February 13, 2015 by The Nation

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...105 D AYS TO GO DA

•Jonathan’s camp splits over anti-Buhari legal battles •AND MORE ON •No room for interim govt, says Adoke PAGES 2,4-7, 58&60 •PDP chairman Mu’azu: we’ve confidence in Jega •Buhari: reject anybody using religion to campaign

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VOL. 10, NO. 3124 FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

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Oyegun, Tinubu, Amaechi, Saraki under security watch ‘I met 24 of the Chibok schoolgirls’

Buhari Campaign chief relives police invasion of home From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

LL Progressives Congress (APC) leaders are being intimidated by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led Federal Government, the party alleged yesterday. Its proof – security agents have placed some of its leading lights on surveillance. Besides, their phones are bugged. But, said the party, it will never bow to intimidation. APC spokesman Alhaji Lai Mohammed said in a statement: “We will not be intimidated by the latest antics of the Jonathan Administration to harass and intimidate the opposition, especially in the run-up to next month’s general elections.” A security source last night declined comments on the matter “because the APC did not name the specific security organisation putting its leaders under watch”. The APC said: ‘’As the elections approach, we know the harassment and intimidation will be stepped up. We know our leaders, including the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, National Leader Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, former Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva, SenContinued on page 2

WILL THE CHIBOK GIRLS KIDNAPPED ON APRIL 15, LAST YEAR EVER RETURN?

•Tinubu...soldiers’ siege to •Amaechi...mobile telephone his home since last weekend. line is said to be bugged.

•Saraki...mobile telephone •Okorocha...armoured tank allegedly bugged. at Govt. House.

HE Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped last year by Boko Haram are alive, a woman believed to have seen them has said. The 24 schoolgirls, who she said she was held with for three days last November, were physically well, she said, and were being coerced to cook for their captors, who numbered in their thousands. The girls were reportedly very tearful and homesick but had not been harmed. “They were very emotional,” said Monica Sunday, a 20-year-old Christian woman who had been kidnapped by the jihadist group after her village, Kiva, in the far north east of Nigeria, had Continued on page 2

•Odigie-Oyegun...we won’t succumb to intimidation.

•Mohammed...reportedly •Sylva...under surveillance. marked down for arrest .

Ekiti poll audio: Soldiers ready to testify, says Fayemi

STORY ON PAGE 9

‘Nigerians should reject use of military to rig‘

•Monica Sunday

•AGRIC P12 •BRAND P14 •SPORTS P16 •POLITICS P17 •SOCIETY P41 •MONEYLINK P55

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS Suspected Boko Haram leader held

SUSPECTED local leader of Boko Haram was arrested and several weapons including rocket launchers seized from his home in the town of Diffa in southern Niger Republic yesterday, security sources said. The town on the Nigerian border has come under attack from the militants this past week, since Chad deployed hundreds of troops in the area as part of a re-

gional effort to tackle Boko Haram. The man was identified as Kaka Bonou, a trader known to authorities for suspected involvement in trafficking stolen goods, the security source said. "Different type of weapons of all calibre including rocket launchers, were found in his house," one of the Niger military sources told Reuters, requesting to remain anonymous.

15 killed in Borno town’s suicide attack

O fewer than 15 people were yesterday killed in a suicide at-

•Displaced Chibok people in a camp in Kuje, Abuja…yesterday.

PHOTO:NAN

Jonathan’s camp splits over anti-Buhari suits

HERE is a split in the camp of President Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) over the eligibility suit filed against All Progressives Congress(APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. Some PDP stalwarts, especially those from the North, are opposed to the four matters pending in court over

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

Gen. Buhari’s certificate, The Nation learnt yesterday. It was also learnt that the Presidency is not keen to “support all the applications in court” as it sees the suits as “mere distractions”. There are three suits at the Federal High Court against Gen. Buhari and a criminal matter at a Magistrate’s

Court on APC’s candidate’s eligibility. Some PDP chiefs, especially those from the North and some retired Generals, are uncomfortable with the legal actions. It was learnt that the grouse of the PDP stalwarts is on the misinterpretation of Section 131 of the 1999 Constitution by those questioning Gen. Buhari’s certificate.

Some of the aggrieved PDP leaders and some strategists of the President were also angry that a case of alleged forgery / perjury could be raised against Gen. Buhari. It was learnt that those unhappy with the suits have started reading “ethnic meanings into the whole drama”. A source said: “Those from

Continued on page 60

‘I met 24 of the Chibok schoolgirls’ Continued from page 1

been twice attacked and then burned to the ground. She spoke to Jonathan Miller of Channel 4 news, a United Kingdom broadcasting organisation, in a dusty informal camp for displaced people near the capital, Abuja, where she had recently arrived. “None of the girls really talked very much,” she said. “They just cried and prayed and lamented for their parents.

I comforted them and told them to have faith in God and that He would open a way for them so that their nightmare would be over.” Monica, who was herself deeply traumatised by her own experience and lost her small baby, Abraham John, as she fled through the bush while making her escape, said the Chibok girls had remained true to their Christian faith. They wore simple head-coverings – not full hi-

jabs – she said, but none was practising Islam. Split up and dispersed The Boko Haram insurgents have a brutal reputation for raping the women they abduct, but Monica insisted that the Chibok girls had not been sexually abused and that none of them was pregnant. “The girls I was with were all in their mid-teens, some a bit younger, some older,” she said. “None of them was

sick.” She did not know where any of the other girls, among the 219 still missing, were held. She also said that none had been forced into marriage. Monica knew about the kidnap of the Chibok girls before she herself was abducted. “They divided them up. Some were taken to Gwoza [a town near Nigeria’s border with Cameroon, near to where Monica herself had been abducted]. Not all of

tack at the Central Market in Biu town, Biu Local Government area of Borno State. Biu has been one of the safest local government areas in the state before yesterday’s strike suspected to be by Boko Haram. Last month, when the insurgents attempted to attack the town, they suffered huge losses as troops swooped on them. Yesterday’s bombing took place as Senator Ali Modu Sheriff was on his way to the town on campaign. The former governor was already in neighbouring town Hawul. An eye witness to the bombing one Isa Mohammed said he went to the market to buy things when the bomber detonated the explosive which instantly killed about seven people. ”I was at the gate of the market when the incident occurred. I saw seven bodies been taken out of the hospital. Many other people were injured. A Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) member who took part in the rescue operation said 15 bodies were taken to the Biu General Hospital. He said that many people were donating blood to assist the victims’ treatment at the hospital. Another Civilian JTC said the explosives were con-

From Duku Joel, Maiduguri

cealed in a truck conveying tomatoes to the market. “The driver of the pick-up came through the Coca-Cola gate of the market and they asked him where he was coming from and he mentioned the name of one village. He was allowed into the market and immediately he passed the gate, the bomb went off. “Many of the people that died are these truck pushers, people selling petty things like carrot and fruits. A man who has a big pharmacy near the market also died in the explosion,” he said. “We are at the Biu General Hospital helping the people that are injured and brought to the hospital. I just met with one of the doctors helping in the rescue and he has confirmed to me seven people were brought in dead and eight injured people later died making 15 dead. About 21 people are critically injured,” the source said. A witness said the explosion occurred at about 3:25pm. ”There is confusion in town now because youths are removing PDP flags and are saying that it was because Modu Sheriff was visiting the town on campaign that they suffered the bomb attack.” the CJTF operative who doesn’t want to be named said on the telephone. Biu town is 185km away from Maiduguri, the state capital.

Oyegun, Tinubu, Amaechi, Saraki under security watch The police siege on my home, by Garba Shehu

Continued from page 1

ator Bukola Saraki and National Publicity Secretary Alhaji Lai Mohammed, are under surveillance and their phones being bugged. ‘’We are aware that several of them, especially the National Publicity Secretary, have been marked down for arrest in the days to come. We know there are evil plots to frame some of them on trumped-up charges. We know our lives are in danger. But these and more will not deter us from continuing to act in the national interest or from seeking to effect change through the ballot box. ‘’Yes, we are alerting Nigerians that if anything happens to us they should know where it is coming from, but for us there is no going back because we are resolute.’’ Tinubu’s Lagos home has been under siege by soldiers for four days though the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division, MajorGen. Tunmi Dibi has said the military deployment is “routine” and part of a joint security measure to secure Lagos. The Imo State Government House in Owerri was also violated when a military ar-

“T

HE family members and I were woken from sleep by the noises from a swarm of strangers and the clattering sounds as they cocked their guns. It was a scary situation. Looking from the window, I saw no fewer than 15 policemen bearing weapons, some in complete uniform and others not fully dressed. It was not in doubt that our Block S.A. 12, in the NNPC Quarters, Area 11, Garki was under a cordon. Two police cars blocked the incoming lane from the gate just by our block, and two others faced it blocking the exit way. A big white van with heavily tinted glasses was parked between blocks 12 and 14, which faced each other. The armed men did not climb up to my apartment and I did not, for my part open the door to, as it were to hand myself into their hands. This situation persisted for about an hour

moured tank manned by some soldiers was deployed in front of it on Tuesday after security men prevented a group of women, led by Minister of State (Education) Prof. Violet Onwuliri, from marching on the facility. Also yesterday, policemen were deployed in the Abuja home of APC’s Presidential Campaign spokesman Garba Shehu – an ac-

until two things happened: the twitter and the Facebook began to render accounts of the siege and the call to Muslim prayers came and passed without my family members leaving for the Mosque. At this point, the van and three of the police vehicles drove off. The fourth one moved to the pavement by the playground with about five policemen in it. It remained there until some moments before 7a.m when that one too, drove off. Since the end of the stand-off, I have been in communication with the Secret Service, (the DSS) and the Police at the highest levels. Both organisations denied knowledge of this operation at the beginning. The Police Inspector-General returned after making his investigation to say that policemen were there following an emergency call by a neighbour who came under robbery attack. The telephone number of the distressed neighbour was given to me and his address

tion which the party said “fits perfectly into this emerging pattern”. In a statement issued in Abuja, the party said Shehu’s residence at the NNPC Quarters, Area 11, Abuja, had been surrounded by armed policemen since 3 a.m. on yesterday, making it impossible for him to even go to the mosque for prayers. ‘’Going after the spokesman of our party’s Presiden-

was given as being Block S.A. 13. The Police account would have been plausible and acceptable to me but for the fact that the point of action, meaning the position of the police cars, the van and the armed men were around and between my own block S.A. 12 and 14 and therefore clearly removed from block 13, which the police report indicated. The account of the heavily tinted van, that it brought policemen from NNPC to assist the police operation is neither here nor there because both the police and the oil company denied owning a van like that. For us at the APC presidential campaign, the duty of communication between our party and candidates on the one hand and the voting public on the other is one that is protected by the Constitution. If any armed group of enforcers whether within the police or outside of it as many are suspecting is behind this act of intimidation think they can break our spirit, they are mistaken. We are not going to give up.”

tial Campaign Organisation is aimed at muffling the organisation’s voice and abridging the constitutionally-guaranteed rights of the spokesman himself. This is antithetic to democracy and totally unacceptable,’’ it said. APC called on those who sent the armed security personnel to Shehu’s residence to immediately order their withdrawal and tell Nigerians what he has done to war-

rant such harassment. The party said “coming after the siege by armed troops to Tinubu’s home in Lagos and a similar siege to the Imo State Government House in Owerri, it was clear that the Jonathan Administration has finally launched its much-anticipated clampdown on the opposition ahead of the general elections. The elections are slated for

•Shehu March 28 and April 11. ‘’The PDP and the Jonathan Administration are bent on badgering the opposition through the harassment, intimidation and arrest of its leaders as well as the circulation of unfounded rumours against the party. These actions are all aimed at fomenting a crisis and scuttling the forthcoming elections,” APC said, adding: ‘’We are, therefore, calling on all Nigerians as well as the international community to Continued on page 60

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THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS

MAY 29

...105 DAYS TO GO

‘Government has

•All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Lagos, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode (second left); his running mate, Dr. Oluranti Adebule (second right); former Lagos Commissioner, Mr Jide Sanwo-Olu (right) and Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Lagos State chapter, Idowu Adelakun at the NLC / civil societies interactive session with Ambode at theLagos Air Port Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos.

His soaring popularity has - arguably - not diminished despite plots by opponents to use religion and ethnicity to discredit him. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, the presidential standard bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) says the religious bigotry stigma is a stain that will never stick on him. In his speech at the gathering of Catholic clerics in Abuja on Wednesday, the former Head of State insists he has no agenda to Islamise Nigeria.

•Coordinator, National Information Centre (NIC), Mr. Mike Omeri (right), Director, Federal Ministry of Information, Mr. Emma Agbegir (left) and Deputy Force Public Relation Officer, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Umar Shelleng at a news briefing on the State of the Nation at the NIC, Abuja...yesterday.

•Group Managing Director (GMD), Tower Aluminium (Nig) Plc, Dr J.C Dugad (left), presenting a document to the Group Managing Director, Odu'a Group of Companies, Mr. Adewale Raji. With them are: General Manager, Finance & Investment Odu’a Group, Mrs. Yinka Tunji-Ojo and Principal Assistant to the GMD on Strategy & Sustainability, Mr Babajide Oyebola.

S our nation approaches perhaps the most crucial election in our history, all true patriots are called to deeper reflection of the basic ingredients that bind the nation together- our common freedom, peace and unity. This reflection is even more relevant in the face of the illegal postponement of the general elections- a feat achieved through various sinister ploys and with the sole aim of avoiding the will and verdict of the people. In all of these, I feel the urge to communicate my personal vision and thoughts to the people of our great country, especially on the question of religion, a sensitive matter for many citizens that has become the most frequently used tool by the ruling party. This affords me an opportunity to give my response to the ruling party’s false propaganda and lies against my person. Needless to say, we must at all times hold the unity, peace and progress of our dear nation paramount and above all other considerations, especially politics. Those who deliberately disseminate divisive disinformation and attempt to stoke primordial sentiments using religion or ethnicity and create fear in the minds of our people fail the standard of patriotism this nation demands of them and deserves from them. The ruling government and PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) have adopted this sad, divisive and false narrative as their strategy to prevent the inevitable change that our country and people desire and require. And they have succeeded in making some of us victims of the tales which they invent, propagate and sell as gospel truth to gullible listeners, while it is all nothing but a tissue of lies. I would like to solemnly declare that in spite of what our detractors say, I am not a religious fanatic of any sort and I have never been. In all my life, I have never supported extremism of any kind, and nowhere in my record of service to this nation can this false toga, political opponents have tried so hard to put on me, be substantiated. Indeed, it is very unfortunate and I feel extremely sad that I have to give this type of assurance.

Pan-Nigerian institution background

•Kaduna State Governor Mukhtar Yero flanked by Managing Director, Bank of Agriculture, Mr. Babatunde Sadiku (right) and Kaduna State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Isaac Bodams at the inauguration of the state and the bank’s N1 billion agricultural loan scheme in Kaduna...yesterday.

My background is in the army, and there is no doubt that the military is the most integrated pan-Nigerian institution. And even today, the military is one of the institutions that represents the pride of our nation’s possibilities in unity. Compatriots from every corner of this country come together, work and live together, entrust their lives to each other and integrate their families. It is a military where many of my dearest friends, from all faiths and parts of the country, lost their lives defending the unity of our nation. That was the military I served in, and

in that military it was impossible to be a bigot. For me, the issue of religion was, and should always, be a matter of personal conviction. This personal conviction approach to religion has defined my work and interactions all my life, including my tenure in office as military Head of State. The religion of all those I worked with was never a factor in their progress or in what happened to them. All that mattered then, and should still matter today, are competence, integrity and readiness to be fair to all. I was recently informed that we had a balanced cabinet with key positions such as Finance, Energy and Defence occupied by Christians. In addition, 11 of the 19 governors I appointed were Christians. My most memorable recollections of subordinate service was under Christian bosses, the finest our country had then, and among the most respected today. Indeed one of the best appraisals I received in the course of my military career was from Gen. T.Y Danjuma.

Protection for citizens’ liberty Government has no business preferring one religion to the other. The role of government is to protect lives and properties of citizens and to respect and protect their constitutional rights. One critical freedom that every government must strive to protect is the liberty for citizens to exercise their respective faiths, Christians and Muslims or others, in a lawful manner without fear or hindrance and to prosecute those who use religion as an excuse to destroy homes, schools and places of worship. When governments fail in that duty, they must then assist in the rebuilding of structures including destroyed places of worship and giving full restitution for lost property. We, Nigerians, are a religious people, and the burning of places of worship constitutes one of the vilest forms of abomination to all those who believe in God. It is the duty of governments to protect this important sensitivity. Let me state this categorically, that I, Muhammadu Buhari, as an individual, and as president of this great country by the grace of God, given the opportunity to serve, have no personal religious agenda. And I will not entertain, consider or promote the religious agenda of anyone. I will not condone any initiative that seeks to promote one religion over the other. Neither I, nor my party, or any member of my team has any desire or plan to Islamize or Christianize Nigeria or support anyone with such intention.

Christian domestic staff Although I am a practising Muslim, and I have been so all my life, I have never belonged to, nor shared the views of, any extremist group. I am not even a cleric. I believe that religion is personal and private. Many of the people close to me are not of my religion. My cook and driver for 20 years are Christians, Most of my bodyguards are Christians. Some were

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

MAY 29

...105 DAYS TO GO

s no business preferring one religion to the other’ Presidential candidate of the All Progressives •Supporters(APC), of Congress Gen. the All Muhammad Buhari Progressives (middle), his running Congress (APC) mate Prof. Yemi at a presidential Osinbajo (second rally on Mapo left), Chairman, Hill, Ibadan, Northern Oyo State. Christian Leaders Eagle-Eyes Forum, Pastor Aminchi Abu (second right), Bishop Daniel Oboni (right) and Bishop Musa Fomson at an Interactive Session between the APC candidate and the Christian leaders in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

killed while protecting me in the terrorist attack on my convoy in Kaduna. If I have not Islamised these people who serve under me, how will I Islamize the likes of Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, Ogbonnaya Onu, Governors Rochas Okorocha, Kayode Fayemi, Rotimi Amaechi or Professor Yemi Osinbajo who is a senior advocate of Nigeria and a pastor? Or how will I Islamise Nigeria? Our Constitution, which in many respects, is similar to the American constitution does not permit a state religion. The Sharia identified in the constitution is almost synonymous with customary law. It is only applicable in matters of personal status such as marriage, divorce and inheritance. This has been the case since the 1979 Constitution. Just as no one can make any customary or any other religious law the law of Nigeria, so Sharia cannot therefore be the law of Nigeria. My record is evidence of this strongly held belief. Before my tenure, the deadly and violent extremist radical sect, Maitasine carried out terrorist activities in the North, especially Kano; When it erupted again in Yola, during my tenure, I took direct command, and personally led the successful effort to eradicate the threat to

‘

Although I am a practising Muslim, and I have been so all my life, I have never belonged to, nor shared the views of, any extremist group. I am not even a cleric. I believe that religion is personal and private. Many of the people close to me are not of my religion. My cook and driver for 20 years are Christians. Most of my bodyguards are Christians. Some were killed while protecting me in the terrorist attack on my convoy in Kaduna. If I have not Islamised these people who serve under me, how will I Islamise the likes of Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, Ogbonnaya Onu, Governors Rochas Okorocha, Kayode Fayemi, Rotimi Amaechi or Professor Yemi Osinbajo who is a senior advocate of Nigeria and a pastor? Or how will I Islamise Nigeria? our country. Similarly, when some Chadian insurgents attempted to occupy Nigerian territory, I led the military confrontation that eliminated the threat. For all purposes, we must all learn to live together as brothers and sisters, because the problems that be-

‘

devil our nation do not discriminate based on religion or ethnicity. Poverty and hunger do not know or respect religion or creed. When a bomb explodes in a market, it kills and maims without regard for religion or ethnicity. The millions of the unemployed youth of our country cut

across all tribes and religions. Wicked propagandists continue to spread vicious lies about me for political gain, including claiming that I once asked Muslims not to vote for Christians. This must be the height of absurdity. How could I ever say that, when whoever voted for me

would be voting for the Christian running with me on the same ticket? And how could I ever say that of Christians when my own holy book, the Qur’an, tells me that in the entire world those that are nearest in love to me are those who believe in Jesus Christ [AS]? I ask, who, intending to win any election, ever does that? How can I choose southern Christian running mates (Chuba Okadigbo of blessed memory, Pastor Tunde Bakare and Pastor Yemi Osinbajo) and with them by my side make such silly utterances? Because they have no record, they must seek to destroy our own; and because they have no integrity, they feel they must impugn our own. We must reject those who propagate hatred, ethnicity, divisiveness, sectionalism or seek to manipulate our religious differences in such cynical fashion. On our part, we will remain undeterred: our commitment is to bring about change in the way we live and think and work in this nation; and our goal is to ensure a decent existence for all. And, by the Grace of God, that is what we will do—we will remain true to our commitment and we will achieve our goal. May God bless Nigeria and its people for all time.

PDP has confidence in INEC, says Mu’azu

ATIONAL Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu has expressed his party’s confidence in the ability of the Independence National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct free, fair and credible elections. Mu’azu, who spoke yesterday at the Abuja headquarters of the PDP, said President Goodluck Jonathan thought very well before appointing Professor Attahiru Jega as INEC chairman. “The President thought very well before appointing Jega. We have the confidence in him to conduct free, clear, fair and transparent elections,” he said. The PDP chair however urged the electoral body to use the time provided by the shift in election dates to tidy up its preparations for the polls. He said that Nigerians embraced the idea of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) as a model to facilitate credible elections and not as instrument of disenfranchisement. Mu’azu confidence in Jega is coming on the heels of accusations of bias leveled against the INEC chair by President Jonathan’s campaign organisation. The Director-General of the organisation, Dr. Ahmadu Ali and its Director of Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode had, at

From Gbade Ogunwale, Assistant Editor, Abuja

separate briefings, accused Jega of bias. Fani-Kayode accused the INEC chair of holding meetings with opposition party leaders in Dubai. He did not substantiate the allegation. Ali also accused INEC of shoddy preparations, expressing preference for the use of the Temporary Voter Cards (TVCs) that were used in the 2011 elections as against the PVCs being proposed by INEC. Fani-Kayode and Ali have continued to mount campaign against the person and office of the INEC chair, in an apparent attempt to discredit the electoral umpire. Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio who was also at the briefing, dismissed reports that PDP governors in the Northeast and Northwest zones have joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) to campaign for the its presidential flag bearer, Gen. Mohammadu Buhari. Describing the report as baseless, evil and scandalous, Akpabio said: “That is a rumour, it is falsehood. It is baseless and it is evil. It is scandalous.” According to him, the PDP governors gave President Jonathan automatic return ticket due to his track record of achievements. “The PDP governors across Nigeria have

resolved to return President Goodluck Jonathan to Aso Villa. This is fact and that was why the PDP Governors endorsed the President for a second term in office,” the governor stated. None of the party’s governors from the Northeast and Northwest attended the briefing, tagged a ‘world press conference’. In attendance were governors Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Idris Wada (Kogi) and Gabriel Suswam (Benue). Reacting to former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s endorsement of Buhari, Mu’azu described the report as a rumour, saying the former president kicked against anti-party activity in his recent memo to President Jonathan. “Obasanjo is a revered leader of our party. He is experienced, he is sagacious. Unless I see and confirm from him, it is a rumour. From my record, he is still a member of the party and he will not do that”, Mu’azu said. In a statement by his spokesman, Tony Amadi, Mu’asu urged PDP members to fortify their constituencies to position the party for victory. He said: "All Peoples Democratic Party members at all levels from ward, local government, state and federal must in the next five weeks to the March 28th 2015 Presidential Elections gird their loins, tighten all loose ends

•Mu’azu

as we face a titanic battle to ensure that we win a historic fourth presidential election victory, control the National Assembly and produce more governors on April 11, 2015. "We are on the threshold of winning the 2015 general elections because our opponents have been disoriented, their consistent fabrication of lies to win the votes of Nigerians has been exposed and their change mantra has lost steam.”=

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS

...105 D AYS TO GO DA

ACF: We’ll resist ‘attempt’ to prolong Jonathan’s tenure

IGERIANS will resist any attempt to extend President Goodluck Jonathan’s tenure, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has said. The Forum also urged the military to keep off the electoral process but rise to defend Nigeria’s territorial integrity. “It is time for our military to stand behind the people and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which they have sworn to protect,” the group said. The ACF position was part of the resolutions made at the end of the joint meeting of its Board of Trustees (BoT) and National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Kaduna yesterday. In a communique issued at the end of the meeting and signed by the NEC Chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Coomassie, a retired Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the ACF reaffirmed its faith and commitment to the democratic process. It said the rescheduled March 28 and April 11 dates for the general elections remain sacrosanct and inviolate. The communiqué reads: “The re-scheduled elections of March 28 and April 11 must take place and produce credible results. Under whatever circumstances, no attempt from any quarter should be made to interfere with the elections. “We view any threat or intimidation against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as an attempt to further cripple its integrity and credibility of the elections. “INEC must also realise that it holds the future of this nation in its hands. There is a historic opportunity for the

No room for ING in Constitution, says AGF THE Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) has said the 1999 Constitution has no provision for Interim National Government (ING). He asked those behind the contraption to forget the idea because it would not work. Adoke, who made the clarification in a statement in Abuja, said the ING was alien to the constitution. The minister said: “My attention has been drawn to calls in the media by some Nigerians for an Interim National Government to ostensibly midwife the 2015 general elections to usher in a new democratic government. “While I recognise and appreciate the inalienable right of Nigerians to freely express themselves and proffer solutions to perceived national challenges, I am deeply concerned that some undiscerning Nigerians are being unwittingly led to believe that a

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

certain prescription, which is alien to the Constitution, can be adopted as a viable solution to our national challenges. “It has become necessary to correct this misconception and refocus the citizenry on the path of constitutionalism and democratic tenets consistent with our quest for democratic consolidation in Nigeria. “For avoidance of doubt, it is pertinent to state that the framers of the 1999 Constitution did not envisage an Interim National Government to superintend over the affairs of government. It is not surprising to observe that no provision for Interim National Government was made in the Constitution. “The contraption called Interim National Government is alien to Nigeria’s constitutional framework and the arrangement should not be pro-

•Adoke

moted by well–meaning Nigerians under any guise or circumstance. “Nigerians are enjoined to continue to rely on the Constitution, which contains adequate provisions on how the democratic process can be activated to elect their leaders from time to time.”

•Group urges military to stay off electoral process From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

Chairman and Commissioners of the Commission to salvage the present dangerous situation in which our nation finds itself. “That ACF irrevocably rejects any attempt to subvert the constitution and that no arrangement which violates the electoral Act or the constitution will be accepted by Nigerians. “In particular, the suggestion of an Interim National Government that violates the Constitution must not be ac-

tualised. “Similarly, attempts to prolong the life of this administration using the cover of national security will be resisted by Nigerians. “In this respect, we strongly appeal to the National Assembly to resist any attempt to be used in violating the rights of Nigerians to live under the Constitution. “We urge all Nigerians, particularly those in privileged positions of leadership on the need to support a peaceful conduct of the March/ April elections and ensure that they are free, fair and credi-

ble. “Losers should also accept the result and ensure a peaceful handover on May 29th. We look forward to an administration that will reverse the damaging politicisation of the public service, the police, the judiciary and the electoral process. “We note that this administration has dragged the military into the electoral process for which they have no constitutional responsibility. “ACF therefore, demands that the military be kept out of the electoral process. The only security requirement in

the electoral process is the maintenance of law and order, which is the constitutional responsibility of the Nigerian Police Force(NPF) which the Inspector General of Police has already indicated not only his capability but his preparedness. “ACF notes with disappointment threats from some elements in the Niger Delta that they will unleash mayhem on the rest of the country if the March/April elections do not produce the result they want. “ACF is not intimidated by this. It is regrettable to ob-

Religious leaders’s role in politics worrisome, says ex-minister

NLC fails to elect new leaders as conference ends in fiasco

RGANISED Labour has failed to elect a new executive to run its affairs at the 11th Delegates’ Conference. The three-day conference of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday ended in a fiasco. Angry delegates broke ballot boxes at the International Conference Centre venue of the event, citing alleged rigging. The election, which started at 8.44pm on Wednesday, was disrupted by some delegates 12 hours into voting. They alleged duplication of the name of a presidential aspirant, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, in some ballot papers. Aggrieved members also claimed that the second presidential candidate and outgoing Deputy President Joseph Ajaero’s name was missing from some ballot papers. After the disruption, used and unused ballot papers littered the main hall of the International Conference Centre. Delegates ran out of the hall, afraid of a fracas. Trouble started about 8.45am yesterday during voting by National Union of Electricity Employees’ (NUEE) delegates. A delegate allegedly observed that some ballot pa-

From: Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

pers had two or more slips containing Comrade Wabba’s name. The Nation could not confirm the claim but nine ballot papers were said to have more than one slip containing Comrade Wabba’s name. While others did not carry the name of Comrade Ajaero. In their reaction, some delegates claimed the ballot containing Wabba’s multiple names were used by his Medical and Health Workers Union, stressing that it was part of efforts to rig in his favour. They wondered why it took the union’s 527 delegates about five hours to vote, if they had no plans to rig. “Look at what they have done and yet they will accuse the government of rigging. The President, Abdulwahid Omar, has been planning this for long,” a delegate, who pleaded for anonymity, said. Unused ballot papers scattered in the hall bore the name of Comrade Igwe Achese, who stepped down and asked his supporters to vote for Ajaero. Some Private Sector unions used an advertorial to accuse the NLC’s leadership of scuttling an agreement to cede the presidency to the sector.

serve that up till now security agencies have refused to arrest those threatening the nation and beating the drums of war. “We therefore urge them to immediately discharge their constitutional responsibility by arresting and prosecuting those who make such threats. The Attorney-General of the Federation should particularly note this. “We appeal to the international community to maintain its vigil on events leading to the scheduled elections and sustain the pressure on the Government to honour its pledge to allow the elections to hold. “We also appeal to leaders of regional groups, civil society organisations and leaders of communities at all levels to rally Nigerians to defend and protect our democracy and ensure that elections take place in March /April. “We invite the attention of the Nigerian Military to its hallowed and constitutional duty to protect the peace, security and survival of our fatherland. This is the time for our military to stand behind the people and the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which they have sworn to protect.” The communiqué also rejects the allegation that the ACF was in secret alliance with INEC to rig the presidential election in favour of a northern candidate. “ACF rejects the allegation that it had a meeting with the Chairman or any member of INEC This is not true and is baseless. ACF has instructed its lawyers to look into the matter and take appropriate legal action,” the communiqué said.

•Broken ballot boxes in the hall... yesterday.

The accusation resurfaced at the conference when the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers’ (NUPENG) President, Igwe Achese, claimed that the agreement to cede the presidency to the Private Sector was of no consequence. Omar explained it was not a congress decision but an agreement among members. Security agents stepped in and ordered everybody out of the hall to prevent violence, as an angry delegate threw

chairs, narrowly missing a former NLC President Comrade Hassan Summonu. Achese, who stepped down to contest one of the three deputy president seats, said they would wait to see workers’ reaction. He said: “We have waited to get to where we are, believing that we’ll have a peaceful and successful election. Unfortunately, we never knew that the election is being rigged. “We have a situation where a ballot paper contains

PHOTO: TONY AKOWE

three sheets of one person’s name. Anyway, we’ll await the decision of Nigerian workers. At the appropriate time, we will address them to take their fate in their hands.” NUPENG promised to address a news conference on the stalemate. Efforts to speak with NLC leadership and officials of the Credentials’ Committee failed. Comrade Wabba also was unavailable.

ORMER Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Aliyu Modibbo has expressed concern about the role of some religious leaders in the polity. Modibbo alleged that some of these leaders were promoting hatred and violence through their speeches and sermons. The former minister spoke at a lecture, entitled: “Security and Crisis Management in Nigeria,” organised in Abuja by the Committee of Core Values of the Northern Reawakening Forum (NRF) on Elections. Modibbo said: “Nigeria is deeply a religious country. So, you cannot divorce religion and the traditional rulership system from politics. I think that has been one of our fundamental problems as we think that this category of people should stay away from politics.” Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Prof. Chidi Odinkalu said the commission would release its Pre-election Violence Report (PVR) this weekend. According to him, the report captured the full picture of election-related violence in the country.

THE NATION FRIDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS

...105 D AYS TO GO DA

Fed Govt seeks support to recover seized territory

HE Federal Government has urged the citizenry, especially those in the Northeast, to support the military in recovering the nation’s lost territories. Coordinator of the National Information Centre Mike Omeri, who spoke in Abuja yesterday with security chiefs, said there was need for constant vigilance

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

by the security authorities and the public in winning the war against insurgency. Omeri said the military had been fully mobilised and deployed against the insurgents, “who are being chased and roundly subdued”. He added: “We urge the

general public to exercise a high level of vigilance and support the effort of the military to ensure hitch-free elections and a return to normalcy. “We also seize this opportunity to restate the government’s commitment in keeping the country and the citizens safe from those who seek to destroy the nation.

“In addition, we urge the civil society, politicians and everybody to avoid disruptive and inciting statements, while assuring the citizens of regular update on the successes scored by our military and security forces in the fight against terror in the Northeast.” Omeri announced that towards ensuring hitch-free general elections, particu-

larly in the Northeast, the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) issued telephone lines to enable the public lay complaints and report incidents of security breaches and related issues for prompt intervention by appropriate authorities. The lines include 07057274630 and 07057276432.

‘Don’t drag military into politics’

DO State Governor Adams Oshiomhole warned yesterday that the military should be left out of politics, adding that the consequence of not doing so could be dangerous. Oshiomhole, who gave the warning in Benin City, said he was happy that the Peoples’ Democratic Party was denounced for the postponement of the general elections. He spoke at the lauch of the reconstruction and dualisation of the 3.6 kilometres 2nd East Circular Road in the state capital. He said: “Those who said they were helpless over Boko Haram have said in six weeks, they would do what they could not do in six years, which means somebody knew what should be done and failed to do it so that they can postpone elections. “All around the world, the PDP-led Federal Government is being denounced. I am happy that the world is with Nigeria; from America to the United Kingdom and Europe, the PDP-led Federal Government is being denounced for postponing the election. “We are warning them not to drag the military into politics because that could be very dangerous.” On the road, the governor said: “We are not resurfacing the old East Circular Road. What we are doing is a complete redesign and reconstruction. We are replacing the old seven-metre wide road with 14.5 metres wide dual-carriage road, so that this road will no longer be just one road. It will be dualcarriage way complete with street lights and a median with plants and trees.” He added: “They said half of the money comrade is using is from the Federal Government. So, the one PDP took for 10 years, where is the money? So, when they say Federal Government is the one supporting comrade, the question then is: was the PDPled Federal Government withholding, money from PDP Edo State Government in the 10 years they were in power? If it is true that it is only APC government that knows how to collect money from PDP-led Federal Government, is that not a reason to keep PDP out of government forever? “If I can collect money from Federal Government to build the number of red roofs we have done, imagine if that same Federal Government is now in the hands of APC, will they not give us more money?”

•Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN (right) presenting a key to a Land Rover to the out-going Head of Service (HOS), Mrs. Oluseyi Williams (second right) during her Pens-Down as the 17th HOS at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Alausa Secretariat, Ikeja, Lagos...yesterday. With them are: Deputy Governor Mrs Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire (third right), Mrs Williams’ husband Omobolaji Olanrewaju (left) and others.

Mark: I never called for polls shift

ENATE President David Mark has described Senator Babafemi Ojudu as a liar for alleging that he (Mark) called for the postponement of the 2015 general elections. Mark, in a statement, by his Special Adviser on Media, Kola Ologbondiyan, “expressed shock and disappointment at the allegation,” saying, it was an “undignifying mischief least expected of a senator.” Ojudu, representing Ekiti Central Senatorial District, according to a media report, accused Mark of requesting senators to support the postponement of the 2015 elections in view of the worsening insurgency in the Northeast. He denied it all yesterday. But, the Senate president insisted that he never called for the postponement of the general elections and never attended any meeting under any guise whatsoever to postpone the elections. Mark said: “I have neither canvassed the postponement or deferment of the 2015 election nor has my body language ever suggested that. I am shocked that distinguished Senator Ojudu could descend to this level of mischief and blackmail for reasons that I am yet to understand.

Senator: report misrepresented me

HE senator representing Ekiti Central, Babafemi Ojudu, said yesterday that he was misrepresented in a newspaper report that quoted him as saying that Senate President David Mark called senators to a meeting to request for their support the extension of President Goodluck Jonathan’s tenure. Ojudu, in a statement yesterday, said: “I never said that. What I said was that when we came back from last year’s summer break, the President gave a speech where he said that left to him, the defeat of Boko Haram should be the nation’s priority now and not an election. “And I said from that moment on, I began to feel that the elections as fixed for February may not hold since the nation may not have overcome Boko Haram by then. “This was the only time I mentioned Senator David Mark in the close to 30 minutes speech that I gave. I, at no time, said senators are broke and they will take money. I said all my colleagues who were made to go through the campaigns expecting the elections to be over with on February 14 must be broke by now and it will be difficult for them to go through the next six weeks campaigning.” The senator added that he had called the reporter who wrote the report to complain and he (the reporter) promised to make amends. From Onyedi Ojiabor, Assistant Editor and Sanni Onogu, Abuja

“How could I call for the deferment of elections? Whereas I ran for the primary election of my party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and was elected unopposed. “I picked and filled the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) forms; I had commenced a rigorous campaign that took me to the length and breadth

of my senatorial district, where I urged Nigerians to come out and participate in the electoral process. How else could I have shown commitment to the process? “In no unmistakeable terms, when the issue of insurgency came to the floor of the Senate and a distinguished senator introduced the issue of election, I had cautioned that the issue before the Senate had nothing to do with election and that the issue before us in the

•Mark

Senate was insurgency and terrorism. “I do hope Senator Ojudu has not embarked on a voyage to rewrite history to suit his clandestine intentions. I know these are desperate times for a lot of politicians.” He added: “I have always maintained that elections should hold on schedule. I also believed that the right thing should be done. This is not personal, but in the collective interest of Nigeria and Nigerians. The country is bigger than any of us. Our unity must be held sacrosanct.” The Senate, according to Mark, would always “remain one united family held together by national interest and will always stand together to defend national unity.”

Private jet operators to submit pictures of passengers From Erick Ikhilae, Abuja

HE Federal Government has directed private jet operators to submit the names and photographs of passengers on their manifests to the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA). The new move was speculated in some quarters as being targeted at opposition party members, who utilise private jets for their political campaigns. But this was denied by aviation authorities. Many charter operators, who pleaded not to be named, said it was another move to clamp down on their operations. A circular dated February 9, 2015 by Acting Director in charge of NAMA’s Aeronautical Information Services, Segun Ogunmola, reads: “The following circular is issued for your information, guidance and necessary action. Submission of passenger manifests and photo identity by private aircraft operators. “Henceforth, all private aircraft operators operating in Nigeria are mandated to submit passenger manifests and photo identities of passengers onboard their aircraft to the Aeronautical Information Service (AIS) during flight planning.” Though, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) threatened to revoke the licences of private jet operators engaged in commercial operations, the authority was still meeting with the affected operators on how to regularise their operations. But, a source hinted that private jet operators with foreign registration numbers on their aircraft were still sorting out issues with the NCAA. Yesterday, some operators met with the Director General of NCAA, Captain Mukthar Usman, on the issue. There are 90 foreign registered aircraft in the country and Nigerian registered aircraft are about 111. The Federal Government last week threatened to ground private jet operators with foreign registered aircraft that engage in commercial or charter operations. Government said such operators have till Thursday February 5, 2015 to regularise such operations with the regulatory agency for approval, otherwise their operations would be considered as “illegal” with severe sanctions. Reacting, Executive Chairman of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) Captain Nogie Meggison dismissed speculations that the new policy was targeted at operators with political links. Meggison said there was nothing political about the directive to private jet operators to regulate their operations with the NCAA, if they engage in commercial operations. Such a move, he said, would bring sanity to the industry and create more avenues for revenue for government. He said:”I do not think there is any political motive behind the directive. It is good for such operators with foreign aircraft registrations to pay money into government coffers to regularise their operations.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS

...105 D AYS TO GO DA

Buhari to voters: reject religious propaganda

HE presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari, has assured that nobody can Islamise the country under his government, if elected in March 28 presidential election. The electorate, General Buhari advised, must reject those who propagate hatred, ethnicity, divisiveness, sectionalism or seek to manipulate religious differences for political gains. Addressing Christian leaders under the auspices of Northern Christian Leaders Eagle Eye Forum in Abuja, he said dividing Nigerians along religious lines was distasteful to him, having lived through a system that recognises excellence, rather than the religion or tribe one belongs to. He declared that despite what his detractors said, he was not a religious fanatic of any sort and will never been. “In all my life, I have never supported extremism of any kind, and nowhere in my record of service to this nation can this false toga, political opponents have tried so hard to put on me, be substantiated. “Indeed, it is very unfortunate and I feel extremely sad that I have to give this type of

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

assurance,” he said. The new phenomenon of dividing Nigerians “along religious lines”, he said, “is really very irritating to me because I live through all these examples.” The former Nigeria leader, who was flanked by his running-mate, Prof. Yomi Osinbajo and other party leaders, added: “Recently, I had the honour and privilege of meeting with the Conference of Catholic Bishops, here in Abuja. “At that meeting, I had the opportunity to make some remarks about our country, these imminent elections, my personal views, as well as record. I cherish and appreciate this opportunity to again reiterate some of the remarks I made at that meeting. “As our nation approaches perhaps the most crucial election in our history, all true patriots are called to deeper reflection of the basic ingredients that bind the nation together- our common freedom, peace and unity. “This reflection is even more relevant in the face of the illegal postponement of the general elections - a feat achieved through various sinister ploys and with the sole aim of avoiding the will of the people. “In all of these, I feel the urge

to communicate some of my personal vision and thoughts to the people of our great country, especially on the question of religion, a sensitive matter for many citizens that has become the most frequently used tool by the ruling party. This affords me an opportunity to give my response to the ruling party’s false propaganda and lies against my person. “Needless to say, we must at all times hold the unity, peace and progress of our dear

nation paramount and above all other considerations, especially politics. Those who deliberately disseminate divisive disinformation and attempt to stoke primordial sentiments using religion or ethnicity and create fear in the minds of our people fail the standard of patriotism this nation demands of them and deserves from them.” He noted: “The ruling government and PDP have adopted this sad divisive and false

narrative as their strategy to prevent the inevitable change that our country and people desire and require. And they have succeeded in making some of us victims of the tales which they invent, propagate and sell as gospel truth to gullible listeners, while it is all nothing, but a tissue of lies.” While saying that he has never been and will never be a religious bigot, Buhari said: “For me, the issue of religion was, and should always, be a

Bauchi State Commissioner for Health, Dr Sani Malami, vaccinating a Baby, during the Launch of Polio Vaccine Immunization in Bauchi...yesterday.

APC campaign: Lagos-Abuja high speed rail line a hoax

LAIMS by President Goodluck Jonathan’s government that a high speed Abuja-Lagos rail service will begin running in three years is a hoax, the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCPCO) said yesterday. In a statement by its Director of Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, APCPCO said the envisaged LagosAbuja line as proposed by the minister of Transport was most desirable and would provide an alternative means of travel between the Federal Capital Territory and Lagos. The APC campaign, however, said it was the height of irresponsibility for a senior member of government to tell lies and give false hope for cheap political points. Shehu noted that a PublicPrivate Partnership (PPP) agreement to build and operate a rail line takes at least two

How are they going to build a 600km electrified high speed line and put it into operation in just three years? years to negotiate and bring to financial closure, adding that the Jonathan government has not even started negotiations with anybody yet on the project. The statement reads: “Before they can start construction, they will need to secure the right of way and pay land compensation along that corridor. This could take years to accomplish. “Then, they will have to construct the line. But a look at the government’s record, only confirms that this is nothing but a pipe dream. Just 186 kilometres (km) Abuja to Kaduna, an ordinary standard gauge line has taken six years

to construct and it is not even finished yet, regardless of their false claims of completion. “Ajaokuta to Warri has taken the government nearly 30 years. Just the last 27 kilometres has taken this government six years and it is not finished yet. “Rehabilitation of existing rail lines which they promised would take 10 months, took them four years and they are still not finished yet. “Is it then 600-km of electrified rail tracks that they can build in three years? “Then they have to order the rolling stock and operations equipment. These are not off the shelf items. They

will need to be manufactured over say another two years. “A high speed rail line means electric trains. So, they will need a dedicated IPP with transmission and distribution. When will that come together? What about the gas supply and infrastructure or they will import more expensive diesel? “So, how are they going to build a 600-km electrified high speed line and put it into operation in just three years? “It is either the minister does not know what he is talking about or he is deceiving Nigerians. He even had the cheek to say, ‘it is not a question of story’ except it is. It is a hoax and Nigerians need to be worried about a lying government that is incompetent and dishonest. “The government should stop misleading the people. The people deserve a more responsible government.”

Lawyers fault Jonathan’s media chat

AWYERS have faulted W e d n e s d a y ’ s presidential media chat, saying it was “stagemanaged”. To them, it was a missed opportunity by President Goodluck Jonathan to address issues, such as the ongoing intimidation of opposition leaders using soldiers and threats by his kinsmen to go to war if he loses. Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN) said the president should have cleared the air on the siege to the homes of All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and others. Activist-lawyer Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa said it was obvious the president was coached on what to say, adding that it was a disguised campaign gimmick by the

By Joseph Jibueze

ruling party. Ngige said: “The reassurances given to the nation by the President are quite commendable. The statement that he has not asked the chairman of INEC to proceed on terminal leave or that he plans to bring another pliant chairman to conduct the election, which was trending in both the social and official media were reassuring enough as it doused the speculations and rumours in the polity. “The only worry is whether members of the President’s kitchen cabinet like Chief Edwin Clark, Mujahideen Asari-Dokubo, Ateke Tom and other Ijaw militants are willing to accept the outcome of an election in

matter of personal conviction. This personal conviction approach to religion has defined my work and interactions all my life, including my tenure in office as military Head of State.” Others who accompanied Buhari to the meeting are: Gen. Paul Tarfa; Gen. Abdulrahaman Danbazau; Col. Hamid Ibrahim Ali; Prof. Ango Abdullahi; Boss Mustapha and B.D. Lawal, an engineer.

which if their son, the President, loses. “That is where the President has additional burden to rein in members of his kitchen cabinet to see the elections as a sport and not as a do-or-die game. “The President should have used the opportunity of the media chat to dissociate himself from the threats by some Ijaw and Niger Delta irredentists that Nigeria will break up if the President is not re-elected. “The President also missed the opportunity of his media chat to clear the air on the redeployment of soldiers to harass and intimidate opposition leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, at their residences in Lagos and Owerri

respectively. The activities of the soldiers are suggestive that the Presidency will use them on the day of election to rig electoral process. It is a bad signal which can lead to unimaginable consequences.” To Adegboruwa, Jonathan danced around the issue of stealing and corruption and also failed to address issues of national concern. His words: “I believe the presidential chat was stagemanaged and organised to shield the president from responding to very burning national issues. I am convinced that 70 per cent of Nigerians could not watch it because of lack of electricity. There was total blackout all over the nation. “In many cases, the president evaded critical questions.”

‘327 young Nigerian pilots are jobless’ By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

HE Chairman of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Captain Nogie Meggison, has revealed that about 327 young Nigerians are seeking jobs in the aviation industry. He said such number of young professionals seeking job placement in an industry that ought to add more value to the growth of the economy was worrisome and enough indication that government needed to rework its strategy to fix the aviation sector. Meggison, who stated this yesterday in an interview in Lagos, added that the directive by government to all airlines operating into Nigeria to engage at least one Nigerian pilot in their cockpit would go a long way to address the unemployment challenge in the industry. He stressed that despite Nigeria’s population, government was not doing enough to position the aviation sector as a continental leader in generating jobs for its teeming aviation professionals. Meggison, who is the grand patron of the Association of Unemployed Professional Pilots, added that the policy of the Federal Government was a welcome development. The strategy, he noted, would take more young pilots off the streets. He said: “If we can have one out of every four black men to be a Nigerian, why can’t we have one out of every four African aviators to be a Nigerian?” In his view, “It is only logical and mutually benefitting and makes more sense when any airline operating and taking off from the country creates avenues to create jobs for the people. It is not a novel idea that Nigeria is standing alone to say that any cockpit operator or anybody flying in Nigeria is expected to take Nigerians in the cockpit.”

Nigeria is 111th in global freedom ranking

IGERIA has been ranked 111th among 180 countries in global press freedom ranking, below countries like Niger, Togo, Kenya, Uganda, Gabon and Liberia. According to the ranking by Paris-based watchdog, Reporters Without Borders, the position is one notch above last year’s ranking of 112th. In the group’s 2015 World Press Freedom Index released yesterday, Finland, Norway and Denmark are ahead of the pack. Finland has been first in the index for five years in a row. Taking the rear are Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea. Reporters Without Borders said the results reflect a “drastic decline” in media freedom in the world last year. Over half of the 180 countries that the index surveyed had a drop in performance compared to the previous years. United States stands at the 49th place, down by three places in 2014; Japan is at 61, down by two places; while Malaysia is ranked 147th. Hong Kong, after their recent Occupy Central protests, dropped nine places to the 70th position.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS I’m sane, says Ambode

Ekiti rigging plot: Soldiers ready to testify in court, says Fayemi

HE governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, has said he is “healthy and of sound mind”. A statement by the Director, Media and Communications, Akinwunmi Ambode Campaign Organisation, Steve Ayorinde, said: “It has come to the attention of the Akinwunmi Ambode Campaign Organisation the wicked, baseless and cowardly lies being circulated about our candidate. “The jittery opposition will stop at nothing in its smear campaign having failed to contain the soaring popularity of the APC candidate. But we are neither bothered nor discouraged; and we know that our numerous supporters can see through the lies and desperations. “For the avoidance of doubt, Mr. Ambode neither suffers from any ailment nor has he ever met or been treated by a certain Dr. Lanre Adeoye. This fictional tale should be disregarded in its entirety. “With a clear focus, sound mind and in good health, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode shall be unwavering in his campaigns and strategic consultations to retain Lagos State for the All Progressives Congress (APC). “Fashola is working, Lagos is moving and Ambode is ready. No weapon of the opposition can stand against this obvious choice of the people.”

‘Beware of bursary imposters’ From Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

GUN State students have warned Governor Ibikunle Amosun to be vigilant in his dealings on students’ bursary. The National Association of Ogun State Students (NAOSS) said “nonstudents and impersonators” were on the loose and roaming the state for “monetary gains” ahead of the general elections. Addressing reporters at the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta, Opaogun Ajibola(National President), Idowu Taiwo(National Vice - President), Akinola Lawal(National General Secretary) and Sode Afeez( National Image maker), urged Amosun to pay the bursary before the governorship election. They said: “NAOSS is the authentic body the governor should relate with. We want him to pay based on the list submitted last year to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.”

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

•Dr. Fayemi

ORMER Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has said some military officers are ready to testify regarding the audio clip that “caught” senior Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members and military chiefs plotting how to rig the June 21, last year, governorship election. Speaking on a live programme, “APC Change Hour”, on ADABA 88.9 FM, Fayemi said the postponement of the 2015 general elections was not about security but about a plot to rig the polls. The audio clip was aired on the radio station with the alleged voices of Governor Ayo Fayose, former Minister of State (Defence) Musiliu Obanikoro, Police Affairs Minister Jelili Adesiyan, Osun State PDP governorship candidate Iyiola Omisore and Gen. Aliyu Momoh discussing how to rig the election. He said the postponement was about a “desperate government and a desperate President who is afraid of losing and using a military that became a willing tool”. The former governor said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)led administration was trying to reenact the rigging perpetrated in Ekiti with the alleged misuse of the military.

