violence that occurred after the 2011 elections. Boko Haram members who have repeatedly expressed their disdain for the democratic process have also escalated their campaign over this period, further adding to the sense of instability. “In a country of 170 million people elections have not been without their challenges, most especially pre and post-election violence, allegations of rigging, delayed delivery of ballot boxes, names left off ballot papers, desperation of some politicians to win at all costs are some examples. Experience, most especially after the 2011 general elections has shown that some of the most serious challenges to election security could emerge spontaneously or due to perceptions, of irregularities during the voting process, which then reflected in what some people concluded were unfavourable election results. “Other challenges that we anticipate include the ability of INEC and the state to protect sensitive election related material as well as the provision of adequate security for electoral officers. This will help to ensure the integrity of the process.” At home,Jega and his officials were angry as the statement implied that INEC was incompetent and had bungled preparations for the polls. They told reporters who bombarded them with questions about their preparation for the polls that they were ready. Presidency sources said that the real reason the authorities are pressing for the postponement of the polls has little to do with insecurity but largely because of unfavourable results of their privately commissioned polls which showed the President Goodluck Jonathan and his party (PDP) trailing badly. “They couldn’t come out openly to admit that. They then asked Dasuki to go and make the case for a shift based on security reasons. Unfortunately the NSA handled it badly,” one source said. “When it became obvious to the Presidency that INEC would not play along, they decided to take the case to the National Council of State which rejected any shift in the election dates of February 14 and 28. “The Villa is very angry with Dasuki over the fiasco. They can’t understand how the NSA couldn’t get Jega to back off on security grounds. “The hope is that a shift will give Jonathan more time to mobilize, and attack Buhari more. They also hope postponement would drain APC resources.”

SPORTS THE NATION ON SUNDAY

Yakubu plans big for Reading

EXTRA

FEBRUARY 8, 2015

ENGLAND Tottenham 2 - 1 Arsenal Aston Villa 1 - 2 Chelsea Leicester 0 - 1 C/Palace Man City 1 - 1 Hull City QPR 0 - 1 Southampton Swansea 1 - 1 Sunderland GERMANY Cologne 0 - 0 Paderborn Freiburg 0 - 3 Dortmund Mainz 05 0 - 2 Hertha Berlin Stuttgart 0 - 2 Munich Wolfsburg 3 - 0 Hoffenheim SUNDAY MATCHES ENGLAND Burnley V West Brom Newcastle V Stoke West Ham V Man United

OTE d'Ivoire coach Herve Renard is confident key man Yaya Toure will have a stellar game in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations finals against Ghana on Sunday. The Elephants face the Black Stars team that has defied all odds to make it all the way to the finals of the competition being staged in Equatorial Guinea. Yaya Toure, who is the star man in the Ivorian side has only started living up to his huge billing after enduring a

IGERIA striker, Yakubu Aiyegbeni has charged his new teammates at Reading to always feed him the ball and he will get goals for the team. The 'Yak' returned to England during the January transfrer window after stints in China and Qatar, and he has an impressive record for always finding the net and the striker is certainly confident of continuing to do what he does best in a Reading shirt. “I hope they feed me, then I can score!” the Nigerian international told the pre match press conference on ahead of today's Championship clash against Wolves at the Molineux. “As a striker your job is to score. When you don't score you don't do your job. I always believe, wherever I play I can score goals. You have to believe in yourself and when you have good teammates it's great, the teammates here they believe in me and I believe in them too.” The 32-year-old admitted that the last few days have been somewhat of a whirlwind after his shock move to the Madejski Stadium on transfer deadline day, but has acclimatized quickly despite a baptism of snow in his first two training sessions!

AFCON FINAL: Renard banks on Yaya Toure difficult start to the tournament. The Manchester City star scored a screamer of a goal to help the side into the grand finale and Renard expects the rising form of his captain to continue. “What I am sure is that Yaya Toure will play a very good game,” he said. “The semi final proved it and he scored a great goal which is not by luck. “This is a very important game and players like that are always ready for these kind of games.

Ayew brothers talk tough

NDRE Ayew has vowed they will fight to win Sunday's AFCON final against Cote d'Ivoire for the whole of Ghana. Ghana last won this competition in 1982 with Andre's father, the legendary Abedi 'Pele' Ayew, one of the

top stars from that triumph in Libya. Ten years later, Ayew senior could not play another Africa Cup final after he picked up a second yellow card against Nigeria in the semi-final and Cote d'Ivoire went ahead to beat the Black Stars 11-10 on penalties after a goalless 120 minutes of action.