Fayemi said the upper echelon of the military was guilty of treason with its role in the dramatic postponement of the polls. “The first duty of the government through the Armed Forces is security of life and property,” Fayemi said, apparently referring to the service chiefs’memo in which they said they could not guarantee security in four states. He deplored a situation in which the military had been desecrated where army generals were being harassed and intimidated by politicians desperate to rig elections for their party. The former governor said the All Progressives Congress (APC) would resist an alleged plot by the PDP to use soldiers in the general elections on the strength of a Federal High Court, Sokoto, judgment which ruled against the use of soldiers for electoral duties. “We, in the APC, will not allow the use of the military to oversee the conduct of the elections because we know and we are aware that they have sewn fake police uniforms, they have sewn fake army uniforms but we will not allow them,” Fayemi said. The former governor, who reiterated that the second part of the rigging audio file would be released, said other steps were being taken on the matter, which may become a subject of litigation. “We are taking appropriate constitutional steps on the matter. In fact, there are soldiers who are ready to testify in court. “There are many Captain Sagir Kolis who are willing to give evidence in court. I am just appealing

to all Nigerians to be patient as events unfold.” Fayemi said it was unfortunate that Ekiti was used as a sacrificial lamb for the new rigging technique, noting that it failed in Osun because the plot was exposed with an alleged plot to deploy Gen. Momoh to Osun to re-enact the Ekiti feat. On the actors in the rigging drama, Fayemi said all the voices could be recognised as they were very clear and distinct. Reminiscing on the outcome of the poll, which he described as “mysterious”, the former governor said a party (APC) with three senators, six members of the House of Representatives, 25 House of Assembly members, council chairmen and councillors could not have lost so scandalously. Answering questions on why he conceded a day after the poll, Fayemi said there was a “grand plan” from Abuja to kill many people after the election should there be any demonstration or protest against the result. According to the ex-governor, some soldiers posted to the state for election duty drove vehicles that conveyed PDP chieftains and members to arrest many APC chieftains and members who were released after the election. “Yes, I carefully couched my statement and I said if this is the will of the people of Ekiti, then I accept but in the second paragraph I said the peace of Ekiti was paramount to me and I said I am choosing peace first, then justice later,”he said. Speaking on the political activities of his successor (Fayose), Fayemi said: “Fayose is fighting for his life; he is more desperate than

PDP candidate to give soft loans By Jeremiah Oke

Man crushed to death in Ondo From Damisi Ojo, Akure

COMMERCIAL motorcycle operator was reportedly crushed to death yesterday by a pick-up van at the popular Tjunction area on NTA Road, IkareAkoko, Ondo State. It was learnt that the victim’s family broke several bottles of drinks on the road and hindered free flow of traffic for several hours. The Unit Commander of Federal Road Safety Commission(FRSC),Ikare-Akoko, Mr Jimoh Bashiru confirmed the report. The Medical Director, Specialist Hospital, Ikare-Akoko, Dr Olatunde Olawoye said the body of an Okada commercial operator was deposited at the mortuary. The Olubaka of Oka-Akoko in Akoko Southwest Local Government Area, Oba Adebori Adeleye, urged the government to find a permanent solution to the incessant accidents at Oke-Oka area. Oba Adeleye suggested that the heavy duty vehicles plying the road should be diverted to Ipele road. On Wednesday, a fully loaded petrol tanker lost control on the hill, but there was no casualty.

President Goodluck Jonathan and he believes that all his atrocities will come to haunt him. The judges who were beaten, the legislature that was sacked, the civil servants who were harassed are coming to haunt him. “They are using the military to rig elections and Nigerians must be vigilant. It is when the situation cannot be handled by the police that you call in the military. “If you hear what Captain Koli said, he said they were given instructions (to rig Ekiti poll). Chris Uba, who is not a military officer, giving orders to military officers. Isn’t that absurd? “Soldiers drove the vehicles that conveyed PDP members to arrest APC members. Our members were arrested and they were not released until the election was over.” Speaking on the alleged plot to remove the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, the former governor urged Nigerians to hold President Jonathan to his words as spoken during Wednesday’s presidential media chat that the electoral chief would not be removed. He said Jega holds the ace on the “three-month terminal leave”, arguing that if he (Jega) insists on not leaving office, until the expiration of his term, “there is noting the Executive can do”. Fayemi urged Nigerians to use their votes to flush out what he called “an incompetent government”, saying Nigerians need to be vigilant to ensure that their electoral wishes are not tampered with.

•Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola (second right); his Deputy, Mrs Titi Laoye-Tomori; Assistant Controller General of Prisons (ACG) Zonal Coordinator, Zone ‘F’, Ibadan, Emmanuel Ogundele (right) and Controller of Prisons, Osun State Command, Deacon Babalola Kunle, when the prison officials visited the Government House, Osogbo…yesterday.

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Oyo State, Senator Teslim Folarin, has assured traders and artisans of soft loans, if elected. Folarin said PDP could not afford to ignore traders because they form the larger percentage of voters in the state. The former Senate Leader spoke during his campaign tours to Eleyele, Oke-padi, Ayeye, Ifoko, Idikan and Agbaje markets in Ibadan. He assured them of total commitment, promising that he won’t demolish their shops. According to him, there were plans for traders to receive soft loans to boost their business. Folarin said the loans would be given without consideration of political affiliations or ethnic group but to be done on merit. “The pride of the Civil Service will be restored under my watch. Those of you who are due for promotion will be promoted in two months, if I’m elected.”

Tension as SURE-P Task Force takes over Lagos road

FFICERS of the Subsidy Re-Investment Empowerment Programme (SUREP) Task Force yesterday took over the old tollgate on the LagosIbadan Expressway, causing tension and gridlock on the road. It was gathered that the task force chased away officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), who withdrew temporarily to avert a clash with them. Sources said over 100 task force

By Miriam Ekene-Okoro

members stormed the road to direct traffic, which is the routine duty of LASTMA officers. Initially, motorists were confused not knowing the traffic control signal to follow, as the task force would ask them not to move when LASTMA officials had signalled them to move their vehicles. A LASTMA official, who pleaded for anonymity, said the

task force came with four armed policemen to take over control of traffic on the road. Officers of the Anti-One Way Squad Enforcement Unit were on the highway trying to restore sanity to the situation. To avert a breakdown of law and order, it was gathered that the LASTMA authority swiftly told its officers to maintain decorum and ensure that they did not retaliate, if attacked. Police spokesman Ken Nwosu

said he would find out about the issue and get back to our reporter. It was learnt that the SURE-P officers were later instructed to move back to their base at the old toll gate after the government contacted the relevant authorities. The government’s intervention appeared to have restored sanity as it was observed that LASTMA officers were gradually returning back to their beats.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015 THE NATION FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2014

NEWS

Ekiti varsity workers protest colleagues’ sack

ORKERS of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State, marched on the university community yesterday, protesting the sack of 10 of their colleagues. The protest, which began at 7am, saw the irate staff blocking the road leading to the campus and paralysing commercial and social activities in the community. They made bonfires at some junctions in the community, causing a traffic snarl on the major highway that passes through the community. The 10 workers were reportedly sacked for what the management described as “unruly behaviour”. The protesting workers called on the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Isaac Asuzu, to reinstate the sacked workers. They alleged “ethnic cleansing” in the treatment of the sacked workers, claiming that the action was targeted at a particular ethnic group. They locked the main gate and

From Odunayo Ogunmola, AdoEkiti

all the offices in the university and prevented the academic staff from holding classes with students. Soldiers were deployed to disperse the protesters; riot policemen later came to forcibly open the main gate and other offices before Asuzu and other management staff were escorted in. One of the sacked workers, Foluso Ojo, said the management was wrong in sacking them for a December 18, last year, protest to draw attention to anti-workers’ policies in the institution. Ojo said the December 18 protest was staged to demand confirmation of staff appointment, promotion of deserving staff and stoppage of deduction on the National Housing Fund. He expressed dismay that the memo given to the workers on January 26 invited them for an interaction on how problems affecting the

university could be solved, adding that the protest was based on recommendations of a panel. “But rather than do that, the management tricked us to a meeting and started subjecting us to trial rather than interaction that was contained in the memo. “The outcome of the panel showed serious bias against us. Some of those who partook in the protest were exonerated by the management because of the influence of the Vice Chancellor. “We are calling on President Goodluck Jonathan and the Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, to ask the management to rescind its action in the interest of peace because the workers will not resume until this ill-treatment is reversed.” But the VC said the six-member panel interacted with the sacked workers before arriving at its decision. According to Asuzu, nobody

was discriminated against as being peddled around. His words: “No responsible leader will fold his arms and allow few individuals to hold the school to ransom. This is an academic environment, where people should display high sense of modesty and intellectualism rather than thuggery and brigandage. “They are not supposed to protest at all because their appointments have not been confirmed. And the delay in this confirmation was not our own making. The Federal Government has not set up the Governing Council that has the power to do so. “We are not particular about sack but we expected them to have shown remorse, but rather than this, they were molesting and threatening workers. As a responsible leader, I won’t condone lawlessness and distraction because I want to develop this university.”

Return fire for fire, Mbu tells policemen

HE Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Zone 2, Mbu Joseph Mbu, has warned that policemen will return fire for fire when they are attacked. He urged the public, particularly politicians and their supporters, not to attack any police officer on duty. The AIG told his men to resist and shoot anyone who attacks them. Mbu spoke yesterday at Eleweran, Abeokuta, the Ogun State Police Command headquarters. He said: “If you love this job, the first commandment is discipline. You must be disciplined. That is why I said don’t touch my policeman. If you shoot my policeman, I will shoot 20 of you. “I will shoot 100 of you because we are coming to you in peace. We are not coming to you to kill you. You are not engaging us in gun battle. You are not robbers who are engaging us in gun battle. “You are having communal crisis, we are coming to settle you and you want to kill us, I say resist, I tell you again, resist. Anybody who fires you, fire back in self-defence. “Anybody who fires you, fire back in self-defence but don’t fire first. Anybody you see who is firing at other person fire him because you are trying to protect that other person because the law permits you.

•Amosun (second right), Mbu, Consultant to the Governor on Security, Mr. Yinka Balogun (right) and Senior Special Assistant on Security to the Governor, Patrick Akinduro...yesterday. From Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

“You are empowered to stop that person from causing harm to the other person. It is clearly stated in the constitution that there shall be a Nigeria Police Force for Nigeria. “There is no other police force. We are the civil authority because we are supposed to deal with harmless civilians. “Our arms storage is limited because we are dealing with harmless civilians. But we have to use arms when the civilians are

armed against us. We are the ones in charge of apprehending offenders before, during or after elections. “Every other person who is coming is only coming to help us. We are the authorities, we are the leading agency. So, you are a leading agency and you must take charge of wherever you are posted to.” Governor Ibikunle Amosun advised Mbu to be fair in the discharge of his duties. Amosun gave the advice when

Mbu visited his office yesterday. “For us in Ogun, our people know what they are doing. They are sophisticated and well informed. This is not a place to push people to do things. They know who to vote for. “Our minds are open until we begin to see things to draw your attention to. Whatever anybody does, there are three judgments- the people, posterity and God. All we expect from you is to be fair to all and ensure that there is a level playing field for everybody,” the governor said.

Court to rule on PDP’s N10.5m debt judgment

USTICE Oluwatoyin Ipaye of an Ikeja High Court has fixed February 16 to rule on an application by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), seeking to set aside its judgment ordering the party to pay N10.5 million to a lawyer, Debo Adeleke, as professional fees. Justice Ipaye fixed the date yesterday, after taking arguments from counsel to PDP, Chukwuma Nmesirionye and that of the claimant, Onyegbena Thankgod. The judge ,in a judgment delivered last November 12, ordered the Lagos State chapter of the PDP to pay N10.5 million as professional fees to Adeleke. The judge also asked the party to pay N50,000 as cost in favour of the claimant now judgment-creditor. She held that the Lagos PDP breached the provisions of Order 11 Rule 4 of the High Court of Lagos State Civil Procedure Rules. The judge said the proof of service before the court showed that while the party was served with the court processes, it refused to file its response to the claimant’s affidavit. Justice Ipaye posited that the

By Adebisi Onanuga

party’s failure to comply with the court rules had shown that it was not interested in defending the suit. She had said then that the court was more than satisfied with the totality of the unchallenged facts of the claimant and therefore entered judgment in his favour. At the resumed hearing yesterday, Nmesirionye told the court that he wanted to move his application dated January 6 filed before the court. He said his application was seeking to set aside the judgment earlier delivered by the court. Nmesirionye argued that the order of the court was against the account of the second defendant (Lagos PDP) and not the account of the first defendant (the national PDP). The counsel argued that the attempt by the judgment-creditor to attach the account of the national PDP domicile in Abuja was against the order of the court. Thankgod argued that the summary judgment gave his client the right to recover his money from the Lagos PDP’s account from anywhere within the country.

Thankgod said Zenith Bank has confirmed that PDP’s account with them has more than enough funds to satisfy the judgment sum. He urged the court to dismiss PDP’s application seeking to set aside the judgment.

Adeleke had sued both the national headquarters and state branch of the PDP over their failure to pay him his outstanding legal fees. Adeleke, speaking through his counsel, Thankgod, claimed to have made 180 representations for the party.

Parties sign peace accord in Osun From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

OLITICAL parties in Osun State yesterday signed a peace accord at the state police headquarters to abide by rules and regulations guiding elections in Nigeria. Representatives of political parties, including the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP) and their candidates pledged to avoid any conduct or behaviour that may endanger the political stability and the security of the state. They also pledged to refrain from campaign that will involve religious sentiment, ethnic or tribal profiling. The Assistant Inspector General of Police, Ikemefuna Okoye, assured that the police will ensure equal protection of lives without bias or prejudice. He warned that any candidate or supporters caught fomenting trouble would be arrested and prosecuted. The Assistant Comptroller of Prison, Adelakun Kayode, warned political parties and their supporters to maintain peace at all times. “Tell your supporters to mind their utterances and if they fail to heed this advice, prison yards are wide open and are expecting inmates.”

Ambode: We’ll improve workers’ welfare By Ibrahim Adam

HE governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, yesterday promised to make life more comfortable for workers. According to him, improved workers’ welfare would enhance the overall prosperity of the state. Ambode said his administration would not increase taxes but ease the processes of its collection. He promised an empowerment trust fund of N25billion to empower youths. Concerning spurious short message services (sms) alerts regarding his sanity, the APC candidate urged Lagosians to disregard them, noting “such messages are meant to confuse the public and sway them against us. Please, don’t be deceived”. “All we are interested in is our people, we will not abuse anybody and we will win. I am able; I am strong, standing before you healthy,” he said. The APC candidate spoke at an interactive session organised by the Lagos State Chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Civil Societies, at the Airport Hotel, Ikeja. Ambode said a programme had been drawn up to meet basic needs of the aged. “I can assure you that my attitude towards the aged has not changed. Wherever Governor Babatunde Fashola stops, I will take it up from there. We must start to respond to their needs and must have a programme that connects the aged to their needs and that is part of my manifesto. “I have a father who worked for over 30 years without receiving his gratuity. We are going to be our brother’s keeper. We are not looking for people who will wear police uniform but we are looking for community monitors,” he said. Ambode also promised that his administration would strengthen primary health care delivery. The APC candidate promised that he would not increase tuition fees at the State University (LASU). “You will agree with me that the present administration has made a lot of giant strides in the last eight years. We will continue from where it stopped. “We will provide primary health programmes in every community in Lagos State to reduce communicable diseases. “The present administration has been building houses with a mortgage of 10 years; we will improve on that by extending the years of payment. “On the issue of tax, I have been an accountant for 27 years and I am not going to become a governor because of tax but am going there to lead and for that, we will improve on the collection of tax and not burden our people. “We are only going to expand the collection; we appeal to Lagosians to willingly pay their tax for the growth of the state. “When we said Lagos is working, we want to make sure that Lagos is working for everyone and if Lagos is supposed to work everyone must have a more comfortable life. “My vision is to make the people prosperous if they have more money in their pockets, then we have done well. “I want you to know school fees were not reduced because of election and I assure you that I will not increase the school fees but we will improve on the infrastructure in our schools to make Lagos the centre of excellence.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net

What does corporate governance do? It ensures that you have set up a structure and a culture within the institution that can drive the business in line with given rules. That’s what corporate governance does. -Seplat Petroleum Managing Director Mr Austin Avuru

Customs generates N5.8b in Cross River From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

HE Cross River State Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) generated N5.8 billion in 2014. Area Controller of Customs in charge of the Calabar Free Trade Zone, Cross River and Akwa Ibom States, Mr Oshomah Nicholas, who made this known during a courtesy visit to the State Security Adviser, Mr Rekpene Bassey, said the command under the present Comptroller General was motivated to do even more. He expressed appreciation for the cordial relationship that had existed between the command and the state government, urging that it be strengthened going forward. “We would not have achieved this without the assistance of Cross River State government and we would be grateful if you would continue the same way you did with my predecessors,” he said. State Security Adviser, Mr Rekpene Bassey, reassured the Command of the continuous support of the state government. He said the state was large and the command needs to gear up to deal with the challenges of checking prohibited items, especially drugs and arms, coming in through the water and land borders. He called on the Federal Government to continue to encourage the Service to do more especially as they generate so much revenue.

DATA STREAM COMMODITY PRICES Oil $58/barrel Cocoa $2,686.35/metric ton Coffee ¢132.70/pound Cotton ¢95.17pound Gold $1,396.9/troy Sugar $163/lb RATES Inflation 8% Treasury Bills -10.58%(91d) Maximum lending 30% Prime lending 15.87% Savings rate 3% 91-day NTB 15% Time Deposit 5.49% MPR 13% Foreign Reserve $34.5b FOREX (RDAS) US Dollar 168 Pounds 253.26 Euro 190.6968 Swiss Franc 181.1907 Yen 1.4316 CFA 0.2889 WAUA 235.9975

• From left: The Head, Employee Services, First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Limited, Mr. Kolawole Amusa; the Group Head, Central Processing Centre of the Bank, Mr. Maroof Busari; the Vice Principal of Modupe Cole Memorial Child Care and Treatment Home, Akoka, Lagos, Mrs. Adetoun Sadiq; one of the teachers of the Home, Mrs. Grace Efunwole; the Team Lead, CSR and Sustainability of FCMB, Mrs. Temitayo Ade-Peters and Head, Treasury Operations of the Bank, Ms. Doyin Dada, during a visit by staff of FCMB to the Home in Lagos...yesterday.

Equities lose N684b in four days

QUITIES dropped to two-year low yesterday as the placement of Nigeria’s credit rating on negative watch by the Standard & Poor’s Rating Services (S & P) exacerbated growing anxiety about macroeconomic and political risks among investors. Nigerian equities lost about N262 billion yesterday, representing an average dayon-day decline of 2.73 per cent. Overall, equities have lost N684 billion in the past four days, after the last Saturday postponement of general election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). But the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, allayed fears of investors assuring that the Nigerian economy is resilient and that monetary and fiscal authorities will do everything possible to see that the economy pulls through fairly well. Aggregate market value of all quoted companies at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) slumped to N9.321 trillion yesterday as against its opening value of N9.583 trillion. It had opened the week at N10.005 trillion, and the year at N11.477 trillion. The benchmark index for the Nigerian stock market, the All Share Index (ASI), a

•CBN assures foreign investors By Taofik Salako

value-based index that tracks prices of all quoted companies, closed at a two-year low of 27,935.77 points yesterday as against its index-on-board of 28,721.27 points. The ASI had opened the week at 29,985.08 points. It started the year at 34,657.15 points. The recent streak of bearishness at the stock market worsened the negative overall market situation, resulting in equities losing about N2.16 trillion so far this year, with average yearto-date return at -19.39 per cent. Afrinvest Securities Limited, a dealer on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), stated that the Nigerian stock market is on overdrive citing increased concerns after the S & P announcement. “The crystallising macroeconomic risk and heightened political uncertainty in the economy continues to weigh on the equity market,” it stated, adding that “the weakening macroeconomic fundamentals highlighted by the depreciation in Naira as well as the political uncertainty has led US rating agency, S&P to place Nigeria’s Credit Rating on a negative watch.

“This has a negative impact on overall market sentiment and we expect the market to stay bearish within the near term,” S&P said. Addressing the investing public yesterday, Emefiele, assured of the authorities readiness to curtail macroeconomic vulnerabilities. “The Nigerian monetary authorities as well as fiscal authorities are doing everything they can to respond to those vulnerabilities. I repeat that there is no need for us to panic because we have looked at various scenarios and models where we look at some of those actions that the monetary and fiscal authorities would kick in as we attain various levels in the price of crude,” Emefiele said. He said the diversification of the Nigerian economy would cushion the crude oil decline, noting that Nigeria has over N75 billion in increased non-oil revenues in 2014 and the government is expecting that this would ramp up to as high as $1 billion this year. He admitted that the negative response has also been due to the political situation in Nigeria, but reassured that the nation would have its general elections and con-

tinue to survive beyond that. “Of course, naturally you will find that before an election happens or occurs, there would be disagreements one way or the other, but I am very confident in the spirit of Nigerians that sometimes you find that as we approach elections, people pull back and say, ‘This is Nigeria and this is one nation’ and that is the reason why we all need to have faith in Nigeria. “And that is why I say, no need to panic. The elections will take place; I am not supposed to respond to (questions on) elections, but it is important for me to say there is no need to panic as a result of the elections. The elections will happen, it will go, Nigeria will remain the same and economic activities will improve. “That is a statement I thought I should make, not only to Nigerians but also to our foreign investors and partners who are working with us. Retain your confidence in Nigeria. Indeed, increase your level of confidence in Nigeria; this economy is resilient. There are so many things that we are doing to diversify the structure of the Nigerians economy and I believe that by the special grace of God in due time, you will begin to reap the benefits of these efforts,” Emefiele said.

FMBN mulls lifting embargo on loans T

HE Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), is looking at the possibility and process of lifting the embargo on Estate Development Loan (EDL), the Managing Director/ CEO, Gimba Ya’u Kumo, has said. Kumo, who spoke when the new executive management team of Real Estate Development Association of Nigeria (REDAN) visited the bank in Abuja yesterday, said this is part of efforts the bank in making to deliver quality houses that Nigerians would be proud of as the bank continues in its efforts to reduce the housing deficit.

From Nduka Chiejina (Asst. Editor)

Recently, the bank embarked on an aggressive drive to recover loans from its clients in order to meet its obligations to its shareholders. The Board of Directors while mandating the management to go all out to recover loans given through the National Housing Fund (NHF), also resolved that Primary Mortgage Institutions would be included in the loan recovery exercise. Kumo who declined to

mention the outstanding debts, said the figure was not important, adding that the management needs to recover the loans in order to enable other Nigerians benefit from the fund. He explained that the bank would review the estate development loan window to remove the observed lacuna, adding that the National Housing Scheme would be reviewed to ensure better collection of contributions from the PMIs. He said the bank is reforming its operations to enforce discipline and transparency. Earlier, the new President, Ugo Chime, thanked the bank for listening to the associa-

• Kumo

tion’s complaints and grievances on issues affecting their members, especially in the area of operations, saying the visit is part of efforts to build harmonious working relationship with the bank.

Govt, South Korea partner on 1,000MW solar plant From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

LOCAL firm and its South Korean technical partners yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Government to construct a ,000megawatts solar plant in Nigeria. Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo who praised Firstgate Business Intermediaries Limited and its South Korean partners on the the initiative, urged them to delivering the project within the time frame stipulated in the agreement. Nebo also urged Firstgate Limited to ensure that it taps into the huge power technology abounding in South Korea to deliver quality power plant in Nigeria, adding that the solar energy farms in South Korea could power industry clusters with advanced battery storage systems. He said building a 1,000Mw plant would require up to $2billion. Earlier, the Chairman. Firstgate Business Intermediaries Limited, Kelvin Iyke Asogwa, assured that the firm has financiers, as it would collaborate with local banks in executing the projects, adding that it also has technical partners from Turkey who are reputed to have excelled in power projects. Asogwa said the company has an MOU with the Kogi State government on 2,700 hectares of land to site the solar farm, saying it is ready to commence the project within three months once the requisite materials are in place. He noted the firm has agreements with foreign partners to train about 74,000 youths in their operating plants overseas, who would then constitute the workforce for the local companies being constructed. “We have planned to work with 74,000 youths. The MOUs we have with these companies say the foreign partners will take our youths and while they are on training, they will be building these companies here and the youths will graduate when the factories are ready to absorb them. They are coming back to resume work in these factories, so the cycle is completed,” Asogwa said.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE NATION

BUSINESS

AGRICBUSINESS

e-mail: agrobusiness@thenationonlineng.net

The importance of soybean as a high protein, primary input in vegetable oil, diary and feed industries is not in doubt. To experts, it holds enormous potential for Nigeria in export and domestic markets. To this end, farmers and agricultural organisations are flagging it as a crop with huge growth potential, alongside projects now delivering higher yields and drawing smallholders into processing. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

Boosting soybeans production O MOLE Toluwalase is an outstanding young agricultural entrepreneur. In Mokwa, Niger State, Omole has cultivated more than 18 hectares of soybeans. In spite of all odds in this aspect of farming, he has harvested good yields from the fields. One reason for this is that Omole is a member of a group known as the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Youth Agrientrepreneurs. The group, after the training, has committed itself to turning the villages into a model of food and nutritional security and environmental protection by deploying appropriate farming technologies. Their achievements are based on the use of good practices to grow their own food, and make hunger a thing of the past. The group has already chalked up significant accomplishments by bringing together agri-entrepreneurs working in different villages and towns. So far, IITA Youth Agripreneurs have decided to take up the challenge of improving soybeans production. This followed the decision to adopt diversified crop production. The young farmers grow corn, soybeans and cassava on hundreds of acres. They are into soybeans cultivation because it has become a source of chemical for plastics, textiles, drug and solvents. But the biggest challenge facing soybeans farmers is good seeds to produce more food than ever before on less land. Science and technology play a critical part of the solution. To this end, IITA Youth Agripreneurs have taken up the challenge of ensuring farmers get genuine soybeans. Head, Cereals and Legumes Unit, IITA Youth Agripreneurs, Quadri Mustapha said many farmers were facing the challenge of accessing genuine soybeans. According to him, farmers cant make good success of soybean production without new hybrids suited to soils and latitude. This is why the group is getting the support and technical enablement of IITA to develop such hybrids. To tackle specific seed products needs of farmers, Mustapha said the group has developed soybean varieties of best quality, which farmers can grow and produce better yields. Apart from getting the seeds processed and bagged for interested farmers, the group is ready to take the seeds to farmers” door steps. To experts, the crop’s potential is far from fully exploited, considering vast areas that are suitable for cultivation. Though Nigeria is Africa’s largest soybean producer, with an estimated 600,000 tonnes yearly, up from near-zero production before IITA began an initiative in the mid-1980s to expand the crop, Director, Seed Technology Centre, University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Prof. Lateef Bello, said domestic production of soybeans is not yet impressive enough to meet the rapidly growing demand from the poultry industry and vegetable oil produc-

ers. According to him, there is a domestic supply shortfall which is affecting the effort of local producers to process soybeans into meal, oil and value-added products and soy-based ingredients. Production, he explained, is constrained by low yield levels resulting from high cost of seeds and scarcity of fertilisers. On the supply side, he said adverse changes in the macroeconomic environment has slowed down new investment, while output expansion has been limited by lack of financial resources, infrastructure, and diseases, such as soybean rust. According to him, Nigeria enjoys a low-cost resource base for agricultural production and has easily raised output by expanding area and increasing productivity. Production expansion has exceeded the rate of increase in consumer demand, leaving surplus production for more exports. Major economic and agricultural policy changes, including those that encourage investment in the sector, have broadened export channels. According to him, rapid expansion of agriculture and agro-food restructuring has began, adding that the government channeling resources away into agriculture to food production. As a result, production of major crops (soybeans, corn, rice,) is going to rise. He explained that agriculture still has plenty of room to grow. Specifically, he said there is growing demand for soybeans as a raw material for the quantity and quality of food products. For consumers, the need to meet necessary caloric requirements may be the primary driver of food consumption patterns. Generally, he noted that soybeans are produced on smallholder farms averaging no more than a hectare; as a result it is non-mechanised. Bello said farmers are discouraged in planting soybean because of poor price as a result it is difficult to meet the demand of the poultry industries and agro-allied processors. According to him, there must be competitive price to encourage farmers to go into production, while they be incentivised to plant improved soybean varieties. While the sector has been far behind the curve in adopting the high growth practice, Bello noted that enormous opportunities exist to turn the situation around, creating profitable farms across that produce an abundance of healthy soybeans. He therefore called on the government to promote mechanised soybeans production in order to boost national volume. In working to make agriculture more sustainable, Bello urged the

•Soybeans trail at IITA,Ibadan

government to partner farmers, companies, and organisations across the food supply chain that could make real progress towards producing more food for the nation. He commended the Federal Government for implementing the agricultural transformation agenda (ATA) to improve the economic and performance of the sector, envisaging a substantial change that will led to real economic gains for soybeans producers. The Agribusiness Coordinator, Community of Agricultural Stakeholders of Nigeria (CASON), Mr Sotonye Anga, said that the worth of soya beans production in Nigeria was N300 billion. Anga said that Nigeria produces 500,000 tonnes of soya beans yearly. He said the commodity is a veritable source of income and a multibillion Naira business with high expansion and investment prospects. “Nigeria’s annual production capacity of 500,000 tonnes makes soya a multi-billion Naira business in Nigeria. “Also, there is room for expansion and investment, considering its diverse industrial uses. “Soya is a suitable raw material in food production and it ranks among the richest and cheapest sources of protein globally. “The demand for soya beans is worth around N300 billion annually,” Anga said. He attributed the sliding trend in the value of Naira in the country to the classification of Nigeria as a non-producing nation. “The devalued currency has a negative impact on the importation of products into the country as it increases the cost of imported products. “But on a good note, it favours exports of agricultural products. “As useful as the computer is, no one e ver feeds on it, but in whatever we do, we must feed and that is agribusiness,” he said. Commending the ATA, Anga

•Anga

urged the Federal Government to increase investment on the programme to boost soya production and utilisation. According to him, investing more in ATA will enhance job creation and improve soya farmer’s income. Publisher, Agro Nigeria, Mr Richard Mbaram said with improvement in breeding and processing pursued by the Federal Government, soybean farming will grow considerably in the country. He noted that efforts are been made to improve soybean recognised as an important oilseed crop and as in indispensible source of protein in animal feeds. According to him, industrial and domestic processing of soybean has risen with farmers encouraged to use soybeans for numerous products. Meanwhile, production of seeds for major arable crops increased to 149,484 metric tons in 2013, up from 4,252MT in 2010, the Federal Government has said. According to the government, the major arable crops include rice, maize, sorghum and soya bean, adding that the impact of the seed industry has been tremendous. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said national

‘Nigeria’s yearly production capacity of 500,000 tonnes makes soya a multi-billion Naira business in Nigeria. Also, there is room for expansion and investment, considering its diverse industrial uses. Soya is a suitable raw material in food production and it ranks among the richest and cheapest sources of protein globally. The demand for soya beans is worth around N300 billion yearly’

food production increased by an additional 21 million MT of food during the period of 2011 to 2014, surpassing the target of 20 million MT set for next year. He spoke during a seed retreat organised by the National Agricultural Seeds Council in Abuja. Adesina, who was represented by his Technical Adviser, Dr. Martins Fregene, explained that there has been a quantum leap in organised seed production of major arable crops such as rice, maize, sorghum, soya bean, etc, from about 4,252MT in 2010 to 14,788MT, 44,487MT, and 149,484MT in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Nigeria, he further revealed, met its Millennium Development Goal, thereby reducing by half, extreme hunger and extreme poverty, two years ahead of the 2015 United Nations target. The minister explained that the Federal Government had provided credit guarantee for seed companies to access financial lending from Deposit Money Banks for seed buyback from their outgrowers at single digit interest rate. He said: “Bank lending to seed companies rose from about N1.895 billion in 2012, N4.2 billion in 2013 and over N6 billion in 2014. Moreover, the value of seeds redeemed by farmers from the seed supplied by the seed companies under the Growth Enhancement Scheme increased from about N5.4 billion in 2012 to about N10.4 billion in 2013. “Some seed companies have taken advantage of this policy environment to expand their production and processing facilities such that Nigeria seed companies can be major players not only in the West Africa subregion but also in the African continent in particular and the entire world in general.” According to experts, the soybean processing sector has an installed capacity exceeding 700,000 tonnes per annum with the main products being soybean oil and the high protein cake that is usually used as an ingredient in poultry feed. Yearly production is estimated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development stands at around 550,000 tonnes. The processing firms estimate based on what they are able to procure that yearly production is around 350,000 tonnes.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

AGRICBUSINESS

Why Nigeria cassava chips are attracting lower price

HE low price tag on Nigerian cassava chips by Chinese importers has been linked to the lower grade of the nation’s cassava, Director-General, African Centre for Supply Chain, Obiora Madu has said. The price is impeding the successful execution of the cassava chip export contract entered by Nigeria and China. Chinese importers, it was learnt, are offering to pay cassava export from Nigeria $250 per tonne, a far cry from the $400 paid for same product exported into China from Europe and $350 from Israel. At this price, Madu said the business will not be viable considering the cost of logistics, including shipping the product to China. He said that the high cost of internal logistics (transportation), high cost of shipping, hurdles in documentations with Customs amongst others does not make the business profitable. According to stakeholders, cassava farmers spend on the average N200, 000 per hectare from clearing to harvesting of cassava.

Stories by Daniel Essiet

The situation right now is worsened by the activities of middlemen, cassava merchants, who buy from the farmers at a cheap rate and sell to processors at a high rate pinning the cost differential on high transportation cost from the farms to the factories. Since the international commodity market price of cassava chips is fixed, Madu said it is uncompetitive for Nigerian processors with competitors in countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, Brazil etc who are able to produce it more cheaply. He said countries making it from cassava chips do ship load which are profitable compared to Nigerian processors who export in containers. Early this year, Country Manager, Harvest Plus, Paul Ilona, expressed the same view ,saying that Nigeria cannot export cassava because of the high cost of production,. He said it is not profitable for farmers to export cassava at $220 (about N36,520) per tonne when locally the farmers spend more than N40,000 per

tonne. Besides, he further explained, the sector still employs unimproved methods in the production of the crop, passing through the ordeal of producing small quantities for nearby markets. Ilona said cassava crops faces increasing competition through increased imports of competitively priced products because most farmers are yet to apply new biotechnology to improve their yields. There are barriers to entry owing to the large scale of some of the market, quality requirements, variability in price, and the established contacts between European and North American importers and major exporters such as Thailand and Indonesia. He said the Thailand cartel were dominating the market, making the export market highly competitive for new entrants. Ilona said the local market for cassava is large and constitutes some products. Thus for the markets to grow, there is need to expand the consumer base. While there are indications that the

wider North American and European populations are interested in new “exotic” foods, the expert stressed the need on the part of producers, processors and distributors to package, price and promote cassava foods locally. According to him, if the country must play a leading role in the cassava production area, the increasing difficulties associated with commercial farming should be looked at. He urged the government and stakeholders to adopt new technologies that would maximise the emerging opportunities for better nutrition. “To revolutionise and boost agriculture, the country must also place premium on biotechnology in view of its vast potentials to multiply yields and nutrient capacity,” he said. Other experts agreed that the country cannot export the crop to foreign markets in commercial quantities for greater financial gains both to the country and the farmers due to consistent application of old-fashioned methods by farmers. Right now, the only hope is the European markets where exporters

can be that offered $400 or Israel that offers $350 as against China’s $250. The Chinese market for cassava chips is not helped by extremely high global cereals production, which by August 2014 saw prices 11.7 per cent below what they were in August 2013. The excellent year for cereals production is also enjoyed in China. This will result in an increase in the use of domestically produced Chinese maize in animal feed and a sharp reduction in demand for imported animal feed. China’s cereal stocks – with maize playing the largest role – are now at a 15-year high, at 24.7% of consumption for 2014/15, compared to a low of 18.4 per cent in 2007/08. Meanwhile, the government, is continuing with efforts t boost cassava milling to expand local demand for high-quality cassava flour (HQCS). This includes the importation of “six high-quality cassava flour mills”, and forms part of wider government efforts to promote the blending of HQCF with wheat flour, with a view to reducing wheat import requirements.

HarvestPlus partners centre on entrepreneurs

GRICULTURE remains the bastion of the economy, stakeholders have said. They spoke at an empowerment seminar by the Dominican Centre for Human Resources Development (DCHRD) for agricultural business men and women. They said agriculture contributes 47 percent to the rebased Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employs about 70 percent of our total population. It accounts for 10 percent of our export earnings. Nigeria’s foreign direct investment (FDI) stands at $6.1 billion and her GDP keeps growing at 7.7 percent, thus making the country one of the fastest growing economies in the world, they said. One of the key messages to the over 150 participants at the eventr was that Nigeria’s future rests on agriculture and those who undertake to invest in it. The speakers dissected the agricultural sector and proffered solutions. HarvestPlus Nigeria, in line with its objectives of promoting biofortified staple crops and foods to tackle hidden hunger, malnutrition and poverty as well as empowerment of Nigerians with requisite skills in Vitamin A cassava production, value addition and marketing, partnered the Dominican Centre to organise the three-day training for the church. The seminar held at St Dominic Catholic Church, Yaba. DCHRD, the arm of St Dominic Catholic Church responsible for grooming investors in agricultural business, tagged the three-day session as ‘Wealth creation

through agriculture.’ Declaring the seminar open, Fr. Fortunatus Okeke, Director, DCHRD, welcomed the participants to a new era in the history of Nigeria and urged them to utilise the opportunities presented by the training to empower themselves economically. “The seminar is conceived to make a statement that despite the fact that Lagos doesn’t have much land space for agriculture, the state can become a hub for other opportunities in the agricultural value chain. Some of these opportunities include: job creation, poverty reduction, capacity building, and helping individual and corporations in creating profitable and successful businesses.” Okeke further said agriculture remains one of the most viable alternatives to oil and agricultural investors are the ones government looks up to in helping to solve the problems of hunger, unemployment and dwindling fortune of the economy. He urged the participants to learn from the experiences of the professionals from HarvestPlus Nigeria, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), The Dominican Centre, and the special guest of honour, Chief Audu Ogbeh, CEO, Efugo Farms, Makurdi, among others, who were at the training to inspire the investors. Delivering the keynote address, HarvestPlus Country Manager, Paul Ilona, described agriculture as an orphan sector because of years of neglect by relevant stakeholders. “Nigeria used to be the powerhouse of agriculture in the world; one of the

•From left: Ilona; Chief Ogbeh and Rev. Fr. Okeke during the training.

biggest exporters of palm oil, groundnut and cocoa, among other crops. Agriculture benefitted most institutions in Nigeria and created jobs. But the story is no longer the same. The country has gradually become a net food importer,” Ilona said. He lauded the effort by the government, institutions and individuals to revive the sector, urging a sustainable programme of action to ensure a speedy recovery of our lost years of agricultural glory. “Food has no substitute because man just has to eat; and agriculture is the only means through which food is produced. The advanced countries such as the United States, the Netherland, Australia, etc, began their journey to economic greatness with agriculture. In our country

How to improve livestock production, by expert

IGERIA will improve its livestock industry by increasing its seed stock, building larger capacity slaughterhouses and launching information systems for animal identification and traceability, an expert, Dr Ademola Adeyemo has said. Adeyemo, the Deputy Director, Directorate of General Administration, Agricultural and Rural Management Institute (ARMTI), stressed the need to increase the seed stock of commercial cattle which could be distributed to livestock farmers across the country. He explained that farmers were not making much because of the low proportion of pedigree animals , the low productivity of its commercial cattle population, small number of dedicated feedlots, and a lack of technical regula-

tions for the production of livestock products to meet world standards. While cattle slaughter rate is increasing ,he added that the number of standard slaughter houses are small to take care of increasing population nationwide. According to him, slaughter houses should be made to operate under international health and safety standards. He said operators should be encouraged to use modern technology, that could led to highervalue product for customers. With increased demand for beef, he said the cattle population has declined as farmers are having to sell more beef than is required to maintain or grow the population. He called on the government to create favourable conditions for

farm business, where raising cattle on a farm would be more beneficial than selling them, “and to import cattle population from other countries in order to achieve an increase in seed stock in the country” as soon as possible. With insecurity in the North, he said the nation could experience beef deficiency ,urging the government to raise to the challenge by creating the conditions necessary for the development of the cattle sector, which included low-cost feed production, high genetic potential and the availability of marketing outlets. In terms of genetic potential, he said the sector needs to develop premium cattle, which is key to the competitiveness and profitability of the sector.

where the per capita income is a little above one dollar and over 100 million Nigerians live below a dollar per day, we have no choice but to turn towards agriculture as the only way out of poverty and economic doom,” Ilona further said. He advised the participants to cease seeing agriculture as a social set up but to regard it as a business and run it applying all known business principles so as to sustain their profit and remain in business for long. He also encouraged them to educate themselves in agricultural business and identify the appropriate agricultural value chain they would like to invest in before making the decision to become farmers. In his lecture titled: “Making agriculture a realistic enterprise in Nigeria,” Chief AuduOgbeh, said ag-

HE Federal Government has distributed 44,163 bags of assorted fertilisers to 14,721 registered rice farmers in Bauchi State for this dry season farming. A Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture in the state, Alhaji Mohammed Yusuf, said in Bauchi that the gesture was to ensure food security in the country. He said each farmer received three 25kg bags of fertiliser, improved rice seeds and 2kg of agrolyser orone 1litre of AG Zyme at subsidised rates. “In addition to that, irrigation water pumps and rice reapers at subsidised rates were also distributed to the farmers. “Redemption was exclusively through the e-wallet system under the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme,’’ he said. The director added that the decision to continue the dry season farming programme this year was in-

riculture, as a business, must be protected against foreign competition. crops such as cassava, tomatoes, rice, cotton, maize, and cocoa as well as fish have been identified by the government as those for which local and global demands keep increasing. Investing in growing these agricultural produce will go a long way to enhance the country’s economy and empower the farmers to eradicate poverty and eliminate hunger. To achieve good and sustainable result, Ogbeh said, farmers need government’s help through sound economic policies and technical support. This will enable them to compete with their counterparts in other parts of the world and earn good profit from their investment. Our Government must be firm in their policy and decision making and must ensure that whatever we can produce, we do not import, Ogbeh said.

Govt distributes input to 14,721 rice farmers formed by the success recorded in 2013 and 2014 in selected states, including Bauchi. According to Yusuf, a total of 4,374 farmers across the state benefited from the programme in 2013, while 11,000 registered farmers benefited last year. “With more than 14, 000 farmers this year, we intend to triple last year’s production. “One of the key mandates of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda is to achieve self-sufficiency and a complete stop to rice importation this year. “It is hoped that this year, Nigeria will be able to totally depend on locally produced rice as well as develop the capacity to export,” he said.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE NATION

BUSINESS BRANDS & MARKETING

e-mail: adedejiademigbuji@yahoo.com /mobile line: 08131075667

There is a competition between online and offline marketing channels as a result of the desire for increased sales and consumers’ satisfaction. This is already sowing seeds of discord among brand owners, authorised distributors and online stores. Experts believe such rivalry can threaten trade channels, writes ADEDEJI ADEMIGUJI.

Online, offline marketers clash over sales E

-STORE has emerged as a significant retail force that is putting pressure on the traditional brick and mortar retailers. With even more pressure on traditional distributor channels of product supply chain, the increasing competitive marketing environment is pushing online stores into offline where traditional supply chains thrive. As a result, The Nation gathered that a leading electronic company, LG, is facing pressure from its traditional distributors to call its online sales partner, Jumia, order. While this introduces new twist to the debate over threats online stores pose to traditional supply chains, regarded as offline market, some distributors are facing hard times, hence prompting LG, according to a source, to accuse Jumia of receiving products for online sales but end up selling them offline to make their books good. “They get products at very low cost much better than distributors of established companies, such as LG + other electronics. They sell to keep margins since their sales don’t move too well,” an LG source told The Nation via email. Though whether their products are old online or offline, brand owners still make good sales but the threat the practice poses to trade channels baffles marketing experts, who also accused marketing activation agencies of similar practice. “The practice is all about recording high sales figure. Activation agencies also engage in this practice when they are given targets in a specific area but they decide to go outside the coverage area. This is diversion which defeats the purpose of the manufacturers. In most cases they short-change the manufacturers by destroying their trade channels which is the main challenge in the case,” a brand expert, Andrew Akinyemi. Though LG refuses to comment on its channel conflicts between Jumia and its traditional trade channels, with the challenge online stores is giving traditional trade channels, the Jumia Head, Offline Marketing Afam Anyika, seems to see such practice as a consequence of competitive business environment. He doesn’t see anything wrong in having an online stores competition in the offline market, especially when physical stores are present in the online market to compete with offline stores. “First of all, we are an online marketing sales channel. You should understand that the way you have competitors online you also have competitor’s offline like Spar, Shoprite. We are also competing within the retail industry. Our competition is not limited to online but we have our own sales strategy. Everybody has their own sales strategy and our own mission is to deliver value for Nigerian consumers,” said Anyika. He said further that there is no marketing rule that prevents online marketing channels from venturing into offline market. “There is no rule in the book that says I can’t. As I said, it comes down to strategy. Offline guys are setting up online stores now. The world is growing bigger and bigger and bigger opportunities are coming, the

market is opening, there is rise in middle class and spending is growing. You don’t sit down and fold your hands. Every successful business thrives on innovation. So, offline guys are doing online stuffs now but the most important thing is how do I satisfy you customers?” he asked. On the concern against alleged Jumia’s involvement in selling LG products offline having been given an attractive discount for online sales of the product, he said: “The issue is that the information is very new to us. We have never heard and we know nothing of it. From my own side, we will ask our partner to find out if the allegation raised is true and if so, why not communicate? So far, even my partner doesn’t know where this is coming from. There is no way that an organisa-

tion that has very strategic partnership with this brand will complain. The LG you spoke about are our partner in a marketing campaign in the last three months. We have developed that level of partnership and trust. So, there is no way such an issue will happen and they won’t tell us within the space of five minutes and we find a way around it. But we need to understand where this information is coming from through our investigation. There are certain things that we are bound by confidentiality. As I mention, understand that we are also competing for market share on sales of this product. We will get it from them, and we know what we discuss with them,” he told The Nation. Experts believe that channel conflict occurs when manufacturers

(brands) dis-intermediate their channel partners, such as distributors, retailers, dealers, and sales representatives, by selling their products directly to consumers through general marketing methods and/or over the Internet. Some manufacturers want to capture online markets for their brands but do not want to create conflicts with their other distribution channels. The Census Bureau of the United States Department of Commerce reported that online sales in 2005 grew by 24.6 percent over 2004 to reach $86.3 billion. Total retail sales in 2005 grew by 7.2 per cent from 2004. These numbers made the online marketplace attractive to manufacturers, but raised the question of how to participate without harming channel relationships. According to Forrester Research

‘First of all, we are an online marketing sales channel. You should understand that the way you have competitors online you also have competitor’s offline like Spar, Shoprite. We are also competing within the retail industry. Our competition is not limited to online but we have our own sales strategy. Everybody has their own sales strategy and our own mission is to deliver value for Nigerian consumers’

and Gartner from 2007, despite the rapid growth of online commerce, about 90 percent of manufacturers did not sell their products online. Of these, 66 percent identified channel conflict as their single biggest issue. However, results from a survey show that click-and-mortar businesses have an 80 per cent greater chance of sustaining a business model during a three-year period than those operating in one of the two channels. However, E-commerce is the most popular second distribution channel because of its low overhead expenses and communication costs. This advantage is also a disadvantage, since consumers can also communicate less expensively and more easily with one another in the online marketplace. Therefore, price and product differentiation is more challenging in online markets. To avoid a channel conflict in a click-and-mortar business, experts said it was necessary to ensure that both traditional and online channels were fully integrated. This reduces confusion with customers while providing the business benefits of a dual channel. Manufacturers sell their products through various channels. Sometimes they find themselves competing to reach the same customers like Jumia and LG.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2 015

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

•

When Ekiti joined the change chorus The campaign train of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, rolled into Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, where the standard bearer unfolded his plan for the people. ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA writes on what transpired before, during and after the rally.

T was a rally that shook Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, to its foundation. The crowd was unprecedented. The young, the old and the aged were there. The organisation was excellent and the rally itself exhilarating. Few days after it was held, it was still being talked about as one of the best political rallies ever held in the state. This was the setting last Saturday, when the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally was held. The rally provided the opportunity for the party’s presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, to canvass for votes. Incidentally, it was Buhari who commissioned the venue of the rally, the Ekiti Parapo Square, one of the legacy projects of

the Dr. Kayode Fayemi administration in October shortly before the administration’s tenure expired. The excitement generated by the rally could be felt as early as 7.00 am when vehicles conveying broom-waving party enthusiasts were seen moving in the direction of the venue. The rally was the talk-of-the-town at various junctions and news stands in Ado and nearby Ikere, as residents engaged themselves in analysis of how the event would go. But, there were apprehensions in some quarters few days before the rally following attacks on APC targets by those suspected to be agents of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The state secretariat of the APC was attacked Wednesday preceding the rally. The homes of some leading lights of the party were also attacked. Fears were further heightened by alleged plan of Governor Ayo Fayose to hold a rally at Fajuyi Park, which is a major artery to Secretariat Road that leads to Ekiti Parapo Square where the APC rally was scheduled to hold the same day. APC members are yet to stop celebrating the success of the rally, despite alleged moves by the powers that be to frustrate it. The Nation learnt that it was the intervention of the highest echelon of security agencies that saved the state from being thrown into chaos, as they were said to have prevailed on the governor to shelve his planned counter-rally and leave the state to allow the opposition enjoy their day. The APC presidential campaign rally was to have been held on January 14, a day after that of the PDP was held at the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, but was postponed to Saturday, January 24 to allow for better planning and organisation. The rally lived up to its billing. Ado-Ekiti was shut down for several hours, as residents gave Gen. Buhari and his team a rousing welcome. In every part of the city, the people were chanting “Sai Buhari! Sai Baba!” as they marched to the rally. Road shows were organised by APC members who thronged Ado-Ekiti from all the 16 local government areas. They looked resplendent in the ‘aso ebi’ emblazoned with their party’s logo and various T-shirts and fez caps bearing the party’s logo and the candidates going for various elective positions. Law enforcement officers were at their best. The police, the Directorate of State Services (DSS), the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and traffic wardens did a yeoman’s job to make the rally

a success. Commissioner of Police Taiwo Lakanu personally supervised the security for the day. He was busy working on his phone and walkie-talkie, passing instructions and getting feedbacks on the situation of things. Vehicles and motorcycles were not allowed beyond a point, which was about 400 meters to the venue. Commercial vehicles, buses and bikes that brought people to the rally were not allowed beyond the point as a security measure. Adjoining streets such as Secretariat Road, otherwise known as Bank Road, NTA Road, New Iyin Road, Saliu Adeoti Road and Awedele Road, were lined with vehicles of those who came to the rally. The arena —- Ekiti Parapo Square —- was well-decorated for the event. It had been filled to capacity by noon. Singing, dancing, drumming and other razzmatazz were going on and party members and other spectators savoured the huge carnival. APC candidates for various elective positions mobilised their supporters from their constituencies to the rally. Such supporters clutched posters pasted on plank slates and danced behind their principals. Hawkers and sellers of various items made brisk business, selling caps, T-shirts, hats, calendars, bottled water, ice cream, soft drinks, confectionaries among others. The highpoint of the rally was the appearance of the Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in the last governorship election, House of Representatives member Mr. Opeyemi Bamidele. Bamidele’s entry threw the arena into raptures, as he moved round acknowledging cheers from the enthusiastic crowd. He received a deafening ovation. Bamidele’s political family, Ekiti Bibiire Coalition, has agreed to work for the victory of Buhari and the APC in the presidential poll. Popular Fuji musician Saheed Osupa was on the band stand. Youths swarmed round Osupa’s band stand, dancing. Major television and radio stations, which gave the rally live coverage, positioned their Outside Broadcast (OB) Vans at strategic locations within the arena. Also, some PDP chieftains defected to the APC at the rally. They were all received by the party’s National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun. They included former Speaker of the House of Assembly, Mr. Sola Ajigbolamu; former Com•Continued on page 18

THE NATION FRIDAY FEBRURARY 13, 2 015

people of Ekiti have seen the differ‘ The ence between Fayemi’s government and Fayose’s government and they know that APC has a better programme and manifesto ...106 D AYS TO GO DA

‘APC ‘ll revive Nigeria’ •Continued from page 17

missioner for Information, Mr. Kayode Otitoju; former House of Assembly member, Mr. Amogunniyi Fadare. The crowd surged forward when the luxury bus conveying Buhari, Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, former Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi, Odigie-Oyegun and other national leaders entered the arena at about 1.50 pm. Other APC leaders at the rally include, the National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; the Deputy National Chairman (South), Chief Segun Oni; former Interim National Chairman Chief Bisi Akande; former Governor, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo; Deputy Chairman of the party’s National Convention Committee, Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje; Senate Minority Leader, Senator George Akume; Deputy Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora. Aregbesola and Fayemi caused a stir when they sat on the top of the bus which conveyed them to the venue and waved brooms, the symbol of the party, to the cheering crowd. APC women also stole the show with their dance steps and footwork. Wife of the former governors, Mrs. Kemi Oni, Mrs. Bisi Fayemi and former Deputy Governor, Prof. Modupe Adelabu entered the arena together and moved round to acknowledge cheers from the crowd. The rally commenced at 2.05 pm, with Mrs. Ronke Okusanya saying the Christian prayer and Alhaji Afolabi Ogunlayi offering prayer in the Muslim way. Fayemi in his welcome address thanked the people of the state for proving to the whole world that Ekiti belongs to the progressive camp. Fayemi who was overwhelmed by the mammoth crowd said the turnout was a sign that Ekiti people have not deserted the APC. He stressed that “the mystery of June 21 shall not stand on the day of the presidential poll”. The former governor commended the people for trooping out in their thousands, defying the threats of the PDP-led government. Fayemi said: “I want to thank you for showing where Ekiti people are; for showing that Ekiti people have not deserted the progressive party. “You are determined to prove that the mystery of June 21 shall not stand. We thank God for what we are seeing today; you did not allow the brigands to disrupt this great occasion; you have stood like soldiers despite their threats.” Speaking in his capacity as the APC Southwest Coordinator of the Presidential Campaign, Governor Aregbesola urged the people to “change President Goodluck Jonathan with their votes” and replace him with Buhari. Aregbesola who spoke in Yoruba said Buhari represents the light that would drive the PDP darkness away. He accused the umbrella party of inflicting the Nigerian people with misery, hunger and poverty. He said: “The Yoruba race will not embark on unprofitable venture and the Yoruba cannot follow these evil people. We must liberate ourselves from this bad government and we must be part of the good government to be led by Buhari. “The accursed one has been threatening that we will not come to Ekiti, who owns Ekiti? We own Ekiti; the APC owns Ekiti. “When we take over government, my friend that is here will be sent out. He is dancing the dance of shame all around; tell him that the game is up for him.” Aregbesola promised that Buhari will give Ekiti an airport, good jobs for the youths and reduce poverty, if elected. The womenfolk were not left out in the speech-making ritual. The APC Southwest Presidential Campaign Women Coordinator, Mrs. Kemi Nelson, urged Ekiti people not to vote for the PDP-led government under whose watch over 200 girls were abducted. Former Ekiti First Lady, Mrs. Fayemi, urged voters to elect Buhari whom he said would

• Buhari

•Tinubu

•Fayemi

•Bamidele

mystery of ’TheJune 21 shall

not stand on the day of the presidential poll

(PDP) have no ’They wisdom to lead Ni-

‘

protect the interest of women. She noted that women constitute the largest chunk of voters. Former Deputy Governor, Prof. Adelabu charged Ekiti electorate to cast their votes for Buhari because he has the pedigree to bring about the much-needed change in the lives of Nigerians, if elected. National Leader Asiwaju Tinubu said Buhari’s election as president would change the future of the people from poverty, hunger, unemployment to a glorious one. He said the Jonathan-led administration has no plan for the youths. He said under his watch, unemployment has become a nightmare and has indeed reached a level of notoriety with the deaths of scores of applicants during the immigration recruitment tragedy. Tinubu said a Buhari-led administration would liberate the youths. He stressed that “the Nigerian youths cannot afford to continue with this government of fake policies and fake ideas.” The former Lagos governor condemned the controversial death-wish advert placed by Governor Fayose against Buhari in selected national newspapers, saying Nigeria presently needs the wisdom of the aged to manage the affairs of the country. Tinubu recalled that when economic recession hit the United States, the country turned to the wisdom and experience of Ronald Reagan who ruled the country in his 70s. He equally paid tributes to the 19 APC members of the Ekiti House of Assembly led by the Speaker, Dr. Adewale Omirin, for standing firm against the alleged impunity of the Fayose administration. The APC leader deplored a situation in

geria; this is common sense revolution, jobs, education and empowerment

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which seven PDP lawmakers passed the 2015 Appropriation Bill into Law in Ekiti Assembly and urged the people to reject the rascality being witnessed in the state. Tinubu also explained that Buhari has come to rescue Nigeria from the abyss of economic recession, insecurity and political instability President Jonathan has failed to address. He stressed that a Buhari administration would help revive the cocoa wealth the Southwest was renowned for, create jobs, ensure security of lives and property, put an end to insurgency and ensure that the kidnapped Chibok girls are rescued. Tinubu said: “They (PDP) have no wisdom to lead Nigeria; this is common sense revolution, jobs, education and empowerment. Go and pick your voter cards and don’t sell your tomorrow.” Tinubu also used the occasion to welcome Bamidele, saying: “We have forgiven Opeyemi Bamidele; he is now back home. He is no longer in the party of labourers.” Mamora, who represented the APC Presidential Campaign Director-General, Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State, said Nigerians are going to enthrone righteousness on the ticket that will give them restoration. Vice presidential candidate Prof. Yemi Osinbajo declared that the time of change has come. Osinbajo who urged Ekiti voters not to allow any “electoral magic” to repeat itself in the state promised that Buhari would stop corruption. His words: “Gen. Buhari will stop corruption and that is why they are afraid of him. It’s time for change in Nigeria, on election

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day, take your cards and go to voting centres and stay there until your votes are counted.” Odigie-Oyegun also deplored Fayose’s controversial advert suggesting that Buhari would not last in office, saying it is God that has power over the lifespan of man and not anybody. Buhari in his speech said corruption, insecurity and unemployment are the problems he would tackle headlong. He urged the electorate to assist in realising the dream by collecting their voter’s cards. The presidential flag bearer urged Nigerians to go to the polls on election day and vote the APC to make the change possible. “It is time to send the PDP packing; we will make sure that unemployment is tackled; we will take care of our youths, who are mostly unemployed. “Insecurity and corruption will receive our attention; we will reposition the education sector by employing qualified teachers, as well as prioritizing mining and agriculture to generate more employment for our people,” the APC standard bearer said. Buhari charged his supporters nationwide to ensure that they collect and utilise their permanent voter’s card, if they truly believe in his candidature. He told the crowd that he had understudied Nigeria and formulated a blueprint capable of accelerating rapid growth of the country. The rally came to an end at about 3.15 pm, but singing and dancing by the party faithful continued. The APC presidential candidate had earlier paid a courtesy call to the palace of Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe where he promised to give the traditional institution its pride of place in the scheme of things, if elected. There was a massive traffic snarl after the rally in all parts of the city, as residents lined the streets to cheer the APC leaders who headed for Akure, the Ondo State capital, for the continuation of the campaign. Vehicles spent hours inside hold-ups in many parts of Ado-Ekiti after the rally, while some party members who could not endure the traffic congestion were seen trekking to other places that were less congested. Residents of Ado-Ekiti heaved a sigh of relief after the APC rally had ended, as no incident of violence was recorded. The rally has given hope to APC leaders and members that the party is still a force to be reckoned with in the state, despite losing the governorship seat to the PDP in the June 21, 2014 election. A member of the party from Ijero, Sola Ogunmodede, said the APC has proved with the rally that it is the most acceptable party to Ekiti people, judging by the mammoth crowd that welcomed Buhari to the state for the rally. Ogunmodede said: “In fact, we are all happy with what happened today and today is my happiest day. See this big crowd that attended our rally; we all came from our wards and local government areas. “What makes me happy most is that this is despite the fact that our party is no longer in power. If we can still pull a big crowd like this, it shows that Ekiti people’s eyes are now opened and they can no longer be deceived by the PDP again.” Femi Oso, a party member from Omuo, was of the view that Ekiti people have compared the APC-led government of Fayemi and the PDP led government of Fayose and they have seen the difference. He expressed hope that this will rub off positively for the APC at the general elections. Oso said: “The people of Ekiti have seen the difference between Fayemi’s government and Fayose’s government and they know that APC has a better programme and manifesto. The good things enjoyed under Fayemi like monthly stipends for aged people, monthly stipends for the youths and good welfare package for teachers and civil servants have been stopped by Fayose. “Next month’s general elections would offer them the opportunity to make a statement with their votes and I know that they will vote for the APC because they are fed up with the deceit of the PDP”. As the two major parties had conducted their presidential rallies, voters in Ekiti are eagerly waiting for March 28 when the first ballot will be cast at the presidential election.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

COMMENTARY LETTER

EDITORIAL

Jonathan’s gargoyle •The military must not become the private rod of partisan politicians, no matter how highly placed in the present order

RUE democracy never tolerates personalising state security; and using it to intimidate the political opposition — especially with approaching elections, if the exercise must not be fatally compromised. Still, that appears the gargoyle from the Goodluck Jonathan Presidency: an increasingly nervy military, near-irredeemably captured for partisan duties, by a reckless ruling party. The latest example, of this culpable and condemnable betrayal of public trust, is the siege, by a column of ostensibly patrolling soldiers, on the Ikoyi, Lagos house of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, national leader of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC). Though the siege, which started in the night of February 8, was relaxed on February 10, The Nation which earlier reported the relaxation on February 11, reported the siege’s resumption in its February 12 issue. Across the Niger, on the same February 10, armed soldiers from the 34 Artillery Brigade, Owerri, allegedly numbering more than 100, stormed the precincts of the Imo State Government House in Owerri. An Imo Government release, which Sam Omwuemeodo, senior special assistant on media to the governor signed, claimed the soldiers were marshalled at the alleged behest of Prof. Viola Onwuliri, Minister of State for Education, who reportedly mobilised an anti-Governor Rochas Okorocha women protest. The climax of the raid was a military armoured personnel carrier which was pictured parked off a gate into the Government House, after the soldiers had allegedly sent government workers there into panic; and beaten an unnamed worker to alleged coma. The army invasion reportedly came after Government

House security had despatched the antiOkorocha protesters. At both Lagos and Owerri, the army commanders denied there was any invasion. In Lagos, Major-Gen. Tanmi Dibi, general officer commanding (GOC) for 81 Division, claimed the alleged siege was a routine preelection Lagos army “show of force”. He also claimed Governor Babatunde Fashola was aware of the Lagos street patrols. At Owerri, Brig-Gen. L.M. Bello, commander of 34 Artillery Brigade present at the scene, claimed his soldiers were invited to disperse the crowd and restore peace. What he did not reveal was who invited the soldiers; and why the army, not the police, should be invited to “disperse the crowd and restore peace” in a democracy. That appears to lend bad faith to the intervention, and increasing allegation, by the political opposition, that the army is progressively being politicised by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) under President Goodluck Jonathan. But even as the controversy in Lagos and Owerri rages, news came from Abuja that armed policemen had invaded the precincts of the home of Garba Shehu, the chief spokesperson of the Muhammadu Buhari presidential campaign. Lagos, Owerri and Abuja, therefore, paint a sickening and truly notorious trend: the Nigerian military and police are more and more becoming a tool in the hands of the ruling PDP to harass, intimidate and whip the opposition into line. That, for the umpteenth time, is absolutely unacceptable. The Owerri army power show is especially sinister. It is bad enough for the army — a convoy of 100 soldiers, with an armoured personnel carrier to boot! — to invade Gov-

ernment House and station a military tank, a crude projection of illicit power, to literally cow civil authority. That is a crude joke that only fascist states dare to muster. Still on creeping fascism: it is even more depressing that any Jonathan minister could literarily snap her fingers and the army would come prowling! That is a disgrace of monumental proportion, which should be visited with all the severe sanction it deserves. Such soulless suborning of state security aligns pat with the latest scandal that the Army colluded to rig the Ekiti governorship election, with a badly compromised brigadier-general doing the bidding of disreputable civilians, who behaved no more than power-crazed bandits! The Nigerian military under President Jonathan appears going to the dogs. Every patriot must rise to save the integrity of this once glorious and proud national institution.

‘Still on creeping fascism: it is even more depressing that any Jonathan minister could literarily snap her fingers and the army would come prowling! That is a disgrace of monumental proportion, which should be visited with all the severe sanction it deserves. ’

Degrees in prison • NOUN results of four inmates encouraging but there is room for improvement

NLIKELY news from the Nigerian Prisons Service shows that the country’s much-criticised prison system is not without redeeming features and not beyond redemption. The controller-general of the organisation, Dr. Peter Ekpendu, highlighted remarkable positives at a workshop on Prisons Welfare Insurance Scheme in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. According to him, “Four inmates of the Nigerian Prisons Service have graduated from the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), with three obtaining 2.1, while the other obtained 2.2.” Noteworthy among these caged academic stars is Theophilus Adeniyi, an inmate awaiting trial who made a second class upper degree in Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution at the NOUN Enugu Prison study centre. He received three awards for excellence, including N50, 000

‘However, the remarkable success stories should not make the authorities blind to the urgent need to re-imagine and restructure the country’s prison system. The problems of overcrowding, poor feeding, inadequate medical facilities, and generally rotten infrastructure, to mention a few, continue to discredit the prison system and deserve to be addressed with greater seriousness’

cash prize as the best student. Indeed, it is a reflection of the possibilities, even behind bars, that Adeniyi was able to continue his education and take it to a logical conclusion. He was reportedly a final-year political science student at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) before his arrest in connection with a communal crisis. It is important to observe that the academic achievements of these inmates may have as much to do with their personal ambition and commitment to success as with an atmosphere conducive to learning. Significantly, Ekpendu was quoted as saying to other inmates during the convocation: “I heard a number of you registered for Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination. We shall do our best to ensure that you are comfortable to the best of our ability.” The striking picture of academic accomplishments in prison is worthy of focus because it underscores the reformatory essence of imprisonment. More and more, the modern-day jail is envisioned as a place of possible reformation and reconstruction, and it is reassuring that this concept is appreciated and captured by the prisons chief. Ekpendu said: “There are six directorates in the Prisons Service, with one dedicated to the training of inmates in skill acquisition and productivity. One of the cardinal objectives for which prison is set up is to train inmates for worthwhile careers after their terms.” Against this background, it makes sense that the vision of improvement is not restricted to the academic activities of inmates, but accommodates their practical involvement in similarly useful areas such

as farming, carpentry and tailoring, among others. This range of opportunities for personal development can always be expanded by the prison authorities for the benefit of inmates. It must be emphasised that at the end of the day, encouraging inmates to be better people not only morally but also vocationally is in the best interest of the society. To be realistic, coping with post-prison stigma will always be a predictable challenge for inmates; and the role and value of learning and training for life outside jail cannot be over-emphasised. In this connection, it is reasonable to consider parole possibilities for inmates who demonstrate a capacity for change based on academic attainments within the prison walls or other positive criteria. Certainly, the narratives of the new graduate inmates make a striking statement about the possible usefulness of adversity. However, the remarkable success stories should not make the authorities blind to the urgent need to reimagine and restructure the country’s prison system. The problems of overcrowding, poor feeding, inadequate medical facilities, and generally rotten infrastructure, to mention a few, continue to discredit the prison system and deserve to be addressed with greater seriousness. The truth is that celebrating academic efforts and brilliance in the country’s prisons cannot obscure the bigger reality of the unacceptably primitive conditions inmates face during their terms.

Leadership lesson from Buhari

IR: Students of management and leadership across the world must be surprised at the criticism against the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate in the 2015 general election, Muhammadu Buhari, by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that the leading opposition candidate shared leadership when he was Nigeria’s military head of state from 1983 to 1985 and chairman of the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund (PTF) from 1994 to 1999. Admittedly, Buhari’s deputy, Tunde Idiagbon, was in those days perceived to be so powerful that the military regime was known in the popular media as the Buhari-Idiagbon regime. Almost all major government policies and decisions were announced by Idiagbon, who was chief of staff at the supreme headquarters. The world must be intrigued by the criticism against Buhari because contemporary leadership scholars, researchers and practitioners are agreed that the notion that leadership is about one man bestriding the stage like a colossus is old fashioned and discredited. The notion is known as the messiah syndrome, according to Peter Guy Northouse, author of the famous book, Leadership: Theory and Practice. In place of the one-man hero idea of leadership which is referred to as personality and trait leadership, scholars now canvass what is called distributed or shared leadership. It seeks to bring on board as many people as possible. You can call it democracy in action. I have in a recent essay shown that Buhari has a reputation of empowering subordinates, stating that this is a good leadership practice. I cited the instance of Tam David-West, his minister of petroleum resources, who has on occasion stated that Buhari never for once interfered with his work by asking him to employ a particular individual or promote another or assign any a person to certain responsibilities or even to consider a firm for a contract award. He trusted his ministers and other aides, and so gave them a free hand to discharge their responsibilities. Interestingly researchers in management science, especially those involved in human resource development, now make a strong case for what is called employee empowerment. This is a concept which supports granting employees a free hand to do their work but also assigning higher responsibilities to them, which will see them develop and grow in their career paths. Nigeria is essentially a traditional society, so a number of even professionals and intellectuals are still very conservative, if not out of touch with modern ideas and practice. This is why some of them are in this day and age still critical of Buhari’s shared leadership style, instead of praising it for being superior to some other leadership styles. These are elements still enamoured of the big man concept, the very leadership disease which has paralysed Africa for several decades. Rather than make our leaders feel that they are truly the servants of the people, these elements make them feel like lords and conquerors of their own people. By seeking to paint him as an ineffective leader because he empowered competent subordinates and practised shared leadership as military head of state at a time distributed leadership had not become a popular concept, especially on a continent notorious for absolute dictatorship, the PDP and its operatives have unwittingly portrayed Buhari as a man ahead of his generation. Students, researchers and authors will find Buhari a rewarding study in leadership even in a military regime. He does provide useful management and leadership lessons. • C. Don Adinuba Lagos

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THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

CARTOON & LETTERS

IR: Before now, many have been relishing the prospect of having the much anticipated presidential election on a Valentine Day. The possibility of mixing politics with love simply aroused the interest of not a few Nigerians. The recent announcement by INEC of the rescheduling of the general elections has, however, put paid to all that. The rumpus caused by the sudden decision of INEC to postpone has continued to echo across the land. To begin with, the abrupt postponement of the election has, without a doubt, done much havoc to the not too admirable global image of our country. Nigeria has now become an object of ridicule across the world. What is particularly puzzling to the world is why a nation of over 170 million people cannot successfully plan an election that has been on the card for over four years. The shift in poll also has deep implications for the image of the Nigerian military as well as other security agencies. In citing reasons for the shift in poll date, INEC chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, clearly made it clear that the shift became necessary mainly for security factors. His words: “There are quite a number of issues in the

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Counting the cost of poll shift conduct of elections, the most critical of which is security matter which is not under the control of INEC.” Professor Jega further confirmed that INEC was ready with all election matters under its control but was compelled to take the security advisory from the National Security Adviser and the service chiefs into consideration in adjusting the timetable for the polls. The issue being raised by pundits is how the military which has not been able to successfully dislodge Boko Haram for six years could do same under six weeks. Another vital concern is what happens if the military is unable to put the security situation in the country under check before the new date. Would that lead to another shift in poll? Whichever way one looks at things, the image of the military has been badly deflated by the poll shift imbroglio and it

would take sometimes before it could really come clean. INEC itself has come out of the poll controversy more battered than before. Despite Professor Jega’s clever maneuver to shift attention away from INEC’s near sloppy management of the distribution of Permanent Voters’ Card, PVC, it is difficult to completely shield the electoral umpire from culpability in respect of the poll shift. It will be recalled that the 2011 presidential poll was equally shifted by a week because of hiccups experienced across the country right on poll day. This shows that INEC has a rich history of ineptitude and this does not in any way do its image any good. It is left to be seen how the electoral body hopes to wriggle itself out of the negative lame duck tag it has been dubbed in certain quarters. The postponement also has far reaching implications for political

Power situation in Lokoja

IR: The availability of both Geregu Power Plant phase one and two and Ajaokuta steel industry power plants have not been a blessing to Lokoja the Kogi State capital. When the Geregu 1 and plant was to be installed, the government promised to ensure the availability of constant power to the entire state and the federal capital territory of Abuja. It was made clear to the people of Lokoja that a step-down transformer would be installed at Zango town near Lokoja to serve

Lokoja and its environs, but this has not been the case. Rather, the plant has been serving the Abuja while the Lokoja was neglected although the power lines passes through and is located near the ancient town. The entire town currently enjoys barely four hours of electricity at this time of excessive heat.. I call on the Ministry of Power to consider the installation of another transformer that would give power from that of Geregu Power Plant to enable the state capital

enjoy uninterrupted power supply. The daily rationing of electricity for a maximum four hours has affected the well-being and the business activities of the people of Lokoja. The availability of this power at this time of excessive heat and the need to promote business activities would go long way to bring development of small scale industries to the area. • Bala Nayashi Lokoja, Kogi State

parties in respect of electioneering campaigns, planning, logistics and financing. Previously, most of the candidates aspiring for various political offices have zeroed their budgeting and other associated matters on the initial election dates as earlier announced by INEC. The poll shift would, therefore, bring about additional strains on the aspirants and their political parties.

With the reality of the current economic situation in the country, having to extend campaign programmes and plans for another six weeks would, undoubtedly, be a serious financial burden on the political parties and their aspirants. It is, however, hoped that the poll shift would help to diffuse the already tense political atmosphere in the country; and that all stakeholders in the Nigerian project would see the need to embrace peace. According to Martin Luther King, “peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek but a means by which we arrive at that goal.” • Tayo Ogunbiyi, Lagos State Ministry of Information & Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.

Emulate South Africa

IR: When the South Africans knew that Nelson Mandela could fix South Africa for them, they did not say that he was too old, or that he had been in prison for 27 years and had, therefore, lost touch with what was going on outside the prison walls, or that he was an ex-convict. They made him their President, and they were not disappointed. He did more than what they had anticipated he would do. He fixed South Africa within the four years’ tenure, and left the Presidency, and watched the fruits of his performance before he died. Nigerians should emulate South Africa and vote General Muhammadu Buhari as President, come March 28, in the presidential elections. Goodluck E. Jonathan has had six years and has not improved Nigeria, instead Nigeria is in ruins – even infants know that. Even in his campaigns for reelection, he has not been able to defend his inability to handle cases of corruption and insecurity; his failure to honour agreements with the organised workers’ unions has

resulted in many strikes. Apart from General Buhari, the All Progressive Congress (APC) has several other presidential materials who are each better than Goodluck Jonathan. Things get better not by chance but by change. Nigerians are assured of true change, when they give the APC the anticipated mandate. It will not be transformation from bad to worse. General Buhari will fix Nigeria in record time. It is obvious that the Electoral Act’s provision for minimum educational qualification is to ensure that people who are involved in governance have some education to do the needful. I am sure that the educational qualifications of General Buhari are more than the equivalence of the WASC. Only nincompoops would say that General Buhari be disqualified on account of paper qualifications. Some of those who say so are even being cantankerous. • Kpamor Dr. J.T. Orkar, Makurdi, Benue State

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015 16

COMMENTS

If ‘press boys’ were patriots... Email: tunji_ololade@yahoo.co.uk 08038551123, 08111845040

HIS year, our practiced clasp may gather into a punch, if we let it. This is the year in which we accord our leaders their rights to everlasting madness – that they may see the bite of the frost against their naked butts, as much as they feel it. This year, we birth the truth, or learn to silence it, as usual. I could plead that we summon our will to defend the interests of our people and State but that would be tantamount to imploring the pirate to pilfer riotous raindrops from the Pacific, wouldn’t it? This year, our practice lumps together, two crucial yet haunting questions into some tiresome rhetoric: (a) As the polls approach, what should our values be? (b) Who should be the beneficiaries of such values? Predictably, we pervert the first to foster an even more insidious perversion of the second, as usual. Thus we evade the task of evolv-

‘This year, we birth the truth, or learn to silence it, as usual. I could plead that we summon our will to defend the interests of our people and State but that would be tantamount to imploring the pirate to pilfer riotous raindrops from the Pacific, wouldn’t it?’

ing and defining a rigid code of moral values that we could be led by. Hence the appalling immorality, chronic injustice, gross double standards and the insoluble conflicts and contradictions that plague journalism practice in the 21st century as it does the Nigerian society, under all questionable variants of leadership and altruist ethics. Observe the indecency of what characteristically, passes for our moral judgement and the consequences today: self-acclaimed democrats and looters who rigged their way to power, political thugfathers and gangsters who shot their way to power and then, out of it – having amassed their fortune by looting state coffers, are enabled and patronised by us as the next best elements to happen to the Nigerian state. Even so, we ignore the promising aspirant who gives up the pursuit of peace and fulfilment in order to support our dreams of bliss and realisation of it. Such an aspirant is regarded by many of us as a hopeless radical; a tiresome irritant to our democratic process. Ultimately, we label wearisome tyrants and desperadoes, beacons of hope, while explaining unspeakable atrocities they commit as their altruistic contributions for the love of the good and the benefit of all. Observe what this leadership and beneficiary criterion does to the life of the average man on the street. The first thing he learns is that morality is his enemy. He has nothing to gain from it as he can only lose in his pursuit of it. And were he to challenge the system by seeking to pursue such ideal or propagating it, self-inflicted loss, agony and the gray, debilitating pall of an incom-

ITH the postponement of the 2015 general elections, various political camps in the country have been trading blames, so much so that people are beginning to think that the prediction of the United States that Nigeria will break-up in 2015 will become a reality. This piece however, is as a result of a reflection I had on the 2015 prophesies of the “Oracle of God”, Apostle Johnson Suleman, of the Omega Fire Ministries Int’l headquartered in Auchi, Edo state, as released on December 13,2014. Apostle Johnson Suleman is endowed with a rare prophetic insight. He is not just a pastor; he is a thinker, educationist, administrator, philanthropist, a prolific writer and a renowned international author who has become a household name around the globe. The Oracle as he is fondly called is known for his apostolic and prophetic flow, he graces this age with a new dimension of revelatory knowledge in scripture, miracles and deep prophecies. He is a flame for God, and the fire falls wherever he goes. He once said: “I believe God’s ministers are to be flames of fire. Nothing less than flames. Nothing less than mighty instruments, with burning messages, with hearts full of love. They must have a depth of consecration, that God has taken full charge of the body, and it exists only that it may manifest the Glory of God. A Baptism into death in which the person is purified and energized...”. Apostle Johnson Suleman is certainly a possessor of an audacity, a daring, a boldness the like of which has rarely been seen in Christendom in modern times. It was not uncommon for him to announce in his meetings: “Every sermon that Christ preached was prefaced by a model miracle. We are going to follow His example. The first person in this large audience shouts the loudest ‘Amen’ ,whatever his or her sickness, I’ll pray for that one and God will deliver him or her.” And the first person to stand, even if they were the most deformed cripple, would be healed. Apostle Suleman believes in COMMANDING the sick to be healed in Jesus’ name. His, is an aggressive, holy

‘We need to pray against further shedding of the blood of innocent Nigerians who would be caught in the cross fire of devil-may-care politicians whose only interest is ruling by all means and by all costs...’

prehensible citizenship is all that he gets. Were he to hope for that proverbial leadership that might occasionally sacrifice itself for his benefit as he endeavours, grudgingly, to attempt likewise in the interest of others, the shortfall will foster ceaseless agony and resentment instead of pleasure and gain. If we could endeavour to rise to fulfil the duties characteristic of natives of the Fourth Estate, we could among other things, assure our poor and helpless compatriots that even though citizenship they endure hardly provides them with benefits of nationality and an automatic form of survival, we – that is, natives of the Fourth Estate – could serve as the means to the attainment of our proverbial vista of progress and abundance. If we could rise to truly observe our role in Nigeria’s democratic process, we could teach the citizenry to discover among other things, the fraudulence implicit in such politics as our redefinition of President Goodluck Jonathan as a true democrat; an impractical sloth as a brilliant Statesman. It’s about time we taught the citizenry to identify the fundamental moral differences between leadership that seeks its effluorescence in rampant corruption, treasury looting, politics of death and institutionalised violence vis-à-vis leadership that has the interests of the poor hapless masses at heart. We could teach Nigeria to understand that the evil of such soulless leadership hardly subsists totally, in its bid to perpetuate itself in power eternally but also in what it considers as its interests for doing so; it lies not in its tenacious cling to the reigns of power but in its practice of the science and art of leadership at a sub-human level. In the flurry of currency-activated campaigns and shallow-talk, we could shun the envelopes that bind to pay good mind to the issues that

matter. We could acknowledge our premises and inclinations for or against every aspirant as the products of our inherent values and evasions and thus understand that the electorate in turn chooses its values by both a conscious and probably more hyper-active subconscious process of thought and acceptance by default. This is oft predicated on some form of social osmosis or blind imitation thus the urgent need to educate the electorate to fashion the measures by which the patriotleader we seek shall emerge. It is the simplest measures that get to count, like the institution of the primacy of rule of law and frank talk. Shall we now institute a worthy flagship with platform upon which we would challenge our self-appointed Messiahs, drill them, analyse them and beam as much of their adroitness as their incapacities through the country, across the continent, to the whole wide world. So doing, we could teach the nation to support our dreams of bliss and its realisation by no other means but dint of our heartfelt efforts. We could help natives of our failing state to understand that the politics that leadership we loathe and endure seek to perpetuate permits no view of us except as clueless bums and sacrificial lambs, hapless victims and parasites; that it permits no concept of beneficent co-existence with us. We could educate the electorate to understand that among other things, the reasons for our dumb acquiescence to cynicism and despair and rebel against them: cynicism, because we neither practice nor accept the incumbent leadership’s debilitating inhumanness and despair, because we lack the courage and will to reject it. We could inspire Nigeria to rebel against such devastating evil by urging the citizenry not to be deceived by promises of unblemished altruism for if anything, the advo-

cates of such altruism are often times and right now, still unable to base their ethics and projections on any dependable philosophy of human existence and politics. For instance, President Jonathan still offers “life-boat” solutions as lifelines from which to derive his philosophy of governance and moral conduct even as he pays lip-service to his much-publicised bid to actualise our most unrealistic fantasies. For all our vaunted ability to challenge the worst of tyrants and speak truth to power, we are yet to get the hang of it, although we love to beat our chests that we do. If we do really, then we would have enlightened the electorate to identify the candidate whose politics deserve our mandate and patronage. If we do, we would have alerted the electorate to those expectations and demands we are meant to enshrine and perpetuate in the flurry of political campaigns primed wholly to befuddle and entertain. It is time we affect such dauntless courage, professionalism and understanding of our socio-politics, that we may in good time teach the nation to explore the politics and soul of at least one candidate in order to trust him.

‘We could teach Nigeria to understand that the evil of such soulless leadership hardly subsists totally, in its bid to perpetuate itself in power eternally but also in what it considers as its interests for doing so; it lies not in its tenacious cling to the reigns of power but in its practice of the science and art of leadership at a subhuman level’

Elections and a clergy’s prophecy! By Phrank Shaibu faith. He is a “violent” man, taking ground from the devil by force. And yet he is also a man of great compassion, as well as of great authority. The devil certainly feels it whenever Apostle Suleman hits any town,city our country! In fact, he would arrive in a place almost unknown and unheralded, but within days there would be thousands thronging to hear. The power of God demonstrated in his meeting, is so great. God is truly glorified everywhere he travels to. In some quarters, it is believed that the accuracy of his prophetic analysis and confirmed predictions has earned him a name and fame in various fields of human endeavour. For instance, he predicted that the former chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur as well as former Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah will be removed from office. And months later they were removed from office. He also prophesied in 2014 that all the Service Chiefs in Nigeria would be fired. It took only few months for it to come to pass. These obviously didn’t ring a bell on the accuracy of his predictions like it did when he prophesied the death of former South African leader Nelson Mandela and also said that “A major and great man of God will be called home. His ministry has blessed the world.” Many of us, his followers didn’t understand the prophesy until the death of Myles Monroe. And on Sunday, January 25, he said the elections slated for February 14 and 28 will be postponed and it happened. He has also said the 2015 elections when it holds eventually, will be rigged, marred in violence and end up as a court case. Interestingly, these indices are playing out already. And it calls for great concern. Apostle Suleman has said we should pray to rescue the country from the forces of darkness. The question now is how many of us are praying? It was on this basis that I decided to x-ray some of his prophesies for 2015 and the general elections and to advocate the need for well-meaning Nigerians to pray for our dear country. In a long list of prophesies released since December 13, 2014, he mentioned the great fall of the naira. He said “I saw the naira falling greatly. It became N200 to USD; I saw people who resigned as ministers to contest election return back as federal ministers; 2015 elections will be worse than June 12; Let’s pray against military intervention and interim government

among many other omnious predictions. These are the highlights of his prophecies for 2015 elections. In my opinion, the way and manner the political parties and regional warlords are threatening fire and brimstone might just be the recipe for the rapid manifestation of the dark days hovering over our clouds. But there are steps we ought to take if we are serious about remaining as a country and averting bloodshed. We must join hands and pray and our actions and inactions must be guided by the fear of God. Need I mention that we at Omega Fire Ministries are praying fervently? Yes, we need to pray against further shedding of the blood of innocent Nigerians who would be caught in the cross fire of devil-may-care politicians whose only interest is ruling by all means and by all costs. We need to pray for God to touch the hearts of those who promised to beat the war drums should their son, Jonathan lose at the polls and others calling for a parallel government should he win again. We need to pray! By prophetic standard, Apostle Johnson Suleman is an apotheosis of prophetic reverence and veneration, the man redefines the word simplicity: simple in speech or sermon, even simpler in his deeds and his dressing. And still far simple in how he addresses serious issues. Whoever has ears, let them hear. • Shaibu, is of Omega Fire Ministries, Eagles Arena, Abuja

‘On Sunday, January 25, he said the elections slated for February 14 and 28 will be postponed and it happened. He has also said the 2015 elections when it holds eventually, will be rigged, marred in violence and end up as a court case. Interestingly, these indices are playing out already. And it calls for great concern’

THE NATION FRIDAY 13 , 2015

COMMENTS ‘It is not often that nations learn from the past, even rarer that they draw the correct conclusions from it’—— Henry Kissinger

RESIDENT Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, in his bid to hang tenaciously onto power, is tormenting the peace of the nation’s ancestors. Whether through his aides’ unguarded statements or by his body language, conduct and lingo in the past weeks, he seems determined to truncate this democracy if the coming 2015 Presidential election will not go his way. When everything pointed in the direction that he would lose the election, he confirmed the fears in public space that he would tinker with the independence of INEC: He covertly compelled the electoral body through Sambo Dasuki, his National Security Adviser (NSA), and military service chiefs to shift the election dates - just precisely a week to the conduct of the presidential election initially slated for February 14. Quite interestingly, like a patient dog that eats the fattest bone, Nigerians that are determined for CHANGE are eagerly waiting for next six weeks to come for them to use their votes to show Jonathan the way out of AsoRock Villa. This president seems to have forgotten the tribulations that Nigerians endured before the birth of the ongoing democratic project. But for the toil of courageous Nigerians that stood up against military dictatorship, probably, the president, who never hitherto stepped out of the country, and perhaps the Niger-Delta, would be rotting away somewhere in Otuoke, Bayelsa state. Now, he wants to overstretch the elasticity of his destiny by daring to submerge the echoes of CHANGE in order to realise his own infamous overambition for another term in office. The president pretends before the entire world that he knows nothing about INEC’s shift of election dates when he is the main architect of the political rigmarole. This government is showing grave disregard for the country’s past because of his having been blinded by the awesome power at his beck. From the first republic when the mobile unit of the police force was created to suppress the opposition of that era to the second republic when the same mobile police were deployed to intimidate, harass and tyrannise the opposition, the end was always dismal for perpetrators. From Ibrahim Babangida’s charade called transition to democratic rule when he used the military with impunity to repress and suppress people’s resistance against the satanic annulment of the June 12 1993 election and; Abacha’s use of same method to facilitate

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Is election shift not road to Golgotha? his failed transmutation agenda down to Olusegun Obasanjo’s use of military to win election at all cost, there had been a dire consequence for such political iniquity. History is currently repeating itself under Jonathan who has been using the military to commit all sorts of atrocities including the deployment of soldiers and masked intelligence and police service operatives to harass the opposition at electioneering period. Does the law allow for the use of soldiers during elections? The answer is capital NO! The 1999 Constitution in section 215(3) vests the Nigeria Police Force with the power to exclusively maintain and secure public safety and order. But there is, however, a circumstantial moderation over this police role in the second leg of provisions of Section 217(2) of same Constitution that empowers the president to deploy the armed forces only for the suppression of insurrection and while acting in aid of civil authorities including the police to restore law order. What is apparent today is that there is no insurrection or civil disturbance except in 14 local governments cutting across the troubled three north-east states out of 774 councils in the federation where the Boko Haram insurgents hold way. So far, there are no civil disturbances in the remaining 760 local governments across the federation or any sign of it that the police cannot contain to warrant military intervention. Even when the president needs to take extraordinary security measures as enshrined in Section 305, he still must go through the national assembly to seek and obtain its approval for a specified timeline. Reading this two Sections

HAVE been in the war front of Nigeria’s political contests for the general elections now for about four weeks. While I am working for the election of Chief Dr. Chekwas Okorie as the next president of Nigeria, the vicious nature of campaign attacks on the person of General Mohammadu Buhari, backed by petro-dollars that has origins in our common patrimony, has been such that demands the outrage of patriots. By the time Major-General Mohammadu Buhari came to power as Military Head of State of Nigeria on December 31, 1983 I was already in the third year of my university education in the United States of America. I did not live in Nigeria under his leadership and as such has no personal experience of life under him and his regime. But I followed developments in my home nation as one had mixed feelings over the return of the military to government. The pride we, as Nigerian students abroad, had in telling our school mates that Nigeria was the third largest democracy on earth (behind India and the USA) was interrupted as a result of that intervention by the Nigerian military. In 1995, I was approached by the late Major-General Joseph Nanven Garba to consider publishing what would turn out to be his last intellectual offering on issues concerning Nigeria. Fractured History: Elite Shifts and Policy Changes in Nigeria by Garba, was published later that year under the Sungai Books imprint, which I own. The launching of that book in Nigeria brought me together with Buhari for the first time. General Sani Abacha was in power at the time and he was not particularly fond of books critical of him and the military government, which Fractured History was. General Buhari chaired the launching of the book at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs in Lagos, a fact that gave us protective cover for the intellectual event. The then Military Administrator of Lagos at the time, Brigadier-General Marwa, stayed away from the event. I had the opportunity of sharing moments with Buhari and Garba in the room where we sat and waited before we proceeded to the auditorium. He commended my service and what he called “courage” in publishing the book at that time, which he had read preparatory to the launching. He expressed happiness with the book design and print and joked to Garba that “if only the book was as good as its cover.” We all laughed. As I often do, I told him that I would like to publish his own works or memoirs if he ever got to writing any. “We will see,” he said in his brief and brisk style. I did not meet the man again until the August 2004 convention of the World Igbo Congress, which was held in New Jersey. He came in a surprise visit to the gathering of the apex Igbo organization in the Diaspora. I was a member of the Board of WIC at the time and one of the closest advisors and allies of the then Chairman of WIC, Dr. Kalu Kalu Diogu. In Diogu’s suite with some of us, the WIC chairman was visibly rattled at the news of Buhari’s arrival at the convention. Diogu’s anxiety

(215 and 217), this column believes that it is only clear that the president can only deploy the military while trying to aid the police to restore peace and order when it has broken down. Otherwise, the president can deploy the armed forces for internal security in cases of suppression of insurrection which includes the devastating Boko Haram insurgency. From the intent/spirit of the grundnorm, it is clear that the military has no place in election matters and the elections’ dates should not have been shifted because the military threatened not to provide security. What is the position of the Inspector General on this issue? There have also been judicial pronouncements on the matter and in this regard the Court of Appeal judgment in Yusuf v Obasanjo (2005) 18 N.W.L.R.(Pt 956) 96 remain instructive: Salami JCA ( as he the was) held: “It is up to the police to protect our nascent democracy and not the military, otherwise the democracy might be wittingly or unwittingly mili-

tarised. This is not what the citizenry bargained for in wrestling power from the military in 1999. Conscious step or steps should be taken to civilianize the polity to ensure the survival and sustenance of democracy.” The current move to stall democracy via postponement of the election by the NSA, the military and the PDP is an efforts aimed at militarising the electoral process which is illegal and criminal. Also in the case of Buhari v Obasanjo (2005) 1 WRN 1 at 200, Abdullah JCA observed: “In spite of the non-tolerant nature and behaviour of our political class in this country, we should by all means try to keep armed personnel of whatever status or nature from being part and parcel of our election process. The civilian authorities should be left to conduct and carry out fully the electoral processes at all levels”. The Supreme Court in its appeal judgement in the same Buhari v Obasanjo (2005) 50 WRN 1 at 313 states that the State must make sure that “citizens who are sovereign can exercise their franchise freely, unmolested and undisturbed.” This molestation obviously obtain in a military-infested polity being bred by Jonathan. It is regrettable that the election was postponed but Nigerians would not condone such evil deed in the nearest future. The election could have gone ahead despite the military’s illegal threat if INEC had been calm enough to read and digest properly section 25 of the Electoral Act which allows the electoral body to deploy his power for election postponement only where there is verifiable threat of breakdown of law and order ‘in the area or areas’ under scrutiny. To Mr President and his goons, Nigerians are saying enough of politics of cluelessness. They want a break from the cycle of PDP’s political servitude for enthronement of a political movement as represented by APC with an echo that would be heard and appreciated by generations to come.

Soldiers’ siege on Tinubu’s residence Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos State is undisputably an enviable pillar of opposition politics in this country and more importantly, an inspiration and model in the current democratic movement against government ineptitude as exemplified by the President Goodluck Jonathan presidency. The move by the presidency to intimidate him by stationing armed soldiers around his house is nothing but a sheer waste of time, personnel and resources. Asiwaju is too experi-

enced and familiar with this kind of desperate repressive official method to be subdued. He, in his fight for democratic enthronement that Jonathan is now enjoying, survived more crude and severe official antics that led to nowhere. Asiwaju, be assured that nothing will happen to you or any of us that truly believes that the time for CHANGE in this rotten system headed by Jonathan is now. You remain a worthy pillar of this inevitable crusade. I reserve further comments on Tinubu and his political exploits till a later period in the nearest future. Ride on

Buhari is no boogeyman By Ugorji Okechukwu Ugorji was grounded in the knowledge of the controversy that former Governor Abubakar Rimi’s surprise visit to WIC’s convention in Dallas, Texas in 2000 generated among Ndi Igbo at the convention. I was among those who counseled that an unscheduled reception and meeting should be held to welcome Buhari, a former Head of State, before the formal opening of the convention. He was the second former Head of State, after General Emeka Odumuegwu Ojukwu, to attend a WIC convention. After I drafted Diogu’s “welcome address” (speech) to Buhari, the chairman calmed down and we proceeded to the reception. In the speech, WIC was cordial to its prominent guest, who clearly was preparing for another run for president of Nigeria in 2007. We told him that it was impressive that a man, who had taken arms against Ndi Igbo during the NigeriaBiafra War, had come to break bread with survivors of that fratricide in the Diaspora. We also noted to him that it was also commendable that a man who had overthrown a democratic government in 1983 was now himself a democrat seeking power and service in a democratic environment. We hoped aloud that he would commit himself to neither of those incidents happening ever again in the life of Nigeria and Nigerians. The officer and gentleman addressed us. And after his remarks, he took questions from those of us who had gathered. His answers were direct and he showed no discomfort in the midst of folks whose sentiments towards him were ambivalent at best. The next time I met General Buhari was during the election period of 2007. He had just finished a rally in Abuja or in a neighbouring state and was heading to Kaduna. I was on my way to Owerri, Imo State. He remembered the face but was not sure from where. I reminded him that the initial acquaintance was made at Garba’s book launch in 1995. Then he remembered that he had bought additional copies of the book at the New Jersey convention of WIC in 2004. He missed Garba, he said. He liked “the Diplomatic Soldier,” he referred to Garba. Diplomatic Soldiering was the title of one of Garba’s previous books. I present this background in order to address some of the unprecedented attacks on the person of the APC candidate for president. One criticism of Buhari is the perception that he operates from a born-to-rule mentality. In essence, the knock is about his ethnic identity of Fulani, which is criticized as a whole for a sense of entitlement in the realms of power. I have always

been against the lazy idea of group stereotypes, which the Igbo (of which I am one) have been a long-standing victim. There is nothing about Buhari that suggests that he has more ethnocentrism or ethnic chauvinism in him than other politicians or “leaders” who have used ethnicity as lever and leverage to power. This is among the reasons the Igbo put aside their feelings about the role of Goodluck Jonathan’s Ijaw ethnic group in the Nigeria/Biafra war to support overwhelmingly the incumbent president’s 2011 run for president. Buhari is also said to be a fierce adherent of Islam who prefers Sharia law to the more liberal Nigerian secular law that is itself based on British common law, which in turn is based largely on Christian ethos. He is in essence a practicing Moslem who takes his religion very seriously. As a would-be president of democratic Nigeria, Buhari will have no tools with which to make Sharia the law of all Nigeria. Nigeria is simply too complex and sophisticated for that kind of adventure. In my neck of the woods, Buhari’s military activities during the civil war have been disingenuously used as a wedge issue by PDP operatives. Yet the same operatives had worked for the election of Obasanjo as a civilian president, a man who more than most, has used the defeat of Biafra as a calling card. Buhari was a young officer ordered to war by superior officers, and by the standards and expectations of the Nigerian Army, conducted himself professionally. I am not supporting Buhari for president. I am working for Chekwas Okorie, a man I believe to be more progressive than Buhari and Jonathan. Nevertheless, having immersed myself in the current struggle for power at the centre, and having witnessed the onslaught of negativity against him, I feel an obligation to state that General Buhari is no boogeyman. He is a patriot and if he wins, I am certain that Chekwas Okorie will congratulate him without equivocation, as he (Okorie) would do if Jonathan wins. •Dr. Ugorji, is Director General of the Chekwas Okorie Presidential Campaign Organization (COPCO).

‘Buhari’s military activities during the civil war have been disingenuously used as a wedge issue by PDP operatives. Yet the same operatives had worked for the election of Obasanjo as a civilian president, a man who more than most, has used the defeat of Biafra as a calling card’

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

Newspaper of the Year

AN 8-PAGE PULLOUT ON SOUTHEAST STATES

Sacked workers protest in Aba

Anambra steps up tourism

•PAGE 27

•PAGE 37

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

PAGE 25

Beauty queen fights crime •PAGE 40

•A part of the erosion-threatened community

T was a danger the residents lived with but could do little or nothing about. Some of their homes and other structures lay buried 32 feet in the red earth opened up by erosion. Their farmlands caved in, leaving them short of cultivation spaces. Several of their roads were literally eaten up. The landscape of the community took a totally different, ugly shape. They cried out. No one heard, but if someone listened, no one did anything to help. Residents of Ogbor kingdom in Aba North Local Government Area of Abia State resigned to fate. Then, in 2011, there was a sense of relief. The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Environment, and National Committee on Ecological Problems, awarded the contract to tackle the soil challenge to construction firm Bilijoe & Berger

Disaster averted

Every year, for over a decade, the people’s agony deepened as their homes and farmlands were washed away by landslides and erosion. SUNNY NWANKWO reports that the Ogbor community is now relieved as 32-feet-deep gullies are being filled up

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Nig. Limited. The relief was short-lived, The Nation gathered. For one year, the project contractors disappeared from the site, leaving the residents with so many unresolved questions. The residents heard, though could not confirm, that the contractors abandoned the work because they got no more money than the initial mobilisation sum. Meanwhile, the gullies deepened, measuring up to 32 feet

The contractors suddenly disappeared from site and when we inquired, we learnt they were alleging that the Federal Ministry of Environment, after the initial payment to mobilise them to site, failed to release more money for them to continue the job. The situation became so bad that the efforts the contractors made to check the over 32-feet-deep gully were being reversed as the rains started washing away the sand-fills

deep in some places. Many people fled their homes. “The contractors suddenly dis-

appeared from site,” said a resident who preferred anonymity, “and when we inquired, we

learnt they were alleging the Federal Ministry of Environment, after the initial payment to mobilise them to site, failed to release more money for them to continue the job. The situation became so bad that the efforts the contractors made to check the over 32-feet-deep gully were being reversed as the rains started washing away the sand-filled gullies. Some people left their houses and relocated to other parts of the commercial city in order to avoid being erosion casualties.” Now, work has resumed and the people have found their voices again, and are happy. “In late 2013 or early 2014, they came back to site to the relief of some of us who were still thinking on what next to do and today, as you can see, they have completed over 80 per cent of •Continued on page 26

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

Disaster averted •Continued from page 25

the work. We learnt that their arrangement with the federal government was to sand-fill the gullies in Aguwa and Akpu roads, but the project will not be complete if they are not properly tarred”. The source expressed optimism that the project, when completed, would not only bring the sufferings of the people to a halt, but link the community with other parts of the commercial city. The Project Engineer, Kayode Owadokun told our correspondent that they have finished the earth work and were about to start excavating the drains. Owadokun was angry over the attitude of residents of the community who he accused of turning the drains into refuse dumps. He warned that the project would

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be in vain if they eventually blocked the drainages. On the fear expressed by residents that the project would collapse if the roads were not tarred, the project engineer said “we have been able to channel all the water from this area to the drainages appropriately which eventually flush into this water (waterside river). Nothing is going to happen to the job, though we have advised the appropriate authority to see how the roads can be asphalted. “The problem we are having which, if not addressed, might affect this job, is that people of this community have started dumping debris into the gutters and when it blocks the drainage, the water will likely wash away the surface. We are urging them to desist from such act if they want this job to last longer”.