Atletico thrash Madrid in Ronaldo’s return

IGA champions Atletico Madrid thrashed league leaders and city rivals Real Madrid 40 in Los Blancos' heaviest defeat since losing 5-0 to Barcelona in 2010. Atletico Madrid have also blown the La Liga title race wide open after the thumping of arch rivals Real at the Vicente Calderon. Atletico Madrid's recent dominance over Real Madrid

shows no sign of letting up after the Rojiblancos thrashed their city rivals 4-0 at the Vicente Calderon. Much had been made of the hosts' physical approach ahead of kick-off and they swarmed all over their visitors from the outset building a 2-0 lead within 18 minutes. Iker Casillas should have done better with the first as he

allowed Tiago's 18-yard strike squirm under his body, but he could do nothing about the second. Saul Niguez, an early replacement for the injured Koke, meeting Guilherme Siqueira's cross with an acrobatic finish. When Niguez doubled the lead with a stunning bicycle kick it was as good as game over with the visitors unable to get their three pronged attack of Cristiano Ronaldo,

Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema into the game at all. Real were flat, not registering a single shot on target in the opening 45 minutes, and Carlo Ancelotti reacted by throwing on Jese for Sami Khedira. The visitors were initially bright after the break but were unable to find a way back into the game and Antoine Griezmann made sure of the three points as he bundled home with 23

minutes left. And there was still time for Fernando Torres to come off the bench and set up Mario Mandzukic to add a fourth. Though Real still lead the table with 54 points, Atletico are now third with 50 - the same as secondplaced Barcelona, who can go one point behind Real if they defeat Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

Anatomy of Nigeria's $20 billion “leak” Contd from page 62 Both companies quickly sub-contracted production work to other operators, according to Sanusi's submission to parliament and several market sources. The companies did not disclose terms of these contracts. Atlantic does not publish accounts, but Seven's 2013 annual report shows its deal with NPDC helped its revenue more than triple to $345 million. In May 2013, Nigeria's parliament threatened to investigate the NPDC contracts because they were not issued through competitive tender. But the NNPC argued no tender was needed because the contracts involved no sale of equity in the oil fields; the probe did not go ahead. Sanusi did not accuse Seven and Atlantic of any illegalities, but he did question why the NPDC chose those companies. His report said the deals' only purpose seemed to be “acquiring assets belonging to the federation (state) and transferring the income to private hands.” Asked about this, NNPC referred to the Senate report, which found that no-bid partnership agreements are not new. It also said that “it may be good policy to

encourage indigenous players by giving them greater participation,” but called for such deals “to be conducted in a transparent and competitive manner.” Seven did not comment. It says on its website its agreement with NPDC predated the Jonathan administration and included an allowance for taxes. The company says it has invested more than $500 million, more than doubled production from its three blocks, and paid $48.8 million in taxes in 2013. Atlantic did not comment. KEROSENE SUBSIDIES The second mechanism Sanusi's report identifies as problematic is a decades-old state subsidy provided to retailers of kerosene, the fuel most Nigerians use for cooking. Nigeria lacks the refining capacity to make kerosene, so imports it instead. The government then sells the kerosene to retailers at a cheaper price than the import price. This subsidy is meant to make kerosene affordable for the poor. In reality, though, retailers have long hiked prices so consumers pay much more than official levels. In June 2009, Jonathan's predecessor, Umaru Yar'Adua, ordered a halt to the scheme on the grounds that it was not working. But

the subsidies carried on regardless. The NNPC told parliament last February that it still deducts billions of dollars a year from its earnings to cover it. In his report, Sanusi called the kerosene subsidy a “racket” that lines the pockets of private kerosene retailers and NNPC staff. The report estimated the cost of the subsidy at $100 million a month. It said kerosene retailers there are hundreds of them around the country routinely charged customers much higher prices than the government pays to import the fuel. Sanusi's report included an analysis of kerosene prices across Nigeria's 36 states over two years. It found that the government buys kerosene at 150 naira per litre from importers and then sells it to retailers at just 40 naira per litre. Sanusi's analysis found consumers pay an average of 170-200 naira per litre, and sometimes as much as 270 naira. “The margin of 300 percent to 500 percent over purchase price is economic rent, which never got to the man on the street,” Sanusi wrote. NNPC said in a statement last year that it can't force retailers to sell kerosene at the subsidised price. SWAP DEALS The third mechanism