•Work resumes on one of the roads

Work has since resumed at the site to the relief of some of us who were still thinking on what next to do and today, they have completed over 80 per cent of the work. We learnt that their arrangement with the federal government was to sand-fill the gullies in Aguwa and Akpu roads, but the project will not be complete if they are not properly tarred

•Another site of erosion in the community

18 co-operatives get MDGs‘ grant in Ebonyi E

IGHTEEN agro-based cooperatives have benefitted from the Millennium Development Goals Conditional Grant Scheme (MDGCGS) of the Ebonyi State government. The cooperatives, drawn from six local government areas namely Afikpo North, Onicha, Ivo, Ohaukwu, Ebonyi and Ezza North got N500,000 each, totalling N9m. The benefiting cooperatives had earlier undergone training on the various agro-based investment opportunities in the state to further equip them with the requisite

From Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

knowledge needed to establish their own businesses. At the launching of the scheme, during which cheques were presented to the cooperatives, wife of the state governor, Mrs Josephine Elechi expressed happiness and appreciation to the state government for supporting the scheme. She also commended the federal government for initiating the grants through the MDGCGS Of-

•Mrs Elechi handing a cheque to one of the beneficiaries

fice. She said it would boost agriculture at the grassroots. She said, “This scheme is aimed at complementing all poverty alleviation and employment initiatives of the Federal Government” “I want to express my deep appreciation to the state government under the leadership of Chief Martin Elechi for making it possible for the 18 benefitting agric-based cooperatives, three each from Afikpo North, Ebonyi, Ezza North, Ivo, Ohaukwu and Onicha LGAs to partake in the programme, through the approval and release of funds to be disbursed to the beneficiaries”. “I am glad to note that each of these cooperatives will also receive a total of five hundred thousand naira for a group of agricultural activities…along the agricultural value chain to be operated through a micro-credit finance process”. “This will go a long way in assisting the agro-based cooperatives to further expand and improve upon their various ventures, which will in turn ensure increase in agricultural production for economic benefit of the large society”. “May I therefore call on various organisations and groups to encourage agricultural programmes by embarking upon small-scale agricultural ventures, through the formation of cooperatives”. “I am convinced that through these measures, it would be easier for our farmers to access agricultural inputs, subsidies and funds from government and other agencies to facilitate the growth of their

This will go a long way in assisting agro-based cooperatives to further expand and improve upon their various ventures, which will in turn ensure increase in agricultural production for economic benefit of the large society. I am convinced that through these measures, it would be easier for our farmers to access agricultural inputs, subsidies and funds from government and other agencies to facilitate the growth of their agricultural programmes

agricultural programmes”. “I hereby charge the benefitting cooperatives to make judicious utilization of facilities provided them through the MDG/CGS agric bases micro cooperatives scheme, so as to actuaries the objectives for which the scheme was designed”. The Focal Person of Ebonyi MDG/CGS, Dr Ngozi Obichukwu said the grants was part of efforts to eradicate goal 1 of the MIllenium Development Goals (MDG). She said the training and grant will go a long way in helping the cooperatives’ members to move their farming system ahead. Dr Obichukwu urged them to go into Agro business like fishing farming etc.

The Head of Service, Mrs Ugo Nnachi noted that the MDG has enhanced the life of Ebonyi people especially those in the rural areas. She said the grants will go a long way in encouraging the cooperatives to judiciously use the grants to diversify on their Agro based ventures especially now that the oil prices is dwindling. Mr James Uchenna, from one of the cooperatives from Ezza North thanked the state government and the MDG/CGS on behalf of the beneficiaries for the grants which he noted will help them improve on their farming system. He also promised that they will use the funds judiciously for the purpose for which they were given.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT Men gave way and could only watch from the sidelines. Women, among them the elderly and expectant mothers, went through the streets of Owerri, the Imo State capital, with just one song in their mouths: change. OKODILI NDIDI reports

T was quite a spectacle watching Southeast women take over Owerri, the Imo State capital. In their colourful attires, they moved with determination, eager to let everyone know where they stood on the future of the state, region and even the entire country. There were expectant and nursing mothers among the crowd as they filled the Dan Anyiam Stadium, where their song grew louder and as clear as their message. They wanted change. They wanted change in the leadership of the country. And the retired General Muhammadu Buhari was their choice, they said. The stadium was filled to capacity as early as 8 am. The enthusiasm of the broom-waving women defined their yearning for change. The gathering, which also attracted octogenarians, was a testament of Igbo women’s resolve to support a new order. Owerri was literarily taken over by the army of women who marched round major streets in their colourful attires dancing gracefully to the admiration of the men. Motivating the women were the wives of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Hajia Aisha Buhari, the

•The women at the stadium

A day‘for women in Owerri vice presidential candidate, Oludolapo Osinbajo, the state governor’s wife, Nneoma Okorocha, the party’s National Woman Leader, Ramatu Tijani and other women and wives of prominent politicians from the zone and beyond. Addressing the huge crowd, Mrs. Buhari, who rode into the stadium on a double-decker bus amid ovation, enjoined them to support the change that will midwife a new Nigeria, where “the Nigerian women will have a feel of what governance is all about”. She stated that for this new Nigeria to be actualised, “the

The Nigerian women will have a feel of what governance is all about...We are one in this country and we should work together irrespective of religion or ethnic differences

women should vote for the APC en masse,” assuring that once this is done, they should know that they have played a promi-

nent part in the salvation of Nigeria. Aisha, who was given the Igbo name Ogechi, meaning God’s

Sacked workers protest in Aba

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•Continued on page 28

The protesters, sacked on October 1, 2011, marched through streets of Aba, the commercial hub of Abia State, demanding that Governor Theodore Orji recall them. Some of their placards read: “We are the sacked workers in Abia State, call us back to work”

ORE than three years after their disengagement, non-indigenous Abia State civil servants have staged a street protest seeking to be recalled to their positions. The protesters, sacked on October 1, 2011, marched through streets of Aba, the commercial hub of the state, demanding that Governor Theodore Orji recall them. The protesters bore banners and placards with such inscriptions as “We are the sacked workers in Abia State, call us back to work”. Some of the sacked have indeed been reinstated by the protesters said the number of the recalled workers were too small. They said that they were using the opportunity to also mourn not less than 35 members of the group who died since their sack, stressing that they were not going to rest until the government recalled all of them. Mrs. Ijeoma Ihejirika who led the group on the protest in an inter-

time, harped on the need for the unity of the country at all times, adding, “We are one in this country and we should work together irrespective of religion or ethnic differences”. Urging support for the reelection of the Imo state Governor, Rochas Okorocha, and other APC candidates, she charged the women to return to the communities and mobilise for the party. Also addressing the women, Mrs Okorocha described women as agents of change, noting that

•The protesting women From Sunny Nwankwo, Aba

view with reporters said that they decided to embark on the protest to remind and also draw the attention of the Abia State Governor that as he prepares to leave office on

May 29, he was yet to fulfill the promise of total recall of its members into the its civil service even as they expressed the fear that the incoming government may overlook their way. Ihejirika who could barely speak

as she was soaked in her emotions said that their members were dying in their numbers out of frustration and idleness arising from expectation that they would be called back to work as the governor promised.

According to her, most of the workers who were due for their retirement were yet to get their gratuity and pension since 2011 till date which has made life miserable and difficult for them, adding that some of them who had put in their years in service, hoping to live on •Continued on page 28

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

Enugu prepares for trade‘fair E

NUGU State, especially its business community, is looking forward to the 26th edition of the International Trade Fair. The state’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ECCIMA) is finalising parrangements for the event scheduled to start on March 27 and end April 6. The theme of the fair is “Engendering the Nation’s Business Climate for Enhanced Industrialisation, Investment Inflow and Employment Generation.” This date was fixed before the postponement of the general elections. The Chamber expressed awareness of the current focus on political campaigns and scheduled elections, saying, “We have strategically designed our action plan for the Fair so that the current campaign and upcoming elections would not affect it in any negative way.” “Of course, you know we are concerned on the issue of deepening our democracy as we are also aware that it is only with a thriving economy and free enterprise that our democracy would be well sustained. “26th Enugu International Trade Fair by the grace of God is going to be an exciting and result-oriented

Part of the value addition to this fair is the erection and availability of over l000sqm marquee air-conditioned dome for corporate and international exhibitors. This is in addition to other existing facilities that will enable enhanced environment for the successful hosting of the fair

From Chris Oji, Enugu

10 days beneficial business concourse. We thank you sincerely for being here as we seriously count on you as partners in progress as we share in the vision of the common good.” ECCIMA President, Dr. Ifeanyi Okoye while unveiling the plans for the fair, said: “This Fair has been packaged to have meaningful and positive effects and outcome for all

•Representative of the President Goodluck Jonathan, DG, Ministry of Trade & Investment, Mr. Ewa Sunday Ulu (scissors in hand) to launch the 25th Enugu International Trade Fair. With him are dignitaries PHOTO: OBI CLETUS

stakeholders, particularly for exhibitors and participants. “Part of the value addition to this Fair is the erection and availability of over l000sqm marquee air-conditioned dome for corporate and international exhibitors. This is in addition to other existing facilities that will enable enhanced environment for the successful hosting of the Fair. “We are partnering with a marketing communications firm based

in Lagos to enhance and boost the level of participation and visitors to the Fair through a unique introduction of gift presentations to lucky visitors to the Fair with the support of partnering exhibitors and participants of which the promotional activities is commencing.” Okoye said the Enugu Chamber would be work-related, working with the company for improved management of gate ticketing

through advance sale of passes and car entry tickets. He said the idea was to enable people have early access to entry pass instrument for visiting the Fair and to a great extent decongest as much as possible the usual rush and crowd that besiege the entry point for access to the Fair ground when the Fair commences. Okoye said: “We shall be consolidating efforts towards enhancing the special designated area in the Fair complex for the exhibition of new products, prototypes, innovations and research findings for commercialization. Recall, that the idea is to boost technological advancement by bringing researchers, business people and industrialists together. This remains one of the core focal points and cutting edge of the Enugu International Trade Fair. “We are hopeful that we are going to receive the support of the Enugu State government towards •Continued on page 40

Sacked workers protest in Aba

•From left: Hajia Aisha Buhari; Oludolapo Osibanjo and Mrs Nneoma Okorocha in Owerri •Continued from page 27

change revolves around them as home builders. She urged the Southeast women to give massive support for the APC Presidential candidate, adding that the change has started in Imo State and would spread to other parts of the zone. According to her, the emergence of Buhari as the nation’s President will restore the economy and security of the country. Several other women, who addressed the people, took turns to underscore the need for women from the zone to join other zones of the country to support and embrace the change that is sweeping through the country.

‘A day for women in Owerri Several other women, who took turns to address the people, underscored the need for women from the zone to join other zones of the country to support and embrace the change that is sweeping through the country

That notwithstanding, the determined women also assured that they will take the massage of change home to their husbands, who they said will

“equally support their wives”. In his remarks, the state governor, Rochas Okorocha, described Buhari as a great and disciplined Nigerian who is poised to end

corruption, adding that “when he takes over as President, criminals will flee the country”. He said, “When Buhari comes on board, he will lock up the pump of corruption and education will be free in the entire country as it is in Imo State”. In attendance at the rally were, wife of the Vice Presidential candidate, Oludolapo, Osibanjo, APC National Woman Leader, Ramatu Tijani, wife of former Bayelsa State Governor, wife of former Benue State Governor, Wife of Senator Chris Ngige, among other prominent women.

•Continued from page 27 their gratuity and pension could hardly afford a square meal for their family to feed on. Thanking the governor for the ones that they have absorbed, she urged him to show mercy and act on his words in order not to create the impression that the promise he made was to score cheap political goals and appealed to the governor to direct his commissioners and Head of Service of the state to implement without any further delay, the orders of the state government in reabsorbing them into their various ministries. One of the disengaged worker that gave her name as Joy Ajah stated that she has received a reinstatement letter since May 2014 from the government but was yet to be placed in a ministry. She said that the delay in the promised re-instatement process was making life more unbearable for her and others in her shoes who have no other means of income because they were made to visit the state capital frequently without any positive result. She therefore called on the state governor to fulfill his promises to them now rather than allowing the issue to drag on.

Newspaper of the Year

AN EIGHT-PAGE PULLOUT ON THE SOUTHSOUTH STATES

•Unagha

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

PAGE 29

URHOBO

PETERSIDE

OIL THEFT

Alhaji Mumakai Unagha, a lawyer, is the National Publicity Secretary of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU). He speaks on the crisis rocking the union, especially the removal of its leaders over endorsement of a governorship candidate in Delta State. •PAGE 31

DAKUKU Peterside, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Rivers State, recalls his humble beginning as the son of a palm produce trader. He also recalls how he met his wife Elima and speaks on other issues.

LIKE other oil companies operating in the Niger Delta, Total Nigeria Plc is seeking effective protection of its facilities and workers in the region. The company is relying on the Commander, Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Pulo Shield, Maj.Gen. Emmanuel Atewe, to curb oil theft at its facilities and protect its employees. •PAGE 30

•Dr. Peterside

•PAGE 32

•Maj.-Gen. Atewe

Fate of missing soldiers, policeman remains unknown From Shola O’Neil, Southsouth Regional Editor, Port Harcourt

BOUT one month after two soldiers and a mobile policeman attached to the Joint Task Force, ‘Operation Pulo (Oil) Shield” and their boat driver went missing in the creeks of the Niger Delta their whereabouts remain unknown. Their fate has become a subject of hush discussions in the barracks and military formations. The team was on a mission that is as mysterious as their whereabouts when they went missing between Warri South West and Burutu local government areas of Delta State. Their family members are anxious for news about them and the leadership of the Joint Task Force is yet to provide any plausible explanation as to what happened to them. Initial reports said they were killed by suspected illegal bunkering gangs. It was gathered that the criminals either shot and killed the military men or overran and sank their boat. The Commander of Sector 1 of the task force, Lt.-Col Bassey, who was contacted by our reporter, refused to divulge the details of the investigation into the incident. He said the military authority have merely declared the troops “missing”. That was shortly after The Nation exclusively reported the incident. In spite of the commander’s claim, there are strong signals that the JTF may have given up the hope of finding the soldiers. It was learnt that the task force could not confirm their deaths because their remains have not been recovered. It was gathered that that much was contained in the report of an investigation presented by Lt Col Bassey to the military hierarchy on the incident. A source at the Effurun Barracks base of the Sector I of the task force said : “We have concluded that the soldiers are died; what is only confusing is the circumstance of their death. What we are interested in are their bodies and how to retrieve their arms and ammunition.

•illegall reifneries

Continued on page 33

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THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT FEATURE

Oil theft: Total demands more troops as JTF woos GOC

Igbo youths seek better opportunities in Bayelsa

IKE other oil companies operating in the Niger Delta where oil theft is endemic, the Total Nigeria Plc is seeking effective protection of its facilities and workers in the region. Therefore, the company heaved a sigh of relief when the Commander, Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Pulo Shield, Maj.-Gen. Emmanuel Atewe, visited its office in Port Harcourt Rivers State, recently. Receiving Atewe and other senior officers of JTF, the Deputy Managing Director (DMD) of the Company and Head of the Port Harcourt Operation Centre, Mr. Nicholas Brunet appealed passionately to JTF to increase security presence around the company’s oil facilities especially those located offshore. He also urged JTF to protect about 2,350 employees of the company in the region. “We will appreciate it if more troops will be deployed to our facilities to protect them facilities from attack by criminals operating in the waterways”, he said. Brunet disclosed that about 96 maritime attacks were recorded on the Nigerian maritime environment in 2013. But he acknowledged that the attacks reduced in 2014 attributing the reduction to the presence of JTF and other security agencies. He commended the Atewe-led JTF for its zero tolerance for oil theft and illegal oil bunkering in the Niger Delta region. He confessed that the JTF has effectively checked the activities of oil thieves, illegal oil bunkering and pipeline vandals adding that the efforts of the outfit had led to increase in oil production in Nigeria. He said the company executed numerous developmental projects

•Atewe and Total officials From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

as part of its cooperate social responsibility to its host communities to make life habitable for rural dwellers. Atewe on his part, thanked the company for the hospitality it accorded to him and his team saying the gesture would go a long way to cement the already existing relationship between the task force and the oil company. He said the JTF under his command had put in place strategies to eliminate all oil-related crimes in the region. “We are carrying out our mandate in a professional manner through our zero tolerance cam-

paign for oil theft and illegal bunkering. “Platforms have been provided by the Defense Headquarters to fight the criminality. In addition to the platform, more boats and marine outboard engines with capacity ranging from 200 to 250 Horse Power have been acquired”, he said. Atewe said he was seeking harsher and stiffer punitive measures against oil thieves to deter others from engaging in such criminal acts. The commander also commended some host communities “for giving out information” to the security operatives which he said had led to many successes in

the war against oil criminalities. Atewe disclosed that recently, development the special anti-illegal oil bunkering and oil theft of Sector 1 intercepted a Mercedes Benz truck loaded with unquantified volumes of substance suspected to be illegally-refined Automated Gas Oil (AGO) along Warri Sapele road in Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State. He said that four suspects were arrested in connection with the illegal activities adding that the truck and the product were destroyed insitu while the suspects were taking into custody for preliminary investigation. “Holistically, eight illegal oil-

bunkering sites were also discovered and destroyed at Ogbengbene and Banjigen creeks in Burutu and Warri Local Government Area of Delta State. “The oil thieves were discovered to be operating with fabricated metals, Nylons reservoirs, four cooking pots and 56 drums used for storage of stolen crude oil and illegally”, he said. Also playing host to the Commander 97 Special Operation Group (SOG) Nigerian Air Force Port Harcourt, Air Commodore Olusegun Philip, the JTF commander said the outfit was winning the war against oil theft. Atewe while commending Philip

for his new appointment as the Commander 97 SOG, urged him to deploy his professionalism and competence in his assignment and justify the confidence reposed on him by the army. He expressed confidence in the ability of Philip to render required assistance to JTF adding that the JTF had formulated new strategies to effectively deal with oil theft menace. Philip, who was on familiarization tour of JTF Headquarters in Opolo, Yenagoa, in his response said he was willing to support the operation of the outfit. He said that he had come to visit Atewe to strategize and key into Atewe’s zero tolerance for oil theft in the Niger Delta.

Akwa Ibom govt partners NEMA Bayelsa monarch seeks on disaster awareness campaigns peaceful transition A A ‘ One major problem that we have always

KENFA is one of the popular communities in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. It is dominated by two major compounds - Atubogene and Izifa. The community has a conventional way of changing its traditional ruler. The Paramount Ruler and his deputy are elected to lead the community for a period of four years. After the expiration of their tenure, young men interested to occupy the positions are invited to vie for them. To qualify, an interested person must be an indigene of the community and should not be less than 30 years old. It is also in the convention of the community reminiscent of the provision of the Nigerian Constitution that only persons from 18 years old and above are qualified to vote. Soon persons willing to clinch the traditional stool from the nine broad families that make up the community will be begin to indicate their interest. The nine families are Abas, Ukuta, Nwaeke, Akpalo, Tumbo, Briye, Agumagu, Ogbolodi and Ishe. Already, indigenes of the community seem to be fretting. They are scared that the looming elections scheduled for October 29, 2015 may shatter the peace of the community. Following such fears, a former Paramount Ruler of the community, His Royal Highness, Mansa Oviemova, recently called on security agencies and the judiciary to provide required modalities to curb crisis before, during and after the election.

had is that people are coerced to decide their leaders in most cases against their consciences and this has always resulted to the people having problems shortly after the enthronement of the leaders From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

He said it will not be acceptable for the community to be engulfed in needless violence in an exercise that is culturally supposed to promote peace. He appealed to security agencies to take special interest and adopt proactive measures to identify violent signals and nip them in the bud. Oviemova implored the indigenes of the community to take extra-ordinary measures to promote peace reminding them that without peace investors and enterprising people especially non-indigenes will not settle in their community. He warned people against moneybags who are ready to buy their votes and later make mess of their traditional heritage. “Study all the interested people and vote for only persons who can promote the rich traditional and cultural heritage as well as unity among members of

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the community and their neighbours”, he said. He added: “The election must not be a matter of do-or-die. It must be left in the conscience of those who are the ruled to decide their choice of leader. “One major problem that we have always had is that people are coerced to decide their leaders in most cases against their consciences and this has always resulted to the people having problems shortly after the enthronement of the leaders. “One who wants to lead a community must have the overall interest above the general interest of the people and applying a divide-andrule method will only cause disaffection among the people. “Security agencies and the judiciary must be neutral, provide service to all parties and ensure that the truth prevails. It is only by so doing that peace will endure”.

KWA Ibom State Deputy Governor Lady Valerie Ebe has acknowledged the contributions of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), towards reducing disaster situations in the society through awareness campaigns and donations of relief materials to disaster victims across the country. She stated this during a sensitization workshop on Fire Prevention and Response Techniques in Market Places, a programmed which was organized by NEMA in collaboration with the State Emergency Management Agency, (SEMA), for traders across the State, at Itam Market, Itu Local Government Area. Lady Ebe described fire outbreaks as a major disaster in the country that has resulted in loss of lives and property worth billions of Naira. She listed some of the notable fire incidents to include the Balogun Market fire in Lagos State, the Keffi Central market fire in Nassarawa state and the recent one in Anambra and Rivers states respectively, which has brought a devastating toll on the psychology of its victims and the economy. The deputy governor attributed most of the fire incidences to negligence on the part of the victims, natural disasters such as changes in weather conditions and accidents, pointing out that more than N50 billion worth of properties are lost annually, leaving a devastating effect on the victims. In the view of the fact that there is a transition to another weather season, Lady Ebe expressed optimism that the workshop was quite timely as it will avail the participants the necessary skills on precautionary measures to stem the tide of fire disasters in the state. The deputy governor, who is also the Chairman, State Emergency Management Committee, commended NEMA for their commitment to reducing disasters in the society through awareness campaigns. The Southsouth Zonal Coordinator, NEMA, Mr. Benjamin Oghenah said the seminar was put in place for traders to curb the spate of disasters and reduce its effects on the economy. He expressed the hope that within the year, more energy

•Valerie From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

and resources would be expended on meeting appropriate standards that would ensure proper prevention of market fires and other disasters in the country. The NEMA executive congratulated the State Government for being proactive in the provision of standard infrastructures and facilities to abate disasters, making the state a benchmark for good governance in the country.

•Dickson

T was a special day for Igbo youths living in Bayelsa State. For the first time, the youths came together in Yenagoa, the state capital recently to inaugurate the state chapter of their foremost unifying organ, the Ohaneze Youth Council (OYC) Worldwide. The Igbo youths known for their entrepreneurial and enterprising skills wanted more opportunities in the state and established a council to pilot their affairs. The Niger Delta Report gathered that the Igbo youths met stiff opposition from some persons including an individual appointed by the Governor of the state, Mr. Seriake Dickson, to represent and protect the interest of the Igbo community in the state. But the youths were dogged in their determination and at the end overcame all their obstacles to install their council. They successfully elected one of them, a believer in Igbo cultural advancement, courageous and foremost businessman, Chief Chinedu Arthur-Ugwa, to lead an 18-member council. It was in fanfare that they gathered at a hall in Opolo in Yenagoa to inaugurate their new council. In fact, they were honored by the presence of their national council. The worldwide President of OYC, Chief Okechukwu Isiguzoro, and members of council were in the state to inaugurate the Bayelsa chapter. Isiguzoro administered oats of office on the council members who vowed to protect the interest of the Igbos and to live harmoniously with their neighbours. The presentation of a certificate of return to Uba was the highpoint of the event. The Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke and the Senator representing Bayelsa Central Senatorial District, Chief Emmanuel Paulker, sent representatives to event. They were proud to have Paulker who is seeking a reelection in a senatorial dominated by them. Indeed, Paulker has been good to them. He is described as a senator who takes delight in solving the problems of non-indigenes in the state. He recently allocated five plots of

‘

We need electronics market and a market for building materials. We also appeal to the governor to stop roadside markets in Yenagoa by building befitting ultra modern markets. Many opportunities will be created for us if there are markets in the state From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

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free land to Igbo organisations in the state. While he gave two plots to OYC, he allocated three to OYC parent body, Ohaneze Ndigbo. Besides, he recently assisted the youths to donate 20 traffic stands to the police. For Allison-Madueke, she promised to give the youths a bus to assist their activities in the state. Also, the youths hope that the petroleum minister will assist the quest by Uba to erect a skill acquisition centre on the two plots of land donated to them by Paulker. So the youths hailed the presence of the two great personalities and hoped that through them, their business would grow and multiply in the state. The elated Arthur-Ugwa said his first mission is to unite the Igbos in the state. “Unity is the only way we can forge ahead as a group. We confront our challenges better when we are united. There are many Igbo youths doing business in Bayelsa. In fact, they constitute much of the state population. So, I am appealing to all of them to come out en masse, bury their differences and work with our council to champion their collective interests”, he said. He commended Governor Dickson for ensuring secured and conducive environment for their business to thrive in the state. He recalled the dark days before the advent of Dickson’s administration and said the insecurity affected their business then. “Our business was at the lowest ebb. In those dark days, we used to close our business premises before 8pm because of fear of violence. But

since Governor Dickson came on board, the insecurity has been checked. We can now do business without fear. Some of us can close as late as 11pm everyday. “For us it is the best thing the governor has done in the state especially for the non-indigenes. The indigenes may not appreciate it but we do because we know that security is the soul of every business”, he said. He, however, lamented that all their efforts to see the governor to personally table before him some of their challenges have been frustrated by some of the aides of Dickson. “We know that the governor loves non-indigenes and that if we can see him personally, he will help us tackle some of our challenges in the state. We need a computer village. Where our youths operate as a computer village is somebody’s estate and they are paying monthly. “We need electronics market and a market for building materials. We also appeal to the governor to stop roadside markets in Yenagoa by building befitting ultra modern markets. Many opportunities will be created for us if there are markets in the state,” he added. Uba further lamented what he described as capital flight in the state. He said contractors who work in government projects always procure their materials from outside the state. He said: “This is not good for the economy of the state. We want to appeal to the governor to mandate contractors working in the state to base their quotations on the local market. They should stopped from purchasing their project materials from outside. It kills the economy of the stage

because money doesn’t circulate in the state. We appeal to the governor to grant us audience to discuss with him”. Arthur-Ugwa said he has been at the vanguard of promoting Igbo culture in the state disclosing that Igbo news bulletin is now aired two times in the state-owned radio station, Glory FM. He said he was making efforts to get the local NTA air similar bulletin. In his remarks, Isiguzoro said the inauguration was historic saying it was the first chapter of the OYC to be inaugurated in South-South. He thanked Dickson for providing safe environment for the Igbos to do business and progress in the state. He further poured encomiums on Paulker and First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan for their love on Igbos living in the state. He said: “It is very historic that today we inaugurated our state chapter of OYC in the state. I pray that they will continue to pilot the affairs of Ndiigbo in Bayelsa within the ambit of the law. “We are very much excited because this is the first inauguration we are doing in the South-South and I encourage them to be law-abiding and to live in harmony with their host. “They should also ensure that properly, they continue to respect the law irrespective of whatever will happen. I want to thank the governor of the state for making it conducive for the Igbos to live in the state and continue to progress irrespective of the challenges. “I also want to thank senator Paulker for the way he has encouraged the Ohaneze Ndiigbo. I want to thank the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan for the love she has shown to the Igbo youths.” Also, the King of Igbos in Bayelsa, His Royal Highness, Igwe Anthony Uwakwe said it was a welcome development that the Igbo youths had come to stay in the state. The king who was represented by Chief Obiedow Nwankwo, asked the council to carry everybody along. Admonishing the the youths he said: “Don’t be an enemy to your brother. Come together and help yourselves. We will help you because you are our strength”.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT FEATURE

We sacked Omene to save Urhobo nation, says Unagha

HAT is happening in the leadership of UPU?

Well, nothing is happening per se. We only considered it necessary to remove Chief Joe Omene as the President General for the good of the entire Urhobo nation so as to protect the sanity of the union. We grew up to note that U.P.U is an organisation with integrity, with men of honour and our fore fathers that founded it are like philosophers that saw tomorrow. In the history of the union, they are not beggars and they don’t begged aspirants no matter the political environment at a given time. It is only in the administration of Chief Joe Omene we noticed it, making us looked inconsequential. Urhorbos are men of honour with high integrity. Late Chief Mukoro Mowoe, Chief Jabin Obahor, Chief T.E.A Salubi, Benjamin Okumagba and most recently Gen. Patrick Aziza were men of esteem value unlike recently. Is that the only reason why you have decided to remove him? No, from the very day Chief Omene took over the leadership of the union, we knew that Urhobo nation is in for a bigger trouble. As soon as General Patrick Aziza took ill and was flown abroad for treatment, the first assignment carried out by the erstwhile Present General was to break the rank and file of the union which he tagged caucus. Whilst we were trying to sink our differences for the unity of the Urhobo nation, he dishes out order as if we are in military era. What break the camel’s back, on the 28th day of March, 2014, the entire

Alhaji Mumakai-Unagha, a lawyer, is the National Publicity Secretary of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU). In this interview with BOLAJI OGUNDELE, he speaks on the crisis rocking the union.

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We have resolved that we are not adopting any candidate until after the Presidential election and we stand by it, especially the Uvwiamuge Declaration. The Uvwiamuge Declaration is a working policy of the Urhobo nation as anything short of it will not be acceptable to the entire Urhobo people

‘

•Unagha

Urhobo nation including traditional rulers, opinion leaders, religious ministers, youth and women group met at Uvwiamuge where a decision was reached that Urhobos should fused into the two major political parties, A.P.C and P.D.P. In what is

known as the Uvwiamuge, it was agreed that the Urhobo will only vote for the political party that ceded the governorship to the Urhobos. At no time, Labour Party was included. Following the directive, Urhobo went into action to realise the declaration. Within six (6) months of the declaration, the former President General made a U-turn to smuggle Labour Party and the candidature of Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru into the immaculate declaration. And of course Labour Party was neither considered nor thought of as it were, because it a mushroom party as it has no national spread. We prevailed on him to stop it but he paid deaf ears.

There are other allegations against the former President General which before now we tried to cover up. How many of you took the decision of the removal? We have removed him for good. We don’t want a person who will destroy the Urhobo heritage because of his personal ambition. Apart from the fact that he was not qualified to contest the UPU election as he was not duly nominated by his traditional ruler or his kingdom President General, he knows nothing about the UPU. Under the constitution of the Union, a candidate seeking for an election must be nominated by his traditional ruler or his kingdom

President General. We are not jealous of his fortune of the several jeeps he allegedly benefited as well as the envelopes he got from Aso Rock to pushed President Goodluck Jonathan. But there is a speculation that he has adopted Chief Great Ovedge Ogboru? That is not true. We have resolved that we are not adopting any candidate until after the Presidential election and we stand by it, especially the Uvwiamuge declaration. The Uvwiamuge declaration is a working policy of the Urhobo nation as anything short of it will not be acceptable to the entire Urhobo people. As soon as the Presidential election is over, we shall convey a stakeholder, meeting of the people to review the situation not the type of Omene. Is it true that some persons were sponsored into the executive of U.P.U to do their bidding? It is now am seeing it and it is true. How would the present administration of Chief Tuesday Onoge address the several ills and challenges facing the Urhobo nation? Insha Allah (God’s grace), we shall correct the various imbalances as well as the injustices facing the Urhobos. Firstly, our concern is the integrity and sanctity of the Urhobo nation. Secondly, the unity of the people shall be our outmost priority with sense of direction, mind you not the type of the sacked President General. One other issue we shall address soon is the unjust sanctioning of people without giving them fair hearing as we will not allow miscarriage of justice. The era of dictation ship is gone.

APC candidate to students: vote out PDP leaders

HE chances of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Delta State, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, has received a boost with students of various higher institutions endorsing his candidacy. The students, who described the technocrat and businessman as the best candidate to manage the affairs of the state, vowed to support him. Emerhor hailed the students for their bold step and urged youths to take their destiny in their hands and kick out bad leaders who have bogged down the progress of the country since the inception of democracy. The APC standard bearer said previous governments of the ruling PDP were bereft of ideas on how to aspeed up development. Emerhor promised to build new industries and revive all the moribund industries in state, stressing that having succeeded in the

From Shola O’Neil, Warri

business world, he would bring his expertise to tackle unemployment through systematic planning. He promised to set aside special funds that would be used to promote entertainment and sports, lamenting that millions of young talents in the country have gone down the drain because of government’s failure to support their dreams. Emerhor promised to build new and standard hostels equipped with modern facilities to ensure that they are comfortable and suitably motivated to pursue their academic dreams and maximise their potentials. The APC candidate said that if voted into power he will partner with private sectors to ensure that education is accessible to all

Nigerian children, stressing that education is the bedrock of any developed nation. Emerhor urged youths to use their vibrancy to vote for a candidate that will secure their future and not for those that that will make life miserable for them. He hailed the leadership of the various Student Union Governments for coming up with the laudable idea of interaction, noting that the choice they have made, was a sign that they were ready to take their destinies in their hand. The turnaround expert reminded the students that the ruling party has led them astray for the past 16 years and that it was time for them to stand up and kick out bad government from the state. He added that they can only do that by collecting their permanent voters cards because it is their power to make the desired change that everybody is clamoring for. •Emerhor

Beauty queen, ex Commissioner sensitise youths, women on PVCs collection

OUTHS have been urged to collect their Permanent Voter Cards to enable them vote for candidates of their choice in the forth coming general elections. A beauty queen, Miss Ukeme James, who is the reigning 2014/2015 Face of Culture South South stated this in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State while on a sensitisation campaign for beauty queens and youths from the South South geo political zone. According to the Uyo born beauty queen, the youths who are a greater percentage of Nigeria’s population and whose future to a large extent depends on the success and outcome of the 2015 general elections must be in the vanguard in sensitising the electorate on the importance of exercising their franchise. Her words: “The future of our beloved country lies on the successful conduct of this year’s elections. That is why I am appealing to all queens

From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

in the Southsouth and the youths to go out and get their PVCs so as to be able to vote for candidates of their choice according to the dictate of their conscience.” She advised the youths not to allow themselves to be used by desperate politicians as tools or agents of destruction but to ensure that the elections are peaceful. The reigning beauty queen admonished the youths to be advocates of peace, tolerance, love and peaceful coexistence in the country and called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to do all in her power towards giving the country an election that will be free, fair and credible on line with the yearnings and aspirations of the people. Also speaking, a former Commissioner for Education and Women Af-

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The future of our beloved country lies on the successful conduct of this year’s elections. That is why I am appealing to all queens in the Southsouth and the youths to go out and get their PVCs so as to be able to vote for candidates of their choice according to the dictate of their conscience

‘

fairs in Akwa Ibom state and Chairman Board of Trustees of Success Award Organization, Mrs. Eunice Thomas, advised women to take the

forthcoming elections seriously and ensure they collect their PVCs to enable them vote for candidates of their choice.

Mrs. Thomas admonished Akwa Ibom women to vote for only candidates who value the role of women in nation building and governance and advised against the selling of the PVCs. She commended INEC for extending the date for the collection of the PVCs, noting with delight that the extension will afford more women who could not collect theirs and who could have been disenfranchised to have the cards and exercise their civic responsibility. Her words: “The strategic role of women in the development of our country cannot be ignored and the role of women in helping to deepen our democracy and electoral process cannot be taken for granted. That is why I am calling on all women to see the general election as a vital step towards securing the future of Nigeria for themselves and generations yet unborn.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT NEWSMAKER

NIGER DELTA REPORT COVER

Peterside: my father was a man with plenty of small money I

N the beginning, Bonny___ the rich Island on whose soil Nigeria’s largest liquefied natural gas plant sits ___ was home to his forebears. They found joy in it and loved it. When on water fishing, or by the river banks picking periwinkle, or on their farms tilling the soil, they felt at ease. Life was really good for them there. But for reasons only historians can establish, they left Bonny around 1869 and made Opobo, the land of the great Jaja, their home. And till today, the Peterside family sees Opobo as home. But Bonny is dear to them too. “I am sure that we are among the very few families who did not voluntarily leave but were compelled by circumstances to leave. That is history,” says Dakuku Adol Peterside, who is arguably the most popular member of this family. Today, he is seen as the man who may be Rivers State’s next governor. He is the standard bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Dakuku, as many love to address him, was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Neither were his parents poor. In Abia, Rivers, Kaduna and other places where the wind of life took them, they managed to live a decent life. Dakuku and his three siblings, which include another boy and two girls, were taught to love Jesus early. And as the first of the four, he led by example. From his teen until the day he got admission into the Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Peterside lived in Bori, a popular Ogoni town and was always returning there as his home when school closed. He recalls: “I was born on December 31, 1970 to a middle class family of Senibo Adolphus A. N. Peterside of Biriye Polo, Opobo. I grew up in Azumini and Aba, both in Abia State, Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Ogoniland at various times. This has molded out of me a cosmopolitan outlook and a rare capacity for sound human relations across social, economic and intellectual boundaries. I studied in Okrika Grammar School, Okrika, one of the pre-eminent public schools in the 1980’s in Rivers State. I was a school prefect by reason of my conduct, leadership qualities and academic standing and was subsequently elected by fellow prefects as Secretary of the Prefects Council.” He led Bishop Tugwell House, his hostel in OGS; to her first inter house sports victory in several years. In OGS, he played volleyball and football, and was active in the literary and debating society. Most of his formative years were spent in the family house of the late environmentalist Ken Saro-Wiwa in Bane and he was involved in the Ogoni struggle. “I spent most of my growing up years in Bori in Ogoniland. I saw firsthand pain of the community in which I grew up. Most of my Christmas holidays were spent in Bane (the house of the Wiwas) and it was from there I learnt to become a community organiser, helping communities to rise above their challenges and raising young leaders through leadership trainings. It was the job I did until I veered into politics,” he says. The streets he lived on in Bori were formal TTC Street, now Poly Street, Taabaa Road and Court Road. He has more Ogoni friends than Opobo and passed more Christmas in Bane (the house of the Wiwas) than Opobo.

Degrees and philosophy of life After Okrika Grammar School, he gained admission into the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), Port Harcourt, where he studied Haematology in department of Medical Laboratory Sciences. “I later earned a Post Graduate Diploma in Business and a Masters De-

ership grooming in Nigeria. “I am a member of many Professional Associations, such as the Association of Medical Laboratory Sciences of Nigeria, (AMLSN), Nigeria Institute of Management (NIM); Fellow, Institute of Management Consultants of Nigeria (IMCN),amongst others. “It’s all about skills and exposure. One of the wonders of the Asian tigers is that they encourage their citizens to go abroad, learn and return to impact on their economy. In those countries, capital productivity was attained through adopting foreign knowledge and technology.”

Political tutelage He got involved in the political arena first in 1996 as Rivers State Assistant Secretary of the unregistered All Nigeria Congress (ANC) and subsequently as Rivers State Financial Secretary of Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN) in 1997. In 1998 he spearheaded the formation and became leader of “RESTORATION YOUTHS” a group of young men and women who worked for Dr. Peter Odili to emerge as governor. Odili, in 1999, appointed him Special Assistant on Student and Youth Affairs in August 1999. He says it was in this position that he honed the art and science of “bridge building between youths and elders, between today and the future, and between leaders and the led”. While serving as Special Assistant to Odili, he had other high profile assignments, such as Board member, Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilisation (CBAAC), a Federal Government agency. In 2002, he became the Chairman of Opobo-Nkoro Local Government Council. When he finished his term as Chairman, he was appointed Senior Special Assistant to the Rivers State Governor on Works in September 2003. He left this office in September 2005.

Amaechi and I

•Dr. Peterside and his wife Elima. By Olukorede Yishau

gree in Business from the same university. I was an outstanding students’ union leader in RSUST who gave hope to my generation and exhibited great passion about a bright future that lies ahead. I have attended several management courses in United Kingdom, United States, Israel, France and Spain,” he says. Last August, Peterside, after satisfying the Senate of the University of Port Harcourt with his research work, was awarded a doctorate degree in Organisational Behaviour. His doctoral dissertation was on Corporate Political Strategy. He also took courses at different times at Harvard University, Kellogg School of Management and Georgia State University, all in the United States. He says his mission is to be a leader with clear goals and priorities: “My mission is that of an emerging leader whose role is to provide clarity of goals and priorities, generate commitment, and mobilise team mates to do their jobs well, create synergy, demonstrate integrity and take responsibility for performance. There is a consensus of opinion that he is the leaders’ leader, and a man of rare integrity. “Early in life, I believed in the fact

that public life is a veritable platform to change society for the better, if guided by integrity and passion to serve. I have been involved in various political parties at various times, such as the NRC, ANC, DPN, and now PDP. I am an unrepentant believer in democracy as the only form of government that can guarantee peace, security and happiness of most members of the society. “I have at various times served as National President, National Union of Rivers State Students (NURSS),State Financial Secretary DPN, State Youth

Leader, Restoration Youths of PDP, Special Assistant to Rivers State Governor on Students and Youth Affairs, Chairman, Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, Senior Special Assistant to Governor of Rivers State on Works and Cabinet Commissioner for Works (2007 - 2011). “I have been involved in leadership training and public advocacy. I founded an NGO, the Development and Leadership Institute (DLI) in 2002. DLI is the sector leader among NGOs working in the area of good governance, deepening democracy and lead-

‘

I am an open book! In my days both at Okrika Grammar School, OGS and Rivers State University of Science and Technology where I served as National President of National Union of Rivers State Students, NURSS, among other positions, I did not join any cult group not even with the excuse of youthful exuberance. This accusation is, therefore, unjustified and should be disregarded

‘

Peterside is the first to admit that apart from God and his parents, another individual who has touched his life immeasurably is Governor Rotimi Amaechi, the man he has known and related closely with for what he describes as “24 uninterrupted years”. He considers the governor as one who has dedicated his life to “helping me and several others accomplish our goals, sometimes at a great risk”. His words: “I may not know all about Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, but I make bold to say that I have the privilege of knowing him at very close range for almost 24 uninterrupted years, that is, more than half my life time so far. To that extent, I can lay claim to knowing him reasonably well. If, therefore, I am asked to summarise, in few words, the man I met, stuck with and adopted as my mentor and role model, I will simply describe him in these following words: God-fearing, truthful, courageous and generous. It is trite to say that these same qualities have earned him both love and hatred from his admirers and adversaries, but respect by all. He is love personified. His frankness robs off on anything he sets his heart to do; an attribute that has been misunderstood by some people. This is, perhaps, his point of departure from the Nigerian political system in which he found himself deeply engaged.” Peterside goes on: “Aside from his wife, the delectable Dame Judith, I can lay claim to being one of the closest observers of Rt. Hon Rotimi Amaechi, partook in his travails, stood by him in his rise and shares in his accomplishments. He leaves no one in doubt that his whole life is woven around the fear of God. As a Christian, I cannot say exactly the point of his transformation from Saul to Paul. I met him deeply rooted in Christ and waxing stronger by the day in the faith. In retrospect, I can attribute all his victories in the bat-

tles of life to his unwavering faith in Christ. His abiding faith in the efficacy of prayers and worship is noteworthy. This faith in Christ is, without gainsaying, his greatest weapon against his adversaries and the basis of his confidence that the future is secured. Drawing strongly from the scriptures as stated in Matthew 10:28: ‘Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell’, Rt Hon Rotimi Amaechi fears no mortal man. His passion to share this God centered life and how God has helped him thus far is infectious. “My mentor lives an honest life. This honesty or bluntness is an asset but, unarguably, a weakness in Nigeria. In 1996, I had an argument, which is still fresh in my mind to date, with some of Rt. Hon. Amaechi’s younger associates; a few of whom, are now diametrically opposed to him, politically. The core of the argument was that since I knew him, he has never told a lie, unless he is fed with wrong information and he shares it out without knowing. At the end of the informal debate, all of us present agreed with the assertion as being true in its purest form. Those opposed to him say he speaks without tact and embellishment. This implies that he is too forthright for the society he found himself. Both enemies and friends concede to him that he is brutally honest, unwavering in standing up for the truth and impatient with liars and deceits. In a society pervaded by darkness occasioned by dearth of values and virtue, Governor Amaechi’s candour and character stands him out as light in darkness. Severally and consistently I attribute his battles in the political space to society resisting light.” The Rivers APC standard bearer adds that “Timi or ‘Boy’, as his late father, Pa Fidelis, fondly called him, is a study in courage and conviction”. He observes that “so many persons have abused his generous and trusting nature, but without any iota of doubt, he is not ready to give up the ‘love for neighbour’ that God engraved in his genes”.

My trader father, mum and three siblings Peterside says of his parents and siblings: “My father lived the bulk of his life between Aba and Port Harcourt. In the truest sense of it he was a trader, even though the man liked to call himself a merchant. He was simply a man who had plenty of small money. He was a merchant dealing with palm produce and my mother all her life has been a teacher. She taught for 36 years. She taught at primary school level, secondary school level and tertiary school, precisely Rivers State Polytechnic, high disciplinarian. “I have three siblings, two girls and a boy. One of my sisters has a Masters degree in Economics, but she is a pastor; another has a Masters degree in Mass Communications and she works with the Ministry of Information. My last brother schooled in England. He has a Masters degree in Information Technology and is working in an oil firm.”

Meeting his better half He lightens up when answering questions about his wife of 15 years, Elima, who has given him three children, Soba, Belema and Miebi. “We used to live in the same neigbourhood in Borokiri, Port Harcourt several years ago and I simply spotted her, this innocent young girl, hard-working, humble, God-fearing and all the qualities a man wants in a woman and simply observed her over time until we developed some kind of friendship and that friendship developed into marriage. We got married in 2000,” he says.

The man, his church and cultism Peterside says he gives because God has given unto him, adding that his status as a true believer of the Bible is something he can never compromise. He says he realises early in life that God is his strength and so does not despise the assembly of believers. No wonder on Birabi Street, old GRA, Port Harcourt, where Peterside’s church, Salvation Ministries is located; he is not looked upon as a politician. He is seen as one of the worshippers. “When you are not far from the person, that is what you get,” he says. Was he a cult member in or outside the university? He became serious when the issue cropped up: “I am amused by this baseless allegation because as a Christian, I know where I stand with Christ. I never belonged to any secret society or cult group all my life, including my university days and I will never be. For emphasis sake, let me unequivocally state that I was never a member of any cult as alleged by my accusers. “From 1986 to 2011, I was a member of Church of God Mission International but for distance, I had to change my denomination to Salvation Ministries and my pastor can attest to my undiluted Christian life and spiritual standing. Curiously, this unfortunate allegation is coming from a party that Rivers people and the Christian community are alleging of parading known Ogboni members. “Perhaps this is a diversionary tactics to divert attention from the demand of the Christian community in Rivers State that those who aspire to the high office of governor must have high moral and spiritual standing. And that the church’s resolve not to vote for anybody with secret society background is firm and well known, and this is highly commendable. I can say without any fear that I was never and will never join any cult. “For me, the issues before the electorate go beyond unfounded and criminal accusation. I am aware that Rivers people know all of us and our moral standing and character, including the issue of Christianity and where I stand. One would have expected my accusers to face the real issues of providing quality leadership rather than crying wolf where there is none. “I am an open book! In my days both at Okrika Grammar School, OGS and Rivers State University of Science and Technology where I served as National President of National Union of Rivers State Students, NURSS, among other positions, I did not join any cult group not even with the excuse of youthful exuberance. This accusation is, therefore, unjustified and should be disregarded.”

Teacher of the gospel Peterside, a good swimmer and lover of football, is busy moving from one part of Rivers to the other selling his candidature. In doing this, he says he is guided by the fact that relationship with Jesus Christ is what gives meaning to life. He says his years as Special Assistant, Local Government chairman and Commissioner of Works were shaped by his relationship with Jesus. His last four years in the House of Representatives, he says, have been defined by Christ’s teachings. He says: “When opportunity comes to lead your people to prosperity, you cannot think of another day, how wellprepared you are at the time makes the difference. “I will like to end up as a teacher of the gospel. For now, I want to be next governor to sustain and build on the strong foundation laid by Governor Amaechi that has given Rivers people that promise of great future.” •Continued on page 34

Fate of soldiers remains unknown Continued on pages 29

E want to find those (bodies and arms) and close the case,” the source told our reporter on condition of anonymity at the initial stage of the investigation. Since then, a massive search and manhunt launched by the soldiers’ colleagues have failed to yield fruits. Initial report that the remains of the soldiers were retrieved and deposited at the morgue of a government hospital in Warri was deflated by the military. Also, a report of the discovery of two bodies matching the description of two of the missing military men in a riverside community in the area could not be independently confirmed. A high ranking officer at the JTF Sector I also said the case was even more puzzling because “Those of us from the riverside areas know that the corpse of someone who drowns needs just about 24 hours to come to the surface of the water. It is been more than that now and we are yet to have any sign of their remains; something must be wrong somewhere.” The deployment of troops and detectives to the area to find the soldiers dead or alive, like other efforts, was futile. Instead, it led to mass exodus of panicky residents, particularly able-bodied men and women from the area because of fear of reprisal attacks by the military. Some of those who fled the area in search of safe haven in Warri and other towns in the wake of the search expressed perplexity over what transpired between the military and the suspected illegal bunkerers, particularly because of alleged cozy relationship between both sides in the illegal business of crude of theft in the area. Some of those who spoke with our reporter said the illicit oil deals were done by gangs led mostly by former militants with active supports of men of the JTF and the Nigerian Navy. “Anybody who knows the waterways, creeks and the strategic location of military posts will tell you that no vessel, even a speedboat, can pass into the open sea without soldiers seeing and searching them. “The soldiers and the boys doing these business are friends; they meet regularly drink together and share ideas and money. So, whenever there is any arrest or incidents like this it is only because something has gone wrong.” An Ijaw leader and traditional ruler in a Warri kingdom disclosed that he was forced to write a petition to Brigade Commander of the Nigerian Army in Benin City, when every effort made to get the JTF to destroy some illegal bunkering sites failed to elicit any action. “Instead of tackling the criminals as I demanded, the JTF men were advising me to be careful of getting involved because those behind the crime are very powerful. I saw a deliberate plot to force me into silence and allow business as usual to continue.” Our source said the petition to the military high command in Benin brought about some action and the closure of the bunkering site, but said, “I know that they merely moved from that place to a more welcoming area.” Independent investigations revealed that pipeline vandalism and theft of crude oil have gradually increased in the Forcados and Warri area of Delta State and locations around the Bayelsa axis of the Ramos River in recent times.