Sanusi identified involves other types of refined petroleum products, such as gasoline. Like kerosene, these are also imported. Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer but it depends on imports for 80 percent of its fuel needs because its refining capacity is tiny. To pay for the imported products, Nigeria barters its crude oil. Sanusi's dossier focuses on these barter exchanges, which are known as “swap deals.” The idea is that importers who bring in refined fuel worth a given amount receive an “equivalent value” in crude oil. How that equivalent value is determined is unclear. Sanusi said he was uncertain how much, if anything, is lost in these deals. But he expressed concern at the sheer value of oil that changes hands and the lack of oversight. His report estimated that between 2010 and 2011, traders involved in swap deals effectively bartered 200,000 barrels of crude a day worth nearly $20 million at average crude prices over the period for a loosely determined equivalent value in refined products. It is impossible to tell, he said, if all the refined products were delivered, let alone if the terms were fair. “It was clear to us that these transactions ... were not

properly structured, monitored and audited,” he wrote. Sanusi wrote in his report that mismanagement and “leakages” of cash in the industry cost Nigeria billions of dollars a year. Since the price of oil has fallen by around half since the start of 2014, such losses are even more significant. As it approaches elections, Nigeria faces plummeting oil revenues and a lack of buffers to shield the economy. Construction projects are on hold and the government is struggling to pay its sizeable workforce. Multiple scandals in the oil sector since Jonathan took power have boosted the popularity of his rival, former military leader Muhammadu Buhari. Remembered by some for deposing a civilian government in a 1983 coup and trampling on civil liberties, the sandal-wearing general often promises to “free Nigeria from corruption.” Jonathan, too, says he will “clean up” Nigeria. By using t e c h n o l o g y a n d strengthening institutions, “I will solve the problem of corruption in this country,” he told a crowd in Ibadan in January.

Report: Reuters

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015

QUOTABLE “It doesn’t really matter to me who wins an election. It matters to me how people win it. If Nigerians want to put the gear on reverse, democracy will allow them to do so. But honestly, if they want to move on to gear five, nobody should stop it and I guest people want to move to gear five.”

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2015 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM VOL. 9, NO. 3120 N 2011, this column endorsed Nuhu Ribadu for the presidency though it admitted he could not win; believed Muhammadu Buhari was best placed to impose meaningful, even if not modern, rule on Nigeria; and announced that Goodluck Jonathan would win though he was unprepared for the presidency and unsuited to a post nothing in him was capable of grasping. Dr Jonathan indeed won, and has proved a spectacular failure: he has been unable to respond temperamentally and intellectually to the demands of the lofty office he has occupied for more than five years. In four years, however, Gen Buhari’s stock has risen in inverse proportion to Dr Jonathan’s steeply falling share price, and though his ideas, policies and behaviour appear hexagonal to the country’s round and modern needs, the retired army general and former head of state has nonetheless grown to become a round peg in a round hole. Only Mallam Ribadu has seemed an inconvenient departure from the 2011 mould, seeing how his steely interior, patriotic fire, altruism, and even-tempered religious and ethnic credentials all appeared wrapped in unstable and unpalatable chemical composition. This year's presidential election needs no nuanced endorsement. Sensing that the All Progressives Congress (APC) momentum had become unstoppable, the Jonathan government worked intensively to stymie it and possibly redirect the momentum in favour of the ruling party. But if the reordering of the election schedule that put the presidential election first unlike in 2011 did not dampen the opposition enthusiasm nor undermine their momentum, it is hard to see the postponement of the election from February 14 to any date in March constituting a negative and morale dampening factor in the drive to unseat Dr Jonathan. The Jonathan government hopes the multinational force against Boko Haram in the Northeast will triumph and the credit for victory will go to Dr Jonathan. The president also hopes that the opposition will become discouraged, and that somehow, by a divine sleight of hand, events will turn around to favour the ruling party. If anything, however, the anticipated intervening variables expected to work in favour of the ruling party may inexplicably work against the Jonathan government. One month postponement or so will not change the incompetence of five years, restore a broken and failing economy, erase the universal negative opinion of more than five years, or stanch the flow of gaffes and monumental indiscretion. Last week, this column took Afenifere, the pan-Yoruba socio-cultural and obviously political organisation, to task for endorsing Dr Jonathan. The group had unbelievably and conveniently anchored its endorsement mainly on the promise by the president to implement the resolutions of the national conference. As an aside, Afenifere also suggested that voting Dr Jonathan’s opponent was tantamount to endorsing slavery, presumably northern slavery, and that in any case the opposition party had kicked against the convocation of the national conference and so was undeserving of the Yoruba organisation’s support. Afenifere did not say, and for obvious and sinister reasons could not say, how they expect Dr Jonathan to implement the conference resolutions when no one knows the composition and temper of the next national assembly. Nor, given his temperament, inattentiveness to details, proven lack of patriotism, and his sectional and provincial worldview, is it clear how Dr Jonathan hopes to overcome his notorious habit of breaking promises to keep a promise not anchored on either patriotic or philosophical conviction. Since the controversial Afenifere endorsement, it has become abundantly clear that the organisation neither spoke for nor represented the Yoruba. The endorsement was nothing more than the private and presumptuous opinion of a group of self-seeking and acrimonious politicians prompted by Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State and former Governor Gbenga Daniel of Ogun State. They stilled the protests of