An independent anti-bunkering group, Heroes of Peace Initiative, in a confidential letter to the Commanding Officer of the 3 Battalion, Effurun , in September 2014, noted that illegal bunkering activities had spiked up in the area. The letter, which was obtained by our reporter, detailed how the operation was being carried with list of the operators’ assets, location and modus operandi. It noted: “These bunkerers are currently using three to four flat bottom vessels to convey petroleum products monthly; that is one flat bottom vessel a week and they also have about 17 to 20 Cotonou boats, (with) which they load on a daily basis, especially night hours and conveying these products from one place to another freely, despite the watching eyes of the Nigerian Army, the Navy and the JTF present at the waters.” The group offered to provide pictorial evidences on the activities of the illegal bunkerers, should the JTF require their assistance to bring the perpetrators to book, adding, “You may as well send us your email address so that we would forward same to you.” Heroes of Faith Coordinator, Chief Futek Zikoregha told our reporter that the open offer was neither accepted by the task force nor was action taken to clamp down on the hotspot areas listed to include around Abrabebe Community and points on the Forcados Trunkline, Agip pipeline in Beniboye and Forcados Export line. Meanwhile, the insinuation that the fate of the missing soldiers was connected to the illegal oil deal was further fueled by the unwillingness of the relevant military authority to open up on the mission and circumstance under which the troops went missing in the volatile scene. There was also rumour but in the communities and the JTF that the occupants of the ill-fated boat were on illegal assignment when they disappeared. A local, who spoke on strict condition of anonymity, said, “Those who said the soldiers were on official duty should answer the question of why they used a private boat and a local driver, who is not on the payroll of the JTF. Do the JTF use local boat for ‘routine patrol’ instead of their gunboats?” Another very reliable source and informant for the military authority in the area told our reporter that prior to the incident there were altercations between the military men and the illegal bunkering ring leaders over the sharing of loots. It was gathered that trouble first started when the criminals allegedly paid some soldiers for access to an illegal bunkering point in the area. “The way the deal done is that the operators give the JTF men money for a specific time or quantity of product to be loaded. During that time the JTF would not patrol the area where the loading is taking place but after the expiration of that time, the soldiers would resume their normal patrol. “The soldiers after collecting their share gave the boys the agreed hours to load the vessel that was brought into the creek. Unfortunately for them, the vessel did not complete loading before the time ran out. When the guys went to the soldiers, they said that they had already used up their time and if they wanted more time, they should pay additional money. “

•Zikoregha

It was learnt that when the aggrieved party defied the order and went ahead with the loading, the crewmembers were arrested and taken to a military base where the man who brought the vessel was asked to pay a certain sum of money or risk having the boat’s crewmembers paraded before camera and newsmen. It was against this back ground of tension between the illegal partners that the soldiers went missing. Chief Zikoregha, who is the founder of the Heroes of Peace (Hope) Initiative and former Chairman of Forcados Community, said the allegations were not misplaced, adding that it was impossible for illegal rogue vessels to load their cargoes of stolen crude if JTF are not involved. “One of the ringleaders is a ‘repentant’ former militant leader, who patrols the area with mobile policemen and personal security details given to him by the Federal Government. Policemen who should be used to secure society are under the command of persons who use them for intimidation, harassment and illegal bunkering,” he said. Asked on the fate of the missing soldier, Zikorogha said “half the story has not been told,” and urged our reporter to dig deeper to ascertain why the two sides that had enjoyed cordial relationship suddenly fell apart enough to the point that soldiers were attacked and probably killed. Several attempts to get a formal interview with the JTF leadership proved abortive. The Coordinator of the task force’s Media Centre, Lt Col Ado Isa declined our request for comment on the incident. The military spokesperson who was recently posted to the task force, said the Commander of the JTF, Major General Emmanuel Atewe, had adequately addressed the issue during a press brief. But our finding revealed that the top army officer only spoke generally on soldiers who were killed in another incident in Bayelsa State.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT FEATURE

Niger Delta empowerment body floats Lagos chapter

HE Lagos State chapter of the Niger Delta Empowerment Association of Nigeria has been inaugurated . The event held at the Pillar of Truth Faith Mission, Ilaje Ojo in Lagos. The association, according to Pastor Emmanuel Ohenrin, is long overdue. The association, Ohenrin said, comprises the six states in the Southsouth. He said: “Oil is not our only trademark. Our different style of dressing also gives us out. “God recognises governance. If we sit here idle and do nothing, any government could take advantage of us. “Our kinsmen are in Lagos contributing their quota and helping the state to develop. We should also use this platform to start demanding our own fair share from Lagos government. Niger Deltans are not common people. We can go to Abuja and challenge government. Let our kinsmen in other states also do same.” The association’s chairman, Udoghoreyon Lawyer Edema, said

By Adegunle Olugbamila

the lack of a unifying language has created a setback for the region. “Niger Delta has been a victim of a unified language. In the West, Yoruba is the Lingua Franca. In the East, we have the Igbo and Hausa in the North. But in Niger Delta, we have no acceptable language; hence we all adopted pidgin English. This affects our socio-cultural life. “Those of us outside our state are never recognised by our host state. This is as a result of non-cooperation or what I will describe as the babel tongue. We have the Hausa as Arewa, the Igbo as Ndigbo and Yoruba as Oduduwa or Afeniferere. The Niger Delta has no socio-cultural group that fully represents them.” Edema said their children can hardly communicate in their mother tongue. “Also our traditional fashion is a taboo to the youths. We borrow anything that comes our way because we are not united,” Edema said.

•Members of the exco after the inauguration.

The Public Relations Officer (PRO), Solomon Toro, said the organisation would have a website to promote its activities. He described

the association as non political but an avenue for the Niger Deltans to “assist members financially and otherwise and redeem our cultural

stance within other communities”. The high point of the event was the inauguration of executive members.

Peterside: my father was a trader with plenty of small money Continued from pages 33

HE man and his scholars

Every year, Peterside changes the lives of 10 graduates from the Andoni-Opobo-Nkoro Federal Constituency of Rivers State. Last September, Harry Dunotio Zipporah, Utong, Barthemaeus Abraham, Ofik Tana,Oko Jaja Opuada, Festus Victor Pepple and five others left for the United Kingdom to pursue masters degrees, at no cost to them. All their expenses throughout the duration of their studies at A-list universities, such as the Kingston University, University of Aberdeen and University of Bedfordshire, will be borne by Peterside through the platform of the AndoniOpobo-Nkoro Economic Zone Development Foundation. Pepple said he was “badly ridiculed into this glorious opportunity today by my elder cousin, Theophilus Pepple”. It all started during the Christmas season of 2012 when posters for the Peterside overseas postgraduate scholarship scheme were pasted everywhere in Opobo Town and designated collection centres in Port Harcourt. When he saw it, he had cold feet about it. Reason: his previous experiences with sourcing for a scholarship to study abroad had always been a last minute disappointment even in situations where he met the criteria. He felt this was just going to be another bad case. So, he did not pick up the form until January 2013 when he saw that a cousin whom he hinted about the scheme had collected the form. He became an object of ridicule at home and hence got the form. Though he had the dream of studying abroad someday, but how that would happen was largely a dream since he could not afford it. Raised from a humble background, he had faith that one day, his breakthrough would come. Like Pepple, Oko-jaja did not attach much importance to information about the scholarship. In his words: “I got to hear about the scholarship from a friend, Mr. Tammy Aloma Cookey who travelled to Opobo Town for Christmas break in 2012. However, I received the information softly as I believed its outcome was going to be business as usual because of my previous experience in scouting for scholarships and jobs. “Reluctantly, I got the form because of the pressure from my parents. Shortly after the submission, I was

called by a friend from the university (FUTO) where I was undergoing a post graduate diploma in Geo-Physics that my name was announced over the radio, inviting me for a test at the ICT centre at Aba Road,Port Harcourt. I never prepared for the exam because I was frustrated with the business-as-usual and manknow-man virus that had eaten deep into the country and I had no one that could assist me.” Utong did not have much doubt having benefitted from a scholarship scheme in the past. Utong, who is studying for an MSc in Mechanical Engineering in Kingston University, London, earlier studied at the University of Nottingham, Malaysia campus through the Rivers State government scholarship and was hoping to further his studies but could not due to lack of funds. In the end, it turned out the fears of Pepple and others were unfounded. Pepple said: “After the submission of completed form, I was told about the selection test by a friend of mine who heard my name announced over the radio, inviting shortlisted candidates for the test which held at the Rivers State ICT Centre along Aba Road Port Harcourt. I came into the hall barely having had about three days to prepare for the test; not knowing what to expect, I literally came in for the exam fasting. It was the first and most transparent public exam I have ever taken in my life. Not only did we see our scores on display at the expiration of allotted time for the exam, the decision on who has been awarded the scholarship was made right on the spot based on the result of the test. I emerged the first candidate for Engineering from Opobo Town. Even at that, I was still apprehensive as to whether there would still be last minute substitution of candidates. To God be the glory, nothing of such was done.” Oko-Jaja said: “Surprisingly, I met the shocker of my life. After the exam, the result was printed out in hard copy and given to us. I thought that was all. As I was about to leave the venue, we were called back and the decision was made publicly and successful candidates were picked, which I was also part of. At that instance, I began to have hope in the system that shortly the change we are clamouring for will come, when positions will be awarded on merit. This has been the first, unprecedented and

•Dr. Peterside and American Ambassador to Nigeria James Entwistle

transparent public exam I have ever taken in my life at that moment.”

‘Let others emulate him’ Pepple, who is studying for a Master of Science degree in Engineering Business Management at the University of Bedfordshire, United Kingdom, said Peterside has kept his part of the bargain. He said full tuition and upkeep allowance as promised by the scholarship board have been paid. “We were credited with over six months’ maintenance allowance for living expenses before arriving the UK. Beyond that, the Honourable has come to visit us in person to see how we are faring. This I find very rare of any public office holder in his capacity. For this, I remain eternally grateful.” In their e-interviews with this reporter, they urged other leaders to emulate Peterside. Utong said to the best of his knowledge, the process of selection was transparent, adding: “If there is interference, maybe I would not have been selected.” The son of His Royal Highness, Chief and Mrs. Abraham Utong of Ilotombi Community in Andoni Local Government, said: “Dakuku Peterside is one of the rare leaders we have. He is an achiever and a true believer of transparent, generous and selfless leadership. I strongly encourage all politicians to emulate the sincerity and kind heart of Hon. Peterside to his people. Hon. Dakuku Peterside is a man of his words, Godfearing, sincere to his people, downto-earth, selfless, generous and principled. And I want to congratulate him for all his achievements.” Oko-jaja, who bagged his Bachelor’s degree in Soil Science from the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST) and studying Msc in Environmental Management in the University of Bedfordshire, said Peterside has written his name with an indelible ink. “He is a man with the heart of gold

and empathy for the all. A man of the people. Most times I get amazed at his humility. He is a selling brand all over the nation. I implore our leaders to emulate this icon.” Ofik, a native of Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, studying for an M.Sc. in Subsea Engineering, said: “I got selected as a beneficiary of the Hon. Peterside’s overseas post-graduate scholarship in June of 2013 after a very transparent selection process in which I emerged the best candidate for the engineering disciplines. The scholarship covers my tuition and living costs at the University of Aberdeen. Till date, the Hon. Dakuku Peterside has followed through with all the promises made to the scholarship beneficiaries. I am thus confident that I will not have any financial worries all through my degree programme. Academically, the experience so far has been quite tasking, as I have been enrolled in a world renowned university with an excellent reputation in engineering studies related to oil and gas development. I have had the opportunity to meet key industry players and develop both personally and professionally. This had only existed as a dream for me before the scholarship but today it’s become a reality. Many thanks to Hon. Dakuku Peterside. He is truly a leader who has the concern of the people at heart.” Pepple, who bagged his Bachelor’s degree in Petroleum and Gas Engineering (Gas Engineering Option) from the University of Port Harcourt, class of 2010/2011, said: “Every honest and right-thinking mind would agree that education is the greatest legacy any society can give to its youths in order to secure a sustainable future. In the words of Nelson Mandela, ‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’. Hence, Dakuku Peterside is championing the individual initiative and effort to em-

power youths of his federal constituency with life-time training, skills and competences that will outlive time and temporary materialistic gains. “The concern of capital flight in paying foreign expertise to develop the state and nation at large is gradually put to rest as local professionals are now exposed to world-class education and training which can be deployed in growing the national economy.” Awortu agrees that the scheme must be bought into by other leaders. Said he: “I strongly recommend that this exemplary leadership be emulated by other people in positions of authority. For this man who is developing human capacity in the communities and, by extension, the state at large instead of giving out guns, we must salute him.” Awortu, who is studying at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, added: “Hon. Dakuku Peterside is an exceptional leader, a capacity builder, a community developer, a bridge builder, a man of his words (Talku na do man) and I will forever remain grateful to God for bringing him my way.” Miss Ngerebara, who is studying for an Msc in Information Systems and Data Management, believes the country will develop better if leaders emulate Peterside. She said: “Hon. Peterside is a very humble and kind-hearted man because only someone with such qualities will remember his people and carry out such charitable work. He has proven to be a great leader, who not only believes he needs to carry his people along but has also shown me that he really believes in our youths being the future; that is why he has done this. This kind act of his has inspired me greatly to give back no matter the position I get to because a lot of people out there need it and to say a big thank you to Warisenibo Hon Dakuku Peterside.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

HE first time I was offered this job, my joy knew no bounds. Laraba, an old schoolmate, called me on phone some six years ago. We exchanged pleasantries and she dropped the bombshell: “Mother Excellency needs a media aide.” “Who is Mother Excellency?” “The First Lady of course,” she answered. Since wives of state governors also addressed themselves as First Ladies at their level, I needed more clarifications. “The wife of the President of Niagara,” Laraba explained. Four months before then, I had quit my job as the Editor of an Abuja-based newspaper over issues bothering on welfare. For close to a year, my salaries and other entitlements were not paid and the fool who called himself our publisher was busy frolicking with women of easy virtues all over the world. Yet, he was an elder in his church and preparing to become a deacon. Laraba’s information was good news given my predicament. She told me she had been given the consultancy job to pick a Chief Press Secretary for the Office of the First Lady. We arranged to meet the following day. Since Laraba knew me well, the interview was mere formality. A week after Laraba sent in my papers as the qualified candidate, a meeting was arranged between the First Lady and me. Thinking back now, I wonder if the near accident I had on my way to the Office of the First Lady was a warning that the job I was about to take might end up taking my peace away. But any sign of trouble faded away after I met Mother Excellency. She was pleasant to listen to. Not that she was an orator, but she said nice things to me and put my mind at rest. I looked forward to a nice time with her. Soon my letter was out and the terms and conditions were good. For me, that was a further sign that all would be well. But how wrong I was. For the first few months, all seemed well. The job was routine. We came to the office and followed her to programmes, usually women-related events. The first sign that I was working with a terror came one morning when she summoned me to their apartment in the Presidential Village. On getting there, I heard noises coming from the first floor, where the bedrooms were. I was in the living room downstairs with a domestic hand who ushered me in. “Who is shouting?” I asked. “You mean you can’t pick out your boss’s voice?” the domestic hand fired back at me. I knew it was her voice, but just could not believe it. Why would she be shouting and who was she shouting at? I didn’t have to wait for long or ask the domestic hand, Chike, for answers to these questions tearing my heart. “Peace, leave me alone. I have had enough of your trouble for one day,” the voice was clearly that of her husband, the president of the Fed-

OLUKOREDE YISHAU

ABOVE WHISPERS

•A weekly intervention on Southsouth people and matters

olukoredeyishau@gmail.com

The dilemma (1)

eral Republic of Niagra. “I will not leave you alone. How can you allow that boy, Chibuike, to embarrass me like that in public and not do something about it?” The mention of Chibuike reminded me of an incident that happened the day before. We had gone to Waters State, her home state, to see the governor, Chibuike, who was carrying out some urban renewal programme on waterfronts in her town. Mother Excellency did not agree with the way the programme was being done and this generated some altercations between her and the governor. “That boy must be removed as governor,” Mother Excellency’s voice cut through my thought. “I will do no such thing,” the president said. “Then say goodbye to peace,” Mother Excellency thundered. Three minutes later, she stormed the living room. Her eyes were red, as though she had taken some local gin. “Good morning ma,” I greeted her, standing. Chike had fled when he heard her footsteps. She did not return my greetings.

LAST WORD

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

‘

The Social Security Act when signed and fully implemented will help in giving hope to the less privileged of the society and unemployed youths, as the monthly stipends that will be given them by the government will go a long way in alleviating their sufferings until they find their feet in a better

‘

––– Senator Wilson Ake

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This letter serves as the first and final warning against the publication of libelous materials against our amiable First Lady, who is a known agent of peace and unity... Ordinarily, she would have gone to court... but she has decided to offer this olive branch to the media

‘

“Chibuike is using the media against me. I want you to counter him. I don’t know how you will do it, but find a way to dominate the media space for the next two weeks portraying him as rude to the First Lady. Go and start immediately,” she said and went upstairs. I left the apartment hearing her resume her shouting match with the president. I went straight to my office, read through reports on her encounter with the governor and started the hatchet job. To make it more effective, aside the statement from the Office of the First Lady on the matter, I wrote a letter to the editor using a pen name, wrote an opinion piece, also with a pen name and did a few other stuffs using fictitious names, all to fulfil her instruction that I should dominate the media space. We had hardly managed that crisis when another reared its head. Advertorials started appearing in the media accusing her of plotting to remove the governor of her husband’s state, Mr Silverbird. The advertorials were signed by fictitious individuals and groups, but going by my experience of how the media worked, I knew the governor was behind them. He only was not pre-

pared to fight her in the open yet. I received another summon; this time, it was to her office and she threw a paper at me immediately I entered. “Go and circulate that in the media.” I tried reading it there, but she shouted on me to go and distribute it fast. “I want it in all the papers tomorrow,” she fumed. I ran out of the office. On getting to my office, I read through the statement. It was from the law firm of Patience and Sisi Mama. It read: “We write as the solicitor to the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Niagra, Dame Peace Azikwe, who we will henceforth refer to as our client. We have her instruction to warn media owners against publishing advertorials degrading her office and person. “In the last few weeks, there have been a series of adverts in almost all the major newspapers accusing her of plotting to remove Governor Silverbird because he refused to share the state’s funds with her. This is so untrue and has brought her office and person to ridicule. “Our client has been receiving phone calls from friends, family members and others from home and abroad on the matter and this has caused her sleepless nights. “This letter serves as the first and final warning against the publication of libelous materials against our amiable our client, who is a known agent of peace and unity in our country. Ordinarily, she would have gone to court to seek damages for the harm done to her office and reputation, but due to her disposition as a woman of peace, she has decided to offer this olive branch to the media. “Failure to respect the terms and conditions of this olive branch will leave us with no other option than to seek redress in the court of law. We will be seeking damages in excess of N5 billion from any media house which publishes libelous materials against our client henceforth.” After reading through, I got my secretary to type it out and I sent them out to Editors of newspapers. On receipt of the statement, Ibrahim Dodondawa, the Editor of Spear and a long standing friend, called me and asked why I did not advise the First Lady against fighting the media. “You know no one fights the media and wins,” said Dodondawa. “My brother, my boss takes no one’s advice. She does what she wants and since I have no choice yet, I have to comply,” I said truthfully to Dodondawa. “I pity you. If not for media owners who run their businesses without human face, what will you be doing working with such a woman? May God give you the strength to continue while searching for a better job.” “Amen.” To be continued next week.

BY BOLAJI OGUNDELE

Ambush of the Uvwiamughe Declaration

HEN the leadership of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU), the apex sociocultural body of Urhobo nation in Delta state, announced the Uvwiamughe Declaration last year, as the compass for the ethnic nation, which prides itself as the fifth largest group in Nigeria, to know the direction to follow in the electioneering process, not many people, even amongst the Urhobo, took the body serious. To the cynics, the Uvwiamughe article would become another currency in the hands of the UPU leadership to feather their individual nests. The Uvwiamughe Declaration dictates that the Urhobo nation, home and abroad, will be directed to vote, as a bloc, for any of the two political parties with national spread (APC or PDP), which concedes its governorship ticket to an Urhobo politician. The support, according to the article, will cover all elective positions for any of the two parties. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gracefully yielded its ticket to Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, a serving senator from the Anioma area of the state, defeating David Edevbie, the UPU preferred contestant. On the other hand, the All Progressives Congress (APC) conceded its ticket to an Urhobo man: Olorogun O’tega Emerhor. At this point, the die was cast for the Uvwiamughe Declaration to be effectively executed and followed letter and spirit, it would mean that the whole of Urhobo nation would convert to the APC; all candidates flying the flag of the APC to the House of Assembly, the three

Urhobo House of Representatives seats, the Delta Central Senatorial seat and probably that of the Southern Senatorial seat and of course, the governorship, would all go to the APC. Bequeathing the almost one million votes to the party’s presidential candidacy was meant to be the icing on the cake and sealing of faith with the Uvwiamughe Declaration. However, water ran dry when midway a section of the leadership of the UPU, led by the President-General, Chief Joe Omene, started redefining the meaning of the so-called ‘spiritual compass’ of the Urhobo nation and eventually took the body and the Urhobo nation away from the Uvwiamughe Declaration path. It started with Chief Omene’s attempt at redefining the declaration in such a way that it could accommodate the interest of President Goodluck Jonathan, notwithstanding the fact that he is the national leader of the PDP and the fact that the PDP called the bluff of the Urhobo nation, the UPU and their Uvwiamughe Declaration first by giving its governorship ticket to someone other than the Urhobo preferred choice. The second offence against the declaration by the very people who enacted it was the defiant adoption of the candidate of the Labour Party, Chief Great Ogboru, by the same faction of the UPU, led by Chief Omene, the same group the has been routing for President Jonathan. As all these were playing out, some members of the executives, led by second deputy presidentgeneral, Chief Tuesday Onoge, were seething with

anger, kicking against what they considered a violation of the common destiny of the entire Urhobo world. They alleged that their leader’s resolve was because he received financial inducement when he visited President Jonathan. They even tried to call the president-general’s merry party to order by calling the attention of the Urhobo leadership assembly, including traditional rulers and other cadres of leadership. This mediating assembly advised that the issue of adoption of candidates, Uvwiamughe Declaration notwithstanding, should be shelved till after the presidential polls, but this also failed to save what was destined to happen. Short form of the story is the president-general called a meeting of the executives with an intention of anointing Ogboru, against all advice, the dissatisfied party staged a walkout even before that could be achieved and went straight to perfect Omene’s dethronement as leader. His dethronement, however, didn’t stop him from performing the anointing service he had all planned out. Now the scenario has given birth to two factions of UPU, with each issuing expulsion decrees and counteractions against the other each passing day. Also, the Urhobo nation now has two strong governorship candidates, painting the picture of a distracted, weakened giant in a contest he looks sure to lose against a smart dwarf. Besides the imminent defeat of the Urhobo one more time, the psyche of the individual Urhobo youth has also been badly affected.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

•Anambra River which gave the state its name

Anambra steps up tourism It started with a successful campaign against kidnappers and other criminals. Now, Anambra State is opening up to tourists with attractive sights, reports NWANOSIKE ONU

NAMBRA State is opening up to visitors, especially those who will stay for a while and spend their money there. Top-of-the-line hotels are springing up and tourists will have little to complain about. This is just as well because the state is a natural tourist home. The Ogbunike Caves offers grandeur, mystique and a natural setting in which even the king of the beasts live. The Anambra River which gave the state its name is something to see and relish, with the coconuts fringing it. The bronzes of Igbo-Ukwu have never lost their charm, nor have the lakes their pull. The state capital, Awka, still re-

tains its famous smiths and carvers. So when top-class hotels spring up, it is just to complement a state brimming with tourists’ desires. Governor Willie Obiano is helping to revive tourism in the state. First, he attacked the violent criminals such as kidnappers and armed robbers, chasing them out of their dens. This has boosted the hospitality industry. When he took over the mantle of leadership on March 17, 2014, he swore to make the kidnappers and robbers uncomfortable in the state. On assumption of office, he and security operatives invaded the dreaded dens of those urchins especially Upper Iweka in the com-

•Part of the Ogunike Cave

mercial city of Onitsha. The fear of kidnappers and armed robbers in those days was almost the beginning of wisdom for investors as they and donor agencies avoided the state like a plague.

Today, the glory days are back, indigenous people are homesick to invest in their state, while their foreign partners are hurtling to come too. Not only that; the flyovers be-

ing built by Obiano are bringing back the beauty of the state capital, while the reconstruction of the dilapidated Onitsha-Enugu •Continued on page 38

Hope for pensioners

•Members of the Association of Imo State widows demonstrating at Owerri Roundabout

HE grief of Abia State pensioners may soon be behind them. But that depends on two factors: one, if the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate in the state, Dr. Alex Otti wins the election, and two, if he keeps his promise to pay the retirees’ arrears. Otti said in Umuahia, the state capital, that he would pay the arrears if elected. The former Managing Director of Diamond Bank Plc was speaking at forum with some members of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) from the 17 local government areas of the state. Otti who sounded bitter over pensioners’ plight in the state, described them as the foundation and pillars upon which the Nigeria and modern civil service was built and should not be neglected. He said, “Anybody who doesn’t respect his parents is on his way down the drain. These people gave

From Sunny Nwankwo, Aba

their all in the service to the nation as civil servants and do not deserve the kind of treatment being meted out on them today.” The candidate bemoaned the inability of governments over the years to treat senior citizens fairly. Otti regretted that senior citizens were, in addition to their unpaid arrears, also forced to pay heavily to access medical facilities, adding that he would end medical tourism in the state. He said that he had concluded plans to establish three major specialist hospitals in Ohafia, Umuahia and Aba with state-of-the-art facilities in order to take care of the medical healthcare of the people, expressing hope that the projects on completion would be staffed by health professionals and would •Continued on page 38

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

BIA State Governor Theodore Orji has assured teachers, artisans and professionals of the protection of their welfare, saying it remains one of the priorities of his administration. Speaking at a parley with heads of primary schools and National Union of Teachers NUT), integrated trade groups and Nigerian Association of Small-Scale Industrialists (NASSI) in the state in Umuahia, Orji said that welfare of every worker was important. The governor promised that he will not toy with the interest of the groups, saying that he once taught for six months before venturing into the civil service. He said he was on the same pedestal with teachers. He also said that whatever concerns teachers and the various other groups in the state are of paramount concern to him and attributed the downturn in the economy as hampering some of his plans for them. Orji said that he showed his love

Orji assures teachers, artisans, others on welfare From Ugochukwu Ugoji-Eke, Umuahia

for teachers in the state by promoting them to the next grade level on assumption of office and ensuring that they reach grade level 17 something he said is peculiar to Abia State alone. The governor urged the teachers to bear with his government as it has their interest at heart and advised them not to listen to the opposition which he said has nothing to offer. He said that the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu who is a teacher will continue from where he will stop and correct whatever mistake he (Orji) may have made in office. Earlier, the Abia PDP governorship candidate, Dr. Ikpeazu who said that every teacher in the state

would retain his job if he wins and promised to provide the enabling environment for teachers and pupils to excel. Speaking at the occasion, the state Chairman, Association of Primary School Head Teachers of Nigeria, Comrade Ekweghiam Christian pledged that the teachers will sup•Continued from page 37 make the state a choice destination for the treatment of various healthcare related cases. Otti lamenting how the state resources have been badly managed by the incumbent administration challenged the government of the day to account for what they have done with the money the state have so far realized from the rich oil deposits in the state. The former Diamond Bank chief went further to promise more dividend of democracy, free and compulsory education, and giving the

port the PDP but appealed to the governor to address some of their needs. In her speech, the Dean of Education Secretaries, in state, Mrs. Elizabeth Uhuegbu noted that teachers welfare have received great boost under Governor Orji, maintaining that it is under him that all teach-

ers were promoted to the next grade level. Uhuegbu said that teachers now enjoy level 17 and promised that teachers in the state are happy with the governor and will support the candidature of Dr. Ikpeazu and other PDP candidates from state to national levels.

Hope for pensioners state a facelift within the first 4years of his administration, adding that it was time politics should be taken serious not to be left in the hands of politicians to toy with it. In his response, Abia NUP chairman, Comrade Chukwuma Ndubuisi Udensi thanked the APGA candidate for finding time to come and see them. Udensi said he was optimistic that Otti would perform credibly if elected governor of the state owing

to his track record and antecedents in Diamond Bank where his (Otti) records stand tall which he believed Otti would replicate as the governor of the state. Recall that no fewer than 500 pensioners in Abia State on Wednesday stormed Government House in Umuahia to protest for the third time in a month, the non-payment of their arrears of pension and gratuities which they said had lingered for more than 16 years.

Anambra steps up tourism •Continued from page 37

federal expressway is also getting a facelift by the state government. Obiano has sworn to make the capital city of Awka to look like other more established cities in Nigeria before the end of his first term in office. As a result, most of the eateries in the city have equally begun reconstructing their outfits, while first-class hotels are springing up rapidly. One of such hotels is the Best Western Meloch Hotel, located in the serene area of Ifite, a few kilometers away from Government House in Awka. The four-star hotel with accommodation of over 500 guests has boosted hospitality and tourism in the capital city, which before now, though, had an array of other hotels. Best Western Meloch could be ranked as one of the third best hotels in Nigeria. It was opened for business on December 20, 2014. Owner of the hotel, Mayor Elochukwu Gwacham, who hails from Ogbunike, in Oyi Local Government Area of the state, if he had heeded to advice of some people, Best Western Meloch would not have been a reality. “Today, by the special grace of God, a hotel like no other is born in our dear Anambra State capital, Awka,” he said. “As a welltravelled businessman, I have carefully taken time to study the hospitality industry in the state and have seen the lapses, hence, the decision to come up with an international standard four star hotel” Gwacham described Anambra State as a trailblazer in everything and an emerging economic destination for every investor, adding the hotel was timely. “Best Western Hotel is adequately equipped with all that will take care of expatriates and Nigerians who value the good things of life,” he said. Gwacham described the place as a family holiday getaway when you do not want to travel

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•The new facility

As a well-travelled businessman, I have carefully taken time to study the hospitality industry in the state and have seen the lapses, hence the decision to come up with an international standard four star hotel

•The Ogbunike Cave

abroad for vacations. He also said it was a haven for newlyweds’ honeymoon.

He said, “Best Western Meloch is a think-home agenda, gearing at supporting the good works of

the working governor of the state, Chief Willie Obiano in first promoting tourism and giving em-

ployment to the teeming unemployed youths in the society.” He is, however, worried by huge tax is kind of tax inventors pay in the state, while appealing to Obiano to give investors what he called a tax holiday for a specified period to enable them to have a breather after heavy investment in the state.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

Antibiotics manufacturers forum set up in Enugu From Chris Oji

•Dr Orhii

PHARMACEUTICAL forum has been inaugurated in Enugu to produce a brand of antibiotics Amoxicillin Dispersible Tablet or AMXDT, the aim being to make the medication readily available, especially in the Southeast. NAFDAC, the nation’s food and drugs agency, set up the forum in collaboration with World Health Organisation (WHO). Speaking at the inauguration, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Dr. Paul Orhii, said the objectives of the forum were to identify and mobilise interested indigenous pharmaceutical manufacturers to produce Amoxicillin DT to increase its availability. It was also to foster and accelerate the readiness of indigenous manufacturers to produce quality, safe, efficacious and affordable AMX-DT and to create an information sharing connection for indigenous manufacturers and programme managers

on AMX-DT. The DG represented by Deputy Director, Technical Services and Focal Person, United Nations Commission on Life-Saving Commodities (UNCoLSC) for NAFDAC, Mr. Ali Ibrahim, disclosed that the agency was working with some indigenous manufacturers towards ensuring the production of AMX-DT in Nigeria. He stressed that the forum would provide a platform for more interested manufacturers who would benefit from technical assistance provided by NAFDAC. Orhii explained that because Amoxicllin DT has been identified as most effective broad-spectrum antibiotic used for bacterial infections of the ear, sinuses, throat, urinary tract, skin and abdomen, it would be especially useful in the treatment of children with bacterial pneumonia, which he said accounted for 17 percent death of children less than five years. He noted that studies showed that Amoxicillin was more efficacious in the treatment of children with severe cases of pneumonia compared to Co-trimoxazole. The NAFDAC DG who disclosed that pneumonia accounted for most neglected of the top childhood killer diseases in Nigeria, global map for pneumonia incidence shows Nigeria as the leader after India among the ten top countries mostly affected. In a remark, National Pneumonia Coordinator USAID Targeted States High Impact Project, Dr. Francis Ohanyido said that pneumonia was the number one killer of children under five in mostly Africa and Southeast Asia. He regretted that Africa accounted for 60% global deaths of under five of pneumonia cases just as he said it has negatively impacted on attainment of Nigeria’s MDG 4. He urged manufacturers of pharmaceutical companies to take advantage of the market in the country to go into production of AMX-DT which has been proven to be its drug and reduce the child mortality rate existing in the country.

•From left: Chief Executive Officer, LOC Construction Limited, Chief Lorieta Aniagolu; Deputy Coordinator, TEAM 2015, Ms Iweka Nwokedi and APC Deputy Governorship candiate for Enugu, Mrs Chikaodili Ibekaku at a meeting of Coalition of Women groups in Enugu

•All Progressives Congress (APC) Senatorial candidate for Anambra Central, Senator Chris Ngige exchanging pleasantries with traditional rulers of Amansi in Awka North Local Government Area during his campaign visit to the area PHOTO: OBI CLETUS

•Graduates and dignitaries at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Enugu Maximum Prisons convocation

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

Beauty queen fights crime T

WENTY-THREE-year-old Jennifer Nkiruka Okorie may have won the crown, but there is a lot on her mind beyond her looks. She was graceful in her flowing red attire, beaming with a disarming smile. Jennifer was also conscious of the fact that people raised their cameras and their phones to take her picture as she strutted by. But it may all have meant pretty little to her. Her crown, she said later, was to enable her fight crime and help save young people from self-destruction and threatening the rest of society. Miss Okorie, a final year student of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) from Ohaozara, Ebonyi State, was crowned Miss Goodluck Nigeria, Southeast, at the East-End Hotels and Suites in Awka, the Anambra State capital. Before her in the hall were thousands of people, including another beauty queen, Miss Global Tourism, Amaka Okafor, who came in from Enugu. The crown had hardly been lowered on her head when she launched her project which is focused on curbing violence, thuggish behaviour and youth restiveness. The beauty pageant was sponsored by Goodnews Organisation. The predominat colours of the night were green, white and red. Presenting her address, the beauty queen said that her entry into the contest was borne out of her desire to establish a platform through which she could contribute to making the world a better place to live. She said, “Since it has pleased God to answer my prayers by helping me to emerge as the winner of this contest, it then behoves on me

•Continued from page 28 the rehabilitation of internal roads within the Fair complex for a more amenable atmosphere/environment for vehicular and human traffic. We are happy that efforts in this direction commenced last year including the rehabilitation of access road to ease vehicular movement around the Trade Fair vicinity, and we hope that this would be com-

From Nwanosike Onu, Awka

to swing into action by bettering the lot of fellow youths.” Why choose to be beauty queen? The Nation probed after the event around 3am. Miss Okorie said, “I have felt disturbed by the level of restiveness that had characterised our national life especially as it affects the youths in the society. “These people are supposed to be tomorrow’s leaders; the rate at which young people engage in thuggish acts and all forms of violence nowadays is very alarming and one feels that something serious must be done to, at least to reduce it. “Furthermore, my agenda is to give due attention to numerous children who, not by their own making but by circumstances of life, are confined in orphanages and destitute homes. “My plan is to carry out massive campaigns through out the South East of Nigeria, reaching out to the youths to pass the message across for peaceful and responsible living.” The beauty queen also said that she would organise seminars, symposia, distribute hand bills and mount bill boards in various strategic positions in the zone to drive home her point. “This I hope to achieve by mobilising both materials and cash for the upkeep of the inmates of orphanages and destitute homes across the Southeast of Nigeria.” “It is a fact that this set of human beings need our assistance and we cannot fail to make them feel loved, and I know that this project is going to cost me a lot but God willing, we shall conquer,” she said. She did not end there. Miss

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•Miss Jennifer Okorie (right) and Miss Amaka Okafor at the event

Since it has pleased God to answer my prayers by helping me to emerge as the winner of this contest, it then behoves me to swing into action by bettering the lot of fellow youths

Okorie told The Nation that the media would be fully involved in whatever she was going to do to actualise her project, adding that such persons needed love and care

in the society. The all night event attracted individuals and government functionaries including Governor Willie Obiano’s Special Special Assitant on

Security Matters, Chikodi Anarah who promised to contribute his own quota to the realisation of the queen’s projects. Politicians also tried to outdo one another in a bid to be recognised in the overwhelming crowd. One of them, a chieftain of one of the top parties in the state, told The Nation that any politician who missed out on such an event was planning his or her own funeral politically in the state. “We are here to give this beauty queen our support and solidarity,” she said. “Yes, she is young but the project she wants to execute has attracted all and sundry and we will not allow her to be alone.” Miss Okorie will need such politicians to fulfill their promises.

Enugu prepares for trade fair pleted before the Fair commences in March, 2015.” Okoye disclosed that the Agriculture Sector would continue to be a major fulcrum in specially designated areas during the Fair towards boosting indulgence in agricultural production and commercial farming.

“As part of our strategic efforts to boost the success of the Fair, we shall by next week be commencing the sensitization tours and consolidating our marketing with visits to stakeholders both in public and private sector in Lagos, Abuja and across the South East and South/ South States.

•Mr. Peter Obi (middle) presenting a cheque of N7m to the principal of Christ the King College, Onitsha, Rev. Fr. Charles Okwumuo (second right) for the on-going Prof. Chike Obi Science Centre. With them are students of the college

“We have equally put in place measures to ensure stable and quality supply of electricity and water. Being conscious of the state of power supply from the Enugu Electricity Power Distribution Company and without prejudice to the genuine efforts to improve supply we have commenced the repairs and maintenance of the two standby generator sets in the Fair complex in event of public power failure,” hinted the ECCIMA president. According to him, the chamber has commissioned the reinforcement of the distribution network of electricity lines inside the Fair complex including the changing of a good number of wooden electric poles to concrete poles. “This has become necessary as the weak wooden electric poles used in the initial networking had during the last Fair led to the sagging of electric wires which caused power interruptions. We shall continue to gradually replace the wooden poles with concrete poles, particularly those that are weak.” Okoye assured that that security during the fair would be tight adding, “we are pleased to note, that we have not had any security breach/problem since we started hosting our Fairs in the Trade Fair complex within the Golf Estate area about five years ago,” and ex-

pressed that we shall deepen our human efforts in this direction trusting that God will continue to keep watch over us.” He also added that the Enugu chamber was pleased to note that Enugu remains one of the most peaceful state in Nigeria and prayed that this would be sustained. He announced that the Fair would be chaired by oil magnate, Chief Arthur Eze. “May I also inform you that in our efforts as it is incumbent on us to accelerate private sector development, we have strategically designed to have a leading private sector personality who have distinguished himself/herself, chair the opening ceremony of the Enugu International Trade Fair. “Interestingly, we shall during this 26th Enugu International Trade Fair have as the maiden private sector Chairman during the Opening Ceremony of the Fair in the person of Engr. Prince Dr. Arthur Eze, Chairman, Oranto Petroleum and Atlas Petroleum International Ltd. “We shall continue to count on the support of the public in the effort to improve the standard in our Fair hosting. It is therefore with singular honour and pleasure that I formally on behalf of the Council of the Chamber present the 26th Enugu International Trade Fair Brochure to the public.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

PEOPLE THE NATION

A SIX-PAGE SECTION ON SOCIETY

The Group Chairman, Tricontinental Group, Chief Olabintan Ajiboro Famutimi, celebrated his 70th birthday, last week in Ikeja, Lagos. At the event, the Group presented him a book titled: ‘Why Not Me?’, reports NNEKA NWANERI.

‘At 70, I am fulfilled’

•From left: Mike Purves; Dr Pocock; the celebrator Chief Famutimi; his wife Stella and Sastourne

ITH life expectancy in Nigeria below 48 years, those who live above the age often thank God. So, it was the case with frontline businessman Chief Ajiboro Famutimi when he turned 70. He marked his entry into the septuagenarian club with style last Thursday in Ikeja, the Lagos State capital. Famutimi, the Group Chairman, Tricontinental Group, said: “I am happy I have made it to 70 and am healthy; every thing has gone well with me and I just look back at all I have been through growing up and I feel fulfilled am 70. I’m satisfied, contented and I couldn’t have asked for more from God. “When I look back on this journey through life, I can say with all sense of joy and fulfilment that God has a purpose in bringing me into the world. I believe that purpose of the Almighty has been fulfilled to a great extent by what has become of me.” The 14th of 64 children, Famutimi’s position in the family did not deter him from living his dreams. He found a thriving business which is one of the biggest conglomerates in Nigeria. “That is what defines me, particularly, among the expatriates. Though friendly, I don’t go back demanding things. They keep close to me because I don’t bother them; despite having easy access to top people; though I intervene in critical cases. They never build walls against me because I try to give more than I take,” Famutimi said. His only regret, however, is that his first marriage broke down. “I would not have done it differently now because am satisfied and I could not have done much better than I have done. I have a lovely home, lovely family, my business is booming so I have nothing to regret and nothing I

•Prof. Ibidapo-Obe presenting the book

•Liu Kan (left) and Chief Anyaoku

would have thought of that I would have done differently. I’m quite satisfied because I didn’t expect that I will be at this level judging where I come from.” he said. Of what the future holds for him, he said: “The only thing I ask for is God keeps me alive. He should keep me healthy. I’ll rather ask God to take me away than be a vegetable on earth.” His associates and family members

joined him at the Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral in Ikeja, GRA, for a thanksgiving service. A brief sermon was given by Ven M.A. Abraham-Odumuyiwa, who enjoined all to seek to please God at all times. Guests moved to the Haven Events Centre beside the church for the reception. They were ushered in by girls in red uniform.

Guests wore what suited them; many were in native attires; the celebrator’s foreign friends were in suits. The hall was divided into two. A platform erected at the centre had four cakes of different sizes. On the other side was a metal carved portrait of the celebrator. Flowers dotted the stage. It was a two-in-one event. A book on the celebrator. Why Not Me? Was presented at the ceremony The event began with an opening prayer by the Senior Pastor of Jubilee Christian Centre in North Carolina, United States Alfred Bisi Tofade. Past chairman of Metropolitan Club Chief Olu Akinkugbe, who chaired the event, said he shares many things in common with the celebrator, who hails from Ondo State like him. Akinkugbe said he did not find anyone more worthy of such honour and praise than Chief Famutimi, who has a rich family background. Former Vice- Chancellor of the University of Lagos Prof Oye Ibidapo-Obe, who presented the book described Famutimi as an abracadabra. It is not an abuse, he said, explaining that the celebrator has the nature of ‘’the more you look, the less you see’’. The don said the celebrator’s wife, Stella deserves a national honour for managing such a ‘’stubborn husband’’. The celebrator’s younger brother and Vicar of St Michael and all Angels’ Anglican Church, Gojere Village opposite Ojo Military Cantonment in Lagos Rev Feyisola Famutimi, described his brother as a man with a good social life. He said: “Boisterous in every sense, a restless lover of life, imbued with elephantine memory, hardworking, happy-go-lucky who no one can fail to notice when he enters a place.”

“If there is a Lagos-based diplomat who does not know Chief Famutimi, he has missed his tour of duty in the Nigerian metropolis,’’ he said. Consul-General de France Francois Sastourne told The Nation that knowing Famutimi has helped him in his job. “I met him as soon as I arrived and he has introduced me to a lot of circles in Lagos, which might have been otherwise more difficult for me to penetrate. I know him to be very keen on doing business with all countries. He is a good friend with whom I spent a memorable New Year during Calabar carnival.” Before his children presented him an artwork, his eldest son Omobola described him as a man with a largerthan-life character. “My father created his own choices and got to where he is through sheer character and hardwork. We love you dad. You really are a living legend.” When the celebrator took the microphone, he invited all his age mates and elders to the dance floor. This, he said, would separate the boys from the league of graceful elders. The old ‘boys’ and ‘girls’ joined him in dancing to old school tunes supplied by the Suga Band. At the event were members of the Metropolitan Club; Bashorun J. K. Randle; Mr Femi Orebe; former Secretary-General, Commonwealth Chief Emeka Anyaoku; former Vice Chancellor, University of Lagos Prof Afolabi Olumide; Chairman, Lagos Sheraton Hotels and Towers, Mr Goodie Ibru; British High Commissioner to Nigeria Dr Andrew Pocock; former Chairman of Island Club Chief Olu Falomo; Chinese Consul-General Liu Kan and Acting British Deputy High Commissioner Mike Purves. •More pictures on page 42

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SOCIETY ‘AT 70, I AM FULFILLED’

•Prof Toyin Ashiru (left) and Chief Olu Akinkugbe

Chief Olusegun Osunkeye and his wife, Abosede

•Bashorun Randle (left) and Chief Femi Olopade

•Toyin Okeowo and Gen. Tunji Olurin (rtd)

•Mr Femi Orebe and his wife, Tinu

•Bayo Osibo and wife, Dele

•Otunba Bimbo Ashiru and his wife, Kemi

•Austin Olorunisola and wife, Victoria

•Otunba Kunle Ojora and his wife, Erelu Ojuolape

•Mr Goddy Ibru and his wife, Emmy

PHOTOS: DAVID ADEJO

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SOCIETY Former Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi turned 50 last Monday. He marked the golden age with a thanksgiving service at St Martins Catholic Church in his Isan-Ekiti hometown, reports ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA.

SAN-EKITI, a rustic community in Oye Local Government Area of Ekiti State came alive last Sunday, when its illustrious son, former Governor John Kayode Fayemi celebrated his 50th birthday. Fayemi, who turned 50 last Monday, marked the birthday in church on Sunday because of the prevailing political mood. Despite his tight schedule as All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council’s Director of Research and Strategy, he returned home to celebrate with his people. Guests started trooping into Fayemi’s Eyiyato Lodge, as early as 7am to welcome him into the golden age, before following him to St. Martin’s Catholic Church, Isan-Ekiti, for the thanksgiving service. The service featured hymns, Bible readings, Gospel acclamation, profession of faith, homily and Holy Communion session. The choir was at its best, dishing special numbers. The wardens ensured orderliness during the service. With the church filled to brim, those who couldn’t make it sat under the canopies provided outside. Fayemi sat with his wife, Bisi, siblings and other family members on the front row. The service was attended by former Ekiti State Governor, Adeniyi Adebayo; former Chief of Defence Staff Lt.-Gen. Alani Akinrinade; former Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Prof. Modupe Adelabu; husband of the late Deputy governor Mr. Lanre Olayinka, federal and state lawmakers and many of those who served in the Fayemi administration. In his homily, the Catholic Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, the Most Rev. Felix Ajakaye, told the celebrator to always be grateful to God. Stating that God is not yet through with Fayemi, Rev. Ajakaye urged the ‘birthday boy’ to always do good to others whether or not they will pay him back. The cleric said Fayemi came from a good family and was trained to fear God, adding that this had rubbed off on his leadership style during his tenure. Leading in a Yoruba song: “Ise

•Fayemi (middle) flanked by from left: Gen Akinrinade; Prof Adelabu; Erelu Bisi Fayemi; Mr Lanre Olayinka

•Otunba Adebayo

•Women celebrating at the event

•Bishop Ajakaye

Fayemi strikes gold t’Olugbala ran mi, ajeye in o je”, which literally means, “I will carry out the assignment God has sent me to accomplish and live”, the bishop said Fayemi has fulfilled the assignment God gave him in Ekiti. The bishop extolled Mrs. Fayemi for being a good wife, mother, daughterin-law, soulmate and pillar of support to her husband. He called on couples to celebrate one another. “When you (Dr. Fayemi) were in power, you said you should not be addressed as ‘Your Excellency’ until after you have finished your tenure but now, I believe I can address you as ‘Your Excellency.’ “You are from a quality family with a quality wife and a quality child. If you have a friend that cannot tell you the truth, that is not good. “Don’t relent in doing good whether people appreciate you or not. Dr. John Kayode Fayemi, continue to be yourself, your qualities and continue to

maintain them. “Don’t be a professional politician but a statesman. Statesmen are better than all these professional politicians because most of them are chop-I-chop, ‘moneticians’, ‘pocketicians’ who are fond of saying ‘they are not allowing me to eat’. “Failure to tell ourselves the truth is one of the greatest problems of this generation. One of the prayers I have been praying is that may God shame the shameless. Never frustrate yourself, never frustrate others and never allow anything in life to frustrate you”. In his remarks, Fayemi said he was able to attend the service following the postponment of the elections. The former governor told the congregation that though he is the last child of his family, he is always the first to celebrate birthdays because he was born in February. Dr. Fayemi said: “The next person in the order of birthdays was born on March 4, the next person, March 25,

GRADUATION

•From left: Otunba Abdul Fatai Olukoga, Special Adviser on Education; Mrs. Adebimpe Akinsola, member, Lagos State House of Assembly; one of the graduands and her spouse; and Wahab Alawiye King, Chairman, House Committee on Science, Technology and Education, at the 9th graduation of vocational trainees, at Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

the next person, March 28 and the next person April 23. “Ironically, our first born happens to be the last on the birthday roll as she was born in August and that is the way God wants it. “As small as I am, I enjoyed many privileges from my elderly siblings. My wife was born in June. I would uphold the scriptures that enjoin us to count the number of our days. “I am not somebody who loves partying and that is where my wife always stands for me and because of this, I have offended many people but I believe they have forgiven me. “I thank God for everything in life, there will always be storm in one’s life but the most important factor is for the storm not to blow you away.” Fayemi sought the forgiveness of those he might have offended, saying: “I want to plead with all those that I have offended to forgive me. You will recall what happened on June 21 last

year and June 22 when I conceded, some of our people were wondering why I did not allow them to pour into the streets to vent their anger. “But I said if indeed it is the will of the people, we will accept and I added that we should seek for the peace of our people. I will rather go for peace first and justice later because the interest of the people must supersede personal ambition. “The news of the audio clip (of the pre-election rigging plot) that was reported yesterday (Saturday) and today (Sunday) is not a surprise to me. “Those who denied that it is not their voice, they will hear the second part of the recording and they will keep quiet. “Justice belongs to God, God will vindicate us because we have worked hard for our people. “It should not be a surprise to anybody that such happened because what I said after the election was not different from what is unfolding now”. Reception followed at the Eyiyato Lodge where there was plenty to eat and drink. Fuji musician Adeniyi Akinola popularly known as “Sese Alhaji”thrilled the guests.

AWARD •Lagos Commissioner of Police, Kayode Aderanti and his wife, Tinu, recieving an award by Oyan Gbajumo Club at the residence of the club’s President Professor Aderanti Adepoju

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SOCIETY

The Nation man finds love A member of staff of The Nation, Abiola Adenekan, got married to his heartrob, Olapeju Adekola, of Natural Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM), last Saturday at the Folawiyo Bankole Memorial Methodist Church in Ikate, Surulere, Lagos, writes IBRAHIM ADAM.

HE family members of Adekola and Adenekan gathered last Saturday at the Folawiyo Bankole Memorial Methodist Church in Ikate, Surulere, Lagos for their children’s wedding. The groom, Abiola Adenekan, arrived in a gold Nissan Pathfinder Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV). He was all smiles in his black suit, white shirt, sky inner blue jacket and tie with a pair of black shoes. Soon, the bride, Olapeju joined him in a black Toyota Land Cruiser. She was a beauty to behold in her shiny cream flowery gown with a veil as she entered the church auditorium with her father, Rev. Johnson Adekola, who walked her to the altar and handed her to the cleric. The Circuit Minister, Rev. Olusegun Aiyedero, coordinated the service. It started with the church choir singing the processional hymn: “Praise to the Lord” after which the Presbyter, Rev. Oluyinka Akande, spoke. He said marriage is a sacred and life-long union between a man and woman who gives themselves to each other in love and trust. The choir sang another hymn: “Blessed assurance”.

•The couple, Abiola and Olapeju

Abiola unveiled Olapeju and both stood up to declare their wish for the marriage. Family and guests affirmed to the matrimony. After the vows, the couple exchanged rings and the cleric declared them man and wife. The couple consequently signed the marriage register. In a sermon, Rev. Akande charged the

PHOTO: ABIODUN WILLIAMS

couple to love each other, constantly express love by word and action and depend on God for the sustainability of their relationship. The cleric urged them not to allow the prevailing economic situation to distract them. “Abiola, your home must be the home

where the husband is the head and Olapeju, you should submit yourself to your husband. Don’t let your love to be based on what you get from the other. Constant expression of love encourages relationship and don’t allow selfishness or third party to separate you. “You must learn to pray together in all situations and don’t allow disagreements to also separate you. The best time to settle your misunderstanding is at bed where no man can disturb you both for the journey you started today needs strength, grace and power of God,” he said. Reception followed at Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) Sports Ground Hall, on Bode Thomas Road, Surulere. Olumide Olagoke popularly called MC DAY, anchored the event; Blessed Band entertained guests. The couple were ushered in amid cheers. They were the cynosure of all eyes. Everyone stood watching them as they entered. Mr Timothy Adelowo Adedokun, who chairmed the reception, enjoined the bride not to take things for granted. He advised the groom to treat his wife the way he would treat himself. “Let there be sincere love, respect honour, care, appreciation, understanding, tolerance and perseverance for each other because without the body there cannot be the head and without the head there cannot be the body. “Olapeju, you are now the Chief of Staff, which means nothing should be taken for granted and you must always watch your tongue,” he said. The couple cut their three-layer cake, fed each other and sealed it with kisses. They moved to the dance floor and were joined by their parents and guests. Rev. Adekola, described his daughter as a faithful woman, saying he would miss her patience. The groom’s father, Pastor Julius Adenekan, described his son as a good boy. Olapeju, a chemist described her husband as her king. “I’m so excited for he is my king, my crown, my best friend and confidant,” she said. Abiola, a graduate of History and Diplomatic Studies, described his wife as calm, supportive and caring. “She is my queen, and does not complain. I feel so happy and honoured for this day and I give God all the glory,” he said.

A Klassic affair ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????? •Mr Adebero and his wife, Nike cutting the birthday cake

OR members of the Klassic Club of Ikere-Ekiti, it was a day to remember. It was the celebration the club’s yearly “Klassic Day” and birthday of its co -founder Oyewole Adebero, who turned 60. The Solab Hotel hall was tastefully decorated; chairs were set round tables covered in gold overlays. The event began with the arrival of the club’s President, Bunmi Ogundana. He was ushered in with music by Grace Praise Band. He danced for a while before heading to his seat. Mr Lanre Olalekan of Bond FM anchored for the event. He enjoined all to stand for the national and the club anthems.

•From left: Ola Ogundolapo; Mrs Idowu Adebayo; Bunmi Ogundana; Mrs Dupe Adamu ; Mr Adedapo Adebayo and Aluko

Members of the Lagos-based Klassic Club of Ikere-Ekiti celebrated their yearly Klassic Day at the Solab Hotel and Suites in Ikeja. It coincided with the 60th birthday of the club’s co-founder, and Chairman/Chief Executive of OAC Investments Ltd, Oyewole Adebero. IBRAHIM ADAM reports. There was praise and worship session led by Lady Yinka Aluko. In a welcome address, Ogundana said the event was aimed at celebrate its members past and pioneer. He appealed to members to strive hard to move the club forward. “We are here to celebrate a very reliable pioneer member, who I personally call the ‘Otunba of Klassic Club’ and our past presidents for

their contributions in sustaining the tempo of the club over the years. “Let us intensify more efforts to search for Ikere indigenes with impeccable characters that meet the club requirements,” He said. He was thankful to God for giving the club members peace despite the insecurity in the country. The ceremony continued with the presentation of gifts and awards to

some members. Adeboro, who is Managing Partner Oyewole Adebero and Co (Chartered Accountants) was presented a large photograph of himself by Prince Lanke Adegboye. Members were honoured for their contribution towards the club. Adedapo Adebayo said: “Whatever I’ve done to qualify me for this, I promise to redouble my effort for

the club,” Adebero described the day as special. He called on God to guide, teach and protect him:”It is a marvellous day, unprecedented, something I never expected, because, who am I? What have I done to deserve what am seeing today? God I thank you. “After God, my mother and then my wife because if not for my mother who sold her clothes, I might not be here or might be a local champion in my town. My wife is just a woman of substance, she made me,” he said. Rev. Oyewole Ayeni urged the gathering to learn from the celebrator.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SOCIETY

Prayer for Nigeria

The Zawiyyat Ridwanullah Islamic Society of Nigeria (ZAWRAN) has celebrated Maulud Nabiyy (Prophet Muhammad’s birthday) in Ogudu, Lagos. It also held special prayers for peace in Nigeria, SAFIYYAH ABDUR-RAZAQ writes.

HE Zawiyyat Ridwanullah Islamic Society of Nigeria (ZAWRAN) held a two in one event last Sunday-the Maulud Nabiyy (Prophet Muhammad’s birthday) and a special prayer for Nigeria. It was held in Ogudu, Lagos. The event began with an opening prayer by Alhaji Bunyamin Arikewuyo, followed by recitation from the Qur’an by Samad Hameed. Pupils from ZAWRAN’s Arabic school, entertained guests with songs, extolling the virtues of Prophet Muhammad. ZAWRAN Chairman, Alhaji Bashir Tiamiyu, in his opening speech, said: “Our Maulud in the last six years has become a reference point for research, academic and spiritual development. I am confident that this year’s would not be an exception. “This year’s programme is very important because we would offer special prayers for the nation due to the fear and concern of Nigerians over the 2015 elections. I urge you all to participate in it because the forthcoming election is very vital to our existence as a country.” In a lecture, ZAWRAN chief Missioner, Sheikh AbdulRasak AbdulMalik said Allah needs no security and has absolute powers. He told the audience that the

•From left: Magaji of ZAWRAN, Alhaji Nosiru Sodiq; Sheikh AbdulMalik and Ustaz Abdul Hakeem Bello

Prophet has 10 rights over Muslims, but he mentioned only six. “The first right the Prophet has over us is to believe in him. He is more than a Prophet. He is a messenger with message for the whole world. Other rights he has are for us to love him, follow

his footsteps, honour him by remembering him, protect his image and to pass on his message which is love and mercy for mankind.” Leading the prayer for Nigeria, Sheikh AbdulMalik said: “The essence of the prayer is that every-

body needs peace of mind. No religious body or institution can function in a problem ridden society or an environment lacking in tranquillity.” Tiamiyu told The Nation that the celebration was to remember

Prophet Muhammad. “The purpose of the Maulud celebration is for the upliftment of the Muslim Ummah spiritually and to remember Prophet Muhammad and to keep reminding our members of his virtues,” he said.

The Musodiq-Bishi Eshinlokun Royal family of Lagos and the Olagunju royal family of Ede, Osun State have become one following the marriage of their children, prince Faruq Musodiq and Princess Bushrah Olagunju, at the Islamic Centre Hall, University of Lagos. (UNILAG) SAFIYYAH ABDUR-RAZAQ was there.

LL roads led to the Islamic Centre Hall, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akoka, on January 17 when a Prince from the royal Eshinlokun of Lagos, Prince Musodiq and a Princess from the Olagunju royal family of Ede, Osun State, Princess Bushrah, were joined together as one. The hall was decorated in aqua blue and champagne gold with spring lights. Blue paper lanterns hung diagonally from one end of the hall to the other. Guests trooped in adorned in their splendid outfits. Princes and Princesses from both royal families stormed the hall in gorgeous attires. It was all for Prince Faruq Tunde Musodiq and Princess Bushrah Bolawole Olagunju. The bride, a graduate of English and International Studies from Osun State University was the best graduating student of her department in 2012. While in her first year, she won an award for first position in Osun State University Inter-collegiate essay competition. She is an author and Television presenter. The groom, a graduate of Computer Science from Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo, is currently a final year student of Mechanical Engineering in UNILAG. He is a member of UNILAG debate team (Team UNILAG) and 2012 Orator of the year second runner-up organised by UNILAG Engineering Society. He works as an Administrative Officer of Structural Solutions, a United Kingdom-based firm. Like his wife, Prince Faruq is a Television presenter. The lovebirds have also held the position of Amir (President) and Amirah of their institutions While Princess Bushrah was the founding Amirah (female president) of the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN), Osun State University, Prince Faruq was the Amir (President) of MSSN UNILAG branch for two terms. The Adqun Nikah, (marriage solemnisation), which was anchored by a student of UNILAG, Tajudeen Mikail, started with an opening prayer from Shakrullah Taiwo. Following the opening prayer was the recitation of the Qur’an in Arabic, English and Yoruba, which was done by Mustafa Kilani, Khalid Mustafa, Abdul Hamid Shonubi and Habibullah Adepoju. After this, the couple was invited to the

A royal union •The couple, Prince Faruq and Princess Bushrah

hall. The groom strode in with his friends while looking resplendent in his peachcoloured buba and sokoto with a blue cap while the bride also came in with a retinue of friends looking grand in a peachcoloured Jalbab (Islamic gown) and Hijab. The lecture was delivered by Sheikh Lukman Idris Sekoni. He explained that Nikkah (marriage) in Islam is one of the steps to finding tranquillity. He urged the couple to continuously put Allah first in whatever they do. He also urged the youths to portray the true beauty of Islam. “Youths should show the true beauty of Islam to the world through their character.

Our character makes people learn more about us and Islam,” he said. The nuptial knot was then tied by Ustadh Sa’eed Salman. He explained that before tying the nuptial knot, the conditions of marriage had to be fulfilled. “The first condition”, he said, was”that the bride and groom have to agree to the relationship. It must not be a forced marriage”. He then asked them if they both agreed to the union and they replied in the affirmative. The second condition was the consent of the parents. He asked the parents if they approve of the marriage and they also replied that they approved. The third condition was the Mahr (dowry from

the groom to the bride). Bushrah received an eight-volume book on Aqeedah (Islamic ideology) as her Mahr and the final condition was two male witnesses. Two of the groom’s friends, Sulaiman Dhikrullah and Habeeb Adepoju, stood in as witnesses. After all conditions were met, the scholar tied the nuptial knot and pronounced them man and wife. The Grand Mufti of Conference of Islamic Organisations (CIO), Sheikh Dhikrullah Shafii prayed for the couple. A lecturer in Obafemi Awolowo University, Dr Shuaib Osunleke enjoined the couple to always thank Allah and remember Him in all their affairs. Speaking with The Nation, Princess Bushrah who wrote her Post Graduate Diploma exam on the eve of the wedding thanked Allah for everything. She said: “I feel very excited and thank Allah that today is becoming a reality in my life. It is something everybody looks forward to and I am glad that Allah has spared my life to witness this,” she said. On how she was able to combine the stress of her exams with marriage preparations, she thanked her friends for making everything easy for her. “It was a challenge but with the help of Allah and my wonderful friends; I was able to survive it. My friends took care of the preparations while I concentrated on my studies,” she said. The groom who was obviously elated and short of words said: “I feel joyous. What I feel today is indescribable”. He described his wife as a caring and compassionate person. The bride’s mother, Alhaja Kudirat Funmilayo Olagunju urged the couple to be prayerful. She prayed Allah continue to bless and provide for them. “As close as the tongue and teeth are, they always fight, if any of them offends the other, they should both be patient. They shouldn’t let in a third party,” she said. Other guests present at the occasion were: Prince Taofeeq Olagunju; Chairman, Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation, Prince Sulayman Olagunju; Alhaji Dhikrullah Adetona; Alhaji Taofeeq Alimi; Alhaji AbdulGaniyy Jumah; Chairman Governing Council, Vanguards Academy, Odosengolu, Alhaji Dawud Arogundade; Principal, Vanguards Academy, Mr Lukman Alatishe; Princess Mutiat Olagunju and Princess Mujeedah Olagunju among others.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SOCIETY They came from London to get married at home. Healthcare Manager for Kings Hospital, London, Kayode Suulola and Temitope Ilesanmi, a Biochemical Scientist at Basildon University Hospital were joined in holy matrimony at the Chapel of Christ the Light in Alausa, Ikeja, last Saturday, reports OLATUNDE ODEBIYI.

•Bride’s father Mr Ilesanmi and representative of bride’s mother Mrs Abudu

•The couple Kayode and Temitope

From London with love I

T was a home coming for Kayode Suulola, a Healthcare Manager at Kings Hospital, London, and his beau Temitope, daughter of Mr Solomon Ilesanmi. She is a Biochemical Scientist with Basildon University Hospital in the United Kingdom. They met at the City University, London eight years ago when they were students. Last Saturday, they got married at the Chapel of Christ the Light in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos. The church and its environs were filled with exotic cars. Guests were dressed in Coral Peach and Magnolia traditional attires. Rev Emmanuel Omodele of the New Light Baptist Church, Magodo, Lagos, led other clerics at the event. Kayode was in grey suit, white shirt and black bow tie. Temitope wore a white flowing gown. In smiles, the duo held hands, exchanged marital vows and rings. In a brief sermon, Rev Omodele said the couple had just signed a covenant to work together as husband and wife, adding that marriage is exciting and fulfilling. He said: “God commanded us to love our wives and we must be faithful to keep that commandment of love to each other. Love God with all your heart you will be able to love your partner. When there is love, there is peace, joy, endurance, meekness, hope and kindness.” Presiding Chaplain, Chapel of Christ the Light Rev Kolawole Verralls led the couple and their parents to sign the marriage register

while the choir sang praise songs. Pastor Adeyemo Adejumo of The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Ogudu GRA prayed for the couple. Reception, was at The Summit, an events centre in Alausa, Ikeja. As guests arrived in the hall, women dressed in Ankara sewn in Oleku style welcomed them. About 3pm, the Master of Ceremony, Lanre Gregory(aka, MC Larry J) mounted the podium, entertaining guests with jokes. He introduced the couple’s parents and invited them into the hall. They entered separately with their friends amid dance to songs by Hazzy Applase Live Band. The couple followed; dancing to the music supplied by The Femix DJ. Mrs Abiola Otaniyi said the opening prayers. Ackmen Nigeria Limited Chairman Mr Siji Ijogun, who chaired the event, hailed the couple. He acknowledged couples who have spent over 40 years in marriage. He told the couple that for their marriage to work, there must be a head, urging the bride to submit to her husband. Ijogun urged the groom to respect and love his wife. “If you love her, you will protect her, provide for her and project her and by so doing, she will always pray for you.” He told them to hold prayers of agreement, reminding them of the saying: ‘the family that prays together, stays together’. Ijogun supervised the cutting of the Seven-step cake, following which the couple had their first dance. Guests

later joined them as they danced to the music from the Live Band. Kayode said he felt excited, describing the day as the best of his life. He said it had been a long and interesting journey, adding that his beau is gentle, loving, kind, forgiving, intelligent and wonderful. Temitope said she is excited. She said her beloved is focused and determined. “He is disciplined and has a good approach to life; he has his own mind, he is not a person that follows other people, and this part of him distinguishes him from other men out there,” she said. The groom’s mother, Mrs Oluwatosin Suulola, a teacher, advised the couple to put God first in anything they do. “They should not run to God when they discover that they cannot do anything on their own. God should be the first that they should look at and in anything they should put God first, live in love and be faithful to each other,” she said. The groom’s father Mr Nelson Suulola gave glory to God for making the day possible. He urged the couple to make Christ the cornerstone of their marriage just as himself and his wife had done in 30 years. The bride’s father, Mr Solomon Ilesanmi, is a licensed clearing and forwarding agent, from Ilesa in Osun State, prayed that the marriage would be smooth. A representative of bride’s late mother, Mrs Olufufeyisike Abudu, a Psychiatric Nurse in Bethlem Royal Hospital, United Kingdom, urged the couple to follow the footsteps of their parents.

Guild of Organists of Nigeria holds lecture

HE Guild of Organists of Nigeria has held its second lecture series at Our Saviour’s Church, Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos tagged “organ recital and lecture”. Guild of Organists of Nigeria is an organisation with the objective to promote, advance the arts and practice of organ playing and choral directing, to increase contributions of the organ and choral music to aesthetic and religious experiences also to promote their understanding, appreciation and enjoyment. Present at the event were the diocesan organist/music director Theophilus Okang, Venerable Olusegun Kuti, Sir Emeka Nwokedi, Mr. Ibeyefiebo Harryand Col. Charles

By Kingsley Diko Bossman among others. In a welcome address was given by the president of the association, Donatus Ajayi, he thanked all for attending its first concert and inauguration which was hosted by Rev. Peru Johnson at the Cathedral Church of Christ Marina last March. Presently the guild is on membership drive and it’s expected that it furthers presentation of the guild to Nigeria and indeed the world, will assist in rapidly increasing individual and especially cooperate/institutional membership of the guild. Top on the agenda is that the guild will be sponsoring individuals,

groups, families, societies,corporate entities, public and private institutions, government, embassies churches and other religious organizations in a bid to having more membership. Tustees of the Organisation include General Overseer of Mountain of Fire and Miracles (MFM) Ministries Dr Kayode Olukoya,Mrs.Tolu Obajimi Alabo. Dr. C.I.T Wokoma JP, James Adekunle, Deacon Olalekan Dosunmu, Kayode Oni (FTCL, JP), Chief Maria Asseeva, Sir Emeka Nwokedi, Donatus Rotimi Ajayi and Chief Dr. Mofolorunso Olumide Akintoye Kuti . Cornel Charles Bossman gave the vote of thanks.

•Groom’s parents Mr Suulola and his wife, Toyin

•Managing Director IGI Insurance, Alhaji Rotimi Fashola (right) and Alhaji Fatai Balogun

•From left: Toyin Abdul, Alhaji Opatola Shittu and Prince Labi Emokpare •PHOTOS: SOLOMON ADEOLA

CONJUGAL BLISS Former Miss Okochi Patience Chidinma and her beau Ezebuilo Chinedu Sunday after their wedding at Methodist Church, Anwani, Road, Asaba

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13 2015

COMMENTARY

FEMI ABBAS ON

“S

AY oh Lord! The Sovereigof all dominions! You bestow power to whoever You wish and withdraw power from whoever You wish; You exalt whoever You wish and abase whoever you wish; In Your Hand lies all that is GOOD. You embed the night in the day and embed the day in the night; You bring forth the living from the dead as You bring forth the dead from the living. You grant sustenance to whoever you wish beyond reckoning” Q. 3: 26-27 Nights are pregnant. They invariably give birth to wonders during the days. All pleasant or sad events found in the records of history are often conceived in the night. The belly of nights is a mystery that cannot be easily unraveled through the success or failure of human dreams. Man is a mere spectator watching the environmental drama going on in the theatre of life. He only reacts to the drama randomly as it affects his interest. The main actor in that drama is the phenomenon called destiny.

femabbas756@gmail.com 08115708536

From Moscow to Siberia

Rein of Power In history, great empires and nations have reputation for rising to the pinnacle of their glory at a time. They also have the notoriety of falling unexpectedly to the abyss of life’s dungeon at another time when they might have reached the elasticity limit of their power wielding. And as it is with nations so it is with individual rulers. In this, what obtained in the past still obtains in the present. And this confirms that humans are like flakes of history they rise today and fall tomorrow according to the dictates of momentary tempest. Yet the world surges ahead without looking back at them. That is the situation which an Arab poet once observed very closely and put succinctly in a famous couplet that has become an axiom through the centuries. This is how he put it: “Those are the situations of life as you can witness them; Whoever is gladdened by a situation today must be ready to be saddened by many other situations tomorrow” There seems to be a striking similarity between the events and developments that precipitated the fall of the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic (USSR) and those prevailing in Nigeria today. In terms of culture, tradition, growth and development, the two countries may not have much in common but they significantly seem to share a common destiny that pilots their affairs separately. Like the defunct Soviet Union, Nigeria was forcefully fused together as a country in 1914 and subjected to the hegemony of the British colonial empire. That was three years before the USSR came into existence as an amalgamated country in 1917. Last year, Nigeria was said to be 100 years old in theory. But in practice, she remains a teething country crawling like a tortoise towards an unstable boat with which she aims to sail across the rough sea of life.

The Soviet Experience For the Soviet Union, the 74 years between 1917 and 1991 can be described as the most turbulent in the 20th century history. That period symbolised the nearest signal towards the end of human world. It was an era of blind ambition for mutual destruction between the capitalist West and the communist East of Europe through unbridled competition for unwarranted armament. It was an era that kept the existing historians of that time as busy as the bees in an active apiary. In those years, the competition between capitalism which later came to be championed by the US and communism as championed by the USSR was so fierce that the entire world was incessantly restive. It took only the grace of Allah to keep our world peacefully propelled till date. That frightening ideological Cold War however took a dramatic turn in December 1991 when the world watched helplessly as the awesomely mighty Soviet Union suddenly crumbled like a pack of cards and amazingly disintegrated into fifteen separate countries. According to analysts, “Its collapse was hailed by the

•Dr Jonathan

West as a victory for freedom, a triumph of democracy over totalitarianism, and an evidence of the superiority of capitalism over socialism. The United States rejoiced as its formidable enemy was brought to its knees, thereby ending the Cold War which had swung ceaselessly like a pendulum over the two superpowers since the end of World War II. Indeed, the breakup of the Soviet Union transformed the entire world’s political situation thereby leading to a complete reformulation of political, economic and military realignments all over the globe”. What led to that monumental historical event deserves a good study by students of international affairs but that is of less concern here than its political implications for contemporary Nigeria. Going the memory lane, one may recall that the Soviet Union was built on approximately the same territory as that of the Old Russian Empire that it succeeded. After the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 that brought the USSR into existence, the newly-formed government developed a Socialist philosophy with gradual and eventual transition to Communism. The philosophy was intended to overcome ethnic differences and create one monolithic state based on a centralised economic and political system. However, the iron rein of power led the government to transform USSR into a totalitarian state in which the Communist leadership had total control.

The Gorbachev Debacle By the time the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, rose to power in 1985, the country had slipped into a situation of severe stagnation, with deep economic and political problems which required a ‘surgical operation’ to effectively confront and overcome. Recognising this situation on assumption of power, Gorbachev introduced a two-tier policy of reform. One was glasnost which meant freedom of speech; the other was perestroika meaning economic reform. And based on these two policies, Gorbachev released many political prisoners in February 1987 and called for the blank pages of Soviet history to be filled. He also renounced the ‘Brezhnev Doctrine’ saying the Kremlin would no longer intervene militarily in the Eastern Bloc’s internal affairs. This was interpreted to mean that the states in the Eastern bloc would henceforth become economically self-sufficient. Glasnost was the cornerstone of alleviating Cold War tension aimed at drastically reducing Soviet military spending and creating an international reputation of a liberal leadership for Gorbachev. In doing these, what Gorbachev did not realise was that by granting complete freedom of expression to the people, he was unwittingly removing the carpet of governance from his own feet. This meant that he

inadvertently awakened in the people the insatiable economic yearnings and political emotions that had been bottled up for decades which could now become powerful enough to burst the bubble. Unfortunately, Gorbachev’s policy of economic reform (perestroika) did not bring the immediate results which he had envisage and publicly predicted. The Soviet people, having become aggressively impatient, seized the opportunity of their newly granted freedom of speech to criticise Gorbachev for his failure to improve the country’s economy. Thus, Gorbachev’s miscalculation led to un-foretold collapse of the Soviet Union at a time when some dozens of countries around the world were looking up to USSR for rescue from the claw of Western imperialism. Mikhail Gorbachev came to power in the Soviet Union with the intention of transforming the economy and easing Cold War tension because he realised that the USSR could no longer compete with the United States in the Cold War arms race as its economy had become significantly dwindled and far weaker than that of its rival. While surging ahead with his ‘Reformation Agenda’ of glasnost and perestroika coupled with liberalisation of the Soviet military might, Gorbachev did not realise that what actually sustained communism for a long time in Eastern Europe was the Red Army which became neutralised. He strongly believed that with the implementation of his two newly formulated policies the USSR could allow the Warsaw Pact states to operate autonomously without the threat of Soviet military intervention even as those countries remained allies to the Soviet Union.

Brezhnev Doctrine Hitherto, Gorbachev’s predecessor, Leonid Brezhnev’s policy towards the Eastern European Bloc, known as the ‘Brezhnev Doctrine,’ had forbidden any democratisation or economic integration with the West amongst Warsaw Pact states. And before Brezhnev, Joseph Stalin had also maintained the Eastern Bloc as Soviet’s satellite states through the threat of force. However brutal those previous policies looked, they were actually the cornerstone of the stability of the Soviet’s Eastern Blocs. The main reason why the Eastern Europe remained communist and under the Soviet’s sphere of influence, was the use of the Red Army as an instrument of threat. By September 1989 when Hungary opened its borders with Austria thereby paving way for East Germans to cross into West Germany through Austria it became obvious that communism was approaching its end. About eleven thousand East Germans thus fled the communist rule which indicated that a vivid anti-communist feeling had begun as people took to the streets to show their resentment. This culminated in the collapse of the Berlin Wall on the 9th of November, 1989 an incident that eventually led to the unification of Germany and the collapse of communism. The West German population enjoyed a much higher living standard than that of the East, and therefore East Germany was willing to join West German governance. The East German thinking allowed the then Chancellor of West Germany, Helmut Kohl, to reunify Germany under Western conditions. This meant a reunified Germany would join NATO and the European Community. Gorbachev planned to allow

cooperation between Europe’s capitalist and communist camps, but did not anticipate East Germany to join the capitalist camp outright. That historic unification prompted the then President George H.W. Bush of the US to openly proclaim, during a November 1990 speech in Paris, that “the Cold War was over”. Thus, like Gorbachev, Nigeria’s Jonathan allowed a misconception of power by caving in to the parochial opinions of some political and religious rats at the corridor of his power to turn him into an ethnic President and a sectional religious captain both of which have now seriously become his political albatross.

Doctrine of Necessity The refusal of many African rulers to learn from the foregoing episodes led to their political downfall and descent into permanent oblivion. Such leaders had taken the will of the people for granted so much that they never thought of any possible downfall for themselves. Going the memory lane, we can still recall the political tsunami that swept away such powerful African leaders such as Idi Amin Dada of Uganda, Jean Bede Bokasa of Central Africa Republic, Siad Bare of Somalia, Mengistu Haile Mariam of Ethiopia, Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), Samuel Doe and Charles Taylor of Liberia, Laurent Gbagbo of Cote D’Ivoire, Muammar Gaddafi of Libya, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, Zainul Abidin of Tunisia and lately Blaise Campaore of Burkina Fasso as well as Saddam Hussein of Iraq. All of these came to power by what was called doctrine of necessity and they all went by that same doctrine.

Conclusion For Nigerian leaders, there are many lessons to learn not only from the rise and fall of the Soviet Union as a country but also from the incidents of the listed past leaders of African States. Those episodes cannot be dismissed with the wave of the hand. It must be remembered that what brought President Jonathan to power in 2009 was the same doctrine of necessity which came up at the instance of the sickness and eventual death of President Umar Musa Yar’Adua. And that doctrine is not a mere hired usher. It is rather a political phenomenon that opens and closes the door of power according to necessity. If the door of power is pleasant at its entry point it must not be bitter to exit from it when the time comes. When the Bolshevik regime led by Vladimir Lenin zoomed to power like an hurricane in 1917 hardly was it envisaged that it would end the way it did in 1991. Like the defunct Soviet Union, Nigeria is now toying with the tail of a tiger through what is manifestly becoming desperation with impunity. After an unwinding economic and political rigmarole which unprecedentedly precipitated insecurity in the land, the government seems to be reluctant to conduct a general election that had been scheduled over one year ago. The shoddy manner in which that announcement became a policy and the lopsidedness that characterized the selection of participants in it as well as the dictatorial tendency it entailed have since polluted the environment with a stench of suspicion. Besides ethnic and religious tendencies, two major factors are particularly militating against any doctrine of ‘incumbency must win’ around this time. One is the current fragility of the country as engendered by corruption and insecurity. The other is the will of the people to collectively pilot their affairs through the use of their ballot papers. The one is as sensitive as the other. In such a situation, to continue to pretend not to see or feel the presence of a surging furnace through a pervading fog is to be determined to sit on a keg of gunpowder without minding its consequences. Whoever rides on the back of a lion must think of how to alight from it. A Nigerian Gorbachev at this precarious time may be too costly for our country. God save Nigeria. If other leaders have failed in such a venture let no one think that he/she can be an exception. Tsunami knows neither ethnicity nor religion and sheer desperado with impunity can never be a panacea. Those who find no comfort in Moscow should try a sojourn in Siberia. •NB: This article is republished here today based on popular demand by readers.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SHOWBIZ

Jazzhole plans album launch show

OLLOWING a successful hosting of electronic music producers and musicians from ten cities in Europe and Africa, the Goethe-Institut Nigeria presents TEN CITIES, a new compilation of electronic music. The show which is billed to hold at Jazzhole, Ikoyi, Lagos, on the evening of Friday, February 20, is expected to feature artistes such as Afrologic, Wura Samba, Temi, Aremu, Jah Device, and Duro Ikujenyo, who will be performing a live set of their songs from the TEN CITIES album. The TEN CITIES project brought musicians from Berlin, Bristol, Kiev, Lisbon, and

By Joe Agbro Jr

Naples in Europe to fuse with musicians from Cairo, Johannesburg, Lagos, Luanda, and Nairobi. The artistes were asked to collaborate and create music after spending hours in studios across Africa. This eclectic fusion brought forth the ‘cross-continental’ experience which is felt in the music. TEN CITIES, whilst searching for common ground also attempts to highlight the differences. As a result, hip-hop from the squats of Naples; bass music from Bristol; experimental techno from Berlin or jazz-tinged deep-house from Kiev are thrust upon the pumping kuduro of

• Temi • Wura Samba

Luanda, the free-thinking crackled electronica of Cairo, afro-jazz from Lagos or the

of aural clichés,’ said a press release from the GoetheInstitut Nigeria.

He said further: “However, the defendants being an organiser of a television reality show tagged, Nigerian Idol, caused the use, adaptation and deployment of my said work titled, Mosorire, on the said show without my consent, and which was broadcast to several millions of television viewers

throughout the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the rest of Africa for 2012 and 2013 editions.” He said the defendants particularly infringed on his copyright when they allowed one of the contestants on the show to reproduce and perform his song in the widely broadcast show.

By Ovwe Medeme

• Waje

pated in Advanced Warning (a reality TV show which featured artists that are on the verge of a breakthrough). The reality show was organised by MTV Base South Africa and ZAIN Nigeria. She emerged as the first runner-up. In her career, Waje has shared the stage with various

international artistes such as Wyclef Jean in South Africa, opening for Kerry Hilson during a show organised in Calabar, and has also worked with a lot of artistes who had hit singles, including One Naira with M.I, OmogeMiwith P-Square and more. She also collaborated with Dencia on True Love.

WARD-winning artiste, Paul Play Dairo, has reportedly dragged telecommunications company, Etisalat, before a Federal High Court in Lagos, asking the court to compel the latter to pay him N200m for making use of his 2009 hit-track, Mosorire, without his consent. The plaintiff also joined Optima Media Group in the suit marked FHC/CS/581/ 2014, in which he stated that the defendants used Mosorire in their popular television reality show, Nigerian Idol, for two consecutive years without paying him. “I am the copyright owner of the work named and tagged Mosorire, contained in my repertoire, exclusively for the jurisdiction of Nigeria and the authority or permission to exploit such work can only be obtained from me,” Dairo said in the affidavit filed in support of his suit.

2Face, Kcee, Olamide, others for Music Festival Lagos

S the Music Festival Lagos enters its third season this year, organisers have said they are prepared for another spectacular event that will practically shut down FESTAC and environs, come March 6. At a recent joint press conference, the organisers of the event, Five Star Music and their headline sponsors, the Golden Tulip, said that the annual festival, which is scheduled to take place within the premises of the Golden Tulip, will continue to relive the memories of the historic Festival of Arts and Culture, FESTAC, which held in 1977. Making the impressive line-up of artistes released at the conference are legendary Victor Uwaifo, Tuface Idibia, Kcee, Olamide, Yemi Alade, Patoranking, Iyanya and Chidinma. Others include Wizkid, Yemi Alade, Phyno, Seyi Shay, Duncan Mighty, Cynthia Morgan and Basketmouth.

sults are far from what many would term ‘World Music’ and its often generic mixture

Paul Play battles Etisalat

Waje to party with orphans on Val’s day ELEBRATED Nigerian soul singer, Waje, through her Safe House Foundation, is collaborating with online marketplace, Kaymu, to celebrate kids of the Living Fountain Orphanage, come February 14. According to the awardwinning songstress, “February 14 is a day known all over the world for the celebration of love. Kaymu and Waje Safe House seek to redefine the essence of that day by putting smiles on the faces of kids who have no family to spend that special day with.” As an entertainer, Waje got a shot at her major spotlight when she featured in the hit single by P-Square titled Do Me, a critically acclaimed track widely known across Africa and some parts of Europe. After that, she partici-

Sheng street-slang of Kenyan rap. ‘It’s no surprise that the re-

• O'Brien Ufondu, CEO, Yage Brand, Marcel Andeweg, GM, Golden Tulip Hotel, Festac and Chuka Nwokeji, Senior partner, CNA Legal adviser for the Music Festival

According to the organisers, efforts are on to get others artistes to confirm their availability for the show. “The festival once again invites artistes and audiences of all ages to experience music in established as well as unconventional settings, exploring the dynamism among art

forms genres and cultures, and reflecting the encounter of tradition with the contemporary,” said Marcel Andeweg, the General Manager of Golden Tulip Hotel, Festac, Lagos. “As we look forward to the third edition of this super music fiesta, the fans will have the opportunity to meet their

own heroes who are revered all over the world,” The last edition of the show featured top artistes like Tuface, Sound Sultan, PSquare, King Sunny Ade, Kcee, Patoraking, Ice Prince, Tiwa Savage, Julius Agwu, Chidinma, DJ Jimmy Jatt, Elenu, Olamide and Ali Baba among others.

Tosin Dokpesi inspired me –Mursty Adinoyi

URSTY Adinoyi, TV producer of the successful TV programme, Hitlist N Cruzin, has come out to reveal the inspiration behind his success. According to him, Chief Tosin Dokpesi, wife of High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, founder of the renowned Africa Independent Television (AIT), inspired him to come up with the concept of Hitlist N Cruzin. “I really want to thank Chief Mrs. Tosin Dokpesi for inspiring me to think out of the box to generate the idea for Hitlist N Cruzing,” he said, speaking with The Nation. “What really happened was that back then, like seven, eight years ago, I was a staff of AIT Lagos and then I was transferred to Abuja. “When I got to Abuja, we in the production department had a meeting with Chief Tosin and she told us to go and start thinking out of the box to come up with ideas for unique TV programmes as her husband, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, was ready to help young people like us by giving us air time for unique TV programmes.” Describing the fateful meeting as the turning point in his life, Mursty added that, “Right from that meeting, I

By Joe Agbro Jr

began to think, and I came up with a programme, ‘Get Cooking’, which she loved. But I didn’t stop my thinking with ‘Get Cooking’s’ success. I kept thinking, and when I came up with Hitlist N Cruzing, I realised it was so unique that I had to reserve it for myself and that I had to bring it to Lagos because it’s an entertainment programme. So, I came back to Lagos.” Right now, Hitlist N Cruzin is one of the most popular entertainment programmes on air, but Adinoyi, not satisfied with its current success level, said he is working on plans to take it higher still and that he’ll reveal those plans soon.

• Adinoyi

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

Brandnews

• Spirit of Lagos advert on highway

TV advert underscores new spirit of Lagos T

O inculcate a new behavourial change, the Lagos State government has adopted a new communication approach, tagged Spirit of Lagos, to enhance discipline among residents. The advert comes under various names to tackle the defacement of public properties, undermining of environmental sanitation and neglect of pedestrian bridges. Titled: Do The Right Thing - and acall-to-action body copy: Change Your Thinking, the advert, according to experts, conforms with creative principles as it raises serious issues which the the government is bent on tackling. Adapted for various media - TV, radio and press as well as social media - and described by commu-

Stories by Adedeji Ademigbuji

nication professionals as a socialcause advert, the Spirit of Lagos explores various lifestyles of Lagosians and their attitudes towards their environment. One of the adverts is targeted at passengers onboard a public bus. The 30-second TV version, which frowns at scribbling in public buses, three teenagers sketch an image of an old man sitting on the last roll of a BRT bus. The old man becomes an artistic object to the teenagers as a result of his white mustache, spectacle, white trilbystyle hat, brown French suit clad on a white shirt and black tie. With a green marker pen, the teenager sketches the old man using the bus seat as the drawing board.

As the bus stops over, a young woman of the same age group with the teenagers boards the bus, walks majestically with a charming smile towards the boys and cleans the sketches. Warning the male characters to desist from such an act with gesture, a background music fades in with a male voice over warns: “Do not deface public property, Do the Right Thing, Let’s change the way we think.” As a pay off, the logo of the TV advert campaign Spirit of Lagos, Restore, Share and Protect signs off the commercial. One of the striking features of the advert is the way it communicates how the residents filled the gutters with dirt and risks their lives in crossing highways instead of using pedestrian bridges. This ver-

sion of the Spirit of Lagos advert theme personifies conscience using an image of an errant resident. The copy shows a young man trying to cross the highway but his conscience which comes to him as his own image taps him from the back and asks him to use the pedestrian bridge just as a woman who dumps refuse on the ground is asked by her image to make use of the government street refuse bin. The TV version of the market setting theme shows a woman sweeping the dirt from her shops into the gutter, but her image which symbolises her conscience warns her to desist and offer her a refuse bin. Beyond the creative brilliance of the advert, the campaign is premised on four cardinal

AAAN laments unethical political adverts

HE Association of Advertis ing Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), has criticised the spate of unvetted advert campaigns by the political parties and shadow interest groups across the various media. In a statement signed by its President, Kelechi Nwosu, the association said in obvious disregard of the advertising code and ethics of APCON (Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria) and the AAAN, most of these political advertisements have been exposed without going through the vetting procedures and consequent approvals from the Advertising Standards Panel (ASP) of APCON.

“Our concerns are that the professional values of the advertising practice and, indeed, public sensibilities, as well as the very stability of the polity have been severely undermined by the continued character assassinations, wanton abuses, unrestrained attacks, threats and counter threats that have become the bane of the political communication building up to the elections,” he said. “As a non-partisan but patriotic association, committed to the promotion and consolidation of democratic ideals, the AAAN implores the various stakeholders: political parties, candidates, interest groups, traditional and religious leaders to

temper their campaign messages and public utterances with decorum. We would all become losers, if the continued improper politicking; unbridled bloodlust for power overheats the system and tilts the polity into chaos and anarchy. “Then there would be no political prize to be won only reversals and crises that would seek to prise us apart as a nation and plunge our generation and possibly those to come into a dark age. These are trying times for our dear nation which demand a high level of maturity, tact, and discipline from everyone,” the association said. AAAN urged media houses and the relevant regulatory bodies

that have a role to play in moderating and channelling political campaigns and public discourse to institute stronger editorial controls that give ultimate priority to the public good and national interest. “Extreme caution must be applied, so as not to ignite the polity, especially now that we’re a few weeks away from the elections. Elections will come and go but Nigeria and Nigerians will remain one. Let’s keep it that way by shunning violent and improper rhetoric, and by comporting ourselves as Nigerians first, and political gladiators second, during and after the election,” he added.

points. It addresses civic responsibility to make residents understand that they have a part to play in developing and sustaining the communities and public services. It also x-rays citizens wanting to contribute to the society while displaying the right actions and attitudes associated with environmental sanitation or quality of life issues. A creative expert, Mr. Yemi Kushimo, said the public service advert is a departure from the old ways which do not apply creativity in grabbing the attention of citizens to civic responsibility. He said personification of conscience as a creative strategy to enhance behavourial change underscore the creative spark in the Spirit of Lagos advert. According to Kushimo, the use of public service advert is very effective in making citizens responsible. “The advertising techniques used to promote commercial goods and services can be used to inform, educate and motivate the public about non-commercial issues, such as HIV/AIDS, political ideology, energy conservation and deforestation, environmental issue among others. He noted that public service advertising, non-commercial advertising, public interest advertising, cause marketing, and social marketing are different terms for sophisticated advertising and marketing communications techniques (generally associated with commercial enterprise) for non-commercial, public interest issues and initiatives.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

THE NATION

BUSINESS SHOPPING

E-mail: toniaitose@gmail.com

Sms : 07035302326 Website:- http://www.thenationonlineng.net

Most Nigerians had concluded that February 14, commemorated worldwide as St. Valentine’s Day or Lovers’ Day would be uneventful because of the presidential election. But the last-minute decision to shift the election will see Nigerians joining the world to mark the day tomorrow–amidst mixed feelings, reports TONIA ‘DIYAN.

•Valentine

Shopping rush in an open market

•Valentine

roses displayed in a shop

•Valentine

items, ready for picks

Shoppers in Valentine frenzy T

HE retail atmosphere around the Lagos metropolis has become more intense and inviting, with shopping malls busier. It is the Valentine shopping rush. A day set aside to share love amongst people, the lovers’ day would have fallen on the presidential election day, but the election has been shifted to March 28. If there is anything that has caused an unprecedented rush in this year’s Valentine shopping, it is the postponment of the presidential election to March 28th. The postponement has given room for sales of love items to thrive. The initial gloom of non-participation in the festivities that attend the lovers’ day, has transformed into excitement as retailers of love items and shoppers are having a field day. Before now, traders of Valentine items had lamented poor sales, complaining of low patronage as people were unprepared for valentine in view of the initial ar-

rangement to hold elections on that day. As it is the tradition for majority of retailers to see the need for early stocking from early January, this year’s case wasn’t an exception notwithstanding. When The Nation Shopping visited a cross-section of shopping malls and supermarkets last week, some of them had very few items for lovers’ day because they had thought after February 14th, they would be needed by shoppers as they are seasonal. A supervisor in one of the upscale shopping malls, Addide, who asked not to be named, told The Nation Shopping that in the last three weeks, he wasn’t keen on stocking his store with associated Valentine items for fear that they won’t be bought off the shelves as all their shops will be shutout to prospective customers due to the presidential elections now postponed. He stated that the store is not expecting as much sales as its yearly experience during Valentine peri-

od. “We are not expecting much this year. It is true that our Valentine sales started early because we thought elections will hold. We planned to sell all we have for Valentine before the Deal day, to be a compensation for the Valentine day sales which is the attraction for this season.” Mrs. Modupe Shopeju, who sells gifts items at Gbagada, also in Lagos, stated that the essence of Valentine sales is to experience huge patronage on Valentine’s Day, not necessarily before or after the day. “As a retailer, if you make sales before Valentine’s day it is okay. But the rush is on Valentine’s day itself. That is when lovers walk into the store together and the lady is asked to pick her choice of gift. gifts ideas can also be suggested to the man to buy for himself and he wouldn’t hesitate to spend money, which is our interest as retailers. “ “This is why most of us felt bad when we found that the election would obstruct our businesses,” she said.

For Chukwuemeka Ejiofor, a retailer at Mushin market, the elections would have been a barrier to his business if it was still scheduled to hold tomorrow being Valentine’s Day. “I am pleased with the election date’s postponment. It would have been a big disaster to my business. I sell seasonal items and Valentine is one season I look forward to for bountiful sales. And I am optimistic that I will make sales as usual because I have stocks of very colourful and attractive items. I have also started welcoming customers, I hope for the very best this Valentine,” he added. On the other hand, online stores across the country said they have not and would not have been affected by the earlier election plans for 14th as most of them have opened their valentine stores since December last year, immediately after the Christmas celebration. Jumia came up with its clearance fashion sale with items of 80 percent

discount sales mainly on display. They also recently came up with their last minute gifts instant delivery. Like Jumia, DealDey, online shopping portal, specifically stocked up wares for the Valentine season just as it offered allkinds of freebies for prospective customers. But why the frenzy for Valentine sales? Norman Sander, Centre Manager, Ikeja City Mall, offers plausible explanation. According to him, “Valentine’s Day is a memorable event all over the world where old and young people are expected to storm shopping places around them to pick one unique item or the other for their loved ones.” He said while some shoppers will make purchases online, others will visit the big shopping malls to unwind. Assuring people of cheap bargains, Norman said, retailers have stocked their stores with wares and have promised good pricing as well.

THE NATION FRIDAY,FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SHOPPING

Why retailers opt for clearance, discount sales F OR retailers of fast moving consumer goods, innovation is key. Faced with the challenge of disposing old stocks and re-stocking with new ones, most of them resort to clearance sales, one of the sure and innovative ways of retaining the loyalty of old customers and attracting new ones. For instance, Mrs Modupe Shopeju, owner of Delightsome Gift Concept, a gift store in Gbagada, Lagos, believes that the best option to dispose old items is to place them on discounts. Such items, according to her, occupy spaces that have been paid for. As store owner, Mrs Shopeju pays rent and other bills, including salaries of members of staff. Sometimes, she even borrows money from the bank to fund her business. Expectedly, the challenge of meeting these expenses in due course and making profit at the same time imposes considerable pressure on her hence, the resort to clearance sale. In a chat with The Nation Shopping, Shopeju recalled an ugly experience of how she kept a particular flower vase for four years because she wanted to sell it two times its cost price, a decision that boomeranged, making her lose instead of make profit.

By Tonia ‘Diyan

Hear her: “I had a flower vase I bought in 2011 on my shelf, which I bought for N2, 000, and wanted to sell for N4, 000. I regret delaying selling that vase when I was supposed to sell it. I have come to realise that my money has been tied down since then, and that the space the item occupied for years would have been useful for other items. I am willing to sell for the cost price of N2, 000.” She added that her decision to eventually sell for the cost price of that item hasn’t made it inferior in anyway. Chinedu Agwu, a retailer in Balogun Market, Lagos, has also embraced clearance sale. Agwu owns a store where he sells shoes and bags. In his store, a black Gucci handbag has been on the shelf for one year and two months, but he thinks putting it on discount is the only solution to getting a buyer for it. He had travelled abroad to buy some of the items he sells, he pays huge sum of money to ship them into the country, which indicates that there is a huge cost attached to Chinedu’s kind of business. Chinedu told The Nation Shopping that because his business is an international one, it needs huge capi-

tal and as such, he borrows money from the bank and for this reason amongst others, he often places some of his items on discount, which is capable of bringing customers from all around the world. This is because people tend to fancy discounted items more, especially luxury goods, which on a normal day they wouldn’t afford. “In some cases, people will be waiting for such shop to open because luxury items are on discount. Also, if I want a new deal and a company offers me a new product at a particular discount too, but I do not have the cash to make payment, I can place some of my items on discount, so that the cash I get from it can be used to purchase new items,” he said. Indeed, experience has shown that as a retailer, if an item is kept longer than necessary in a shop, the capital used to purchase such item will lose its value. The risk of selling it more than its cost price will also arise. Besides, the item would have become older, out of vogue

or out of fashion. Shopeju and Chinedu say that determinants of discount placement include weak sales and the quest for foot traffic to a retailer’s shop, which makes such retailer place discount on items. For slow moving items, the merchants said when a retailer is in business, he knows the turnover of goods he gets; he knows how often he sells his items, and if he hasn’t made sales within two month, he wouldn’t have sold everything. Sometimes a retailer can introduce discount because he doesn’t have cash at hand but, if he stock swell over 50 million worth of goods, he can decide to put some things on discount and end up making close to 10 million to meet his immediate needs. Speaking on the benefits of placing items on discounts, retailers say that it is certain that the retailer gets back his money on time because what ordinarily he should sell for N2,000, he will sell for 1,000 and make immediate profit even

if it’s little, but getting ones money back is sure. The retailer will surely benefit in the form of customers’ loyalty, as customers will want to come back because of what they are getting. Some shoppers who have benefited from discounts sales say they get items at reduced rates, particularly luxury items which ordinarily they wouldn’t have been able to afford. Kikelome Akande said, “One of the clothing stores at Ikeja City Mall stock lovely United Kingdom (UK) tops for N5, 000, and I have always wanted to buy. I guess I am lucky because it was recently reduced to N1, 500, making it affordable.” Also, Femi Babalola said: “People are ordinarily attracted to cheap items, even the rich doesn’t want to spend too much when he goes shopping.” What this means, according to analysts, is that all parties stand to benefit from discount sales, including manufacturers, sellers, and buyers, and it should be encouraged.

Gifts’ prices skyrocket ahead of Valentine’s Day

ALENTINE’S Day is tomorrow, and a number of retailers are offering bouquets of roses as well as other gifts items to customers looking to mark the occasion but at substantial prices. Cecilia Agu is the Public Relations Officer of an online store in Lagos , she said Valentine’s Day is her busiest day of the year. “So far it’s not too bad. Mostly the day before and that day, I have a lot of last minute pick-ups,” said Agu, adding that purchasing them last minute costs more. Agu said prices for Valentine items can be five times higher around Valentine’s Day than at other times of the year. Normally, the price for a dozen

roses in a pack is about N4,500 according to Agu but it goes up as much as N22,500 in some top shops because of the season. Those looking for other affordable options can try their neighbourhood supermarkets or grocery stores; they will get what they pay for. “Grocery stores tend to have them all bunched in a piece of cellophane sitting in baskets and on shelves,” he said. Not all gifts’ prices go up during the season, said Tomiwa Oladele of Kaymu.com, another online store. She said for instance, chocolate is priced the same year-round. The only difference this time is that they are hardly placed in rectangle boxes, they come mainly in heart shapes.

•Gift

items displayed in a shop at Gbagada, Lagos

Val in the air

OVE is a special feeling, which should be expressed in an extraordinary way. And Valentine’s Day being tomorrow comes with preparations to celebrate this special day for lovers. Shoppers are at the peak of it all, as they are seen in open and enclosed shopping places where they can find cheap bargains. Also, mega stores and local markets have keyed into the Valentine mood, they stock their shops with different

By Ochu Ohunene Latifah

Valentine’s gifts. Gifts like; Valentine cards with red decorations depicting the colour of love, Red teddy bears of different sizes and designs, Red heart shape carrier bags and Red foil papers to wrap other gifts. Mr Tijani Ahmed, who works at Justrite Superstores, told our reporter that preparations are ongoing to make the day lively for shoppers and prof-

itable for retailers. “With the postponement of the elections, we are assured that our shop will have much to offer to our numerous customers before and during this valentine.” At one of the stores in Abule Egba a suburb of Lagos , red teddy bears packed with either the red rose flower, Valentine cards with romantic words; ‘Just for valentine’, dominate other items on display. It cost between N500 and N5,000.

•Flower

vase

Spaces open for Val

HERE are new stores and spaces opened this weekend specifically for Valentine. They offer just about everything a shopper needs to indulge in this season. Despite their vast sizes, these places, which offer offline and online sales are open to the public with colourful items and mix-andmatch household items. But surprisingly, everything found at theses places are for sale, “from the candle burning, to the CDs playing and the sofa one would sit on,” says a space creative personnel

Gloria Harrison. “They are like open, shoppable private homes for everyone to hang out in.” She said. At the bazaar in Illupeju- Lagos, women and men assemble with fashion items amongst other things. And while clothing brand makes the best of the season, local talents are also represented as they indulge in various entertaining activities. From findings, the choice of multifaceted spaces for shopping is making some neighbourhoods become more and more global during festive seasons.