—Edo State governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, speaks on a number of national issues and political calculations ahead of the elections.

Palladium's endorsement: Voting Jonathan will doom democracy

•Jonathan their consciences, rode roughshod over a commonsensical view and reading of history and politics, and projected clumsily into the future on nothing but a magic carpet to offer that futile and unmerited endorsement to Dr Jonathan. Except they tell themselves a hopeless lie, they know, as indeed the rest of the world, that Dr Jonathan, should he win the poll, is unlikely to perform better than he has done. Not needing re-election after 2015, he would bare his fangs, subvert values and sound principles, denude every political virtue conceivable, harass and intimidate the people out of their constitutional rights, and break every promise he has made. Perhaps inspired and emboldened by Afenifere’s endorsement, the even more superficial Yoruba organisation, the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), which for more than two decades had affected to fight for and protect the rights of the Yoruba, has also offered Dr Jonathan their endorsement. Whereas Afenifere pretends to be philosophical, anchoring its preference for Dr Jonathan on the need to restructure the country, OPC on the other hand anchors its endorsement on materialist grounds, perhaps because it wants a pipeline protection contract. The president, it said enthusiastically, had promised to build a deep seaport in Badagary, the best in the country, and a free trade zone and seaport in Lekki. When he met the president and complained about the poor representation of the Yoruba in his cabinet, said OPC’s flustered and flattered leader, Gani Adams, Dr Jonathan ‘within three days’ appointed a Yoruba as his chief of staff. If the Southwest, which used to be a thinking region, is now overtaken by charlatanism, it is not difficult to imagine why the evident and self-admitting failures of Dr Jonathan have elicited mixed reactions in many other places. I do not know of any north-easterner who would reward Dr Jonathan for his abysmal and vexatious handling of the Boko Haram menace. Nor do I know any parent, except one without empathy, who would ignore the more than nine-month-old Chibok abductions in which 219 schoolgirls were seized by Boko Haram militants to endorse Dr Jonathan. I do not also know any unemployed and hungry man except a sadist who would ignore

•Buhari the failing economy crippled by Dr Jonathan’s government and vote for him. I do not know any patriot who would ignore the humiliating fact that the current onslaught against Boko Haram is inspired and led by Chad and, like the Afenifere and OPC, foolishly and shamelessly endorse Dr Jonathan. Indeed, I do not know any self-respecting Nigerian who would listen to Dr Jonathan’s many embarrassing gaffes and his wife’s noxious and verbose tales and brush aside all scruples to vote for him. After the Chibok abductions, the world became sick and tired of Dr Jonathan, and in diplomatic and polite circles they speak of his legacies and his government in idioms and proverbs, describing him as an exasperating failure that cannot be redeemed by either reelection or rehabilitation. Opinion of him abroad is universally poor, whether among foreigners or Nigerians. Even in Africa, there is not one country where Nigeria is respected, thanks to Dr Jonathan whose style, speech, and actions have consigned the country to the dustbin. The world has made up its mind that it would indeed be tragic for Dr Jonathan to be returned to office, for they are sure nothing inspiring can come from him, no matter how long he postpones the election. But in spite of Chibok, insecurity, failed economy and threats to the survival of the country, it is precisely within beleaguered Nigeria that opinion on Dr Jonathan is divided. The main reason, discounting the ethnic balderdash oozing out of the creeks and parts of the Southeast, is religion, a highly divisive and incendiary factor propagated energetically by Dr Jonathan himself. He was that factor’s originator, mastermind, and catalyst. He has curried the Christian vote as irresponsibly and recklessly as a medieval bigot, unconcerned by any fear that his opponent could also deliberately and as openly curry the Muslim vote. Where would that leave Nigeria? But if he is receiving any hearing, it is a pointer to the shortcomings and abject failure of Christian leaders who should draw on the wisdom of God to denounce the sectarian bogey and divisive politics of a shortsighted leader. Knowing Dr Jonathan for who he is, everything he stands for is unscriptural. His private and public morals are un-