Job portal makes its debut

• Sales Manager, Tokyo Boeki, Emmanuel Bamidele (middle); Olamide Akande (left) and Chinwe Ezeigwe both of the Sales Department at the pre-launch of the new Samurai Curry Sauce in Lagos.

NLINE enterprise solution, PushCV, has announced its plans to connect prime employees to head-hunters and employers via a new initiative, Elite Employee Quest 2015. In partnership with top companies across Nigeria, the Elite Employee Quest 2015 initiative according to PushCV, will give everyone equal opportunity to be part of the qualified, deserving people that PushCV would place in gainful employment positions in these top organisations in 2015. The programme was formally announced on the 12th of February, 2015 at a Cocktail Event hosted at Melarossa, Ikoyi. The event had in attendance top CEOs and HR professionals across Nigeria. The programme will be seeking talents across five major employ-

By Lucas Ajanaku

ment categories: Accounting, Engineering/IT, Administration, Sales/ Marketing, and Customer Service. PushCV and their partners believe that this initiative can bridge the gap between qualified candidates and employers. “Job seekers, even qualified ones, find it quite difficult to find the right jobs because of the overwhelming competition and lack of knowledge of how/where to send their CVs; and the employers say they have jobs available, but most of the applications they receive are not up to standard. It takes up a lot of time and money going through the piles of applications looking for qualified candidates,” said PushCV in the release announcing the programme.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 12-02-15

Nigerian Breweries declares N37.2b dividends

HAREHOLDERS of Nigerian Breweries (NB) Plc will receive additional dividends of N27.75 billion, bringing total dividend for the 2014 business year to N37.2 billion. This represents total dividend per share of N4.75 for the year. The board of directors of NB yesterday announced the additional dividend yesterday. The company had earlier paid an interim dividend of N9.45 billion, representing a dividend per share of N1.25 per ordinary share of 50 kobo each in October 2014. The board of directors said the dividends will be paid on May 14, 2014 to all shareholders whose names appear on the company’s register of members at the close of business on March 4, 2014. In a statement signed by legal adviser and company secretary, Nigerian Breweries, Mr. Uaboi Agbebaku, the company stated that it recorded a turnover of N266.3 billion in 2014, 0.8 per cent decline from N268.6 billion turnover in

2013. Profit before tax stood at N61.4 billion while profit after tax closed the year at N42.5 billion. Agbebaku stated that despite the challenging circumstances in 2014, the company was able to return creditable results for the year due in part to her cost leadership and innovation agenda. According to him, the reported performance does not include the results of the dissolved Consolidated Breweries Plc. In the course of the year, the company concluded the legal process which culminated in a merger with Consolidated Breweries Plc resulting in an enlarged company. The effective date of the merger was December 31, 2014. “The beginning of 2015 has seen a continuation of the challenging business environment with even more impact on disposable income. However, our company is poised to maximize the economies of scale arising from an enlarged company formed from the merger with the dissolved Consolidated Breweries

Plc, with a view to creating more value for shareholders. Our innovation and cost leadership agenda will be enhanced in 2015 and, the company is also in a position to take advantage of any upswing in the economy and maintain its market leadership,” Agbebaku stated. “NB’s fourth quarter results mirror the weak set of results recently reported by rivals Guinness Nigeria and International Breweries for the end-December quarter. We believe that the year-on-year decline on the topline was driven by a slow-down in beer demand arising from significant macro headwinds. As such, sales growth was most likely constrained by a volume–price mix, with volumes skewed in favour of NB’s value brands on the back of down-trading by consumers. The devaluation of the naira by around eight per centofficially,also likely weighed on earnings,” analysts at FBN Capital stated in reaction to the earnings announcement.

DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 12-02-15

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

MONEYLINK

‘Naira undergoing price discovery’

AfDB strengthens anti-money laundering strategy

• Banking sector sound, resilient, says Bankers’ Committee

HE Bankers’ Committee met yesterday and gave a verdict on the naira. The local currency is undergoing price discovery, Group Managing Director/CEO, GTBank Plc, Segun Agbaje said at the committee’s inaugural meeting for the year in Lagos yesterday. He said that exchange rate remains an emotional thing for the country, and that devaluation is not a curse. So, where we are today, is oil price is down, as a country, we are trying to see what level the currency devalues to. “The is no central bank in the world that allows free float of its currency. What is done is find price discovery and find a rate at which you can lead with. I think we are going through that process in Nigeria. What we are seeing in the interbank market is a kind of price discovery. Until we find what that rate is, the CBN is going through that process. Our

Stories by Collins Nweze

reserves what it takes to defend the naira,” he said. He said that forex speculators will lose money because naira will rebound. The committee also assured on the soundness of the financial sector despite headwinds from oil price decline. Speaking yesterday at its inaugural meeting in Lagos, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Director, Banking Supervision, Mrs. Tokunbo Martins said that Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of banks are all above minimum regulatory threshold. “Despite all the global and domestic headwinds, the banking industry remains sound, safe and resilient. The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) in terms of liquidity, in terms of profitability and asset quality. It was concluded that all ratios remain satisfactory,” she said. She said the high capital levels

of banks have made it easy for the lenders to withstand pressures that come with low oil price. “Capital levels of our banks are very high and are for a time like this. Capital levels of our banks will accommodate the unexpected in oil sector. There is no too much course for concern,” she said. For the industry at large, all the banks were found to be above regulatory minimum threshold. On the economy, Managing Director, First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Plc, Mr. Ladi Balogun said the economy remains resilient despite oil price fall. He said the Federal Government economic diversification from oil is paying off, and that non-oil revenues rose by N75 billion in 2014, and is expected to hit N150 billion this year. Balogun said the banking sector has been supporting the agriculture and Small and Medium

A •CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele

Enterprises (SMEs) sector to support economic development. The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Citibank Nigeria, Mr. Omar Hafeez said the CBN will continue to fund the forex market and that all legitimate demands in the market will be met. “The CBN assured that stakeholders that there is no need to panic, and that all demand that is genuine will be satisfied,” he said.

IMF urges caution in Eurobond borrowing spree

HE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned African countries against rushing to issue Eurobonds, saying they may face exchange rate risks and problems repaying debts. African governments facing falling levels of foreign aid are on a borrowing spree to pay for new roads, power stations and other infrastructure, prompting concern from many analysts that this could raise debt levels and un-

dermine growth. “It comes with some risks,” the director of the IMF’s African Department, Antoinette Sayeh, told Reuters. “Whereas what it costs the countries to issue these bonds can often look lower than what they would pay on domestic borrowing. The real cost in the final analysis will also depend on the evolution of exchange rates in the course of the life of the bond issuance.” In 2007, Ghana became the first

African beneficiary of debt relief to tap international capital markets, issuing a $750 million 10year Eurobond. Since then, previously debt-burdened countries such as Senegal, Nigeria, Zambia and Rwanda have all joined in. “In the last two years we’ve seen new issuers - Kenya issuing the largest amount of sovereign bond this year and Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), as well also having issued this year and then

Rwanda last year,” said Sayeh. “In 2014 alone we’ve seen some $7 billion already in sovereign bond issues, which is a record high for the region,” she added. Tanzania is in the process of securing credit rating and plans to issue a debut Eurobond worth up to $1 billion in fiscal year 2014/ 15. Ethiopia aims to make its first foray into the international bond markets by January, while Rwanda is planning another sovereign bond.

FRICAN Development Bank’s Vice-President Aly Abou-Sabaa has said that addressing issues of governance, fighting corruption and promoting greater transparency and accountability across both public and private sectors is key to unlocking the full African potential. of the continent and ensuring the sustainability of its development. In a statement, the bank chief said Africa’s abundance of natural resources in forestry, agriculture, minerals, oil and gas, offer a major opportunity to close the development gap. He said a recent research by the bank shows that countries which implemented governance reforms were performing better than non-reforming countries. According to the African Development Effectiveness Review on Governance, published in 2012, reformers benefitted from an additional two percentage points of growth in comparison to non-reformers between the decades 1990-2000 and 2000 to 2008. However, while some progress has been achieved towards promoting good governance, there remains a lot of work to be done. “Progress has been uneven and insufficient,” Abou-Sabaa said. Speaking at the opening of the conference, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz called for increased cooperation between African countries as well as a multidimensional approach and joint action between government departments, civil society and the private sector in order to effectively fight mismanagement and lack of transparency. The lender, he said, is playing is playing a key role in that regard. Its Strategy for 2013 to 2022 is articulated around economic transformation, with governance and accountability as a key priority.

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

126.04 9.17 1.12 1.19 0.63 1.39 1,744.73 1,104.77 112.34 121.16 1.67 1.29 1.32 0.95 1.17

125.82 9.08 1.12 1.19 0.62 1.33 1,744.73 1,104.00 111.75 120.30 1.62 1.28 1.32 0.93 1.17

GAINERS AS AT 12-02-15

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

C/PRICE

FOREX RATES (NairaVs Dollar) February 11, 2015

Inflation: December

9.82

4.91

AIRSERVICE

1.86

1.95

4.84

FIDELITYBK

1.18

1.22

3.39

Monetary Policy Rate

13.0%

Foreign Reserves

$34.5b $59

Money Supply (M2)

N16.42 trillion.

Credit to private Sector (CPS)

N17.2 trillion

Primary Lending Rate (PLR)

16.5%

NIGERIAN INTER-BANK OFFERED RATES (NIBOR)

OKOMUOIL

27.50

27.90

1.45 Tenor

200.00

202.00

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

FLOURMILL 30.51 GUARANTY 18.19 DANGSUGAR 6.80 DIAMONDBNK 3.80 AIICO 0.80 TOTAL 144.50 CHAMPION 6.25 ACCESS 5.88 MAYBAKER 1.42 NASCON 6.50 SKYEBANK 1.83 WAPCO 83.00 UBCAP 1.46

C/PRICE 28.00 17.86 6.46 3.61 0.76 137.28 5.94 5.59 1.35 6.18 1.74 78.95 1.39

03-02-15 Rate (%) Rate (%) 04-02-15

1.00

LOSERS AS AT 12-02-15

CHANGE -8.23 -5.55 -5.00 -5.00 -5.00 -5.00 -4.96 -4.93 -4.93 -4.92 -4.92 -4.88 -4.79

Interbank ($/N)

202.50

Black Market ($/N)

212.00

CBN EXCHANGE RATES (RDAS) February 11, 2015

Oil Price (Bonny Light/b) 9.36

168.00

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

CHANGE

CCNN

R-DAS ($/N)

Overnight (O/N)

10.54

11.17

11.94

12.18

13.08

13.33

14.03

14.17

Transaction Dates 03/02/2015 3/12/2014 1/12/2014

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

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

Currency

Buying (N)

Selling (N)

US Dollar

167

168

Pounds Sterling

251.7525

253.26

Euro

189.5617

190.6968

Swiss Franc

180.1122

181.1907

Yen

1.4231

1.4316

CFA

0.2689

0.2889

234.5928

235.9975

Yuan/Renminbi

26.6837

26.8444

Riyal

44.4908

44.7582

SDR

235.2863

236.6952

WAUA

GOVT. SECURITIES YIELD – SECONDARY MARKET

Tenor

Feb. 11, 2015

Rates

T-bills - 91

13.65

T-bills - 182

13.88

T-bills - 364

13.65

Bond - 3yrs

13.81

Bond - 5yrs

13.85

Bond - 7yrs

13.83

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

CITYBEATS Synagogue accuses coroner Six suspected vandals charged of exceeding jurisdiction with destroying NITEL’s cables T T CITYBEATS LINE: 08023247888

•Lagos seeks dismissal of Joshua’s motion

HE police yesterday arraigned six persons at the Federal High Court in Lagos for allegedly vandalising underground armoured cables belonging to Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL). Adolphus Audu (28), Marcel Mmadu (25), Paul Bassey (27), Kabiru Garuba (30), Abdulrasaki Musa (27) and Ahmed Babatunde (23) were charged with conspiracy and unlawful damage of the

By Joseph Jibueze

cables. They were said to have committed the offence on October 22, 2013. They pleaded not guilty. The prosecutor, Mr Goddy Osuyi, said: “The accused on the said date, at Union Bank Car Park, Marina, Lagos, unlawfully disconnected, tampered with, removed and damaged underground armoured wires or cables, belonging to NITEL, the val-

ue of which had yet to be ascertained.” The offence violates Section 516 of the Criminal Code Act. Cap C38, Vol. 4, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. The prosecutor said the accused were liable to punishment under Section 1 (11) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap. M17, Vol. 9, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumobi

granted all bail, but only Mmadu regained his freedom after fulfilling the N200, 000 bail condition. He was asked to provide two “reputable” sureties in the like sum. The sureties, the court added, must have landed properties within the court’s 200 metres radius. The others will be in custody until their bail applications are considered. Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia adjourned till March 25 for trial.

Three arraigned for plot to ‘kill’ Pastor Ighodalo

HREE men were yesterday arraigned before a Tinubu Magistrate’s Court in Lagos for allegedly plotting to kill Trinity House Church Senior Pastor Ituah Ighodalo. They are the Ighodalo’s dog handler, Abdulkareem Mohammed, 24; a witchdoctor, Akeem Makinde-Ewuosi, 36; and a security guard, Paul Eke, 29. The defendants were brought before Magistrate A.O Awogboro on a twocount charged of attempted murder and poison. They were also accused of poisoning the complainant’s four month old domestic pet (dog) named Simba. Police prosecutor Chidi Okoye told the court that Mohammed between Janu-

By Precious Igbonwelundu

ary 28 and February 10, at 10pm at the complainant’s 4B Ogun Street, Osborne Foreshore Estate in Ikoyi, Lagos residence tested the poison he got from Makinde-Ewuosi on the dog and it died. The prosecutor alleged that Mohammed nursed sexual fantasies about the pastor’s wife, and was planning to kill the cleric to make his wife love him. The defendants’ plot, he said, was un- •Pastor Ighodalo covered after Mrs Ibidunni Ighodalo got a revelation that something an instruction to buy a was about to go wrong in sponge and have his bath. her home. He was throw the sponge He told the court that into the river after his bath. when she confronted the de- This, they were told, will fendants, they confessed to imbue them with the power have poisoned the dog. They to demand N10 million and also confessed to planning to anything else from Mrs get rid of her husband, the Ighodalo and she would oblige. prosecutor added. Makinde-Ewuosi was said Okoye said the offences to have given Mohammed a contravened Section 409 and black soap and powder with are punishable under Sec-

tion 228 (1) (2) of the Criminal Laws of Lagos, 2011. The defendants pleaded not guilty and were granted N500, 000 bail each with two sureties in the like sum. Magistrate Awogboro directed the police to duplicate the case file for advice from office of the Director of Public Prosecutor (DPP). He adjourned the case to March 18.

Mbu parades money counterfeit suspect

N his official assignment since his deployment to Zone II Command, Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Mbu Joseph Mbu, on Wednesday, paraded a suspected serial money counterfeiter, Akeem Alo (aka Ayo Doagbo). Alo, 45, was arrested in 2012 and 2013 for the same offence, but was freed by the court. He is married and has four children. Zonal spokesperson Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Olugbemiga Adeoye, who represented Mbu, said the suspect was arrested and charged to court, where he was granted bail. He was arrested on February 1 at his Ikorodu, Lagos residence. The accused said he was initiated into the illicit trade by one Onyeka. He said: “In 2012, I was arrested in Ketu and sent to Ikoyi Prison where I spent four months. In 2013, I was arrested by Special Anti-

•The suspect

•The fake currencies By Ebele Boniface

Robbery Squad (SARS) Lagos State Police Command for the same offence where one Londoner organised counterfeit work for us. I was arrested at Ikorodu. I was charged to court but my family and our lawyer perfected our bail with N60, 000 at the court. This time again, I was arrested at Ikorodu by the operatives of the Zonal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (ZSARS).” On how he gets the money, he said: “I used to get the original of each of the currencies (Foreign and local) and put them in those machines and print and they will come out as photocopies. When I pack them in a box and cover each top with the original

currency the buyer will collect them like that.” Among the fake curren-

cies recovered from Alo are 25 50 Euro; 10 N1000 and 310 $100 bills.

HE coroner conducting an inquest into the September 12, 2014 Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) building is acting beyond its jurisdiction, an Ikeja High Court heard yesterday. Synagogue’s counsel Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) told Justice Okunnu that the coroner, Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, is taking evidence on extraneous issues. Fagbemi was arguing an application his client filed against the coroner and the Lagos State Government. Urging the court to declare the coroner’s proceedings null and void, Fagbemi argued that under the Lagos State Coroner’s Law 2007, the coroner is only empowered to determine the cause of death and to identify the body. “Issues, such as approval and construction of the collapsed building, are clearly outside the scope and jurisdiction of the coroner court”, he said. He cited Sections 32 and 33 of the Coroner Law, which he said were clear on those to give evidence at the inquest. Fagbemi described the summons issued on SCOAN’s founder Prophet Temitope Joshua to appear at

By Adebisi Onanuga

the inquest as unconstitutional and a breach of his right to fair hearing. The coroner, he said, had shown personal interest in the subject matter, which could lead to his being biased against Joshua, urging Justice Okunnu to declare the coroner’s proceedings null and void. But counsel to the state Afeez Owokoniran urged the court to dismiss the suit, saying the coroner has extensive powers to investigate the cause and circumstances of death and bring his “findings and recommendations to the attention of appropriate authorities”. Owokoniran said: “In doing this, he has all the powers of a magistrate to summon and compel the attendance of witnesses, including medical examiners, and require them to give evidence, produce documents or present other relevant materials. “In order to determine the cause of death, the coroner has the latitude to investigate issues pertaining to building approval, soil testing and materials used in the construction of the collapsed building.” Justice Okunnu adjourned the matter till February17.

Court dissolves 34-year-old marriage •He’s too lazy, wife

“

I have always supported the family. Even when we were cohabiting, all expenses were on me. When I was struggling to have a structure of my own, my husband was chasing everything in skirt. It’s really frustrating.” These were the words of 54-year-old Sarah Adeyemi whose 34-year-old marriage to Tunde was dissolved by the Ifako-Ijaye Customary Court in Lagos yesterday. The petitioner, who lives at 4, Ajilete Street, Ifako in Lagos, told the court that her husband is an adulterer and a drunkard. She said: “After I got pregnant for my husband, I realised he had two children from another woman. I accepted my fate to the extent of keeping them in my custody as mine. My husband is irresponsible. He contrib-

By Basirat Braimah

utes nothing to the house. I decided to stay with him because of our children and now that they are adults, I am done with him. I just want him to take responsibilities of our last two children’s education.” Adeyemi, 59, who did not counter the petition, said: “I did the best I could for our children even if they never regarded me as their father.” The marriage produced five children between ages 13 and 32. The court’s President, Mrs Christiana Odujoko, said the parties ceased being married following futile efforts to reconcile them. She said the medical expenses of the last two children should be the couple’s joint responsibility.

•Guest Minister Reverend Olusegun Obafemi of The Crucified Ministry in Ghana (fourth right) joined Pastor Isaac Olaomo (right) and congregation during the Third Anniversary and Book Launch of The Mantle Prayer Ministry.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS Grand Oak hosts Valentine Party

S lovers brace up to celebrate another St. Valentine Day, Grand Oak Limited a leading marketer of alcoholic and non-alcoholic brands in Nigeria is inviting all and sundry to enjoy a romantic evening at Kingsize Bar and Restaurant, 75b Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun tomorrow by 6pm. The event, which is sponsored by Swagga Bitters, Apperito and Calypso Slim Coco all brands of Grand Oak Ltd is sure to be a thrilling evening. Couples stand a chance to be rewarded with special baskets of love filled with chocolates, cakes, rose flowers, Swagga bitters, Apperito and Calypso Slim Coco. The celebration which is in the spirit of the season is the company’s way of identify-

ing with the passion of its teaming target audience by sharing with them while adding glamour and grandeur to their celebration during this season of affection. The brand has relaunched Calypso Slim Coco Pack and Swagga Bitter Variant into the market. Grand Oak Limited is a marketing and distribution company of Lexcel Group. Its flagship brand, Seaman’s Schnapps firmly connects with Nigeria’s numerous cultures and values. Some of its other brands include Calypso Coconut Liqueur, Dark Sailor Rum, Regal Dry Gin, Lord Dry Gin, Bacchus Tonic Wine, St Lauren and the Swagga variant which has steadily enjoyed patronage from consumers and trade alike.

Odu’a Investment to make 250% turnover

HE Group Managing Director of Odu’a Investment Company Ltd (OICL), Mr. Adewale Raji, has reiterated the firm’s vision to make a target of 250 per cent turnover in the next five years. He spoke on Wednesday when opening a retreat organised for the management of one of its subsidiaries, WEMABOD Estates Ltd, at Premier Hotel, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. Raji said: “I will say the company at its inception has been maintained solely for the heritage of the Yoruba. What is important is that when you have a change of leadership, the company should move to the next level. “Our focus is that we should go to the next level and we are at that level by bringing out new things that the Yoru-

From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

ba will be proud of and also for the benefit of our people. We are making the turnover move to 250 per cent in the next five years. This is our target. “With the kind of ambition we have, with the 250 per cent turnover increase, we realise we have to do new things to achieve our target.” He said to achieve its target, OICL ventured into a partnership with a Spanish construction company, TODO Construction. Added he: “This is to form a joint venture of 50-50 per cent ownership by both parties to sell, import and market in Nigeria ceramic, tiles, bathroom finishes as well as bath, shower, cubicles, Jacuzzi, doors, frames, among others.”

Will Jonathan postpone Nigeria? •Continued

from Back Page

And he would even postpone our lives, if it required that to hang on to power - not minding the huge costs, individual and corporate, to the nation. If only he could adjourn Nigeria sans his presidency, what a great magical world it would be. This distortion, this abrupt dis-alignment of our very lives brings up pictures of Babangida calling off the June 12, 1993 election mid-victory; it reminds me of Abacha’s tanks on the streets of Lagos chasing and killing protesting Nigerians; it brings back the picture of Obasanjo bribing lawmakers with tens of millions of naira to twist the constitution in his favour. I am reminded once again of those bleary days when Nigeria was a pariah state and all the countries of the world condemned her leaders and kept them at arm’s length; away from the conclave of decent people. It was the foolish, heady days of Abacha when he thought he could do whatsoever he wanted with Nigeria and the citizenry and get away with it. But the world ostracised him and it was only a question of time. So, so sad that Jonathan contemplated that road to perdition in today’s world. Defying the will of the people and the world community, he has forced the abrupt adjournment of a poll that had been on the card for four years. Who would tell him that it is a failure of his government that this election is deferred; it is an injury to his office as commander-in-chief that his service chiefs had the temerity to declare that they could not guarantee security after a year of a scheduled election and he did not or could not summarily dismiss them all if truly that excuse was not his contrivance Elders with new-found virility This presidency needs no advice anymore; this presidency seems far gone, lost and irredeemable. But the greater tragedy is that most of the elders have gone too. Having acquired a new-found virility, when they are not taking young new wives, they are drumming the drums of war. Elders who are at the departure lounges of their lives are drinking the strong wine of perdition and seeking to leave the country in a ruble. How could elders like EK Clark, Alex Ekwueme, Ayo Ladigbolu, Chukwuemeka Ezeife and Walter Ofonagoro ask that INEC chairman, Attahiru Jega, should resign this late in the day? When he conducted the elections in 2011 and it favoured Jonathan, it was okay. Today he is not good enough and each day a man on such a serious national assignment is ridiculed and blackmailed? Now who will tell Jonathan that losing an election is not the end of life? Who will admonish him that it is better to lose an election than to lose your honour, your soul and your country? Who will call him back from the road to Golgotha? What more to say than to inform our dear President that all the fellows before him who trod this path never ‘returned’: at least not in one piece. He must ask Babangida, Abacha, Shonekan and Obasanjo; if only he could learn from their folly.

•His Excellency, Prince Eze Madumere (MFR), Deputy Governor of Imo State exchanging pleasantries with Prince Tony Momoh, BoT member of All progressives Congress during BoT meeting earlier in the afternoon at APC headquarters, Abuja.

Impeachment plot against Elechi thickens

HERE was tension in Ebonyi State yesterday, following moves by prominent Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders to instigate the House of Assembly to impeach Governor Martin Elechi. The leaders accused the governor of anti-party activities, adding that he has encouraged his supporters to defect from the PDP to the Labour Party (LP). The PDP chieftains, led by Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Pius Ayim, on Wednesday secured the approval of the national PDP caucus to sanction the governor for the decimation of the Ebonyi chapter. A party source said the former Senate President complained to President Goodluck Jonathan that Elechi will be an obstacle to the PDP’s victory at the general elections because he has turned his back against the party. The SGF has been having sleepless nights, following the mass defection to the LP, a move that is believed may jeopardise the chance of the party at the polls. There has been a running battle between Elechi and Ayim over the control of the chapter. On January 16, the governor was booed at the Abakaliki Township Stadium during the presidential campaign, to the embarrassment of the President and other dignitaries. According to the source, the disgrace was orchestrated to give the impression that the governor is not popular in the state. He added: “PDP leaders, who are against Governor Elechi, are pushing for his impeachment because they see it as the ultimate guarantor of the PDP victory in the elections. The Abuja-based anti-Elechi forces are working on the members of the House of Assembly to ensure the non-passage of the 2015 Appropriation Bill. Other actions against the governor are in the pipeline. They want to cut the governor’s influence, especially the incumbency power.” The governor was not present at the Abuja caucus meeting where Ayim pressed for sanctions against him. However, mixed reactions trailed the SGF’s proposals. The impeachment slot was opposed by the President,

By Emmanuel Oladesu

who noted that the time was not auspicious. A source said despite the President’s objection, Ayim has intensified his lobby to remove Elechi in the belief that by the time the plan is executed close to the elections, the President would be too engrossed in his re-election battle. The source added: “The SGF’s confidence may have been buoyed by what happened on November 27, last year during which the President took a decision with some high ranking officials of the government and the party to postpone primaries in Ebonyi, Taraba, Adamawa and Ondo states, pending the resolution of the problems in those states. Some vested interests flouted the order and conducted the primaries in Ebonyi State and the outcome was accepted and the President did nothing. Ayim is apprehensive that it will be difficult for PDP to win the election in Ebonyi while Elechi remains the governor”. Party sources said the declaration of the seats of four members of the Assembly loyal to Elechi vacant on the same day the caucus meeting was holding in Abuja was to set the stage for the impeachment. Another chieftain, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: “The whole essence of the action is to whittle the number of proElechi and to get the constitutionally-stipulated number of anti-Elechi members to successfully initiate impeachment proceedings” The Speaker, Mr. Chukwuma Nwazunku, on Wednesday declared the seats of the four members vacant, following their defection to the LP. Nwazunku said in a statement that he has the consti-

tutional right to declare their seats vacant. The affected legislators are Eni Uduma Chima, (Afikpo South West); Helen Nwaobashi (Abakaliki South); Sam Nwali (Ikwo North) and Mabel Aleke (Ohaukwu South). However, many stakeholders have risen in defence of the governor, saying he was being blackmailed and witch-hunted by the SGF. A group, the Ebonyi Patriotic Coalition (EPC) alleged that Ayim was instigating the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Ebonyi State government. At a news conference in Abuja on Monday, Ebonyi government officials complained about the freezing of the accounts of the local governments by the anti-graft body on the grounds that its funds are used to fund the LP. The Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, Dr. Ben Igwenyi, and the Commissioner for Commerce, Dr. Ifeanyi Ikeh, said: “There is a spate of frivolous petitions against state government officials in charge of finance. In the last three weeks, the Accountant-General, Mr. Edwin Igbele; the Commissioner for Finance, Timothy Odaah and the Commissioner for Local Governments and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr. Celestine Nwali; have been guests of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). “The allegations against them being that some local government funds, which were legitimately spent in 2012 and 2013, were unlawfully spent. These are all lies because the documents are there to speak for themselves. Even without hearing from the above three officers, the joint accounts of the 13 local governments were frozen by EFCC, contrary to Section 34(1) of EFCC Act 2004.

“The joint accounts of local governments were frozen when there was no evidence of the money being proceeds of corruption. We have it from grapevine that the Chairman of EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, was instructed to do what he did by the Secretary to Government of the Federation who is from Ebonyi State. “As we address you now, there is another petition from the same group pending at the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offence Commission (ICPC) over the same frivolous allegations. We will not be surprised if there is another one pending at the IGP’s office against state officials, all aimed at destabilising the state government”. The political crisis in Ebonyi State stemmed from the conflicts, which followed the PDP primaries in November last year between those loyal to Elechi, who backed the former Minister of Health, Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu and those loyal to the Deputy Governor, Dave Umahi, who is being supported by the SGF. This led to the defection of the majority of Elechi’s supporters from the PDP to the Labour Party. Since then, Elechi has been campaigning for President Jonathan’s reelection without extending similar support to other candidates of the PDP in the state. The move to remove Elechi has polarised the state along ethnic lines. Those from Abakaliki bloc where Elechi hails from and, who are in the majority, are spoiling for war against party chieftains from a section of Afikpo zone, the birth place of Umahi. Many are of the view that the governor deserves respect because of his age and popularity among the people.

UN names Edo monarch Peace Ambassador

HE United Nations (UN)-POLAC has appointed the Okumagbe of Weppa-Wanno Kingdom, Edo State, His Royal Majesty, Dr. George O Egabor, as an Ambassador of Peace. The honour is in recognition of the monarch’s leading role in ensuring lasting peace in Nigeria and globally, His Excellency, Dr. Egabor, who is the Pro –Chancellor of Usman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto, and also the Chair-

man of Pharchem Industries Limited, Lagos, is a recipient of the Order of the Niger (OON) and Justice of Peace(JP)for over two decades. Speaking on the UN honour, the monarch said “The UN award is a huge challenge given the rising cases of insurgency and insecurity in Nigeria which is threatening peace in the country. “I will work more conscientiously with individuals and corporate organisations charged

with the duties of ensuring enduring peace in Nigeria, which is necessary for unity and progress’’ In a statement by Mr. Michael Martin Nkemakolam the General Manager / Chief Operating Officer of Pharchem Industries Limited Ilupeju who is also a senior aide to Dr. Egabor, said the appointment was made pursuant to the declaration of the United Nations Resolution 53/15 of November 20, 1997.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS Thieves return stolen items from razed market

OME items stolen by hoodlums from the razed Edaiken Market at Uselu, in Egor Local Government Area of Edo State, have been returned. This followed the invitation of a juju man by the market leaders to curse those who stole from the market and those who might make false claims on the losses to the fire. Items returned included a bag of slippers and a wheelbarrow. A “mysterious” fire razed over 50 shops at the market last Tuesday night. Some of the affected traders brought in a juju man

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

from Igueovbiobo in Ovia North East Local Government and cursed whoever caused the fire or stole from the market. A leader of the market, Godwin Omoregie, said several goods were returned by hoodlums following a previous fire in the market. He said the market leadership invited the juju man because they believed the fire was a clear case of arson. When our reporter visited the market yesterday, he saw the returned items. It was learnt that the fire affected 75 traders.

Immigration arrests 40 in Calabar From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

HE Cross River State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has arrested 40 illegal immigrants. NIS State Comptroller Mrs Funke Adeuyi said the affected immigrants entered Nigeria without valid travel documents. Parading the suspects yesterday in Calabar, the state capital, Adeuyi said: “These illegal immigrants were arrested on February 9 by the intelligence group of the NIS at various locations. “We have thoroughly screened and profiled them. We have also identified those that are not here with their valid travel documents. “...We have identified 40 of them; they will be leaving the country as soon as possible. “Of the 40 of them, 12 are from Mali; 10 from Burkina Faso; six from Niger Republic; five from Guinea; three from Senegal and four from Cameroon.” The NIS Comptroller hailed Comptroller-General David Parradang for equipping NIS officers to fight human trafficking, child labour and illegal migrants. Mrs Adeuyi said: “Nigeria is open to law-abiding and ECOWAS nationals, who get into this country with their valid papers. But at any time we find any illegal ones, we will send them back.” She urged the residents to be cautious of illegal migrants and report any suspect to security agencies.

Funeral for community leader

•The late Madam Adebayo

Toyin Anisulowo, a reporter with Hallmark and a member, Ekiti State Correspondent Chapel; and her younger brother, Mr. Adeleye Olaofe. She will be buried on May 1 at Are-Ekiti.

Funeral for Crawford University PRO

HE Public Relations Officer of the Crawford University, Igbesa, Ogun State, Abayomi Ojo, is dead. He died after a fatal road accident. Ojo was 51. The late Ojo was a fervent and passionate Christian. He attended Ibokun Grammar School, Ibokun before proceeding to the University of Ibadan for his Higher School Certificate in 1982, where he studied psychology and grad-

Man, 35, electrocuted in Asaba

35-YEAR-OLD man, Bright Ekene Abunwaeze, has been electrocution in Asaba, the Delta State capital. Abunwaeze worked with the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC). An eyewitness, who spoke in confidence, told our reporter how Abunwaeze died on Wednesday night. He said: “We saw three BEDC (PHCN) workers when they came with a Hilux van at 8pm and started

uated in 1985. After holding several appointments in the Apostolic Faith Church, he was appointed the Public Relations Officer of the Crawford University in 2009. He was also the Principal Assistant Registrar. His remains will be interred today, at the Trumpet Shall Sound Cemetery on the University ground after a funeral service at the school’s university chapel.

From Okungbowa Aiwerie, Asaba

climbing the electricity poles that night. So, we wondered why they were working at that time. Few minutes after, we saw a spark at the top of the pole where the man was working. Suddenly, the man was electrocuted, hanging on top of the pole. “He later fell down, his hands burnt. Smoke was coming out of his nostrils and ears.”

It was learnt that Abunwaeze was attempting to fix a faulty 450 KVA high tension wire on Nnebisi Road’s Service Unit in Asaba when he was electrocuted. His colleagues on the scene ran away, it was learnt. BEDC’s Asaba Business District’s spokesman Mrs Esther Okolie said Abunwaeze’s death was regrettable because he was among the company’s best. Mrs Okolie said investigation had started on the inci-

dent. She said the control room had confirmed that the line was dead before the deceased climbed the pole for the repairs. A relative of the deceased, Mr Sam Anukwu, said the late Abunwaeze’s father died six years ago on official duty in the same company. Anukwu said the deceased would have been married last December but shifted his wedding till tomorrow, the Lovers’ Day.

Bayelsa PDP chair rejects suspension

HE death has occurred of a community leader, Mrs. Adenike Adebayo (nee Olaofe). She was the mother of Olori Bosede Adebiyi, wife of Alare of Are-Ekiti, Oba Boluwade Adebiyi. She died on January 20 at Are-Ekiti in Ekiti State. The deceased is survived by children- Mr. Tunde Adebayo, Yeyeoge Remi Fadipe, Mrs. Beatrice Bolaji, Mrs. Tolani Alofe, Mr. Jide Adebayo and Mrs. Kemi Alabi. She is also survived by her younger sister, Mrs. Adebimpe Anisulowo, mother of

•From left: Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan; HRM Dr. Ezeagwu Eze, Nwali of Umunede; HRM Dr. IfeanyiChukwu Alekwe II, the Obi of Mbiri and Chief John Oguma, at the inauguration of Umunede-Mbiri Road...yesterday.

HE embattled Chairman of Bayelsa State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Col. Sam Inokoba (retd), has rejected his suspension by the State Working Committee (SWC). Inokoba was suspended for alleged anti-party activities. Petroleum Resources Minister, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, was said to have donated some money to assist the party’s plan to host the just-concluded PDP’s presidential rally in the state. But the chairman, yesterday, was said to have blamed his travails on the second term ambition of Governor Seriake Dickson. It was learnt that Inokoba reported the development and his alleged persecution by Dickson to the Presidency. The plot to remove Inokoba gathered momentum, following the suspicions in Dickson’s camp that the chairman had displayed signs of disloyalty to the governor. Besides, the governor’s camp was said to have become uncomfortable with the chairman’s relationship with the First Lady, Dame Patience

• Governor’s aide: leave Dickson out of it From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

Jonathan, and other key elements of the anti-Dickson’s bloc. It was gathered that things fell apart finally between Inokoba and Dickson, following controversies on the choice of candidates that emerged at the party’s primaries. The fallout of the primaries, it was gathered, deepened the cold war between the chairman and the governor. To get the chairman out of the way, the governor’s camp was said to have mounted pressure on him to resign and pick a senatorial form during the primaries. An aide to the chairman, who spoke in confidence, said: “The governor has never trusted the chairman because he came from President Goodluck Jonathan. He believes that getting the chairman out of the way would enable him to have total control of the party. “He became more suspi-

cious of Inokoba when the crisis between him and the First Lady started. He is scared that Inokoba can easily succumb to the antics of presidential forces, who are bent on removing him.” The source denied the alleged diversion of N70 million, claimed by SWC members. “Yes, money was donated to the party by the minister. The minister gave specific instructions on how the money should be shared. The chairman simply obeyed the directive and distributed the money that way,” the source said. But a source close to the governor said Dickson had nothing to do with the problems rocking the SWC of the party, including the suspension of the chairman. He said the chairman’s problem was caused by a frosty relationship between him and SWC members. The source also said the governor had intervened without success to persuade the aggrieved committee members

to settle their misgivings with the chairman. He added: “It is a party affair. The governor begged members of the SWC to settle their problems with Inokoba but they refused. “Besides, they accused the chairman of failing to lead the party, including boycotting camping rallies organised to support PDP candidates in the next general elections.” But Inokoba insisted that it was beyond the powers of the party’s executive committee to decide his fate. Quoting copiously from Section 10 (7) of PDP Constitution, he said: “No executive committee at any level (state, local government and ward), except the National Executive Committee, shall entertain any question of discipline, sack or sanction as may relate or concern a member of the National Executive Committee. “By virtue of my position, I am a member of the NEC and the provision of the law is applicable to me.”

APC’ll fulfil promises to electorates, says Odubu

VER 100 members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Urhonigbe, Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State. Deputy Governor Pius Odubu and the APC Chairman in the local government, Chief Matthew Ehigie, received the defectors at a rally in Urhonigbe. APC held rallies at Idunmweka and Idunmwunehen, in

•Party chair receives more PDP defectors Urhonigbe South Ward, and Idunmwungo and Urhomehe, in Urhonigbe North. Ehigie said the March 28 and April 11 general elections were not about tribes or religions but about who can fix Nigeria. He said the cardinal objectives of APC included tackling corruption, creating jobs and reducing the high cost of living in Nigeria. The chairman noted that the

PDP government at the centre had failed Nigerians, adding that the calls for and the choice of General Muhammadu Buhari, the APC presidential flag bearer, were resonant among most Nigerians. Ehigie presented Samson Osagie as APC candidate for Edo South Senatorial District; Patrick Aisowieren, for the House of Representatives and Roland Asoro, for House of

Assembly. The chairman urged the electorate to vote for APC candidates to fast-track the development of Urhonigbe. The spokesmen for the defectors, Monday Osazuwa and Sunday Nowamagbe, said they joined APC as the winning party in the state. Ehigie assured the defectors of equal treatment with other members and gave them the

broom, APC’s symbol. After the campaign visit to Idunmwungo in Urhomgbe North Ward, Dr. Odubu also stopped at the residence of the Okaevbo of Urhonigbe, Pa Julius Aimuyo and his Urhomehe counterpart, Chief Manson Umweni Odubu where he obtained their support and blessing for the candidates. Also, Odubu said all APC candidates for the general elections had the requisite ability to deliver.

•Odubu

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

NEWS Aliyu bars deputy from council meetings From Jide Orintunsin, Minna

ESPITE repeated promises by Niger State Governor Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu that his deputy, Ahmed Musa Ibeto, who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would get his rights and privileges, the governor has excused Ibeto out of the State Executive Council (SEC) meetings. The governor, on Wednesday, in his opening remarks at the weekly council meeting in Minna, the state capital, said he would not chair the council meeting with Ibeto on seat. The governor accused his deputy of calling him a thief at one of the APC’s rallies. But a statement yesterday in Minna by his Chief Press Secretary, Israel Ebije, the governor said Ibeto sought and was granted permission to stay away from SEC meetings on moral grounds. The statement said Ibeto told the council that unless on very sensitive state matters, it would not be morally right for him to be in council when discussions are hinged on political matters, especially those that affect the ruling PDP and he begged to take his leave. But Ibeto faulted the statement, describing it as false. The deputy governor said he had got wind of a grand plan to send him out of the weekly SEC meetings. Ibeto said he gathered that Aliyu had decided not to have anything to do with him at the council again. He said: “It is not true that I excused myself. When I received notification for the council meeting of yesterday (Wednesday) I went as usual. But before the council started, the governor, in his opening remarks, said people and members of the executive council were aware that I had defected from the PDP to APC, adding that we had gone on campaigns round the state. “The governor said he had information and clips that I called him a thief and that he would not preside over the council where I sit.”

Kwara politicians urged to sign peace pact From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

HEAD of this year’s general elections, the Kwara State Security Council has urged the candidates seeking elective posts to sign a peace agreement with security agencies. This, the council said, would ensure peace and order before, during and after the elections. The Security Council, which comprises police, the Department of State Security (DSS), the army, paramilitary forces and traditional rulers, is headed by Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed. Police Commissioner Salihu Garba had decried the rising wave of political violence in the state.

•Beneficiaries at the launch of the Kaduna State and Bank of Agriculture N1 billion agricultural loan scheme in Kaduna ...yesterday PHOTO: NAN

Boko Haram recruiting fighters to disrupt polls, says Fed Govt

HE Federal Government yesterday said the Boko Haram sect has started massive recruitment of fighters in three Borno communities - Geidam, Mairi and Dupcha. The government said the plan is meant to disrupt the general elections. It urged Nigerians to support the military operations against insurgency in the Northeast. National Information Centre (NIC) Coordinator and National Orientation Agency’s (NOA’s) Direc-

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

tor-General Mike Omeri addressed reporters yesterday in Abuja on various national issues. The NOA chief explained that there was need for constant vigilance by security agencies and the public to effectively tackle insurgency. He said: “In the efforts to contain acts of insurgency in the Northeast and secure the area for the forthcoming general elec-

tions, the centre wishes to alert the public to very recent intelligence reports, which indicate a considerable movement of Boko Haram recruits from such locations as Geidam, Mairi and Dupcha (all in Borno State) to training camps within the general area.” Omeri stressed that previous attacks by insurgents, including the siege on Bama and Monguno military bases, were preceded by such massing up of fighters in training camps within the proposed targets. He said: “This recent de-

velopment, which points in the same direction, has also been alluded to by the Boko Haram group in its recent boast about having a 30,000 – 50,000 strong force to disrupt elections in Maiduguri.” The government released emergency telephone numbers the public could call to lodge complaints and report security breaches and related issues for prompt intervention. These numbers include 07057274630, 07057276432. among others.

NANS condemns soldiers’ siege to Tinubu’s home

HE National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has condemned the military siege to All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders’ homes. The union also warned President Goodluck Jonathan not to remove Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, saying he should be allowed to conclude the elections. Addressing reporters yesterday in Ikeja, Lagos, with other students’ leaders in the Southwest, NANS Vice President (External) Oluwatosin Ogunkuade described the postponed general elections from February

By Olamilekan Andu and Joseph Jibueze

14 and 28 to March 28 and April 11 as a coup. The students’ leader noted that there was more to the shift than meets the eye. Ogunkuade said: “We use this medium to admonish the Federal Government to stop the Nigerian Army from laying siege on the home of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as this is not decent in a democracy.” He also condemned the “reckless” political utterances by former Niger Delta militants, warning that the youth would not fold their hands and allow democracy

to be derailed. The students’ leader noted that it was illegal to deploy soldiers for political purposes, including providing security during elections. He said: “We are aware that there is a subsisting order from a Federal High Court in Sokoto State barring the military from interfering in elections and it remains sacrosanct until it is upturned by a higher court.” Referring to the audio revelation that soldiers were used to subvert the people’s will in Ekiti State, the NANS leader said the army could not be trusted to be non-partisan, having demonstrated its alliance with the ruling party. Calling for vigilance,

Ogunkuade said the security challenges facing Nigeria was not worse than those of Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Tunisia, Somalia, South Sudan and Ukraine, where elections were held “in the midst of civil armed struggle”. He added: “We urge all Nigerians to be vigilant, remain steadfast and forever patriotic. We must all be conscious of our environment and eschew violence in its ramification. We believe that the time for change in Nigeria is now.” The association said the postponement had exposed Nigeria to the most unpardonable ridicule, adding that it was even more embarrassing that countries that are as small as Chad were coming to Nigeria’s rescue.

Abiara to Amaechi: name pastors that collected money HE General EvangeAbiara said ministers of from Jonathan list Worldwide of God sacrifice a lot to pray

Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Prophet Samuel Kayode Abiara, has urged Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi to name the Christian leaders who allegedly collected money from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to campaign for President Goodluck Jonathan’s reelection bid. The cleric spoke yesterday at a programme organised by the CAC at Odo Owa, Kwara State, the birth place of the church’s founder, the late Apostle Jo-

By Adeola Ogunlade

seph Ayo Babalola. Abiara said there was no way the governor would have made such an allegation, being a man of integrity, without having the proof. The cleric said Amaechi was probably misquoted. He said: “I want to believe that the governor was misquoted by the press, because this not the first time a Muslim is contest-

ing for the Presidency in Nigeria. Moreover, we’ve had Muslims as presidents before. So, why the bribery allegation now?” The CAC leader noted that if the allegation was true, Amaechi should clarify issues and be more specific. He said the names of such people should be mentioned and published in the newspapers because “Nigerians would like to know to avoid speculations”.

for Nigeria’s peace and stability, adding that Christians were still praying for free and fair elections. He said: “God commands us to pray for the peace of Nigeria. No more, no less. We can boldly say that nobody motivated us to pray. We follow the biblical injunction, and the move of the Spirit of the Living God. “The authority of CAC is never biased about whoever God allows to occupy any position of authority.”

Wike lied against me, says Amaechi From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

IVERS State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Chief Nyesom Wike, lied against him to deceive the people. The governor said the insinuations about his administration’s expenditure by Wike were falsification of figures and “tales by the moonlight”. Amaechi, the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Director-General of Buhari Campaign Organisation, noted that the verbal attacks on him and his government by the former Minister of State for Education at rallies in Port Harcourt and Obio-Akpor Local Government Area were deceitful. The governor said Wike’s smear campaign had failed to tarnish his (Amaechi’s) sparkling image. He said: “He (Wike) should know by now that the people are not gullible and Nigerians should know that Wike is rather an embodiment of everything that is wrong with our country.” Amaechi, who spoke yesterday in Port Harcourt, through a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, David Iyofor, urged Rivers State residents and other Nigerians to disregard Wike’s outbursts against him. The governor said the PDP candidate was just desperate to score cheap political points by falsifying figures and spreading falsehood about his “enemies” because he had nothing to offer the people. The statement said: “That Amaechi runs a transparent and accountable administration has never been in doubt. Everything about the income and expenditures of this government is in the public domain and has never been shrouded in secrecy. So, Wike’s ignominious attempt to dish out cooked figures will never fly.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

FOREIGN NEWS

Al Jazeera journalists get bail in Egypt

WO Al Jazeera journalists sentenced to seven years in jail over alleged terrorism offences have been released on bail after spending more than a year behind bars in Egypt. Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed were imprisoned after being arrested alongside Australian reporter Peter Greste in Cairo in 2013. The men were convicted of spreading lies to assist a terrorist organisation, namely the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, and sentenced for to up to 10 years each. All three have maintained their innocence, claiming they were merely covering the fallout from the army’s removal of President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 at the time.

Last week Egypt’s highest court ordered a retrial into their case, claiming the prosecution had not presented firm ties between the defendants and the Brotherhood throughout the original trial. Greste was released from jail under at the order of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi citing a new law which allows the deportation of foreign prisoners. Neither Fahmy nor Mohammed was given the same fate, though both were released on bail at a court in Cairo this morning, the former ordered to pay $33,000. None of the other 11 defendants, mostly students, were ordered to pay the court any money. They are all Egyptian nationals. Upon his release this

morning, Fahmy’s fiancée Marwa Omara broke down in tears, weeping: ‘Long live justice.’ Following his imprisonment in December 2013, Fahmy applied to marry Miss Omara in prison. His release allows them to tie the knot, though his fiancée said she would not be entirely satisfied until her partner was acquitted. ‘I am very happy. It is a rebirth for me and Mohamed. ‘I am happy but my happiness is incomplete until he gets acquitted.’ Last week the 40-year-old journalist described the notion of retrial as ‘his worst nightmare’ in a statement released on his behalf. He is represented by international human rights lawyer Amal Clooney who was her-

self threatened with arrest in relation to the case last month. Mrs Clooney, who married Hollywood actor George Clooney last year, was warned against publishing a report which criticised the Egyptian judicial system. Her findings suggested the country’s courts were not sufficiently independent of its military. On January 15, a statement released on behalf of Mr Fahmy by Doughty Street Chambers, where Mrs Clooney works, highlighted the inability of the Canadian government to secure his release. The former CNN journalist, who has dual Canadian and Egyptian nationality, said: ‘My situation and the ongoing legal limbo that I am enduring affects all Canadi-

ans who are in the Middle East because it shows that anyone, regardless of how innocent, can become a victim of the political turbulence here. ‘And rest assured there will be other Canadians who will suffer like me as long as there is such injustice in this region. ‘Canada and Egypt have friendly relations and so I hope you will continue to advocate until the diplomatic process results in my release. ‘It is vital that Ottawa continues to engage with my lawyers Amal Clooney and Lorne Waldman at this critical stage of the negotiations so that my colleagues and I can achieve a smooth transition to freedom.’ Upon his release last week, Australian journalist Peter

•The Al jazeera journalists

Greste said he felt compelled to secure the men’s freedom. The men were arrested on December 29, 2013, accused of assisting the Muslim Brotherhood in their coverage of the aftermath of the ousting of President Morsi. They denied having any hand in terrorism, consistently claiming that they fulfilling their roles as journalists in reporting the conflict in Cairo.