satisfactory, his Christian ethic, to which he pays only lip service, is twisted, and his heart, not to say his soul, is full of malice (of the malignant type), envy, hatred, hypocrisy, injustice, pride and all forms of pomposity, notwithstanding his open show of humility. It is to this pharisaical approach to religion and politics that Christian leaders, trading and peddling secular influence, have subjected the purest doctrines of Jesus Christ, as if it mattered to Christ what obstacles exist in a State House against the Scriptures, as if once a hypocrite took Christianity under his wings Christian doctrines would be given fillip. But even if Christian leaders should support Dr Jonathan, could they hope to keep a Christian in power for the next 10, 20 or 30 years? Would a Muslim not one day mount the throne? For much of 2013 up to the third quarter of 2014, most churches had laboured under the delusion that Dr Jonathan was God’s choice for Aso Villa. There was hardly any exception to this profanity. Many churches still labour under that delusion; and had a top pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) not been on the APC ticket, it is not clear where even that great and huge pentecostal church would tilt today. Churches of course reserve the right to support whomsoever they wish, individually or collectively. But they have a responsibility to recognise that the political leader they support must satisfy the standards of Christ, and importantly, Christian leaders must also recognise that they have congregations that run the gamut of the country’s political persuasions. It is irresponsible to discountenance these facts or to tyrannise from the pulpit. Of the many contestants for the presidential stool, only two are worthy of attention: Dr Jonathan and Gen Buhari. President Jonathan is familiar to us by his failures and present and continuing inadequacies; and Gen Buhari by essentially his past, especially his 20-month rule as a military dictator. The retired general is certainly no policy wonk, and can’t even be relied on to engineer remarkable economic and political ideas, nor to preside over the most thoroughgoing democratic practices sorely needed by the country. In fact, much of his brutal past, which he has done little to expiate, leaves much to be desired. But because the choice for Nigeria is between Dr Jonathan and Gen Buhari, it is critical to consider what the urgent problems of the day are, and who better to address them between the two leaders. In a nutshell, the country desperately faces the problems of insecurity/insurgency, economic decline/collapse, indiscipline, corruption, leadership collapse on a continental scale, ethnic and sectarian divisions, and national crisis of confidence. Because Dr Jonathan either originated these problems or promoted and worsened them, and because he is in fact a sham democrat, he cannot be trusted with the task of providing the remedies and leadership needed for a national rebirth. Should he be reelected, Nigeria’s democracy would certainly be lost, for no elected president has deployed the police, army, secret service and all other instruments of state to partisan uses as Dr Jonathan. On the other hand, Gen Buhari may not have completely and believably transformed into a true and modern democrat, but he at least has the discipline to rein in the rampant insurgency laying the country waste, the common sense and altruism to subject himself to the constitution, and the ethical wherewithal to tackle the corruption and economic collapse threatening to trigger a revolution in Nigeria and destabilise the sub-region. He seems able to restore the pride of the nation, and in many ways stand as a strong and disciplined symbol around whom technocrats can have the space, safety and comfort to design appropriate redemption policies. He will make the better president of the two. More, if the country is able to rise above ethnic and religious sentiments, he is in fact the only choice today, whether that today is February 14 or any other date.

Published by Vintage Press Limited. Corporate Office: 27B Fatai Atere Way, Matori, Lagos. P.M.B. 1025, Oshodi, Lagos. Telephone: Switch Board: 01-8168361. Marketing: 4520939, Abuja Office: Plot 5, Nanka Close AMAC Commercial Complex, Wuse Zone 3, Abuja. Telephone: 07028105302. Port Harcourt Office: 12/14, Njemanze Street, Mile 1, Diobu, PH. 08023595790. Website: www.thenationonlineng.net ISSN: 115-5302 E-mail: sunday@thenationonlineng.net Editor: FESTUS ERIYE