Ukraine deal: West cautious, rebels victorious, civilians sceptical

ESTERN European leaders voiced cautious optimism after hammering out a Ukraine peace plan in Minsk yesterday, hailed as a great victory by pro-Russian rebels but met with scepticism by war-weary civilians. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was a driving force behind the negotiations, along with French President Francois Hollande, said she had “no illusions” and that “big hurdles” remained in ending the 10-month conflict. “We now have a glimmer of

‘Rebels strengthened by tanks, missiles from Russia’

KRAINE said yesterday that proRussian rebels had reinforced their positions with tanks and missile systems in east Ukraine while marathon four-nation talks were taking place the previous night. A deal reached at talks involving Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France envisages a ceasefire between Ukrainian forc-

hope,” she said in the Belarussian capital, adding that “concrete steps must of course be taken and there will still be big hurdles ahead”. “I have no illusions, we

es and Russian-backed separatists starting on Sunday, but all sides said there was a long way to go towards real peace. “The intensity of fighting is evidenced by a sharp increase in the number of people trying to leave front-line towns,” Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said in a daily briefing a few hours after the agreement was reached in Belarus.

have no illusions,” she said, adding that “much work” remained. Hollande said the deal included a “comprehensive political solution” and pro-

NEWS ‘I met 24 of the Chibok schoolgirls’ Continued from page 2

them are held in one place.” This is in line with earlier reports that the girls had been split up into smaller groups and dispersed across the region. Monica says that the “room” in which she was held with the Chibok girls was a shanty-style lean-to, its roof just polythene sheeting. After three days, she says she was moved to another part of the camp where she was held with more than 40 other women from across northern Nigeria, who, like her, had all been kidnapped. “Among them was one particular woman who they beat until she was bleeding all over her body because she refused to convert to Islam,” she said. “She eventually succumbed,” she said, her head bowed. Monica said she had refused repeated attempts to force her to convert. “They were really angry with me and shouted and screamed at me and called me ‘arney’” – an abusive term for “infidel” in the Hausa language. But she said that she had not been physically hurt by her captors. Her experience at their hands in the Sambisa camp, having been marched for two months through the bush, has left Monica shattered. “Every time I hear their name,” she said, “I shake with fear.” She said that the Boko Haram commander in the Sambisa camp was called Ibrahim Shekau, who she described as “assistant” to Abubakar Shekau, the appar-

ently deranged leader of the group. It is not known whether the two are related. Impenetrable terrain The camp, she said, was huge, and sprawled through almost impenetrably thick forest terrain. She said there were at least 1,000 women held captive there and thousands of rebel soldiers. “Most of the soldiers are out in the bush all the time, hunting others,” as she put it. They had guns and uniforms and many military vehicles, and there were access roads. Monica added that these roads allowed Boko Haram to bring tankers, carrying drinking water, into the camp. She said there was enough food, mostly looted from nearby villages by the rebels. “They even have grinding machines,” she said. “We had rice and we had corn. No meat, but sometimes there was fish.” It is known that there is military aerial surveillance of the Sambisa forest region, so the existence of many vehicles – including water-tankers – would suggest it would be possible to spot the camp from the air. I asked her whether she thought it would be possible for the Chibok girls to escape from Sambisa. “It would be very hard,” she said. Monica made her escape when she was driven out of the camp into the bush at night with her baby, for reasons that were not clear to her. She found herself miles from anywhere and started walking east, towards Gwoza. The journey took her several days, without food.

Her baby died somewhere along the way and Monica, now completely alone, said she was unable to bury the child. “I had to just leave his body in the bush,” she said. She spoke quietly and matterof-factly, but without obvious emotion. Most of her family is in a refugee camp in neighbouring Cameroon. Her husband is in Lagos, where he has found work as a bicycle taxi-driver. After reaching Gwoza, she says she kept walking all the way to Cameroon, where she tracked down her parents. She came to Abuja earlier this year with her younger brother, in the hope of meeting her husband, John, again. Within the past two weeks, Monica says she was interviewed and debriefed by Nigerian military intelligence after her story was made known to the authorities. She says that after hearing her personal account, “the military people asked me many questions about the Chibok girls. They vowed to me they would go to the Sambisa forest as soon as they possibly could.”

vided “serious hope, even if all is not done”. The next few hours would be critical to the deal, Hollande later said on arriving in Brussels for a European

Union summit. He added that it was essential to keep up pressure to ensure the accord’s success. “The next few hours will be decisive as it could go either way,” Hollande said. “We will have to remain vigilant, to maintain the pressure and to press ahead.” Merkel’s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said it represented neither “a comprehensive solution” nor a “breakthrough”. He said he welcomed the truce plan but “without any exuberance” since “it was a difficult birth”.

“For some it will not be enough. Also we would have wished for more,” he said, voicing hopes that both sides had negotiated “seriously and with good intentions”. British Premier David Cameron welcomed the new accord but said EU sanctions against Russia would remain in place until real change took place. “Vladimir Putin needs to know that unless his behaviour changes, the sanctions we have in place won’t be altered,” Cameron said.

Jonathan’s camp splits over anti-Buhari suits Continued from page 2

the North are shocked that those behind the applications are mostly from the Southeast and a negligible few from the Southsouth. They are seeing everything from the ethnic angle. “They also said the matters accounted for part of the reasons Jonathan is losing ground in the North because Northerners see it as signs of desperation.” Another source added: “Some of us believe those behind the suits do not mean well for the President. They should have taken cognizance of past pronouncements by the court on Adams Oshiomhole and Section 131, which says the minimum requirement is the ability to be able to read and write”. But a few others trying to please the President wanted the suits to be pursued to the logical conclusion. A member of the NWC said: “If some APC sympathisers can go to court to challenge the President on his right to second term, then we felt we must also place some

hurdles before Buhari. “Some of our leaders do not like these suits but we cannot stop our supporters who have genuine reasons to challenge Buhari’s eligibility. “This is politics. The onus is on Buhari to provide all necessary evidence.” A highly-placed source in the Presidency said: “To the best of our knowledge, these suits are mere distractions. This is why the Presidency has nothing to do with it. “Let me tell you, some of these applicants and their counsel have been advised by some government officials to drop the suits.” Responding to a question, the source added: “When these suits get to advanced stage, they may not get the required support from the government.” Section 131 says: “A person shall be qualified for election to the office of President if (a) he is a citizen of Nigeria by birth; (b) he has attained the age of forty (40) years; (c )he is a member of a political party; and (d) he has been educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equiv-

alent. “In Section 318, School Certificate or equivalent means (a) a Secondary School Certificate or its equivalent, or Grade II Teacher’s Certificate, the City and Guilds Certificate; or (b) education up to Secondary School Certificate level; or “(c) Primary Six School Leaving Certificate or its equivalent and (i) service in the public or private sector in the Federation in any capacity acceptable to the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) for a minimum of 10 years; and “(ii) attendance at courses and training in such institutions as may be acceptable to the Independent National Electoral Commission for periods totaling up to a minimum of one year, and “(iii) the ability to read, write, understand and communicate in the English Language to the satisfaction of the Independent National E l e c t o r a l Commission(INEC); and “(d) Any other qualification acceptable by INEC.”

Oyegun, Tinubu, Amaechi, Saraki under security watch Continued from page 2

take note of this growing pattern of harassment and intimidation of the opposition, and the effect such action will have on the conduct of the elections,’’ it said. APC thanked Nigerians for their immense and unwaring support, especially since the postponement of the elections which was aimed at

dampening the enthusiasm of the citizens, and urged them not to relent. The presidential and assembly elections will were slated for tomorrow and the governorship elections February 28. ‘’We are glad that instead of weakening the resolve and enthusiasm of Nigerians, the Presidency-or-

chestated postponement has further galvanised them to be more determined not only to vote but also to defend their votes,” APC said, adding: ‘’Nigerians must demand and insist that the elections be held as rescheduled, that there will be no interim government or tenure elongation. Nigerians have the

power to forge change with their voter’s cards and no one must deny them that right.’’ The APC urged President Jonathan to remember the verdict of history and put his dogs of war on a leash, realising that history will judge no one but him even for the actions of his supporters, who are all acting in his name.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

IN THE HIGH COURT OF LAGOS STATE OF NIGERIA PROBATE REGISTRY, LAGOS DIVISION

WHEREAS the person whose names are set-out in the first Column under died intestate on the date and place stated in the said Column. AND WHEREAS the person or persons whose names and addresses and relationship (if any) to the deceased are set out in the second Column here have applied to the High Court of Lagos State for a Grant of Letter of Administration of the Real and Personal Properties of the deceased. NOTICE IS HEREBY given that Letters of Administration will be granted to such persons unless a NOTICE TO PROHIBIT THE GRANT is filed in the registry within (14) days from the date hereof. S/N 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76.

NAMES OF THE DECEASED PERSON:

S/N

Mr. Olusegun Adesan. Late of 11, Mustapha Aluko Street, Igbogbo, Ikorodu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 11th day of February, 2010. Mr. Lasisi Okunade otherwise known as Mr. Lasisi Ademola Okunade. Late of 6, Olaniyi Street, Idi - Oro, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 16th day of August, 2014. Mr. Adegoke Adeyemi. Late of 11A, Hamzat Ibijonwo Street, Rofo Estate, 3rd Avenue, Odogunyan, Ikorodu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 21st day of August, 2014. Dr. Olurotimi Bajulaiye. Late of 44, Abosede Kuboye Crescent, Surulere, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 20th day of December, 2011. Aminu Vuba. Late of No. 59, Moshalashi Street, Obalende, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 26th day of August, 2014 at Lagos. Alafia Rasaki. Late of No. 50, Zoglo Way, Badagry, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 9th day of September, 2014. Dr. Anthony Bassey Attah. Late of 21B, Oju Olobun Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 23rd day of December, 2005. Onobrak peya Victoria. Late of 3G, Belingham Building, Milverton Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 16th day of November, 2013. Mrs. Fadairo Deborah Oluwabukola otherwise known as Fadairo Bukola. Late of Flat 12, Block I, K - Close, 22 Road, Festac Town, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 8th day of August, 2013. Richard Olaseinde Callisto. Late of No. 26, Omididun Street, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 15th day of March, 2010. Adebogun Kola otherwise known as Adebogun Kolawole Azeez. Late of 29, Araromi Street, Imota. Who died intestate on the 15th day of August, 2013. Mrs. Aniowo Blessing otherwise known as Miss Bridget Udoh Etuk. Late of 6, Ejire Street, Itire, Surulere, Lagos. Agbabiaka Abiodun Akanni Yinusa. Late of 3, Araromi Oke - Ode Close, Orile Iganmu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 4th day of April, 2010.. Mr. Agunbiade Akeeb Segun otherwise known as Agunbiade Akeeb Olusegun. Late of 13, Moses Adebayo Street, Ojodu Berger, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 3rd day of December, 2012. Ekiye Robert .O. otherwise known as Ogbokale Robert Ekiye. Late of 3, Unity Close, Alakuko, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 5th day of July, 2014. Madam Florence Nwazojie otherwise known as Florence Ekwutosi Nwazojie. Late of 1, Osadebe Street, Ogui New Layout, Enugu. Who died intestate on the 21st day of April, 2009. Ijaodola Sefiu Segun. Late of 28, Tunde Taiwo Street, Papa Epe, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 4th day of November, 2009. Adewopo Adedamola Sikiru otherwise known as Adedamola Adewopo Sikiru. Late of 23 Road, U Close, House 34, Festac Town, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 20th day of June, 2009. Mr. Nnaemeka Kenny Anyanwu. Late of 9, Oremeji Street, Alapere, Ketu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 5th day of April, 2013. Oni Joseph. Late of 123, Alhaji Amoo Street, Off Roju Avenue, Ojota, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 20th day of November, 2010. Amba Grace Raphael. Late of 6, Modupe Shita Street, Egbe - Kotun, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 20th day of May, 2014. Okorocha Kenneth. Late of 5B, Hassan Street, Afromedia Okokomaiko, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 30th day of October, 2012. Ulasi Christiana Uche. Late of 19, Prince Abiodun Adebambo Street, Egbeda, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 3rd day of June, 2012. Akinbami Samuel Olukayode. Late of 55, Adeoyo Street, Off Isolo Road, Mushin, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 22nd day of May, 2006. Mr. Akinsiku Francis Olabisi. Late of 4, Alhaji Arole Street, Ogudu, Ojota, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 1st day of February, 2013. Rufai Olaitan Abolanle. Late of 24, Dawodu Lane, Ebute - Metta, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 17th day of August, 2010. Mr. Adeosun Emmanuel. Late of 6, Balogun Square, Abule – Oja, Yaba Lagos. Who died intestate on the 6th day of January, 2009. Mr. Ashimi Jelili. Late of 12, Idiaba Street, Magbon, Ibeju, Lekki, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 21st day of September, 2014. Diya Samuel Abiodun otherwise known as Mogbolese. Late of 19, Daniel Oderhowoh Street, Ejigbo, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 22nd day of September, 2013. Pa. Adeola Alo. Late of 41, Agunbiade Street, Somolu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 11th day of May, 1987. Ugochukwu Emmanuel Ezenwankwo. Late of 240, Herbert Macaulay Road, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 16th day of December, 2010. Dr. Daikpor Michael otherwise known as Dr. Daikpor Michael Nasamo. Late of 12, Oluaji Segbede Street, Somolu Onipanu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 4th day of May, 2014. Mr. Maina Maman Maena otherwise known as Maina Maman (Mr.) Late of 36, Arufa Street, Agric, Ojo, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 30th day of September, 2014. Asuzu Catherine Ogechukwu. Late of 13, Ekwulobia Street, Onitsha South, L.G.A, Anambra State. Adeoti Steven Adeola. Late of No. 17, Igbeyin Adun Street, Orile, Iganmu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 25th day of March, 2014 at Lagos. Efetie Gideon Emoro. Late of No. 28, Adetola Street, Aguda, Lagos. Who died on the 4th day of January, 2013 at Lagos. Gabriel Olawale Oginni. Late of No. 82, Ogunmuyiwa Street, Ijeshatedo, Surulere, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 20th day of December, 2012. Mr. Fatai Oladosu Oladele. Late of 114 Road, 1st Avenue, Gowon Estate, Egbede, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 22nd day of August, 2014. Mr. Eric Okechukwu Njoku. Late of 8, Karounwi Avenue, Surulere, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 14th day of May, 2012. Lawal Rotimi. Late of No. 7, Araokanmi Street, Ipaja Ayobo, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 4th day of June, 2014 at Lagos. Mr. Idowu Isaac Adedipe. Late of No. 13, Mustapha Crescent, Baruwa Ipaja, Lagos. Who died on the 11th day of August, 2012 at Lagos. Mr. Nzeribe Anthony Jansen Nwanegbo. Late of No. 26, Awkuzu Street, Lekki , Phase 1, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 15th day of May, 2012 at Imo State. Sakirat Folasade Adepo otherwise known as Sakirat Ashake Folasade Adepo. Late of No. 8316 Sperry Court, Laurel, Maryland, USA. Who died intestate on the 4th day of January, 2010. Mr. Peter Enebeli Omoghene. Late of 244, Ojo Road, Ajegunle, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 2nd day of March, 2014. Alabi Kola Sule. Late of 17, Akinwunmi Street, Itire, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 30th day of May, 2014. Oluwatoyin Risikat Ogunkoya. Late of 66, Obalende Road, South West, Ikoyi, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 5th day of September, 2009. Elder Lawrence Ogunmola otherwise known as Ogunmolasuyi Lawrence Funmilayo. Late of 19, Shoremekun Street, Babalosha, Mushin, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 13th day of November, 2010. Mr. Ogunlana Yekinni Ayinde. Late of 2, Sobande Street, Akoka, Yaba, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 2nd day of January, 2012. Mr. Emmanuel Efe Eghobamien. Late of Winners Coperative Road, Ayobo, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 15th day of June, 2013. CPL Andrew Obenta (RTD) otherwise known as CPL Andrew Obenta. Late of Ogbadibo L.G.A, Benue State. Who died intestate on the 6th day of January, 2014. Faton Emmanuel. Late of Block 19, Plot 6, Unilag Estate, Ikorodu, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 2nd day of November, 2013. Biyaosi Rasheed Olayiwola. Late of 73, Soglo Way, Badagry, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 13th day of June, 2014. Mr. Innocent Edet Eduok. Late of 44, Yaya Crescent, Olodi Apapa, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 23rd day of July, 2014. Emmanuel Babalola Olojo. Late of D16, Isiba Street, Ilesa. Who died intestate on the 13th day of December, 1984. Abiodun Adeyemi. Late of 2, Cameroun Street, Mushin, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 8th day of November, 2012. Obi Chinedu Augustine. Late of 2, Bakare Yusuf Street, Isashi, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 8th day of September, 2014. Pa. Joseph Olatunbosun Falore. Late of 1st Avenue, 111 Road, F Close, Block 2, Flat 1, Festac Town, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 16th day of March, 2011. Abiodun Akerele .B. Late of 15, Ogunlana Drive Surulere, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 2nd day of March, 2014. Dr. Daniel S.O. Gbenebitse. Late of Block F, Flat 6, Road B, LUTH Compound, Idi - Araba, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 13th day of December, 2010 at Lagos. Mrs. Ifeoma Ugbekile (Nee Omole) otherwise known as Ifeoma Judith Omole. Late of No. 2, Sinatu Lane Soluyi, Gbadaga, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 25th day of September, 2012. Mrs. Mary Pius Ayo. Late of No. 25, Olaiya Street, Makoko, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 8th day of November, 2014 at Lagos. Mr. Edwin Obunike Oneafolu. Late of Edoji Uruagu Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State. Who died intestate on the 11th day of September, 1998 at Edoji, Anambra State. Mrs. Serifatu Ajoke Ade Banjoko - Ibirogba ( Nee Alaga). Late of No. 9, Odepele Street, Ijebu - Ode, Ogun State. Who died intestate on the 6th day of September, 1996 at Ijebu - Ode. Mr. Edward Akindele Leigh. Late of No. 10, Akin Leigh Crescent, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 4th day of November, 2013 at Lagos. Mrs. Anna Adekunle. Late of No. 16, New Transformer, Oke - Odan, Isashi, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 11th day of January, 2013 at Lantoro, Abeokuta, Ogun State. Mr. Adams Musiliu otherwise known as Mr. Musiliu Oyebisi Adams. Late of No. 34, Igbobi Sabe Street, Yaba, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 3rd day of December, 2011 at Lagos. Mrs. Julianah Alabi. Late of No. 6, Sultan Bello Street, Agric, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 16th day of March, 2013. Abdul Rasaki Owolabi otherwise known as Mr. Abdul. Late of 10, Pashi Street, Off Aroloya, Lagos Island, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 1st day of March, 2014. Bello Atinuke. Late of No. 14, Ramoni Street, Off Lawanson Road, Surulere, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 25th day of December, 2012 at Lagos. Fasanya Yewande Latifat. Late of No. 52, Yusuf Eri Folami Street, Ago Palace Way, Okota, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 22nd day of August, 2014. Abubaka Mohammed Hamidu otherwise known as Abubakar .M. Hamidu. Late of No. 77, Odo Street, Off Keffi Road, Obalende, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 1st day of August, 2012. Ubom Mfon Thomas otherwise known as Mfon Thomas Uban. Late of 55, Brickfield Road, Ebute - metta, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 14h da of November, 2014. Nwaodu Augustine. Late of No. 6, Dispensary Street, Amukoko, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 18th day of August, 2013, at Lagos. Johnbull Akorede Mayegun. Late of No. 6, Oyerinde Street, OlodiApapa, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 30th day of April, 2014. Mrs. Ezeala Chidinma. B. otherwise known as Ezeala Chidinma Beatrice. Late of No. 1/3, Waheed Akanni Street, Okota, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 20th day of May, 2014, Lagos. Mrs. Mojisola Agnes Coker. Late of 11A, Alhaji Bankole Crescent, Ikeja, Lagos. Who died intestate on the 9th day of November, 2009.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76.

NAMES OF APPLICANT APPLYING FOR THE GRANT

Mrs. Mariam Adesan and Miss Yetunde Adesan. Both of 11, Mustapha Aluko Street, Igbogbo, Ikorodu. Widow and daughter to the deceased. Mrs. Musilimat Okunade and Mr. Rasheed Abiodun Okunade. Both of 6, Olaniyi Street, Idi - Oro, Lagos. Widow and one of the children to the deceased. Mrs. Funmi Adegoke and Mr. Williams Adekunle Adegoke of 11A, Hamzat Ibijonwo Street, Rofo Estate, 3rd Avenue, Odogunyan, Ikorodu, Lagos and No. 1, Sakau Oriola Street, Off Awolowo Street, Oworosoki, Lagos. Widow and brother to the deceased. Mrs. Adesuwa .T. Bajulaiye , Mr. Akinyemi O. Bajulaiye, Mr. Temitope .O. Bajulaiye and Dr. ( Mrs.) Moyosore .W. Adejumo. All of 90, Victory Blvd, New Rochelle, New York. Widow, sons and sister to the deceased. Suleiman Digwa , Mr. Bello Vuba and Mr. Mohammed Vuba of No. 60, Odo Street, Obalende, Lagos and No. 59, Moshalashi Street, Obalende, Lagos. Brother and brother-in-law to the deceased. Alafia Lukman Ishola and Alafia Safuri Tijani. Both of No. 50, Zoglo Way, Badagry, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Janeen Attah Nwokennaand Mrs. Wendy Angela Attah of 3, Harewood , Rickmansworth, U.K. and 1, Croft Close, Chipper field, U.K. Daughter and widow to the deceased. Mrs. Rose Odiri Sawyerr and Pastor Julie Maduka of 3G, Belingham Building, Milverton Estate, Agunyi Ikoyi, Lagos. Two of the children to the deceased. Mr. Joshua Oyewole Fadairo and Mr. Abiodun Emmanuel. Both of Plot 913A, Cavera 14 Road, Off Cavera 63 Road, 6th Avenue, Festac Town, Lagos. Widower and brother to the deceased. Quirina .O. Oduwole, Miss Angela Korede Callisto, Mr. Gerald .O. Callisto and Mr. Fatai Olasheni Ojikutu. All 26, Omididun Street, Lagos. Children, brother and close relation to the deceased. Mrs. Rabiu Adenike (Nee Adebogun) and Adebogun Soji Johnson. Both of 23, Ladega Street, Ikorodu, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mr. Alphonsus Isaiah Aniowo and Victor Inyang . bothof 6, Ejire Street, Itire, Surulere, Lagos. Widower and son to the deceased. Agbabiaka Opeyemi .K. and Omowale Agbabiaka. Both of 3, Araromi Oke Ode Close, Orile Iganmu, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Miss Oluwaseyi Agunbiade and Shamsondeen Babatunde Agunbiade. Both of 13, Moses Adebayo Street, Ojodu Berger, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Evelyn Ekiyeand Miss Prere. Both of 18, Odofin Street, Off Boundary Road, Ajegunle, Lagos. Sister and daughter to the deceased. Osita Albert Nwazojie and Leonard Chiedu Nwazojie. Both of 1, Osadebe Street, Ogui, New Layout, Enugu and HSE, Raz, 7th Avenue, Sunny Dale House, Abuja, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Atinuke Ijaodola, Adebola Ijaodola, Babatunde Ijaodola and Saheed Ijaodola. All of 28, TundeTaiwo Street, Papa, Epe, Lagos. Widows and children to the deceased. Mrs. Veronica Adetola Adewopo (Nee Dosumu), Mrs. Rachael Taiwo Adewopo and Muyideen Akinide Adewopo. All of 23rd , U Close, House 34, Festac Town, Lagos. Widow and brother to the deceased. Miss Judith Chianaka Anyanwu and Mrs. Christiana Onachukwu Nweze of 9, Oremeji Street, Alapere, Ketu, Lagos and 121, Isolo Road, Mushin, Lagos. Sister and counsel to the deceased. Oni Adekunle Damilola of 123, Alhaji Amoo Street, Off Roju Avenue, Ojota, Lagos. Son to the deceased. Pastor Raphael Amba and Mr. Stephen Raphael Amba. Both of 6, Modupe Shita Street, Ikotun Egbe, Lagos. Widower and son to the deceased. Esther Okorocha and Nkechi Okorocha. Both of 5B, Hassan Street, Afromedia, Okokomaiko, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Juliana Ulasi and Mr. Jude Ulasi. Both of 19, Prince Adebambo Street, Egbede, Lagos. Mother and brothers to the deceased. Akinbami Victoria Mobolajiand Foluke Olayinka Ogunyemi. Both of 55, Adeoyo Street, Mushin, Lagos. Widow and child to the deceased. Mrs. Akinsitu Bola Olaitan, Mr. Akinsiku Olawale Temidayo and Mr. Akinsiku Segun Busayo. All of 4, Alhaji Arole Street, Ogudu, Ojota, Lagos. Widow and children to the deceased. Rufai Toib Yomi and Mrs. Olowo Franscisca . Both of 24, Dawodu Lane, Ebute - Metta, Lagos. Widower and children to the deceased. Mr. Adeosun Oladipupo and Miss Adeosun Moturayo. Both of 12, Davies Street, Abule - Oja, Yaba, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Latifat Ashimi and Hassan Ashimi. Both of 10, Idiaba Street, Magbon, Alabe, Ibeju Lekki, Lagos. Widow and child to the deceased. Gbokoyi Abosede Oyebowale and Diya Olalekan Funwa of 15, Olufowobi Street, Lawanson and 19, Daniel Oderhowoh Street, Ejigbo, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Adewunmi Adeola and Bosede Adeola. Both of 41, Agunbiade Street, Somolu, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Michael Ezenwankwo and Chukwudi Ezenwankwo. Both of 240, Herbert Macaulay Road, Lagos. Father and brother to the deceased. Mrs. Lilian Bulouebiere Daikpor, Mr. John Kememopigha Daikpor and Miss Theresa Ebimoboere Daikpor. All of 12, Oluaji Segbede Street, Somolu, Palmgroove, Lagos. Widow and children to the deceased. Alhaja Ajala Maina and Mr. Isah Maina. Both of 36, Arufa Street, Agric Ojo, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Mrs. Okpala Afoma and Mrs. Ogochukwu Euptemia Aka - Okafor. Both of 39, Hospital Road, Olodi Apapa, Lagos. Children to the deceased.. Mrs. Alarape Ibidun Adeoti and Adeoti Andrew Adegboyega. Both of No. 17, Igbeyin Adun Street, Orile, Iganmu, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Mr. Emoro Herebe Efetie, Mrs. Edna .C. Udobong (Nee Eguh), Miss Tanoh .L. Efetie and Mr. Riume Efetie. All of No. 28, Adetola Street, Aguda, Surulere, Lagos. Children and niece to the deceased. Engr. Omotunde Oginni, Mrs. Olufunmilayo Alalade and Mrs. Adenike Aluko of Plot 1, Giwa Estate, Alakia Ibadan, No. 10, Joseph Akinyemi Ola Balogun, Ikorodu, Lagos and No. 4, AjibolaAluko Street, Ayobo, Lagos. Brother and children to the deceased. Mr. Ayoola Abubakar Oladele and Mrs. Helen Oladele. Both of 114 Road, 1st Avenue, Gowon Estate, Egbeda, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Mrs. Dorothy Njoku and Miss Chidima Njoku . Both of 8, Karounwi Avenue, Surulere, Lagos. Widow and daughter to the deceased. Lawal Wasiu and Lawal Lateef. Both of No. 7, Cardoso Street, Mushin, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Isreal Babajide Adedipe, Adekunle Adedipe and Taiwo Adedipe. All of No. 13, Mustapha Crescent, Baruwa, Ipaja, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Nkeiru Obi (Mrs.) and Chinedu Anosike (Mrs.) of No. 26, Awkuzu Street, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos and 5th Avenue, H1 Close , Block 1, Flat 5, Festac Town, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Adeniyi Adepo and Zainab Adedapo. Both of Block 147, Flat 4 , L.S.D.P.C , Housing Estate, Mile 2, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Dr. Peter Omoghene and Engr. Patrick Omoghene .both of 244, Ojo Road, Ajegunle, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Latifat Alabi and Toyin Alabi. Both of 17, Akinwunmi Street, Itire, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Suliat Adeola Ogunkoya and Bolade Susan Afe. Both of 66, Obalende Road, South - West, Ikoyi, Lagos and Block 3, 23 Road, Festac Town, Lagos. Daughter and family friend. Mrs. Rachael Olubunmi Osunsami and Mr. Kehinde Ogunmola. Both of 3, Jinadu Street, Mushin, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Oluwatoyin Oladejo, Mr. Bolaji Ogunlana, Mr. Alade Ogunlana and Mrs. Taibat Fetuga. All of 2, Shobande Street, Akoka, Yaba, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Elizabeth .O. Eghobamien and Mr. Samuel .O. Eghobamien. Both of PTC, Phase 3, Winners CoporateEstate, Ibefun, Ayobo, Lagos. Mother and son to the deceased. Andrew Alechenu Emmanuel and Obenta Peter Okewu. Both of 14, Ola - Olude Adekola Street, Oworonsoki, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Faton Sewanu Ayomide and Faton Seyon Meshark. Both of Block 19, Plot6, Phase 2, Unilag Estate, Igbokin, Ikorodu, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mr. Biyaosi Mustapha Olalekan and Mr. Biyaosi Sheriff Olarewaju. Both of 23, Akapo Street, Alaba International, Market, Ojo, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Innocent Uduak and Mr.Innocent Ofonime Eduok. Both of 44, Yaya Crescent, Olodi Apapa, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Olajide Olojo and Tolani Taiwo . both of D16, Isiba Street, Ilesa. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Banke Adeyemi and Adepeju Adeyemi. Both of 2, Cameroun Street, Mushin, Lagos. Widow and daughter to the deceased. Anthony Obi (Mr.) and Maria Obi (Mrs.). both of 2, Bakare Yusuf Street, Isashi, Ojo, Lagos. Father and mother to the deceased. Mrs. Felicia Ajike Falore and Mr. Olatunji Falore Joseph. Both of 1st Avenue, 111 Road, ‘F’ Close, Block 2, Flat 1, Festac Town, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Mrs. Sulola Akerele and Olusegun Akerele.Both of 8, Obadeyi Close, Ikoyi, Lagos. Mother and brother to the deceased. Mrs. Omadeli Doris Gbubemi Gbenebitse, Mr. Temisan Gbenebitse Daniel. Both of No. 17, Chief Onitolo Street, Off Rasaq Balogun Street, Surulere, Lagos. Widow and one of the children to the deceased. Friday Ugbekile and ChukwumaUgbekile .both of No. 2, Sinatu Lane, Soluyi, Gbagada, Lagos. Widower and brother to the deceased. Pius Suru Stephen and Mosun Sowemimo. Both of No. 13, Olaiya Street, Makoko, Lagos. Son and sister to the deceased. Mrs. Oneafolu Salome Chibunoand Mr. Oneafolu Stanley Chike. Both of No. 8, Olubunmi Street, Ire-Akari, Phase 11, Isolo, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Oluwalanke Omowunmi (Nee Ibirogba) and Omolara Ibirogba. Both of No. 5, Kola Ibirogba Street, Federal Housing Estate, Aboru, Iyana Ipaja, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Mrs. Audrey Adenike Leigh, Mrs. Christiana Olurotimi Iweze (Nee Leigh), Mrs. Helen Oluwatoyin Oshinbolu (Nee Leigh) and Mr. Edward Akindele Leigh JNR. All of No. 10, Akin Leigh Crescent, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos. Widow and children to the decased. Adekunle Adebayo and Adekunle Adeola. Both of No. 16, New Transformer, Oke Odan, Isashi, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Alhaja Shukurat Masha, Alhaja Salawat Oyetayo Idowu and Mrs. Morusuko Sola Olodo of No. 1, Sheikh Masha Oshinlokun Street, Ajah, Lagos, No. 20, Elias Avenue, Langbasa Ajah, Lagos and No. 53, Okesuna Street, Lagos. Younger sister and daughters to the deceased. Alabi Kofoworola, Alabi Omoniyi and Alabi Damilare. All of 6, Sultan Bello Street, Owutu, Agric, Ikorodu, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Miss Abdul - Rasaki Halimot and Mrs. Abdul Rasaki Olushola Aina. Both of 10, Pashai Street, Off Aroloya, Lagos Island, Lagos. Widow and child to the deceased. Bello Sunday Morufu and Bello Oluwasimisola Aminat. Both of No. 14, Ramoni Street, Off Lawanson, Road, Surulere, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Fasanya Oluseyi and Adegboyega Oluwaseyi . Both of No. 52, Yusuf Erin Folami Street, Ago Palace Way, Okota, Lagos. Widower and cousin of the deceased. Safura Abubakar and Sodiq Abubakar. Both of No. 77, Odo Street, Off Keffi Road, Obalende, Lagos. Widow and son to the deceased. Ubong Asuquo Thomas and Ime Asuquo Thomas. Both of No. 55, Brickfield Road, Ebute - metta, Lagos. Children to the deceased. Chikwadu Nwaoduand Nduibisi Nwaodu. Both of No.38, Mba Street, Ajegunle Apapa, Lagos. Two of the children to the deceased. Miss. Mary Ikueyi Minone and Mr. Monday Olanrewaju Ikueyi Minone. Both of 6, Oyerinde Street, Olodi Apapa, Lagos. One of the children and brother to the deceased. Mr. Chris Nnadozie Ezealaof No. 1/3, Waheed Akanni Street, Okota, Lagos. Widower to the deceased. Engr. Jacob Akinwale Coker, Mr. Olubiyi Okeola Coker and Mrs. Adetokunbo Ademola Sotunde. All of 11A, Alhaji Bankole Crescent, Ikeja, Lagos. Widower and children to the deceased.

E.O. OGUNDARE (MR) PROBATE REGISTRAR

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SPORT EXTRA

Be valiant flag bearers, LMC urges clubs C

LUBS campaigning for the country in continental competitions have been urged by the

League Management Company (LMC) to be good ambassadors and flag bearers of the ever-improving Nigeria

Professional Football League. Kano Pillars and Enyimba International are campaigning for the CAF Champions League cup, while Dolphins and Warri Wolves are in the CAF Confederation Cup competition. All the clubs are engaged in the first leg of the qualifying rounds this weekend. A statement from the office of the Chairman of the LMC, disclosed that towards supporting the clubs and the two junior national teams that are billed to play in continental tournaments to excel in their respective competitions, the LMC would be remitting the sum of N2m to each of the teams as players’ bonus to facilitate their preparations and encourage the players to give their best. The LMC therefore urged the teams to convert the gains of the pre-season Glo Premier League Super-4 tournament to excellent performance in their respective fixtures in the CAF Club competitions and

African Championships. “We wish our clubs and the two junior national teams well in their outings beginning this weekend and also offer our support to inspire the players to excellent performance, building on the benefits of the Glo Premier League Super-4 which was organized to prepare them for the continental engagements”, the LMC said. All the four clubs representing the country participated in the Glo Premier League Super-4 Tournament in Abuja which also featured two junior national teams, the National U-23 team and the National U-20 team from Saturday, January 24 to Sunday February 1. “We are also aware that your needs are more than what has been offered but we expect that the respective proprietors will continue to play their roles and equip you adequately to be good ambassadors and flag bearers of your fans, the league and Nigerian football generally”, the statement concluded.

Pomp as Eaglets arrive Niamey

IGERIA'S Under-17 team, Golden Eaglets, Thursday arrived safely in Niamey for the 11th African Under-17 Championship and

were given a royal welcome by members of the local-based Nigeria Football Supporters Club. Flag-waving members of the NFSC led by their chairman, Sidney Sunday Ubanna, rode in a motorcade with the team to their new abode in Niamey , Palace Royale Hotel , where accommodation had been reserved for the team. The Nigerians assured the total support for the team throughout their stay in Niamey. A representative of the Nigerian Ambassador to Niger, who was unavoidably absent, was also at the hotel to welcome the team. "Some of us were actually in Sokoto yesterday when you played the friendly match against Fasbir and we were really impressed with the performance of the boys," said Sidney."We are also expecting more of our members and we are going to support the team all the way at this championship." Meanwhile, Coach Emmanuel Amuneke on arrival, told the players to remain focussed about the assignment at hand "We thank God we arrived safely here in Niamey and we have to remain focussed in the next two weeks in order to achieve our objectives," he said. "We are here for business and by the grace of God; it shall be well with us here in Niamey." In the meantime, the team would train twice on Friday and once on Saturday to strategise for their first match. The Golden Eaglets would open their Niger 2015 account with the championship's opening fixture against the host, Niger on Sunday at the Stade Général Seyni Kountché (SGSK) multi-purpose stadium. They are drawn in Group A where they would also play Guinea and Zambia on February 18 and 21 respectively. The Championship holds between February 15 and March 1 with the semi-finalists to represent the continent at the 2015 FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Chile in October.

THE NATION FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015

SPORT EXTRA

Fenerbahce coach hails ‘brilliant’ Emenike F

ENERBAHCE head coach, Ismail Kartal, has heaped praise on Emmanuel Emenike, following the striker's performance against Rizespor. Fenerbahce secured their spot in Last 16 of the Turkish with a 4-1 victory on Thursday

evening. The Super Eagles has bagged three goals in all competitions this season for Kartal's side but the manager insists he is not worried if Emenike scores or not if he continues to perform like he did on Wednesday evening. “If Emenike keeps playing like this I do not mind if he scores

or not because he really does work hard for the team,” Kartal was quoted as saying by Sporx. “Emenike was brilliant, I want to congratulate him and the team,” The Yellow Canaries are currently second in the Turkish Super Lig, one point behind leaders, Besiktas.

• Flying Eagles with their trophy after being crowned Champions of Glo Super 6 in Abuja recently

Muhammed, Awoniyi lead Flying Eagles to Ghana

IGERIA U20 team, the Flying Eagles, have named 22 players for two warm-up games against their Ghanaian counterparts. The team to be led by skipper Musa Muhammed, is made up of players who won the FIFA U17 world Cup in UAE two years ago. They include goalkeeper Sunday Alampasu, Akinjide Idowu, Abdullahi Alfa, Zaharadeen Bello, Samuel Okon, Musa Yahaya, Chidera Ezeh and Taiwo Awoniyi. Others in the squad are goalkeeper Joshua Enaholo, Obinna Nwobodo, Ifeanyi Ifeanyi, Ifeanyi Matthew, Abdullahi Ibrahim Alhassan aka ‘Mu-azam’. Both the Flying Eagles and the Black Satellites are prepar-

ing for next month’s African Youth Championship in Senegal. The first test match between the two rival West African countries, will be played on Saturday and a second match is fixed for Wednesday. The Flying Eagles will depart for Ghana ooday via Lagos and return to the country on Thursday, February 19. THE SQUAD: GOALKEEPERS: Joshua Enaholo, Sunday Alampasu, Olorunleke Ojo DEFENDERS: Musa Muhamed, Zaharadeen Bello, Izu Omego, Mustapha Abdullahi, Samuel Okon, Abdulganiyu Saheed MIDFIELDERS: Ifeanyi Matthew, Ifeanyi Ifeanyi, Akinjide Idowu, Obinna

GOTV to air more sports

FRICA’S biggest football tournament has come and gone, leaving you craving for a littlebit more field action, but there is no need for anxiety. SuperSport and GOtv have you covered with a variety of exciting sporting contentfrom the topleagues in Europe tobasketball, athletics and boxing, live on SuperSport Select 2. Throughout February, gear up to see the best teams go head to head to be crowned “Europe’s NO1 team”.Arsenal vsMiddlesbrough, Crystal Palace vs Liverpool, PSG vs Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur vs Fiorentina, are just some of the games that you can look forward to live on GOtv Plus. From the 13 – 15 February, basketball fans are in for a treat with the AllStar weekend. Dubbed an e n t e r t a i n m e n t

showstopper, the All Star weekend comprises of a range of basketball events, exhibitions, and performances, culminating in the spectacular All Star Game - West Coast vs East Coast. Now that’s a slam dunk! On the 21 February, the world’s top runners will take to the streets of Tokyo for the Tokyo Marathon and we bring you the highly anticipated world middleweight championship fight between Martin Murray and Gennady Golovkin in Monte-Carlo. And there is more! Coming up in March; theCapital One Cup Final betweenChelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur, the UEFA Europa League, the FA Cup Quarter Final and the IAAF Cross Country Championship in Guiyang, China. GO for the best sports variety on SuperSportSelect2 on GOtv.

Nwobodo, Musa Yahaya, Bernard Bulbwa, Abdullahi Alfa STRIKERS: Taiwo Awoniyi, Abdullahi Ibrahim Alhassan, Usman Hassan, Chidera Ezeh, Abubakar Lawal, Wasiu Jimoh.

2nd Bomarah Foundation Cup kicks off Feb 14

HE second edition of Bomarah Foundation Cup 2015 for Under 14 Boys and Under 16 Girls will kick off on Saturday, February 14th, 2015. According to the organisers, 16 male teams and eight female teams are expect to participate in the competition which will hold its preliminary games at the Ojo –Oniru Sports Center, Ebute Meta and White Sand, Orile. The finals will however hold on the 25th of March 2015 at the Kirikiri Maximum Prison field, Lagos. A total of N740, 000 (Seven Hundred and Forty Thousand naira) will be won at this year’s edition of the tournament. A breakdown showed the same price money for the Under-14 boys and the Under-16 girls. The winner of each category will be rewarded with the sum of N150, 000, second placed team will get N100,000, while the third and fourth placed team will go home with N70,000 and N50,000 respectively. Sponsor of the tournament, CEO of Bomarah Group and Chairperson Bomarah Foundation-Hajia Bola Muse promised to sustain the competition, a way of giving back to the community, where she has benefitted from. Organisers of the competition, Lagos State Grassroot Soccer Association while commending Hajia Muse for her commitments, promised to continue to use competition such as this to discover promising Nigeria football stars.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL.10 NO. 3124

TODAY IN THE NATION ‘This year, we birth the truth, or learn to silence it, as usual. I could plead that we summon our will to defend the interests of our people and State but that would be tantamount to imploring the pirate to pilfer riotous raindrops from the Pacific, wouldn’t it?’ OLA TUNJI OL OLADE OLATUNJI OLOLADE

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

In the name of security Citizen voters must bow As jittery candidates scared of losing Reboot their flailing campaign

T is now abundantly clear that a sleazy security cabal has the President’s back in his assault on democratic values. What is particularly galling is the matter-of-fact manner in which this latest scheme was executed and the insult on our collective intelligence that it represents. The National Security Adviser flew the kite in London. Citizens’ reaction was instantaneous and overwhelmingly against election postponement. The government itself came up with a rebuttal. This was only a calculated dishonest response. The presidency knew that Sambo was delivering its message. It is that Machiavellian deceptive attitude we have come to identify with this presidency for which politics is the jewel of accomplishment. Attending mega churches during election is not to campaign but to thank Christian brethren praying for the nation. Publicly lamenting state government decisions not to sponsor pilgrims to Jerusalem is not a subtle appeal for Christian votes; it’s only encouraging those governments to rethink. And not calling to order supporters who threaten hell fire should he lose the election doesn’t encourage them; it only acknowledges free speech. Every time that an aide makes some pronouncement on behalf of the President, my heart aches. How does Nigeria get to this sorry pass? We were there before and 2015 is now looking very much like a replay of 1965 and 1983. I have just been informed that security agents arrested top leaders of APC in Okeho, Oyo State. Governor Abiola Ajimobi had led his campaign to Oke-Ogun. After he left Okeho, some unknown miscreants vandalised the President’s campaign posters. But someone must pay for the crime. The police therefore arrested and detained Okeho APC leaders in Ibadan for two days. They were lucky. In 1965 during the heat of the Western Region election, Honourable Atioro representing Shaki visited Okeho. Shortly before he left town, there was a scuffle between his followers and some NNDP members. It happened in front of my house. After Atioro and his boys left for Shaki, my father and other Action Group leaders were arrested, detained and charged to court in Ibadan. It was the coup of 1966 that saved them from prison. And in 1982, a friend of my father

HE fountainhead of our corruption is traceable to the spiritual corruption flowing out from Aso Rock…when a man is afflicted with spiritual corruption, he corrupts everything around him. He prefers to bring near himself, men who are tainted and morally depraved, and easily blackmailed or manipulated… one of the ugliest attributes of the spiritually corrupt is greed. Greed for power… Chief Sunday Awoniyi, pioneer chairman of PDP in a speech to Northern senators in 2005 The spirits of Aso Rock Despite reassurances carefully handed out by President Goodluck Jonathan during the President Chat last Wednesday, the auguries are still dim. He had assured Nigerians that he would hand over power if he was defeated in the coming elections; he vowed that there was no plan to sack INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega and that he would not sack him. Notably, he said: “The rumour that I will not hand over or that I am scheming to prolong my tenure are insinuations; they are not true…it is quite unfortunate that so much wrong information is floating in the system.” Yes, President Jonathan may have doused some of the tension in the polity, but one has been around long enough to read the emerging trends and to doubt whether in spite of his words, is the man of the moment in Aso Rock, not marching down the same road to Golgotha that almost all his predecessors trod? My apprehension follows from the above quote from Chief Awoniyi, the late Aro of Mopa, among the last true statesmen to grace this land. He was speaking about the then occupant of the Presidential Villa, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. One also speaks from experience having reported (as a journalist) all previous occupants of Aso Rock from inception and witnessing nearly all of them go bad and leaving in ignominy. From the first, Ibrahim Babangida; to Ernest Shonekan, Sani Abacha, Abdulsalami Abubakar,

SEGUN GBADEGESIN gbadegesin@thenationonlineng.net

In the name of security was killed by a leader of the NPN protesting taxation. Nothing happened to the killer. Every community has a story to tell about the rot in our system of policing, and the politicisation of the police in aid of the central ruling party. IGP Abba is not a different species. For those of us •Dr. Jonathan who have been victims of police partisanship, therefore, what is happening is a cruel reminder of the past that should be tossed in the dustbin of history. And when some cowardly commentators hiding behind pseudonyms question our integrity even when in the performance of a labour of love since 2006, I write out of conviction without asking for payment in cash or kind, without receiving contracts from any government, what can one do but to ask for God’s mercy upon them and their ilk? We have now reached a new low with the politicisation of the armed forces. Who would have thought that after the near collapse of the institution of the military between 1993 and 1998, our men and women in uniform would be toying again with the fire of shame and ignominy? Since 1998, there appears to have been a deliberate effort to give the military a new lease of life and apart from some random cases of individual acts of indiscipline in public, the institution seemed to have held its own. That is until now. Our military is now firmly in the corner of the President with its resources of men and equipment in the service of the ruling party. Evidence 1. Ekiti leaked tape. Evidence 2. Service chiefs’ letter to INEC.

The leaked tape from the Ekiti election is a clear case of official abuse of power. I pity the hapless Brigadier-General, who was humiliated by political warlords on a mission. Will there be an investigation? Hell No! The President has nominated as Minister Musiliu Obanikoro, former Minister of State for Defence, who resigned his position to contest the Lagos State PDP primary, and who has been implicated heavily in this sordid affair of conspiracy to influence the outcome of democratic elections. The nomination, coming two weeks before the original date of the elections and barely four months to the end of his presidency, calls into question again the thinking of the President and the rationale behind it? Is it for Obanikoro to have an official standing to repeat his Ekiti feat in the general elections? Or is it a signal to us that there will be no elections and the President is going nowhere? In any case, it is now up to the Senate to conduct a proper investigation of the tapes and to ascertain the involvement of the nominee in the Ekiti electoral heist. For the Senate to grant Obanikoro confirmation hearing without a preliminary investigation is to shirk its constitutional responsibility. With regard to their derailment of the elections, there are urgent questions for the service chiefs and the NSA to answer: First, did they or did they not confirm few days before their February 6 letter to INEC that they were ready to provide security for the elections on February 14 and 28? Second, if the answer to the first question is yes, when did it occur to them that they were no longer in a position to provide security for the elections? What was the basis of this new realisation? Third, Professor Jega reported that the new operation against Boko Haram was to begin on February 14. Does it make sense to disclose

STEVE OSUJI

EXPRESSO

steve.osuji@yahoo.com

•Columnist of the Year (NMMA)

Will Jonathan postpone Nigeria? Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Yar’Adua and now Goodluck Jonathan. Speaking of Aso Rock, “spiritual corruption” and damaged leaders, there was a longstanding rumour that interred in the very foundation of Aso Rock during its construction, were evil sacrifices. Besides, every occupier was said to have implanted, his own fetish ‘fortifications’. So even though our presidents have been either Muslims or Christians, their professed faith were merely ceremonial and for photo opportunities. In other words, each one of them reportedly had interred, some ‘black power’ of his own within the precincts of Aso Rock. Mind you, one has no confirmation for these rumour, but one has reasons to suggest that the combined force of these dark powers would render any occupant of Aso Rock confused, bereft of the true spirit of God. One really cannot find any other reason why honour, dignity and moral leadership have seem to desert our leaders while they are ensconced in that hallowed abode. Babangida, who laid the now suspect foundation of Aso Rock, would not leave office. He almost brought Nigeria to her knees in

1993 and practically had to run away under a gale of global opprobrium. Abacha, who snatched power from Shonekan, was a more pathetic figure, preferring tragic end game. His remains were hurriedly evacuated in a wooden plank from Aso Rock. Obasanjo, after two terms, tried to suborn the legislature and damage the constitution in order to continue in power by hook or crook. We thought we had been through the worst; we thought that those men were perfidious just because they were mere soldiers without

this strategic information about the start date of such an important operation? And what makes this (election) date the most appropriate for the military to begin its operation? Fourth, Professor Jega quoted the letter from service chiefs as suggesting that the six weeks extension was only a “first instance” request, implying that a further extension may be requested. Does this mean that the elections may be cancelled since the military does not want to be “distracted” by any elections? And how is this not a coup against democracy? For my fellow democrats, especially those who applaud the extension, I have a few questions as well. First, if you look down into your democratic heart, reflect dispassionately on what is going on, and you eschew your candidate preferences or party leaning, can you honestly say that you are in tune with what just happened to the polity? Second, are you able to separate your hatred for a person from your principled stand on democratic values? Third, in a different setting, where the dramatis personae are different, can you honestly and conscientiously assent to the impunity that has characterised this regime in the last four years? I ask these questions from a conscience that is absolutely clear. In 2009 I wrote several columns objecting to the North’s insistence on having one of its own complete the term of Yar’Adua. I vigorously applauded the new “transformation agenda” of Jonathan in 2011. What changed for me was my inability to defend a President that has all but destroyed the very foundation upon which he was elected to power. Whether the President was ill-advised does not really matter. The buck stops at his desk. First, the suspension of Salami and Sanusi was an abuse of power. Second, the intervention in the affairs of the Nigeria Governors Forum was the height of fascism. Third, the triumph of corruption in the war against it is a national disgrace. Fourth, the loss of territory and girlcitizens is a national humiliation. Assume the President is given the benefit of the doubt that the last is too complicated due to international terrorism run amok. I hold him fully responsible for the first three. What prevented his party from presenting a different candidate from the Southsouth? •For comments, send SMS to 08111813080 much learning and culture. We thought they behaved the way they did because they were philistine in nature with no understanding about the finer ideals of life, governance and nationhood. But we may be mistaken; we fear we are back to that ugly crossroads once again. Jonathan’s road to Golgotha For some of us who had the misfortune of reporting and writing about the stupid behaviours of our past presidents, we cannot help but feel a certain sense of déjà vu in President Jonathan’s current contrivance to hang on to power at all cost. We can smell the signs from miles away. A last minute postponement of elections which had been scheduled for nearly four years is reminiscent of the antics of Gen. Babangida in his maradonic days. We see Abacha and Obasanjo come alive once again when we see soldiers and amoured tanks raised at every turn to intimidate the citizenry. Surely Jonathan saw defeat stare him in the face; he saw an overwhelming Buhari momentum; he saw that Nigerians are sick of his failed presidency and that they were poised to make that change through the ballot. What Jonathan has done by that singular stroke of subterfuge, by that sleight of hand is to try to postpone Nigeria.

•Continued

on page 57

Kayode Fayemi @50: welcome to the golden age

HIS is ushering John Kayode Fayemi to the golden age as he turned 50 last week. An intellectual and gentleman of immense culture and breeding, he tried to finesse Nigeria’s politics but whoever gives pearls to swines? As stated on this forum in the run up to the Ekiti election, to compare Fayemi with Fayose is to compare light with darkness. That Mr. Ayo Fayose, the ‘alleged’ governor of Ekiti State, could as much as stand up for

an election in today’s Nigeria is a searing affront to the civilised world. And that he was declared winner would unravel someday as a cold-blooded betrayal of democracy if not a cardinal sin that both heaven and earth would continue to reject until the very plot and plotters have been exposed and shamed. Well, we urge you JK, to continue to hold out in quiet dignity; welcome to the age of defiant grey hairs and muted strengths. •For comments, send SMS to 08111526725

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